“Not this time.”
“Say thank you for what?”
He didn’t even realize what he’d done, did he? That was so typical of him. When it came to complexity, it only involved him. The rest of the world he seemed to view in terms of black and white. She wondered which side he placed her on.
“You stayed with me at the hospital, when I knew you would have rather hit the street again.” Because she’d asked him to, he had stayed even while the emergency room physician had removed the bullet fragment from her side and had stitched her up. She’d held his hand throughout the whole ordeal, and at times she could feel the probing scalpel, feel the needle despite the injections she’d been given to mute the pain. Hawk had never once given any indication that she’d channeled the pain and squeezed his hand far too hard.
Hawk dismissed her gratitude as unnecessary. “You had a vise lock on my hand. I figured if I made any sudden moves, you would have ripped out my shoulder.”
“Not hardly.”
Something inside of her wanted to kiss him again. Even as the last effects of the painkiller were fading. But because there was no medication to blame it on, she banked the urge down.
It took her a moment to realize that the car had stopped moving.
“We’re here,” Hawk told her when she made no move to unbuckle her belt and open the door. Why wasn’t she getting out? Was she weak? He knew she should have stayed in the hospital overnight for observation. The woman didn’t have the sense of a three-minute-old butterfly.
She took a breath, bracing herself, hoping she wouldn’t embarrass herself when she tried to get out. “Yeah, we are.”
He needed to get back. He was primary on this investigation and that meant not letting the lead fall into a subordinate’s hands.
But he never liked leaving anything half done. That included shepherding a wounded partner home. “You want me to come inside with you?”
She was embarrassing herself and she hadn’t even taken a step out of the car yet. She didn’t like appearing like a weakling. “No, I’ll be all right.” She looked at him significantly. “You’ve done enough penance for one day.”
“I wouldn’t exactly call it penance,” he muttered, then allowed a slight smile to take possession of his mouth when she looked at him in abject surprise. “But close.”
He watched her begin to unbuckle her seat belt, then saw the way she winced. Her wound had to be hurting her like hell. The painkiller must be wearing off by now.
“That’s going to be tender for a while,” he toldher. Moving her hands out of the way, Hawk un-buckled her seat belt for her.
As his hands brushed against hers, her eyes met his. “What would you know about tender?”
It was a loaded question and she knew it, but maybe because, for a fleeting second, she’d come face-to-face with her own mortality, she was feeling a little more reckless today than was her norm.
“I’ve caught a couple of bullets,” he answered.
She knew about that, that he’d caught one to the shoulder in his rookie year and another just above his heart a couple of years ago. In both cases, he’d been lucky. Nothing vital had been injured.
But that wasn’t what she meant. “I wasn’t talking about body pain.”
The late-afternoon March sun filled the interior of the Crown Victoria, making it warmer than the temperature right outside the windows. Sunbeams got tangled in her hair.
Hawk looked at her for a long moment. Something tightened in the middle of his gut, fueled by the sharp urge that kept insistently reappearing each time he banked it down.
He pushed it away again.
They were partners and while he didn’t exactly relish their partnership, he had to admit Cavanaugh was a good cop—good at her job and honest. That counted for a lot. He didn’t really like having to work with anyone, but he supposed she was better than most.
Kissing her, making the first move himself thistime, would place everything
“Say thank you for what?”
He didn’t even realize what he’d done, did he? That was so typical of him. When it came to complexity, it only involved him. The rest of the world he seemed to view in terms of black and white. She wondered which side he placed her on.
“You stayed with me at the hospital, when I knew you would have rather hit the street again.” Because she’d asked him to, he had stayed even while the emergency room physician had removed the bullet fragment from her side and had stitched her up. She’d held his hand throughout the whole ordeal, and at times she could feel the probing scalpel, feel the needle despite the injections she’d been given to mute the pain. Hawk had never once given any indication that she’d channeled the pain and squeezed his hand far too hard.
Hawk dismissed her gratitude as unnecessary. “You had a vise lock on my hand. I figured if I made any sudden moves, you would have ripped out my shoulder.”
“Not hardly.”
Something inside of her wanted to kiss him again. Even as the last effects of the painkiller were fading. But because there was no medication to blame it on, she banked the urge down.
It took her a moment to realize that the car had stopped moving.
“We’re here,” Hawk told her when she made no move to unbuckle her belt and open the door. Why wasn’t she getting out? Was she weak? He knew she should have stayed in the hospital overnight for observation. The woman didn’t have the sense of a three-minute-old butterfly.
She took a breath, bracing herself, hoping she wouldn’t embarrass herself when she tried to get out. “Yeah, we are.”
He needed to get back. He was primary on this investigation and that meant not letting the lead fall into a subordinate’s hands.
But he never liked leaving anything half done. That included shepherding a wounded partner home. “You want me to come inside with you?”
She was embarrassing herself and she hadn’t even taken a step out of the car yet. She didn’t like appearing like a weakling. “No, I’ll be all right.” She looked at him significantly. “You’ve done enough penance for one day.”
“I wouldn’t exactly call it penance,” he muttered, then allowed a slight smile to take possession of his mouth when she looked at him in abject surprise. “But close.”
He watched her begin to unbuckle her seat belt, then saw the way she winced. Her wound had to be hurting her like hell. The painkiller must be wearing off by now.
“That’s going to be tender for a while,” he toldher. Moving her hands out of the way, Hawk un-buckled her seat belt for her.
As his hands brushed against hers, her eyes met his. “What would you know about tender?”
It was a loaded question and she knew it, but maybe because, for a fleeting second, she’d come face-to-face with her own mortality, she was feeling a little more reckless today than was her norm.
“I’ve caught a couple of bullets,” he answered.
She knew about that, that he’d caught one to the shoulder in his rookie year and another just above his heart a couple of years ago. In both cases, he’d been lucky. Nothing vital had been injured.
But that wasn’t what she meant. “I wasn’t talking about body pain.”
The late-afternoon March sun filled the interior of the Crown Victoria, making it warmer than the temperature right outside the windows. Sunbeams got tangled in her hair.
Hawk looked at her for a long moment. Something tightened in the middle of his gut, fueled by the sharp urge that kept insistently reappearing each time he banked it down.
He pushed it away again.
They were partners and while he didn’t exactly relish their partnership, he had to admit Cavanaugh was a good cop—good at her job and honest. That counted for a lot. He didn’t really like having to work with anyone, but he supposed she was better than most.
Kissing her, making the first move himself thistime, would place everything
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