Chapter 14
Ashley had always been a force to be reckoned with, and it appeared time hadn’t mellowed her one bit. She’d convinced Emily to call me, then insisted I sleep on her couch. I’d never admit it to them, but a sleepless night on Ashley’s couch sounded way better than a sleepless night in my SUV.
It was going to be a long night and my bladder already felt like it held my body weight in coffee, so it’d be nice to have a bathroom nearby.
I’d probably help myself to some of the left Chinese food they’d offered earlier. Meg had packed a sandwich and some snacks, but it wasn’t enough to get me through an overnight shift. In her defense, she would have packed more if she’d known I’d be staying. I’d been up since six-thirty that morning and knew I’d need more food and coffee to stay awake. I’m not as young as I used to be. Overnight stakeouts after a full day in the office weren’t as easy as they used to be.
I rang the bell so Ashley could buzz me in. She was waiting at the door when I got off the elevator, waving like a maniac.
I held back my laugh as I waved back. I ushered her inside, then closed and locked the door behind us before saying, “Thanks.”
Ashley pushed me towards the couch. “Your bed for the evening thir.”
I didn’t bother hiding my amusement. I was pretty sure she was trying to sound like a butler and failing miserably. Partly because she was slurring her words, partly because she was wobbly on her feet, and partly because she couldn’t stop giggling. Neither of them could. They reminded of Madi’s slumber parties when we were kids.
“Thanks Ash,” then I remembered and corrected myself, “Ashley.” I gave her a quick half bow, which set off another giggling fit. My God, they’re like a couple of teenagers tonight. Then I smiled; Emily needed a night like this. No worries, no fear, just fun.
I tried not to notice how cute Emily looked in Ashley’s pajamas. At least I assumed they were Ashley’s since Emily hadn’t planned on staying the night. The bright pink shorts and matching tank top had cute little designs all over them. The shorts showed off Emily’s lean legs. Muscular, but not too bulky. Sexy. Shit, I shouldn’t be thinking about her legs. It’s better than thinking about her small, firm breasts pushing against the thin fabric. I shifted my stance to hide the uncomfortable evidence of my reaction to her. Get your head in the game, Sheppard!
Emily blushed. Shit. She’d noticed me staring.
Ashley broke the silence, which couldn’t have been more than a few seconds, but felt like a lifetime. “Come on, Em, let’s give your hot bodyguard some privacy.” She grabbed Emily’s arm and turned her down the hall towards the bedrooms. They skipped arm in arm, or tried to—they bumped into the walls a lot. I heard Ashley’s loud whisper. “If we’re lucky, he sleeps naked.”
“You suck at whispering Ash.” I laughed as I used her old nickname, just to be a wiseass.
“I wasn’t trying to whisper, James.” She called back over her shoulder.
Touché. She knew I”d never liked being called James, it always felt too formal, too stiff.
I set my phone alarm to go off every sixty minutes, it wasn’t my intention to fall asleep, but I was only human. After setting the alarm on vibrate so it wouldn’t accidentally wake the girls, I turned the TV on, lowed the volume, and watched old sitcoms to pass the time. I’d dozed off a few times throughout the night and was grateful I’d set my alarm. I wasn’t worried about taking cat-naps, knowing I was between the door and Emily and would wake up at the slightest wound, but after his stunt at her apartment, I didn”t want to risk sleeping too long or too soundly.
Around six-thirty, I started a fresh pot of coffee. By that point, I’d been up for over twenty-four hours and was in desperate need of a cup. While it brewed, I searched the fridge for something I could make for breakfast. Emily and Ashley would need something greasy when they got up. Unless they were still drunk, which could very well be the case. They’d had a lot to drink last night. Unfortunately, Ashley’s kitchen was pretty bare bones. Apparently, she doesn’t like to cook.
There were a few eggs and some cheese in the fridge and I lucked out when I found a pound of bacon in the freezer. Perfect hangover food. I put the bacon in the sink to thaw, then poured myself a coffee and checked my emails. I’d emailed Meg at the office after texting Jack last night, wanting there to be an official record of the overnight stay at Ashley’s. It didn’t affect billing since we were providing round-the-clock coverage, and I was volunteering my time, but I’d always been detailed oriented and was a stickler for keeping accurate records.
I checked the clock: seven-thirty. I didn’t expect the girls to wake up for a while, but I was hungry, so I started frying the bacon. The thick, rich smell quickly filled the tiny kitchen. I ate a slice while I cooked the second batch. While the last pan of bacon was sizzling, I scrambled some eggs, then cooked them in the bacon grease, sprinkling on some grated parmesan cheese. I’d offer to replace the food I cooked this morning, though I didn’t think Ashley would mind since I’d feed them, too.
I’d just sat down to eat at the bar separating the kitchen from the living room when I heard groaning coming from the hallway. I stood up and checked to see who it was.
“Morning Ashley. How’re you feeling?”
She lifted her head and grunted at me. Her hair was a rat’s nest, and her eye makeup was smudged, giving her a raccoon mask.
“I made coff-.”
She perked up as she cut me off. “Do I smell bacon?” Her voice was deep and scratchy.
“You do. I can cook you some eggs too, if you want.”
“Marry me.” She said as she walked by me, rubbing her temples.
I followed her to the kitchen and watched her pour herself a huge mug of hot coffee. Her large yellow mug had a smiley face on it, in complete contrast to the grumpy expression she currently wore. She inhaled deeply, her nose almost touching the dark liquid. “Mmm, Thanks.”
“You’re welcome.” I grabbed the eggs from the refrigerator and turned around to find Ashley sitting in my chair, eating my breakfast. I chuckled; apparently, she couldn’t wait.
She looked up sheepishly. “Oops,” she circled the fork over the plate, “was this yours?” I couldn’t help but notice she’d used the past tense. If I wanted my breakfast back, I’d have to fight her for it. Not that I would, it was her food.
“Eat up. I’ll make more.” I grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge and put it down in front of her. “Drink this.”
She shoved another bite into her mouth, then thanked me around a mouthful of eggs.
I cooked more eggs and topped off my coffee. We ate in silence, except for the occasional happy moan Ashley made every couple of bites.
“I almost feel human again.” Ashley leaned back and finished her bottle of water. “Aspirin should fix the rest.”
“I’m surprised you’re up this early. I expected the two of you to sleep in for a few more hours.”
“Em might, she’s a lightweight, but not me, I do this all the time.” She glanced up at me and backtracked. I wasn’t judging, but she felt the need to explain, anyway. “Not get crazy drunk, but I drink often enough that I’ve built up a tolerance over the years. Don’t judge.”
“No judgement.” I raised my hands in surrender. “I’m just glad it was here and not at a club where it’d be harder to keep an eye on her.”
“Is she really in danger? I mean, I know you’re all afraid Asshat Craig might come after her, but how realistic is that?”
I grinned, loving the nickname they’d given Emily’s ex.
“It’s hard to say, but based on his history of drunken violence, we’re assuming it’s likely.” I couldn’t tell her anymore than that without violating our client confidentiality agreement. Besides, it was Emily’s place to tell her, not mine. Though it was safe to assume Emily had already told her some of what had happened.
“So you probably wouldn’t approve of me dragging her out to go dancing one night.”
“It’s my job to keep her safe, not to tell her what to do” I sipped my coffee and thought about how much I’d hate it if she went out dancing. I don’t think I can handle watching guys hit on her. “It might make our job a little more difficult, but we can handle it.”
“So it wouldn’t bother you if I took her out and tried to hook her up with some hot guy in tight jeans for the night?”
I almost spit out my coffee. “Jesus Ash. No, it wouldn’t bother me.” So why did I feel like I was lying? The thought of Emily going out and meeting people, men, shouldn’t bother me. She’s an intelligent, beautiful woman, and she deserves to have fun. Just not with hot guys. No, that’s none of my business. She can do whatever she wants. And she should. She should totally go out and have some fun. I could feel my shoulders tightening as I thought about some guy grinding up against her.
“Riiiiight.” She drew it out while nodding her head slowly. “You’re not a very good liar, Jamie.”
“Just thinking about the logistics of providing protection in a loud and noisy nightclub, that’s all.” I lied, again, as I got up and cleared our dishes, hoping she’d drop the subject. I didn’t want to think about how I reacted to Emily. And I sure as hell didn’t want to think about how strongly I felt about breaking the arms off any random guy who touched her.
“Lucky for you, she’s not interested in going out.” She paused for dramatic effect. “At least not yet.”
I didn’t give her the satisfaction of getting a rise out of me. Instead, I grabbed the coffeepot and refilled my mug, then held it up in her general direction. “Refill?”
“Yes please. Anyone ever tell you you’d make a great housewife?”
I almost choked on my spit when I laughed. “No, they haven’t. Though Isabelle used to tell me I was a great husband.”
“I bet you were.” Her tone turned more serious. “I’m sorry about Isabelle, Jamie. I didn’t mean to remind you of your loss.”
“Thanks. It’s getting a little easier to talk about her as time passes.” I hadn’t meant to drag the conversation down with my confession.
“Hot and sensitive, you’ll be a great catch for some lucky woman.” She grinned before taking a sip of her coffee. “When you’re ready.”
“Thanks.” I laughed. I was about to ask her how things were going with her when my phone buzzed. It was Chris, wanting to know how Emily was doing. I sent a quick reply, assuring him she was still sleeping, safe and sound, and said I’d check in when we got back to Weatherford. Then I called Jack and asked him to rearrange the schedule. The morning shift was due to start soon, but I’d be covering until Emily got home.
When I asked him for an update, he said, “Doug’s reviewing the surveillance footage around Emily’s office to see if Craig has shown up. So far nothing.”
“Good. Let me know if he sees anything.”
“Yes, sir.” I could almost see his salute. “How’s Emily this morning?”
“Still sleeping it off.”
“Tell your hottie, baby brother I said Hi.” Ashley was waving her arm back and forth like a maniac.
“Ashley says hi.”
She rolled her eyes at me when I refused to finish her message.
“Tell her your hottie baby brother says hi back.” I heard him laughing as I relayed an abbreviated version of his message, edited for my sanity.
Then I remembered I was supposed to make breakfast for Meg. “Shit, tell Meg I’m sorry about breakfast. I’ll make it up to her.”
“Oh, she knows and be prepared, because you’ll be making banana chocolate chip pancakes for the foreseeable future.” My predicament clearly amused him.
“Do I need to go shopping on my way home or do we have everything I’ll need?”
“Nope. Meg stocked up on pancake supplies last night. She didn’t want you to have any more excuses.”
“Surely keeping a client safe is an acceptable excuse.” I chuckled.
“She’s more than a client, and you know it.”
“I didn’t mean Emily.” Damn it, I gave myself away. Trying to cover my tracks, I added, “It was a general statement about the only acceptable reason to skip out on making breakfast for Meg.” I heard someone talking to Jack in the background.
“Dad says to take the rest of the day off and get some rest before your shift tonight. Just let us know what needs to get done today.”
“Thanks man. I’ll do what I can while I’m here and let you know.”
“No problem. Later Bro.” Jack said before hanging up.
Well, that didn’t go as expected. Jack was too perceptive for his own good. And while it made Jack a brilliant investigator, our best in fact, it annoyed the hell out of me when I was on the receiving end. He was smart, quick-witted, and perceptive. Qualities he chose to mostly ignore while in high school, but not only embraced but honed to a sharp edge when he was in the Army. If I was being honest with myself, I was a little jealous of his ability to think outside the box. I wasn’t stupid or unobservant, but I generally thought inside the box.
I turned around when I heard Emily shuffling down the hallway. She looked miserable. Then again, who wouldn’t? Nasty hangovers had a way of doing that to a person.
“Good morning Emily.” She lifted her hand to wave but didn’t follow through, letting it fall instead. “I made coffee, eggs, and bacon if you want-”
She put her hand on her stomach and moaned. “Maybe just coffee and water for now.” She sat down next to Ashley. “Why’d I let you talk me into drinking so much?”
Ashley got up and poured her a cup of coffee. “Do you still take cream and sugar? And don’t blame me, you brought two bottles.”
“Cream only. Thanks.”
Now that I knew Emily was okay, I could go back to my SUV. I needed to get some work done, and I was supposed to be watching from a distance, not hovering over her shoulder.
“Excuse me ladies, I’m going back downstairs. Call if you need anything.”
“Aren’t you going to make Emily breakfast?”
“She said she didn’t want any.” I answered Ashley, then turned my attention to Emily and offered again. “I can cook you some eggs if you want.”
“That’s okay. I’m not ready to eat yet.” Her voice sounded shaky.
“Alright. Let me know when you’re ready to leave.”
“Thanks.”
“You’re welcome.” I turned to Ashley. “Can you lock the door behind me.” It wasn’t a suggestion.
“Yes, sir.” She stood up and saluted.
Why does everyone feel the need to salute me?
When we got to the door, I handed her my card. “Emily isn’t looking so good. Call me if she gets worse or if she needs anything.”
“I’m sure she’ll be fine after she eats and takes some aspirin. She won’t be doing cartwheels or anything, but she’ll be functional.”
“I hope so.” It crossed my mind that I might need to drive her home and come back later to get her car.
I opened the door and turned to remind Ashley to lock the door, but she beat me to it.
“I know. I know. Lock the door.” Her eye roll was less than subtle.
Emily didn’t feel any better two hours later, when I went upstairs to use the bathroom, but kept insisting she was okay to drive. I took one look at her and couldn’t, in good conscience, let her. After several minutes of arguing, I put my foot down and made it clear I wouldn’t let her drive home.
“Your options are to stay here a while longer, or let me drive you home. I can pick up your car later.”
She crossed her arms over her chest and kept arguing. “This is stupid. How will I get my car home?”
“One of the guys will help me. You don’t need to worry, just let me take care of the logistics. You’re not looking so good.” Emily glared at me with blood-shot eyes. That didn’t win me any brownie points. “Please Emily, I’m worried about you driving.”
Recognizing she needed me to ask, not demand; I changed tactics. “Let me help you. Please?”
“But…”
Not wanting to argue anymore, I asked, “Would you feel better if I billed you for the extra travel expenses?” I wouldn’t, but I needed her to quit arguing so I could get her home safely. And so I could go home and get some much needed sleep.
I could see her contemplating her options as she stared at me. “I guess so. But it still seems stupid to me. I’m perfect-”
“Then it’s agreed. I’ll drive you home and come back later to get your car.”
“What if I need my keys?” She stood up too quickly and wobbled on her feet. She tried to pretend it hadn’t happened, but I raised my eyebrow to let her know I saw it.
It was a valid question. “Do you have a spare set at your parent’s house?” She nodded. That made it easy. “I’ll have Doug pick up your spare set. Can you let your parents know it’s okay to give them to him?” I could pick up the keys myself when I dropped her off, but I didn’t want to get delayed by her parents.
“Sure.” She sounded like an annoyed teenager, but at least she’d stopped arguing.
“Thank you.” I thought about reminding her this was for the best, but kept my mouth shut. I didn’t think she wanted to hear it. We said goodbye to Ashley, who had been shockingly quiet while Emily and I sorted out the ride home situation. Which was good, I didn’t need her riling Emily up.
We didn’t talk for the first thirty minutes of the ride. I had the radio on but turned down low so it wouldn’t add to her headache. Not liking the silence, I attempted to start a casual conversation, only to have her grumble in response. I told myself it wasn’t personal, but it still sucked. I’d thought she’d fallen asleep, with her head resting against the window, until I heard her sniffle.
“Emily, are you okay?” It was a stupid question, but I didn’t know what else to ask.
“I’m fine.” Her clipped reply made it obvious she was not fine.
“Look, I know you’re upset with me because I didn’t want you driving home in your condition.”
“My condition?” She whipped her head around too fast and closed her eyes while she steadied herself. “I’m hungover, not dying.” Her voice was barely above a whisper.
I only want to help. Why was she being so stubborn?
“Yes, hungover. So much so that you made yourself dizzy just by turning to look at me. That could go bad fast on the road.” I tried to reason with her.
“You’re treating me like a child.” I saw her wipe her cheeks from the corner of my eye. “Reporting my every move to Chris, and my parents, not letting me drive, telling me what to do.”
“What? What are you talking about?” I’d checked in with Chris once, to tell him Emily was staying at Ashley’s for the night, but hadn’t said anything else.
“Did you tell Chris I was too drunk to drive home last night?”
“All I told Chris was that you were having such a great time that you thought it’d be easier to stay at Ashley’s rather than come home late. I didn’t mention the drinking.”
Her beautiful, blue, bloodshot eyes opened wide as she realized her mistake. “Oh. I, um, I’m sorry.” She looked out the window.
“It’s okay.” It wasn’t. I didn’t like the idea of her thinking I was like her ex. Not even a little.
I broke the silence after a few minutes, it was still bothering me she thought I was treating her like a child. I remembered Meg complaining about the same thing whenever Jack got too protective or “all bossy” as she liked to call it. He thought he was doing the right thing and being helpful, but she thought he was being overbearing and pushy. I didn’t want Emily to feel that way.
“Emily.” I waited for her to look at me. “I’m sorry if I seemed pushy about driving you home. Maybe I’m being selfish, but I don’t think I could handle watching you get in a car wreck, knowing I could have prevented it.” There I said it. It was as much about me, and my fears, as it was about her.
Her eyes opened wide as she realized the depth of my fear. “I’m sorry Jamie. I didn’t think about that.” She sighed. “I guess I’m just tired of someone telling me what to do all the time.”
“I can understand that.” There was so much more I wanted to say, but I couldn’t sort through it all. “I’ll try to be less bossy in the future.” I looked back over at her. “Forgive me?”
She smiled. “Yeah, I forgive you.” She reached over and patted my hand. The warmth of her touch lingered after she pulled it away. “Thanks.”
“You’re welcome.”