by Maren Lee
“Do you hear that noise? The thumping? Sounds like thumping in water?”
Lane nodded. “That's the heartbeat. You can hear it.” Jake kissed her forehead.
She smiled sweetly at him. It was feeling real. There was a sweet little gummy bear with a heartbeat inside of her. And Jake was the daddy. Everything was different. She couldn't stop the changes in her life right now. And even if she could, she didn't think she wanted to.
How on earth do you love something that you haven’t even met yet?
“Come on, Red. Let's get you dressed and then get you and my baby fed. I'll tuck you in extra special for a nap, if you're good.” He winked. Swoon.
“Mmmm. I gotta work this afternoon, so no nap for me. But I’ll take lunch. Baby wants hot wings.” Lane licked her lips at the thought.
“What baby wants, baby gets.” Jake handed her the pile of clothes from the exam room. “Come on beautiful.”
Lane hopped up off of the table, her gown open in the back.
Jake wolf whistled. “Wouldya look at that?” he said in his sexy, only-for-Lane voice.
She knew exactly what he was looking at. She shook her ass at him as she walked by.
“That's one.” Jake rubbed his hands together, threatening to spank her.
“Promise?” Lane turned and blew a kiss his direction.
“Of course. I never break a promise, Red.”
God, his voice made her ache between her thighs. Maybe they could have lunch at home.
Chapter 12
After lunch (at the Cadillac Ranch Club and not at home, unfortunately), Jake reluctantly dropped Lane off at work. In addition to the hard work she was putting in on the Walters case that was in the fast lane to nowhere, she had a shit ton of her regular day-to-day defense work. More-often-than-not she was working on felony drug possession cases, DUIs, assault and battery, and a smorgasbord of property crimes.
Jake really didn’t understand how she did it, but he wasn’t going to argue with her about it again. The woman’s enthusiasm for the United States Constitution and the Sixth Amendment baffled him. He’d learned more about the “landmark Supreme Court case” (her words; Jake learned to not roll his eyes) Gideon v. Wainwright than he ever needed to know. Jake supposed he would be enthusiastic about a Supreme Court case that essentially guaranteed him a job too. But he’d never say that out loud to Lane. She’d skin you, man.
Jake pulled up in front of the Sheriff’s office in his personal truck and civilian clothes. Justin was waiting for him in uniform and hopped in.
“How’d the appointment go?” Justin asked as he buckled himself in.
“Awesome,” Jake grinned at his friend and then pulled out of the station’s parking lot. “It was awesome. You didn’t tell me Dr. Olsen was a man, though!”
Justin laughed. “How long have you lived here? He’s the only lady-parts doc in town.”
“I suppose you would need a lady-parts doctor more than I would. You get sand in your vagina way more often than you really should.” Jake snorted. Justin slugged him in the quadricep. Ouch.
“You’re such a fucking asshole, Jake,” Justin said with a smile. “How far along did they estimate you?”
“9-10 weeks? I was worried at first. Your wedding was what, 8 weeks ago? But then they explained to me that the first two weeks of pregnancy are basically before you get pregnant. What the fuck, man? Why is this so confusing?”
“Yeah. We’re at 14 now. I do not profess to be an expert on this procreation shit. The stuff happening to my wife’s body...it’s miraculous and she is beautiful and barely even showing... but it is weird. It’s like there’s an alien in there.”
Jake laughed. They parked across the street from City Hall to remain as inconspicuous as possible. Justin unbuckled and went to open his door.
“Hold on, bro. Should we try to go in? Or should we just sit here and watch for a bit?” Jake asked.
“Let’s make some waves, brotha’. Walk in the front door and see what happens!”
Jake could see the merit in that option. But he was worried about coming off as too suspect. Right as he was about to open his door, Jake saw Officer Ryan Blakesly getting out of his squad car out of the corner of his eye. Officer Blakesly was one of the city cops he and his crew had always gotten along with. If they could talk to anyone, it would be him. Jake unbuckled and opened his door, “Hunt, let’s grab Ryan,” he nodded toward him. Jake and Justin climbed out of the truck.
“Yo, Blakesly,” Justin shouted. On occasion Ryan would join in on poker night or meet them at the bar for drinks and pussy trolling. He was in his late thirties, maybe early forties. Divorced, so he wasn’t exactly looking for a new ball and chain. He’d been good company up until a few months ago. Since neither Jake nor Justin had been in the market recently, it wasn’t surprising that they hadn’t seen Ryan socially. Lately, though, he’d been completely M.I.A. He hadn’t stopped in at the Sheriff’s office for months, hadn’t flagged the guys down out on patrol. Nothing. It was not Ryan’s normal behavior. Something was up.
Jake and Justin slowed their walk as they approached him. “Hey, guys,” Ryan’s voice cracked. There was something uneasy about him as he walked over and to meet them. “Poker night anytime soon?” He looked at the ground and kicked his feet around in the dust. Typical nervous behavior. What the fuck is going on, Ryan?
“You missed it last night. Wednesday, the week after Thanksgiving is our next one. You in?” Jake asked.
“Yeah. Yeah. I’ll be there. Sorry I missed last night. Been busy.” He continued to look away from them as he spoke, “I’ve got to get in there. See you guys around.” Ryan turned to walk away.
Fuck this. He was acting weird and the small talk hadn’t gotten them anywhere. Time to grab the bull by the horns. “Ryan, be real with us, what the fuck is going on with the City? You guys haven’t been around for a long time. We used to have a great co-op, but now you guys aren’t allowed to back us up? We can’t back you up? What happened to change it? I know Sheriff Ramey has no idea why. None of the sergeants know. So what the fuck gives?” Jake folded his arms waiting for a response. Justin followed suit.
Ryan shook his head a few times before he turned around slowly to face them and began to laugh. He was extremely jovial. It was the wrong response to the question asked. Completely fake. We’re being watched. Ryan made eye contact with Jake, then looked to Justin. His facial expression was desperate; like he had a secret. It did not match his tone at all. He looked to the ground, then back to Jake, he bent down to tie his boot. Jake watched his actions as he moved his hands to his laces, laces that were not in need of tying. The fuck? Ryan start quietly talking, his face tipped to the ground. “Listen. I’m not 100% sure what is happening with the City, but I think Thorngren may have been close to uncovering it before his murder. I have some info to pass along but now is neither the time nor the place. There are cameras everywhere. The line of sight stops at the Beehive Salon, if you're going to watch, do it from there. Our patrol cars are wired. It’s not that we don’t want to talk. We can't.” Ryan stood back up and smiled widely and then smacked Justin in the arm, “Great to see you guys! I’ll see you for poker night after Thanksgiving! We’ll catch up then?”
“Sounds good, buddy,” Jake gave Ryan a friendly handshake and then he quickly turned and walked toward City Hall.
“Well, then.” Justin said.
“Yeah,” Jake was kind of flabbergasted by what just went down. The two sauntered slowly back to Jake’s truck.
“Back to the office?”
“Yeah...”
“Coffee first?”
“Definitely gonna need it now.” What the fuck just happened?
They got in the truck and pulled away.
When they were a safe distance away from City Hall, Justin asked, “Are you thinking what I’m thinking, Jake?”
“We need to get Brenden involved.”
“Bingo.”
“Let’s do it.”
&n
bsp; ➰
Lane rubbed her eyes and stared at her computer screen filled with notes for the DUI trial she had scheduled tomorrow. It wasn’t her favorite type of case or easily winnable, but she thought she had some good arguments. The defendant refused to take the plea bargain offered by the prosecution no matter how much she told him it was a good offer, so it was her job to give it her best shot. Lane would be ready. Exhausted and nauseous. But ready.
It was getting late and Lane was the only one left at the office. She grabbed her phone to call Jake, since he’d dropped her off earlier after their appointment, but she didn’t get the chance to dial before she heard the front door open and creak shut. Didn’t Anne lock it on her way out? She held her phone in her hand and walked toward the reception area where she heard a rustling of papers.
Holy shit.
A masked man stood in by Anne’s desk, rifling through the files stacked on top. Lane ducked back in the doorway as quietly as possible and dialed 911.
“911 what’s your emergency?”
“There’s a masked man in my office. Public defender’s office. 311 Main Street,” she whispered as quietly as she possibly could, her voice shaking.
“Stay on the line, I’m sending officers your way.”
The rustling of papers stopped. Oh god. He’s coming this way.
“I don’t know what you think you’re doing, Ms. Bennett. But Walters killed a man. You make sure he ends up in prison, or you’re next. Understand, bitch?”
He knows I’m here. Lane started shaking. Please leave, please leave, please leave. She slowly slid her back down the wall to a crouching position. Lane wished she had a gun in her office. Not that she would have known how to shoot one. But she wished she had something other than her phone, heavy law books, and a stiletto heel.
“I’m confident you’ll do the right thing,” he added, “I’d hate to have to slit that pretty little throat of yours.” The voice was slightly high pitched. If she’d heard it in another context, she wouldn’t have been intimidated, but the fact that he was masked and threatening her in her office in such a personal manner sent chills down her spine. Please leave, please leave, please leave.
As if he were listening to the voices in her head, the papers shuffled quickly -- like he’d grabbed a file off of Anne’s desk -- and then the front door opened and slammed as it closed. Lane let out a shaky breath and slowly made her way to her desk on her hands and knees and then crawled underneath it. Tears streamed down her cheeks, but the wetness was not accompanied by any noise.
She’d never felt fear like this before in her life. She certainly didn’t want to lose her life, but now she was worried for her baby. Her need to protect the little being growing inside of her was completely unexpected. Who knew? Hearing that little heartbeat was changing everything for her.
Not five minutes later she heard the front door open again. Her body jolted upright and she tensed as she hit her head on the drawer under her desk. Ow, Fuck. I should have locked the door.
“Lane?! Baby?!” heavy footsteps ran through the office.
Jake! It was Jake! She felt relief run through her body as her heart rate slowed and tension melted from her body.
“Honey, where are you?” Jakes voice boomed. He was in cop mode.
“Here. I’m in here,” she answered as she crawled out from under the desk. She heard other voices in the foyer. Jake must have brought a crew with him. He ran to her and scooped her up in his arms.
“Holy shit, baby. I heard the call on the radio and my heart went to my throat. Oh my god. I’ve never been so worried in my life.” He pulled her tight to him and kissed her forehead as he placed his hand on her tummy.
Lane burrowed into his neck and sobbed.
“Shhhhhh. Lane, calm down, it’s alright.” He whispered softly into her ear. “You need to calm down. For the baby, honey. Deep breaths. You’re okay. I’m here. I’m not letting anything happen to you.” She worked through her breathing exercises with Jake. Magically, as she had during all of her anxiety filled moments with Jake by her side, she felt better.
“Thank you.” She exhaled. “I have no idea who it was. He was wearing a mask. High pitched voice. He threatened me because of the Walters case. Said if Walters doesn’t end up in prison, I’ll end up dead like Thorngren. He said he’d slit my throat if I didn’t. And then he left. I think he was gone for five minutes before you got here.” She felt tears welling up again as she looked into his eyes. No more crying, stay calm.
“Fuck. This is the last straw. I’ll find this motherfucker, baby. Nobody will hurt you, ever. I’ll get to the bottom of this and handle it.”
“So will I.” Lane’s response was confident. Like there was no doubt in her mind that she was going to win. Jake wasn’t having it.
“No. You’re going to stay away from this and stay safe. You can’t knowingly put yourself in danger. It’s not just about you anymore, honey.”
“I know it’s not just about me anymore, but I have a responsibility, Jake! I have to figure this out for my client. His life's in danger too! He did NOT kill Thorngren.” Lane yelled. She was 100% convinced of his innocence at this point, even without actual evidence. Her gut reactions were usually right, but the break-in solidified her belief.
Instead of yelling back, Jake lowered his voice again to a whisper. “You have a responsibility to our baby now and I will not have you acting foolish and getting yourself hurt or even killed! I watched Justin go through this shit with Chloe, it nearly broke him. I can’t do that, Lane. I won’t. Don’t be reckless.”
“You don’t get to boss me around when it comes to my job and my life, Jake.” Lane glared at him, her mouth tight.
“Please, baby. Do not break me.” He stared at her for more than a beat. Lane didn’t blink. “We’ll talk about this later. You need to give a statement.” He released her, as if she had become too hot for him to touch and then pulled her out into the reception area. Yeah, they would talk about this later. But Lane was too tired and emotionally drained to fight with Jake now.
➰
Jake sat in the back row of the courtroom, watching Lane as she interrogated Wesson on the stand. His woman was hot as fire and stubborn as hell. Before Lane came to town, he’d never seen a public defense attorney go to so much effort to help out a client on a DUI. A seriously unforgivable offense. But his woman went all out no matter what. He’d seen her crucify every single one of his coworkers at one point or another. She didn’t always win, but she always seemed to draw blood. So he wasn’t surprised she was ripping Wess a new one. He smiled as she raised her voice to make her point.
“Deputy, do items such as mouthwash or cough syrup have alcohol in them?” Lane tilted her head as she looked toward Wesson. Jake knew exactly what was coming. Wesson clearly did not. He was a great guy. An awesome cop. But his brain would shut down on the witness stand. Jake had tried to coach him, but the guy had serious courtroom anxiety.
Stop holding your breath, Wess.
Jake suddenly realized he was rooting for his friend over his woman. He wasn’t sure if that was permitted in relationship-land, but Jake was pretty confident Lane could handle shit on her own. He could tell she was about to attack him like a grizzly in the woods. If Wesson tried to play dead, it would only be good practice for when she actually killed him.
“I suppose they could.” Wesson spoke through gritted teeth.
“Okay, and have these items ever registered on a breathalyzer before?” Lane tilted her head to the left now. Fuck, she’s a cute little barracuda.
“I've never drank enough mouthwash to fail a breathalyzer, so I don't know.”
Wrong answer, man. Seed planted in the jury’s mind. Jake shook his head.
Lane glared at Wesson before she continued her cross examination. “Are you aware my client wears corrective lenses?”
“Yes.” Wesson was irritated. The defendant was wearing glasses.
“Were you aware that my client has an astigmatism which
causes involuntary twitching of the eye?”
“I…was not aware of that.” His face went beet red.
“Did my client inform you that he'd taken cough medicine just before he'd gotten in the car that day?” Lane stayed cool, as if she wasn’t about to go in for the kill. Jake had seen her do this enough. He used to hate her for it. Now he thought it was hot. The fact that she gave him all the control in the bedroom just made her authoritative courtroom style even hotter.
This woman lets you control her. Fucking hot. Hey, man. Stop thinking about that. Boners are frowned upon in a court of law.
Wesson answered, “He'd mentioned something about some kind of medication. I don't remember exactly what it was.”