The Officer's Promise (Brothers in Blue Book 1) (4 page)

“Geez, Reese, we’re not having sex. I was just kind of hoping for a kiss.”

“Yeah, I don’t want to talk about that either.”

“So, are you okay with this?”

“Of course I am. I already knew.”

“You did?”

“Ryker told me how he felt about you a long time ago. I didn’t like it at first. I don’t want to share my best friend with anyone else, but I guess I have to at some point, right? Best to just…keep it all in the family.”

I laughed. “Well, thanks for that.”

“You’re welcome. All I know is you two better make it work. I don’t want no messy breakup.”

“Reese, will you relax? You have us fictionally breaking up when we’re not even realistically together yet.”

“Whatever, I’m going to sleep now so you can go fall in love.”

“All right, I’ll be back.”

“Okay.”

“Hey, MaryAnn?”

“Yeah?”

“Happy birthday.”

“Thanks, Reesey!”

The throw pillow narrowly missed my head before I made my escape.

Ryker was waiting for me as I hopped down the last rung. He’d changed out of his uniform and showered, wearing a Yankees T-shirt, blue jeans, and tennis shoes.

Gosh, he smelled so good.

He held his finger over his lips when I opened my mouth to speak then reached for my hand, pulling me toward the row of shrubs that separated our yards. There was an opening that we used to go back and forth to each other’s houses.

“Where are we going?” I asked when we made it to the other side.

“We always swing on your birthday.”

“Swing? Ryker, in case you forgot, I turned thirteen today. I’m too old to swing.”

His low laugh made my heart do a backflip. “You’re never too old to swing.”

Leading me to the old wooden swing set in his backyard, he clasped my hand tighter. My skin prickled with nerves and my heart leaped in my chest when his blue eyes met mine underneath that August moon.

“There’s something I need to tell you first, before I give you your gift.”

“Oh, okay.”

If I wasn’t nervous before, I was dying now.

Shifting on his feet, he took a step closer. “I like you, MaryAnn. I like you a whole lot. I’ve tried to tell you so many times, but I could never find the right words.”

I gasped, reveling in his confession. “I really like you too, Ryker.”

There goes my stupid mouth again, or maybe it wasn’t stupid considering the smile it just put on his adorable face.

“Really?”

“Yeah, I do,” I admitted. “I like you a whole lot, too.”

“Thank God,” he said, wrapping his arms around my waist, pulling me in for a hug and burying his face in my hair.

“So does this mean you’ll be my girl?” he asked against my neck.

“You want me to be your girl?”

He pulled back, looking into my eyes. “Yes, and I want to kiss you. All the time. Every day. I can’t even fall asleep at night without thinking about kissing you.”

My mouth had gone completely dry.

“You want to kiss me?”

I’d never been kissed before. Not properly anyway. Evan Rogers gave me a peck kiss once last year on the bus, but it was so freaking awkward.

Ryker nodded. “I want to kiss you so bad my chest hurts.”

“Okay,” I replied, and his large hands cupped my face.

He tilted his head, pressing his soft lips to mine, and my whole world changed in that moment.

It got bigger.

Brighter.

Expanding beyond anything I’d ever known. A million emotions rushed through me, but I couldn’t name a single one.

Was this what love felt like?

His mouth convinced me it was, fitting against my lips so perfectly, kissing me sweet and slow as my knees grew weaker and weaker. My heart fought to hold me upright. I didn’t have any other kisses to compare this one to, except the movies I’d seen, but even those didn’t seem to measure up.

This had to be the best first kiss ever.

“Wow,” I whispered into the cool night air.

He grinned in that way that always made me smile. It was the kind of grin every girl dreamed of being on the other end of. “That good, huh?”

“It was all right, I guess,” I said with indifference, teasing him.

He kissed me again but this time with a little more passion and a lot more determination.

Gosh, he was so good at this.

I smiled when he pulled away. “Much better.”

“Smart-ass.”

“Yeah, well, I learn from the best. Now are you going to give me my birthday present or master your excellent kissing skills all night?”

“Both.”

He guided me to sit on the swing then his hand disappeared into his front pocket. Kneeling down in front of me, he presented a small ring between his thumb and forefinger.

I felt like I was living in a dream. Everything began to move in slow motion, and I found myself never wanting this moment to end.

The moonlight bounced off the silver band, twisted perfectly to create an infinity knot, showcasing its simple beauty.

“It’s a promise ring.”

My throat grew all tight and scratchy. “It’s beautiful.” I was short on words when it came to speaking but there were eleventy billion of them flashing through my mind.

“Now, I know this is sudden.” He smirked, lifting a finger to shut my gaping mouth. The contact struck like a bolt of electricity shocking my skin. “Don’t worry. I’m not asking for your hand in marriage, yet.” He winked. “We’re only thirteen, and I have to talk to your dad first.”

A giggle burst from my mouth and Ryker leaned in to capture it. “I’ve always wanted to do that.”

“What?”

“Kiss your laugh. I just knew it would have a special taste.”

“Well, does it?”

“Yep, it tastes just like home.”

“Gosh, Ryker Cunningham, I never knew you could be so romantic.”

“I have five older brothers, I’ve picked up a thing or two.”

“I should say so.”

“You going to let me finish or what? I’d like to get back to kissing you soon.”

I’d like to get back to doing that, too.

“Sorry, please continue.”

He cleared his throat, his nerves beginning to get the best of him. Ryker was playful by nature, so seeing him so serious was weird yet oddly refreshing.

I liked that I made him nervous.

Lifting my hand, he slid the ring onto my finger. “I promise to always be there for you. I promise to make you laugh at least once a day, kiss you every chance I get, and hug you all the time. Oh, and I promise to share my doughnuts with you.”

“Whoa, that’s a big commitment. You sure you can live with that?”

“It’ll be hard, but for you, I’ll try.”

“Promise to stop stealing my hair ties.”

“Promise to wear your hair down more.”

I gasped. “Is that why you steal them?”

“I don’t steal them. I’ve saved them all, and I’ll be more than happy to give them back if you promise not to use them.”

“Then what’s the point?” I laughed.

He shrugged. “Exactly.”

Both hands threaded through my hair, gently tugging the strands. “I love it when it’s down. When the breeze picks it up off your shoulders and whips it across your beautiful face.”

Tears filled my eyes, my heart on the verge of bursting at the seams. I wrapped my arms around his neck to prevent it from happening. Then I buried my face in his neck, breathing him in.

“Thank you, Ryker. This has been the best birthday ever.”

Ryker kissed me for what seemed like hours, mastering his superb kissing skills. Then he gave me a push on the swing before walking me back to my tree house.

Little did I know, one month later, my world would be turned upside down.

Again.

And there wasn’t a promise in the world that could prevent it.

That month before my parents died was the best month of my life. To this day, I have never felt as strongly for someone as I did for Ryker.

Not even Trent.

I still had no idea what I was going to do or where I would go, but I had to do something. I couldn’t keep going on like this.

Eyeing the suitcase in the hall, another bout of fear consumed me.

What’s it going to be, MaryAnn? Are you going to be brave and fight or are you going to continue letting him beat you?

Finally, with a stiff chin and newfound resolve, I answered myself.

“Fight.”

Before I could change my mind, I grabbed the handle of my suitcase, but my determination crumbled like shards of broken glass when I heard the front door open and close with a resounding click.

I stood frozen in place, terror deadening every nerve in my body.

“And just where the fuck do you think you’re going?” he asked as he made his way into the hall, his voice ominous and deep.

My mind spun for an excuse, a lie, something that would get me out of this alive, but words eluded me, as did my last remaining hope.

B
lowing out a frustrated breath, I gripped the steering wheel tighter. After seeing MaryAnn at the deli the other day, I had come back to the office and began digging into her past—actually, Trent’s past.

Trent Deveraux.

He graduated from Stanford with a degree in business management and was well-known among New York’s elite business professionals. His reputation seemed to be squeaky clean. Apart from uncovering a closed juvenile record from when he was fourteen, I didn’t find much. All that meant was he hadn’t been caught yet. Coming from a wealthy and prominent family in Louisiana helped matters, I was sure. He’d been charged with animal cruelty. Fucker beat the shit out of a dog with a baseball bat. Rage twisted in my gut, filtering in my veins at the thought of him beating her like a helpless animal.

I had staked out her address after locating it the very next day. Though I didn’t see much. The swanky high-rise had tight security, and while I could flash my badge and gain entry without any problems, I was trying to come up with another way to go about getting her out of there without him knowing. I had looked her up on social media as a way to contact her, but just as I’d suspected, she wasn’t there.

“Fuck, man, you gonna be like this all day?” Felix asked, irritated with my mood.

“Probably,” I answered.

“What do you say we go find some runners, crank up “Eye of the Tiger” and drive by real slow? That always makes you fucking giddy.”

“Not today, Felix.”

“Just forget about it, man. She doesn’t want to get out of her shitty situation, so why are you still dwelling on it? Now, Adrianna on the other hand, is perfectly willing to be rescued,” he tossed out with a grin.

“Shut up. And stop trying to set me up with her. I’m not interested.”

Shifting in his seat, he pressed his back to the door. “Dude, I’m just trying to help you out. You’re getting all worked up over someone you hardly even know.”

My heart clenched in my chest.

“She was the first girl I ever cared about, man. I made her a promise a long time ago, and I’m keeping it. She has no one. I have to get her out of there.”

Felix blew out a heavy breath, riding out my words in silence before the radio blared to life, signaling a call.

“Go ahead, dispatch,” Felix replied.

“We have a disturbance at 737 Park Avenue, apartment 8G. Security stated he heard a woman screaming for help, but the resident says everything is fine and refuses to give him entry.”

“Fuck, that’s her apartment number,” I gritted through clenched teeth, gunning the gas.

We arrived at the address four minutes later and took the elevator to the eighth floor. I pounded on the heavy wood with my fist, announcing ourselves.

It took everything I had not to kick the motherfucker in.

“NYPD. Open up!”

Tucking my fingers in the top of my belt, Felix rested his palm on the hilt of his Glock. We were prepared for whatever was on the other side of this door.

Or so I thought.

A few seconds later, the door flung open. He appeared calm and cool, but I could tell he was bristling with anger due to the tight line of his lips and jutted jaw. He was just a little bit shorter than me; I’d say around six one or so, wearing a white collared shirt with the sleeves rolled up, dress pants, and shiny black shoes. MaryAnn was five four—if that—and very petite.

If I weren’t wearing this badge, I would kill him with my bare fucking hands.

“May I help you, Officer?” he asked politely, despite his rigid appearance.

“We had a call here about a disturbance.” I tried to get a good look around him but his broad shoulders blocked my view.

“I think you have the wrong apartment.”