by Claire Adams
I untied her bottoms and let them slide to the floor as my fingers slipped between her legs and stroked the damp fabric. There was something that made me need to please her. I needed to feel her moving under my hands, being aroused by me and reaching a climax because I gave it to her. I didn't understand the need driving me I just acted on it.
Alex moaned softly into my mouth as I slipped my fingers under the fabric and dipped them into the warm wetness. Her inner lips were so soft and slippery, I knew she'd been thinking about me long before I'd shown up. I played in the wetness, tracing a slow, deliberate path from top to bottom over and over again as she moaned and pushed her hips forward to meet my hand. I spent a long time stroking the outer edges of her entrance so that when I finally pushed two fingers up inside of her, she cried out with relief.
I took my time finding the soft spot on her inner walls, and when I did, I stroked it as I pushed my thumb against her clit and applied pressure. Alex writhed in my arms as I kept my mouth pressed to hers. I needed this, and I knew she did too. I increased the tempo of my rhythm as I felt her moving closer to a climax. I stroked and pressed until she was crying out begging me to take her over the edge.
I watched as the waves began to engulf her, and when the full force of her orgasm hit, I pulled back and watched the beautiful expression on her face as she found release through my hand. I held her until I heard her breathing return to normal, and then I slowly withdrew my hand and bent down to pull her scrubs up over her hips and tie them again.
"What was that?" she asked looking up at me with a mildly dazed expression. "What do you do to me?"
"Alex, I wasn't planning that," I said suddenly aware of how all of this would seem if I spilled my secret after that. She was going to think I was using sex to manipulate her. My heart dropped as I realized that I'd just spoiled my chance to tell her the whole truth. "I'm sorry."
"You've got to be kidding me," she said. "That was amazing, but if that's not why you came here, why did you?"
"I wanted to tell you something," I said. "You make me want to do things I haven't done in a long time. You make me feel things I've never felt before and I want to be around you all the time."
"I know the feeling," Alex said as the color rose in her cheeks. "I feel the same way."
"I just wanted you to know that I want you in my life," I said. "I know it hasn't been that long, but there's something special about you and I don't want to lose it."
"And that's what you ran away from last night?" she asked. I inhaled deeply knowing that now was my chance to spill it all. I needed to tell her about the company and the money because it was going to come out whether I liked it or not. Either Metzler was going to get his way or Victor was going to divulge my secrets. I had to tell Alex before it all came crashing down.
"Yeah, that's what I wanted to tell you, but was afraid to say," I said kicking myself for chickening out.
"It's okay, you know," she smiled. "I'm scared, too. Maybe if we talk to each other honestly about it, we'll be able to work it out."
Unable to reply to her because I was burning with the shame of hanging on to a secret, I simply nodded. Alex threw her arms around my neck and pulled me down to kiss her, and in that kiss I could feel hope returning. It was a hope that I thought I'd lost the day that Quinn died.
I wrapped my arms around her waist and kissed her back. I knew I was going to have to tell her about CSC, but right now was not the right time.
"I want you to come to my place and meet Tesla," I said as I held her close to me. "Can I pick you up on Friday morning after I get off shift? Will you be here?"
"No, I'll be in class, but I don't have to work Friday night," she smiled.
"I'll pick you up at your place at six," I said as I cupped her cheek. "I'm going to cook for you, so bring your appetite."
"Oh, wow, a guy who fights fires, is kind to animals, makes my pulse race and cooks, too?" she grinned as she feigned swooning. "Be still my beating heart!"
I leaned down and kissed her once again before I stepped back and straighten her scrubs. She laughed lightly and then grabbed the basket of supplies she'd gathered and headed for the elevator. I took it from her even as she frowned.
"It's not a sexist thing, I'm just trying to look like I was helping rather than...uh..." I explained.
Alex threw her head back and laughed loudly, and I grinned feeling like I'd finally rejoined the world.
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
Alex
The rest of the week flew by as I waited for the investigation into the cheating charge to begin. I knew that I had not cheated, but I could no longer speak for Liz. When she didn't show up for class on Friday morning, I began to worry that something was terribly wrong, but before I could call her, Professor Jackson pulled me aside and told me that I was to go to the nursing department and talk with the program director.
I walked over to the department and found that Dr. Gatskill and two other administrators were waiting in the conference room for me to arrive. I walked in and realized that whatever had happened, was a much bigger deal than I thought it was.
"Ms. Pierce, thank you for coming," Dr. Gatskill said. She was a formidable woman who, when standing, was close to six feet tall. She wore suits that were custom tailored to fit her wide frame and a string of pearls that were triple looped around her neck. The only thing she varied was the color of the silk blouses she wore buttoned up under her suits. Today she was wearing a coral colored blouse that gave off the appearance of spring, but I didn't feel it in the air. "Please have a seat."
I sat down in the chair across from the three and waited. The conference room felt large and intimidating with its glass windows and large, rolling chairs. I felt dwarfed by the grandness of it all, and I swallowed hard to keep my breakfast from making an appearance.
"Ms. Pierce, it has been brought to our attention that you and Ms. Baker have been accused of cheating on the practice nursing exam," Dr. Gatskill began. "Our aim here is not to accuse or exonerate you, but to find out what happened and evaluate the evidence against the claim. Do you understand?"
"Yes, ma'am," I nodded as I swallowed again. The entire process made my stomach turn, and being certain of whether Liz had cheated or not made me feel even more queasy.
For the next hour, the committee asked me questions about the class, the exam and my knowledge of the material we'd been tested on. I felt confident that I had prepared well, so the questions posed no problem for me and I answered with ease, but when they started asking questions about Liz, I found myself hesitating. I ended up telling them very little about Liz or her state of mind, mostly because I didn't know it.
"Thank you, Ms. Pierce," Dr. Gatskill said when they'd finished asking questions. "We will evaluate the evidence and let you know our decision within two weeks. Please be aware that all scholarship money and financial aid will be held until such time as we make our decision."
"Wait, what?" I said not sure that I'd heard her right.
"We cannot, in good conscience, disburse funds when we aren't not certain that you will be allowed to stay in the program," Dr. Gatskill explained.
"But I need to pay my tuition and rent!" I said. "I can't be late with either one or I'll lose my place in the class and be evicted from my apartment."
"I'm sorry, Ms. Pierce," Dr. Gatskill said. "It's truly unfortunate, but we have to follow university procedure on this and part of that procedure is temporarily placing a hold on money to be disbursed."
"This isn't fair," I said as I looked at her helplessly. "If you find I'm innocent, then I'll have lost my place in the class anyway and I won't get to graduate."
"We'll do our best to work quickly, Ms. Pierce," one of the other administrators assured me. "I'm sure you can ask your family for help during this time."
I shook my head as I gathered my things and walked out of the room. My entire world was crumbling down around me and I had nowhere to turn for help.
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
Cam
I woke up the next morning with Alex on my mind. Over coffee, I planned the dinner I would cook for her and called to have groceries delivered on Friday morning when I got home. As usual, Tesla sat patiently waiting for me to get ready and drive her over to visit her buddies at the station.
"I'm going to bring a woman over on Friday night," I told her as I opened the passenger side door and motioned for her to hop in. "I want you to be a really good girl, okay?"
"Woof," she huffed as she impatiently looked over at the driver's side and pawed my seat.
"All right, all right, we're getting there," I said shaking my head.
At the station, Tesla hopped out and ran into the lounge where she jumped on the sofa and licked Danny until he was laughing and crying uncle.
"Down," I said pointing to the floor. She shot me a dirty looks she slinked off the sofa and sat at Danny's feet with her head in his knees as she stared up at him. I shook my head, "I think my dog is in love with you, Newsome."
"Wouldn't be the first one!" Mike yelled from the kitchen.
"Fuck off, Kelly!" Danny yelled as he patted Tesla and said, "They have no idea what they're talking about. Don't listen to them, good girl."
"Hear anything about Vangel's promotion?" I asked Mike.
"Yeah, I heard he's out blackmailing everyone he can in order to lock up the nomination process," Mike said as he stirred the eggs he was cooking. "That bastard is up to no good. Did he come after you?"
"Me? What would he have on me?" I asked with as much shock as I could muster.
"No clue, but he was laying it on thick earlier," Mike shrugged. "Just wondering who he's targeting."
"No idea," I said as I walked back to the locker room to store my bag. I'd just opened my locker when Victor spoke.
"Made a decision, Connor?" he asked as he peered around my locker door with his creepy grin.
"Yeah, I have," I said. "No thanks."
"What?" Victor's shock at my refusal to give him what he wanted was palpable. "You do realize that I'm going to spill the beans on your little security business, don't you?"
"Yep, I'm fully aware of that," I said without further comment.
"I'm going to ruin you and you're going to stand idly by and let me?" he laughed maniacally.
"No, Victor, I'm not," I said fixing him with a steely glare. "You're not going to do shit to me you little weasel. I'm going to report you to Chief and let him deal with your blackmailing bullshit."
"You have no proof of anything," he said nervously.
"The hell I don't," I said moving closer. "I know that you've been spreading your poison all over this station. You went after Brian and Gavin, and I'm sure if I start grilling guys, they'll tell me all about your little plan."
"How do you know that?" he spat. "It's nothing but a rumor! You can't prove anything."
"If I make Chief aware of what you've been doing, I'm sure he'll have zero problem investigating the issue and finding out the truth," I said as I stared at Victor who was now visibly nervous. "I'm going to recommend that you back the fuck off and leave me and the other guys alone. If you get promoted, it'll be on your own merits, not because a single one of us supports you."
"You're an asshole, Connor," he said narrowing his eyes. "And I don't like guys who are assholes."
"Good, then that makes two of us," I said dryly. "Now get out of my sight and stay that way or I'll have your ass checked out by the Investigative Affairs Bureau so fast your head will spin."
"You'll be sorry you did this, Connor," Victor said as he slunk away with his tail between his legs.
I knew that he wouldn't be kept at bay for long; he was too slimy not to find a way around my warning, but I figured my threat would at least buy me enough time to tell Alex about CSC and tell Leo we were a go for the Metzler contract. After that, Victor would have no hold on me.
"Sneaky little son of a bitch," I muttered as I slammed my locker shut and went out to join the guys for breakfast.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
Alex
When Liz didn't show up for class on Friday, I started to get really worried about her. I tried her phone several times, but she didn't answer. I figured that she'd had the same meeting with Dr. Gatskill as I had and that she was probably home licking her wounds.
I left her a voicemail when her phone picked up: "Liz, it's Alex. I'm worried about you. Call me and let me know you're okay, please? Did they tell you that they're holding back your funding? I don't know what I'm going to do if they find us guilty. Anyway, call me or else I'll come looking for you with a big plate of liver and onions! Love you."
I hoped that my message would pull her out of her funk and make her laugh, and that by sundown she'd call and tell me she was fine by making some sassy crack about Dr. Gatskill's wardrobe. I hoped.
I finished the anatomy lab lesson in record time, but I'd noticed Violet and her gang of girls staring at me as I did it. I wanted to say something, but I didn't dare stir up trouble while I was under investigation. Besides, I didn't think it would do any good even if I hadn't been in trouble. Violet and her posse were mean girls who took pleasure in making others miserable. I pitied them more than anything.
As I walked home, I noticed that spring was in the air. The snow from earlier in the week had melted and there were tiny green shoots poking out of the dirt near the park. I smiled as I realized that warmer weather was on its way and that soon we would have the luxury of walking to class without our heavy coats. I opened my mouth to say something to Liz and then closed it when I remembered that, for the first time in a long time, she wasn't walking home from class with me. I checked my phone, but she hadn't yet left me a reply.
I shifted my focus to my date with Cam. He was picking me up at six for dinner at his place and I couldn't figure out what to wear. I wished Liz would call me back so that I could ask her what one wears to dinner at a man's house when you're meeting his dog. I smiled thinking about how Liz would probably flippancy reply that the best outfit is one that is easily removed.
"Call me, Liz," I whispered as I looked at my phone again. Nothing.
It didn't take me long to get ready, but it did take me quite awhile to settle on an outfit. I finally decided that the best one would be jeans and a soft, fuzzy blue sweater that tended to shift and drop off one shoulder, and a matching tank top underneath. I carefully picked out underwear and looked at myself from every angle in the mirror before pulling my clothes on. I wasn't sure why I was so nervous since Cam didn't seem to be overly concerned with my clothing, and then it dawned on me that I was dressing for his dog and I fell over laughing, wishing Liz were here to see this silliness.
At six, when Cam had just knocked on my door, my phone started ringing. I couldn't get to it in time, and I worried that I'd missed Liz's call. I needn't have worried; no sooner than I'd picked up the phone did it start ringing again. It was Liz.
"Liz, where have you been?" I demanded as I answered the call.
"Alex?" she said in a weak voice. "Alex? Help me..."
"Liz, what's going on? Where are you?" I shouted into the phone. "Where are you?"
"Bathroom, Alex. Help me..." she trailed off and I heard the phone hit the floor.
"LIZ!" I screamed. "Pick up the phone! Tell me where you are!"
On the other end, all I could hear was the sound of Liz wheezing and calling my name over and over.
"What's going on?" Cam asked with a concerned look.
"It's Liz, we need to find her," I said as I grabbed my coat and keys and ushered Cam out the door. "You drive."
I instructed Cam on how to get to Liz's apartment complex and he let me off at the door before he went to find a parking spot.
"She's in 3D," I called before I slammed to truck's door and ran for the building. The doorman let me in and I told him to let Cam in when he came back. I looked at him and said, "We may need an ambulance, too."
Scared to take the time to wait for the elevator, I raced up three flig
hts of stairs and pounded on Liz's door. When she didn't answer, I opened the door with the key she'd given me for emergencies.
"Liz! Liz! Are you here?" I called as I raced through the apartment. The place was a mess with dirty dishes on every surface and clothing strewn across the floor. I hadn't been there since New Year's Eve, and I had no idea Liz was struggling.
"Liz! Where are you?" I yelled as I pushed open the bathroom door and found her lying on the floor. She was bleeding from a cut on her forehead and was mumbling incoherently.
"Alex, where are you?" Cam called as I grabbed a towel and blotted the blood on Liz's head.
"In here! Call an ambulance!" I shouted as I cradled Liz in my lap and spoke softly to her, "C'mon Liz, stay with me. You're going to be okay. I promise."
"It hurts, Alex," she cried as I held the towel to her head.
"I know, sweetie," I said as I stroked her hair and gently rocked her.
"They'll be here shortly," Cam said as he appeared in the doorway. "Is she high?"
"Shhh," I said shaking my head. "I don't know."
The paramedics arrived a few minutes later to assess the situation. Cam talked with them as they scooped Liz up and prepared to take her to General. I hugged her before they wheeled her to the elevator and told her I'd be at the hospital when she woke up.
"Not good," Liz mumbled as she shook her head. "I'm not good."
"You're fine, Liz," I said as tears welled up. I squeezed her hand and then the paramedics motioned that they had to go. After they left, I pulled together a bag of clothes and things for Liz in case they decided to admit her to the hospital, and as I did it, I searched her drawers looking for evidence of drugs.
"Do you think she's using drugs?" Cam asked as we drove to the hospital.
"It seems like it, doesn't it?" I said as a nagging doubt entered the picture. "But there wasn't any drug paraphernalia at the apartment and I've never seen her do more than get drunk."