Kali trotted off and it wasn’t long before we found ourselves outside in the freezing cold. It hit you the minute you stepped out the door.
In our small moment of silence, I started to wonder about poor Lisa-Marie again. I felt especially bad for her because I touched her. I now knew about her and the lovely family she would leave behind if she were gone.
“What’s the matter, Twinkles? I didn’t upset you by saying it was a pity that Kali wasn’t coming, did I? I was only saying it to be polite.”
I gasped a little, wanting him to see how much I thought that was preposterous, even though he kind of hit the nail on the head. “Of course not. Why would I be upset? You can ask whomever you want out. It’s none of my business.” I was probably a little too eager to point that out to him. It looked as though he felt that way, too, as that devilish grin appeared on his face again.
“You’re a very interesting girl, you know that, Twinkles?”
I shook my head in disbelief. “I don’t know why you find me so interesting. There is nothing special about me. Nothing at all.”
“Oh, I highly doubt that, Cassie. You are one special lady, and I won’t hear any different. Next time you put yourself down like that, I may have to get my handcuffs out and arrest you.”
I nearly gasped again. I didn’t know whether that was innuendo or not, but it certainly sounded like it. Little did he know!
“A policeman threatening me with handcuffs. How so cliché.” I giggled, feeling a little lightheaded from his presence.
“Quite the feisty one, I see. I think I may have to watch you more closely. You’re a little devil beneath that innocent, calm exterior of yours.”
“I don’t know what you mean.” I acted as though I was really astonished by his outburst, but I imagine I was failing miserably.
“Hmm,” he mused. “You’re a tough egg to crack. A mysterious girl with the most beautiful green eyes.”
My face flushed and he noticed right away. “See, a girl without the innocence you possess wouldn’t blush as scarlet as you just did now, would she? I told you I was right.”
I huffed a little, annoyed with him, but I was still intrigued by his charm and wit. The fact that I still didn’t know who he was frustrated the hell out of me. I think I was just as fascinated with him as he obviously was with me, although I couldn’t fathom why.
We stopped by a local deli to buy some sandwiches. I didn’t realise how hungry I was until we started digging into them.
“You know, you look rather cute when you eat.” Stephen smiled over at me and I couldn’t help the little rise of heat to my cheeks.
“Thank you for the sandwich.” I was trying to avoid this sudden, rising need to grab him and kiss him. I didn’t know from where that was coming. It was almost as if I knew him already. He gave me a sense of calm and peace that I’ve never had with anyone before.
“You’re very welcome, Twinkles. Are you ready to hit the bar now?”
I smiled the biggest, cheekiest grin I could muster. “Oh, yes.”
Grinning back, he shook his head. “Oh, Twinkles…”
I didn’t know what that meant, but it felt good that I obviously affected him in some way. It was making me feel certain things I had never felt before. Whether that was welcome or not, I had yet to find out.
Walking into the local pub called The Three Horseshoes, a team of guys were already waiting. I didn’t realise I would be the only girl in this little gathering. It was a bit too much testosterone for my liking.
“What would you like to drink, Twinkles?”
“Just a Coke will do, thanks.”
“What about a drink drink? Come on. Live a little.”
I smiled sweetly, wondering why I was contemplating it. I never usually drank during the day, especially when I had to get back to work.
“I better not. You’re okay because you’ve finished work. I still have to get back and finish my day yet.”
“Let your hair down a little, Cassie. One or two won’t harm you.”
“Okay.” I was giving in way too easily. I’m not sure why he seemed to have this knack of making me agree to anything he asked.
“Great! So what will it be?” Pausing for a moment, I was a little unsure of what to order.
“Tell you what. How about some brandy with that coke of yours?”
I smiled and nodded. “Okay, thank you. That would be nice.”
He motioned for me to take a seat and told me he would bring the drinks over when they’re ready. Again, I do as I’m asked and immediately am greeted with five sets of eyes.
“Hey, guys,” I chimed as I sat down in my seat opposite them.
“Hey to you, too, Cassie. To what do we owe the pleasure? Or has someone finally managed to steal you away from us?”
Daniel turned his head towards Stephen at the bar, making me blush. “It’s not like that. He asked me here and I said yes. Doesn’t mean anything, does it?”
“No, but I think you have had a number of requests to go out for drinks and you have always turned people down. What’s so special about him?”
Oh, boy! “It’s not a date, Daniel. It’s a few drinks with colleagues. He told me that you would all be here, so that’s why I agreed. It’s not a date. It’s a drink.”
They all started laughing and I’m left feeling rather embarrassed.
“You’re so easy to tease. That was fun.” Daniel chuckled a little.
I certainly wasn’t going to let him get away with that. “Yeah, and you’re a tosspot, Mr. Rutherford.”
His laughter abruptly halts and his stare was rather menacing. It was uncomfortable, to say the least.
“I hope these guys aren’t causing you too much trouble, Twinkles.”
Thank god!
“Twinkles?!” Scott bellowed. “He has a pet name for you? Isn’t that sweet?”
They all started laughing again and I was left feeling a little pissed. I shouldn’t have come here.
“Hey, guys, watch your tone. We have a lady present. Now keep it friendly.” Stephen glared, warning them he meant business. I was quite surprised that it seemed to work.
“Yes, sorry.” Scott dipped his head a little. “I didn’t mean to offend. We were just playing.”
Thanking Stephen for the drink, I swigged half of the contents down in one go. Stephen looked at me wide-eyed, but smiled.
“So, Cass,” Terry began, “are you going to the CID thing tomorrow night?”
I nodded, grateful at the change in subject. “Yep, both Kali and I are going.”
“I see. Is anyone else going with you?” He glanced in Stephen’s direction.
Oh shit, maybe not.
“No,” I blurted. “Kali and I are going together.”
Placing the glass to my lips, I take another swig of my drink and let the pleasant warmth wash over me. I noticed that Stephen was edging closer.
Positioning his arm around my chair, he leaned in, suddenly very intimate, making my pulse react.
The guys started talking amongst themselves and Stephen seemed to take that opportunity to lean in close to my ear. “Are those guys bothering you? Because I can tell you right now that if they are, I will personally beat the shit out of each and every one of them for you.”
My legs suddenly turned to jelly. I could feel his hot breath on my ear, which started a torrent of sensations inside me that I never knew existed.
I didn’t know how to react to this unknown sensation, so all I did was take another gulp of my drink—downing every single drop this time. Once all of it was gone, I placed it on the table. I didn’t think I had enough strength in my hand to hold it anymore.
Whatever these feelings were, they felt alien. It both excited and scared the shit out of me at the same time.
“I’m okay, Stephen. I think I need to use the bathroom. Excuse me.”
Getting up, I rushed to the toilets as fast as my legs could carry me. I needed air all of a sudden and I didn’t know why. What was wron
g with me? I suddenly felt very hot, so I grabbed some tissues, placed them under the tap, and dabbed them on my neck and chest. I needed to cool down, and fast.
This was such an unusual feeling. I couldn’t understand it. I didn’t know if I wanted to understand it. I had an ache that my body didn’t want me to ignore, but my head screamed at me to. The whole thing was just so bizarre.
Once I calmed down a bit, I went back to the table and found another drink patiently waiting for me.
“You shouldn’t have, Stephen. But thank you.”
“That’s okay. I’m sorry if I upset you. Are you okay? You look a little flushed.”
“Do I?” I acted shocked, but I knew he must have been right. Just his presence alone was starting a fire burning inside me like never before.
He nodded, showing me that heart-stopping smile of his. Not knowing what else to do, I just took another sip of my drink.
“Am I making you nervous, Twinkles?” he whispered in my ear.
Closing my eyes, I let that ache wash over me. It was running through my veins with a vengeance. It was like a sweet torture of some kind and I didn’t know how to stop it. I didn’t know if I wanted to stop it.
I felt his hot breath on my neck and I opened my eyes, shuddering. His smile was spread wide, like he was rewarding my reaction.
Suddenly, a song came over the loud speakers and I noticed Stephen react to it straight away. His eyebrow seemed to curve up in amusement as he quickly captured my eyes. “You know, this is the third time I have heard this song today. I think it might be telling me something. The minute I heard it, I thought of you.”
Tilting my head to the side, I listened to the words so I could gather some understanding of what it means.
“‘Cause all I know since we said ‘Hello’. And your eyes look like coming home. All I know is a simple name. Everything has changed. All I know is you held the door. You’ll be mine and I’ll be yours. All I know since yesterday is everything has changed.”
I tried hard to swallow, but my throat had suddenly enlarged. “What’s it called?” I asked with a trembling voice.
“Everything Has Changed, by Taylor Swift and Ed Sheeran. It’s nice, isn’t it? It reminds me of you, as everything has changed since yesterday.”
My face flushed even further and the only thing I could think to do was take another sip of my drink. I finally managed to find a sentence to string together. “It’s lovely.” I gulped a little, unable to fathom why he was having such an effect on me.
“You’re lovely. In fact, you’re more than lovely.” He whispered the last few words in my ear and it was like listening to the sound of velvet—if velvet had a sound.
“Are you okay, Cassie? You look a little hot.” Scott was sitting opposite me, a highly amused expression on his face.
“Actually, I do feel a little giddy.” And it was true.
“Maybe I should take you out for some fresh air,” Stephen suggested.
Thinking that would be wise, I said, “Okay. I think that would be a good idea.”
We finished up our drinks, quickly saying goodbye to everyone as we headed out the door. Once out in the open, I took a deep breath. The effect of the alcohol hit me with a gentle nudge.
“Is that any better?”
Looking up at Stephen’s concerned expression made me smile. “Much better, thank you.”
Placing his hand in front of me, he gestured towards the station. “Come with me. I have something to show you. It’s a little bit naughty of me, but I think it will be fun. You still have a little time left before you have to get back to work. Can you entertain the idea, just for a few more minutes?”
I was suddenly intrigued. “Okay.”
“Oh, Twinkles, you better be careful. I’m not sure I have the strength with you when you give me such a beautiful smile.”
I stared into his eyes, the ache back in full force. It was almost as though he had me in some sort of hypnotic trance.
He sighed, shaking his head, and it immediately broke my stare. “Come on,” he said, grabbing my hand. “You’re gonna get me in big trouble, you know that? You’re completely worth it, though.”
I let him lead the way back to the station. I was wondering what he meant about getting him into trouble, but my body seemed to lead my head at the moment. All I could feel is Stephen’s hand on mine and it felt good. It felt really good.
We soon walked into the Custody Suite. To say I was confused was an understatement. He obviously had something naughty up his sleeve, but the only feeling I had was intrigue.
Looking at my confused reaction, Stephen smiled. “You’ll see in a minute.” He winked, pulling me toward a door.
Opening it wide, I peeked in to see a little room with a big machine in the corner. It looked like a big photocopying machine but, on closer inspection, I knew what it was.
“Why have you pulled me in here?” I giggled, unable to hide my excitement all of a sudden.
“I wanted to see how over the limit you were. I wouldn’t be doing my duty as a police officer if I didn’t make sure you were fit for work, would I?”
With a wink, he waltzed over to the machine and pulled a tube out for me to blow in. “Now,” he began, “I want you to blow into this—.”
I don’t know why, but laughter suddenly erupted. This wasn’t like me at all. Stephen reacted to my laughter by raising his incredibly sexy eyebrow at me, smirking.
“Steady, Twinkles. You really are being so naughty for one so innocent.”
I stopped laughing and tried to pull myself together. I didn’t know what came over me all of a sudden.
“That’s better. Now, you have to take a deep breath and blow. You have to keep on blowing until I say stop. Got it?”
I nodded, but my mouth was trembling with another eruption of laughter threatening to echo around the walls.
With a little shimmy, he moved over so I could get a closer to the tube. I grabbed it, taking a deep breath—just like he asked—and kept blowing and blowing.
“Keep going. That’s it. Now…stop.”
A sharp intake of breath had me gasping a little. I didn’t realise it was going to be as difficult as that.
“Wow,” he said, astonished.
“What?” I stood on my tiptoes and looked over his shoulder.
“You blew ninety.”
“Is that bad?”
He laughed. “Well, the limit is eighty so, yes, just a little.”
“How could I be that high on just two brandy and cokes?”
He suddenly looked a little guilty. “I have a confession to make. I ordered you doubles.”
I gasped loudly and he started laughing. “This isn’t funny, Stephen. How am I supposed to go back to work now?” I smiled despite myself. I was actually having fun. I knew I was a little tipsy, but I wasn’t too bad. I could still take on the rest of the day.
“You know you could always come home with me. I’d promise to look after you.”
He stared intently and my knees wobbled slightly. The silence was deafening. With a movement of his foot, he edged closer to me, the fun-loving smirk now replaced with a serious, intense, penetrating stare.
I gripped my hands together, shocked at how clammy they felt. The closer he came, the more my heart beat rapidly through my chest. Placing a finger on my cheek, Stephen ran it down towards my chin. I couldn’t help but close my eyes. His touch felt so good.
“You really are going to get me into so much trouble, Twinkles.”
I opened my eyes, about to question what he meant, but he was so close now. Our lips were inches away from touching and the thought of that seemed to override any rational thinking.
I stood still and waited. It was a strange feeling to actually want to have someone kiss me. I have kissed guys before, but I already knew what they were thinking beforehand so it was so off-putting that I never enjoyed it. With Stephen, it was different. I was in sweet, ignorant bliss. Sweet, heavenly, torturous, ignorant bliss. With h
im, I could let my walls down, have him kiss me with the need to kiss him back.
He was my game changer.
Some sort of electric pulse ran through me as he tilted my head slightly to meet his lips. I waited in agony for that first feel of his mouth on mine. Time seemed to stand still and all noise was drowned out. That is, until the door slammed open.
Jumping out of my skin, I quickly remembered where I was. Any thoughts of kissing were now replaced with a certain amount of fear at being caught. Stephen turned toward the door and, with his hand behind his back, hands me a mint. Thank goodness he thought of everything.
“What are you doing in here?” Michael huffed in our direction, looking every bit the predatory male he most probably was.
“Just showing Cassie the breathalyser machine. That’s all. She’s on her break. We’re not doing anything wrong.”
Quickly popping the mint in my mouth, I used Stephen as a shield to hide me. Michael didn’t look impressed at all. In fact, he looked really pissed off.
“You shouldn’t be in here. Cassie, maybe it’s time you got back to work.”
I nodded, feeling a little guilty about being here now that we were caught.
Walking around Stephen, I headed for the door. “Twinkles!” Stephen shouted. I looked around and found him smiling. “I’ll catch up with you tomorrow, okay?”
Another feeling quickly hit me the moment I stared back at him. It was the feeling of excitement. I was actually looking forward to seeing him again.
I waved my goodbye and, as I walked out of the door, I heard Stephen’s voice. “You know, you really need to loosen up a little, man. It’s like you have a constant broom stuck up your arse.”
As I walked down the hall, I couldn’t help but laugh. At least I wasn’t the only one who noticed how moody he was.
Once at my desk, Kali looked up at me expectantly. “So,” she began, “how did it go?”
I felt a little embarrassed all of a sudden. What could I possibly say to her? She fancied him only yesterday. “It was good, thanks. Just had a couple of drinks with the guys, that’s all. Nothing major.”
She smirked, but said nothing.
In an effort to look nonchalant, I sat down at my desk and tried to go through some of the cases I had stashed in my IN tray. It was hard, though, as my head was still a little fuzzy from the alcohol. It didn’t help that I kept thinking about Stephen and the emotions I didn’t know how to handle. It was strange. Despite Michael hating my guts, I still had this strange obsession with him. Stephen, on the other hand, made me feel special and wanted. I never thought I would ever be caught in the middle of two very different, very hot men. Michael was moody, arrogant, sexy, but very unobtainable. Stephen, on the other hand, was sweet, gentle, and seemed to be there for me. He seemed to want to be there for me. In fact, since we met, he was making all the effort to do so.