by Tara Brown
I stared at it and knew, I had to meet her. Fuck Mike and his weird obsession with this girl. If he knew her, he wouldn’t be interested. She was so much more than a pretty face and a hot body. She was a girl he’d have to work for. And weirdly enough, she was the one working to get to know me.
I took the ten-thousand-dollar win and the cool girl wanting to have drinks with me as a serious sign of just how amazing the night would be.
Nothing was going to ruin it.
Not even Mike.
Chapter Eight
Shark-infested waters
The Shark Club was one of Matt and Mike’s favourites. Not one of mine. I’d been there twice and never liked how loud it was. Or the fact it came across as a meat market instead of a meet market.
Scantily clad, barely legal girls slung booze, showing skin for tips, almost akin to stripping. Pigs like Mike devoured them whole, not ever caring what kind of person they were. It had a real “anything for a buck” feel to it.
I suspected Ashley also came out once in a while with Mike to wet his whistle discreetly.
Phil never came. He never went out. He was in bed as early as possible every night to hang with his daughters during the day. Our days off were all right. Usually running four on and four off, unless we were on a hard case. Then we banked overtime like mad people for vacations we would never take.
The loud music, stench of improperly washed floors, and sticky bar tables all went by the wayside the moment she walked in. She wore her dark skinny jeans and a pale-blue sweater, skin-tight and again V-necked. Her hair was in a messy bun, something I wanted to undo. But her smile was the beacon of light from a mile away.
“Simon!” she gushed as she got closer, hugging me. I’d stood for her to sit but was unprepared for the embrace. I awkwardly one-arm hugged her, patting her back like my mom did to me. She laughed at my wooden stance, like she knew I was an idiot for not embracing her and maybe wondered if I was taking notice of the vanilla scent she always seemed to have. She pulled back, brushing a light kiss on my cheek and whispering, “I’m glad you asked me for drinks.” Her eyes sparkled in the bar lights.
“I’m glad you accepted,” I whispered back, not sure where my voice had gone.
I didn’t glance at Matt or Mike. I ignored them completely.
She slid into the booth seat across from my chair and settled in like before, getting comfy and pulling up her sleeves. “Did you eat already?”
“No,” I lied. I’d eaten, but I could eat again.
“I’m starving. I had a tiny lunch. We did sushi and there was a hair.” She waved her arms in front of her face, disgusted. “Anyway, I couldn’t finish.”
I had so many things to say to that but the idea of someone’s hair in my food would ruin the meal I was about to eat, so I left it there.
“Did you hear, Carter’s still missing?”
“I did,” I answered honestly. It was in the news by now so it was no longer a secret. He was considered missing and possibly a victim of foul play, and of course, Dubhe was at the top of the suspect list. And that was why we were all over him.
A telling smile swept across her face. “Do you ever open up?” She leaned across the wooden table. “Because I want in, Simon.” She stared me down, confessing something that made me panic and become excited, “I like you. I like that your first instinct was to write me an email, not peek in my windows, but protect me. I like that you have all your cards so close I don’t even know you’re holding them. It feels like a challenge sort of.”
“I don’t really open up,” I answered her. “There’s nothing happening inside.” I was so awkward. Why, God, why was I so awkward?
“You don’t think?”
“I do, but it’s not what you think.”
“Is it circus music up there while your ride a unicycle?” She laughed and started humming the typical circus song.
“Is that a Family Guy reference?” I almost gasped.
“Peter.” She chuckled as a server came over to us. “We’re both going to have a Guinness.” She winked at the girl.
I almost cried inside. “I don’t really drink beer.”
“I know. It’s my guess you might add pineapple juice and an umbrella to your drinks, but we’re going to teach you to drink like a man.”
“You watch Family Guy?” I circled back, not wanting to discuss the fact my favourite drink was Malibu, pineapple juice, and Sprite.
“Love it. Have you seen Letterkenny?”
“No.” The name was familiar.
“We’re adding that to our list of things we must do.” She said “we” and I inhaled sharply.
I took two breaths before I spoke, “I wouldn’t go adding Netflix and chill to our goals just yet. You haven’t seen me gag on the warm beer.”
“Warm?” She wrinkled her nose. “Who drinks warm beer?”
“Isn’t Guinness served warm?”
“Hell no.” She shook her head. “No. It’s a stout. You always drink it cold, ice cold. I had it served to me in Ireland, at Guinness, and I will say the brewmaster himself served it to me ice cold.” She glanced at my menu. “Can I order for you again?”
“No.” I furrowed my brow. “Let me order for you.”
Her face lit up. “Okay.” She pushed the menus at me. I glanced down, recalling the burger I had here last time. It was the one Mike was currently eating at the bar.
I ignored them but I did see the food deliver.
“So tell me something else about you. Did you go to college? How did you get hired by Langley?”
“I went to the University of Toronto and I have a degree in electrical engineering.”
“Oh wow.” She was shocked.
“Yeah. I joined the RCMP the last year of college. I wanted to work for CSIS maybe, do some foreign postings. But I knew the RCMP would give me better odds at being hired by CSIS.”
“What’s CSIS?” Our beers arrived and the server interrupted us.
“Are you interested in the special?” She tilted her head and batted her lashes at me.
“No. We’ll both have a shark burger with poutine instead of just fries.” I handed her the menus.
“Sounds yummy.” She blinked and smiled sweetly. “And can I get you anything else?”
“We’re good.” Callie smiled not so sweetly at her.
“Great.” The server lost her sweetness and nodded. “I’ll put that in right away.” She spun on her heel and left.
“CSIS is Canada’s intelligence agency,” I continued where we left off. “So I got into the RCMP the summer I graduated from university. I went to Depot in September.”
“You’re a Mountie?” She gasped. “I thought you were like a city cop.”
“No.” I bit my lip. “Mountie.”
Her eyes widened. “Wow. I’ve never met a Mountie before.” She lifted her beer. “Cheers.”
“Cheers.” I grabbed the ice-cold pint and clanked it against hers. I prepared to gag and cry on the inside like a winner, but the taste was amazing. It was sparkling and refreshing. I took a bigger gulp and put it down, wiping my lip. “That’s delicious.”
“I know, right?” She sipped hers. “I was sure I’d hate it when I tasted it in Ireland, but now it’s my fave. So how long have you been a Mountie?”
“Eleven years.”
“You’re thirty-four?” She sounded unsure about that.
“No. I turn thirty-three in November.”
“A Scorpio.” She waggled her eyebrows.
“Sag.” I corrected her.
“Oh, end of November. Hmm.” She sipped the beer. “You’re four years older than I am.” She tapped a red fingernail against the glass. “I thought we were the same age for sure, or you were a bit younger. You have a baby face.”
“I know. I still get ID’d for lottery tickets.” I remembered my awesome win. “Hey, speaking of lottery, I won ten grand today.”
“What!” She sat up. “Are you kidding?”
“No. It wa
s nuts. I was wasting time, waiting for someone at the casino for work, and I did a couple of spins on a slot machine and won.”
“That’s fucked!” She lifted her beer. “You’re buying dinner.”
“I know.” I clanked my glass against hers again. “I was going to say something about that. I don’t want you to buy me meals. I know you’re a feminist and I am too, but I like to buy meals and open doors and take your coat,” I muttered, hoping I didn’t sound too archaic or I had gone too far.
“Okay.” She nodded along. “And I sleep on the right side of the bed, like when you’re standing at the foot staring down on the bed.”
“Okay.” I blushed and glanced down.
“I like you, Simon.” She laughed at me.
“I like you too,” I forced myself to say, hating that Mike and Matt were across the bar from me, watching me be flustered and embarrassed.
“So if we kissed sometime or whatever, that would be cool?” she asked.
“Uh yeah. More than cool.” I was dying inside. My eyes darted to Matt’s, basically asking for help.
“I’m glad.” She sighed. “You just seem like the type of guy who would wait for permission before you do anything, and I just want you to know, you have it.”
“I have to pee.” I said the last thing I should have, but sweat had started to form on my neck.
“Okay.” She laughed again. “Maybe the food will be here when you get back.”
“Okay.” I stood up and walked to the bathroom. I knew Matt was following me. He was casual whereas I was walking with the giant carrot I had shoved up my ass.
“Bro!” He slapped me on the shoulder as the door closed. “She is so into you.”
“Oh, I know.” I took a deep breath. “She just told me I have permission to do anything.” I could barely breathe.
“Oh shit, she’s forward.” Matt nodded. “Not something I was prepared for, but you need to ride the wave.”
“She’s more than forward.” I exhaled deeply. “She talks about feelings. We’ve known each other for a week and she’s already like, ‘Hey, I like you.’ Is it hot in here?” I tugged at my shirt.
“No. Dude, calm. You’re panicking. A pretty girl just gave you the keys to the gate. You’re okay. This is okay.” He rubbed my shoulders.
The door opened and another guy walked in, giving us a weird look and skirting around us to not get too close.
“She’s super into you. The body language is off the charts. Mike is dying. I think he’s kinda drunk. And I know I’m loving it!” he gushed.
“Can you guys just go? I can’t do this with you watching.”
The guy at the urinal gave us another look.
“He’s panicking about a hot chick,” Matt explained.
The guy’s eyebrows rose. “Don’t panic, bro. Tap that.” He gave me an approving nod.
“This isn’t making it better.” I shrugged Matt off, embarrassed and ready to just call it a night.
“You’re being a little bitch. Now go out there and seal it and tell yourself that you are going where Mike will never go, because that girl is into you!” He slapped me on the butt, getting us both another look from urinal guy.
“Right.” I tugged at my collar again. “It’s hot.”
“It’s not hot. You just need to get naked. Don’t eat whatever big meal you’re planning. Skip it and go home. If she gets a food baby going, she won’t be able to work it. She’ll wanna nap and cuddle. Not the same as sex.”
“Shut up.” I shoved him off from pawing me again. “I gotta go back out.”
As we rounded the corner I almost gagged again. Mike was leaning over the table, talking to Callie.
Her eyes darted my way and they didn’t look like I still had the keys to the gate. She was visibly pissed.
“Oh fuck,” Matt muttered.
“Yup,” I muttered back and walked over, ready to kill Matt and Mike for this.
“So”—Callie stood up, glaring at the three of us—“this moron tells me you were all taking pictures of me naked and using them for the spank bank?”
My stomach lurched into my throat.
“And you basically beat him to the punch on meeting me?”
“What?” I had nothing. I wanted to throw up and then punch the shit out of Mike.
“Nice meeting you, Simon. Lose my number.” She grabbed her purse and stormed from the bar.
We watched her go, in silence.
“Run after her, you idiot!” Matt shoved me.
My feet burst to life as I sprinted after her. She was across West Georgia and into the EasyPark. I rushed through the traffic, leaping out of the way of a honking car and into the parking lot after her. “Callie, wait!” I shouted.
She spun on her heel, giving me an icy stare like I was about to get it.
“Here.” I pulled my phone from my pocket and passed it to her. “Seven, five, three, nine.”
She snatched the phone and punched in the code.
“Go to the chat called Asshat—that’s Mike, the drunk moron you just met.” I swallowed hard. “See how the conversation has new messages but hasn’t been opened. He’s been texting me for over a week, since he sent that picture, and I haven’t opened the chat or messaged him back. I see his messages on my closed screen because I can’t open it. I don’t want to. It makes me so angry I could kill him, and I have to work with him. I never looked at the picture he took. I never opened it. He flashed it on his phone, I saw it then for a brief moment. It made me angry. It’s why I emailed you. I wanted to protect you from him.” I left out the peeing or me being the one spying on her. I would have to tell her that later on, if she ever forgave me.
“This changes nothing. You’re a dick—oh my God!” She lifted a hand to her mouth. Her eyes were wide. “Oh my God, those curtains! They’re completely see-through!” She stared at the phone, bug-eyed. It lasted a second before she tilted her head, like she was inspecting. “At least I look good.” She scrolled through my phone more, blushing and passing it back.
“I’m so sorry. I couldn’t tell you there was a team of guys. There was a stakeout. I shouldn’t be telling you this right now. But I don’t want you to hate me.”
It took several moments of what appeared to be her wrestling with herself or figuring out what I had said before she took a deep breath and nodded. “I think I get it.” Her voice sounded like it might crack, but it didn’t. “You work with that perverted Neanderthal. What he did bothered you. You didn’t want him to continue doing what he did, so you wrote me the email to keep me safe.”
“Something like that.” I was still lying to her, and I hated it, so I owned up a little more. “And the next night, after that photo was taken, I saw you for myself. I was in your yard, cutting through to get to Carter’s in the middle of the night, when you switched on the bathroom light and came into the bathroom, naked again. No one saw but me. But I had to stop this, so I sent the email. I didn’t want pigs like Mike to see you.” I closed my eyes and waited for the slap, or the kick in the balls.
“Because you liked me?” she asked.
“No.” I opened my eyes. “I didn’t know you. But I thought you were beautiful,” I offered weakly. “And I would have done that for any girl. I did it because it’s wrong to spy on people.” I was digging another hole for myself, considering what I did for work.
“I liked you the moment I met you, Simon. Watching you flounder and try to defend yourself, after I got over my initial anger, was everything. You weren’t what I expected to find when I saw the email.” She stepped closer.
I took a cue from her and stepped closer too, taking her hand in mine. “I’m sorry. I should have told you, I just didn’t know how.”
“I get it. I don’t think I could have told you that my entire work unit saw you naked.” She stared up into my eyes. “I’m so embarrassed.”
“Don't be. We’re the ones who should be embarrassed.” I lifted a hand and brushed her hair from her face, sliding my hand up into
it and leaning forward, placing a soft kiss on her glossy lips.
She tasted as good as she smelled, better even.
Chapter Nine
Not God, Simon.
The drive to my place was unbearable. I wanted to touch her, but we’d gone from an intense parking lot kiss to awkward silence. Even she was quiet, which was alarming. She never shut up.
Not that I wanted her to.
Not now that she was quiet and I was lost in the silence.
I parked the car and took a deep breath. “This is it.”
“I know.” She smiled, biting her lip.
“Right.” I nodded and stared too long and too hard before I climbed out and got her door for her. She stepped out, coming close. Her chest brushed against mine as she lifted her face and kissed me again, just whispering the kiss to me.
My hands ached to touch, grab, and hold her to me. But I didn’t do PDA. I couldn’t even have living room sex; it was weird. I liked a bed.
I closed the door and slipped my hand into hers, leading her to my front door.
In the house, I locked the door and left the lights off so we were facing each other, basking in the awkwardness of first time sex and everything.
I felt like a kid as I led her to my room. I wished I’d listened to Matt and changed my sheets and cleaned my house, but there was no way I imagined the night would turn out this way.
When we got into my room, I held my breath as she opened the blinds, letting the moonlight from the rare but beautiful clear sky in the window. She turned her back on it, creating a silhouette, and began undressing in silence.
Every part of me was covered in pins and needles but I didn’t dare move. She removed her clothes slowly, taking them off neatly and placing them on the chair in the corner. When she was naked, swimming in moonlight, she folded her arms, not making a move towards me. “Your turn.”
I pulled off my glasses, tee shirt, jeans, and socks, leaving my underwear for last. Since she was naked, all the way naked, I took a breath and dragged my boxers off, kicking it all to the side of the room but not breaking eye contact with her.