Deserve (16 page)

“How about we take it slow and see what happens before we
tell
Cael
?” I suggest and the tension disappears from
his face.

“Okay. We’ll take it one day at a time,” he says, sounding
relieved.

Brushing aside my uneasiness at his ready agreement, I ask,
“How long do you think the police report will take? I want to check in on
Hannah.”

 
“It shouldn’t
take too long.” He takes out the card from the officer at the scene last night.
“The station is not far from the hospital.”

I drain my coffee and stand up. “Let’s go.”

Our first stop is my dorm. Sean refuses to let me go in by
myself and I’m relieved. I’m not sure I want to be alone for a while. I promise
myself I will be stronger tomorrow, but today, I’m giving myself permission to
be clingy.

It’s still early and the lobby and hallways are deserted.
Most students are night owls.

I change quickly, pulling on jeans and a white angora
sweater, and gleefully dump the leggings into my garbage can. It only takes me
a few minutes to throw enough essentials for a couple of nights into a duffel bag.
I don’t want him to think I’m angling to move in with him, especially
considering I’ve already jumped the gun. My face warms as I recall my
inadvertent declaration of love.

The next stop is the police station. We ask for the cop from
last night, but he’s off duty.

“I can have Officer Ramirez take the statement. He
frequently works with Officer Cox.” The young brunette behind the desk stares
at Sean like he’s a smorgasbord and I stifle a spurt of annoyance. If we’re
going to be together, I’ll have to get used to women ogling him.

“Is there anyone who was on the scene from last night?” I
ask, hoping my dislike isn’t obvious.

She shakes her head. “Sorry, ma’am. They’re all off shift
now.”

I grimace and glance at Sean. “Can we come back another
time?” It’s silly, but I would feel more comfortable talking to someone who had
been there last night.

Sean studies me for a moment and then shakes his head. “It’s
better to give the statement when it’s fresh on your mind.”

Resigned to rehashing every detail with a stranger, I turn
back to the brunette, but before I can say a word, I hear Sean’s name called
out in an excited voice.

Turning around, I see a tall, curvy woman with brown hair
and hazel eyes walk out from the back, a huge grin on her pretty face.

“Sean Rowan! It is you!”

Reluctance and dread cross his face, but they’re gone like
smoke and in the next second, his lips are smiling in welcome. “Leslie!”

I rub my temples.
Jesus, just what I need
right now—to meet another one of Sean’s exes.
I avert my eyes when
they hug each other, all the while hating this insecure side of me.

“What are you doing among us mere mortals, Mr. Hot Shot
Detective?”

“You should talk, Ms. Hot Shot Sergeant. Congratulations on
the promotion, by the way.”

“Thanks for the flowers and card.” She laughs. “James didn’t
appreciate the little taunt in the card.”

“Your husband needs to get a sense of humor.”

Relief floods me at hearing that the policewoman has a
husband, but it’s closely followed by irritation at my erratic emotions.
Get a grip, Maggie.

Sean’s face sobers. “Listen, I need a favor.” He puts his
hand at the small of my back to bring me closer. “Maggie, this is Leslie Ashby.
She was with me at the academy.”

I smile and shake her hand. “Nice to meet you.”

Her face is open and friendly. “You too.” She glances at
Sean. “What’s the favor? You know I’d do anything for you after everything
you’ve done for us.”

Sean’s shoulders stiffen at Leslie’s show of gratitude and
his unusual reaction stirs my curiosity.

“Can you take Maggie’s statement?” He quickly outlines what
happened last night and looks down at me with a concerned expression. “It might
be easier if she speaks with a woman.”

If I had two hearts, the second one would officially belong
to Sean Rowan in that moment. I grab his hand, squeezing it to let him know how
much his consideration means to me. When he tightens his grip, a smile bursts
onto my face.

Leslie’s sharp gaze hones in on our entwined hands and she
smiles. “Of course. Come on back.” She leads us through the station until we
reach the doorway to her office.

She beckons another officer with a wave of her hand. “Ron
Contee
, meet Sean Rowan. Sean, Ron can take your statement.
I’m going to take Maggie to one of the interview rooms.”

I follow Leslie to a surprisingly comfortable room in the
back of the station. The first few questions are easy enough. Name. Age.
Occupation. Residence. Then she asks me to describe last night. As she tries to
tease out the details, it gets more difficult to talk. My heart thunders like
crazy and my armpits grow damp. When we get to the part when he cuts off my
oxygen, it feels like I’m sucked back into the moment and my breathing becomes
labored.

Leslie looks at me and says, “Let’s take a quick break.” She
stands up and gets me a cup of water. “Here, this will help.”

Taking a grateful gulp, I decide to try to satisfy my
curiosity. “Um…so what was Sean like at the academy?”

She grins, her eyes twinkling. “Intense, but also fun. We
were all worried at first, you know…on account of his family background.”

I frown. “Oh, you mean because his father is a senator?”

“Yeah, and because he is filthy rich.”

“What did that have to do with his capabilities as a cop?” I
ask, feeling defensive on Sean’s behalf.

She shrugs, looking ashamed. “Most of us never attended
college and came from pretty rough backgrounds. We were sure he was a bored,
spoiled billionaire who joined the force on a whim. Nobody thought he would
last.”

“That’s not fair!” I protest, angry at the prejudice he
faced. “Sean joined because he wanted to make a difference!”

She smiles crookedly. “Yes, I know that now. And he proved
us all wrong. He was better than us at everything. Bastard!” There’s no hint of
resentment in her voice. “But he was the first to cheer on the ones who
struggled and to provoke those of us who needed the extra push. Don’t get me
wrong. There were times during firearms training when some of us were tempted
to use him as the target, but we knew he’d be faster and take us down in a
blink of an eye.”

I laugh along with her. “He does like to taunt people.”

“Are you guys together?”

My smile disappears at her question. “Um…” I don’t know how
to answer the question, especially since we have decided to keep it a secret
from
Cael
.

“Don’t mind me,” Leslie rushes to say, “I’m just nosy.”

“It’s complicated.”

“Honey, isn’t that always the fucking case.”

Her
put-upon
tone makes me smile.
“Do you mind if I ask you something personal?”

“Ask, but I won’t guarantee I’ll answer.”

I am starting to really like Leslie Ashby. She’s
straightforward, with no bullshit. “Earlier, you mentioned that Sean did
something for you?”

“Oh that.” Her eyes grow hazy with memory. “Did you know my
husband, James and Sean used to be partners when they were beat cops?”

I shake my head. Sean talks about his work in the abstract,
but never shares anything personal.

“Like Sean said, we were at the academy at the same time. James
and I started dating then. When we graduated, we all worked at different precincts,
but after a couple of years, James ended up at the same station as Sean.
Normally they wouldn’t put two relatively new cops together, but both of them
had gotten outstanding reviews and the force was short on veteran cops. They
were a great team, complementing each other’s weaknesses.”

She pauses, her throat working, and I brace myself for the
next part of her story.

“One night, they were out on patrol when they spotted a pimp
hitting one of his girls.”

At my gasp, she grimaces ruefully. “Unfortunately, there are
plenty of those scenes in the city. James has always been very impulsive and
his trigger is violence against women. He charged into the situation without
fully assessing the environment. Turned out the guy was as high as a kite on
some new super drug. He saw a cop coming at him and pulled out his piece. Put a
bullet right into James’s abdomen.”

I cover my mouth in horror. Abdomen wounds are the most
dangerous because a bullet can do a lot of damage in an area filled with soft
tissue.

“Sean was right behind James and he shot the junkie in the
arm, disabling him. Thank God Sean staunched the wound as fast as he did or my
husband would have bled out on the scene. James was rushed to the hospital. The
bullet had gone through his stomach and almost severed his spine. It was a
miracle that he didn’t die. Afterwards, James needed a lot of follow-up
surgeries.”

Her eyes fill with tears and I feel my own eyes moisten. I
reach out and squeeze her hand.

Leslie sucks in a shuddering breath. “The doctors didn’t
think James could recover full mobility in his legs, but Sean sought out the
best surgeons and therapists and paid for everything. The recovery was brutally
hard, but James proved them all wrong. He won’t be running any marathons, but
he’s quick enough to chase after our two-year-old son, Mac.” She smiles
proudly.

“I’m glad your husband’s okay.”

“Thank you.” She looks at me with a fierce light in her
eyes. “I owe everything I love in this world to Sean. I’d do unspeakable things
to anyone who hurts him.”

The warning is loud and clear. I have to modify my earlier
assessment of her. She’s not friendly; she’s downright scary. “Message
received.”

“Good.” She smiles as if she didn’t just threaten me and I
make a note never to cross this woman. “Ready to continue with the report?”

“Yes.” I take a deep breath and finish telling her the rest
of the story.

“Was there anything else you can remember about the
attacker? Tattoos? Unusual clothing?”

I cast my mind back to—God was it only last night
?—
and replay the scene frame by frame. I gasp as the
attacker’s words clang in my head. “Yes! He said, ‘Think you can ignore me, you
little redheaded bitch?’” When the implications hit me, my body seizes in fear.

“The fucker knew you,” Leslie says grimly, immediately
grasping the situation.

I will myself to resume breathing. “But he didn’t go after
me,” I say slowly. “Nobody knew I was going to walk down that street.”

“The target was your friend, but you got in the way. Has
anyone been acting suspiciously around you or Ms. Michaels?”

I started to shake my head, but I stop and bite my lip,
remembering Josh’s obsession with Hannah. “There’s this guy…”

She leans forward eagerly. “Who?”

“I don’t want to implicate anyone who’s innocent,” I
protest. “I didn’t see the attacker.”

Her face softening with understanding, Leslie pats my hand.
“Interviewing suspects and gathering evidence is my job, not yours. We don’t
have any leads right now, so if you know someone who could have done this, you
need to tell me. We’ll question him and if he’s innocent, we’ll let him go. If
not…” Her
face hardens
. “He won’t be able to hurt
anyone else.”

The idea of the attacker being on the loose nudges me to
tell her about my encounter with Josh and his infatuation with Hannah. I show
her the texts I exchanged with my
floormate
.

She takes photos of my injuries and then says, “Good. We’re
done with the report.” She touches my knee, her eyes soft with sympathy. “I’m
sorry this happened. We’ll do everything to get this guy and we’ll start by
talking to Josh Ludlow. We’ll also question Hannah’s boyfriend. If you can
think of anything else, please let me know.”

“Okay.” I take her card and put it in my messenger bag.

When we walk out, Sean immediately gets to his feet. He
studies my expression and relaxes at my reassuring smile.

God, I love this man.
Leslie’s
story only reaffirms what I already know about him. He’s an incredible person.
Heroic. Caring. Honorable.

“Sean, can I see you for a second?” Leslie gestures to a
chair. “Have a seat, Maggie. We’ll only be a few minutes.”

Sean nods and walks with Leslie into the same room we just
vacated. Less than two minutes later, he stalks out of the room, his face dark
with rage.

“What’s wrong?” I ask worriedly, getting to my feet.

“THE FUCKER KNOWS YOU?” he roars, attracting curious eyes.
He’s shaking and I move into his arms, petting his chest to try to get him to
calm down.

“Sean, it’s okay—”

“IT’S NOT FUCKING OKAY!” The tic jumps in his left cheek.

I grimace at seeing the wide-eyed looks of curiosity from
the others in the room. “I meant
I’ll
be extra
vigilant.”

“I’m going to kill him,” he says quietly, his eyes flat.

“Who?” There’s a note of relish in his voice that sends chills
down my spine.

“Ludlow.”

I cup his cheeks and force him to look at me. “Sean, Josh is
innocent until proven guilty. There’s no evidence that points to him. It’s just
a shot in the dark.” I move my fingers over his muscle tic, trying to ease the
tension. “Sean, promise me you won’t do anything rash,” I beg urgently, not
wanting him to break the law and risk his career.

He stares at me, staying stubbornly quiet.

“Sean,” I say warningly. “You’re sworn to uphold the law.
Let Leslie’s people do their investigation.”

He chews on this for a moment and then spits out an
ear-burning curse. “Maggie, we need to tell
Cael
,
especially now that we figured out the
perp
knows
you. He’s going to blow his fucking lid if he found out I kept this from him.”