“Nu-uh,” Sydney said. “On your back, Sergeant.”
ALEX BECAME AWARE of her surroundings some time later as she felt a slight pinch and stinging sensation to the top of one shoulder, near her collarbone. She opened her eyes just as Sydney’s head pulled up to look into her eyes. “Syd?”
“Yeah?”
“Uh. Wow.” Alex tried to order her thoughts, still somewhat overwhelmed by what she had just experienced. “Um, are you sure you’ve never been with women before? ‘Cuz that was...um...wow.” She took another deep breath. “Was that because of, you know, what’s her name?”
Sydney put her head down on Alex’s chest and ran her fingers lazily across Alex’s shoulder and up and down her arm, causing goose bumps to rise.
“Well, I didn’t want there to be any doubt in your mind about my intentions, or how I felt about you, or how I feel about other people even looking at you the wrong way.”
“I see.” Alex closed her eyes and put both arms around Sydney, drawing her closer. Sydney ran a finger around Alex’s breast and up to her shoulder, hitting a particular sore spot. Alex glanced down at herself, seeing a large hicky now emblazoned below her left collarbone.
“So you did mark me as your territory.” Alex’s head fell back on the pillow. Sydney smiled and shrugged and Alex could only hug her tighter as she laughed.
“Well, better be careful. Because if your response is always gonna be something like that, then I just might start paying people to do stuff that’ll make you jealous.”
They spent the entire middle of the day in bed, intermittently dozing and making love, though in the late afternoon they did find their way to the phone to order a pizza to be delivered.
“So, what are the chances of me convincing you to have dinner with me again this week?” Alex reached for another piece of pizza from the box lying on the bed between them.
“Your chances of convincing me are outstanding,” Sydney replied. “But I kind of have the week from hell.”
“What’s hell about your week?”
“There’s a strategic planning retreat this Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday for all the unit supervisors. It’s the D.A. offices from L.A., Orange and Ventura Counties, plus the federal prosecutors. We’re supposed to discuss strategies on vertical prosecutions for major crimes, mainly gangs and organized crime,” Sydney said with a tired sigh. “But Stan called yesterday morning to tell me he came down with the flu, and then his wife and kids got sick. So I’ve been asked to stand in for our unit. Everybody is driving out tomorrow and the first session is Tuesday. I have some pre-trial motions tomorrow I can’t miss, but I’m supposed to be on the road right after that.”
“Hmm. A retreat on the county’s dime. That sounds nice.”
“Please,” Sydney said. “It’s in Oxnard.”
“Oh, okay.” Alex smiled. “Not exactly Palm Springs or San Diego, is it?”
“Nope, and I’ll probably be driving out there in the afternoon commuter traffic and I think it’s supposed to rain. I’m not looking forward to it.”
“So you’ll be gone until Thursday?” Alex asked. Sydney nodded, leaning back against the pillow, clearly not happy about the circumstances. “Well then,” Alex said, reaching for the now empty pizza box and dropping it over the side of the bed onto the floor. “We need to make the most of the time we have left together.” She grabbed Sydney by the hips, pulling her downward in the bed, off the pillow to lay flat. Then leaned over her, pressing their lips together in a crushing kiss. She immediately felt Sydney’s arms wrap around her shoulders, pulling them together.
By the time the sun went down that evening, the two were cuddled together in exhausted sleep.
Chapter Twelve
WHEN SYDNEY ARRIVED at work the next morning she ran into Tyler in the break room as she went in to fill her coffee cup.
Tyler turned and leaned on the counter. “So,” he said, stirring his coffee. “How was the barbeque?” The two had spent Friday evening together and Sydney had told Tyler of the invite to meet Alex’s friends.
“Barbeque was nice,” Sydney said. She put the mug to her lips and walked out of the break room toward her office with Tyler following close behind.
“Uh-huh,” Tyler said as they entered her office and he took a seat without invitation. “And what about the rest of the weekend?”
“What about the rest of the weekend?” Sydney said, shuffling files on her desk.
“I knew it.” Tyler leaned forward in his chair. “You spent the weekend together, didn’t you?” Sydney gave up on the files, picked up her coffee cup and leaned back in her chair. She looked at him and couldn’t keep the smile from her face.
“Yes, we spent the weekend together.”
“And?”
“And, it was,” she paused. “Amazing.”
SYDNEY FINALLY CHASED Tyler out of her office, but only after being forced to share the full details of the previous two nights. She got to her first pre-trial hearing before lunch, then managed to finish her second one by three. She went home to pack, then immediately got on the freeway in hopes of beating the afternoon commuter traffic heading out of L.A. to the Simi Valley and Thousand Oaks areas. Unfortunately, a big rig overturned in the rain on the northbound 101 Freeway and abolished any hopes of spending less than several hours on the freeway. Sydney called Alex once she was on the road in hopes of passing the time away. The cell phone rang and then went to voicemail, so she left a message.
Hours later, after surrendering to the traffic congestion somewhere east of Thousand Oaks and stopping for a quick salad for dinner, she finally pulled into the parking lot of the conference hotel. At eight p.m. she checked into her room and picked up the phone to call Alex.
“I was hoping that was you,” Alex said when she answered. “I’m sorry I missed you earlier. So how is the exotic retreat to Oxnard? All you expected it to be?”
“Oh, sure. The view from my room looks over a beautiful parking lot and across the street to a strip mall that includes an adult video store and a restaurant that advertises both Chinese and soul food on the same menu.”
They talked for several more minutes about nothing in particular, both just enjoying the comfortable companionship and hearing the other’s voice, then reluctantly said their goodbyes.
THE CONFERENCE CONCLUDED on Wednesday afternoon and Sydney returned to her room with a new urgency. The group of rooms was actually booked through that night and none of them were expected in their offices until mid-day on Thursday, allowing them several hours to commute back from the Oxnard area.
Sydney’s mind, however, drifted through the afternoon sessions of the conference thinking more and more about Alex and the need to see her. She didn’t want to wait for the weekend. She begged out of a dinner invite from several other attorneys, figuring if she got on the road she could make it home by eight or nine o’clock. Maybe she and Alex could get together depending on when Alex got off work.
She took a last look around the room to ensure she wasn’t missing anything, then zipped up her case as her phone rang.
“Speak of the devil,” Sydney thought to herself when she noticed who the caller was.
“Hey, I was just thinking about you.” Sydney gathered her things as she spoke, now even more determined to get back to Los Angeles as soon as she could.
“And I was thinking about you,” Alex said. “I miss you. I wish I didn’t have to wait until Saturday to see you.”
“I was thinking the exact same thing,” Sydney said. “I’m leaving now. I can hopefully make it back in about three hours.” Sydney exited her room and made her way down the hall to the elevator.
“You’re leaving now?”
“Yes. I’m about to check out now. I’m getting in the elevator so if I fade out just hold on.”
“You really shouldn’t leave yet. When you get to L.A....” Alex’s voice was lost when the call dropped in the elevator.
“Damn,” Sydney muttered. She punched the button on her p
hone to re-engage the call as soon as the elevator doors opened and she stepped into the lobby. Alex picked up instantly.
“What do you mean I shouldn’t leave?” Sydney asked as she stood in the hotel lobby. “You cut out, what’s going to happen when I get to L.A.?”
“I’m not going to be there.” Alex’s voice, rather than coming to her through the phone, was spoken from lips only inches from her ear. Sydney turned to find her standing there, a grin on her face. Sydney immediately fell into her arms, saying nothing. Several people exiting another elevator were forced to step around them, some looking at the two grown women in curiosity.
“I think we should go to your room,” Alex said. “Come on.” She picked up her duffle bag and took Sydney’s rolling case from her hand. They entered the elevator and the doors fortunately closed before anyone else had a chance to enter. Sydney pushed the button for the eighth floor then was immediately in Alex’s arms once again, this time their lips met in a deep kiss. They broke only when the elevator dinged, indicating they were arriving.
They made it to the room and inside before they kissed again, followed by a gradual dance toward the bed. Various items of clothing were shed along the way and they fell into bed as the setting sun came through the window.
Several hours later they lay in one another’s arms. They had made love as if they hadn’t seen each other in months, rather than days. Then they ordered room service and enjoyed an intimate dinner together.
“One of the other sergeants mentioned this morning he needed to get out early to drive to Santa Barbara for a family thing. I just kind of hopped a ride with him at the last minute,” Alex said as they lay in bed together after dinner. “I hope you don’t mind me showing up like this.”
“Mind? Of course I don’t mind,” Sydney said. “You answered my prayers by showing up here.”
Alex rolled over and pushed herself up, coming to rest on top of Sydney. She intertwined her fingers with Sydney’s and raised her arms over her head, pressing them into the pillow.
She leaned down and their lips met. Then Alex moved down to nuzzle Sydney’s neck, gradually working toward her collarbone.
“So is that all you prayed for? Just me showing up?” Alex asked, her voice husky with passion. She dipped her head to one of Sydney’s breasts, taking an erect nipple into her mouth.
She lifted her head momentarily waiting for Sydney to respond, but her hand kept massaging Sydney’s nipple.
Sydney gasped, trying to concentrate. “My prayers definitely involved you doing a little more than that.”
Alex smiled and returned her lips to Sydney’s chest, eventually working her way even lower.
“THIS IS KILLING you, isn’t it?” Sydney squeezed Alex’s hand with her own as they rested together on the center console of the small Mercedes two-seater. She’d noted Alex fidgeting that Thursday morning from the moment they left the hotel.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Come on. Tiffany told me all about your control issues. It’s killing you not being the driver right now, isn’t it?”
“Hmm.”
“Let’s see, you have control issues which include the need to always be the driver and sitting in restaurants with your back to the wall or facing the door, even when you’re off duty. How am I doing?” Sydney said with a playful smile.
“I don’t think that’s really a control issue, it’s more of a precaution. I’m a very cautious person.”
“And you have an unhealthy affinity for pizza and those carbonated energy drinks.”
“Well, I wouldn’t categorize it as entirely unhealthy, really,” Alex said. “And I’m going to have to be angry at Tiffany for a while since she decided to reveal my issues to you so early in our relationship. I’m still trying to woo you, after all.”
“Oh, hon, you successfully wooed me a long time ago.”
“Really?”
Sydney smiled as she nodded in reply.
“Cool,” Alex said with a self satisfied smile.
About forty-five minutes later Sydney pulled off the freeway as they entered Thousand Oaks, the halfway point back to downtown Los Angeles.
“I’m going to get some gas,” she said as she pulled into a gas station.
Alex already had the gas pumping when Sydney came back out of the gas station mini-mart. She turned to Sydney after returning the nozzle to the pump and was met with a can of one of her favorite zero calorie energy drinks, as well as the car keys.
“Here ya go, sport,” Sydney said with a smile. “These should help you relax.”
The smile was still on Alex’s lips as she entered the freeway headed for L.A.
“THANK YOU FOR coming out to spend the night with me,” Sydney said as they stood together just inside the front door of Alex’s house. They’d made good time from Oxnard and had returned as far as Burbank where they ate a late brunch together. Sydney was dropping off Alex before she headed in to work the rest of the day at her office.
“When will I see you next?” she asked.
Alex stood with her arms around Sydney. “I’ve got a really early morning warrant service tomorrow. I guess it was very hush-hush and so my squad just got told about the assignment yesterday. I’m gonna hit the sack now, I think. I’ve got to be at the station a little after midnight tonight. But I can meet you for dinner tomorrow night.”
“Is that the Temple Street gang warrant?” Sydney asked. Alex nodded, surprised Sydney knew about it.
“I just got asked on Monday to work the D.A.’s command post for that.” Alex was familiar with the D.A. assignments to multi-location, multi-suspect, or other high profile search warrants such as this one.
City Attorneys, District Attorneys, even federal prosecutors would be assigned to command posts and staging areas to provide advice on appropriate booking charges and to coordinate prosecutions amongst the various agencies.
The two women discussed it further and agreed they would definitely get together the next evening.
“You’re sure that’s not too long a day for you?” Sydney asked.
“Not at all. It’s worth it to see you.”
Sydney reluctantly started for the door. She did, after all, have to be at work at least for the afternoon. Alex turned to Sydney before opening the door and they found themselves looking at each other in the entryway. Sydney pulled Alex to her as she tilted her head back. Alex complied without resistance, leaning down to meet Sydney’s expectant lips. Her hands found their way around Sydney without conscious thought.
The kiss broke and they stepped back, both smiling. Sydney opened the door and Alex followed her to her car at the curb, opening the driver’s door for her.
“So we’ll see each other tomorrow evening?” Sydney asked as she got behind the wheel. Alex nodded, still smiling. She stood in the road, unmoving, until Sydney’s taillights turned out of sight.
Chapter Thirteen
THE AFTERNOON WAS busy for Sydney as she attempted to catch up on the work left untouched the last several days. On her way home she received a call from Alex.
“Hi,” Alex said. “How was your afternoon?”
“Not bad. Aren’t you supposed to be sleeping?”
“Well, yeah. I napped, then I woke up hungry. So I ord...I, uh, got something to eat and then I’ll nap again before heading in later tonight.”
“Uh-huh. And what did you have to eat?” Sydney asked, having caught the hesitation in Alex’s voice. There was a slightly mumbled response. “What was that?” she prompted.
“I ordered pizza,” Alex said with a sigh. Sydney laughed.
“Well, I know you have to get some rest since you’re up early tomorrow morning. And I know we’ll see each other tomorrow evening, but I’m glad you called,” Sydney said, then added quietly. “I wanted to hear your voice. Please be careful tomorrow.”
“No worries. I’m pretty sure we’re getting one of the boring locations. Probably someone’s girlfriend or grandma’s house,” A
lex said. They wished each other a pleasant night and promised to see each other the next evening.
Sydney had been given the case file summary for the warrant service and spent the rest of the evening reviewing it. The intent was to serve search and arrest warrants on over forty locations, searching for over sixty individuals associated with the Temple Street gang in Rampart Division, just west of Downtown Los Angeles. The charges ranged from weapons and narcotics sales to robbery, witness intimidation and accessories to the attempted murder of a police officer.
The investigation had begun seven months prior when three Temple Street gang members carrying illegal automatic weapons had been the subjects of a simple traffic stop by uniformed officers. Knowing they had the weapons in the car and they would likely be found, the gangsters decided to just shoot it out and conducted a surprise ambush on the officers. In the gun battle that followed, one of the gangsters was killed and one officer was seriously wounded. The two remaining gangsters tried to flee the scene on foot. One of them was caught within the perimeter the responding officers had set up. But the second, who it was later determined was the primary shooter in the ambush, did manage to escape and had evaded capture for months. It was believed he possibly fled to Mexico.
They launched a multi-agency task force to not only identify and capture the outstanding suspect, and anyone who assisted him, but also in hopes of dismantling the Temple Street gang and its ability to function as an organized criminal enterprise. This warrant service was the result of over a year of investigative work, surveillance and undercover buys.
White Roses Calling Page 17
