Chapter 10

Steak Night

It was after five when Anna arrived at Bobby Vann's steak house. She and Adam weren't big meat eaters, so they had never before been to the upscale establishment. "This must have been Raylan's idea," she thought to herself. The hostess led her to a linen-covered four-top cozied in a darkened corner of the grand room. She slid her tall, slender form into the empty seat between Adam and Raylan. At this time of evening, there weren't many people there.

Adam turned his head for a kiss. "Glad you could make it."

"Me, too," she said. "Sorry it took so long. Traffic was tied up. Another demonstration." She looked across the table and smiled at Winona and Raylan. "Did you get to see everything you wanted to?"

"We didn't make it to the Air and Space Museum," Raylan answered. "But we sure saw a lot of memorials and monuments."

"You're sounding much better," Anna commented to Raylan, referring to his wheezing. She noted his voice was a little lower this day.

"Yeah," he nodded. "That inhaler seems to have done the trick. Thanks."

"No problem." Changing the subject back to their afternoon, Anna commented, "It seems like they're putting up a new monument every month." Without missing a beat, she asked, "Winona could you please pass the bread?"

Winona picked up the basket containing a variety of breads, and Anna grabbed a pretzel roll, twisting it apart and smearing one end with butter.

"Sorry," Anna mumbled, swallowing. "I'm starving."

The waiter appeared with a tumbler of bourbon for Raylan, a dish of apple sauce for Willa, and a bottle of red wine. After he poured, Adam slid one glass of wine to Anna. "This is that Malbec we had last week."

"Umm," she said, taking a sip. "I'm glad you remembered."

"I also remembered the mushroom appetizer you like. We got some mussels, too," Adam said. He passed another glass of wine to Winona and raised his. "To fam . . .," he began then, catching the glance between Raylan and Anna, changed his toast, ". . . possibilities." He gave Winona a wink, as their glasses clinked.

Willa, who had been a little angel all day, began to fuss a little.

"Here you go, Punkin'," Winona said, distracting her baby with the promise of pureed fruit.

"Winnie. Do you think I could I feed her?" Adam volunteered.

"Really?" Winona smiled.

Adam was seated next to Winona with Willa's carrier stand in between them. The two had decided to let Raylan and Anna sit together for some more bonding time, whether they wanted it or not. It could be the last time they would see one another for a while.

"Sure," Adam confirmed, taking the dish of applesauce and a baby spoon from Winona, as she put a bib around the baby. "This is as close to being around a baby as I'm ever going to get now that my youngest niece is in kindergarten."

"Here we go again," Anna leaned over towards Raylan, speaking out of the side of her mouth.

Adam overheard her. "I'm clear you don't want to have children," he said to Anna, gently spooning the applesauce into the hungry baby's mouth. "But that doesn't mean I don't miss the opportunity to be around little ones."

Anna raised an uncomfortable, disapproving eyebrow at Adam.

Raylan picked up on the cue. "I'm afraid we all gotta little bit of a head start," he said to Anna, tapping his tumbler of booze with a spoon. Pointing his head in the direction of Adam and Winona, he continued to clue her in. "This is my third and these two are a bottle ahead of ya'."

Changing the subject, Winona said, "Adam was telling us earlier that you're a realtor. I was married to a realtor. Hard work, long hours," she continued running at the mouth. "Especially on weekends."

Again, Anna raised that eyebrow, only this time, she was annoyed that Adam had been talking to them about her business. "Yeah. It's a living," she said, trying to be as brief as possible.

"I thought maybe I could do that part time, when Willa is a little older," Winona continued to chit chat. "Sell real estate. I used to help my ex with the paperwork."

"Your dead ex," Raylan said under his breath. "This is news to me," Raylan shifted his weight in his chair, also uncomfortable that she was discussing their personal business in front of this couple they barely knew. "You're not goin' back to court reportin'?"

"Well, I don't want to go back to full time until Willa is much older, and there's no money in court reporting part-time," Winona explained. "There's no money in marshaling, either." She let out a little laugh.

About that time, Raylan's phone buzzed in his pocket. He pulled it out to find a text message from Karen Goodall.

"Where are you?"

"D.C.," he texted her back.

"Meet me at the U.S. Courthouse Building at 3rd and Constitution (DC) in the conference room at 9 a.m. sharp."

"I'll be there," he replied.

Returning his attention back to the table, Raylan figured that last crack Winona made about his job had something to do with his command meeting with the Assistant Director. Winona was worried about him losing his job. So was he.

The waiter interrupted them by placing the mushrooms in the center of their table and asked if they were ready to order. None of them had looked at the menu and asked for a few more minutes.

Glancing down the page, Anna asked Raylan, "So, how much longer do you think you'll be in our fair city?" She was tiring of these meetings of 'Twenty Questions.'

"We'll head out for Miami, as soon as my meetin' is over in the mornin'," he answered.

"You'll need to get back to your hotel and pack," Anna gave him an out for an early evening. "I've got an early morning meeting, myself."

Winona tilted her head towards Adam as he fed Willa another bite. "All work and no play?" She tried to keep her voice down.

"Don't you know it," Adam chuckled. "Don't tell me. Raylan's all work and no play, too."

"Don't you know it," Winona parroted back.

"Hey. I heard that," Raylan said, flashing a look Winona's way and adding, "Winnie."

"I hope you're having fun with this," Anna chimed in, speaking to Adam. "Because it's no fun being on this end."

Once again, the waiter's timing was impeccable. He stepped in and asked if they were all ready to order. After a series of nodding heads, Winona began.

"I'll have the Surf and Turf," she said. "Steak cooked medium-well with the arugula pear salad."

The waiter asked Anna, "And you, Miss?"

"Hmmmm. I think I'll have the broiled copperhead salmon with a side of the grilled vegetables and rice pilaf." As an afterthought, she said, "And could we get another one of these appetizers?"

It was almost gone. The waiter then turned his attention to Raylan.

"I'll have the Porterhouse," he read. "Medium-rare. Baked potato with the works and a side salad with ranch dressin', if you have it. And another one of these." He tapped his almost empty glass.

"We do," the waiter acknowledged before turning his attention to Adam.

Adam smiled with widened eyes. "I have to try the Bouillabaisse. And I know it doesn't go, but I also must have a taste of the prosciutto mac and cheese."

"Awww," Winona let out a sigh of disappointment. "I was going to try that."

"Me, too" Anna chimed in.

Closing his menu and handing it back to the waiter, Adam said to the ladies, "We'll all share." Back to the waiter, he added, "And how about another bottle of the Malbec." Looking at Anna, he said, "You have some catching up to do."

As the waiter walked away, Raylan rambled, feeling no pain from his third drink. "Funny how so often ladies will order rabbit food and then, eat all the good stuff off their man's plate."

"If I didn't know better, I'd think you were directing that comment towards me," Winona said. "Is that why you ordered such predictable sides?"

"I've learned," Raylan said. "The hard way."

"I don't know, Raylan," Adam joined in. "It's kind of sexy to have a woman eat off your plate. Don't you think?"

Raylan huffed. "Well, yeah. But not steak and comfort food. Now, maybe ice cream." He shot a smile over at Winona and placed his hand high up on her thigh, under the table.

-o-o-o-O-o-o-o-

"I'm stuffed," Raylan groaned, flopping down on the bed. Winona kept one eye on him as she carefully took a sleeping Willa out of the carrier and lay her in the port-a-crib.

"I imagine you are. You just ate a huge steak and drank half a bottle of bourbon."

"Yeah, we both had a little too much to drink tonight," Raylan wasn't going to fight it. "I think a late checkout is in order before we head out for Miami."

"Do you think you could pack up your things tonight? I'll take care of mine and Willa's," she said, standing with her hands on her hips. "I took care of all the packing last time."

Raylan walked over to her, his face closing in for a kiss. "Yes, you did." After one, he added, "And I appreciated it."

After a second, Winona reminded him, "You've got to be up early. Did you set the alarm? Call for a wake-up call?"

Nuzzling her neck, he said in a low voice, "You afraid I won't wake up on time?"

"Well . . . yes," she answered, her body past the point of responding to him. "This meeting is kind of important, don't you think?"

Raylan reached over and dialed "0" on the phone on the nightstand. "Could I get a 7 o'clock wake-up call in the mornin'? Thank you." After hanging up the receiver, he murmured and returned to her neck, "Now, where was I?"

Winona resisted a little. "You need to be in Alexandria at 9:00. Did you give yourself enough time?"

He sighed. "Karen texted durin' dinner. I'm meetin' her in DC. Not far from here. Can we just forget about her and this stupid meeting for a little while?" Raylan's warm breath was now heading down, towards her cleavage. He began unbuttoning her top. He had already peeled her bra away to expose her breast and began to work his magic.

Winona plunged her fingers into his hair and backed him closer toward the bed. Raylan sat down with her standing before him and continued to undress her. She helped with her panties and kicked off her shoes, as well as pulling his boots off. Pushing his shoulders to lean him back, she began to return the favor, unzipping his jeans and tugging them off along with his boxers. Lowering herself to her knees, she skillfully took him into her mouth. He leaned back, closed his eyes, and enjoyed the ride.

After a time, Raylan's breathing changed, and he began to slowly move against her mouth. He reached over the nightstand to retrieve a condom. She took it from him and rolled it on. He watched her, thinking as always that she was the sexiest woman he'd ever known. She straddled his hips and lowered herself onto him. He reached for her and began to forcefully thrust an upward motion. He filled her, and Winona let out soft moans.

Raylan slowed their pace and sat up, burying his face in her breasts, paying attention to each with his mouth. Winona methodically ground her hips until she established a rhythm that slowly built to her waves of pleasure. Feeling she was close, he grabbed her hips and pushed himself deeper until her release set her body quaking.

He held her tight until the quaking subsided. "I love you," he whispered.

She answered him, breathless. "I love you, too."

Raylan covered her mouth completely with his and kissed her deeply, as he flipped her so that he was on top. He moved deep inside her, thrusting, until his own release was impending. He waited for her to catch up to him, and when she did, they climaxed together, letting out all the tensions of the day and the worries of the morning ahead.

Out of breath, Raylan tenderly kissed Winona's face and held her close in his arms. He closed his eyes and together, they drifted off to sleep.

-o-o-o-O-o-o-o-

The sun was rising above the horizon when Anna rounded the corner, breathing fast, her arms pumping.

"Come on," she hollered over her shoulder. "You can do it."

"Don't . . . you dare," Adam huffed. She heard another intake of breath as he came up behind her. "Slow down."

"Don't worry," she smirked. "I won't."

When the front stoop of their brownstone came into view, the pot of geraniums perched on the ledge . . . Anna picked up her pace, running full out.

"Arrrgh!" Adam pulled past her at the last minute, stretching out his arm and grabbing the railing. Breathing hard he collapsed on the step.

Anna sat beside him, catching her breath. "Good workout. I sure as hell needed it." Already, she was dreading the length of the day ahead, sitting.

"You trying to kill me?" he asked, panting. But he was grinning.

Anna laid a hand on his sweat drenched shoulder. "Too tired for another workout?" She slid her gaze to his, raising an eyebrow.

"Why Ms. Rule, are you trying to seduce me?"

Anna glanced at her watch. "Maybe," she said with a grin of her own.

She pulled out her key to enter the brownstone. Once inside they peeled off their running clothes and shoes, strewing them down the hallway. Anna headed straight for the shower, off their bedroom, and turned the water on. She turned around and pulled Adam in, under the warm spray.

Grabbing a bar of soap, she began to soap him up . . . starting with his well-defined chest, muscular shoulders, his built biceps and forearms. He took the bar out of her hands and began to soap her up as well, paying extra attention to her small but beautifully filled breasts.

By the shoulders, Anna pulled him towards her, out of the spray, for a kiss. His body involuntary responded against her. She took the bar of soap back from him and began to suds up his abdomen, moving lower. Adam leaned against the shower wall and groaned.

Adam moved the water with his hand, rinsing the suds away, while Anna followed the sheeting water with her hungry kisses. She stooped down and took him into her mouth. She knew how to make her lover weak in the knees. Soon, he could stand it no more, and he reached for her, bringing her up to her feet. He spun her around in one quick motion so that she was the one with her back against the tile. She wrapped a long leg around him, and he grabbed hold of her thigh as he entered her.

Anna's fingers dug into Adam's back. His mouth covered hers, hungry for her. He was always hungry for her, as she was for him. He loved her hard, and she gave him as good as she got, until she felt herself over the edge. A few thrusts later, Adam pulled out and followed her release. She grabbed both sides of his face and kissed him, grateful. For much like the run, she needed this.

Adam allowed Anna to finish showering first. Afterwards, Anna toweled off and headed for the bathroom vanity. She glanced at the clock. "Shit," she said under her breath. She had twenty minutes to get to the Metro.

Quickly, she applied deodorant and began to brush her teeth.

"I don't know what time I'll be home again tonight," Anna spoke to Adam through the shower door, as she spit toothpaste into the sink. "Depends on when the bitch cuts us loose."

"I'm working at the restaurant today," he said from under the spray. "How would you like me to bring you home some ravioli ricotta e spinaci? It heats up well . . . whenever you get home. Plus, you could take some for lunch tomorrow. By the way, I made your lunch and snacks. It's in the fridge."

"You're so good to me," she praised him. "You're saving me from that cheap-ass crap they try to pass off to us as food. I don't know why our Government spends so much money recruiting and training us, whipping us into top physical condition. And then, they try and kill us with the garbage they feed us on stake outs or in meetings."

With a comb, she quickly pulled her hair into a tight bun. Her flawless, mocha complexion required little makeup. It was one of the things Adam loved best about her: Anna Rulé was a minimal, no fuss woman.

"It's money, Babe," he offered from the shower. "They push the cheap, government subsidized foods because they're cheaper. Just as they do in the schools. Hospitals." After a beat, he said, "Don't worry. I'll keep you hooked up with the good stuff."

"And once again, you're good to me," she gushed. "Thank you."

"I've got to keep my lady in top physical condition. To keep your stamina up, if you know what I mean," he laughed.

"Hmmm. I do know what you mean," she said. "Hey, Adam, I hate to ask you do to this, but could I ask you to overnight Raylan's and my genetic samples today? They are packed in box also in the fridge, already addressed. It needs to be shipped with the blue icepack that's in the freezer. I'm anxious to get that going, and there is no way I can get out of the task force to take care of a personal errand."

"Sure," he said in a cheerful voice. "The sooner you two get an answer, the better off you both will be."

"You're a life saver, again," she said with a lilt in her voice.

Anna applied cocoa butter to her face, arms, and hands. She continued to moisturize her legs, knees, and her feet. She followed that with a touch of concealer under her eyes. A little eye pencil, one coat of mascara, and lip gloss, and she was good to go.

After putting on a clean bra and panties, Anna went to the closet and selected a lightweight navy suit with a powder blue shell. Dressed in no time, she slipped her feet into a pair of commuter shoes and placed her navy pumps in her tote bag.

Adam stepped out of the shower and wrapped a fresh towel around him, when she rushed up to give him a quick peck goodbye. He gave her a parting, lingering squeeze.

Anna made it to her station on time, only to find the train was running late. "Damn it." She would be late, too. She hated being late, especially on a Monday morning. Started her week off bad.

Luckily for Anna when she arrived at the task force conference room, the bitch wasn't there.

(To be continued . . .)