The impatient ringing of the kitchen phone jolted Lisa awake. Her father was out of town for a few days and groaning, she realized there was no one else around to pick it up. Drowsily, she clawed for the alarm clock to see the time. It was only 5AM; she didn't have to be up for work for another hour. Completely agitated, Lisa ran for the phone.

"Hello?" she asked in an annoyed tone.

"Lisa? It's Detective Daly... We need to talk."

Lisa groaned loudly into the phone. Probably yet another round of meticulous questioning, she thought. She was beginning to think that perhaps Daly had a crush on her... he always concluded every round of questioning with asking her out to drinks.

"Lisa?"

"Umm, yeah I'm here. What time do you want me to come in? I have work at 7:30," she answered impatiently.

Daly chuckled a bit before saying, "You know how it is. As soon as possible."

Within forty-five minutes Lisa was showered and out the door, on her way to meet up with Daly at a nearby diner for "breakfast".

Lisa knew Daly was a nice guy, and it didn't hurt that he was very attractive and very available, but these constant questionings were getting old. Her coworker and friend Cynthia would giggle every time Daly showed up at the hotel to ask Lisa questions. She'd follow around Lisa for the rest of the day, practically singing her suggestions. You should go out with him the next time he asks. He's sooo cute! And I don't see any wedding ring on his hand!

Cynthia unsuccessfully tried getting Lisa back in the dating game, setting her up with her boyfriend's balding best friend Louie. Twenty minutes after picking Lisa up, he had already "accidentally" grazed her breasts five times. After that date, Lisa decided to lay low for a while and just take it easy. Cynthia had calmed down a bit but again was pushing Lisa to date the Detective.

Detective Ryan Daly was very tall. He had chestnut-colored hair and eyes the color of the sea. Sometimes they appeared to be green, when other times Lisa would swear they were blue. He had a muscular build and looked athletic, but you'd know he didn't have to spend too much time at the gym. He was just one of those naturally perfect looking guys, and it made sense that he'd decide to be a detective. He was extremely intelligent and his wit and drive helped him to become one of the most successful detectives around. Lisa was impressed by his abilities and intelligence and was attracted to him physically as well, but her fear would answer for her whenever he asked her to join him for dinner.

Lisa made it to the diner and reluctantly went inside. She spotted Daly instantly, sitting in a corner booth scanning the menu. She made her way over and slid into the booth.

"Good morning," she said as if it were anything but. Daly looked up at her and smiled, obviously pleased with her presence. He gestured the waiter over and ordered them two coffees.

"So," Lisa began, "what's this all about?"

Daly slowly took his silverware out of the napkin and placed the napkin onto his lap before answering her. He averted his eyes, never once making contact with hers.

"I know about your little visit to the prison yesterday."

Lisa sighed. She was incredibly tired of people feeling like they had to take care of her. She beat a contract killer, for God's sake. Couldn't they give her a little credit?

"And?" she asked with a rebellious tone, reminding herself of a teenager.

She couldn't help it; this whole thing was getting old.

"We asked you not to. It makes our job difficult. There are a lot of people out there who still believe you were in on it with Jackson. Ridiculous, I know, but people are stupid. We're out there doing damage control and you're visiting the guy. It doesn't help our case much. I can't even imagine why you'd want to see the guy after everything he did to you."

Daly was red in face, obviously annoyed at Lisa's disregard for the government's hard work.

She sighed for what seemed like the millionth time today. "Detective Daly, you don't know me. You don't know what I'm about. Stop thinking for me. I wanted to find closure and felt that a visit to him would help. Is that so hard to believe?"

"But Lisa," Daly said quickly, "I do know you. I care for you. I am truly worried about you and I don't want to see any more harm come your way. I'm just watching out for you, I'm sorry if that upsets you. And although it upsets me to upset you, I cannot stop watching out for you." His face was still red but Lisa could tell that this time it was from embarrassment.

Lisa eased up a bit and said, "Yeah, I know Detective. I may not show it but I really am appreciative for everything you've done for me. And don't worry- I won't be visiting Jackson Rippner anymore."

Daly smiled and met her eyes. "Good."

Their steaming coffee arrived and while drinking it, they made small talk. When Daly walked her to her car, Lisa realized she enjoyed his company much more than she realized. He truly was a gentleman.

As she opened her door and prepared to sit down, he said gently, "Uh Lisa, there's something else I wanted to say."

Lisa turned around and waited patiently while Daly's face contorted through various emotions, struggling to get the words out. "W-would you like to have dinner with me tonight? After you get off work?"

Lisa smiled, giving in, and agreed to meet with him at 8:00 that night. She got in her car and hummed a song to herself as she drove to work, happy that some good came out of her visit with Jackson.

The day passed by quickly and Lisa found herself looking forward to her dinner with Detective Daly. Ryan. He frequently asked her to call him that but only now could she call him that in her thoughts.

Cynthia was enthusiastic about her date. "This is so great Lisa! I'm so happy for you. This is exactly what you need: a nice date with a great, stable guy." Lisa laughed, happy that she seemed to finally be doing something right.

Lisa got off at 6 and ran home to change into something a little more attractive. She chose a silk green dress with a beige-colored cardigan to go over it. She hoped this would bring out the green of her eyes. She applied her makeup quickly but expertly and, with a quick approving glance in the mirror, rushed out of the house to meet up with Ryan. It felt good to have a reason to look good again.

The restaurant he had picked was very elegant. Lisa began to worry that maybe she wasn't exactly dressed up enough for it but she had no time to go back and change now. She left her car with the valet and rushed into the restaurant. She informed the maitre de that she was here with Ryan. He escorted her over to a dim-lit corner table where Ryan was anxiously waiting for her. His eyes lit up when he saw her, and Lisa smiled at the attention. She sat into the chair across from him and smiled at him.

"Lisa, wow. You look wonderful."

"Thanks, Detective Daly." Ryan winced and Lisa said quickly, "Oh, I'm sorry. Habit, you know. Thank you, Ryan."

Ryan smiled and poured champagne into Lisa's glass.

"Champagne, huh? You know how to impress a girl." Lisa giggled as she picked up the glass and took a big sip. She hoped she sounded more confident than she felt.

Ryan laughed politely. "I'm really glad you came tonight, Lisa. I've wanted to get you out for some time."

Lisa smiled. "Isn't this a conflict of interest?" she asked teasingly. He laughed and seductively sipped at his champagne.

Lisa kept nervously searching for some topic of conversation but Ryan would respond with one word answers. Then the two would return to silence, with Ryan's eyes boring into Lisa's.

Finally, Ryan lowered his eyes and blurted out, "Lisa, about what you said before, about this being a conflict of interest- I don't think my boss would be too understanding if he knew I had you out on a date, but I don't care. I'm really attracted to you. I know it's bold of me to say all this to you, especially after the ordeal you've been through. We don't have to be serious or anything, but I do want to give you some pleasure and take you out every now and then. As long as it's okay with you."

Lisa blushed, embarrassed but intrigued by what he said. Lisa stared at her hands for a while and played with the glass of champagne in front of her. When she looked up at Ryan, his eyes were searching her face for some sort of answer.

Lisa smiled and said, "I'd love to spend time with you, Ryan. We've been having a good time tonight and I really feel safe with you."

Ryan finally exhaled, relieved by her answer. His smile was ear to ear as he reached across for her hand and kissed it tenderly.

The pair left arm in arm and laughed like teenagers. Both were a little tipsy, but Lisa was much closer to drunk than Ryan was. He insisted upon driving her home, promising to take her back to her car in the morning. Lisa was uncomfortable with this situation but, always practical, she knew she couldn't drive herself home.

The two were silent on the way back to Lisa's father's house. They let the radio do all the talking. The silence was a comfortable one and Lisa mused to herself that it felt almost like they'd always been together.

When they arrived at Joe Riesert's house, Ryan rushed out of the car to open the door for Lisa. Lisa giggled and reached out for the hand he had extended toward her. He put his other arm around her waist and led her toward the door. Lisa fumbled around for her keys and with an embarrassed grin, finally pulled them out of her bag. The front door opened with a creak and Lisa looked back at Ryan, unsure of what to do. They had had a great time but she didn't want to rush things. As much as she wanted to invite him in for coffee, she felt she wasn't ready yet. He just smiled sweetly at her and leaned in to kiss her cheek. She smiled at him, grateful that he understood.

"I had a great time tonight, Lisa. I'll call you tomorrow morning."

He turned and walked toward his car. He turned back and smiled at her one more time before getting in and driving away.

Lisa watched his car until he turned at the end of the street. She sighed and walked into the empty house, locking the door behind her. She leant back against the door, smiling as she replayed the night's events.

Not all men are bad, she thought.