They were sitting at a table of a nice restaurant in South Sacramento, both of them pretending they were enjoying their meal when they actually were not. This whole situation felt wrong to Jane; he'd wanted this evening to be perfect, but he found himself distracted by memories of the past instead.
His mind went back to that farce of a date he'd had with Kristina; how he'd panicked in the men's room right before Van Pelt called him. And now Kristina was somewhere inside a locked room, facing a fate even worse than death.
Then there were all the times he'd taken his wife out for a romantic evening; he would hold her hand and she would smile at him, her hazel eyes warm with love and affection. It was his fault if Angela was nothing but ashes now, the world a sadder place without her and Charlotte.
As he forced himself to snap out of his remembrances, he couldn't help but notice Lisbon's efforts to put on a brave face in spite of everything; guilt hit him full force, and yet he was simply unable to do anything about it. They weren't like other couples, it wouldn't do for them to play a part they just didn't feel.
When he walked Teresa to her door at last she gave him a quick peck on the cheek, and it felt strangely as if she was kissing goodbye to everything that could have been between them.
He spent the rest of the night staring at the ceiling of his old motel room, wondering if he was doomed to let any chance at happiness pass him by until it was too late.
xxx
Jane let out a sigh of contentment as he finally sipped a belated cup of tea. He and Lisbon had been unpacking boxes the whole afternoon, she was so happy of his decision to finally buy his own apartment that she'd insisted to help him move in at all costs.
Both of them started nibbling at the Chinese takeout they'd ordered earlier, and he kept on stealing her food on purpose; Lisbon responded in kind, and soon they engaged a fight with their sticks.
In the end he managed to snatch the offending objects from her hand, but she had him pinned against the couch in no time. As he watched her laughing at him – her cheeks rosy and her hair falling loosely about her shoulders – realization hit him at long last.
This was what they were, what he wanted to have every single day for the rest of his life; forget about dates, he would have their usual arguing and bantering at any time.
That was why he grabbed her wrist, and Lisbon let out a surprised yelp as she fell over his chest. The moment he found her lips she made a half-hearted attempt to push him away, only to deepen the kiss a moment later.
When her nimble fingers sneaked to the buttons of his shirt, he couldn't think of anything but committing each of her moves to his memory palace.
Much later, as they were panting for breath, Teresa rested her head in the crook of his neck and smiled softly against his skin. "I thought you once said you wouldn't seduce me over a meal."
He let out an amused chuckle, realizing how long she'd been mulling over the subject.
"You weren't exactly complaining a moment ago," he said playfully, and she smacked him lightly before snuggling further into his arms.