Her eyes widened as she processed what he had said, his soothing tone, the depth of feeling his eyes seemed to show - in that moment she felt surrounded by more love and warmth than she could remember. It was both comforting and confusing, and spoke to a desire she had been denying even to herself… but most of all it was all-encompassing. She swallowed and closed her eyes, wanting to keep the moment for as long as she could. No secrets or painful revelations, only love. She was physically and emotionally exhausted, gripped by a deep-down tiredness that binds people who have been alone for too long.
He seemed to understand without her having to say anything; when he drew her gently to his shoulder she didn't resist, only savored the feeling of his strong arms around her, his soft kiss on her hair. She wanted answers so badly, but, she thought foggily, he had been right – she didn't even know what she wanted to ask him yet. She had a feeling that the only concrete question she had so far was being answered right at that very moment, in the way he spoke to her, held her. And that was enough. At least for tonight.
In the shadows outside the motel room window, Tom Keen's eyes were glazed with fury as he watched his wife lean into the arms of another man. And not just another man - Reddington. The man who had put him in her life and then told him to keep his distance. The man who had shown him just how good his miserable, dangerous life could be and made him watch what he couldn't have from the shadows. And when he finally got that life, Reddington had poisoned her mind and corrupted everything they had shared together. But none of that was worse than knowing that she had gone willingly into the arms of someone so much darker than Tom had ever been.
The pain of that was unbearable. Tom had spent years feeling unworthy of her, trying to be good for her, trying to put the blood he had spilled behind him, to bury the darkest part of himself, just so he could make love to her without picturing the women who had died at his hand. And now she knew who he really was, he had helped her, confessed to the harbor master's murder and stayed for her, hoping against hope that she might be able to accept his past.
She was so different now from when they married. The job had changed her, he had thought, possibly into someone who could love him for who he really was. His time spent as her captive may have been bleak, but it had also taught him to hope. He knew the real reason she hadn't killed him was because she still loved him, and he clung to it like air in his lungs. It also showed that there was darkness in her too, perhaps a place where their souls could connect for real.
After Reddington's shooting, Tom had come to her more and more frequently, unable to stay away, offering her information just so he could spend time with her as himself after years of playing a part. He studied her each time she looked at him, for a sign that they could move on together. Now the moment had finally come where he thought they were connecting, and he arrived at her motel to find her with him, a man so corrupt he would destroy her, utterly devour her until there was nothing left of the woman he fell in love with.
He wouldn't nurture her goodness like Tom had, no. He would expose her to the worst the world had to offer until she finally broke, and Tom wouldn't let it happen. He turned away from the window, his breathing quickening as a plan began to formulate in his head. Tom Keen was going to fight for his marriage the only way he knew how.
In the motel room Red leaned slowly back against the pillows, gently bringing Lizzie's tired head to rest on his chest near the spot where the bullet had entered him weeks earlier. He stroked her softly between her shoulders with his thumb, and marveled to himself that he felt no pain for the first time in days, as though her very touch was healing him. He couldn't lose her now. The thought gripped him as he remembered the reason for his visit; the specter of Tom Keen was not only putting her in danger, it was also an impediment to this – whatever this was.
Deep down he knew he should leave now and never see her again. She deserved so much more than him, and the peril a life with him would bring. He also knew human nature well enough to recognize the danger in the feelings he had for her. Once she gave herself to him – and he knew that she eventually would - he would never let her go. God, Sam would roll over in his grave if he knew the thoughts Red was having about his little girl. He opened his mouth to do the right thing, to explain, to tell her she was better off without either Tom or him. But when the words came out, all he said was
"Promise me Lizzie. You must never see Tom Keen again."
She stirred against him and murmured, half asleep.
"I promise Red. I trust you. For some reason I don't know why, I trust you."