Million Reasons

Chapter Seventy Four: Road Trip

The 'cabin' was actually more like a small lodge. Maggie couldn't believe the sheer size of the place as she stepped out of the passenger side of Antonio's black car and focused on the building in front of her. The structure was a combination of rustic wooden slats and a stone panel that met the wood a quarter of the way up the building. The roof was slanted, fixed with a modern material that she remembered jay telling her was resistant to all weathers.

A small stone path curved from the porch steps leading through the dense woodland to the concrete drive way in which they were standing. Although Jay had told them that the place was closed for winter, someone had kindly switched the porch lights on giving the cabin a warm and alluring glow.

Maggie shuffled further down into her black padded coat as the cold air bit at her flushed cheeks. Up here there was already a crisp bite to the air and she found herself inhaling deeply enjoying the sensation of the fresh air filling up her lungs as she stamped her feet in order generate some warmth.

"Patience is a virtue." Antonio teased her as he handed her the black rolling suitcase she had borrowed from Erin. Maggie propped it up alongside her, pulling out the handle as Antonio slung his black holdall over his right left shoulder.

"We both know it's never been one of mine." Maggie reminded him, her cobalt eyes glittering with mirth as she trailed after him along the flat path.

However it was definitely one of Antonio's finer traits. She remembered the first road trip the two of them had taken together as partners in Vice. Even the thought of that case made her shiver involuntarily, she'd seen the effects of drug trafficking when she'd worked in Narcotics but it was nothing compared to the sex trafficking that the Detectives in Vice dealt with. They'd been on the trail of one of a particularly prolific sex trafficker for months before he'd been picked up in Cincinnati on a speeding violation. The local cops had been more than happy to hand him over to be charged in Chicago unfortunately that meant a six hour drive for the two lucky detectives who had been lumbered with the case.

"Will you quit flicking through the radio stations?" Detective Antonio Dawson snarked at his partner as he navigated the darkening road in front of them. They'd left the city behind them over an hour ago and in that time Maggie had proceeded to drive him almost insane by flicking through the multitude of radio stations his car had to offer.

Maggie slumped back in her seat, her head resting the headrest as her right knee began to bounce up and down in a rapid motion. She was stressed, he could feel the anxiety coming off her in waves as he maintained the speed limit.

He removed his left hand from the gear stick and placed it gently upon her denim covered knee, his thumb ghosting along the indent until the limb stopped vibrating underneath this touch. He felt his heart beat that little bit faster as her breathing hitched sending a hot tingle throughout his muscular form. It was like this whenever the two of them came into contact, he'd tried to avoid it as much as he could but being around Maggie was so frighteningly easy. She was intoxicating in her own way, those slight touches they shared were like a narcotic to him, it felt as if opium was pumping directly into his blood stream.

Lord help me, Antonio thought as his gold wedding ring winked at him in the light from a passing street lamp.

Maggie exhaled deeply as Antonio removed his hand from her lithe leg and placed it back upon the steering wheel. He wondered if she felt it's absence as acutely as he did.

"You should open the glove box." He told her warily, half thrilled by the fact she hadn't snapped at him to get his hands off her. The other part of him asked what the hell he thought he was doing laying hands on a woman that wasn't his wife.