“Have I ever told you how much I love you, Emily?” Agent Crowley says as he swipes the box from my hands and kisses my cheek.
“I think you have mentioned it a time or two,” I reply with a smile.
“Don’t let Jameson hear you say that,” Agent Higgins chimes in with a grunt. “Last time I did I couldn’t piss right for a week, and all I said was pregnancy looked good on her.” A collection of agreements are made over Ryder’s possessive nature.
I smile and shake my head. “Speaking of my husband, is he around?”
“Yeah, he’s in his office,” Agent Wilkins answers with his mouth full of doughnut. “He was on a call but he might be done now.”
“Okay, thanks.” I decide I’ll just pop my head in, and if it’s not a good time then I’ll wait until he gets home to tell him the news. I just pray he forgives me and isn’t too mad.
Grabbing two napkins, I place a doughnut on each one for Nick and Ryder, knowing if I don’t they won’t get any.
“Leave Summer with us,” Agent Crowley says.
“Are you sure?”
He nods then turns and shouts across the room. “Hey, Larson, get your ass over here. You have to see what this dog can do, it can push elevator buttons and shit.” With a smile I leave Summer with them, knowing she is more than happy to oblige by showing off her skills. She loves the attention.
I stop at Nick’s office first and see him at his desk, bent over paperwork. I tap on his door with my foot since my hands are full. “Knock, knock.”
His head shoots up in surprise. “Hey, Emily, what’s up?”
I walk in, holding up a doughnut. “I thought I should bring you this before they’re all gone.”
He grunts. “Thanks, those greedy bastards would have eaten them all like last time.”
“That’s what I figured.” I snicker. Leaning over, I put the doughnut down in front of him and accidentally knock over a picture at the corner of his desk. “Oh shoot. I’m so sorry.”
I put down both doughnuts then pick up the frame making sure I didn’t break it. I’m surprised when I see the picture is of a younger Nick, in his teen years, with the most beautiful girl hanging on his back. They’re outside, surrounded by lush, green trees with the glow of the bright sun shining down on them. The girl’s long, dark hair, olive skin and warm chocolate eyes have her looking like an Amazonian. She’s the one holding the camera to take the picture, her warm smile is just as beautiful as the rest of her, and although you can tell Nick’s trying to seem annoyed, his eyes say differently by the way he is staring back at her. He looks at her the same way Ryder looks at me.
“It’s all right,” he says, breaking into my thoughts and taking the frame from me.
“Who is that?” I ask, my curiosity getting the best of me.
“Just a girl I used to know.”
“A girlfriend?”
“Nope. You know I don’t date, at least not exclusively,” he adds with a smirk.
I roll my eyes. Yes, I do know that, the man spends many nights with women, but never the same one twice. I’ve always wondered about his past but never pried… until now. “So what? She’s just an old friend?” It can’t be a sister because I know he doesn’t have any siblings, but for him to have the picture he must care about her.
“You’re not going to let this go, are you?” I shake my head with a smile and he finally relents with a frustrated sigh. “She’s the younger sister of a guy I used to be best friends with.”
“Used to be?”
“Yup.” He answers abruptly.
“You don’t talk to her anymore?”
“No.”
“What’s her name?”
He looks at me annoyed. “Katelyn, all right. Now stop with the nosy questions and go bug your husband.”
I decide to try one more time, since this is the most I’ve ever gotten from him and I don’t know if he will ever open up again. “How come you’re not friends anymore?” He shoots me a death glare and I finally know I’ve overstepped. “Okay, okay.” I hold my hands up with a giggle. “I’m out of here.” I grab Ryder’s doughnut, then just before I make it out the door Nick calls out to me. I stop and turn back to him.
“Thanks for the doughnut.”
“You’re welcome. Thanks for the top secret information.” He shakes his head but I don’t miss his smirk.
I head to Ryder’s office next, which is just a little ways down the hall. He and Nick got promoted shortly after they came back from Georgia, and with it came the luxury of their own offices. Much to the other agents’ dismay. I believe they still get heckled from them about it, but it’s all in good fun. They deserve the promotion, they’re very passionate about their jobs and I’m proud of them both. The only part I don’t like about the job is that Ryder’s hours can be very long, but I’ve learned it comes with being the wife of a cop, so I deal. Actually, I’ve had to learn to cope with a lot of stuff when it comes to being a cop’s wife. The biggest one is dealing with the fear of something happening to him… Don’t go there, Emily. I quickly shake myself of the horrific thought and lightly tap on his door.
Peeking my head in, I see he’s still on the phone. He looks over at me in surprise and I mouth the word ‘sorry’ before holding up the doughnut. I’m just about to slip back out, not wanting to disturb him, but he waves me in. I make sure to close the door behind me so the outside noise doesn’t distract his phone call. As I walk the doughnut over to his desk, his intense, green eyes devour my body, his hungry gaze instantly turning my panties damp. Lord, the things this man can make me feel with just a look. I’m glad he finds my minor baby bump sexy because I have been jumping his bones every chance I get.
As I set the doughnut down on the corner of his desk he grabs my wrist then pulls me around until I’m standing in front of him. He puts the phone between his shoulder and ear, still keeping his conversation going, and then lifts me up to sit on his desk. I slip my flip-flops off and put my feet on either side of his chair while his hands slip under my dress and grab my hips possessively. I bite my lip to keep from moaning, the simple touch has pleasure erupting through my body.
“Yeah, that sounds good. Just meet me at the courthouse later and we can go over the case files then. Okay, yeah, see ya.” I take the phone from him and hang it up since his hands are under my dress and I really don’t want him to remove them.
“Hi,” I greet softly.
“Hey, baby.” He leans in and kisses my small baby bump, completely melting my heart.
“Sorry to bother you.”
“You’re not a bother, Em, but you sure are a sight for sore eyes. Jesus, I really like this fucking dress.” His tone is gruff as he takes in my new, soft blue sundress. “What brings you here? Not that I mind, but you better tell me Summer is out there.” He nods at the door, telling me if she isn’t I’m in big shit, which I already knew. He doesn’t like me going anywhere without him unless I’m with her. To say he’s a little over-protective is an understatement, but I understand it’s just the way he’s wired, especially because of his job. And even though I have learned a lot of the area I still don’t know it all, but Summer does. Ryder made sure of it.
“Of course she is. Agent Crowley has her showing all the guys what she can do,” I tell him with a smile. “And I had a meeting with Kristin at Future of Hope. Oh, Ryder, the place is looking so good. I can’t wait until it’s all done.”
He smiles. “I bet it looks great, baby, because you’re amazing, and what you’re doing is amazing.”
I am definitely not amazing, but this group home is going to be. I inherited a lot of money after everything happened with my parents. It was money I didn’t want, and Ryder refused to spend it on our lives in any way. It wasn’t long before an idea formed and I knew what I wanted to do with it. I decided to start a group home for young girls who are less fortunate. I figured what better way to spend my father’s money than to give back to a cause that he had tarnished by hurting so many. It’s going to be a place that will give the girls a chance at a bright future. Therapy will be provided to them, along with the opportunity to finish school and get their diplomas. It will be a caring environment, that will hopefully give them the family they were never blessed to have. It’s been a huge process in the making, but I found a wonderful team to work with and I am so excited for the finished product. Even Cassie is going to come for the grand opening. I can’t wait to see her.