The layover in Atlanta was two hours, which Lisbon, instead of cursing, thought was a miracle considering it took them 45 minutes to find their gate. Once they had sat down she laid into Jane.
"This is ridiculous," she told him as he closed his eyes to wait for the plane. "How'd I even get talked into this?"
"Shh," he told her, mumbling. "I'm trying to sleep."
She gave a curse. "I know good and well you don't sleep."
He opened his eyes. "And I don't know how many times it's told to you but just because I don't sleep doesn't mean I don't need to try."
"You're just trying to sleep so you can avoid me but I'm onto you, mister."
"I'm not avoiding you now, Lisbon," he said in soothing voice.
"I don't know how you talked me into this but I don't want to do it anymore."
He raised his eyebrows. "What do you mean?"
She gestured about her wildly. "You just jumped me yesterday about this trip and it's my fault for letting it go this far but I'm wanting to drop this charade."
He sat up a little more to look better at her. "What do you mean, Lisbon?"
She nearly looked desperate. "I want to go home, Jane."
"Why?"
"Why?" she repeated. "One takes a trip with a lover not a coworker for one."
"We'll get back to that one. What else?"
"Ireland, Jane? A foreign country? Really?"
"I've family there, remember," he told her. "And I've been there several times before. You'll be fine. Anything else?"
Lisbon frowned. "Isn't that enough?"
He gave her a smile. "You have a problem with us being just coworkers?"
She saw something in his face and backed up a little. "Well, you have to admit it's not appropriate."
"Would you rather us be more than coworkers?" he asked, blandly.
"What? No! What?" was her response.
Jane chuckled. "Lisbon, this trip we are friends. Just stick with that mentality."
She took a deep breath and grabbed his forearm for support. "What are we going to be doing?" she asked.
"For a small portion I will be signing away my rights to the Jane Malone. But we are also going sightseeing and visiting my cousins."
Tired as she was she laid her head on his strong shoulder as she wrapped her arm around his. "Maura was your mom's sister, right?"
"Right," he confirmed. "And, though her husband Malone is dead they have three sons to survive them."
"Michael, Shea, and Brannon," she answered.
"Shea you've met. Brannon is more laid back, everything rolls off his back. Michael is the business man, always serious."
"And looks exactly like you."
He shifted his head to look down at her. "I hope you can tell us apart," he told her.
She turned her head to look up. "One's completely serious and one never is. I think I can handle that."
"I can be serious," he argued as an attendant began to make announcements for their flight.
"Oh, no. I might take the wrong man home since I can't tell their accents apart. What ever will I do?" she said, sarcastically.
"And to think," Jane said as they were called to their seats. "I was afraid for the moment he might want to come home with you."
She made a face at him. "You know, you think you're really cute but you really aren't."
"It's all in perception, my dear."
