“Well if it isn’t Officer Buzzkill,” the boy behind the counter said under his breath when I walked to the counter.
I raised an eyebrow. “Staying out of trouble, Craig?” I asked, pulling my credit card from my pocket.
“It’s only trouble if I get caught,” Craig answered with a smile. I had arrested him about a month ago for underage drinking and driving. He thought I’d let him off easy with just a warning. Hah. I didn’t do that. And besides…it was the first time I got to cuff someone in months. Maybe he was only 0.01 over the legal limit. But dammit I wanted to take someone to the station…even though he had sobered up enough to be released as soon as he got there.
“And you will get caught. Again.”
Craig laughed. He was twenty. Couldn’t he wait a fucking year? It was more than getting in trouble; it was about his future. Kids didn’t realize how much a simple DUI charge could affect them years later. That shit comes back to haunt you. Trust me.
The one time I drank underage in college, I got caught. I was grounded for months. Dad still held it against me.
“You know we thought you were a stripper when you showed up,” Craig said, turning to put in my order. I didn’t have to give it to him; I always ordered the same thing. “You could be, you know. If you ever smiled. Officer Sexy is way better than Officer Buzzkill.”
“Watch it,” I said, extending my arm to give him a credit card. “Harassing an officer isn’t a charge you want on your record.”
Craig stifled a laugh and left to make my turkey on rye sandwich. I took it and hurried through the rain, eating in my car. I went the long way back to work, hoping to catch someone speeding or turning without using their signal.
Ugh.
My life. Fuck it. Every day was so boring.
Chapter 4
That Friday, I helped Misty pack up her house. Her husband’s interview went better than expected, and his soon-to-be boss’s sister was a real estate agent. She got them a good deal on a nice house.
So there we were, packing everything up and spending the last Friday night together before she moved. It was bittersweet. Of course I didn’t want her to go, but it was good for her and her family.
“Promise me,” she said, opening a box labeled “baby stuff.” “You’ll get out into the dating world soon. I know how hard the breakup with Ken was.”
I set an armful of brand new baby clothes in the box. And she knew how even more rigid I had become since then. That was a whole other conversation…one we’d had many times. “I will. Someday.”
“You’re still not ready?” she asked, arching an eyebrow.
“If I find the right person, I’ll be ready,” I told her. And I did want to date more. I wanted to find that person…but being single gave me the freedom to screw anyone I wanted to. Hah. Like I would use the freedom like that. I sighed. “You’re so lucky. You got married at twenty-two. Your search is over.”
Misty subconsciously rubbed her belly. “I do feel lucky. I hated dating. But hey, don’t get down. You’ll find someone.”
I pressed a smile. “I know I will. Eventually.”
She put more baby clothes into the box. I turned, going into another room to start taking things apart. We worked until midnight and made a lot of progress. I stayed the night, and then the next day to help Misty oversee the movers loading the heavy stuff into the moving truck.
*
I stopped by on my way to work Monday morning to give her a hug goodbye. I cried all the way to the police department. I dried my eyes and went in.
“You all right Ellie?” my brother asked me as he came out of Dad’s office. He was wearing a bulletproof vest. His detective badge hung around his neck. I looked at it enviously for a second before flicking my eyes up.
“Yeah. Fine.” I started to walk to my desk.
He grabbed my arm. “You don’t look fine.”
“Scott,” I said, shaking him off, “it’s nothing.”
“Don’t lie to me,” he said, giving me a concerned half smile.
“Misty moved to Germany. I’m fine. You probably have important things to do. Get to work.”
He tipped his head. “Sorry to hear that, sis. And I’m going home. Was working on a case all night.”
I didn’t have to ask how it went. The shimmer in his eyes let me know he had solved whatever he was working on. He always did. He was a damn good detective. I sighed. I could be that good too, I was sure of it. I just needed dear old dad to give me the chance.
I set my stuff down and straightened my holster. I was on traffic duty today. Directing traffic duty that is. And it was raining. What a great fucking day.