Chapter Twenty-six
Chapter Twenty- six
W ren was finishing up her patrol, taking the long way by the high school. The day had been full of domestic disputes and shoplifting calls. She’d arrested two teen girls for stealing lipstick from the supermarket, and when she was putting them in a holding cell, one of them swung her purse, hitting Wren in the head. It was as if there was a full moon coming up, and it was sending everyone into a tizzy of off-the-chart behaviors.
At least tonight she was looking forward to a nice, relaxing bath after she got home. Sam was hanging with his brother, and although he didn’t say he’d be out late, Wren figured they were probably going to take their time catching up. He and Clark hadn’t hung out since the guys had crashed book club, which was over a week ago.
Wren couldn’t believe that Sam had been at her place every night, but even more perplexing was why she hadn’t made him go home after the deed was done.
The simple answer was, she wanted Sam with her. When they slept and he cradled her against his body, she’d never felt safer. She’d even started leaving him breakfast in the microwave with little notes. Have a great day. Can’t wait to see you later.
It was as if she’d become a completely different person, a happier version of herself, and that was in large part due to how Sam made her feel.
Wren was curving along the backside of the high school when she saw something strange. It was a hooded figure pushing a wheelbarrow overflowing with what looked like ropes or snakes, who kept passing below the school lights.
“That’s not weird at all.”
She veered her cruiser slightly to the right, and her high beams caught the figure and what he was pushing.
It was a wheelbarrow full of Christmas lights.
“I got you now,” she said, flipping on her siren. Wren took off around the school and into the parking lot, gunning the engine to gain some ground on the thief. Duke bared his teeth from the back a split second before she saw the figure headed for the woods behind the Ag building.
“Not this time!” Wren parked the SUV and jumped out, releasing Duke from the back.
“Seek!” Wren said, racing after the dog.
“Stop, police officer!” she called, identifying herself. Wren could see him stumbling as he pushed the wheelbarrow over the rough terrain. Duke leaped through the air and knocked him to the ground. The wheelbarrow tilted and dumped its contents. The man struggled with Duke, but Wren was still too far away to do anything.
His hood had come off, but it was too dark to make out his facial features. Wren did see him reach for a large branch, holding it over his head.
“You hit my dog, and you’re getting tased.” The guy dropped the branch, and she called Duke off. He ran back to her, his tongue lolling out of his mouth happily.
The guy started to scramble upright, and Wren hollered, “Take one step, and you’re going to know what being struck by lightning feels like.”
He froze, glancing back to see the Taser in her hand.
“Get on the ground.”
He did so without hesitation, and Wren kneeled to put the cuffs on him.
Duke stood next to the guy’s head, and any time he twitched, Duke would let out a deep snarl.
“You have the right to remain silent,” she said, snapping the cuffs in place before she put the Taser away. Wren lifted him to his feet, reciting his Miranda rights as she led him back to the car.
Duke panted beside them, and when they broke through the trees at the edge of the woods, Wren pulled out her flashlight and shined it in the perp’s face. The kid winced, probably no more than fourteen, and fury rushed through her like a lightning bolt.
“What the hell were you thinking, taking off like that? You could have been hurt.”
The little snot had the audacity to smirk at her. “Worked at the Festival of Trees. Figured I could outrun you again.”
Wren shook her head, continuing their march toward the cruiser. “Catching charges for stealing a bunch of Christmas decorations is pretty random. What were you doing with them anyway?”
“People pay a buttload for that stuff, and I needed money,” the kid said.
“Ever heard of a job?”
“Nooo,” the kid drawled sarcastically. “What’s that?”
Wren pressed the button on her radio and contacted dispatch, ignoring his question. “Hi, this is Officer Wren Little. I just chased a suspect on the high school property who was pushing a wheelbarrow full of Christmas lights. I’ve got the suspect in custody. Heading back to the station with him and the evidence.”
“You caught the Grinch, Little?” Becker, her brother Luke’s buddy, tsked. “Did you set a trap like the Scooby gang, or did you suddenly gain wings on your shoes?”
“I bet she used crazy glue and a net. She looks like the type to have a secret crafting dungeon,” one of the other guys quipped.
Wren released the radio, muttering under her breath, “Jackass.”
“I don’t know,” the kid said, dragging his feet. “I kind of like them.”
“Shut up,” she said through gritted teeth.
She could still hear their laughter and teasing, choosing to tune them out rather than engage. Being the new officer on the force, and a woman, some of them had taken to giving her a ration of shit. Wren wasn’t sure if they wanted her to quit or if this was their awful way of welcoming her to the squad. Either way, she was getting tired of their antics.
Not that she didn’t expect it in a male-dominated field, but the razzing seemed to be more prominent here than in the bigger cities. As she headed back to the cruiser with Duke by her side, she thought for the hundredth time since coming back that maybe she was done being a police officer. The politics and boys’ club were bad enough, but after being shot, she had been thinking of hanging up her holster. The only issue was figuring out what to do next. With her degree, she could look into teaching maybe a self-defense class or a criminology course through an online high school, but it felt a bit like giving up.
The peanut gallery was still talking, but she ignored the chatter as she returned to where the wheelbarrow was tipped over, ordering Duke to watch the suspect while she righted it. Wren wasn’t sure where this latest stash had come from, but if the kid didn’t want to answer questions, once they put out a bulletin of what had been found and what was still missing, people could come look.
Wren picked up all the items and shoved them back into the top of the wheelbarrow, nodding her head at the kid. “Let’s go.”
The kid stumbled forward with Duke hot on his heels, and Wren pushed the full wheelbarrow along the bumpy terrain until sweat poured down her neck. She glanced down at Duke, who happily walked beside her, and grumbled, “You are so lucky you don’t have opposable thumbs.”
Once she hit asphalt, the final walk back to where the cruiser was parked didn’t make her arm muscles scream in protest. As she drew closer, Wren saw a figure standing by her car, and Duke barked twice, dancing in place. She dropped the wheelbarrow handles and removed her flashlight, her other hand on her gun.
“Who are you?” she hollered. “Show me your hands!”
“Birdy?”
Sam’s voice was strained and hoarse, but Wren took her hand off her gun, sucking in a deep, relieved breath.
“You scared me,” she said, taking the kid’s arm, heading for the back seat. “I got this guy with a wheelbarrow full of lights.” The minute she got the kid inside, Sam rounded the car, eating up the ground as he barreled toward her, and for a second, she thought he was going to tackle her. Wren took a step back, bracing for impact, but instead he jerked her into his arms and squeezed her tight.
“I thought something happened to you,” he murmured, his mouth buried in her shoulder.
“No, nothing happened to me,” she said, putting her flashlight away so she could rub his back. Sam was trembling against her, and she realized how it must have looked for him to drive by and see her cruiser abandoned, door open, and neither her nor Duke in sight.
He’s so sweet.
“I got the Christmas lights.”
“Thank God you weren’t hurt. I was driving by on my way back from Clark and Merry’s, and I saw the SUV. All I could think was what if it was your car, so I looked inside for anything identifiable, and I saw your computer. I panicked and was about to start screaming for you when you came back.”
“Yeah, no need for all that. This is what I do.”
Sam held her tighter. “I don’t want you chasing people into the dark alone.” He pulled away, his worried eyes boring into hers. “What if he had been armed or if he had had a friend waiting?”
“Oh, yeah, I’ve had that happen. That’s actually how I got shot in the ass.” When she noticed how pale he was, Wren sobered. “Sam, I get you were worried, but this is my job.”
“But you want to be a mom, right? What happens if you are raising our child alone and something happens to you? Once you have someone else to think about, you can’t make decisions that put your life in jeopardy. You have to come home every night.”
Our child. Those two words overwhelmed Wren, making her warm and weak at the same time. He wasn’t telling her to be careful because he was some macho man who didn’t think his girl could handle it. He was worried about her being around for years to come. He was asking her to be cautious and take care because she was living for other people, too.
Like Sam?
Wren squeezed him tight, breathing in his cologne, and the comforting scent washed over her. “I promise, I’ll be more careful, and I won’t do any more foot chases alone.”
Sam released a rough, shaky breath. “Thank you.”
Now that her heart rate and adrenaline had come down, she could feel Sam’s body shaking against hers and realized how truly scared he’d been. Wren didn’t remember being scared when her dad went to work, but then again, her older brothers kept her shielded from anything on TV that might have made her worry. Besides, she’d been under the impression her dad was invincible, even when she was grown up.
Rubbing her hands over his back, she soothed him. “It’s okay.”
Suddenly Sam was kissing her hair, her cheeks, her face, her lips, murmuring, “I just found you again. I’m not ready to say goodbye.”
She realized she wasn’t, either. The thought of Sam not being a part of her life left an empty place inside, a spot he’d claimed nearly twenty years ago, and only he could fill it. He was her support system. Her best friend. Her everything.
She loved him.
A lump lodged in her throat as those three words sank in. This was everything she’d fought against, had tried to avoid, but he’d gotten to her anyway.
“No one is saying goodbye to anyone,” she whispered, finding his mouth and kissing him slow and deep.
We’re just getting started.
Sam broke the kiss, resting his forehead against hers. “Do you wanna meet up for dinner after you clock out and change?”
Wren smiled, looking up into his eyes, her body radiating with joy. She loved him.
And Wren was almost positive he loved her, too.
Now, how was she going to tell him?
“There’s nowhere else I’d rather be.”