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“And enjoy some drinks and debauchery on the town, no doubt,” Faith said with a mischievous smile.
David laughed. “Well, drinks, yes, but no debauchery.” He offered a mischievous smile of his own and said, “Unless you want me to come over after you’re finished with Michael and Ellie.”
Faith chuckled. “I think I’ll take a raincheck on the debauchery for tonight but thank you.” David’s face fell exaggeratedly, and Faith rolled her eyes. “Don’t try the puppy dog act with me. I can tell when you’re lying.”
“What’s wrong with puppy dogs?” David asked, grinning and lifting his hands.
Turk whined in agreement.
Faith smiled and kissed David softly. When she pulled away, she said, “Absolutely nothing.”
David’s eyes furrowed slightly, but he kept his grin. “I thought you said no more kissing until we brush our teeth.”
“You’re right,” Faith said, pulling away. “I won’t kiss you anymore.”
He pulled her to him and kissed her deeply. Her senses came alive, and she melted into his arms. Her hands snaked behind his neck, and—
He pulled away suddenly, leaving her gasping. She glared at him, heat warming her cheeks, and he laughed and kissed her on the tip of her nose. “I’ll see you later, then.”
“Later,” she said.
***
That kiss remained with Faith as she drove to Michael’s house. A month ago, David had asked her if she saw a future with him. She had freaked out and basically taken advantage of the Tucson case to ghost him for a few days. When she did talk to him, she skirted around the edge of his question until she got back to Philadelphia where he reassured her that he only wanted to know if there was a chance at a future and wasn’t looking for a commitment right now.
At the time, Faith had been relieved. She liked David, but she was nowhere near ready to even consider a future with anyone. Now, after talking with Doctor West, she thought she might be. Not right away. She still had a long way to go before she recovered from the effects of her trauma at Trammell’s hands, but she believed now that she could recover one day, and when she did, there would be nothing preventing her from moving things along with David.
Except the copycat killer case. Faith’s smile faded. She wanted to move on from Trammell, but she couldn’t as long as that copycat killer was out there doing to people what Trammell had done to her. She couldn’t just stand aside and watch while Clark and Desrouleaux continually screwed up the investigation.
She needed to solve that case. If she could put the copycat killer behind bars, she could once and for all move on from the original Donkey Killer and what he had done to her. She could have a future with David. She could have a future with herself.
Turk barked, jolting her from her thoughts. She narrowly managed to avoid hitting a semi that changed lanes in front of her with her in his blind spot.
“Jesus,” she muttered. “Thanks, boy.”
Turk barked, and Faith could swear she heard sarcasm in the sound.
“Do you want to drive?” she asked.
Turk snorted, and Faith said, “Yeah, yeah, right back at ya, buddy.”
They reached Michael’s house ten minutes later. It was an old, brownstone townhouse in the early twentieth century New York style. Michael said it reminded him of some detective novel or other he used to read. Faith thought it looked like the house a serial killer might live in if serial killers were all as they were portrayed in Hollywood. She mentioned this to Michael once, and he had stared blankly at her.
“David laughed,” she said as she pulled her old Crown Victoria to a stop. The venerable, old Windsor V8 grumbled appreciatively to a standstill, and she patted the dash before stepping out. The car probably had two years of life left, maybe three if she babied it. Then she would have to give in and buy a newer vehicle. Not much newer. New cars were too posh for her taste. Even cheap economy cars felt to Faith like they glided over a cushion of air instead of rumbling powerfully over the road. Where was the fun in that? Give her an old, powerful American sedan over a cheap, foreign tin can with a lawnmower engine any day.
She walked to the door and steeled herself for what she was sure would be the most uncomfortable dinner of her life. She and Michael had argued over his new girlfriend a few times before settling into an uneasy silence on the subject.
Ellie was married. Separated for two years now, but still married and seemingly no closer to divorce than she was when she met Michael five months ago. Faith saw red flag after red flag, but Michael was in love, and when you see things through rose colored glasses, it’s hard to see red flags.
Well, she would leave him to his business. Besides, as far as she knew, Michael was right, and Ellie’s financial situation was complicated and prevented her from simply leaving cleanly.
Not that it mattered tonight. She was Faith the supportive friend tonight, not Faith the investigator.
The door opened, and she smiled, “Hi, Michael.”
He looked her up and down, “What’s with the clown smile?” he asked. “Jesus, she’s my girlfriend, not Internal Affairs.”
Faith rolled her eyes and pushed past him. Turk offered a polite bark in greeting and followed her inside.
