C.J. Carmichael - The P.I. Contest

He moved closer, blocking Max and Dan from the conversation. She stepped aside.

“Max? Dan? You’re part of this, right? I’m sure you want to be included now, as well.”

The guys looked terrified, shaking their heads with a vehemence that only proved her suspicions.

Kate was vaguely aware that the room had grown dead quiet. But she was on the attack now. She couldn’t stop.

“So who is she, Conner?” Kate tried to pin him with her gaze, but the coward would no longer look at her. “From Janet’s description, I’m guessing Emily White in Records.” She looked from Conner, to Max, then to Dan. She could tell by their sheepish expressions that she’d come up with the right woman.

“I saw the three of you, joking and congratulating yourselves. You seem to be pretty proud, but I’m not sure why anyone would think it’s so great to be a liar and a cheat.”

“Ouch,” Max said. “Come on, Kate, give the guy a chance.”

Kate’s hands were fists, and the anger inside her was hot, irrepressible. She had been so crazy about Conner. She’d really thought he cared as much about her as she did about him. Hell, they’d made love just before she went on duty. And only hours later, he’d invited someone else to their bed.

How could you? she wanted to cry. But years of police training and experience held her in good stead, allowing her to maintain a degree of emotional distance.

“Kate, you know I love you—”

She shook her head. “No. You don’t get to say that anymore. Not after what you did.”

“But—”

“I guess I’m just lucky I found out before the wedding.” And before she’d had kids. God, what a mess this situation would be if children were involved. Kate drew in a shaky breath, then held her hand over a trash can. Unclenching her fist, she watched as the ring that had been a symbol of her happiness was swallowed up by the remains of somebody’s midnight snack.

“KATE, STOP. I WANT TO TALK to you.”

At the sound of her commanding officer’s voice, Kate froze. Damn, she’d almost made it out of the building in one piece. Her legs were shaking. In fact, she thought every part of her body was about to give out on her. “Sir, this isn’t a good time.”

“No, I guess not. Still…get in here.” He opened the door to a small meeting room and after a brief hesitation, she preceded him inside.

Lieutenant Rock was very tall with rough features and a deep love of his job. Over the years, Kate had established a good rapport with the man, but right now she wasn’t up to talking to anyone.

She wrapped her arms around her body, refusing a chair when he suggested they sit.

Rock rested his hands behind his back and sighed. “I heard what happened and—”

“Already?”

“Kate, everyone on the floor heard. As soon as people clued in to what was going down, the whole department could figure out that the shit was about to hit the fan.”

“They figured that out pretty quickly, then. Maybe because most of them already knew.” Kate wondered how many others had been privy to Conner’s affair. These were supposed to be her colleagues and friends, too, not just his. And yet no one had said a word to her. She’d had to be clued in by a neighbor who had noticed Conner in the laundry room with another woman.

How sweet that Emily White had helped him wash the sheets and towels after…Oh, God. She blocked the awful images of the man she loved being with a woman who she knew didn’t mean that much to him.

Why would he have risked everything they’d had—their love, their future—for a silly fling?

“He’s a bloody fool, but the truth is, he was never good enough for you, Kate.”

“I appreciate the sentiment, Lieutenant.”

“It’s sincere. I’ve got your back on this, so let’s make a plan. Want me to transfer Lowery’s butt out of here?”

“No.” She’d been thinking about what she wanted to do. She’d intended to sleep on it before making a firm decision.

But nothing else had gone according to plan this morning, so what the hell. “I’m quitting.”

“Get out, Cooper. You can’t be serious. With your record? I’m sure I don’t have to remind you that you’re coming up for promotion.”

“It wasn’t just Conner who betrayed me. They all knew what was going on. Even my partner.”

“You can’t be sure of that.”

She looked at him skeptically. As if.

“Kate, he’s just a guy. You can’t let one jerk change your life like this.”

Rock didn’t understand. She’d lost more than the man she loved today. She’d lost the biggest, most important dream of her life…the chance to start a family of her own. A warm, loving, happy family with lots of children and maybe a dog or a kitten thrown into the mix. Only twelve hours ago, she’d thought this was Conner’s dream, as well.

But maybe he’d also been lying about that.

“If you really want a change, how about you put in for a transfer? I’d hate to lose you, but if it’s what you want…”

She shook her head no. She’d always enjoyed her job, but after today, she couldn’t imagine coming back here, or starting fresh with another group of strangers. “Remember Lindsay Fox and Nathan Fisher? They’ve been trying to convince me to come and work with them. Maybe I will.”

“This isn’t the time to be making life-altering decisions. Why don’t you take a few days off? See how you feel when you’ve had a chance to cool down?”

Kate already knew how she’d feel. Betrayed. Hurt. Angry.

None of that was going to change.

When she made up her mind, she seldom changed it. And her mind was made up.

“I’m quitting. It’s a done deal.”

AS SOON AS SHE GOT HOME, Kate wrote her letter of resignation, then dropped it in the mail. She’d really felt a sense of pride working for the NYPD, but she had no sense of regret about leaving.

She had learned a lot from the organization, but she was ready to move on.

Next she packed all of Conner’s belongings and arranged for a moving company to pick them up the next day. She called Conner at work to ask where he wanted her to send them.

“Kate, damn it, why are you moving so fast? We haven’t even talked.”

“Did you sleep with Emily White?”

“Stop it. We need to meet in person…”

“Why? So you can try to charm me? Forget it, Conner. Nothing will work. You haven’t just lost my love and my trust. You’ve lost my respect. I don’t want to see or speak to you again.”

Her words were cutting and possibly cruel, but at least Conner got the message.

“Fine. Be that way, Kate. You can send my stuff to Max’s apartment.”

And that was it. The end of a one-year relationship.

Kate put down the phone, wondering if she was going to break down and cry. It hadn’t happened yet. Oddly, once the first rush of anger had worn off, she’d felt quite calm.

The tears would come, she was certain, but while she was waiting she would clean the apartment. When she found a pair of Emily’s pink panties between the mattress and the footboard, she was glad she’d gone to the effort.

“Disgusting.” She put on a pair of rubber gloves, then carried them outside to the garbage chute. In the hallway she met Janet.

“You were right about Conner,” she said.

“I’m sorry. Maybe I shouldn’t have said anything?”

“I’m glad you did.”

Only once her apartment was spotless, and the movers had arrived to remove Conner’s belongings, was Kate able to sleep. She was out for over twelve hours and when she awoke, it was a new day.

She sat up in bed and checked in on her emotions. Was she going to cry now? But she felt not just calm, but peaceful. Maybe on a subconscious level she’d already known Conner wasn’t the right man for her.