Chapter 22

Amber sucked in her breath, her eyes never leaving Fabian’s piercing black ones.

I think I’ve fallen in love with you. The words echoed through her mind like the humming of a sweet melody, and it brought a subtle smile to her face.

“Is this some kind of joke?” she whispered, still standing in the cocoon of his arms. She wondered if she was dreaming.

Fabian chuckled a little and brushed off a strand of hair that had fallen over her eyes, ignoring the curious looks from people who walked past them.

“No, I’m serious,” he replied, his voice soft and full of emotion.

“You got me on your first day of La Fire. I just didn’t realize it,” he said simply before swooping in for yet another kiss.

She should have stopped him, but she didn’t. She should have run, but she couldn’t. Her heart was already his the day she surrendered her body to him. There would never be anyone else.

As the kiss deepened, Amber’s lips quivered and somehow, she found her hands snaking up to the back of his neck. The throbbing of his veins echoed the thundering beat of her heart as she surrendered herself to his kisses, and together, their tongues swirled in a slow dance of passion.

“Get a room you two!” a big burly man shouted from the side and the lovebirds immediately broke off their embrace. A few cars slowed down to snap pictures of them and cheered them on.

Amber felt her cheeks flush beet red with embarrassment and Fabian shot the burly man an icy stare. The man’s posture shrunk immediately to a cowardly one and he quickly walked off, muttering, “You really should get a room.”

Then, Fabian turned back to face Amber and entwined his long lean fingers with hers. He tugged at her hand and started to guide her to his car. It felt good to stroll hand in hand with Fabian, and for a moment and Amber wished for time to stand still. Cheekily he nudged her and said, “Maybe we should get a room.”

“Hey!” Amber swung at his chest playfully only for him to grab her wrist, stopping her in mid-stride.

“I mean it, Redd, I won’t let you go ever again.…. I’m sorry for what I did last night.”

Her gaze dropped at the mention of what transpired the night before.

“I’m sorry for what I did too,” she said, her voice barely audible. Then she lifted her face to meet his steady gaze, and cupping his chin in her hand, she smiled, “I won’t do it again.”

She had no intention of stealing from Fabian again. He did not deserve to be hurt. She would take on Liam Smith herself.

***

The brunch spread at a little café by the street was a scrumptious one. On the white Victorian cast iron table lay an assortment of dishes. There was spaghetti and meatballs, garlic bread, tiramisu, and a bowl of crisp seedless green grapes. The food was absolutely to die for.

Fabian sat across from Amber with his elbows perched on the table and hands cupping his chin as she dug into her spaghetti in the most ungraceful way.

He had to laugh, “Slow down. You’ll choke.”

“I’m hungry,” she replied. She really was, plus the dish was delicious.

Fabian smiled and reached out to brush off some tomato puree from Amber’s cheeks.

“You had this on you,” he eyed her sensually, licking the puree from his finger.

Fabian then sat back on his chair and allowed Amber to eat without any interruptions after that, preferring to just observe the people walking along the sidewalk.

Why on earth does he have to do that? she groaned inwardly. Sheepishly she took a napkin and quickly dabbed lips, suddenly very aware of her table manners. There were butterflies in her stomach just by looking at him and she wasn’t the only one. The waitress who served them earlier was practically salivating over Fabian. She’d even slipped him her phone number under a plate, much to his amusement. Not to Amber’s though. The waitress had acted as though Amber wasn’t even there.

“So, how was Anson when you saw him this morning?” he asked when she finally finished eating.

She inhaled sharply. She was surprised he hadn’t asked earlier. She was even more amazed that he did not mention anything about the blueprint.

Anson almost went into a cardiac arrest, she wanted to say.

The truth threatened to spill from her mouth, but she swallowed it back and instead, chose to tell him a lie, “He’s stable.”

A slight frown crossed his face as he looked at her; and for a moment, his gaze turned dark and unfathomable. Amber’s heart skipped a beat and her fingers curled into a ball under the table.

Does he know?

Then, just as suddenly, his darkened look was replaced by a bright smile. He nodded his head, “That’s good. Would you like to go back to the hospital to accompany him?”

No, I’d much rather like to pay a visit to the man who tried to kill him.

“It’s fine, the doctor said he needs to rest. Why don’t we spend some time together first?”

She was being honest this time. Amber truly wanted to enjoy a day of peace and quiet with Fabian. But she was running out of time.

Oh, how she wanted to laugh with her brother again, and perhaps taste Margaret’s cinnamon rolls once more, but most of all, she would have loved to spend her entire life with the man who sat across from her. But she had a feeling all her wishes would never come to be.

***

John Grant was back in his office. But he was not alone.

“What on earth were you thinking, giving Banks three days?!” his colleague from the water dispenser the other day ran a pudgy hand through his balding head as he paced back and forth in front of John’s extremely neat and clean desk. “What if she runs away with her brother?!”

John chewed on his ballpoint pen, “She won’t. Her brother’s practically comatose and we have that new guy on patrol, what’s his name again? Dirk?”

His colleague groaned, scratching his head with both hands in agitation, “Kirk! What if the higher-ups find out? We’ll be roasted! We have the fingerprints! The evidence! You were chasing after the forensics for the report like crazy! And now you’re just going to sit back and wait??” He slammed his fists on the table and said, “Ow!”

John sat straighter and stroked his desk, “Don’t hurt my baby.”

His colleague rolled his eyes as he nursed his now reddish knuckles. It would probably bruise the next day.

“Look,” John eyed the older man, “We’ll just give the redhead a few days to see what she pulls off. She won’t be able to do much. Plus, I want to wait for the details on Rodriguez’s mysterious financier…”

His landline began to ring, and he answered it with the speaker turned on, “What’s up?”

“Boss, we managed to trace the financier's details.”

Bingo!

A smile crept up his sun-tanned face and he beamed, “Talk about perfect timing!”