7 Months

  “Uh, yeah, she’s going to.” I looked at my partner, then thought about what Brendan had said, and asked, “Hey, uh, Ty, can I ask you a question?”

  I saw his head swing toward me and caught a glimpse of surprise before he covered it and said jovially, “I’d be ecstatic if you asked me a question.”

  “Am I a hard guy to get to know?”

  After a few minutes of laughing hysterically, Doobie turned to me and asked, “Is the pope Catholic?”

  When he saw I was serious, he said, “Let me put it to you this way … we’ve known each other for over seven months now. I know you have brothers who are married, because they’ve stopped by the station. I know you’re in a band, but I’ve never seen you play. I know you’re a good cop, and a great partner, who willingly does paperwork … but that’s about it.”

  I thought about what he said, and knew it was true. I’d never invited him to one of the bazillion get-togethers my brothers and their friends had. I didn’t open up about my past or my life. And other than grabbing drinks sometimes after work, we didn’t hang out off the clock. Not because Doobie had never asked, but because I always made an excuse as to why I couldn’t.

  “In seven months you’ve never asked me where I’m from or about my family. I get it, not all guys like sharing stuff, and maybe you aren’t looking for any new friends, but it would make the day go by a lot quicker if we shot the shit every once in a while.”

  Shit, I thought once he turned his attention back to the road, I really am a first-class dick.

  “I know you’re from Louisiana,” I started, shifting uncomfortably in my seat. “New Orleans, right?”

  “That’s right, cher,” he answered, speaking in an over-exaggerated Cajun accent. “Best city in the world.”

  “Do you, uh, still have family there?”

  Doobie chuckled at my obvious discomfort and said, “Yeah, my parents and my two younger sisters.”

  “Do you miss it?” I asked. The longest I’d been away from my family had been while I attended the academy, and I hated it. Brendan had traveled to Europe and worked there for a while, but I’d never had any desire to leave home. I couldn’t imagine taking a job in a different city, let alone a different state.

  Doobie nodded, seeming lost in thought as he replied, “Every day. I figure I’ll put in my time here, gain some experience, then move back home.”

  “Yeah?” I asked, surprised to realize that I’d miss him if he left. We’d been in this together since the beginning, and I’d never thought what it would be like if I had a different partner.

  “Yeah, but don’t get worked up,” he joked. “I won’t be leaving you any time soon.”

  I’d reached my limit of conversation for the day, so the rest of the drive back to the station was quiet, but before we left for the night I asked him, “Do you play poker?”

  “Yeah, why?” Doobie asked, pushing his dark-blond hair off of his forehead as he put on a baseball cap. He’d changed out of his uniform and was about to head to the gym.

  “My brothers and I play with a group of guys, at least once a month. We’ve got a game coming up this weekend, if you want in.”

  “Yeah, that sounds good. What’s the buy in?”

  “Fifty bucks and a six pack.”

  “Sounds good.”

  “Cool, I’ll give you the details later. Have a good one.”

  “Night, Irish.”

  I packed up my stuff and started for the door, then looked over when I heard sniffling coming from Marsha’s desk.

  I walked over and asked, “Is everything okay?”

  She turned her head away from me, trying to hide the fact that her eyes had welled up with tears.

  I put my hand on her shoulder and prodded, “Marsha?”

  “There’s something in my eye,” she replied, then waved her hand and said, “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

  “I don’t want to leave if you’re upset,” I said gently.

  She rendered me speechless when she turned and said, “That boy’s been waiting for you to open up and be his partner in every sense of the word. I’m just glad to see you’re finally doing it.”

  Confused, I wondered what she meant.

  Marsha must have read my face because she added, “A true partner. A brother in arms. Someone who has his back on and off the streets. He’s out here all alone. No family or friends. Doobie’s been hoping you’d eventually open up and be his partner, his friend … I have to say, I was starting to worry that you didn’t have it in you to be that for him.” She brought her hand up and rested it gently on my cheek. “I’m glad I was wrong.”

  Now I was the one who needed to hide my eyes, so I patted Marsha’s hand, said goodnight, and went home to try and process everything that had happened that day.

  Chapter Fourteen ~ Ming

  Emergency*** Girl’s Night. My place.

  That was the text I sent Bronagh and Cass on Friday afternoon. Yes, it was short notice, and yes, they had husbands and lives outside of me, but I knew they’d come through for me. It’s what we did.

  I’ll bring snacks and wine. Cass replied almost immediately.

  I’ve got Melissa McCarthy and Sparking Grape. L Bronagh added not long after.

  Relieved to have a night with my girls, a night where I’d decided to finally come clean about Brady, I could get everything off my chest and get their opinions on the matter.

  Cass arrived first, already in her pajamas, waving two bottles of wine, Doritos, and a bag of snack-sized Snickers at me.

  “I hope nothing’s wrong,” she said as she breezed past me into the loft to put down her goodies. “But, damn, I was sure spoiling for a girl’s night!”

  Before I could respond, there was another knock at the door signaling Bronagh’s arrival.

  As soon as I opened the door, I could tell by the look on her face that she knew … and she wasn’t happy about the fact that she’d heard it from someone other than me.

  “You know,” I said softly, taking the movies from her hand. “How?”

  “Brendan told me last night,” she replied haughtily.

  “Brendan … Does that mean Brady’s been talking…” I muttered as I shut the door.

  I was surprised that he was talking about it, after we’d agreed not to. I mean, sure, I was about to do the same thing, but this was Brady … I hadn’t expected him to feel the need to share.

  “Yeah,” Bronagh said, pulling off her coat to reveal Tweety pajamas underneath. “Apparently, Brady told him the other day over dinner, and, you know the deal, married people tell each other everything, so…”

  “What are you guys talking about?” Cass asked, moving toward us.

  I ignored Cass and asked, “What did he say?”

  Bronagh glared at me and replied, “That it’s been going on for over seven months, and this is the first I’m hearing about it.”

  “What’s been going on for seven months?”

  “Ming banging Brady.”

  “What?” Cass bellowed. “How, when, where? Tell me everything. Don’t be afraid to be very, very specific.”

  Bronagh put her hands on her hips, causing her large belly to jut out even farther.

  Looking at her bump I asked, “Would you like to sit down first?”

  Bronagh looked like she wanted to argue, then thought better of it and muttered, “Yeah, my feet hurt.”

  “I’ll open the wine and cider,” Cass offered, practically skipping off to the kitchen, obviously excited about the turn of events.

  I pulled the tuna sandwich with extra sour pickles that I’d made out of the fridge and set it in front of Bronagh as she leaned back into the cushions.

  She looked from the sandwich to me and said, “Don’t try to butter me up. I’m mad at you.”

  Then she snatched the sandwich off the plate and took a big bite.

  Bronagh had been craving tuna and pickles throughout her pregnancy, so I’d made it in hopes that it would help soften my news when I told
her. Since she already knew, I hoped the bribe would now help ease her anger.

  Cass came rushing over, her hand full of glasses. She set them all down on the coffee table, then sat in the chair, curling her feet under her as she sat back with her glass of wine.

  “I’m ready,” she said excitedly. “Give me a quick rundown.”

  “Okay, well, you guys know I’ve had a crush on Brady since I first met him, back when Bronagh and Brendan were doing their on again, off again dance.” They both nodded. “The night of his academy graduation, I’d had quite a bit to drink, which gave me liquid courage. He looked so handsome, and I thought, why not? So, I went up to him and asked if he’d like to get out of there.”

  Cass squealed, then took a sip of her wine and nodded that I should keep going. “He said yes, and we went back to my place. Over the seven month we only ever went to my place. We’d meet up at night and have sex. Sometimes he’d stay, sometimes he wouldn’t.”

  “How was it?” Cass asked.

  “The best I’ve ever had.”

  “Where’d you do it?”

  “Everywhere in this loft,” I replied. “The bed, the counter, the table, the couch, that chair you’re sitting in, the kitchen floor, that rug, the shower, the toilet, the balcony, oh, and in the stairwell.”

  Cass started fanning herself, the grin on her face huge, but Bronagh just asked, “The toilet?”

  “Yeah, with the lid down of course. No one was going to the bathroom at the time.”

  She looked skeptical, so I said, “Him sitting, you on top. You hit all the right places, believe me…”

  “Noted,” Cass said gleefully, and I knew she’d be bringing the new position home to Geo. “Exclusive?”

  “Sexually, yes,” I replied. “But we were free to date other people, since we weren’t dating each other.”

  “Who ended it?” Bronagh asked, her face thoughtful.

  “I did.”

  “Why?” Cass asked, her voice whiny as if she were upset about the end of a non-relationship that she’d just learned about two minutes ago.

  “I don’t regret it,” I began. “And it started as a mutually gratifying relationship. There was no pressure, no stress, just sex … It was great. But then…”

  “You wanted more,” Bronagh guessed, her tone gentle.

  “Yes. I wanted more. I’ve always liked him, and I was tired of pretending to be practically strangers whenever we were together at your house, or a party, I wanted things to change. To progress. So, I asked him to go with me to the New Year’s party.”

  “He said no?” Cass asked, and I could tell he was being shifted to her bad side.

  I nodded. “He wanted to keep things the way they were, said he wasn’t ready to change, and I said I didn’t want things to stay the same. So I ended it.”

  “And he just let you?” This came from Bronagh.

  “He said something about not wanting it to be over on New Year’s, but then everything happened with Nat, and I didn’t see him again until he came by the office to ask me to take her case.”

  “What happened then?” Cass asked, her feet hitting the floor as she leaned in toward me.

  “We mostly talked about Nat, then Christian came in and asked me out for drinks. I said yes.”

  Finally, Bronagh smiled.

  “What did Brady think of that?”

  I shrugged.

  “He didn’t say anything, he just left. I haven’t heard from him since.”

  Cass and Bronagh both frowned.

  “I think that’s it, it’s over.”

  “I’ll talk to him,” Bronagh said firmly.

  “No, Nonie, this isn’t high school, you can’t try and talk him in to wanting to date me.”

  “How did it go with Christian?” Cass asked.

  “It wasn’t a date, just a group of us going out for drinks. I didn’t talk too much to Christian, although I think if I want to go there, he’s receptive to that. It’s just that…”

  Bronagh put her plate down and scooted closer to me on the couch, her hand reaching out to take my hand.

  “You love Brady.”

  I looked at my friends and agreed sadly, “I love Brady.”

  Chapter Fifteen ~ Brady

  Since Brock had just hosted New Year’s at his place, Cal offered to have poker night at his and Shelly’s house, even if it wasn’t his turn.

  Poker night rotated monthly. There were so many of us now that each of us usually only had everyone over once or twice a year. We’d had guys come and go, but the regulars were me, Brock, Brendan, Cal, TJ, Scott, and Craig. Lately, Carson Brandt had been holding a seat at the table, and we often had whatever guy Victoria’s sister Abby was dating at the time. Luckily, she was in between boyfriends right now.

  Tonight, I was bringing Doobie along, or rather, he was bringing me. He’d offered to pick me up since he had something to do in the morning and was only planning on having a beer or two.

  Brendan always cooked the food, no matter whose house it was at, and Brock always ordered pizzas. Each guy had to bring a six pack of beer as part of their buy in, as well as fifty bucks to sit at the table.

  “So, this game has been going on a while?” Doobie asked as he turned on Cal’s street.

  “Yeah, a couple years now. It’s pretty low-key.”

  Doobie chuckled and said, “I wouldn’t expect anything else. Not if you keep going back.”

  “You’re hilarious,” I responded dryly.

  As Doobie parked a couple houses down on the curb, he turned to me with his eyebrows raised.

  “Did you just display a sense of humor?”

  “Fuck off,” I said with a grin.

  “Looks like I’m going to get to see yet another side of my partner tonight,” he said as he grabbed his six pack of IPA out of the back.

  “Maybe tonight you can journal about it,” I shot back as I headed up the walkway, leaving my partner staring after me, his mouth opened in shock.

  “Holy shit,” he said as he jogged after me. “Now you’re making jokes.”

  I ignored him, instead saying, “What up, TJ?” when TJ opened the door and stepped to the side to let us in.

  “This is my partner, Tyler, but we call him Doobie. Doobie, this is TJ, he’s the one who restored my Chevelle,” I said by way of introduction, then headed toward the kitchen.

  “Nice to meet you,” I heard Doobie saying behind me. “Nice work on the Chevelle.”

  “Thanks, man,” TJ replied. “Good to meet you, too.”

  Pretty much everyone was already there, so I introduced Doobie to everyone except my brothers, who he already knew.

  I’d known Doobie would have no problem fitting right in, that’s just the kind of guy he was, so I left him talking to Scott and Cal and meandered to the kitchen to talk to my brother.

  “What’s up, Mountain Man,” I asked as I leaned against the counter. “How’s my favorite pub owner doing?”

  “I’m doing great,” Brendan said, and I think he was smiling, although it was hard to tell through that raggedy-ass beard.

  “I meant my sister-in-law, jackass, the one carrying my niece or nephew…”

  “She’s doing good. Tired, and ready to be done being pregnant, but good.”

  I watched as he piped some kind of loaded mashed potato concoction into a crisp potato skin.

  “Are you ready for the pregnancy to be over?” I asked, knowing that my brother hadn’t always been a hundred percent sure he’d wanted children.

  Brendan brought his head up and admitted, “I’m nervous. Not about being a dad, or the baby coming, but about how much everything’s going to change.”

  “Have you talked to Brock about it?” I asked, thinking our brother would be the best source of this kind of information. He did have two little ones, after all.

  “I did, and logically I know what he’s saying, and that our relationship will evolve in a good way … but emotionally, I can’t deny that I’m a little resistant to chan
ge.”

  “It’s gonna be great,” I assured him, clapping my hand on his shoulder.

  I could tell he wanted to change the subject when he asked, “So, did you ever get a hold of Ming?”

  “Yeah, I did, she agreed to meet with Nat, and Natalie told me that they have an appointment day after tomorrow.”

  “That’s great,” he said, then asked, “And, the other?”

  “Ah, nothing to report on that end,” I replied lamely.

  I hadn’t seen or talked to Ming again since that day in her office, when she’d agreed to go out with another guy right in front of me. It still didn’t sit well, and I wanted to do something about it. I just didn’t know what to do.

  “Brandt just got here, you ladies about ready?” TJ called from the living room, where Cal had set up a large folding table for the game.

  “Help me carry this stuff out?” Brendan asked, and I grabbed a couple dishes.

  We were setting stuff out on Shelly’s buffet when Doobie came up and snagged a crab-filled deviled egg and popped it in his mouth.

  “Wow, this is quite the spread for a poker game.”

  “My brother’s an overachiever,” I replied, then grabbed one of the potato skins.

  “Brady, it’s good to see you again.”

  I turned to see Carson Brandt coming toward us. Tall with jet-black hair and blue eyes, Brandt was an entrepreneur. CEO of Brandt Industries, Carson had a myriad of businesses, one of the latest being the record label that had signed Whiskey Heat.

  “Brandt,” I replied, holding out my hand to shake his offered one. “It’s been a while … This is my partner, Doobie.”

  “Mr. Brandt,” Doobie said in greeting.

  “Please, Doobie, call me Carson.”

  Once everyone had said their hellos, we finally sat down to start the game. It was a great night full of shit-talking, beer drinking, and bullshitting. All too soon my six pack was gone, along with my money, and I was listening to Craig talk shit as he counted his winnings.

  “That kid’s so fucking lucky,” I told Brock as I gave him a hug goodbye.

  Brock chuckled as he looked at Craig, then he turned to me, his face serious.

  “I’ve been wanting to talk to you about him.”