Fatal Series 01 - Fatal Affair

life, she hadn’t allowed herself to imagine this moment. Tears wet her father’s cheeks as he watched from his chair. He loved his three girls passionately, but the special bond he shared with Sam was obvious to everyone who knew them.
    Once the bars were in place Tracy and Angela stepped back.
    Sam leaned forward to rest her head on her father’s shoulder, which was a poor substitute for the hug she’d have given anything to receive from him right then. Two long years had passed since he’d last been able to hug her.
    “Congratulations, Lieutenant,” he said in a gruff tone.
    “Thank you, Chief.”
    He kissed her cheek.
    She turned to shake hands with Chief Farnsworth.
    Watching the remaining cops leave the room, Sam had to hold herself back.
    “It’s okay if you want to go with them,” Nick said from behind her.
    “No way,” she said as she turned to him. “I’m off today.”
    “Sam.”
    “Nick.”
    He leaned in and kissed her square on the lips in front of her father, her sisters, the chief and the mayor. The mayor , for God’s sake!
    “Congratulations, Lieutenant,” Nick whispered.
    “Thank you,” she muttered. She planned to speak to him once again about his inappropriate PDA habit once they were back in that stupid limo he’d insisted on to transport them around the famously congested District of Columbia on their big day.
    “The uniform is h-o-t,” he whispered in her ear. “I’ll need a private viewing later.”
    “Stop.” She pushed at his chest. Even through the suit she could make out the pronounced contours of his muscular pectorals.
    His full, sexy mouth lifted into the smile that promised carnal delights, and Sam’s panties went damp. That was all it took, and he knew it.

    As they partook in the coffee and pastry reception, Sam felt twitchy with anxiety as she waited to hear something— anything —from the scene of the domestic disturbance. Sipping her second diet cola of the day, she watched Nick share a laugh with her father and was grateful that the two of them had bonded over their shared concern for her safety. She wished they were a little less concerned, but hey, at least her father had stopped trying to intimidate Nick every chance he got—something Skip was still quite good at, even from his wheelchair.
    Angela and Tracy materialized out of the crowd and linked their arms through Sam’s.
    “Ready to move on to part two?” Tracy asked.
    “Do I have to?” Sam asked, a shaft of pain through her midsection reminding her of her many worries about Nick’s new job. It also reminded her that she’d promised him she would have this annoying stomach situation checked by his doctor once the O’Connor case was closed. She hoped he would forget but knew he wouldn’t. “I need to get changed.”
    “We’ll go with you,” Angela said.
    Sam signaled to Nick that she’d be right back and headed for her new corner office in the detectives’ pit where she had stashed a change of clothes earlier. The suit she’d paid way too much for hung on a hook behind the door.
    “Come in here and help me, you guys,” Sam called to her sisters. “I’m all thumbs.”
    Angela and Tracy marched through the door and took over, changing Sam out of her uniform and into the black suit with a subtle silver pinstripe. The three-button jacket revealed just a hint of her substantial cleavage, but she worried it was too much. They capped off the outfit with Sam’s prized black Jimmy Choo heels and their grandmother’s pearls, which Sam hoped lent her an aura of respectability.
    Angela helped Sam with the shoes, straightened and then wobbled. “Whoa,” she said, reaching for the wall to steady herself.
    “What’s the matter?” Sam asked.
    “Nothing. Just got dizzy for a minute there.”
    “Did you skip breakfast again?” Tracy asked.
    “Maybe,” Angela said sheepishly. “I’ll grab something on the way to the Capitol.” Turning her attention on Sam, she added, “You look fabulous, Sam. Absolutely gorgeous.”
    Sam tugged at the top button of the suit, willing it up another half inch. But the moment she let it go, it slid back down over breasts she thought were far too big. “It’s not conservative enough.”
    “Well, since Nick is a flaming liberal, that shouldn’t be a problem,” Ang joked.
    “Very funny,” Sam said. “The chief justice of the Supreme Court is swearing him in. He isn’t going to want to see my boobs.”
    “Wanna bet?” Tracy said with a