He scanned the room for others, but there was only the fat man on the couch. So, he approached with his weapon trained. When he was close enough, he was able to identify the man as their target. He kicked his leg.
“Get up!” he shouted.
Kane snorted mid-snore. His eyes blinked open for no more than a second before his lids closed again. Nick kicked him again a bit harder.
“Get your fat ass up!” he demanded.
Kane’s eyes flew open. “What the fuck?”
Panic flickered in his eyes when he realized what was happening. He raised his hands in surrender.
“Search warrant,” Nick repeated.
* * *
Nick leanedagainst the doorjamb and watched his team as they completed the process of arresting Kane and inventorying the half key of dope found in his freezer.
Although they were able to get a drug dealer off the street, he couldn’t hide his disappointment from not locating Boogie. After a brief interrogation, they found out he’d shown up right after his escape from the hospital. But according to Kane, he kicked him out when he found out he was a fugitive, telling him that he didn’t need the kind of heat Boogie would bring.
He was right.
Nick scratched his arm and then his head. He’d been scratching at imaginary roaches since they’d left Kane’s roach-infested duplex.
“Aye! I’m outta here. When you finish processing, you guys can take off,” he told his team from the doorway.
They rumbled their appreciation for the early dismissal and continued their paperwork. Since they were able to leave once they were done, they were surely going to work faster.
“Call me if you need me,” he said over his shoulder as he left the office.
Without haste, he made his way out of the building and to his car. Since Rebecca’s loft was closer to where he worked, and he had a bag of clean clothes there, he planned to shower there. He needed to convince his mind that there were no roaches crawling on him. Only soap and water could do that.
12
King
Rebecca rolled over, avoiding the offensive sun that assaulted her through her bedroom window. She squinted at the clock and chuckled when she realized how late she’d slept in.
It was nearly noon. She, Paula, and Nick had enjoyed great dinner conversation, delicious food, and a large amount of wine. Nick enjoyed beer. Since they’d stayed up until nearly 2 o’clock in the morning, Rebecca felt a little guilty that she was able to sleep in while Nick had to be at work so early.
She was tempted to go back to sleep, but her bladder wouldn’t allow it. She flung the comforter from her body and willed herself to sit upright. Her thick, curly hair rested in her face as she sat or ratherslouchedon the edge of her bed. Eventually, she pushed herself up and padded to the en suite bathroom.
After sitting for what had to be the longest pee in history, Rebecca washed her face and hands and brushed her teeth. She thought of grabbing a robe before leaving the bathroom but remembered that Nick had to work. Since she had the place to herself, she could walk freely in her satin camisole and matching shorts.
Rebecca reentered her bedroom and grabbed a hamper filled with dirty clothes. She carried it down to the guest bathroom. She grabbed a dirty hand towel from the rack and tossed it in the hamper. She continued down the hall to the guest bedroom that Nick was occupying. When she entered the room, she noted how clean he kept it. It was as if no one slept in there at all. She went to the bathroom to gather the dirty towels and replace them with fresh ones before Nick returned in the evening. But when she opened the bathroom door and entered, she found much more than dirty towels.
CATO
Nick sighed, relieved by the feeling of cleanliness. He’d washed the filth of the roach-infested dope house from his skin.
He turned the water off. Cool air kissed his skin when he opened the shower door. Unfortunately, the cool air that touched his skin did nothing to calm the erection that had grown as soon as the water had touched his skin. Out of guilt, he’d suffered through the throbbing hard-on, refusing to give himself the relief he so desperately needed.
Nick stepped out onto the bathmat, and again, he had carnal thoughts of Rebecca. The outline of breasts and the peak of her nipples in the tight, pink T-shirt she’d had on the night before had been a distraction. Her full hips in the yoga pants that she often wore around the house kept his eyes glued to her perfectly round ass.
From cooking together in the kitchen to dinner with her friend, the evening had been so carefree and easy. He would never speak the words out loud, but it felt like home. When he closed his eyes, he could picture her sweet doe-eyed gaze and beautiful smile. If he allowed himself to imagine her absent her clothes, it would be so easy to tighten his fingers around his dick and stroke himself to relief. But every time he thought to do so, thoughts of his beautiful wife danced through his mind. Therefore, suffering would be his fate.
He reached for a towel that was hanging on the rack, but before his fingers could graze the fabric, the door flew open. Rebecca entered the bathroom without noticing him. But when she finally looked up from the hamper and her gaze landed on his nakedness, her eyes stretched wide with shock.
“I’m sorry.” She gasped, dropping the hamper to the floor. “I—I… t-thought…. thought… I’m sorry.” She fumbled backward until her back hit the doorjamb. “I thought you were working.”
