Hi all :) I posted chapter 9 last night before the 24 hours was up, so it didn't show an update on the homepage. So don't read this one until you read chapter 9!

Happy reading :) And Happy Passover to those who celebrate!

Chapter 10,

"Brooke."

At the sound of her whispered name, Brooke slowly opened her eyes, adjusting to the natural light that was now streaming through the windows.

It was only when her eyes had fully adjusted to the brightness of the room did she remember where she was and who she was with.

Shit.

"Brooke," Millie whispered her name once again.

Shit, shit, shit. She was so not in the mood for the conversation that was inevitably going to follow this.

Sure enough, when she searched the room and found Millie's face, her eyebrows were raised and she had a very teasing smirk on her face.

"I woke up and you were gone," she whispered, keeping her voice low enough so as not to wake Jay. She was standing in the doorway of the second bedroom, still in her pajamas, still wearing her bright plastic glasses in place of her contacts. "Now I know why," she added, wriggling her eyebrows and crinkling her nose in an excited gesture.

Jay, who had committed to staying awake and keeping watch for her, was snoring lightly beneath her on the couch. He may have been sleeping, but his strong arms were wrapped protectively around her, as if even in his sleep, he could still shield her from any harm.

His arms were just loose enough that she was able to shift slightly beneath them, and when she turned to momentarily study his face, she noticed that even in this uncomfortable seated position, he looked completely relaxed.

She suddenly found herself happy he was asleep. Not only because he didn't have to see the superior attitude that was currently being expressed also over Millicent's face, but also because she really liked seeing him relaxed like this.

Gone was yesterday's tense jaw, the gritted teeth, the stiff shoulders. Gone was last night's heartbroken eyes. This morning, he looked completely at peace.

And, she reasoned that he needed his rest, too.

"Shut up," she whispered, turning back to Millie. She slid out from under his arms and off the couch, careful not to wake him, and moved towards her friend.

"Remind me again. You know, just so we're on the same page," Millie said, as they tiptoed towards the kitchen. "We don't like Jay Halstead?"

Brooke flipped the light switch on in the kitchen and busied herself looking for coffee, avoiding Millie's questioning gaze.

"We...uh..." She wasn't exactly sure how to finish that sentence. She most certainly was starting to like Jay Halstead. But if shared that will Millie, Millie might want details. She might want to know how much Brooke liked Jay Halstead. And at this point, she wasn't quite sure how to answer that question.

God, she sighed, frustrated. There was a coffee maker on the counter, there had to be coffee somewhere.

"Hey," Brooke closed the cabinet suddenly at the sound of Jay's voice echoing through the room. It gave off a loud bang and her cheeks flushed immediately. She found herself suddenly nervous to face him. Well, nervous excited.

Jay gave Millie a small smile and nodded a good morning greeting to her, and then he moved past her further into the kitchen. He moved right next to Brooke, reaching past her to grab the coffee. His arm gently grazed her shoulder, and he smiled when he noticed the goosebumps that erupted immediately at his touch. She was still wearing the thin white tank top, and it left very little to the imagination. He stood next to her, close enough to feel the heat emanating from her body.

"I'm going to get dressed," Mille said, before backing up and leaving the room. Some things were best left unseen between friends, and the sexual tension rising between Brooke and Jay was definitely one of those things.

Neither of them even noticed Millicent's hasty exit from the room.

"Thank you," she said, finally turning to face him and gesturing towards the container of coffee.

"Well," he said, "I'm sure you would've found it eventually." He began scooping the ground coffee into the coffee maker, measuring out enough for the three of them to each have two cups. "You know, with all your snooping last night, I'm surprised you didn't already know where it was." He smirked at her, making sure to let her know he was only kidding.

She just rolled her eyes in response, "You wish I cared enough to snoop around your apartment last night," her voice full of sass.

And instead of the witty retort she had been expecting from Jay, she was rewarded with a real smile; a smile that lit up his whole face, causing his blue eyes to appear even deeper.

The photograph she had found in the drawer had not done his smile justice. Seeing it in person, it almost made her lose her breath. She was sure her heart rate had doubled, only after skipping a beat.

She was at a loss for words, and he seemed to take her silence as a cause for concern. "Speaking of last night," he began, treading carefully. "How are you today?"

She considered her answer before giving it, wanting him to know she wasn't brushing off his question. "I'm okay," she replied, keeping her voice calm and clear.

It wasn't the truth exactly. But it felt like a lot less of a lie than it had been yesterday.

"Well," she added, after another moment's thought. "I will be." That felt like the truth. And that felt really good.

"Yeah," he replied, in a way that let her know he understood completely. "You will."

0000000000000

"The Commander's nephew is involved." Jay was still in his pajamas, pacing in the living room while he listened to his boss. Voight and the rest of the team were still tied up with the latest case, and Voight had called to bring him up to speed. "We are trying to finish it quickly, but-"

"I understand," he interjected, not needing Voight to explain the importance of the Commander's personal involvement. This one would need to be handled delicately, and it would need to be done right.

"Okay. But I want you checking in with me every couple hours," Jay took another sip of his coffee, as he paced through the living room and listened to the instructions being delegated to him from his boss.

"I will, Sarge," he replied, knowing it was completely unnecessary but that he would do it nonetheless.

"And don't do any investigating on your own, do you hear me?" Jay rolled his eyes at the second unnecessary instruction. He would have to leave Brooke's side in order to do any investigating on his own, and he was not about to leave her alone. Not today. Maybe not ever.

"Yes, sir," he gave the quick reply.

He expected Voight to hang up the phone then, but he didn't. "And Halstead," he continued.

"Yes, Sarge?"

"Take care of her, okay?" His tone was stern, but wistful, and for the hundredth time that day, Jay wondered the significance of the relationship between him and Brooke.

"I will," he said, meaning it more than his boss even realized.

And with that confirmation, Voight hung up the phone.

Jay took his now half filled mug back into the kitchen, where Millie and Brooke were currently sitting and enjoying their coffee and breakfast.

Brooke looked up at the sound of his entrance to the room. "Was that Hank?"

He moved towards the stove and scooped another spoonful of scrambled eggs onto his plate, and then walked across the room to the toaster to take the last croissant. "You know no one calls him Hank right?"

She just smiled, and he watched as her eyes lit up and her dimples sunk deep into the crevices of her cheeks. "Well, when I met him, no one called him 'sir' either."

It was the first time she really referenced her history with Hank, and she knew he wanted to ask her about it. She also knew he wouldn't with Millie in the room, and that the comment was completely safe.

She loved holding it over him. She loved thinking that there might be a day in their future that they would find another intimate moment and she would tell him all about it while his handed rested warmly on her knee.

"Fair enough," he said, smiling at her, letting it go for now.

When he woke up this morning and had seen her standing in his kitchen once again, his mindset had changed. He didn't know why, but he could feel the slight shift in his perspective.

He still wanted to know everything about her, every detail, every story, every piece that came together to form the tapestry of her life. But he had lost the sense of urgency.

When he fell asleep last night with her head resting comfortably in his lap, he had the distinct feeling that this wasn't the last time he would fall asleep with her by his side with her soft snores lulling him to sleep. They would have other opportunities to delve into her history, and into his.

So for now, he had only one priority. And that was to keep her safe.

"That was Voight," he said, emphasizing his Sergeant's last name as he took a seat at the stool next to Brooke. "He wanted to let me know that the team is still working on last night's case."

"Oh," she said, and he could tell she was trying to hide her disappointment. He knew she didn't want to be demanding, but that she also wanted this to be over.

And not because she was an entitled brat celebrity, but more likely, because she was scared. How hadn't he seen that before?

"So, since they'll be tied up with that today," he continued, trying to comfort her with his tone as much as his words. "You can work out of your own office and prepare for your store opening, and I will be there to make sure no one bothers you."

What had seemed like the most menial, most irritating assignment merely days ago had shifted into so much more.

He found himself happy the team was busy, and he found himself looking forward to spending the day watching Brooke Davis in her element again.

"Thanks, Jay," she said, her voice soft and her eyes even softer.

He realized it was the first time she had ever said his name, and it seemed to knock the wind out of him a little bit. He took another sip of his coffee, trying to cover the emotions racing through his chest.

When he was able to speak again, he found her gaze and said a quiet, "You're welcome."

00000000000

Two hours later, all hell was breaking loose.

"What do you mean the shipment has been delayed?" Brooke yelled angrily into the phone.

Jay noticed that she was using the same tone she had with him the day he picked her up at the hotel and she had annihilated him outside his own car at the district.

"Well, that is completely unacceptable."

He suddenly felt really bad for the person on the other line.

"I would like to speak to your supervisor. Now." She was pacing the length of her office, pounding her heels so violently into the wooden floor, he was nervous she was going to hurt herself.

Her hair was currently in a loose pony tail and every time she turned away from him, he was awarded a view of the back of her neck. For some reason, he found it absurdly sexy.

Sexy and distracting.

"Yes, Hi," she said, changing her voice only slightly. She must have been talking to the supervisor now. "This is Brooke Davis." She paused, undoubtedly listening to someone on the other end of the line. "Yes, I have a shipment that is supposed to be delivered from the Clothes over Bros New York corporate office to the Chicago office in two days."

He noticed that she kept her voice commanding but even, and without the other person seeing the angry look on her face, they may even think she sounded almost pleasant.

"And I have just been informed the delivery is going to be delayed. And I just wanted to inform you that if the shipment doesn't reach my Chicago office in 2 days, Clothes over Bros will no longer be needing your services."

Wow, he thought, impressed. That voice was even deadlier.

"Wonderful," she said, now smiling for real. "I'll keep an eye out for it. Yes, okay. Bye, now."

"Brooke," Millie called for her the minute she hung up the phone, and Jay noticed that her tone was not even. He could tell this wasn't going to be good. "I don't think the shipments are going to make it in time."

Brooke looked over and saw that Millie was hanging up from a phone call of her own. "What?" Brooke asked, confused. "I just hung up with FedEx." They had a long standing deal with FedEx that they would use their company for shipments instead of UPS, and threatening the loss of her business generally did the trick.

"I don't think FedEx is the problem." Millie said, her voice now careful and controlled. Jay noticed that Millie seemed to be preparing to deliver bad news, but he could also tell that it was bad news she didn't seem all that surprised to be delivering. "The New York office received an order not to release the clothes."

Shit, Brooke thought.

That could only mean one thing. "Fucking Victoria."

Who's Victoria? Jay wanted to ask. But he hadn't been invited here to ask questions, and he certainly wasn't about to interfere with her work. So he just stood their silently, watching the situation unfold.

He had been right though, because as he continued to watch Brooke, he noticed she also didn't look surprised. Pissed off and angry, sure, but surprised by this news, she was clearly not.

"Yeah," Millie answered. That had been her first thought, too. Fucking Victoria.

"She tried to sabotage my Tree Hill opening and now she's trying to sabotage this one too," Brooke said.

Jay watched as Brooke stand abruptly from her desk and began pacing angrily. He once again wondered who this Victoria person was, and how she had the power to halt orders and sabotage a store opening of Brooke's company.

"Well," Brooke stopped abruptly and turned to face Millie. "I'm not going to let her."

That's my girl, Jay thought.

Woah, where the hell did that from?

Brooke wasn't hisgirl, he thought. Not even close.

But then he stared at her, as she continued to talk to Millie and as she pieced together a plan for the opening less than one week away, and he realized that last time he was in here, he hadn't allowed himself to really look at her. To really notice how amazing and sexy Brooke Davis really was.

And it wasn't just her long legs, the ones that seemed to go on forever. It wasn't her slim waist, or her perfect breasts, or even her strong, thin arms. It wasn't her long hair, or her sexy neck, or her beautiful brown eyes.

Although, all of those things didn't hurt.

But, no. It was her confidence.

He was learning that there was a difference between arrogance and confidence. There was a big difference.

Being arrogant and entitled and cocky, that was a turn off. It was what he assumed all celebrities were like.

But being strong, and confident, and self-assured. Well, that, it turned out, was a turn on.

And Brooke Davis did strong, confident, and self-assured well.

And as he stared at her, formulating a plan to successfully open her store despite the obstacles that laid at her feet, he realized he really wanted Brooke Davis to be hisgirl.

Maybe one day, he thought.

0000000000

Brooke had come up with a plan. She had put in calls to four other stores in the non-New York areas, and had asked them to ship one-quarter of their supply to the store in Chicago. Then, she planned to have those stores call the New York office to ask for more stock.

She had orchestrated it so that the calls for more merchandise would come into the New York office staggered enough that Victoria wouldn't take notice.

It had to work.

She really wanted her opening to go well.

She knew that one day, this mess with Xavier Daniels was going to be behind her, and when that day came, she wanted to run Clothes over Bros from Chicago.

She wanted her fresh start.

And this was the first step.

At that thought, she shifted her gaze to Jay, who was standing in the doorway. He had been standing quietly in the doorway of her office for the past several hours, placing himself firmly between her and the outside world.

He had called Hank three times just to check in, but otherwise, he just stood there looking solid, strong, and focused.

She reasoned he must be bored out of his mind.

"Hey," she said, moving over to him. "Should we order in some lunch?" She really wanted to go to a restaurant, but something told her that wasn't an option. "I was thinking Chinese?"

"Chinese sounds perfect," he replied, a smile forming on his lips.

Ever since this morning, he had been a lot quicker to smile at her. He had smiled over at her several times in the last hour alone. But even though it no longer felt completely new, it still felt so damn special.

It made her feel like the most important person in the world to be able to bring out his grin.

She wanted to press a kiss against that smile so badly, she had to physically restrain herself from getting too close.

Instead, she just smiled back, forcing herself to keep her distance, and then picked up her phone to dial the restaurant.

But just for a moment, as she watched him standing guard in the doorway, his gun holstered on his hip, the smile still wide on his lips, she allowed herself to really imagine what it would be like to kiss him. To press her lips against his, to melt into his embrace, to feel his body hard against her own.

And then just for a moment, she found herself thankful for the circumstances that brought them here.

Because the store might be the first step in her fresh start.

But she was starting to think Jay Halstead might just be the second.

xoxo

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