Chapter Fourteen
The morning after the night before...
Charlie opened her eyes, squinting as they were met by a burst of bright sunlight infiltrating through the wooden blinds and into the room. The realisation that she was in unfamiliar surroundings hit her almost as heavily as the dull ache that was currently pounding across her temple. It felt like someone was playing football inside her head. Groaning, Charlie ran a hand through her hair. It was tangled and matted; the result of a night obviously spent tossing and turning.
It was then that Charlie was hit by another sudden revelation. Not only was she lying in an unfamiliar bed; not only did she probably look as though she'd been dragged through a hedge backwards; but she was also half naked! Clad only in her bra and panties, Charlie's brain began to work furiously; and as she began to put the pieces of the puzzle together, she suddenly felt like she was about to hyperventilate!
Christ, Charlie... you wake up with the hangover from hell... in some stranger's bed... half naked... probably looking like Frankenstein's bride... what the hell did you get up to last night, woman?
Her cop instincts suddenly kicking in, Charlie tried to ignore the perpetual pounding in her head as she surveyed her surroundings. Aside from the large wooden bed, matching bedside cabinets and a chest of draws, the room was tidy but minimal. What was most noticeable, however, was the various drawings and paintings that adorned the walls. Charlie's attention was drawn to the largest; a black and white framed sketch, which depicted two women lying in bed, entwined in a post-coital embrace.
Oh my god, Charlie... join the dots... you wake up in a strange bedroom... very nearly naked... with a hangover... if you didn't know better, any minute now you're probably bound to run into some half naked chick who you must have pulled in a drunken stupor last night.
Glancing at her wristwatch, Charlie was shocked to discover it was almost eleven o'clock. Work being her first thought, she was somewhat relieved to remember that she'd taken a leave of absence for a couple of days. Noticing her clothes from the night before lying neatly folded at the bottom of the bed, Charlie threw off the duvet and gingerly attempted to climb out of bed. Her feet were heavy and her movement sluggish.
Seriously, Charlie, how much alcohol did you actually consume last night?
After throwing on her jeans and t-shirt, which, surprisingly, had been recently washed and pressed, Charlie decided it was time to investigate the rest of her surroundings. And hopefully make a quick retreat from the scene before embarrassing herself - and her newly acquired "friend" - any further, despite the fact she was in desperate need of pain killers and a strong cup of black coffee. It had been a long time since Charlie last found herself waking up in an unfamiliar bedroom. She usually wasn't the kind of girl to pick up random women for a quick roll in the hay.
With as much caution as she'd muster when preparing to enter a crime scene, Charlie slowly and carefully began to turn the knob on the bedroom door. Cringing slightly when the door started to squeak in protest, exiting the bedroom, Charlie was immediately met by the all too familiar smell of fried bacon and coffee. In full cop mode, Charlie began to make her way down a small corridor which appeared to lead directly to the kitchen, judging from the delicious aroma that was currently penetrating her nostrils.
Reaching the kitchen, Charlie stopped suddenly in her tracks. In front of her, a young woman was busily occupied preparing breakfast. Slender and toned, her long brown hair flowed down her back. Clad only in a long oversized black t-shirt that showcased a perfect pair of firm, tanned legs, Charlie couldn't help but cast her a long and appreciative glance. And that's when it hit Charlie like a sledgehammer. Major deja vu.
Oh my god... oh my god... Joey... you got drunk and tried it on with Joey... way to go, Charlie... I wonder if we... you know... surely not... I mean... after last time... no way... if we had... well I know I'd bloody well remember that.
Flashback from the night before...
"I want you, Joey. Right here. Right now. I want you."
"Charlie..."
"Don't you want me, Joey?"
Charlie smiled seductively. She didn't require a verbal answer. Joey's body language and the lust and desire that flooded the dark brown pools of her eyes told Charlie everything she needed to know. Like a predator about to devour its prized bounty, Charlie slowly and gently closed the gap between them, before circling her arms around Joey's waist. She took her time to tease the younger brunette, cupping her pert, firm bottom with both hands before swooping in hungrily to claim Joey's lips and mouth as her own. Their tongues met in a clash of passion, as both women ground their bodies closer together. Charlie heard Joey moan, which encouraged the older woman to increase the pressure and deepen their kiss.
"See anything you like, officer?"
Turning around, Joey smiled at Charlie sweetly, breaking the policewoman from her extremely pleasurable flashback.
"That depends... is that bacon I can smell?" Charlie said, teasing Joey with a sexy smile.
Joey chuckled, before turning her attention back to the food she was cooking on the stove. "Why don't you take a seat and I'll sort you out some food. Can I get you some coffee?"
"Yes please. Do you have any pain killers, too? My head feels as though it came into contact with something resembling a sledgehammer."
Charlie took a seat at the kitchen table, just as Joey placed a steaming plate full of bacon, eggs, baked beans, fried bread and hash browns in front of her.
"Had a bit too much to drink last night, did we?" Joey said with a smile, as she proceeded to pour some black coffee into two mugs that were residing on the kitchen table.
"You tell me. It's all a bit of a blur I'm afraid."
"I see," Joey said, as she handed Charlie a box of panadol and a bottle of water.
"Thanks."
"So, you don't remember anything about last night then, I take it?" Joey asked, as she took a seat at the table next to Charlie.
"Er... no, not really. Why?" Charlie looked both frightened and puzzled, as she took a couple of pain killers, washing them down with some water.
"Oh... so you don't remember us having wild hot steamy sex on this very table? Or the neighbours from the flat next door banging on the door at two o'clock in the morning, complaining about the noises we were making because we were - and I quote - 'humping like deranged rabbits'?"
"Er..."
"Or what about you asking me to marry you; surely you remember that?"
Charlie looked like a startled kangaroo caught in a car's headlights seconds before impact.
"So... you better eat up and regain your strength honey, because you promised we'd go ring shopping today. A girl isn't engaged until she's got a bit of bling on a certain finger!"
Charlie looked as though she was struggling to breathe. She hadn't heard anything much past the words "marry you".
"Oh, sweetheart, there's no need to look so terrified. We decided on a long term engagement. So we've got plenty of time to organise the perfect wedding. I was thinking I'd maybe ask Becca to be my maid of honour... what do you think?"
"Er... er... look, Joey, I like you but... but..." As she was struggling to find air, much less words, Charlie noticed a huge grin suddenly break out across Joey's pretty face. When the younger woman started to giggle, it was then that Charlie realised she'd been had.
"Joey Collins... you... you devil!" Charlie said, lightly punching Joey on the shoulder.
"Sorry, but I couldn't resist. The look on your face was priceless."
"So... so I take it we didn't do anything..." Charlie asked tentatively, as she took a bite of the fried bread.
"Inappropriate? No, not really."
"Not really?"
"Well, let's just say you didn't make it particularly easy for me to resist your advances. But as tempting as it was, particularly when you stuck your tongue down my throat, I brought you straight home and put you to bed... alone. I slept on the couch."
"Oh, right."
"And in case you were wondering about your clothes... you sort of... well you kind of had a bit of an accident."
"Huh?"
"You threw up, Charlie.
"Oh my god, I didn't? Did I?" Charlie said, mortified.
"I'm afraid so. You must have consumed rather a lot of alcohol."
"God, I am so sorry, Jo. Sounds like I made a bit of a fool of myself. Thank you for not... for not taking advantage of me in my inebriated state."
"I'm not that kind of girl, Charlie. I prefer my women to be sober if I'm going to have my wicked way with them," Joey said, casting Charlie a flirty smile. "But if you don't mind me asking, what on earth prompted you to get so off your face last night? I mean, you don't seem the type."
"The type?"
"The drown-your-sorrows-in-copious-amounts-of-alcohol type."
"Oh. I'm not. Usually. I just had a bad day. A really really bad day."
"Want to talk about it?" Joey said sympathetically, as she drowned a mouthful of coffee.
"I... I..."
"It's okay, Charlie," Joey said, gently placing her hand on the older woman's shoulder. "I just didn't like to see you like that. If you want to talk about it, I'm all ears. If not, then that's cool. But the offer's always there."
"Kristen died yesterday. She was... she was murdered." Charlie said, surprising both herself and Joey with her sudden revelation.
"Kristen? As in your ex Kristen?"
"Yes."
"Oh my god, Charlie. I am so sorry. That must have been terrible for you."
"I had to identify the body and break it to her parents. I mean, there was no love loss between Kristen and I... but I thought... I thought I owed it to her, you know, given our history, to be the one to tell her family. Rather than let some nameless faceless stranger... shatter their world."
A single tear suddenly crept from Charlie's eye. She instinctively went to wipe it away, hoping Joey wouldn't notice. But she was too late.
"Oh, Charlie." Joey said, as she covered Charlie's hand with her own, desperate to comfort the police officer.
"It's okay, Joey. It was just a bit of a shock, seeing her... seeing her like that. Despite our differences, she didn't deserve to go like that. No one does."
"Of course they don't. You obviously still cared about her, at least on some level. And I can totally understand how losing her would still be traumatic for you."
"I guess. I mean, it's always harder when it's someone you know." Charlie said sadly.
"Tell me about her."
"Kristen?"
"Yes, what was she like?"
"Well, you met her... unhinged and unstable springs to mind." As soon as the words had escaped her lips, Charlie felt immensely guilty.
"Humour me, Charlie. She must have had some good qualities, surely."
Charlie smiled at Joey, aware of what the younger woman was attempting to do. "When I first met her she was fun; you know, always the life and soul of any party. And she had a great exuberance and passion for life. I always admired that about her."
"How long were you together?"
"Too long," Charlie sighed. "As it turns out, Kristen and I had one of those unhealthy co-dependent relationships. She was a bit too controlling but it took me a long time to see that. I guess when you love someone you can't always see what's staring you in the face. Don't get me wrong; I'm sure I brought a fair few of my own issues into the relationship. But although I did love her, with hindsight I don't think I was ever truly in love with her. I've certainly never argued with anyone as much as I argued with Kristen. Our screaming matches were legendary. The make up sex afterwards was great but I guess deep down we were just never right for one another. We just couldn't see it. I lost count of the number of times we broke up and got back together again."
"But you eventually found the courage to walk away." It was a statement rather than a question.
"Yeah. But it took me a long time. I think... I guess I finally realised that if one of us didn't leave we would just continue to be stuck in the vicious circle of what had become an unhappy and destructive relationship. Truth be told, we just didn't seem capable of making each other happy. Not truly happy. However hard we tried. I guess deep down I always knew she wasn't right for me."
"So why did you stay together for so long, if you knew she wasn't good for you?"
"I guess because I wanted it to work. I really did. I invested a lot emotionally into my relationship with Kristen. And besides, I've always believed that relationships take a lot of work. What about you?"
"Me?"
"Yeah. Any unhinged psychotic ex-girlfriends hiding in the closet?"
"No, I'm unhinged psychotic ex-girlfriend free."
"That's good to hear," Charlie said with a smile. "But anyway Joey, I really should be apologising to you for my inappropriate behaviour last night. I don't make a habit of getting insanely drunk and throwing myself at women."
"I could definitely have done without the insanely drunk part," Joey said, returning the smile. "And the vomiting part; definitely could have given that a miss. But the you throwing yourself at me part... well, I wasn't adverse to that."
"You weren't?"
"No. In fact, if you'd have been sober, I'd probably have brought you home and shown you just how so not adverse I would have been to that scenario."
"And how would you have done that, exactly?"
"Well, stick around officer, and after you've eaten your breakfast... you might just find out." Joey said, huskily as she starred into Charlie's piercing blue eyes.
Neither woman could fail to notice the oh-so-obvious signs of attraction that were dancing around the room. Entranced by mutual lust and desire, they shared a glance that spoke volumes of their want and need for each other. Charlie knew she was only moments away from tearing Joey's t-shirt off and ravishing her there and then on the kitchen table. And by the wanton look in the younger brunette's eyes, there was no doubt that Joey was exactly on the same page.
"Joey? Hey, are you in Jo?"
Joey rolled her eyes and groaned as Becca barged her way through the apartment and into the kitchen. Clutching onto various designer shopping bags, her friend and flatmate was clearly hyper after a productive morning of retail therapy.
Dropping her bags onto the floor, a sly smile spread across the blonde girl's face as she spied Charlie sitting next to Joey at the kitchen table.
"Oh. Hello. I think we've already met... I'm Becca, Joey's friend."
"Hi. Yes, I'm..."
"... Charlie. Yes, how could I forget.
Joey glared at Becca, who seemed totally oblivious to her death stares as she proceeded to pour herself a cup of coffee whilst waffling on about some arrogant jerk who tried to muscle in on her parking space.
Joey looked at Charlie and smiled, silently mouthing her an apology. But inside she was secretly seething.
Damn it, Becca. Could your timing be any worse?
TBC