Title: Seeking Sanctuary
Summary: Lexy's left unnerved after the phone call and with Tess and Sadie out of the flat she calls the one person who can help her feel safe.
Disclaimer: Don't own Lip Service or anything associated with the show.
Rating: M
A/N: An alternative ending to 2.04. Sam/Cat Sam/Lexy. Just another one shot as I'm already working on a longer Sam/Lexy fic.
Lexy jumped as the doorbell sounded. It had been almost an hour since she'd received the strange phone call and she'd been on edge ever since. She hovered by the living room door, unsure of whether to answer or not as the doorbell went for a second time. Whoever was there held it down for longer, the shrill sound piercing the silence in the empty flat. She felt her mobile in her pocket and pulled it out, her fingers typing in '99' and hovering over the last 9 as she approached the door.
Through the glass panel she could see the outline of someone wearing a cap down low over their face. She thought it looked like a man but she couldn't be certain. "Who is it?" she called out, her accent coming out thicker than usual due to her frazzled nerves.
"Got a delivery for number 16."
"I didn't order anything." Lexy felt her chest tightening as she crept closer to the door and stood with her hand on the latch.
"Look I've got a ten inch double pepperoni for 16. You want it or not?" The figure behind the glass held up a white box that undoubtedly had the pizza in it. That didn't mean he was a delivery man though.
"No. I told you I didn't order anything!"
"Well someone ordered it! Listen I'm not pissing about here, someone needs to pay for this!" His accent was thick Glaswegian and he sounded pissed off, but he didn't sound like the man on the phone. It was easy to fake an accent though; Lexy could pass for English with ease.
"Look my boyfriend's in the shower, so I suggest you fuck off before I get him!"
"Stupid bitch." The man grumbled to himself but he walked away from the door and a few moments later Lexy heard a car starting up outside.
She slumped down to the floor with her back against the door and felt her heart racing in her chest. Her hand was still gripping her phone and she stared at it for a few moments, deciding what to do. Her fingers fumbled over the buttons as she dialled a familiar number. Her voice was choked when the person on the other end picked up. "Hi Sam, it's Lexy." She heard a heavy sigh on the end of the line and Sam's voice sounded heavy and tired as she answered.
"Sorry Lexy, this isn't a good time-"
"Please." Lexy hadn't meant to sound so desperate, but she was shaking as she sat on the floor and she could feel hot tears welling up in her eyes. The phone call had spooked her and the delivery man had terrified her.
"What's wrong?" Sam finally picked up on her desperate tone. "Are you ok?"
"Someone rang me asking for my address and then this delivery guy just knocked on the door but I hadn't ordered anything and…can you come over, please?"
"I'm on my way." The detective didn't hesitate in replying. "Make sure the door is locked and don't answer it for anyone. I'll call you when I'm outside."
"Thank you." Lexy's voice was still shaky as she hung up to go and check all the doors and windows were locked.
Sam pocketed her phone and stared at the still image of Cat on the laptop. Standing outside the very flat Sam was about to go to, wrestling off the band that Frankie had given her; the one with their initials engraved on it. She'd been in no mood for anyone, never mind the young Australian doctor that she had been trying to avoid. Things had been a little awkward between them since she'd realised Lexy was single. Sam wasn't blind. She knew Lexy was an attractive girl; she was also smart and funny and didn't look bad in her running shorts. She'd been surprised to find out she wasn't seeing anyone.
She was still seething from having her suspicions about Cat confirmed, but she couldn't ignore the panic that had been in Lexy's voice and with everything else that had been going on with the doctor she didn't want to risk ignoring her and have something happen. Slamming the laptop shut she got to her feet and put the CCTV footage back before anyone could notice it was missing. She went to the bathroom and washed her face, patting it dry before tucking her hair behind her ears and taking a deep breath.
She drove to the apartment Lexy shared with Tess and Sadie and parked outside the front door. She sat staring up at the house, feeling her chest starting to tighten and her stomach churn. She'd been teetering on the edge of another panic attack for hours and as she sat in the car, wrestling over what to do, it was threatening to get the better of her. Finally getting out of the car she scanned up and down the street for anything that looked out of place. There didn't appear to be anyone sitting in the parked cars or lurking in any of the nearby gardens. She pulled out her phone to let Lexy know she was at the door.
She heard the chain and the lock come off before the door inched open and Lexy cautiously peered out of the gap before opening it all the way up. She looked pale and shaken as she hurried to close the door behind Sam and put the chain back on. "What's going on?" Sam stood in the hallway with her arms folded across her chest as Lexy explained what had gone on. Sam's expression darkened as she listened.
"And you just told him your address?" She snapped at the younger woman. "Are you stupid? After what's been going on I'd have thought you'd have more sense than that!" Lexy was shocked by Sam's candour and felt her fear being replaced by anger.
"Gee, thanks Sam! Remind me not to go to you if I get fucking mugged." She wrapped her own arms around herself protectively, suddenly regretting calling the detective. She felt stupid, as though she'd over reacted.
"Lexy…" Sam sighed, knowing she could have been a little more tactful. She had her own stuff to deal with though without being terrified that something was going to happen to the Australian. Lexy had been a rock for her in the weeks since Cat's death, she couldn't imagine losing her running partner.
"You know what, I over reacted! You should just go; you clearly don't want to be here anyway." She went for the door but Sam stopped her by catching her wrist. Lexy yanked her wrist away as though she had been burned.
"I'm sorry." She sighed again as she ran a hand through her hair. "It's just been a long day. You were right to call me...I'm not leaving you like this. I'd never forgive myself if something happened."
"Can you stay over?" The words were blurted out before Lexy could think about them; she was just scared to be left alone. "Sadie's at a party and Tess is on a date…I don't feel safe on my own."
Sam's gaze flickered towards the bedroom door that had belonged to Frankie. The room where she had obviously fucked Cat in the hours before she had died and felt her stomach starting to churn again. She couldn't stay there. Not knowing what she did; but she couldn't leave Lexy either. Her expression softened. "Why don't you stay over at mine? Tess' old bed is still in the guest room and no one will know you're there, it might be easier to get a good night's sleep."
"If you're sure you don't mind?" Lexy hesitated, Sam was clearly upset by something and she didn't want to feel like a burden.
"Go pack a bag and leave Tess a note."
Sam waited by the door as Lexy went back in to her room. She was already dressed in her pyjamas so she threw some clothes in a bag and put her leather jacket on over the baggy t-shirt she'd put on for bed. She wasn't sure what to say to Tess, and she didn't really want to tell her about what had been happening. She tried ringing her as she wrestled her bag shut and walked back in to the hall. She didn't pick up so it went straight to voicemail. "Hey Tess, it's Lex. Look I'm staying out tonight, I had some weirdo on the phone earlier and it's kinda spooked me. I'll explain tomorrow, hope you're enjoying your date." She hung up as Sam took her bag off her. She bit her cheek to supress a smile as Sam carried her bag to the car for her, and even opened the passenger door of the car for her. She tried not to read anything in to it though, she knew it was just the way Sam was.
She wanted to ask her what was going on with her, as she was clearly distressed herself. Her pallor was pale and her breath was coming in short sharp rasps. "Are you ok?" Sam nodded and turned the radio on low to try and hide it, but she couldn't hide how tightly her hands were gripping the steering wheel as she pulled out; her knuckles were white. Her hand slipped on the gear stick as she tried to change gear and brushed against Lexy's bare knee. The Australian wished she had changed out of her shorts. Sam's hand instantly went back to the gear stick and the silence in the car seemed to be suffocating.
They sat in an awkward silence as they waited for a light to change not far from Sam's flat. She kept her gaze straight ahead, burning a hole in the windshield as she willed the light to change to green. She didn't look away from it as she spoke. "Cat was cheating on me."
"With Frankie?" Lexy realised it was a stupid question the moment she said it. Of course it was Frankie. "Sorry." Sam shook her head, her gaze still on the light as it finally changed.
"Why? You didn't force her to fuck her did you?" Her voice was tight and strained, and Lexy wasn't used to her sounding so crude. "I knew I was right, I thought maybe it was just me, seeing guilt everywhere…but she was fucking her."
"Are you sure, maybe-"
"I saw the CCTV. She was at the flat for almost three hours. She wasn't meant to be anywhere near there, told me she had a meeting…" Sam trailed off as her voice choked. She was fighting back tears.
"I'm sorry." Lexy repeated, because what else was there for her to say?
They lapsed back in to silence as they drove the rest of the way to Sam's flat. Lexy hadn't been to the other woman's place before and followed Sam up to the right flat. The detective shrugged off her coat and hung it up on one of the hooks by the front door before depositing her keys on a small table. The flat was nicely decorated, though it wasn't what she had expected from Sam. It was clear it had been Cat's flat first. Sam caught her looking around and seemed to read her mind as she walked up to the fridge and pulled out two beers. "I moved in with Cat last year. The landlord's been nice; she's letting me stay on for the rest of the lease." She popped open the two bottles and handed one to the other woman before leaning against the bench and downing half of hers in one go. "Still haven't decided whether to stay on or not. Rent's cheap though and it's hard to find a decent flat these days." She was making small talk, trying to fill the silence.
"Well I'm pretty sure Tess is going to kick Sadie out if you're looking for somewhere." Lexy smirked as she put her bag down on the kitchen table and started drinking her own beer. Sam twisted her face at the suggestion. "Fuck, sorry I didn't think. Happens a lot I'm afraid." Obviously Sam wouldn't want to sleep in the room that her girlfriend had probably fucked another woman in. Sam chuckled in to her beer and it was nice to see a smile on her face.
"I'd love to be able to stop thinking." She didn't need to say what she wanted to stop thinking about.
"Here's to not thinking." Lexy held her bottle up and clinked it against Sam's almost empty one. The older woman turned back to the fridge and took out another two bottles. Alcohol wouldn't help her anxiety attacks but Lexy was pretty sure she needed a friend, not a doctor.
She placed the second opened bottle beside Lexy on the bench before picking her bag up from the kitchen table. "I'll put this in the spare room. Make yourself at home." She gestured over to the sofa before disappearing out of the kitchen. Lexy took her second bottle of beer over to the sofa with her and placed it on the glass coffee table in front of the TV. She sat with her feet up on the coffee table, flicking through the TV channels and supping her first beer while waiting for Sam to come back.
After dropping Lexy's bag in the spare room she went in to her own room to change out of her work gear. She pulled on a pair of sweat pants and an old polo shirt she kept for bed. As she slipped her watch off her wrist and went to put it down on the dresser she caught sight of the charred lump of wood that had been sitting there for weeks. It clattered as she tossed it in to the waste paper bin. Picking up her beer she padded back in to the living room and found Lexy channel hopping. "Please tell me you're not one of those people who can't stick to watching one thing?" Sam teased, the alcohol and the company having slightly improved her mood.
"No I'm one of those gifted people who can watch four things at once." Lexy shot back with a smirk before she eventually settled on watching Bizarre ERand started telling Sam about some of the weird cases she'd had to deal with in the A&E over the years. It seemed to be taking her mind off what had happened with her stalker and she was keeping Sam preoccupied too; though it wasn't with what she was saying.
Sam's eyes kept wandering from the screen to the young woman sitting beside her on the sofa. She was still wearing her bed shorts and a baggy grey t-shirt with a low neck line that was giving Sam just a hint of the cleavage hidden beneath it. Her long tanned legs were crossed over each other and propped up on the coffee table. Sam tried to stop herself from looking, but she couldn't deny her attraction the other woman. She was gorgeous, and though Sam was grieving that didn't make her blind. The more she drank the more her eyes kept wandering. "My god that nurse should be shot, look at the way she's putting that dressing on!" Sam laughed at yet another one of Lexy's outbursts. She was on to her third beer and her accent had been getting noticeably thicker as she paid less attention to it.
Sam got up to get another beer from the fridge and Lexy held her empty bottle up for her. "What did your last slave die of?" She teased as she took the bottle, her fingers brushing against the other woman's. Sam felt the knot tightening in her chest at the contact, though Lexy didn't bat an eyelid as she answered back.
"Oh she's not dead; she's just a bit tied up in my room."
"Remind me to hide my cuffs from you." Sam chuckled as she opened the fridge door. She frowned as she found they'd run out of beer. It was after midnight and nowhere close would still be open. There was a good bottle of single malt Scotch whisky tucked to the back of one of the cupboards and she pulled it out along with two tumblers. She poured two generous measures out and handed one to the Australian.
"The good stuff, been holding out on me DS Murray?"
"Cat got it for me for my birthday." Sam held the bottle in her hands and stared at the label, her voice was choked as she spoke again. "It's a twenty-one year old Aberfeldy." Lexy could see the other woman was slipping back in to the sour mood she had been in earlier and tried to make a joke to lighten things up.
"I was five when this stuff was made!"
Sam managed a weak smile as she downed her own whisky, but it was clear she was preoccupied with thoughts of Cat and Frankie again. Lexy tucked her legs under her as she turned to face the other woman and placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Sam-" Whatever she had been about to say was lost as Sam surged forward and suddenly her lips were on Lexy's, firm and demanding as she kissed the stunned Australian. For a few moments Lexy was too shocked to do anything, she had fancied Sam since that first night in Rubies' bar and had been dying to feel her lips on hers; so for just a moment she kissed back.
She came to her senses at the same time as Sam's hand found her thigh and almost fell off the sofa as she pulled away. Sam tried to lean forward again but this time Lexy was ready for her and held up her hand in between them. "Sam, you don't want to do this-" Again she was cut off as Sam pushed her hand out of the way, pinning it to the sofa as she practically got on top of her. Her lips were warm and soft and tasted of whisky. Her free hand returned to Lexy's thigh and trailed further up, brushing against the hem of her shorts. The young doctor felt a shudder of excitement run through her at Sam's touch. How many times had she imagined Sam kissing her, touching her, her hand travelling up her thigh… No. It wasn't right. Sam was angry and drunk and as much as she wanted the detective she didn't want it like that.
"Sam!" She had to push her hand away twice before she finally gave up and just shoved Sam away from her completely.
The other woman was panting for breath as she lay against the arm of the sofa, tears running down her cheeks and her eyes dark and smouldering with an equal mix of anger and lust. "You don't want this."
"I do." Sam objected, though she made no move to pounce on her again and Lexy let herself relax a little on the other side of the sofa. Sam ran a hand through her hair out of nervous habit and sighed. "I want you. I do…You're gorgeous and funny and I'd be crazy not to-" It was Sam's turn to be cut off as Lexy slowly leant forward and pressed her lips to her cheek. The older woman tried to turn her head to catch her lips, but Lexy pulled away again. She wasn't trying to start anything.
"You're drunk and you're grieving and you're angry. As much as I fancy you I'm not going to fuck things up between us by letting you do something you'll regret in the morning. I'm going to bed."
She got to her feet and adjusted her shorts. Despite her lecture to Sam she wasn't all that sober herself and it was taking every fibre of her being to stop herself from jumping the cop where she sat. Sam didn't make it easy for her. She caught her wrist and stood up to face her and Lexy felt herself holding her breath as Sam leant in and kissed her again. The kiss was softer than the earlier ones, more sincere and less rushed. Lexy's eyes closed as her lips started moving. It was the kind of kiss she had been fantasizing about since meeting the other woman and she felt her resolve slowly slipping. She had never wanted someone so badly and she knew if Sam tried anything she wouldn't have the conviction to stop her a second time.
Instead of trying to take things further though Sam pulled away and pressed her lips to the young doctor's forehead. "You're right." She mumbled, suddenly sounding sober but tired. "I'm sorry."
"Forget about it." Lexy kissed her cheek again as Sam let go of her wrist. "Thanks for letting me stay over…I'll see you in the morning." She left Sam standing in the living room staring after her as she made her way in to the spare room. She closed the door behind her and climbed under the covers, forcing herself to stay there and ignore the burning between her legs.
In the next room Sam stood staring at the sheets on her bed, the ones that hadn't been changed since before Cat's death. Before she knew what she was doing she started yanking the duvet cover off along with the ground sheet and the pillowcases. When the bed was stripped bare she crawled on to it and dragged the duvet off the floor and over her exhausted form. She buried her face in a pillow that no longer smelt of Cat's shampoo and for once her thoughts weren't of Cat or Frankie; they were about the gorgeous Australian doctor lying next door.