a/n: Number eleven (who knew we'd come this far?)! This list is getting long, so here are the last few entries: "Escalating Thoughts" by Desina, "Say What?" by me, and "Whatever the Lady Desires" by Desina.

Hither and Thither

"So, tonight?" Kate looks at me quizzically.

"For?"

"Being less of a gentleman. Per your insistence, of course."

"We are not having this conversation," she says.

"Oh, it doesn't need to be a conversation, Katie. A simple 'yes' would do." She spins and snaps at me.

"You are the most infuriating man I've ever met." I smile.

"Is that why you love me?" I ask sweetly. The corners of Kate's lips rise slightly and she gives me an obviously prepared answer.

"Objection, Counselor. We have not yet established that I love you." Given that she and I are clearly thinking along the same lines, I should call ahead and have Leo start the homicide proceedings. Naturally, I don't. Instead, I press the elevator's stop button and lean in to kiss her, one word on my lips.

"Overruled." I am just a breath away from Kate's mouth when she lifts her hands to my chest and stops me.

"You have no basis to overrule my objection," she states, poking a finger into my sternum. I back up a couple of steps, trying to avoid the incessant prodding.

"No?"

"No." She smiles sweetly and spins on her heel. As she reaches for the emergency stop button, I realize that she has purposely moved me away from the panel. I wait for a moment as she pushes the button, allowing the elevator to resume its course. She settles in the middle of the car, facing the doors with smug smile on her face.

Is this a challenge? I think this is a challenge.

Hmm. She's going to make me work for this one.

I walk behind Kate and towards the panel, making quite the choreographed display of hitting the stop button. When I turn to look at Kate, her smile is gone and she is staring at me from the corner of her eyes. I have to hold back a smile as I move to stand in front of her. I clasp my hands behind my back as she looks up at me, eyes now narrowed.

"What are you doing?"

"I want to argue my case," I answer. Kate rolls her eyes and moves to her left, pushing the button again. I, in turn, hit the button, stopping the car once more. "I think I deserve the opportunity." I pout but she offers no sympathy. With a slight tilt of her head, she stretches her arm past my side, hand seeking the button. I gently grab her wrist before she can complete her action. Kate doesn't seem to notice that in our back and forth over the control panel, I have adjusted her position, putting her just a couple of steps away from the back corner of the elevator.

"How can you possibly have an argument?" she asks, pulling her hand free. "You kiss me once, proposition me and then declare my undying love for you?" She shakes her head. "That doesn't work." Interesting.

"First of all," I start, taking a step closer to her. "I've kissed you twice." She backs up a little and I press on. "Well, three times, but the kiss we shared in my office last night was kind of…" I shrug. "Fleeting." I take another step forward and she takes another one backwards. "The third time, much as the proposition, was per your insistence."

"The third time?" Kate frowns as though she doesn't remember that moment.

"The third time, on the couch in my living room," I remind her unnecessarily. "Per your insistence," I repeat slowly.

"What?" she practically screams. "My insistence?"

"Yes," I nod. I lift my eyes to the ceiling, pretending to be thoughtful. "I believe your exact words were 'Kiss me. You have to kiss me.'" I drop my gaze back to her eyes and she starts shaking her head.

"That's not what I said," she argues.

"And, just shortly before this conversation, you said…" I lift a finger, pointing at her. "And, I'm quoting again. 'You were a gentleman, which I wasn't expecting. Kind of hoping you wouldn't be so much of one.'" I pause and tilt my head, smart-ass smirk perfectly placed. "'Frankly.'"

"Okay, you know what that is? That's just borderline creepy stalker."

"And then you admitted that your love for me is undying." Kate's jaw drops.

"I definitely did not say that."

"On the contrary, Katie, you did." I straighten the knot in my tie and smile. "I have to say I was quite flattered." Her eyes drift downwards and she frowns. I can tell she's replaying that part of the dialog in her mind, trying to find a way to tell me that I'm wrong. Her lips form a small 'oh' and she looks up at me. "So, may I overrule your objection now?"

"You have no grounds," Kate says, trying to sidestep me. I lift my arm, hooking it around her waist, to bring her back to me. Two small, calculated steps and I have her pinned in the corner of the elevator. My fingers find her chin, lifting her mouth, and I finally gain the contact of her lips against mine. She slumps back against the wall and I have to tighten my arm around her waist to keep her upright. Kate moans so quietly against my mouth, the hottest sound I have ever heard, and I dare to take my 'argument' a little farther. I wrap my fingers in her hair, deepening the kiss well beyond the intensity of the two we have already shared. Her body tenses in all the right ways as she shifts against me and I slow our kiss, unhurriedly ending it.

Kate is breathless and flushed when I pull away. Her eyes are closed and a small crease has found its way across her brow. I release her, turning to the control panel to restart the elevator. As I stand facing the doors, pleased with this seeming acceptance of my reasoning, I work to remove the smirk from my face before we reach our intended floor. Kate moves, hitting the button to stop the elevator.

"This is the longest ride ever, Katie," I say, turning to her with an overly sarcastic roll of my eyes.

"You can't do that."

"Do what?"

"Th-that," Kate stutters, motioning towards the back corner. I turn to look at the corner, nodding my head thoughtfully. "Kissing each other doesn't constitute love." I turn back to her. "There are other things that need to happen first."

"Such as?"

"Such as…" She struggles for a moment to answer. "Dinner," she states. "People go out to dinner. To get to know each other."

"We already know each other."

"Not like…that's not what I mean."

"We just had lunch together," I argue.

"Yeah, and what did you learn about me during lunch?" Her question is rhetorical, but that doesn't stop me from answering.

"I learned that you could give a guy a heart attack with the way you eat your chocolate cake." Kate is clearly unamused. "All right," I shrug. "Let's go out to dinner. Then you can concede to my point."

"I will not concede," she says shaking her head. "One dinner…It's not enough time to really get to know each other."

"So we'll go out twice."

"Ben," she whines. "You are being infuriating again." I tip my head to the side.

"We're right back to where we started, Katie. Is that why you love-" Before I can finish my sentence, Kate closes the space between us. She wraps her arms around my shoulders and presses her mouth against mine. My arms circle her waist as I enjoy the way she takes control of this kiss. It's tentative and slow, but oh so passionate. When she pulls back, she smiles lightly, her lips still very close to mine.

"Pick me up at seven," she whispers.