Three Days Apart
An Alleycat Crew Short
Calynn still hated stakeouts.
Their target — a cheater who stole a necklace from his wife that had been handed down through generations — had been holed up in a hotel room across the street with his mistress for a whole week. Their client, the absolutely livid wife, could care less about the husband. She just wanted the necklace back.
The problem was the mistress had ties to a paramilitary group that was acting as security for their not-so-secret rendezvous.
The bathroom door opened behind Calynn. Kash walked out wrapped in a towel, still dripping.
Calynn rolled her eyes and turned back to the window.
“What was that look for?” Kash asked, his tone sharp.
“Just thinking how much I love stepping on wet carpet.”
“Oh, forgive me for wanting to come out and check in, princess,” he replied with far too much sarcasm. “It’s not like we have a job to do or anything.”
Calynn shook her head and glanced back at him over her shoulder. He was still standing there… dripping.
“If I get wet feet next time I have to pee because you’re standing there with stupid things coming out of your stupid face…”
“I can make sure of that,” Kash cut her off. “Where’s the ice bucket?”
Calynn snapped around to face him, scowling. She was about to berate him further when she paused. His face softened an instant before hers did.
“I’m sorry,” Kash said, stepping back into the bathroom and off the carpet.
“Why are we fighting like this?” Calynn asked genuinely. “Normally we’d walk through a volcano for each other.”
“Because we need a little space,” Kash sighed. “We’ve spent every minute of every day together for too long. We just need a breather.”
“But we love each other.”
“We do. We do… And we also annoy each other. But absence does make the heart grow fonder,” Kash replied. “We just need a little space. Just a weekend. To blow off steam.”
“Don’t get me wrong, I’d kill for a spa weekend, but we are still working,” Calynn explained, pointing out the window. “And you’re my favorite person to annoy.”
Kash smiled, held up one finger, and closed the bathroom door. He was fully dressed when it reopened.
“Can you make sure the cameras don’t see me?” Kash asked.
“Why?”
“I’m going to go get you that spa weekend,” he answered as he marched out of their hotel room.
Calynn pushed out with her mind and created a magnetic field around each camera so they only saw static. Then she watched Kash jog across the street from their hotel to the cheater’s. Her sensors couldn’t penetrate the building due to the anti-intrusion technology, and with the cameras down she had no idea what he was doing.
She knew she should be at least slightly worried about him, but her mind kept drifting to seaweed wraps and mud facials. She loved the soft relaxing music they always played in them too.
Kash exited the hotel twelve minutes later. Four minutes after that, he walked into their room and tossed the necklace at her.
“I’ll drop you off at the spa and then I think I can just make it to this obstacle course race thing I saw an ad for the other day,” Kash said, packing their luggage. “It looks like they have the new Tec-Ace available.”
“So we’re really doing this?” Calynn asked, still stunned he ended the job so quickly.
“It’s just for the weekend,” he smiled. “We can continue annoying each other after.”
Calynn looked down at the necklace still in her hand. Kash had risked making a new enemy — something he was usually adamant about avoiding — just for her. She tossed it aside, hurried across the room, wrapped her arms around him, and buried her face in his chest. His strong hands held her close as he rested his cheek on her head.
“You’re welcome,” Kash said, hugging her back.
“I can’t wait to tell you all about it.”
“Me too.”
Calynn rose up on her toes and placed a long, slow kiss on his lips. He didn’t have a stupid face. It was handsome and warm and she loved to kiss him.
“Three days,” he murmured against her lips. “We can do three days.”
“Three days,” she whispered back, kissing him once more for good measure.
She made reservations for the spa while en route.
“Promise me you won’t crash and die, flyboy,” Calynn smiled when he dropped her off. “I’d miss annoying you.”
Kash stepped close, cupped her face, and kissed her. It was a slow, warm kiss. She loved the taste of his kisses.
“I promise,” he replied, their lips still touching.
“It’s just three days,” Calynn whispered, hugging him tighter.
“I know,” he replied softly. “My heart is already fonder too.”
Calynn pressed their lips together yet again before grabbing her bag and heading out. She was ready to be pampered for three whole days.
Three days…
She made it exactly thirty-two hours and seventeen minutes before she commed him just to hear his voice.
He told her he had been pacing for the last hour, thinking of doing the same.
Now they only had forty hours and change to go.
Calynn smiled. She already couldn’t wait to kiss his stupid face again.
