Beer and Conversation

Natalie sat at a closed Rodi's spinning the bottle of beer she held in her hands as she watched John lean against the stocked shelves across from her as he drank from his own bottle. "How'd we get here again?" she wondered as she brought her bottle up to her lips.

"Damned if I know," he replied with a smirk as he leveled away from the counter and went to throw away his bottle. "Want another?"

"Sure. Why not?" Natalie shrugged as she slid him her empty bottle. "Why here and not the roof?" she asked him.

Not looking up at her he muttered an answer of "too cold.'

"Too… oh hell no! You did not do Blair Witch on our roof!"

"Technically…"

"Don't even, John!"

"You telling me you didn't do Banks up there?" he asked her as he slid her a new bottle.

"Umm… let me think," she started sarcastically. "Hell no! That was our place!"

"Yeah, well, it's not like it was the same," he told her as he took his place across from her up again.

"Oh really?" she asked as she brought the bottle to her lips.

"It was just…"

"Just what?" she spit out.

"Sex," he admitted. "That ok with you?"

Sipping her beer, she cocked her head to the side and took his measure: "doesn't make it ok. But I'll deal."

"Like you have a choice?"

Natalie rolled her eyes: "so what's going on with you two anyway?"

"Nothing."

"Riiight."

"She slept with Manning. Told her if she continued with the games with him that was it," he admitted grudgingly.

"Puh-lease. If it was just sex you wouldn't give a damn," she pushed.

"Maybe I don't want anything she could be carrying," John threw back at her.

"Should of thought of that one before you slept with her the first dozen times," she shot back with a sweet smile before taking a swig of her beer, causing him to spit out the mouthful he had just taken. "Come on. Tell the truth. Your decision has more to do with the whole Marty/Wes thing, doesn't it?"

"I'm not a cop anymore," he told her gruffly as he wiped his mouth with the sleeve of his shirt.

"Well it wouldn't be the first time your trying to get Marty of a murder rap broke up your relationship."

"She wasn't why we broke up."

"She certainly didn't help."

John shook his head as he gulped down the rest of his beer. "So what's up with you and Banks?" he decided to ask, hoping to distract her from his entanglements.

Natalie shrugged: "not really sure. He claims long hours at his so called new job…" she told him as she started playing with her now empty beer bottle.

"But…" he asked, knowing she wasn't telling him everything.

"Company's never heard of him."

"Idiot," John bit out.

"Hey, at least he figured out I didn't write that letter and was in trouble," Natalie pointed out. "Thanks for that one, by the way."

"I was distracted."

"Yeah, by St. Marty the not so dead martyr," she groused.

"How many times do you want me to apologize for that, Natalie?"

"You know, once would be nice."

"You know…"

"'I'm not good with words.' Yeah, yeah, yeah. Think I've heard that one a few million times."

John shook his head with slight amusement. "I think you need to be cut off."

"That's not what I need," she shot back sweetly.

Gulping at her meaning, he chuckled slightly: "then why are you still wearing his ring?'

"Hell if I know!"

"Why'd you say yes?"

"Because he asked? Because it's what people expected after we got out of the room? To prove a point? Take your pick, because I don't know and I don't particularly care at the moment!" she answered with slight embarrassment.

John stared at her in surprise: "would any of those have been the only reason?"

"You're a real prick, you know that?" Natalie shot back annoyance clear in her voice.

"So you have a tendency of pointing out. And I know that wouldn't have been…"

"Then why ask?"

"Maybe I just needed to hear the words."

"There were a hell of a lot of words that I needed to hear that you never said."

"You knew them anyway," he shrugged.

"Just like you already knew the answer to that stupid question."

"So where does that leave us?" he wondered aloud.

"You taking Blair or Marty back into your bed?"

"You taking off Banks ring?"

Smirking, Natalie pushed off the stool and to her feet as she pulled off her engagement ring and tossed it into an empty ashtray.

"Nice tip."

"That's not the tip," Natalie remarked cheekily as she rounded the bar to stand next to him. "Where to?"

He smirked as he took in her mood and stance as he decided to take her up on her challenge: "How about I get you over your fear of basements?"

"How… I'm killing Gigi!"

John laughed at her outrage: "well, if she hadn't of let that little tidbit slip I wouldn't have put a little something down there in storage."

"Like you knew I'd- we'd- be doing this. Or was that your plan? Lure me here and get me drunk!"

"On beers? Give me a little bit credit than that. I wanted to get you drunk it would've been tequila."

"Oh, please I can drink you under a table!"

"We'll test that out another night. For now, I want you on a certain other table."

"Excuse me?" Natalie asked, fringing indignation.

John indicated the pool tables in the corner of the bar with a swipe of his hands: "those are new. Ours is downstairs."

"Such a romantic," Natalie laughed.

"So?"

"Well, it just might be worth the fear."

"I'll keep the boogie man away," he reassured her.

"I thought you were the boogie man in this equation," she her teasing turning into a squeal as he pulled her into his arms and started kissing her neck.

"Well, the monsters anyway."

"Mmmm… so tempting."

"You don't know half of what I have in store for you."

"Well, I guess you'll just have to show me."

"With pleasure…"