by B. D. Gates
The next morning, Penny dropped the beautiful stranger off in Johnson's parking lot. As she turned out onto the highway, she was thinking that she should have at least gotten her name, she'd obviously saved the best for last, but she knew she wouldn't be forgetting her any time soon.
"Outstanding," she declared out loud.
59
Tess and Hatch met with Captain Huff after breakfast that next morning. Cap was none too happy with the DEA being brought in by one of his officers without informing him first, but Hatch smoothed it over, telling Cap that the excellent police work of the officers had led them to Tenley, that the information had only been shared with them in the past twelve hours, and that the DEA's decisions were made on the fly. She then provided him with all the necessary identifications, promising that they would keep him informed of their progress as the investigation continued.
The two women were quietly laughing as they exited the stairwell to the first floor hallway outside the department, Hatch having a bit of fun at the captain's righteous indignation over something going on in his department he knew nothing about.
"So, I guess you're not one for authority figures, are you?"
"Is it that obvious?"
Tess chuckled, declaring "You'd love Bishop."
"Speaking of, I'd really like to meet her."
There was a slight pause, then Tess replied. "Sure, I can arrange that."
"I want to talk to her about the case, Tess. She put the file together, I'd like to know what she was thinking during her investigation."
"Yes, of course. I'll give her a call and see how her day is going, maybe she can meet us for lunch."
George buzzed them through and they entered the bullpen. They were reviewing the surveillance log photos when Penny entered, preoccupied with the small electronic device in her hand as she made her way to her desk.
"Good morning, Penny. Do you have a minute?"
"Not now, Tess, I'm trying to sync this..."
"Penny, I need to introduce..."
"Tess, I really can't right now," she replied a bit brusquely, looking up from the gadget. She froze in place, her eyes opening wide as she took in Hatch standing next to Tess. "Omigod, it's you," she said in a low voice.
Tess did not understand Penny's comment, but Hatch had recognized her the second she walked into the bullpen.
Hatch was smiling at Penny but with a bit of a smirk at the edge of it. "Hello again."
"Yeah..." Penny, staring at Hatch, was having trouble finding her words.
"Have you two already met?" Tess, confused, was looking back and forth between the two women, but neither answered, so she continued on with the introductions. "Penny, this is Joelene Hatcher, DEA, she's here to follow up on the surveillance you and Bishop did on Charlie's place. Hatch, this is Penny Harris, she took the photos."
"Uh...hello..." Penny's eyes had not left Hatch's face.
Tess looked at Penny, seriously wondering if she was having a stroke of some sort.
Hatch, still smiling, walked over to Penny and extended her hand. "Hi, Penny Harris. Call me Hatch. You take great photos."
Penny nodded as she reached to take Hatch's hand in hers, her face taking on the faintest blush as her hand slipped into Hatch's, swallowing hard as she felt the soft strength in Hatch's grip, as she remembered what it was like to be under Hatch's hands and mouth.
It was as if Hatch knew what she was doing to her, that she was deliberately flirting with her.
Hatch smiled down at Penny, the half-smirk telling her that, yes, she knew exactly what she was doing.
Penny blinked and withdrew her hand from Hatch's, realizing that she was probably just holding it now, and shook her head in an effort to clear the haze Hatch had induced.
Tess watched their meeting, not sure about anything that was happening in front of her, but also knowing that she was seeing Penny struck nearly mute, probably for the first time in a very long time.
If ever.
Penny Harris was a force of nature in her own right, and Tess took a certain perverse pleasure in seeing her meet what was likely the equivalent of her own form of kryptonite.
60
Hatch grinned to herself, thought it amusing, and sweet, how Penny had seemed rattled and tongue-tied when they'd come face-to-face that morning.
Penny volunteered to pick up lunch and Hatch invited herself along for the ride, telling Tess that the DEA should pay for it. She wanted the opportunity to see the town now that it was light out.
At least, that's what she said.
Hatch turned in her seat and gazed at Penny, that half-cocked, rather smug smile on her face. Penny, well-aware of Hatch's eyes on her, finally looked over and called her out as they sat waiting for the traffic light to change.
"Hatch."
"Ma'am?"
"What are you grinning about?" She had her ideas, of course, that Hatch was thinking wicked thoughts of their night together.
Hatch just grinned all the more, rested her arm across the top of Penny's seat, behind Penny's head. "Serendipity."
"Serendipity."
"You don't believe in it?"
"Luck?"
"Good luck. Or happy accidents."
"Happy accidents."
"Yeah, you know, like us, last night, then meeting again this morning. It makes me happy, anyway."
"Happy."
"To see you again."
Penny looked over at Hatch, not quite knowing what to think about that.
"Hatch, what we had last night..."
"Was the most fun I've had in a long time, Penny Harris."
"What?"
"I'm just happy that we've run into each other again. I hoped we would, but I didn't know how to make that happen, short of eating at Johnson's every night on the chance that you'd come in while I was there, that is."
"Really?" Penny glanced over at Hatch as she put the car in gear and rolled through the intersection.
"Yes."
"Why?"
What Hatch wanted to tell her was that the world had stopped turning, moving, breathing, for that tick of a second when she first looked into Penny's eyes across that diner. That she'd felt a drawing to her that she could not resist.
What she said instead was "You looked like fun."
Penny smirked. Oh, hell no, she didn't just say that. "You're kidding, right?"
"I'm sorry, did I offend you?"
"No, Hatch, you didn't offend me. I suppose it's payback for all the times I've used that very same line myself."
"So, then, you're saying you believe in Karma but not serendipity?"
Well.
Penny steered the car into a parking space in the Pharmacy parking lot and pulled the handbrake, then looked over at Hatch, still wearing that smug-damn grin.
What Penny didn't tell Hatch was that she'd spent the morning thinking of her, that she couldn't shake her memory of the woman who had quickened her breath just walking into that diner, had left her breathless in her bed later that night.
They got out of the car, it really was a bit small for Hatch, and Penny gazed at Hatch's back as she stretched and twisted, marveling at the way she was so perfectly built. Everything was just right, there wasn't an odd proportion anywhere on her. Penny blinked, then tried to shake off the visions of a naked Hatch in her bed, her mouth suddenly dry, her heart beating faster with those thoughts.
She turned and made her way towards the Pharmacy grill entrance, calling back to Hatch. "Are you coming or not?"
Hatch turned, was surprised that Penny was nearly to the building. "Yes, ma'am," she replied as she broke into a quick step.
Penny chuckled. So polite.
On the ride back, Hatch looked about, commenting on the small town's houses and quiet streets, noting the beauty of the town commons, the gazebo at its center. Her attention to the details surprised Penny, Hatch had the kind of vision that was second nature to photographers, or artists, rarely found in people who didn't see life through a viewfinde
r, or at the end of a brush or a piece of charcoal.
"Hatch, you are...just...stunning."
Penny was shaking her head. Words weren't her thing, and for a second she wondered if she'd actually said it aloud or had it just been a thought, unspoken and still safe inside her head.
She glanced over at Hatch, noted the fresh pink coloring on her cheeks, and she took on her own smirk as she put the MGB in gear and punched the gas, maneuvering the small sports car through the tight spaces in the lunch traffic. She'd obviously surprised Hatch, and she wondered if that was something that occurred very often. Or at all.
Hatch found herself blushing a bit, and suddenly shy. She didn't respond to Penny's declaration, she didn't know how, really. So she pulled the box with everyone's lunch closer, wondering if their destiny may only be to die together in a fiery crash after a night of amazing sex, her foot reflexively punching the nonexistent brakes on her side of the vehicle.
61
Tess had texted me that morning and asked that I meet her for lunch at the Tenley PD for a conference with Hatch about the surveillance work I'd done on Charlie's business. I told Dr. Biggs where I was going and that the meeting may take longer than my usual lunch hour time.
"Are you thinking about being a police officer again, Baxter?"
"Oh, no, ma'am, not at all. I'm happy right where I am, thank you very much. I had just...noticed something odd going on here in town and I...reported it. I've been asked to talk with some agents from out-of-town this afternoon, I guess they have some questions."
I think that if I told Biggs the extent I'd "noticed" Charlie's business doings, she would be absolutely certain that I was about to quit her for the Tenley PD.
I was a little early when I arrived at the department. I spent a few minutes waiting for George to finish with whatever urgent business a desk sargeant was required to complete before he'd call Tess and tell her I was there. I circumvented his passive-aggressive behavior and texted Tess, messaging her that I was in the department lobby. Within a minute, the bullpen door opened and she looked out.
"Why are you sitting out here?" she asked.
"Ask him," I jerked my thumb at George. He merely looked up and cocked an eyebrow. We walked on through the door and headed to the back corner to Tess's desk. I reached it first and spun the chair next to it so that I wouldn't have my back to the room.
"I'm over here, Bishop." Tess was standing at the desk next to her old one, gathering up photos and pages, stuffing them into a folder. I gave her a puzzled look. "This is my desk now," she clarified.
I nodded and returned the first chair to its place, then stood leaning against the wall, waiting for Tess to finish. The door to the employees' lounge and locker room opened and Penny came through, talking and smiling, followed by a woman I didn't recognize carrying a cardboard box. Penny crossed the room, then spotted me.
"Hey!" She was still smiling, this time at me.
She seemed in good spirits.
"Hi, Penny," I smiled in turn.
This was the first time we'd seen each other since our break-up and I supposed that we were in what was as good a neutral territory as any. Like I said, our break-up was the easiest I'd ever had, but I was now also standing next to the woman who'd brought that break-up about.
I felt a little weird, to be honest.
Kind of like running into your ex-girlfriend who really, really wanted to get married, but you told her you didn't put any stock in matrimony, so you broke up, and now you're face-to-face with her, your wife at your side.
That kind of weird.
Penny crossed the room, opened the top drawer to Tess's old desk and dropped her keys in it, then pushed it shut. "Hang on to the box, Hatch, we're going across the hall."
Oh, lawd, Penny had taken Tess's desk. I looked over at Tess, who was still fussing with the file.
Hatch looked at me, also smiling, nodded, shifted the box, and put out her hand to introduce herself. "Hi! Bishop?"
I nodded as we shook hands. "Hatch?"
"Yep."
We nodded at each other, then she turned to Tess. "You should have told me she's a maniac behind the wheel."
Tess looked up, her eyebrows raised. "Is she? I had no idea."
I laughed. "Oh, yeah, don't go down a country road with her."
Hatch laughed and nodded. "Thanks for the warning."
I laughed at that.
Penny just rolled her eyes. "C'mon, Hatch," she instructed as she headed to the door opening on to the back hallway.
Tess held the stuffed file up and tapped the bottom on her desk, neatly aligning the contents. I wondered why she was taking so much care to put right a file that we were about to pull apart. Her forehead was slightly puckered and she had a bit of a frown as well.
"What's the matter, Tess?"
She didn't say anything, just shook her head. "Nothing. It's...nothing."
62
"C'mon." Tess had put off the inevitable long enough and headed for the conference room across the hall, Bishop following behind.
"I ordered a burger, onion rings, and a chocolate malt for you, Bishop, hope that's okay."
"Yeah, fine, Tess. Perfect. Thanks."
Over lunch, Hatch quickly grasped the interchangable Bishop/Baxter names, using "Baxter" when addressing her, recognizing that "Bishop" was Tess's to use.
Hatch and Bishop reviewed the file, Bishop showing Hatch the logs, drawing a rough sketch of Charlie's building to show the public and private spaces. Hatch asked questions, the two of them with their heads together as they looked through the file.
Tess never could have imagined that these two women would be sitting in the same room, much less working on a case together. She realized how very much alike they truly were as she watched them quickly exchange information and ideas in a very short time.
How could she not have been drawn to Hatch when she had missed Bishop so fiercely?
She broke away from watching them and found Penny intently gazing at her, giving her a slight nod, a knowing curve to her lips. Tess quickly looked away and went about cleaning up the wrappers and trash from lunch.
Penny joined the discussion when Hatch and Bishop began reviewing the pictures, Hatch supplying names for the faces she'd photographed, giving details of their criminal histories and associations, how far up the supply chain they placed. There was a "bump in the road," a man Hatch didn't recognize in her own files, and she set his photos off to the side for facial recognition and database searching, giving Penny a nodding smile of her good work as thanks.
Penny smiled in turn.
Tess noted that Penny had overcome her initial shyness with Hatch, she now seemed totally at ease with her.
So much for kryptonite.
63
Hatch and Bishop had left the department together a little after two o'clock. Tess was at her desk reviewing the last of her files and making notes. Penny was still trying to sync the gadget she was working on, a miniature camera, on occasion pointing it at Tess as she tried to gain access to the feed. They had the bullpen to themselves.
"So, Tess. What was that all about?"
"What?" Tess looked up, blinking, and she found herself staring at her own image on Penny's monitor.
"You. You and Hatch."
"Hatch."
"Oh, c'mon, Tess, admit it. Obviously, you have a type." She grinned a wicked grin. "Hatch is hot. Like, steaming hot. Like a 'long-slow-night-in-Richmond' hot. There's no way in hell you could have resisted all that butchy goodness. I mean, who could, really?"
Tess just looked at Penny.
"I'm thinking you did, Tess, and she rocked your world. At least, I hope you did, because everyone needs a night like that. It gives you perspective. Reminds you you're human."
This time, it wasn't a mirror that Penny was holding up to her, it was a camera, but the effect was the same.
64
Hatch and I walked out of the back door of Tenley City Hall and my eye caught sight of a beaut
iful Harley parked next to the building.
"Damn, that's purty."
Hatch laughed. "It's mine."
"Oh! Damn!" I walked over to get a better look.
"Do you ride?"
"It's been a long time, and nothing that big," I replied. "I guess it's all good until you lay it down, right?"
Hatch laughed again. "Yeah, righting it would be a bitch. I've been very lucky so far."
"I'd need a winch," I joked.
"Me, too," Hatch agreed. "So, that Penny," she was shaking her head, "she's really something, isn't she?"
"Penny is intense."
"That's a good word." Hatch nodded her agreement.
"Yeah, she's not like most people. She's very passionate, about a lot of things. She's extreme. You have to be able to keep up if you want to run with her."
"What are you saying?"
Baxter looked at Hatch. Just looked. "I guess I'm saying that if you have any ideas about Penny, you better bring your 'A' game. She is three, maybe five steps ahead of everyone else around here and she doesn't care for bullshit. Not only will she see it, she'll call you out on it. And she will be prepared when she does."
I recalled the day Penny had confronted me, telling me she knew I was lying, that I wasn't who I said I was and that she had gone so far as to investigate my claims, exposing my fraud. "If she's in your corner, though, you're golden, she'll back you to the death."
Hatch nodded, her brow furrowed.
"Look, don't get me wrong, she likes her fun, she can be a blast, it's just that she's a...well, a one-of-a-kind experience. She's smart, she's totally honest, and absolutely fearless. She's just...I'm saying...don't make promises you won't keep."
Hatch cocked her head as she looked at me, then nodded. "Duly noted."
"I've got to get back to work, so if I can do anything for you, let me know. Tess and Penny have my number."
"Yeah, and listen, thanks. I appreciate the work you've done, all of it."