Present - Bailey

It was the weird month of October in southern California. For a fashionista, this was a trying time. Some days shined with the light of a thousand suns, requiring short skirts, tanks and hair done up off the neck to prevent unseemly sweating. Other days had me pulling on my Uggs over leggings and layering my tops so I could strip down a layer at a time as the fog may or may not lift and the sun may or may not shine brightly later in the afternoon.

It was on one of the cooler evenings when Esa called me to fill me in on the issues our girl Hessa was having. Yep, that's right, she had to call me as I'd moved out into my own apartment last month. Ivan had proposed to Esa, and they were planning a spring wedding. I figured it was time to give them their privacy and find space for myself before I became a permanent third wheel.

It was all a bit depressing, really. I felt like we were growing up and instead of playing house, we actually were adults keeping households together and pairing off to build families. Well, Esa, Brinley, and Hessa were, it seemed. I was still solidly single and pretending I was happy with it.

I don't know when the switch happened but sometime over the summer, I'd gone from happily single, flitting around from man to man, to feeling utterly deflated that I hadn't found 'the one'. Maybe it was Esa getting engaged. Maybe it was watching Brinley and Dean fall in love over the summer. Maybe it was currently watching Kai fall all over himself in front of Hessa and seeing her try to ignore it. All I knew was that I was feeling lonely, and no amount of surface level flirting would cure me.

Which brings me around to Jack. We'd been steadfast in our pact of ignoring each other, much to my disappointment. I'd lost my flirting buddy. I saw him here or there around town as we ran in similar circles, but never got more than a head nod from him. My heart would race, my palms would get sweaty, and my insides would clench in anticipation of something. And all I got was a goddamn head nod.

Any who, I've gotten off track here. Esa called me and told me Hessa was having problems with someone online publicly daring her to sing in public, which I knew was a no-go for her. Hell, she wouldn't even sing in front of the Beach Squad girls who were all just chomping at the bit to cheer her on and support her.

I decided that I'd use my online hacking skills for good, yet again. I threw on a scarf type thing, jammed my feet in my boots and off I went to Hessa's. I was just pulling onto her street when a squad car started coming down from the other end. The driver looked suspiciously like Jack.

My first thought was terror at being caught since my intentions at Hessa's were nefarious. I ducked down right as the car passed me, seeing it was in fact Jack, and not at all thinking a headless car driving down the road wouldn't be even more suspicious. Thankfully, when I lifted my head back up to check my rearview mirror, the squad car was turning like nothing had happened.

I gasped in horrified laughter, adrenaline making it seem far funnier than it was. That had been a close one. I parked outside Hessa's house and gave myself a moment. When I had my breathing back to normal, I headed to her front door.

A loud thump came from the other side of the door as I stepped up to it. I wrinkled my nose, confused as to what was happening. Then I heard a giggle and my jaw dropped. It sounded suspiciously like someone was getting busy up against the door. Seriously? I was surrounded by sex addicts!

Hey, I was all for the sexy times. And I didn't have a problem with voyeurism per se, but enough was enough. Here I was trying to do something nice for her, and I was made to feel like a third wheel again. I was done with that shit.

I rang the doorbell and then banged on the door with my fist. That ought to break up the lovefest. I bit my lip to keep the evil smile from my face.

Long moments passed, which was weird because they were right there. How hard is it to reach out and open the damn door? "You know I can hear you in there, right? Open up, bitches!" I called through the door.

It finally swung open, showing a red-faced Hessa and a smirking Kai. Yeah, I knew exactly what they were doing in there.

I swept into her place, telling Kai not to take offense to me calling him a bitch. Everyone was called a bitch in my world. In my defense, it was actually a term of endearment at this point. I pulled Hessa onto the couch with me and proceeded to lay out my offer.

"I have certain skills. Skills that can help you in your quest to find this person who dared you. I assume Jack hasn't found anything concrete yet?" I was smug, I admit. I knew Jack's computer geeks had to follow certain rules. They couldn't tunnel into anything illegally and then use that evidence in court. Their hands were tied.

And as much as I wanted my hands cuffed by Jack, my hands were most definitely not tied.

"Um no, he was just here and gave me everything they had, which wasn't much." Hessa slid some paperwork off the coffee table and handed it to me.

I flipped through the flimsy pages, confirming what I thought: Jack had diddly squat. I smirked harder, knowing she needed me and I needed her in order to one-up Jack. It was a beautiful relationship of mutual need.

But really, I was doing this to help Hessa. Period. Not to show up Jack. At all.

"So. The only question that remains is will you unleash my skills?" I smiled at both her and Kai, excited at the prospect.

"Okay, cut the cloak and dagger routine, Bailey. How exactly do you plan to help Hessa?" Kai jumped into the conversation, killing my impersonation of Liam Neeson in Taken.

I went for it and deepened my voice. "I will find you. And I will kill you."

They looked at me with wide eyes and dumbfounded expressions.

"Seriously? No one's seen that movie?" I sighed heavily, seeing my jokes were wasted on this crowd. I jumped up and explained clearly (and super boringly I might add) what I could do to help. "I am a damn good computer hacker. I can tunnel in and find out who this guy is. Give me the go-ahead and I'll send you what I find."

They finally got me, giving me consent to move forward, and letting me take pictures of the pages Jack had left. I cleared out, going home to start my hacking. It was exciting to be hacking for someone else for once. Maybe I could make a side business out of it. I'd need a kickass name though. Like Hacker Extraordinaire or Mistress of Hacking or Hacking for Good or...well, those all sucked. Hmm...I'd have to think on it.

I arrived back home and got in my pajamas to settle in for the night. Now that I had my own place, I could get back to wearing minimal clothing without fear of Ivan seeing me half naked. I had on a sheer, baby pink camisole with matching boy cut shorts that mostly hid my goods. Keyword: mostly.

I sat on the couch and started breaking through various firewalls on my laptop, knowing this search would take time, but no time like the present to get started. It was like a secret little thrill every time I got through another firewall. Like hitting the next level in Mario Kart when I was a kid. Addicting.

I startled, nearly upsetting my computer from my lap, when the doorbell rang. I closed the computer lid, covering any criminal activity and wracked my brain for who it could be. I hadn't invited anyone over, but I knew it could be one of my Beach Squad girls. We didn't bother texting to let one of us know you were coming over. Prior notice is for acquaintances, and with all the topics we'd covered in detail over glasses of wine, we were way past acquaintances in the Squad.

I walked to the door and peered through the peep hole.

I jumped back, my heart racing from just one quick, fish hole view of Jack standing on my doorstep.

"I can hear you in there, Bailey. Open up," Jack demanded through the door.

Damn! Karma worked quick these days.

My hand fluttered to my chest like some kind of Victorian schoolmarm, irritating me on principal alone. I didn't let anyone scare me.

"Sorry, Jack. I can't let you in. Maybe call me tomorrow so we can set up a better time instead of just stopping by uninvited." I was proud of the strength in my voice, knowing just what to say to piss him off.

"Bailey, I swear to God, open this damn door right now." He wasn't even shouting, yet the command in his voice was admirable. Few men could cause me to shake doing nothing more than deepening their voice.

I looked down at my outfit, realizing I wasn't fit for company in more ways than one.

"I really can't, Jack..." I sing-songed.

"Bailey. Do not make me break this door down." His voice sounded like his head was leaning against the door, just inches from me.

An insane giggle almost escaped as I readied myself to obey his command. This aughtta be good.

I whipped the door open, my other hand on my hip, giving him a full head-to-toe view of my body, barely covered in lingerie.

Listen, I'm not conceited. However, I do have a healthy self-confidence. I knew I was beautiful in a traditional sense. Years of people asking me why I didn't model helped clue me in to that fact. I just wasn't interested in that line of work. I preferred to show off my body in more intimate settings. Like this one.

I so wished I had a camera, but as it was, I'll never forget the look on Jack's face as it transformed from angry to astonished to highly aroused to desperate, and then back to angry. Like a full circle trip.

Jack

I'd seen Bailey's face before she ducked down in her car on Hessa's street. I don't know who she thought she was fooling. I knew her car and her beautiful face. What I wanted to know was why she was hiding from me and what she was doing at Hessa's house.

I admit that I was highly sensitive to everything Bailey did, but something was off. I was a detective for God's sake. I knew when someone was hiding something. And Bailey was definitely hiding something.

So I drove to her place and waited down the street for her to come home. She wasn't at Hessa's long enough for it to have been a social call. She was there with a purpose and I would find out what that was.

When she wouldn't open the door, I was irate. The woman was infuriating. She was sassy beyond all reason. It's like she purposely said and did things to make me angry. And like an idiot, I took the bait every time. I couldn't seem to help it.

And then she finally opened the door.

Words can't possibly describe all that went through my head at the vision before me. Bailey was gorgeous on any given day, but standing silhouetted in her doorway with one hand propped up on the door and the other on her hip, dressed in clothes that were more see-through than actual clothes, was a sight I'll never forget.

My gaze dropped to her toes and traveled all the way back up her body, memorizing every curve to keep me warm for the rest of my years. Unfortunately, my gaze snagged on her breasts, where her nipples were rock hard and showing through her tank top. It was like everything I'd pictured for months was now revealed and it far surpassed anything my imagination could have come up with.

I tried to be a gentleman and not look my fill, but shit. I was a living, breathing male presented with female perfection. I had to look.

And then I got angry again. What the hell was she doing opening the door wearing that? I don't care who was on the other side, or what I might have said, a woman should not be opening her door wearing that.

I quickly took two steps in and slammed the door shut behind me, afraid half her neighborhood could see her in all her glory.

She smiled at me and shrugged. "You said I had to open the door."

I clenched my jaw, trying to calm myself before I spoke. I took another step toward her, now just inches from touching all that perfect skin on display.

Her eyes widened and she took a step back. I stepped forward, she stepped back again.

We continued this dance until we were in her living room. I finally spoke, hoping she understood the level of restraint that I was showing.

"Put on some clothes."

She grimaced and cocked her head to the side, hand back on her hip. "Excuse me? You come to my home uninvited, demanding I open my door, and then you think you can tell me what to do?"

I sighed and dropped my head, pinching the bridge of my nose. She had a point. "Bailey. Would you please go put some clothes on so I can concentrate enough to have a conversation with you?" I didn't bother looking up, knowing if I saw her in that get-up for one more second, I'd be throwing her down on her couch and ripping that pathetic material off her body.

She huffed loudly, then conceded. "Since you asked nicely..."

From my position, I saw her feet move toward a doorway, presumably to get clothes. I allowed myself to peek, instantly regretting it when I saw the backside of those shorts. They were even more sheer in the back, giving me an eyeful of exactly what junk she had in her trunk, as the young kids would say.

My fingers literally itched, wanting to reach out and squeeze her flesh. After adjusting the front of my jeans, I made a fist to keep my hands occupied. I needed a distraction, or she'd know exactly how much I wanted her. I looked around her living room, deciding to spy to pass the time before she came back in the room. As a detective that was how I spent my idle time: observing.

My eyes focused on her laptop, placed on the coffee table in front of the couch. It was closed, blocking any information I could have gained from it. The rest of the room was tidy, with little furniture. Two boxes were in the corner which made sense as I knew she'd only moved in about a month ago.

Two identical jackets were stacked on top of the boxes. I wandered over to them, curious as to why she had two of them, brand new and exactly alike.

"Do you mind, Detective?"

I spun around slowly, seeing Bailey back in the doorway with that black and red silk robe on. That was hardly better than what she was wearing before but at least I couldn't trace the outline of her nipples this time or see the small scar high on her left thigh.

"You know you can just wash these when they get dirty and not have to buy two of them." I hitched a thumb over my shoulder to the jackets behind me.

She quirked an eyebrow, a small smile playing on her face. "Thank you for the laundry advice. I really appreciate it."

I walked over to her, watching her intently, getting a thrill out of how fearless she was. So much attitude; in the way she walked, the way she held her body, even in the expressions on her gorgeous face. I knew I could be intimidating, and she held her own around me, no problem.

"Your mouth will get you in trouble one of these days, Bailey," I murmured to her when I was right in front of her, leaning toward her, our bodies only a few short inches apart.

Her wicked smile nearly brought me to my knees. "I'm hoping so."

Fuck this.

I was done ignoring her. I just needed to taste her. Wipe that damn grin off her face. Remind her who held the power here.

I reached out and slammed her against me in one rough yank. Before she could open that mouth and protest, I leaned down and claimed it with my lips.