Teasing you, p.12
Teasing You, page 12
“Right…” she said slowly.
“And I think that maybe that’s what happened all those years ago. I don’t think what Reid did was malicious or…”
“He basically told the entire school that I wore kiddie underwear, Chloe! He said, and I quote, that my panties had Olaf from Frozen on them!”
“Okay, but…they did.” She shrugged. “That movie was huge for us and I remember us buying anything and everything with the characters on it. We used to think it was funny.” Another shrug. “Basically, he was just stating a fact.”
With a huff, she sat up. “That wasn’t what pissed me off,” she explained, trying to stay calm. “It was the fact that he told everyone! I didn’t realize my skirt was going to blow up in the wind! He asked me to go for a walk with him and I agreed. Then we stepped outside and it was windy and…” Her arms gestured wildly. “My skirt goes up, he sees my underwear, I shriek and run inside, and he tells everyone!”
“Maybe they asked?”
This was the reason her go-to reaction was rage—questions like this.
“No one would have specifically asked what kind of underwear I wore.”
At least, she always told herself that.
“And besides, he could have said a hundred different things. He could have said I tripped. He could have said it was too windy. But instead, he came in and announced that he had seen my underwear and Olaf the snowman was on them! Do you remember how many Olaf stuffed animals I got after that? And stickers and drawings and…gah! It was ridiculous! All because Reid did a terrible thing!”
“And yet you’re with him now,” Chloe said simply. “So you’re okay with it and you’ve moved on.”
“Yes!”
“And you don’t think this is going to be an issue down the line? Like something you’re going to throw back in his face when you’re mad at him for something?”
“I’m a lot of things, Chlo, but I’m not psychic. I can’t see into the future. And what are you getting at?”
“The whole sabotage thing, remember? I just don’t want you falling back on one silly thing…”
“It wasn’t silly. It was awful, and I’m moving on. But if you keep reminding me…”
“Okay, okay, you’re right. Just…” She let out a long breath. “I don’t want to see you ruining something that could be really good. Reid’s a nice guy and he seems to really like you. So…just be happy. That’s all I’m saying.”
“I’m working on it,” Ashlynn admitted. “I really am.”
“Good. Now let’s go finish our dinner because it was yummy and we have ice cream for dessert. And you know the rules…no dessert if you don’t finish your dinner.” Rolling off the bed, Chloe walked over and turned on one of the lights before holding out her hand to Ashlynn.
With a small sigh of her own, she accepted her sister’s hand and stood up.
“We’re good, right?” Chloe asked nervously.
“Always. Me and you, Chlo? We’re always going to be good.”
They hugged each other tight before walking back out to the living room to finish eating their Chinese food.
Neither talked about fires or mean girls or Frozen.
And it was a great night.
Reid was on his twenty-four-hour shift and it was almost midnight when he tried to summon up the willpower to try to go to sleep. His mind was racing in a dozen different directions and all he really wanted to do was call Ashlynn and talk to her.
But he couldn’t.
He was walking a fine line right now between his job and his personal life, and if anyone heard him talking about all the shit that went down today to her, he’d more than likely either get fired or put on probation. Still…he knew when he was off duty that they’d end up talking about what the inspector found out—so far—after going to Lavish Locks and looking things over. There wasn’t much left to examine, but it was obvious it wasn’t accidental.
The good news was that meant there was no physical evidence of Ashlynn being involved.
At least…he thought there wasn’t.
After briefly speaking to Inspector Rowe, Reid figured out very quickly that he wasn’t going to be included in any part of this investigation. He had a feeling his captain mentioned that he was dating Ashlynn. He spent a good part of the day doing his best to look unfazed by it all, but deep down, he was seriously starting to freak out.
The biggest hurdle was the fact that Becky was being very vocal about pointing the finger at Ashlynn, and now she had one of her employees backing her up. Someone named Sandy came forward and corroborated all the things Becky was saying.
He’d learned about that while in line for coffee over at Books & Beans. Gossip was starting to spread and he knew it wouldn’t take long to spread like wildfire.
Either way, those statements may cause charges to be filed and at that point, Reid had no idea how Ashlynn would fight them, if he’d even be able to help her, or if he was going to be facing charges himself.
What were the odds that he’d finally be on track to getting set in his career and then have something like this happen? If the charges were true? If Ashlynn was involved in this fire? It would potentially be a black mark on his career if not the thing that ended it.
Ugh…how much of a selfish prick can I be? Ashlynn’s the one in trouble and I’m only thinking about myself.
“You okay, Reid?” Bob asked as he walked into the break room.
“Yeah, why?”
“I just heard you groaning and wanted to make sure you felt alright.” He was holding a mug in his hand and he sat down in one of the recliners opposite Reid. “These long shifts are rough, aren’t they?”
He nodded. “Most of the time they don’t bother me, but I’ve got some stuff on my mind and can’t seem to relax enough to grab some sleep.”
“Lavish Locks?”
“Um…what?”
“You thinking about the Lavish Locks fire?”
Why deny it?
“I am. None of it makes sense, and the timeline doesn’t…well…it definitely seems iffy.”
Bob took a sip of whatever it was he was drinking. “In what way?”
For a moment, Reid wasn’t sure they should be having this conversation. After all, he wasn’t involved in the case and most of what he’d learned had been hearsay.
His hesitation led his captain to speak. “Reid, we’re a small squad in a small town,” he said mildly. “People talk. If you’ve got concerns—legitimate ones and not just that you don’t want anyone picking on your girlfriend—then I’d hope you’d speak up and say something.”
Straightening a bit, he let out a long breath. “Alright. For starters, I was with Ashlynn when the fire was discovered. I told you that. And it’s going to take a while before anyone can say exactly when the fire started or if it smoldered for an extended period of time.” Standing, he began to pace. “I’ve spent a lot of time with Ash, and I can tell you that she’s never asked about fires or how to start them or anything suspicious.”
It was like he was being cross-examined without anyone asking the questions.
“That was something I planned on asking,” Bob commented.
“And I think if you talk to people other than Becky, I think you’ll find that she’s the one who’s been instigating all the public arguments.” He paused. “The whole thing just feels wrong.”
“Unfortunately, you’re not impartial. And I have to be honest with you; if you’re hoping to move up the ranks and even someday be an inspector, you have to be able to compartmentalize. There may come a time when a suspect is someone you know—a friend, a relative, or…”
“A girlfriend,” he murmured.
All Bob did was nod.
“So what am I supposed to do, huh? Like you said, we’re a small squad in a small town. People talk. How am I supposed to handle this situation?”
After taking another sip from his mug, Bob sighed. “Are you serious about Ashlynn?”
“What the hell does that have to do with anything?” he demanded.
“I’m just saying that maybe…if this isn’t a serious relationship, that you may want to distance yourself from her.” He studied his mug before looking up at Reid. “The department is growing and I’m looking to retire by the end of the year. You have excellent qualifications, Reid, and I think you’re someone who could be a good leader here. Don’t let this ruin your chances. Make sure you’re backing the right side.”
Before Reid could say anything, Bob was on his feet. “I’m going to grab a couple of hours sleep. Hopefully it will be a quiet night.” He held up his mug. “I never thought I’d be someone who drank sleepytime tea to help me relax, but it works every time. You should try it.”
“Thanks,” he mumbled and watched his boss walk away. Sadly, he was more awake than he was just minutes ago.
It was all a lot to think about and even though he eventually fell asleep, it was on the couch in the breakroom, and it wasn’t the least bit peaceful.
When he pulled into the apartment parking lot the next day, Ashlynn happened to pull in right beside him. Her smile was bright as she climbed from the car and came over to kiss him. Reid allowed himself to simply melt against her because he needed this, needed her. He didn’t want to think about all the negativity and speculation, and he didn’t want to look at her as a suspect in a fire. Right now, she was his girlfriend and he was happy to see her.
When they broke apart, she was smiling again. “That was some greeting,” she said breathlessly. “How was your shift?”
“Quiet, thankfully. But I’m going to be glad to sleep in my own bed tonight.”
Nodding, she took his hand and they began walking up to the building. “Would you like to have dinner with me? I don’t have to stay over if you’re tired, but I missed you last night and just thought it would be nice to hang out.”
They got to the stairs and began walking up. “Why aren’t there any elevators in this complex?” he asked with a small laugh. “Most days it’s not a big deal, but right now, I’d kind of love it if we didn’t have to climb three flights of stairs.”
“Believe me, I know. I feel the same way, but I never questioned it. Old town, old buildings.” She shrugged and when they got to the second floor where her apartment was, she stopped. “Why don’t you go up and relax for a bit and call me if you want to eat.”
“Ash?”
“Hmm?”
“Is there anything you need to do in your apartment?”
She thought about it for a minute. “Not really. I just got back from Billie’s. We were looking at salon equipment online so I was going to go inside and probably do more of that to pass the time.”
Tugging her in close, his arms went around her waist. “Come upstairs with me,” he murmured against her lips. “We’ll order a pizza or something and just sit and relax and you can tell me all about the stuff you found.”
Pulling back slightly, she eyed him warily. “Really? You want to know about sinks and chairs?”
“More than you know,” he teased, kissing her lightly. “Come on. Let’s go up this last stupid flight so I can take off these boots and collapse on the couch.”
He loved the way she snuggled up against his side as they made their way up to his apartment. Normally working a twenty-four didn’t bother him, but he’d never had such a hard time sleeping like he had last night.
Think about something else…
They got in the door and Reid hit a couple of light switches on his way to the living room before dropping his duffel bag and sitting on the couch. Ashlynn went to the kitchen and when he looked over at her, she was pouring them each a glass of wine. She caught him watching and smiled.
“It seemed like you might need this,” she said as she walked over to join him.
“Thanks.” He carefully took the glass from her hand and then got comfortable as she sat down beside him. “How was your night last night? Did you have dinner with Chloe?”
She nodded. “I did and it was…interesting.”
“Oh?”
“We sort of had a bit of a disagreement—something we haven’t done in ages—and we ended up talking until after midnight and then I made her sleep over because I knew she was tired.”
“What was the disagreement about?” When he noticed the small frown, he backpedaled. “You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to.”
She took a sip of her wine before resting her head on his shoulder. “Chloe and I are total opposites. She’s the cheery one and I’m the ragey one.”
Laughing softly, he asked, “Ragey one?”
Nodding, she explained, “Definitely. Chloe tends to give everyone the benefit of the doubt and is a people pleaser whereas I am the one who gets mad, gets even first, and doesn’t give a damn what other people think. I’ve gotten myself into more than my share of trouble by lashing out before I think things through. It’s a terrible trait.”
You’re telling me…
“Anyway, we were talking and I got…well…bitchy with her and she called me out on it. And trust me, Chloe never calls anyone out on their behavior. So for her to do that to me, I knew I’d screwed up. But not before I stormed off to my room, slamming the door and everything. Ugh…it was awful.”
Now he desperately wanted to know what they were discussing, because if it had to do with the fire and maybe Ashlynn having something to do with it…
“Anyway,” she went on, “we worked it all out and it was a good night.”
“Oh, well…that’s great.” He took a sip of his own wine. “And what about today? Anything exciting going on?”
“Well, I’ve quit the coffee shop because I don’t want anyone coming in and giving Jade grief about me being there until all this Lavish Locks stuff is cleared up,” she said firmly, her head still on his shoulder. “Billie got off at noon today and we looked at all kinds of equipment for the salon and met with the general contractor who is going to be doing the bulk of the renovations on the shop. We had to walk through the space with him and tell him where we plan on putting everything. The architect should have plans for us next week.”
Twisting slightly, he kissed the top of her head. “That sounds very exciting.”
“It is.”
But he couldn’t tell by the tone of her voice.
Which is what he said to her.
“I’m just…” She sighed. “I’m just waiting for something bad to happen. Like every time I step outside, I’m waiting for Becky to be waiting there or for the cops to be there to arrest me.” Another sigh. “Honestly, Reid, I still can’t believe she’s trying to pin the fire on me.”
Then she straightened and her expression was full of hope.
“You can help clear me, can’t you? You can work with the inspectors or whoever it is heading up the investigation and tell them that I’m innocent, right?”
He didn’t respond right away and he watched helplessly as her expression fell.
“My captain knows you and I are dating so he’s already made it abundantly clear that I can’t be objective,” he said solemnly. “I tried talking to him last night, but…”
Holding up her hand, she put some space between them. “I get it,” she said quietly. “I don’t like it, but I understand. I’m sorry that you got put in the middle of this and it was wrong of me to even ask you to try to step in.”
There was a slight tremor in her voice and Reid took the wine from her hand and placed both their glasses on the coffee table before gently pulling her into his arms. “If it were up to me, there wouldn’t be any investigation and I certainly wouldn’t be standing by and only taking the word of one person.”
She pulled back again and looked up at him. “Is that what they’re doing? Are they simply taking her word on this and not even looking into this?” Now her voice was nearing hysteria and he knew he needed to put her mind at ease.
“Ash, no one would do something like that. Ever. It’s not ethical and it’s not the way the department works. They’re going to investigate this until they know exactly how and where the fire started.”
Then he maneuvered her back into his embrace.
“It’s not fair,” she whispered.
“I know.”
“This should be a great time for me and it’s not. I should be celebrating, and I can’t.”
He felt completely conflicted and helpless all at the same time.
“Tell me what you need, Ashlynn. I know I can’t go in and help with the investigation, but…tell me what I can do to make you feel better.”
She was quiet for a minute before she tilted her head back again and looked at him. “You’re here and we have the entire night and all day tomorrow together. I know you’re tired, but…maybe we can go inside and…you know…fool around a little before we order dinner? I missed you last night and…”
He didn’t let her finish.
He was kissing her—devouring her—because he’d missed her too. But more than anything, he was frustrated and angry at the situation and needed to just shut the world out for a little while just like she did.
Lifting her into his arms, he carried her into his bedroom. Once she was on the bed, he stood and peeled his shirt off and smiled sexily down at her. “Take your clothes off, Ash,” he said gruffly and smiled even wider when she did.
It was hard to say who stripped faster; all he knew was it was practically in the blink of an eye that he was joining her on the bed and kissing her again. Her warm, silky limbs wrapped around him as she pressed closer and he loved the feel of her skin against his. It was both calming and a complete turn on.
Her hands went right to his hair as she forced him to look at her. “Take me, Reid. Take me now. Hard.”
“Sweetheart, that was already the plan,” he murmured before kissing her again.
It was hard and fast and he could feel all the anger and need in her that mirrored his own. Sex wasn’t the solution for what was going on in their lives, but it sure as hell worked as a great distraction.
And right now, that was all he could ask for.
Chapter Nine
