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.She decided that until she did, she wouldn’t act on either.To do so was to risk hurting Parker, and she had suffered enough betrayal from others who lacked the courage of their convictions.Morgan resolved she would keep her feelings to herself until she was sure.Chapter TwelveParker walked in from the garage and headed straight to the kitchen.She wanted coffee, but she needed water more.She had woken up about forty-five minutes before, sprawled on the couch in Morgan’s hotel room.They were both fully dressed and Parker felt the dull throb of a hangover begin to take hold.She eased her way out of the room, casting a wistful glance at Morgan sound asleep on the couch.It had been a strange night.The only one they had shared without sleeping together, yet it was the most intimate by far.Now, as she chugged a bottle of cold water, Parker regretted not stealing a kiss before she left.Parker was so wrapped up in the memory, she didn’t notice the presence of anyone else in the kitchen.The scraping sound of a throat clearing caused her to turn abruptly and smack her head on the refrigerator door.“What the hell?” She rubbed her head and stared at Kelsey and Dex, who were standing in the middle of the kitchen staring right back at her.Slowly, her memory started to return.Dex.Research.Saturday morning.Shit.She wondered if they had seen her come in from the garage, dressed in yesterday’s clothes.Feeling like a kid caught with her hand in the cookie jar, she scrambled.“Oh, hi, Dex.Sorry, I had to run out this morning and get some stuff.Give me five minutes and I’ll be raring to go.” She grabbed the bottle of water and jogged out of the room without waiting for a response.*They had been working for almost two hours when Dex abruptly pushed the button on the computer monitor.As the screen faded to black, Parker exclaimed, “Hey, I was reading a case!”Dex settled into the chair next to her.“We need to talk.”Parker squirmed in her seat.“Dex dear, we’ve been talking.We’ve talked all morning.I think we’re getting close to having this motion briefed.Can we finish please?”“In a minute.” Dex took a deep breath.“Gerald Lopez came by to see me last night.”“Is he feeling a little left out? I’ll never figure out how he made the team in the first place.”“Yeah, me neither.But apparently he’s got a pretty big chip on his shoulder and it has to do with you.”Gerald had never hidden his jealousy for her success in school.He believed he was entitled to accomplishment because his daddy was a hotshot lawyer, alum, and major contributor to the law school.He viewed Parker as a lowly cop, which figured into his calculation that he was more deserving of success than she.Parker had no idea what Dex was about to say, but whatever it was, she wasn’t surprised about the fact Gerald didn’t like her.She was surprised, though, that Gerald had bothered to talk to Dex about his feelings, since he had to know Dex and Parker were tight.“Gerald has it in his head you and Professor Bradley have a thing.”Not in a million years did she expect this revelation.Her feelings furiously treaded water while her thoughts swam in search of an acceptable response.“A thing? What’s that supposed to mean?”Dex gave Parker a knowing look.“Don’t make me spell it out.You know what I mean.He says he saw you two, quote, ‘cuddling up in class’ and riding off somewhere together last night.”“What did you say to him?”“I threatened to beat the shit out of him.” Dex gave her a pointed look.“Was my bluster unfounded?”Parker managed to return Dex’s look, but couldn’t find words to convey a simple answer to his question complete with an explanation of the complexity of her relationship with Morgan.She had trouble understanding the situation herself.How could she expect Dex to comprehend? As she watched his expectant expression, she realized their friendship demanded she at least try to explain.Knowing Dex, Gerald had suffered for even bringing up the issue, and she owed Dex for his loyalty.Parker told Dex everything, from the first moment in the alley to her soul-baring episode of the evening before.She omitted no detail, not even her involved past with Skye, and was surprised at the sense of relief she felt at the telling.Years of training allowed Dex to listen without reacting, giving Parker no idea how he felt about her revelations.When she finished she waited expectantly.“Wow.” The one word revealed the surprise his flat tone was meant to hide.“Wow? You don’t have anything to say but wow?” Parker waited for his thoughts to catch up to his feelings.Dex shook his head.“So you’ve slept with both the lead detective on the Chavez case and the lead defense attorney.Gee, Parker, any other major players on this case you haven’t bagged?”Parker stood abruptly, knocking over the reams of research they had compiled.“You’re an ass.”“Come on, Parker.What the hell did you expect me to say? ‘Way to go’?”Parker was furious at Dex for his callous reaction and furious with herself for sharing with him
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