Thank you as always to Hollie! Dan definitely would have found a way to maintain control over Jess had he not found his comeuppance, thats for sure! Enjoy, some more Jess and Callum fluffiness in here.
A few more months passed, and spring made way for summer. The leaves on the trees were green and bright, and the days were longer and warmer. Jess' grief for Dan had slowly muted until it was a dull presence in the back of her mind that would rear its head if she was caught off guard. She may not have loved Dan like she used to, but she was still sad; she had lost her partner of five years, her first love, and the father of her child.
His funeral was a muted affair; a few of his old friends from university showed up, as well as his mum, and of course Jess. He was buried next to their son, which Jess thought was the right thing to do. After everyone else had left the grave, Jess slowly rested her small bunch of pale pink roses on top of the newly overturned Earth. She touched the headstone gently before leaving.
To her, it felt like everyone that she loved had abandoned her; first Luke, and now Dan. It wasn't through their choice, but Jess felt like she was being left behind. She didn't want the same thing to happen with her and Callum. Things between them had been progressing rapidly, and they often stayed at each other's flats and had exchanged keys. It felt right.
The investigation into the crash that caused Dan's paralysis and Allie's death had been closed. When forensics had checked Dan's car, an issue with the brakes had been identified. It was just Jess' sheer bad luck that it happened to be her car that he had smashed into- another gift from the universe.
Jess hurried into work on one particularly warm June morning. Her hands were grasping an iced coffee and as she got into the station she visibly relaxed, relishing the air con. She was about to enter the changing room when Smithy stopped her.
"PC Hunter?" he called, stopping her in her tracks.
"Yes Sarge?" Jess replied, pausing in front of the changing rooms.
"Don't go to briefing, you need to go straight up to CID. They've got an undercover op for you and Sergeant Stone. Ok?" Smithy asked, already heading towards briefing.
"Yes Sarge." Jess confirmed, going into the changing room. She set her coffee on the bench, opening her locker and pulling her uniform out. She wondered what op she would be doing, and wondered why she had been paired with Callum.
Had someone seen them together after work one night? So far, no-one knew about them, and that was the way they wanted it to stay, at least for now. She changed quickly, stuffing her clothes untidily into her locker, grabbed her coffee and headed up the stairs towards CID. She rushed through, seeing that the briefing room was already full. She breezed in, taking a seat next to Jo.
"PC Hunter, nice of you to join us." Max said with a nod.
"Sorry Sarge, Smithy only just told me I had to come here instead of a normal briefing." Jess explained hurriedly, smiling at Callum who was sitting across from her. On the screen were the faces of a white man and an oriental looking woman, and underneath was the word "burglary" in nice big writing.
"Did he tell you why we want you up here?" Max asked, moving to lean against the wall.
"Just that you had an undercover op for me and Sergeant Stone." Jess replied, sipping her coffee.
"Yes, that's right. Over the past two months there have been a spate of burglaries in this area." Max said, pressing a button on his laptop, and a map filled the screen with a red circle around an area. "The MO has been the same on each one. A man and a woman, those who were previously on the screen, went around to the houses offering to install burglar alarms, cameras, home security sort of thing. Those who let them into their homes to install the alarms paid them a nice big amount of money, and after the installations had been done, they were burgled. Now, there were no forced entries into any of the houses, so we think that the couple got copies of the keys. They ask their victims what time they'll be at work, on the pretence of wanting to install the equipment while the home-owners are there, but once they find that out it's easy for them to pick a time to burgle the place. They took the normal stuff: jewellery, laptops, other electrical items." Max explained, bringing more pictures up on the screen, this time of the victims. "Now, so far, five different houses have been burgled. They tend to go for people who have just moved into the area, and they go for couples rather than people with children. This is where you two come in." Max said with a smile, signalling Jess and Callum.
"You want to put us into a house in the area, put cameras in the house, lure the burglars in, let them steal from us, and catch them in the act. Am I right?" Jess guessed.
"Correct. And it's just your luck that one of the houses has recently gone on the market. We've paid rent for it and we've got a removal van there right now taking out some of the old furniture, putting new stuff in. We're putting in some nice electrical items which are worth a lot, and Jess, you'll be given some nice expensive jewellery for them to nick." Max said with a smile.
"Have any of the victims been hurt?" Callum asked.
Max paused before answering, "The first burglary ended up in a woman being hospitalised. She came back from work early and disturbed them, ended up being pushed down the stairs and being knocked out. But apart from that, all the others were fine."
"So there's little chance of them hurting us?" Jess confirmed.
"Right. And obviously there will always be someone outside the house and also round the back, so you'll be covered. Someone is installing cameras in all the downstairs rooms, and at the front and back doors, so we'll be able to keep an eye. Are you both in?" Max asked the two officers. Jess and Callum exchanged a look before nodding. "Good. Your new names are Jake and Liz Morris. You own your own business selling hair supplies to salons. You've been married for two years and together for six. Here's your credit cards with your new names, and of course your wedding rings." Max held out two silver wedding bands in his hand. Jess and Callum walked up to him, each taking their own band, and slipping it onto their fingers. "I now pronounce you husband and wife." Max said with a wink.
They took all the documents from Max and ended their briefing. Jo and Stevie were to be their handlers and would always be somewhere nearby.
"Can we go pick up some clothes from home?" Jess asked before they left the briefing.
"There's already clothes in the house for you both." Max said. "Good luck, and call us if there are any developments or you need anything, ok?"
"Sarge." they both nodded and made their way back downstairs. They stopped in front of the female changing room.
"I'll wait outside in my car, and you can follow me to this new place." Callum said with a smile before heading into the male changing rooms.
The "married" couple drove to their new house, parking behind the removal van. The house was a gorgeous white Georgian style, with a few steps leading up to the glossy black front door. The door had a brass knocker, and on either side of the door was a pot of beautiful purple flowers. The front windows were tall and slim, and under the windows were steps which led to a basement. Jess looked up at it in wonder; she didn't think she'd seen such a beautiful house.
"Wow, I think I might put myself forward for more undercover op's if the houses are like this." Jess said, slowly moving towards the house.
"Yeah, it's pretty nice." Callum said with a shrug.
Jess looked at him incredulously, "Pretty nice? Callum, it's gorgeous!"
Callum smiled over his shoulder at Jess while he waited for the removal men to put the last bit of furniture into the house. Once they had given Callum the list of items and left, Callum offered his hand to Jess. "Shall we?"
"Yes, I can't wait to see inside!" Jess said excitedly, her arm slipped through the crook of Callum's arm. They made their way through the front door into the hall, and Jess froze. It was so beautiful, with high ceilings, polished wood flooring, and intricate pieces of furniture dotting the hall, such as the side table with a big, expensive looking vase full of white roses. They moved into the living room, which was painted pale green and had a comfy looking pale green and duck egg blue striped sofa against one wall, and a matching recliner next to it. There was a massive TV dominating the wall opposite the windows. Jess did a double take when she saw the photos on the marble fireplaces.
"Is this us?" she asked, peering at them closely.
"Oh God, where did they get these pictures from?" Callum asked, standing beside her.
The biggest picture on the mantelpiece was a wedding picture, and someone had taken Jess and Callum's heads and photo shopped them onto some bodies. "Wow, if I didn't know better I'd think those are real!"
"Well, it makes it authentic I guess. Let's go check out upstairs." Jess said with a smile, dashing up the grand staircase. There were three bedrooms and a study upstairs, and the main bedroom had an en suite with a gorgeous clawfoot tub in the centre. "Callum!"
Callum appeared in the doorway of the en suite, "What's wrong?"
Jess smiled flirtily while pointing at the tub. Sure they were on an undercover op, but that didn't mean they couldn't have fun. Callum finally clicked and said, "Ah, well, obviously we'll have to try that out later, for work purposes of course."
Jess nodded, "Oh of course."
It was their first night in this new house, and they were sitting on the sofa watching TV. Stevie had rung earlier telling Jess that the burglars had been spotted in the area, so it was likely they would be contacted within a few days. Until then, they just had to go about their new life. They would be heading to their fake office on an industrial estate in the morning to work. Jess was leaning against Callum's chest, the candles casting a flickering glow over them.
"Come on, it'll only be for a week, maybe two tops." Jess said, raising her head so she could look at him better.
"True, and at least I won't be working twelve hour shifts." Callum said, nodding.
"Exactly. I've got a question to ask." Jess said slowly.
"Sure, go on." Callum replied.
"You don't think they've put cameras up in the bedrooms?" she asked, taking a sip of wine.
"I hope not, otherwise we may find leaked videos on the internet which would not be becoming of police officers." Callum said with a laugh, Jess nearly choking on her wine.
The next morning, Callum left the house at eight to head to their fake office. The plan was for Jess to join him around lunchtime to allow the burglars a chance to scope the new owners out.
"Have a good day, see you at lunch." she mumbled before going back to sleep. Callum pressed a kiss to her cheek before leaving the bedroom, pulling the door behind him.
Jess was woken at eleven by a knock at the door. She glanced at the clock, estimating that she had an hour before she had to get to the office. She shrugged on her dressing gown and hurried down the stairs. She opened the door and smiled at the man and woman on her doorstep. It was the burglars.
"Can I help?" she asked pleasantly.
"I'm hoping we can help you." the man said with a smile, offering his hand to Jess. She shook it. "My name is Mitch Reed, and this is my wife Trudy. We're security alarm installers."
"Nice to meet you. I'm Liz Morris." Jess replied.
"We've been in the area to people who have recently moved here, seeing if we can be of service. We install burglar alarms, security cameras and lights, panic buttons, that sort of thing." Trudy said, handing Jess a leaflet with their offers and prices.
"Oh right. Me and my husband were just looking to get some kind of security. We heard there have been some burglaries in the area." Jess said innocently, gauging the expression of the two people on her doorstep.
"Yes, that's why we're here, we're trying to protect more people from being burgled. Would you be interested at all?" Mitch asked.
Jess appeared to think about it for a minute, "Well I'll need to talk to my husband about it, but I'm sure he'd go for it. Have you got a business card or something, and then we can give you a call."
Trudy pulled a business card from her suit pocket, "Here you go. Thank you for your time." she said, smiling.
"Thanks. Bye." Jess said, shutting the door on them. She walked over to the side table, putting in Stevie's number.
"Jess? We've just seen them leaving, how did it go?" Stevie asked.
"I got their business card, I said I'd give them a ring soon about doing the installations. I'll ring them when Callum's home, and we'll arrange for them to come tomorrow morning." Jess said.
"Sounds good. Let us know what happens. Bye." Stevie said, hanging up.
Later that evening, after Jess and Callum had finished work, she had gone upstairs, running herself a bath. There was some lavender smelling bubble bath which she had poured in, and she had lit some vanilla and rose scented candles, dotting them around the bathroom. She stripped her clothes, leaving them in a pile by the door. She sunk into the water, letting it cover her body. Her hair was piled on top of her head in a messy bun, and she stretched luxuriantly in the hot water. She shut her eyes, letting the water massage her tired body, inhaling the scents. She heard the bedroom door open and shut, then Callum walking around the bedroom.
"Jess?" he called.
"In here!" she shouted back. She could hear Callum putting all his things down. The ensuite door was nearly shut, but she could see him through the gap, shedding his clothes until he stood in just his boxers. He opened the door to the bathroom, shutting it quickly behind him before the cold air flooded in. He just stood there for a minute, watching Jess. He took a step forward, and Jess followed him with her eyes. He pulled off his last remaining item of clothing and moved towards the bath. Jess sat up, the bubbles clinging to her body, and scooted forward to allow Callum room to get in. He placed one foot in the hot water, and then the other, and slowly sunk into the foamy water. Once he was settled, Jess moved back until she was pressed against him, her back on his front. She leaned back contently, and Callum wrapped his arms around her, pressing a kiss onto her neck.
"There aren't any cameras in here are there?" Jess murmured.
"Not that I know of." Callum said into her neck, the coolness of his breath making goose bumps rise on her skin.
"Good." Jess whispered, turning round to kiss Callum.
The following morning, Jess and Callum were waiting for Mitch and Trudy to turn up. Jess had rung them once they'd got out of the bath, and they would be around at nine o'clock to install the cameras and alarms. Jess opened the door, giving them room to come in.
"Morning Mrs Morris." Mitch said pleasantly.
"Morning. This is my husband Jake." Jess said, as Callum came into sight. They shook hands.
"Nice to meet you." Trudy said, coming in behind Mitch. They set down their equipment by the front door.
"Do you both want a hot drink?" Jess asked, playing the hostess.
"Coffee please, black." Mitch said, and Trudy nodded as well.
"Can I use your loo please?" Trudy asked.
Callum nodded, knowing that this was how they scoped the house out. "Yeah sure, I'll just show you where it is." Callum led Trudy through towards the kitchen where the downstairs toilet was, and Mitch quickly looked into the living room, his eyes lighting up when he saw the amount of expensive equipment in that room alone. He was quickly back in position when Jess came through with the coffees.
"Now how much do we owe you?" Jess asked, pulling out her purse.
"A grand please." Mitch said, sipping the coffee.
"Wow, that's cheap compared to the other places we saw. Here you go, cash is alright isn't it?" Jess asked, making sure that the cameras in the hall could pick up the exchange clearly.
"Yeah course, thanks Mrs Morris. Now when Trudy comes back we can get to work." he said, rolling his eyes.
"Ok, I'll be in the kitchen if you need me." she said, walking back down the hall to the kitchen. Once in there, she sent Max a text, asking if he caught the exchange on the camera. Max text back yes, and also about Mitch scouting the living room. Callum came into the kitchen as well, and they sat talking for a while when Mitch came in.
"Um, did you know that you've got cameras in the house?" Mitch asked, trying not to show his suspicion.
"What?" Jess asked, pretending to be shocked.
"Yeah, we found one in the hall." Trudy added, following her husband in.
"God, no we had no idea!" Callum said, looking at Jess. Shit. "The previous owners must have had them installed, but we weren't made aware when we bought the house."
"Do you want us to take them out for you? We can do it for no extra charge." Mitch said.
"Um, well, do they even work? Because if they're not working then you may as well leave them." Jess said with a nod.
"We don't know if they work or not, and we can't tell. Maybe we should take them down anyway?" Trudy suggested. Jess and Callum could hardly say no without raising suspicions. They would just have to sort something out.
"Yeah sure, thank you." Callum said finally.
"No problem." Mitch said with a smile, walking back into the hall.
As soon as Mitch and Trudy had finished installing their security system and left the house, there was a knock at the door. It was Max.
"What happened? The camera in the hall suddenly went offline." he asked, following them into the kitchen away from Mitch's camera.
"They found it and took it down. We couldn't say no without seeming suspicious." Callum explained, shutting the door to the kitchen.
"Right, ok, I'll get someone in to replace it. Did he seem alright about it?" Max asked, perching on the bar stool.
"At first he seemed suspicious, but we said the previous owners must have installed them and I think he believed us." Jess said, handing Max and Callum a tea.
"Cheers. So what did they install?" Max asked, sipping the hot liquid.
"Um, one camera out the front pointed at the street, and a burglar alarm for both the front and back doors." Jess explained.
"Before they found the camera, when you two came in here, Trudy got something out of her pocket and took your keys. We think she had a wax tin and imprinted your key on it, but we can't be sure because her back was to the camera." Max said.
"Right, and I told them what times we'd be out of the house." Callum added.
"So it's looking likely it'll happen over the next few days. They'll be watching on the camera when you both leave. They've got a copy of the key, and they can quickly disarm the burglar alarm, if it even works. You both need to leave as normal, and we can catch them in the act. Sound ok to you?" Max asked, finishing his tea.
"Sounds good. See you tomorrow." Jess said with a smile. Max left the house and Jess returned to the living room.
"That was a close call today." Callum said, sinking into the sofa.
"Tell me about it. I thought they were going to find us out." Jess said, letting out a breath.
"Never mind, they're none the wiser, and they'll be behind bars tomorrow." Callum said with a laugh, not realising that they were being watched by Trudy and Mitch's own hidden camera.