Know That I 8/11
Title: Know That I
Disclaimer: Not my characters - except for one or two. The rest of the ladies and gentleman contained herein belong to entities with a higher pay grade. Thanks for allowing li’l ole me to play; I promise to return them as I found them…just like the tools I borrowed from dad when I was a kid. Also, this is unbeta’d so…mistakes are really all me. Sorry about that.
Fandom: Women’s Murder Club - TV show only.
Pairing: Lindsay/Cindy, Jill/OC.
Rating: PG-13
Summary: An old college friend of Cindy’s moves to town and shakes things up.
Ch. 8 - Pieces and Parts
Lindsay looked down at her empty cup of coffee, then to her friends’ dwindling cups and let her gaze sweep around a very busy, very chaotic Papa Joe’s. The two servers, Tessa and Neace were at tables on the other side of the restaurant taking care of booths full of customers. Making an executive decision, she slipped from the booth and headed behind the counter towards the coffee machine.
Taking both the decaf and regular pots sitting on the warmers, she sauntered back to her table and filled up Claire’s with decaf and topped off her’s, Cindy’s and Jill’s with regular.
“Did you take a part time job?” Jill smirked around the top of her fresh mug.
Sticking her tongue out, she responded playfully, “I’d make that uniform look good.”
This earned a titter of laughter from her friends and made Cindy purr, “You make most uniforms look good.” The reporter winked at her girlfriend, enjoying the hint of color dusting her lover’s cheeks.
Lindsay rolled her eyes, opted not to respond and went to set the pots back in their respectful places.
“Thanks,” Neace said as she rounded the corner. “I owe you one.” The woman looked a little frazzled causing Lindsay to wave her off.
“No trouble, take care of the other customers.” The inspector made her way back over to her table and slipped in next to Cindy. She took a sip of her coffee, relishing in the added heat and taste slipping down her throat before starting the conversation back up, “So, we’re still waiting on the DNA results to come back for Delgado. Claire, do we know how long it’s going to take?”
The doctor set down her cup and toyed with the napkin next to it, remembering the schedule for testing. “It’s going to be three maybe four days at least.” She sighed and asked, “Do you and Warren have any other leads?” it was doubtful seeing as how there was nothing left of the partial remains to get a clear I.D. from. The doctor did hold out a bit of hope though. Stranger things had happened in her world. She watched Lindsay shake her head and let her shoulders slump. “Thought so. I’m trying to work out the weapon used in her killing. I’m having a hell of a time trying to figure out what could have done that.”
“I’d like to know where the rest of her is,” Lindsay groused and slumped against her girlfriend. Her longer form creating a bit of an awkward angle to cuddle up next to Cindy, but she did anyhow.
“There has to be more to her body, but nothing’s come in. I think it’s probably at the landfill by now…if it hadn’t been for those kids dumpster diving.” Claire thought out loud and looked out at the dusky sky.
“I know the case took a back burner for the other three going on, but Jacobi and I did some prelim work on the suitcase at least. It was run of the mill TravelStar. They’re sold everywhere and there’s no batch or serial numbers to do a trace. That was a dead end,” Lindsay added.
“What about following up with the roommate?” Jill asked from next to Claire.
“We talked about it and we’re not sure we want to spook her until we know for sure if the body is Amy Delgado. We did talk to neighbors in the area, and there was nothing there. Jacobi and I spent a good portion of this afternoon going through traffic video, but didn’t see anything.” Lindsay perked up as Cindy ran her hand down the length of her arm and threaded their fingers together. The shorter woman’s palm resting flat over top the back of Lindsay’s hand on her thigh.
“I could go talk to her,” Cindy offered. “I could play the ‘doing a story’ thing to help find her. Get some more personal information; see if she was actually seeing anyone.”
“I’ll go with you,” Lindsay immediately offered.
Cindy just shook her head and shut the idea down. “You have realized that you are a cop, right?”
The snarky reply caused Lindsay to sit up a bit straighter and she retorted, “What’s that supposed to mean?”
The two across the couple snickered while the reporter answered, “Unless they really have to, people won’t talk to you, Linds.”
“You’re a little intimidating, sweetie,” Claire offered in sympathy.
“Cindy’s more their age, they’ll talk kid lingo and she’ll be in. Let Cindy Lou ride solo,” Jill teased. “You’re old and will scare them away.”
Rolling her eyes, Lindsay jabbed a finger at Jill. “You’re just as much of a cradle robber as me at this point. How old is MacKenzie?”
Jill sucked in her lips and glared.
“Twenty-seven,” Cindy supplied much to Jill’s annoyance. “But the roommate will talk a little more freely without you there, babe. I’ll just be polite and ask some questions, see if anything comes up.”
“Fine,” Lindsay finally relented and looked up at the distinct whine of a sports bike pulling up. Having come to recognize the figure, Lindsay piped up, “Speaking of your toddler, Jill, she’s here.”
The attorney’s foot shot out and connected with Lindsay’s shin before she smiled and slipped free from the booth. “For that, you’re covering my part of the bill.”
“One, ouch. And two, how’s that even fair?” Lindsay winced as she rubbed the spot Jill connected with on her leg.
“Who cares?” Jill rolled her eyes.
“Hi,” Mac said slipping in next to Jill. She laced an arm around the smaller woman’s waist and smiled at the table.
“Daddy,” Cindy greeted smiling.
“Mac,” Claire grinned, enjoying the way the couple looked together.
Lindsay gave a grunt in greeting and continued to glare at Jill.
The lawyer stuck her tongue out her friend before turning to girlfriend and pecked the slightly taller woman’s lips. She pulled back smiling and whispered, “Hi.”
Mac returned the smile with an upward quirk of her lips and responded, “Hello to you too. Ready?”
“Yep,” Jill affirmed and turned to her group. “I’ll talk to you ladies tomorrow and please, please, please, only call me if you really need a warrant.”
“Augie,” Mac looked over at her friend, “Hide your girlfriend’s phone, please? For me?”
Cindy waved them away. “Go, have fun. We’ll try not to have to interrupt.”
Jill slipped her hand in Mac’s and gave it a tug. “Come on, that’s the best offer I’m going to get.”
Mac stumbled a few steps before righting herself and sending a wave over her shoulder at the group.
Relaxing against the wall across from Mac’s apartment door, Jill stuffed her hands in the pockets of her girlfriend’s jacket. She rested her head against the cool stucco and observed a fumbling MacKenzie from behind. In snug blue jeans, black riding boots and the black and white riding jacket that was covering a form fitting button-up, the woman couldn’t have been sexier.
A slow smirk covered Jill’s lips and she knew that Mac probably could, but she’d need to get them inside if that were to happen. Being arrested for public indecency wasn’t any fun.
“Ah-ha!” Mac let out a little louder than what was decent for the hour. “I’ll get the hang of these locks eventually,” she grumbled a little more quietly as the door to her home swung open.
Jill pushed off the wall as Mac turned and beckoned her forward. The attorney decided to be helpful and grabbed their riding helmets and her overnight bag from the floor as Mac ushered in. Mac picked up the two grocery bags and gently kicked her front door closed as Ozzie came scrambling out of her room.
He let out a growly, happy greeting that usually freaked people out when they first met him. Mac thought she missed out on calling him Chewbacca because that’s exactly what he sounded like when he was excited and greeting people. She dropped the grocery bags and leaned over to offer her dog the attention he required after her absence most of the day.
She scratched behind his ears and then worked her short nails down the length of his body. The dog moved with her movements so that Mac was left with his hind quarter’s right under her nose and she scratched the back of his haunches before he was fully satisfied. From there he trotted over to Jill and required similar attention. Mac laughed at the two who ended on the floor, Ozzie’s nub thumping against the hardwood floor and Jill trying to prevent a tongue bath to the face.
“Ozzie, leave it,” Mac barked at him and picked up the groceries they bought at the bodega right across the street from her apartment. She set them on the counter and began emptying the wine, beer and snacks Jill required.
“Should he go for a walk?” Jill asked as she slipped onto one of the stools in front of the kitchen counter.
“Yeah, if you don’t mind, we can go and let him do his business. I ran with him this morning so it won’t take but a few minutes,” Mac explained.
“Well, why don’t you get settled,” Jill hopped up from her seat and grabbed Ozzie’s leash from the side of the fridge. “And I’ll take the dog out.” She leaned towards Mac and pressed a kiss to the side of the woman’s neck.
Mac’s head tilted to offer Jill better access as she hummed, “You’re okay with potentially having to pick up dog poop?”
Jill shrugged and spun her girlfriend around to face her. “It’s not a gory dead body. I can deal with some poop.” She pressed forward and dropped a full kiss to waiting lips. Jill let her tongue run over pouty lips, enjoying the taste of the fruity flavored lip gloss Mac favored. She pulled away licking her lips and humming. “Come on, Oz-monster; let’s go do your business.”
Mac watched as Jill clipped on her dog’s leash, grabbed the doggie bags by the front door and sauntered out. Before Jill could fully shut the door, she couldn’t help but call out, “Let him off his leash if there are any creepers.”
Jill’s laugh filled the apartment before the door clicked shut. She knew that if Ozzie did have to go, he wouldn’t take long. Unless they were going to a park or on a jog, the dog preferred to stay inside and went quickly. Mac took advantage of the time she had, putting the few groceries away, putting her riding gear in the front closet and straightening up the front room.
Plugging her phone into the home unit, she accessed Pandora and put on her Blues station, softly humming along to Keb’ Mo’. She headed back to her room to assess the damage her dog had done, surprised with only a few tattered pieces of his favorite chew toy, a pair of her old running shoes, spotted the floor.
Just as she was coming down the hall after picking up her room, Ozzie slipped in the opening front door followed by a laughing Jill. “What?” Mac asked as Ozzie went straight for his water dish.
Jill shook her head. “Your dog, he’s a little crazy and has the bladder of a camel.” Jill set the unused doggie bags where she had picked them up.
Mac slipped Ozzie’s leash from Jill’s loose grasp, tossed it on the chair in the living room and gathered the blonde in her arms. “He’s enthusiastic. Good for us. Bad for anyone that he doesn’t like.” She wiggled her eyebrows as Jill buried her head in the crook of her neck.
Mac took advantage of their positions, swaying them gently to a classic T-Bone Walker song. Her left hand trailed up Jill’s back, then down gain. Jill tilted her head up, urging Mac to close the distance between them. The other women complied and offered a soft kiss before peppering Jill’s jaw line and swooping down for a slow, calculated assault along the woman’s neck.
Jill let herself be carried off in the swirl of sensations and the emotion Mac was causing. She barely registered the whispered request, “Can I take you to bed?”
Relief flooded through the older woman, knowing that her dry spell was about to come to an end. She smiled and pulled away nodding. “If you didn’t, I was going to have to hurt you.”
Mac wiggled her eyebrows and led her down the hall. “The nights still young. You may yet.”
Lindsay keyed in on the muttering Cindy was doing in the bedroom, shuffling around some of her clothes so that the reporter would have a bit more space for her stuff and grinned. Sure they still weren’t making anything official and sure Cindy still thought it was too soon to be discussing them living together.
Lindsay was holding out a little bit of hope and also, considering some of the things that Claire had annoyingly pointed out a few weeks ago. Lindsay’s apartment was her apartment. From the mismatched, comfortable furniture to the minimal decorations and the few personal touches Lindsay had made time to add, this was her space. Not Cindy’s. Not her’s and Cindy’s. Just her’s.
When Cindy wanted to hang out and work from here, she was stuck sitting either on the couch or the kitchen table and neither were ideal. On those days when Cindy stayed here and worked, Lindsay came home to a Cindy that was a little crankier, a little sorer and a little less fun.
Lindsay wasn’t about to go apartment hunting anytime soon, but she figured in a month or so, she’d suggest the idea of looking for a new place, maybe with two bedrooms, one to turn into an office and invite Cindy along. That way, Cindy could pick something out she liked and Lindsay could put it in an office for when Cindy did want to work from home.
The plan was carefully constructed and one she thought would go over well, provided the reporter didn’t see through the partial ruse. So for now, Lindsay let the easy smile spread across her face as she tuned out the T.V., listened to her girlfriend instead and read over the reports Jacobi had asked her to.
Martha came trotting out of the bedroom a few minutes later, tail tucked between her legs. Lindsay’s eyebrow quirked as Cindy stomped out a few seconds later. “Do you remember those shoes I was looking for last week?” she bit the question off, pointing one shoe, presumably the shoe in question, at the inspector and planted her free hand on her hip.
Knowing that if she spoke, Lindsay would end up in a fit of laughter, she wisely just shook her head and sandwiched her lips between her teeth.
“Do you know what I found under the bed?” Cindy glared down at Martha, who was smart enough to lie down in front of Lindsay and ignore the chatter above her.
Lindsay repeated her previous response, but this time, she closed the open file in her hands and tossed it on the coffee table.
“Martha thought it’d make an excellent chew toy and it ended up under the bed.” Cindy held the shoe to the side to show the damage done by her dog.
“It’s why I put my shoes in the closet and make sure the door’s shut.” Lindsay let her hand drop and soothed down the silky coat on Martha’s back.
Cindy’s ire slowly melted at she looked at the two on and by the couch. “Still,” she whined a little and tossed the shoe on the recliner. Knowing it was a lost cause, the redhead’s shoulders slumped and she shuffled to her end of the couch. Automatically, long legs lifted up to allow her to sit down before settling back down across her lap.
Lindsay swung her left leg over Cindy’s head, tugged the other woman’s arm and pulled her down so that Cindy’s head rested right below the inspector’s chest. She ran a hand through red locks and conceded, “If it will help, I’ll make sure there’s more space at the bottom so the shoe situation is easier.”
“Hmm,” Cindy hummed, “that would help.” She relaxed against the taller woman and adjusted her lower half to rest more comfortably along Lindsay’s length. “This is nice.”
“What?” Lindsay rasped extending the stroke of her hand to trail down Cindy’s back.
“The down time. It’s not even eight yet and we’re both here…” Cindy’s thoughts were cut off by Lindsay’s free hand pinching her lips together.
“Cindy Thomas, I love you, but I swear if you jinx us, I’ll…” Lindsay warned.
“Mhll aut,” the reporter mumbled.
Lindsay let go of her lips and asked, “Eh?”
“I asked, ‘you’ll what’?” she clarified.
“I don’t know, but it will be bad. If you keep on talking like that, I’ll end up getting a call,” Lindsay reasoned. It was an unwritten law and one that the inspector loathed to break.
“Yeah, Jill might hurt us,” Cindy snickered. “Mac too for that matter.” Cindy’s head popped up from its position on Lindsay’s stomach and she followed up, “Speaking of though, really, Linds? I mean, you couldn’t have just asked me?”
The brunette’s brow furrowed at the accusatory tone before realization finally caught on and she justified, “Oh please, like if a college friend of mine hadn’t shown up and I was all nick name this and touchy that,” Lindsay grabbed on to Cindy’s arm and offered it a few firm strokes for example, “that you wouldn’t have thought the same thing.”
Cindy pulled her arm away and shrugged. “Maybe, but I wouldn’t have been an assh…as hostile…”
Lindsay laughed, “No, you’d go for the glarey, passive aggressive thing and wouldn’t have acknowledged her existence. For what it’s worth,” Lindsay’s tone softened, “I’m sorry about that.”
“Yeah, yeah,” Cindy waved her off and settled back down to her original spot. “Is Claire okay?” Cindy wondered as she took hold of Lindsay’s offered hand and kissed the inspector’s most prominent knuckle.
“I think…I don’t know. Ed’s on her about the amount of time that she spends at work,” Lindsay answered honestly.
“Is there anything we can do, like have club meetings at her house or I dunno, not call her unless we absolutely need her?” Cindy wondered.
“I don’t know. We can ask and see. What I do know is that the night is young. You’re here and not tired. I’m here and not tired.” Lindsay wiggled her hips to get Cindy to look up at her. As their eyes met, Lindsay smiled. “I love our friends. Jill’s probably getting lucky. Claire’s at home and we’re here, alone. We don’t really need to talk about them anymore, do we?”
“Well,” Cindy drawled, “we did just see them less than two hours ago. I suppose I could find something else to do with our time together.”
“Poker?” Lindsay joked.
“Unless it’s strip poker, not really what I had in mind, inspector.” Cindy grinned up at her girlfriend, admiring the way the unruly head of hair fell. A few particular strands fell casually across Lindsay’s forehead. Cindy reached up and smoothed them back, her hand trailing down as she tucked them away to stop above Lindsay’s breasts.
“Why don’t we go the bedroom and figure this out then?” Lindsay suggested, the right corner of her mouth curling upwards.
Cindy didn’t have to be told twice as she scrambled and pulled Lindsay up from the couch. “Love the way you think.”
“I’m fond of it,” Lindsay laughed as they headed to their room. She quietly shut the door and then spun Cindy around to back up against it. Her fingers worked quickly on the button and zipper to Cindy’s jeans. Sinking to her knees, she looked up at the reporter before placing a gentle kiss across a triangle of bare skin.
Next>>>
Disclaimer: Not my characters - except for one or two. The rest of the ladies and gentleman contained herein belong to entities with a higher pay grade. Thanks for allowing li’l ole me to play; I promise to return them as I found them…just like the tools I borrowed from dad when I was a kid. Also, this is unbeta’d so…mistakes are really all me. Sorry about that.
Fandom: Women’s Murder Club - TV show only.
Pairing: Lindsay/Cindy, Jill/OC.
Rating: PG-13
Summary: An old college friend of Cindy’s moves to town and shakes things up.
Ch. 8 - Pieces and Parts
Lindsay looked down at her empty cup of coffee, then to her friends’ dwindling cups and let her gaze sweep around a very busy, very chaotic Papa Joe’s. The two servers, Tessa and Neace were at tables on the other side of the restaurant taking care of booths full of customers. Making an executive decision, she slipped from the booth and headed behind the counter towards the coffee machine.
Taking both the decaf and regular pots sitting on the warmers, she sauntered back to her table and filled up Claire’s with decaf and topped off her’s, Cindy’s and Jill’s with regular.
“Did you take a part time job?” Jill smirked around the top of her fresh mug.
Sticking her tongue out, she responded playfully, “I’d make that uniform look good.”
This earned a titter of laughter from her friends and made Cindy purr, “You make most uniforms look good.” The reporter winked at her girlfriend, enjoying the hint of color dusting her lover’s cheeks.
Lindsay rolled her eyes, opted not to respond and went to set the pots back in their respectful places.
“Thanks,” Neace said as she rounded the corner. “I owe you one.” The woman looked a little frazzled causing Lindsay to wave her off.
“No trouble, take care of the other customers.” The inspector made her way back over to her table and slipped in next to Cindy. She took a sip of her coffee, relishing in the added heat and taste slipping down her throat before starting the conversation back up, “So, we’re still waiting on the DNA results to come back for Delgado. Claire, do we know how long it’s going to take?”
The doctor set down her cup and toyed with the napkin next to it, remembering the schedule for testing. “It’s going to be three maybe four days at least.” She sighed and asked, “Do you and Warren have any other leads?” it was doubtful seeing as how there was nothing left of the partial remains to get a clear I.D. from. The doctor did hold out a bit of hope though. Stranger things had happened in her world. She watched Lindsay shake her head and let her shoulders slump. “Thought so. I’m trying to work out the weapon used in her killing. I’m having a hell of a time trying to figure out what could have done that.”
“I’d like to know where the rest of her is,” Lindsay groused and slumped against her girlfriend. Her longer form creating a bit of an awkward angle to cuddle up next to Cindy, but she did anyhow.
“There has to be more to her body, but nothing’s come in. I think it’s probably at the landfill by now…if it hadn’t been for those kids dumpster diving.” Claire thought out loud and looked out at the dusky sky.
“I know the case took a back burner for the other three going on, but Jacobi and I did some prelim work on the suitcase at least. It was run of the mill TravelStar. They’re sold everywhere and there’s no batch or serial numbers to do a trace. That was a dead end,” Lindsay added.
“What about following up with the roommate?” Jill asked from next to Claire.
“We talked about it and we’re not sure we want to spook her until we know for sure if the body is Amy Delgado. We did talk to neighbors in the area, and there was nothing there. Jacobi and I spent a good portion of this afternoon going through traffic video, but didn’t see anything.” Lindsay perked up as Cindy ran her hand down the length of her arm and threaded their fingers together. The shorter woman’s palm resting flat over top the back of Lindsay’s hand on her thigh.
“I could go talk to her,” Cindy offered. “I could play the ‘doing a story’ thing to help find her. Get some more personal information; see if she was actually seeing anyone.”
“I’ll go with you,” Lindsay immediately offered.
Cindy just shook her head and shut the idea down. “You have realized that you are a cop, right?”
The snarky reply caused Lindsay to sit up a bit straighter and she retorted, “What’s that supposed to mean?”
The two across the couple snickered while the reporter answered, “Unless they really have to, people won’t talk to you, Linds.”
“You’re a little intimidating, sweetie,” Claire offered in sympathy.
“Cindy’s more their age, they’ll talk kid lingo and she’ll be in. Let Cindy Lou ride solo,” Jill teased. “You’re old and will scare them away.”
Rolling her eyes, Lindsay jabbed a finger at Jill. “You’re just as much of a cradle robber as me at this point. How old is MacKenzie?”
Jill sucked in her lips and glared.
“Twenty-seven,” Cindy supplied much to Jill’s annoyance. “But the roommate will talk a little more freely without you there, babe. I’ll just be polite and ask some questions, see if anything comes up.”
“Fine,” Lindsay finally relented and looked up at the distinct whine of a sports bike pulling up. Having come to recognize the figure, Lindsay piped up, “Speaking of your toddler, Jill, she’s here.”
The attorney’s foot shot out and connected with Lindsay’s shin before she smiled and slipped free from the booth. “For that, you’re covering my part of the bill.”
“One, ouch. And two, how’s that even fair?” Lindsay winced as she rubbed the spot Jill connected with on her leg.
“Who cares?” Jill rolled her eyes.
“Hi,” Mac said slipping in next to Jill. She laced an arm around the smaller woman’s waist and smiled at the table.
“Daddy,” Cindy greeted smiling.
“Mac,” Claire grinned, enjoying the way the couple looked together.
Lindsay gave a grunt in greeting and continued to glare at Jill.
The lawyer stuck her tongue out her friend before turning to girlfriend and pecked the slightly taller woman’s lips. She pulled back smiling and whispered, “Hi.”
Mac returned the smile with an upward quirk of her lips and responded, “Hello to you too. Ready?”
“Yep,” Jill affirmed and turned to her group. “I’ll talk to you ladies tomorrow and please, please, please, only call me if you really need a warrant.”
“Augie,” Mac looked over at her friend, “Hide your girlfriend’s phone, please? For me?”
Cindy waved them away. “Go, have fun. We’ll try not to have to interrupt.”
Jill slipped her hand in Mac’s and gave it a tug. “Come on, that’s the best offer I’m going to get.”
Mac stumbled a few steps before righting herself and sending a wave over her shoulder at the group.
Relaxing against the wall across from Mac’s apartment door, Jill stuffed her hands in the pockets of her girlfriend’s jacket. She rested her head against the cool stucco and observed a fumbling MacKenzie from behind. In snug blue jeans, black riding boots and the black and white riding jacket that was covering a form fitting button-up, the woman couldn’t have been sexier.
A slow smirk covered Jill’s lips and she knew that Mac probably could, but she’d need to get them inside if that were to happen. Being arrested for public indecency wasn’t any fun.
“Ah-ha!” Mac let out a little louder than what was decent for the hour. “I’ll get the hang of these locks eventually,” she grumbled a little more quietly as the door to her home swung open.
Jill pushed off the wall as Mac turned and beckoned her forward. The attorney decided to be helpful and grabbed their riding helmets and her overnight bag from the floor as Mac ushered in. Mac picked up the two grocery bags and gently kicked her front door closed as Ozzie came scrambling out of her room.
He let out a growly, happy greeting that usually freaked people out when they first met him. Mac thought she missed out on calling him Chewbacca because that’s exactly what he sounded like when he was excited and greeting people. She dropped the grocery bags and leaned over to offer her dog the attention he required after her absence most of the day.
She scratched behind his ears and then worked her short nails down the length of his body. The dog moved with her movements so that Mac was left with his hind quarter’s right under her nose and she scratched the back of his haunches before he was fully satisfied. From there he trotted over to Jill and required similar attention. Mac laughed at the two who ended on the floor, Ozzie’s nub thumping against the hardwood floor and Jill trying to prevent a tongue bath to the face.
“Ozzie, leave it,” Mac barked at him and picked up the groceries they bought at the bodega right across the street from her apartment. She set them on the counter and began emptying the wine, beer and snacks Jill required.
“Should he go for a walk?” Jill asked as she slipped onto one of the stools in front of the kitchen counter.
“Yeah, if you don’t mind, we can go and let him do his business. I ran with him this morning so it won’t take but a few minutes,” Mac explained.
“Well, why don’t you get settled,” Jill hopped up from her seat and grabbed Ozzie’s leash from the side of the fridge. “And I’ll take the dog out.” She leaned towards Mac and pressed a kiss to the side of the woman’s neck.
Mac’s head tilted to offer Jill better access as she hummed, “You’re okay with potentially having to pick up dog poop?”
Jill shrugged and spun her girlfriend around to face her. “It’s not a gory dead body. I can deal with some poop.” She pressed forward and dropped a full kiss to waiting lips. Jill let her tongue run over pouty lips, enjoying the taste of the fruity flavored lip gloss Mac favored. She pulled away licking her lips and humming. “Come on, Oz-monster; let’s go do your business.”
Mac watched as Jill clipped on her dog’s leash, grabbed the doggie bags by the front door and sauntered out. Before Jill could fully shut the door, she couldn’t help but call out, “Let him off his leash if there are any creepers.”
Jill’s laugh filled the apartment before the door clicked shut. She knew that if Ozzie did have to go, he wouldn’t take long. Unless they were going to a park or on a jog, the dog preferred to stay inside and went quickly. Mac took advantage of the time she had, putting the few groceries away, putting her riding gear in the front closet and straightening up the front room.
Plugging her phone into the home unit, she accessed Pandora and put on her Blues station, softly humming along to Keb’ Mo’. She headed back to her room to assess the damage her dog had done, surprised with only a few tattered pieces of his favorite chew toy, a pair of her old running shoes, spotted the floor.
Just as she was coming down the hall after picking up her room, Ozzie slipped in the opening front door followed by a laughing Jill. “What?” Mac asked as Ozzie went straight for his water dish.
Jill shook her head. “Your dog, he’s a little crazy and has the bladder of a camel.” Jill set the unused doggie bags where she had picked them up.
Mac slipped Ozzie’s leash from Jill’s loose grasp, tossed it on the chair in the living room and gathered the blonde in her arms. “He’s enthusiastic. Good for us. Bad for anyone that he doesn’t like.” She wiggled her eyebrows as Jill buried her head in the crook of her neck.
Mac took advantage of their positions, swaying them gently to a classic T-Bone Walker song. Her left hand trailed up Jill’s back, then down gain. Jill tilted her head up, urging Mac to close the distance between them. The other women complied and offered a soft kiss before peppering Jill’s jaw line and swooping down for a slow, calculated assault along the woman’s neck.
Jill let herself be carried off in the swirl of sensations and the emotion Mac was causing. She barely registered the whispered request, “Can I take you to bed?”
Relief flooded through the older woman, knowing that her dry spell was about to come to an end. She smiled and pulled away nodding. “If you didn’t, I was going to have to hurt you.”
Mac wiggled her eyebrows and led her down the hall. “The nights still young. You may yet.”
Lindsay keyed in on the muttering Cindy was doing in the bedroom, shuffling around some of her clothes so that the reporter would have a bit more space for her stuff and grinned. Sure they still weren’t making anything official and sure Cindy still thought it was too soon to be discussing them living together.
Lindsay was holding out a little bit of hope and also, considering some of the things that Claire had annoyingly pointed out a few weeks ago. Lindsay’s apartment was her apartment. From the mismatched, comfortable furniture to the minimal decorations and the few personal touches Lindsay had made time to add, this was her space. Not Cindy’s. Not her’s and Cindy’s. Just her’s.
When Cindy wanted to hang out and work from here, she was stuck sitting either on the couch or the kitchen table and neither were ideal. On those days when Cindy stayed here and worked, Lindsay came home to a Cindy that was a little crankier, a little sorer and a little less fun.
Lindsay wasn’t about to go apartment hunting anytime soon, but she figured in a month or so, she’d suggest the idea of looking for a new place, maybe with two bedrooms, one to turn into an office and invite Cindy along. That way, Cindy could pick something out she liked and Lindsay could put it in an office for when Cindy did want to work from home.
The plan was carefully constructed and one she thought would go over well, provided the reporter didn’t see through the partial ruse. So for now, Lindsay let the easy smile spread across her face as she tuned out the T.V., listened to her girlfriend instead and read over the reports Jacobi had asked her to.
Martha came trotting out of the bedroom a few minutes later, tail tucked between her legs. Lindsay’s eyebrow quirked as Cindy stomped out a few seconds later. “Do you remember those shoes I was looking for last week?” she bit the question off, pointing one shoe, presumably the shoe in question, at the inspector and planted her free hand on her hip.
Knowing that if she spoke, Lindsay would end up in a fit of laughter, she wisely just shook her head and sandwiched her lips between her teeth.
“Do you know what I found under the bed?” Cindy glared down at Martha, who was smart enough to lie down in front of Lindsay and ignore the chatter above her.
Lindsay repeated her previous response, but this time, she closed the open file in her hands and tossed it on the coffee table.
“Martha thought it’d make an excellent chew toy and it ended up under the bed.” Cindy held the shoe to the side to show the damage done by her dog.
“It’s why I put my shoes in the closet and make sure the door’s shut.” Lindsay let her hand drop and soothed down the silky coat on Martha’s back.
Cindy’s ire slowly melted at she looked at the two on and by the couch. “Still,” she whined a little and tossed the shoe on the recliner. Knowing it was a lost cause, the redhead’s shoulders slumped and she shuffled to her end of the couch. Automatically, long legs lifted up to allow her to sit down before settling back down across her lap.
Lindsay swung her left leg over Cindy’s head, tugged the other woman’s arm and pulled her down so that Cindy’s head rested right below the inspector’s chest. She ran a hand through red locks and conceded, “If it will help, I’ll make sure there’s more space at the bottom so the shoe situation is easier.”
“Hmm,” Cindy hummed, “that would help.” She relaxed against the taller woman and adjusted her lower half to rest more comfortably along Lindsay’s length. “This is nice.”
“What?” Lindsay rasped extending the stroke of her hand to trail down Cindy’s back.
“The down time. It’s not even eight yet and we’re both here…” Cindy’s thoughts were cut off by Lindsay’s free hand pinching her lips together.
“Cindy Thomas, I love you, but I swear if you jinx us, I’ll…” Lindsay warned.
“Mhll aut,” the reporter mumbled.
Lindsay let go of her lips and asked, “Eh?”
“I asked, ‘you’ll what’?” she clarified.
“I don’t know, but it will be bad. If you keep on talking like that, I’ll end up getting a call,” Lindsay reasoned. It was an unwritten law and one that the inspector loathed to break.
“Yeah, Jill might hurt us,” Cindy snickered. “Mac too for that matter.” Cindy’s head popped up from its position on Lindsay’s stomach and she followed up, “Speaking of though, really, Linds? I mean, you couldn’t have just asked me?”
The brunette’s brow furrowed at the accusatory tone before realization finally caught on and she justified, “Oh please, like if a college friend of mine hadn’t shown up and I was all nick name this and touchy that,” Lindsay grabbed on to Cindy’s arm and offered it a few firm strokes for example, “that you wouldn’t have thought the same thing.”
Cindy pulled her arm away and shrugged. “Maybe, but I wouldn’t have been an assh…as hostile…”
Lindsay laughed, “No, you’d go for the glarey, passive aggressive thing and wouldn’t have acknowledged her existence. For what it’s worth,” Lindsay’s tone softened, “I’m sorry about that.”
“Yeah, yeah,” Cindy waved her off and settled back down to her original spot. “Is Claire okay?” Cindy wondered as she took hold of Lindsay’s offered hand and kissed the inspector’s most prominent knuckle.
“I think…I don’t know. Ed’s on her about the amount of time that she spends at work,” Lindsay answered honestly.
“Is there anything we can do, like have club meetings at her house or I dunno, not call her unless we absolutely need her?” Cindy wondered.
“I don’t know. We can ask and see. What I do know is that the night is young. You’re here and not tired. I’m here and not tired.” Lindsay wiggled her hips to get Cindy to look up at her. As their eyes met, Lindsay smiled. “I love our friends. Jill’s probably getting lucky. Claire’s at home and we’re here, alone. We don’t really need to talk about them anymore, do we?”
“Well,” Cindy drawled, “we did just see them less than two hours ago. I suppose I could find something else to do with our time together.”
“Poker?” Lindsay joked.
“Unless it’s strip poker, not really what I had in mind, inspector.” Cindy grinned up at her girlfriend, admiring the way the unruly head of hair fell. A few particular strands fell casually across Lindsay’s forehead. Cindy reached up and smoothed them back, her hand trailing down as she tucked them away to stop above Lindsay’s breasts.
“Why don’t we go the bedroom and figure this out then?” Lindsay suggested, the right corner of her mouth curling upwards.
Cindy didn’t have to be told twice as she scrambled and pulled Lindsay up from the couch. “Love the way you think.”
“I’m fond of it,” Lindsay laughed as they headed to their room. She quietly shut the door and then spun Cindy around to back up against it. Her fingers worked quickly on the button and zipper to Cindy’s jeans. Sinking to her knees, she looked up at the reporter before placing a gentle kiss across a triangle of bare skin.
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