19. Chapter 19
Six months later…
Taking a sip of wine, Melanie looked around the restaurant. They rarely got dressed up to go out for fancy meals. Levi had been insistent about this though. Wanting to make him happy because he never really asked for anything, she had agreed. Fettuccina was one of the DeLaney restaurants, but it was one of the few five stars in Berkland. For good reason. The wine was divine, the service impeccable, and the food was so delicious the waiting list was months long. It wasn’t a mystery how Levi got the table. The genuine mystery was why they were here. And why he looked like at any minute, he was going to start sweating.
“Are you ok?” She asked because she couldn’t take it anymore.
“I’m great, why?” He was picking at his tie and glancing around from table to table. That was not great in her opinion.
“Let me rephrase the question, why do you look like you’re going to either pass out or vomit?” When she grabbed his hand, he clutched it tightly. That was cause enough for concern. Then it hit her. She looked at him in surprise. “If you’re going to propose, don’t. Not here.”
His eyes looked panicked. “What?”
Their waiter came to the table, interrupting her. “Have you made a decision for your main course?”
This was her chance to save them both. “Yes. I’m actually not feeling well. Can we just get the check?”
He looked between them and practically bored holes into Levi, waiting to be stopped. Levi said nothing though. “The bill has been paid for the evening. Tip too.” Of course Andrea would do that.
“Then we’ll be going. My apologies. Thank you.” She stood up and pulled on Levi’s hand. Something in him snapped. He put a hand on her back to lead her out of the restaurant. They stopped at the coat check and she only slipped hers over her shoulders while Levi put his on. It was February and there was still snow on the ground. She was more worried about her feet being cold than her body.
Outside, he took a deep breath and pulled on his tie to loosen it with his free hand. “Wait,” he said, pulling her closer. “I wasn’t going to propose.”
“Then what was that?” She needed to know. His behavior was confusing her.
“I was going to ask if you want to move in together.”
She looked around the sidewalk at the people passing them by and laughed. All this just to ask her to live together? He had almost given her a heart attack over something they were pretty much already doing.
He looked at her with his eyebrows all scrunched together. “Are you laughing at me?”
“No,” she shook her head and smiled up at him, “I’m laughing in relief. But yes, you were practically sweating bullets in there. Five-star restaurant. Fancy clothes. You were nervous. That screams proposal!”
He shook his head and moved them to the valet stand. After he gave the guy the ticket, he looked at her again. “You know you make me nervous sometimes, Mel. It’s hard to explain…” When he sighed and looked away, she felt bad. All he’d been trying to do was something nice for her and she ruined all the big plans he put into place. Then she laughed at him. She felt like an asshole. But she didn’t want to have this conversation on the sidewalk with all the world to hear.
After they were on the road, she put a hand on his leg. “Levi, I’m sorry.”
“It’s fine.”
“It’s not. Let me explain.” The last thing she wanted was to push him away because of this. “I want to move in together, that sounds great. We spend almost every night together anyway.”
“But…” He glanced over at her while he drove. He was still upset though.
“No but about that. I want to move in with you.” She squeezed his leg. “I know you saw the test in my purse the other day when you were looking for my keys.”
He sighed and looked behind them then pulled over on the side of the road. When he put the car in park, it took everything she had to not pry his hands off the wheel and hold on to them. “I did.” Finally he covered her hand with his on his leg. “You still haven’t started.”
“I’m not pregnant. Yes, I’m late, but I went to the doctor yesterday. Birth control can sometimes stop a period. That’s what this is.”
The look of relief but also sadness in his eyes made her smile at him. His eyes were always sure to show her what he was thinking even when he kept his other features guarded. “Oh.”
“Yeah. So I thought you thought I was pregnant and were asking me to marry you tonight.” She pulled his hand over the console into her lap and laced their fingers together. “Were you really not going to?”
This time when he sighed, he let out a half laugh. “I was but then you sounded panicked so I just thought of the first thing I could. I want to live together though.”
He was a good man, just trying to do the ‘right’ thing. She loved him for it. This wasn’t how she wanted it to happen though. “I should’ve told you that night you found it that the test was negative. I’m sorry.”
“If it was negative, why still go to the doctor?”
“Because I needed to be sure.” Her sister had done ten tests at home the last time that she was pregnant. All were negative. Then she wound up being four months in by the time they convinced her to go to the doctor. “I love you, Levi. And I know you love me. We don’t have to rush, and I don’t want you to feel pressured.”
He laughed again and turned to look out the window. “I was excited, you know?”
Her heart ached for him. All the loss he’d experienced in his life was more than anyone should ever have to.
“Scared as fuck, but excited to have a kid with you. Someone who’s my blood.”
She couldn’t fault him for that. “Look at me for a second,” she whispered. When he did, he looked conflicted. “I want that too, just not at this very moment. Soon, but on our own time. Not rushed or hurried just to fill a void.”
Now he just looked confused. “You said you were in a better place. That the therapy was helping?”
“It is. And I am.” She shook her head and struggled for the right words. “Let’s just take a breath because this conversation is going a way I wasn’t prepared for.” There were things she wasn’t ready to admit in a car on the side of the road.
“Ok. Take a minute while I drive you home.” He pulled his hand back to shift but then offered it to her again. That was a good sign. The whole way she held onto it tight with both hands.
Somehow she had to figure out a way to explain without them having the same conversation they’d already had a million times before. Kenneth Grand and what he did to her were not the reason for anything anymore. She wasn’t traumatized or scared to live for fear that someone else would stalk her. What she had always failed to communicate properly was that she had always had a plan. But that plan failed. Somehow she ended up on a whole different path. It was a path she loved, but it wasn’t the path. Letting go of that and not being able to control her world were hard for her.
They were pulling into the parking lot when his phone rang through the speakers. Mean Lady flashed on the screen of the radio and made her smile. Levi never put people’s names in his phone in case it was ever lost.
“Hello.”
“I know I’m interrupting date night, but we’ve got a problem,” Scarlett said.
“What kind of problem?”
“The kind that isn’t for the phone. How fast can you be here?”
“Fifteen.”
The line disconnected. Apparently that was good enough. He pulled up to the front door. “I’m sorry.”
“It’s fine. When you get done, come back here. It doesn’t matter what time it is, ok?”
“Ok,” he said with a nod.
She didn’t like that he was leaving while feeling uncertain. That could lead to poor decisions. “We’re good and I’m good. Please be safe,” she whispered and leaned across the console to kiss him.
His fingers and palm cupped her cheek, pulling her closer. “I’m always safe, cupcake.” He always said that. She didn’t believe it for a second, but she nodded anyway. That was their routine.
“Love you.”
“Love you,” he said and kissed her again.
Inside her apartment, she took off her dress and hung it up. Then she brushed out her hair and took off her makeup. In a pair of sweats and with a big glass of wine, she took her laptop to the couch. While she waited, she was going to look at real estate. If they were going to move in together, this apartment wasn’t big enough. Levi’s wasn’t right either. They needed a place for both of them. Where they could also have space for their own stuff.
At HQ, he hurried up to the eighth floor and into the Intelligence Command Center. He’d named it that way so no one could ever confuse it with the Control Room just below them. “What’s going on?”
“We don’t know. She’s in your office.”
Levi looked at the screens with camera feeds to see nothing out of the ordinary. “Nothing is happening?”
“Not that we can see.”
He turned and walked out. Right down the hall at the corner of their bullpen area, he pushed the door to his office open. Scarlett was sitting on his desk facing the door with her feet in one of the guest chairs. “Make yourself at home,” he said, not appreciating the fact that she was in here waiting on him.
Instead of answering, she held out a photo to him.
“What’s this?” He took it and looked at it. There was a man laying on the ground dead. His pockets were turned out like the killer had robbed him. Other than that, it looked like a mugging gone wrong. He looked up at Scarlett.
“His name is—was Vincent. I need you to find out who killed him.”
Now he was thoroughly confused. “What about the police?”
“Fuck the police investigation. Perkins will help you, its his case, but they don’t have shit and we need answers. He was killed four hours ago.”
Levi held his hands up in front of him. “Ok. Who is he to us?” Because he sure as fuck didn’t recognize him.
“Victor’s brother.”
“Well, shit.”
“Exactly.”
“Does he know?” That couldn’t be good either way. Victor didn’t have any other living family. Just a brother who didn’t even live here.
“The Boss is telling him with Perkins right now in her office. As you know, we get copied on all homicides. She recognized him and called Perkins because he was listed as a John Doe.”
Levi leaned against the wall and shook his head. “Of course she did.”
“Get to work. Anything you need outside of what you already have—resources, money, whatever—it’s yours.” She stood up off the desk and brushed her hands against her legs. “The second you know something I want to know.”
“Sure.” After she was gone, he took a breath and pulled out his phone. There was no sense in Melanie waiting up on him or waking up in the morning only to find that he wasn’t there.
“Hey, that was quick,” she said when she answered.
“Im not done. Actually, there’s a good chance I’m not gonna be done at all tonight. Didn’t want you waiting up.”
“Oh…”
He sat down in his chair and flipped on his computer. At least he could look at the report that got all this started before he took off to see if he could find anything. “It’s not because I’m avoiding you. Victor’s brother was killed.”
“That’s terrible.”
“It is.”
“Will you check in with me later? Even if it’s just a text so I know you’re ok.” Since she was taken, Melanie had become slightly more dependent on wanting someone to check on her. Even if she said it was so she knew he was safe, really he knew it was so someone would know she was. He would always give her that.
“Yeah, cupcake. Just text me when you see it. I gotta go.”
“Ok be careful, Levi.”
“Always.”
He waited for her to hang up first, then started typing. It was nine, almost ten. That meant Vincent had been killed in broad daylight. Somewhere, someone knew something. He just needed to find it.
It was two in the morning when Levi texted her. She shoved a bite of ice cream in her mouth and kept the spoon there while she read it.
I hope you’re sleeping. If not, I could use some motivation.
She smiled around the spoon. That was her boyfriend. Always trying to get her to send something dirty just because he thought she was a prude. She wasn’t a prude, just a lady with morals and standards…most of the time.
And what would motivate you?
She took another bite before putting the carton on the coffee table. There were a couple of good houses she’d found, but also two bigger apartments. Buying a house was a commitment. She could do it on her own. That wasn’t what this was about though. If they were really going to do this, they needed to be sure.
What are you wearing? ;)
It made her laugh out loud. With a shake of her head, she typed back.
Baggy sweats and one of your shirts.
They’d played this game before. Sometimes, he would leave her on read though because something else came up.
That’s my favorite. You know why?
Why?
Because those sweats let me touch you without having to get them off.
She smirked and took a deep breath. Before all the drama at the restaurant she had been thinking that at the very least, she was going to get laid tonight. Now, who knew when he would be done with work. The entire weekend was probably going to be spent alone. Maybe she should just take her mom up on the offer to go out to the house. It could be a distraction if nothing else.
Remember last month, when you did me against your desk with my skirt still on?
That was hot. Even for her.
How could I forget? It was the first time you screamed for me.Still can’t believe you were in there waiting for me with no panties on. God you’re so hot.
It made her blush just thinking about it. The cry had left her lips against her will. Knowing they were having sex at work—which she’d never done before. People could probably hear them. That her clothes were still on. The way Levi had held her neck and hair while he moved inside of her and whispered in her ear. It was one of the best sexual experiences she’d had.
Do you want me to bring you clothes in the morning?
If they didn’t stop, then his mind was going to go to places it didn’t need to while he was working. Or she was going to have to dig out that toy she’d hid away since getting together with him.
I’ve got some extras here, but I’ll always take a break to see you.
She was going to take him some clothes anyway. The ones he had at the office were mostly dress clothes in case he needed them. For the weekend, casual would be better.
Your office around eight.
Get some sleep, cupcake.
She put the phone down and laid back on the couch. The part that she didn’t like about his job wasn’t even the fact that he could get shot or killed. It was the late and lonely nights. They didn’t happen all that often, but when they did, it just left her feeling cold and alone.