Page 179 of White Raven
“It isn’t. I’ll never say goodbye to you, Wren fucking Vintorri. Not ever.”
“You know I love you, right?”
Sarah’s tears rolled down her face, her eyes stinging with mascara as she clutched Wren tighter. “I love you too, bitch. So much.”
“I don’t care what the time difference is…you better call me every fucking day. Don’t make me hop a flight to London and beat your ass.”
Sarah huffed a laugh and cried over Wren’s shoulder. “Leave pretty boy at home if you do.”
They pulled back, and Wren’s face was streaked with dark makeup. “It seems like everything happened so fast, dude. Are we sure we’re ready for all this?”
Sarah deepened her gaze and placed assuring hands on her best friend’s shoulders. “We are. We’ve all been ready for a while. We were all just too pussy to make the jump. Always misfits, remember? Nothing’s ever gonna change that, Wren.”
Wren softly nodded; her face drawn with more tears. “Yeah…you’re right.” She wiped her face with her sleeves and blew out a harsh breath. “Okay. Let’s go get Detective Brood. Rhaena left before we got up this morning. I know she’s trying to tuck her mangey tail, but…she’s not hiding from me.”
“She’s not so good at goodbyes,” Sarah said, cleaning up her face.
“Yeah, well…she doesn’t have a choice,” Wren smirked, opening her driver’s side door as Sarah made her way around thecar. Several people gave them looks as they belted lyrics to every stupid song on the radio the entire way to the 12th. They made damned sure to sing louder, and jerk invisible microphones in front of their mouths as they hung out of the windows at stoplights. Another core memory unlocked.
The precinct was busy again. The smell of fresh coffee hit her nose as she passed the break room, and Brandon cursed loudly, shaking his hand in Foley’s old office while he tried—and failed—to put a new bookshelf together for Rhaena. Wren and Sarah stood at the open door, smiling down at him.
“Hate to see what you look like trying to screw together a crib,” Wren snorted. He looked up at her from the floor with wide eyes.
“I’m sorry,what?” Brandon asked, cocking his head.
“I’m not harboring secrets,” Wren corrected, waving her palms in front of her. “I’m just saying that’s gonna be a sight.”
“You joke…but I think Brent would do a far shittier job. Careful what you say,” he smiled, waving the end of a flat-head screwdriver at her. Wren gulped.
“Where is she?” Sarah smiled, thinking of how fucking adorable Wren Vintorri would be with a pregnant belly. Brandon softened and inclined his head toward the corner hallway. “She’s in the training center with Kane. You’ve been warned. She doesn’t do well with shit like this.”
“Uh oh…” Wren grinned, biting her lip.
They meandered down the hall, following the signs for the training center, until they came to a door you could practically smell the sweat pouring out of. Sarah pushed it open, and the sound of gloves against skin thundered through the room. A group of cops stood together near the mat, laughing, and it wasn’t until Sarah and Wren stepped around them that she finally spotted Athan and Rhaena squaring off.
“You’re rusty, old man,” Rhaena huffed, smiling as she circled him on sure feet. God, Athan looked good. He had a cut, loose white tank that was sticking to every bit of carved muscle on his body, and some gym shorts that had seen better days. Sweat dripped down in rivulets from them both as he grinned behind his gloves at his partner.
“Rawr,” he teased, mocking Rhaena’s secret maw, and gesturing for her to come closer. “Come get you some, Northwood.”
Rhaena laughed and cocked her head. “Oh, I’ve had it. You weren’t that good then, either.”
Wren snorted loudly, distracting Athan, and Rhaena took a cheap shot to the side of his jaw. Spit flew from his mouth, and Sarah covered hers with her hand, trying not to laugh her ass off. “Whoops,” Wren shrugged.
Athan recovered quickly, and landed a couple jabs to Rhaena’s ribs, before knocking gloves with her a few times as she blocked his next moves. He giggled under his breath, and Rhaena popped him in his collar bone, grinning. “Had enough yet, partner?”
“Not until my back’s on the mat!” he laughed, whirling around her as she swung, and knocking his glove into her kidney. She winced, but it was almost non-existent as she turned sharp and pounded into the same spot on his jaw—that time without distraction.
“Kick his ass, Rhaena!” Wren shouted through her cupped hands. Sarah couldn’t help but follow suit. She cheered Rhaena on right beside Wren, and Athan looked thoroughly amused.
“What’s the matter, Kane?” Rhaena laughed, not at all out of breath as she danced a little closer. “Come on back over here.”
Athan charged at her, tackling her to the mat, and Rhaena flipped around, winding her arm around his neck, and pressing down on his back with a knee. It seemed her handsome detective had forgotten that Rhae-Rhae was a hell of a lot stronger than him right now, as she was still adjusting to her hybrid changes.
“Tap out, and admit you suck,” Rhaena laughed, pulling tighter around his neck. Athan struggled, smiling.
“Your mom,”he grit through his teeth. Rhaena broke into hard laughter and let him go when he tapped a glove to the floor.
“Low blow, you idiot,” she chuckled, collapsing next to him on the mat. Athan cackled exhaustedly and wiped the sweat from his brow on the back of his forearm. Rhaena rolled her head to the side and glanced between Wren and Sarah as their colleagues dispersed. “You two wanna taste?” she smiled.
