Brotherhood of District 23 Complete Series

by Amy Briggs

  “No, no. I’m sorry, bro. I didn’t mean for it to sound that way. I’m just surprised you’re moving so fast. It’s like lightening fast for an outsider looking in. I believe you though. I know you love each other, and I’ll help you do whatever you need. Seriously.” I felt bad for making him think I didn’t approve.

  “Thanks, I appreciate it. Basically, I want to find a way to surprise her in the next couple of weeks, so I was hoping you might be able to help me come up with some ideas or help me get her where I need her to be,” he said.

  “Yea, of course, man. Whatever you need.” I looked around and saw Jo and Isabel still leaning up against the wall, talking and smiling. They were both so pretty. As I looked around the bar, I noticed a lot of guys staring in their direction. “Did you get a ring?”

  “Yea, mama went with me to pick it out. I wanted to be traditional and kind of do it the right way, and since her dad isn’t here, I went and talked to mama about it last week, and we went shopping. I think she’ll love it.” He was glowing. When he talked about Jo, he was either pissed and defensive because someone was hitting on her, or he was being protective about something, or he was lit up like a Christmas tree. She definitely did something to him no one else ever did.

  “That’s awesome. Alright, well, let me know what you have in mind, and I’ll make sure she’s where you need her to be.” I absolutely wanted to help in any way I could.

  “Thanks, man. Ok, keep quiet. The girls are coming back. That detective is hot, dude. You should investigate that. It looks like Jax has moved on,” he laughed and made air quotes when he said investigate. I rolled my eyes at him again and then looked back as the girls were walking up. Jax had taken up with a blonde across the room. He really did have the attention span of a fly when it came to talking to women.

  “What’s going on over here, gentlemen?” Isabel asked. She smiled at us, and her beautiful, full lips revealed the most perfect white, straight teeth. I was thinking about what I’d like to do with that mouth of hers. She was really sexy.

  “Nothing at all, Isabel. We were just having brother talk, is all. Can I get you another drink?” I nodded toward her empty glass.

  “Why, yes, you can, thank you very much.” She stepped closer to me, so I scooted over to give her a spot next to me at the bar, and we leaned up together. I caught a hint of her perfume as she leaned in closer. I wasn’t sure what it was, but it was light and sweet smelling, sending a signal right to my cock again. I almost groaned out loud. She was turning me on, and I didn’t understand it, since frankly, I hadn’t liked her all that much before I got here.

  “So, Isabel, how does a pretty girl like you become a detective? Does it run in your family?” I flirted a little while we waited for our drinks.

  She laughed. “No! Not at all, actually. My mom is a doctor, and my dad is a lawyer. They never really loved the idea of me being a cop at all. I think they’re used to it now, but they definitely would have preferred I did something else.”

  “Interesting. So you must really love it then?” I was fascinated that someone as pretty as her would want to chase after douchebags for a living. It was sexy, mostly because it was badass.

  She looked off for a moment and smiled before meeting my eyes again, so I focused. “I really do love it. I can’t imagine doing anything else. Every single day, even when I’m doing bullshit paperwork and dealing with red tape, I’m helping people. It was a calling for me, running investigations, chasing the bad guys, the whole thing. I was meant for it…” She started to trail off. “I must sound silly,” she said and rolled her eyes at herself.

  I leaned in closer, so she could hear me. The bar was noisy, and I simply wanted to get closer to her while we were talking. “It’s not silly at all. It’s how I feel about being a firefighter. I think it’s comforting to know I’m doing exactly what I was meant for. So no, I don’t think it’s silly at all. I completely understand what you mean.” Her intent stare into my eyes was throwing me off again. Then the corners of her mouth turned upward into a smile, making me smile too. She listened so intently when I spoke, like she was truly listening and interested in what I had to say. So few people did that, really. Maybe it was because she was a detective and was looking for answers or something. Whatever it was, it was attractive to have her focus, and it drew me to her in a way I didn’t expect.

  I was listening to Matt tell me how he was drawn to firefighting the way I was drawn to police work, and I felt like he truly understood that pull to do something the same way I did. He was an attentive listener, and I kept getting lost looking into his green eyes. He and his brother had the same beautiful green eye color, but Matt’s were softer in a way. He never looked away when I talked to him, and he was hot. I had to admit it. He was six foot three inches of rock solid, beautiful manliness. He didn’t have tattoos all over his arms, but I could faintly see he had one on his chest and shoulder, and I found myself wanting to see more of them, without the obstruction of his shirt. His dark blond hair was perfectly trimmed, and he didn’t have one bit of facial hair either; he was clean cut. I wondered how old he was. He had a bit of a baby face, but he was also seemingly mature in a way as well. He absolutely oozed sex appeal, and even though I didn’t really need to be quite as close as I was, he smelled amazing, so I kept leaning in as his scent wafted around me.

  As the moistness in my panties became apparent to me, I tried to shake off the attraction I was feeling. This was supposed to be professional, right? Or was it social? I could never tell, really, but I was certain I shouldn’t have been so extremely turned on as I was at that moment. All we were doing was talking about our careers. I was lost in thought on that for a moment when he spoke again.

  “Want to do a shot?” He raised his eyebrows at me and gave me a million-dollar smile, causing me to giggle a little bit.

  “Sure, why not? I am off tomorrow. Let’s have some fun.” I was hoping I wouldn’t regret saying that later. I did want to go to the range tomorrow afternoon for some target practice, and with a hangover, that would be damned near impossible. The bar was so crowded, we were standing really close to each other, and even closer when we both leaned in to address the bartender.

  He ordered us two shots and got me another vodka soda and himself another beer. Handing me the shot of dark liquid, clearly whiskey, he flashed me that smile and raised his glass to toast. “To catching the bad guys.” I clinked my glass to his and poured the warm liquor down my throat. I felt the burn all the way down but never broke eye contact with him. I couldn’t stop looking at those eyes.

  “Well, that was gross. What was that?” I asked as I put the shot glass down and took a sip of my vodka.

  “Aw, come on now. That was Irish whiskey! It’s good for you. Warms you from the inside out,” he laughed at me, and I pursed my lips.

  “Well, we live in Florida, so I don’t generally need to be warmed up,” I replied sarcastically.

  “Oh, everyone needs to be warmed up every now and again, don’t you think, Detective?” He leaned in close to whisper the last part, essentially melting my panties into nothing. Goddammit, he was so hot, and smooth too. He was definitely flirting with me, and I was loving it.

  I didn’t want to get into a situation I would surely regret later, like going home with this player, so I leaned back a bit, away from him, and said, “I suppose you’re probably right. And I suspect you’d know far more about that than I do, wouldn’t you?” A hot single guy like him, there was no way he wasn’t a total womanizer, regardless of how nice his family was. He was just way too smooth for this to be his first rodeo.

  “I don’t know, Detective. I suspect you can hold your own just fine, maybe even teach me a thing or two.” He stared down at me, challenging me with his eyes. We were facing each other, and I really had nowhere to go in the small space we had squeezed ourselves into. I could feel my heart racing. I enjoyed this cat and mouse game a little too much, and the alcohol was definitely getting to me. I watched his lips move
as he spoke and couldn’t help but think of what they’d feel like pressed softly against mine.

  “You never know, Cavanaugh. Anything’s possible.” I smiled. I didn’t know what to say. I didn’t want to push him away, but I knew that anything happening tonight would be so wrong and only end in some kind of disaster. The intensity between us had grown. I had almost forgotten we were at a completely packed bar while we were talking. I wanted that to come out sounding like a joke, but it wasn’t. In actuality, I’d have loved to leave right that moment to let him fuck me rough and dirty against the wall in the alley.

  “I see you like to be vague, but I can tell you like me, Detective. Just a little bit, but you definitely want more, don’t you? I can see it in your eyes.” I couldn’t believe he was just asking me that outright. He had some balls. Clearly, his ego was talking, and the alcohol, of course. He wasn’t wrong though.

  “I don’t even know you, Cavanaugh. But you’re awfully sure of yourself, aren’t you? You think your moves always work on the ladies, don’t you?” His boldness was starting to irritate me a bit, and his obvious player tendencies were ringing in my head as they came to the forefront of my imagination. I could envision some little blonde bouncing up and down on his dick, and it actually aggravated the shit out of me. I couldn’t begin to fathom why I cared, but it was making me mad nonetheless.

  “I have my fair share of luck, if that’s what you’re asking me. Right now, I’m talking to you though.” He leaned in to whisper something in my ear when Brian walked up with Jo. Matt took a step back, looking taken off guard.

  “We interrupting something here?” Brian looked from one to the other of us in quick succession, searching for an answer to his question.

  I spoke up first. “Not at all, Chief. Matt here was just telling me about how much he loves firefighting. And how he has plenty of luck with the ladies.” I had stepped away from the bar, closer to Brian and Jo, and was looking directly at Matt with a smirk planted across my face. Take that, pal.

  “Is that so?” Jo laughed. She looked at me and rolled her eyes in Matt’s direction. “Well, his taste in those women he speaks of actually sucks, so don’t let him tell you otherwise.” She gave him an eye roll and a dramatic fake smile.

  “Hey, wait a minute. We were just talking, weren’t we, Detective?” He gave me a bit of a glare mixed with a look of desperation to be saved from the conversation. I was fairly pleased with myself; feeling like I’d knocked his ego down a peg. I didn’t like cocky out of the gate, and I surely didn’t care for his presumptuous attitude with me. Even if he was ridiculously good looking.

  In any event, I didn’t want him to be completely angry with me. “I’m just having some fun with you, Cavanaugh. Lighten up.” I took a sip of my drink while smiling across the glass at him.

  “Uh huh, I see how it is.” He took a sip of his beer and turned to his brother. “So, how are you two doing?”

  “Well, we were actually just coming over to say goodbye. It’s been a long day, and we’re...tired,” Brian said and wrapped his arm around Jo.

  “Oh, tired, I see.” Matt rolled his eyes at them. “Well, Jo, congratulations, or whatever we’re supposed to say when these things happen. I’ll wait a half hour to text you until you’re done,” he joked.

  Jo laughed back at him, and Brian playfully punched his arm. “Ahhh, go fuck yourself, little brother. Text her tomorrow. We’ll be busy in half an hour, and half an hour after that as well. For the remainder of the evening, in fact.”

  Jo turned to me and leaned in for a hug. “Thank you so much for coming tonight, Isabel. I’d love to go have a girls’ night or something soon if you’d be up for it. I’m with these clowns twenty-four hours a day, so it would be wonderful to have some lady time.”

  “I’d absolutely love that. You have my number, Jo. And seriously, great job, and I’m proud of you.” She smiled at me, and they left the bar arm in arm. They really were in love. I didn’t quite understand that kind of love. I’d certainly never had it, but I admired it. I actually would love to spend some girl time with Jo. She was tough but also feminine and pretty, and we had a lot in common, working in a man’s world. I thought about asking her to meet up for coffee later in the week when Matt caught my attention again.

  “So, Detective, where were we?” His cocky smile drew me in and irritated me at the same time.

  “Cavanaugh, we weren’t. We were just about to part ways. It’s time for me to go as well.” I leaned in close to him to set my drink down on the bar, catching one last sniff of his intoxicating, manly smell.

  “I feel like we were just getting started.” He looked down at me, and I almost got lost in those pools of green again.

  “No, you’re mistaken. It’s time for me to go. I’m sure I’ll see you around somewhere, Cavanaugh. Have a good night.” I turned around and walked out the back door to the rear parking lot where my car was without awaiting a reply from him or looking back. It probably looked like I was making an escape, and truthfully, I was. He had a charm about him you knew was probably not good, but it was goddamn irresistible.

  I couldn’t believe she’d turned around and left like that. I decided to follow her out. I didn’t know why, but I was enjoying our little game. I thought she was kind of into me, at least a little. She wasn’t normally my type, but then again, a guy like me didn’t really have a type. But she was challenging. I liked a challenge. A moment after she left, I walked out the back door too, looking for her.

  I saw her walking down the short alley to her car and ran to catch up to her when she quickly turned around, gave me an elbow to the ribs, and shoved me into the wall of the building.

  “Jesus Christ, Isabel, it’s me!!” I grabbed my side and crouched over in pain as I leaned against the wall.

  “What the fuck, Cavanaugh? You don’t run up behind a girl in the alley at a bar! What the fuck is wrong with you?” I couldn’t believe she was mad at me! I was hoping she didn’t crack a fucking rib. She was fucking strong and got me good.

  “Well, Detective, I wanted to see you out to your car like a gentleman, but instead, you assaulted me.” I decided to try to make her feel at least a little bit bad about nearly kicking my ass in the alley.

  She softened her stance against me after the shock had worn off, and I guess she realized I wasn’t a threat. “I was already gone. Jesus. Well, shit, I’m sorry. Are you ok?” She came closer and put her hand on my ribs softly, attempting to lift my shirt to take a look at where she got me with her elbow, immediately making my dick hard.

  Her touch sent chills through me, and I felt my breath hitch as she lifted my shirt up to see where she’d hit me. She rubbed her hand along my rib softly, and I flinched a little when she came to the tender spot, all the while turning me on at the same time. I watched her inspect my body for a moment and then grabbed her hand. I thought I’d explode if I let her soft little fingers roam across my abs any further.

  She stopped, looking up at me while I had a hold of her hand at her wrist. “Am I hurting you?” she whispered.

  “Not anymore,” I whispered back, looking into her beautiful, brown eyes. My desire had taken over my entire body, and I wanted to taste her so badly. She gave me a small smile, and I pulled her into me with my other arm, letting my lips just barely touch hers, testing the waters of what I felt was our pull to one another.

  She leaned into my kiss, letting me explore her mouth with my tongue and taste the citrus from her drinks on her lips. I released the hand I had grabbed to run my hands through her long, dark hair, while she ran her hands under my shirt to my back, gripping me just enough to send me into a spiral of want for her, feeling her pressed up against me, grabbing me like that. For a moment, we kissed passionately and softly, then, as her grip on me tightened, my animal need for her took control. I pulled away to look at her, inspecting her face for a reaction to what I was about to do.

  Her hands were on my chest, and she looked at me hungrily, biting her lip just a little and
giving me doe eyes. I charged in, crushing my lips to hers this time. Her sexiness was more than I could stand, and I’d completely forgotten she’d nearly knocked the wind out of me just a few moments earlier. As she reached up around my neck, giving me her mouth roughly, I scooped her up in my arms, completely picking her up and swinging us around so I could press myself into her against the wall of the building. My cock was straining. I was practically fucking her through my jeans. I couldn’t get enough of her. I wanted to fuck her hard right there in the alley, and she wasn’t fighting it; in fact, she was clawing at me, while I held her tiny frame up against the wall.

  “Isabel, come home with me,” I whispered in her ear. I wanted to carry her to my car right then and there and have my way with her. As it turned out, she had other plans.

  She hopped down and rested her forehead against my chest for a split second before she pushed me away. “I gotta go, Cavanaugh. That was fun.” That was fun? She gave me a smile, patted my ribs gently, and said, “You're lucky I didn't shoot you. I'll see you around.” She laughed a little bit, ducked under my arm, and started to walk away.

  I spun in her direction, shocked. “Are you kidding me, Isabel? You’re leaving?” My cock was throbbing, and my head was spinning.

  “Yea, I gotta run. Lots to do tomorrow. But I’ll see you, don’t worry,” she winked at me, then walked to her car, a fully restored 1969 Chevy Camaro that was black with racing stripes. She had a muscle car. Fuck me, she was hot.