Chapter 12

Jason Wheeler hung his coat up on the coat stand in the hallway. Whatever was cooking smelled amazing.

'Honey I'm home.' He called cheerfully.

'In here!' A voice said from the kitchen.

Wheeler walked through the warm house towards the kitchen. He past the living room and heard the TV playing Spongebob Squarepants.

When he got into the kitchen, it was a mess. His wife was sat at the table with his 5-year-old daughter Ellie, and their 2-year-old son Toby in the highchair, his face covered in food.

His wife sat between them, spoon-feeding Toby but he would sometimes push the spoon away or snatch the food off the spoon and rub it over his face.

Amelia, his wife had a plate in front of her. It had some vegetables and lasagne on it, the smell and the sight of the food made Wheeler's stomach growl.

'Daddy!' Ellie exclaimed.

Wheeler smiled, 'Ellie!' He exclaimed, throwing his hands into the air, 'Toby!'

And the boy squealed excitedly.

'Hello sweetie.' Amelia said, 'I'll get your dinner.' And she stood up from the table. Wheeler glanced at her belly, in four months they would have another one around the table with them.

'I'll get it.' Wheeler said, and he grabbed the oven gloves and opened the oven, 'It smells amazing.'

'Thanks, babe.' Amelia replied with a smile. 'How was work?'

'Yeah dad, how was work?' Ellie asked. She was going through a stage of copying everything her mother said, so Amelia had to be careful. Not that she used a lot of bad language anyway, but she didn't want Ellie to say the wrong things at school.

Wheeler smiled, 'I'll tell you later.'

Amelia's smile faltered a little bit, 'Ok.' And she nodded.

'Why?' Ellie asked.

'Because it is very very boring grown-up stuff.' Wheeler replied. Ellie rolled her eyes and returned to her spaghetti, suddenly laughing wildly at Toby who had spaghetti hanging out of his mouth, over his face and his hands.

'I think someone needs a bath.' Amelia laughed.

After dinner, Wheeler cleared everything away and tidied up a bit whilst Amelia was upstairs giving the kids their bath.

Wheeler could hear the water splashing, Ellie laughing and Toby squealing. He realised how lucky he was to have a family of his own. And a wife who loved him.

After Ellie was born, he was worried that Amelia would struggle going back to work, but she enjoyed being home with their baby. And after they worked out their finances, they figured out that Amelia didn't really need to work, Wheeler was earning enough to support the three of them. But then Toby came along, and then two years later Amelia is pregnant again.

Amelia Wheeler is a very talented craftswoman, and so when Ellie was at school and Toby was down for him nap, she would make little things and sell them online. Her biggest hits were stuffed toys made out of Ellie's old baby clothes and old bedsheets, handmade rattles and 'baby's 1st' photo albums.

Once the kitchen was cleaned, Wheeler went into the living room. Spongebob Squarepants was still playing so Wheeler grabbed the remote. He held it in his hand, not changing the channel. He simply stared at the TV.

A few minutes later, Amelia came down water splashed over her shirt but she explained that she was going to put her pyjamas on soon anyway. 'How was work?' She asked, a little bit concerned.

'We found a link.' Wheeler began, 'Between the murder cases and the murder of Milo Pablo.'

Amelia's eyes widened, 'Milo Pablo?' She asked.

Wheeler nodded.

'Oh my gosh, I was only a few years old when happened.' Amelia gasped, realising how much time had gone by since Milo Pablo's death.

'So was I.' Wheeler added.

'How are the new detectives?' Amelia asked.

'Great.' Wheeler replied.

'Really? You don't sound too excited.' Amelia said.

'They have brought this case forward quicker than anyone has in the last 34 years. Not even Fischer could figure it out.'

'That's a good thing though.' Amelia said.

'I know, but it's making me think, is someone hiding something?'

Daphne and Fred stopped by the convenience store on their way home and purchased a bottle of whisky; a big one.

Fred and Daphne weren't really in the mood to eat anything, but they knew they couldn't drink and not eat, so Fred boiled some water and decided to make spaghetti again.

Daphne went into the bedroom and changed into her pyjamas. She checked her phone and found a message from her sister, 'Hi sis, hope it's all going ok! We miss you!' Attached to the message was a photo of Daphne's sister Thalia and her niece Emily. They were both smiling widely, Emily was sat on her mother's lap and Daphne could see a trail of drool down Emily's chin and stains on her clothes.

She smiled at the photo and quickly replied with, 'Miss you too.'

She wasn't sentimental like her sister, sometimes Daphne would reply to her messages to keep her sister happy, but other times she wouldn't reply. If Daphne was not a detective, she probably wouldn't have a phone, she hardly used it and the only people she contacted outside of work was her mother, sister and Fred.

She returned to the kitchen and sat at the table whilst Fred was making dinner. But seconds after sitting down she got back up again and went to the cupboard, took out two glasses and then she opened the whisky and poured some in each glass for herself and Fred.

'Thanks.' Fred smiled, and they sat at the table together whilst Fred waited for the water to be boiling enough before he could put the spaghetti in.

When the whisky touched their lips, they realised just how much they desired the drink, it was like a relief after a long day.

Daphne sighed.

'You can't be wrong about it Daph, we've been over it since we left the park.' Fred spoke.

'I know. I know it's the only thing that makes sense, but I don't want to believe it.' Daphne replied.

'Neither do I. But before we can tell anyone, we need to make sure we have everything we need to prove it. We don't even know where Luca Pablo is.'

Daphne ran her hand through her hair, 'I know.'

Fred reached across the table for her hand, 'Your instincts were right this time.' He smiled.

Daphne smiled, she knew she was right this time. It was Fred who had suggested what could have happened and then Daphne tried to create a scenario in her head.

It came together.

'Let's not think about this now, let's just forget about work for tonight. Ok?'

Daphne smiled, 'Ok.' And she realised Fred was still holding her hand. Was it Déjà vu, or did this happen last night too?

But Fred didn't let go this time, 'It'll be fine.' He smiled.

They sat like that for a few minutes, until Fred heard the bubbling of the water and got up to put the spaghetti in the pan.

It was the same as last nights, but Daphne didn't complain, she loved it.

This time they ate in the kitchen before they went into the living room to watch the TV; taking the bottle of whisky with them.

They flipped through the channels, but nothing was interesting on so they watched the Simpson's again.

They sat so close to each other that one would think they were stuck together.

Daphne cradled her whisky glass in her hand on her lap. Fred had his glass in one hand resting on his knee and his free hand on his other leg.

Daphne felt something brushing her right hand, so her eyes rolled away from the TV and she saw the backs of Fred's fingers brushing lightly against her hand.

She felt a gently tingle run through her body. But when she looked up and saw that was staring right at her, she felt the goosebumps spread through her body, and she realised how close they were.

She stared into ocean his blue eyes for what felt like the longest time. Her eyes looked down at his lips before quickly looking back to his eyes.

She wasn't sure if it was the alcohol taking responsibility, or if maybe she wanted to and the alcohol gave her a boost, but she and Fred were inches apart and then he pressed his lips to hers.

They were soft and she could taste the alcohol on his breath, but it wasn't strong.

She felt his hand at the back of her head, sliding underneath her hair as if he was trying to pull her closer.

Suddenly she realised what was happened and quickly pulled away, blushing heavily. She didn't know how Fred had managed to put his whisky glass on the table during their kiss without her noticing.

'I'm sorry.' He said quickly.

'Don't be.' Daphne quickly flashed a smile before she finished the rest of her whisky, then she decided to go to bed.

She took her glass into the kitchen, lucky that she didn't drop it because her hands were shaking, then she went to the bathroom to brush her teeth.

She tried to stop herself from smiling into the bathroom mirror as she brushed her teeth. She had realised that she and Fred probably shouldn't have kissed. They both had been drinking so how were they to know if it was what they wanted or if it was the alcohol doing all the work.

And also because she and Fred were so close, she didn't want anything to ruin their friendship.

She spat out her toothpaste and stared at herself one last time in the mirror before she turned the light off and went to the bedroom.

Fred came out of the bedroom as Daphne walked from the bathroom. He had his pyjama's in his hands and smiled as he pasted Daphne, who returned the smile and went quickly into the bedroom.

Daphne quickly checked her phone and saw another message from her sister, 'How is it going with you and Fred?' An eye-wink emoji followed the question and Daphne rolled her eyes replying with, 'We're working.'

Her phone was on silent and she put it on the bedside cabinet.

A few minutes later Fred came into the bedroom. Daphne climbed into her own bed and Fred into his.

Daphne turned the light off, 'Night.'

'Night, Daphne.'

She wasn't sure if Fred had gone to sleep.

But Daphne closed her eyes only to open them again seconds later and staring up into the darkness.

She asked herself why she and Fred had kissed. Why she didn't stop him when he came closer to her? Maybe because she didn't want him to stop?

But this was not the first time Fred and Daphne had kissed. During their last year of college, she and Fred had gotten quite drunk at her apartment and ended up kissing and one thing followed another and they ended up in bed together.

The next morning was awkward and they told each other that it wouldn't happen again, however, the week that followed was just as awkward. Daphne and Fred tried to focus on their college work, but each time they got too close they realised that what they had done wasn't going to go away. And Daphne decided that they needed to try to forget what had happened and focus on their college work.

Neither of them wanted the friendship to be ruined by one drunk night, and eventually, the night was forgotten and never mentioned again.

As she laid in the bed, Fred lying in the other bed on the other side of the room, she thought about what work would be like tomorrow. What tomorrow morning would be like too.

She didn't want things between them to be so awkward like the last time.

But she had been realising over the last few days that she had feelings for Fred, even if she didn't fully understand them, she knew that he gave her goosebumps, he made her smile and he made her heart beat faster when he was close to her.

She was lucky to have him as her partner, he was one of the smartest detectives at the NYPD. He was switched on and could easily pick up if someone was lying and hiding something. He was also fast and strong.

But Daphne knew was lucky to have him as her best friend. He was always there when she needed him, he was loyal and he knew her better than anyone else did. They were both there for each other, and Daphne knew everything about him. She knew he liked his coffee strong, just a tiny splash of milk and two sugars. He didn't like tea. Neither did she.

She knew he had always wanted to be a detective when he was a kid, thanks to the many hours of police movies he used to watch when he was a kid.

She loved him, and she knew that he loved her too.

Her head rolled to his side of the room and she watched him. With the moonlight shining through the curtains, she could see he was lying on his back but couldn't tell if his eyes were open or not.

She wanted to lie in bed with him and cuddle him like the night before. And she felt herself sliding out of the bed, but she stopped herself.

What if it was awkward? It probably wouldn't be, but what if it was?

She was so frustrated with herself, she wanted to scream.

But instead, she climbed out of her bed and crept to Fred's. He was awake and he looked up at her. She felt her cheeks warming. Before she could say anything, Fred pulled the bedsheets back and Daphne climbed in next to him.

He covered her with the bedsheets and wrapped his arms around her.

'Are you ok?' He asked.

'Yeah, I'm ok.' She replied.

Their faces were just inches apart and Daphne brought her hand up to his cheek, her thumb brushed against his skin and she felt his skin tingle.

This time who leant in and she caught his lips with hers.

Fred was a little bit surprised, but he began kissing her back.

Neither of them expected it to last as long as it did, it was probably less than a minute but it was longer than the one they had shared downstairs.

They pulled away suddenly. Neither of them saying anything, just staring at each other before they went back in and kissed again.

It was a little more heated than the last one.

Daphne felt her stomach twisting and she moaned a little when his tongue slid into her mouth and collided with her own.

She felt his hand in her hair and it caused her to moan again, and Fred gave a breathy chuckle.

Fred rolled onto his back and pulled Daphne on top of him, the kiss wasn't broken by their movements.

Fred's hands dropped to her waist and hers were now in his hair. This time Fred was moaning, as Daphne was lightly tugging on his hair.

Then she pulled away from the kiss. She stared down at Fred, looking deep into his eyes and she knew what she wanted. She went back in for another kiss.

She gasped when Fred rolled them over and was now on top of her, though she laughed as he did.

Fred pulled his lips away from hers and began tracing kisses down to her neck, while his hands slid under her pyjama t-shirt and roamed around her torso, slowly going higher and higher.

Daphne's eyes widened when his hand came in contact with her breast, and Fred stopped for a moment, and he stopped kissing.

'It's ok.' Daphne replied, 'Go on.'

Fred brought continued kissing the spot on her neck and his hands continued to roam her body before Daphne began to pull off her pyjama top, leaving her breasts exposed before him.

He pulled his lips away from her neck and stared at her exposed chest, but Daphne laughed, 'For God's sake Freddie you've seen them before.'

Fred quickly laughed before bringing his lips back to hers again.

Daphne groaned when she felt his hand cupping one of her breasts. He pulled his lips away from hers once more and seconds later Daphne felt him kissing her other breast before taking the nipple in his mouth.

Feeling his tongue over her nipple, followed by the light nipping from his teeth, Daphne's head sank further into the pillow as she moaned. He was gently squeezing her other breast as he worked on the other, before moving his mouth over to the other one.

He pulled his t-shirt off. Daphne was surprised to see that Fred was nicely toned, and more than he had been the last time they were like this. Sometimes he wore shirts that complimented his muscular body, now she knew that he had a well-kept body.

Fred trailed kisses from her breasts down to her stomach, and back up again. He threw the bedsheets off them after Daphne's failed attempts to kick them off.

Daphne pushed down her pyjama bottoms before Fred pulled them off, and he trailed kisses down her body again, hooking his fingers around her panties and pulling them off and kissing her inner thighs.

Daphne gasped when she felt his lips between her legs, lightly kissing her there for a few seconds before his kisses became more fervent and he earned himself a moan when his tongue slid inside her.

'Freddie!' She gasped, her hands in his hair, tugging lightly and she felt him groaning against her, he mumbled something but she couldn't tell if it was a groan or he had attempted to say something whilst his tongue worked.

Much to Daphne's dismay, Fred pulled his lips away from her. And she watched as he pulled his pyjama bottoms off, kicking them to the floor where her pyjamas were.

And then he pulled his boxers down, Daphne's eyes widened when she saw it. But Fred chuckled and Daphne gave a small laugh. Fred picked up a little nervousness in her laugh, but Daphne reassured him it was ok.

He brought his lips down to hers again, sliding a hand into her hair as he slowly slid inside her.

Daphne gasped when she felt him, and Fred pulled his lips away from hers, 'You ok?' He asked.

Daphne nodded, 'Yes…keep going.'

He continued sliding until he was fully inside her, earning moans from her as he kissed her neck.