Chapter 3

The next morning, Chelsea felt happy and refreshed as she strolled into the precinct. Her mind was filled with thoughts of Raven and she couldn't wait to see her again. It had been a long time since she dated anyone, the demand of being a police officer not allowing much time for a personal life.

Arriving at her desk, she unloaded her things and set about checking her messages. Eddie arrived a few minutes later.

"Morning," he said quietly as he glanced at his partner.

"Good morning," Chelsea said indifferently as she continued to study the computer screen. It wasn't as if they had never gotten into a disagreement before, but sometimes Eddie could be a difficult person to get along with. Their coworkers often jokingly commended her on being able to work with him.

Eddie sighed and ran a hand over his face. "Listen, I'm sorry about yesterday. I don't know what got into me," he said.

Chelsea gave him her full attention as she looked away from her computer.

"We cool?" he asked, an innocent look on his face as he waited for his partner to forgive him.

"Yeah, we're cool," Chelsea acquiesced, deciding to let him off the hook. She smiled as Eddie held out his arm across the desk for a fist bump and she returned the gesture.

"I finally had that talk with Chantel," he said as he relaxed back into his chair.

"And how did she take it?"

"Not, too, well at first, but she cooled off after a while," Eddie explained. "I think I can finally stop stressing about how much this wedding is going to cost."

Chelsea was glad to hear it if it meant the end of her partner's cantankerous attitude.

"And I promise…" Eddie began as he rummaged through his desk drawers. He finally pulled out the worn gossip magazine from a few days ago and tossed it onto her desk. "No more raggin' on your girl." His phone rang just then and he answered it. "Thomas."

The magazine was creased open to the page that displayed the photo of Raven and the woman holding hands. Chelsea took a closer look at the article this time to see that the woman in the picture was the famous model Jordan Hilltopper. She felt the blood drain from her face as she considered what that photo could mean and her analytical brain went into overdrive. She had forgotten all about it. What if the designer was still seeing this other woman? Was Raven serious about what they had started last night or was she just using Chelsea for some quick fun? If she had given in and stayed with Raven last night, there was a good chance they would have ended up sleeping together. Was that all Raven wanted from her?

Chelsea closed the magazine and set it aside. As a detective, she knew better than to jump to conclusions. She would just have to ask Raven about it the next time she saw her.

"Let's roll, Chelsea," Eddie said as he hung up the phone and stood from his desk. "We've got two new witnesses that need interviewing from last night's case."

"Right behind you," she said, but her mind was still preoccupied with thoughts of the designer.


As it turned out, nearly two weeks passed before Chelsea and Raven saw each other again. The designer had been called away on business to L.A.

"A cop?" came the incredulous question from a high pitched voice.

Raven rolled her eyes as she took a sip of her ice water. She was having lunch with her publicist, Muffy Stevens. "You say that like it's a bad thing."

"It is a bad thing!" Muffy said as she stared at Raven. "You're one of the hottest designers in the country right now. No one wants to open up a magazine and read about you dating a cop. How boring."

Raven held her tongue as she stared at the petite blond. Personally, she didn't much care for the woman, but professionally speaking, Muffy was very good at what she did. "First of all, she isn't just a cop, she's a detective…"

"Bor-ing," Muffy said in a sing song voice as she stared at her menu.

"And second of all," Raven continued forcefully, "I don't choose who I date according to what the public wants to see."

"Raven, people want to see you with someone more your caliber. It's what keeps you relevant," the publicist tried to explain. "When you and Jordan were dating…"

Raven quickly held up a hand to cut her off. "Don't even go there," she warned. "As you well know, my relationship with Jordan was a disaster and I'll be damned if I go that route again just to stay relevant,"she mocked using air quotes.

"All I'm saying," Muffy began gently, "is that you can do much better." She chose to leave it there, knowing from years of experience how far she could push the designer before communication shut down completely.

Raven ignored her. "And whoever published that old picture of us is going to have hell to pay," she said.


For two weeks, Chelsea had been left to wonder if she had made a mistake by befriending the fashion designer. They spoke on the phone a few times and texted while she was in L.A., but it wasn't a conversation Chelsea wanted to have over the phone and now Raven was on her way over.

There was a soft knock on the door and Chelsea answered it, her heart beating faster at the sight of Raven. After closing the door behind her, she was met with a kiss and she allowed herself to become lost in the feel of warm, soft lips pressed against her own. No matter what her fears were, she couldn't deny how she felt.

"I couldn't stop thinking about you while I was gone," Raven smiled.

"I know what you mean," Chelsea whispered with one last kiss. "Have a seat. I'll get us something to drink."

Raven did as she was told and looked around the apartment. It wasn't huge, but it was spacious and inviting with built in bookshelves and other features that made for a cozy environment.

"Cute place," Raven commented as Chelsea joined her on the couch.

"Thanks," the detective said as she sat two bottles of water on the coffee table. She didn't want to drag it out, but she wasn't sure how to ask Raven without offending her. "So, how was your trip?" she asked instead.

Raven relaxed back into the couch and sighed. "Long. Filled with meetings. But," she said excitedly, sitting up once again, "my new line is almost finished!"

"That's great," Chelsea said, genuinely happy for her.

"Yeah, but I'm glad to be back home. L.A. seems to get crazier and crazier every time I go and the paparazzi are out of control," the designer said, shaking her head. "I'm sure I'll be appearing in about fifty magazines with some lie or exaggeration to go along with it."

Raven's obvious disdain for tabloids didn't make Chelsea's next question any easier. "Speaking of…I actually wanted to talk to you about something."

"What is it?" Raven asked unsuspectingly as she reached for one of the water bottles.

"Listen, Raven, I really, really, like you and I…are you seeing anyone else?" Chelsea asked rather bluntly.

Raven paused, her brow furrowed. "Why would you think that?"

Chelsea pulled out the magazine, which had been buried under some scattered newspapers. "I saw this and I thought maybe I should ask."

Raven looked at the magazine with an unreadable expression on her face.

"I don't want to offend you, but…"

"But you thought I was just like every other celebrity you see on television who's dating someone new every fifteen minutes."

"No," Chelsea protested. "That's not what I..."

"You know what? Maybe this was all a bad idea." Raven stood from the couch and grabbed her purse.

"Raven…" Chelsea called as the designer began making her way to the door.

"And for your information, detective, that photo was taken nearly a year ago and I haven't seen her since. Just because I happen to be famous doesn't mean that I'm not a real person."

Chelsea watched helplessly as Raven left, the door slamming behind her. She dropped lifelessly to the couch and let out a loud sigh. "Way to go, Daniels," she said to the empty room.


"Wrong fabric, wrong color… I asked for the dark blue denim and the white cotton. We don't have time for mistakes like this," Raven said as she motioned for the interns to leave. She had been called back to L.A. nearly a week ago and it was nonstop work. Decisions needed to be made and designs needed to be finalized. The young designer sighed as the last intern shut the door to her office and leaned back in her chair. It was the first quiet moment she'd had all day…maybe all week. Releasing a new line was always a stressful time.

Raven knew her bad mood was the result of the last time she saw the detective. She knew they were moving pretty fast, but it had been a long time since she felt a connection like that with anyone.

Many second thoughts went through her head about how she had reacted that night. What else was Chelsea supposed to think after seeing a photo like that? But when the detective asked her if she was seeing anyone else, it brought up all sorts of old feelings and emotions concerning Jordan.

"Maybe it was too good to be true," the designer said softly to herself, hating to admit that maybe Muffy was right. Taking a deep breath, she pushed any thoughts of the detective away and got back to work.


"Quick, Chelsea! He's going out the back!" Eddie yelled as he ran down the front steps of the rundown home.

Chelsea, who had been keeping a lookout from the sidewalk, quickly went into action as she ran along the side of the house and through the dilapidated gate. She saw the suspect hop a fence and quickly gave chase. She could hear Eddie talking into his radio behind her, but she didn't look back as she watched the suspect darting between homes. The man suddenly rounded a corner and she quickly lost sight of him.

Pulling her weapon, she eased around the corner slowly and silently cursed when the suspect was nowhere in sight. Taking a calming breath, she eased along what looked to be an abandoned factory of some sort until she came to a partially opened doorway. Stepping inside cautiously, she couldn't see much, but continued forward, aided by a few rays of sunlight peeking in through a broken window.

The detective listened carefully, making sure to step lightly, but she was suddenly startled by the crackle of her radio and Eddie's voice asking where she was. A split second later, she heard a grunt and felt the weight of something slam against her back. She fell to her knees, but managed to keep a hold of her weapon. Turning around as quickly as she could, she saw the suspect hurry from the building and she followed suit.

As she stepped back out into the sunlight, she could see the suspect, but pain was exploding through her shoulder. Luckily, Eddie rounded the corner just then and she pointed in the direction the suspect had gone.

"That way!" she yelled as her partner approached. Police sirens could be heard nearby and she caught up with Eddie as quickly as she could.


Finally back home, all Raven wanted was a shower and to feel the soft sheets of her bed against her skin.

Grabbing the mail, she unlocked her door, deactivated the security alarm and tossed the stack of envelopes onto the coffee table before making her way toward the stairs.

Her phone rang just then and she groaned at the intrusion, but smiled when she saw who it was.

"Hi, Dad," she answered.

"Hi, sweetheart. You sound tired," said the voice of Victor Baxter on the other end of the line.

"I am tired. Being a fashion designer is no easy feat."

"Yeah, but look at how great you are at it," Victor said, never missing a moment to praise his daughter's successes.

Raven smiled, feeling better already. "My show is in a few weeks. You and mom are going to be there right?" she asked. No matter how successful she became, she always wanted and appreciated the support of her family.

"We sure will," he reassured. "I think your brother might even try and make it this time."

Raven's brother Cory had turned out to be a great businessman and he had his hand in several projects that proved to be quite lucrative.

"So," Victor continued, "have you had any interesting visions lately?"

Ever since she was a child, Raven had psychic visions. At any given time, scenes would play out in her mind and more often than not, the visions came true. It was a gift that was inherited from her mother's side of the family, so there was some comfort in knowing that she wasn't alone. The strange ability had made for many awkward moments throughout her life though and only her family knew about it. Ever since she was a kid, she had a strong fear of being labeled a freak and so her secret remained just that. Sometimes, she marveled at how she had gotten so far in life without anyone noticing.

"Nothing terribly mind boggling," she said. "Although, I did have a vision of some guy I don't know. He was sort of just staring at me."

"Well, I'm not so sure I like the sound of that," Victor said concerned. "You make sure to be careful."

"I will, Dad. I promise," Raven said. She decided to omit the fact that there had been an attempted break in, knowing that her father would be there in a heartbeat if he knew.

After a few more minutes, they said their goodbyes and Raven finally made her way upstairs. Just as her foot hit the first step, she froze in place. Her eyes stared straight ahead, unwavering, as she saw a vision play out in her mind.

The vision ended and she took a deep breath. "Oh no," she whispered before grabbing her purse and quickly leaving the house.


He watched as the car raced away from the curb before standing from behind the bushes. Just as he had been about to look through the window, the front door opened and she quickly ran out to her car.

With one last glance around the quiet neighborhood, he walked up to the front door and checked the knob, a smile coming to his face as he realized that she had forgotten to lock it in her hurry.

Note: I realize that the character's name is actually Jordache Hilltopper in the show, but I chose to change it to Jordan for this story.