📎A/N.  Hello my lovelies.  I have been dealing with a bout of chicken pox that my son managed to bring home from school one day.  He now has more spots than all the 101 Dalmatians put together.  My house currently smells of calamine lotion and pinetarsol.  - so my apologies for the delay with getting this chapter out.

For those of you who are wondering what happened to chapter 38... The chapter has been marked private as it contains mature content. If you wish to read it you will need to first follow me for the previous chapter to be unlocked.

Take care.

❤ ℳ 

PS This chapter is unedited. If you spot any mistakes don't hesitate to let me know

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Murphy gazed down at Kaitlyn's sleeping form. He was unaware of the tender expression, or the softness in his eyes as he watched the gentle rise and fall of her chest as she clung to the crinkled bed linen.

His eyes swept down the length of her body, tangled in sheets which only covered half of her. His brows furrowed as he noticed fresh bruises on her exposed thigh. Guilt racked him as he realised he was the one to have marred her otherwise perfect body. Murphy stopped himself from reaching out and touching the blemish. He didn't want to wake her. 

 A smile overtook his normally stoic features as he propped himself up on his elbow.

She needed the rest. It had been nearly dawn by the time Kaitlyn started showing signs of slowing down. He had been amazed at her endurance and her capacity to bring him to fulfilment with each and every round.

He became aroused just thinking about the way she would thrash and cry out his name with each new release, a sound and feeling he could get used to. It had come as no surprise that her bold and unbridled passion matched his in equal proportion. A strange feeling descended on him, and he realised that it had been a long time since he had felt as sated and as content as he did now.

With June, he had reached to the heavens and back. Their coupling had been as equally satisfying, although her gentle nature didn't give her the aggressive predisposition that Kaitlyn possessed.

Murphy froze. His eyes widened in panic. He felt the sharp cuts of shame as he realised where his mind had wandered.

How could I?

How could he compare Kaitlyn to his beloved mate? He had dishonoured her memory with his lapse in judgement. 

Murphy, careful not to wake Kaitlyn, escaped to the lounge. Terror escalated with each new feeling of remorse that threatened to overwhelm him. He had spent the past half century mourning the loss of his mate. Grieving for the children they would never have. The empty space where his heart used to be had been his companion through the decades.

How could he have so easily forgotten? So easily tossed her memory aside to quench the thirst that had been building since he had met Ryan's daughter. Much to Murphy's dismay, he couldn't recall June's scent, no matter how much he tried. In its place was Kaitlyn's distinct essence; fresh, spirited and soothing.

Murphy had bedded woman over the years. The act had been only to satisfy a primal urge. There was nothing to it. Each time he had walked away without looking back. There had been no regrets on either side. No promises had been made. 

Murphy drew in a deep breath. He was confused and mortified at the same time. There was no doubt in his mind that he wanted Kaitlyn. His entire being hummed in her presence. Her quick and insightful mind was refreshing. He enjoyed her company, not to mention her cooking. And, after their marathon, they were more than well matched in that department.

With each new realisation, so to was the self-condemnation. It was if he was dishonouring June. Her death, his loss and the need for revenge, was the only thing that had kept him going. His heart had been buried along with his mate. Never to be seen again.

Murphy chastised himself as he continued with his tormented thoughts. He had been derelict in his duty. It was not in him to hurt Kaitlyn, but it was what he would inevitably do. Once Elijah was dead, he would be leaving, disappearing into the shadows that he had emerged from. The thought of not seeing Kaitlyn again only served to intensify the pain he was already experiencing.

The vibration from his phone broke into his thoughts as it shimmied across the breakfast bar. He lunged for it and caught the phone as it toppled off the edge. Murphy glanced down at the screen and swore. He'd missed eight calls and four messages.

"Where the hell have you been?" demanded Joshua after he had answered Murphy's returned call.

"Busy," Murphy replied, not keen to let on to Kaitlyn's grandfather his current location. "What's so urgent?" he asked.

"Our little Mafioso detective is out for breakfast."

Murphy checked his watch. It was just after nine in the morning. "Shouldn't he be at work by now?"

"Yep," Joshua chirped, "according to Tim he called in sick this morning."

"So what's so special about his breakfast?" Murphy said as he glanced towards the half open door to the bedroom.

"There's nothing special about the breakfast. It's who he's having it with is the interesting thing."

Murphy waited for Joshua to continue. "And?" he asked when it was obvious that the other man was waiting for him to say something.

"His dining partner is one of us."

"You sure?" Murphy asked as he snapped to attention.

A snort from Joshua was the only reply that Murphy received.

"So what do you want me to do?" Joshua asked once he had finished briefing Murphy on the situation.

Murphy considered the options available to him. They needed to be careful in case they tipped their hand too quickly. "Stay with the Werewolf – let me know where you are. I'll be there as soon as I can."

After he had ended the call, Murphy let out a deep breath and ran a hand through his hair. Finally a break. This woman could lead them to Elijah.

He headed back to Kaitlyn's bedroom to grab his clothes only to discover she was already awake.

"I didn't mean to wake you," he gulped as he admired her standing in the middle of the room draped only in a cream bedsheet.

Kaitlyn yawned. "It's okay," she said as she handed him his jeans. "I gather we have another lead."

Murphy took the offered clothing and quickly rummaged around the room for the remainder as he gave her a rundown of the conversation with Joshua. By the time he finished, she was fully awake and was dashing across the room towards her bathroom.

"Give me five minutes," she called out as the door slammed behind her.

Murphy slumped down on the bed staring at the closed door as he heard the shower being turned on. Shaking his head, he pulled his clothes on and subconsciously thanked Joshua for the diversion. It had removed the awkwardness that he instinctually knew would have occurred once she had woken.

Feeling like a coward, he made his way back to the kitchen and made two cups of coffee to go. By the time she appeared freshly showered and changed he was already by the door, keys in his hand. It wasn't until they were on the road that it occurred to him that he too should have showered. There would be hell to pay when Joshua detected her scent all over him. He groaned inwardly. He would deal with it later. Right now they had more important things to concentrate on.

Through some weird twist of fate, they managed to circumnavigate the morning traffic and reach Joshua's position before Antonio and his guest had finished.

As soon as she saw him, Kaitlyn rushed to her grandfather and gave him a quick embrace. Murphy kept his distance and made sure that she was between him and the elder man as he scanned across the road and spied their quarry sitting at one of the tables at a popular café. The petite woman across from him had just finished laughing at something Tony had just said. The distance and the loud hum of the traffic did not allow him to hear what they were conversing about.

"Are you sure she's a Werewolf?" he asked as he sniffed the air.

"Absolutely," confirmed Joshua, "We are too far away here. I went in closer to make sure."

"She didn't detect your presence did she?" asked Murphy with a tinge of concern.

Joshua harrumphed and glared at Murphy. "This is not my first rodeo. I was upwind and far enough away that she had no idea I was there."

Murphy could see Kaitlyn was straining to see who they were referring to. He sometimes forgot human's vision was nowhere as sharp as theirs. "Our errant detective is sitting with a woman, mid-thirties, five-two, and," he paused as he took another look at Tony's guest, "she's not a natural blond."

"So what's the plan?" Kaitlyn asked, having given up on seeing anything.

Murphy rubbed a hand over his stubble and glanced back towards the café. "We wait and follow her, see where she leads us." He turned to Joshua. "You stay with Garcia, you never know who else he's going to bump into."

The three of them spent the next hour trying not to look conspicuous as they lurked, pretending to window shop. Kaitlyn, unable to stop herself had actually made a couple of purchases.

"Heads up," Murphy called out softly. It was nearing lunch time and he was almost expecting them to stay longer. He was relieved when they made a move to pay the bill. Stakeouts, while necessary, were the worst part of the job.

They watched as Garcia and their quarry hugged and bid farewell. Tony heading in one direction and the woman in the other.

"I'm going to get closer to her," Kaitlyn announced. "We can't risk losing her."

Murphy tensed. "No. You stay back with me. We don't know how she will react if she spots you."

Kaitlyn rolled her eyes. "She's not even going to notice me. It's you who could compromise us if the wind goes the wrong way." Without waiting for an answer, Kaitlyn began to saunter up the street, swinging her shopping bags as if she didn't have a care in the world.

They watched her progress in silence and Murphy shook his head, knowing he wasn't going to win this particular argument. "Do you know if she arrived in a car?" he asked Joshua, who was waiting for Garcia to leave the cafe.

"If she did, it wasn't parked nearby."

Murphy detected a strange tone in Joshua's voice and turned to discover the other man's fixed gaze. He began to feel uncomfortable under the intense scrutiny.

"If you hurt her," Joshua warned coldly, "It will be the last thing you do."

Murphy squirmed. With a single look, Joshua had made him feel small. Something not too many people had managed to do over the years. There was no doubt that Kaitlyn's grandfather had picked up on the fact that Murphy reeked of his granddaughter.

"It's just as well I have no intention of doing so," Murphy responded before marching off in Kaitlyn's direction.

Murphy could feel Joshua's glare on his back the entire way up the street. Not willing to look back to verify, he pulled out his phone and dialled his partner's number.

"She's headed into a jewellery store," Kaitlyn said as she answered. "And there's no indication that's she's aware that she's being tailed."

"Make sure you don't get too close," he warned as he watched her idling outside a bookstore a few hundred feet in front of him.

"Good lord!" she exclaimed, "Do you think you're the only person who's done this?"

Murphy clenched his fist around his phone, almost bending it in the process. "When was the last time you tracked down a Werewolf?" he hissed.

He could see her look back in his direction. "Point taken," she conceded. "I can take care of myself. I've done it for a while now you know," Kaitlyn teased. "Whoops, she's on the go again."

They continued the cat and mouse chase for the next two hours. Finally, the woman, laden with bags from high-end shops, disappeared into a high priced apartment building. The moment she disappeared through the doors, Kaitlyn broke into a sprint across the road, dodging traffic as she went.

What the hell are you doing?

Murphy, unsure of what she was up to or whether he should intervene, assumed she knew what she was doing. However, the moment she disappeared into the apartment building - he wasn't so sure.

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📎A/N. .. wonder who Tony had breakfast with???  ... And I'm not sure it was the best idea to go into the building... who knows who else might be there?  What do you think?

... and what do you think of Murphy's dilemma?? I'm surprised Joshua didn't have more to say on the matter...

Don't forget to vote.

Till next time. Take care.

❤ ℳ