Bronco's Rough Ride (Bad Boys of Beta Squad, 0.5) (11 page)

“Thank you, Detective Jarvis. I’ll give you the one my grandmother used to say to us.” He held both her hands and looked into her eyes. “May you have
walls for the wind and a roof for the rain, and drinks beside the fire. Laughter to cheer you and those you love near you, and all that your heart may desire.” Unexpected emotion tightened the muscles around his eyes and made his nose tingle. The Celtic blessing suddenly meant more than he thought. “Thanks for all your help.”

He released her and climbed into his truck before he did something stupid like kiss her and hold her against his chest.
Just let her go.
He closed the door and rolled down the window, trying to find his patented relaxed smile. It seemed elusive.

“Hey, Bronco.” She leaned her arms on the truck door. “I won’t tell you to be careful because that’s not your job. But be as safe as your profession allows, okay? I like knowing the world still contains the
hottest ride I’ve had.”

Her face showed professional flippancy, but her eyes shuttered and he found couldn’t read her at all.
Damn, the woman would make a good SEAL.

“It was a helluva ride. Thanks again, Detective.”

“Safe trip, Chief.”

He started the truck and threw it into gear, backing away from her.
This is for the best. I’m starting a new duty station and don’t have time for anything.
The words didn’t have the conviction he would’ve liked.
She has a new life, too. Clean break is best.

John drove out of the parking garage pretending his heart didn’t ache w
ith each yard and he didn’t watch until she disappeared behind the walls of concrete behind him.

Lindsey put the finishing touches on the last report for the closed case and sat back in her chair, rubbing her eyes. Damn, she’d forgotten all the paperwork it took when she was in the visible world. When she’d been undercover, her handler had taken care of all of it.
Wouldn’t mind her doing that again.

Courtney no longer oversaw Lindsey’s work. She had a new undercover cop to direct and Lindsey knew they had a
few cases going on the Strip.
Ah, Vegas. Always a hotbed of people trying to live the ‘what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas.’ Too bad the cops notice.
Courtney might no longer be her boss, but they’d kept their friendship alive. Even after three weeks since John “Bronco” Andrews drove out of her life, the woman checked up on her.

I don’t miss him.
Lindsey couldn’t miss him. She hadn’t known him long enough.
Plus, he’s a SEAL based in California, when he’s home at all.
All good reasons to let him go and move on with her life.
I have the job I want and the time I need to just be normal. So why can’t I?

She’d made a few strides in getting a new life. She’d managed to call her mother and reconnect with her family. Lindsey had choked up so many times on the phone she’d barely
been able to speak through her tears. But her mother had invited her to visit them in Reno in their new house for the weekend. Lindsey had made the trip twice.

She rolled her head on her shoulders to loosen them and checked the clock. Weird to think she could just go home at the end of a work day.
Home.
She’d returned to the apartment Metro had kept for her, but it felt like someone else’s place. It didn’t even smell right. It held all sorts of things she remembered, but none of it felt like it should belong to her, even after three weeks of living there.

Nothing
here felt right.

“Hey, you done for the day?”

Lindsey looked up and nodded at Courtney as the tall woman paused at her desk. “Yeah, I was just getting my purse to head out. Nice of the department to let me keep the one I used from my last assignment. It’s a bit more expensive than I would’ve bought myself, but it’s pretty.” She hefted the burnt sienna Louis Vuitton handbag and slung it over her shoulder.

“They would’ve just thrown it out and it seems like a waste of good money.” Courtney shrugged. “Besides, it looks good on you. Do you have plans for the weekend?”

“Yeah, I have a date with my elliptical and a good book. Not quite as glamorous as when I hung out at all the clubs, but I no longer have the bankroll for that kind of life.” Lindsey walked around her desk and headed for the bank of elevators to the parking garage. “What about you?”

“I was hoping you’d agree to go out for a drink with me. You know, blow off the glitter of the work week.” Courtney smirked as she pressed the down button.

Lindsey snorted. “I don’t know if I’d be good company right now. Still trying to find my equilibrium after returning to the ‘real world’. Nothing feels settled or right, you know?”

They stepped into the elevator as Courtney nodded. “Yeah, but that’s what I’m here for. Since I know you in both lives, I’m that cornerstone, the keystone, the linchpin. Choose your metaphor.”

Lindsey laughed as the car dropped smoothly to the garage and opened. “Yeah, okay. Fine. Where did you want to go?”

“Follow me to Bailey’s?” Courtney clicked her fob and her car chirped a few spaces from Lindsey’s.

“Yeah. That works. See you there.”

Lindsey didn’t really want to go out, but
it’d be good to reconnect with Courtney. She missed the regular meetings and camaraderie they’d shared while undercover. Somehow she needed to find her feet. She felt like a space alien wandering around trying to find Area 51.

Courtney had already arrived
at the bar when Lindsey stepped through the thick doors. Classic rock and roll music enveloped her as she picked her way to Courtney’s table, ignoring the scent of cigarette smoke. She shoved away memories of her undercover work and sat down.

“Want a beer?”

Lindsey shook her head. “Not tonight. Gonna take a raspberry iced tea and call it good.”

“Aw, you’re no fun.” Courtney mock-pouted and Lindsey swallowed a snarl.

“You’re right. I’m not fun. I don’t know how to have fun since the last time I went out for a party I had to watch what I said and did, and pretend I enjoyed sexually debasing men.” Lindsey rubbed her forehead. “See? I told you I wouldn’t be good company.”

“Yeah, I figured, but I had to get you someplace I could talk to you and light a fire under your ass.”

Lindsey blinked. “What?”

“Listen, Jarvis. You’ve been on the job now for two years straight and you haven’t had a break from it.” Courtney leveled her with a hard stare, her mouth sealing shut as the waitress brought their drinks. She waited with a gentle smile until the woman drifted away, but her eyes remained hard. “You’ve earned, what, something like a hundred and sixty hours of vacation time
? I bet you’re at ‘use-or-lose’ and you’re still here working.” She shook her head and pointed one manicured nail at Lindsey. “Go away. Take a vacation. Go relax. Visit family again. Do something, because you’re a nasty, snarly bitch right now, and that’s fun for no one.”

“Damn, sugar coat it, why don’t you?”

“No point.” Courtney fixed her with a stern glare. “You don’t need coddling, you need to figure out who the hell you are. A vacation would do you good. Hell, a stay-cation would improve things.”

“That’s the problem, isn’t it?” Lindsey inhaled the scent of stale beer and old cigarette smoke. “I don’t know who I am because I’ve been someone else for two years. And now I’m supposed to be Detective Lindsey Jarvis
of sex crimes, but she’s so new, I don’t know who that is, either. The only time I kinda knew myself, I was hiding in a safe house with Chief Petty Officer John Andrews.”

“Then go find him and find yourself while you’re at it.” Courtney punctuated her words with a sharp nod and a swallow of beer.

“I can’t go find him. He’s a SEAL, remember? Masters of being unseen, unheard, and deadly?” Lindsey snorted. “He could be standing behind you and I’d never know it.”

Courtney twisted around and scanned the bar. “Is he behind me?”

Lindsey thumped her shoulder. “Shut up. You know what I mean.”

“No, I don’t. He’s only been there for three weeks. He’s probably
getting up to speed with both his new squad and recovering from the shit he experienced here.” Courtney pointed to the front door of the bar. “You should go out there to Coronado and request his ass, and shag him for real this time.”

“Damn, you’re crass.” Lindsey grimaced around her iced tea. “W
e barely know each other. I can’t just show up on his doorstep and say, ‘hi, I know we only had a few days together, but I thought we had a connection and so I decided to invade your space. M’kay?’” She shook her head. “He’s a SEAL and has to be there. I’m a detective with Metro and have to be here.”

“I’m not suggesting you marry him, Jarvis. I’m saying to
go out there, get laid, and take a vacation with someone you know is hot and sexy.” Courtney raised an eyebrow. “Haven’t you ever heard of a fling?”

“I’ve been there, done that, got the t-shirt, and took it back.
Jenna Black was all about the casual fling.” Lindsey swallowed some of her tea. “I don’t want something quick and empty, Court. I want the fairytale, or at least the practical application of it.” Courtney tipped her head in inquiry. “You know, a solid relationship based on trust, honesty, affection, and passion. A safe harbor I can retreat to and know I’ve found the clear water.”

“You want to live on the water?”

“No, ‘clear water’ means to find a safe place where you have the high ground and the action is over. It’s a Navy thing.”

“Ahhh.” Courtney nodded and a smug smile curled her lips. “I know where you can find some of that Navy clear water if you’re not too scared to look for it.”

Lindsey ignored the spike of hope in her gut as she leveled her friend with a flat look. “You’re not going to give up on this, are you?”

“Nope.”

“Court—”

“Listen, Lindsey. I’ve been you
r friend for a while now, and I know you’ve pushed yourself to be the best at what you do. Believe me, I’ve been there the whole time.” She laid a hand on Lindsey’s arm and squeezed gently. “But here’s the thing. Everyone needs a break and burnout is right around the corner. You have leave. You have a ton of it. Go take some before you’re too bogged down in cases to make it practical.”

Courtney smiled and sat back, swigging her beer. “And do me a favor. Go find that SEAL and tell him you love him before you drive us all crazy.”

“I do not—”

“
Don’t lie to me or yourself, Lindsey.” Courtney held up her hand to forestall her. “I’ve known you long enough to know when someone has gotten under your skin, and Chief Petty Officer Andrews did it with his super secret agent skills.”

“He’s a SEAL, not CIA.”

Courtney rolled her eyes. “Doesn’t matter. They have the same sneaky-sneaky skills.”

Lindsey snorted. “Sneaky-sneaky? Is that a technical term?”

“Hell, yeah.” Courtney grinned and finished her beer. “Maybe you need to develop a few sneaky skills of your own and go see if smart, handsome, and sneaky is willing to be your clear water.” She sobered. “Please. Do me, you, and him a favor. You deserve the chance at the fairytale you want, Lindsey. But sitting here in the damn desert won’t get you any closer to it. Put in for some vacation.”

“You’re not my boss anymore, Court.” Lindsey finished her tea and tried to swallow the dread of facing her apartment alone.

“No, I’m your friend. And I’m telling you to get a life before you implode.” Courtney gave her a sympathetic look as she waved for the bill. “No one needs or deserves it more. Besides, from the outsider’s perspective, I think the chief was pretty sweet on you.”

Lindsey shook her head as she tossed a ten spot on the table. “How could you tell? He didn’t show anything on his face or body language.”

“Call it a gut feeling.” Courtney’s smug smile returned to her face. “You gonna go west, Jarvis?”

“This isn’t some romantic movie, Court. He’s probably moved on.”

“So? What’s the worst that can happen? You go out there and find out he’s moved on. Done. Plus you’ll get to see the ocean and some of those other hot SEAL men.” Courtney shrugged. “Think of it this way. Nothing will happen if you don’t go. But something
might
happen if you do. At least you’ll get some time to recharge.”

Lindsey couldn’t argue with her friend. She let her gaze rest on the polished brass of the bar fixtures and ran through the scenarios in her head.
So what’s it gonna be, Jarvis? Tuck tail and hide, or make your play for the brass ring?

“I’ll talk to you on Monday, Dabner.”

“You gonna take leave?”

“I’ll let you know.” She waved as she headed for the door, her mind churning with possibilities. The question remained as to how John would respond to her just showing up.

No, the real question is, can I handle it if he turns me down?

****

John dropped his head under the shower spray to wash the salt water, sand, and sweat off his body. While the heat in southern California wasn’t as intense as in Las Vegas, he still counted it warm enough to fry eggs on the hood of his truck. Despite the relative cool compared to the Mojave Desert, he missed Vegas.

Correction, I miss a woman in Vegas, and the cool little cabin we shared.

He scrubbed his body down with soap and tried to ignore his thickening cock. She’d been on his mind since he climbed into his truck and headed for the I-15, and she hadn’t left it. He’d visited Coronado, learning the city and its environs, and the scents of fresh flowers and pine had him looking around for Lindsey Jarvis. Each night, he’d hit his rack with the intent to find out her new number or email address, but come morning, he’d thought better of it.

Bronco didn’t really have time for a woman in his life. Not with a new duty station and a new squad to integrate with. But when he wasn’t focused on the job, his mind strayed to long
, dark hair and a warm, sultry voice that still came to him in dreams. God, her voice could make him come with no more than a few words.

John groaned and fisted his
aching shaft, his mind full of Lindsey’s sweet moans and hot mouth. He stroked himself hard and quick, not wanting to take too much time in the shower. He imagined her silken tresses sliding over his thighs as her molten, slick mouth tightened on his flesh. Pleasure and yearning overwhelmed his logical mind and his release exploded from his balls. The intensity of his orgasm couldn’t compare to what he experienced with Lindsey.

Even the SEAL groupies hadn’t distracted him from the woman in his memories.
I bought that damn ring. I should call her.
But the old, tired excuses came roaring back and he let the thoughts subside.