“When can I meet her?” Mitch asked.
“Maybe Friday. She’s expected to close her case Thursday.”
“Excellent news!” Mitch was excited about the new development.
“I’m calling Kreed.” Mitch dialed Kreed’s number immediately and got voice mail. He left a message, inwardly praying Kreed’s gut was right.
Chapter 37
Cody finally nodded at some children who stood across the street. They had been staring at him for at least the last five minutes. He could tell they were on a field trip and every so often he could hear them talking about him as they waited patiently in line to take the tour through the capitol building. Cody had come to learn over the last couple of days he’d been in the field, small kids were fascinated by an officer on a horse.
He got it. Most little boys stared at him whenever he was in uniform. Many would eventually muster up the nerve to come over and talk to him whenever they had the chance. And all children loved horses, but put the two together and children were drawn to him and Ranger like moths to a flame. And to top it all off, his horse loved the attention.
Sometimes on occasion, parents let their children get close enough to actually speak to him and touch Ranger. He was mindful of his actions, careful how he handled his mount. Over the past few days, he’d met so many interesting people. He enjoyed his job, and he hoped it showed, giving a lot of nods to the tourists he encountered, and he always returned a smile.
For Cody, being in law enforcement meant he needed to uphold a certain standard. He had to always remain the constant professional.
Cody held on to the reins and backed his horse Ranger into the shade. They were due a break, but he was just so pumped about the job he didn’t want to leave. He also didn’t want to push Ranger too hard. They were just getting to know one another.
His phone vibrated in his pocket. The faint whistle sounded, and this time, he had to really fight the smile. Thank god no one heard that ringtone. He’d thought he had completely silenced his phone. Man, the hell he’d get if any of his team heard that.
He shouldn’t have, but since Mitch had been on his mind twenty-four seven, he palmed his phone, keeping an eye on the crowd as he read the message.
“Can you talk?” Mitch had asked. Instead of sending back a text and wasting the precious few minutes he had, Cody decided to call.
“Shut the door on the way out!” That’s how Mitch answered the phone. “Hey.”
“Is it a bad time? I figured you could talk,” Cody replied.
“Nah, it’s fine. I’m waiting for Kreed to call back. What are you doing?”
“Working, Ranger and I are taking a break. So I can’t talk long.” Ranger shifted his weight under Cody.
“Are you outside? I hear…a lot of noise. Wind maybe?” Mitch asked.
“Yes, I’m on Ranger and the capitol’s full of tourists today,” Cody answered.
“You’re on your horse right now?” Mitch asked.
“Yeah, I probably shouldn’t have called.”
“No, you should have, that’s hot. Damn, the visuals that produces, cowboy.”
Cody was silent to that.
“Take a selfie,” Mitch urged.
“I’m not taking a picture of myself on this horse,” Cody said.
“Please take a picture. I wanna see you mounted and in your uniform,” Mitch insisted.
“Mitch…” he started, but the guy cut him off.
“I’m hanging up now so you can take the picture and text me,” he said, then hung up on Cody. A text came immediately in.
“Hurry. Don’t overthink it. Just do it.” And Cody did. He opened the camera button on his phone, stuck his arm out, and clicked the picture. He’d never done anything like that while on the job. He didn’t let himself even consider the inappropriateness of his actions. The shot was awkward but showed him and part of the saddle and a bit of Ranger’s neck and dark mane. He swiped the photo and sent it to Mitch, before dropping the phone back in his shirt pocket.
“I didn’t think you could be anymore sexy than when you were lying underneath me. You proved me wrong. Wear that when I see you next time.” Mitch’s text came back quickly.
Cody felt the blush rising up on his cheeks at the same time his cock hardened. He tugged his trooper cowboy hat down farther on his head and adjusted himself in the saddle, neither helped. He nudged Ranger forward and forced his mind back on the job. Mitch Knox was exactly the distraction his sister had always warned him about, yet somehow he couldn’t find it in him to care. He welcomed the distraction if it meant keeping Mitch around.
~~~
If Mitch sat there staring at that picture of Cody, he’d be left with a full-fledged hard-on and no way to relieve it while sitting in the middle of the FBI building, so he closed the picture and redirected his thoughts as he dialed Kreed again.
“We finally got the break we needed. Your gut better be right on this one. I put down a hundred bucks in your favor. We have someone going in undercover starting Monday!” Mitch said before Kreed could even speak.
“I gotta go home,” Kreed spoke quietly into the phone. Kreed was like a brother to him, and that tone he heard had him worried.
“Hey, man, you can’t just open the van door like that.” Mitch heard someone say, then he heard the door slam shut.
“What’s wrong?” Mitch asked. Whatever this was, it had to be bad.
“My little brother was killed.” Mitch could hear the pain in Kreed’s voice as he tried to register those words.
“What? I thought he was in San Antonio. Did he get deployed? What happened? I’m sorry, man.” Mitch sat straight up in his chair. His heart broke as the momentary shock wore off, and the reality settled in.
“Thanks. No, my dad said it was a training exercise accident, some shit like that. He’d just moved back home with my parents. They said he decided to not re-enlist. He declined orders and was just waiting to get out. I didn’t even know that.”