Slice of Life
8 p.m.
Suburban Dallas
Karina Brighton looked out over the small suburban neighborhood, her eyes carefully watching for any movement. She had to be patient, still. The windows on her van were tinted and she’d parked out of the way, but the smart criminal might be able to see a silhouette moving and decide to take the night off. She did not want that to happen.
This was a favor, not a job anymore. Her job was running a community outreach, but she still remembered how to take down a bad guy or two.
But damn it was way more comfy to do it in a minivan than her old two-seater. She did not care that the guys from MT made fun of her. After Ross had been born, she’d needed a new set of wheels and this minivan had been the safest bet. She’d been a little hesitant at first. After all, it wasn’t like Derek was giving up his muscle car so their son could be safe. Mom’s sacrifice.
Yeah, Mom’s sacrifice was pretty sweet when it came to being comfy sitting for hours.
She had an audiobook to listen to. And she had snacks. No stakeout was complete without snacks.
Where had she put the Cheetos?
Karina nearly screamed when the passenger door came open and a dark figure started to slide inside.
“Hey, babe. Thought you could use some dinner.”
She dragged air into her lungs as she looked at her husband. “You should be very happy I didn’t shoot you, Derek.”
Her hubby. Even after years of marriage and a kid between them, she still looked at that man and wondered how she’d managed to catch a Greek god in her trap. DPD Lieutenant Derek Brighton had been the Dom of her dreams, but he’d exceeded all expectations as a husband and a father.
“Why would you shoot the man bringing you delicious food?” He smiled at her as he settled in. “Look. I went to Top. Though it wasn’t on the dinner menu, I convinced Sean to make a couple of burritos. Burrito love. You know you want them.”
That heavenly smell hit her and so did a few questions. “Where’s our son?”
Derek started to unpack the bag he’d brought. “With my mom.”
She frowned his way. “Derek, why are you here? I told you I could handle this. If this is some bullshit about how you’re worried about me being alone…”
He held up a hand. “This is some bullshit about me wanting to spend time with my wife. Between that weird case with the body modification dudes and prepping for the review that’s coming up, I’ve been the problem and I know that.”
Her heart softened immediately and she reached out, brushing her hand over the scruff of his beard. It was always there at this time of night, that sweet scruff. He would get rid of it in the morning and be back to perfection, but she kind of liked him like this. “You are not the problem. You have a job and it requires your attention. I know that, babe. I don’t blame you. I’m the one who let an old friend talk me into a stakeout on what could have been our first date night in months.”
His lips curled up. “So we have date night here.”
“It could get boring.”
He shook his head. “Nothing’s boring with you.”
Oh, she could show him.
9 p.m.
“Why do all the vampires talk like rappers?” Derek asked. “They are vampires, right? Also what’s up with calling dudes ‘males’ and chicks ‘females’? It’s odd. And how does the guy with the weird name turn into a T-Rex? Wait. They all have weird names. I need to be more specific.”
She paused the audiobook that had been playing through the van. She’d found she could be far more focused on the task in front of her if she was listening and not talking, but Derek obviously wasn’t as in love with J.R. Ward as she was. “They have Brotherhood names. And they’re a separate society from ours. They don’t sound like millennial douchebags.”
Derek took a drag off the iced tea in his hand. “Sorry, baby. I guess it’s taking me back to that case. Damn I was glad to turn that over to the Rangers. They handle the weird woo-woo shit. You know, I’m actually surprised the press didn’t get hold of those killings.”
No more audiobook for her. The Brothers would have to wait as she had a much needier male in the car with her. It had been silly to think he could enjoy it when he’d come here to spend time with her. “I think the Rangers are good at keeping the press out.”
Derek shifted, glancing out over the darkened street. “You can turn it back on. I’ll just listen. Promise.”
“Or you could tell me why you’re really here, babe.”
“I told you. I wanted to spend time with you.”
“In a minivan. Listening to paranormal romance and waiting to see if maybe, just maybe someone shows up at the Linkman house tonight?”
He fell silent. “You’re here. I thought I should be here, too.”
Something was stirring in her husband, but he wouldn’t tell her until he was ready. She flipped the button that turned on the radio and quickly found something that might keep her husband’s interest. There was a game on. Naturally. There was always some kind of sport taking place in DFW.
His eyes lit up. “The Rangers. Awesome.”
Not the ones who had taken over his case. The other Rangers. The ones whose games sometimes took so long she wondered if she was in purgatory.
Well, at least she could focus on the street.
9:48 p.m.
“You want some more? Sean packed a whole thermos,” Derek pointed out.
“Nope,” she replied. “Rule number one of the stakeout is thou shalt not overfill one’s bladder. Not unless one is wearing adult diapers.”
He frowned her way even as he poured some more tea into his travel mug. “Adult diapers?”
It wasn’t so surprising. “I once had to wait almost fourteen hours to catch a bond runner. He was worth ten k, so there was no way I was letting his ass go. What, you never did your time in a car?”
“We took regular shifts,” he replied.
“Princess problems, babe. And if you keep drinking that tea, you’re going to have more problems.”
He shook his head. “Nah, my bladder’s like an iron drum. It can handle a lot.”
10:02 p.m.
“You’re sure it’s the only one available?” Derek asked, sliding out of his seat.
“It’s one block that way, babe.” She pointed toward the convenience store she’d noted on her way in.
Derek sighed. “Aren’t we close to Big Tag and Charlotte’s?”
They were, but it was an even longer walk. “Three blocks that way. And I heard they were out for the evening.”
His head hung. “Damn it.”
Well, she’d told him.
11:38 p.m.
“Are you serious?” She stared at Derek like he’d lost his damn mind.
“I’m just saying that buying an RV could change our lives. Think about it, gorgeous. We could be sitting in our own RV staking this place out,” he continued. “We would have our own bathroom.”
“I told you not to drink the whole iced tea.” He’d been a pampered princess of a police officer for years. He seemed to have forgotten how low rent actual detective work could be.
“Well, it wouldn’t have mattered if we had an RV,” he pointed out. “We could drink all the tea we liked and not have to risk flesh eating bacteria just to relieve our bladders.”
He was such a germaphobe. “I’ve used the bathroom in that convenience store. It wasn’t that bad.”
He pointed her way. “You’ve used the women’s room. Men’s rooms are completely different animals. Men’s rooms are disgusting places where drunk assholes revisit their toddler years and try to paint the walls. You have no idea how hard it is to deal with men’s rooms.”
“Well, we’re not spending a hundred grand so you can drive around with your own personal porta-potty,” she argued back.
“But that’s the whole point. It’s not a porta-potty. It’s a state-of-the-art bathroom. I found one with a top-of-the-line bidet included. Think about that. Turn that water to a nice icy cold and suddenly anal has a whole new meaning.”
She threw back her head and laughed because he was insane. Although sometimes… “Derek, I think you’re forgetting the purpose of a stakeout. It’s to blend in. The minivan blends. Your six-figure moving monstrosity of a vehicle would not blend. Not in any way.”
He sat back. “I don’t know. I just thought if you were getting back into this stuff, maybe we could find a way for us all to be involved.”
Was that what he was worried about? She turned in her seat. It looked like the stakeout was a bust anyway. It was almost midnight, and all the incidents up to this point had happened before midnight. “Babe, I’m not reopening the store, so to speak. This is a one-time gig for a friend.”
“But I think you miss it.”
“You think I miss the long hours and dealing with criminals? The fancy clothes? Wait. I didn’t wear those because I often had to kick some ass. Sometimes got my ass kicked, too. Don’t miss that either.”
He leaned over, his hand sliding into place, fingers locking. “I don’t ever want you to miss out on something you love, Karina.”
Relief flooded her system. This she could handle. “I love my work, Derek. I thought it might be fun to revisit my old days, but honestly even in the minivan, stakeouts suck. I’d forgotten how shitty it is to have to sit in one place waiting for some asshat to finally remember he needed to do a crime. We could have been at home eating burritos and watching TV all snuggled up and happy. I kind of hate this guy now.”
“I do, too. I hate all of this,” he replied with a smile. “I hated it when I was a beat cop and a detective. I’m too old for this shit.”
She leaned over. They’d both been trying to prove how they could have a kid and still be themselves, but the truth was they were different and it was totally okay. “I’m too old for this shit, too. I don’t want to eat chips and drink stale coffee. I want my totally environmentally craptastic single cup maker, and I want to actually eat at Top in real life adult clothes and everything. And one day, when we can afford it, we’re getting an RV with a bidet.”
“God, I love you so much.” He leaned over and kissed her.
Reminding her that they hadn’t had sex in a while. Heat flashed through her and she no longer cared about a favor for a friend. It was ridiculous and honestly, she knew Teddy pretty well and he likely deserved it.
Derek’s hands moved to her hair and he sank his fingers in. He dominated her mouth and the world fell away.
“Come here, gorgeous. I need you so fucking bad,” he whispered against her lips. “I know we’ve both been busy, but I couldn’t let another night go by without trying to get inside you.”
Yes, that sounded like the best idea she’d heard in forever. Unfortunately, she wasn’t sure how they were going to work that…
This was a beautiful, pimped-out mom van, and that meant it was fully functional when it came to reconfiguring the seats. She reached down and let the driver’s side fold out as low as it would go. She’d stored the third row because she’d had to restock the center with water and sodas. It was completely empty and as nicely spacious as the dude who’d sold it to them had promised.
It was easy to slide herself off the driver’s seat, past Ross’s car seat, and into the nice flat space where the third row normally went.
“Oh, I take back everything I said about this car. It’s sexy as fuck,” Derek said, lowering his seat so he could slide into the back, too. “Although I should point out that our RV would have a bed.”
“Hush, you overly luxurious bastard, and get back here and fuck me.” She toed out of her sneakers and shoved her yoga pants and undies off her hips.
Derek was already working the fly of his slacks, freeing his cock, though he left everything else on. He fell on top of her, spreading her legs wide.
Who said they were old? They were going at it like two teenagers in a ridiculously expensive, technologically advanced minivan. Okay, so with age came some benefits. She would take them.
Derek kissed her again, his tongue invading. This was what she’d needed. For weeks she’d been restless and when this chance had come up, she’d taken it. Somewhere in the back of her brain she’d thought it would be cool to visit the old Karina, the one who was more concerned with kicking ass than cleaning her baby’s butt. The Karina who had worn combat boots and listened to Nirvana and was one of the guys. The one who would never have had sex with her husband in the back of a minivan.
Her old self had no idea what comfort meant. It was warm, fuzzy socks and baby snuggles and a minivan with heated and cooled seats and a backseat meant for fucking.
She wrapped her arms around him as his cock slid inside.
“Oh, god, you feel so good, gorgeous. So fucking good.” He whispered the words against her mouth. “How can I miss you every single time we’re apart? It’s been years and I still hate it when you’re not in a room with me.”
“I love you, Derek Brighton.” There was nowhere she would rather be. “Why don’t we make another baby?”
He flexed inside her. “But you’re on the pill.”
“So we practice for a while,” she replied. But she wanted more babies out of that man. He made them right.
Her whole body fluttered as he pulled out and thrust back in.
“Practice does make perfect,” he said and settled in.
Derek fucked her hard, the van moving in time to their lovemaking. Yeah, they probably weren’t inconspicuous now, but she was way past caring. She needed this. She needed her husband’s cock diving deep inside her because he couldn’t stand another second they weren’t connected.
“I am motherfucking Emmitt Smith!” someone yelled.
Was there a Cowboys game on?
It didn’t matter. All that mattered was the fact that her husband managed to hit the perfect spot and she was the one biting back a scream. The orgasm overwhelmed her, sending her wave after wave of pleasure. Derek stiffened above her and she watched his handsome face contort with his release. He pressed in one last time and then rolled off her, falling to his back.
“Was someone screaming about Emmitt Smith?” He laughed. “This is a weird neighborhood. No wonder Big Tag likes it here.”
She liked it here, too. Her body pulsed with the aftereffects, but she managed to get to her knees anyway. That masculine voice had sounded weirdly familiar. She glanced through the back window.
Son of a bitch.
“Gotcha, you little bastard,” she said, seeing the punk in the yard she’d been watching over. She was fairly certain he hadn’t been the one screaming about running backs, but that didn’t matter. She was going to have her cake and catch a little fucker, too.
Derek pushed the button that released the back door of the van. Karina dove for her pants. “Jeez, baby. Hello, half naked.”
He shook his head as he buttoned his slacks. “No time, gorgeous. We’ve got a perp to catch.”
Yes, her perp. Damn man. It was so unfair. Woman had to get totally out of her pants, but all the man had to do was slip ’em down. She cursed her pants as she struggled back into them.
“Hey, you, stop! DPD!”
Karina rolled out and caught sight of their perp. He was standing in the middle of the yard, a roll of toilet paper in each hand. “You Johnny Kellerman?”
Johnny Kellerman, her number one suspect. Fourteen years old. Recently fired from his job mowing Teddy Linkman’s yard when he found a service that would do it cheaper. Little Johnny had found his revenge by ruthlessly TP-ing the Linkman yard on a weekly basis.
“Drop the toilet paper,” Derek said in his best cop voice.
“I think he needs to use the TP, babe. You made the kid pee himself.”
The lights inside the house came on and then Karina found herself playing the boy’s advocate.
Forty-five minutes later, they started back toward the minivan, Derek’s arm around Karina’s shoulders. There had been a whole lot of yelling at first, but she’d managed to work something out that everyone was satisfied with.
“You’re pretty good at that, you know,” he said with a grin.
“The negotiation thing? I do it every day.” She looked up at him. His hair was still mussed from earlier and she loved it when he was just a little messy. “It’s part of my new job and I enjoy the hell out of it. I don’t miss the private eye stuff.”
Not when she could do so much good by being the one at-risk kids came to when they needed help. Johnny was going to provide the Linkman household with free pool cleaning for a month, and if it worked out, he would get hired again. With the promise of no more yard art.
It was a good compromise.
It was a damn good life.
Derek pulled the keys he’d pocketed earlier and pushed the button. Instead of the doors unlocking, the back of the van swung open. “So, Mom has Ross until tomorrow. What do you say we go for round two?”
She hopped into their van. The world could wait a few hours more.