"Don't be so sure about that, I'm a big fan of yours, and if you want I can have Nick talk to Nike. I've seen your butt, and it definitely competes with mine any day at Time Square."



"I don't know why you'd be a fan of mine. I almost got you killed today." Emily moved up a little and pressed her fingers against Parker's mouth to stop the protest that was coming. "You know I'm right. Crazy wouldn't have tried to kill you if it wasn't for me."



Parker opened her mouth and nipped at Emily's fingers getting her to laugh and forget about the mood the smaller woman was falling into. "I'd want to kill someone too if they stole you away from me, Em. You're so special, and I love you so much," the fingers came back to stop Parker again as a blush colored Emily's face.



The thought of what could have happened to Parker flooded through Emily's brain again like a nightmare and she released a sob from deep in her chest. When Gail's knife had sliced into Parker's bag, in that one second of violence Emily realized she had fallen so in love with her it would have killed her to see Parker hurt. What a tragedy would it have been to know that in one instant, then have it torn away from you in the next heartbeat?



"You didn't steal me away from anyone, Parker. I tried, I really did but all the fighting and drinking wore me down. That night Gail scared me out on those dunes and I've never been able to forget the look on her face as she fought herself not to hurt me. Now she's tried to hurt you," Emily's tears fell in earnest at the admission.



"Hey, Em, it's ok. We are fine and Gail can't hurt us anymore. Come on now, it's going to be fine." Parker gathered the crying woman into her arms and just held her as she talked. "Want to hear what I figured out today?" The blonde head nodded against her chest as the crying slowed and was replaced by hiccups.



"I was playing today and Marsha was kicking my ass, gloating the whole time and for a while there I was thinking I was going to lose to America's sweetheart." Emily looked up from Parker's chest interested in where this story was going. "Last year that thought would have pissed me off because of the work that goes into preparing for a tournament like the Open, but this year I figured you wouldn't think any less of me if I lost so it didn't matter as much. I looked up there and saw you biting your thumbnail and it hit me."



"What did, sweetheart?"



"I love you, Emily. Don't get me wrong, I don't think of you as a trophy, but if I could win your heart, I could never win another game of tennis and it wouldn't matter." In books someone confesses love and the girl gives them a huge kiss, she doesn't break down like her dog just died, thought Parker as Emily started sobbing into her chest again.



"You could tell me that a million times a day and I'll never get tired of hearing it." Parker used the bottom of her t-shirt to wipe Emily's face dry after she got her confession out through her tears.



"Enough tears for one night, cute stuff. Let's get some sleep so you won't be tired at work tomorrow. Where're you headed in the morning?"



"A morning flight to Houston then Dallas, where I'll get to cool my jets for three hours before heading back. I took the shitty schedule this time so I could get off to watch the rest of your matches." Parker rolled them over so she could tuck the blankest around Emily's body. After a gentle kiss, Parker spooned around behind her and relaxed.



"How am I going to sleep when you go back to Florida?" Emily asked putting her hand over the one Parker had rested on her abdomen under her nightgown.



"That's easy, I'm not going back to Florida. At least not without you." Emily smiled in the dark at the answer and pulled Parker's hand up between her breasts. Behind her Parker smiled as well knowing that the answer had put to rest some of the demons in Emily's mind.



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



"Sir, we found this in one of the drawers in the desk located in the study. We also bagged numerous newspaper articles on Ms. King and her playing schedule." The uniformed policeman handed the senior detective a bag with a letter in it. The note in the plastic sheaf was like many of the others Parker had received explaining her death because she was an abomination to God.



"This doesn't make any sense." Logan Sully muttered in a low voice after reading the note for the third time. He had listened to Parker's explanation of how she knew Gail and why the broker had attacked her.



"Why not, sir?" One of the officers that had accompanied Logan to search Gail's apartment asked.



"Because she attacked Parker King because the woman stole her girlfriend. Don't you think that would make Ms. Ingles an abomination to God as well? This time there was no threat spoken during the attack." Logan continued when the two policemen looked like they weren't following what he was saying. "Outside the restaurant, Gail Ingles runs up to Parker King and stabs her. But before she does, she say's 'Death to those who go against God,' or something to that effect. Two weeks later she does the same thing, only this time in broad daylight but dressed the same using the same weapon. I don't think the same person did this, but where did the Ingles woman get this note. If you compare it to all the others Parker King's coach showed me, I'd be willing to bet my paycheck they match."



"I'm thinking the bitch is crazy, boss. More crazy now than she was two weeks ago. The head shrinkers call that spiraling mental illness."



"All right, Sigmund, collect the rest of the stuff and let's head back to the precinct. I'm sure that Ms. King would like to know that the nut that sent all the notes is locked up. The sooner the better since I have money riding on the outcome of the Open this year. This Ingles woman could have cost me a fortune had she knocked Parker out of the finals."



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



"Do you have some lunch money?" asked Parker as she helped Emily on with her jacket. The question made the pilot laugh and turn around as soon as her arms had cleared the sleeves.



"Yes, but I don't need any. The airline feeds us wherever we land, or in the air depending on the flight. What are you going to do today?"



Parker pulled Emily closer and kissed her forehead. She was worried about Emily after she'd had to wake her three times during the night from the throes of some nightmare Parker was convinced were about her. What she really wanted to do was ask Emily to stay home from work, but figured the blonde wouldn't appreciate the suggestion.



"Play tennis, watch some television then wait for you to get back. I'm going to miss you today, Captain," said Parker.



"Come down here, stretch." Emily pulled on the back of Parker's head trying to get her down to where she could reach her lips. "I'm going to miss you too. Promise you'll be careful and stay away from maniacs carrying knives until I get back?"



"I promise. You stay away from low flying birds and frisky air attendants. I'm the jealous type, so keep that in mind, Sparky."



"I'm not the one that keeps making the cover of the tabloids, Parker." Emily kissed Parker one last time before heading out to flag a cab. With any luck she would get favorable tailwinds and be back in time for them to go out to dinner.



The pilot was almost at the Virgin gates at JFK when her cell phone started ringing, and after rummaging through her purse found it before whoever was calling hung up. "Hello."



"Hey, Captain."



"What you miss me so much already, you're calling me at work?" Emily waved to one of the ticket agents who was walking into the building beside her. She almost sighed in relief when she felt the air conditioning the moment the doors slid open.



"It's true I miss you, but that's not why I'm calling. Remember this morning when you said something about me making the rag headlines every time the papers are printed?" asked Parker from the bench at the practice facility.



"Yes, I'm dating a chick magnet what can I tell you."



"Baby, are you at the airport?"



"Walking down to collect my crew and plane as we speak."



"Before you go flying off into the wild blue yonder, stop at one of the newsstands for me if you would." Parker could hear people around wherever Emily was when the pilot stopped talking and kept her fingers crossed that a big sense of humor part of the woman's makeup.



"You have got to be kidding me, Parker?" Emily looked at the front page of one of the national rags and saw herself staring back under a headline that read, 'Woman That Bagged Kong.'



The photographer had captured Emily in an unguarded moment as she cheered something Parker had done on the court. Despite the FDNY ball cap and sunglasses she had on, it was impossible not to tell who it was.



"I wanted to give you a heads up before you got teased about it."



"Thanks." Emily continued to stare at the photo and from her immobility started to get the customers around her to compare the picture to the woman looking at it with a strange expression.



"Are you mad?"



"No, honey, just surprised that anyone would do this. I'm nobody."



"Are you kidding me? You're the woman that bagged Kong. I think the mayor's going to honor you with a medal this afternoon when you get back." Parker felt better when she heard the laugh at the other end. It was a fleeting moment when she looked up and saw the detective from the day before walk across the court towards where she was sitting making her sigh.



"What's wrong?"



"I'll tell you about it this afternoon. Fly safe and I love you," said Parker before she hung up and faced the unhappy looking cop.



Emily wanted nothing more than to call Parker back and find out why she sounded so frustrated all of a sudden, but she was running late for her preflight checks. She was surprised no one was behind the desk at the gate when she got there so she just walked down the jet way to the plane to meet with the crew. Turning the corner, Emily could feel the heat in her face when every single Virgin employee in the vicinity stood by the door with a newspaper and pen in their hands. The blush only got worse when they started to clap and chant the mantra that had reverberated through center court the day before, "Kong."



"Way to go, killer. We didn't know you had it in you," teased Willy. To make her feel better he came up and hugged her then walked her to the cockpit to get her color back to normal.



"I'm not going to be able to greet passengers, am I?"



"Captain, you're in love and I'm happy for you. Don't sweat it, the only reason those people did that this morning is because they like you, not to embarrass you. If some uptight passenger gives you a hard time over this picture, they shall find an extra-added bonus in their coffee, so don't give up your routine. Besides you were just too tempting to pass up considering what you were wearing. No wonder they put you on the cover," said Willy.



"I thought Parker would get a kick out of it, so I wore it as a joke." Emily looked at the t-shirt in the picture and laughed. When she had gotten dressed after Parker had left, her top selection had been too good to pass up. Hanging off the Empire State Building was King Kong trying to knock some planes out of the sky, with the bottom caption being 'Who's Your Monkey?'



"So?" asked Willy.



"What?"



"What's the answer, silly?"



"William, at times like this it's important to remember how young Parker King is compared to us." Emily paused getting Willy to come closer and nod his head. "It truly boggles the mind how many slang off color expressions Park knows with the word monkey in them. So the simplest way to answer that question is, she's my monkey."