"Great job as always, Kristen." With a wink and a smile, he's off to speak with Dana.
The smile that she could not help reciprocating faltered as he walked away. June could not come soon enough for her, she was hoping that her time away at the FBI academy would be enough to overcome what she is only just now admitting to herself is is a crush.
A crush.
On an older man.
On an older man who is her boss.
God, can she be anymore cliché?
The case of the week had Maggie and OA (as well as the rest of the FBI) racing to find a 12 year old that had been abducted as leverage against her mother. She had just narrowed down the location where the girl was being held, and sent the field agents out to the rescue.
Of course they were successful, and after reuniting the anxious parents with their daughter, the two came back to the office for debriefing.
Kristen looked on enviously as they recounted their actions which led to the safe recovery of the girl. That was what she wanted to do, be on the front lines and not stuck behind her tablet. She knew it would be hard, but in her mind, the benefits far outweighed the risks.
"That's gonna be you one day." She fights not to shiver at the words whispered in her ear.
"I don't know about that." She demurred softly.
"I do." He patted her on the shoulder, which wasn't unusual. What was unusual was the way he let his hand linger before sliding down to cup her elbow gently before letting go.
What the hell was that?
Kristen narrowed her eyes at Jubal who was across the room congratulating OA and Maggie. Did he know? Was that why his little pats and touches have become more frequent as of late? Whatever it was, she was tired of thinking about it. Easing her way past the rest of the team, she headed to the locker room to grab her belongings. It would be a while before anyone realized she had left, and she was in desperate need of space to clear her mind.
Kristen studied the blackboard behind the register, why were there so many choices? Who even came up with these drink ideas? She decided to take a chance and ordered a frothy concoction that was guaranteed to have her bouncing off the walls.
Sipping her sugary drink she turned to leave the coffee shop…...only to smack right into a muscular chest.
"Oh, I am so sorry!" She went to step back, but was stopped by an arm reaching out to grip her waist to steady her.
"Fancy running into you here."
Kristen groaned as she recognized the teasing voice. It was Sunday for christ's sake! The weekends were her chance to decompress from her job and steel herself for another week of hiding her emotions from the very man in front of her.
Aware that they were taking up valuable space, he maneuvered them to a less crowded corner of the coffee shop. "What are you doing on this side of town?" Jubal asked curiously.
"I was helping a friend move." She gestured to her leggings and tank top.
Jubal's eyebrows shoot up, "I'll keep that in mind if I ever need help moving."
She shook her head, "Oh, this is not a thing I do for just anyone, I'll need to get something in return; food, drinks, or some kind of compensation."
"Who gets to choose the compensation?" Was it her imagination, or did his voice get huskier?
"I do, of course" she leaned in closer, "Don't worry, I won't ask for anything too extravagant, I'm pretty easy."
Her choice of words didn't register until he let out a snort of laughter. She smacked his arm playfully, "You know what I mean." She waited until he got himself under control. "What are you doing here? This isn't near your place."
"Not gonna comment on you knowing where I live" He ran a hand through his hair, "But this is where I attend my meetings."
"Oh."
"Yeah."
Kristen knew Jubal was in A.A, it wasn't a secret, but he also didn't go around advertising it either. She gave him a soft smile, "I'll let you get back to it, then."
"I'll walk you to your car." Jubal held the door open for her on the way out. As she passed him she took a deep breath, he always smelled so good. She would be lying if she said she'd never walked by him intentionally a few times a day a just to get a whiff of whatever he was wearing that day.
She tried to calm the butterflies in her stomach as he walked her to her car, choosing instead to revel in the feel of his hand on the small of her back. She handed him her drink to hold while she unlocked her car and slid in. "See you Monday." He passed her drink to her through the open window.
"See you Monday." He patted her shoulder, and Kristen held her breath to see if he would leave it at that, or if he'd follow through with the rest of it.
He didn't disappoint.
Just like before, his hand traveled from her shoulder to her elbow, leaving goosebumps in its wake. She nearly moaned out loud, he had to know what he was doing with all these little touches. There was no way he didn't know.
She drove away still feeling his phantom touch on her arm.