Page 12 of Protected By West (San Antonio S.W.A.T. #1)

When Tracy met Jaime at the Valet stand outside the front door of the hotel, Jaime gave her a wink. "You look exhausted."

Tracy lowered her chin and gave her a grumpy look. "You're driving first."

"Calm down." Jaime lifted up her hands in surrender. "Of course, of course. I was planning to. I got a good night's sleep after dinner. I was thinking about reading, but I knew if I started a book, I'd be up until the wee hours of the morning and then we'd both be dragging."

Tracy smiled at her friend. "I got some sleep before the morning breakfast meeting. I'll be okay after a nap."

Jaime grinned at her. "And you'll have to give me the almost PG13 breakdown of all the fun you had last night."

Shaking her head, Tracy sighed. "There are many things that shall not be said about last night."

"But... I'm guessing by the smile on your face that you'll be seeing more of the hot cowboy?"

At her friend's mention of cowboy, Tracy's whole face heated up.

Thank goodness the valet picked that moment to pull up and Jamie moved around to the driver's side to get in.

When another valet offered to take their bags and put them in the back, Tracy happily handed over a tip and a 'Thank You,' managing to sit down without collapsing in the passenger seat.

Picking up her phone, her first order of business was finding directions back to the Buckee's they'd stopped at on the way to the conference.

It was just late enough that they'd likely miss the morning rush, but avoid the lunch crowd.

Jaime sat down beside her in the driver's seat and leaned in on the console to look at the phone. "That better be directions to Buckee's."

Tracy moved her hand under the screen like Vanna White. "Sure 'nough."

The valets stepped back up on the curb and waved at them.

Tracy and Jaime waved back and as the car rolled out onto the road, Tracy laughed. "Do you ever wonder if they see us in the car and wonder..."

"Wonder?" Jaime came to a stop at the sign. "About what? How awesome we are?"

"Or if we're going to go all Thelma and Louise on the road?"

"Thelma and Louise?" Jaime laughed out loud. "You think those boys know who Thelma and Louise are?"

"Ahh... point taken." Tracy looked at the directions on her phone screen. "Two lights up, right lane to merge onto the highway."

Jaime nodded. "Got it."

As soon as the car merged into the right lane, Tracy saw Jaime look over at her. "What?"

Jaime shrugged. "I was half expecting to see you and the SWAT guy locking lips when I met you at the valet."

"As much as I would have loved that, he left early to head back to San Antonio."

"Ah... Well, I'm looking forward to seeing him around the credit union."

"Ha!" Tracy smiled at the thought. "We'll see. I'm not going to put any money on it."

The mood in the car dampened a little, but they were merging onto the highway, so Tracy hoped that they could avoid the subject on the road.

"Now, I know I'm your nearest and dearest friend..."

Tracy sighed and leaned back against her seat.

Jaime was not going to let this go.

"And I know this is something you don't want to talk about-"

"You got that right," she grumbled almost under her breath.

"But as your bestie sometimes I have to go against the grain and risk excommunication-"

"Excommunication? I'm not the Pope!"

"You are my bossbabe, Tracy."

"Just say it." Tracy felt like she was on pins and needles. "I promise not to kick your butt if you hurt my feelings."

Jaime snuck a look over at her. "It would be hard to kick my ass since I'm sitting down."

"Well you have to pee sometime."

"Fine. Fine." Jaime groaned and set the cruise control. "Seriously though. I saw how you were excited to see him and he wasn't exactly hiding how much he liked seeing you. That's not in question."

"Ohhhhkay?"

"For a long time you've had his NO WAY policy with guys in law enforcement, but I think you're splitting the difference emotionally." A car ahead of them slowed and Jaime touched the brake. "I hear the difference in your voice when you're happy and when... when you're pulling back."

"When I'm what?"

"Pulling back. Tapping the brakes. I think you're just waiting for him to mess up."

Tracy felt her mouth go dry.

She was glad that Jaime's focus was on the road.

Tracy didn't like the face looking back at her from the windshield reflection.

Jaime was right. She was already thinking about what she'd do when things went wrong.

It wasn't easy to look in the mirror when it wasn't a happy face staring back at her. Even worse, she was setting herself up for problems in the future.

The future.

She let out a breath and closed her eyes.

"Do I really want to sabotage this before it's really started?"

The traffic evened out again and Jaime reset the cruise control. "Seriously, Trace? I'm betting you spent the night in the man's bed and you're thinking it hasn't really started?"

Tracy reached out her arm and gave her a playful poke in her arm. "Well... we're in the twenty-first century. Things are more... uh... adventurous now."

Jaime sighed, but the end of her breath was more of a snicker. "Look at it however you want to, girlfriend. You're in a relationship with tall, blond, and built. You might as well suck it up and deal with it."

"Oh, the humanity!" Tracy's phone pinged. "Next exit leads to all things amazing."

"In other words," Jaime lifted her fingers off of the steering wheel, wiggling them like 'spirit fingers.’

Together they cheered.

"Buckee's!!!"

WEST

Weston was driving his Ranger issued vehicle, following the tracking data on his phone. Leaning over from the passenger seat Duval looked at the screen and frowned.

"Huh."

"Huh?" Weston chuckled at his friend. "Those communications classes really helped."

"Communications classes?" Dally called out from the back seat. "Where did he take those?"

West smiled, but he didn't answer the question. Oxy, smiled at him in the rear view mirror and gave a little snort of laughter. "Can I tell?"

Duval lifted his left hand and extended a rather emphatic middle finger.

Weston turned his head for a moment and sighed as he turned back to the road in front of him at the map and marker on the screen.

"Gentlemen, remember, this is an official vehicle and you are all wearing uniforms. If you want to make questionable gestures with your fingers, wait until you're on your own time and in street clothes. "

Duval settled back in his chair and smiled. "Yes, dad."

Oxy's snorted from the back seat. "That sounds so wrong."

Dally covered his face with his hand. "So damn wrong."

West rolled his eyes. "You guys are worse then children."

Dally opened his mouth just as Weston looked up into the rearview mirror. "Say it and you'll be walking, Dally."

Dally practically smothered himself to keep quiet and Weston turned onto the ramp parallel to West Lubbock Street and when he saw the Texas State Trooper car ahead of him, pulled off to the side.

Oxy leaned forward and put his hand on the side of Duval's chair. "What's up ahead, West?"

"State Trooper Bonney."

Dally leaned forward and braced himself as they came to a complete stop. "You think he'd fit in?"

West set the parking brake, but left the Chevy running.

After he unbuckled his seat belt he half turned in his seat so he could see the three of them at the same time.

"Well, according to the letter from his supervisor, he follows orders, unlike you three who are planning to test my patience.

" He heard the collective frown in the car and shook his head.

"I can tell. I'm from a big family. My cousins were a handful growing up. So don't try to blow smoke up my ass."

He unlocked the car doors and got out.

The other three followed suit.

The scene they walked up on was one for the record books.

And one that was likely to make its way onto a YouTube Police Interaction Video.

"You're wasting my time, asshole!"

The hullabaloo was coming from the SUV in front of the Trooper's car.

The woman making the ear splitting shriek was likely wearing a wig.

Weston couldn't see how any hair product company would come up with a hair dye that ugly.

The wig had likely been part of a clown college or a discount Halloween store. It was a surprising neon puce that would have to be scrubbed from his brain at a later date.

"Ma'am. I appreciate that you're late for your hair appointment, but you were going forty miles above the speed limit."

"Forty?" She glared at the trooper. "It wasn't more than thirty! What kind of machine are you using!"

Weston saw Duval draw up short at the woman's answering sneer.

They both knew that there was going to be a record of her inadvertent admission on the Trooper's body camera.

"Our equipment is verified at the start and end of every shift and-"

"Like I fucking care! Now give me my damn ticket so I can get to my appointment!"

"Ma'am," Weston watched the other man take a calming breath before he continued, "I'm still waiting on your drivers license, registration, and insurance."

Weston heard Dally speak up from less than a foot behind him. "I'm surprised that he didn't say ma'am a second time at the end."

Weston shook his head. "The man's got manners, Dally. Let's not mock him for doing his job."

"This is why I hate traffic stops." Oxy was one of the more even-tempered men on the team, but apparently he did have his limits. "People act like they're the only ones who matter and that we're supposed to wave them on their way. If they don't want a ticket, don't break the law."

Duval nodded and folded his arms across his chest, looking at the scene before him. "I bet a twenty that the next thing she wants is a supervisor."

Weston smiled. "I'm not taking that bet."

Ahead, the woman pushed her car door open, knocking the State Trooper back, almost into traffic.

Weston moved, walking toward the car as Trooper Bonney stepped to the side to avoid the rushing traffic.

"Ma'am-"