London

by Patricia Evans Jordan

  “Well, not Ian Norton, that’s for damn sure.”

  After they got off the phone, Jaq went to open a bottle of wine while Bronwyn changed her clothes. She made it as far as the bathroom and sat down on the edge of the claw foot tub, her legs suddenly weak. Ian was angry. He was more on the edge than she’d admitted to Jaq and she could hear in his voice that he knew she was lying. What she wasn’t saying out loud was that she needed him to go down for whatever crimes he was involved in, because if she left him for Jaq Bailey and he wasn’t in jail, they might as well add murder to that list.

  “Damn.” Jaq turned around and stared at her as she walked back into the kitchen. “How do you make my ancient sweater look like that?”

  Bronwyn smiled and took the glass of wine Jaq held out. She’d pulled on the wool sweater she’d claimed in Blackpool and paired it with red silk shorts and bare feet. “Like what?”

  Jaq pulled her close and slipped her hand under the sweater and across the velvety warmth of her breasts, lifting it just as the downstairs buzzer rang. Bronwyn laughed, and Jaq reluctantly went to buzz the grocery delivery guy up and took the bags. She peered down at them as she set them on the counter. “What are you making?”

  “Just some tikka masala and naan.”

  “Just tikka masala? That sounds like every late night kitchen fantasy I’ve ever had.” Jaq dropped her eyes down Bronwyn’s body and smiled. “Well, maybe not every fantasy, but it’s up there.”

  Bronwyn swatted at her with a tea towel and got to work on the dough for the naan; it was quick to put together, and she set it aside to rise under a towel. She peeled a white onion and chopped it into perfect squares, mincing them so finely they were almost a paste by the time she slid them off the knife into a warm pan with a glug of olive oil.

  Jaq looked mesmerized. She watched Bronwyn season the chicken breast, then fry it to a golden brown in a second pan while she caramelized the onions with some brown sugar and vinegar in the first.

  “Where did you learn to cook?”

  “I haven’t, really,” Bronwyn said. “I’ve just watched enough Jamie Oliver to get it right every once in a while.”

  “I don’t believe that for a second.” Jaq pulled her eyes away from the food and looked over at her. “There’s got to be more to the story.”

  Bronwyn left the chicken to simmer in some butter and spices while she floured a cutting board and started kneading the onions into the naan dough.

  “Maybe,” Bronwyn said, looking up at Jaq with a smile.

  She stretched the naan and rolled the edges, popping them into the oven to bake while she started the sauce.

  Jaq started to say something, then hesitated and seemed to think the better of it. Then said it anyway. “I can’t believe I’m asking you this because I’m almost positive I don’t want to know.” She took a long sip of her wine. “…But how’s the sex with Ian?”

  “Jaq Bailey, I can’t believe you just said that!” Bronwyn looked up and tossed a tomato in her direction.

  Jaq caught it with one hand and waited. “Feel free to decline to answer. I fully recognize it’s none of my damn business.”

  Bronwyn slid the onions out of the pan and put it back on the heat. She looked over at Jaq then dropped her eyes to the counter. “It’s fine.”

  Jaq reached over and tucked a stray lock of hair behind her ear. “Bella, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have asked you.”

  Bronwyn paused, then looked up. “Actually, do you want to know a secret?”

  “I’m pretty positive I should say no here,” Jaq said, “But of course I want to know any secret you want to tell me.”

  “That night in Blackpool was the first time I’ve had an orgasm with someone other than myself since high school.” She smiled. “Since you, specifically.”

  Jaq stared at her. “You’re kidding, right?”

  “Nope.” Bronwyn crushed some fragrant leaves into her hand and threw them into the hot pan with some other dry spices. “I slept with a couple of guys after college, but I wasn’t serious about either one, so I’m not surprised it didn’t happen then.”

  “What about Ian?”

  “Not once,” she said. “But in fairness, it’s not Ian’s fault.”

  “Oh really,” Jaq said, refilling Bronwyn’s wine glass and trying not to smile. She leaned back against the counter and crossed her arms. “You’re going to have to explain that one to me.”

  “I don’t know,” she said, “I guess he just never asked and I never told.”

  Jaq took that in for a moment. “He never asked if you came during sex?”

  Bronwyn shook her head.

  “Were you faking it?”

  “No, not even once. He just never noticed, I guess.”

  Jaq shook her head. “More like he never cared.”

  Bronwyn nodded towards the garlic on the other side of Jaq and Jaq reached over and handed it to her.

  “Sorry, I’m not trying to shit talk your fiancée, but if you weren’t faking it, there was no reason for him to think you ever came. And if he wasn’t getting you there he should have been on that from the first time.”

  Bronwyn smiled but shook her head. “He’s not my fiancée,” she said quietly.

  Jaq looked at her hand and realized for the first time her ring was gone.

  “And he’ll never touch me again.”

  Jaq didn’t say anything. She just pulled Bronwyn over into her arms and kissed her until they were both breathless and the herbs in the pan caught fire.

  ****

  Jaq finished the dishes and wiped down the counters, switching on the lamp and turning off the main kitchen lights before she sank down by Bronwyn on the couch.

  “That was the best food I’ve ever eaten in my life.”

  Bronwyn stretched out on the couch and put her head in Jaq’s lap, looking out the windows at the city lights below.

  “Lying is a sin.” She looked up at her and smiled. “But thank you.”

  Jaq smoothed her hair back from her face. “You can think I’m lying all damn day, but that’s the truth.”

  Bronwyn was quiet for a moment, running her fingers up and down Jaq’s arm. “Can I ask you something?’

  Jaq looked down at her. “After that meal, you can ask me anything you want.”

  “Do you…” Bronwyn hesitated, visibly choosing her words one by one, “think I’m gay?”

  Jaq leaned her head back on the couch. “That’s a loaded question.” She looked down at Bronwyn and held her eyes. “And only you can answer it.”

  Bronwyn gave her a look. “You said I could ask anything I want, and that suggests an answer is on offer as well. Like it or not, that’s how it works, Bailey.”

  Jaq laughed; she’d known Bronwyn long enough to choose an early surrender when faced with certain defeat.

  “Fine.” Jaq looked down into Bronwyn’s eyes. They looked lit from behind even in the semi-darkness of the room. She decided to tell the truth. “I’ve always known.”

  Bronwyn was quiet for a moment. “Me too. Maybe that’s why I chose Ian; so I didn’t have to think about it.”

  “You wouldn’t be the first.”

  Jaq didn’t throw words at the silence; it belonged to Bronwyn. She ran her finger across her lip and waited until she spoke.

  “Will you take me to bed?” Bronwyn sounded almost hesitant, but then she caught Jaq’s finger and brushed the tip of it with her tongue.

  “Go get ready for bed, Bella,” Jaq whispered. “I’ll make sure everything is locked up.”

  Bronwyn took off her makeup and brushed her teeth. She reached for the pajamas she’d brought into the bathroom, then thought for a moment and let them slip from her fingers. Jaq came to bed a few minutes later, the scent of her skin warm and familiar.

  “Jesus,” Jaq said, pulling Bronwyn’s naked body into hers. “You have no idea what this does to me.”

  Bronwyn kissed her, her thigh between Jaq’s, then ran her fingers slowly over the muscular
lines of her stomach. Jaq kept her close, the heat between them intense and palpable. She slipped her thumb underneath the waistband of Jaq’s underwear.

  “Take these off for me?”

  Jaq slipped them off and dropped them beside the bed. She laid back and ran her fingers over Bronwyn’s back, watching her. Bronwyn leaned in and worked Jaq’s nipple with her tongue, then a scrape of her teeth, stroking it until she felt Jaq’s breath deepen and her hand at the back of her head. She ran her tongue slowly down Jaq’s body until her mouth met the curve of her hip, then paused, her breath warm and still on Jaq’s skin. Jaq ran a hand through her hair and let out a slow breath, resisting the urge to pull Bronwyn into her arms.

  Bronwyn moved over Jaq’s body and settled between her legs, pulling one knee up beside her and kissing slowly down the inside of Jaq’s thigh until she groaned, biting gently until she felt Jaq’s hand in her hair.

  “Bella…” Her voice was like gravel.

  Bronwyn didn’t look up, just took her time, her mouth moving over every inch of Jaq’s inner thigh, and then the other, raking her nails lightly across the outside of her legs. After what seemed like forever, she laid her hand warm and low across Jaq’s abs and looked up at her. Jaq put her arm under her head and traced the edge of Bronwyn’s face with her thumb.

  “Are you sure you want this, Bella?”

  Bronwyn’s eyes were soft. “Since the day I met you.”

  Jaq laid back and scraped her hand through her hair. Bronwyn touched Jaq with her breath, then ran her tongue lightly over her, dipping inside to taste her, then drawing one of her lips into her mouth just hard enough to get her attention.

  Jaq growled, her thighs tense under Bronwyn’s fingers. She explored Jaq with her tongue for what seemed like forever, slicking into her center, dragging the tip slowly across the wet heat of her, touching everywhere but her clit. She got close, over and over, her tongue so near Jaq’s swollen clit that Jaq felt her breath.

  “Fuck, baby.” Jaq’s voice broke as she pressed the heel of her hand to her forehead. Every muscle in her body was tight. “Are you trying to kill me?”

  Bronwyn laid her palm low on Jaq’s stomach, holding her eyes as she finally slid her tongue slowly over Jaq’s clit, listening to her groan as she drew it slowly in and out of her mouth the way she remembered Jaq doing to her.

  “Oh my God.” Jaq’s fingers tangled in her hair.

  Bronwyn held Jaq’s clit in her mouth while she swirled her tongue around it, achingly slowly, memorizing the feel of her. Jaq’s body told Bronwyn what she wanted. Hips arched towards her mouth when she needed more pressure, her hand at the back of her head telling her to stay when Bronwyn fell into a rhythm, breath begging her not to stop, her abs tense and still as Bronwyn got her as close as possible without tipping her over the edge.

  Then she felt Jaq’s clit harden under her tongue, taut with tension and realized her breath had gone quiet. Jaq silently pressed her hips into Bronwyn, and she drew her clit further into her mouth, stroking it until she heard Jaq cry out, her breath wild, the sheet wrapped hard into her hands as she came. Bronwyn stayed with her, Jaq’s clit slick and hard under her tongue, until Jaq wrapped her hand lightly around the back of her head, her breath slowing and hoarse.

  Bronwyn moved into her arms and Jaq enveloped her, covering every part of her with her body.

  “I can’t believe you just made me come like that,” she whispered into the warmth of her hair.

  “I can,” Bronwyn said, settling onto Jaq’s chest, listening to her heart as Jaq’s arms closed around her. “I’m in love with you.”

  Chapter Eleven

  The next morning Jaq woke just after dawn and reached for Bronwyn. She was gone, her pillow cold as she ran her hand over it; Jaq had never known her to wake up first, even in school. Jaq looked toward the bathroom but it was dark. Her heart sank all at once and she laid back onto the pillows, kicking herself for not realizing last night would be too much.

  After a few minutes, it occurred to her that Bronwyn might have left a note; she pulled on a pair of jeans and headed down the hall to the kitchen. As she rounded the corner, she saw her, wearing one of her shirts, standing at the farthest window. She was on the phone.

  “Ian, this is not your choice. It’s mine.”

  She pulled the phone away from her ear and leaned it against her forehead. Jaq could hear him shouting from across the room.

  “I realize I should have done this in person.” She paused. “But I’m doing it now. I don’t want to be in this relationship anymore.”

  She listened for a long time. When she spoke, Jaq could hear the tears in her voice. “You can’t make me change my mind, Ian. I should have done this the first time you put your hands on me.”

  Jaq listened as she asked him to go to her house later in the day and take anything he had there, then leave the key on the entry table when he left. When she finished, she clicked the phone off and leaned into the glass. It wasn’t until Jaq walked over and pulled her into her arms that she started to cry.

  ****

  Jaq got to work early, walked into Terry’s office just as he arrived, and told him about Bronwyn’s break up with Ian.

  “Bloody hell.” Terry shook his head. “I mean, I get why she wants rid of him, but she just woke up this morning and decided today was the day?”

  Jaq didn’t answer, just looked at him and raised her eyebrow.

  “Ah, I get it.” Terry smiled, looking down at the stack of folders on his desk. “I can’t say I blame you, but this complicates things a bit from here on out. I’ll need you to take a back seat if there is any kind of safety issue with Bronwyn. You’re too close now to stay objective.”

  Jaq nodded. “There shouldn’t be; she asked him to take anything he still had at her house by the end of the day and leave the key.”

  “Smart girl. That tightens up the time frame significantly. I’ll get some more officers down there first thing. I had the tech guys go over every inch of her car over the weekend, so it’s clear,” Terry said. “Did you happen to bring in her phone?”

  “I did; I already dropped it with the techs. I ordered her a new one and it should come to the flat by this afternoon.”

  “How is she doing?” Terry asked, leaning back in his chair and tapping his pen on the desk. “This is a lot to take in for her, I’m sure.”

  “She’s a tough girl. I think she’s been ready to see the back of him for a while.”

  “That’s not hard to imagine.” Terry smiled. “I’m happy for you. I like her a lot.”

  “Thanks,” Jaq said. “I’ll feel better when we’ve got him and he can’t get to her.”

  Terry stood and picked up his jacket. “You ready to go?”

  “Always.” Jaq dropped her takeaway coffee cup in the trashcan at the side of his desk. “Where are we going?”

  “I think it’s time we paid a little visit to Mr. Norton at work, don’t you?” Terry strapped on his holster and made sure Jaq had done the same before they left and shut the door behind them.

  By the time they got to the bank where Ian worked, people were streaming in the door, shoulder to shoulder. The lobby was massive, built with endless white granite, and everything they said seemed to ricochet off the walls, even at a whisper. They stopped to ask the woman at the front desk what floor held Ian’s department.

  “Investments will be the sixteenth floor, to your right as you get out of the lift.”

  Terry pressed the button in the lift and looked at his watch. “I was hoping to be a little more low-key than this, but I guess we should ask someone where he is. This place is like Manhattan shoved in a skyscraper.”

  Terry dug into his shirt pocket and slapped a nicotine patch on his arm as the doors opened and they walked down the hall. Jaq looked over and smiled.

  “I still hate these bloody things. There’s nothing in them but misery.”

  They stopped at the main reception desk and Jaq asked for Ian Norton’s office.
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  The receptionist, a delicate looking blonde, looked slightly confused. She turned to her computer and typed in his name, then looked up at them.

  “Ian Norton doesn’t work here anymore. This says he was terminated just over a year ago.”

  Terry turned to Jaq. “Well, I can’t say I saw that coming.”

  “Can you refer us to whomever was his direct superior?” Jaq asked.

  “Of course, sir; that’s Maeve Thomas, in the corner office on the west side.”

  They started walking toward the office, and Terry looked over at Jaq, trying not to laugh. “You get that a lot?”

  Jaq rolled her eyes. “All the damn time.”

  The hall opened up into an enormous room full of cubicles, ringed by offices on every side. The noise hit them like a wall, computer keys clicked from every inch of available space, and the people passing them from every direction made it seem like they’d been dropped into a human beehive.

  “Jeez, I thought the Yard was crazy.”

  Terry looked over when Jaq didn’t answer to find she’d stopped about three meters back, standing with her eyes closed, people swirling around her in every direction as if she wasn’t even there.

  “You’d better be having a stroke or something,” Terry said when she finally reached him. “I looked like an idiot talking to myself just then.”

  Jaq put up her hand and turned her face to the left. He watched as she walked in that direction, holding her fingers tight to her right ear. Terry just shook his head and followed. Apparently, all geniuses were a bit odd, and Jaq was no different. He had to admit it was worth it; he’d never worked with a more promising detective. He’d balked at first, when she was being interviewed; bringing in a random American at such a high level with no law enforcement experience was ridiculous by anyone’s standards. But Jaq had won him over the first time she scanned a fifteen page case file in less than a minute and singled out an inconsistency that instantly solved a case the department had been sitting on for a year. Initially, she’d been hired to head up forensic accounting, but as time went on, Terry increasingly pulled her in to look over stalled cases from every department. Her mind worked faster than a computer and she instinctively thought like a detective, which he knew from experience couldn’t be taught. He didn’t have favorites, but if he did, it would be the ridiculous American.