Chapter Four – The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

Before long all four were engulfed in enjoying their basket of heaven. The fries were thick, piping hot, and absolutely delicious.

"These are to die for," Emily said as she popped another perfectly salted fry in her mouth.

"Like I said. Good beer and great fries. What more could you want?" Olivia grinned back.

"I could always get you all another round."

All four women glanced up to find a man who could fit every category of tall, dark, and handsome. He was grinning down at them, apparently thinking he had a good chance. Oh how wrong he was. The girls glanced at each other and grinned.

"Unless you feel like buying without anything in return, I don't think you'd want to," JJ told him.

"I won't know unless I try," he responded with a beaming smile, still thinking that he might get lucky.

"Considering I'm taken, I doubt it," JJ responded.

"What about the rest of you?"

"Honey, we deal with perverts all day. I don't really think you want to be the next ass we kick," Amanda drawled before she took a sip of her beer.

Olivia held her badge up with a smile to further explain what Amanda had told him. It was just habit to carry it with her even when she was off duty. Their new "friend" winced slightly and disappeared into the crowd. All four women glanced at each other and burst into hysterical laughter for the umpteenth time already that night.

"If one doesn't work, try a different one, huh?" JJ laughed. "Lame."

"Not as lame as Viper," Emily smirked as she remembered the flamboyantly dressed man who thought he could have women eating out of the palm of his hand at any point.

"Viper?" JJ asked while the other two lifted their eyebrows in a question.

"You were on maternity leave," Emily explained. "Be glad too. Jordan and I had to go into a club to talk to him since he was related to our case. The guy taught other guys these tricks and gimmicks to get women. Really thought he was all that."

"Sounds fun," Amanda mused with a roll of her eyes.

Olivia snorted and shook her head. She didn't even want to know how bad this guy was. Speaking of guys though…

"So you're married, JJ?"

"Um… not exactly," JJ explained, her face showing her slight unease. It was a question she always tried to avoid since she never had a good answer. She was really sick of people pushing the issue too.

"She's been putting it off for years," Emily moaned.

"Ugh! I don't see what's so important about putting a ring on my finger and officially getting married. Will, Henry, and I are perfectly happy the way we are."

"JJ!" Emily cried out in exasperation.

"How long have you known this guy?" Amanda asked.

"We've been seeing each other for awhile, but we started living together three years ago, before Henry was born," she explained.

"Has he proposed yet?" Olivia questioned, a light smile playing across her fact. She knew how hard it was to hold any kind of long term relationship in their line of work. It couldn't be any easier for JJ.

"Well…"

"The day we all found out she was pregnant," Emily cut in, knowing JJ wasn't going to share the details willingly.

JJ blushed darkly. She desperately needed to get this conversation off of her and Will. Defense wasn't going to cut it. She was going to need to go on the offensive, and she knew just the way to do it too.

"What about you and Mick, Emily?"

Emily's mouth dropped open in surprise at the sudden reversal of interrogation. They hadn't discussed Mick Rawson in years. JJ smirked. That had worked far too well.

"Oh? You've got a guy too?" Amanda asked, also amused by Emily's shock.

"No! I haven't even called the guy once since the case, and that was awhile ago," Emily insisted.

"And I for one don't see why not!" JJ returned.

"Bad feeling?" Olivia asked.

"No. Nothing like that," Emily assured.

"Not interested then," Amanda concluded with a knowing nod of her head.

"Oh no, she was very interested," JJ grinned before she dunked her fry in some ketchup. She thrust it toward Emily as she spoke again. "What is not to like in a British guy with a sexy accent, badge, and gun?"

"And you didn't jump on this?" Amanda demanded incredulously. "Seriously, what is wrong with you?"

Emily groaned. There was absolutely nothing wrong with her.

"Things got in the way," she reasoned.

Both Amanda and Olivia rolled their eyes. Excuses, excuses.

"What could possibly be that important that would get in the way of maybe having a shot with a guy? That chance doesn't come up all that often!" Amanda questioned, her eyes skewering Emily.

"Well, you know, dying sort of does a good job of getting in the way of everything," Emily grumbled softly, sudden pain flaring up in her eyes as she locked them on the table top.

JJ reached out and squeezed her friend's hand in support. She didn't want Emily thinking about that if she could help it. The less time Emily spent dwelling on Ian Doyle and her time in hiding the better. Thankfully, Amanda and Olivia seemed to pick up on the sudden dip in mood.

Amanda was about to ask what Emily's explanation meant when she felt a light touch on her arm. She glanced at Olivia and caught the barely perceptible shake of her head. Being as good with victims as she was, Olivia could easily pick up on someone's unease. Depression was seeping out of Emily, and Olivia could see it no matter how hard the other brunette tried to hide the emotion. She was about to say something to shift the topic and help Emily out of her obviously painful memories when Amanda spoke up.

"Hey, Liv. What about you and that DA?"

The question certainly did the trick. Emily latched onto the new topic with a vengeance, especially when she saw the light blush creep over Olivia's face.

"Ah hah! Why didn't this come up earlier?" Emily demanded, her eyes sparkling and a wide grin on her face.