L grabbed her fingers with his other hand and peeled them from his wrist. Holding her left arm up between them, he forced her to look at the bracelet and ring adorning her wrist and finger.
"Tell me about these. Tell me about the man who gave you these. What is his name? Teru? The one you call for at night in your sleep?" he questioned her, his dark eyes taking on a sharp expression that pierced her greenish-gold eyes as if to see into her very soul.
"What?" Adila whispered, swallowing so hard she could hear it.
"You cry out his name in your dreams," he told her in a softer voice, putting his arm around her waist to pull her close when her body began to tremble with emotion.
"I don't know –" She stopped talking when he shook her slightly and pulled her arm up higher to make her focus on the jewelry.
"Don't lie to me. You know I'm not that stupid. Tell me. Those questions you asked me, I answered truthfully. It's your turn to answer mine." He pressed a kiss to her forehead and sat down on the bed next to her.
Adila laid her head on his shoulder, sliding her arm around him after he let it go. She had just wanted to be close to him, seeking comfort in his arms and…other things. She did not want to talk about Teru. It already angered her that she still had feelings for him; feelings that she could not shake or forget because of those damn letters. Why did she read them? Sometimes she wondered about it herself. Apparently, she was a glutton for punishment who enjoyed torturing herself mentally as much as he did. It was possible she was a masochist in disguise and could not admit it to herself.
"He's just an ex-boyfriend I haven't seen in almost four years. It doesn't matter. It's the past," she grumbled, allowing herself to slowly fall back onto her pillow.
"You need to get rid of your past if you ever plan on having a future," he responded in a warning tone. "Or do you want your past to be your future?"
"I don't know," she murmured, barely above a whisper, rolling over to turn her back to him.
Closing her eyes, a single tear escaped and snaked its way around to her temple to be absorbed by the pillow. What did she want? It appeared she had done just what Uncle Anthony had warned her about. She ran so hard from her past that she made a full circle so that now it was right in front of her again. Her body went rigid when she felt L slide underneath the covers behind her. She took very shallow breaths while he made himself comfortable against her with his arm draped loosely over her waist. Her breathing ceased completely when his lips grazed her neck on the way to her ear.
"Just sleep," he breathed, his warm breath blowing across her ear.
Adila moaned without meaning to as goose bumps rose over her entire body. She slid her hand over his, lacing her fingers with his long thin digits. It felt good to be so close to him. His body was warm with a gentle strength that flowed from him to her giving her the comfort she needed. She squeezed his hand slightly when his soft lips pressed a kiss just below her earlobe.
"Do you really want me to go to sleep?" she asked, turning slightly to look at him.
"What do you want?" he inquired, resting his chin on her shoulder to look at her. With a sad smile, he sighed. "Go to sleep. You don't know. I can see it in your eyes."
"Don't leave me, okay?"
"I'll stay here until you are asleep."
Adila wiggled against him until she was cozy in his embrace. She smiled when he snuck in the occasional kiss to her neck.
"Stop that or it will be more than sleeping," she warned after the third stolen kiss just above her collar bone.
"I can't help it. You have the most wonderful skin. It's so soft. And the color of caramel. I want to lick you all over," L whispered in her ear. He proved his point by licking her from her collar bone to her earlobe.
Adila recoiled from the arousal that slid down her spine like liquid fire and exploded deep within her. She clenched her hand, squeezing his fingers between hers. Without intending to, she rubbed her behind across his manhood; he was excited too.
"Do you want to stop this?" he asked, grasping her chin between his thumb and forefinger to turn her head to look at him.
"No," she answered bluntly, flipping over to be face to face with him. By this time, she probably could not have halted the feelings much less any further actions.
"You'll never see me again when this case is over," he reminded her, sweeping his fingers over her cheek and through her hair.
"That's okay," she replied, offering him a small smile. Memories of Shuichi Aizawa flitted through her head. "It's happened to me before."
"What? What do you – "
Adila covered his mouth with hers to block his question. She would not have answered it anyway. Sometimes the detective was way too meddlesome. Despite what he thought, he did not have to know everything. Wiggling out of their clothes was difficult but not impossible as their hands and mouths explored each other's bodies. They probably could have gotten undressed faster if they would have just relinquished their contact with the other's body long enough. Unfortunately, it would have shortened the foreplay so it was a sacrifice they were willing to make. For a lonely, eccentric type he sure knew his way around a woman's body. He did indeed lick her all over by the end of the first part of their encounter. Some places garnered extra attention from his tongue and mouth which inevitably led to a breath stealing orgasm. By the time he got around to entering her body, she almost had another climax just from the gradual movement of him sliding into her. She never would have guessed the scrawny, owl-like man could be so damn arousing and orgasm inducing. Apparently he thought about more than his cases in the many hours he stayed awake. No wonder he was a latent lothario and open pervert with those thoughts running around in his head constantly.
Adila gasped the one letter that constituted his name and buried her fingers in his untamed hair while he carried her to the very edge of an orgasm then backed off. Her eyes opened, meeting his as he lay still on top of her just gazing at her face.
"Why did you stop? I was about to – "
"I know," he interrupted, kissing her fleetingly on the lips. "Take me with you."
His plea was shocking on two levels: one that he was not just selfishly seeking his own pleasure and two that he showed his vulnerability. Until now, L had always been so smug, so arrogant; always right and ever confident to remind everyone, particularly her, of his infallibility.
Adila held him close to her body and rolled over to be on top.
"But wait, I don't like this. I prefer to be the dominant one," he protested, putting his hands around her waist as she sat on top of him.
"For once L, let someone else be in charge. Trust me, you'll like it," she assured him, moving her hips slightly as if to show him.
L kept his large, rounded eyes on hers as if to make sure she was not pulling a trick on him. His fingers slid down to her hips and dug in slightly. She continued the small, gentle movements until he relaxed beneath her and his eyes fluttered closed. Lowering herself until she was lying down on him, she planted a few tender kisses on his neck and cheeks.
"That's it. Giving up control is not a bad thing. You just have to be careful who you give it to," she whispered, picking up the pace a little with her hips. Her mouth pressed to his and he willingly accepted the kiss, opening his mouth to bid her tongue in to meet his. She smiled against his lips thinking about how nicely he had adjusted to being submissive.
Adila winced and giggled when his fingers slid over her behind then clamped down to hold her against him. She moaned from the pleasure that coursed through her body as she was reduced to grinding against him instead of taking full strokes.
"Even when you're not on top, you still want that control, don't you?" she inquired teasingly, sitting back up on him.
"Yes," L groaned, his eyes rolling back in his head as she gripped and released him several times with her inner muscles.
"Sometimes we're fooled into thinking we have power over someone, when they're actually dictating us," she said, rotating her hips to bring them both pleasure.
If she had not been so carried away with teasing L and arousing him, she would have realized she had perfectly described her relationship with Teru. Although she thought she had taken that power back from him by leaving, she was still permitting him to manipulate and influence her through his letters. Way down deep inside, so far down that she either did not know or would not admit it, she still wanted him and wanted to be his.
"Adila," L gasped, grasping her thighs so hard his fingers indented the skin.
Adila quickened the speed of her movements, causing the ecstasy to rise within her because he was getting close. She wanted to grant his request for a simultaneous orgasm. She leaned forward to brace her hand against his lean, smooth chest right over his heart. The difference in their skin color made it appear she was making love to a ghost. Maybe she was. Soon he would be gone from her life, and she would never see him again. She seemed to have that effect on men. Have fabulous, mind blowing sex and POOF!, they disappear. It's magic. She imagined other women wished they had that power as well.
Opening her eyes, she watched the man beneath her as his pale face grimaced with the effort to hold back the impending orgasm. She could feel his heart beating beneath her hand. Her breathing synced up with his along with her steady rise toward the climax they were searching for. She cried out his name when he thrust up at her to bring them closer to the end. Sliding forward, meeting him again in mid-thrust, closer still. Then…there it was. Her body convulsed on top of him as he shuddered under her from the powerful orgasms that rocked their bodies. This mind warping, soul crushing orgasm devastated them completely and turned them into a quivering mass of humanity who clung to each to ride it out until they could form thoughts and words again.
"Would you consider working for me? You could travel with me. Always be by my side," L said, kissing her forehead as she lay beside him in his arms. "You would have to leave everything behind. You could not contact family or friends. You would even have to change your name and identity."
"I can't," she answered regretfully.
She had already altered her life and plans once for a man. This time she would have to cut all ties with family and friends. She would have to leave her identity behind and become someone else. As exciting as it would be to travel the world and solve unsolvable cases, she could not do it. It was too much to ask, even to be with him.
"I understand," he murmured, hugging her close to him. "Go to sleep, Adila."
Without a word, her heavy eyelids closed. She knew when she woke up she would be alone in the bed, and he would be typing away at his computer. How much longer did they have before the case was over?
~.\..'../~
Five days later…
Adila tried not to cry as she watched him pack. The case had ended yesterday. BB actually caught himself when he tried to commit suicide to make it appear as if he were another victim. What an interesting way to cover the crimes he had committed. It was brilliant but not foolproof and it failed. He would be taken to jail once he was out of the hospital. Adila had gotten the approval to interview him from the LAPD once he was incarcerated. She needed to complete gathering the information for her thesis so she could begin writing it.
"Kiss me once and say good-bye, Adila. A long good-bye will only hurt worse," L told her firmly, almost cruelly. But he was right.
Adila stepped forward, sliding her arms around his neck as he bent to kiss her. The kiss was brief, poignant, and painful emotionally. Good-byes usually are never a good thing, and this one definitely was not. The inevitable had come and despite knowing that it would come, they were both ill prepared.
"Good-bye, L," she sniffed, managing a quivering smile. She turned and walked away quickly before she changed her mind about his offer.
~\..'../~
Over one year later, FBI Field Office, Los Angeles, California
Adila proudly hung her doctorate of psychology degree on the wall in her office. Along with earning her doctor title, she was now one of the FBI's prominent profilers and psychological experts. Her paper on BB had been published in a psychology journal that had brought in calls from forensic psychologists and law enforcement agencies the world over. Job offers and consultation requests poured into her mailbox, snail mail and email, daily. It felt good to be sought after by some of the top agencies in the world. The loneliness, broken heartedness, and hard work had paid off. She had reached her goal so now all she had to do was sit back and wallow in her success.
Tears flooded down her cheeks. So why wasn't she happy? For one thing, her best friend was gone. Naomi had quit several months ago to marry Raye. Didn't Naomi know that they were living in the twenty first century and it was okay for a woman to keep working even if she was married? Oh, well, she guessed there was something to be said for traditionalists. They were now in Japan because of a case he was working on. At least she was able to travel with him. It would be a horrible thing if they were on different cases on opposite sides of the world.
Adila sighed loudly and swiped at her tears when she thought of L. She could have been traveling and working with someone as well. It made her angry when Naomi so easily left everyone behind for a man when she had refused to do the same. To each her own. She hated this nagging, gnawing feeling of cold emptiness that gnawed at her brain and her guts and would not seem to go away. What was the missing piece to the puzzle of her life? She had gotten everything else she had wanted and then some. So what was it that she still needed?
Grabbing a tissue from the box on her desk, Adila blew her nose which covered up the sound of the incoming email. Her Uncle walked in with a big envelope and handed it to her. She hated that sympathetic smile he always offered her. Of course, if she were not constantly crying, she would not have to see it. When he lingered in her office, she knew something was wrong.
"What is it?" she asked, fear gripping her heart and making it difficult to breath. "Is it grandma or grandpa?"
"No. Everyone in the family is fine," he assured her, taking her into his arms. "Naomi is dead."
"Wh-what?" she stammered, pushing him away so forcefully he stumbled backwards.
"She killed herself after Raye died of a heart attack. Both of their bodies will be arriving at the airport today. Would you like to go with the Director and myself to retrieve them?" he inquired, pulling her back into his arms as she turned white with shock.
"Just give me a moment to gather myself," she requested, moving unsteadily even with her Uncle's help, toward the desk chair.
"I'll be back in ten minutes to get you," he told her, leaving the room.
Adila laid the envelope on the desk beside her computer keyboard. Clicking on the email to open it, she did not recognize the sender name. Ryūzaki? Who the hell is that? She hoped it there was not a virus attached to the email. The resident computer geek would kill her if she downloaded another one. It was not her fault psychopaths loved to send those to destroy the FBI computer system.
I am relinquishing control to you because I trust you. I need your help. If you are willing, send back yes. I will contact you.
"L," she gasped, pressing her fingers to her lips.
With the touch of a key, the empty reply page opened and the cursor blinked at her ominously. Her fingertip hovered over the Y key but hesitated. Did she really want to do this? There was no telling where in the world he could be or what he was working on. Would the director even permit her to go? She was sure he would allow it considering the identity of the individual requesting her help. Sitting back in her chair, her eyes fell on the envelope. Ripping it open, she stared at the fancy letterhead that read Okibashi Group. It was a law firm in Japan. Why did that sound familiar? Scanning the letter, she realized it was a job offer to be an on staff expert at their firm. They generously offered to pay for all of her moving expenses, the rent for her apartment as long as she worked for them, and a salary that would make it more than worth her while to be in their employ. Her eyes moved over the list of names that made up the staff of lawyers at the firm. One name held her attention and her eyes remained stationary on it. That name was Teru Mikami.