Which begs the question…is undercover work really what I want to spend the rest of my career doing? I already don’t have time for a relationship as it is, and this job makes it almost impossible. If, and when, I go on another job, I’ll have to leave Jordan behind without contact for long periods of time. Is that something I want to do?
I decide it’s time to call the two people I trust the most in the world.
“Hello?” My mother’s voice fills the car as she answers my call on the first ring.
“Hey, mom.”
“Mijo, are you okay?” She sounds worried. I never call my parents on a job, but they know to expect the unexpected and are always prepared. “Let me get your dad.”
“Son, what’s wrong?” my dad asks a moment later.
“Nothing. I’m fine. You don’t need to worry. I just…I just needed to talk to you guys.”
“You never need to ‘just talk to us’ tell me what’s wrong, mi cariño,” the term of endearment rolls off her tongue like I’m five not thirty.
I decide to rip the Band-Aid off. “I met someone.”
There’s a long pause on their end and then my dad says, “Halle-fucking-lujah.” My mom curses at him in Spanish and I chuckle.
“Tell us about her,” my mom says.
And I do. I tell them about Jordan’s strong will, her beautiful laugh, her bravery…everything. By the time I’m done speaking, I think I’ve shocked them speechless.
It’s my mom who speaks first. “You’re in love with her.”
I swallow hard. Because I know the answer, I just haven’t voiced it out loud yet. It seems quick to fall in love with someone, but how would I know? I’ve never been in love before.
“It’s too fast,” I tell them.
My dad’s the one who chimes in next. “Son, I fell in love with your mother the first time I laid eyes on her and told her the same day. Sometimes it happens like that, sometimes it doesn’t. But love doesn’t have a timeline. When you know, you know. And maybe that’s the Italian in me. We love hard and fast. I was always taught there’s no need to waste time when you know exactly what you want.”
“Call us old fashioned but you kids these days will take ten years to date before you realize that you should marry each other, why? Why waste time like that?” my mom says.
“I don’t think I can have this job if I chose her,” I tell them my predicament.
“Oh…so that’s what this is about. I would be lying if I said you were wrong. Your father and I got lucky, being in the same police department and having similar schedules. It wasn’t always easy, but we also didn’t do undercover work like you.”
“Think of it this way son, ten years from now, are you going to be completely fulfilled with work being your wife? There are other avenues you can take that will still use your skill set and give you the flexibility to have a life. We know how important your job is to you, but we’ve always wondered if you did it because of us…” he leaves the statement open-ended, giving me time to think.
A part of me knows I became a cop because of them. I wanted to make a difference, just like my parents did. And alongthe way I fell in love with the job. But the job has left me longing for more. I can’t have a normal life doing this kind of work, but I knew that going into it. I just didn’t think along the way I would find someone that I cared about as much as I care about Jordan. I have a lot to think about.
A ping comes in on my phone, signaling a text message.
“I have to go. I love you guys.”
“Stay safe,” my dad says, and I hang up the phone.
I look at my phone, thinking Emmett is texting me about work, but no, it’s a text from Jordan.
I open the message and am greeted with a photo. Not just any photo. A photo of Jordan lying on the bed, angled from the front. Only half of her face is visible and the curve of her back to her naked ass is showing.
I instantly get hard and press the call button.
She waits until the fourth ring before answering. “Hello?” Her voice is shaky like she’s nervous.
“What the hell do you think you’re doing,” I growl, adjusting myself in my pants.
“Oh shit…you don’t like it do you?” She’s panicking and I hear her whisper something along the lines of, “I fucking knew this was a terrible idea.”
