Cally had the sense and thoughtfulness to help him out of bed, then into the bathroom, where she got the shower running and the temperature nicely warm, then she helped him out of the t-shirt he wore and left him to remove the lounge pants – which he simply shoved down as far as was comfortable, then kicked out of them, leaving them lying on the tile floor for the time being.
By the time he finished with a nice hot shower, he was feeling a bit more mobile. Toweling off, he headed into the bedroom, to find his girlfriend had laid out shorts and trousers for him, but no shirt, shoes, or socks. Which makes sense, he realized. I’m gonna need help with those today, even loosened up.
So he donned the shorts and slacks, and meandered barefoot through the den into the kitchen.
Cally stood in his tee, cooking breakfast. Her long legs extended below the shirt’s hem, and the neckline had slid off one shoulder.
Oh dear Lord, he thought, trying not to drool. I think I want to see that every morning for the rest of my life.
“Scrambled eggs and bacon do for breakfast?” she asked, throwing a grin over her shoulder.
“Sounds good,” he agreed. “But you look even better.”
“Aw.” Even her neck flushed.
She turned and dished up the food, then brought it to his dining table.
“Let’s eat,” she said. “Then I’ll get dressed in what I wore yesterday, help you get dressed, and we’ll head in to work.”
“The guys may tease us, when you show up in the same clothes.”
“Not when they see how you can hardly move,” she retorted, and he chuckled.
Sure enough, several smirks appeared on faces when the pair appeared together, Ames clad in the same slightly rumpled clothing she’d worn the day before. But they disappeared when she helped Ashton ease stiffly into his desk chair. He grunted when he finally hit bottom, and leaned back.
“Got it?” she asked.
“Yeah,” he said. “Listen, I hope you’re not too stiff from sleepin’ on a couch last night.”
“Nah, the couch was comfortable,” she said. “I’m good. And we got the bruise goop back on you before you put on your shirt today, so that’ll help even more.”
“Yeah. Feels better already.”
“Good. Then I’m gonna run to the locker room and shower and change, so I’ll be back before the morning status briefing.”
“Go,” he told her. “I’m sure not going anywhere.”
She headed out.
Jones eased over to Ashton’s desk in her wake.
“Good nurse, in addition to good cop, huh?”
“Yeah. Good girlfriend, too.”
“Oh really? It’s official, then? You two are seeing each other?”
“We’ve been seeing each other, but yeah, it’s official.”
“She got a ring now?”
“Not yet, no.”
“Okay, man. Just so ya know, I’m happy for you two. We all are.”
“Thanks.” Ashton grinned, and Jones grinned back.
“And the Sandman case has been handed over to the prosecutors,” Peterson told the Team, when all of the reports had been filed, later that morning. “Oh, and Lana Rounder died this morning.”
The group sighed collectively, faces falling.
“I don’t see that as going well for Ellis,” Peterson continued, “though in some respects, I can almost see why she did what she did. I’d have had a lot less problems if she’d gone after the actual board members, though. Some of those guys...shit.”
“I hear you,” Ashton agreed, subdued. “I almost – almost – feel bad we caught her. Still, she was going after innocents, not the actual crooked politicos, like you said.” He shrugged, then winced at the movement. “Besides, it sounds like, on this case at least, they did the only thing there was to do.”
“And it is not our business to interpret the law, in any event,” Demetrius said, his tone soft. “Only to enforce it, to the best of our abilities, as honest officers of the law, when the law is just.”
“And in this instance, it certainly is,” Gorski averred.
“And the Sandman – or woman – is in custody, and will kill no more,” Demetrius proclaimed.
It took some few weeks for Nick’s chest to heal; a bone bruise was generally considered only about one step removed from a break, so it took nearly as long to heal as if it had broken. During that time, Cally insisted on helping him take care of himself and his apartment…which meant she walked home with him most evenings after shift. More, the Team considerately took turns escorting the pair to and from their respective apartments as needed. Sometimes she spent the night on his couch, and sometimes she headed on home – with escort – after seeing him settled for the night.
“It isn’t that you can’t take care of yourself,” Rassmussen told her one day. “It’s that…well, you’re gonna be preoccupied with Nick’s healing, and maybe not as alert as you might otherwise be. Plus, if they bring several of their goons, you’re outnumbered.”
“Yeah,” Jones agreed. “And Nick…well, you’re special to him, Cally. For Nick, that says a lot. This is as much for him as for you.”
Cally was deeply touched, and agreed to let them escort her when needed.
By the time Nick was getting some mobility back in his upper body and the stiffness had eased, he’d made room in his closet and dresser for her to keep some of her things at his place. This negated the inconvenience of her having to get ready for work at the headquarters gym, or go home late each night to prepare her own things.
It also made their relationship even closer.
Especially after she woke up on the couch with a decidedly unpleasant neck kink.
“Enough’s enough,” he declared. “The bed is a damn queen. There’s plenty of room for both of us, even if we decide we’re not ready to go there yet. And once we
