The desire coursing through him dominated his thoughts, and he couldn't help but think of how badly he wanted to taste Amélie's lips since the night they had shared drinks in his apartment. Seeing her run her tongue over her full lips, her gaze fixed on his mouth, made him conclude that Amélie desired the same.

“Bro—”

Amélie stepped back abruptly and turned away from the detective, pretending to cough as Derick entered the room. Na-moo cleared his throat and stretched out his arms.

Derick studied them with raised eyebrows. A sly smile played on his lips. He placed the tray he was carrying, with a few bottles of water, on the bench.

“I thought you might need something, but it seems I was mistaken. Looks like I interrupted something.”

“You didn't interrupt anything. We were actually thinking of taking a break for some water,” Na-moo replied, approaching to grab one of the bottles.

“Careful not to get electrocuted. I almost got a shock from the high voltage coming from you two when I walked in!”

Na-moo sputtered the water he was drinking, wetting the bench and his shirt, which only caused Derick's mischievous smile to turn into a mocking laughter.

Amélie pressed her lips together, grabbing one bottle, trying not to laugh.

“You're seeing things, Rick. We were just training!”

“I know, I know,” Derick said, resting his right hand on his friend's shoulder, whose features twisted into a flushed scowl. “You were training just the way I like to train with my favorite students.”

He winked playfully and leaped away, anticipating the playful hit he'd get from Na-moo for taunting him at that moment.

Na-moo huffed, and as Derick expected, he chased after him. It was just what he needed, the kid mocking him! And Na-moo knew Derick Kwan well enough to know that the whole lecture he'd given him about his habit of mixing classes with sex whenever he noticed a woman desiring him, had failed after being caught with Amélie. Even though they weren't doing anything of the sort…

The detective would have to endure the younger one staring at him as he circled the room like a child, his eyebrows moving up and down and his lips curled into a mischievous grin.

A loud, hearty laugh made him stop chasing Rick. Na-moo stood with his hands on his hips and looked at Amélie. Her eyelids were crinkled, her hands held her stomach, and a few tears trickled down her red face.

“S-Sorry” she gasped, trying to compose herself, “you two are acting like a pair of kids! If I didn't know your family history, Na-moo, I'd think Derick was the youngest of the Hwang family.”

“We don't share the same DNA, or last name, but I consider this big lug my little brother.” Na-moo glanced at Derick out of the corner of his eye.

“Aw, come on, Moo! I'm starting to feel bad for teasing you and thinking about sharing this with Hector.” Derick sighed and scratched his brow. “Take a break, I'm free right now, I can teach her some moves while you rest. No flirting, I promise.”

“I'm not worried about that possibility, kid,” Hwang smiled wryly and looked at Amélie. “Is it okay for you to train with him?”

“I won't be afraid of hurting him.” She nodded with a tight-lipped smile.

“Ouch! That hurts!” Rick dramatized placing a hand over his heart.

Na-moo nodded, still smiling, and moved his bag on the bench to sit and watch them. Despite the banter and flirting, Rick was one of the best instructors in his family's academy. So, when he stood in front of the girl, his expression turned serious to demonstrate some attack and defense techniques.

He took out his phone to check messages as Derick positioned himself behind Amélie. The young man held her by the neck from behind, his lips moved to explain how she should react if attacked in that way; but before he could finish speaking, Amélie dragged her right leg back and tripped him while simultaneously hitting his chest with her elbow.

Derick fell onto the mat with eyes as wide as Hwang's, who let the phone slip from his fingers with a small exclamation.

“That's how I'm supposed to take down an aggressor, right?” she asked, reaching out a hand to Derick.

“How… you…” the young man stammered, accepting the outstretched hand.

Na-moo leaned down to pick up the phone from the floor, static, his eyes never leaving the doctor, who flashed a small smile.

“After what happened to me and Hannah… I thought I should know how to defend myself,” she said, looking at the detective. “I didn't want to feel helpless ever again in my life.”

“Why didn't you tell me?”

“I didn't know you were going to bring me here,” Amélie shrugged, biting her lower lip, “and you seemed so excited when you asked me out during breakfast that I felt awkward about spoiling your plans when I found out what they were.”

“I'm relieved I'm not the only one caught off guard,” Derick gasped, still stunned from being knocked down. “I was starting to believe you did it on purpose, bro, because I interrupted you” he glanced at Amélie, wary, “I only let my guard down because I thought it was your first time in a place like this.”

“I'm sorry about that, but know that I took it easy,” she assured, patting his back lightly.

“I think you can move on to the next activity on the list. It doesn't seem like your partner needs any more lessons, Moo.”

Na-moo nodded, still in disbelief at the scene he had witnessed. The whole time, Amélie knew about every move he had mentioned before Derick showed up. A mixture of relief and pride welled up inside him. Relief for worrying unnecessarily, because just like his other colleagues, Amélie Zhou could defend herself—to some extent, given the situation they were in at work. And pride for her for taking Derick down right after he interrupted them, even if it was by catching him off guard.

“Do you know how to shoot?” the detective asked, imagining the surprise the next activity might hold.

“Lucky for you, no. I've never touched a gun.”

Na-moo ran his fingers through his dense, dark hair and cracked a small smile.

“Then we can change and head to our next destination.”

✛✛

Amélie thought shooting would be easy, because that's how movies and TV shows made it seem. However, nothing was as easy as television made it seem. She lost count of how many times she squeezed the trigger without releasing the safety on the gun Na-moo had chosen when Derick left them alone in one of the training rooms. As if that wasn't enough, when she remembered she needed to release the safety, she reacted like a fool, startling at the shot's impact—understandably, she missed the target.

Na-moo didn't laugh. At least not in the mocking way she expected. The smile that tugged at the detective's lips was different. His brown-coffee eyes had a gleam she couldn't quite place when his steady fingers brushed aside her wavy locks, tucking them behind her ear to clear her line of sight.

On the third try, she hit the target in one of the strategic spots he'd indicated.

After training for a while, missing most of the targets—guns were definitely not Amélie's strong suit—Na-moo took her back to the lobby to return Derick's keys, then they headed to the parking lot. The rain continued to pour, and the air remained muggy, so they both ran to where the Chevrolet was parked. Water droplets trickled from their hair as they got into the car. The gray sky would darken soon, and although the encounter wasn't what Amélie had imagined, she didn't want to say goodbye to Na-moo.

She was pondering how to say this when he got back on the road, but to her surprise, the car didn't take the route back to her apartment. Na-moo veered onto the expressway in the opposite direction.

“I mentioned that the gym wasn't the only place I had in mind to take you,” he replied with a restrained smile, feeling Amélie's curious gaze on him. “Actually, the place I really wanted to take you to from the beginning is where we're going now.”

“You're making me curious. What place is this?”

“You'll see soon.”

✛✛

Na-moo parked the Chevrolet on the paved ground amidst the lush surroundings. Through the rain-dappled windows, Amélie recognized the place they had stopped: they were in the Drusa Grove parking lot.

She turned in her seat to face him as he shifted the gear and engaged the brake. The dimples in Na-moo's cheeks deepened with his smile when he met Amélie's curious gaze.

“I come here whenever I need to clear my mind or breathe fresh air. I thought it would be a good idea to bring you here after the hectic week we've had. Unfortunately, it's raining, so we can't really enjoy it…”

Amélie raised one eyebrow.

“You deal with criminals and murderers, but you're afraid of a little rain, Na-moo Hwang?”

“I'm not afraid of the rain, just not…”

“In that case” a smile lifted her cheeks as she opened the passenger door, “you won't mind joining me!”

Before he could say anything, Amélie leaped out of the car and moved away. Heavy, cold raindrops fell from the clouds, quickly soaking her clothes and wavy locks, which soon clung to her neck.

Torn between laughing and cursing, Na-moo removed the key from the panel and locked the car. It didn't take long for his T-shirt to stick to his body too, outlining the muscles of his chest and arms, as he flexed them to brush away the strands that covered his eyelids.

“A rain shower wasn't in my plans this morning.”

“Nor in mine” Amélie replied. “But, it's fun! I had forgotten…” She closed her eyes, savoring the scent of damp earth and the feel of the water falling on her skin.

Hannah hated getting caught in the rain, while Amélie loved it and tried to make her cousin enjoy it too when they went out with Yan and got caught in the rain on the way. Back then, Amélie believed that a gray day didn't have to be sad just because it lacked bright colors. Maybe her fond memories of Hanna shouldn't hurt so much every time she thought of her, but it still felt too difficult. Amélie's chest ached as if tiny splinters were lodged between her ribs, and the memories she held were the trigger that moved them toward her heart.

“Are we back to childhood?” Na-moo's voice brought her back to the present, and Amélie opened her eyes. 

The detective was watching her with a mix of curiosity and amusement. The shade of brown in his eyes was so vivid and warm that it quickly dispelled the melancholy that threatened to engulf her.

This wasn't the rain shower of her childhood with Hannah. It was another good memory with Na-moo, in the same place where he had encouraged her to keep going.

“You wanted to clear your mind, and that's what rain does on a hot day, don't you think?” Amélie said. “We can go to the lake, we're already wet anyway!” A wide, perfectly aligned smile adorned her features, accentuating the subtle dimple on her left cheek.

Na-moo agreed and tried to suppress a smile when she reached out to him, but his lips twitched as her fingers met his and Amélie intertwined them, locking her eyes with his.

The last rays of the sun hidden behind the heavy clouds all day pierced through to leave their mark on the late afternoon, intensifying the shade of the penetrating gaze fixed on Na-moo. He raised his hand to brush away a strand that clung to the full lips of that enchanting woman.

Amélie's heart gave a lurch as his fingers gently touched her skin. She moistened her lips as he nestled his hand in the curve between her shoulder and neck, holding her nape firmly. Without a second thought, she rose on her tiptoes and kissed him, fearing that something—or someone—might interrupt them again.

She closed her eyes as Na-moo's soft, plump lips parted beneath hers. Her stomach filled with butterflies as his tongue intertwined with hers, deepening the kiss, now made wet from the rain falling on them. The detective laid his fingers on her hip, pulling her closer to him.

The sound of rain on the gravel was the only thing surrounding them; the scent of wet earth mixed with the naphthalene and roses emanating from their soaked bodies.

Until a phone rang, echoing in the surrounding nature.

Resigned and determined to turn it off, Na-moo took it out of his pocket. His eyes widened when he saw the short message that flashed on the notification bar when the call dropped.

“What happened?” Amélie asked, her heart freezing at the sudden change in his expression.

Na-moo swallowed hard. “It's Hector. We got a kidnapping report.”