What If

                                                                          Chapter 28

The next morning, Raegan came awake slowly to the feel of a warm hardness against the length of her backside, warm hands covering her breasts, teasing her nipples and full lips trailing soft kisses along her shoulder. I must be dreaming, she thought. She stretched slowly, raising her arms up over her head, feeling her muscles tense then loosen as she relaxed. Still she felt a warm body against her backside, a hardness pushing against her bottom. One of the warm hands that held her breast so gently grazed down across her ribs and her stomach to slip between her thighs. Raegan gasped softly. This is a very realistic dream! she thought as her eyes fluttered open. She moaned as gentle fingers parted the twin petals of her femininity and dipped inside her.

“Oded!” she whispered on a sharp intake of breath. The night before came rushing back to her, and she remembered that Oded was there, lying beside her.

“Hmmm?” Oded nipped at her shoulder as his fingers continued to lazily explore the inside of her body.

“You’re real!” Raegan raised a hand back to touch his face. “You’re really here!” she said in awed amazement, enjoying what his fingers were doing to her body.

Oded chuckled softly, his deep voice rumbling through his chest and vibrating against her back. Raegan shivered at the sound of it. It was the most beautiful sound she’d ever heard. “Of course I’m really here,” he teased, pressing his full lips to her ear, taking the lobe between his teeth, sucking it into his mouth, then releasing it. “Shall I show you just how real I am?” he asked as his fingers that had been merely exploring her now began to stroke her more boldly, eliciting another moan from her. Raegan tried to turn in his arms, but Oded held her still, spooned against him. His warm breath teased her ear as he continued to concentrate on that particular area with his mouth, his hands busy in the more southern regions of her body. “No,” he whispered huskily as he removed his fingers and parted her thighs. Moments later she felt the velvety tip of his sex pushing at her wet entrance as he entered her from behind. Oded pushed her legs forward and moved his own to press the tops of his thighs to the bottom of hers. His hips moved slowly forward, easing into her, filling her. Raegan slipped her free arm behind her to slide across Oded’s hip and down to barely reach the outside of his thigh. Her fingers squeezed the muscled flesh as he moved within her, slowly, methodically, just enjoying the feel of being one with her.

Raegan breathed in deeply as she began to pick up his lazy rhythm. His hands came back up to cup her breasts, his mouth working its way up and down the side of her neck, down along her collarbone. Raegan turned her head toward him, wanting to feel his lips on hers. “Oded,” she whispered as he lifted his mouth from her shoulder and immediately placed it over hers. He kissed her in the same slow, methodical, lazy way that he was making love to her. His lips moved over hers with feather lightness, his tongue teasing her slightly parted mouth, causing her to smile at his playfulness. His hands continued to roam over the front of her body, caressing her breasts, her ribs, her stomach, her thighs, then they would trail back up her side and start over. His hips continued their lazy motion moving in and out, eliciting a moan every now and then from Raegan. Her orgasm was slowly building, working its way through her body with every stroke of his tongue in her mouth, with every caress of his hands on her body, and with every thrust of his hard length into her womanhood. Raegan felt a shiver race up and down her spine as she was suddenly hanging in limbo, her body tense and on the edge, just waiting for that one stroke that would send her soaring.

Suddenly Oded tightened his arms around her, holding her against him, and he rolled onto his back, taking her with him. Raegan shrieked, then laughed as she found herself staring up at the ceiling. “Sit up, now.” He chuckled as he grabbed her gently by the shoulders and shoved her upper body upward until she was sitting up. Now she was straddling his hips, facing away from him. “Now, finish it,” he commanded with a sexy grin. Raegan looked back at him from over her shoulder and grinned back. She placed her hands on his well-muscled upper thighs for leverage and began to move her hips. Slowly at first, getting the rhythm established and bringing them both back to the point they were at before Oded had moved them. Then she picked up the pace. Oded placed his hands on her back and traced his fingers up and down her spine. As Raegan began to pick up the pace his hands moved down to grip her waist. He looked down between their joined bodies and watched in fascination as she moved up and down the length of him. His whole body clenched as his climax approached. He felt her hands tighten on his thighs as she rode him, her breathing heavy and erratic.

“Oh!” Raegan’s breath hitched in her throat as her body shuddered its release.

Oded gripped her hips and thrust up hard. The only thing keeping her from flying off the bed was his firm hold on her waist. Raegan bore down on him, meeting his upward thrusts, drawing out her climax. She clenched her tight muscles that surrounded his sex and was rewarded with a sharp gasp. “Rae!” he nearly shouted as he pumped his essence deep within her.

They both stayed where they were for a moment, then Raegan slowly lifted off of him. Oded groaned at the feeling of her withdrawing off him and immediately missed the warm, moist blanket that had been surrounding him. Raegan turned to face him and stretched out across him. Her lips pressed against his as his arms circled around her. “Mmmm, good morning.” She smiled against his mouth.

“Good morning!” he answered with a dimpled grin. His mustache tickled her nose, and she moved her head back to rub the spot with a giggle.

Raegan moved her lips back for another kiss. “I could stay like this all day,” she said, giving him a satisfied look.

Oded tightened his arms around her and rubbed the end of his nose against hers playfully. “That’s a wonderful idea, let’s do it.”

Raegan laughed, then groaned. She didn’t want to deny him anything right now; if she could have she would have lassoed the moon last night to make up for the hurt she’d caused him, but if they were going to settle the problem with Billy, she needed to go into work today. “Oooo, honey. I really wish I could,” she began. She saw the smile fade from Oded’s face, and she groaned again as she kissed him. “I’ll make you a deal,” she offered.

“What’s that?” he asked softly, his dark eyes seeming to see right into her soul.

“Let me go into work today. I’ll talk to Lisa, find out what steps I need to take. Then I will ask for tomorrow off. Tomorrow is Friday; you can pick me up tonight after work and I’ll spend the next three days doing whatever you wish,” she said with another kiss.

“Whatever I wish, huh?” Oded grinned mischievously.

“Well, now wait a minute!” Raegan began as she thought about the kind of trouble she could get into with that open-ended offer. The phone rang just then, interrupting them. Raegan slid off of Oded and picked up the phone on the nightstand. “Hello?”

“Well you answered. I take it everything is okay?” Nancy asked.

“Yup, hunky dory!” Raegan answered.

“Alright, I’m on my way home then. See ya in a few, and tell lover boy it’s nice to have him back!” Nancy teased. “You were a real bitch when you weren’t seeing him.”

“Oh shut up, twit!” Raegan grumbled and hung up the phone. She glanced at the clock and saw it was 6:00 a.m. “Nancy is on her way home.” Raegan glanced over at Oded, who was lying on his back with his arm flung over his eyes. The covers had been pushed down around his ankles, and Raegan admired his nude body. God, he was beautiful! For a brief moment Raegan considered calling in sick, but then shook her head. She really needed to talk to Lisa. The sooner this was done, the better. “I’m going to jump in the shower,” she said as she stood up.

“Mmmm, hmmm,” Oded answered, not moving.

Raegan quickly took a shower and after toweling off, put on a lightweight robe. She came out of the bathroom to find Oded sitting on the edge of the bed a bit bleary eyed. “You alright?” she asked, picking up a comb to untangle her hair.

“Yeah, just tired. The last week or so is finally catching up with me, I think.” He smiled, his dark gaze meeting hers in the mirror. He stood up and walked across the room. “Would you mind if I used your shower?” he asked as he came to a stop behind her. Moving a bit of her wet hair, he placed a kiss on her neck.

“Not at all. Go ahead,” she answered as she watched him smile at her through their reflection in the large wall mirror.

Oded moved off to the bathroom. Rather than it all being in the same room together, the shower and toilet were separated from the bathroom sink. Raegan was able to continue getting ready for work without his showering interfering. Closing the door behind him, he glanced around the small bathroom and saw the shower/tub. He froze. “Oh shit!”

“Oded, you alright?”

Oded hadn’t even realized he’d said anything out loud. He turned back to the door and opened it. “You remember that dream I told you about? The one you said you had the same dream?”

Raegan nodded with a frown. “Yeah, the one where I was taking a bath and you came and joined me.”

Oded stared at her with a mixture of excitement and fear. “Rae, it was in this bathroom. I dreamed that we were in this bathroom.”

“Okay, so did I. I don’t get the problem.”

“Honey, until now, I’ve never been in this bathroom. I had no clue what it looked like. But in my dream it was very vivid, very detailed. I even remember that little seashell soap dish you have over there on the tub,” Oded responded as he pointed toward the tub where the small soap dish sat.

Raegan stood there, stunned. She opened her mouth to say something, but nothing came out. She tried again and all she managed was an “Oh.”

Oded nodded. “Exactly!”

“Oded, that is scary! How is that possible?” Raegan asked softly.

“I don’t know, but it’s freaking me out,” he answered as he glanced back into the bathroom. He turned back to face Raegan and caught her smiling at him. “What?”

She began to laugh. “I’m sorry,” she began. “I just find it amusing that we are standing here talking about this weird dream and you’re naked as a newborn baby!”

Oded grinned. “Yeah well, what can I say?” He stepped toward her and gave her a kiss. “We’ll talk about this dream later. I’m taking a shower now.”

Raegan laughed. “Alright.” She watched as he closed the door and then shivered. It really was freaky that they had had the exact same dream at the exact same time. But as strange as it was, it only confirmed to Raegan the connection that she shared with Oded, that awareness that she had of him that she had with no other man.

Twenty minutes later, Raegan stood at the kitchen counter pouring herself a cup of coffee. She was dressed and ready to go. Nancy hadn’t arrived yet, but she expected her any minute. Arms circled her waist from behind, and she felt a warm kiss on her cheek as she saw Oded’s face come into her peripheral view. “Do I get a cup of that?” he asked as his arms tightened around her, pulling her against him.

Raegan could smell him. He smelled of her honeysuckle soap, and it mixed nicely with his own unique scent. She leaned back into him and realized he was shirtless. Turning in the circle of his arms, she slipped her arms up around his neck. “A cup of what?” she teased. His skin was still slightly damp and warm from the shower; his thick hair was combed back away from his face. Already it was curling up on the ends about his shoulders as he smiled at her.

“I’ll take a cup of you,” he said as his lips playfully skimmed over hers. His hands worked her blouse up out of the waistband of her pants so he could touch her skin. He deepened the kiss, thrusting his tongue between her parted lips.

“Oh god, I’m blinded!” came a familiar voice. “This is worse than seeing my parents having sex!”

Oded broke the kiss, chuckling softly. He turned his head to look at Nancy. “Nothing is worse than seeing your parents having sex!” He grinned. Raegan rolled her eyes, dropping her arms from around his neck.

Nancy appeared to think about what he said, then nodded. “Okay, you’re right about that. But this is damn close!” She wagged a finger at them. “Go put a shirt on for Christ’s sake, Oded! Have mercy on me, okay?”

Oded laughed, releasing Raegan. He turned and headed back toward Raegan’s bedroom, stopping just long enough to press a kiss to Nancy’s forehead and continuing on. Both Nancy and Raegan watched him go. “Oh my god, he has a nice ass!” Nancy exclaimed.

“Yeah, you should see it without the pants covering it,” Raegan teased her best friend. She picked up her coffee and took a sip.

“Oh bite me, bitch!” Nancy growled, but then smiled. “So, I take it you two are back together?”

“Yeah,” Raegan answered, taking another coffee mug down from the cupboard and pouring coffee into it for Oded.

“Do I get to hear the whole sordid tale?” Nancy asked, crossing her arms in front of her and leaning against the counter.

“I’ll tell you all at lunch. I’m taking tomorrow off, so Oded will be picking me up after work tonight,” Raegan answered.

Nancy nodded. “Alright.”

Oded came back into the kitchen fully dressed. He accepted the cup of coffee from Raegan. “Thanks, sweetness,” he said as he took a sip of the hot coffee. He glanced over at Nancy and smiled. “Better?” he asked.

“No, but Rae won’t let me see you naked,” Nancy sniffed.

Oded tossed his head back and laughed. The deep husky laugh sent shivers down both of the girls’ spines. He turned to Raegan and pressed his lips to hers. “I’ve got to go. I’ll pick you up at five. Call me after you talk to Lisa.”

“Okay,” Raegan answered, walking him to the door.

“You mind if I take this?” he asked, indicating the cup of coffee he still held.

“No, go ahead. I can get the cup back later,” Raegan answered as he bent down once again to kiss her.

“I love you,” he whispered against her lips.

“I love you, too,” she answered, and he turned and headed out the door.

“See ya later, Ded!” Nancy called out.

“Later, Nance!” Oded answered as he headed to his car.

“You about ready to go, Rae?” Nancy asked as Raegan shut the front door.

“Yeah, I just need to get my shoes on and get my stuff for the weekend,” Raegan answered as she headed back to her bedroom.

Raegan entered her bedroom and grabbed a pair of shoes from her closet and put them on. She tucked her blouse back in and grabbed her overnight bag to throw some things into it for the weekend with Oded. As she was packing, out of the corner of her eye she saw something sitting on her bed. Walking over to it, she found a small box sitting on her pillow. Underneath it was a slip of paper that she recognized from the notepad next to the phone on her nightstand. She picked them both up and opened the folded piece of paper. She recognized Oded’s neat print.

Rae ~
Here is a flower that will never die! Wear it always knowing that my love is forever! Oded

Raegan felt tears forming in her eyes as she opened the small box. Inside was a gold necklace. Attached to the necklace was a small gold rose. She gasped softly as she took the necklace out of the box to look at it. This was the most romantic thing a guy had ever done for her. When had he gotten her this? she wondered. She walked over to the mirror above the vanity and put it on. Looking at the rose necklace around her neck, she fingered it, her heart swelling with love for him. Wiping her tears away, she grabbed her purse and overnight bag and headed back into the living room.

“Look.” Raegan pointed out the necklace to Nancy.

Nancy looked at the necklace. “Hey, very nice. From Oded, I presume?” she asked.

“Yeah, I just found it on my pillow. He must have put it there before he left,” Raegan answered. “Check out this note he left with it.”

“Oh, how romantic!” Nancy exclaimed as she took the piece of paper and read the single sentence. She glanced back up at Raegan and handed her the note. “Wow!” Nancy replied, her voice softening. “He really does love you, huh?” Nancy sniffed and blinked back the tears that burned in her eyes.

“Nancy, are you crying?” Raegan asked, almost in shock.

“Temporary insanity!” Nancy nodded. “I just think this is so wonderful, Rae. You finally found Mr. Right, and I couldn’t be happier for you and Oded!”

Raegan smiled as she followed Nancy to the front door. “It’s the most romantic thing a guy has ever done for me.” Raegan sighed. “He’s so wonderful, Nance. He makes me so happy, just like Rick makes you happy.”

“Mmmm, Rick,” Nancy began with a smile. “He is wonderful, isn’t he?”

“Yes he is,” Raegan answered as they climbed into Nancy’s Honda. “Hey, maybe we can all double date sometime,” Raegan suggested.

Nancy pulled the Honda out into the street and headed toward the freeway. “Oh, find out of Ded can play miniature golf. I’m dying for a good game!”

“Oooo, that sounds good! Maybe next weekend we can plan something. I’ll check with him.”

“Do you know what you’re doing with your three days off?” Nancy asked.

“Haven’t a clue. Oded has something up his sleeve, though, but he isn’t saying,” Raegan answered as she gazed out the window. Her thoughts turned to what she had to do that morning, and before she knew it they were pulling into the parking structure at work. With a deep sigh she followed Nancy into the building and headed for their office.

                                                             ********************

                                                                       Chapter 29

Raegan tapped on Lisa’s door to get her attention. Lisa looked up from her computer and smiled. “Hey Raegan.”

“Hi Lise,” Raegan greeted. “Do you have a few minutes?”

“Certainly. Come on in.” Lisa went through the motions of saving her work on the computer then gave Raegan her undivided attention.

Raegan closed the office door and sat down in a chair positioned in front of Lisa’s desk. “I’ve got a problem and I need your advice,” Raegan began.

“Alright,” Lisa answered, leaning back in her chair.

“Um, well I guess I need to find out if an AUSA has the authority to go to INS and have someone’s visa revoked and have them deported?” Raegan asked, her hands fidgeting in her lap.

“Well, that depends,” Lisa answered. “If the person is under investigation by the U.S. Attorney’s Office and that person has violated their visa by committing a crime, then yes, an AUSA could probably arrange to have someone deported, or at the very least arrested and held until further investigating could be completed.”

“I see,” Raegan answered a bit more hopeful. “So the AUSA couldn’t just arbitrarily have someone deported.”

“No, not without a legal cause,” Lisa replied. “Rae, what is this about?”

Raegan took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “Well, last week Billy threatened me, saying that if I didn’t break up with Oded and come back to him that he would pull some strings with INS and have Oded’s visa revoked and have him deported back to Israel.”

Lisa’s eyes widened in shock and she leaned forward quickly. “You’re shitting me! He really threatened you like that?”

Raegan nodded. “I believed him. I was too afraid not too. I broke up with Oded just before he left to go to San Francisco last week. It was the hardest thing I’ve ever done.”

“My God, Raegan! Why didn’t you come to me sooner?” Lisa exclaimed, shocked.

“I know I should have, Lisa, but I was just too upset, and I wasn’t thinking straight. My only concern was for Oded, so I did what I felt I had too,” Raegan explained. “Oded came home last night and showed up at my house late. He made me tell him the truth. He was very upset with me.” Tears began forming in Raegan’s eyes. She blinked rapidly and took another deep breath. Her hand went up to the small gold rose around her neck, and she fingered it tenderly.

“How are you two then? Did you work it all out?” Lisa asked sympathetically.

“Yes, as a matter of fact, we did. We are back together, and we talked it out and decided that I should talk to you to see if there is anything I can do about Billy,” Raegan answered.

Lisa leaned back in her chair again, thinking. “Well, first what I want you to do is write it all out: how Billy approached you, everything that he said to you. I want you to detail as much of it as you can remember, even how he handled you. Do you understand what I am saying?”

Raegan nodded. “Yes.”

“Then when you’re done, bring it back to me and let me see it. From there we will go see Randy and see if any charges can be brought against Billy,” Lisa told her.

“Do you think he could be arrested?” Raegan asked curiously.

“Hmmm, I don’t know, Rae,” Lisa answered. “It’s just going to depend on the extent of what he did. At the very least he could be fired for abusing his position as an AUSA.”

Raegan nodded and stood up. “Well, I guess I’d better hop on it then.” She headed to the door and opened it. “Thanks, Lisa.”

“You’re welcome, Raegan. I’m glad you and Oded were able to work it out. He seems like a really nice guy.” Lisa smiled.

“He is. He’s the best!” Raegan answered. “Oh, by the way, I’m taking tomorrow off. Oded and I need some time together.”

“Absolutely!” Lisa responded with a wave of her hand. “Fill out the Leave Slip and bring it to me, and I’ll sign off on it. The trial is on hold right now anyway.”

Raegan hurried back to her desk and began typing out on her computer exactly what had happened between her and Billy last Thursday. It took her a while to remember all the details. She had been really emotional and things kind of got garbled in her head, but she finally got it all written down the way she remembered it. She printed it out and took it into Lisa. Lisa read it over and just shook her head.

“This guy has a lot of gall!” Lisa muttered as she finished reading. She picked up her phone and punched in some numbers, then waited. “Hi Tammy, is Randy in?” She paused, then, “Okay, Raegan and I need to talk to him on an urgent matter. Can you let him know we are on our way?” Another pause. “Okay thanks, Tammy!”

Randall Peterman was the Chief of the Civil Division, where both Lisa and Raegan worked. He was a middle-aged man, short, balding, and rather homely looking. He’d been an AUSA for 15 years before achieving the rank of Chief over the Civil Division, and since obtaining that position he’d proven himself to be a good and fair boss. He was also known for being friendly and caring toward those that worked under him. “Hi Lisa, Raegan. What can I do for you?” Randy asked as they entered his office and sat down.

“Go ahead, Rae, you tell him,” Lisa encouraged.

Raegan handed Randy what she had written. “Read this first,” she said as Randy took the paper from her.

Randy carefully read the details of what Raegan had written down. When he was finished, he looked up at Raegan with a shocked expression. “You do not know how much this disturbs me Raegan, and how very sorry I am that this happened.”

“Thank you,” Raegan answered.

Randy then asked her many questions regarding the incident, wanting to clarify a few points. He made a few notes, and when he was through, he said, “Raegan, these are some very serious charges against Billy Bronson. If the FBI investigates this and finds that he did in deed try to blackmail you by abusing his authority as an AUSA, then he could be arrested. Based on what I’ve just read and the answers you gave me to my questions, it sounds like he hasn’t actually tried to have your friend deported. Mr. Bronson will most likely be fired regardless, but if the FBI finds that he did indeed abuse his authority, are you prepared to go the distance on this?”

“Yes, I am prepared to see this thing through, if necessary,” Raegan answered nervously. What a mess this was turning out to be, she thought. Why couldn’t Billy just have left her alone?

“Okay then, what I want you to do is to go over to the FBI Office in the Roybal Building and talk to Agent Nicholson. I’ll call him now, so he will be expecting you. You give him this,” Mr. Peterman held up the paper that Raegan had written, “and file a complaint to get the investigation started.”

Raegan nodded. “Thank you, Randy.” She and Lisa stood up to leave.

“I’m sorry this has happened to you, Raegan. I hope you and your young man were able to work things out,” Randy stated as he flipped through his Rolodex, searching for Agent Nicholson’s number.

“Yes, we were,” Raegan answered. She thought of Oded and the coming weekend and smiled to herself. Reaching her hand up to her throat, she fingered the gold rose. She could hardly wait to see him again and tell him how much she loved him.

After taking care of her meeting with Agent Nicholson, Raegan got back to her desk to find Nancy waiting for her. It was almost 1 o’clock and she was starving. “Hey Nance,” Raegan greeted her as she plopped down in her chair to check her messages.

“Hey yourself. I’m hungry,” Nancy complained.

“Okay, I need to call Oded first before we go.” She hung up from checking her messages, then punched in Oded’s phone number.

“Yeah,” Oded answered on the second ring.

Raegan laughed. “You know, I really need to teach you about phone etiquette.”

“And just what is wrong with my phone etiquette?” Oded asked. Raegan could hear the humor in his deep voice.
“One does not answer the phone, ‘yeah’,” she responded with an overly done uppity voice. “The proper greeting is, ‘hello’, or one can even go so far as to say ‘good morning’ or ‘good afternoon’.”

By then Oded was laughing. “Alright, alright, I’ll work on it,” he answered. “So did you talk to Lisa?” he asked curiously.

“Yes. Nancy and I are getting ready to go to lunch. How about I tell you all about it tonight?” Raegan suggested.

“All right, sweetness,” Oded answered. “By the way, did you bring stuff with you for the weekend?”

“Mmmm, hmmm,” she answered.

“Shorts, bathing suit?” he asked.

“Uh, yeah,” Raegan answered suspiciously. “’You got something planned?”

“Maybe,” he intentionally answered vaguely. “Did you get my present?” he asked, changing the subject.

“Yes,” Raegan answered softly, her fingers immediately going up to touch the necklace. “It’s beautiful, Oded, I love it. Thank you.” She wanted to throw her arms around him and kiss him until they could hardly breath.

“I’m glad you liked it. I had hoped to give it to you this past weekend if you had come up to San Francisco, but . . .” He let the sentence die. They both knew why she hadn’t come up, but there was no need to dwell on it anymore.

“Oded, I . . .” Raegan began.

“Don’t Rae. What happened is done. I don’t want this to spoil our weekend, so just let it go,” Oded replied. “I’ll be there to pick you up at the usual time.”

“Okay. I’ll see you then.” Raegan wiped at the tears that had formed in her eyes again. Even though she knew Oded forgave her, she still felt the guilt of hurting him. “I love you.”

“I love you too, sweetness,” Oded answered. “I’ll see you later this afternoon.”

Nancy and Raegan had a nice lunch. They walked down to Olvera Street for Mexican food, and Raegan told Nancy everything that had happened with Billy. Then she told her about talking with Lisa and Mr. Peterman. When she was done, Nancy shook her head. “Damn girl! Promise me something, will ya? When they make this whole mess into a movie, can I play myself?”

Raegan laughed. “It does sound like something out of a movie or a soap opera, doesn’t it?”

“Well between Billy and that publicist of Oded’s, I’m amazed this is all that has happened so far,” Nancy commented. “Shit, whatever happened to just simple relationships? You date, you have sex, and if you’re lucky, you fall in love.”

Raegan raised an eyebrow at her friend. “Yeah, nowadays, you have to battle with ex-boyfriend blackmailers and jealous wannabe girlfriends!” she mused.

“Well, damn it, I knew Billy was holding something over you,” Nancy said angrily after a bit. “I know you too well, Rae, and I knew you would not break up with Oded to date Billy again. That bastard really has a lot of balls to pull that shit. I hope they put his ass in jail and throw away the key!” Nancy finished her tirade with a thump of her fist on the table where they sat.

Raegan felt that tinge of guilt rush through her again as she thought of what she’d done. Sometimes good intentions don’t mean crap. She swallowed. “Well, hopefully this is the end of it. Agent Nicholson is going to launch an investigation and see what he can come up with. He said that if Billy is capable of blackmail, then he might be capable of other things too, so they are going to possibly get a warrant to search his home in addition to searching his office.”

“Wow!” Nancy’s eyes widened. “What do they expect to find?” she asked, fascinated.

Raegan shrugged her shoulders. “Any evidence of wrong doing, I guess,” she answered. “I think he is also going to interview the INS agents that have any connection to Billy in the past to see if he has approached any of them on having Oded deported.”

“God, Rae!” Nancy sighed. “I certainly don’t envy you this! But you know I’m here for you if you need me for anything.”

“I know, Nance. Thanks.” Raegan smiled at her.

“By the way,” Nancy began, her blue eyes snapping angrily at her. Raegan cringed, instantly knowing what was coming. “You ever keep crap like this from me again and I’ll tan your hide, is that understood?” Raegan nodded. “Oded is not the only one you hurt. I’m your best friend, for Christ’s sakes! We’ve always shared everything with each other, and in the past month in a half, you have kept more secrets from me than you have our entire friendship. I love you dearly, Raegan, and there isn’t anything I wouldn’t do for you, but if you purposely lie to me again . . .” Nancy let the sentence hang between them.

Raegan wanted to crawl into a hole and die. The two very most important people in her life and she’d come close to losing them both. “I’m so sorry, Nancy,” Raegan whispered as a tear trickled down her cheek.

“Oh Rae,” Nancy softened her voice, the anger gone. “I know you did it to protect Oded. I do understand and I’m not even saying I wouldn’t have done the same thing in your position, but well, damn it, it still hurts knowing you didn’t trust me enough to tell me the truth.”

Raegan met her friend’s gaze and saw the forgiveness there. “Thanks, Nancy. For being my friend and for caring.”

“Ah damn it, Rae, you’re gonna make me cry.” Nancy blinked furiously to keep the tears from forming. “Have you heard from Billy at all today?” Nancy asked, changing the subject.

“No, and I’m really dreading having to face him. I’m hoping that he is too busy to bother with me today,” Raegan answered, wiping the tears from her cheeks.

“Well, you be sure and call security if he tries to make a scene, you hear me?” Nancy commanded. Raegan nodded. “Come on, I’ve got to get back. I’ve got a 3 o’clock Windows training class to prepare for,” Nancy stated, standing up. Raegan stood also and followed Nancy out of the small restaurant.

The rest of the afternoon went by quickly, and amazingly enough, Raegan made it through without seeing or hearing from Billy. At 5 o’clock she gathered her stuff together, and after saying goodbye to Nancy, she went down to meet Oded in front of the building.

“Where the hell do you think you are going?” Raegan jumped, startled at hearing Billy’s angry voice. She had just come out of the building when she found herself face to face with the one person she did not want to see right now.

“Billy!” Raegan stammered. He glowered at her, trying to intimidate her.

“I asked you a question!” he barked grabbing her arm. He looked at the overnight bag she had slung over her shoulder. “Looks to me like you’re going on a trip somewhere.” His voice was icy soft.

“Let me go, Billy.” Raegan winced at the tight hold he had on her arm. She glanced over his shoulder and her eyes widened in real fear as she saw Oded walking toward them. The look on his face made her breath freeze in her throat. Quickly Raegan wrenched her arm from Billy’s grasp and pushed past him. “Don’t ever come near me again, Billy!” she commanded and moved to intercept Oded.

“Damn it, Ra . . .” Billy spun around, and his curse died in his throat as he saw a furious Oded bearing down on him. He quickly backed up several steps.

If looks could kill, Billy would have dropped dead that instant. Raegan wasn’t sure if Oded would stop or just run her over in an attempt to get at Billy, but she couldn’t let him do it. Not that she cared what happened to Billy, but she cared more for Oded and the scene it would cause, and the fact that Oded was a recognizable figure. “Oded, no!” She planted herself in his path and placed her hand on his chest.

The hurricane that was Oded stopped. He could have easily pushed Raegan aside to get to Billy, but his love and respect for her stopped him. When he had pulled up in front of the building and saw Billy grab Raegan roughly, he’d lost all common sense. The rage that had filled him had become a living, breathing thing, and it was all focused on one person. The only thing that kept him from reaching his goal was the very woman all his male instincts wanted to protect. He watched as Billy scurried inside the Federal Building. There was no way Oded could follow him without being surrounded by a dozen security guards. His dark intense gaze fell on the woman standing before him. His breathing was labored in his anger. Raegan could feel his muscles, hard and tense beneath her hand, and his heart was racing. “Why did you stop me?” he asked so softly that Raegan almost didn’t hear him.

“Because I love you and because your publicist hates me enough as it is. If she got wind that I had to bail you out of jail because you got into a public brawl with my ex-boyfriend . . .” She left the rest for Oded to figure out. “Not to mention that it would totally ruin our plans for the weekend,” she added for good measure.

Oded reached for the overnight bag she carried. “Get in the car before I change my mind,” he commanded. She could still hear the anger in his voice, but she could tell by the look in his eyes that he saw the logic in why she’d stopped him. It would do his career no good if he was arrested for assaulting his girlfriend’s ex-boyfriend. Even if the jerk did deserve it!

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                                                      What If - Chapters 30 - 31