Then just like that, the man she’d driven up with came up to her in his too-tight-fitting (for Adrian’s tastes) shirt and pants and protectively covered her shoulders with his jacket. Oh, so now he wanted to cover her up, Adrian inwardly fumed. Why didn’t the jerk do that in the first place instead of letting her walk into a police station all by herself and exposed like that at this hour? But Adrian figured whoever the guy was talking to on his cell phone was obviously more important to him than the woman was. He knew if she were his woman, he’d never take his eyes off her.
• • •
When Cory was finished giving her report to the officer for the tenth time, she and Jay quickly headed out the door.
“You had an admirer back there,” Jay announced when they were safely outside.
“Oh, yeah. Who?” Cory asked.
“One heavily armed and pissed off-looking soldier.”
“Oh! The cute one with the American accent?” Cory asked with an unmistakably urgent interest in her voice.
“I don’t know. He didn’t speak to me. But it looked like he was having a very serious conversation with your ass because his eyes never moved from there.”
Despite her depressed mood, Cory burst out laughing. “He was looking at my ass? Seriously? Hmm, little does he know?”
“Seriously, Cory, you need a man, okay?” was Jay’s response to that.
“Only one? You think?” Cory asked in mock exaggeration. “With my drought, I probably need more like four.”
“And I already feel sorry for all of them,” Jay winced.
When they settled back into the car only then did he ask her, “So you’ll be okay, right Ri-Ri?” Jay was the only person who called her by that name and only when he was in his rare brotherly moment.
“When I get my car back, I’ll be.”
“Well then, you better start praying hard, Miss Nice Ass.”
Chapter 2
The whiff of a horrific stench emanating from her surroundings outside hit her hard, bringing Cory head-on with her immediate dismal reality. She was dreaming no more. Here she was, back again in this grimy and dreaded place she loathed so much.
It had been two days since the theft of her car and she hadn’t heard anything. Now, Cory was here and ready to do battle. She needed her car back. It was amazing how public transportation could immediately snap you out of it.
Jay had been with her the first time she had come in to report the matter; today she was all alone. Cory pushed the door open and stepped inside the station’s waiting area. She walked up to the counter and began speaking to a male police officer on the whereabouts of her car.
It didn’t take long before she started screaming. Cory knew she could be over- dramatic at times but she totally lost it when the officer showed complete disinterest in helping her. Drama was a skill she most definitely got from her father. He had the literary background, being a high school teacher of literature and language for the past thirty-two years. So if drama helped her cause today, hats off to his literary genius and years of coaching.
Anger, disbelief, and frustration came hot and fast. As if she didn’t have enough to deal with these days!
• • •
As Adrian opened the side door to the waiting room of the station, two things caught his attention. The first thing he noticed was her legs. What seemed like miles and miles of a beautifully created, well-formed masterpiece. Then her voice. Well, it was more like a high-pitched scream actually. She leaned over the counter animatedly talking to Stewart. As Adrian’s eyes studied this wondrous sight some more, they met that tight, perfect ass and those wild curls. Adrian couldn’t believe his eyes. His New Year object of desire had returned.
The waiting area was probably the calmest he ever saw it. The place was usually a madhouse around this time of day. The other people waiting certainly didn’t look like her. There was one woman sitting with a bad weave and a gold tooth flashing in her mouth, maybe the reason she couldn’t keep it closed. Add in the ton of baby powder heavily caked to her neckline and huge capital G gold earrings dangling from her ears. Another young man was standing speaking to a female officer, his pants uncomfortably sagging under his butt. These were the regulars they had at this station.
He was leaving to go out for lunch in the city. His training exercise with some of the officers here was finished until afternoon. Adrian had been assigned to a special task force for a little over two years now, an elite military unit introduced by the government of the island. Their mandate: to respond to all extremely violent crimes, especially gang violence and firearm offenses.
Adrian was starving but her presence had stopped him dead in his tracks.
The conversation she was having with Stewart was heatedly escalating. She was holding her head between her hands and shaking it in total disbelief. It was about time he found out who this upset goddess was. It was obvious her boyfriend hadn’t tagged along this time.
He walked over in their direction, forgetting all about lunch for the moment. As Adrian approached, she paid him no mind. Stewart’s sour expression clearly signaled he wasn’t a happy camper and Adrian figured his butting in would just aggravate the man even more. Policemen and soldiers didn’t necessarily get along well here but that was a risk he was willing to take.
“Excuse me, ma’am, is everything okay over here?” Adrian asked her.
“No! Everything is not okay,” she screamed at the top of her lungs, without even looking his way. Then she stopped.
She looked at him, seemed to recognize him, and stood speechless for a moment. Then she began explaining to him, “I came to find out if my car was found yet, but nobody here seem to care enough to tell me anything.”
It was hard for Adrian to concentrate on what she was saying. She had the most exotic brown skin and her wild hair just tempted his fingers to smooth back the curls from her face. Undoubtedly, he would be slapped silly if he attempted that move. But that didn’t stop him from enjoying the view. Those high heels just topped it off for him. Adrian was definitely happy he had intervened here. Since their first encounter he had been totally captivated by this woman.
This time, he was taking in all of her from much closer. Her cleavage strained the fitted white blouse she was wearing under the tailored gray jacket, her breasts obviously screaming to be let out. Maybe it was the belt on her tiny waistline making them out to be so obvious to his hungry gaze and emphasizing to him their luscious ripeness.
“So can anybody in this place tell me something?” Cory started to cry.
It was her tears that finally brought Adrian’s mind back down to earth. That was when it hit him. The reason why he had decided to come back after twenty years of life in America. This woman made it all clear once again. He wanted to help people. Growing up, he wanted to be nothing else but a soldier, just like his father was. And to this day, Adrian could never imagine himself doing anything else but that. So he tried to do what he was trained for; to serve proudly.
“So your car was stolen the other night?” Adrian asked her.
“Yes.” He could see she was trying to pull herself together now, trying to calm down.
“What’s your name?”
“Cory. Cory Phillips.”
Adrian nodded. Pretty name. “Okay, Cory. Let me see if I can help.” He turned his attention for the first time to the officer standing behind the desk.
“So Stewart, what’s the status on this?” Adrian asked.
A pissed-off looking Stewart replied, “I was just telling her I don’t know and Franklin isn’t here right now.”
“Franklin is the investigating officer?” Adrian asked next.
“Yeah.”
“And he has all the required information, right?”
“Not that I see this is any of your business, Mendez. But yes, he should. I’m
trying to tell her this but it’s like she doesn’t understand English.”
“What?” Cory blurted. “Well, maybe you should try telling me in Spanish because I can understand that!”
Stewart was raising his voice at Cory again. “Because like you’re hard of understanding something as simple as this, lady.”
“Me!” Cory screamed. “Well, if this is so simple, you all would’ve found my car already, wouldn’t you?”
Stewart glared at her. Cory glared right back at him.
“Stewart. Enough!” Adrian wanted to quell the disaster that was about to erupt here. It was apparent that this conversation wasn’t going anywhere. The woman looked like she was about to floor Stewart, explode from anger, or both. “I’ll handle this,” Adrian announced. “Ma’am, please come with me.”
“Mendez, yuh crazy? Yuh can’t do this. This is not your jurisdiction. Yuh cannot walk in here and do as yuh please. You’re here to conduct a training exercise,” Stewart’s voice also reached a high-pitched screech. “This is police work, so leave it to us.”
Although Stewart was right, Adrian casually ignored him. Soldiers were just there to assist but Adrian didn’t like the tone he was using with this woman at all.
“Stewart, I said I’ll handle this,” Adrian firmly restated without even raising his voice. He only shouted and cussed when was absolutely necessary. “Ma’am, please come with me.”
Chapter 3
Cory smiled inwardly when she heard the long slew of colorful expletives from Stewart as she turned away from the desk to follow the man he called Mendez. She didn’t know who Mendez was yet but if she was going on looks and politeness, he was clearly tipping the scale. She followed him through a side door, down a corridor and then into a room that looked like some sort of classroom.
“Have a seat please, ma’am,” he offered. Cory gladly took the seat, resting her expensive handbag protectively on the desk in front of her.
He sat on the edge of the same desk, looking down at her. He pulled out a couple of tissues from a box sitting on the desk and handed them to her. “Urr, you have some stuff running down your face, ma’am,” he said.
“Oh, God,” Cory groaned in embarrassment. This was the very reason she didn’t like wearing makeup. The black mascara was probably running down her cheeks in torrents. She felt like a fool and probably looked like something out of Michael Jackson’s Thriller video, too.
“Thank you,” she muttered quietly when she took it from his outstretched hand and started dabbing vigorously at her cheeks.
“Are you okay now, ma’am?” he asked, concerned.
Cory nodded. She was getting there at least.
“Good. Firstly allow me to apologize on behalf of the officers here for the utter disrespect directed at you by Officer Stewart. There was absolutely no need for him to be speaking to you in that manner, ma’am.”
Shocked, Cory couldn’t respond. Was this guy for real? Was he actually apologizing on behalf of the police? To a member of the public? Certainly, this had never happened to her before. Ever!
“And you might be?” Cory asked him. He must have a high rank or something, she thought.
“Well, as you could see, clearly I’m not a police officer.” He smiled as he said this. “I’m second lieutenant Adrian Mendez. You know, ma’am, I wouldn’t have liked to witness you being arrested out there just now.”
“Arrested for what?” Cory cried out in utter amazement. “For standing up for my rights?”
“Actually, you looked like you were about to clobber Officer Stewart,” he laughed. Cory was beginning to feel at ease with him. Strange enough, his words were warming to her. She felt comfortable. She felt comfortable and safe for the first time since she’d stepped foot in this Godforsaken place.
He continued, “Look, I’ll be honest with you, ma’am. I really don’t have a clue about taking stolen car reports.”
“So why did you ask me to follow you, then?” Cory asked.
“You really looked like you needed some help.”
Okay, so was second lieutenant a high rank? Cory wondered. Not that she really cared, but it sure sounded that way. And he certainly was very professional. Not to mention gorgeous. Cory was admiring the thick veins running through his folded hands as he crossed them against his wide chest. The way his military jacket fit snugly around his muscular arms. Please look at the man’s face, Cory, she mentally warned herself.
But then again, he had the most unbelievably piercing eyes that followed her every move. Cory clutched her blouse at the opening. As if sensing her sudden discomfort, Adrian asked her about the make, color, and license plates of her vehicle. Cory gave him the details he asked her for. She noticed he wasn’t writing anything down, either. So typical!
“Look, I already gave them all the information,” Cory sighed.
“I know, Cory. But as Officer Stewart told you, the investigating officer, the one who took your initial report, Officer Franklin, isn’t here right now. However, when he comes in I can find out what’s the latest on your car for you. That’s the most I can do at this point, I’m afraid.”
“Well, I guess I have no choice, do I?” Cory muttered.
Diverting her gaze from his muscular body for the first time, Cory’s eyes settled on the gray skies outside through the windows. Unbelievable! The sun had been shining a few minutes ago when she came in. Now, the clouds looked a menacing dark gray-black color, threatening to burst and unleash their fury over the city at any time. If it started raining, she didn’t have an umbrella and she’d have to take a taxi back to her office.
“Oh, just great,” Cory once again muttered to herself. She stood up and grabbed her handbag. “Well, if we’re done here, I have to get back to work now.”
Adrian stopped her. “Wait! Do you have a ride?”
“Oh yeah, but it was stolen, remember?” Cory shot back.
“So where’re you heading? Maybe I could offer you a lift. I was on my way out, anyway,” Adrian said. “If your boyfriend wouldn’t mind.”
Boyfriend? “Fortunately, I don’t answer to anyone,” Cory retorted.
“Well, I can’t say I’m disappointed to hear that,” Adrian said.
Though I’d love to ride you … ride with you! What was wrong with her head? “No offense, but I really don’t know you, okay,” Cory coolly offered.
“But you know my name and rank. And where you could find me, too,” Adrian said as he walked out with her.
“True. But that doesn’t mean that I know you.”
“I know. But I’ll never allow any harm to come to you, Cory. Look, if anything happens to you once you’re with me, you could always come back and report me,” he added with a broad smile on his face.
Cory started laughing despite her foul mood.
“So you haven’t answered me yet. Do you need that lift or not?” he pressed.
Cory realized the guy wasn’t giving up. He seemed different from the others. She knew she felt at ease with him. For someone so soft spoken, he had quite a commanding presence about him.
She stared at the sky again. The thick saturated clouds were heavy with rain, just waiting to burst. Cory knew all it took was a short but consistent shower to wreak havoc in this city. Flash flooding, heavy traffic jams, and stranded commuters were the resulting chaos.
Cory weighed her options. She could wait out the impending shower with Officer Stewart throwing comments left, right, and center or she take a taxi back to the office. Or, she could just accept the lift offered by this gorgeous soldier.
She looked at Adrian again. Then a sudden louder than usual crack of thunder rolled, causing Cory to nearly jump out of her skin. That sealed the deal. Maybe that thunder was a good sign, Cory reasoned. She knew she didn’t want to stay here another second. “Okay, I’ll go with you,” she bega
n hesitantly. She didn’t want to come off as too desperate to him. Even if she was at the moment! “And only because it’s going to rain and I don’t have an umbrella with me right now.”
Chapter 4
Cory followed him into the yard, trying her best to keep up with his long strides in her high heels. The rain started then, drizzling lightly at first but rapidly developing into bigger droplets. She heard an alarm deactivated and just in the nick of time, they reached his vehicle, a sleek black four-door pickup. It reminded Cory very much of the owner, muscular and rugged.
“Nice ride,” she muttered under her breath as he opened the passenger door for her.
“Thanks.”
Okay, so the guy could hear very well apparently. Cory hiked up her skirt hem a few inches to get into the monstrosity. Adrian’s greedy eyes definitely took notice.
She sank into the plush richness of the luxurious crème-colored leather interior and buckled up. The interior gave off a heady masculine scent mixed in with the usual freshness of a new vehicle. This was a far cry from her car but she was nevertheless reminded of it.
Adrian turned on the AC and the radio. Soca music came blasting from the speakers. It was that time again on the island and one of Cory’s favorites. Immediately after the festive Christmas holidays came the electrifying Carnival season, of which this type of music was an integral part. Soca was the modern, faster-paced version of the Calypso musical art form that had started way back during the time of slavery. Cory easily imagined slaves singing the songs to ease their pains and frustrations as they toiled all day long in the sugar-cane fields. Maybe she should start singing Calypso, she thought.
A thick, white rain was pouring heavily now. Traffic was at a crawl, as she’d expected. When it rained, everyone drove slower just to be safe. Well, at least she had eye candy.
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