Authors Note: This one got away from me, and is longer than I origanaly intended. Thanks to Ebony10 for betaing for me. Next and last part will be up tommorow, reviews always apreciated.
Disclaimer: Not mine, not even close.
Teresa Lisbon pulled into the parking space at the mall and turned off her car. This was not what she had planned to do with her Saturday off, but she was here anyway. Jane had used the last of the lotion in her desk on Thursday and so she was here to buy more. She put her I-Pod on—she had no desire to be disturbed today. She was going to forget that she didn't want to be here and just let go off all the stress she had at work. She was going to enjoy herself.
She decided to head straight to the store she needed first, then she would look around. She knew that the lotion at Victoria's Secret wasn't the cheapest, but she liked the scents that they had. And it would give her a chance to look at the other things that the store sold. She'd never admit it to anyone, but she liked to wear the nicer things, even at work. It made her feel more feminine, which was helpful when she did such a masculine job.
She was almost there now, enjoying the fact that the music was blocking out the sounds of the screaming kids dragged here by their parents as well as the teenagers goofing off and hanging out. She almost stopped when she saw who was sitting on the bench right in front of the store. What was he doing here today of all days?
She knew it was he who had used the last of her lotion. He probably did it on purpose, knowing that she was going to have to come here to get more. Sometimes he could be such an ass. She decided to just ignore him. Maybe he wasn't waiting for her. Maybe he wouldn't try to follow her. Maybe he wouldn't see her. She knew it was pointless, but she hoped anyway.
She went into the store, not looking at Jane as she passed. She grabbed the lotion first. She wanted to make sure she had it in case she had to make a hasty retreat. When he didn't come in right away she decided that she was safe to look around. She was looking at some of the lingerie, trying to decide between red and blue when she felt someone come up behind her.
"Are you planning on wearing that to work? Because I would pay to see it." She felt his breath on her neck and had to suppress a shiver. There was no need for him to know that she regularly wore things like this to work. She couldn't stop the blush from rising in her checks.
"I was just looking, for your information. I had to come in and buy more lotion. Someone used all of mine." Teresa wasn't really mad, but she glared at him anyway.
"Hey, if you don't want people to use your lotion, don't leave it sitting on your desk." He had a boyish grin on his face. He knew she hadn't left it sitting on her desk and she told him that. Instead of apologizing he gave a flippant answer about having dry hands. He could be such an idiot at times, but that was one of the things she loved about him. Trying to ignore the fact that she had just admitted that she loved something about Jane, she quickly changed the subject.
"What are you doing in a woman's lingerie store anyway? Not hiding anything from the rest of the team are you?" She wasn't sure, but for just a second there it looked like he had been embarrassed. It didn't last long and she wasn't even sure she had seen it.
"No, I came into see if there was anything I could help you with. Any special occasions coming up that you are buying for?" Jane knew just what to say to make her blush and she could feel her face getting hot again.
She was trying to ignore him now, but it wasn't working. The sales lady come over and tried to get him to leave, but Jane being his normal charming self managed to embarrass Teresa even further and make the sales lady fall in love with him at the same time. She hated when he did that.
She decided that she just needed to pay and leave. There was no way she could buy anything else here today, not with Jane standing over her shoulder recommending colors. She paid quickly and left the store. She knew that Jane was going to try to follow her, so she attempted to hide behind a large couple on their way to the food court.
She had almost gotten away too when she heard him come up beside her. "Come to lunch with me."
She wasn't sure what she expected when she heard him coming up behind her, but that wasn't it. "I've already eaten lunch." She was lying, and she knew that Jane knew she was lying. Sure enough he didn't believe her.
"You're lying. It's just lunch. It won't kill you." He smiled at her again, always with that smile. It was going to be the death of her one day. She could feel herself giving in, but still felt the need to protest. No reason for him to win that easily.
"Rigsby and Van Pelt are eating lunch together." He said it as if that would help her make up her mind. She let him tell her how he knew that they were eating together. She knew that they were walking toward the food court, but didn't stop him. It was just lunch after all.
She noticed that they were now standing in front of Hot Dog on a Stick. "How do you know this is where I eat when I come here?"
Jane looked at her with a slight smile. "I didn't. This is where I always go. They have the best lemonade."
"I think you might just be psychic after all." She chuckled as they waited for their turn to order.
They stood at the counter "dressing" their dogs, "You eat yours with ketchup? What are you—like five?" Teresa asked.
"What's wrong with ketchup?" Jane asked putting even more on his tray than was necessary, as if to prove a point.
"Nothing is wrong with ketchup if you're a kid, but adults usually stick with mustard." She slathered her dog in mustard just to show that she was right.
"Well, most people would say that I remind them of a five year old, so it's ok." He grinned at her and went to sit down. They picked a table near Rigsby and Van Pelt. They wanted to see what they were going to do after lunch.
"Did you know that Cho and Rigsby have a bet going about whether we're involved in a relationship?" Teresa asked, not looking at Jane. She wanted to see his reaction, but didn't want him to see hers so it was best to not look at him.
"I did know that. The real question is how did you know?" Jane looked amused. Rarely did Lisbon know something like that. Maybe he was rubbing off on her.
"I'm psychic." She smiled at him and then said, "I overheard them talking."
"I knew there was no way you could have found out without someone telling you." She glared at him slightly. She wasn't really mad. It was the truth—she wasn't nearly as observant as he was.
"Hey, I think that they're looking at us," Lisbon said to change the subject. Jane looked up slightly, noticing that Rigsby whipped his head around and focused on Van Pelt with a little too much intensity.
"I think you're right. I bet Rigsby is trying to win his 100 bucks." He chuckled slightly. Lisbon looked at his face trying to figure out what he was thinking. She had an idea, but wasn't sure if he would go along with it. It was definitely something he would think of though, so he just might.
"Do you want to help him win?" she asked quickly so that she wouldn't lose her nerve. She looked at him hopefully.
"What did you have in mind?" He was careful to keep his face impassive. He wanted to hear what her plan was first.
"I bet they're planning to follow us. We could act like we're in a relationship. It could be fun." She could feel herself blushing and silently cursed her pale skin that showed every little color change. She made a mental note to try and get a little bit of a tan. It would help.
"I think you're right. It could be fun. We should start right now." He reached across the table and grabbed her hand. He held it gently for a few moments and rubbed his thumb across the back of it.
She was tempted to pull away. Any kind of touching by Jane was dangerous. There was no telling what he might be trying to do. Still, this had been her idea and she actually liked him holding her hand. "You have a little mustard on your face," Jane said breaking into her thoughts.
Teresa pulled her hand away from his to reach up and wipe it off. "Missed it," said Jane, "Here let me." He reached up and brushed his thumb along the corner of her mouth and bottom lip. "Got it." He said, wiping his hand on a napkin.
"Um, thanks," she said, absentmindedly reaching up and tracing the path that he had just seconds earlier. Maybe this hadn't been such a good idea. They sat at the table for a few more minutes. Lisbon was trying to figure out what they could do at the mall all day that would convince Rigsby and Van Pelt that they were in a relationship. "There are a few more things I needed to do today here at the mall if you'd like to join me," Teresa said eventually.
"I'd love to." Jane smiled at her and stood up. He grabbed the tray and took it to the trash. When he came back, Teresa also stood up. To her surprise, Jane grabbed her hand as they started walking. "We have to sell it," he said when Teresa looked down at his hand.
They walked through the mall. Teresa was slightly leading them to the store she needed. She was slowly getting used to the feeling of Jane's hand in hers. She liked it. "I need to get a birthday gift for my brother and a gift for a friend's baby shower."
"What did you have in mind for your brother?" Jane glanced over his shoulder slightly. "They're still following us." He mumbled. He pulled Teresa's hand up and brushed his lips against her knuckles.
She blushed faintly. "What was that for?"
"I'm just trying to sell it." He said quietly. "So where are we going?"
"I think we can get both of the gifts taken care of at the Disney Store."
"What are you going to get for a twenty-five year old at the Disney Store?" Jane sounded amused.
"It's an ongoing joke between me and him. We both get each other something for our birthdays that we would have wanted when we were a kid. I'm thinking that I could get him a toy of some sort."
They had reached the store at this point and went in. The baby shower gift was easy. Teresa picked out a pair of pajamas that had Mickey on them, and a shorts outfit with Winnie the Pooh on it. "Your friend is having a boy?" Jane asked while looking at some of the toys on display.
"She is." Teresa wasn't really paying attention. She was looking at the men's clothing now, trying to decide if she should get her brother a t-shirt as well as a gag gift. She noticed out of the corner of her eye that Rigsby and Van Pelt had decided to stay outside of the store and were currently sitting on a bench that was right in front of the entrance.
"Hey, Lisbon, check it out!" Jane called to her from across the store. He had been looking at the small toys and trinkets by the registers. "It lights up and spins," he said as she came towards him. In his hands he held a plastic Buzz Lightyear toy with wires and lights sticking out of his neck. When Jane squeezed its legs together, the lights lit up and spun around in circles.
"No good. I got him one of those last year. He still has it. He was playing with it the last time I visited. What do you think about this?" Lisbon held up a Peter Pan play set, complete with hat and tights.
"Is he supposed to be able to wear that?" Jane laughed slightly.
"It's a gag gift. He's supposed to open it and laugh. It's Peter Pan, the boy who never grew up."
"I know, but maybe you could get him a gag gift he could actually use."
"Like what?"
Jane looked around and walked over to a large pile of stuffed animals and pulled out a rather large stuffed Eeyore. "What about this?"
"I have to ship it. I would like to pay less in shipping than for the actual gift." She walked over and started to look through the animals as well. "What the heck is this supposed to be?" She asked, holding up a strange looking gray animal with four arms, two feet, two antennas and two ears.
"That is experiment six two six, otherwise known as Stitch. He was in a Disney movie named "Lilo and Stitch" that came out in 2002. It was about an alien that lands in Hawaii. The movie didn't do so well in theaters, but now has several sequels and a TV show on Disney Channel."
Teresa looked at him like he was crazy, "How do you know that? Are you some sort of Disney genius?"
"No." was all he said. She was about to make a flippant remark about his answer when she realized that the movie had come out before Red John had killed his family. His daughter would have been the right age for the movie. She was going to say something about it when he reached into the pile and pulled out another doll.
"This is Lilo, his owner. She thought he was a dog." The doll was a little girl in a flower print dress with a big nose and long black hair.
"I think I'll get these. I wonder if I can still get the movie. That would make a nice combo, the dolls and the movie." She was still concerned about Jane's mood and so, on her way to the movie selection, gave Jane a gentle push into the pile of stuffed animals. His reflexes were better than she thought, however, and Jane pulled her down with him.
The landed with a thump in the pile of dolls, most of which went flying. They were laughing hysterically. They stayed on the ground for a few minutes until Teresa realized that Jane still had his arm around her waist. She turned her head to look at him and noticed how incredibly close they were. "Jane," she said nervously, "What are you doing?"
"I don't think they're watching us anymore." Whatever answer she had been expecting, that had not been it. She lifted her head up slightly and looked out the window to the store. Van Pelt and Rigsby were still sitting on the bench, but they were a lot closer than they had been before. As she was watching, she saw Rigsby lean in and kiss Van Pelt. It was little more than a peck, but it was enough for her to stop watching.
"No, I don't think that they are." She turned back to Jane and noticed that his face was now just inches from hers. "Jane," she was practically whispering. She knew he was going to kiss her. She could see it in his eyes. She leaned in.
"You two need to clean up this mess of leave." She silently cursed the bad timing of the salesman who chose that moment to come over and notice the mess they had made.
"Sorry." She mumbled under her breath, standing up and offering her hand to Jane to pull him up too. They quickly put all the stuffed animals back into the big pile. Teresa remembered to grab the Lilo and Stitch dolls and they walked up to the counter to pay.
"Can I get the movie that these two are from?" She asked the salesman behind the counter. It was the same one who had come over and gotten mad at them for making the mess. To her surprise, he didn't act mad now and gladly told her that the special edition was coming out. He continued to inform her that she could preorder it and have it shipped to her brother.
They walked right by the bench that Rigsby and Van Pelt were sitting on, much closer now than they had been before, and stopped just a few feet away. "Let's go to a movie." Teresa looked at Jane, not sure she had heard him right.
"You want to go to a movie?" She asked.
"Why not? I know I haven't been to a real movie in ages and I know you haven't been to one either. It won't hurt."
It wasn't that she thought it was going to hurt, but she hadn't been to a movie in so long. She just decided to go for it. "Sure, why not, have any suggestions?"
They walked toward the movie theater talking about the movies that were playing. They didn't notice that Rigsby and Van Pelt got up and followed them or that they were holding hands. Jane and Teresa also didn't realize that they too were holding hands. They had been doing it so much today that they didn't even realize they were doing it.