Captain's Choice

by V. K. Powell

  “On the house, she said.” He turned to leave.

  “Thank you for the delivery. By the way, have you seen Captain Carlyle today?”

  The young man scuffed his shoe in the grass and didn’t make eye contact. “No, ma’am.”

  “Do you know if she’s in her office? I checked a few hours ago, but the door was locked.”

  “Don’t imagine she’ll be around for a while.”

  The statement sent a chill through Kerstin. “What do you mean?”

  “A rookie got her injured last week, put her in the hospital. She’ll be out for—”

  Kerstin’s knees weakened and she started sinking.

  The officer rushed to her side, clasped her hands, and helped her sit. “Here, easy.”

  “How…what…okay?” She couldn’t find the right words, and the ones that came weren’t enough to get the answers she needed. “Tell me.”

  The confused officer released her hands and stepped back as if preparing to give a report. “She responded with two new officers on a domestic. A male suspect attacked one of the rookies with a broken bottle, and Captain Carlyle intervened. The man cut her pretty bad. She’s something else. Nothing like our former captain.” He puffed his chest out, clearly proud of his new commanding officer. “Are you sure you’re okay, ma’am?”

  “Fine. Thank you.” As he walked away, Kerstin folded her arms, the light breeze suddenly too chilly across her sweaty skin. She had to find Bennett, to see for herself if she was okay.

  Ma Rolls. Norma and Gayle would have all the facts. She shoved the papers into her bag and sprinted toward the street where their food truck was usually parked. Empty. She ran toward her car and was unlocking the door when Henry called from the work site.

  “Ms. Anthony, I need to see you before you leave.”

  “You’ll have to wait.”

  “It won’t take but a minute.”

  She slammed her car door and mumbled as she walked toward him, “It better not.”

  Henry’s minute turned into two hours as she struggled to clarify one key point on her drawings. She was distracted, unable to focus and properly explain the changes she’d made—very unlike the controlled professional she professed to be. By the time she headed to Bennett’s place, it was almost eight o’clock at night.

  Cars lined the street in front of the Carlyle home, so Kerstin parked around the corner, entered the garden through a white wooden gate, and followed a solar-lighted path toward Bennett’s door. As she approached, laughter drifted through the night air, a good sign. Halfway up the path, the front door opened, and a woman with short black hair exited, her young face glowing in a genuine smile. Maybe she should’ve called before showing up. Her last exchange with Bennett was tense and prickly. The woman nodded as she passed with the agile swagger afforded the very young or deeply enamored. Kerstin’s steps faltered.

  Was coming here a mistake? She had to check on Bennett for her own peace of mind. What if she wasn’t alone? Kerstin argued with herself as she approached the cottage and stared at the door for several seconds before finally knocking. No answer. She pushed the door and it opened easily.

  As soon as she entered, she wished she hadn’t. Bennett, naked from the waist up, lay on her back across the sofa, and redheaded nurse Jen sat on the edge leaning over her. Jen’s hands worked slowly on Bennett’s naked torso as Bennett watched her movements with hooded eyes. They were totally engrossed. She shouldn’t be here. The scene in front of her would never fade from her memory.

  The women’s intimate exchange made Kerstin queasy. She wanted to announce her presence but choked out only a squeaking sound. Bennett finally noticed her, and Kerstin mouthed I’m sorry and ran.

  “Kerst, wait.” Bennett called after her, but she didn’t stop.

  She was almost to her car before she heard footsteps behind her. Expecting to see Bennett, she turned, not sure what to say.

  Instead nurse Jen stood with her arms crossed over her low-cut blouse and plentiful breasts. “Really?”

  “What?”

  “You don’t call or come by for almost a week, and now you’re throwing shade?”

  “I need to know how she’s doing. Anything else is your own business.” Up close and under the glow of a streetlight, nurse Jen was even more attractive than Kerstin remembered. Her red, shoulder-length hair curtained a chiseled face and bright-green eyes that flashed angry stares at Kerstin as they faced off. Jen’s comment finally registered. “You don’t know me, so don’t judge my behavior. And I’m definitely not shady.”

  “Have you seen Bennett since she was injured?”

  “Well, no, I—”

  “Maybe you were at the hospital, and I missed you?”

  “I didn’t—”

  “Have you even called?”

  “No, but—”

  “That’s all I need to know about you. If you sleep with a woman, it’s polite to keep in touch, unless she was a one-night stand. Was she?”

  The air rushed from Kerstin’s lungs. “She told you?”

  “Ben wouldn’t. I guessed. Suppose I was right. The look on your face when you saw my hands on her body—”

  “Stop.” Kerstin turned away so Jen wouldn’t see how deeply her words affected her. Why was she standing in the street talking to a stranger about a woman she, what? Hadn’t quite forgotten after a decade and a half? Had sex with and couldn’t wait to again? Cared about? Loved? Certainly not love. Was it? The thought unsettled her nearly as much as watching Jen touch Bennett’s naked chest.

  “I probably shouldn’t put you out of your misery, but I’m a nice person and sworn by the Florence Nightingale Pledge to do no harm. I was changing Ben’s bandage.”

  Jen’s statement took a second to register while Kerstin played the scenario through her mind again with the new information. “But she looked…her eyes…”

  “She’s on pain meds. A guy wielding a broken bottle neck ripped through her skin, some muscle tissue, and nicked her ribs.”

  Kerstin flinched at the vivid description, trying not to visualize the damage to Bennett’s body. “I see.”

  “Do you really? While she was hospitalized and heavily sedated, she called your name. She might not be special to you, but I’m pretty sure you are to her. Don’t hurt her.”

  Jen’s assumption fanned Kerstin’s irritation into a rage. She bit back an angry retort, stepped closer, and spoke through clenched teeth. “You don’t know how I feel, and unless Bennett confided in you, you don’t know how she feels either.”

  “I’ve known her a long time, and we’ve been intim—”

  “Again, stop with the details.”

  “The point is, I know her, probably better than you do. I’ve lived in this town all my life, went to school with Bennett, nursed her through breakups, and yes, even slept with her.”

  Kerstin cringed at the mental image of Bennett having sex with this pretty, intelligent woman. “Since you’ve known her so long, you must also know she has her choice of female companions, so I doubt I’m special.” Her anger made the words taste bitter, but the truth didn’t always leave a pleasing taste.

  Jen laughed like she’d told a sidesplitting joke. “Granted, she has quite a rich dating pool, but she seldom dips into it. Don’t get me wrong, she’s not celibate, but she doesn’t indiscriminately bed every available woman. After you left the first time, she was gutted.”

  Bennett grieved for her? She hadn’t pictured Bennett as anything but her usual carefree self, until recently. Kerstin wanted to flee, to reject this woman who obviously knew Bennett better than she did, but against her will she hungered for every morsel of information about the woman who’d thrown her life into chaos.

  “And for the record, my wife would be mightily pissed if I fooled around.”

  “Your wife?” Kerstin’s angry spiral slowed a notch. “Why didn’t you say so sooner…I wouldn’t…you know?”

  “Sometimes you need to risk losing something, or someone, to realize wh
at you really have. Trust me, Ben is a keeper.”

  The wooden gate behind them squeaked, and Bennett walked slowly toward them, one arm curled tightly across her stomach, holding her side. “What’s going on?” She looked at Kerstin, her dark eyes sleepy but full of concern. “Are you okay?”

  Kerstin nodded.

  “I’m leaving,” Jen said. “Check on you tomorrow. If you need anything, let me know.”

  “How about a doctor’s note releasing me for regular duty?”

  “No can do, pal. You wanted to play hero. Now you pay the price.”

  “Thanks.” Bennett waved to Jen before turning her attention to Kerstin. “You’re not going too, are you?”

  The disappointment in her voice almost changed Kerstin’s mind, but she needed space and time to think. “Yeah. I only heard about your injury today. Sorry I’m so late.”

  “No biggie. I’ve been pretty rotten company anyway, groggy and half-asleep most of the time. Everybody’s conspired to keep me drugged so I won’t do anything stupid, like go back to work too soon.”

  “Drugs don’t sound like a bad idea if you’re already considering returning.”

  “Would you come in for a while?” She motioned toward the cottage.

  “I really should go. Jen updated me pretty thoroughly.”

  Bennett breathed deeply and winced, placing both hands over her right side. “Did you need something else?” Kerstin must’ve looked as confused as she felt because Bennett added, “Work, maybe? Is everything all right at the site?”

  What was happening to her? She didn’t let personal situations interfere with work and her career, but she also didn’t usually let a fling rattle her. Bennett stared at her. Damn, she’d asked a question. “Oh, yes, everything’s fine.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “Definitely.” Her news wasn’t good, and she couldn’t face another emotional conversation tonight. “I’ll swing by soon and fill you in, after we’re both rested.”

  “And maybe we can talk about what happened tonight too?”

  “Tonight?”

  “What you saw just now, with me and Jen. This isn’t the time for either of us right now.” Bennett opened the car door and waited while she settled in. “I hope to be back on desk duty next week. Thank you for stopping by. It’s good to see you.”

  She rested her hand on top of Kerstin’s before closing the door, and desire sprouted so rapidly she jerked away. “You…too.” She stomped the gas pedal too hard, and her tires barked as she left the curb. “Really mature, Anthony.”

  Chapter Eighteen

  Bennett paced back and forth in the cottage and drank coffee before sunrise, waiting for Dylan to stop by. She’d discovered getting up early wasn’t difficult if she didn’t sleep. The hard part turned out to be showering and dressing with a painful gash in her side.

  “You look perky. Too much coffee or pain?” Dylan quipped, closing the door behind her.

  “Cabin fever. I’m ready to get back to work.”

  “Soon, my impatient patient.”

  “I’m not kidding, Dylan.”

  “I know, but a few more days. Humor me.” She dug a pill from the bottle on the nightstand and offered it to Bennett.

  “No more pain pills. I need to be myself again, not the zombie version.”

  Dylan rested on a barstool and studied Bennett’s worried pacing. “What’s wrong, sis? You seem more agitated than usual this morning.”

  Bennett stopped suddenly, sloshing lukewarm coffee on her hand. “Damn it. What’s wrong? You mean other than being housebound for a week, coddled by my family, stuffed with my favorite fattening foods, and plied with drugs by my baby sister?” Dylan’s smile was warm and genuine, and Bennett regretted being so sarcastic, sort of.

  “Yeah, other than those few minor details. Have anything to do with the steady stream of women outside your place last night?” Dylan didn’t flinch as she waited for the truth.

  After a short debate with herself, Bennett said, “Kerstin dropped by.”

  Dylan’s smile grew bigger. “Good. Right?”

  “It might’ve been if Jen wasn’t changing my bandage.” Dylan’s mouth twisted sideways, her sign of confusion. “I was half dressed and, from her viewpoint, probably not so good.”

  “Oh.”

  “She bolted before I got off the sofa. Jen went after her, and I have no idea what they talked about before I pulled my shirt on and got out there, but Kerstin didn’t look happy.”

  Dylan’s mouth still had a quirky twist. Bennett had given too much away. Her sister didn’t miss anything, whether blatant or nuanced.

  “So…you’re upset Kerstin might think you and Jen are getting busy?”

  She’d talked only to Jazz about her feelings for Kerstin, but the whole family had gone through her brokenhearted episode in high school. Might as well own it. “Pretty much.”

  “Does that mean you’re interested in Kerstin again, really interested?”

  Bennett slowly lowered herself onto the sofa. “I don’t know what it means, Dylan, but I need to see her, soon. Will you please help me escape? You write a return-to-duty slip. I go by the hotel and check on Kerstin. I’m in my office this afternoon on desk duty like a good girl.”

  Dylan raised her hands in the air. “And risk the wrath of G-ma and Mama? You know the old saying ‘physician, heal thyself’? I’m not anxious to test the adage.”

  “Please.”

  Dylan started to leave but paused with her hand on the doorknob. “Under one condition.”

  “Anything. Seriously.”

  “Drop a hint to G-ma and Mama about me moving out.”

  “What?”

  “I need my own place, Ben. I want to forge my own way without the family influence.”

  “Or our overprotectiveness?”

  Dylan’s reluctance to answer signaled she might regret confiding in her.

  “Is this a recent decision?”

  “Not really. I’ve mentioned the subject before, so I’m sure they won’t be surprised. But I’m the baby, so there might be some resistance. I’d hate myself if I hurt any of them.”

  Bennett eased her way out of the sofa and joined Dylan by the door. “I know, sis, really. Besides, living at home definitely puts a kink in your sex life, huh?”

  “I mention I still live at home, and women assume something’s wrong with me or run the other way. It’s embarrassing, Ben, but it’s not really about that.”

  “You need independence, but do you really think moving is the answer? It’s not like people won’t know you’re a Carlyle, unless you change your name too.”

  “I love our family so much, but sometimes I feel we live our lives by committee. And as wonderfully supportive and helpful as that is most of the time, I need more. I’m a doctor who makes life-and-death decisions every day, but I don’t pay my own power bill, cook my own meals, or even have an address that doesn’t necessitate sorting mail into five stacks.”

  Bennett couldn’t suppress a chuckle. “Some people would argue those are good things, but I see your point. Not everyone is comfortable living in a family commune. I’ll bring it up, soon, but don’t push the timeline. Deal?”

  Dylan launched herself toward Bennett but settled for a gentle hug. “Deal. I so love you, right now. How about that doctor’s note?” She retrieved a pen and piece of paper from a side table and scribbled quickly. “This gives you desk privileges only for the time being. No field work at all. Agreed?”

  “Agreed.” She snatched the note and kissed Dylan on the cheek. “Now out. I have things to do, places to go, and a woman to see. And by the way, I love you too.”

  “Good luck.”

  Thirty minutes later, she stood in front of Kerstin’s room at the Proximity Hotel, unsure if she should knock. What would she say to a woman she’d had sex with once who might be upset about her having sex with another woman? Did the status of her and Kerstin’s relationship, whatever that was, even require an explanation?
r />   Before she had a chance to decide, the door opened and Kerstin stood in front of her wearing a plush white bathrobe that exposed a hint of cleavage and shapely legs. Her blond hair was sleep-tossed and her face free of makeup. She’d never looked more beautiful. The image plucked at something deep inside Bennett. She’d carry this vision of Kerstin as her favorite until another took its place. She fought an urge to take her hand, lead her to the bedroom, and—

  “Ben?”

  “Huh?

  “Bennett, what are you doing here at this hour? Are you okay?”

  “This hour?” She checked her watch. Not yet seven. Crap. “Sorry. I needed to see you. I didn’t realize. Um…yeah. I’m fine. Can we talk?”

  Kerstin picked up the complimentary copy of USA Today but remained in the doorway, clutching the neck of her robe, as if considering the request. A few excruciating seconds passed before she stepped aside and motioned her in. “What’s so urgent before breakfast?”

  Bennett slid her sweaty hands into her back jeans pockets to hide her nervous shaking. Now what? Had Kerstin assumed she and Jen were together? Did it matter? She second-guessed her decision to come here, so what to say now? “Can we talk about what happened last night?”

  Kerstin still stood in the open doorway. “Could we possibly have this chat after I’ve gotten dressed, maybe over breakfast? We have business to discuss as well.”

  Bennett walked back to her, closed the door, and took Kerstin’s hands in hers, tossing the paper aside. “What I have to say can’t wait, and I’d rather talk in private.”

  “You don’t need to explain anything about last night.” Kerstin squared her shoulders and glanced around the room, looking everywhere but at her.

  Bennett stepped closer, forcing eye contact. “Jen and I are not together, or dating, or even having sex…in case you wondered.”

  “I didn’t.”

  Kerstin’s blue eyes sparkled, suddenly full of light and a hint of humor. “Because she changed my—wait. What did you say?”

  “She explained everything, which wasn’t really necessary. As I’ve said before, your personal life is none of my business, even though I seem to keep bullying my way in.”