Just Us Chapter 35

The difficult, dangerous and complicated wasn't just going to go away.

Mick gets his hug ...

Coming up next...Mick and Beth start their investigation...

Cheers penni :)

The drive over to Beth's place had turned into an impromptu tele-conference with The Cleaner. It was obvious that she was still pissed with him about the way he handled things with Emma Monaghan. Claudia and her crew would deal with the cover up on this one. The Cleaner didn't like sloppy clean ups and this one was pretty ugly.

Mick had seen it too many times before. The suspect would 'die' in a car accident, a house fire or would simply commit suicide, too ashamed to face the consequences of his actions. A far as the vamp community was concerned, he would be punished for his neglect in leaving evidence out in the open for others to find, not for the deed itself. The only consequence this vampire would face was a forced relocation. It made Mick sick. Vampire justice? How could he expect Beth to understand when he still struggled with it himself? For some reason, he couldn't summon up the will to object with this plan. Let them deal with the crap for a change. His involvement would be to guide the police investigation in the direction that they wanted it to go. Carl was a good cop. Beth would have to be in on the whole thing if she was going to help him pull this off. It wouldn't be easy. It was asking a lot from her, lying to her friends wasn't an easy thing for her to do, but she would do it.

Claudia's no nonsense voice pulled him out of his thoughts. "Josef, we will all meet up in your office tomorrow night. By then we should have a couple of options for St John to work with."

The BMW pulled up outside Beth's apartment building. Josef turned off the engine and looked over at Mick who made no move to get out. Mick sat silently his head slightly bowed in contemplative silence. It was so selfish to come here because he felt like shit and expect Beth to understand and make him feel better, give him comfort.

"Are we just going to sit here all night? I have things to do."

Mick looked out the window into the street. It was late, really late. He should go home and catch some freezer time. It would be a long day tomorrow working human hours. Maybe he would just check on Beth to make sure she was okay before he headed back to the loft. Yeah right. As soon as he saw his love he knew that he wouldn't be able to make himself leave her.

"What if she doesn't want to see me, doesn't let me in?"

"Do I have to hold your hand every step of the way? It's getting tiresome." Josef sounded as tired as Mick felt.

"Yeah well, I told you more than once I have no idea what I'm doing." Mick confessed.

"What are you going to do about the police investigation?" Josef was tired but there were still matters that needed to be attended to before he could see the inside of his freezer.

"I don't know, we'll know more after tomorrow."

"Okay, there is one other thing Mick. There are a couple of vamps caught up in this Martinez financial freak show."

"Please, leave me out of it." Mick was fed up with Talbot parading Beth around at his press conferences like he was the DA up for re election and she was his little woman. Beth would be so happy that she was being reassigned to Carl, for the time being at least.

"Just a heads up, I'll take care of it. Do you think that Logan would be up for a little creative government department system hacking?" Josef snickered, already knowing the answer to his own question. Logan would never turn down the chance to earn some quick bucks. Playing poker with the big boys was expensive.

"I think he'd pee his pants just thinking about it. I know you don't like him much but he's really good. Give him a call."

Mick was only half listening when Josef made a snarky comment about Logan being irritating and having the hots for Beth. He looked up at her window, feeling the pull of their connection. He got out of the car but leant down when Josef called out to him as he started the engine.

"Yeah." Mick rubbed his thumb down the side of his nose anxious to go inside.

"I know how you are feeling Mick. All the shit that's happening around you doesn't seem to matter as much when you are with her. Not every one gets what you've got, be grateful that you fell in love with such an amazing woman and that she loves you, despite everything. That's the big pay off."

Mick nodded unable to come up with a suitable response.

"You really should try and get Beth to stay at your place more often. All this missed freezer time makes you look like you're going to have a stroke." Josef revved the engine of his new toy before driving off.

Mick ran his hands through his hair knowing he must look he had gone ten rounds with a gang of vamps. "I'm working on it Josef." He ran across the road and up the familiar stairs to Beth's apartment.

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Mick closed his eyes and just listened to her breathing. The measured breaths and gentle beating of her very living heart gave him comfort. He was slouched lazily in the chair that was in her bedroom, his bare feet crossed at the ankles, his heels digging into the edge of the mattress. His suit jacket was neatly draped over the back of a chair, his shoes and socks sat neatly nearby. His shirt was unbuttoned and his trousers hung low on his hips with this belt and zipper undone like he had planned to get undressed but changed his mind. He had no plans to go anywhere, not as long as she let him stay. He just wanted to watch over her for a while.

He had been sitting there, just sitting there, watching her sleep for the better part of an hour. He had taken a look around her room before settling into the chair to keep watch. On her nightstand sat a glass with only a small amount of water left in it and a bottle of strong pain medication. She only took them when she had a bad headache or for cramps that she sometimes suffered with during her 'special' time of the month. There was also a bottle of iron tablets that he had insisted they buy on their last outing to the market. Beth refused to take them after a couple of days saying they made her feel nauseous. It looked like another home cooked steak dinner was in order.

Her much loved, dog-eared copy of Pride and Prejudice lay open on his side of the bed. She would always read it when she couldn't sleep. He smiled when he picked the book up seeing that she used a photo of him as her bookmark. It was a copy of the one she had taken of him when they were at the beach. He had been happy to be human again but that smile may have had more to do with the fact that she was there with him and that she had told him how much she cared for him. His Beth. He had had so much hope for them that day.

Mick looked over at her when she made a little snuffling noise. It made him grin because she always stubbornly refused to admit that she snored. Her leg came out from inside the covers, her chemise riding high up on her thigh. She was waking up.

"What are you doing over there? Come to bed." Her voice was soft and sleepy. She moved her foot to rub against his. Just that simple touch was enough to start a ripple in him that he felt from the tip of his toes to the top of his head.

"I didn't want to wake you." He had to clench his teeth to keep from moaning as her foot slowly made it's way up his leg.

Beth opened her eyes then, looking at him in the dim light of her bedroom. He looked exhausted, his hair ruffled and his face drawn. She sat up straining to see him more closely.

"Mick?" She didn't need to say anything else for him to know what she was asking.

'I'm fine." Mick held out his hand to her wanting her to come to him. "Come here."

"You don't look fine." Beth scrambled over the bedclothes to sit sideways across his lap, her legs dangling over the side of the chair. The chemise she wore barely covered her satin panty clad bottom. She snuggled into his bare chest as he wrapped his arms around her and breathed deep, taking in her scent. It was like a tonic to his battered soul.

"Did something happen?" She turned to look at him running her hand gently over his chest, shoulders and back, making sure that there were no bullet holes or stab wounds.

Mick had already decided that the cold hard facts could wait till the morning. Beth would find out all the gory details soon enough.

"I got called to a cleanup, it was pretty bad Beth. The body was slashed to hide the bite marks. The cops turned up before the Cleaners could do anything. They don't know what they are looking at and it has to stay that way. "

"A vampire? What are you going to do?" Beth asked her hand over her mouth.

"I don't know yet. It's being taken care of. I need to get some rest." Mick picked up her hand and kissed her fingers. "You didn't call me tonight."

"You told me that you would be with Josef. I don't need him giving me grief about calling you all the time." Beth got up and pulled his hand till he got up from the chair. She finished undressing him down to his low rise trunks and led him over to the bed.

"So you don't call me at all?" Mick pulled her to him, his hands holding her face so that she had to look at him.

"Isn't it bad enough that he can hear our conversations. He's already listened in on us having sex does he have to listen to our arguments as well?"

Beth blushed deeply pulling out of Mick's arms and heading for the bathroom. When she came back she gave him a pair of his silk pj bottoms that he kept there and watched as he put them on, shedding his trunks as he went. When he was done she got into bed and pulled Mick down with her.

"We weren't fighting, were we?" Mick knew they weren't but he asked anyway.

"No. I was being snippy and unreasonable. I've turned into such a cry baby lately."

Mick gathered her in his arms. "You've never been a cry baby Beth."

"I don't know, maybe I need some kind of therapy."

"Listen, I saw Barrett tonight..."

"Mick! What did you do?"

Mick picked her up and sat her on the bed in front of him, his hands resting on her legs. "I'm not trying to tell you who you can or can't see." He started to explain.

Beth cut him off trying to apologise for her earlier outburst. " I know that. I over reacted. I was frustrated and I shouldn't have taken it out on you."

"Listen, sweetheart, people know about you, about us now. I have enemies Beth, people who wouldn't bat an eye at hurting you to get back at me, or Josef for that matter. Do you understand what I'm trying to say?"

"Yes, that I am not only risking my safety but yours too. That there are good reasons why you don't trust easily, and that I'd better get used to it because it's not going to change anytime soon." She smiled at him then and was rewarded with his lopsided smile. "Mick, please don't be mad. I don't talk to him about you or Josef. I think he's taken pity on me, you know a human amongst the vamps. I think he is trying to help me."

Help her do what was the question. "Just as long as you don't start talking to him and stop talking to me."

Beth chuckled. "Yeah, because you tell me everything."

"Okay, okay you little brat." Mick leaned over her pushing her back on the bed. Beth squealed as they rolled around and kissed playfully for a while until Mick had her where he wanted her, pinned under him, her arms held above her head against the pillows. They looked deep into each other' eyes. Mick kissed her then and let go of her arms to hold her against him as she ran her hands slowly, gently up and down his back. Mick slid hid hand under her chemise to touch her, his hand cupping the curve of her ass.

"Mick." Beth grabbed his hand to stop him from slipping his fingers into her panties. Beth wasn't squeamish about making love during her period but the conditions had to be right. It seemed they weren't right tonight. "I want to ….I know you can tell ….but it's just not a good time….I mean….."

"Shhh I'm not going to do anything. I just want to hold you close to me."

Beth tried hard to stifle a yawn but it came out sounding like a cross between a sigh and a hiccup. She snuggled into him, her hand resting on his chest.

"Go to sleep sweetheart." Mick cooed softly to her in the darkness.

"Okay, I love you." She whispered sleepily, leaning up to kiss his chest over his heart before snuggling back down into his side.

"I know you do, I love you too." He whispered into her ear.

His Beth, his whole life was lying right here in his arms. He couldn't help but entertain the idea of asking her to marry him.

It was just as Josef had said, all the bad stuff that happened around them didn't seem to matter as much when he was here, with her, like this, knowing she was safe and that she loved him.

Grateful? Yeah, he was grateful, grateful to whatever force in the universe had made this possible and he would be for the rest of his existence.

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