social. Every minute we’re not working, he’s finding time to be out and about. Says he needs to soak up humanity and all the good there is in it otherwise he’d be swallowed by the horror we deal in day to day chasing serial killers and profiling criminals.”
“Sounds like a really hard job. You gone a lot?”
His body went stiff next to me. I reached for his hand and laced our fingers. We both held our drinks in the opposite one.
“Yeah, it’s part of the job.”
“Do you get to see anything?”
“In what way?”
I shrugged a shoulder. “Well, you know, if I had a job where I traveled, I’d be visiting all kinds of attractions, old relics, festivals, that kind of thing.”
He smiled softly and stared into my eyes. “I’m sure you would. We don’t usually have much time for that. When my team in the FBI is called in, it’s usually a bad situation. Multiple deaths, often across state lines. We get in, profile the criminal and work with local authorities. Once our job is done, we jet back home.”
“Like Criminal Minds?”
“Kind of, but that’s more glorified. Ryan and I are criminal profilers, but we have a bit broader scope. There are a lot of FBI offices. Ours is downtown Chicago but we could be called in for anything. Depends on the job. Sometimes we don’t travel for months because we can do a lot of things virtually. Meaning review case files across the nation and give feedback, act as consultant on criminal cases, and more I can’t really get into.”
“Meh, it’s okay. I don’t need to know everything. How long have you been working with Ryan?”
“Since the beginning. We were best friends in college, both transferred to Quantico, and have been paired up ever since. It’s been mostly luck that we’ve gotten to stay in the same branches.”
“What type of woman is he usually into?” I ask thinking about my sisters. He was super hot and I could see any one of them being into him.
Jonah dipped his head toward mine and cocked an eyebrow. “Why?”
“Because I’m a woman with seven sisters. A good man who’s hardworking and hot is hard to find.”
He chuckled. “He’s always dated a wide variety of women.”
“Does he date out of his race?”
For a minute he seemed to think about it. “Yeah.” He nodded. “Actually, I’ve seen more women of color leaving his bedroom in the morning than I have white women.”
I grinned wide. “That’s awesome. My sister Blessing is Black, but her preference is white dudes. She’s dated a few brothers in the past, but for some reason they’ve never had staying power. She’s also a fashion designer who travels all the time too so a man who traveled and was okay with his woman traveling too wouldn’t be a problem to her.”
Jonah ran his nose down my neck and I trembled, squeezing his hand. “And what about you? Do you have a problem with a man who travels for work?”
I licked my lips and I could have sworn his eyes dilated. “No. People have to do what they love. I’m always busy and if my man was gone, I’d take that time to do hobby-related things, spending time with my sisters and mom. I’m not exactly the type of girl who ties a man down. Nor do I sit still for long. I respect people for what they need to be who they are. And I expect that in return. Would you have a problem with the fact that I planned a vacation with my sisters, and you happened to be home that weekend?”
He shook his head. “Never.”
“And what about when you want to have children?”
That had him letting go of my hand and rubbing at his forehead. “I want children in the future. Helen wanted them right away after getting married. I wasn’t prepared to give them to her when we were twenty-five and just married. I was in the beginning of my career at the FBI and needed to put the time in to solidify my position. Something I’ve since done.”
“How long were you married?”
He groaned and cracked his neck. “Seven years. I’m thirty-three now.”
I curled my hand around his thigh appreciating the muscles flexing under my palm. “I can understand that. I’m twenty-seven. You’re the same age as my sister Sonia. And she doesn’t have kids or a husband yet. It’s okay to want to be settled in your life and career before bringing children into it.”