Love Undercover

 

Chapter 2

 

 

Jo rolled over onto her back, opening her eyes to the sight of a helium balloon gently bobbing against the ceiling above her, the bright pink ribbon loosely swaying beneath it.  She wondered how it had got there, noticing that the ribbon had been cut and as she peered to her left she could make out her dainty nail scissors sitting on her bedside table.  How they had got there as well, she couldn’t remember, couldn’t even remember crawling her near naked body under the duvet, but she must have done, her home was far too silent for there to be anyone with her.

 

Little by little the events of her birthday replayed over and over in her minds eye, the appreciative looks she’d received from both Jim and Allan, the numerous shots she’d knocked back, the man that had pinched her bum, the man’s friends bottom she had pinched in return, noticing when Saffy and Will were no longer with the group and then when Marian had left with Rob.  She groaned, unable to satisfy herself that things at work were ever going to be the same again.

 

Then she remembered their time in the ‘Plume of Feathers’.  She’d been three sheets to the wind by the time she’d managed to walk through the front doors, nearly throwing up from knocking back the shot of absinthe she’d been given, downing a pint of water and having her drink bought for her by the man with those ever so appealing cool blue eyes.  What had happened then?  Oh yeah, she’d sung.  She brought her hands up over her face suddenly embarrassed by her efforts.  But she had been good; so many people in that pub had told her so.  “They were all drunk though,” she tried to reason with herself.  ‘The man with dark hair wasn’t,’ her mind told her, and he had complimented her on her voice, asking if she sung regularly and that he should like to hear her again.

 

“Oh god,” she grimaced, suddenly having a flashback of all those men kissing her as she’d stood outside the pub waiting for her friends.

 

She relaxed back into the bedclothes, her brain still trying to piece everything together in a coherent order that actually meant something.  She remembered something else then, her fingers delicately touching over her lips and her chin.  She closed her eyes to the sensation, the feel of his soft, generous lips against her own, and his day old stubble brushing over her chin and cheek as he kissed her.  “Wow,” she murmured, “happy birthday to me.”

 

Suddenly aware that there was a ringing of a bell and a loud knock on her front door, Jo sat bolt upright in bed, her senses clouded as a wave of nausea hit her.  She forced down the feeling of rising bile and tried to get herself up from her bed, reaching for her dressing gown and shrouding herself within it.  Gingerly she walked through the flat, finally arriving at the door and beginning to open the latch.

 

“Hope you haven’t got a man in here?”  Marian remarked as she bustled through the door, leaving Rob on the doorstep.  He half smiled, noticing how Jo still seemed half asleep and fighting the urge to throw up.  Jo opened the door wider, her actions clearly suggesting that he should come in, he shrugged as he passed her into the hall, “sorry!”  He offered.

 

Jo yawned, “it’s ok, feel like crap but I know I had a good time.”  She said, closing the door behind her.

 

“That’s good.  Look point me in the direction of the kitchen and I’ll make us all coffee whilst you have a chat with Marian, ok?”

 

Jo nodded, “thanks, Rob.  It’s through there,” she pointed along the corridor, before walking through into the living room and plonking herself down on her sofa.  She yawned again.

 

“God I can see what you had for tea last night and I hope you’re going to brush your teeth?”

 

“Sometime today, maybe,” Jo answered, “what are you doing here?”

 

“Come to see how you are; come to take you out for lunch.”

 

Jo shook her head, “no, can’t do lunch, feel ill.”

 

“Nonsense, besides I need to know all about this handsome stranger that kissed you last night.”

 

“What?”  Jo asked, her chin dropping away, ‘how on earth could Marian know about that?’

 

“Helz phoned me this morning, telling me about the man that bought your drink and then kissed you at the end of the night.”  Marian stifled a giggle, “knew that balloon would work wonders.”

 

“It was you, you changed it.”

 

“Give her a gold star, she really is a detective.”  Marian spluttered, unable to stop herself from laughing, “it’s a wonder what a few choice words can do.  So, come on, spill.”

 

“Not much to tell.”

 

“Right!”

 

“There’s not, Lenny couldn’t afford to pay for my drink so he saved me by paying for it instead.  That’s when I got dragged off to sing in front of everyone …”  She tailed off as Robert stepped into the room with their drinks.  He handed hers over to her, a strong black coffee with a teaspoon of sugar.  “Ugh, is there sugar in here?”

 

He nodded, “one won’t harm you.”  She sipped again, relishing the taste as the sweetened bitter liquid washed down her throat.

 

Marian, sat next to her, “and?”

 

“And what? … Oh, yeah … um, so I was singing.”

 

Robert’s eyebrows arched, he took a seat on the opposite of the room.  “You sang?”

 

“She’s very good,” Marian remarked, looking over toward Rob before returning to Jo and gesturing for her to continue.

 

“I sang.  The next thing I remember is being outside, waiting for some of the guys, being kissed by all sorts of random fellas,” Jo grimaced whilst Marian sniggered, “and when I looked up he was there again, he came over to me asked me if I’d enjoyed myself, told me I had a good voice and that he’d like to hear me sing again, got me to tell him my name,” she grinned at that, “and then …”

 

Marian gesticulated with her body, itching to know what had happened, her frustration evident when she asked, “and then?”

 

“And then …,” her fingers covered her mouth again before realising that 2 sets of eyes were watching her intently, “and then he kissed me.”

 

“How?”

 

“Marian,” Rob said, wondering at her.

 

“Oh, it’s alright Rob.  She knows what I’m like.”  Marian countered.

 

Jo nodded in agreement, she knew exactly what Marian was like and wouldn’t be satisfied until she’d got everything out of Jo, “well,” she began, “it was soft and tender and glorious and everything a damn good kiss should be.  The only things that touched were our mouths and his stubble against my chin.”

 

“No tongues?”

 

Jo shook her head, smiling profusely.  “No, no tongues, but there didn’t need to be, not then.  My whole body tingled at the feeling of his mouth on mine and when it was over I felt lost, but he said goodnight before walking off into the night.”

 

“And you didn’t get his number; Helz said you didn’t even know his name?”

 

Jo shook her head, “no, sadly.  Too drunk, thanks very much.”

 

“Pity,” Rob said, “Now are we going for lunch or not.  I think Marian wants to tell you something.”

 

“If it’s about you and her then after your arrival at my front door together I probably have a good idea what she wants to say.”

 

“Oh no, it’s something much better than that,” Rob looked over to her, totally nonplussed, “not that last night was bad, Rob.  It was actually very very good, but it’s not that.  It’s about Jim Much and Allan Dale.”

 

“What about them?”  Jo asked, remembering the looks and compliments that they had both given her the night before.

 

“You’ll just have to wait and see, Plume of Feather’s do?”

 

Jo nodded; maybe she could make a few enquiries whilst she was there, see if anyone knew anything about the man that had kissed her.  “Ok, just let me get up.”

 

 

.oOo.

 

 

Jo stood at the bar waiting to be served, “if it isn’t Aretha Franklin from last night, how are you love?”  Asked the middle aged landlord who, she’d noticed, spent his night propping the bar up himself.

 

“Not too bad thanks, could I have a pint and a half of lager and a mug of coffee please.”

 

“Of course, coffee for you?”

 

“Yeah, head not fully engaged yet, need that to sort it out.”

 

“I’ll do that first then,” he strolled to the back bar and pushed a few buttons on the coffee machine awaiting the brew before returning to her with it and pouring the other drinks.  “Got a good voice, if you ever fancy doing a turn then give me a shout.”

 

“I’ll think about it, not that I’m thinking of giving up the day job you understand.”

 

“What’s that then?”

 

“Unfortunately, I can’t tell you.  See the two I’m with,” she pointed over her shoulder and watched as his eyes barely moved to look at them, she whispered for effect, “they’ll kill me if I say … anything.”

 

“Mum’s the word then,” he tapped his finger against his nose.

 

“I’m looking for a bit of information though?”  She asked of him.  He nodded, if he could help he would.  “The man that bought me that drink last night, do you know who he is?”

 

“The one with all the dark hair in that expensive looking suit?”  She nodded, “no, sorry.  Never seen him before.  But he looks like trouble.  Why would a nice girl like you want to have anything to do with a bloke like him?”

 

‘You have no idea,’ she thought.  “If he’s as bad as you think he is will anyone around here know anything about him?”

 

“Jez Barker might, but he was only in briefly last night.  Might not have even seen him, mind.  Here, Jez,” the landlord bellowed over to a thin looking man sat on a stool at the other end of the bar, “did you see that fella that this young lady had a drink with last night.  All dark hair, blue eyes, white teeth and expensive suit.”

 

“The one that she kissed?”  Jo’s cheeks flushed from his direct question, nodding her head.  “He’s trouble, miss.”

 

“You know that for certain?”  Jo asked, her heart beginning to sink.

 

Barker picked himself up off his seat and sidled over to her, “he works for a very bad man,” he whispered, “number two to that Vasey bloke.”

 

“Vasey bloke?”

 

“Yeah, the one with that casino and club over by the docks.  Say they’re running drugs and arms out of the place.  Two words for you, stay away!”

 

“Right, thanks, I’ll do that.”  So that was that then, there was no way that she was going to have an affair with a criminal regardless of how well they seemed to have hit it off.  She paid the landlord and went back to the table with the drinks, her face glum.

 

“You ok?”  Marian asked with concern, “you seem a bit peaky.”

 

“I’m ok, just found out about that bloke though, the one that kissed me.”

 

“Yeah?”

 

“Guv?”  She addressed Rob as she sat down, “that intelligence we had, about the sex, gambling, etc, what’s the main bloke’s name?”

 

“Vasey, why?”

 

“Nothing.  Let’s just say that I’ll be seeing that dark handsome stranger again but when he sees me, I’ll probably be his arresting officer.”

 

 

.oOo.

 

 

Guy was woken by the ringing tone of his mobile.  He sat up in bed, wiping the sleep from his eyes as he picked up the phone and answered it, “Yeah?”

 

“Matthews, where are you?”  The irritated voice said on the other end of the line.

 

“In bed!”  ‘Oh, masterful one,’ his mind added, smiling at himself.  “Why?”

 

“I’ve got the police all over the club, there was a fight here last night and a punter decided to take it upon himself to let the pigs know.  I need you here, now, to sort it out.”

 

“It’s my day off.  Why can’t Sid sort it?”

 

“Because he’s the one that was hauled off to the cells this morning, apparently he was a little heavy handed with the com-plain-ant.”  He sounded the word out to make it seem more important.

 

“Vasey, give me ten minutes, I’ll be there.  And then I am off for the day and tomorrow morning too.”

 

“As you wish, Guy.  But get here as soon as, got it?”

 

“Yes, got it!”  He hit the off button with as much venom as he could afford the item in his hand without actually breaking it.  How he wished he could just put his hands around Vasey’s neck and squeeze, hard!  He hated him, with a passion and now his day was about to get decidedly challenging just because of him.

 

He pulled himself up out of bed, dragging his naked body into the bathroom and under the shower when the water was warm enough so that he could seemingly cleanse himself.  His mind wandered, thoughts of the previous night arousing him in ways that he’d not experienced in a while.  What it would have been like to have woken up this morning with that gorgeous woman he’d kissed last night, not only in his bed but in his arms as well.   He’d never imagined that one kiss could have effectively sent him off the deep end; he’d never experienced anything like it.  Of course he’d had women before, many women, he was an attractive man and knew the effect he had on the opposite sex but last night had been different.  Last night had been perfection.

 

Even considering the fact that she had been drunk, he had seen an honesty about her and he knew he’d be able to trust her.  And when she’d stood up in front of all those people and sung her heart out he had been taken with such a force that he couldn’t describe what it had done to him.  He’d even taken himself off to the gents in order to control his reaction toward her, only to have it happen again when he’d returned to his seat.  He’d felt his heart jump into his mouth and his stomach turn somersaults as he sat and watched her intently.

 

But it was when they had kissed that he was done for, the strange overwhelming desire that had surrounded him as he’d broken away from her and heard her moan from the loss of his lips on hers that had nearly done him in completely.  He should have asked her then, asked her to go home with him, asked her if he could adore her, all night if needs be.  He knew she’d have said ‘yes’.  At least he had her name, “Jo,” he said, the sound of her name filling the room around him as he stood in front of the mirror deciding whether to shave now or wait until later.

 

He had to find her, had to get her into his life, somehow.  He’d make a start at that pub, going there after he’d sorted out the problem at the club.  He dressed quickly, pulling on a pair of blue denim jeans, a white t-shirt and a pair of black leather boots.  He pulled his black leather biker’s jacket from over the newel post at the bottom of the stairs, picking up his keys as he went and putting them into a pocket.  “I’m going to find you, Jo, and when I do you’re never going to want to let me go.”

 

 

.oOo.

 

 

“So, I think that our first course of action will be to survey the lay of the land, see what goes on, who does what, gain more intelligence, etc.  DI Harper and DS Little will be coordinating the shifts so if you have any problems see them first, before coming and boring me.”  DCI Rob Hood watched as the assembled crew nodded in anticipation of actually getting some time out of the office for once.  “Any questions?  No?  Good.  Right then, ladies and gentleman, here’s to a successful surveillance.  Harper?  Little?  My office for 5 minutes, please.”

 

“Guv,” they both said in unison as they followed Hood into his space, shut the door and each of them took up a seat.

 

“If we have to go in undercover are you both happy to do it?”

 

“Of course,” John Little nodded his head, “no problem, what about you Ma’am?”

 

Jo nodded, knowing that the question had actually been asked of her rather than John.  “I’ll do what’s necessary to bring this organisation down.”

 

“Good to hear, I’ll be relying on John to keep you safe, especially seeing as you know Vasey’s number two, a Guy Matthews, I’m lead to believe.”

 

“You know him?”  John asked.

 

“Kind of, he kissed me on my birthday.”

 

“Oh, the stranger, eh?”  John laughed.

 

“It’s not funny, John.  The last thing I expected was to be kissed by a major player in the criminal underworld.  And it’s not like I had a big sign hanging around my neck saying, ‘don’t mind the fact I’m a copper, I’ll take anything that’s going’”.

 

“Oh dear, don’t worry, you know I’ll look out for you.  Wouldn’t want anything happening to my son’s godmother, would I?”

 

“Thanks John,” Rob said, “now we best get on with the rota, probably not wise to stick you with Much or Dale either.”

 

John looked back toward her, his face awash with amusement.  “Don’t even go there,” Jo warned him, “it’s too horrible to even contemplate.”

 

“Ok, well they can pair up together then.  Sounds like it would be safer that way.”  John said.

 

“Thanks, right then, John, let’s get on, shall we?”

 

“Lead on, ma’am.”