Sin City Uniform 01 - All Fired Up (5 page)

He was quite fucked.

* * * *

“I don’t want to fucking talk about it.”

It was the day after the fire at Showstoppers and Shawn had made the mistake of stopping by the station to see if there were any changes to the schedule. They were adding a few new officers to the team and there had been some hints that things might get shuffled around. His hopes that interest in the events of the past couple of nights would have faded in importance had decidedly been dashed. Almost from the moment he’d set foot in the station, he’d been subjected to crude remarks about Trent Marshall saving a damsel in distress and other stupid observations regarding Trent’s hands on his ass.

He’d ducked into the break room to escape them all and Vicki had followed him in.

She’d been on her way out of the building after being there for the same reason as him, but had turned on her heels and chased after him instead. He was kicking it in there with her in an attempt to regroup before he finished his final walk of shame out the door.

Part of what bothered him was that he couldn’t tell if his fellow officers were mocking him good-naturedly or if there was a tinge of homophobia involved. He hadn’t been around any of them long enough to know one way or another. At least he knew Vicki was cool. But that still didn’t mean he wanted to talk about anything regarding Trent.

“You wanna grab a coffee?”

“And not talk?” He was being a tad bitchy and he knew it. “Sorry. I might stay in here until everyone leaves.”

“You’re overreacting.”

One thing he really liked about Vicki was how direct she was. She didn’t offer long drawn out expositions on everything. She cut to the chase. He responded well to people who were like that. They seemed more honest.

“I disagree. The little performance our associates gave out there is all the proof I need to verify my feelings.”

She shrugged. “Who gives a shit about them?” She paused as if she were carefully forming her thoughts before sharing them. “Look, I’ve been through it with a lot of these dickwads, I know how it feels. You have to remember there are the good ones too, like Darren and Parker.”

“Whaddya mean, you know how it feels?”

She seemed to get along with everyone really well, and he’d been impressed from the moment he’d gotten there with how well-respected she was. He wasn’t sure what she was trying to say.

“When I started, I got a lot of flak. Some of the guys threw around some passive aggressive bullshit since they couldn’t openly say they didn’t want a female partner—or that they thought a woman cop would be too weak to handle herself. My former partner—the one you replaced—helped me out. The best advice he gave me was to never let them know that they bothered you. It took a while, but I proved myself through my work and my attitude. No one fucks with me now.”

“It’s all so lame.”

She shrugged again. “Yuppers. It is.” Stretching, she looked at her watch. “So, since you won’t get a coffee with me, I’ll leave you with one final comment.”

Shawn groaned. At least he knew that anything she had to say about his situation would not only be sincere but would be said from a place of real concern.

“Okay. Have at it.”

“The man wants you. Bad. Fucking do something about it already.”

She rose from her chair then grabbed her wallet from the table. Right as she turned to leave, two of the officers who’d been giving him a hard time earlier peeked around the door.

“Hey, Everly. Your boyfriend is here looking for you.”

They both broke into laughter. The other one piped in.

“Yeah, he said he needs to make sure your ass is okay.”

He and Vicki exchanged glances. She was right—they were monkeys.

“I would’ve been disappointed if he didn’t make sure it was okay.”

They stopped in mid-guffaw and frowned at each other. The first one turned back to him.

“I don’t get it.”

“Obviously.”

He rose from his chair and brushed past them, noting Vicki’s satisfied grin before he left the room.

Now I have to face Trent.

That part of his grand exit could’ve been thought through better. He was still insanely angry at the man, yet a new emotion crept up on him—excitement. It was too confusing, so he focused on one thing. Getting out of the station. The last thing he was about to do— regardless of how he felt about Trent—was to stand there in the lobby and yak about anything personal.

No point in handing out the ammunition for free.

He inhaled sharply the moment he saw Trent. Their eyes locked and Shawn knew he was toast. Yeah, he was still pissed off at Trent, but that did nothing to change how incredibly drawn to him he was.

In an attempt to maintain some level of composure, Shawn cast his gaze down as he made his way from behind the counter. Peripherally, he saw Trent move toward him. Shawn kept up a steady pace as he made his way to the door.

“Shawn, I’d like to speak with you for a moment…”

Never slowing, Shawn pressed forward. He wasn’t about to stop and have a conversation of any nature while they were still inside the building.

“Shawn?”

Fucking get a clue.

As he stepped from the icy air of the station into the instantaneous blast of August heat, he finally slowed. The moment Trent was outside, Shawn turned his head slightly—still unable to meet Trent’s eyes—and subtly gestured for him to follow. He remained blissfully silent as they walked to the garage where Shawn had his car parked.

At last they reached his Toyota Rav4 in the shade of the parking structure. It basically meant that the temperature was probably only ninety instead of over a hundred. But at least they weren’t in the direct sun. Shawn spun around to face Trent. This time, he did look right at Trent—and was immediately sorry. They were within two feet of one another. Alone. No immediate emergencies occurring. It was definitely a first for all three things at once. It made him hard.

“I apologize for last night.”

Shawn thought about tearing into the guy but didn’t have the energy all of a sudden.

Must be the heat.

He decided to have a discussion with him instead. Somewhere buried underneath the anger he held against Trent Marshall for the way he’d behaved the night before was the desire to get their obvious mutual attraction out in the open. Deal with it one way or the other.

“What you did was incredibly humiliating.”

Trent nodded, still holding his gaze. “I realize that. That’s why I wanted to apologize to you.”

The man was not the most talkative thing on two legs. It didn’t seem like he wanted to add to his statement, yet he gave no indication he was about to leave either.

“Then why the hell did you do it?”

Shawn watched in fascination as a whole buffet of emotions seemed to flit across Trent’s face. His muscles bunched slightly as he tensed up, clenching his jaw and balling his fists. Shawn couldn’t even begin to imagine what could be so distressing about what had happened the night before, especially since Trent wasn’t the one who’d been embarrassed in front of all their peers.

“Well?”

“I was concerned for your safety.”

“Um, yeah. And I appreciate the thought. But it seemed rather over the top, don’t you think? I mean, you just apologized for it, right?”

Shawn noted the sweat beading on Trent’s forehead then tracked a drop as it trailed down the side of his face. He swiped at his own forehead, the heat getting to that point where it would begin to suck the life out of him until all he wanted to do was take a nap for the next fifty years.

“Have you had lunch?”

Shawn resisted the urge to laugh. Trent was difficult to follow. But since he’d wanted to find a way to approach the guy about them getting together anyway, Trent’s invite was perfect—except for one small detail.

“We don’t have to go anywhere around here, do we?”

Trent made a face as though he’d smelled something really bad. “God, no. There’s an old diner about five miles from here that I go to a lot. No one I know ever shows up there. It’s a great place to have some peace and a decent meal.”

“Perfect. In that case, I’d love to get lunch.”

Trent nodded, still staring at him with his intense blue eyes.

“Why don’t we ride together in my truck?”

Shawn chuckled. “Why? Are we having a date?”

“Yes.”

Stopping mid-chuckle, Shawn couldn’t help but let his jaw drop. Straightforward was too mellow a term to describe Trent Marshall.

“Oh. I see.”

“Then let’s get going.”

Trent’s deep, growly voice gave Shawn the shivers under normal circumstances. When he used it to order him around, it threatened to make him come right then and there.

“S-sure.”

Trent pierced him with one more steely gaze then jerked his head to the other side of the garage before turning and heading that way. Shawn followed after him, fighting the sensation that he had just been brought to heel. Oddly, it didn’t bother him. Something about giving himself over to Trent suddenly held a lot of appeal.

Perfect. The voracious heat has melted my brains.

His dick was doing remarkably well however. All it seemed to care about was that he and Trent were apparently going on an officially sanctioned date. It wasn’t as romantic as a burlesque restaurant, but it was a start. He snorted. Trent peered over his shoulder, no doubt wondering what Shawn had thought was so funny. Thinking about the restaurant did bring something up for Shawn though.

They reached Trent’s newer red Ford F-150, and after unlocking the passenger side, Trent opened the door for him. He put one foot on the step to lift himself inside and had a flash that Trent would palm his ass again. It didn’t happen and he wasn’t sure how he felt about that.

Once Trent climbed into the driver’s side, he started up the engine and they were on their way. He noted how Trent would glance at him occasionally, almost as if he were checking to see if he was really there. Typically, Shawn didn’t consider himself to be tongue-tied, but he’d been so surprised by the insta-date situation, and he was still in the midst of processing it.

Date. That’s right.

“Um, last night. That guy you were with. Not that it’s any of my business, but you said he wasn’t your date. I just want to clarify that we’re not sneaking around behind someone’s back. I’m not into that.”

“Good. Me neither.”

“So…you guys are just friends…or something?”

Shawn watched as Trent seemed to be working through his thoughts. His jaw was clenched and he stared straight forward, his eyebrows pulled together.

“He’s an ex from a while back. He wants to start up again, but I’ve decided I don’t.”

“Oh.”

Shawn had the impression that Trent didn’t really want to talk about his ex anymore, so he dropped it for the time being. It was clear to him that Trent wasn’t a gabby kind of a guy, so he would likely have to get his info from him in bite sized pieces. As with Vicki though, he appreciated that the man was a straight shooter. He didn’t anticipate having to sift through a lot of bullshit.

They arrived at the diner on the other side of the interstate and although a little run down, when they stepped inside Shawn was assailed with the aroma of homemade food. He could see why Trent would want to make it a regular destination. They sat in a booth across from one another in the very back, the place thankfully almost empty. Shawn was thrown when the waitress only handed a menu to him. He lifted his eyebrows at Trent.

“I already know what’s on that.”

“Any recommendations?”

“I’d have to know what you like.”

“You could always ask.”

Trent considered him, his eyes narrowing a little.

“Okay. I’m asking.”

“As much as I love comfort food once in a while, I tend to eat fairly healthy.”

“I like all the salads, but they make a damn good Cobb. I also like the turkey and avocado sandwich.”

Shawn glanced over the well-worn menu, the plastic laminate peeling away on parts of the edges. “Hmm. Actually, the turkey avocado sounds excellent. I think I’ll go for that.”

The server returned. Trent gently took the menu from Shawn and handed it to her.

“Two turkey avocado sandwiches, Lora.” He looked at Shawn. “Drink?”

“Iced tea, no lemon.”

He turned back to Lora. “I’ll have the same with iced tea too, but bring lemon with mine.”

“Sure thing, Trent.”

After she walked away, they were back to staring at one another. This time when heat rose to his face, it had nothing to do with the temperature.

“You still haven’t told me why you threw me over your shoulder like a caveman last night.”

He wants forthright. I’ll give him forthright.

Trent made a small grunt. “That wasn’t my intent.”

“Fine. What was your intent then?”

Trent cast his eyes down and fiddled with the spoon lying on his paper napkin. Lora came by with their drinks. Trent thanked her and waited until she’d walked away again before speaking.

“How’s your lip?”

“
What
? Are you nuts? Why can’t you answer a simple question?”

Shawn’s frustration grew. Trent could blurt most things out without hesitation, yet this one topic he kept dancing around.

What the hell?

Squirming in the booth, Trent clasped his hands in front of him. Shawn noted how white his knuckles became from the obvious tension-filled grip Trent had on them.

“I lost my lover, my partner and best friend while he was in the line of duty.” Trent met his gaze. “He was on the Homeland Security SAT team and was the first one on the scene of a robbery at a casino. He was shot in the head and died instantly. When I saw you in trouble at the Bellagio—saw you almost drown—it was too much…” Trent lowered his eyes for a moment as if to gather himself before raising them again and continuing. “I like you a lot. Last night was uncalled for, but I want you to understand that it came from a place of concern. All I could think of was getting you to safety.”

Holy shit.

“Oh God, Trent, I’m so sorry. I had no idea.”

Shawn was taken aback by the revelation. He wished Vicki had warned him. She had to know, didn’t she?