Drop Dead Sexy

“What’s wrong?”

“I forgot it’s my night to be on call for body pickups. We’ve had a death called in from Eastside Hospital back home.” I quickly texted Allen that it would be a little while before I could get there, but I was on the way. “Sorry that I have to get back.” What I really wanted to say was, “Sorry that I’m not going to be able to screw your brains out.”

“No need to apologize, and no need to cut our evening short.”

“What do you mean?”

“Well, why don’t I come along with you to pick up the stiff? Then we can get some dinner.” Catcher grinned at me. “After two dicks, a nudist resort, and snake handlers, I have yet to have the pleasure of buying you dinner.”

I grinned. “Are you sure you don’t mind?”

“Of course not.”

“Okay. Sounds good.”

Actually, it sounded a hell of a lot more than just good. I mean, here I was with a drop-dead sexy man who not only didn’t find my profession abhorrent, but he was actually supportive. More than anything, he wanted to spend time with me. It was quite refreshing to find such a man existed. Catcher was truly turning into a man who was good for both the body and soul.





After we got home from the boonies, Catcher swung by the funeral home so I could pick up the hearse. As he opened the passenger side door, Catcher chuckled. “What’s so funny?” I asked, as I slid across the leather seat.

“The fact I’m about to take a spin in a hearse, and I’m not dead.”

“Yeah, I guess it is a little weird the first time.”

“Your dad didn’t drive you around in this, did he?”

I laughed. “God, no. It was bad enough being the girl with dead people in her house. The last thing I would have needed was to be the girl with dead people in her car.”

Catcher snorted. “I see your point.”

Eastside Hospital was a quick ten minute drive from the funeral home. Compared to the hospitals in the bigger cities like Marietta and Atlanta, Eastside was pretty small.

I pulled around back to the loading dock. “You can wait here if you want,” I said, as I grabbed my identification badge out of the dash.

“And miss seeing you in action? Ha! Never.”

I grinned. “It’s really not that exciting.”

“Anything with you is exciting, Olivia,” Catcher said sincerely, which when spoken in his sinfully, sexy voice sent my heart beating erratically and caused me to feel lightheaded.

Without my normal elegance, I stumbled out of the hearse. After recovering, I went around to the back and opened the door, pulled out the gurney, got it upright, and then locked it in place. With what felt like rote movements, the wheels rattled along the pavement as I approached the backdoor. I gripped the rails on the gurney so it wouldn’t go careening away as I rang the bell. The last thing I needed was to make a fool out of myself in front of Catcher.

“Yes?” a voice questioned.

“Olivia Sullivan from Sullivan’s for a pickup.”

The door buzzed open, and I rolled the gurney in with Catcher on my heels. After following the maze of hallways to the elevator to the first floor, I picked up Mr. Marvin Delaney—a stroke victim who had been brought in to the ER earlier that day.

I was greeted by Marco—one of the orderlies. He had started work about six months ago, and he had always been really nice to me. He was probably what you would call nerdy cute with his thick glasses but a built body.

“Hey Liv, what’s shaking?” he asked, flashing me a grin.

“Not much, Marco. What’s up with you?”

“Same old, same old.” At the sight of Catcher standing behind me, his smile faded. “Got a new apprentice?” he questioned, a hopeful lilt to his voice.

When I opened my mouth to introduce Catcher, he stepped in front of me. He thrust his hand out a little too forcefully. “Catcher Mains.”

“Marco D’Angelo.”

“And I’m not a new funeral home apprentice—I’m Olivia’s boyfriend.”

What. The. Fuck. I stared at Catcher in absolute shock at the fact he had referred to himself as my “boyfriend.” I mean, we hadn’t actually been on a real date yet. I couldn’t bring myself to consider our meeting at The Rusty Ho as a date. Sure, we’d spent a lot of time together in the last two and a half days, but it was in the pursuit of a murderer.

I wasn’t the only one staring at Catcher in shock. Marco wore the same deer-in-the-headlights expression as I assumed I did. Finally, he shook his head like he was shaking himself out of a stupor. “Hey man, that’s great.”

“I like to think so.”

As the tension grew in the air, I put the brake on the gurney. “I guess I better get Mr. Delaney.”

When I started to slide the sheet under Mr. Delaney to do the transfer from the bed to the gurney, Marco jumped forward like he usually did. “I’ll get that, Liv.”