Chapter 6.

Monday Plans

The next morning I was up bright and early, even before my alarm went off; it was supposed to go off at eight. My first thought was today was the day I was going to the shooting range with Jay. The second things I thought about was of the fight I had with my brother the day before, and the person who was following me. I then shook my head and decided it was time to focus of the good. Today was going to be a good day. I told myself last night and that's what was going to happen.

I jumped out of bed and started getting ready for the day. After I grabbed a short-sleeve hoodie and some jeans to wear, I went to the bathroom and washed my face. For my hair, I put it into a ponytail so it would be out of my face, and getting dressed afterwards. I put my gun in its hostler, and put it on my belt. When that was all done, I went to the kitchen and made myself some pancakes and bacon. I wasn't normal a breakfast person but today I was kind of hungry.

Around nine I was starting to freak out a little. Jay was due here any minute and I didn't know how this was going to work out. Yes, I knew we could end up being friends or we could end up not talking ever again. There was part of me that didn't think it was a bad idea to never talk once this was over, but there was also that small part in my heart that wanted to be friends. I guess there was only one way to find out.

I stood around my living room window – which faced the street – waiting for Jay to show up. Around nine thirty a red Ford Mustang with a black top pulled up to the front of the apartment. The vehicle was very impressive; I didn't know much about cars but I knew it was an older model. I'd have to ask Jay a little bit about it later. Right now, he was getting out of his car, and making his way up to the door. Just then my heart started to race.

Deciding to meet him halfway, I grabbed a light jacket and my keys and made sure my wallet was in my back pocket, before making my way out the door. Locking it behind me, I turned around and almost ran into him. I jumped backwards and almost fell down, but the man was always fast and grabbed me by the arms to steady me.

"Whoa," Jay chuckled. "Steady there."

He let me go once he saw I was stable enough to stand on my own. I could feel my heart still race faster than ever. Just him touching me I could feel the heat rise up to my cheeks. I hope he doesn't notice.

"I'm so sorry," I exclaimed. "I swear I'm usually not this clumsy."

"I believe you," he said.

By the look on his face I could tell he didn't, but I let it slide. He smiled at me, and I smiled back, as he held out his hand. I hesitated only for a second, before slowly taking it. I could tell, Jay's hands were rough with calluses, but also warm and gently, as he intertwined our fingers. The electric shock was back, oddly enough I was used to it. The warm feeling that spread through my body was a different story.

It was surprising to me that someone could feel so coarse but be so tender at the same time. I didn't care through. Jay seemed like a sweet guy and I was going to see if what I thought about him was true. If I didn't I would go crazy wondering, but if it ended badly… That was just something I wasn't going to think about right now.

Jay started to lead me toward his car, and I decided to stop over-thinking all this. There was nothing to over-think about it. All it was, was two friends going to the shooting range to shoot some guns. Simple… right? Well it should have been simple but sadly it wasn't. This man worked with my brother and he didn't want me to have anything to do with Jay. My life just couldn't be easy, could it?

When we got to the vehicle, he took me to my side and opened the door for me. No one has done that for me on purpose before, not even my brother. So, I was kind of shocked and I just stood there.

"Is everything alright?" Jay asked.

"Yes," I said. "It's just… no one has ever opened a door for me, let alone a car door."

"Come on. Adam at least had to have opened a door for you, one time or another."

"Not on purpose."

"Well I'm glad I could be the first."

I tried to hide a smile has I got in but I failed. Once I was in the car, I watched Jay walk to his side. When he was in and the door was closed, he turned on the car. He pulled off the curb and headed to his districts shooting range about seventeen minutes away from my place. Which meant we had time to talk a little. I didn't want it to be awkward.

"So, nice car you got here," I told him. "Ford Mustang, right?"

"Thank you," he smiled, "and yes. It's a 1967. My brother helped me rebuild it."

"Was that your brother I saw at Molly's the other day?"

"Yes. His name is William, but of course, we call him Will."

"Is he older or young?"

"Younger by two years."

"Oh, I bet that was fun going up two years apart."

And that's how it went for the short trip to the district. He told me a lot of stories about when he and Will were kids. How his dad walked out on him and how his mom raised the two boys all by herself. I wished my father would have left somewhere along the line, but that would mine my mother would be the one raising me, Kate, and Adam. I don't know which one I would have wanted. An abusive cop father, or a mother who wanted everything to be perfect.

Jay's mom really did sound like a great woman, but sadly she died a few years ago. He really did seem sad even now about her death, and everything got quiet after that conversation. It wasn't an awkward silence thankfully.

~J&M~

Once we made it to the district Jay went to the truck of the car and grabbed a big duffle bag. When I asked him what was in the bag he told me I would find out. I just smiled and rolled my eyes, letting it go. We walked into the build, meeting Sergeant Platt at the front desk. I wonder if that woman ever had a day off. That would explain her personality and attitude. She did great us as we walked back to the range, which was something.

Jay but the duffle bag down on a table at the front of the range. He opened it up and started pulling out a few guns. There was Glock 17 Pistol, Beretta 92FS, Smith & Wesson Model 36, and a M4A1 Rifle. Yes, I knew my guns, after living with my brother and dad. My eyes were wide and my jaw hung open when he looked at me. I couldn't believe Jay had all of these guns. He was smiling, when I was finally able to look away from the guns he had spread out, and it brought out a dimple on his left cheek; I could see it through the scruff he had going on.

"Is this how you impress all the girls?" I asked him, smiling back. "Taking them to the shooting range and show them all your guns before shooting them?"

"Na," he laughed. "To be honest, I've never brought a girl out to shoot before. You're the first"

"I find that hard to believe."

"Well believe what you want to because it's true."

I believed him oddly enough, and I feel the blush creep up my cheek. That tended to happen a lot when I was around Jay I noticed. I didn't feel bad about it either. The man before me looked down at all the guns he had on the table – probably thinking about which on to use – with a cute quizzical expression on his face. He then glanced over at me, and down at my hip.

"Do you want to start with your Beretta?" he questioned.

"I don't see why not," I shrugged.

We both walked up to the booth and I took out my gun. Keeping my finger off the trigger, I got into position – making sure it was the wrong position – and Jay got behind me.

"Okay first of all," he muttered. "Your stance is sloppy… I think you would be better in the Weaver stance. Put your left foot in front Here."

Jay gently grabbed my hips and I sucked in a sharp breath. If he heard it he chose to ignore it as he turned them so I moved my left foot to the front.

"Keep your torso facing your target," he whispered in my ear.

I could feel a shiver go up and down my spine as his breathe hit my neck. My body was running on the warm side, but not in an angry way this time. I didn't know what to think of this.

The hands moving to my arms brought me out of my train of thought. Jay was slowly moving his hand up my arms and to my hands.

"Now keep your arms straight," he told me. "Your hands are in the correct position. Put your finger on the trigger. When you get ready to shoot, you have to remember don't jerk the trigger, slowly pull it. If you jerk it you're going to go off target."

"Okay," I said.

"When you're ready go ahead and pull the trigger."

I felt him step back from me and I let out the breath I was holding. Looking at the target in front of me, I concentrated on the center of the silhouette of a person. I breathe in and out a few more times before finally jerking the trigger a little. The bullet hit the white part of the paper instead of the black silhouette. Of course, I didn't want to Jay thinking I knew what I was doing the first time. He told me he was going to teach me, so I had to make him think he was. I at least had to give him a few minutes.

"That's okay," Jay said, coming back up behind me. "You jerked the trigger a little bit."

He put his hand around over mine and steadied me. A smile was slowly creeping across my face. Hopefully he was paying too much attention to helping me rather than my face.

"Okay," he muttered. "Now pull the trigger."

Doing as I was told, I did a little better making sure I didn't jerk the trigger. Then time the bullet was in the black but ne where in the center.

"That's better," he stated. "Now try it without my help."

Jay stepped back, and I decided it was talk to let the cat out of the bag. I took another deep breath and pulled the trigger. I shoot the target a few more times. When I put the gun down, Jay came up beside me and pressed a button so the target moved towards us. As it came closer I could tell the last three bullets were smack-dab in the middle and they were so close together they were touching.

I was pretty proud of myself and I had a smile on my face as I looked back at Jay. He was smirking and I could tell I was busted.

"So, tell me again," he grinned, "how you don't know how to use a gun."

"I'm so sorry," I told him. "You just asked me if I needed help and I didn't know what to say, so I said yes."

"No don't worry about. I never had a girl act like they didn't know how to shoot a gun just to spend more time with me."

"I didn't say yes just to spend time with you."

"Oh really?"

"Yes."

"Then what did you do it for then?"

"I didn't want to hurt your feelings."

Jay pierced his lips together and I could tell he was trying so hard not to laugh. He failed miserably. His laugh was so contagious I couldn't stop myself from doing the same thing. I don't know how long we sat there and laughed with each other, but we soon stopped. Once I got my breath back, I looked over at the table of guns behind us. When I looked back at him he was staring and me.

"You know," I said, "I'm not lying this time, but I have never shot a M4A1 Rifle."

"Are you serious this time?" he asked.

"I promise you, I have never shot one of those."

"Okay then. Let's get started."

~J&M~

After about two hours of shooting the different kinds of gun – some I knew some I did not – I helped him back them up and we headed out to his car. Once again, he opened up my door, and I didn't hesitate to get in. When we started on the streets he started laughing at me for the lie I told him. We laughed about this for a few minutes, and I had to admit this was pretty fun.

"So, would you like to grab some lunch?" he asked.

"Yea," I nodded. "That would be nice."

"That's good, because I know a good place to go. Will and I like to go there a lot."

"Oh really? And what place is this?"

"You'll just have to wait and see."

This was sounding like a surprise and I didn't like surprises, I let it slide. I knew all he was going to was I'd just have to wait and see. What was the point of asking if there wasn't going to be an answer. We ended up pulling up to a place called Smoque BBQ. I'd never been here before let alone heard of it, but I guess if Jay thought it was good I might as well trust him.

"I hope you like Barba-Q," he stated.

"I like just about anything," I informed him.

"Great."

He came to my side of the car and opened my door. Once I was out he grabbed my hand and lead me to the outside sitting area. The man even pulled out my chair for me. I didn't hesitate to sit down, but I was still a little shocked. When he was sure I comfortable he went, and sat down across from me.

"You know you don't have to stuff like that," I voiced him.

"Stuff like what?" he asked.

"Opening the car door – any door for that matter – and pull out my chair. I'm a big girl. I can do things for myself."

Jay was starting to smile again, and I didn't understand what I said to amuse him. I looked into his eyes and they were shining with playfulness. That should have scared me, but it didn't.

"What's so funny?" I demanded.

"Nothing," Jay said shaking his head. "It's just you're so defensive."

"We had this conversation before and we came to the conclusion–"

"That you were defensive."

"Whatever you say buddy."

"Anyway… It's just my mother always taught Will and I to be gentlemen, no matter how defensive the woman is."

"Oh."

"Yea. So, no matter how much you hate it when I open any kind of doors for you, or pull out your chair, I'm going to do it anyway, before my momma–"

"Raised you right?"

"Exactly

We both laughed but soon stopped when our waitress stopped by our table. It was clear they knew each other. She was smiling and her eyes were shining with excitement. I didn't know what to think about it, but knew it wasn't my place to even be thinking about it. Jay and I were just friends.

"Hey Jay," she greeted, with her eyes staying on him. "How you been? Haven't seen you and Will for a while."

"Hey Clair," Jay smiled. "Just been busy at work. So, has Will. I don't think he has had a day off for a few weeks."

"Well that don't sound like fun."

"No, it does not."

"So, the usual for you?"

"Yes. But I think you need to give us a minute. Grace hasn't been here before I don't think."

The waitress finally glanced in my direction. I was sure I looked pretty shocked from him calling me Grace, but she, herself, looked kind of stunned for some reason. Had Jay ever brought a girl here before? Oddly enough he didn't seem to pay much attention to the waitress. I noticed, out of the corner of my eyes, he was looking me the whole time – only looking at her long enough to be polite.

"Oh…" the Clair mumbled. "Can I at least get you something to drink?"

"Of course," Jay nodded. "I'll have my regular."

"And I guess I'll have a Pepsi," I shrugged

"One Mountain Dew," the waitress confirmed, "and one Pepsi coming right up."

"Thank you," Jay and I said together.

I turned around to watch the waitress leave and when I turned my attention back to Jay, he was staring at me. Feeling the blush creep up my face for the hundredth time today, tried to look away from his gaze, but that didn't work. His eyes held all my attention and it was hard to look away from them.

"So?" I muttered, trying to get a conversation going.

"So?" he repeated.

"Tell me more about yourself."

"What would you like to know?"

"Oh, I don't know. How old are you? Where were you born? Favorite color? Do you have any kids? All that stuff."

Once again, Jay started to laugh. I didn't mean to make him laugh, but it was nice to hear it. He had one of those laughs that started in his chest and was more of a chuckle. It was a nice sound to hear. I would love to hear more of it.

"Okay, well…" he finally muttered, after he stopped laughing. "Your first question I'm twenty-eight. I was born here in Chicago. Favorite color would have to be red or blue. And no I don't have any kinds."

"Ah," I mumbled. "I see."

"But I was married once."

"Oh you were?"

"Yea."

I didn't know what to say after that. Him telling me he had been married before kind of threw me off. I also, didn't know how it made me feel. I was glad he was up front with me about it; it meant a lot. Other guys probably wouldn't have been so honest.

He was also very patient. Like right now; he was quiet and he let me think about what was said. As he gave me this time, Clair came back with our drinks and a menu for me. I waited until she left before I started talking again.

"What's her name?" I finally asked. "Where did you meet her?"

"Her name is Abby," Jay admitted, without hesitation. "I met her while I was Army Rangers. We were in it together."

"You were in the Army?

"Yea. I went in right after high school. Did a few tours, and got out four years after joining. Soon after getting out of that went to the police academy."

"I'm sorry your marriage didn't work out."

"It's fine. I think we did it because we were young and thought that's what we were supposed to do."

"Do you know where she is?"

"No."

"Ah."

"Yes. Now look at the menu. I don't think Clair will be happy if she comes back and you haven't finished anything. I do recommend the Barba-Q Chicken. It's Will's favorite."

I opened my menu and looked over my options. After a few minutes of glancing over the cardboard in front of me I finally decided to take Jay's advice and try the Barba-Q Chicken. When Clair came back she took our order and we sat and talked about anything and everything.

"So, did it surprise you that I was in the army?" he asked, right before our food got here.

"To be honest?" I smirked. "No, it did not."

"Why wasn't it?"

"It's obvious. Your haircut, the way you carry yourself, oh we can't forget all the guns you own, and many more things."

"Your very observant. Why is that?"

"Well with the home life I had growing up you had to be. Plus, my brother and father are cops so they taught me to be aware of my surrounding."

"What kind of home did you have?"

"Oh, come on, you don't want to hear my sob story."

"That's where you're wrong."

Looking him up and down I realized he was serious. He really did want to know and he looked legitimately concerned or interested. I surprised myself by wanting to actually tell him.

"Alright fine," I told him. "Well you know how hard the Police job is."

"Yea," he agreed.

"Of course, you do. You also know how anger some things make you?"

"Yes."

"Okay. I'm sure you go to a gym to get that anger out, that's obvious. Well my dad didn't do that. He took that out on my siblings and me. If you didn't notice the signs that he was getting angry, you either ended up getting yelled at for no reason or hit so hard you saw stars."

"I see."

I could tell by the expression on his face he was trying not to show how mad he was. His jaw was pulsing under his skin and I knew I had to finish the story now or I don't know what would happen.

"I was the one who got most of it," I admitted to him, "because I couldn't get out of the way fast enough. When my brother got older and thought he could take our old man he took most of the beatings."

"Sorry to hear that," Jay mumbled. "That explains a lot."

"I'm sure it does… Uhhh… Let's change the subject."

"I couldn't agree more."

"Thank you."

Just then Clair came back with our food. Jay made sure to change the subject to something light and funny. He made me laugh but I made him laugh more because of my defensiveness. If me being defensive made him chuckle I was more than willing to do it.

~J&M~

We stayed at the restaurant for about two and half hours. It was fun I had to admit. All the talking and laughing was refreshing. I don't think I felt this good in a very long time, which was great. I wish life was like this all the time.

The two of us left the Smoque BBQ hand in hand and he opened my door once we got to the car. I didn't say anything as I got in. The drive to my place was filled with more light conversation and I really didn't want this time with Jay to end. When we pulled up to my apartment he put the car in park and turned in his seat to look me.

"I had a fun time," Jay stated.

"I did too," I agreed. "I really appreciate it."

"And the next you want to hang out just say so. Don't lie about not knowing how to do something."

"Oh, shut up."

We both laughed for a few minutes before becoming silence again.

"Well I better go," I said. "I have to get to sleep so I can start my twenty-four-hour shift tomorrow."

"Ouch," he grimaced. "I don't envy you."

"No one does."

"Well I hope we can hang out more. I really did have a good time."

"I did too."

"Have a good night Grace."

"Okay. I have one more thing to talk about."

"And… what's that?"

By now he was trying so hard to keep his smile from getting bigger. I crossed my arms over my chest and glared at him.

"Why the hell are you calling me Grace?" I snapped.

"You really want to know," he smirked.

"Yes. I really want to know."

"Okay. The reason I'm calling you Grace because everyone calls you Mo, and Adam calls you Roe. I didn't want to call you by a nickname everyone else calls you. What better name to call you by than Grace?"

"Because that's not my name."

"It's your middle name."

"Whatever. I'm gonna go now. No need to get out and get my door. I'm more than capable of doing that myself."

I turned around, opened door and got out the car.

"See you later Grace," Jay chuckled.

At the sound of my "new nickname" I slammed the door and started to stomp my way to the apartment. When I got to the door I turned around just in time to see Jay drive away in his stupid Ford Mustang.

Walking into the house, I locked the door behind me, and I walked to my room. It was only three in the afternoon but I wanted to be comfortable, so I put some PJ's on considering I was home. I was just putting a shirt over head when a knock at the door. A smile came to my lips. It was either my brother or Jay, but Adam had a key so he'd just come in. That only left one person.

I made my way to the door and not even bothering to look through the peep-hole, unlocking it. Pulling the door open, I made sure the smile was still on my face.

"Did you forget something?" I asked.

When I saw who it was, my blood ran cold and my stomach dropped. The person at the door was the last person I ever thought I would see again. I hadn't seen him almost a year and a half. From the time, I spent with him I didn't want to see him every again; and yet here he was standing at my door, and he didn't look happy.

"Well, hello there Monroe," the man said.

He smiled and I knew I wasn't going to like whatever happens next.