"I thought today was your day off, Audrey." Duke observed as she came down the steps. Audrey sighed inwardly. Yes, Tuesdays were her normal day off. She knew that and so did he. Convincing Nathan that she needed to be at work would take enough energy as it was. She didn't need to convince Duke as well.

"Isn't today taco day?" She asked, ignoring his remark.

"Those were last night's specials. The drawings are better if I finish my coffee first." He explained, gesturing to the mug in his hand, not missing the dodge. Before he could call her on it, Audrey's cell phone chimed to signal an incoming text. "New case keeping you busy?"

"Not quite," she answered as she viewed the message, looking a little pleased. "Chris just wanted to tell me that he's sending me a surprise he picked up on his trip."

"Trip?"

"Yes, he's in London doing whatever marine biologists do to get grant funding." Explained Audrey. "He'll be back in a couple of weeks."

"Wait, he actually left?" Duke asked, a little more surprise in his voice than he'd planned. A memory flashed through his mind of Audrey alone on the deck after the worst day off possible.

"Um, yeah. Last Thursday." She answered, confused by his tone. "Miss gazing adoringly at him already?"

"No." Duke stated emphatically looking as disgusted as if she'd suggested kissing a rat. "I'm just surprised he actually went."

"Why not?"

"Why not? The last time you two were talking about that trip was when…was last Tuesday." He replied, wincing a little at his weak fumbling. In spite of both his and Nathan's best efforts, Audrey's last day off had been added to the increasing list of things they never talked about. The only reason he knew anything about it at all was that Nathan had filled him in.

"You heard us?" She started, a mixture of annoyance and confusion on her face.

"It was kind of hard not to. Nate and I were only a few feet away." He almost apologized, feeling a touch guilty. The guilt just made him feel silly. After all, he couldn't help what he'd overheard, right? Especially when one of the people talking was a friend who looked like she was about to collapse. Come to think of it, Audrey still looked like she was one step away from a collapse. Her eyes looked so haunted. Was she sleeping at all?

"Well, since you were paying such careful attention, you'll remember that I was the one encouraging him to go." Audrey reminded him, more aggravation surfacing. Did they really think she was so fragile that they had to keep tabs on her private conversations?

"I know you did. I just can't believe he didn't even try to stay considering everything that had happened." He said. Outrage rose up on him at the thought that Audrey had been discarded like a broken doll. Sure, she had told him to go, but, Chris could've at least tried to care.

"We never talked about it," she admitted, "I was just…it didn't come up."

"I'm sorry to hear that." Duke replied, some of the anger at Chris gone. When she looked surprised he added, "I had hoped you'd at least talk to him if not me or Nathan."

"I don't need someone to hold my hand and lie to me about everything being all right." Audrey told him coldly, feeling some real anger of her own. Duke frowned slightly at her inference. It made her feel sorry and angrier at the same time.

"You might not need it, but,-"

"But what?" She exclaimed. The concerned frown deepened as he held up a placating hand. If he wasn't careful, this would dissolve into a fight. Audrey looked more than ready for one. While he was glad to see some spark taking over the haunted look in her eyes, he doubted it would help matters.

"It's just not good to keep secrets bottled up." Duke cautioned quietly.

"This is coming from the man who hit on me for months when he was actually married?" She snapped.

For a moment, neither one could say anything. Audrey had regretted her words the moment they'd flown out of her mouth. Of all the comebacks she could've used, that was definitely the wrong one. She looked at him, horrified, as something Audrey had never seen before flashed in his eyes. Then, his face slid into an unreadable mask.

"Well, I guess I would be an expert then, huh?" He finally replied with a smile that looked more like bared teeth.

"Duke, I-"

"You have a nice day now, Officer Parker." He cut in before turning wipe down the chalk board.

Audrey took the hint and slowly walked to her car. A cold feeling settled in the pit of her stomach as she recalled the look on his face. His defensive wall had come up a second too late for her to miss his true reaction. The look on his face wasn't the exaggerated wounded puppy look he wore when she turned down a boat ride, or, refused to cancel a parking ticket. This was something quite different; something that had hit him right in his core.

This time, she had really hurt him.

Author's Note: While I think the writing on the show is phenomenal, it did bug me a little that Audrey never confronted Duke after Evie's appearance. This story came out of that. More to follow soon. Reviews and constructive criticism are greatly appreciated.