by Kit Rocha
"Anna, it's not what--" Mitch started again, but Steve rushed in, slamming his hands down on Mitch's chest. He fisted the front of Mitch's leather jacket, and who knows what he'd have done next except Anna shoved herself between them, facing her brother. Protecting Mitch. Awareness in every inch of her that he stood at her back, their bodies close enough if she leaned a tiny bit, she'd be in his arms.
She glared menacingly at her brother. "Drop it now, or I'll forget I'm off duty and haul your ass down to the station."
"But he--"
"I said drop it," Anna barked in her best cop voice.
She twirled to face Mitch, the tightness in her chest only increasing as she stared into his beautiful eyes. Those familiar yet now haunted eyes as his gaze darted over her face.
She wanted to throw all their plans into the garbage and wrap herself around him. Show all the naysayers watching that she thought he was worth so much that she'd...
She'd what? Possibly sacrifice her career? Mitch's words came back to her. I'd hate myself if I ruined everything you've worked so hard for.
It was a trap. One with no way out that didn't leave someone hurting. So instead of doing what her heart wanted, she pulled on every bit of acting ability she had. Lifted her chin, and put her arms across her chest like a shield.
"Don't try to explain. Don't call me. Don't text. We're done, Mitch."
Anna focused on the exit, ignoring the faces around her. Steve was still at her side, and he shoved open the door, the freezing air numbing her lungs so they matched the rest of her.
"Anna, are you okay?"
She damn near sprinted toward her car. She needed to get away. Needed to be anywhere but here. "I'm fine."
He caught her arm and stopped her, and Anna lost it. There in the shadows of the parking lot, far enough away from the doors she couldn't be easily spotted, she broke down. Grabbed hold of her brother, pressed her face to his chest and let the tears escape.
They weren't a huggy family. Steve must have been thrown for a loop, but he tentatively wrapped his arms around her anyway. His awkward embrace was the only thing that kept her standing for the first minute. He patted her back and made soothing noises, and she pulled herself back together. The tear tracks on her cheeks froze when she gave him a final squeeze and stepped away.
A thick line furrowed Steve's brow. "Say the word, and I'll beat the shit out of him for you."
Oh God, what a disaster. She couldn't tell her brother the truth, but she couldn't stop her very real anguish from showing. Anna hiccupped as she fought for control and headed to her car. "Not a good idea. I'd hate to have to arrest you."
"Oh, Anna. I'm so sorry." Steve patted her arm again, his helplessness clear. "Not only for this crap, but for being an idiot myself. I should have paid more attention. Maybe I could have seen this coming."
"Not likely." Anna shook her head, unable to say anything more without choking up again.
"You didn't deserve that."
She slipped her key into her lock, needing to just go home. She kept her comment generic. "No one deserves to get dumped."
"I did."
Steve's blunt confession was enough to distract Anna from her misery. "What?"
"When Megan dumped me, I deserved it. I take people for granted," Steve admitted. "You, the folks. My ex."
Not much Anna could say in response, too overwhelmed by her personal pain.
Her brother clued in quick enough this time. "And I'm a shit for bringing that up now, other than to say I'll try to do better. You let me know if you need me, okay?"
Anna nodded, then escaped. A careful, deliberate escape, well under the speed limit. Instead of heading home, though, she drove in circles, not wanting to go back to a place filled with memories.
She was alone again, and this time it felt colder than before Mitch Thompson had twined his way into her life and her heart. She pulled to a stop under a tall light in the supermarket parking lot, hurting inside, and confused, and all she wanted was someone to hold her.
Not true. She wanted Mitch to hold her.
The cold air seeped in through the car doors, a fitting match for the ice in her heart. Anna rested her head back and closed her eyes.
Moving forward was her only option. She was strong, dammit. Strong enough to follow through with their plans. In the meantime maybe she could move forward into something even better than before.
This was a good thing, Mitch and her taking this break. She trusted him implicitly. Anna wiped the tears from her eyes and aimed her car home. She'd take it like a fresh start on life. Tomorrow she would begin some serious planning so that down the road she could have it all--her career and her wild man.
Tonight?
Tonight she was honest enough to admit she was going to crawl into bed and cry herself to sleep.
Chapter Eleven
Mitch kicked his own ass over and over for that first, disastrous public meeting. Anna took the situation with a hell of a lot more grace than he would have. If she had turned up at Traders with another guy, he would have taken the asshole apart before tying her to his bedpost for a long hard discussion.
Anna? Other than that one moment when he thought she was going to slit his throat, she'd stuck to the plan.
Which sucked. Hugely.
Christmas passed. New Years. They followed their own rules and didn't contact each other on the sly. It felt as if he bumped into Anna a million times, though, yet never once did she look straight at him or acknowledge him. He was invisible, at least to her.
The reaction of the Coleman clan was mixed. As expected, word spread throughout her extended family that he and Anna had broken up. The good part was most of the Colemans were decent enough to assume he hadn't done anything horrid. From them, there were no dire repercussions against him or the rest of his family. Katy's friends kept supporting her. The few times someone needed help with their cars, they still used the Thompson and Sons garage.
But anytime one of the Moonshine Coleman men crossed his path, Mitch remained extra wary and protected his balls. Steve and Trevor especially ended up being pains in his ass, which he understood since she was their little sister and all, but damn if their deliberate bullshit didn't rub him raw.
He fucking missed her like crazy.
The good part was the ache inside was getting familiar enough that if she got the promotion and moved away, he'd be used to the pain. He hated to think about it, but that possibility was real. Or if she decided at the end of it all that they weren't ever getting back together again, he'd already know how to live without his heart.
Mitch slipped out from the garage and walked to the tattoo shop on Main Street, the warming air a sure sign of approaching spring. So damn long since he'd been truly warm. He missed her fire, missed--
Jesus, he was doing it again. His thoughts drifted back to her even when he tried to avoid it.
The pain and pleasure he got from another tattoo couldn't compare to the pain he was living with. He'd let her go because it was the right thing to do, but no matter what happened he'd never forget her.
It was time to add another link to the chains he wore.
He pushed through the door of the shop, pulled off his coat and hung it up. The front desk was empty--Brad must be busy with another customer.
Mitch dropped into a chair to wait, thumbing through a bike magazine, unable to avoid hearing when voices rose from the back room.
"You like how it's turning out?" Brad asked.
"I do."
Mitch was on his feet and moving before he realized. That was Anna. What the hell?
"It looks awesome," Brad declared. "Ashley did a great job designing it."
"She did. But you're good, yourself. I like the shading you added."
Mitch had never wanted to bust down a door so bad in his life. Anna had gotten a tattoo? Fuck. He needed to see it more than he needed his next breath of air.
"Well, we're done for today. Take the usual precautions, let me know if you hav
e any troubles. One more session will finish the shading."
Double fuck--Anna had a tattoo that had taken more than one session? Mitch's mind whirled with possibilities of where on her creamy skin she'd placed it.
Utter agony rolled through his soul that he'd missed being a part of her planning it. What if he never got to see it in living, breathing color?
He was still standing a few paces away from the door when she stepped out, her long hair loose and flowing instead of up in the ponytail she wore when she worked. He took in every detail about her hungrily while she was still distracted, talking over her shoulder to Brad.
Then she turned and jerked to a halt, the laughter in her eyes fading to longing. "Mitch."
He had to wet his lips before he could speak. "Anna. You're looking good."
"Thanks."
Nothing more. Safe. Public.
He kept staring, soaking in every detail. "Ashley drew you a tattoo, did she?"
Her eyes widened, and her cheeks flushed. Involuntarily, images from their night spent with Ashley and Cassidy raced through his brain, and damn if his cock didn't react.
Anna straightened slightly, her gaze locked on his so there was no possible way he could miss the heartfelt intensity with which she delivered the words. "It's something I decided I wanted," she said softly. "Life's too short to put off things that are important."
There was nothing he could say in response, because he didn't want her holding back and waiting for him. But the truth tore him apart. She was what was important to him, and he wanted her right now. Every bloody second of the day.
She stepped around him, her fingers brushing him with the faintest of a caress as she headed for the coat rack.
Had the contact been deliberate? He ached to catch her in his arms to tell her he was sorry for all the things they'd missed doing together. That he wanted to take it back about breaking up being the best thing for them. He wanted to share that more than anything he wished he could be with her, and be good for her.
But he couldn't. He couldn't be any of those things, not for certain, so he did the only thing he could.
He let her walk away.
It had been a long winter full of lessons Anna hadn't really wanted to learn. Yet, no matter how trite it was, as spring approached hope stirred in her heart.
She missed Mitch, jackass of the century that he was. He'd taught her things while they'd been together. About living life to the fullest and not worrying about others' responses.
The time apart had taught her that she was stronger than she thought.
Maybe it was pathetic, but she often found herself smoothing the paper she still had from him, the one with the date-like things he'd said he wanted to do with her. She missed that man. Missed the strangely earnest hoodlum who had shared his heart with her during their quiet moments together.
"Constable Coleman. Can I see you in my office?"
She was on her feet, swaying as she considered why the staff sergeant was calling her. "I'll be right there."
Her commanding officer put her out of misery immediately after she'd closed the door behind her. "I thought you might like to witness this."
He slipped a page from the file on his desk and ran it through the paper shredder.
Anna took a deep, deep breath, the extra oxygen making her lightheaded. "Thank you, sir."
Max nodded. "I have zero complaints about your work, and there have been no further incidents, so we'll put it all behind us." He paused. "I will admit I was surprised to hear that you and Mitch were no longer seeing each other at all."
Well, that was an unexpected turn in the discussion. "We thought it best."
Her commanding officer pulled another page from her file and stared at it. "I think I should tell you about this. It's a letter of reference of a sort. I got it in the mail back in December, and it's a glowing report of your skills as an officer."
"Always good to know people appreciate our work." Anna waited to be dismissed, but Max obviously had more on his mind.
He read a few lines. "'An asset to the force, and a strong member of the community.' You have quite the admirer." His gaze traveled farther down the page. "He goes on at length regarding your skills, but what I'm still confused about is this section. 'I'm completely to blame for any recent black marks against her record, and hope that you will take that into consideration as she is considered for promotion.'"
Oh God. "Mitch Thompson wrote that."
Max nodded. "Seems to think a lot about you. Was totally willing to throw himself under the bus to get you off the hook, although we both know he's wrong in that. He's not to blame for anyone else's behavior."
"Of course he's not. I take full responsibility for myself."
"And that's why I've cleared your slate. Your actions have proved your value to this department." Max frowned. "Although I admire his guts in sending this to me, I have no idea where he got the idea you were up for promotion. Nick is the only one who put in for job advancement last fall."
Anna's brain felt filled with puzzle pieces trying to fit together correctly. "Nick's up for a promotion?"
Staff Sergeant Max put a finger to his lips. "They're still in the works. We're in the final months. I'll be asking for feedback from you later this week, in fact, as one of his closest coworkers."
Nick was up for promotion, and Mitch knew about promotions back in December? Anna shook herself back to alertness to answer her commanding officer. "Whenever you'd like to talk, let me know."
"And Anna--I want to make this clear. I have no issues with you seeing anyone in town that you want. My only expectation is that your behavior in public remain exemplary."
A shimmer of light broke through the mental haze. She smiled at him. "Thank you for that, sir."
"Thank you for proving me right in your skills." He slipped the note from Mitch back in her file. "I have a feeling there's someone else who will be pleased to hear your news."
A strange mix of euphoria and confusion floated her back to her office. Sheer relief was the highest emotion followed by a nagging tic at the back of her brain. Why had Mitch thought she was up for promotion? Had she ever said anything to make him think that?
It was one thing she would definitely ask when she contacted him with her good news. Part of her wanted to call him that very minute, but if the past five months had taught her anything, though, it was patience. She'd wait for that evening and the privacy of her own apartment.
Nick stuck his head in the office door. "You have the final reports on the last break-in?"
Anna paused, adjusting her brain to focus on work again. "I'm pretty sure I put them on your desk."
Her partner stepped in and flipped through the pile. "Got any plans after the picnic is over this weekend?"
"Nothing unusual." Anna wasn't about to tell him she was planning to hold a private party with Mitch to celebrate that pile of shredded paper in the staff sergeant's garbage bin. "You? Talk to anyone interesting out there today?"
"Pulled Mitch Thompson over. Well, a whole gang of riders, including Mitch."
Hearing his name mentioned so soon after thinking about him made her smile, but she focused on staying nonspecific until they were officially back together. "So the bikers are out again, are they? With the great weather, I figured they'd be on the road soon."
"That guy, I swear." Nick shook his head. "One minute I think there's a rational person under all that ink, and the next he proves he's nothing more than brawn and attitude."
Anna held her tongue.
"He's obviously not stupid--he does listen to reason occasionally, but you should have heard the garbage he spilled at me today. Should have known one moment of sanity doesn't make a man sane."
Something about Nick's comments didn't sit right, especially not when mixed with the staff sergeant's information. Anna turned slowly, trying to make sense of her forebodings. "Nick, when else have you talked to Mitch? Other than while pulling him over?"
He stiffened, eye
s widening, and an awkward pause went on and on until she interrupted it. She might be leaping to conclusions, but something in her gut told her she was right. Mitch mentioning promotions. Nick being the one up for one.
"Did you say something to Mitch about me?" She felt her anger stirring. While she and Mitch had discussed the best way to deal with her reprimand, this sounded as if something else had gone down without her knowledge.
Nick walked around her and closed the door to their office. "I didn't...exactly. I might have encouraged him to think of your future with the department and--"
Oh my God, her guess was correct. "So you butted into my life? You had no right."
"You were making us look bad," Nick snapped, colour flushing his cheeks. "Maybe you want to stay at your current level of near-incompetence, but I have aspirations to do a lot more and--"
Anna shot up a hand to cut him off again, utter fury creating a black hole in her belly. "Near incompetence? You want to explain that one to me? I have a perfect record with the department, including being involved in liaison work and high-risk security details."
"You only got the liaison position because you're a woman." Nick's control vanished, and his words came out a shout.
Her rage bloomed so quickly it had already passed being an inferno. Instead, her fury was blue hot, like a core of dry ice burning from the intensity of her frozen emotions. She ground out her words, soft and low. "If you have such a low opinion of my skills, why did you not decline when you were offered me as a partner?"
Nick wouldn't meet her eyes.
Another thought whispered through, shock registering as revelation kicked in. Some of the pain she and Mitch had suffered through was because Nick had an agenda. Nick was the one looking for things.
"You asked to be my partner, didn't you?"
He headed toward his desk. "Maybe we should put this aside for another day when we've cooled off."
"Bull fucking shit on that," Anna spat out. "You asked to partner with me in the hopes of getting some weird glory from being with the lone woman on active duty, didn't you? What is your game, Nick?"
