by Rhea Wilde
“Wait… You said you had to get through it if you wanted to be considered for Green Beret training. What happened?”
“John Sabin happened. He was a year younger than me. Got erased just as bad as I did. He convinced me to try it again. So, we trained together.
“I can still remember the sound of his voice as he yelled me whenever I did something. ‘Come on, Derek! You can do it! One more! Don’t stop now!’ I never trained so hard in my life.
“It wasn’t just the exercise, too. We started eating together, cleaning up our diets. I started feeling better, stronger. When the next opportunity rolled around, we smashed it. I wondered if it were the same training course because I was able to get through it without falling over once.
“He’d been with me ever since. Always pushing me, always inspiring me to do better. I couldn’t have done it without him. I couldn’t have done any of this… without him.”
Derek shifted his eyes to the slice of pizza in his hand.
“I wonder what he’d say to me now if he saw me,” he said. “I wonder what he’d think about me cheating and having a greasy slice of pizza when I shouldn’t be.”
“He was your friend. I don’t think he would mind you indulging yourself just one time.”
“Yeah, I suppose you’re right.”
He looked up at me and smiled softly before taking another bite out of his pizza. The two of us ate in silence except for the sound of us chewing.
“What about you?” he asked.
“What about me?”
“Is there anybody important in your life? Anybody close to you?”
“Me? I can’t say there is. Except for Mya, of course. But she’s a lawyer. It’s her job to be friends with everybody. My parents… They’re gone.”
“Eva, I’m sorry.”
“I’m fine. I… I learned how to get by on my own. It’s just something you get used to.”
I shook my head and took another bite of pizza.
“No,” I said with a mouthful. “It’s too difficult being my friend. I don’t think anybody has any interest in that.”
“Then I suppose it’s for the best we end our partnership after this case is closed,” he said.
I looked down at him sitting on the couch. I knew we were close to finally cracking this case. Out of all the things to consider, I only just now realized what that meant for the two of us. We made a deal only to solve the case. We had two different agendas.
“What’s gonna happen?” I asked. “I mean, with the CID and all that after everything is done. You can’t let them chase you forever.”
“I could but they’d catch me eventually. No. I’ll turn myself in. I’ll go with Agent Neville and that’ll be it.”
“But what’ll happen exactly? You’ll be punished.”
“No question about that. I disobeyed a direct order. I attacked civilians, even if they were criminals. I’ve caused a commotion in this city. I’ll be facing a court-martial. As for the penalty, there’s no telling what will happen.”
“Wait a second. You don’t know what’s gonna happen?”
“I won’t know until they sentence me.”
“Sentence you? You mean they’ll actually put you in jail?”
“I committed a crime. You heard what Neville said. They invested a lot of time and money into me and I turned my back on them. It’s not something they take lightly.”
“But… But—”
“Eva.”
I didn’t realize how flustered I’d become. I only noticed it when he said my name. I looked back at him as he stared at me. Only then did I start to calm myself down. It was frustrating to see that he didn’t appear worried about it but I was.
“I only came to New Gardens with one intention,” he said. “That was to make sure Brandon is safe.”
“And now? Do you have other intentions?”
“Well,” he sighed. “Seeing as how Reese is planning to unleash a dangerous drug into this city’s infrastructure, it’s only right to stop him. I think that’s as good a cause as my original goal.”
“You sound sure of yourself. Are you sure we can do this?”
Derek smiled at me. I didn’t know why, but seeing that look on his face was always more reassuring than anything I’d ever felt.
“I remember asking John the same thing when we were training.”
“What did he say?”
“He didn’t say anything. He didn’t need to. He just ignored me and kept pushing forward. That was all I needed.”
He got up from his seat and moved next to me. He stood right in front of me, looking down at me as I stared back at him.
“I know that you’re apprehensive about all of this,” he said. “I don’t know what your past is with this man. It’s none of my business. But whatever he did to you, it won’t affect you. We’ll get through this. Together. As partners.”
He was a stranger. I’d only just learned his real name a day ago. But when I looked into his eyes, I felt a familiarity. A familiarity that had burned me once before but I was still so compelled by.
A part of me told me it was foolish. There was a voice in my head telling me not to trust him completely. But I did anyway. It wouldn’t be the first time I made the same mistake twice.
I looked away from him, no longer wanting to read the sincerity on his face. I took a big bite of my pizza and sighed to cover any emotions that might have spilled out of me.
“I just wanna relax,” I said. “I wanna eat the rest of this pizza and relax. I’ll worry about what comes next later.”
“Sure. That sounds like a good idea.”
I looked up at him and he chomped a bite from his slice.
“This pizza is good. Not the best pizza I’ve ever had but it’s good.”
“Just keep eating it,” I said with a chuckle. “It’ll grow on you.”
“We’ll see about that.”
Chapter 23
DEREK
“You have to watch over him… Keep him safe… For me…”
New Gardens was a beautiful city at night. The buildings lit up and the streetlights illuminated the streets. There were pockets of darkness between the buildings, giving the city a calm eeriness that made you wonder what was going on down there.
There were men out there, somewhere, who wanted Eva. Being in a hostile city wasn’t anything new to me but I knew it was for her.
The night was winding down but I was getting close to finishing.
The room was dark. The only light came from the computer screen on the desk and the moonlight shining through the window.
Eva sat on a chair next to the window, her feet kicked up on the bed.
“Do you ever sleep?”
I slowly turned my face toward her.
“We always have to be ready,” I said. “It doesn’t matter what time it is or how much rest we’d gotten. There are no exceptions.”
“There’s an exception now. You’ve been staring at that screen for a long time. A watched pot never boils or whatever they say…”
“That’s just a saying.”
“I’m saying you should rest. What happens when we find Reese and you’re tired? You’re gonna fall asleep on the spot.”
“That won’t happen—”
“Take a break,” she interrupted me. “For me. For your partner.”
I closed my eyes for a moment, exhaling a deep breath through my nose. Then I slowly got up from my chair and took a seat on the bed next to her feet.
“You’ve been working ever since you got here,” she said.
“I came here for work.”
“You can’t do anything now. We’ve done all we can. Searching another spot would just mean putting ourselves in danger.”
“If I recall, you were the one who objected to being locked in a hotel room all this time.”
“That doesn’t mean I’m not going along with it. Now it’s just a matter of seeing it through, partner.”
“Partner, indeed.”
&
nbsp; “Speaking of which…”
She moved her feet on the bed and pushed them against my leg.
“…Since you’re there, how about a massage?” she asked.
I stared at her feet in their socks then gave her a puzzled look.
“You’re joking,” I said.
“I’m not. Partners, remember?”
“If I do this, that means I get something in return.”
I raised an eyebrow at her. She looked away to hide her face as she laughed. Being around Eva was so relaxing in a way I couldn’t explain.
“Fine,” she sighed. “Me first.”
She kicked her feet into my lap. I took them in my grip and began kneading her soles.
“You’ve done this before,” she sighed deeply.
“I have some experience.”
“Traveling all over the world, going on your secret missions. When would a foot massage ever come into play? Probably had to seduce a few women to get some information. A little foreplay and a little wining and dining.”
“I’m not James Bond,” I said, laughing softly. “You’re confusing me with a spy.”
“But you’ve done it before.”
“If you’re asking about the intimate details of my life, I regret to inform you that it’s classified.”
“You’re no fun.”
“It’s never fun.”
“Yeah, I know… It doesn’t matter to me though. The past is… the past.”
She looked out the window while I gently massaged her feet.
“This city is a mess,” she said. “There’s so much construction going on and half of the buildings are abandoned. I wonder if I’ll ever see those parts of the city finished. I guess that’s why I came here in the first place.”
“Why did you choose New Gardens of all places?”
“I needed a fresh start. This place seemed as good as any. I didn’t think too much about it…”
I looked at her and she was lost in thought. She started talking, her mind drifting somewhere else.
“…Ten years. I’ve been here for ten years. Honestly, it feels like longer than that. It feels like I’ve been here my entire life.”
“Home. It feels like home to you.”
She turned to me and smiled.
“It’s the only home I’ve ever really known. I can’t imagine living anywhere else.”
There was a tenderness in her eyes. It was always there but it wasn’t always so apparent.
“How about you?” she asked. “You got a place you call home?”
“I’m too busy for a home.”
“One night you’re in New Gardens, the next you’re in some desert in Sudan. Must be quite the life you live.”
“I think I’ll settle down after this though. I won’t have a choice once Neville gets his hands on me.”
“Derek—”
“It’s all right. I’m not going to keep running. But I will say… this city isn’t like any city I’ve ever been to. There’s something about it. The weather. The food. The scenery…”
“The people.”
I couldn’t help but smile softly. Spending all this time with Eva was more than I expected it to be.
“The people,” I said. “A lot of interesting people here.”
“Interesting. That’s one way of putting it…”
“Once Brandon is safe, I should look into visiting here more often. But I’m getting ahead of myself. We’ve still got a lot of work to do. Speaking of which…”
I raised her feet gently from my lap and placed them on the bed.
“…It’s your turn.”
“What do you mean?”
“It’s your turn to give me a massage.”
“You’re not serious, are you?” she said, laughing softly to herself.
“A deal’s a deal.”
I put my hands up and held them there. I wasn’t going to let her off the hook.
“Fine,” she sighed as she stood up. “But I’m not touching your feet.”
“A back massage sounds nice.”
“That’s not fair! Your back is bigger than my feet.”
“Stop trying to back out of it.”
I smiled at her as she rolled her eyes. She didn’t seem to object as much when I peeled my shirt up over my head.
We stared at one another in silence as she reached out to touch me.
She pressed her hands on my chest and pushed me onto the bed.
“Lie down,” she said. “On your stomach.”
I gladly followed her instructions. Then she climbed up on my back.
“I don’t know what I’m doing,” I said.
“Just press down hard. Push down on the muscles like you’re trying to spread them out. You won’t hurt me.”
“This was your idea. So, it’s your fault if anything happens.”
“I’ll take the risk.”
She pressed down on my back with both palms. I sighed a deep breath as a bit of stress left me.
“Damn…” she muttered.
“Is something wrong?”
“What the hell do they feed you? This isn’t gonna work. It’s like trying to massage a brick wall.”
“Stop complaining.”
“I’m not complaining… I told you this wasn’t fair.”
“It was your idea.”
“Don’t remind me…”
She pressed down on my back. Feeling her hands on me felt better than I expected. Even when she pressed down with as much pressure as she could, I only felt relief.
She was silent outside of a few heavy breaths and grunts. I could tell she was getting into it.
“Hold on just a second…”
I couldn’t see her but I saw her shirt bounce off the wall next to me, so I knew she must have been getting hot. When I felt a drop of sweat on me, I slowly turned over with her still on top of me. Her skin was covered in perspiration.
“Wow,” I whispered. “You’ve worked up quite a sweat.”
“It was my idea,” she sighed. “You don’t need to remind me.”
“It was also your idea to take a break, so you can stop now.”
“Thank you.”
I slowly sat up with her now sitting in my lap. I moved closer to her, my face right up to hers.
Eva was gorgeous. Her green eyes shimmered in the darkness. The contours of her face were more apparent from the moonlight shining in through the window.
She put the wrong kind of thoughts in my head. The kind of thoughts I wanted to deny but couldn’t.
“This is probably my last night in the city,” I whispered. “I… I want to ask you something.”
“What is it?”
“I don’t know what’s going to happen after tonight. But I want you to do something for me.”
“What’s that?”
“The same thing you asked me to do for you. I just… I need something. Something that I can take with me, wherever I’m going.”
I looked into her eyes. I saw a woman I’d been through so much with even though we hadn’t known each other for long.
“I… I don’t know how to explain it—”
“Shh…”
She put an index finger to my lips.
“I understand.”
She slowly pulled her finger away. We stared at each other in the darkness of the hotel room, cradled in each other’s arms on the bed.
I didn’t need to tell her how I felt. She already knew.
She put her hands up to my face and pulled me closer. She wasn’t resisting now, so I cupped her face just the same. Our lips smacked loud, the beginning of a memory I hoped I would keep forever.
As we kissed each other, we wrapped our arms around one another. A sexual desire awoke within me.
I tugged at the hooks on her bra. The metal snapped and she lowered her arms so I could pull it off her completely.
I moved my face down her neck, trailing kisses along her soft flesh until I got down to her breasts. I sucked on one nipple, teasing it with
my tongue. Her gasps made the pink flesh taste even sweeter.
Her arms wrapped around my head and her hands pulled me closer. She moaned louder as I devoured her breasts.
My appetite was only growing.
I placed my hands on the small of her back. She leaned back into my arms as I guided my mouth down her stomach. I knew she was getting wet. I could taste her feminine scent filling my nostrils and clouding my judgment.
Passion consumed the both of us. She got up on her knees just long enough to fumble with the button and zipper on her jeans. I did the same with mine. She kicked her jeans off and I tore her panties off in my lustful frenzy, revealing a dripping slit just waiting for me.
I pulled my jeans off and threw them to the side. Eva tugged at my briefs and unveiled my hardened bulge. Seeing Eva’s naked body, so soft and vulnerable… It filled me with a desire that made my cock swell so much it was almost painful.
She kissed the side of my face, trailing her mouth up toward my ear. Her warm breath against my skin made the blood pulse harder in my veins.
“Let me do the work,” she whispered. “It’s my turn.”
She pulled away from me then pushed me back down onto the bed. Her eyes locked on me as she straddled me. She grabbed my cock in her fist and guided me toward her folds. She shuddered when my tip hit her entrance.
I moved into her slowly. She freed herself from my cock and lowered herself down. Her eyes started to close as I disappeared inside of her.
She was breathing hard. Her breaths turned into whimpers. She rode my cock like she’d done it before. Feeling her work me up and down made my shaft pulse with life.
She was so wet, so warm, so inviting… I gripped her waist and squeezed her soft skin in my palm to brace myself.
“Just relax,” she whispered. “I’ll do it…”
She slowed her rhythm. She was letting me feel every inch of her on my cock. She clenched around me, massaging my swollen shaft.
We were joined in a sensual union. Nothing else mattered. The weight of the mission had disappeared. New Gardens didn’t exist. It was just us, in this room, together in a state of ecstasy.
I kept my hands on her waist as she started to bounce up and down on me. Eva pressed her hands on my chest, trying to balance herself on my sweaty body. I only grunted when her nails dug into my skin.
