Undercover Daddy

by Katherine Deane

  She laughed. “Okay, so I won’t call you a wuss yet. Come on, big Daddy. Tell me your first move.”

  “I’m going to egg you on, let you get pissed off so you lash out.”

  “Yeah? I can see that. What next?” She stroked his palm.

  “I’ll feint left, and when you go right, I’ll grab you around the waist and tilt you over my hip.” He groaned. Shit, he was so tired, and his words sounded off in the ambulance.

  “Yeah, Daddy. You got me over your knee now, don’t you?” She sniffled. “I’m fighting for all it’s worth, and I just called you a bad word.”

  “What word?” He was getting so sleepy.

  “I called you a fucking wimp.”

  “Okay.”

  “No, damn it. I swore at you, Daddy. Come on. Please.” She squeezed his hand hard, but he couldn’t squeeze back. “I said you’re an asshole. A lame ass who can’t get his tiny dick up, even if I blew him to the moon and back.”

  “All right.” He tried to grin at his funny girl trying to goad him into attack. But he was so tired, and her voice sounded farther away. Had she left the ambulance?

  “That’s it!” He heard her shouts coming closer. “You are a fucking moron, and I’m not playing with you right now. You think his death was your fault? Fuck you!”

  That got his attention. “You don’t know what you’re talking about, little girl,” he growled.

  “No. You are not my daddy right now. You’re my goddamn partner, and I’m going to tell you what happens next. You keep your fucking eyes open, and listen to that little beeping pattern.” She knelt in close, and he saw the flash in her eyes. “That’s your heart, asshole. You stay awake and keep it going, because I need you.”

  “You’ll get another partner, a better one who doesn’t get himself shot,” he mumbled.

  “Is that what you think?” Her voice raised an octave. Yeah, that he’d heard. “I don’t even want you for a partner. I’m quitting the force when we get back.”

  That hit him like a ton of bricks on his already ravaged body.

  “I want you, Connor. As my best friend, my workout partner, my lover, my Sir. My Daddy. I won’t settle for anyone else.” She kissed him on the lips and tears streamed onto his cheeks. “No one else but you. You just have to accept the job.”

  “I accept, Pip.” He groaned and closed his eyes for a moment, but his pit-bull of a partner kissed him again.

  “Keep your eyes on me, Daddy. You’re going to have to work for this.”

  “‘Kay.”

  The sirens stopped as the ambulance screeched to a halt in front of the emergency room. The doors flung open and several pairs of hands pulled his stretcher out.

  Alex followed as closely as they would let her until they told her they were going into surgery.

  “I’m waiting right here for you, Daddy. You had better come get me.” The look in her eyes said there would be hell to pay if he didn’t.

  So he did what any good man would do in the situation. He lifted his good hand to give her a thumbs up, gave her a big drooled smile, and passed out.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Alex paced the waiting room and scowled at her watch for the millionth time. How much longer? Was this the kind of case where no news was good news, or did a longer time in surgery mean he was that much closer to death? Captain DiMarco was on his way, along with a small contingency of lawyers. They had to make sure all their T’s were dotted and I’s crossed—or was it the other way around. Crap. She was definitely going Loony Tunes.

  A set of off-white tennis shoes paced quickly toward her and she turned to face Connor’s sweet cousin.

  “How is he?” Gabby was still out of breath and looked frazzled.

  “I don’t know. They took him back hours ago.”

  Gabby took her hands in hers and hugged her tightly. “Con’s a fighter—always has been.”

  “I’m so sorry about this. If he hadn’t been with me—”

  “Don’t even go there.” Gabby’s eyes flashed. “Connor has always gone his own way. He does what he wants when he wants. And no one is ever going to talk him out of doing what he thinks is right.”

  “He took a bullet for me.”

  “Then he did what he was supposed to do.” Gabby put her hands on her hips and stared Alex down. “I love him as much as all my brothers. I pray he makes it through this, but if he doesn’t, you need to let him die a hero. I’ve never been prouder of him. And you should be too.”

  Alex’s heart filled as the tears ran down her face. How did she get so blessed to have not one, but two amazing people in her life? She raced to Gabby and hugged her again.

  “How is he?” Charlotte’s soft voice came from the hall. She sported a bandaged wrist, disheveled hair, and no makeup, making her seem more vulnerable than ever.

  Gabby’s eyes turned into slits as she made the connection from Alex’s description, and the uniformed officer standing behind her. “You!”

  The officer stood in front of her, blocking her path, and Alex grabbed her shoulder. “Gabby, no. Not here. Not now.”

  “How can you protect this trash?” Gabby spat, her fists clenched as she tried to get around the much larger man.

  “She saved my life. And if you get taken to jail for assault, you won’t be able to see Connor when he comes out of surgery.”

  Gabby deflated, her shoulders sagging, before she expelled a hiss. “You are not welcome here. Please leave.”

  Charlotte squeaked another apology, her eyes filled with tears, and she followed the uniformed officer out the door.

  “He’s going to be all right.” Alex took Gabby into her arms and they sagged together onto the small couch. “I promise. He’ll be all right.” She couldn’t make those promises. She knew it in her heavy, aching heart. But it was all that was keeping her from curling up into a ball and sobbing herself into a year of sleep. Now she truly knew what it felt like to be responsible for and love someone else. Yeah, she had loved her father, and had been devastated by his loss. But over the past year, she had realized, she had never really had him. He had done his own thing; she had done hers. They met in the middle for bonding events that never really stuck—they were as far apart as ice and fire. So his loss, as awful as it had been on her, wasn’t the same as the thought of losing Connor. With her father, it had been like losing someone she wished she could have gotten to know better. With Connor, it was like she could breathe for the first time—sucking in huge lungs full of crisp autumn scents, tasting the sweetest apple ever, feeling the golden rays of sunshine warm her aching chilled bones, and smiling. For once, feeling truly connected to the world and embracing the joy and peace that comes with truly loving someone.

  Only to have it ripped right out of her heart. One mighty tug, leaving her cold and so very tired and alone. Darkness tugged at her heart, trying to wrap its sludgy tentacles around it, around her, squeezing her, suffocating her. It wanted to break her into a million tiny, shattered pieces.

  “He’s going to be okay.” She stood up and glared at the far doors. He had to be.

  * * *

  Connor awoke in a haze of blips and beeps. His body felt heavy—like it was a million pounds. White fluorescent light streamed into his eyes, and he closed them again with a wince.

  Gabby sat curled into a tight ball on one of the chairs in front of the window, her brow furrowed as she rapidly typed into her cell phone.

  “Hey, Tink.”

  She bolted upright, dropping her phone, and raced toward the bed, stopping inches from him, her eyes shining with tears. “God, you look like hell, Big Bear.” She reached tentatively for his hand and squeezed gently.

  “I feel like hell, like run over by a Mack truck or something.”

  Gabby grabbed a cup of water and held it out for him so he could sip and work something into his parched and achy throat. “Not a truck. A couple of nine-millimeter bullets.” She scowled. “Thank goodness they didn’t hit anything vital. Your doctor said you were real
ly lucky. The chest one missed your heart by an inch, and the one in your foot nearly shattered your ankle. Don’t you guys wear protective vests?”

  “I was only supposed to start a distraction, then get the hell out of the way.”

  “But you went in.” She frowned.

  “She was in danger. Of course I went in.” He shrugged. Okay, his chest didn’t appreciate him moving like that, so he relaxed back against the bed with a groan. “My boss is probably going to fire my ass.”

  “Or give you a medal.”

  “I’d just like to get out of this bed.”

  “You still need to recover, but it’s better than it could have been.” She sat down carefully next to him and hugged him. “We were all so worried. Mama, Daddy, and the boys are on their way. Oh, come on, don’t give me that look. You know I had to call them.”

  He nodded. “Is Alex okay?”

  “That girl is more active than the energizer bunny on a road trip with one of those Wile E. Coyote magnets. She didn’t want to leave you, but they told her she needed to answer some questions. I told her I’d guard over you. She loves you, ya know.”

  Shaking his head, he winced and tried to sit up. “She’s too vulnerable, and doesn’t know what she wants. This probably triggered a lot of pain from her father’s death. I’m not going to push her into something she’s not ready for.”

  “You’re an idiot.” Gabby frowned and leaned back to glare at him.

  “What’d he do now?” Alex’s voice sounded from the doorway, a relieved expression on her face, which she masked quickly as she walked in to stand at the foot of the bed.

  “It doesn’t matter.” Connor smiled and held out his hand for her, and after a moment of hesitation, she accepted it.

  “I’ll be back in a few minutes.” Gabby shut the door behind her to give them some privacy.

  “You okay?” “How are you feeling?” they both said at the same time, and laughed at the awkwardness in the air.

  “I’m fine.” Alex started after he gestured for her to go first. “Just finished filling out the paperwork. Um, you?”

  “Yeah, I’m okay. A little heavy on the medicine head and my body aches a bit, but nothing I can’t handle.” He tried to shrug, but winced when the stitches in his chest pulled.

  “I’ll help you. Hold on.” She grabbed the remote and slowly tilted the bed up. “Better?”

  “Yeah.”

  Another moment passed, and neither spoke, the silence filling the room.

  “Listen, I need to tell you—” “I just wanted you to know—” They spoke over each other again, and Connor waved Alex on. He would tell her how he felt—that he was afraid of hurting her, and that he knew this might be too fast for her, but that he loved her—after she said her piece. Gabby was right. He’d be an idiot not to at least tell her how he felt.

  Alex fumbled with the fingertips she was nibbling, seemed to notice, and placed them down by her sides. “Listen, Connor, I want to thank you for saving my life.” Her gaze shifted above his shoulder. “You went above and beyond the call of duty as a partner, and I appreciate it.”

  “You’re welcome?” He couldn’t stop the frown.

  “Yeah, so anyway, you did your job. You stopped the bad guys, saved the day, and kept your partner from getting killed. My father would have been proud of you.” Her brows furrowed and her fists balled tightly at her sides. “I may have said some stuff when you were in the ambulance, if you remember any of it, um, sorry. I was just trying to keep you from falling asleep and giving up. You don’t remember, do you?” A hopeful look clashed with a sad tear in her eyes.

  “No, sorry. It’s all kind of fuzzy to me,” he lied, a dagger slicing his chest open. “What’d you say?”

  Her lips trembled and she blinked a few times before answering. “I was just smack talking you, that’s all.”

  “Okay.”

  “So we’re good? We’ll go back to just seeing each other around the precinct, maybe hook up on the mats sometime?” She grimaced. “Not hook up. I mean spar.”

  “Yeah, Makowski. Mats sometime sounds cool. You might actually be able to take me down this time, busted ankle and all.” He tried to laugh and make a joke, but neither of them laughed.

  “Sounds good.”

  Loud knocks at the door announced his family had finally gotten there, and four large men bounded in, making the room suddenly very tiny.

  Alex introduced herself quickly, hugged Gabby, and then walked toward the door. “I’ll be back in the morning to check on you. Captain DiMarco said I could stay at the hotel until you’re discharged. Your doctor hopes to release you in a few days, so I can drive you home as soon as you’re okay.” She furrowed her brow. “I’m glad you’re all right.” She left before he could stop her.

  “You okay, Bear?” Gabby whispered.

  “No, I’m not.”

  Chapter Sixteen

  Four weeks later

  “I don’t see why we have to go back now. The conference ended and the pageant went to Becky with an online vote. Don’t get me wrong, I’m glad she won, but I really wanted to get Big Brothers and Sisters on for next year,” Alex grumbled and pressed the accelerator to pass a minivan.

  “The event organizers wanted to end on a good note. Bring everyone back for one night to add some positive energy to a pretty sucky party ending.” Connor flicked her on the thigh. “And if you know what’s good for you, you’ll slow down.”

  She rolled her eyes at the speedometer, but slowed down.

  “A busted ankle only keeps me from driving, Pip. My lap is fully functioning, and so is my right hand.” He raised his eyebrow and gave her that look that always turned her insides to mush.

  “Sorry. I’m just nervous. What if everyone hates us, and is angry we were there? It didn’t do much good. I think…” She swallowed thickly. “I think I created even more drama. If we hadn’t been there, maybe Charlotte would have scared everyone off, and won just like she wanted.”

  “You might be right.”

  “Okay, for starters, you’re not supposed to agree with me. You’re supposed to say ‘No, Pip. We were there for a reason. We can’t see it right now, but our presence was very important.’ Followed by ‘Blah blah blah, you’re an awesome cop, blah blah, and you should be proud of yourself. You’re a good cop, good friend; you’re a good girl, and I—’” She clamped her mouth shut. “‘Um, I think you rock.’ Yeah. That sounds good.”

  Connor chuckled and squeezed her knee gently. “It sounds like you already perfectly monologued my reply. What do you need me for?”

  She could hear him smiling, and it grated on her nerves. Yeah, you couldn’t hear a person smile. But she knew his lips were turned up at the corners, curving up into that adorable smirk that made her want to smack him in the head. His eyes would be crinkling, and that little dimple in his left cheek would show as he tried not to lift one side of his sexy lips. She muttered a low curse under her breath and slowed down for the exit.

  “I know something you need me for,” Connor said in a silky voice. “You need me to wash your mouth out and call you a naughty girl for using such bad language.”

  She cranked the AC on her side, trying to nullify the sudden flush that took over her body.

  “Is that what you want, little girl? Me taking you into the public bathroom as soon as we get there. Making you get a nice handful of liquid soap from the sink. It’s probably that generic antibacterial kind that’s the color of puke orange. I’ll dip my fingers into your palm, and scoop up a nice amount and tell you to open your mouth wide—as wide as if it were my cock.”

  She couldn’t stop the soft mewl that escaped, and she tried to cover it with a cough.

  “Yeah, your mouth will be nice and wide for Daddy to punish you. Punish your naughty, dirty little mouth. Scrub the back and front of your teeth with soap, and make you stand there bent over the counter while I give you…” He paused for a second. “How many swear words on this trip?”

  She
growled when he ran his fingertip up the side of her leg.

  “At least five, maybe ten. Let’s say ten, naughty girl. I’ll give you ten strokes with my belt on your bare bottom. And I won’t lock the door. Maybe you would be more repentant if someone comes in to see a bad girl getting her mouth soaped and her bottom whipped by Daddy. Is that what you need, Pip? A punishment session from Daddy?”

  God, she wished she could stop the car right there in the middle of the road, and… What? Smack him hard in his chest? Attack his mouth with hers? Throw herself over his lap, open her legs, and beg him to do all that and so much more?

  They stopped at a light, and she tried to clear her muddled head. What did she want? She was a grown woman and a newly decorated cop, for God’s sake. Why they gave her a city medal was beyond her. Maybe the mayor thought she did a great job of letting herself be drugged and tied to a chair. Dudley Do-Right’s damsel in distress, only instead of a freaking set of railroad tracks, it had been a hardback chair. But she wasn’t helpless. She never had been. She was her father’s daughter—strong, capable, good in a crisis; that’s what it said on her commendation anyway. She rolled her eyes again.

  The mission was over. Connor was recovering well, and would be off his administrative leave as soon as the doctor said his ankle was good to go. He was the hero of this mission. The golden boy/all hail the hero of Newmarsh. He could have any job he wanted, and was already in line for another promotion at the precinct. He could have any woman for that matter. A soft woman, less rough around the edges. Pretty, perky, one who didn’t swear and try to beat the shit out of him on the mats. A woman with young energy and looks, but the maturity to have sense, articulate with poise and grace, and no matter how much that commendation lied, the ability to rationally make decisions without jumping into a frying pan. Or was it the fire? Crap. She was so confused, she couldn’t even internalize witty retorts without getting them wrong. Yeah, Connor deserved someone who also didn’t make wisecracks and could verbalize the correct form of an idiom.