Rose looked up at the clock and inwardly groaned. The monthly meeting for Team Leaders and Department Heads was never going to end and she was supposed to have a dinner date with Sherlock. Therefore, she surreptitiously took her mobile out to text him.
Change of plans. Still in the meeting. My place instead? ~ Rose
She then held the phone in her hand under the table until she felt the answering vibration. She found that she couldn't keep the grin off of her face as she read his message.
Only if dessert can come first… -SH
Jake was sitting to her right and noticed her distraction. He nudged her to get her attention and then whispered in her ear, "Save the sexting for later, girl. We are trying to protect the world here, you know!"
"Oh yes," she whispered back, "knowing the proper procedure for filing paperwork is so essential to the wellbeing of the universe!" She rolled her eyes and he had to hold back his laugh. They then turned their attention back to Pete, who was giving them the evil eye. Rose flashed him a sweet smile and pretended that she had been listening to him the whole time. Of course, he knew his adopted daughter better than that, but since she worked twice as hard as anyone else and her paperwork was still always completed in an efficient and timely manner, he felt that he could let it slide…this time!
She finally let herself into her flat and was only slightly surprised to find Sherlock already sprawled out on her sofa with bags of takeout on the table. He smirked at her while she was still standing in the doorway, so she asked the obvious question. "How long did it take you to crack the new keycode for my door this time?
"Two minutes and thirteen seconds," he stated with a slight frown.
"Tsk, tsk!" she reprimanded him teasingly. "That's a whole seventeen seconds longer than last time." She just rolled her eyes at him in amusement and finished crossing the room to sit beside him.
"That's because someone is getting more creative with her codes," he said in a low soft voice and then it was her turn to smirk as he pulled her close and bent his head down to greet her enthusiastically.
When they finally pulled apart, she commented on the bags of food on the table. "I thought we were going to have dessert first," she purred suggestively.
"Using my incredible powers of deduction, I thought that you might need to consume a source of energy first – especially after a meeting that lasted all afternoon!" he replied.
"You are a genius!" she exclaimed happily while he just smirked again and handed her a takeout container and a fork.
Just as they had finished eating and were starting to sample…the dessert, he received a text from Lestrade – asking him to come to a crime scene.
"Care to join me?" he asked.
"Yay!" she exclaimed. "Our first official case together! I hope it is a good one!" She jumped up and headed toward the door. "I'm driving!" she pronounced as they left the building and headed towards the communal garage to pick up her personal Range Rover. It was a distinctively new TARDIS blue one - as opposed to the slightly older black ones that were used as the designated company vehicles.
"I'm sorry, Miss, but you can't go in there," the uniformed officer at the entrance of the alleyway said to Rose.
"She is with me." Sherlock stated in a tone that declared the man was an idiot not to realize that simple fact– especially when Rose had her hand nestled into the crook of his arm.
"Still…" the unknown PC wavered and then looked extremely relieved when DI Lestrade appeared out of the alley and headed towards them.
"Ah, there you are, Sherlock." He good-naturedly clapped the detective on the shoulder and then turned to look at his companion, "but this is definitely not John!" He looked at the pretty blond woman with some surprise, noting how she was touching Sherlock with familiarity and how comfortable the man seemed with the action.
The woman in question flashed him the most attractive tongue-touched grin. "I should hope not, Inspector. That might make things a little awkward between Sherlock and Mary, wouldn't it?" She glanced over at Sherlock who just gave his usual sardonic smirk before she let go of his arm to pull out her ID and credentials to hand over to the Inspector – who examined them carefully. "I'm Tyler, Agent Rose Tyler of the Torchwood Institute."
"Torchwood? Are you taking over this investigation then?" The DI didn't know much about the mysterious high-security organization except for the fact that they tended to steal some of his most interesting cases.
"I had not planned to, Inspector – unless you have found something that you think I would need to know about, that is. We just happened to be having dinner at my flat when Sherlock got your message and I thought that I would tag along. I hope that you don't mind."
"You were having dinner with Sherlock at your flat?" the DI asked incredulously – looking between the two.
"Of course, Inspector." Rose's tone became noticeably chillier since she was beginning to get irritated. She did not like where this seemed to be heading, so she pulled out her Agent No Nonsense Tyler persona and spoke curtly. "People do sometimes have dinner together. At any rate, this is not about what does and does not occur in my flat. However, it is about whatever happened in that alleyway. I am sure that you can see that both my qualifications and clearance levels allow me to be on any crime scene that I choose. Therefore, I do not actually need your permission since I technically outrank you in this area. However, by not pointing out that fact, I was trying to be courteous…and I suggest that you start to do the same." Here she was interrupted by a voice calling from the entrance of the alley and turned towards the speaker – leaving a stunned…and slightly embarrassed Lestrade standing behind her.
"Rhodes! What are you doing here? Oh no, did I miss something? This isn't a Torchwood case is it?"
"Don't worry, Sal." Rose said, laughingly, and visibly thawed as she reached over to hug the woman who had just joined them. "I'm not here officially. I just tagged along with Sherlock."
"Sherlock? What are you doing with the Freak?" DS Donovan asked confused - looking between the pair of them.
Rose stiffened at that statement and then hit her forehead with the palm of her hand. "Oh, no! You're that Donovan!" She glanced over at Sherlock, who was being uncharacteristically quiet while he watched her interacting with his contacts among the official police force. He didn't know how to feel about Rose defending him – mainly because nobody had ever done it before. Therefore, he just shrugged at the unspoken question in her eyes, so she continued. "I should have guessed that," she said, shaking her head. "Anyway, Sal, for the sake of our friendship - I would appreciate it if you stop referring to my boyfriend that way."
"Your boyfriend!" exclaimed both the DS and the DI together. This time when Rose, completely exasperated, looked back at Sherlock, she saw that he wasn't bothered at all. In fact, his eyes had lit up and he had a rare and beautiful smile on his face. However, before she could say anything about it, the smile evolved into a smirk as he turned and spoke to Lestrade.
"I believe that you asked me here to examine the crime scene – not to cross examine my…girlfriend…about our love life," he said in a deceptively mild tone, but inside he was elated! Rose had just publically acknowledged him as her boyfriend and judging by the sudden sparkle in her eyes, she certainly didn't mind being called his girlfriend, either!
"Um…yeah…right this way, Sherlock…Agent Tyler," the normally confident Inspector Lestrade stammered a bit before starting to lead the way to the alley. Sherlock looked back at Rose before following him. His eyes met hers as he held out his hand for her to take. Then her dazzling smile at this simple public declaration of affection almost took his breath away while she gently slid her hand into his - where she could feel his happiness and attraction. They were so intent on each other that neither one of them were aware that both the DI and the DS were watching them closely.
Sherlock really does have a girlfriend! A fit and feisty one, at that! Lestrade thought as he watched them. Unbelievable! He just couldn't seem to wrap his mind around this concept and resolved to ask Mycroft about it as soon as he could.
What the hell! thought Donovan at the same time. The Freak seems like any other normal love struck bloke right now. I didn't even know he had feelings! She couldn't wait to get Rose alone and hear about how in the world something this unlikely had happened!
The scene in the alley was gruesome. The corpse was shirtless and covered in blood. Sherlock glanced over at Rose worriedly to see how she was handling it since he had not been in this kind of situation with her before. Therefore, he was pleased when she just squared her shoulders, compartmentalized her feelings, and settled into her professional Torchwood demeanor as she moved towards the body. She pulled on the gloves that they were handed as they had entered the alley and then knelt down next to the body. She looked at the dozens of small wounds across the naked torso of the man and turned to the DI and DS.
"What can you tell us?" she asked. She nodded as they pointed out the blood trail and the disturbed ground leading to the spot where the body was found. Then Donovan leaned in and whispered so that only Rose and Sherlock could hear.
"Are you sure that this isn't a Torchwood issue? Look at the unusual size and shape of the wounds."
Sherlock looked at her sharply as Rose shook her head. "No, this is a human crime." Then she nodded and held up a finger for them to wait as she walked to the head of the alley to speak to the PC. He looked at her oddly at first, but then nodded and left quickly. Sherlock followed her movement with his eyes and a proud smile lit up his face. She knew the answer and she must have figured it out about the same time that he had! What a brilliant idea to send the PC! However, when both the DI and DS looked back at him, he just shrugged. He wasn't going to take this moment away from her. In just a moment, the PC returned and handed something to Rose. She then walked back down the alley to them.
"I don't know the why," she said, "that will be your job to figure out. However, I do know the where and the how. You will need to focus your inquiries on the Korean restaurant that is located just a couple of buildings away on this block." With these words she pulled out the pack of disposable chopsticks that the PC had provided. She took one and inserted it into one of the small wounds. The chopstick was the same size and shape and, therefore, fit perfectly! DS Donovan gasped, DI Lestrade looked amazed, and Sherlock eyes just lit up with pride again! "These disposable chopsticks are probably not strong enough to pierce the chest without breaking or splintering, so there are too many wounds here for them to be the murder weapon. However, Korean meals are traditionally served with…" here she finally looked up to share her triumph with Sherlock.
"Metal chopsticks!" he finished the sentence for her. Then at her pleased nod, he continued. "See the bruising at the shoulder – you can see the fingermarks where the man was held tightly with a left hand while the right hand wielded the metal chopstick that struck him over and over again."
"He was then carried from the back door of the restaurant to this alley before being dragged the rest of the way down the alley," Rose added and Sherlock nodded in agreement. "That why the drag marks start at the entrance."
"Bloody hell!" exclaimed Lestrade, extremely impressed. Donovan just stared at her friend.
While Lestrade supervised the loading of the body, the DS joined Rose and Sherlock for a quick chat.
"That was quite impressive, Rhodes. Apparently, you are a bit of a freak yourself."
"Sal…" Rose growled slightly in warning.
Before she could say anything else, Sherlock exclaimed, seemingly out of the blue, "You know about Torchwood! You thought that those wounds were strange enough not to be made by a human."
DS Donovan gasped. "You know, too!"
Rose just sighed, "Of course he knows, Sal. His has actually been on a couple of assignments with me…and he is my boyfriend." Then she turned to him. "Of course she knows, Sherlock. She is my Torchwood contact at Scotland Yard – just like Molly is at the morgue. She lets me know if there is anything above and beyond the norm going on."
Sherlock looked thoughtful. The news that Rose trusted Donovan enough with the knowledge about the existence of aliens meant that there was probably more to her than he originally thought. He looked over at Donovan with a speculative look which she returned since she was thinking the same thing about him! However, something else was also bothering him. "Why not Lestrade?" he asked, confused.
"He's too high up," Rose said shaking her head. "Other Inspectors wouldn't look kindly upon him checking out their cases to see if everything appeared "human" enough. Whereas a DS," here she paused and gestured at Donovan with a smile, "is encouraged to study as many different cases as possible as a learning experience. Therefore, Sal can pour over as many case files as she wants without drawing undue suspicion."
Sherlock nodded. It made perfect sense. He should have realized that Rose put a lot of thought into every decision that she made. That reminded him again that she had decided that he was her boyfriend! He smirked at the thought as he watched Lestrade walk back towards them.
"Well, Agent Tyler, I apologize if I seemed rude earlier. The truth is that I quite like Sherlock," here he paused to clap the man on the shoulder again, "and I am used to having him around, but I still can't see why a woman like you would want him. However, I can definitely figure out what he sees in you! I think he has finally met his match and I couldn't be happier. He needs someone to keep him - and his ego - in line!" Lestrade then grinned in such a cheerful way that Rose immediately decided to forgive him. After all, she did know that Sherlock acted differently with others than he did with her and that he certainly did not go out of his way to make a good impression. Therefore, she had to reluctantly admit that she could understand Lestrade's surprise at this development!
"Apology accepted, DI Lestrade. Please call me Rose," she said holding out her hand for him to shake.
He beamed and took her hand, "Only if you call me Greg. As you rightly pointed out, I know you don't need my permission. However, I just wanted to let you know that you are welcome at my crime scenes anytime!" Then Rose bestowed that gorgeous tongue-touched smile upon him and he realized that Sherlock was a very lucky man, indeed! He reluctantly turned away from this radiance to look at his DS. "Donovan, I believe that we have a Korean restaurant to visit!"
She nodded. "See you later, Rhodes!" she said and gave her friend a hug. Then she surprised everyone by turning to Sherlock and offering her hand. "Sherlock," she said simply. He nodded and took her hand - accepting the truce that he knew that she was offering. Lestrade looked thunderstruck again as he heard Sherlock ask her a question in a very civil manner.
"I can understand why she calls you Sal instead of Sally, but why do you call her Rhodes instead of Rose?" Both men then shared a look of confusion when the women started to laugh.
"I'll let Rhodes tell you later about our first meeting," Donovan said grinning. "It's a long story* and we don't have time to get into it right now."
"Sal, you can tell Greg, too, if you want," Rose said smiling. "Otherwise, he'll feel left out," she said with a wink.
Then after another round of congenial handshakes and promises of a future meeting, they parted company with pleasant feelings on both sides. The DI and DS grabbed a few uniformed PCs and headed over to the restaurant to catch a murderer while Rose and Sherlock hopped into her Rnage Rover. "Your place or mine?" she asked suggestively while flashing that grin at him.
Sherlock felt himself heat up under her gaze. "Whichever is closest!" he growled. The events of the night had shown him a different side of his Rose. Because of that, he found that he was even more attracted to her now than he was just a couple of hours ago – and that was something he would never have thought was possible!
"Let's go to Baker Street, then. We are less likely to get stopped by a bunch of nosy neighbors there," she replied eagerly.
Sherlock listened to Rose mutter while trying to find a place to park on Baker Street. "This is why I never drive over here!" she exclaimed grouchily under her breath. However, her good humor had returned by the time they entered his flat, having successfully parked and sneaked up the stairs without alerting Mrs. Hudson to their presence.
As soon as the door closed behind them, Sherlock pushed Rose up against it and started to ravish her lips with his own. "You were brilliant tonight!" he paused long enough to tell her while they took just a moment to catch their breath. Then he started on her neck while murmuring, "About everything…Lestrade…Donovan…the body…just brilliant!" Each word accompanied a pause in his attention to her body, so she took over instead.
"Ahh…so my supposed brilliance turns you on, yeah?" she grinned at him with her tongue between her teeth while she switched their positions, pushed him up against the door, and removed his shirt. Then he decided to return the favor for her.
"Oh, yes…" he breathed as he unhooked her bra and let it fall to the floor as he just stood there and looked at the gorgeous woman who stood topless and tousled in the middle of his sitting room. He couldn't stand it anymore, and she squealed happily as he launched himself at her, picked her up, and carried her to the bedroom.
"Did you really mean it?" he whispered as he laid her gently on the bed, "when you called me your boyfriend?"
"Oh, Sherlock! Of course I did, but that word doesn't even begin to cover what you mean to me!" She whispered back, and with those words, she pulled him down to join her. Then they both set out to prove wholeheartedly what they meant to each other – without using any words at all!
The next morning when Mrs. Hudson came up to deliver the daily paper, she saw the scattered clothes everywhere and just smiled. Oh, to be young again…and in love, she thought wistfully. She left everything just as it was, placed the newspaper in its usual tray, and then quietly shut the door behind her as she left – so as to not disturb the sleeping lovebirds.
Author's Notes:
*The story of how Rose and Sally met, "A Moment with DS Donovan," can now be found in my Moments Between Mysteries and Mayhem collection.
I have to take a moment to give kudos to my husband for the "death by chopstick" idea. I was stuck on an idea for the unusual murder weapon in the alley scene and asked for his input…and we just happened to be eating in an Asian restaurant at the time – LOL! Also, I should point out that I know that disposable chopsticks and metal chopsticks usually have different shapes… I just took a little creative license there. ;)