Sydney grinned and Alex was relieved to see she appeared more amused than irritated with her.
“I’m looking forward to it,” Alex finally said in a rush, and then a moment of uncertainty passed through her mind. “Are we still on? I mean, you’re okay with it?” she asked. “I understand if something’s come up,” she added, hoping that wasn’t the case.
“Absolutely,” Sydney said. She reached between them and gave Alex’s wrist a reassuring squeeze. “You can’t possibly think I was canceling on you?”
Alex glanced away with a shy shrug, concealing her overwhelming sense of relief.
Alex noticed as Sydney’s attention as caught by another assistant
D.A. poking his head out of a courtroom door some distance away. His eyes locked on Sydney and his eyebrows raised in a question. Sydney waved and lifted one of the files she was carrying, silently indicating to her protégé she was en route to deliver it to him.
“Hey, I’ll let you get back to work,” Alex said, picking up on the communication.
“So, I’ll see you at six, right?” Sydney said as she began to drift down the hall, walking backwards so she could continue facing Alex.
“You bet,” Alex said.
Sydney nodded and then glanced down at the paper still in Alex’s
hand. “Hey,” Alex said. “Can you do me a favor?” She took several steps toward Sydney then held her hand out. “Throw this away for me?” Sydney smiled broadly as she took the crumpled paper from Alex.
“My pleasure,” she said, and then gave a wave as Alex headed for the elevators.
ALEX KNOCKED ON Sydney’s door that evening promptly at six and it was opened almost without delay. Sydney smiled and moved aside to allow Alex to move past her into the entryway.
“Wow,” Alex said, as she entered, taking two steps through the doorway then turning and watching Sydney close the door. She admired the slightly tight dark blue cocktail style dress, which came to just above Sydney’s knees, the top plunging suggestively toward her cleavage. When Sydney turned away from the door she stumbled into Alex who immediately caught her around the waist.
“You look fantastic,” Alex said.
“You’re looking pretty sharp yourself, Sergeant,” Sydney said. Her eyes tracked down Alex’s silk shirt and cashmere slacks.
Alex didn’t miss Sydney’s gaze drift back up to her lips, and took this as a subtle invitation. She leaned forward and gave her a gentle kiss. The kiss lasted longer than Alex had intended as Sydney leaned into her and caressed the back of her neck.
“You ready to go?” Alex said when they finally pulled away from the kiss and looked at one another.
“Yeah,” Sydney said, making no move. They remained standing in each other’s arms for several moments until Sydney finally pulled away.
“Let me get my purse and, you know, do that last minute check in the mirror.”
“You don’t need any last mirror check,” Alex said. “Like I said before, you look great.”
Several minutes later Alex held the passenger door to her truck open and helped Sydney in. Sydney smiled her thanks and they were on their way.
“So where are we off to?” Sydney asked as they pulled onto the freeway heading west. Alex glanced over at her and smiled.
“I just thought we could have a nice quiet dinner. Maybe a view, some candles, you know...”
“Something romantic?”
“Yes, exactly.”
Alex rested her elbow on the center armrest between them, turning her hand over palm up as a subtle invitation. She was silently gratified when she felt Sydney’s hand rest in hers and their fingers entwined. They traveled west on Sunset Boulevard then turned southbound and drove down to Santa Monica Boulevard. Neither felt they needed to interrupt the comfortable silence as Alex felt Sydney’s thumb slowly massage the top of her hand.
They soon pulled into a parking lot and stopped adjacent to a valet booth, both doors opened simultaneously by the red vested staffers.
Alex handed over the keys and they made their way to the door.
“Café La Boheme,” Sydney said as they entered.
“Yes, have you been here?” Alex asked, relieved when Sydney shook her head.
“No, but I’ve heard about it.” She turned to smile at Alex. “You must’ve read my mind. I’ve been wanting to come here.”
“I have a reservation for Chambers,” Alex said to the maître d', who nodded and welcomed them to the restaurant then led them upstairs to a dim booth on the second level. Sydney’s eyes continued to look around her, finally taking in their own private candle lit setting. Her eyes came to rest on Alex who was sitting, simply gazing at her. Their knees made contact softly beneath the table and Sydney smiled as their eyes met.
After the meal they shared a crème brûlée and coffee, talking about anything and everything as they virtually lost themselves in one another, completely losing track of time. Alex left a generous tip for the waiter as they had occupied his table for most of the evening and prevented him from serving other parties.
The evening was crisp but dry and so at Alex’s suggestion they walked through the heart of West Hollywood. As the night cooled Alex removed her jacket and gently placed it over Sydney’s shoulders. Sydney gave Alex a smile of appreciation and reached out to take Alex’s hand, giving it a gentle squeeze and then not letting it go. They walked hand in hand as they meandered slowly through the commercial heart of West Hollywood.
“Have you spent much time in WeHo?” Alex asked.
“Oh, I’ve come here quite a bit with Tyler,” Sydney said. Alex nodded thinking that was why she was comfortable with the public display of hand holding. Sydney clearly was familiar with WeHo being the gay mecca of the Southern California region.
“Thank you again for a wonderful dinner,” Sydney said later that evening as Alex walked her to her door. It was almost eleven o’clock when they returned to the home in the Hollywood Hills. Sydney opened the door and stepped inside, Alex holding it open for her.
“Can I interest you in a nightcap?” Sydney asked as she let the jacket slide from her shoulders. She turned to find Alex standing there, looking at her, making no move to enter the house.
“I think I should let you get to sleep. You do have closing arguments tomorrow in your jury trial,” Alex said, though her inner voice was screaming that yes, of course she would love to stay a while. Sydney, however, moved closer, clearly reading her hesitation.
“Sergeant Chambers, are you making excuses to not be alone with me?” Sydney rested a hand on Alex’s shoulder and another around her neck as Alex, almost on autopilot, wrapped her arms around Sydney.
The kiss that followed was passionate and lengthy, taking the breath from both of them. Their lips parted and tongues probed. Alex pulled Sydney toward her, their chests and hips meetings, locking them in a strong embrace.
ALEX’S LIPS traveled down Sydney’s neck to the silk collar of her blouse. Sydney’s arms moved naturally around Alex’s neck. She moaned and arched her body against Alex then ran her fingers through Alex’s hair as Alex’s lips again found hers, kissing her deeply. The kiss ended the way it had begun, with hesitancy and tenderness.
When their lips finally parted Sydney recognized the incendiary look of what was undeniable sexual desire consuming Alex’s expression. They were both breathing rapidly and Sydney was thankful for Alex’s strength. She felt dizzy and short of breath, as if she would have slid to the floor if she didn’t have Alex’s strong arms around her.
Alex closed her eyes as if willing herself to remain calm and in control. It was clear to Sydney that Alex was hesitant to allow herself to move quickly. She silently wondered what inner battle might be raging inside Alex’s head. They stood for a moment together, embracing, foreheads touching. Sydney was smiling gently when Alex finally opened her eyes and looked at her.
“We really have to stop this here,” Alex whispered. “Because in a little while I might not be able to stop at all.”
&nb
sp; “Would that really be wrong?” Sydney asked.
“It wouldn’t be right,” Alex said. “One of these days, when you’re absolutely sure you’re ready, and it’s what you want, then you ask me to stay. Okay?” Sydney could only nod as they stood simply holding one another. Sydney’s arms were still around Alex’s neck, her fingers playing gently with the hair at the back of her head.
“I’m going to miss you this weekend,” Sydney said in a quiet voice after several moments. Alex’s eyes showed momentary confusion, then she appeared to remember.
“That’s right. You’re meeting your sister in Chicago. Jen, right?” Sydney nodded. “Just through Sunday?”
“Yes. I’ll just be staying Friday and Saturday night, then fly home late Sunday. I was supposed to leave tomorrow, but with this jury trial the plans had to change and the trip shortened by a day. Will I see you tomorrow?” Sydney asked.
Alex gave a regretful shake of her head. “I don’t think so. I’ve gotta work late tomorrow, Friday and Saturday.”
“Damn the L.A.P.D.,” Sydney said in mock annoyance. “Are you sure you won’t stay, just for a while—”
Alex stilled her mouth with a gentle finger. “I will not be responsible for the County of Los Angeles losing this case. It’s already late.” She leaned down once more and their lips caressed. “You’re gonna be great tomorrow. Call me when you’re out?” Sydney agreed and they kissed once more, just briefly, before Alex finally retreated out the door. Sydney once again watched Alex’s truck until it turned out of sight at the base of the driveway.
THURSDAY AFTERNOON FOUND Sydney out of court and back in her office. The closing argument went well, with both the defense and prosecution summarizing their cases for the jury prior to the lunch break. They returned to court afterwards and the judge read his jury instructions, then handed the case off to the jury to begin their deliberation. Sydney called Alex as soon as she returned to her office.
“You done?” Alex asked, though she sounded like she was on the move.
“Yeah. I think it went okay. You sound busy.”
“We’re just about to go into roll call. Can I call you later this evening?”
“Sure. Go to work. We’ll talk tonight.”
Sydney reviewed case files for upcoming trials and smiled when her eye ran down a list of witnesses and arresting officers and a particular name caught her attention. She was interrupted when Cathy came into her office carrying a dozen red roses in a glass vase.
“Look who got a delivery,” Cathy said with a smile. She placed them on Sydney’s desk, gave Sydney a wink, and then left, only to be very quickly replaced by Tyler.
“Well, someone had a good date,” Tyler said. He reached over and pulled the small card from the bouquet of flowers and began opening the envelope.
“Hey!” Sydney stood and reached over her desk and grabbed the card before he could read it. She turned away and finished opening the envelope.
Thank you for a wonderful evening. I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did. A.
“So?” Tyler closed the door to her office. “Tell me everything.”
“I can’t. Not here. Let’s go for dinner after work and I’ll tell you about it. But I have work to do now and you need to get out.”
“All right, all right. But at least tell me if you got to, oh I don’t know, second base?”
“Get out!”
But Sydney’s blushing face and the way she held the card close against her chest told him all he needed to know. “I knew it! I just knew it!”
Sydney chased him out of the office, slamming her door in mock frustration.
ALEX HAD JUST finished supervising the scene of a moderately sized narcotics sales arrest by a couple of her officers and was standing in the street leaning on her black and white when her cell phone rang. She answered it and found Sydney on the other end of the phone.
“I got the roses,” Sydney said. “They’re lovely.”
“Are you sure they’re okay?” Alex asked. “I mean, right after I had them sent I was kind of kicking myself. You know, roses, with everything that’s going on. But they’re red, so I thought it was kind of traditional.”
“They’re beautiful. And yes, red is traditional. So you’re a romantic at heart, Sergeant Chambers.”
“Well, I don’t know about that. Don’t get your expectations up too high. But I’m glad you like them. I really did have a wonderful time,” Alex said. “How has your day been?”
“It’s been okay. It’s much better now that I have something beautiful in my office to look at.” Alex smiled at Sydney’s appreciation of the flowers. “I might have trouble concentrating now, though, with that constant reminder of someone more pleasant to think about.”
Alex was silent, unsure exactly what to say in response. She looked around as if checking to see who else could be listening, despite the fact she was alone on the street. Sydney’s voice was quiet when she spoke again seconds later. “I’m almost regretting my trip this weekend. I think I miss you already,” she said.
“Well, I’ve been thinking about that,” Alex said. “Why don’t I give you a ride to the airport tomorrow and pick you up on Sunday evening? It’ll save you the hassle of parking and stuff.”
“What about your work schedule?” Sydney asked. “You’re working late tonight and I leave very early tomorrow.”
“Don’t worry about it, I can work it out. I’ll go back home afterwards and take a nap before work. Besides,” Alex’s voice dropped lower this time. “This way I can give you a proper goodbye kiss at least.”
“That’s nice, but I think I’ll definitely be looking forward to the hello kiss more.”
“Good, it’s settled.”
ALEX ARRIVED AT Sydney’s doorstep the next morning before six. When Sydney answered she stepped in to find Sydney’s suitcase sitting inside the door. She looked at the full sized suitcase then back at Sydney. “You are just going for the weekend, right? Just two nights?” she looked back at the suitcase with raised eyebrows.
Sydney slapped her shoulder lightly. “Yes, Sergeant Smartass,” she said. “I’m just going for the weekend. But you know us girly-girls, we have stuff we have to take.”
“Stuff?”
“Yes, stuff,” Sydney said, putting her arms around Alex’s neck. Alex leaned down and met her lips as they kissed. When they finally broke apart Sydney looked up at Alex and fondled the hair at the back of her neck. “How is it I already know I’m going to miss you so much?” she asked. “We’ve only had a few dates. Does this make me a stalker?”
“You can stalk me anytime,” Alex said with a smile. She brought Sydney closer into her embrace in a tight hug. “And I’m going to miss you, too.” Sydney looked up at her and Alex met her lips in a passionate kiss once again.
“I guess we should be on our way,” Sydney said when they separated once more. Alex gave her one last embrace and a smile then moved to the suitcase.
“All right. I’ve got your, uh, weekend bag,” she said as they moved to the door.
The drive to the Burbank Airport was brief with almost no traffic in the early morning hours. Part way there Alex was aware of Sydney reaching over to run her fingers down Alex’s arm then settle comfortably in Alex’s hand.
“You know,” Alex said. “It’s kind of funny you should mention we’ve only had a few dates.” Alex was aware of Sydney looking at her from the seat next to her. “Do you feel as if we have a little more of a connection than you’d normally feel after three dates?”
“Yes,” Sydney replied without hesitation.
“Well, I have a confession to make.”
“If it’s anything like your last confession, I’m sure I’ll like it.” Sydney gave Alex’s hand a squeeze.
“Well, the last couple months, uh, I might not have had court as many times as you might have been led to believe.” Alex looked over at Sydney and found nothing but a slightly amused and curious look on her face. She plunged on with her explanation.
<
br /> “I was just really interested in seeing you again, so I may have, uh, embellished the demand on my court appearances.”
“You embellished the need for you to be in court?” Sydney asked. “You hadn’t really been subpoenaed to appear?”
“I had subpoenas some of the time. But, yeah, something like that.”
“Because you wanted to see me again?”
Alex smiled. “Yeah, then again, and again...”
“So it’s not really as if we’ve only had three dates, then. Right? I mean some of those lunches and coffees weren’t really just coincidence to kill time between court appearances because you had nothing better to do. You were actually there because you wanted to see me?” Alex nodded as Sydney spoke.
“Well, I certainly can’t think of anything better I could have been doing.” This time Alex squeezed Sydney’s hand and then brought it to her lips for a brief kiss. “And yes, I can honestly say I was there a lot of the time just because I was hoping we’d run into each other. I wasn’t completely avoiding my duty. I do, after all, work Central Division, which includes the courthouse. I was technically just providing some extra patrol there.” Alex shrugged. “But I guess after all this I really am a stalker.”
By this time they were pulling into the airport terminal area.
“Well, you may not find you need to make those excuses too much anymore, because an above average number of cases you’re involved in may have somehow, coincidentally, found their way onto my desk,” Sydney said with a smile. “And I’ll say it once again, Sergeant Chambers, you can be my stalker anytime.” Sydney gave her hand one last squeeze as they pulled to the curb before she opened the door to get out.
“Call me if you have a chance?” Alex asked a minute later as she gave Sydney a final hug at the curb in front of the terminal.
“Absolutely,” Sydney said without hesitation. She surreptitiously kissed Alex’s cheek before releasing her and taking the handle of her wheeling suitcase. They exchanged waves and Alex watched as Sydney made her way to the terminal doors, turning once more to wave before entering and proceeding out of view.
White Roses Calling Page 11
