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storyline - "Informant"
prompt - jalopy
"I won't be able to pick you up until six. Wait for me?"
I squinted against the waning sunlight, shifting my weight so I could lean against the porch column.
"I have the nursery truck, Edward. I'll be fine."
"I don't want you driving that jalopy around; it's not safe. Whoever's in town is just waiting for you to be vulnerable," he insisted.
Resisting the urge to argue, I steadied myself with a long breath and exhaled slowly. "Fine. Okay. I'll just… hang out here 'til you come."
"Good." He sounded relieved. "Thanks, baby. If I can finish up any quicker I will."
"Okay. Love you."
"Love you too."
We disconnected and I pocketed my cell phone. Rose wandered out of the house.
"Want a mojito?"
"Um, I guess," I said, laughing a little. "I've never had one."
"It's the best way to unwind," she said, waving for me to follow her inside. Her kitchen was very indicative of her personality: stylish and practical and very modern. She and Jasper both had homes on the nursery's premises; the land had been in their family for generations. I was always fascinated by people who could trace their roots so far back in one location.
Leaning against the counter, I watched as Rose mixed our drinks, using mint leaves from her own herb garden to crush and use as the final garnish. I wasn't a big drinker, but I knew a good drink when I tasted it.
"Oh, wow. This is good," I said, closing my eyes as the strong, cool liquid trickled down my throat. "I should hang out with you after work more often."
"You really should. I don't know why Edward insists on keeping you away from everybody all the time."
I knew why, but I couldn't share it with Rosalie. It had now been a full week since the incident at the house, and while things had been calm at Edward's I knew they were still tenuous.
By the time Edward finally came to get me Rose and I were on our third mojito each. She could hold her liquor a little better than I could – not surprisingly – and giggled when I wobbled sloppily to my feet.
"Hey handsome," I slurred, grasping Edward's tie and pulling him in for a kiss. "God, you're gorgeous."
"Nice, Rosalie," Edward said. He sounded disapproving, but when I leaned back to look at his face, he seemed amused. "Glad to see you're in good hands here, Liz."
"I am," I sighed, kissing his chin.
"Yeah, she is. Stop being such a killjoy," snickered Rose. She handed me my bag and shooed us out the door. "Go. Em's coming over for dinner and I need to get ready."
Edward kept a sturdy grip on me as I stumbled over to his SUV.
Part of me knew how silly it was to get trashed like this, but part of me just didn't care. I was under a lot of stress lately, and Edward had been keeping long hours. Even when he was home he was on the computer or on the phone – often both at the same time – doing research and following leads.
And he'd made progress. Not all of his contacts and sources could be considered kosher but he wasn't leaving any stone unturned. He'd discovered that Officers Jensen and Ryan weren't the only two involved in shady Volturi dealings. There were several others and they spanned across the nation.
Organized crime was no joke and getting to the bottom of this was like peeling back layers of an onion.
"You're quiet," Edward observed.
My head lolled around so I was looking at him. We were nearly home.
"Just thinking about the case."
"Yeah… It's all I think about too."
"I know. And I love you for it. But I miss you," I said, squeezing his thigh. "I miss you."
He smirked. "You're drunk."
"So?" I unbuckled my seatbelt and draped myself across the console, bringing my face right down to his crotch.
"Bella, stop," he laughed.
"Not my name," I sang, batting his hand away so I could access his zipper.
"Liz. Stop," he said, sounding serious this time. He grabbed my hand tightly and pushed me away so that I was back on my side. "Getting pulled over because you're sucking my dick is hardly the way I want my superiors to know we're together."
I gaped at him, shocked. He never spoke like that.
"What? It's true," he said, eyeing my sideways.
"Ugh. Can't believe you just said that." I folded my arms and stared out the window, feeling rejected. What he'd said made sense, obviously, but the harshness with which he'd said it had hurt. It was like tossing ice cold water on my arousal.
Which, come to think of it, may have been his objective.
He let me stew; probably knowing my pissiness was directly related to the amount of alcohol I'd consumed at Rosalie's.
As soon as we pulled up to the drive way I grabbed my bag and got out, slamming the door.
I had my own key, so I let myself in and kicked my shoes off, wondering if there was any beer in the fridge. What was that saying? Beer before liquor, never sicker… but what about liquor before beer?
In all honesty I just wanted to pass out and wake up and be a normal person.
I was halfway to the kitchen when I heard Edward close and lock the front door.
He came up behind me suddenly and maneuvered me to the couch. He didn't do it gently.
"You can be such a brat," he breathed, pulling the drawstring on my shorts before he yanked them down.
I heard the unmistakable sound of his belt buckle and his zipper and then he was bending me over the back the couch.
"Take them off," he said, snapping the waistline of my panties against my skin.
I did as I was told, hasty with want. He could be commanding in the bedroom but we'd never done it anywhere else, and definitely not like this.
I felt his hands and the tip of him against my backside and then he sort of kicked my legs apart, almost like cops do when they're frisking people on TV. I giggled.
"What's so funny?" he asked, sounding like he wanted to laugh too.
"Are you arresting me?" I whispered.
"Maybe I should." He nudged himself between my legs and then he slid inside, slick and quick.
He was so hard.
It wasn't romantic, but it was just what I needed.
And by how hard he took me and how fast he came, he needed it too.
"Go take a shower," he said, pulling out so abruptly it made me gasp. "So I can finish you off properly."
We were in bed.
I was on the edges of sleep, the drunkenness having been screwed out of my system. Edward was beside me on the laptop, clicking and typing in earnest.
I was having those random thoughts, the nonsensical ones you have when you're right between consciousness and slumber, when he cursed under his breath and sat up straight.
My eyes flew open. "What is it?"
"Son of a bitch."
I rolled on to my side and propped myself on to an elbow, squinting at the screen.
"What, Edward?"
"They're taking me off the case."
"Why?" I cried; panic wiping away the last of my grogginess.
"I have a meeting in the morning with my boss... Pogetti." He closed his eyes and wiped his hand over his face. "They're probably going to suspend me."
"No," I whispered, horrified. The things Edward had been so worried about were actually happening now and it all felt very surreal.
If he wasn't the one to protect me, who would be? Would they try to move me to someplace else?
"What are you gonna do? Where will – "
"No, you don't understand. This isn't just about my job. It's about the case. Pogetti's one of the ones I've been investigating."
I stared at him, trying to make sense of what he was saying.
"You found shady things about your boss?"
"Something like that."
"If they suspend you what will happen to me?"
"I don't know." He looked pained. "We'll figure out our next step tomorrow, after I come back home."
"I might have to leave…"
His eyes turned fierce. "If you go, I'm going with you."
