SMUT WARNING! Notice the rating has been changed. Time for Careese lovin'!

Decisions

Shaw followed Roger Jimenez down the street, hating the man in front of her more and more with every passing minute. As Fusco was fond of reminding her, she hated everyone, but Jimenez was rapidly moving the bar to a whole new level of hate unique to him.

During the day, Shaw had been able to observe how he had interacted with several other people, mostly service people, and he had universally treated them all with the same amount of disdain. Considering he was a con man and murderer, Shaw found his arrogance even harder to stomach than, say Logan Pierce's. At least Pierce could back it up with his accomplishments in computer science and business, Jimenez was nowhere near that level of accomplished. Shaw wondered what Sh'Linda ever saw in the man.

Jimenez was forced to wait at a red light to cross the street and Shaw was able to blue jack his phone.

Jimenez entered a restaurant and took a seat in a booth. Shaw seated herself at the counter where she had a good view of him and ordered a large plate of calamari and a coke. Jimenez was soon joined by an older female version of himself with the harshest face Shaw had ever seen. Obviously Sh'Linda was correct about her husband being unable to cut the apron strings from his mother. Shaw pulled out her phone so she could listen in on their conversation.

"What's wrong?" Cecilia Jimenez demanded coldly as soon as she sat down. "You said it was urgent."

"Hi, mom. How are you?" her son sniped back.

Shaw had to grin; this could get as good as an episode of Empire.

Mother Jimenez eyed her son with a face that was even harsher than when she had sat down. "Don't get snippy with me."

Her son sighed and ran a hand over his face. "Linda's out of prison and here in New York. She came to my office yesterday and made a scene outside the building. She wants to see Henry."

"I told you you should have killed her when you had the chance," Cecilia snapped.

"Ma, I couldn't kill Henry's mother!" Jimenez was whining now.

"No, but you framed her for murder, sent her to prison, and hid her son on the other side of the country and that was perfectly OK," his mother sneered.

"It gets worse. The police came to my office today, Shanika's death has been reclassified a homicide."

Cecilia sniffed and sipped her tea. "It's a cold case. There's nothing there."

"Maybe, maybe not, but we should start getting ready to move. I already have new identities for us and Henry…"

His mother put her iced tea down and glared at him. "So I have to relocate again because of your ghetto taste in women?"

"You don't have to relocate at all, Ma," Roger hissed between clenched teeth. "You're welcome to stay here."

"Don't you dare talk to me like that, I gave up everything for you! I left my home and my friends. I lied to the police, I committed perjury at the trial. I put up with your whores." Cecilia face contorted into the ugliest scowl Shaw had seen in a long time. Now she knew where all those harsh lines on her face came from. "I'm too old for this! You know I have a bad heart!" She rubbed her chest for emphasis.

Shaw snorted as she watched Jimenez close his eyes and sigh. Cecilia Jimenez had a black belt in guilt and was wielding with all the finesse of a rampaging elephant, but it was working. Roger was every bit the Mama's Boy Sh'Linda had said he was.

"Mom, I wouldn't if I didn't think it was necessary," Roger sighed.

Cecilia reached across the table and took her son's hand. "You know I'm on your side Roger," she said tenderly. "I'm the only one who is."

"I know Ma."

It was a somber team that met over dinner at the safe house to discuss their options. Sh'Linda had insisted in preparing a large, tasty ham she had found in the refrigerator as a thank you to everyone for "Being the only the people to believe in me in ten years." While her skills in the kitchen were a bit rusty from her incarnation, she still turned out a delicious home cooked meal. Shaw, of course, was the most appreciative, joyfully snarfing down huge chunks of meat and a more than generous helping of potato salad before anyone else was even halfway done.

Fusco eyed Shaw as she shoved another large chunk into her face and chewed with her mouth open. "I thought you only ate red meat."

Shaw looked over at him, her cheeks bulging with her meal like a squirrel's. "Ham's pink, pink's just light red. 'Sides, this is good stuff."

Sh'Linda beamed with pleasure at the praise. She had correctly surmised that the ever hungry ex-op didn't pass out compliments often.

"Mr. Reese, how long do you think we have before Jimenez runs?" Finch asked. "According to the information we downloaded from his computer, he's been moving considerable sums of money offshore to Cayman Island accounts."

Reese leaned back in his chair. "Based on what I saw in his safe and what Shaw overheard, I would say only a few days. He has plenty of cash and the IDs. You've already traced most of his money to offshore accounts. He needs to get out of town before Joss and Fusco finish their investigation into Shanika's death, and he has no idea how long that will take."

Fusco snorted. "Well, it's going take a while. We printed the syringe that was found in Shanika's arm, the figure prints don't match Roger's or Shanika's. That don't mean Roger didn't hire someone to do it, but we aren't in a position to arrest him, yet."

Sh'Linda pushed the food around on her plate. "But, he was so callous after Shanika died," she said quietly, her voice heavy with distress. "He let them bury her in a pauper's grave." She looked like she could burst into tears at any moment.

Joss set her own fork down and took Sh'Linda's hand. "I know, honey. But being a douche-bag isn't illegal. But we will nail Roger, I promise."

"Right now, the immediate question is how do we keep him from running?" Finch said. "If he leaves New York and the jurisdiction of the detectives, it will be harder for us to make him pay for his crimes."

"There is a way, but it will be dangerous," John looking at Sh'Linda.

"You want Sh'Linda to go ahead with her meeting with Roger," Joss stated flatly.

"He won't want to leave any loose ends behind. She was able to trace him all the way across the country, he has to know that she won't stop following him." John looked at Sh'Linda and gently touched her arm. "The decision is up to you. Even if Roger runs, we will still pursue him, but we won't have the advantage of using Joss and Lionel in their official capacities."

Sh'Linda looked up from her plate and met John's eyes, her own eyes blazing with determination. "I'll do it."

"It's not safe," Joss said.

"I know," Sh'Linda replied. "But I haven't been safe in over ten years since this nightmare began. It cost me my freedom, my sister, and ten years with my son. I'm ready for it to be over. Whatever comes, I'm done with this."

The whole team nodded in agreement. Sh'Linda deserved the chance to finally be free.

Later that night, John watched as Joss slept next to him. He pushed back a hair that had escaped the silk scarf she tied over her hair at night and was tickling her nose as he contemplated what had driven Roger Jimenez to destroy his life with his wife and child. Roger had had it all, a loving wife, a baby, a lucrative career, yet he tossed it all away lusting after a few extra bucks. John had confronted all sorts of evil in his travels as a CIA agent and, while he developed a pretty good understanding of what drove evil people, he never understood how anyone who had the family that John had craved his entire life could toss it aside with barely a second thought.

"You're brooding again," Joss murmured and opened one eye.

John smiled and tenderly stroked her face. "I was just wondering how Jimenez could destroy his family when he already had plenty of money. Why weren't they enough?"

Joss raised herself to her elbow and held John's hand as he cupped her face. "Not everyone values family the way you do, John. Jimenez had no idea how precious what he had was. According to Sh'Linda, his mom groomed him to WIN. She pushed him and nurtured his ambition.

"Sh'Linda was once as driven and as ambitious as he was, but once she had Henry, she changed her priorities. He couldn't make that shift. He couldn't stop 'winning' any more than you could stop protecting people."

John lay on his back staring up at the ceiling for several minutes until he finally spoke. "I could."

"Could what?"

"Stop protecting people. I'd do it for you and Taylor."

"John!" Joss gasped, her eyes wide.

John turned on his side so he was facing her again. Even though the only light in the bedroom was from the moon shining in through the window, Joss could see John's face was dead serious. "If I ever have to choose, you and T come first."

Joss gently rested hand on his chest. "I would never ask you to choose…"

John laid a finger on her lips to quiet her. "I know. But if there is ever a time when I do have to make that choice, you will win."

Joss was touched by how John trusted in her to not force him into a choice, and by his devotion for her and her son to make the choice if needed. "Oh John," was all she could say.

John pulled her to him and pressed a gentle kiss to her lips. Joss responded by putting a hand behind his head and pulling him in for a deeper, more passionate kiss. Her tongue lovingly caressed his until they finally broke apart.

"Detective," John purred, "anymore of that and you won't be getting much sleep tonight."

"There's always coffee, John," Joss purred back with a naughty smile as she ran her hands under his shirt. Within seconds John was bare chested, just the way Joss liked him. She began biting and kissing her way across his collarbone with gusto.

John relaxed and let her take control, for now. He found it arousing when she took charge. He had often wondered how her colleagues at the 8th would feel if they knew that their normally straight-laced Detective Carter could be so enthusiastic between the sheets.

John arched his back and hissed as Joss lightly ran her hands down his stomach to the waistband of his pajama bottoms. "You're overdressed, John," she murmured, her voice deep and throaty. John could only groan as she relieved him of his pants, setting his already hard cock free. Joss ran a finger gently along the underside from base to tip and John's eyes rolled back in his head. She giggled, loving that the legendary Man in the Suit was putty in her hands. Gently, she stroked him until he pulled her hand away. "Not yet," he whispered to her.

He pushed her over onto her back and slowly began unbuttoning her pajama top, kissing each new inch of mahogany skin as it was revealed. Joss squirmed under his gentle touch and raked her fingers through his hair. He smiled against her stomach as she lost herself in the moment. His hands roamed her body, touching her everywhere. John knew where every erogenous zone on her body was and he touched, bit, or stroked every single one. She was completely lost in him.

John turned Joss on her side, lifted her top leg and positioned himself so that he straddled her bottom leg. He guided himself to her opening and with one thrust he was deep inside of her. He rested the calf of her upper leg on his shoulder while he flicked her clit with one hand and gripped her waist with the other. In this position he could hit all her pleasure zones while maintaining a steady, even pace. Joss was gasping incoherently with pleasure as he slid in and out, never rushing. Her hands clawed at the sheets as he felt her tightening around him. She was gripping him so tightly he could barely keep moving.

John watched as her face twisted with ecstasy. Joss came with a shudder that tore through her entire body. John finally released his iron control to follow her over the abyss scant seconds later. With a throaty groan he pulled out and flopped down on the bed facing her.

"That was amazing," Joss giggled. Her large brown eyes shone with love and John found himself smitten with her all over again. That happened a lot, like every time he looked at her. He hoped she could see his love for her in his own eyes, and by the way she touched his face, he was sure she did.

"Go to sleep Detective, we have a busy day tomorrow," John said, tenderly.

Joss yawned. "No problem, you wore me out!" She snuggled up to his warm body and was asleep within a couple of minutes.

John lay next to his dream woman, the one who made him whole, and the one who accepted him completely. No, he would never understand Jimenez and other men like him who would let this feeling go. He decided that he didn't even want to try.

We are winding down. One more chapter to go!