by Amy O'Neill
Trent froze for a moment and then laughed. “I’ll show you alright!”
And for the next while he did just that as he kissed her senseless under the stars.
CHAPTER SEVEN
The next morning Noelle clocked in almost an hour late. She forgot to set her alarm when she’d returned from her date and overslept. But it was well worth it.
She ducked her head as she opened the office door and muttered an apology to Delphine.
To her surprise, Delphine laughed in response. “It was that good of a date?”
Noelle couldn’t stop herself from smiling. “Yeah, it was that good.”
Delphine whistled. “Well, look at you Miss Thang. I told you he was your lover boy!”
Noelle batted the comment away. “It wasn’t that great! It was just ‘stayed up all night and kissed into the wee hours of the morning’ great.”
“I told you he wasn’t a bad guy.”
Noelle walked back to the supply closet and started preparing her housekeeping cart. “You were right. But we aren’t talking about it.”
Delphine tucked a stack of fresh towels onto the second rack and shook her head. “Honey, with a smile like you got, you don’t need to say a word.”
Noelle rolled her eyes. “Really Delphine, I don’t wanna get too far ahead of myself. The last thing I need is to get all head over heels.”
“Ok, I’ll zip it.”
Noelle tilted her head and nodded. “Thank you.”
Delphine held up her hand, “I’ll zip it right after I ask when are you seeing him again?”
Noelle shook her head and pushed the cart out the door. “I don’t know that yet. I just said goodbye to him four hours ago.”
“Four hours! And all you did was kiss the entire time?”
Noelle stopped and put her hands on her hips. “Delphine please! We talked, too.”
Delphine arched her eyebrow. “I find it hard to believe Trent Torres spent most of his night with a pretty woman just talking.”
A sultry voice broke into their conversation. “Well believe it.”
Noelle and Delphine both turned to see Trent standing at the front desk.
Noelle tried to hide her blush and hoped he hadn’t heard much. “What are you doing here? I thought you had to get to work.”
He nodded. “I don’t start for another twenty minutes so I figured I would stop by to thank you for last night and see what you thought about going out tomorrow.”
Delphine slapped the counter and said, none-to-subtly, under her breath, “Holy shit. I think Hell is about to freeze over.”
Trent ignored her. Noelle was surprised when he walked over and gave her a gentle peck on the lips. She knew she was probably beaming as bright as the sun at the PDA, but didn’t care.
“I’d like that. What time are you thinking of picking me up?”
Trent shrugged. “Does six work for you? My best friend just got back from his honeymoon and I’d like to introduce you to him and his wife.”
Delphine fell back in her chair. “Trent Torres is having a woman meet his friends. Noelle, honey, what the hell have you done to this kid?”
Noelle shrugged and tried not to blush. She failed.
Trent answered for her. “Whatever it is, I hope she keeps it up. And be nice Delphine. You knew this day would come eventually.”
She smiled and nodded. “Yeah I guess. I just assumed I’d be dead by then. But good for you. Now you two get out of my office before you make me sick with those doe-eyes.”
Noelle waited until they were out in the parking lot before she asked, “What day is she talking about?”
Trent put on his sunglasses and gave her another kiss. He began to walk away and turned so he was walking backward toward his car. “The day I found someone to tame me.”
Before she could say anything he got in his car and drove off, leaving her standing there, dumbfounded.
She might not know a lot of things, but one thing she knew for sure – taming Trent Torres sounded exhilarating.
Trent hummed to the radio and drummed his fingers on his knees as Fitzer drove past Scripps Aquarium. “Man it’s a great day.”
Fitzer gave him a dirty look. “What the hell is going on with you? Did you get lucky last night?”
Trent shook his head. “Nope, and I’m totally fine with it.”
“Is it that chick from the motel?”
The way Fitzer said the word ‘chick’ didn’t sit well with him, but Trent brushed it off. “Yeah, it does.”
“Something about her is shady. It seems like she’s hiding something.”
Trent shook his head. “Naw, she’s not.”
“How do you know?”
“Because I asked! Why all the questions?”
Fitzer shrugged and took a left turn. “Because I’ve got an investigative nature. It’s why I became a cop.”
When it came to his personal life, Trent wanted to tell Fitzer where he could stick his investigative nature.
“Leave Noelle alone.”
“Are you sure that’s her real name? Sounds kind of made up to me.”
Trent wanted to backhand him. “Seriously? Of course that’s her real name.”
“What’s her last name?”
Trent shrugged. “I don’t know.”
Fitzer laughed out loud. “So you went out on a date with a woman you met on a B & E call and you never found out her last name. That doesn’t seem very bright to me.”
Trent hated to admit it but the rookie had a valid point. “It never came up.”
“She shows up in a U-haul with Arkansas plates, doesn’t give her last name, seems to hate cops, and yet she doesn’t set off any warning bells in you? What kind of cop are you?”
Trent was about to be the kind to throw his partner out of a moving vehicle. “Plenty of people move here in U-hauls with possible fake names and vague pasts. It’s California, moron. Do you know how many people do that every day?”
Fitzer shook his head. “You tell yourself whatever you want, but something is up with her.”
The topic of Noelle was dropped there, but enough had been said that Trent’s mind churned all day.
When they finally returned to the precinct at the end of their shift, he logged onto his desktop computer and typed in the spotty information he did have on her - her first name and where she came from.
While the software did the search, he prayed it came up with nothing. Unfortunately that wasn’t the case. She fit the description on a missing person case from the Batesville PD.
Ethics said he called them to notify that she was found, but as quiet as Noelle had been, he wondered if she didn’t want to be found.
And what about the people she didn’t want to find her? She’d never said who ‘they’ were. He read the general information on her, name, height, weight. But the part that stopped him from picking up the phone was the statement provided.
“Miss Dupre is feared in danger and may be suffering memory issues due to recent head trauma. Her mother contacted the Batesville, Arkansas Police Department after she disappeared from her home. Her purse, with her identification in it, was left at her home.”
Noelle may be withholding things about herself from him, but the emotions he’d seen when she spoke of her mother were genuine. If her mother was dead, then who was using that to trick unsuspecting law enforcement?
He shut off the monitor and headed home to shower before he was to pick her up. That would give him enough time to collect his thoughts so he could ask the questions he needed her to answer.
Noelle tried all day to not think about the fact that Trent wanted her to meet his best friend. It really was a big step. In the past, when she’d introduced her friends to Lenny it didn’t take long for them to stop calling or coming around.
Now, making it worse, was Delphine and her teasing. Even at this moment, she was kicked back in her desk chair, filing her nails and dropping not-so-subtle hints on what she thought about Noelle meeting Tren
t’s friends.
“If that man starts driving you east and doesn’t stop, don’t be surprised when you arrive in Vegas at some tiny drive-thru wedding chapel.”
Noelle stood near the lobby door waiting to see Trent pull in so she could make a beeline for it. “Would you stop already. He doesn’t want to marry me.”
“How do you know that?”
Noelle looked at Delphine as if she’d grown a second head. “Uh, probably because we ain’t even talked anything about marriage. It’s only the second date for Pete’s sake.”
Delphine shrugged. “I met my third ex-husband on a Tuesday, was engaged to him on Thursday, and married him a month later. And if he hadn’t been a lying, cheating bastard we’d still be married.”
Noelle couldn’t help but laugh. “Well then I can see why you are already expecting him to marry me. Going by your timetable we’re moving slow as molasses.”
Delphine nodded and tossed her nail file onto the desk. “Hell I thought he was moving that slow after he didn’t try to sleep with you the day after he met you.”
Noelle waved her off. “Men don’t think of me like that.”
“Maybe where you came from, but I can tell you he looks at you like you’re breakfast, brunch, lunch, dinner, and dessert.”
“I wouldn’t go that far.”
“Oh, but I will. And I wouldn’t be surprised if he doesn’t want to go that far sometime in the near future.”
Noelle hadn’t thought too much about them being that intimate. Kissing and touching was one thing, but going all the way was another story. Sex had never been the seductive, panting-for-more act that she saw on television. It had been an expected occurrence, a chore, a task to check off the to-do list Lenny always made for her.
Truth be told, she felt about as inexperienced as a virgin. Especially since all she knew was how to lie there and wait for it to be over.
But her body told her what her mind didn’t know and that was that she did have those carnal needs and desires. Every time Trent came around her heart pounded, her skin tingled at his touch, and each kiss added to the slow burn within her.
She fanned herself and took a deep breath. “Is it getting hot in here?”
Delphine laughed out loud and slapped the desk. “You look a little flushed honey, but I think it’s more to do with whatever is turning them wheels in your head.”
Noelle put her hands on her hips and was ready with a retort when she saw Trent pull in. “Though this conversation has been delightful, I’m gonna leave now.”
“Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do!”
Noelle shook her head and laughed as she opened the door and walked out to the parking lot.
Trent was in a pair of black cargo pants and a light blue polo shirt. His hair was damp around the ends and she could smell the fresh scent of his soap from several feet away.
“Hey there, handsome.” She winked at him and gave him a kiss on the lips. Surprisingly he didn’t draw it out like he’d done before. It wasn’t as if he rejected her kiss, but there was definitely a lack of his normal charisma.
“You were practically running to me. Is everything alright?”
She nodded and laughed. “Yeah, but Delphine was razzing me so I ‘m overly happy to see you.”
He smiled and wrapped his arm around her waist. “I’m happy to see you too. Shall we get out of here then?”
She nodded and he led her to the passenger side.
He opened the door and bowed. “After you, Miss Dupre.”
What he said didn’t hit her at first, until the thud of the closing door snapped her to attention. Noelle sat frozen in the seat with her mind whirling a million miles a minute.
When he got into the car it only took Noelle one look at Trent’s face to see he knew. How much he knew, she didn’t know, but from his expression it was just enough to bring the truth out.
CHAPTER EIGHT
“I’ve got some explaining to do, huh?”
Trent nodded with an encouraging smile. “Yeah.”
Noelle took a deep breath, trying to decide where to start. Though she knew she owed him an explanation, the fact that he’d snooped enough to know her last name unnerved her. “First I have a question for you. Did you turn me in?”
He turned in his seat and rested his arm across the steering wheel. “What would I have to turn you in for?”
She shook her head. “Nuthin’. I didn’t do anything wrong. All I did was get away from a very bad situation. But I know that others involved will manipulate things to make it look like I did something.”
He eyed her suspiciously. She didn’t appreciate that he was in ‘cop’ mode. It made her want to clam up just out of spite.
They stared each other down. A moment later Trent finally asked, “Is your mother really dead?”
Her mouth fell open and she gasped, not expecting that at all. “What kind of question is that? Of course she’s dead. She’s buried with the rest of her family at the cemetery in Sulphur Rock if you want proof.”
Noelle felt the sting of tears burn at the corner of her eyes. The fact that he could even question she’d lied about her momma’s death hurt deeply.
Trent reached out to place a comforting hand on her shoulder but she jerked away. “Please don’t touch me.”
He nodded. “That’s fair enough. And I didn’t ask that because I doubted you. I needed to know for sure because of some information I have.”
She narrowed her eyes at him. “What information?”
He leaned back against the car door and looked like he was settling into his seat. “You tell me about you and I’ll tell you what else I know.”
“Really? Here in the car? You’re gonna start interrogating me?”
He shrugged. “I’m not leaving until we clear the air. We could go to your room, but I think this is less distracting.”
Noelle rolled her eyes when he flashed her one of his wicked smiles. “Now is not the time to be joking about sleeping with me!”
He held up his hands. “Geez, Noelle calm down. Look, I don’t want to even be having this discussion, alright? For me, joking about that makes this feel less heavy.”
She let out a sigh. “Fine. My name is Noelle Dupre…and yes that is my real name - Noelle Angeline Dupre to be exact.”
“Besides you being born on Christmas Eve, your mom must have really loved the holiday to go with that name.”
She couldn’t help the smile. “It was her favorite. We scrimped and saved all year for Christmas and even then it was nuthin’ others would think was spectacular. But it was enough to get a real tree and a good meal. She hand made almost all of my gifts.”
Noelle wiped at the moisture at the corner of her eye and continued. “Anyway, when I was twenty I met this guy I thought was real charming and sweet. He wanted to sweep me off my feet and I let him. Within a month I moved in with him. Within six months the charm and sweet wore off and his true colors came out.”
Trent’s face was blank, but she saw the muscles around his mouth tense. “How so?”
Noelle realized she’d never truly said the words out loud, thinking if she didn’t say them they wouldn’t be real. But they were. Still, she couldn’t look him in the face when she said them.
She looked out her window and whispered, “That’s when the abuse started. It’s when he first hit me.”
Trent swore vehemently under his breath and something in Noelle froze, waiting for the explosion. But there wasn’t one.
After a moment she looked up and could see the anger in his eyes, but realized it wasn’t directed at her. The tension eased a bit and his reaction made her feel protected instead of threatened.
“How long did it go on?”
“Years.”
“Why?”
She felt stupid to admit the truth. “Because he would apologize and the thoughtful Lenny would come out again. I wanted to have the love my momma never had. I wanted it so bad that I made myself believe that in time he would stop.”
“But he didn’t, did he?”
She shook her head. “No, it got worse.”
“What do you mean by ‘love your mom never had’?
Noelle never talked about the other person who helped create her; she never referred to him as dad or daddy, he hadn’t done anything to have the honor of that title.
“My mother’s husband left when I was five years old. He run off with another woman who had more money. He left my momma with nuthin’ but the clothes on her back, ten dollars and me. He coulda cared less about me. It was just me and her. Momma never bothered to look for love after that, figuring if what she’d had was love she didn’t want it again.”
“What did your mother say about the guy you were with? Lenny, was it?”
Noelle nodded. “Yeah, Lenny Dunlap. Momma hated him. She’d raised me to be independent and not depend on a man, but Lenny insisted I not work. At first I thought it was nice, being taken care of. It took a while, but I realized it was more about controlling me than anything.”
“Did she ever try to talk you out of being with him?”
“Yeah, especially in the beginning when she saw the first bruises. But eventually she stopped saying anything and I never went around with bruises anymore.”
Trent was silent for a moment, and something in the distant look on his face made her feel he was thinking about something else. “My abuelita was like that with my mom too. It was hard to see, but we realized our protesting just made her want to prove that my father really was a good guy.”
Noelle nodded. “Yeah, that’s how I was too. Even after he’d beat me I’d still defend him. I thought if people could see that he did have good days that they wouldn’t be so hard on him. But I was wrong.”
“So what made you finally leave?”
Noelle wiped away the tears as they silently fell at the memories. “I decided I deserved better. Lenny cut me off from everyone and when my momma died I almost missed my chance to say goodbye. Luckily my momma’s best friend, LuAnn, is a nurse and she called to say my mother was on her deathbed. Momma wasn’t awake, but I still think she heard me when I vowed to get away from him. She passed a few moments later.”
