Author's Note:This story is in response to a challenge from Tess in Ch 22 of Strip concerning an incident that happened in Barbara's bedroom 2 years previously. I've been enjoying the ILM Fanfic stories for several years, but have finally gotten the courage to post one of my own. A big thanks to both Cats070911 and Tess 4 5 for all their help and encouragement. Hope you like it….here goes
What happened in Barbara's bedroom…or A Slippery Situation
DS Barbara Havers turned on the hot tap and poured a generous amount of bubble bath under the running water. Buying this bigger flat with an actual bathtub and not just a shower was one of her better decisions. How she loved a nice long soak after a day of investigating another grisly murder. After today especially. Her boss, DI Thomas Lynley had been more prickly than usual. She guessed it probably had to do with his estranged wife Helen. Things certainly weren't going well for her boss in that department. Helen was still staying with her sister and brother-in-law in Cambridge, and it didn't look like a reconciliation was in the near future.
For the most part, Barbara felt sorry for her boss, he was like a sad, lost puppy since Helen left, but today was different. He had gone out of his way to be especially difficult, even snapping at his constable Winston Nkata as he left for an out of town investigation. Winnie had been pulled off the case he was working on with Tommy and Barbara and assigned to a high profile murder case in the wilds of Cornwall. AC Hillier had told Tommy they were shorthanded at the local police station there and he had volunteered to send them one of the Met's best up and coming constables to help, no doubt to blow his own horn. He assured Tommy and Barbara that Nkata would be back soon, but that didn't seem to placate her boss. He'd had a definite scowl on his aristocratic brow all day. He had been in "one of those moods" grunting one word answers to her questions and just being an all-around tosser.
Barbara was glad to escape home to her lovely big tub for a bubble bath and a nice glass of wine. She set her glass of cabernet on the small table at the side of the bathtub. Beside it she laid her iPad tuned to her favorite British 70s Pandora channel.
She climbed in and slowly slid down into the warm bubbly water. She took a sip of wine, put on her headphones, closed her eyes and let out a big sigh. Ah, this was heaven after the trying day she had had.
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Thomas (Tommy) Lynley, the 8th Earl of Asherton poured himself a large scotch. Helen had lately refused to talk to him, sighting that she "just needed time" to think. He wondered if they could even salvage anything of their marriage after she had been away for over two months staying with her sister. Why should he try so hard when it was obvious that she didn't feel the need to try to repair their marriage? Sometimes he felt like he didn't even know her anymore. Oh, the hell with it, he could play that game too, he could take all the time in the world to "think".
He had been a total ass today with his colleagues, especially poor Winnie. He had taken out his frustrations on him, snapping at him when he stuck his head in his office to say goodbye on his way to Cornwall. Tommy was more than a little perturbed with AC Hillier for volunteering the best constable on his team for an out of town investigation.
Barbara hadn't fared any better. He'd barely talked to her all day, mumbling one word answers to her questions. He knew he had given her his incredulous raised eyebrow "…you don't seriously think..." look more than once this day. The look his mother had dubbed his "petulant child face" when he was a boy. It had unfortunately carried over into adulthood, and he used it on Barbara on a regular basis.
Looking back on his behavior today, he had to admit that he had been a complete knob.
Barbara didn't deserve to be treated like that. He had come to realize over the last few years that she was his best friend. Next to Helen, she was the most important woman in his life. She never failed to be supportive and kind, and she never failed to let him know when she thought he was being an ass. He knew Barbara would always tell him the truth, even when he didn't want to hear it, and he respected her for that. He didn't know what he would do if she was no longer a part of his life. He needed to apologize to her, right now.
He put down his tumbler of scotch and headed to his car. He would drive over to Barbara's flat and ask her to forgive him for acting like such a jerk.
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Barbara sloshed water over the side of the tub as she slid deeper into the warm bubbles. Oh well, she would clean it up when she was done with her bath. She thought she could possibly stay in this comforting place forever. She could feel the tension leaving her body.
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Tommy pulled up in front of Barbara's new flat. It really was very nice. He was pleased when she had asked him his opinion before buying it. It was bigger than her little studio apartment and in a very trendy neighborhood. It made him happy to see her so contented with her decision.
The lights were on in the front window. Good, she was home. He headed up the steps and rang the bell. There was no answer from inside. He waiting a few minutes and rang the bell again adding a hardy knock on the wooden door. Still no answer. He called out Barbara's name and knocked again, harder this time. Still no answer.
Now he was getting anxious. What if she needed help and couldn't come to the door? Without hesitating, he flipped through the keys on his keyring and located Barbara's front door key, the one she had given him in case of emergencies.
He opened the door and called out her name, shutting the door behind him. There was still no reply. Could she be out and just have left her lights on? That was possible. He walked through the lounge into the kitchen where he found an open bottle of wine and a corkscrew on the counter….When did Barbara start drinking wine? She was a lager girl. Hmmm. She must be here somewhere if there is an open bottle on the countertop…
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Barbara thought she had heard someone call out her name. She lifted the headset over her right ear and listened...nothing...it must have been her imagination. She slid back down into the warm water.
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Tommy had been in Barbara's lounge and kitchen many times, and had also used the half-bath in the laundry area. They had spent countless hours going over investigation notes and hashing out clues and opinions on their cases. More than once he had fallen asleep on her small settee when the hour got late and they were both exhausted. But he had never been in her bedroom.
He called out to her again. Getting no reply he headed toward her bedroom door, slowly opened it and walked in. He was pleasantly surprised. Barbara's bedroom was decidedly girly in contrast to her no nonsense, sometimes abrasive personality. There was a double bed with a soft and welcoming baby blue duvet and lots of pillows. To the left of the door in front of the bedroom window was a lovely antique desk and matching chair. On it was a small vase of pink roses. My, my, his sergeant was full of surprises.
On the bedside table was a crystal lamp and a framed picture. Moving a little closer he saw that it was a picture of the two of them taken at his and Helen's engagement party at Howenstow. He felt a tug on his heart when he saw it.
Then straight ahead he noticed a light under a slightly opened door. She must be in there, he walked closer and pushed it open a little further.
He wasn't prepared for the sight that met his eyes. There was his sergeant lounging in a large tub full of bubbles, eyes closed and humming softly to the music coming through her headphones. Her right leg was resting on the tap at the end of the tub. He had never noticed how shapely her legs were. Actually, if he thought about it, he had never even seen her legs, they were always covered up with trousers, she never wore skirts or dresses.
His eyes roamed further up to the top of her body. Her creamy shoulders were above the water. The bubbles rose to the bottom of her breasts, and what glorious breasts they were, firm and white….Whoa, get a grip man, this is your sergeant…. Barbara shifted slightly in the tub and a small pink nipple peaked out of the water.
Tommy felt a pull in his groin…Good God, I never noticed how beautiful she is and what a wonderful curvy shape she has. I should go now before my imagination gets the better of me… He turned quietly to leave. That's when his left foot hit the puddle of water on the floor and he slid headfirst into the door frame with a very loud crack.
Barbara's eyes flew open when she heard the loud bang. She turned her head just in time to see her boss stumble out of the doorway into her bedroom.
What the... "Sir! What are you doing here?!" Tommy was out of sight now, so she quickly jumped out of the tub and grabbed her robe hanging on the back of the door. When she ran into the bedroom, there was Tommy sitting on her bed looking dazed with a small trickle of blood running down the side of his face. Before she could reach him, he had collapsed back onto the pillows.
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When Tommy came to and opened his eyes, Barbara was leaning over him with a cold flannel dabbing at the cut above his eye.
"Well, there you are. I thought I was going to have to call an ambulance. That was quite the entrance…..or should I say exit? Now, you have some explaining to do."
Tommy managed a lopsided smile. "I had come over to apologize to you for my behavior today, and when you didn't answer the door, I used my emergency key to get in. I was worried there was a problem. I came into your bedroom to see if you were here, but I didn't realize you had an en suite bath. When I saw you were relaxing in the tub, I thought I'd just quietly leave and talk to you in the morning. The last thing I wanted to do was scare you half to death. I guess I failed pretty badly at that".
"I'd say so. That was some loud crack your head made when it hit the door frame. You have quite the goose egg above your eye. You're going to have a lovely bruise. I always knew you were hard headed, but that's a hell of a way to prove it"
Tommy started to laugh at that, but grabbed his head instead.
"Oowwww, that hurts"
"Come on, let's get you a bandage, some aspirin and then some wine, or maybe something stronger. You'll be fine in the morning….and at work tomorrow just make sure I'm in the room when you explain how you got that black eye."