Chapter 4

The next morning, I quickly and quietly jumped out of bed. It was another sleepless night. This time thanks to Evan. He was really starting to worry me. I know Matthew coming back into the picture wasn’t ideal for him, but his behavior didn’t sit well with me. Doesn’t he realize how hard this is for me, too.

Sighing, I look around my closet to find my outfit for the day. I settle on a nice blue blouse with a black pair of dress pants. Leaving the closet, I stop when something catches my eyes. A beautiful red dress was tucked towards the back of the closet.

The dress was skintight and strapless barely reaching my knees. “This will be perfect for tonight,” I smile to myself grabbing the dress and some shoes to match it. There’s no telling how tonight will go so I might as well as look good.

Setting the dress and shoes on a chair, I head into the kitchen. Infront of the stove stood Evan stirring eggs around a pan. “Morning,” I say taking a seat at the table. “Morning,” Evan replies giving me a smile before turning back to the stove.

I nervously look at Evan before fixating my eyes on my hands. After last night’s events, there was no way I was going to tell Evan about meeting Matthew. He can’t even stand me talking about him, let alone be around him.

“So… Rachel invited me to dinner tonight,” I finally mention watching Evan’s reaction closely. He looks back at me for a second before looking back at the stove. “That was nice of her. It’ll be good for you to have a girl’s night.” I nod, letting out a quiet sigh of relief.

That went a lot better than I expected. “Yeah. I think so, too.” I really hate to lie to him, but he left me no choice. This conversation with Matthew must happen, regardless of the consequences I’ll face with him.

Walking into the station house, I saunter over to the coffee machine. I quickly poured myself a cup before making my way back to my desk. While taking a sip, I fail to notice Detective Simmons rushing to his desk. The entire cup gushing over my shirt drenching it entirely. I gasp out in shock and pain. “I’m so sorry! Are you okay?” I barely hear Simmons frantically say.

I struggle to pinch my shirt away from my body, the coffee starting to severely burn. Both Matthew and Russell bolt from their chairs racing towards me. “You’re okay Lizzy. You’re okay,” I hear them both say. Seeing the seriousness of the situation, Matthew rips my shirt off before removing his own.

He hastily covers my chest before ushering me into the locker room followed by Russell. Once in the room, Matthew wastes no time checking my burns. He winches at the look of them. “They don’t look too bad, but we should really call a medic,” he says in Russell’s direction. “I’m on it,” Russell replies pulling his phone out.

He turns his attention back to me. “Are you okay?” “I think so. It hurts like hell.” I wince trying to see the burns. “They’re on the way,” we hear Russell say. The locker room door bursts open revealing Captain Johnston. “You, okay?” He looks at me worriedly.

“Yeah. I need a new shirt though,” I chuckle, trying to laugh at the situation I was in. My boobs were practically on display and being embarrassment so wasn’t needed right now. “What? Mine not good enough for you?” Matthew smirked. I shake my head with a small chuckle. I focus my gaze on his face.

I missed this. Our little banter. It makes me hopeful for our relationship to be mended. Captain Johnston clears his throat, breaking me of my thoughts. “Once they check you out, I want you home. Take the rest of the day off.” Before I can protest, he interjects, “Don’t even start. My orders.”

Two paramedics rush into the room taking over. “It’s borderline second degree.” I hear one tell the other. “How’s your pain? Do you want to go to the hospital?” the second paramedic asks. “Uh, not too bad, and no, I’d rather not.” They finish up before telling me to take it easy and how to care for the burns.

“Come on. I’ll give you a lift,” Matthew tells me leaving no room to argue. He places a hand on my back leading me out to his car. “I’m so sorry Elizabeth. I didn’t see you there. I feel horrible,” Simmons apologizes profusely. “It’s okay Simms. I’m gonna be fine,” I try to reassure him.

The entire car ride was spent talking about all the different injuries we had gotten on the jobs over the years. Each incident only bringing us closer together. Hearing him recall about the time he got shot in the ass made us both burst out with laughter.

God, I missed his laugh. It never failed to cheer me up especially after bad cases. Pulling up to my apartment, he steps out of the car to open my door. Leaning me his hand, I apprehensively grab it, letting him help me. The whole walk to my front door is filled with silence. I pull out my keys and open the door blocking him from entering.

I turn to face him. “I uh… I really appreciate everything you did for me today.” “Of course,” he says with a small grin. “See you at 7?” I ask. “Only if you’re up for it?” He nods back. Smiling back, we say our goodbyes before I close the door.

I feel so conflicted. I’m still infuriated with how he left me, but the way he was so affectionate earlier makes it so hard to remain resentful. I mean, he dropped everything to help me, to be here for me. On the other hand, he was just being a thoughtful compassionate human being.

Sighing, I plop down on the couch, not realizing I was still wearing his shirt. I chuckle pulling it to my face to take a whiff. It smells just like him.

A few hours later, my phone vibrates on the living room table. ‘Hey Liz. Just checking in on you. Hope you still like pasta. I booked us a table at Francis. I’ll pick you up at 6:20. -Matt’

‘Sounds yummy. Looks like you didn’t forget about my obsession with chicken alfredo. Lol. See you then. -Liz’ I quickly typed back before tossing my phone back on the table. It was already 3 in the afternoon, and I would need to start getting ready soon.

I head to the bathroom for a quick shower. Stepping out of the shower, I stare at myself in the mirror, the toll of the last 2 days was clear on my face. Wow, I look rough. I grab my makeup bag and hope I can work a little magic.

Leaving the bathroom, I see my red dress draped over the chair in the bedroom. I stare at it for a few seconds before forcing myself to put it on. My nerves were starting to get the best of me. This conversation has to happen. I just didn’t think my life would this big of a mess when it did. I always thought Evan would be there to support me, yet he throws a hissy fit if I even mention Matthew’s name.

I try to zip up the back of my dress, but it won’t budge. The zipper must be caught, I thought. I freeze at the sound of the doorbell ringing. Turning towards the door, I look at my alarm clock to see it was barely past 6. I rush to the door, unease filling each step.

I look through the peephole before opening the door. Matthew stood in the doorway with flowers and a sweet smile on his way. “Hey.” “Hey,” I smile back. He was wearing a dark grey button up shirt with black dress pants that hug his butt in all the right ways.

“These are uh for you,” he says handing me the flowers. My smile grows when I realize he remembered what my favorite flowers were. Red roses and sunflowers. I smell them before saying, “You remembered. Thank you. You didn’t have to do that.”

He glances at the ground before returning his gaze to me. “Actually, I did. I... um… it’s the very least given everything.” I nod before moving aside for him to come in. “Please. Come in. I’m almost ready. I just can’t get this dang zipper up.” “Here, let me.” I feel him softly yank the zipper to the top. “There.”

I turn to face him. “Thanks.” “Of course. You have a nice place here,” he says scanning the apartment. His eyes stopping on pictures on the mantle before returning to mine. “Make yourself comfortable. I just need my shoes and we can go.” He slowly makes his way to the mantle while I grab my shoes from the bedroom.

“Is that Evan Peterson?” he asks from the other room. I stop at his question. “Uh, yeah. Yeah, it is?” I quickly put on my heels. The sooner we leave, the less he can ask about Evan. “How is the old bigshot lawyer? Still defending sleaze bags?”

“Uh, no, actually. He’s an ADA now,” I respond walking into the living room. Matthew was holding a picture of Evan and I from a party we attended last year. He swiftly puts it back sensing my tension. “Ready to go?” he asks handing me my coat. I nod, passing him into the hallway.

Awkward silence overtakes the car. A few minutes pass before Matthew inquires, “So how long have you and Peterson been, you know?” “Uh... a couple years. He’s actually a really decent guy, but I’d rather not talk about him right now.” I continue to stare out the window, grateful to see the restaurant in view.

Taking our seats at the table, I start to become anxious. This is it. “So..” I start, his eyes meeting mine. “Why did you leave?”