Bad Cop

by Linda Verji

  Lucas cut off the man’s sob-fest. “We’re told that you’d arranged an audition for him on the day he died.”

  Teddy’s sorrow rapidly turned back to tension. “Who told you?”

  “Is it true?” Lucas countered.

  Teddy’s shoulders were stiff as a board as he nodded. “Yes, that’s true.”

  “Who was he auditioning for?” Lucas asked.

  “Huh?” Panic flashed in Teddy’s eyes. “Oh… oh… the audition? Um… I’m not sure. I think it was a small independent production but I’ll have to check my notes when I get to the office to confirm.”

  Lucas and Shane traded looks.

  “Wow! Talk about suspicious,” Shane said once the man was gone. “Did you catch how quick he was with his alibi but couldn’t remember what the audition was for?”

  Lucas snorted derisively. “I caught it.”

  Most people would’ve taken a minute or two to think of where they’d been. Teddy had had his alibi right at the tip of his fingers. It was almost as if he was waiting for someone to ask him, as if he’d prepared it beforehand. Why would he need to prepare his alibi beforehand? It screamed guilt.

  “We should’ve kept him in,” Shane said.

  Lucas shook his head. “No, we need to check him and his alibi out first then we’ll have something solid to call him in for.”

  “I’ll check with the bar,” Shane offered.

  “Don’t forget to get his bank records too.” Lucas reached for his phone. “I’ll call Random.”

  “Random?” Shane’s eyebrows shot up. “Do we need him for this?”

  “I just want to check if there are any rumors about Teddy Bryk out on the street.”

  CHAPTER 14

  “Are you sure about this?” Kenny asked later the same day as she and Jasmine took the elevator down. “Geoff and I don’t mind if you stay longer.”

  “I know,” Jasmine said. “But I’ve missed my place. I want to go home.”

  “Are you sure-”

  “Mooom,” Jasmine whined, “let me go home.”

  It was true that she’d missed her own house, but her real reason for leaving was because she didn’t like inconveniencing other people, even if they were friends. Geoff and Kenny had given her room and board for close to a week. That was enough. Otherwise she risked wearing out her welcome.

  “Okay fine.” Kenny surrendered with a sigh. “If you insist, then I won’t stop you.”

  “Stop playing like you’re mad that I’m leaving,” Jasmine teased as she looped her arm into her friend’s arm. “I know you and Geoff have been praying that I leave so you can get freaky in weird places again.”

  “Again?” Kenny protested. “I swear it didn’t happen that time. We were just kissing when you walked in on us.”

  “Okay. Kissing with both your shirts off.”

  “It was hot,” Kenny defended herself.

  “Riiiight,” Jasmine teased. “That’s why y’all had the fireplace going.”

  Kenny huffed in frustration. “Honest, we weren’t doing anything.”

  “Mm hmm. Got it,” Jasmine said in a note that left no doubt that she didn’t believe her friend.

  Kenny kissed her teeth but before she could defend herself further, the elevator doors opened. The two women walked out of the building together.

  “At least let me give you a ride home,” Kenny offered.

  “Why would you do that? We live on opposite sides of the city.” Jasmine pointed out. “Don’t worry about me. I’ll just take a cab.”

  Reluctantly, Kenny let her go.

  The cab-ride to Jasmine’s home didn’t take long. Within twenty-five minutes, she was in her apartment. Her apartment hadn’t changed; it was just the same way she’d left it. Yet it felt different. Like a foreign place. Maybe it was because she’d been away for so long. Maybe it was because the last time she’d come home, she’d been attacked. Either way, Jasmine couldn’t help feeling unsettled even as she changed into something less restricted.

  She’d just emerged from her bedroom when she heard her phone ringing. She hurried to the side-table where her purse was and took out her phone. The number blinking on her phone was strange.

  Frowning, she answered, “Hello?”

  “Jasmine.” Lucas’s voice echoed over the line. “Where are you?”

  “I’m home.”

  “No, you’re not,” he retorted. “Kenny just got in but you were not with her. And I know you’re not in the office either-”

  Her jaw dropped. “Are you stalking me?”

  “Answer my question,” Lucas countered. He sounded almost angry as he repeated, “Where are you?”

  “I’m home,” she repeated. But before he could call her out again, she clarified, “My own home. I left Kenny’s.”

  Lucas didn’t even answer. One moment he was on the phone with her and the next only the dial-tone rang in her ear. Jasmine stared at her phone in confusion. What was that about?

  That abrupt phone-call was surprising, but what was even more surprising was the ring of Jasmine’s doorbell barely thirty minutes later. When she checked the peep-hole and saw who was standing there, her heart almost jumped out of her chest.

  “Lucas?” She stared at him when she opened the door. “What are you doing here?”

  He gave a quick up-and-down onceover before meeting her eyes. “You okay?”

  “Of course I’m okay. Why wouldn’t I be okay?” She repeated, “What are you doing here?”

  “I wanted to make sure you got home safe.” He gestured with his chin towards the interior of her apartment. “Is everything okay in there?”

  “Yeah, it’s okay,” she assured him.

  Jasmine couldn’t quite believe that he was here to check if she was safe. However, now that she thought about it, it wasn’t strange that he was here. Though she pretended not to notice, she knew that he’d been spending most of his nights outside Kenny’s house. Every night before she slept, she’d checked outside the window, and his car was always there. The only reason she hadn’t called him out on it was because she already knew why he was doing it; to protect her. Also, she didn’t want to make him leave. Having him close by made her feel safe.

  “Is it okay if I check?” he asked.

  When she silently stepped aside, he entered the house. After inspecting every room in the house, he headed for the door. But before he left, he said, “I’ll be outside your building. If anything happens, call me. Okay?”

  “Okay!” Jasmine nodded.

  With one last glance around the living room as if to reconfirm that everything was fine, Lucas left the house. It was only after he left that Jasmine took her first easy breath. However, with that relief came questions. As much as she wanted to hate him for their past, how could she when he was being like this? Was he doing this because as a cop he was supposed to protect people, or was he doing this because he genuinely cared for her? For some reason she wanted it to be because he cared for her and not because it was his job.

  As she prepared dinner, Lucas was on her mind. He was probably seated in his car, right? Had he eaten or was he hungry? Since he was here because of her, the least she could do was feed him. Before she could change her mind, she grabbed her phone and called him.

  “Is something wrong?” he asked as soon as he picked the phone.

  “No. I’m fine,” she reassured him. “I was just wondering. Have you eaten?”

  “I was going to order something.”

  “Um…” She hesitated a moment before offering, “Why don’t you come upstairs? I can make something for both of us.”

  He was quiet for such a long while that she thought he’d reject the offer. Fortunately, he said, “Okay.”

  As soon as she ended the call, Jasmine started to second guess herself. Was it okay to eat with him? It would be awkward, right? They hadn’t spent any meaningful time together after their reunion. Eating together would force them to talk, and talking to him didn’t seem like a good idea especi
ally with all the tension simmering between them. Should she retract the invitation?

  The ringing of her doorbell brought her troubled thoughts to a screeching halt.

  “Thanks for inviting me,” Lucas said when she opened the door for him.

  “It was the least I could do.” She led the way to the living room. When he sat down, she asked, “Can I get you something to drink?”

  “What do you have?”

  “I’m not sure. Let me check.” She strode to the kitchen and opened her fridge. Turning to face the living room, she called out, “There’s ginger-ale and fruit juice.”

  Lucas said, “I’ll have the ginger-ale.”

  Once she’d poured him a glass, she carried it to the living room.

  “Thanks,” he said as she set it on the coffee-table.

  “The remote control’s there.” She pointed to it. “Hope you don’t mind entertaining yourself while I cook.”

  “No, I don’t mind.” He smiled at her. “Thank you.”

  For some reason, his smile sent an odd fluttering in her belly. She couldn’t help smiling as she pottered about the kitchen.

  Dinner wasn’t anything fancy. She made a roasted sweet potato dish with a side of baked chicken and vegetables. But to see Lucas devouring it, one would’ve thought that it was the gourmet meal of the century.

  “When did you learn to cook?” He looked up from his plate. His eyes glittering with amusement, he teased, “I remember that you used to even burn water.”

  Jasmine laughed at the memory. “My mom forced me to take classes.”

  The mention of Yolanda was enough to cool the temperature in the room. Lucas was more somber as he asked, “How is she doing?”

  “She’s okay.” Jasmine shrugged. Then because she didn’t feel like talking about her family or anything that might remind them of the pain of the past, she changed the subject. “So how is the case going? I haven’t heard anything since you guys exhumed York’s body. Did the autopsy confirm that it was a murder?”

  Lucas nodded. “It was a murder.”

  “I knew it.” She leaned forward eagerly. “So? Do you have any suspects? Michael Walcott has something to do with it, right?”

  Lucas’s lips lifted in a crooked smile. “I can’t confirm or deny that.”

  She frowned. “Why?”

  “Because I’m the cop and you’re not,” he said. When she gave him a look of disbelief, he said, “We don’t divulge details of cases to civilians. Especially not when they might be suspects.”

  It took a while for her to decipher what he was saying. When she got it, she had to blink. “What? Are you saying I’m a suspect?”

  Lucas didn’t answer but the look he gave her was answer enough.

  Jasmine guffawed. “No way.”

  “Hey, think about it,” Lucas said. “It’s possible. Maybe you two had issues.”

  “Issues like what? You’re crazy.” Jasmine shook her head in disbelief. “I liked York. I’d never kill him.”

  Lucas shrugged. “People who like each other kill each other all the time that’s why love ranks as one of the top motives for murder. If pushed enough, anyone can become a murderer. You included.”

  “I suppose you’re right,” Jasmine admitted reluctantly. She took a bite of her meal before curiosity lifted its head again. “How did you become a cop? You were the last person I imagined as one.”

  “Tell me about it.” He chuckled. “To be honest, that’s part of the reason why I did it.”

  “Because no one expected you to be one?”

  “Yeah.” He nodded. “But the real reason is because it was a natural progression after the army.”

  “Ah! I’d forgotten you were in the army,” Jasmine mumbled.

  The army. The place that he’d disappeared to. Rather than stay with her, he’d chosen to hide in the army where he could get killed. That was just like him. Suddenly, she didn’t feel like asking anymore questions. Fortunately, she was done with her meal.

  She took her plate to the sink then went to the bedroom to shower. When she emerged from her bedroom, she found Lucas washing the dishes.

  “You don’t have to do that,” she protested.

  “You cooked. I should clean,” he offered as he rinsed a plate. “I’m almost done anyway.”

  While he washed up, she headed to the living room.

  He found her there when he was done. He said, “I’ll just head out then.”

  “You’re going.” Instant panic shuttled through Jasmine. As awkward as it was to have Lucas around, she didn’t want him leaving either. She didn’t want to be alone.

  Lucas must have read her panic because he asked, “Don’t you want me to?”

  She didn’t say anything but her silence was answer enough.

  “Okay.” Lucas circled the couch and settled on it.

  “You can sleep here. On the couch,” Jasmine offered as she shot to her feet eagerly. “I’ll get you some covers.”

  Lucas simply nodded.

  It was funny, wasn’t it? That even though Lucas was as close to an enemy as she’d ever had, he was also the only person capable of making her feel safe. Still, she wanted to be able to defend herself, not just depend on him for protection. She brought the covers to the living room.

  “Thanks,” he said as he took the covers.

  She stood watching he spread the covers over the couch before calling out, “Hey, Luc.”

  He looked up. “Yeah?”

  “Could you teach me a few self-defense moves?” She forced a laugh. “I’ve always wanted to learn, and now that you’re here… well.”

  Truth be told, the real reason she wanted to learn was because of everything that had happened with Brando Moore. Before that night, she’d never really thought of her personal security, never imagined that she’d ever be in a position where she needed to defend herself. Even now she couldn’t forget the helplessness that had overwhelmed her when he’d had his hands around her throat, when she’d seen death coming yet had no way of stopping it. She didn’t want to feel like that ever again.

  Lucas seemed to immediately understand what was going on within her because he didn’t ask any questions. He simply nodded then grabbed the coffee-table and carted it to the corner of the room.

  “I can’t teach you everything in one night,” he said as he strode back to her, “but we can start with the simple stuff.”

  “Simple stuff like what?”

  “Like how to get out of an arm grab. Come here.” He gestured for her to come closer. “Grab my wrist. Tightly.”

  As soon as she grabbed his wrist, awareness surged through her. But she didn’t even get to revel in that awareness because within the flash of a second he’d freed his wrist. She didn’t even know how it happened.

  Her eyes wide with surprise, she asked, “How did you do that?”

  “It’s easy.” Lucas grinned. “Take my wrist again.”

  When she took his wrist, he demonstrated while explaining, “Point your elbow up like this, then slice down using your core. It will immediately loosen your opponents grip. Why don’t you try?”

  She was no self-defense genius. It took her a couple of tries to get the move right, but eventually she did. Next he taught her how to get out if grabbed from behind, from a chokehold and if someone grabbed her hair. The brief lesson was interesting enough that she even got him to show her how to get out of zip-ties and a few jujitsu moves.

  “Hah!” She laughed when she easily got out of the chokehold he’d put her into.

  “See, it’s easy.” He grinned proudly. He suddenly came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist.

  Instantly, electric heat flared through her and her breath caught. She could feel the muscles in his chest rippling as they pressed into her back. Had his thighs always been so muscular? They pushed against the back of hers tantalizingly. And they way his arms were right below her breasts… Her breasts started to swell and her nipples puckered in attention.

&n
bsp; Good God! What was he doing to her? Was he doing it deliberately? Breathlessly, she turned her head slightly to check his expression.

  Lucas looked and sounded all business as he urged, “Try to get out of my arms now.”

  Get a grip, Jasmine. It’s just a lesson. She swallowed to get rid of the sudden tightness in her chest before she started to wiggle around in his arms. “Like this?”

  “No, I told you-” Before he could even finish the sentence, she grabbed one of his hands and swung it forcefully away from her body. She then spun around to twist his arm behind his back like he’d taught her.

  “Oh, yeah!” She chuckled gleefully as she forced him to his knees with a jab to his back. “I got- ahh!”

  She screamed when he suddenly grabbed her thigh with one hand and brought her down. It happened so fast that she couldn’t even prevent her fall. Somehow, he managed to grab her waist as she went down so her back didn’t slam into the floor as she fell.

  Then he was over her. His knees were beside her hips as he hovered over her, staring into her eyes. The effect of his eyes on her sucked all the air out of her lungs. The temperature immediately rose between them and she couldn’t help but lick her lips.

  Lucas was still staring at her. His eyes darkened and desire flashed within them. When his gaze lowered to her mouth, she couldn’t stop biting on her bottom lip as a sharp ache shuttled through her, straight to her pussy. Lucas’s eyes darkened even further as if he could see the need that he’d created. Then he started to lower his face. He was going to kiss her. No.

  “Um…” Jasmine immediately scrambled out from under him. “I… I think that’s enough for tonight. Th… thanks.”

  Her face flaming, she raced to her bedroom.

  That was close. Jasmine lay in her bed, staring up at the ceiling and fanning herself. Wow, that had been close. Thank goodness she’d had the good sense to get out of there otherwise it would’ve been a disaster. With their past, kissing was the absolute worst thing they could do.