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CHAPTER TWO
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HICKS
The only other female officer in the room besides me was a tall, forty-ish black woman, Shawna White. She made a beeline for me the moment the morning session ended. Shawna was the horniest woman I’d ever met. I knew exactly what was on her mind. I’d seen her checking out my new partner during the briefing.
Falco and I had already decided to keep our previous relationship between just us and to my knowledge, no one knew that he and I had once been an item.
“Woo hoo,” Shawna called out lowly to me. “Hot damn. You scored this time girl. That boy is fine. Look at those shoulders and arms. His biceps look like they are going to split right out of that uniform. Can’t you just picture yourself running your fingers through all that brown hair while he is dining at the ‘Y?’”
My face turned red as I offered a nervous chuckle.
“You are incorrigible,” I managed to say.
“Hot . . . damn, he is to die for.”
“Give it a rest, Shawna,” I said. “Yeah, he’s hot, but I’ve been dating Todd for over three months now. Things are good. Besides, I’ve been there and done that in the past with a partner or two. It's not worth it, let me tell you.”
“Oh, but it would be worth it with him,” she spouted back. “Check out those tight blue pants. You know damn well that man is packing heat. I’ll bet his meat is the size of your forearm, baby.”
Hicks chuckled, “You’re a piece of work, you know that? It's not going to happen."
“What’s the big deal?” Shawna said. “He’s single. You’re single . . .”
“. . . and in a committed relationship,” Hicks added.
“Oh, please, you don’t owe Todd jack shit, girl,” she said, dismissively. “Besides, I’ve known Todd longer than you. That man can’t possibly be doing any damage in the bedroom.”
“Fuck off. You don’t know a damn thing.”
“Tell me I’m wrong, then,” she insisted. “Tell me Todd doesn’t pull it out of the middle of his silk pajamas once a week and give it to you missionary style for a minute and a half before he starts snoring.”
I didn’t answer.
She chuckled as if my silence made her answer right. In this case, of course, she was.
“We don’t live together . . . not yet,” I told her.
“Well, it you aren’t gonna tap into that gorgeous hunk of man, do you mind if I take a run at him?”
“Suit yourself,” I whispered. “Just shut up. He’s coming this way.”
Falco was approaching me with a small smile. I couldn’t help but size the guy up a bit on his approach. Shawna was right. He was certainly hot—damn hot. He was hot when I knew him in the academy but now he was more mature looking, a man, a real man, a real hot man. Perhaps six-feet-two with a golden complexion and brown hair and big dark eyes. He had obviously shaved earlier in the morning but she could see remnants of a dark stubble. His uniform looked a tad too small, but it accentuated broad shoulders, thick arms and tight waist. I was not about to complain.
“I haven’t met you yet,” Shawna jumped in as he approached. “I’m Shawna White.”
“John Falco,” he said, extending his hand to her. “Everyone calls me Falco.”
“Well, you can call me ‘tonight’ if you want,” she said, cackling in her typical loud laugh. She brushed her hand across his arm as she laughed.
Falco chuckled, “Well I just might do that. I’m new to town. Franklin is not that far away but my job kept me pretty busy, so I never made it to Nashville all that much. I don’t know many people here.”
“Oh, trust me, you’re gonna hit it off just fine here,” Shawna replied. “Did you bring your girlfriend to town with you.”
I felt myself turning red, hoping he wouldn’t notice. I wanted to kill Shawna or at least stuff a sock in her mouth.
Falco smiled but froze just a little at the forwardness of the question. He seemed to recover quickly, “No . . . uh, no girlfriend.”
Shawna raised her eyebrows and smiled broadly. She looked at me. I couldn’t help it. I could feel my face turning red.
“Ah ha,” she said. “Well, now isn’t that interesting.”
“Shawna, I think your partner is waiting for you,” I said.
“Oh, you mean needle-dick?” she asked. “He can wait.”
“Don’t you need to head out, now?” I insisted.
She gave me a look that let me know my face was indeed turning red, “Yeah, I’ll leave you two to it. You both be good now. Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.”
Falco smiled at Shawna, “I get the feeling there is nothing you wouldn’t do.”
Shawna cackled again, “You know, you’re right about that. Alright, now, have a good day, Falco. See you later, Hicks.”
“Yeah,” I replied, allowing some of the exasperation I was feeling to filter through.
Shawna walked away, swinging her ample ass back and forth trying to draw Falco’s attention. I shook my head, wanting nothing more than to put my foot up that ass at the moment.
I turned back to Falco, feeling my face beginning to return to normal.
“Well . . . shall we?”
“Let’s hit it,” he said.
“I’m driving,” I told him.