by Karen Nappa
She found an open burglary file and started reading through it. The thieves had entered the house while the family had been out to a party on Christmas Eve. She tapped her teeth with her pen. I wonder, I wonder. She pulled up reports of calls from the night before. Nothing. Wait. There it was. At 4:10 am, a call had come in from a couple who said their house been burgled while they had been out the night before. No detective had been assigned to the case yet, so Paula put herself in before someone else could claim the case. Two burglaries with the same M.O. could mean nothing, but they could be connected. Paula had made sergeant by noticing things. She read the report from the patrolman through twice and the method of entry matched the Christmas Eve robbery. If it was the same crew, was it possible there had been more hits the same nights and nobody had connected them yet? She started digging, and by lunchtime, she had eight robberies on Christmas Eve, twelve last night, and when she went back further, there were another three on Thanksgiving Day. Jackpot! Here was something she could sink her teeth into and distract herself with at the same time. She made notes on all the cases and the various detectives assigned. None of the others were working that day, so follow-up would have to wait until tomorrow. She could check in with last night's victims. It was late enough in the day now that they would probably be up.
Her stomach rumbled and she went into the break room to grab her lunch. She had bread from The Sweet and Savory Table and soup she'd made the previous weekend. She'd never known soup could be so easy. If only Jim had been there to see her kitchen success. She was still keeping it neat and had made a good dent in the boxes, too. Working on the mess helped pass time she would otherwise have spent thinking about him. Too bad she couldn't banish him completely. If she'd made the right call in leaving him, why did it hurt so much?
Since Paula had left him, Jim had buried himself in his work and volunteering at Club Indigo. If he wasn't at one place, he was at the other, or else home watching Tolkien movies as he tried to get to sleep at night. The meth lab investigation continued, but no one was making any breaks in the case. They had arrested multiple low-level dealers, both from the independents and from the cartels. There had been another truck hijacking of pharmaceuticals, so the independent operators had plenty of cold medicine to use in making the deadly drug. His work life was plodding along. Jim leaned back in his chair. How about his private life? He missed Paula. He missed her as his submissive, but he also missed her as a person. Watching a movie with her or listening to music they both liked—it didn't seem to matter what they did. She threw herself into the experience with abandon and made it more fun and exciting for him, too.
Then there was Club Indigo. Jim couldn't decide if he was filling his time or torturing himself with how much time he spent at the club. He was there every weekend, being Dungeon Monitor, checking people in, setting up, cleaning up. It didn't matter as long as it kept him busy.
When Valentine's Day arrived, he decided he'd had enough and took the night off. Seeing all the happy couples was more than he could take. At least, the rest of the time, there were single people around. The night had been no better home alone. Even his favorite movies couldn't save his shitty evening. Maybe he needed a break from the club. He should find some new hobbies. There had to be things to do that didn't remind him of Paula.
It was warmer than usual for March, making the evening perfect for the party Paula was heading to. She had opted for her fuchsia shirt—the bright color fit the weather and the occasion. She was looking forward to seeing James and Laura again. She entered The Sweet and Savory Table and was greeted by the noise of happy people gathered for the private party at the café.
Someone clinked a glass and the conversation died down so James could speak. "Thank you all for coming here today." She turned her attention to James. He stood in front of the crowd with Laura and Josh close by. Josh looked from James to Laura with love and adoration in his eyes. Despite the fact Paula felt down about her failed relationship with Jim, her smile was so wide, it hurt her face. To see the three of them together was wonderful and made her hopeful. Even with a dark past, Josh had found his way to the light. "We've invited you here today to share our joy at making Josh a permanent member of our family. Without the help and support of you all, we couldn't have done it."
James exchanged a glance with Josh, and the boy gave a small nod. James placed his hand on Josh's shoulders and guided him forward. The boy gave Laura a smile and raised his chin. "I would like to say something, too," he said into the silence.
"First, I want to thank Mom and Dad for taking me in and supporting me. It sounds really good to be able to call them that. I haven't had much in the way of a real family the last few years, but Mr. James and Ms. Laura took me in and kept me, even when I got in trouble with the police. The last few months…" Josh broke off and swallowed. Paula could see James give a reassuring squeeze to his shoulder and the boy continued. "…have been really hard and I'm grateful for all the people who stood by me. So, thank you all."
Paula swallowed a lump in her throat and blinked rapidly to avoid the tears forming as Josh shared hugs with Laura and James.
James added, "On behalf of my wife and our son, we thank you all for coming. Thanks to Suzie, Sonja, and Connor for welcoming us here at The Sweet and Savory Table. They and their crew made a wonderful meal. Please enjoy." People applauded and cheered, and Paula heard a few whistles as well.
Paula looked around at the guests. She recognized a number of people from Club Indigo and she was surprised at how many she considered friends. Paula also spotted Laura's father, Dan, and his wife, Mary, and Suzie's children, Tim and Abby. As she was scanning the party, she caught a glimpse of the one person she didn't want to see and she moved to where she hoped she wouldn't be noticed—the children's table.
"Aren't you Aunt Laura's police friend? I saw you at the wedding," a curious young voice inquired.
Paula smiled and turned her attention to the young girl. Abby looked beautiful in a dark blue dress. Soon, the young men would be crowding Suzie and Connor's doorstep.
"Yes, I am," Paula answered.
"Are you here to arrest Josh?"
Paula's mouth dropped open. "No. Why would you think that?"
"Josh told Tim, and I wasn't supposed to hear, but I did. And so, I know you took Josh's fingerprints and all, and now he's in some kind of trouble," Abby summed up, without coming up for air.
Ah, okay, now things made more sense.
"It's true that Josh had some contact with the police and I was the investigating officer. I'm not the reason he's in trouble," Paula explained. "The problem with listening in on people is that you don't always get the whole story, Abby."
Abby's eyes widened and she whispered, "How did you know I was doing that?"
"I'm the police; we know these things." Paula made an effort to stay serious, but she ruined it by chuckling. "I'm kidding. I know this from experience. You miss a lot of information, that's all. Josh isn't in trouble anymore. He has to do some things over the next few years to make up for what he did, but unless he makes a big mistake or a bad choice, there's no reason to think he'll have to deal with the police again."
Abby pursed her lips and her eyes drifted over the crowd. Paula followed her gaze and found Josh. She looked over to the girl and noticed how her cheeks had flushed to an attractive pink shade. Interesting!
"Do you know Josh well?" Paula inquired.
Abby nodded. "Josh is Tim's best friend and we see him every Saturday, sometimes at our house and sometimes at Aunt Laura's. He comes over during the week, too. We play outside when the weather is nice. Well, mostly, Josh plays soccer with Tim, but I'm outside, too." Paula made an encouraging sound and Abby didn't need more prompting. "And of course, we play with the trains together, too. And…and Josh helped me with my geography last month. I got an A."
Paula couldn't suppress a smile. "That sounds nice."
"Yes," Abby sighed, her expression dreamy, "He's very nice."
Ah, y
oung love, so beautiful and fragile.
"I agree. He is pretty great," Paula agreed.
"Are you talking about me?" a playful voice behind her asked. Before Paula could answer, Abby jumped up and embraced the tall blond man behind them. "Mr. Chris!" she exclaimed in delight.
Chris swung Abby into his arms. "How's my favorite girl?" Paula felt her mouth curl up again. She hadn't smiled this much in weeks, she realized. Yes, it was good to be here with friends and to see how happy the newly formed family was. Josh had been dealt a rough hand by life, but now things were looking up. She glanced around the room again and felt paralyzed as her gaze was met by magnetic blue eyes.
Paula sucked in a shocked breath as Jim's heated glance skimmed her body and returned to her face. Was it hot in here, or was she having a hot flash? Paula stomped down the urge to fan herself. She pulled her eyes away from him and started talking with Chris. "Do you come here to eat often?" She knew how lame it sounded but needed something to say.
"This was always a good place to have lunch, but with Suzie baking and breakfast happening, it's so much better. Those pastries in the morning are something else."
"Trust you to have a sweet tooth, Chris."
Paula didn't hear his next comment as her thoughts kept drifting toward Jim. Chris was nice and entertaining—and an incorrigible flirt—but he wasn't Jim. He didn't have this pull—Paula forced her attention back to Chris. "I'm sorry did you say something?"
"You know, sweetheart, if I didn't know you were Jim's sub, I'd be heartbroken," he teased her with a wicked grin.
"I'm not Jim's sub."
Chris let out a belly laugh, and she felt her face flush again. Menopause, it had to be!
"The two of you can't keep your eyes off each other."
"Yeah, well, I don't deny we have great chemistry, but I'm not built for the kind of relationship Jim wants." Paula gave a noncommittal shrug as if the admission didn't tear her apart.
"What do you mean?" Chris cocked his head sideways and frowned at her.
"I don't like to give away as much control as he wants to have," she answered.
"Don't tell me Jim isn't open to renegotiating if something doesn't work between the two of you?" Chris asked with sheer disbelief in his voice.
Paula blinked in confusion. Change the contract, but she—
"It doesn't matter. I don't think I'm submissive after all." She couldn't talk about this any longer. Why had she picked Chris to divert her attention? She started to turn away.
"Stop." The command in his voice, more than the word itself made her halt in her tracks. Chris invaded her personal space and she stayed rooted to the ground, unable to pull away from his command.
"Not submissive, huh?" Chris stated. He brushed his knuckles over her cheek before stepping away from her, breaking the spell. "Sweetheart, if it looks like a duck, walks like a duck, and quacks like a duck, then it's probably a duck." With that, he tipped his two forefingers against his temple in a mock salute and he sauntered off in the direction of the drinks table.
What the hell? Paula looked after Chris in confusion, before shaking her head and looking away from his retreating form. Again, Jim caught her eye on the other side of the room and she took the only option she could think of. Paula exited the party like a burglar would run from a police officer.
Jim's mind had been reeling since he'd seen Paula at Josh's adoption party. He couldn't describe the anger and possessiveness he'd felt when he'd noticed Chris dominating and touching her.
For days, he had been torturing himself with 'what ifs' and it had brought him nothing. Now he was sitting at the bar in Club Indigo staring into a glass of sparkling water, his shift on door duty over for the night. Someone slapped him on the back and said, "You look like shit." He turned around to see Captain Connor.
The Scot grinned at him. "Just returning the favor."
Jim gave a cynical laugh as he remembered the funk Connor had been in almost a year ago and how he'd used the exact same words.
"I won't fight you, Connor," Jim said as he thought back on that moment.
The bulky man shrugged and asked, "Paula?" Connor was a man of few words.
Jim nodded his head. "I came on too strong, too fast, and too soon. She isn't used to being a submissive." He scrubbed his hands over his face. "But damn, she walked in on a robbery, without her bulletproof vest, without calling for backup in a place she had no business being."
Connor settled on a barstool next to Jim. "So?"
"I punished her by taking my belt to her ass."
"Did she safeword?"
Jim shook his head.
"Did you break the skin?"
"No, never! She let me take care of her after, rub in arnica. I thought everything was fine and then she took off her collar and walked out. Fuck me, if I understand women."
Connor chuckled at that. "What man ever does?"
"Speaking of women," Jim gestured to Suzie who was waiting on the ground near the play area, "you'd better go and grab your woman before she gets more agitated."
Connor's grin widened and he waggled his eyebrows. "Let her act up, gives me more reason to beat her little ass." His grey-green eyes sparkled. "Of course, I don't need a reason and I promised her a whipping tonight. Take care, Jim."
Connor accompanied his parting words with a squeeze to Jim's shoulder that had him wincing and the sadist grinning.
Jim took a gulp from his water, but the fizz was gone and it had lost its flavor.
Although he was not into severe pain himself, he decided to watch Connor anyway. The man put up a great show with the three-foot single tail whip. Connor once told him he'd had his whip for over ten years and he felt one with it.
Jim waited for Bob to replace his drink and he turned around to see who else was at the club. He spotted Henry and Jackson nearby. Henry claimed Jackson's mouth in a possessive kiss—hand fisted in the older man's short hair at the base of his neck. How Jim longed for his Melda. The pain of not having her with him blinded him for a heartbeat and he closed his eyes. When he reopened them, he noticed Bob had replaced his drink without a word and Henry was walking over, with Jackson following close behind.
"Good evening, Jim," the African-American man greeted him in a gentle tone as he settled on the barstool and Jackson kneeled on the ground.
"Evening."
"Thinking about a certain detective?" Henry inquired, a tad too casually.
"Am I that obvious?"
"Nope, I've asked Connor to beat a bit on Jackson later," Henry rubbed Jackson's head affectionately, "and he told me we should talk with you first."
"Meddling and gossiping. You're worse than women," Jim accused.
"Yup." Henry grinned. "But not as bad as the PD."
Yeah, Henry was right about that; his workplace was a real gossip mill. Jim didn't know what to say, but the lawyer continued to talk. "Paula got scared by the lifestyle?"
"I don't know. Could be the BDSM, could be me, or could be relationships in general. She told me at the beginning, she didn't do relationships, preferred one-night stands over commitment," Jim answered.
Henry hummed and tapped his bottom lip. "Is that what she said? Because from where I stand, it looked like she was blossoming under your wing."
"Permission, Master?" Jackson's voice surprised Jim and he caught a raised eyebrow from Henry.
Henry looked down on his slave with tenderness in his eyes. "You have some insights for us?" He pulled on the leash. "Permission granted; take a seat, Jackson."
The man rose to his feet and—after accepting a towel from Bob—perched his naked butt on a vacant barstool. If Jackson found it strange or uncomfortable to have a serious conversation in his birthday suit, he didn't show it.
"Paula's reputation in the police department is cool, competent, and laser-focused on the job. She's someone who won't let anyone or anything get between her and what she wants. Many of the men are convinced she's gay because she won't date any of them. Maybe she doesn
't want a relationship, but I'm fairly certain it's what she needs," Jackson stated.
Jim noticed Henry nodding and he, too, agreed with Jackson's assessment.
"Of course, there's also the age difference." Jackson glance over to Henry and one corner of his mouth pulled up in a rueful smile before returning his attention to Jim. "I had a bit of a problem with that, myself, you know?"
"No, I didn't," Jim replied. "You and Henry were already a couple when I joined the club."
"That's right." Jackson nodded and explained, "Henry and I met in an official capacity, one could say."
Henry laughed and added, "Jackson freed me from metal police handcuffs and I thanked him by cuffing him with leather instead."
"Sounds intriguing." Jim perked up.
Jackson didn't need any prompting. "As a criminal defense lawyer, I was called to defend a young guy who had been arrested after a protest got out of hand. There was a white power march and my Master, here, was part of the counter group. His parents called my firm to represent him. The police had him in an interrogation room and I walked in expecting a troublemaker."
"Oh boy, if you'd known half the trouble you'd be in," Henry interjected with a cocky grin.
Jackson flashed him a smile and continued. "So I walked in this bare room with this hideous olive drab paint on the walls and a metal table and chairs bolted to the floor, and in one of those chairs, sat the most gorgeous man I'd ever seen." Jackson blew out a low whistle. "I had to lower my briefcase to hide the instant boner I had. Of course, at that moment, I thought Henry was too young for me, and for all I knew, he could be straight. Anyhow, I suffered through the interview with a painful hard-on and I'm still amazed that my brains had enough blood flow to function."
"How did the case end?" Jim was curious.
"Since nobody was seriously injured and the white supremacists caused all the damage, we counter-protesters got off with a warning," Henry answered. "That made it easier to pursue a relationship with a very reluctant Jackson."
