Walter couldn't sleep.
It was a two-and a-half-hour flight from Los Angeles to Texas, where the aid was originating. Depending on the obstacles they encountered, the trip could extend to five or six days, or longer. While the promised payment was more than sufficient for that period of time, the thought of Drew caring for Ralph for nearly a week displeased him.
Ralph was, biologically, Drew's child. Far be it for Walter to debate the science of genetics. And the young genius had proven his ability to thrive even under the care of sitters, teachers, and other adults who failed to understand him. Drew was no different than anyone else whose ignorance Ralph was forced to rise above.
But Ralph's sitters didn't throw Walter into chaos every time they showed up. They didn't make him fear losing the two most valuable relationships in his life.
He felt more like a dad to Ralph now than any time in the past. When the three of them were in Paige's apartment, eating spaghetti and discussing a case, they were a family. When he accompanied Paige to one of her son's presentations, and they held hands while watching Ralph proudly, they were a family. When Ralph fainted at school, and they waited in tense silence in the waiting room of the hospital until the doctor assuaged their fears, they were a family.
Walter knew Ralph saw it that way, too. But Ralph's excitement over Drew's sudden reappearance—one Paige had barely trusted the man to make—still shook him.
Paige shifted slightly, and Walter balanced his tablet on one knee while checking to make sure she was comfortable. Despite a patch of mild turbulence, which Walter was sure would frighten her, given their history, she'd fallen asleep soundly an hour earlier. Her head was on his shoulder, and he could hear her steady breathing if he concentrated on it. His arm was starting to cramp between them and he stretched it with as little movement as possible before sliding it around to her back. Rather than distracting him, her close proximity centered him and allowed him greater focus. He knew conditions were not ideal between them, that she needed time, that he made mistakes and so had she, but god, he missed holding her like this.
In more private circumstances, he would've kissed her head and surrendered to sleep with her. But he couldn't relax when a former Navy SEAL was sitting six feet away, going over a report with Cabe and casting sideways glances at Paige far too frequently.
She'd hardly mentioned the trainee after their relationship ended, and virtually never once she and Walter were together. He couldn't complain about that. It was history, a footnote in her life just as Linda was in his. But now he realized how many questions were left unanswered. He had no idea if it was amicable or contentious, if it had been her decision or if she was blindsided, if there was unfinished business between them. Their interactions seemed mostly polite and detached, but Walter could be missing the subtext. He often did.
He swallowed, refocusing on the shipment schedules in front of him. There was no time to dwell on his concerns. They had a job to do.
Paige blinked, shutting her eyes tightly when a stream of bright light fell through the window. She felt like she'd been sleeping for hours. Vaguely, she recalled passing out on Walter's shoulder, but he was on the other side of the plane, engrossed in a map with Sylvester and Happy. Her hand traversed the hard ledge until it reached the pillow underneath her head, and she smiled as she realized that the genius must have left it there, along with the sweatshirt draped over her side.
She hadn't meant to be out of commission for so long. It wasn't even noon yet. But there was a great deal of scrambling to get the apartment ready the night before when Drew confirmed that he was flying in—without arousing Ralph's suspicions—along with a few hours of restlessly staring at the ceiling, wondering if she was doing the right thing. The trip was planned to introduce Ralph to Natalie, Drew's girlfriend of about eight months. That was nearly derailed when Drew called to inform Paige that he and Natalie had broken up, but he sounded so distraught that Paige thought spending time with Ralph would be beneficial for him anyway. Allowing him to stay at the apartment wasn't part of the original itinerary, but she had to think about what would be best for her son, not just for herself.
She still didn't know if she'd done that. It killed her to leave, just as much as it killed her to send Ralph away to Portland for a week. While she had no doubt that he was physically safe with his father, Drew never quite succeeded in connecting with him mentally or emotionally. But it would only be a few days. Perhaps they would shock her and achieve some sort of breakthrough.
Paige did know it wasn't fair to spring everything on Walter that way. He was extraordinarily protective of Ralph and unlikely to ever fully trust or respect Drew. It was true that she didn't see the point in dredging it up if Drew's visit fell through, but maybe she'd also just wanted to spare herself a difficult conversation. Maybe she didn't want her choices questioned. For eleven years, the only voice in her son's life was hers. Tim never dared to challenge her when it came to Ralph, but Walter was…different. Since day one, he hadn't hesitated to stand up to Paige if he thought he knew better. Sometimes he did. Sometimes he didn't. It was never easy to hear, especially if she was already doubting herself.
They were supposed to be partners. But Walter wasn't the only person who could push someone away when things got complicated.
She yawned and fumbled for her phone. No missed calls meant nothing serious had happened yet. Fortunately, the team wouldn't need her until they were on the ground, so she had a little more time to rest before they landed. There were dozens of people involved in the supply chain, any one of whom could be intentionally or unintentionally sabotaging the aid shipments. She was better at spotting a lie than the geniuses were, and if they suspected someone, they weren't likely to be tactful about it. She needed to be on her game so she could do what she did best and keep the peace. It was a significant undertaking and they needed all the allies they could find.
"We're landing in twenty minutes."
So much for that. Paige dragged her hand over her face, wondering how long Tim had been sitting there. "Thanks."
"Yeah." But he didn't move, just hunched forward slightly and clasped his hands together between his knees. "Uh, sorry about…earlier. That was rude. I was caught off guard." He met her eyes and shrugged. "Though I probably shouldn't have been."
In her grogginess, it took a second for Paige to understand what he was referring to. She shot a glance at Walter, who was deep in a conversation with the mechanic that she couldn't hear over the din of the plane. She wondered whether Tim still would have come back if he'd known. "Thanks." She could just leave it at that, but the elephant in the cabin was trumpeting too loudly for her to ignore. "What are you doing here, Tim?"
"I was checking in on some of the guys from Homeland, and I ran into Cabe. He suggested—."
"No." Paige shook her head, cutting him off. "You knew this would be awkward. You have limited time in the U.S. Why are you here?"
Tim pressed his lips together, a long silence falling between them. She'd almost given up on an answer when he sighed. "If circumstances were different, I would've stayed with Scorpion. I meant it when I said that I care about the work you guys do. I saw another shot at that and I took it." He rubbed the back of his neck with one hand. "If you're asking whether I'm here for you, then no. But it is nice to see you. And Ralph."
Paige wasn't so vain as to assume that he was there to win her back. They both knew that would never work. But she wasn't sure she completely believed his explanation, either. "No trouble then?"
Tim raised his eyebrows, clearly surprised by the warning in her voice. But things were already threatening to crumble around her in ten different directions and she wasn't in the mood to play nice. "Sure. No trouble."