Read Online Burnout (NYPD Blue & Gold) by Tee O'Fallon - Free Book Online
Authors: Tee O'Fallon
Tags: Romance, Contemporary, Protector, romantic suspense, Law Enforcement, tortured hero, small town, Entangled, bait and switch, cop, secrets, Mistaken Identity, Select Suspense, nypd, big city, Sexy cop, running from their past
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helped Joey into the backseat then waddled slightly as she rounded the car and hauled herself into the driver’s seat. An unexpected warm feeling came over her. What would it be like to be pregnant? To have someone like Mike doting on her, massaging her aching feet, running out at midnight to get pickles and pistachio ice cream to satisfy her hormonal cravings? She couldn’t help but look at the subject of her thoughts as he checked out a menu.
Keep things in perspective. You so don’t need this right now.
“Don’t you have to get back into the kitchen?” Rose prodded. “Still a few customers left to feed.”
“What?” Cassie was barely paying attention, her thoughts solely on Mike.
“The kitchen. You know, that little room in the back where the cooking is done?” Her tone was teasing as she looked from Cassie to Mike, who was speaking into the microphone on his lapel.
A moment later, he and Jimmy rushed out the door, leaving Cassie wondering what kind of call they were on. A traffic accident? A domestic? Could be any one of a number of things that used to get her heart racing but didn’t now. She continued watching Mike as he hustled to his truck, then sped away, red and blue strobes flashing.
“Cassie?” Rose grinned at her.
“Yeah?” She cleared her throat and felt heat rise to her face at the realization she’d been caught staring at Mike. Again. To get away from Rose’s deep, throaty laugh, she quickly sought out the peaceful solitude of the kitchen.
“You know,” Sue said as she stacked plates onto a shelf, “Mike could have any woman he sets his sights on, but if you don’t give him something to work with, he’ll find someone else.”
Cassie grabbed the last two order slips clipped to the wheel and began to fill them.
“I couldn’t care less if he finds someone else. And I couldn’t care less if the chief of police is a real ladies’ man, either.” It would figure if he was. All women—except her—loved a man in uniform, especially one with muscles bulging all over the place.
“He is,” Sue continued as she cleared dirty plates from the counter. “But not in the way you think. Women throw themselves at his feet all the time, but he’s never brought one date to the Nest. Says he doesn’t have time to date.”
“Maybe not, but he certainly has a lot of spare time during the day to stop in for lunch.” Cassie ladled some of the remaining white bean and bacon soup into a plastic container and set it in the commercial refrigerator.
“Now he does, but it wasn’t always like that.” Sue grabbed a stack of napkins. “Before Mike got here, there was a lot of dope-dealing riff-raff in town. Mike, Jimmy, and the other cops got into a lot of scrapes back then, always having to get stitched up at the hospital.”
Cassie paused in the middle of ladling a second container of soup. “Is that how he got that scar on his forehead?”
“No, that one he had when he got here, and he refuses to talk about it. Must have gotten it when he worked for the NYPD.”
Cassie nearly dropped the soup container onto the floor. “Mike was a cop in the city?”
“Sure was. Rumor has it there’s a box chock full of commendations and medals from his old job stored in the basement of the police station. Anyway, all I’m saying is that Mike’s a catch, and if you don’t go fishing, someone else will reel that man in before you get your hook in the water.” Sue took the soup from Cassie’s hand, winking as she headed for the refrigerator. Ignoring Sue’s suggestive hint, Cassie pondered whether Gray or Dom would know Mike. Then again, the NYPD had nearly forty thousand officers.
The sudden urge to blow off a little steam had her glancing out the door at the billowing summer clouds.
Cassie retrieved her keys from her locker and pointed the key fob out the kitchen’s rear door in the direction of her Trail Blazer. She’d left the air conditioning setting cranked high, so when she hit the
Keep things in perspective. You so don’t need this right now.
“Don’t you have to get back into the kitchen?” Rose prodded. “Still a few customers left to feed.”
“What?” Cassie was barely paying attention, her thoughts solely on Mike.
“The kitchen. You know, that little room in the back where the cooking is done?” Her tone was teasing as she looked from Cassie to Mike, who was speaking into the microphone on his lapel.
A moment later, he and Jimmy rushed out the door, leaving Cassie wondering what kind of call they were on. A traffic accident? A domestic? Could be any one of a number of things that used to get her heart racing but didn’t now. She continued watching Mike as he hustled to his truck, then sped away, red and blue strobes flashing.
“Cassie?” Rose grinned at her.
“Yeah?” She cleared her throat and felt heat rise to her face at the realization she’d been caught staring at Mike. Again. To get away from Rose’s deep, throaty laugh, she quickly sought out the peaceful solitude of the kitchen.
“You know,” Sue said as she stacked plates onto a shelf, “Mike could have any woman he sets his sights on, but if you don’t give him something to work with, he’ll find someone else.”
Cassie grabbed the last two order slips clipped to the wheel and began to fill them.
“I couldn’t care less if he finds someone else. And I couldn’t care less if the chief of police is a real ladies’ man, either.” It would figure if he was. All women—except her—loved a man in uniform, especially one with muscles bulging all over the place.
“He is,” Sue continued as she cleared dirty plates from the counter. “But not in the way you think. Women throw themselves at his feet all the time, but he’s never brought one date to the Nest. Says he doesn’t have time to date.”
“Maybe not, but he certainly has a lot of spare time during the day to stop in for lunch.” Cassie ladled some of the remaining white bean and bacon soup into a plastic container and set it in the commercial refrigerator.
“Now he does, but it wasn’t always like that.” Sue grabbed a stack of napkins. “Before Mike got here, there was a lot of dope-dealing riff-raff in town. Mike, Jimmy, and the other cops got into a lot of scrapes back then, always having to get stitched up at the hospital.”
Cassie paused in the middle of ladling a second container of soup. “Is that how he got that scar on his forehead?”
“No, that one he had when he got here, and he refuses to talk about it. Must have gotten it when he worked for the NYPD.”
Cassie nearly dropped the soup container onto the floor. “Mike was a cop in the city?”
“Sure was. Rumor has it there’s a box chock full of commendations and medals from his old job stored in the basement of the police station. Anyway, all I’m saying is that Mike’s a catch, and if you don’t go fishing, someone else will reel that man in before you get your hook in the water.” Sue took the soup from Cassie’s hand, winking as she headed for the refrigerator. Ignoring Sue’s suggestive hint, Cassie pondered whether Gray or Dom would know Mike. Then again, the NYPD had nearly forty thousand officers.
The sudden urge to blow off a little steam had her glancing out the door at the billowing summer clouds.
Cassie retrieved her keys from her locker and pointed the key fob out the kitchen’s rear door in the direction of her Trail Blazer. She’d left the air conditioning setting cranked high, so when she hit the
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