And she makes incredible money doing it. She’s said that lots of people candoresearch well, but it’s the making sense of it that screws them. Apparently, being an outside source lets her look at the numbers and patterns without the biases the researchers have.
Fuck if I know what she’s talking about, but she’s happy doing it, and she doesn’t have to work face-to-face with people. Honestly, it’s the perfect setup for her. She gives people million-dollar advice wearing footie pajamas with a spiked coffee in hand.
“Are you listening to me?” she asks with a laugh in her voice, “Or were you dreaming about getting DP’d byThe Wonder Boysagain?”
“Isla!” I snort, “No, I was honestly thinking about how perfect your job is for you. Even if it’s boring as all hell.” She smiles, obviously pleased with herself for making me snort with laughter.
“It is great. Boring, but great. Speaking of,” Isla glances at her watch, “I need to head home to get some rest. Idohave to get some work done tomorrow morning.”
I’ll never admit it, but I’m grateful to call it a night. I’m exhausted from all the sex marathons Caspian has put me through, and my body is begging me to bathe and rest for the next few days until they return. I also have, like, 12 hours’ worth of recording to catch up on and a few emails waiting for responses.
We order our cars, pay the tab and start walking out into the frigid air. With one last hug and one last attempt from Isla for me to tell her more about the guys, we part ways.
As soon as I walk in the front door, I kick my shoes off and set my stuff down. After plugging in my phone and shooting a text off to Fritz, I make my way upstairs to shower, taking my sweet time to let the hot water relax me and admiring the countless love bites peppering my skin.
I can’t help but wonder what the guys are doing right now. Did they skip straight to the fucking? Or are they doing romantic stuff? I can’t imagine they’re the types to wine and dine each other, but what do I know? Maybe they’re having a few drinks, chatting, and catching up on all the years they’ve been separated.
As I throw on pj’s and braid my hair back, I find myself wondering if they’re in love. Or were? After a few centuries apart, they’d have to basically start over. Fritz has had several lifetimes to move on, find new lovers, be happy. They seemed pleased to see each other, but both of them were more excited to have me, so maybe they weren’tthatclose.
There’s a small part of me thatisjealous I was excluded, but if this is going to work, they’ll want to have their own time as much as I want one on one time. Thoughmoreparts of me wish they’d call so I could see what they’re doing without me. Or send naughty pictures. I’d take a text full of filthy details, just to help my imagination out a bit.
With thoughts of them and their long, muscular limbs tangled in each other, groaning and sighing in pleasure, I meander over to my office, hoping to find a toy that will almost make up for missing out on this experience with them. I’m so tired, I should just go to bed, but I am who I am. And who I am right now is a horny, needy bitch, so I’m gonna go with it.
Before I can make my choice, I hear a knocking sound.Who could be at the door? It’s almost ten.I start towards the sound, and halfway down the stairs, I hear, “Miss Hart, it’s Officer Taylor… from last week?”
Fuck.
I make my way toward the door and crack it open, seeing the youngest of the officers who checked up on me. I think again that this kid can’t be more than 20 years old, with nearly white blonde hair, blue eyes, and cheeks so round and sweet he looks like a little cherub. “Hi! What can I do for you, officer?” I ask through the slight opening in the door.
“Ma’am, I’m sorry to bother you so late, but we’ve had some developments about the strange occurrences around your home last week.” He pulls at his uniform uncomfortably, wiggling his shoulders, adding, “May I come in? I’d rather not discuss this in the hallway.”
I consider turning him away, but I’m not sure I can afford the kind of attention he would bring if I did. He might show up with a search warrant, and that would absolutely land me in the big house.Are there guts in my freezer? No. There’s not. Right?If I let him in now, I can at least guide him away from the kitchen.
I open the door, moving out of the way so he can enter. He walks in and places his gun holster next to my purse, “I don’t need that here, do I?” he laughs, “This is just a friendly check up.”
Him not having his gun on him does help me breathe easier. I walk towards the couch, hoping he’ll follow, ignoring the comment about needing a firearm here. It wouldn’t help if the guys were here anyway, but that’s probably not something that needs to be said aloud.
I’m still feeling a bit of a buzz, so keeping my mouth shut against my thoughts is probably the safest bet.
“You said there were developments?” I ask, hoping to let him fill the silence.
“Well, it would appear that some of your neighbors reported an unfamiliar man coming in and out of your apartment around the same time as the disappearing officers and strange noises.” He begins wandering around the living room, looking over my sparse decor.
“Oh?” Of course, people saw Caspian, he’s impossible to miss. But those nosy fucks haveunfamiliarguests all the time, and I’m not spilling their business to a twelve-year-old cop.
“Yes, but most of them… amended their stories a little when we were touching base again since then.” That could be very good or very bad. “They’ve all said that as it turns out,strangenoises leave this apartment every time they see him come and go.” I begin to blush, and he chuckles, “See, that’s what I figured. Nosy neighbors inserting themselves into someone’s dating life.”
“This is so humiliating,” I mutter. Our sex life is so loud that my neighbors are reporting it to the cops? I’m going to have to install soundproofing walls on every surface. “Everyone in the building…” I cover my face with my hands, refusing to even finish that sentence.
I think about what he’s said for another minute, asking, “But you also mentioned the missing officers? What’s the update on them?” Though I’m unsure if I want to know.
“Well… They- I probably shouldn’t be telling you this, but I want to assure you that you and your neighbors are safe. There were remains found in a dumpster a few blocks down. Two men, wearing police uniforms. It would appear that they were parading as officers, so it can only be assumed that they stole those uniforms from the missing men.”
“Jesus.” He flinches at my use of the curse.Oops, religious type.In a small voice, I add, “Sorry. Didn’t mean to offend.”
He turns toward me and shrugs nonchalantly, but I can still see barely concealed fury across his features. Through gritted teeth, he states, “My faith is not everyone’s, so I cannot expect you to abide by not using His name in vain. Though I wouldappreciateit if you tried while in my presence.”
I nod, standing. Goosebumps break out along my skin at the officer’s reaction to something as small as a curse word, and I know I need to get rid of him immediately, “Of course. Now, if that’s all, officer, it’s late and I was just about to go to sleep.” As I start walking towards the exit, he follows behind me. Right as I’m about to reach out and open the door, I realize he left a huge part of the story out, and I ask, “How did the guys posing as officers die?”
