Author's usual notes and disclaimer: I don't own any of the original characters nor the original Inspector Lynley Mysteries – they belong to Elizabeth George and the BBC. I have borrowed the characters from the TV-Show and solely own the ideas of my stories and the developments I've let them go through.
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Author's note and summary: You never know where the inspiration comes from and sometimes even some plot chippies hop by so I dedicate this first chapter to Alvin and the Chipmunks.
As chance will have it Barbara is not alone in her flat for two nights. The weather is brilliant so a nice day out with her guests was planned and her boss had agreed on joining them. Let's see where this is heading. Let's...
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Catch a Glimpse (ch.1)
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The morning was bright and sunny but still quite cool for a day in early May. DI Lynley stood at the door and hesitated after a first knock. From the inside came the sounds of a loud riot - a dog barked, a baby cried and it sounded as if a dozen children ran about and shouted, only drowned out by a woman's voice yelling at them to finally shut up or they would stay at home for the rest of the week. Then suddenly it went quiet and he jumped at the chance to knock a second time.
The door jerked open.
"What?!" the woman snarled. She had appeared in the doorway with a now only sobbing toddler on her arms. A young dog, some cross breed of its own kind, barked at him but kept a safe distance. "Oh, sorry, Sir. I totally missed the time. Come on in. Now will you stop, you stupid dog."
She explained that usually he was the best trained and dearest dog of the world but obviously everybody was freaking out today. With a broad grin Lynley entered DS Haver's flat. The sight of Barbara with the child in her arms had given his heart a soft sting that was soon overlaid by a warm flood of love. He had to tell her. He had to tell her about the discovery of his feelings for her that somehow had turned from deep friendship to deep love during the past year. They had spent so much time together, at the office as well as in their private time. They even had met on some sort of dates a few times.
Today they had a date in the zoo. Tommy had learned that her recently widowed friend Emily with her three children had returned from their former life abroad and she now was on the search for a job here back home in Britain. Today Emily had an unexpected job interview somewhere in northern Scotland and due to the lack of a baby sitter she had parked the kids for two nights at Barbara's flat. That's why he was here now. The six-year old twins were to be entertained today.
Fortunately London's murderers had a heart and had stopped killing people for some days so there was nothing to do for the detectives at the office and Barbara could enjoy those three days off. She was not even on call. Tommy had offered to drive them to the zoo. Of course not without Barbara rejecting any monetary interference although he had not at all offered it. Knowing his Sergeant he would not dare to and he was not the type to to parade his wealth either.
It would be just a nice day out. He looked forward to a few hours with her. In fact he even had dreamed about her tonight.
"Hello Barbara. Hello boys." Tommy smiled at the twins who sat on the sofa with the most angel-like faces in the world. They just looked at him with big shy but defiant eyes.
"You the Lord?" The left one asked and Tommy nodded.
"Yes, I am. But please call me Tommy. And who are you?"
"Babba called you Sir!" came instead of an answer.
"Yes, she does," and turning his pleading eyes to Barbara he added "and she definitely should've stopped that by now. At least for today? Please."
Barbara just rolled her eyes and gave him the baby. "Hold her for a moment please. I still have to get ready."
Only for a brief moment anxiety ran through Tommy's mind before the girl showed a two-toothed drooly smile. "And who are you, little princess?" he asked her softly rocking her in his arms.
"She's no princess." the right boy with the blond curls answered disgusted. "she's just Paula."
"She's just a baby." the left boy with slightly darker hair snidely added.
"And what are your names, little men?" Tommy was glad that they were not identical twins.
"Stan 'n' Ollie." the left one answered and immediately another argument broke out that they had agreed on being Harry and Ron and not those stupid old men and one could not change an agreement and they had wanted to be cool but only Harry really was cool and you had decided on being Harry because you are so, so selfish and one could very well change an agreement and you are so, so stupid anyway.
"Shut up now!" Barbara shouted from behind the closed bed room door. "We still could stay at home if you wish."
"You shouldn't make her more angry." Tommy conspiratorially whispered winking at the twins. "I know how mad she could become."
"We know that too." the left boy whispered.
"We're Josh 'n' Ian." the right boy whispered finally introducing them. "And that's Battenberg."
The dog at Tommy's feet, clearly with a German Shepherd in his bloodline but obviously some smaller dogs too since he just was at knee-height, now wagged his tail feeling the attention turned on him. Paula meanwhile had started to earnestly join the conversation with some cute and almost completely inarticulate baby-talk. Her little fingers were playing with the beard Tommy had grown for a while now. He was besotted from the very first moment.
When Barbara finally got ready and returned into the living room her heart made a happy jump seeing her boss so at ease with an attentive dog at his feet and a contented baby in his arms but that feeling quickly turned into a sad certainty that she probably never will have children of her own, least of all with him as their father. All those dinners or pints they recently had shared and she secretly had called dates only had added to her feelings for Tommy until she finally had realised that the crush and admiration she once had felt for him apparently had turned into an unrequited love for the 8th Earl of Asherton. This had to end, she inwardly sighed, and the forthcoming day at the zoo probably was not the best idea.
"Shall we?" the warmly smiling man now asked and immediately the twins stood at the door.
"Jackets, please!" Barbara commanded and grumbling the boys took on their anoraks. Meanwhile she had taken the baby girl back into her arms and Tommy had lifted up the car seat for Paula that had stood at the flat's door. It all had happened without any words and for Barbara it felt in a strange way painfully normal.
With the boys waiting at the kerb where Tommy had parked his car and listing which animals they would want to see today Tommy and Barbara adjusted the seat in the middle of the backseat of his Bristol and the booster cushions for the twins on each side. Josh, Ian and Battenberg hopped through some puddles and almost had started to argue again but eventually Paula was seated so they also jumped into the car. The dog would sit at Barbara's feet.
Knowing them to be wet and muddy his Lordship felt two small feet kicking into the back of his seat but before he could say anything he felt a soothing hand squeezing his arm. He saw a soft shake of her head.
"You've got leather seats in here. Just let them." Barbara muttered. "I'll wipe them later." Then she raised her voice. "Please put the seatbelts on. Josh, you too."
"Will this rust bucket even start?" Josh asked.
"Aren't you rich?" the other one giggled.
"It's like from Stan 'n' Ollie." Josh joined the giggling.
"We'll need half a day to get to the zoo." Ian laughed.
"Woof!" Battenberg said and tried to climb over Barbara to get in the backseat to the twins but she gently nudged him back down.
"Or should we ask Babba to push this old car?" Seeing her boss' eyes watching the kids through the rear mirror Barbara knew what inevitably would follow now. She chewed on her cheeks so she would not laugh.
"It's not an old car." There it was. She grinned. "It's a classic-"
Barbara's soft voice made him stop.
"Tommy!" she said and did not even recognise she had called him by his given name. Tommy instead barely recognised anything else she told him further on. And her soothing hand was on his arm again. For a moment he held his breath. "They're six. They don't understand how precious your car is. They love roaring speedsters, modern rockets, fancy race cars. Oh my!"
Meanwhile Tommy had turned on the engine and now let it roar once. Broadly grinning he told the two little ignorants that they'd be in the zoo in twenty minutes. They were. Even without ignoring the speed limits.
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