Free Heated Restraints by Yvette Hines

question knocked the wind out of his sails. “What?”
    “Have you called her?” he asked again.
    “No.”
    “I thought you said you two were adults.”
    “I am a fuckin’ adult.”
    Standing, Jack grabbed both their beer bottles. “No time like the present to act like one.”
    “What makes you think that she wants more from me than a good time?”
    Thor asked.
    “Women who want a good time don’t lay on the side of the road in the dirt holding on to an unconscious man’s hand. Nor do they spend all night in a hospital waiting for a guy to wake up if all they’re looking for is a little fun.”
    Jack turned and headed toward the kitchen.
    Jack’s words hit him deep in the gut. Liza had been there at the accident and with him at the hospital? Thor watched his friend walk into the kitchen. He knew Jack was right. For the last two days, he’d been sulking around the house waiting for her to come by so he could talk to her. Tell her how he felt and that he cared for her. More than he ever wanted to.
    Liza had waltzed her little sassy ass right into his heart. And damn it, he’d fallen for her hard. It was time for him to make the next move.

    * * * *
“So, guys, this is our game plan.”
    Thor watched Glen Russell, the captain of the RACE team, walk over to the white board in the conference room they’d all been in for the past hour discussing the drug traffickers.
    Popping the cap off a marker, Captain Russell began to make drawings that resembled a football diagram. “I spoke with Chief Dennison and Sheriff Pyle.
    We’ve all decided that our best plan of attack against these guys is a good solid roadblock.” He turned back toward his men, waving the marker as he spoke.
    “There may only be one main interstate that runs through Claremont from Florida, but there are several ways to branch off it and travel around.” Facing the board again, he made a few more X’s and O’s. “Now, these are the areas we will cover. As you can see we’re goin’ need all of the law enforcement workin’
    together at the same time to make this happen.”
    “Any questions?” Snapping the cap on the marker, he waited.
    “Does this mean we all will be on duty every night until they come through here again?” Thor asked, leaning back in his chair in the first row and trying to ignore the pain in his ass from sitting in the hard plastic seat for so long. Add it to the nagging feeling in his knee, which only acted up when he sat still; he was more than ready for the session to end.
    “Nope. The schedule will remain just as it is. The only difference is everyone will be on call. As soon as these guys are spotted, you need to get to your position point in record time.” Captain Russell picked up a small stack of papers and passed them out to his team.
    Thor glanced down at his copy of the town and city limits map. He sighed with relief when he located his name with a few more officers from the other two law enforcement departments. Since he was on desk duty this week, he’d been afraid they may have considered leaving him out of the detail.
    “We’re going to catch these guys and sooner or later they’ll all learn to stay out of our county. If there’s nothin’ else, you all can go.”
    The room was silent. When all the men were dismissed, Thor stood to exit the room. It was his day off and he had his own plan of action to execute tonight.
    “Officer Zeller,” the Captain called out to him, halting Thor at the door.
    Stepping to the side, Thor allowed his other teammates to pass. “Yeah, Captain?”
    “I just wanted to check on how you were doin’?”
    “I feel great. My leg gets a little stiff now and then, but I’m fine. I wouldn’t jeopardize the team just to be part of the show.”
    Captain Russell eyed him for a moment. “Glad to here it.” Extending his arm, he patted Thor on the shoulder. “You’re still on desk for a while. But, whenever all this goes down, you’re in.”
    “Thanks,