Lisbon continued putting her belongings back in their proper place. Even though only a few days had passed, agents had come into her office and made it ready for her replacement. As she put her diploma back on the chest in the corner of her office she thought about what Jane had said.
He's in love with you.
She hadn't been all that surprised Jane had worked it out. If anything she had been surprised at how long it had taken him to discover they had a history. But honestly, Sam wasn't in love with her anymore, was he? They had had their fling. He had been her superior and she was the impressionable young agent who wanted to be the best. He wasn't attractive in the traditional sense but education had been Lisbon's seduction. He was intelligent, witty and dry. His understanding and support filled a void that had been present since her mother's death and her father's subsequent decline. Young and eager to impress, Lisbon had clung to the only male in her life that had offered her comfort. She didn't regret their romance, but she had certainly moved on and it worried her that it appeared Sam hadn't.
Lisbon continued to chew on her doughnut thoughtfully. She was almost sure that Bosco wasn't in love with her, but then, how many times had Jane been wrong in the past? She went back to her desk and sat down in her chair. Her brow was furrowed, the crease of annoyance present on her forehead. Lisbon was irritated with Jane. Until this moment she had been convinced that her and Bosco were going to be able to behave professionally with one another. She was sure that no one on the team (aside from Jane of course) had any idea of her former attachment to Bosco. But if Jane was right and Bosco did still have feelings for her she was going to have to deal with them, and soon. Picking up the phone Lisbon decided to leave him a message. She would arrange to meet him outside work the sometime the following week to clear the air. Until Jane had said the word love Lisbon hadn't even entertained the notion that Bosco might have returned to the CBI for her. But now that the thought had been planted in her head she just wanted to make sure that Bosco didn't get the wrong idea.
As Lisbon dialled, she waited with bated breath, praying for the automated voicemail to break the repetitive ring rather than the voice of Sam. Her prayers were answered when the voice on the other end told her to leave a message.
"Sam, it's Teresa, just wondering if you fancied grabbing a coffee sometime next week after work? Let me know, bye!"
Lisbon placed the receiver back in the cradle. At least that was done. She felt like she could tick something off her mentally created list. Now all she had to do was finish putting her office to rights and then she could head home. Though even home would require some tidying up. Jane's scheme had resulted in her apartment being messed up somewhat to look the part of someone who was having a break down....
***
It didn't take as long as her office to sort out her apartment. So much was still in boxes anyway that it still looked a mess even once back to its original state. Lisbon thought to herself as she did every evening that this weekend she would make a concerted effort to make her place more homely. As she put the almost empty bottle of whiskey back on the drinks shelf Lisbon looked around for her brother's football jersey. She had been sure she had left it in the kitchen after doing a quick change to go back into the office with the crazy therapist but she couldn't see it anywhere. Too tired to give it much thought she decided just to get a fresh t-shirt to wear for bed and look for it in the morning. It had been a draining week, even if she had just been acting for the last two days of it and now she just wanted sleep.
***
Across town Patrick Jane was feeling guilty. Not only had he glanced back at Lisbon for longer than was really socially acceptable after he had realised Bosco's feelings for her, he was also feeling guilty about the garment he held in his hands. It was a black football jersey with the number 99 on it. He had taken it while Lisbon was taking the suspect out to the car. He hadn't even thought about his actions. One minute it was lying discarded on the floor, the next minute he had folded it into a small bundle and surreptitiously held it under his suit jacket as he met Lisbon at the car. He lifted it to his nose, taking a breath in. It smelled like a mixture of laundry detergent, cinnamon and whiskey. Jane wasn't entirely sure what it meant that he had felt it necessary to take what was obviously Lisbon's favourite 'down time' clothing. But one thing he was sure of was that he was going to do everything in his power to keep Bosco away from Lisbon.