Chapter 7

The alarm blared beside Laura at six o'clock on Monday morning. She quickly rolled over and slid the button to the off position. Beside her, Remington grunted, shifted his leg once and sighed as he settled back to sleep. Laura smiled and thought back over the last few days. Just as predicted, the unusually heavy rain came down hard for several days, leaving minor flash floods in its wake. Laura spent most of the days sleeping on and off. By Sunday morning, she finally felt more like herself, the pain in her sinuses practically gone. Her appetite returned with a vengeance and even Remington made a laughing comment as she got her second serving of ice cream after dinner the previous night.

Laura stretched, arched her back slightly and sighed happily. She rolled onto her side to watch her husband as he slept in the dimly lit room. She watched, fascinated, as his dark eyelashes twitched and the muscle in his jaw flexed even in his sleep. With one finger, she traced the shadow of his beard. He batted her hand away, drawing a soft giggle from her lips. She continued to trace the dark swirls of hair on his chest until he finally opened one eye. "Good morning, Mr. Steele," she announced softly.

"It's early, Laura. We don't need to be in the office for several more hours," he groaned before closing his eyes again.

Laura continued moving her fingers along his chest, working her way down his abdomen, partially hidden under the sheet. "I know," she whispered in a sultry tone.

Remington's eyes snapped open when her fingertips found the waistband of his pajama pants. "Have something on your mind this morning?" he teased.

"Maybe," Laura responded. "It's been too long, don't you think?" She pushed forward and brushed her lips against his. He quickly wrapped his arms around her back and pulled her onto his chest. Laura squealed in response.

"I agree," Remington stated. He pressed his hand against her head to hold her lips to his. "I most certainly agree," he muttered again.

Laura challenged his kisses with a few of her own and it wasn't long before she found herself divested of her cotton nightgown and Remington was hovering above her. The only sound that filled the room for a while were the gasps and cries of the lovers. When Remington finally collapsed beside her, his chest heaving as much as hers, did he comment, "Too long was just right."

Laura giggled long and loud before she glanced over at the clock. She sobered up quickly when she saw it was nearly seven-thirty. Knowing her husband's penchant for dilly-dallying in the morning, she scrambled off the bed to get into the shower. She hoped he would follow, which, in turn, would speed up the morning process of getting ready. He didn't disappoint her as minutes after she stepped into the streaming water, he stepped into the shower with her.

"Decided to join me, Mr. Steele?" Laura teased.

Remington hugged Laura from behind, allowing the water to cascade over both of them. "Well, I was hoping you'd consider another round, Mrs. Steele," he teased.

"Work, Mr. Steele. I've missed too much the last week, I can't afford to miss anymore. After all, what would my boss think?" she retaliated with a semi-serious face.

Remington kissed the sensitive spot of her neck just before the delicate curve of her shoulder began. "I think he may just forgive you this once," he whispered.

Laura shimmied her shoulders and laughed, "Maybe, but he still owes me a new desk chair after our failed honeymoon."

Remington rested his stubble covered chin on her shoulder and groaned, "Really, Laura? You want to bring that up now?"

Laura laughed again, handed him his shampoo and instructed, "Shower. Shave. Get dressed." She reached for her own shampoo and began lathering her hair as he stepped back to give her room.

"You know, Laura, I'm thinking maybe we should start looking for something a bit bigger than the apartment. Something with a larger master bath, perhaps," Remington replied.

Laura rinsed her hair and traded places in the small shower with him. "All in good time, Mr. Steele," she answered. Several minutes later, she patted his shoulder and said, "I'll get some tea started." She stepped out of the shower, wrapped a towel around her thin frame and disappeared into the bedroom, leaving Remington alone.

"Wake me up early," he grumbled before he snapped the shower tap to the off position. He wrapped the towel around his waist and moved to the vanity to shave. He continued to mutter his discontent as he ran the razor across his skin. He could hear Laura humming happily in the bedroom. With a sigh, he wiped the remaining shaving cream from his face and neck and inspected his skin for any missed areas. Not finding any, he padded into the bedroom where Laura had just finished buttoning her suit jacket. Hoping he could distract her once again, Remington swept her into his arms and kissed her wholeheartedly.

Laura returned his kiss with several of her own before she patted his chest and stated, "Nice try. We leave in ten minutes." Remington groaned again, exhaled and began pulling his briefs on. He was just tucking his shirt into his dress pants when Laura poked her head in the doorway, "Ready?" Remington nodded and followed her into the living room. "I thought we could swing by the River Basin this morning after we check in with Mildred," Laura stated.

"Maybe we should call Mr. Clark and have him meet us there as well. You know, make him feel like he's contributing and all," Remington added.

"Good plan. Have him bring the letter, so we can go over it again," Laura agreed. She handed Remington a travel cup full of tea. "The Auburn or the Rabbit today?" she asked once they were in the hallway, waiting for the elevator.

"Well, the rain has finally stopped so let's take the Auburn," Remington decided. They rode to the office, making record time despite the normal Monday morning commuter traffic. Entering the office, Remington called out to Mildred, "Morning, Ms. Krebs! Already hard at work, I see."

Mildred, completely focused on the computer, answered back, "Almost done, Chief. Just confirming the last known whereabouts of Jerry Thomas, the latest skip trace. And gotcha! He's not going to get away again!" She tapped a few keys on the keyboard before she turned to face Laura and Remington, patiently waiting to greet her. "Hiya, Mrs. Steele. Looks like you're feeling better than you were a week ago."

"I am, Mildred. Much better, thank you! What do you have on our schedule for this morning?" Laura smiled.

"Bupkis," Mildred stated with a straight face. She glanced over at Remington, standing behind Laura with a smirk on his face. "Why do you look like the cat that ate the canary this morning, Boss?"

"No reason, Mildred. I'm just happy Mrs. Steele is feeling better, so we can get back to work. Oh, can you give Russell Clark a call? Tell him we'd like to meet him by the…" Remington began but paused to confirm the location with Laura.

"The 6th Street Bridge. There's a tunnel nearby we can use to bypass into the basin itself," Laura stated matter-of-factly.

Remington tipped his head to the side and repeated, "There's a tunnel?" Laura nodded to confirm, "Near the bridge?" he continued. Again, Laura nodded. Remington responded with a definitive nod of his own head and stated, "As Mrs. Steele said… We'll meet Mr. Clark by the 6th Street Bridge at say ten o'clock."

"Ten o'clock it is. I left your mail for you on your desk, Mrs. Steele. And the morning paper on your desk, Boss," Mildred replied with a pointed finger at each closed door.

"Thank you, Mildred. Any other messages?" Laura questioned lightly.

Mildred handed her two slips of pink paper. "Just these. One from Frances just asking you to call her and the other from Bernice. She said she'll be back in LA by the end of the month and she wants to get together for lunch."

"Ah, yes, Bernice…" Laura's voice trailed off as she raised an eyebrow in Remington's direction. "Mildred, Mr. Steele and I have been thinking… How would you like, not only a raise but a new position at the agency?"

"A new position with a raise? Are you pulling my leg?" Mildred demanded lightly.

Remington sat on the edge of Mildred's desk and smiled, "Not at all. You've been working hard at your apprenticeship and well, it's about time your work has paid off. If you decide to take the position, you can even have Murphy's old office. A little more private to get things done than out here with all the hustle and bustle happening."

Mildred blinked several times then fired off several questions, "But who'll answer the phones? Greet the clients? Get the mail? Order the supplies?"

"Well, Mildred, that's why Bernice called. She's moving back to Los Angeles and Mr. Steele and I have talked about possibly hiring her to take over as office secretary… only if you agree, that is," Laura explained.

Mildred looked from Remington's smiling face to Laura's hopeful one and tears formed in her eyes. "You'd do that? For me?"

Laura circled the desk and put her arms around Mildred in a hug. "We wouldn't want it any other way. So, what do you say? Murphy's office and a raise?"

"When can I move in?" Mildred exclaimed happily.

Remington clapped his hands together and declared, "As soon as Laura and I get back from meeting with Mr. Clark, we'll sit down and hammer out the specifics."

"Thank you, thank you, both!" Mildred cried, happy tears snaking down her cheeks.