"Ma'am, can you please step out of the car." The sound of a man's voice startles me.
I turn to face him with widened eyes. "Yes, sir."
Stepping out of the car, a barrage of deafening noises from the vehicles traveling on the freeway snaps me out of focusing on the police officer.
"Have you consumed any alcohol or illegal substances today, ma'am?" The officer asks in his distinct Nevada police uniform.
I shake my head knowingly. "No, sir."
He looks at me with a puzzling expression on his face. "Come with me over to the car please, ma'am. I've got a few questions I would like to ask you."
I nod to agree despite the tension in my body, and proceed to walk with him to his dispatch car. He opens up the door and tells me to jump into the backseat as the other officer exits the car.
My heart starts to palpitate when the officer that just exited the car puts on two latex gloves before strolling towards my car.
"What's he doing?" I ask with a frantic edge to my voice.
"He's doing a routine check to ensure you have no illegal substances or firearms in your possession.
"What have I even done, officer?" I speak without thought.
His attention heightens as he notices that I continue to draw breath and release it before speaking, classic signs of someone not telling the truth about something.
The officer shuts the car door of where I am sitting, and leans in on the opened window, aligning himself with me.
"I think we both know why I've pulled you over." He pauses to take off his sunglasses. "How much have you had to drink, be honest? It will be a lot easier if you tell the truth."
My jaw opens in disbelief that he assumes I've been drinking. "No, I haven't drunk anything, sir! What makes you think that I've drunk anything?"
"Well if it's not alcohol, it must be an illegal substance that's caused you to swerve in and out of lanes." He says, sounding more riled up.
If he knew I was texting I could get into so much trouble.
"I have not taken anything, honestly. I didn't even know I was swerving. It must have been the sunlight that caused me to do that. It's really bright during the midday." I respond with jerky movements.
Clearly displeased by my response, the officer nods to the other one to go ahead with searching my car, whilst the one questioning me reaches into the trunk of the car and pulls out a small device.
"Okay, ma'am, I'm going to need you to blow into this machine for me please."
"But why? I haven't drunk anything!"
"You need to do this, so I can prove if you have, or haven't had any substance that may have impaired your driving." He says.
I shake my head out of irritation more than anything as he proceeds to place the plastic straw in my mouth. With one eye on the device and another on the other officer checking my car, I breathe into the device, as requested. A bleeping sound prompts him to pull the straw away from me. As he stares at the data being processed, I glance to watch over the other officer as he reaches into my car. My sole focus now is how I can justify having a gun on me. I struggle to swallow as the fear of being taken to jail suffocates me. I pray he doesn't find it.
"Hmm." The officer next to me grunts.
I turn to look at him as I try to disguise my trembling.
"It says here you are telling the truth." He looks at with me with a defeated expression on his face.
"I told you, sir." I respond tamely.
"Over here." The cop searching my car yells out to the officer who is speaking to me.
He quickly puts the device back in the trunk before heading over to my car. My heart sinks. This is it. I'm going to jail. Laws in Nevada state that carrying a concealed firearm, without a license carries a prison term of one to five years. I knew this was a stupid idea! I sense the color of my face drain as I battle the shakiness in my limbs. I'm too scared to even stare ahead at them, instead, I scrunch up into the fetal position to nurse my nauseous stomach.
The sound of footsteps dragging across the gravel forces my head to jolt up.
"Ma'am, are you sure there is nothing you want to tell me?" The officer leans in towards the window.
"No." I stutter with a trembling voice.
"Are you 100% sure?" He reiterates, prolonging the inevitable.
"Yes, why?"
He lets out a disappointing sigh while shaking his head. The officer then waves for his colleague to head back over to the dispatch car. I feel so cold, sick and empty. Petrified is an understatement right now.
"So you don't want to tell me about this?" He pulls up his left hand, holding some documents.
"What?" I reply dazed.
"It says here you bought this car a little under two weeks ago, and according to our database, this is your second stop in the space of three days."
I stare at the officer as I try to consume what it is he is trying to tell me. The fear within me has blocked out most of my sense. "Was that in my car?"
"Er, yes, ma'am. We found this in your glove compartment. If you are stopped by another officer for an illegal offense, we will take your driver's license away from you, and you will be prosecuted. Do you understand?" He asks.
Feeling ultra-awake and rejuvenated by adrenaline, my body perks up. "Yes, sir, I understand. Am I free to go?"
"Yes you're free to go. If you say it was the sunlight that caused you to drift a little, then I cannot punish you for that. But, I will caution you to pull down the sun visor in the future. Have a safe drive, and try not to get pulled over again." He opens the door and lets me out.
Despite the high, happy energy flowing through me, I still cannot fathom how the gun didn't get found. As I leap out of the car, I welcome the breeze as if I had just been let out of prison, ironically. I turn to face and wave both the officers goodbye, deeply appreciative to still have my freedom.
The tremors still won't ease up. I'm shaking like a leaf! Not in a million years did I see myself getting out of that. Walking to my parked car, I notice the police car pulling off into the highway. What a close call. I am never bringing this thing out with me again. Ever! Both my hands will remain on the steering wheel from here on out, too.
I need to get home. I need to relax. I've got a lot of big decisions to make regarding my future with Dean. This could either make or break me.
Chapter 10
"What a day!" I sigh as I shut the front door of the house. No Jess again, result! I usher myself to the kitchen and pour a much needed glass of cold water. As I gulp down the drink to quench my thirst, I feel the water trickling right through me, causing my eyes to water. I take in some air after necking the whole glass down in one.
I need to call Amy. Reaching into my handbag, I grab my phone and begin to dial her number. It rings for so long, but just as I am about to hang up, a breathless voice greets the speaker.
"Dana!" She gasps.
"Are you, okay, Amy?" I ask cautiously.
"Yeah, I'm good, what's up? How's everything?" She exerts.
"I'm good...um. Have I caught you at a bad time? I can call you later?"
"NO!" She says adamantly.
"Alright cool, well basically Dean and I are fine, but so much is happening right now. I might as well come out with it, he wants me to leave Vegas with him by the end of the week." I screech, bracing myself for a lecture or two.
"Fuck it! Go for it, I say." Amy says out of no-where.
I am left stunned by her response. No way is this the Amy I know speaking!
"Seriously? Is that it?" I ask to validate her response.
"Yes. Seriously! This guy has treated you well, brought you in on his business, and it turned out he never did anything disloyal to you yesterday. Not only that, it sounds like he really likes you by the way he doesn't want Ryan anywhere near you, and the fact he's wined and dined you so much."
"Omg! This is all too much. Seriously, you were right all those weeks ago about coming to Vegas. It's been the best thing I've done, ever! So you don't thin
k this is all too soon?" I ask in tame excitement.
"We was both right about it, babe." She acknowledges the first part of my response before continuing. "To a lot of people, it would be inconceivable to leave with someone after just two weeks of knowing them. But what is time anyway? Time is something humans designed, and use to measure things. Do you think animals care about time, or their birthdays? No! Go with what feels right now!"
Elation is not the word right now. I am flabbergasted by what Amy is saying. Never would I have expected her to come out with this.
"You only have one hurdle with this - Jess. She's going to question you like crazy, so perhaps you should break the news to her when you next get home. That is of course, unless you've already told her?" Amy adds.
"No, I'm at home now, and she isn't even here. I'm not telling her tonight because I haven't fully decided yet what I'm doing." I reply.
"Shut up! Your mind is already made up babe! You're going, and you know that. He must be wooing you pretty well, that's all I'm saying!"
"Amy!" I shout in surprise to how crude she is.
"What? It's the truth, Dana. Let's not lie about it." She jokes.
"Come back to bed baby." A male voice echoes on the line.
"Oh my god. Are you with someone at the moment?" I ask with a raised voice.
"Hold on! I'm on the phone to my friend" She hisses at him. "Yes, I am with someone. I was at the bar last night and got catching up with someone from college, and well...y'know."
"Are you over Brad then?"
"Babe, like I said a little while ago. Our relationship was dead a long time ago." She adds.
The sound of a constant bleep in my ear forces me to look at the phone. Dean's calling me! Desperately not wanting to avoid it, I wrap up the conversation with Amy.
"Amy, I'm really, really sorry, but Dean is calling me. Do you mind if I call you a bit later or something?" I plea.
"You're lucky I've got things to do with certain people myself! I'm only playing. Yeah sure! Just promise me you will follow your heart with what we spoke about yeah?"
"I love you so much! Of course I will, I promise. Thank you! Speak soon, bye." I hang up the phone before accepting Dean's incoming call.
I wonder if her response would have been the same if I had enough time to mention Dean giving me his gun. It's probably wise to leave that for another time.
"Hey!" I greet him feeling very perked up after the talk with Amy.
"Guess what?" He asks with a cheeky tone to his deep voice.
He's up to something! "I don't know, what?" I ask.
"I'm not meeting the clients till later tomorrow night now, so I was wondering if you would like to go out for a brunch or something tomorrow at this cool outdoor place. I want to make the most of what time I have got left in Vegas."
"Oh wow, nice! Yeah sure, what time was you thinking?"
"Hmm. Good question. Perhaps, 3pm?"
"3pm sounds good! I'm so excited about the takeover going public tomorrow!" I go all giddy to him.
"Brilliant! That's a date then. I am so excited too, but our shares might not be sold until the day after launch. Shares fluctuate, high and low for at least the first 48 hours of going to market." He adds.
"I don't care. The fact is, the deal is going live tomorrow, and that's all that matters." I throw in my two cents of optimism.
He laughs to himself under his breath.
"Me neither." He pauses to suck in some breath.
"What you up to now?" I ask.
"Just smoking a cigarette, at the top of the Plaza hotel, as you do." He jeers sarcastically.
"Have you thought more on leaving with me this Friday?"
I pause, not wanting to commit to it just yet. "I'm still thinking about it. It's something we can talk about more tomorrow?"
The sound of him pausing to inhale his cigarette prompts me to wait.
"It's a big decision, so I understand. We can absolutely talk about it tomorrow, my lady. I know this sounds corny, but I kinda miss you already."
My heart begins to elevate, radiating nothing but warm sensations through me. "Aw! I miss you too! It's not corny, real men tell their girlfriends how they feel." I mock him.
We both engage in light laughter together.
"Dean, you would never guess what happened today --"
He interrupts me as I am about to tell him about almost getting caught with his gun.
"Dana, I'm sorry, my smoke break is finished and Steve just dropped me a text to get back down to the room. Tell me what happened tomorrow! Just keep safe, and meet me at the bar I took you to when we first met, the place I'm going to take you is only a block away from there."
"Alright cool, sounds great. See you tomorrow! Bye." I reply with a happy tone despite being in shock about how abrupt the conversation is ending.
"Bye, baby girl." Dean adds, before cutting off the line.
Life feels so good right now! This is definitely the turning point I've needed, but definitely not the one I had hoped for weeks ago. I just hope this isn't one of those "it's too good to be true" things, because I don't think my heart can take anymore drama.
Chapter 11
A horn roars beside me. Why are there so many jerks driving around in Vegas? Like seriously! Letting someone cross the road is no big deal. I shake my head to rid my body of annoyance. I can't wait to get out of here now! My mind is definitely made up. Last night was just what I needed - a free house to think everything through. Other than Jess, I have nothing here. No job, no friends, nothing. Plus, to travel to a state that I've never been to before and start building a prosperous business with Dean is a no-brainer, jam-packed with adventure.
As I pull up at the red light, I spot a familiar person from a distance. It's Dean, leaning up against his bike smoking a cigarette. He looks smoking hot in that vest top!
I take in a deep breath, readying myself to tell him about my decision. I'm itching to tell him, and I'm even more excited to know about how the shares are performing. The green light flashes and I speed towards Dean. Before parking behind his bike I hit the horn to scare him, but it doesn't work. Instead of jumping like a normal person, he simply gazes towards me, bearing a smile big enough to welcome me, but small enough to accommodate his cigarette.
I swiftly turn off the ignition, grab my handbag and head out of the car without drifting my gaze off Dean.
"Hey dimples!" I blurt out happily as I shut and lock the door beside me.
"What have I told you about calling me that?" He sucks in one last puff of smoke before flicking it on the pavement to stomp it out.
"You're going to have to enlighten me again." I mock as I walk up to give him a kiss.
Dean welcomes the kiss, but does one better by wrapping his big, muscular arms around my waist.
"Someone's woke up on the right side of the bed this morning." He stares down at me.
The sunlight looks beautiful as it shimmers through Dean's dark brown hair. His eyes and skin tone look more distinct in the daylight. It's like everything is in ultra-high definition right now.
"I always wake up on the right side of the bed, except for the days I stay at yours, because you hog up the whole bed." I joke sarcastically to him.
"Ha, ha, ha! That has to go down as the worst joke I've heard all year!" He patronizes me with a huge, cocky grin.
"I learn from the best." I say as I peel off from him.
Dean rubs his chin and glances away from me in shame. "Ouch! For the first time in forever, I haven't got a comeback for that!"
I poke fun at his rock hard abs, as I gloat in victory. "I guess that's 1-0 to me then!"
He glances back at me with strong eye contact, as if I've antagonized him. "For now Dana, for now." He grins at me in full confidence.
"Come on then, my feisty little lady, let's get some brunch." With one hand holding his black helmet, and the other reaching to grab my hand, we both start wandering towards the outdoor restaurant a block away.
&nb
sp; As we are walking, I can't help but reflect back to the day we walked from the police station to the bar, my feet killed me that day!
"Hey, this isn't going to be like that hike we did the other week, right?" I ask expectantly.
He tilts his head to the floor to let out a tame laugh before glancing at me. "No. It's literally around the corner, I promise."
"Pinky promise?" I extend my little finger to him.
"Pinky promise!" He makes the pledge looking somewhat embarrassed.
Dean halts to browse at some jewelry, I promptly join him in the shaded part of the sidewalk. A stunning sapphire and gold necklace grabs my attention immediately. I scoot over to it and to further inspect it. Wow. It's beautiful. I stare at it in awe, but it soon switches to shock as my eyes gravitate to the price of it. $12,500!!!
"That's a nice necklace." Dean comments behind me.
"The price isn't." I joke with him, staring though the window's reflection.
"We're in Vegas. These prices are commonplace. I think it would suit you though." He smiles at me in the reflection.
"True, but still. $12,500 is a lot!"
"Stay here, I'm going to ask the owner if you can try it on." He says with a beaming grin.
"Don't be so stupid, honestly, I'm not all that big on jewelry as it is."
Dean heads over to the entrance of the store, but stops just before going in. "There's no harm in trying it on, just wait here." He says.
"You really don't take "no" for an answer, do you?" I ask.
He laughs calmly, then turns to walk into the shop, causing the bell to ring as he opens the door.
Doubt #2 (The Deception Series #1) Page 6
