by Tina Reber
I knew what she was asking for but I had nothing to give her. “Sorry, Doc.”
She frowned. “I can’t find a pulse, either. I need you to keep steady pressure to keep him from bleeding out on us. Squeeze as tight as you can. Okay?”
All I could do was nod, waiting on her next instruction. I wanted to help her give him CPR; I’d been recertified recently, but I knew the second I let go of this kid’s leg the blood would flow.
Such a tiny thing and yet she was pumping his chest with renewed strength. I found that I was keeping count with her, but nothing was happening.
We were wasting our time trying to change his fate. Out here on the streets, not breathing and no pulse only meant one thing.
“Doc, I think he’s dead.”
She never stopped pumping. “No, he’s not. Not yet.”
I felt useless just doing nothing but clamping his leg. I didn’t want to admit that the smell of his blood was getting to me. “Do you want me to do that? You hold his leg?” I switched to breathing out of my mouth.
Her dirty blonde hair bounced off her shoulders with each compression. “No. Your hands are stronger. Keep him clamped tight. You have an AED in your rig?”
Regret and anger poured over me, knowing we should be better equipped but weren’t. “No. None of the ATTF units do.”
“Shit,” she growled out, pressing down on him harder. “Bagger? Oxygen?”
I squeezed the kid’s thigh with all my might, not wanting any of her efforts to be in vain. “No. Regular patrol does. We don’t carry that stuff. Like you said, it’s just you and me, Doc.” The moment she looked over at me again with those gorgeous blue eyes, I felt it. It was as if an invisible wavelength tethered us together in this shitty situation somehow. It almost took my breath away. It was that strong. I saw her next question clearly manifest on her face, as if I could read her mind like her thoughts were my own. She didn’t need to ask. I scanned the area, yelling over to one of my team members, making sure she’d get whatever she needed as soon as a squad car pulled up.
“Thanks,” she muttered, still compressing his chest.
Hearing the added sirens from arriving fire trucks and ambulances was nothing short of a relief, but it seemed to take forever for them to get on scene. I’d been a first responder on numerous occasions, but never had much of a stomach for the sight of torn human flesh.
“Officer, you can let go now,” some paramedic said to me as he tried to shoulder me out of the way. I reluctantly rolled back off of my knees, very aware how much they hurt from kneeling on the wet, icy cold road. I didn’t want to leave her; we were working well as a team. We’d gotten the kid’s heart to beat again, and I felt like I was abandoning her to deal with the mayhem all on her own.
My captain stepped to my side and snagged my arm, attempting to tug me away, but I stood firm. I wasn’t going anywhere, not without her, that is. “Come on, Adam. There’s nothing else you can do here. Let’s go get you cleaned up.”
I rolled him off my shoulder, ready to push him away if I had to. She was up to her elbows in trying to save this guy’s life. How she managed to keep so calm and in control was awe inspiring. I wanted to drop back to my knees next to her, soak in some of her power. “No, I’m staying here. She may need me.”
“Adam.”
I contemplated slugging him. “I said I’m good.”
He pulled harder, deliberately knocking me off balance. “Come on, Adam. The EMTs got this. Local PD is here. It’s their show now. We’re just in the way.”
“I don’t give a fuck,” I growled low.
Cap got right in my face, staring me down. “I’m not asking, I’m telling.” He gave my chest a shove.
Respect for the man kept me from doing something rash and stupid, like laying him out right in the street.
“You’ve got blood all over you,” he pointed out. “Try not to touch anything. Come on.”
Touch anything? My hands felt numb; icy cold to the bone. That’s when I noticed my leather gloves were soaked with the kid’s blood, causing that chill to roll throughout my body.
Cap walked me back to my rig while my constant shadow, Ritchie, followed us like a faithful dog—still filming my every move.
“Shit, Adam,” Cap said, shaking his head in disbelief. He pulled on a pair of latex gloves so he could peel my leather ones off. “Turn your face away until I get these off.”
I looked back at the scene; that adorable doctor was still at it, working with the paramedics and the fire department to secure the victims.
“She sure is something,” I breathed out, feeling extremely proud of her for some reason. She met extreme adversity head on, making me admire the hell out of her. Not too many women would have the guts or the tenacity to roll from one shitty situation to another.
Ritchie’s camera light illuminated the wet street around my feet. Regret for putting her through all of that earlier hit me like a fist to the face, driving my need to right another wrong.
I leaned in closer to my commander, hoping that my words wouldn’t get recorded. “Cap, the footage from tonight, it can never be aired. That shit will ruin her.” I looked back at her; she was still giving orders, maintaining control of the situation as if she’d done it a thousand times. She was assessing the vics in the other car, pointing, telling people what she needed them to do, without even realizing she was being filmed by a major television network.
A third ambulance rolled up, along with another fire engine, taking care of the truck driver and the fluids spilled on the road. I wanted to run back to the scene and pull her out of there, carry her over my shoulder if I had to.
Cap sighed, eyeing Ritchie warily. “I know, but I’m worried about the shit they’re recording right now. You know as well as I do that any shots of your heroics gives ’em serious hard-ons.”
I bit back a curse, knowing the deal with the network and how their focus had secretly shifted, making me their primary target. Why we ever agreed to be filmed for reality TV was beyond me, although the amount of money they tossed at us was ridiculous and hard to say no to. At least it helped get the word out that the Auto Theft Task Force was out in full force, cracking down on crime.
Still, I felt like a sellout at times, especially since there were plenty of other hardworking cops on the streets who weren’t pulling in an extra five figures to do their jobs.
Several patrol units were on the scene now, managing traffic. None of them were getting a cut of the action being on reality TV, but each of them were putting their lives at risk every time they wore their badge.
“All right,” Cap said, dumping my bloody gloves in a plastic bag. “You need to get out of here and get cleaned up.”
I held the plastic bag open while he removed his own soiled gloves. After a healthy dose of hand sanitizer for both of us, he used his com unit. “Attention all ATTF officers, local PD is on scene. It’s almost five forty-five. Time to clear out.”
I checked my watch and hustled over to her car, assuring myself that her belongings were secured. Her sweet ride was at least forty-five grand to start and it was brand new. There was no way I was going to let her or her car sit in this neighborhood.
I didn’t need to inform Cap what I intended to do. After being under his command for the last few years, one glance from me was all it took to know I needed to see this to the end. He gave me a nod of understanding.
I turned my glare on Ritchie, pegging him with a pointed finger. “Don’t you fucking follow me. Understood?”
I was glad he didn’t need me to repeat myself since I was at the very end of my rope. I jogged back to the accident scene alone, knowing I wasn’t leaving until she was safe and secure. It was beyond too late to keep her off camera or from her seeing the injured. I found myself shouldering up to her, fighting an urge to wrap my arms around her.
She was standing there, misting the cold air with her labored breath. How many hours did she say she’d worked when we stopped her? Sixteen? And she’d
just worked her ass off for another half hour doing field triage. Holy hell, that was admirable. Thoughts of my little brother Jason doing the same exact shit in some war-torn place of hell on Earth blasted into my mind, rippling pain and worry into my chest. Damn, I hoped he was doing all right—that he was safe.
The second ambulance pulled away, lights and sirens blaring.
“Told you he wasn’t dead,” she muttered, more to herself than me, I supposed.
“I thought for sure he wasn’t going to make it.” She was a fucking miracle worker. “You did real good, Doc. Real good.” I rolled her name around my brain one more time, soaking it in so I wouldn’t forget.
Erin.
Just standing next to her seemed to calm me, as if she were coated in some sort of magical aura that made me feel as though I wasn’t so lost and alone in the ugliness of life.
The urge to haul her up into my arms and protect her from seeing any more misery was strong. “It’s time to clear out, Doc.” I held out her keys, needing to get her far away from this place, knowing I wouldn’t be able to rest until I saw her home. Lights twinkled off the rhinestones that were embedded in the metal letter “E” that dangled from the keychain between my fingers.
She snagged them from the air, practically ripping her key fob from my hand. “Yes sir, Officer. At least I got to do one more good deed before you assholes turned my life to shit.”
Wait… What? What the fuck did that mean? I distinctly recalled trying to stop her before her life turned to shit.
She turned on her heels so damn fast and started marching her pretty little ass down the street, I barely had a comeback.
She wasn’t going to get off that easy. “Hey. Hold up. Doc. Stop right there.”
Did she just flip me off? Oh hell no.
I got right into her personal space, holding my position at her car door as she stepped up to me.
“What? What do you want, Officer? Have some puppies you need to run over yet tonight?”
God, she was being such a bitch. Ballsy little thing, I’d give her that. Intriguing as all hell, too. You aren’t going anywhere until you explain that attitude you’re dishing out. Try getting in your car with me holding the fucking door closed. I dare ya.
She stared me down. “You just going to glare at me or do you have something else you need to say? Why don’t you run and get your little ticket pad thing. I’m sure I can handle a final kick with a nice hefty ticket on top of it. What’s a red light cost these days? Two hundred and three points on my record?”
Damn, she had a mouth on her. “What’s your problem?”
She looked at me like I was cracked. “My problem? Oh, I’m sorry. Where should I start? The fact that I was already having one of the worst nights of my life before you and your posse aimed your guns at my head, or how the last twelve years of my life were just eviscerated when I was filmed wearing handcuffs? Once this hits the media, my career is over. Do you understand? Everything I’ve worked for is gone. Everything! So sorry if I’m a little bitter about that. And on top of all of that, four more people were just severely injured, causing even more misery to my horrendously shitty night. So if you haven’t any further need for me, I’d like to go home and wash the blood off me that I got on my pants from keeping someone else from dying tonight, in case you need to clear that up.”
I never wanted to gag a woman so badly in all my life. I wanted to tie this little spitfire up and give her what she really needed—a good, thorough fucking—my way.
Whoa. Where the hell did that come from?
I was holding my jaw so tight my molars were starting to hurt. What did she expect? Her car was reported stolen at gunpoint. It was a justified stop. “If you’re waiting for me to apologize for doing my job, it ain’t gonna happen.”
She tugged on the door handle again but it barely jostled me. Her shoulders slumped with exhaustion. I could tell she was running out of steam. Not only did we scare the shit out of her earlier, she just saved the life of complete strangers in the middle of the damn street. She’d run the gamut of emotions and the stress was making her lash out.
I could totally relate to being an asshole like that.
Those sexy-as-hell eyes turned up and leveled me again, silently pleading, sucking the wind right out of my lungs. I felt the urge to touch her, wondering like a prepubescent school boy what it would be like to kiss the girl. I rested my hand on my revolver instead, especially since I spotted a small crew of the Crips moseying down the sidewalk. Fucking delinquents. I needed to get her safely out of this neighborhood—now.
“Just let me go home.”
I glared a warning in their direction, surprised that the gangbangers hadn’t scattered like cockroaches with so many cops present. “I can’t let you do that.”
“Why?” she squealed, pulling with renewed force, but still nowhere near getting me to budge. “Grrahhh.”
“Not done with you, Doc.”
“Am I under arrest for chucking you the finger, because believe me, if that’s the case I’ll do it again just to make sure you got the message.” She pulled on the door again.
The fact that she was so desperate to get away from me was aggravating. “Keep yanking. I got all morning, sweetheart.”
Her hands finally slapped down in defeat. That a girl; listen and surrender to me. I’ll be more than happy to keep at this until I wear you down.
“What if I kick you in the shins?”
Holy shit. Was she serious? “Gets you back in my handcuffs for assaulting an officer. You want back in my handcuffs?”
Her eyes flashed but something told me we had two very different versions of that scenario running through our minds. I sure as hell liked my visual of that—her tied and bound, bending to my will. I felt my dick twitch, agreeing with me.
Her chin jutted up. “Then I better aim for your balls instead. C’mon. Just. Let. Me. Go. Home.”
Her reply unnerved me a bit. She was a fighter, and a dirty one at that. Surprising. Challenging too, which was also a pleasant surprise. Bring it, baby, right after we take care of business. I stared her down. “You going to calm down first and listen to me?”
Damn, she was infuriating and so goddamned sexy all flushed with anger. I just about lost all my breath when she finally relented. Those pink lips, that sexy mouth… Shit, she already had me by the balls.
“Look, we’ve both just been through a lot. And you don’t have a plate on your car. If you give me a damn minute, I’m going to follow you in my rig to make sure you get home safely. I can’t do shit for you if you drive away from here and local PD pull you over for driving without a plate. You copy?”
“Copy what?”
My patience was all used up. “Do you understand me?”
Erin finally nodded. The looming shadows and possible vendettas were making me edgy.
“Do not turn around but there are about twelve members of a local gang eyeing this situation from down the block and you’ve got that kid’s blood all over your coat. I need you to listen and trust me. I’m going to get a bag for your jacket so you don’t get that shit on your skin or all over your car seat. I’ve got an extra sweatshirt in my rig for you to wear home. Okay?”
“Okay. Copy.” She saluted.
I still didn’t trust that defiant look in her gorgeous eyes. “Do not move. You attempt to drive away from here without me tailing you I will haul your little ass in personally. We clear, Doc?”
That knocked some of the starch out of her. It was a relief to know she’d give in when I put my foot down. Good thing she had no clue I was bluffing.
“What are you doing, man?” my partner, Marcus, asked when I passed him leaning on our rig. I opened the back hatch of our Expedition. “I have no fucking clue,” I grumbled, grabbing my black ATTF sweatshirt out of my duffle bag, grateful that Ritchie wasn’t on my ass for once. Unfortunately, he and Scott were hovering around her with their standard appearance release in hand. I should have warned her not to sign it.
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br /> Shit.
“She sure is a sweet slice of woman,” Marcus muttered.
I had to agree. Shame we were fucking up her life like this. “Feisty as shit, too.”
“Background check came back squeaky clean. One parking ticket and an old speeding violation dated about six years back. Oh, and no last name changes—ever, in case you’re wondering.”
I nodded. “You gonna give me shit if we tail her back to Drexel Hill Heights? I’m not going to put her through having her car towed tonight on top of all of that.”
Marcus’s eyebrows rose up his massive forehead. Then he huffed, surely holding back the desire to jack me up. I could see it in his eyes. Instead, he flashed those big white teeth at me. “I guess I don’t have much of a choice. But you’d better hurry if you want dibs on that sweet piece ’cause Ramirez and Hill are sniffing all around your shit over there.”
I tossed my bag back into our rig and slammed the hatch, rattling the glass.
What the fuck were those two assholes doing? Ramirez I could understand looking to upgrade women, but Hill? He’d better be playing wingman to his partner ’cause the prick was married with kids.
I stepped into Ritchie’s line of sight. “This is done. Shut it down before I bust that camera.” Didn’t take long for Hill and Ramirez to get my glare either. That’s right. All you pricks just back the fuck up.
I shook the bag, holding it open for her. “Coat. Bag. Now.” I ignored her womanly defiance and the annoying film crew that hovered, assuring myself that my team members were moving the fuck along like good boys.
“You always such a bastard?” she asked, peeling her coat off. She stuffed it into the bag, trying to keep her hands on the clean parts.
“Only when I’m pissed off.”
She scoffed and then shivered. “Join the club.”
I tied the top of the bag into a knot and tossed it to the ground. She only had a short-sleeved scrub top on over a thin dark blue thermal and it was starting to snow again.
I fixed the neck opening and pulled the hoodie over her head, taking care not to accidently tug her hair. The sleeves were a few inches too long and it came halfway down her thighs, but something about seeing her in my clothes caused a warm rush to flood my body.
