Page 12 of Her Secret Wish

Killian didn’t even look up from filling out his paperwork, so he missed the skeptical look Dean sent him. Then he did jerk his head up. “Hey, there’s a place in Arvada that sends those edible arrangements. I bet she likes cookies or fruit.”

Dean thought about it for a minute. “That may not be so bad.”

He found the place online and placed an order for a mixed arrangement of brownies and cookies.

Killian grinned at him as he pushed away from the desk, paperwork in hand. He smacked Dean on the shoulder. “Hopefully she won’t think you’re criticizing her weight.”

Dean looked up at him sharply. “No way. She wouldn’t, would she?”

Killian shrugged his heavy shoulders. “You never know with women. They’re strange creatures. I’ve been married eighteen years and I still haven’t figured my wife out. When she starts yelling, I just apologize. Then I get her flowers.”

Dean gave his buddy a look. His wife Joyce was one of the most pleasant people he’d ever met. He doubted she’d ever lifted her voice to her husband at all.

Killian must have seen the look on his face because he grinned, his blue eyes shining. “Okay, I may be messin’ with you. I love her to pieces and we get along better than we ever have. Now that the yahoos are getting older and more self-sufficient, we have more time for each other. She’s really sweet right now because she wants to do another cruise this year. I’m going to soak up the lovin’ then give in, but not just yet.”

Dean laughed at the wicked light in his buddy’s eyes. Killian had been his training officer when he’d first moved out here last year, and they’d been the best of friends since. They traded insults and jokes almost constantly, but Dean knew if he ever needed anything Killian would be right there.

Dean gave him a serious look. “Rachel appeals to me more than any other woman I’ve ever met. It’s a little scary how similar we are.”

Killian grinned at him crookedly. “That’s excellent! Good thing you weren’t working that day, huh?”

“I know.”

If there were an active case it was kind of an understood rule that there could be no fraternization between the officer in charge and the subject. Too much chance to lose objectivity. But Dean wasn’t worried about that.

Even if he had been the officer doing the report he doubted he would have been able to resist asking her out.

***

Rachel went backto work on Wednesday. Wilde had talked her into staying home an extra day, probably because he’d heard the pain in her voice. She was too stubborn to take the pain pills they had given her, but she would take the time off, then make up her workload later.

When she walked into the gleaming office building that morning, Shannon was waiting for her. The smaller woman dared to reach out and wrap Rachel in a careful hug. “I was so worried about you. Are you okay?”

For a moment, Rachel was a little choked up. She wasn’t aware she’d meant that much to Shannon. Yeah, she’d been incredibly welcoming, but hadn’t she done that for all the new hires? Maybe it was just because she was pregnant now and everything seemed to make her emotional.

“I’m fine. Just bruised and sore.”

Shannon turned her left arm over and gasped at the line of stitches. “Oh, fuck!”

She slapped a hand over her mouth and looked down the hallway guiltily, scanning for Palmer. “I told John he had to start laying off the word fuck because the baby is coming, and now I’ve said it.”

Shaking her head, wincing, she released Rachel’s hand.

“When did this happen?”

“Saturday.”

“And they had to cut you out with the Jaws of Life? Is that what I heard?”

Rachel nodded and pulled out her cell phone to show Shannon the picture of the mangled car. Dean had taken it for her. The smaller woman’s eyes filled with tears. “I’m sorry, I don’t mean to cry.” She reached out and gave Rachel another hug. “If I had known, I would have been there for you. I know your family isn’t nearby.”

Incredibly, Rachel’s throat began to tighten. Shannon was so sweet to have said that. “Thank you, Shannon. Honestly, I was kind of out of it for a while, then I slept the rest of the night. When they released me, I kind of had a buddy waiting. There was a guy that stopped, an off-duty cop named Dean West. He got there right after I crashed and helped me out, then he picked me up when they released me from the hospital.”

Shannon’s sharp hazel eyes turned considering and Rachel felt her cheeks flush. She was a decorated Marine, had flown in several deployments, but the look Shannon was giving her made her feel like a junior high school girl talking about her first crush.

A slow smile spread Shannon’s lips and she reached out to squeeze Rachel’s upper arm. “If you ever need to talk, I would love to have lunch sometime.”

Rachel blinked and looked at Shannon in fresh consideration, thinking about the dried up make-up under her counter. Some girly interaction might be nice. “Thank you. I may take you up on that.”

---