A/N: Thank you to all who wrote reviews to my first attempt at fanfic writing. I especially want to thank MentalistLover13 who gave me ideas for two more chapters. In return, I invite you to join me once again in my Pike-free AU, still taking place inside the Violets episode. I will be making an attempt at a 3rd chapter at some point. Hopefully this will provide a respite for us tortured souls watching the insanity unfold during what could be the final episodes of the show.

Jane awoke a few hours later and it took him a moment to figure out where he was. It was dark in the room, except for the light of a nearby clock that read 2:15. He looked next to him and was able to make out that Lisbon was asleep with her head on his arm. Then he remembered. The undercover mission. The party house. He remembered lying down on the couch while he was waiting for Lisbon to get ready for bed and check in with their coworkers for the night. He was looking forward to spending a night in the same house as Lisbon, hoping the time together be a step on the path towards getting their relationship back to the way it was before he'd left for South America. He missed how comfortable they used to be with each other.

He hadn't intended to fall asleep, but setting up the undercover mission had made the day chaotic and exhausting. If he had woken up on the couch downstairs, he would have been kicking himself for blowing the opportunity to spend some time alone with Lisbon. But he wasn't still downstairs. Lisbon had woken him up. He had still been half asleep as she explained why she wanted him to join her, but her message had come across. She was concerned about him. She cared about him. She wanted to help him start moving forward from the tragedy that had come to define him the last 13 years. She was willing to stay with him through the struggle of it all.

What was thoroughly amusing, though, is that Jane wasn't as stuck as Lisbon thought. He had set up a few of the details of the undercover mission with a similar purpose in mind. He had started to think about what he wanted the rest of his life to look like. Even if the next five years were dominated by FBI cases, he needed a plan for when that was over – assuming he managed to not get himself killed along the way. Did he really want to spend the rest of his life alone? He was growing weary of it. And the two years he'd spent in South America had really shown him how important Lisbon was to his life. He'd missed her so much it hurt. Writing the letters was the best he could do to alleviate the pain, but it wasn't enough. He wanted to hear her voice again, spend time with her, even touch her. Was he in love with her? Maybe. It wasn't something he'd really allowed himself to think about during the decade of hunting Red John. But he couldn't force himself to ignore the questions in his mind during the quiet isolation of his exile.

He still wasn't sure if he was really ready for this. He really didn't think he was ready to discuss it with Lisbon. So he'd set up a test run in the undercover mission. An evening where he could live the experience of being in a romantic relationship with her. Even the detail of being a dating couple instead of a married couple was deliberate, so he could see how he felt having his wedding ring off without everyone around him making a big deal out of it. And the strangest thing about it, was that it hadn't been strange at all. During the party, the "couple behavior" had felt so natural. The little touches in passing, an occasional arm around her waist, a kiss or two in her hair. God, she smelled great. The exact same smell he'd held in his memories during the countless empty hours of his two years in exile. When he'd felt lonely (which was often) he'd relive the good times he'd had with people he cared about. Most of the memories centered around Lisbon, but there were some that were of the whole team. He'd never intended to get attached to people again after what happened to his family, but to some extent, he couldn't help himself. He cared about them all. It warmed his heart to learn from Lisbon how dedicated they all had been to helping him. Even in the impossible situation of the stand-off with the FBI, guns drawn, they had fought for him. Even though it went completely against their responsibilities in law enforcement. And now, tonight, Lisbon lay sleeping beside him, for the sole purpose of getting his ass in gear, and letting him know that he didn't have to be alone for any of it. Who was he to deserve such dedication? He didn't know, but he was grateful for it even so. He still couldn't resist teasing her a little about her drooling, but he had felt her smile against his arm and she didn't hit him so it couldn't have been that bad. Jane made a decision – in the morning, he would tell her what was going on in his head. No more evasiveness. She deserved at least that.

Carefully, Jane turned on his side so he could watch Lisbon sleep. She stirred a bit when he moved and he took advantage of her movement to shift his arm so it was under her neck instead of her head. A lock of hair fell across her face. He gently smoothed it back and moved a little closer to her, letting his hand come to rest on her waist. He was close enough to feel her breath on his face. Lulled by her warmth and the slow rhythm of her breathing, Jane drifted back off to sleep.