Chapter Seven
Jay's back was stiff, being in the hard waiting room chairs. He'd been sitting there for hours, holding Rachel, waiting on word about Blake. She'd fought so hard to keep him alive until they got him to the ER. But that didn't surprise him because she'd done the same thing for his sister and her best friend, Grace. That's what she did for the people she loved. He felt like such an ass for not letting her say it. The fact was he did love her and he couldn't live without her. When Rachel nearly got herself killed, his heart stopped beating. He made a plea with God to be the man she needed, if he would let her be alive. Now wasn't the time to have this conversation with her, but he would soon.
Mike called him earlier with an update on the case. The shooter was still at large, but they were getting closer. The DNA results from the cigarette butt he found at the first shooting would be back in less than twenty-four hours, now. The lab found pieces of the same type of detonator at each explosion and they had a lead on where it was purchased. The captain had pulled in additional resources, including the TBI, Tennessee Bureau of Instigation, for help. Jay was confident they would catch the bastard soon. But until then, Rachel was not going to be out of sight. The officer and firefighter who were shot were going to be fine, and he was grateful.
"Jay."
"Yeah, baby?"
"He has to be okay."
The look in her eyes was killing him. "I know, baby." He pulled her closer and kissed the top of her head.
"Besides you and Gracie, he's all I have. I should call his parents and his sister."
"The chief called them already, babe. They're getting a flight out, but it will be tomorrow."
She sounded so lost and all he wanted to do was make it better. Rachel didn't have any family, to speak of. Her mom died of cancer when she was ten-years-old and she never knew her father. She was raised by her grandmother, who died when she was twenty-one. She loved her grandmother and was good to her. When Grace was in the hospital, he and Rachel would sit and talk for hours. She told him about going to medical school and dropping out to be a paramedic. She felt like it was her calling, just like being a cop was Jay's.
He heard the door to the waiting room open, and the surgeon walked in. Rachel stood and held his hand as the doctor approached them both.
"Is he okay?"
"The bullet did extensive damage to his neck and both his external and internal carotid artery. We were able to repair them both and he is in recovery. However, he did lose a lot of blood and the oxygen was cut off from his brain for a period of time. The next twenty-four hours are critical."
"Can I see him, Doc?" Rachel asked as she squeezed Jay's hand.
"He needs his rest, right now, but I can let you see him for just a minute."
"I'll be right here when you get back," Jay assured her.
***
Jay parked in front of his apartment and went to the passenger side and opened the door. Rachel hadn't said a word since leaving the hospital. It had taken him almost an hour to convince her she needed rest. He promised her he would have her back at the hospital, first thing in the morning. He reached across her lap and unbuckled her seatbelt. He brought her to his place so she could rest and, besides, he lived closer to the hospital. He took her hand and guided her through his front door. She paused, looking at him, so lost. He ushered her to the leather couch in his living room and had her sit.
He covered her shoulders with a blanket and kissed the top of her head. He went to the bathroom, ran a warm bath, and put his gun in the safe. He walked back in the living room and removed her shoes and picked her up. She immediately put her arms around him and nuzzled her chin under his neck. He could have stood there and held her like that forever. He took her to the bathroom and stood her by the tub.
"Hey baby, get in the tub and have a soak, and I'll fix you something to eat."
As much as he wanted to stay with her, he knew all she needed now was comfort. He turned to leave and give her some privacy to undress, when she grabbed his arm.
"Don't go," she whispered to him.
He put her on the bathroom counter and, one by one, removed her boots and socks. Then came her pants, shirt and vest, leaving her in only her panties and bra. He reached behind her and undid the snap on her bra and slid her panties down her legs. She was the most beautiful woman he'd ever laid eyes on. He helped her into the tub and got a sponge. The only shampoo he had was his, but that would do. He washed her black locks first, carefully leaning her head back to rinse it. He found some vanilla body wash his sister left and squeezed it on the sponge.
Jay began washing her back then moved to her legs. He ran the sponge over each of her perfect breasts. They were not too big and she had the prettiest brown nipples he'd ever seen. They were raised into perfect pointed peaks. He meant to only offer her comfort but he was hard as a rock. He stayed that way around her, though. He moved lower to her stomach, but paused just shy of the juncture of her thighs. Rachel placed her hand over his and moved it between her now open legs. He glided his fingers over her sweet spot and into her wet heat.
She pulled his mouth to hers and kissed him deeply. He thrust his tongue in her mouth to mimic the rhythm of his fingers. She was already on edge so it didn't take him long to work her into an orgasm. She reached for him, but he pulled back.
"Baby, that was for you. I wanted you to feel better," he whispered as he kissed her again.
The water was cooling off so he helped her out of the tub and took care drying her off. He stood behind her and combed her hair and then gave her one of his t-shirts to wear. He led her to his bed and turned to go so she could rest, when she grabbed his hand again.
"Stay with me, Jay. I need you."
He stood there as she stood up before him. She pulled his shirt over his head and made short work of hers. Rachel began placing small kisses on his chest. She ran her fingers over each of his abs and undid the snap of his jeans. She came up on tiptoes and licked his lower lip. He opened his mouth and she thrust her tongue inside. He knew he should stop; she had been through too much, tonight. But he was far too gone to stop now. She felt so right here with him. Her bare breasts pressed into his chest. He was so hard, he was nearly bursting out of his jeans. He slid his fingers over hers and unzipped his pants.
She wrapped her hands around his hard length and he thought he would explode. He gently pushed her on the bed and stood between her thighs. He guided himself to her entrance and made sure she was ready for him. He hesitated, wanting to make sure this was what she wanted.
"You sure, baby?"
"Don't make me wait any longer, Jay."
He didn't. He thrust into her so deep, he nearly lost his mind. He withdrew and thrust again. She wrapped her legs around him and held on. Her sex began to squeeze around him and he knew her orgasm was coming. He laced his hands with hers on the bed as he came over her.
"Open your eyes and look at me, Rachel."
She did, and she screamed as her orgasm rushed through her. Jay followed right behind her. He collapsed on top of her as they both shuddered. With their hands still intertwined, Jay kissed her lips gently.
"Rachel, will you say it now?" he asked her, as vulnerable as he'd ever been in his life.
"I love you, Jay," she said as tears began falling from her eyes.
"I love you, too, Rachel."
He pulled the covers over them and held her as she slept.
Jay eased out of bed and wrapped the covers around Rachel. He hated to leave the heat of her warm body, but work called. He pulled on his boxers and treaded lightly to the kitchen. He put on a pot of coffee and fired up his laptop. He began going through the files Mike sent to him. Out of the twenty-seven possible suspects, they had narrowed it down to eight. Jay was able to rule out two more, but he still had six. Two females and four males. According to the TBI profiler, the suspect was most likely a male in his late thirties-early forties who served in the military. If he factored that in, he could narrow it down to two people.
Raymond Carson was a thirty-nine-year-old male who had lost his wife in the accident and his son was left in a coma. Randy Pope was a forty-three-year-old male who'd lost his brother and nephew. Both of these men had served in the army. He put in a request to have their military records sent over. He called Mike and filled him in on what he'd discovered. They agreed to talk in the morning, which was in a couple of hours, and fill in the rest of the team. The one thing that kept nagging at Jay was, why now? It had been over a year since the accident in the park happened. One thing he did know is that they had to find this guy and get him behind bars, now.