Morelli's idea of spending a few days in Point Pleasant was as appealing as it was unexpected. We'd been together for several months, but we never really went away together. In fact, we rarely went out on dates. It wasn't that we didn't spend a lot of time together—unless Morelli had to go undercover or my grandmother had decided to move into my apartment, we saw each other several times a week. We'd order in food from Pinos or Sal's Steakhouse or another favorite restaurant. We'd watch TV together. We'd have sex after an hour or so of TV watching. Sometimes, we'd go back for more TV after sex. That had more to do with the fact that sex occurred spontaneously and frequently when we were together than either of us being TV addicts. If we hadn't seen each other for awhile, we'd get intimate before eating, and then have to reheat the food a couple of hours later. On occasion, Morelli cooked for us, but ordering takeout—or using up the leftovers my mom had sent home the previous day—was much easier.
My point was that things were now pretty casual between us. There wasn't much point in getting dressed up to go out if we couldn't keep our hands off of each other before we even left for the restaurant. I wouldn't say Morelli and I had no control…well, okay, maybe he had no control. I preferred not to be fainting from hunger when we were about to have sex. So, takeout seemed like the best choice for both of us. Good food, good company, no waiting, and we could interrupt the eating and resume it later if the mood hit us.
We'd never taken off by ourselves for a few days. Not even for one full day. Oh sure, Morelli and I had spent weekends together, but those were at his house or my apartment, and besides, there was usually an interruption at one point or another. Not always on his end. My job doesn't stop on the weekends if I have FTAs to catch.
Speaking of FTAs, I knew I'd have a huge amount of catching up to do when I returned to work. I'd been trying not to think about that. Ranger might handle a few of the higher end skips he wouldn't usually go near as a favor to me, and Lula had a little experience, but even with their help, I'd be working my butt off for the next month trying to catch up.
Okay, maybe not a full month. Maybe just two weeks. Still, it would feel like a month because I'd be under so much pressure to get everything finished.
Especially if we were about to go away for a few days.
I turned to Morelli, who was still waiting for my response.
"Cupcake? You got a blank look on your face for a minute," he commented, putting a hand to my forehead. "You feeling okay?"
"I want to go…I'd love to go," I told him. "I'm just worried about getting everything finished in time. Vinnie's already pretty ticked that I've been out for so long."
I'd received an angry message on my cell phone earlier from him, stating that if I wasn't back tomorrow, I'd better be ready with a doctor's note or I was fired. I hadn't called him back yet.
Morelli's eyes darkened, his cop face in place. "That weasel." Then, he softened and put an arm around me. "We'll talk to him. Figure out a way to do this. If you want to?"
"I do want to," I reassured him. "You know how much I love Point Pleasant. Spending a few days there would be great. Except, won't it be really expensive?"
That thought had just crossed my mind. Hotels on the beach or the boardwalk weren't cheap. Spending a night at a nice one would pretty much drain my savings. Morelli wasn't as pressed for cash as I usually was, but I didn't like the idea of him throwing away a week's pay for a few nights of fun.
So help me, I was becoming responsible.
Morelli's smile returned. "Not in early April. I did some research after I found out I'd need to take time off. It's not super warm, and no one uses the ocean, so most places end up with more empty rooms than used ones. Even with a steep discount. I took a look at some of the places with the best rates, and you'd be amazed at what we can get this time of year. Besides, I've been putting some money aside for awhile in case we wanted to do something like this. It's really no problem, money wise."
A smile was starting to form on my lips. Getting away for a long weekend…a long, uninterrupted weekend with Morelli…spending time on the boardwalk…eating that delicious unhealthy boardwalk food like funnel cake and fried oreos and giant ice cream cones dripping with hardened chocolate…
Well, it was starting to sound a little like paradise.
I could deal with Vinnie. I could manage the skips in the meantime, if I had that to look forward to. I was mostly feeling myself now anyway, and if I could convince Vinnie to let me off the hook until next Monday, I was sure I'd be ready to hunt down the FTAs. Especially if I had Point Pleasant to look forward to.
The smile was turning into a grin. I could taste the fried oreos already…
"That sounds incredible," I told him.
His smile was widening as well. "Speaking of incredible, are you ready for tonight?"
I raised an eyebrow. "Maybe if you tone it down to 'really good', Joe. I'm not completely well yet. I want to have sex tonight, but maybe not a sex marathon."
He stroked my cheeks and kissed me briefly on the forehead, then longer on the mouth. "All right, Cupcake. Tonight, I'll go easy on you. The serious stuff…we can save that for our trip."
I laughed as the kisses continued.
The next morning, I woke up feeling well rested and very happy. Morelli had kept his promise, and while the previous evening had been great, we hadn't done anything strenuous enough to cause a relapse in exhaustion or my previous symptoms. I took a mental inventory of myself. The sore throat was long gone. No headache to speak of. No dizziness. No pain in my stomach or anywhere else. I'd slept very soundly, so I wasn't at all tired. I knew I wouldn't be running a marathon anytime soon, but I was feeling at least 95% myself. Maybe I should go back to work and try to take on a low energy case. Not a wife abuser, but maybe a computer genius who'd been so busy working on his programs that he'd just forgotten to show up for court. Or maybe a grandfather who'd accidentally drank too much wine one night and had been arrested for a DUI, and felt so embarrassed about getting caught that he didn't want to face the court. Something small like that.
Besides, if there was nothing that minor available, I could always invoke Lula's help. Even if I couldn't bring in an FTA that day, the fact that I bothered to show up would show Vinnie that I was still serious about my job. Not that he'd say this to my face, but he'd notice, and the message would get through.
Probably.
Morelli was still sleeping when I got up, probably thinking he'd use some of his extra hours by going in late for a few days. Now, he stretched and found me nestled against him. His eyes opened, and he rolled over towards me. A contented grin, associated with sex the previous night, spread over his face.
"Morning, Cupcake."
I wrapped an arm around his. "Morning, Joe."
"How are you feeling?"
The "after last night" wasn't added, but we both knew what he meant.
I smiled. "Good."
He leaned over me and played with one of my curls. "Think you'd be up for round two?"
I pretended to consider. "Hmm."
He kissed me on the lips. "How about now?"
I closed my eyes. "I could be persuaded…"
A half an hour later, we were cuddling against each other, my head in Morelli's chest. I was reconsidering the notion of going back to work, thinking that if I had another half an hour with Morelli, I'd probably be out for the rest of the day. Too soon, though, Morelli stretched and began to sit up.
"I got to get to work," he told me reluctantly. "Are you going to rest today? You'll need it for tonight."
I rolled my eyes and disentangled myself from the covers. "I was going to head into work and see if I can work on some low end FTA. Take it easy."
Morelli looked at me critically. "You sure you're up for that?"
I shrugged and made my way out of our bed. "I feel fine. I won't overdo it."
He gave me a light peck on the forehead. "I trust you, Cupcake, but try to be extra careful. Take it easy for now."
"I will," I promised. I poked him in the chest. "You too."
He laughed, and we walked down the stairs to eat breakfast.
Well, actually, Morelli carried me downstairs. But that had more to do with him feeling romantic than my not being able to walk on my own.
An hour later, I entered the bonds office, feeling ready to take on the day.
