'I've been scheduled for an off-site training course at short notice,' Harry frowned. She looked over at her former partner, 'I didn't apply for this, it's a counselling course.' She looked up as Spikings stormed through the office and then got up and followed him into his office.
'Sir, I appear to have been drafted onto a course I have absolutely no interest in for two weeks in Scotland, near Fort William, I don't understand. I didn't…
'D.I. Makepeace, we need someone in the department that has those skills according to the Personnel Department and you're the only profile I have that fits. I can't see Dempsey, Watson or Bradshaw fitting the brief or not being ejected from the course in short order, so you're it.'
'I'm assuming the profile that fits because I'm a woman and we do that kind of thing,' her blue eyes sparkled with fury.
The Superintendent harrumphed at that and gave her a steely glare. 'I let you run around playing at cops and robbers with the yank, Detective Inspector which is more than most of the men in here could stomach so I don't really thing you can play the sexist card on me. And if that's all, I have a rather large workload here and don't need telling how to do my job, dismissed.'
Harry fumed all the way back to her desk.
Dempsey went and made her a cup of tea. 'Scotland's nice in April or so Chas tells me, you might even enjoy the break. I think there's some outward bound involved.'
'Thank you for the tea and would you please just shut up!' Harry responded in a super snit. She could see he was looking vaguely amused and that annoyed her further.
'Nice that you said please,' he went back to his desk and lit up a cigar. 'Anyway, now you're a D.I. you probably need those softer man-management skills might help you with Steve,' he blew a smoke ring.
'And what sort of skills do you need as a Chief Inspector,' she seethed as she watched his name plate go up on the new office he'd been allocated. D.I.'s didn't get offices but Chief Inspector's did.'
'Well, I will need one of my Detective Inspector's to have counselling skills and Chas's wife is about to have a baby so he couldn't go and Watson would probably moan and play the race card cos he'd want to get out of it, so your kind of taking one for the team.'
Harry glared at him, 'so this was your idea and not Spikings?'
'Not entirely. Look you're the best fit for that kind of thing and…
The Chief Inspector was left to finish whatever he was saying as Harry said a polite excuse me and left him to it.
-oOo—
Harry was just checking on the roast she was making when her doorbell rang and she went to see who was disturbing her peace. 'Dempsey,' she acknowledged not moving back to let him in as she was still angry with him.
'Hi Harry, something smells good,' his tone was warm and appreciative. Still mad he observed, she had that look on her. The blonde would be even more annoyed if she knew why she'd been shoved off to the Highlands but he wasn't about to mention that. He had two weeks to close the case and then she could throw her toys out of the pram when she got back. 'I got the impression that I wasn't your best pal so I came round to make amends,' he produced a bunch of flowers from behind his back and a bottle of good wine.
'You can take your flowers and your wine and insert them up your ass or arse as we say over here,' she responded irritably. 'You're still the same sexist, manipulative bastard you were when you stepped onto British soil and I have nothing to say to you. I may be forced to listen to you at work but not in my own time so good evening, James.'
He sighed and gave her that puppy dog look which usually had some effect but he could tell that it probably wasn't going to wash. 'Har-ry, I'm sorry but who would you send? Think about it.'
'Well, you for a start,' she seethed. 'Or are you too busy polishing the brass panel on your door which, if I may say, looks very ostentatious.'
'Have to settle into the new job, and for your information I have to go on a budgeting course shortly and I ain't looking forward to that. So, you're not the only one that's been stiffed.' He wasn't looking forward to that any more than she wanted the girls' course.
'And I still don't see why you aren't a D.I. and why you got the Chief Inspector's job…
'You do know why,' he growled. 'I was already an Inspector Grade, that's what Lieutenant means in the States, even though you would never acknowledge it. NYPD promoted me in abesentia and then Spikings made a play for me to stay on to deal with the nasty stuff over here. Ergo here I am.'
Harry sighed heavily, 'I suppose you may as well come in for a few minutes. Joyce and Susan are coming for dinner though so you'll need to leave me to it.'
His expression darkened at the idea of the coven turning up. Harry'd probably ask one of them to take point on the course and he wasn't having that. He followed her into the house, and accepted a glass of wine that she'd already chilled.
'You might enjoy the change of scene,' he tried to placate her. 'I need you to do this for me Harry, cos I need the skills mix and I can come to you if I get stuck on something. It ain't the same with the others you see past the brash Yank, know me better.'
'How is it that whenever you want me to do something you play on my sympathetic nature,' she eyed him knowingly. 'Appeal to Harry's best nature and she'll be sucked in.'
He gave her a warm smile. 'When it comes to it Harry, you're the best friend a guy could have, well I could have anyway. Don't want you being anyone else's best friend especially if they're a guy.'
'Because guys don't have best friends do they James?' Her gaze challenged his.
'No, they don't honey, it's just a guy who wants more,' he leant over and kissed her on the nose. 'Say the word and I'll get the bans read.'
'I'm sure,' she responded her blue gaze holding his. 'Although I was hoping for a less challenging mate, so I'm sorry I can't oblige.' A shiver ran up her spine as he came closer and his scent teased her senses. 'You're in my personal space,' she said softly.
'I am,' he leaned in and his warm mouth caressed hers until a hand came against his chest and he was pushed back gently. 'I'm still annoyed,' she tasted him on her bottom lip.
'I'm still horny,' he growled, as he kissed her neck. 'C'mon Harry, you've got to know how I feel by now.'
'Well funnily enough it's not just your feelings that matter,' she responded in her usual style. The doorbell rang and Harry gave him a pointed look. 'I'll see you tomorrow, James. That's probably my guests.'
'You can't run forever, princess.' His dark gaze held hers and then he dropped a swift kiss on her lips and made for the door letting in the ladies on the doorstep.
Joyce looked curious and Susan was salivating over the Chief Inspector. 'I didn't know he made house-calls,' she said to Harry, 'when do I get mine.'
'It was work,' the blonde dismissed Dempsey's visit. 'I hope you're both hungry,' she remarked as she poured them a glass of wine.
-oOo—
'Right, so we've got a present from C.I.D. and it's a doozy, serial killer they can't seem to catch. And we have two weeks to catch this one.'
Joyce stiffened as she quickly put two and two together. Harry had been abducted by a serial killer and Dempsey had spirited her away from this one. Harry had been put on a training course deliberately with a two-week duration. Her eyes narrowed. Well, well so the Chief Inspector was playing the protector and she knew how Harry would feel about that.
'Hargreaves, I want you to do the profiling on this one. Last one of these we had, D.I. Makepeace worked out why the guy went for a certain type of female. Get your head together with the shrinks and see if they can get a bead on that.'
Joyce nodded. 'Perhaps we should get D.I. Makepeace back from the Highlands if she is the most experienced officer.'
'No, we're not doing that,' the American growled. 'Let's get on with it.' No way was Harry getting a second helping of homicidal maniacs. In her current role she did the more cerebral stuff, money laundering, Ponzi schemes that kind of thing she was a whizz at the finances. He didn't want her traumatized by another Swabey. Spikings had agreed, he'd seen the damage that case had done. She was tough Makepeace, but she wasn't getting a second helping of this.'
-oOo—
'Congratulations,' Spikings eyed his second in command favourably. 'One more sick psychopath behind bars and at least this time we didn't have one of our officers abducted.'
'Didn't like his mother apparently, hence the older profile of his victims. And then they were kind of in one geographical area which made it easier to pin down. Hargreaves did some excellent work and so did Bradshaw. Pizza delivery man, you don't expect to be murdered for getting pepperoni, his mother's favourite apparently. It takes all sorts, I suppose.' Dempsey ran his hand through his hair in a distracted fashion.
'At least you got him quickly, saved some other poor woman from his clutches. The story was in the red tops so it's very possible that Harry will see the coverage and being a smart woman, she'll probably put two and two together.'
'Yeah well, it's a risk I was prepared to take,' Dempsey growled. 'Later,' he left the boss's office.
-oOo—
Harry's eyes widened as she saw the papers in the hotel lobby. She quickly picked one up and scanned it. The Metropolitan Police were getting a lot of praise and Spikings had been addressing the press, 'James,' she hissed, 'you, manipulative bastard.' If she had succumbed to his dubious charms then what a fool she would have felt when she read this. He'd deliberately sent her away to avoid her being present while the investigation went on.
She wouldn't give him the satisfaction of addressing the issue, if he tried to plant a kiss on her he'd get a quick knee, in the crown jewels as he called them.
As per usual she passed the course with flying colours with an enquiry as to whether she would consider a change of career, she would not. She left the Highlands with a bit of a tan as the weather had been pleasant.
-oOo—
Hargreaves placed a cup of tea in front of Makepeace in the canteen and eyed her friend knowingly. 'I've decided to be a lot less confrontational with my children,' she remarked drily. 'I'm more than pleased to write up that case and put it in a mental file not to be re-opened.
'How did you work it out?' Harry asked her tone edged with the tension she'd felt at the Swabey case.
'Looked at the geographical distribution of the murders and then who would be likely to be visiting addresses in the area. We got it down to either taxis or delivery services and after that it was just the grunt work of elimination. Dempsey piled on the overtime as he didn't want the case on the books.'
'It was excellent work Joyce,' Harry praised her friend as it had been a wonderfully rapid solution to the case and had most certainly saved the lives of other potential victims.
'Have you seen Dempsey yet,' Joyce asked tongue in cheek. She hadn't and wouldn't allude to the coincidence of Harry's sudden departure on a course and a serial killer coming onto the books.
'No, he's been tied up all morning with the Superintendent,' Harry said airily. A plan for a bit of payback was giving her a certain amount of pleasure. She had been invited out by a nice chap who had been on the course with her and she knew Susan fancied James. It would be good to set up a blind, double date. She would of course partner Simon and James would be Susan's date. Dempsey wouldn't know that he wasn't going on a date with her and he could stick that in his pipe and smoke it. He would be furious if he thought she'd met the man of her dreams on that bloody course!
-oOo—
Spikings viewed his next in command. 'Harry said anything about the pepperoni psychopath,' he lit a cigar and watched Dempsey's body language.
'Nope, congratulated Hargreaves and Bradshaw on the work but hasn't said a word to me,' he looked as uncomfortable as he felt. 'Having a drink with her tonight though so maybe I'll get the hard word, then.'
'Makepeace is highly intelligent and she would probably smell a rat. It wasn't as if the course dropped on her desk in a timely fashion.' Spikings took a drag on his cigarette. 'Any understanding achieved between the two of you on your relationship.'
'Let's just say I've told her I cared and she's playing hardball as usual,' Dempsey growled. 'I'm not sure that she does care, care. More into giving me a hard time about being a masculine threat to her maidenhood.'
'Oh well if she thinks you're just after sex you can't have approached the matter sensitively, women in my understanding like hearts and flowers not just an over ripe libido. It all comes to the same thing but they like the faffing around.'
'Thanks for those wise words,' the dark American gave a grimace of a smile. 'Guess I'll find out how the land lies tonight.'
-oOo—
Dempsey's jaw squared when he saw the line-up for the date. Simon was a very good looking, guy even the Yank could see that and Susan was eating yours truly with her eyes. Harry, was all smiles and telling anecdotes about the outward-bound activities in Scotland.
'Our team won the challenge,' she smiled at Simon as he praised her as their elected leader. 'And Simon and I realised we had lots of joint acquaintances. It's a small world.'
'I've met Harry's father a number of times, I volunteer for a charity he's involved with.' Simon piped up.
'Of course, you do,' Dempsey said with a pleasant smile. 'Stand up kind of guy working for a charity as policing doesn't allow you a lot of time off.'
'You work very hard Jim,' Susan drooled, 'the hours you put in are very impressive. Keeping the country safe and it's not even your country,' she gushed.
Harry almost winced at the others woman's obvious fascination for all things Dempsey.
'I'm in Fraud,' Simon chimed in. 'I've told Harry she'd have a career in Fraud no problem as she's such a whizz at finance. I mean we may be working together closely on a couple of cases as we have joint interests.'
'Well, if a case belongs to Fraud that's where it's heading,' Dempsey said in a pleasant tone. 'Makes it easier if we know who's driving the operation. SI10 always lead if we're involved but I guess it's no hardship leveraging what you guys in Fraud have on the down low.'
Macho posturing tick, thought Makepeace. 'Anyway, Simon's coming down this weekend to Winfield Hall as the charity has a bit of bash on there so we can confer over that.'
'That's nice,' Susan was thoroughly pleased by the idea of Makepeace being off the pitch as far as Dempsey was concerned.
Harry caught the warning look from James and a shiver of awareness went through her. It annoyed her that she felt that he thought she was transgressing in some way. She didn't bloody belong to him.
She went to the bar as it was her turn and found Dempsey at her shoulder.
'What the hell are you doing?' He growled. 'You're involving other people in stuff we have to work out, it only makes for casualties. It's a stupid move.'
'I'm not following you James what do we have to work out? You fancy a shag and I don't anticipate being your latest victim, Susan looks up for it though so, there you go.'
'You know damn well that's not all I want from you,' he snapped back. 'I'm telling you, cool it with Simon or I ain't responsible.'
'Well, you will be responsible for any untoward behaviour as this is just a pleasant social occasion, don't you dare make a scene. I like Simon he's the nicest man I've met in ages.'
'Nah, that ain't gonna wash,' he growled and took some of the drinks and headed back to the table. 'Nobody likes nice men,' he said under his breath.
Harry came back with the rest of the drinks and potato crisps all the ones he didn't like; she got the stink eye for that.
Susan then decided to be liberated and asked Dempsey if he would like to have dinner at her place on Friday, 'I make a very decent lasagne,' she offered fluttering her lashes at him.
'That would be great only my girlfriend wouldn't be too keen on me doing that,' he smiled pleasantly and his gaze met Harry's.
'I wasn't aware you were dating anyone,' the blonde challenged him in a snippy tone. 'In fact, you were bemoaning a dry spell as I remember.'
'It's not something I would lie about,' he responded in an even tone. 'I'm in a committed relationship with someone; have been for some time. The lady in question is demanding a full courtship so I don't think dining elsewhere is on the cards, much as I like lasagne.' He smiled charmingly at Susan to take away any hurt she might feel.
Harry decided to up her game and accepted a lift home from Simon and left James and Susan to it. She was intrigued that Dempsey might feel he was in a relationship with her and that left her distracted during the drive to her home. She thanked Simon nicely for his trouble and accepted a date for dinner at the weekend. She kissed his cheek and got out of the car. The line about casualties rang in her ears and she bit her lip. Yes, it probably wasn't too sensible to give Simon hope for more just to annoy her ex-partner she felt momentarily ashamed about that. 'Damned Yank,' she muttered as she let herself into her home.
-oOo-
'Hello darling,' her father hugged her. 'James arrived earlier and I thought the pair of you would have driven up together.' He registered her look of surprise. 'Dempsey agreed to come and support the event a couple of months ago, I thought you would have been aware of that. He's doing one of those SAS type courses for the local youth. We've had a large number of entrants, the usual village chaps who are bored and cause trouble. Well, it might be good for them. £100 each donated as an entry fee. About thirty of the blighters.'
'I see and where is James, Freddy? Harry looked less than pleased with this turn of events as Simon would be here and Dempsey was bound to be hostile. They'd had their talk after she'd accepted the job back and then she'd basically stalled on what to do next. The fact she'd stalled had annoyed the American because he'd told her he wanted to move their relationship forward and she'd basically refused to jump the fence.
The blonde felt annoyed with herself, she'd applied pressure on him and then when he'd responded to said pressure, she'd… She'd been fighting the attraction so long she hadn't known how to let go. When he kissed her, which he did whenever he got the opportunity, she went weak at the knees so she knew that part of their relationship would be… 'Oh God!' She ran a hand through her hair.
'James is in the far paddock setting up some sort of combat course, it looks jolly hard work he's got some of your coppers helping out.'
'Almost a work's outing,' Harry responded drily. 'I've got all the certificates in my car and the prizes themselves. I need to supervise the buffet, the cake and flower arranging tents and the tent for local produce. So, I must get on,' she got her bag and a number of boxes out of the car and handed them over to Bovis her father's new P.A. 'Has Simon Bartlett arrived Freddy, he was on a course with me recently and he said he'd be lending a hand.'
'He's doing a raffle to assist the local juvies and is in charge of the prize for the winner,' her father looked pleased with his term for the local juvenile delinquents. Freddy did whatever he could to try and get the local troublemakers to realise their mistakes and get on in life.
'I'm sure that's not one of Simon's terms,' she remarked acidly eyeing her father somewhat critically.
'I can't think where I heard it,' her father's eyes twinkled. 'I think you'll find Simon too easy to please Harry, you've got your man, now reel him in.'
'My man?' She queried her blue eyes flashing.
'Yes, your man, the strapping fellow in the back paddock,' her father winked at her and went off to supervise something or other and left Harriet to it.
-oOo—
Harry spent her time soothing the feelings of one or other of the local ladies who each thought they were the villages leading light. Turf wars were inevitable.
'I'm sure Mrs Palmer didn't mean to take the tables allocated to the baked goods; I'll get Bovis to organize some additional display areas.' She smiled pleasantly and walked off to organize the missing units.
'Think I prefer the juvies,' Dempsey turned up at her shoulder looking provocatively masculine in a navy blue, tank and jeans, his tanned muscular arms a testament to her father's description. 'If you're trying to find Simon, he's looking for the missing raffle prize, using all his police skills to find the bad ass that scooted off with it.'
'You didn't tell me you were supporting this event,' Harry eyed him accusingly.
'Your Pop cornered me at that ball of your aunt's, I would have said something only you've been avoiding me. I thought it was me that found it hard to commit but Jesus, Harry, you got me beat.' He tipped up her chin, 'that mouth of yours was made for kissing, beautiful mouth,' he added obviously fascinated.
Harry's response was caught in her throat as he stole a swift kiss, the warmth of caress caught her by surprise. 'Have you ever thought of getting permission for a kiss,' Harry said crossly as he lifted his head.
'You weren't exactly fighting me off,' Dempsey growled. 'What do you want, one of those guys who's terrified to touch you.' He folded his arms and viewed her disparagingly. 'I always thought there was fire under the ice cos you're one of the bravest and strongest people I've ever met.'
'If you think that, which I doubt, why did you get me posted to the Highlands for that course when the serial killer case got allocated.' Her blue gaze battled his.
'Well maybe I ain't as brave as you,' he held her gaze his hazel eyes dark with emotion. 'I've had nightmares about Swabey since you got abducted. In fact, you could say I'm traumatized so I took action, pulled a few strings, and I knew you'd make me pay for it later but it was a risk I was willing to take.'
Harry swallowed hard quelling her emotional response. 'You were traumatized, you?' Her gaze searched his.
'Yeah,' he nodded. 'I was, even seen the shrink about it cos I knew you'd go throwing yourself at the next case that had danger written all over it. I faced a lot of things Harry, but I couldn't face losing you.' He took a steadying breath. 'And now that I've bled out all over you, I'd better get on or the youth of the village will be up to mischief and mayhem.'
Harry watched him go. She felt winded, the thought of her big, strong, macho partner being traumatized by a threat to her shook her to the core. Was that just Dempsey trying to get out of the fact he'd manipulated the situation to protect her or was he serious. He'd looked serious.
-oOo—
The combat course was a competitive affair with the local miscreants being highly inventive as to ways to get around it. Dempsey's whistle was shrilling regularly as those who weren't watching that event tried to listen to the local youth orchestra or appreciate the floral offerings that had just been given their awards.
Simon was looking under the tablecloth which covered the display tables to see if he could find the stolen, first prize.
Harry enquired as to what the prize looked like to see if she could help and also because some of the Women's Institute members were looking dangerous.
'It's a bullworker, a rather expensive model, it can't have gone far,' Simon added, 'it went missing shortly before the event started.'
Harry's eyes alighted on one of the larger floral offerings, 'hidden in plain sight,' she laughed as the bullworker had been incorporated in the design by virtue of some foliage being draped over it.
'Oh, well done,' Simon kissed her exuberantly and swung her off her feet and then hugged her to him just as Dempsey walked in.
'Found it,' the American asked Simon tersely as his hard gaze challenged the other man. If a man could be described as having hackles, the Yank was displaying them.
Simon instinctively dropped his arms from around Harry, sensing that he might be in some kind of danger, even if he didn't perfectly understand why, and pointed to the floral display. 'Yes, Harry spotted it. He went over and removed the ferns and delicate gypsophila that was disguising the object.
'Always the detective,' Dempsey growled as his dark gaze met hers.
'You have a winner then?' Harry instinctively put her hand on his arm in a soothing gesture that she'd sometimes used during their police work to calm him down. It had worked then, even when he was in a dangerous mood.
'Yeah, Dawson, you know him?' His gaze moved back to Simon and pinned him to the spot.
'Yes, since he was a small boy, he must be eighteen now. I'll er… I'll come and present the prize then, shall I?' Harry was trying to assess how much testosterone she was dealing with.
'Later,' Dempsey growled at the other man and then followed Lady Harriet out of the tent.
'He was relieved to find the prize, hence the hug,' Harry offered awkwardly giving him a dart of a glance to assess his emotional temperature. She had to walk quickly to keep up with his longer stride.
'I could see he was pleased,' the American responded in an annoyed tone. 'He was lucky he didn't get the bullworker shoved up his ass.'
'I rather thought it would be sensible to remove the temptation,' Harry answered in a bright tone.
'You like setting up guys to beat on each other,' he rounded on her. 'You get some kind of kick out of that?'
'Oh yes that's why I became a copper because I get my kicks from acts of violence,' she looked at him incredulously. 'I would never have thought you would become jealous over a hug. You continually surprise me, Dempsey.'
'Well, I wouldn't want things to become too samey,' he snarled back. 'And I am not jealous of that pen pushing, souped up, bean counter. He ain't in my league.'
'Yes, it's very evident that you're not jealous,' she took the bullworker off him as a precaution. 'I'll take this,' she smiled at him pleasantly and walked towards the podium.
Dempsey strode after her and took a steadying breath and said a few words about the strong competition and lavished some praise on the prize-winning juvie even managed to crack a few jokes about certain aberrant behaviour that had occurred.
Lady Harriet played her role and awarded the prize with a handshake and was surprised when she got an unasked for kiss on the cheek from the winner.
'Don't say a thing,' Harry eyed Dempsey as she could see he was putting her in the role of some kind of femme fatale.
'Didn't realise I was gonna have to stand in line,' he snarled at her annoyed at every other male in the place for being on his turf.
Harry stood on her tiptoes and kissed his cheek which could have been thought to be patronising and then gave a gasp of surprise when she was swung up into his arms and carried off much to the delight of the crowd.
'What on earth are you doing?' She held onto her summer boater as it threatened to fall off.
'Claiming you,' he looked down at her his jaw squaring in a determined manner. 'You seem to be attracting guys like bees around a honey pot and since you're my honey my manly instincts tell me that we need to sort this out.'
'Neanderthal instincts,' she corrected him. And I haven't agreed to be your honey,' she pointed out pedantically as he placed her on her feet in front of her ancestral home.
'Well, are you or aren't you,' he folded his arms across his chest which made his muscles flex in an attractive manner had he but known it.
Their gazes met in the usual combative way and then she took a deep breath. 'I had thought that I would settle down with a more gentleman like partner.'
'Yes or no,' his dark eyes flashed a warning, that told her if she said no that would be it.
'Don't I get to think about it,' she retorted looking put out.
'No,' he relaxed his arms and pulled her to him, 'you've done the thinking thing for the last four years, you must know the answer by now.'
She pouted beautifully and ran her arms around his neck. 'And this is a forever thing, is it?'
'It's a forever thing, honey,' he smiled at her his warm gaze running over her beautiful features, 'and just for the avoidance of doubt, you-are-my-honey,' he interspersed the words with light kisses around the curve of her cheek and his voice lowered with emotion.
'I can't tell you what that does to me,' the tone of his voice made her melt, she stood on her tiptoes and kissed him and then sighed as she was pulled more firmly into his embrace.
Dempsey could feel exactly what it was doing to her as she was kind of trembling in his embrace. He raised his head and looked down at her and then at the fascinated gaze of those who were in near proximity. 'I think we'd better take this someplace else.'
'Yes, I think that would be a good idea,' Harry agreed in a rather breathless voice as that had been some kiss and she felt rather shaken. She took his hand and they walked into the Hall together.
Simon who was witness to the behaviour of the other two officers turned to Lord Winfield, 'are they…'
'Yes, I rather think they are.' His eyes twinkled as he looked at the other young man. 'Plenty more fish in the sea, dear boy. Come and have a beer, fetes are always thirsty work and one of the contestants in the brewing competition has a very fine offering.' He strolled off followed by a rather despondent, rejected suitor.
