A/N-This is the second part to "Toward You" based off a prompt from Inglenook17 who said, "Could you follow this up with a scene where the team is working undercover and they don't know Weller and Jane are together when someone (may or may not be Oliver, I wish they brought him back on the show, he seemed to serve very little purpose) begins to hit on Jane and Weller goes all territorial.
I liked the idea so much that I had to write it. Hopefully you all like what I did with it. Thanks for the suggestion!
As always, thanks to this whole fandom…you guys really make writing here a joy.
Things had been going pretty well with Jane, at least as far as Weller was concerned. They'd been sort of seeing each other for about six months. They split time between their places, spending the nights together at least four times a week, sometimes more. It was perfect for this point in their relationship.
Jane was fun to be with, and they seemed to enjoy their time spent together just hanging out as much as they enjoyed their active sex life. Jane was the perfect combination of fearless and shy, two traits that were difficult to balance but somehow made her unique and so incredibly alluring. Work presented its challenges, at times, but they seemed to manage. Since things weren't broken, Kurt saw no need to fix them.
Their ill-defined arrangement was that they'd try "heading toward" one another, and that was what they did. She never called him her boyfriend or really asked for any more of him than they'd already agreed upon. At the same time, she never joined him when he visited with his daughter or family, and they kept their lives neatly separated. So far, they hadn't even mentioned their quasi-relationship to anyone else, although there was often speculation. It was a very simple, comfortable, tidy arrangement.
They wrapped up a case one Friday night, and Weller walked up behind her as she closed her locker. He leaned down and whispered, "Your place tonight?"
She turned suddenly, smiling flirtatiously up at him before she looked around to be sure they were alone, "I promised Patterson that I'd join her after work for a few drinks. She asked and…I didn't want to make up some awkward excuse."
"Come by my place afterwards?"
"I don't know how late it will be, and we'll probably split a cab home. Tomorrow?"
"Yea. Sure," he answered, a bit disappointed but certainly not concerned. "Have fun."
Going home alone that night wasn't fun, though. He'd told himself the whole way home that he was glad to have a night to himself. He could watch whatever he wanted, eat whatever he wanted, it was good for a man to have a night to himself. Shortly after finishing his dinner, he was already bored.
He glanced down at his watch, realizing that usually by now on a Friday night when they didn't have a case, they'd be in bed together. He never seemed to get tired of her naked body. He stared off into space, flashes of the last night they'd had together popping into his head. He told himself he missed the fun and the excitement and the sex, but he knew damn well it wasn't just his libido that missed her.
He thought about going out and 'accidentally' bumping into Jane and Patterson, but he admonished himself, mumbling, "You're gonna ruin it." Jane didn't expect much from him, and he had a horrible track record with relationships, so it was ridiculous to do anything that might mess up something he got so much enjoyment from.
It was a long, boring Friday night. Around two am, he checked his phone, hoping that maybe she'd left the bar and might want to stop by, but he didn't have any missed messages.
When she arrived the next day, a little earlier than expected, she grinned as he opened the door, asking, "Miss me?"
In response, he grabbed her, pulled her into his apartment and quickly shut the door before she dragged him back to his bedroom.
Kurt thought, Yea, things are fine just the way they are.
Monday morning he was walking to work when he saw Patterson, Zapata and Jane waiting by the coffee truck. He stepped next to them and heard Patterson say, "So I went out again last night, and guess who was there?"
"Who?" Jane asked.
"That guy from the other night…Justin…" Patterson replied. "He was looking for you."
"Justin," Tasha said, dragging the name out knowingly.
"Who's Justin?" Kurt asked.
"We went out Friday night," Patterson explained, "and these guys were having a Bachelor party."
She paused while Kurt nodded, then Zapata added, "Justin was the best man. He seemed more than a little bit interested in Jane here."
"It was nothing," Jane replied.
"Nothing? He was really…persistent. And cute," Patterson said.
"Cute?" Zapata corrected, "Puppies and kitties and babies are cute. He was hot."
Patterson turned her attention to Jane and said, "Are you going to call him?"
"Are you?" Weller followed-up.
"I don't know," Jane replied to Patterson. "He's not really my type."
"Who cares! I'm not suggesting you marry him, but if you're looking for…" Zapata looked at Weller, feeling odd talking about such a subject with her boss around, and continued on more cautiously. "I just think you should give him a chance. You need to call him. He said he gave you his number."
"I probably don't have it anymore," Jane answered.
"He also said you'd say that…so here," Patterson replied, handing a bar napkin to Jane with his number.
"Thanks," Jane replied. "I appreciate it."
Weller found himself in a bit of a foul mood all day, enough so that at one point or another, nearly every member of his team tried to figure out what was wrong. Jane went to the evidence room to retrieve an item that they needed for the case, and Weller followed.
"What was that about?" he asked, smiling and trying to appear as nonchalant as possible.
Jane selected an evidence box, comparing the label to the ID number she'd written down as she replied, "Reade needed to see a few things from the Vega case. I offered to come down."
"I'm not talking about the evidence," Kurt said, coming closer, "This morning. I mean Patterson and Tash trying to push some creepy guy on you."
Jane shook her head, looking at him with confusion, and then she responded, "What? Oh, no…Justin. He's not creepy. He's actually really sweet. Harmless."
Kurt's phone rang and he barked his answer, "Weller?...Yea, I'll be right up." Looking at Jane, he said, "Patterson said he's being persistent. You need me to talk to the guy, get him to back off?"
Jane's eyebrows rose and she said, "You know I can take care of myself."
"I do…I just thought—"
"He doesn't have my number or know where I live. Like I said…harmless. We better go," she told him, grabbing the pieces of needed evidence before she headed back to the office.
Weller followed, deciding to let it go for the moment.
That night they were together, and he realized that he'd clearly overreacted. She didn't seem distracted, joking and laughing with him through dinner, and they shared a completely amazing time in bed that night, so he felt confident that nothing had changed between them. Just a false alarm.
One morning almost ten months after Jane had started seeing Kurt, they were working on a tattoo case that led them to a meeting in a bar. "We need to go undercover," he suggested. "Tasha and I will bartend. Jane, Reade, Patterson, you work the floor as customers. Everyone got it?"
Later that night, they were all in position. The first few hours were quiet as small groups came and went. Jane was sitting at the bar, slowly nursing a beer as she chatted with Kurt and surveilled the crowd until Patterson came up to join her. She whispered something to Jane, and the two women turned toward a group that had just come into the bar.
Just as Kurt was wondering what Patterson could have been saying, he saw someone slip onto the bar stool right next to Jane. Kurt went over the list of physical characteristics for their suspect in his head: blond caucasian male, mid-length hair, 5'9", 220 lbs, blue eyes. The man sitting directly next to Jane certainly wasn't the suspect. This man was definitely over 6 foot, slender but obviously fit, tanned and ethnically ambiguous, brown eyes and brown hair and a pearly grin. The guy looked photoshopped. He had entered with the suspect, though.
"Jane, right?" the man asked, pleased when she nodded. He pointed at himself and said, "Justin…we met at—"
"I remember," Jane answered.
Kurt approached and said, "What can I get you, pal?"
The man didn't even look at Kurt, keeping his eyes focused on Jane. "I'll take a beer. Darkest thing you have on tap." Leaning closer to Jane, the man said, "You never called."
"Things got busy and…you know," Jane answered.
"It's weird that we keep running into each other. Do you believe in fate? Maybe this was meant to be."
"Maybe," she answered politely.
Kurt thought about telling the guy that he and Jane were dating, figuring there was no harm since he could pretend it was part of their cover, but he knew too well that Justin had arrived with their suspect, and Jane had the perfect excuse to get close.
Justin wordlessly signaled for Weller to refill Jane's drink and placed money on the bar. "Can I interest you in a dance?" he asked Jane.
"Why not," she replied, allowing the man to take her hand and lead her to the dance floor.
Kurt saw both Zapata and Patterson taking a moment to admire the man. God, Kurt really hated this guy.
At first a dance seemed innocuous enough, but Weller wasn't prepared for the sick feeling he felt in his gut as the man curled his arm around Jane's waist and pulled her flush against him. That stranger's hands were all over Jane, feeling the shape of her back, the curve of her hip, places he clearly didn't deserve to be touching. Kurt was snapped out of his thoughts when he heard a woman standing in front of him yell, "Dude, I said I want a fucking lager." Weller's eyes shot angrily at the impatient woman, and, although he said nothing, the stare was enough. "Please," the woman added.
Kurt grabbed the drink and popped it onto the counter, paying little attention to what he was doing because he was busy watching Jane smiling sweetly at Justin, giggling at a joke and hanging on the man's words. Kurt reminded himself that it was an act, but those looks she was giving didn't belong to Justin. He didn't deserve to be looked at like that, not by Jane. Justin leaned down toward Jane, whispering some kind of question that made her nod before he nudged her neck with his nose.
Weller wished to hell he knew what was being said, but then again, maybe if he knew, the urge to punch that man would overwhelm him. He caught sight of Tasha studying him, and he asked, "What?"
"Nothing," she replied, obviously lying, shaking her head and walking away to tend to customers at the other end of the bar.
Patterson leaned toward Kurt and said, "We got lucky."
"How so?" he asked.
"Well, that guy clearly likes Jane, he's friends with the suspect, so hopefully she can get close enough to Roberts to get his prints without raising any suspicion…it's practically perfect."
"Yea," Kurt grumbled, "perfect."
During the moments Kurt had been distracted, Justin had dragged Jane over to the fake juke box with a nearly unlimited digital library and picked something much slower. He held Jane between his side and the juke box, turning on all of the charm that he had. Kurt's eyes honed in on the way Jane's fingers curled around the back of Justin's arm. The man looked like a damn model, flawless in the most irritating way, and Weller figured the guy probably didn't get turned down often enough.
Taking her back to the dance floor, Justin slid both of his hands down her back, whispering and flirting so shamelessly that Weller was surprised Jane didn't already give him a swift kick to the groin. Justin's fingers remained at the small of Jane's back, and then Weller saw red flash when that man's hands ventured lower onto her ass to pull her against him. Jane shook her head, whispering something that made Justin laugh but still move his hands northward and settle more respectfully on her back. "Atta girl," Kurt mumbled supportively, glad that she wasn't going to allow things to go too far.
As the song ended, she casually but firmly pulled away, bringing the man back to the bar for another drink. Weller could barely look at the guy, the urge to lash out and claim what was his gnawing at his brain even though he knew it could jeopardize the mission and their relationship.
Justin's hand returned to Jane's lower back, leading her over to the table with his associates. For some reason, that gesture, the possessive way that Justin stood over Jane, made Kurt even more infuriated. But he wasn't just angry with Justin, he was furious with himself. He wondered why in the hell he'd been so complacent, why he hadn't at least tried to find out where they stood, or tell her that he wanted it to just be the two of them. He thought back to all of the warning signs he'd had before when his brain had been telling him to take action. He sure as hell didn't want anyone else since that first night he'd been with her. He felt like he could handle this operation so much better if he knew that she was all his.
He anxiously ran his hand over his face, feeling the scratch of his beard as he realized she'd probably be furious if she heard the possessive thoughts in his head. Jane wasn't the type of woman who would want to belong to anyone. Still, it seemed painfully unfair that he already belonged to her, even if she didn't know it.
"You alright, Kurt?" Reade asked.
"Why does everyone keep asking me that?" Kurt snapped.
Reade's eyes opened wide as he put his hands out to the side in surrender and replied, "I just wanted to tell you that I'm pretty sure that's our guy. If Jane can get a print, Patterson will do the comparison."
Justin and Jane sat at the large table as the occupants all exchanged stories and laughter, loudly filling the space with their sounds. It seemed as if some part of Justin was constantly in contact with Jane, and he seemed to feel the need to whisper everything to her, right against her ear, far more than could have possibly been necessary. When it looked like Justin softly kissed Jane's neck, right on that damn bird that Weller had so often tucked his face against, he grabbed the bar and was ready to jump over.
"Hey," Zapata interrupted, "Relax. She's doing her job."
"I'm fine," he answered, his eyes fiery.
"I can tell," Zapata sarcastically answered.
He turned toward Tasha, prepared to tell her that she'd been imagining things, but he knew she was far too perceptive to accept such a lie. A few seconds later, Jane rose, walking casually over to Patterson and acting as if they were sharing a laugh. Kurt noticed that Jane handed Patterson an empty beer bottle, using their bodies to block the exchange from Justin and his table of friends. Jane ordered two drinks, watching Weller handle the glasses and bottles a bit too roughly. "I got his prints," she whispered victoriously to Kurt, watching his jaw muscles clench and release. "What's going on with you?" she asked when she noticed how irritated he seemed.
"Nothing," he answered, short temperedly.
"Well maybe you should stop taking 'nothing' out on those glasses," she mentioned.
He pushed the drinks across the wooden surface to her, waiting for her to pay, staring irritably into her eyes.
Jane took the drinks and returned to the table, shrugging off the exchange with Kurt as she tried to look like she was having a great time. After over an hour, Patterson returned and walked immediately up to Weller, whispering to him that the prints on the bottle matched their suspect.
Kurt flung the rag he'd been using to wipe down the bar into the sink behind him and quickly hopped the bar and went straight to the table. He wanted to arrest Justin, to fling him on the floor and cuff him to keep his damn grabby hands off Jane, but Justin wasn't the man who'd needlessly slaughtered a family to hide his plans for a much larger attack in a few weeks. "Vincent Roberts, you're under arrest," Weller said as he recited the man's Miranda rights and handed him over to Reade and Zapata, who took him into custody.
Kurt gave instructions to the agents, going outside to ensure that the murderer was safely locked up in the back of a van, and when he walked back in, Jane was still talking to Justin. She was seated on the opposite side of a large round table. All of the other people had scattered. Kurt strode up to the bar, going right behind it and pouring himself a healthy serving of bourbon. After he gulped it all down without a pause, he walked over to Jane, standing partially beside and partially behind her, and he put a hand possessively on her shoulder. He scowled at Justin who looked at Kurt for just a second and then asked Jane, "Would you like to take this conversation somewhere a little more private?"
"Look, pal," Kurt countered, posturing with his most intimidating FBI Special Agent glare, "I think the lady—"
"Can speak for herself," Jane interrupted, standing, her presence on this small stage just as bold and powerful as Weller's.
"Damn right she can," Justin responded, chuckling confidently. He held out his arm and said, "Are we going, or what?"
Jane smiled softly, "Thanks for the offer, but I'm going to pass."
"Give me a call?" he questioned, offering her his number once again.
"I'm sorry, Justin, but…"
He left his number on the table, patted it, and said, "Just in case."
As soon as he walked out the door, Weller said, "What the hell was that guy's problem? Really gutsy hanging all over you like that."
"His problem?" Jane countered with disbelief. "What was your problem?"
"I didn't like how he was groping you."
"Groping is a bit strong. I was undercover. What did you want me to do?"
"I'm not mad at you. He was the one who stepped out of line," Kurt explained.
"Actually, no one stepped out of line. I've tried," she argued, "several times in the last few months to casually bring up our relationship, or whatever this is, with you. Every time I get close to saying anything, you get all tense and avoid the subject completely."
"You did? Because I definitely don't remember that."
"Bullshit. Look, I've accepted that this is where you're at and I'm okay with what our particular relationship is, but you don't get to keep me at a distance and under lock and key at the same time. I am not your property, Kurt."
"I didn't say you—"
"Let me finish," she argued. "I don't give you the third degree or a guilt trip when you fly out to see Allie and Ava. I don't question you if you work late with Nas, or if you go out on your own. I trust you. This arrangement is what it is, and that's fine, but you can't be angry because I dance with someone while I'm undercover. It seems like there's a definite double standard here. And this caveman routine is not at all attractive."
"Jane," he said, regretfully, "I don't—"
"I'm leaving," she interrupted. "I'm going home. I'll talk to you tomorrow after I've had some time to think."
"Come on," he tried to persuade.
She was uninterested, and slipped immediately out the door, leaving him standing alone, wondering what in the hell to do.
Jane was still furious at Weller the next morning. He had acted like an idiot, and he owed her an apology. He texted her to invite her over to talk, so she decided that it was time to figure things out. When she knocked on his door, Allie answered. "Oh hey, Jane," Allie said, "good to see you."
For a moment, Jane was confused, wondering if this was Weller's attempt to make her jealous in return.
"I asked Kurt to keep Ava tonight," Allie explained. "I had to come to town to testify…all very last minute."
"I can come back later," Jane said, looking down the hall for her escape.
"I think you should come in. He said you were stopping by. Come on, Kurt just ran down to my car to get some of Ava's things. He'll be back in a minute."
"Okay," Jane hesitantly responded.
"This doesn't have to be weird," Allie said, flashing an engagement ring from Conor while trying to make it look like she wasn't drawing attention to it. "I love Kurt…always will, but he and I weren't a good fit. And Conor—let's just say Conor and I work. He's a great man, and I'm in love with him."
"You…don't have to explain. You share a child with Kurt. No explanation is necessary."
"I'm going to be in Kurt's life because of Ava, and I'm pretty sure you're going to be in his life, too. It would be nice if we all got along so birthdays and holidays wouldn't be awkward. I can tell how much he likes you," Allie said. "I've never seen him like this with any woman before. Not even me. And believe me, that was really hard for me to admit."
"It's not like that," Jane argued.
"Yea, sure it isn't," Allie rolled her eyes. "I told you he has walls. I also told you he's worth it. That hasn't changed."
"Really," Jane countered, "it isn't like that with us."
"I'll never understand why you both try so hard to convince everyone that there's nothing between you. Wait…" Allie said suspiciously, "What did he do?"
"What do you mean?"
"I know Kurt and I know that look…he did something."
"It's nothing."
"Okay, fine," Allie answered. "Trust me…give the man a break. I'm not sure what he did, but he is worth the effort. And I think you're the only woman he's going to even try to open up for. So let him try."
"Hey," Kurt walked through the door with a folded up portable crib and a small suitcase, "What'd I miss?"
He was smiling tentatively at Jane, happy to see her there, clearly nervous about the fact that Allie was there too and that they'd probably been talking in his absence.
"I have to go," Allie said, offering Kurt a half-hug and saying, "I'll bring Ava by around six."
"Sounds good," he replied.
"Thanks, Kurt." Allie grinned and added, "Be good, you two."
Allie closed the door behind her as Kurt ambled sort of aimlessly forward. "Look, Allie just called and—"
"You don't have to explain," Jane interrupted. "You guys share a child and you should be in each other's lives. I understand that."
"What you said, last night…that you've tried to talk to me about us."
"Yea. I have."
"When?" he questioned. "I don't remember a single conversation…"
"Every time I try to be at all serious about our personal lives, you run, or have a sudden desire to go down on me to shut me up."
"Actually that's not why I like going down on you," he stated with a salacious grin.
She smirked back, trying to hide the smile that resulted from a flash of many memories, but she regained focus, "This is exactly what I mean. I like sex, I love it, actually, but you use it as a distraction. But then your behavior last night was way out of line. You act like this relationship is casual, but then you're also possessive."
"You like that guy?" he questioned softly.
"I was undercover. You of all people should understand that. That's all. But that doesn't change your sudden burst of possessiveness. I don't know what you expect, or what this is between us and I don't know how to talk to you about it."
"I'm listening. Right now. Let's talk."
She looked to the side, waiting for a moment, and then said, "Why do you avoid talking about us?"
"I didn't realize you were trying to," he began, then he paused, knowing damn well that he'd deflected even the slightest attempt by her to talk about their relationship. Finally, he confessed, "Because I don't want to ruin it."
She smiled, breathing out with relief that at least he'd said something quite honest. "Are you trying to keep your options open in case someone else comes along?"
"God, no," he said, quickly shaking his head, "not at all. I'm terrible at relationships. I like being with you, I like how things are. I figured, why change when it's already perfect."
"You think it's perfect like this?"
"At least I have you. I mean…I thought it was fine, but last night… I realized there is really nothing stopping you from going home with that guy…any guy. And you may not like it, but I hated seeing him all over you. I hated the way he kept whispering and touching and grabbing at you. And no, I don't consider you property, but I want you to be mine. Maybe that's antiquated, but I still feel that way."
"Possession is antiquated, but commitment isn't. But commitment has to go both ways."
He answered defiantly, "I'm already yours. I don't want anyone else. I haven't for a long time."
She stared into his eyes and said, "So you want…?"
"No more hiding. Exclusivity. An actual relationship. I want to know that, at the end of the day, you'll come home to me." He stepped closer. "So I can be the man kissing these lips," he said before he gently kissed her. "And whispering what I'm going to do to you into this ear," he promised as he nuzzled against her neck. "And grabbing your ass and making you scream and waking up next to you. I want to be that man."
He pushed her onto the table, roughly tugging the jacket from her shoulders and yanking her shirt off. His hands were everywhere, roaming her body, holding her close, divesting her of every piece of clothing he could find. She stroked him through his jeans, finally able to pop the button and drop the zipper before she slipped her fingers into his shorts. He pressed her sex with his fingers, feeling the moisture that was gathering and then he stopped, "Wait," he said, mischievously. "I'm making the same mistake again."
"What mistake?" she asked, her cheeks flushed and eyes filled with confusion.
"You said, I tend to redirect things to sex when we should talk."
"Shut up, enough talk," she grinned, teasing and smacking his shoulder with one hand before she tightened her grip around his hardening flesh with the other.
They shared smiles for a moment and then their desires took over. He pressed her back on the table, pulling up a chair so he could sit between her thighs and taste her. He loved the way she was spread across the table for him, swept up in the abandon and pleading for more. He stopped just before she came, standing and shifting his hips between her thighs before his thrust into her body. Her back arched as she responded to the feeling of him, that persistent, pleasant, welcomed invasion of body and the senses.
His hands covered her body, trying to surround her, to feel all of her. She certainly didn't mind this feeling of possession, this mutual devotion that was swallowing her reservations and propelling her closer to him in ways beyond the physical. When he tucked his forehead against her neck, she dug her fingertips into his back and she gasped, "You're mine."
He nodded, his body and heart wracked with pleasure at the totality of the feeling of her as he wished he could be just a little closer to her. "And you're mine," he said, a hint of question in his statement.
"Yes," she mumbled before repeating the word as her bliss crested. She dragged fingers down his back, clawing and pulling him closer to her as he plummeted over the edge with her.
Jane stayed at his apartment until shortly after five that evening, then stood and said, "I guess I'll see you tomorrow evening. You want to come over to my place after Allie picks up Ava?"
Kurt furrowed his brow as he thought for a few moments. "See," he commented, "I may have been hesitant to talk about our relationship, but you've kept a safe distance. You still are."
"What?" she practically shouted.
"You never come along when I invite you to Colorado. You've never really even met my daughter. When Sarah and Sawyer came to visit, you didn't come by. If this is a real relationship, doesn't that mean we should be part of each other's lives?"
Jane nodded slowly, "I don't want to intrude on your time with Ava. You don't see her often."
"You're not intruding. I want you to be part of her life. I want her to be part of yours. I think…maybe this thing between us could last. I'm willing to find out. Are we diving in with both feet, or not?"
When Allie and Conor dropped Ava off, Jane was still there. They left after only a few minutes, and Kurt carried the baby over to the sofa and sat next to Jane. "Ava," he whispered, "this beautiful woman here is my girlfriend, Jane. Say hi."
Jane chuckled as he lifted the baby's arm as if she were trying to shake Jane's hand.
Jane didn't move, so Kurt asked, "Are you really going to leave this kid hanging?"
Humoring Kurt, Jane reached out to accept the handshake and the infant firmly grasped Jane's finger. "It's nice to meet you, Ava," Jane softly responded.
Kurt faced the tiny baby toward him and whispered conspiratorially, "I'm going to need you to be on your best behavior. No drugs, no joy riding, no crazy parties tonight, young lady." The baby grinned and cooed as if on cue, so Kurt added, "I am completely in love with this woman and we need to impress her…try to convince her to stick around. Now, lay on that Weller charm," he added, turning the girl to face Jane. "Can you seriously resist this face?" he asked Jane. "Clearly she has her father's good looks and charisma."
"Fortunately she didn't inherit your facial hair." Jane smiled at the girl, reaching out and rubbing a finger along the girl's cheek and chin and watching the baby grin at the gentle touch. "Your dad is charming and handsome, but he's also a little crazy," Jane smirked, whispering to Ava as if Kurt couldn't hear her. "I love him. A lot. But us girls are gonna have to stick together. If he thought it was bad seeing me go on a fake undercover date, I can't imagine how he's going to act when you go on a real one."
Kurt huffed and moved the child so she was facing him and asked, "You wouldn't do that to me? Would you?"
Ava giggled and babbled and he stood up and said, "Let's go, Rapunzel. Daddy's got a tower to build."