Sunny heard Rachel's hoot of laughter at Lauren's whispering, and guessed Lauren was saying something about the man who was apparently Rachel's first boyfriend. It was probably something suggestive, because even Sunny could see the man was ruggedly handsome with broad shoulders and a slim physique. Al was right to introduce himself right away as Rachel's husband, because Omar beat him in the looks department, and Al would have to be a saint not to feel jealous at the intrusion of a sexual rival on what he probably expected to be a fun and low key evening with family and friends. Sunny was a little jealous himself. This man had gotten to be with Rachel first, while Sunny was at the end of the line, although he probably benefited most from her experience.
His assessment of Omar, and his own jealousy, while interesting, had to take a back seat, though, to the crisis sitting across the table from him. Harpreet. And Logan.
When had this happened? Was he away from home so much that he hadn't even noticed it developing? He racked his brain, trying to remember a time when he saw his daughter paying extra attention to the boy, who'd suddenly become a man in the year since the intrigue that had led to his kidnapping, when Rachel, Joe, Lauren and Joanie had nearly been killed amid a battle between two rival drug gangs. For the life of him, he couldn't think of one time. He'd assumed Harpreet, and Naomi, apparently (he'd seen her reaction and surmised she also had a crush on him), saw him only as the brother of Emma and a kind of older brother to themselves, since their families were so close, and that romantic feelings weren't even a factor in their relationship.
Then again, they all texted like crazy, so maybe they didn't need to use body language to convey their interest, and this hand-holding was their first ever open acknowledgement of it. If so, it couldn't have come at a worse time. Not that Sunny would have been ready for this revelation any other time, but with the funeral for Joe's dad coming up, and Rachel's first boyfriend sitting across from them, it was a lot to take in, and he didn't think he was doing a good job of it, because Tej was squeezing his knee hard under the table, and Harpreet wouldn't meet his eye.
Omar spent a polite few minutes introducing himself to the other detectives and listening to his fiancee talk shop with them as they let Joanie know everything she should expect in her first few days as a trainee detective, but Fatima only had enough time to relax, assured in her place as Omar's centre of attention, before Omar turned back to Rachel and called across the table, "So, Rachel, I don't believe I asked you what you do now."
Fatima's jaw clenched, and Sunny felt sorry for her. Not cool, dude, he thought.
Rachel blushed as everyone's attention turned her way again, which made Harpreet finally look up from the table, visibly relieved that the heat was finally off her. For now. Sunny wasn't letting her off the hook that easily. They'd talk when they got home.
"I'm a forensic accountant," Rachel said. "I work for Justiciar Security and Investigative Services, with Lauren, actually. She's an owning partner."
Omar brightened at that. "You're a private investigator?"
"Well, I'm not," Rachel clarified. "Lauren is the licensed P.I. I just audit finances while she does the field work."
"It's really not as glamorous as you might imagine," Lauren said, "just in case you were wondering."
"Well, no, it's just..." Omar suddenly shook his head and said, "Never mind. It's just interesting, Rachel, I never thought that would have been your life path."
"I never thought so either, but I'm so glad it happened this way."
Sunny wasn't surprised she didn't mention that Justiciar had created that job for her because of Lauren's influence, and that she'd needed that job because she'd been fired from her last one because her client, who'd also been her lover, had framed her for embezzlement. There was no way Rachel was going to admit to a man who broke her heart that another man had shafted her so badly, and the less said about that man, the better. He'd gotten his comeuppance, somehow, though his friends had never clarified their role in it, which he didn't want to know if he was to keep his status as an officer of the court; if he had no knowledge of a crime, he had no duty to report it to the police.
Omar smiled at her and looked at the rest of them. "Are you all involved in this company? I seem to recall Rachel told me you had a detective club when you were kids."
To Sunny's surprise, all the actual detectives burst out laughing, and Omar looked so stunned that the very active Lawrence Street Detective Club couldn't help laughing too.
"We're not," Sunny said. "I'm a family lawyer and a city councillor in New Westminster."
"Seriously?" Omar looked impressed. "You must be a busy man."
"No busier than you, I expect."
"I own a construction company with my brother, who's not here tonight," Joe said.
"That I can see," Omar said, giving him another once-over.
"Logan's actually working with us over the summer," Joe added, "and if we're lucky we'll hire him permanently once he's got his ticket from BCIT."
Omar nodded and turned to Al. "And you?"
"I work at Vancouver Public Library as a Cataloguing Assistant." Al tried to sound confident, but Sunny could tell he was comparing himself to the doctor across the table and finding himself lacking.
Omar nodded. "I don't know what that entails, but it sounds like an interesting job," he said, reaching for something but coming off as condescending in Sunny's opinion.
"It's a career," Al said stiffly. "I got a college diploma to qualify for it." Against the med school graduate, though, it didn't sound like much, and Al knew it.
"He's really good at his job," Agnes said, finally contributing to the conversation, and Sunny realized to his embarrassment that none of them had introduced her yet. "We're coworkers, and I know full well the effect the work he does has on the patron's ability to access materials."
Omar's eyes glazed over, and Sunny could tell he was wondering whether it was too late to get her name. This was awkward, and it didn't help that Rachel wasn't defending her husband, which Sunny found surprising; why did Agnes have to be the one to talk him up? She was probably wondering if Omar was plotting to steal Rachel away from Al and, if he was, would she be able to get Al to marry her instead.
It took Fatima, fed up with all his interest in everyone but her, to come to his rescue. "Al's a brave man," she said. "I remember when I first met him. I didn't know of his association with Joanie until later, but I still remember it because of what he'd done."
Now everyone was looking at her, mostly in surprise, Al with pathetic gratitude. "What did he do?" Omar asked.
"He got arrested for speeding and fleeing the police," Fatima said. When Omar's eyes widened, because that didn't sound like something to be commended for, she clarified, "Lauren was in Aldergrove, tailing a guy she suspected of being one of a group of men who'd beaten up Joe a few months earlier. Anyway, she'd called Al to help her keep an eye on the guy, and he was driving to Aldergrove to help her, but he'd gotten the idea that she was in trouble because she wasn't picking up her phone, and so he went over the speed limit to get to her. We tried to stop him to give him a ticket, but he evaded us until we got into town, where we discovered Lauren was indeed in trouble, struggling with the guy on the sidewalk. We still arrested him, but if he hadn't led us there, we might have been too late to arrest the other guy, and in the end he informed on his buddies, and they informed on the woman who'd hired them to beat Joe up."
Omar looked amazed. "I feel like there's so much more to this story you're not telling me, like, why did this woman hire those guys to beat him up?"
"We'd tell you," Joe said, "but we don't want to hog your time when your betrothed deserves it more."
Oh, snap! Someone finally said it. Maybe Joe just didn't want to get into the whole story of how he was nearly killed to a stranger, but Sunny was still surprised he'd been the one to put the man in his place.
Omar looked like Joe had slapped him, and Rachel put a hand over her mouth to stop herself from laughing. Fatima gave Joe a grateful look and said, "Well, now that we all have our professions out on the table, why don't we turn our focus to the woman of the hour, whose profession we're all here to celebrate."
Fatima rose, holding a glass of water in her hand. "I'd like to propose a toast to Joanie. She's not only a decorated hero, she's also the most humble person I've ever met. She never starts anything, but if trouble ever starts, there's no one you'd rather have in your corner. She took me under her wing when I first arrived at the Langley detachment, and I know it's because of her that I haven't suffered the discrimination so many other women of colour suffer in the force. She's like a big sister to me, a friend in good times and in bad, and I'm proud to say that I model my behaviour and work ethic on her."
She cleared her throat, and Sunny wasn't surprised to see tears in her eyes. Joanie was also wiping hers. "Sarge," Fatima said, "I can't tell you how thrilled I am that you made detective. It's been your dream as long as I've known you, and you did it. You showed them all, and you're lowering the ladder for me and women like me to follow you, but..." She sniffed and wiped her eyes, and now the whole table was getting emotional. "... but you're leaving a big hole at the Langley detachment, and a big empty seat next to me in the cruiser." That made everyone chuckle, but then she got the tears flowing by saying, "And a big hole in my heart. I'm going to miss you, sister. Please keep in touch."
"I'll just be in the next town over!" Joanie protested, now in full ugly-cry mode. "We'll still hang out!"
"Okay, Joanie." Fatima cleared her throat again, realizing she'd now laid it on a little thick, and it was time to wrap up the toast. "Everybody raise your glasses to Sergeant Joanie Mara, now Detective Joanie Mara."
"To Joanie!" they all repeated, and everyone clinked glasses whether they had hard or soft drinks in them. Emma especially liked making sure all the adults near her clinked with her, and she lightened the mood of the table just before it got maudlin.
Joanie stood and hugged Fatima fiercely, and everyone applauded. The other detectives called for a speech, and Joanie tried to decline politely until Goncalves asked, "Weren't you a media relations officer? You're a pro at speeches!"
"I only said what they told me to say," Joanie protested. Then she sighed and said, "Okay, I don't have anything prepared, but I just want to say thanks everybody for organizing this dinner. I can't remember ever having so many people I like and admire sitting together in one place, and I'm honoured and humbled to know that I'm the reason you're here. I'm looking forward to my new role, but I will miss Langley, and especially you, Fatima." Joanie raised her glass to her. "I'm toasting you, too, girl. To you, and your new fiance. May you and Omar have every happiness in the world."
They all clinked glasses again, and Omar kissed Fatima on the lips, making Fatima blush, but Sunny could tell she was pleased. She deserved it for her sufferance tonight.
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