8 comments/ 18570 views/ 13 favorites NYPD: Fighting Temptation By: CaramelAppleBottom Writer's Foreword: This story is intended to slowly build up to the hot and sexy stuff. So if you want a quick read, this is not it. Enjoy :) New York was a drastic change from the Miami heat she'd come to love, mainly because it reminded her of the beautiful island she was born on 26 years prior. She and her family had left Jamaica when she was only 10, but they would visit every year till she was 20 and the month they'd spend there was filled with utter relaxation, kind of like what she needed right now. "Why the hell did I take this promotion again?" she mumbled while massaging her throbbing temples. She had been working on this case for what felt like months and it wasn't getting any easier. She was really good at her job, that's why she was hand picked for the promotion, but lately she felt a bit... "Dr. Davis, here are the labs you requested" her assistant Lisa was placing the documents on her desk when Khalilah realized what she was missing. "Dr. Davis?...I...uh have the – "Shit! Why didn't I think of that before? Lisa, I'm sorry, but you need to run the tests back to the lab for me and screen for levels of toxicity of Ketamine" she looked at the young girl who was a bit puzzled and had to gesture that it was something that needed to be done immediately before Lisa got a clue. Khalilah felt like this might be the missing piece to the puzzle. She worked the Cold Case Files and enjoyed bringing justice to forgotten victims via her medical background. Like most of the cases she worked on, which were either reopened due to familial request or new evidence, this one had been going on 7 years cold. But a recent kidnapping with similar M.O. had caused her to dig deeper and work in overdrive. As both an ME and Detective specialized in forensics, Dr. Khalilah Davis was neck deep in this case, but nothing seemed to come to light. She was stressed from the big move, she was tired from working 24/7, she was lonely without her family close by and she was annoyed that she was going to be partnered up in a matter of hours. She liked her space and back home in Miami she worked alone and was content. Yeah, she was a bit of a loner, but the work she did didn't leave much time to socialize and meet people. She had been on dates, but most of the men she'd dated seemed either intimidated by her choice of career or afraid they'd end up in jail themselves. Khalilah suddenly had the sensation of being watched so when she looked up to see a strikingly handsome man staring back at her, she was taken aback a little, but not surprised. She cleared her throat to speak when he stepped in and introduced himself. "Det. Davis I presume?" as he extended his hand, "I'm Detective Aiden Brooks- "Your new partner" Stated her police chief Comm. Rollands. He was an older man in his mid to late fifties, but had handsome features. When she met him he instantly reminded her of Danny Glover circa Lethal Weapon. He had a commanding air, which ensured respect from his precinct, but he also had a heart of gold. Khalilah stood and shook Det. Brooks' hand, but could not hide her displeasure at having heard the news. "Sir" she nodded her head and offered them a seat. "Well Davis, I told you this day would be coming and I'm sorry it took so long, but I had to wait until Det. Brooks was back from leave. I gave him the file, but you can get him up to speed ASAP. I want a briefing first thing Monday morning." He stood to leave and both Khalilah and Brooks got up as well. Formality...sometimes it was a pain. As soon as Comm. Rollands left, Khalilah was uncertain of what to say. Sure she had had a partner when she first started on the force as an officer, but since focusing on the forensics aspect of detective work she thought she left that babysitting gig behind. "So Det. Khalilah Brooks....I'm guessing by the way you're looking at me you either want me to disappear or tear my clothes off - Ah- I think it's just the disappear thing" He had this smug look on his face as he noticed her jaw drop at the last part of his statement. He looked back down at the mountains of paperwork pilled up on her desk haphazardly and smiled to himself. "Don't flatter yourself Det. Brooks, and don't touch my files" she was not in the mood. Sure he was fine as hell, but she could care less. He was 6'3 and fit. With broad shoulders and a narrow waist, he definitely had the physique of a swimmer. He was dressed casually in dark wash jeans, some white air force ones and a navy blue polo that barely seemed to contain his nicely rippled biceps. His body was hot, but his face was gorgeous. He had the square jaw thing going on and it was covered by some two-day-old stubble, but it looked sexy all the same. His hair was blond, but in different lights could pass for light brown, it flowed wildly top his head, but looked styled at the same time. But it was his arresting green eyes that were the showstopper. They were a shade of green (perhaps emerald would be an accurate way to describe them) Khalilah didn't even know existed. Luckily for her she observed these things quite quickly, she had a knack for seeing things once and remembering them. Snapping back to the matter at hand, Khalilah knew she had no intention of getting Det. Brooks up to speed at the moment so she ignored his rattling hoping that he'd get the hint and leave. As she sat looking over some files on her desk, Aiden couldn't help but stare. She looked no older than 22, but he had done his homework and knew all the stats of his new partner. She was born in Spanish town, Jamaica to Clive and Monica Davis in 1982. Both parents were professors at the University of the West Indies, where her father taught law and psychology and her mother taught biology. She was the youngest of 3 children, with a brother named Curtis and a sister named Melinda. When she was 10 she and her family moved to Florida because of a teaching job her father received from the University of Miami. At age 11 she was found to be gifted and put into accelerated classes allowing her to graduate from high school at 15. She went onto study biochemistry and law as her undergrad and decided she wanted to be a doctor. She finished med school at 22 and went to work for Miami PD quickly making her way up the ranks. Just going over her history was making Aiden dizzy. She was only 3 years younger than him yet she seemed to have lived a lifetime. When he first came to her door he had cleared his throat to get her attention, but she was so wrapped up in her thoughts that she hadn't heard a thing, but she must have sensed something because she looked up expecting to see someone looking back at her. She had this blank expression on her face, which made her hard to read, but Aiden could tell that even though she was an ME, she was a natural detective too. She was taking in all his stats and ensuring she had a good visual. He liked that. Not to mention she wasn't bad on the eyes. Her skin was the colour of caramel and it looked like it glowed in New York's dreary weather. She was no taller than 5'5 and she had a petite overall appearance to her. Her hair was black and curly tucked in that sloppy bun women tended to do. Her eyes were deep brown, bordering black, but they shone like stars and her lips were the perfect shape as though Michelangelo himself had drawn them. She looked like she had been up for days and she had no make-up on, which is generally not an appealing combination, but she was wearing the natural look and she did it well. "Khalilah, I sent the docs to the lab and I'm heading out to- " Lisa had been semi-yelling as they were the only two who tended to be down in the dank basement when she entered her boss' office to see a handsome specimen of man sitting in the room. Lisa got red faced and hoped that Dr. Davis wasn't in some sort of meeting. "Oh, I'm sorry I didn't realize you were in a meeting- " she began to stumble clearly a bit embarrassed. "Don't worry about it Lisa, we weren't discussing anything anyways" she looked up slightly to assure her assistant that she was in no trouble at all. Lisa released the tension in her shoulders and made a sigh of relief. She loved her job and her boss was awesome. Dr. Davis or Khalilah as she would rather be called was really cool and she was kind of like Lisa's mentor, but Lisa should have known better than to be so unprofessional. Seeing that they were 2 of a handful of female employees in the entire department, they had to always be ahead of their game - it was a dog-eat-dog environment. "Hello, I'm sorry for the intrusion, but Dr. Davis I'm heading out to Pete's Diner for lunch would you like me to bring you back something?" Lisa laid on the formality thick and she was good at it. Aiden noticed the tiny side-glances she kept directing his way. He didn't mind a bit, she was definitely hot. "No thank you Lisa I'm not hungry you enjoy your lunch." Khalilah looked up and noticed Det. Brooks looking at her as though she was the rudest person in the world for not introducing them. Khalilah mumbled something unintelligible and then introduced the two. "By the way Lisa, this is my partner Det. Aiden Brooks, Det. Brooks this is Lt. Lisa McAvoy my – I mean our assistant. She's a forensics psych student interning with us and she's also the receptionist." It was a mouthful, but someone had to do it. With that Khalilah turned back to her papers, but not before noticing the exchange of pleasantries that went on. "Ha!" Khalilah thought to herself, "this is going to be interesting." A giggle or two caused Khalilah to furrow her brow at the not so subtle flirtation between the two. "Why did they feel the need to carry it out in her office?" She wondered, but she finally heard the conversation coming to an end...or so she thought. "So I'd better head out, I don't want to miss my chance to eat.." Lisa said with playful laughter. Khalilah noted the jest between the two. Lisa was definitely what you'd call model-esque. At 5'10 she was much taller than Khalilah's 5'3 frame, which gave her a more womanly appearance. Whenever the two went out in the field, Khalilah was always mistaken as the assistant and Lisa as the doctor. Lisa was no doubt beautiful with her auburn hair that reached past her shoulder blades in waves (today) and her piercing hazel eyes and tanned skin. She wore subtle make-up that accentuated her doll like features and she had a great sense of style, usually dressed in Club Monaco, Calvin Klein or Banana Republic to name a few. She had that long legged look and was thin but not skinny. At 23, Lisa had probably been the fantasy of many, many young and old men. "Well, they do look picture perfect together" Khalilah noted, it was sort of like looking at one of those Guess clothing billboards plastered along the New York skyline. It was a bit sickening. "I'm sure your boss, isn't as evil as she looks and wouldn't mind if we came back a little late." Aiden smiled coyly and Lisa blushed while playfully hitting his shoulder. Khalilah had had enough. Trying not to sound offended or annoyed by his comment, Khalilah started to pack. "Oh, Lisa I don't mind if you take a bit longer, I can see that Det. Brooks has wasted about 20 minutes of your lunch hour alone. I'm going over to the morgue anyways to see if I can examine the body again, so if you don't mind can you close up tonight, I don't think I'll be coming in until tomorrow." As she packed up her belongings she noticed that Lisa was looking at her with a bit of confusion...God, was that the only look she had? Det. Brooks on the other hand had a playful grin on his face. Maybe he picked up my subtle sarcasm. "Dr. Davis, We'll be quick to get lunch, we just got carried away with the conversation" Lisa was clearly trying not to piss off the boss, but Det. Brooks was enjoying the show. He was good at reading people, hence why he was one of the best profilers in the East Coast at just 29. He could tell that Det. Davis was annoyed even though her assistant Lisa was oblivious to it. Aiden noticed that when she was annoyed she'd clench her jaw shut. It was the first thing she did when Comm. Rollands introduced them and she was doing it again. "It's okay Lisa, you guys enjoy your afternoon. I'll see you tomorrow" Khalilah took off her lab coat and tossed her bag over her shoulder and waited for them to exit the doorway so that she could pass. Lisa quickly moved aside, but Det. Brooks stood there blocking her path. "Det. Davis I would really enjoy your company at lunch you know, we could get to know each other. We are supposed to be partners" Det. Brooks looked her straight in the eyes hoping that she couldn't refuse his charm, but when she lifted her eyes to meet his he was almost taken aback by her ability to contend with him. "No thank you Det. Brooks, like I said before I'm not hungry and I have no intentions of getting to know you outside of work. I have read your profile Detective, like I'm sure you have read mine. I'm not that interesting and I'm sure you and Lisa would have much more to talk about anyways. Excuse me" As she held his gaze she noticed the change in colour and though it interesting that they appeared darker as she spoke to him. The entire time she felt a sense of victory that she hadn't faltered in her statement, she wasn't going to look like a lame third wheel while these two yuked it up at lunch. Never again... As he side stepped to let her past her arm brushed against his hands and she could have sworn she felt a spark. It was like a bolt of energy passed through her. "How ironic" she thought as she turned the corner and headed for the stairs. She rarely took the elevator because of a childhood incident, but it was more for exercise she told herself as she began the ascent. NYPD: Fighting Temptation Ch. 02 Lunch with Lisa had been slow torture. Sure, she was nice on the eyes, but she was nonstop chatter. She pretty much told him her entire life story in one club-sandwich sitting and was about to go on when she was interrupted --to Aiden's luck—by some old precinct buddies. "Get the fuck outta, he-ah. Aiden you S.O.B. you was just gonna come up in Pete's and not say "hello"?" Gerry was a completely Brooklynite. He was older than Aiden but only by a few years. He was a big guy in every sense of the word. He wasn't fat per say, he was just solid and tall. A few years back, he and his partner responded to a call about a robbery in progress at a local convenience store and well to make a long story short, Gerry's partner and the store owner were killed and Gerry was shot 4 times. It took months of rehab and years of therapy so now he worked the desk. Aiden couldn't just call to him from across the diner so he told Lisa he's be a minute and walked over to the commotion. There were several uniforms there, some old some new, but all NYPD brothers. Aiden had been out of commission for a while and was uncertain about even coming back to the field, but when he was told about the new case he figured it was just the type to ease him back into the game. They said their "hellos" and the new kid, Jones was his name, noticed that I was eating lunch with "the hot chick from the basement". "Shit" Aiden thought to himself, he had been all caught up with the guys that he actually forgot about Lisa at the table. "Well I gotta head back to lunch, you know duty calls." Aiden smirked as he retreated back to his booth with Lisa. The guys gave him a knowing look and burst out laughing. Gerry just smiled and shook his head at the kid. Man, Aiden was never out of commission when it came to the ladies. He used to have a different one for everyday of the week. He was a legend in the precinct and on his first day back, it looked like he was coming out of retirement. "That lucky bastard" Gerry thought. As Aiden returned to the table he was glad to see the bill sitting there waiting to be paid. He put down a twenty and noticed that Lisa didn't even look like she intended on leaving. He felt like an ass when he began, but it had to be done. "Hey, Lisa, lunch was great....but I really gotta head out. I –" "Oh, oh-my-gosh, that's cool I didn't mean to hold you up or anything. Lunch was great thought, maybe we should make it a habit." Lisa smiled seductively and grabbed her purse as Aiden put on his jacket. He knew exactly what she was getting at, but for some reason wasn't as interested as her. But he had to remain professional; she was after all his secretary. "Yeah, for sure. I'll see you Monday. Have a good weekend." They headed in separate directions, Lisa was going back to the precinct and Aiden was headed to the number one place he figured his new partner would be... ~~ "Hey Shelley, how's your afternoon been?" Khalilah smiled as she walked up to the sign in desk of the morgue, tossing Shelley the other half of her turkey sandwich. She had become very close with Shelley since her arrival several month prior. In fact, Khalilah considered Shelley, or Shell as she often called her to be her only friend in the Big Apple. For some reason, Shelley reminded Khalilah of her best friend Allie back home in Jamaica. The women looked nothing alike, her best friend being of Venezuelan descent and Shelley being Chinese-American, they just had the same mannerisms and style. Shelley was a nurse, who was usually in emergency, but she was moonlighting in the morgue due to lack of staff. That's where the two women met. It had been Khalilah's second week in New York and she was working on a minor hit and run case and it was Shelley's third day at the desk and she was bored out of her mind. They struck up a conversation and ever since then they were cool. Shelley even took it upon herself to be Khalilah's official New York City tour guide. They went out for food at least two-times a week and if their weekends weren't filled with career chaos, then they'd go to a disco or bar on Shelley's request. Khalilah wasn't the type to party she didn't really get the opportunity like most during university because of her age. And when she was of age she was so busy with schoolwork and interning that she just didn't get involved. She was almost 23 before she had actually been to a disco with some people from the hospital. She had had fun, but she felt uncomfortable at times with the people she once thought of as friends. But with Shelley their friendship was genuine and not an attempt to get farther in life or make connections. "Hey girl, It's been dead – get it?! Dead. Haha, okay so apparently comedy isn't my calling." She smiled and the two women laughed. "Nothing new to tell you, hun, it's been quiet." Shelley usually calls to give Khalilah a heads up from Emergency if there's anything remotely suspicious and it has been to her benefit, but since the body of the young female washed up a couple weeks back, the attackers have been keeping low. Khalilah wasn't sure if that was a good thing. "Sooo how was your day?" Shelley inquired as though she knew something was up. It was uncanny sometimes how she did that. "Actually, it sucked. I had to rerun some labs, which is going to slow me down at least a couple days. My office looks like a tornado blew through it, not once, but twice." She paused as they both laughed at the imagery "...and I was introduced to my new partner." Khalilah wasn't able to hide her displeasure from her friend who just teased her by playing the world's smallest violin in tribute to her. Khalilah went on to explain everything that happened and Shelley stared in amazement as her friend explained expressed emotions she didn't even think Khalilah had. "And then they were like... "Well I grew up in Manhattan!"" Khalilah was mimicking Lisa's voice and doing a really good job too. "And he was like "I grew up in Queens, blah blah blah"". It was then that Khalilah noticed the big grin plastered across Shelley's face and had to stop to her performance hoping to God that no one else had heard her silliness. Khalilah looked around and was glad to see that no one else had come in on her performance, but her friend sat there with that stupid smile that Khalilah just had to yell. "What?!" She was a bit annoyed since Shell just sat there smiling like a goofball. "You're jealous." She said it like a question but Khalilah knew that she was stating it. "What? No! I'm not jealous, just a bit queasy from the cheesy flirting, but NOT jealous. He's not even my type." Khalilah said it like she had been practicing the response on her way over here. "Kiki, how long have we been friends? Like, what seven, eight months? Okay well from the time we've gotten to know one another you have never gotten so riled up about a guy – ever! And you've had to work alongside some mighty good-looking guys. How do you even know he's not your type?" Shelley laid it out for her with no sugar coating. "Because he's into Lisa!" Khalilah burst out before she even realized the trap Shelley put up for her. "Shit – okay you're good." Khalilah shook her head and smiled while her friend came over and patted her on the back. "You know, he did say he wanted you to join." Shelley pointed out. But Khalilah quickly retorted "Because he wanted to get to know me as his partner." She said the last part as though it were leprous to her tongue. Was she really jealous? She was never one to want what others had, her parents had always taught her to be thankful for her lot in life. She and her family hadn't always had it easy. But jealously was never something that crossed Khalilah's mind. Was she upset that Det. Brooks was nicer and more charming to Lisa when they were introduced? Or was it that Lisa was a people-person and could strike up a conversation with anyone, something Khalilah actually found quite difficult to undertake. She was good with reports and presentations, but that was related to her work, her passion. Just going up and talking to someone, for Khalilah was harder than her MCAT. "Kiki...hello in there?! Are you still with me?" Shelley knew her friend's thoughts were a million miles away and she hoped that she didn't cause her to be upset. Khalilah snapped out of the daze and simply smiled at Shell. She knew her friend meant well and Khalilah appreciated Shell's tell-it-like-it-is attitude. She had her best interests at heart. As they went into the dimly lit room, Shelley's pager went off. She checked the message and looked a bit pissed. "What's up? You gotta go?" Khalilah asked noticing her friend's scowl. "Sort of...they want me to help out overnight in E, but fuck I've been here almost 13 hours already. I was supposed to have two days off. I need to go call the nurses station, you know where everything is anyways..." Khalilah watched as Shell stalked off in a rightfully sour mood. Khalilah remembered those days in residency when it didn't matter how long you'd already put in, if shit hit the fan you had to be there. As she set up shop getting the body from storage and rolling it over to the examiner's room, Khalilah's mind went back to the showdown she had had earlier with Det. Brooks... Aiden Brooks.... From what she had read, he was at the top of his game until a recent case had him on leave for almost a year. He was 29 years old and had already spent almost a decade in the force. He grew up in Queens with his mother, stepfather and siblings. Apparently his biological father had been involved with some shady people and wound up dead when Aiden was 2. As a child he had found himself in some trouble like a lot of the kids in his neighborhood. They weren't necessarily bad kids; they just didn't have any structure. He was definitely rough around the edges, as he got older and bolder. He stole his dad's car and was selling weed to kids at school. After several stays at juvie before he was even 14, something clicked in him and he suddenly turned his act around. He worked hard at school and was making money the legal way and graduated at the top of his class. He went on to study Psychology at Columbia and maintained a 4.0 GPA, while volunteering at the local Boys and Girls Club and working a part-time job with full-time hours. During his second year he was recruited by the FBI as a profiler and began working on major state and national cases. But one case apparently really got to him and he suddenly took a leave of absence. "Now he is my partner and I have to deal with his giant ego." Khalilah thought to herself as she finished preparing the examination room. She turned on the stereo and hooked up her I-Pod and pressed play. She never liked the maddening silence that came with the morgue although she didn't have a problem with the post mortem bodies themselves. In Miami, where she lived you could always hear music playing or cars driving by one of the things she had no problem getting used to when she arrived in New York...the city really never sleeps. But the morgue, it was too quiet and so she always came prepared with her music on hand. She unzipped the body bag and looked down at a young girl only a few years her junior and sighed. "I'm sorry that I couldn't help, but maybe we can help other girls so they don't end up in here." She said hoping that she could learn something new. This was the girl who had been kidnapped and sadly her body had turned up several days later. Luckily she was well preserved which allowed Khalilah to make the associations and see the similarities in the cold case she had been assigned. Was it possible that these kidnapping/murders were related or was it coincidence she wondered. As John Mayer's "In Repair" began to play in the background, Khalilah couldn't help but sing along. She loved the song and could swear that John had written it for her. As she sang, she was totally unaware of the visitor she had standing in the doorway watching her intently. ~~ Aiden entered the hospital and knew exactly where to look for his elusive partner. He had been to the morgue in this particular hospital too many times to make use of the barely legible signs, so he headed down a wing, which he knew would have less traffic than what he was encountering at the moment. As he sauntered through the halls, Aiden turned several nurses heads and dodged familiar ones as he made his way to the elevator heading to the basement. As he stood waiting for the doors to open, he heard his name being called. "Aiden?... Det. Aiden Brooks, is that you?" the high-pitched voice of a bubbly-blond assaulted his ears as she approached him from the east wing doors. As he made out her features, he knew he was in trouble. Sure he had the reputation of a playboy, with too many one-night stands under his Hugo Boss belt, but he had turned over a new leaf in the last few years as he found the dramatics of his unions too Melrose Place-ish for his liking. He realized then that he needed to grow up when his "ex's" were unionizing and creating official "Aiden Brooks CockBlockers Clubs". Aiden realized the ass he had become and decided he needed to take his relationships with others, especially women, more seriously. So the few relationships he had had in recent years were seen as potential long-term situations, but he tended to attract the wrong type of women to settle down with, and Melanie Stokes was one of them. "Hey Melanie, how've you been?" Aiden quickly put on the charm and gave her a friendly hug, and she made sure to press her ample breasts into his chest. As she placed a lingering kiss on his cheek, Aiden recalled one of their sessions and man, was she ever wild. She could fuck for hours and she gave damn good head, but she had this way of overacting sometimes, like sex was a performance as opposed to a natural act. But one thing was for sure; some of the ways she could bend was definitely not normal. "Where have you been, I've been calling but got nothing?" She batted her eyelashes and I thought how I was glad to be immune to her act...now... a few months ago I would have been screwed. Melanie knew that Aiden wasn't interested in her like that any longer, but she'd hoped that maybe he'd come around. He was a good catch and she wasn't one for missing an opportunity. They had started seeing each other more than a year ago and they only lasted 4 months, but she knew what he liked and they continued to sleep together for a couple more weeks, until he ended that relationship quite abruptly and literally disappeared off the face of the planet. She knew he was having a hard time with a case he was working on, but didn't realize that it was worse than he had let on. She still cared for him in her own opportunistic way, but this encounter made her realize that he just wasn't that into her. She wasn't surprised when he politely brushed her off due to his "busy schedule and deadlines". "Busy? That's the best I could come up with. I wish I had just taken the stairs." Aiden said to himself as he rode the elevator down 3 floors. He rounded the corner and headed to the morgue, but realized that he didn't know exactly what he was going to say if he found who he was looking for. His thoughts were interrupted by the sound of music not quite blaring, but probably louder than intended due to the echo produced by the basement's structure. As he approached the sign in desk he found no one attending it, which was unusual. The morgue itself was empty, but there was light filtering from the examination room. "That's probably where the music's coming from." Aiden thought to himself, but he felt a bit wary about the situation so he reached for his gun and slowly approached the room door. As he approached the entryway, Aiden called out to see if anyone was there. "Hello? Is someone working at the desk this afternoon?" he called into the doorway, trying to be inconspicuous and as he entered the doorway, there she was, his partner, singing along to what sounded like John Mayer while cutting open a cadaver with her scalpel. She was completely in her element because she didn't even hear him call to her. So he watched her for the second time since their introduction and he was enthralled. Aiden decided that he should probably get her attention in a subtle way before he approached her from behind, but as he was about to her phone vibrated on the metal chart causing her to jump slightly at the rattling instruments. As she went to turn down her music, Aiden took the opportunity to "help" her out. "I'll get that." he said as he picked up her cell and said "hello". She jumped at his voice, but the look she had on her face was nothing close to fear. "What? No- what are you-" she was in shock at his boldness and worse he was shushing her as he spoke to whoever was on the other end of her phone. "...is that so? Yes ma'am! I'll let her know Mrs. Davis. It was nice talking to you too and have a good evening out with your husband. Bye." Aiden laid the charm on thick and Khalilah watched in horror as she realized that he was speaking to her mother. "Why didn't you give me the phone? That was my mother." Khalilah was pissed, this guy was so freaking rude! "Yeah, I know and to be honest you should really start taking after her, she's so pleasant. Anyways, your hands were all covered in human remains, I figured you wouldn't want to get shit all over your phone." He smiled as he notice her turning red from frustration. If they were cartoon characters, she'd be the on with the smoke coming from her ears. "Well, what did she say?" Khalilah quipped. "Oh you know, just that she hasn't heard from you in over a week and wanted to know if I, perhaps was the cause of your lack of communication." While on the phone Aiden knew what Khalilah's mother was implying and didn't feel the need to correct her. After noting that her daughter was okay, Mrs. Davis seemed excited at the thought of her always-too-busy daughter being involved with someone as though it was a rare occurance. So Aiden let the elder Davis believe what she wanted, not only to maintain her elation, but because he felt something else...he just couldn't quite put it to words. Khalilah knew he was trying to annoy her and to be honest he was doing a damn good job. "Why am I letting this idiot get me upset?" she thought to herself. And more importantly what was he doing there and how did he find me? Aiden was surprised that she had no retort for his prior comments, but he could tell she was trying to hold her tongue. "So, this is where you like to hang out, huh?" It wasn't so much of a question as it was an observation. "Yes- I mean no! I don't like to hang out here, I have work to do" she found herself trying not to sound like a complete loser as she answered his rhetorical statement. "What are you doing here anyways? I thought you were having lunch with Lisa." Khalilah tried to inquire without seeming overly interested in their lunch "date", but Aiden either caught her sarcasm or was just trying to piss her off...it was probably the latter. "Oh well, Lisa's smoking hot that's for sure" Aiden paused to gage Khalilah's reaction before going on, but noted that she was stone faced as he spoke so he continued. "And the lunch was pretty good, but you shouldn't be jealous of us, I mean, you and I are partners after all." Hook, line and sinker Aiden thought to himself as he saw Khalilah raise her eyes to meet his with the most incredulous expression he had ever seen. He couldn't contain himself any longer, he was a playful guy by nature and this was just too easy. As he began to laugh, Khalilah couldn't take it any more. Why was it that this man felt the need to annoy her constantly? And worse why was she finding him attractive? Even know as he laughed at her expense, she knew he was only playing around and she found it...cute? He had a sexy laugh and his eyes became half moons as he closed them. Even his mouth looked...No, no this was not happening. She couldn't start thinking these things about Det. Brooks, this man was becoming the bane of her existence and they only met...4 hours ago. As she took a second glance at her watch she realized it was later than she had thought. NYPD: Fighting Temptation Ch. 02 "Shit!" she said aloud, which caught them both off guard and causing Aiden to stop laughing. He noticed that she was no longer peering at him through angry slits, but he'd hoped that she wasn't taking it to heart. "Listen, I'm sorry I hope you're not taking me seriously right now. I just think you're too wound up and I thought you should laugh a little, you know loosen up." Shit! He hoped that didn't come out wrong, he didn't want her to be really mad at him. "I get it, you're a jokester and I'm an uptight, stick in the mud. Thanks, I get it, but this time my issue has nothing to do with you, Mr. Conceited." she smiled as she spoke and not one of those snide remarks smile, an actual smile and Aiden was floored by her beauty. Khalilah couldn't even believe that she was enjoying this back and forth banter, but the seemed to flow and now as she smiled at him, she saw him staring back at her with an expression she could not read. Is there something on my face? A long silence ran between them only to be interrupted by Shelley, who had finally come back to the station after being gone for what seemed like hours. "Kiki, I'm sor –...Hey am I interrupting something?" Shelley noticed a strikingly handsome man in the room with her friend and was unsure of whether she had just interrupted something important. The man walked over to Shelley and extended a hand, "Hi, I'm Det. Brooks, Det. Davis' partner." They shook hands and all that ran through Shelley's mind was that she hoped she wasn't visibly drooling. "Kiki was right, he's hot!" Shelley thought, and then heard her friend cough as to signify that too much time had elapsed and maybe she should pick er jaw up off the floor and introduce herself. "Hi, I'm Shelley Chen. Nice to meet you." She smiled. "Likewise." Aiden replied and turned his attention back to Khalilah, who had been clearing up her table during the intros. "Shell, I completely lost track of time, we should be getting out of here if we want to make it to the 8 o'clock showing of Sex and the City." They had decided earlier in the day that they'd have a girls night out. High heels, martinis, and all. "Well that's what I was coming back to tell you. Good news or bad news first? Okay bad news first" Shell always gave the option, but never let you pick. Khalilah laughed as her friend rattled off her predicament. All the while Aiden watched the two converse. "So, I have to work E room till ten o-clock, BUT I'm free for the entire weekend, no pager or anything, so that's the good news. I can always meet up with you downtown at Luxe after the movie." Shell had a plan for her friend and she hoped it would work. She knew Khalilah would take this as a way out of going out, but Shell was having none of it. "Shell, why would I go to a movie by myself and then meet up with you. We can just reschedule." Khalilah was kind of happy the night was a bust she was tired, but truth be told SATC wasn't really her thing. "Because I already bought the tickets!" Shell retorted and when Aiden piped up, the two women were a bit surprised, as though they had forgotten he was in the room. "Well," he started "if you already have the tickets, I can go in your place and then we can all meet up after." He was hoping he sounded suave as opposed to eager. Khalilah was about to decline, when Shell took the reigns. "Det. Brooks, that's a great idea, then I wouldn't feel like I wasted my money and we can all go out for drinks afterwards." Shell's plan was not this perfect, but this was definitely a good outcome. "I think everyone wins this way, and please call me Aiden." He was speaking to Shelley, but he never took his eyes off Khalilah, who stood there unsure of what to say or do. "I can't say no otherwise Shell will never let this go." Khalilah said to herself and before she even realized what she was agreeing to, Aiden was letting her know what time they'd meet up. Khalilah knew that this was going to be a long and interesting night. NYPD: Fighting Temptation Ch. 03 "Shell, I'm only going through with this because I know you'll hold it over my head for the rest of my life if I bail." Shelley had snuck her friend a phone as soon as she thought she'd be home. She was ecstatic for her friend's "date" tonight and was half expecting Kiki to bitch her out for the not so subtle push to go out with Aiden scheme. But as she listened to her friend's complaints, she realized that Kiki was nervous about the entire ordeal. Since she had met Khalilah, they had become fast friends. It was funny how some people just clicked like that. She couldn't believe how accomplished Kiki was for someone her age and found her to be inspiring to say the least. She was intelligent, funny, kind and beautiful, her only fault was that she didn't take the time to see those great qualities within herself. On several occasions, when she dragged Kiki out for a night of fun, many attractive men had hit on her, but she was too shy to strike up a conversation or give out her number. As her friend, Shell let her know constantly that she should break out of her old habits and just let loose sometimes, she definitely deserved to. But Shell also knew that Kiki's closed off demeanor was a byproduct of a difficult childhood. Kiki didn't really go into depth, but from what Shell gathered Kiki was the awkward girl for most of her adolescent and teen life. She was probably always pretty, shell thought, but because Kiki was younger than most people she was in class with and she always had her nose in a book she most likely sailed under the social radar unnoticed. She had no excuse thought now, Shell thought. At 26, Kiki was gorgeous without a doubt, but she was always in those damn lab coats. Sure Shell was not one to talk in her nurse's uniform, but as soon as her day was done she made sure to glam it up. Kiki on the other hand probably slept in that damn white coat. She had some really nice stuff in her closet (courtesy of a shopping spree the girls went on a few weeks prior) but never found the time to actually wear them. "Well tonight's the night to put those fuck-me boots to the test" Shell thought as her friend grumbled on the other side of the receiver. "Listen, hun, there's no need to be nervous okay. It's just a movie and he's just a guy. A very attractive, sexy, hot – "Okay I get it! Thank you for reminding me of what I've been thinking about since we left the hospital." Kiki was a bit distressed to say the least, but she told herself to take several deep breaths to calm down. It usually worked, but for some reason it wasn't helping tonight. Shell was right; he's just a guy. "I feel really stupid for being so wound up, Shell. He probably doesn't think anything of going out to a movie. Not to mention going with me as company." Kiki was feeling silly about semi-thinking it felt like a date when she knew very well that she wasn't Det. Brooks' type. He could easily have any woman he wanted any day of the week, so she found it peculiar that he was adament about going out with her and Shell. Kiki hadn't said anything to her friend, but she figured he wasn't really interested in getting to know his partner as much as he was interested in getting to know her friend. Shell was beautiful and when put side by side, Kiki always felt insecure, but she never ever told her friend. At 5'6 Shell was taller than Kiki, but not by much. She was in good shape from the yoga and circuit training she did a few times a week. Her raven colored hair was long and silky and she had recently gotten choppy bangs to change her look. She was fair skinned and had dark brown almost black eyes. Kiki always thought Shell looked like Lucy Lui, but she never saw it. "Kiki, don't over think it, just be yourself and we'll have a good time." Shell knew it was going to be a long night. "Okay, well I'm not too sure about the outfit you suggested, but I promise I'll try and look presentable. I know that Luxe has a dress code." Khalilah was certain that her friend would be pissed if she didn't put on the exact outfit she had suggested, but she was too nervous to dare wear it out with her partner in tow. So she made a few minor adjustments and was shocked when she looked in the mirror. There Khalilah stood looking back at herself and was surprised to see that she actually looked...attractive? It was a bit weird looking at her freshly straightened hair that hung in the middle of her back with sleek side-swept bangs. She rarely straightened her hair in Miami because of the heat, but New York was a little better for trying new hairdos. She wore a pair of dark denim jeans (her alternative to Shell's mini skirt suggestion) with her black and gold Jimmy Choo stiletto peek-toe pumps. Her top was a shimmering gold halter with the faux rope empire seems under generous sized breasts, which added support, but more importantly some lift. She finished off the outfit with some black and gold bangles and a black and gold clutch that matched her shoes. Although, it was summer and July could get really hot, the nights were a bit cool and Khalilah considered bringing a small jacket, but then decided against it, remembering that coat check was a pain at the end of the evening. As she looked at the time on her nightstand clock, she realized that she had about forty-five minutes to get to the theaters before the cinema got too full. She double-checked her purse ensuring that her money, I.D., keys and of course movie tickets among other things were all accounted for. As she turned off her bedroom light she heard her phone ring signaling a visitor downstairs. She definitely wasn't expecting anyone, but chalked it up to the sometimes absent-minded deliveryman who always got her and Mrs. James mixed up. As she picked up the receiver to tell the person they had the wrong apartment she was stunned by the voice on the other end. "Det. Davis, you know that the movie starts in about a half an hour and you're still in your apartment." he didn't say who it was, but she knew it was him; his jovial tone emanating through the phone. She stood there almost too stunned to reply at his unexpected arrival at her home. "How does he know where I live?" Khalilah thought to herself. "Hey are you there or what?" Det. Brooks' voice now had a tinge of concern in it. She had yet to say anything to his surprise visit and was honestly expecting a "what the fuck?" to escape her pouty pink lips. "Yeah I'm still here...umm...I'll be down in two minutes." Shit! That's the best you could think of? Khalilah was almost kicking herself when she realized the seriousness of the situation she had gotten herself into. What was she doing going out with someone from work, let alone her extremely attractive Adonis partner? And worse, why deep down did she want it to be a date? She looked at herself in the mirror cursing some words that would make even a pirate blush. "I should change, I look like I'm trying to hard!" she felt extremely out of her element and was beginning to feel the pressure. "Knock, Knock, Knock. Hey you're gonna make us miss the movie. I personally don't mind, but I know you're friend would be really pissed off you ditched." Aiden, had been let in by one of the residents while he waited down in the lobby. He was tired of looking around the nicely decorated building waiting for Det. Davis to finally make an appearance. The building was new and was located in a fairly good part of town. It reminded him of his first place sans roommates and he smiled at the memory. He was fresh outta school and newly employed and was making more money than he'd ever dreamt of. Now, he lived in a two-story condo in the rich part of town and drove an Audi TT Coupe to impress the ladies. He might have been on the lookout for a serious relationship, but he was a bachelor nonetheless. Running, around the living room, Khalilah had been caught off guard again by his sudden arrival on her doorstep and was trying to toss clothes aside in case he could see the mess she had made trying to figure out what to wear that evening. She unlocked the door, to find Det. Brooks leaning into the doorframe with an exasperated expression across his face. When she opened the door fully to let herself out, he stood up abruptly instantly noticing her outfit. "Hello, Det. Brooks. I did say I'd be down in a minute," Khalilah said through clenched teeth, while smiling prettily. Aiden felt his heart beat faster as he took in the sight of her. She looked absolutely gorgeous, almost unrecognizable. Khalilah must have noticed his expression because she started to fidget on spot and then brushed past him towards the elevator. "When are you going to start calling me Aiden? Det. Brooks is too formal." He said politely. "Well, Aiden is too causal. How about I just call you Brooks?" Khalilah stepped into the elevator and turned around to see Brooks walk in towards her. He was a beautiful specimen of man. He was wearing dark jeans and a nice pair of black dress shoes. He had on a white pinstriped dress shirt with a black vest and a striped tie to complete the look. He looked laid back at the same time completely put together. "The man definitely knew how to dress." Khalilah thought to herself and then lowered her gaze, hoping he didn't notice her eyeing him. As they rode the elevator down, silence permeated the walls to an almost deafening tone. Khalilah was too nervous to speak knowing that her voice would betray her if she attempted to, but Aiden seemed completely content with their lack of conversation. Suddenly it occurred to her that any other woman would be chatting it up in her situation...she could just imagine how he and Lisa got along when they were alone at lunch. " Maybe I should say something to be more engaging." she asked herself and as if Aiden heard her thoughts he smiled and turned towards her. He looked at her with an odd expression, which she couldn't read, but then the doors opened and she almost felt like running out of the confined space. As he extended his hand to signal her to go ahead of him, Aiden couldn't help but stare at her ass as she walked pass. From assessing her earlier, he knew she was petite, but he had no idea that such a small package came with some many surprises. She had curves in all the right places. Nothing like the majority of women he'd been with, with their model type bodies, that were long and lean, but lacked substance. Khalilah walked out the front doors, hoping that the fresh air would help clear her head, but it did little to appease as she turned to see Aiden being "friendly" with an attractive female passerby. "That's his type of woman." she thought as she turned back towards the street, hoping the night could just end right there and then. Leaving him to his devices, Khalilah began to walk towards her car deciding that they could meet each other at the theaters. "Hey Davis, wait up!" Aiden called to his partner who was now five car lengths away from him. He did get a bit caught up with - what was her name again? But he was only being polite. She "accidentally" dropped her keys and he was just being a gentleman by picking them up and holding the condo doors for her as she searched through her purse to give him her number. Now his actual date was walking towards her car without him and it pissed him off. As he sauntered up to her, Khalilah was taking out her keys and unlocking the driver's side door. "I thought we could drive my car, since we would be going out for drinks later." he looked at her over the hood of her car and she gave him a surprised look, as though having not considered taking only one vehicle. "Oh...well I just thought since you were busy talking, we could just meet at the theater" Khalilah's voice was quiet and didn't expose her upset at Brooks' explicit brush off, but she felt the heat rise to her cheeks and hoped he didn't notice her embarrassment. "I'm sorry if it seemed like I brushed you off, she just dropped her keys so I picked them up for her. I am here to serve and protect, after all." Aiden smiled and Khalilah could have screamed. Initially the apology seemed genuine, but when he concluded with the "serve and protect" bullshit, she was fuming mad. He knew he was shamelessly flirting and had her waiting while he did so and worse the woman he was flirting with probably noticed her standing there like an idiot before she decided to walk away. "I never said you brushed me off, so please don't flatter yourself into thinking I give two shits about who you flirt with." Quick witted Khalilah had returned and she felt a bit empowered by her biting words. Brooks' jaw went a bit slack, clearly not expecting her response, but quickly readjusted itself and softly chuckled. He liked her attitude, thinking it made her cuter than usual. But he saw her eyes deepen in hue and realized that he had in fact upset her and she was serious. Khalilah lowered herself into her car all the while watching Brooks try and open the passenger side door. It was locked and she found some amusement in having him wait outside the car begging to get in. "I'm sorry, come please open the door, we're gonna be late for the movie" he pleaded with her and realized that he probably looked really stupid to the passerbys. He heard soft lyrical laughter emanate from within the car and realized that she was laughing at his ridiculous display. "At least I can make her laugh." Aiden thought to himself as he heard the door unlock allowing him to get in the car and go on their way. He looked at her and saw that she was still smiling and he realized that he didn't mind looking like an idiot if it caused that reaction. Even with her racecar driving skills, Khalilah and Aiden were a few minutes late to the movie. First the traffic was heavy, then the parking lot was full, but worse was the fact that the theater was so packed that they were the stragglers that had to sit in the front row straining their necks to see the screen. Luckily they hadn't actually missed anything since the previews were still rolling. Truthfully, Khalilah wasn't interested in seeing the movie. She had watched episodes here and there, but never really got into the show. But she'd never say that out loud. She never really found time to watch television with med school and police academy. Also, she never understood how four women living in New York didn't have any friends that were visible minorities except for Blair "sexy-as-sin" Underwood shacking up with Miranda. The show just never appealed to her. She looked over at Brooks who was watching the trailer to Pineapple Express, another Seth Rogen sure fire hit, laughing audibly along with the rest of the theater. She liked the way his eyes twinkled and found his deep tone to be sexy. And as soon as she thought it she wished she hadn't. She quickly turned her head back towards the screen and laughed at the final scene of the trailer. She promised herself that no matter how busy she was she'd see the movie when it came out. That was more her style. Her thoughts were interrupted by a soft whisper in her ear that made her skin tingle, she was almost too flushed to respond. "So are you excited yet?" It was a simple enough question, but for some reason it caused her to analyze it over in her head. "Umm...excited?" She turned to look at him and felt stupid for not catching what he meant. "Yeah, excited about the movie." He didn't seem to notice her lapse in common sense and was she ever grateful. "Oh.. well, to be honest...it's not really my thing" Khalilah whispered back pretending to be afraid that if someone had heard her she'd been attacked by the crowd, who were now in an uproar due to the opening credits. "What? So you don't like Sex and the City?" Aiden said a little too loud, because the female seated next to him shushed him into silence. He quickly apologized and turned back to Khalilah, who was shaking her head in the negative. "So what are we doing here?" Aiden asked and received the hard stares of the couple on Khalilah's side who clearly found their talking to be rude. "Well, Shell –" She was about to explain Shell's love for the quartet, but before she could finish, Aiden quickly stood up and grabbed her hand and began to pull her out of her chair. Khalilah was embarrassed as people began shouting for him to sit down, but he refused to take his seat when she asked him what he was doing. Realizing that he had no intentions of sitting back down, Khalilah stood up and he pulled her past the other patrons who were cursing them for being disruptive. They finally reached the exit and Khalilah yanked her hand away wondering what his alpha male display was all about. "What the hell was that about?" Khalilah was asking in a loud whisper, causing people to stop and stare. "Why are we watching a movie that your friend likes when she's not even here?" he said matter of factly. He figured she wanted to see the movie too, so he told himself he'd suffer the chick flick for her sake, but now that he knew it was for her friend's sake he was not having it. "Well, first because she already bought the tickets and..."Khalilah couldn't think of anything else. She knew that Shell wouldn't want to know what happened in the film until she herself saw it, so that wasn't a good excuse. "What do you want to see?" Aiden asked knowing that she would be a bit wary of the switch. "I don't know...well, I did want to see Iron Man" Khalilah said it quietly as though she were embarrassed. She'd always liked cartoons and comics and still watched them when she found time. "Really? You like Iron Man?" Aiden was a bit surprised, but was glad that she wasn't choosing some sappy comedy like Made of Honor, whose poster was standing directly behind her. "Well he's not my favourite Marvel character, but it's better than watching some stupid romantic comedy like Made of Honor" At that, Aiden laughed and she didn't know exactly why, but she knew it was not meant to offend her. "Well, Davis, looks like well be watching us some Iron Man." Aiden said as he walked towards the screen that indicated the movie times. The movie wouldn't be starting for another 20 minutes. As Brooks told her the playing time, Khalilah wondered what they would do in the mean time. Luckily, the waiting time went by quickly, with Aiden going off to buy them some popcorn and getting hit on by some cougar behind the confectionary stand. It was funny to watch, but she felt a tinge of envy for the attention she was receiving. "Don't think about it, you're not his type" Khalilah said to herself quietly. "What was that?" Aiden had snuck up on her and now she feared she had spoken too loudly. Khalilah was about to sputter out a lie when he cut her off by asking if she wanted another type of snack. "Thank God" Khalilah thought, he didn't hear a thing. Seeing that she was mulling something over internally, Aiden hoped that she wasn't having second thoughts about the evening. This was his chance to get to know Khalilah Davis and he was not going to let her weasel her way out of it. There was something about her and he couldn't seem to figure it out. From the moment she looked up at him from her desk that same morning he felt...something. That same sensation was returning now as he looked into her deep brown eyes. No words had been exchanged and they both became increasingly aware of the other's attentions. She was the first to look away, turning her gaze to the hallway, but he knew he saw something familiar in her eyes. "..So, we should probably get ourselves a seat, we don't want to come out with scoliosis by the end of the movie." Khalilah chuckled lightly, hoping her voice didn't waver. She could still felt the heat in her cheeks from their intense staring contest moments earlier. Aiden agreed and they headed towards the theater... NYPD: Fighting Temptation Ch. 04 "So did you like it?" Aiden asked as they walked out of the theater. He already knew the answer, since he stole sideways glances at her and saw the expressions on her face. She was absolutely loving it, and he was glad. He knew from his boss that she had been working overtime on the cold case when a new one had stumbled into her lap. Comm. Rollands and Aiden had a father-son type relationship. It was Rollands that was his mentor at Juvie and it was him that suggested he become a police officer. He also recommended him for Detective and to the FBI profiler gig. So Aiden knew that Rollands had hand picked him to work with Davis for a reason. After being briefed on the case, he figured it was due to public outcry for justice, which they were not able to provide thus far, but after meeting her he figured it was due to her inability to give herself a break and she'd eventually burn out, like he did. "Yeah, it was really good. The suit was amazing!" Khalilah had really enjoyed herself, but she hoped she didn't sound like a geek. "Yeah those were some ridiculous special effects." Aiden countered. "Did you like it?" Khalilah asked trying to keep the conversation alive. She knew that long pauses led to long gazes and she was not prepared for the latter. "It was great, one of the better comic-into-movie films." Aiden was holding the doors for her as they walked out of the theater. As she passed, he made sure to check out that ass as it sashayed towards the parking lot. Although petite, she had some sexy curves. And the curve of her ass was causing him to have dirty thought of bending her over her desk while he rode her from the back. "Brooks, hello? Brooks." Khalilah had been calling his name for at least a minute and she realized that he was completely absorbed in his thoughts. What could he be thinking about that had him almost comatose, she wondered and before she could ask her cell began to ring. "Hey Shell, we are just leaving the movies now, I hope you're not waiting by yourself" Khalilah had just realize the time and noticed that they were running a bit behind schedule. "Hey no no, I was calling because I am a bit late, but now I don't feel so bad.." Shell giggled on the other end and Khalilah had to smile. "Okay well we're on our way, see you in a few." With the click of her phone, Khalilah turned half expecting Brooks to still be daydreaming, but she glimpsed a smile on his face that made her heart skip a beat and cause her to stammer as the next words dribbled out of her mouth. "Hey, umm...that was Shelley, she's just heading to the club now - " Khalilah felt silly as she explained herself not only because she was stumbling over her words, but also because Brooks was still smiling his sexy smile at her while she spoke. Khalilah began to feel a bit self-conscious, as if she maybe had something in her teeth. As she began to fidget Aiden snapped out of his state and began to walk towards the car. "Come on, we're gonna miss out on all the fun, standing here." He called to her. He glanced back and noticed a look of confusion on her face but knew it was for the better that he walked away. He was really intrigued by her but he knew he couldn't have her no matter how badly he wanted too. "No thank you, I don't drink." Khalilah explained for the third time that evening, and was hoping Shell would hurry up and order so they could move away from the bar and back to their low key spot. As Khalilah turned back to her friend, Shell had just received her signature mojito and without even the thought of bringing it back to their seats, gulped down the drink like she was trying to win a race. Shell was the drinker of the two and Khalilah didn't even bother giving her the usual shpeel of "taking it easy", knowing that it never really did much. "Hey, don't you think you should slow down on them drink?" Aiden asked as Shelley washed down another mojito. He looked over to Davis for some backup, but she just rolled her eyes and shook her head. "Listen, handsome, I know I might be petite in comparison to you, but I'm a big girl who knows how to handle her alcohol...but you're cute for being concerned." Shell smiled and patted Aiden on the shoulder and announced she was heading back to the dance floor. Khalilah nodded and told her friend she'd come join her soon. When she was out of earshot, Khalilah was about to apologize for Shell's rudeness when she was suddenly cut off. "Where the hell were you to back me up?" Aiden shouted, not out of angry but to be heard over top of the loud bass beat. Although he was a bit annoyed that Davis hadn't agreed with him in regards to her friend. Khalilah sat there with her jaw practically unhinged on the bar table at his outburst. "Well there goes my apology" she thought to herself and to think, she was really enjoying their time together. "I'm sorry-" she began, but again was cut off by her overzealous partner. "Well I accept you apology, but I really think she should be-" Aiden began, trying to point out that even though it was their day off, there was still a killer out there who preyed on people in this environment. "First off, that was not an apology, second Shell is my friend and I can tell you from prior experience that she could probably drink you under the table. Third, if you haven't noticed the dynamics by now, Shell does what she wants, when she wants and rarely lets other people tell her what's up." Khalilah was steaming mad and she was losing her control. She knew exactly what Brooks was trying to insinuate and she was pissed because it insinuated that she didn't have her best friend's best interests in mind; which was completely untrue. Seeing that he was beginning to piss her off, Aiden tried quickly to out the flame, but knew he'd still get a little singed. "I didn't mean to suggest that you were a bad friend, it's just the work we do we see girls like Shell in body bags all too often, because some sick bastard sees her as an easy target and I'm trying to prevent that. And I have noticed the dynamics between you two, but I think you sell yourself a little too short, I think if you told Shell your opinion she'd listen to you." "Well thank you for your concern, but you don't know shit, because I didn't even want to go out tonight and yet I ended up at a movie with you as my date and at this new club with a DJ who has ruined my love for Ne-Yo by playing Closer at least 15 times in the last hour." The last part, khalilah said as a joke to lighten up the conversation again, because she didn't want Brooks to go all Dr. Phil on her. As she mock frowned, Khalilah noticed Brooks began to laugh and she felt her stomach knot up at the sight. He was a gorgeous man and even more so when he smiled or laughed. But as his laughter subsided so too did the elation she felt in her heart. She definitely was not his type, not by a long shot. As he finished laughing, Aiden noticed Davis' sudden sadness. It wasn't obvious to the untrained eye, but he saw it and wished that whatever it was, he could fix it. "Hey, um why don't we go and join Shell on the dance floor? It's not Ne-Yo anymore and sitting on this couch is making me tired." Aiden held out his hand for her to grab, but she clearly was contemplating whether to take it. Aiden was about to lower it, when Khalilah tentatively placed her hand in his and without a word followed him to the dance floor. ~~~~~~ He watched as she and her friend Shell, as she so affectionately called her made their way to the bar. He watched as a few men attempted to buy her drinks, but being the classy woman that he knew she was, she politely declined. He wondered what lame ass lines they tried to use on her, knowing that she was too sophisticated for that. "Idiots," he thought to himself "you're not even worth breathing the same air as her." The nightclub was not her scene it was Shell's, who was a regular at other places so he wasn't shocked to see her at this one, but when he saw her....he knew it was a sign. He had been fixated on her from the moment she had walked in the doors. He was about to get closer, when he noticed that she wasn't alone. "Who the hell is he?" was his first thought. He knew she didn't have a boyfriend, so maybe it was one of Shelley's friends. But that didn't stop the immediate dislike he felt for the unknown man she was with. "Stop getting so distracted!" he grumbled to himself, he was there for a reason and he wasn't going to fuck up because she was there too. If anything, this made the game even more exciting. ~~~ As they walked through the crowd, Aiden's grip got tighter around her hand and she felt a hot flush travel across her body. He glanced back every so often as to make sure it really was her hand he was holding. When he would, a smile spread across his face and she was always the first to break eye contact. "What are you doing?" she asked herself, knowing that he was only being polite, but hoping that underneath it all it secretly meant more. "He's your partner and nothing more, he's just being nice" she repeated like a mantra and was so consumed by it that she didn't realize that E had stopped walking and walked right into his chest. "When had he turned around?" Khalilah wondered, but was quickly drawn back to reality when Brooks' hand slid down her cheek to rest on her chin. "Hey, is everything alright? You seem dazed." Aiden had lowered his lips to her ears so he wouldn't have to yell, but by doing so he also felt the heat radiating off her body and practically tasted the sweet fragrance she was wearing. Khalilah was definitely mesmerized, but nervous at the same time, so not wanting to show him his effect on her she didn't move away. Instead she got up the nerve and whispered back. "I'm better now." Initially, she wasn't sure if it had made the effect she wanted, but as she pulled away, she noticed that his hand had slowly made its way to the small of her back, which was slightly exposed allowing Brooks' fingertip to gently stroke her sizzling skin. The look that past between them was feral and the body language was electric. So in that moment Khalilah decided she would take a page from Shell's book of life and "follow her instincts". She moved closer to him, her hands now on his muscular forearms. Brook's continued to gaze into her eyes, his head lowering to hers, but this time it was Brooks that looked away first, and as he did, Khalilah felt the life drain from her.