A/N: Jack makes an actual appearance in this chapter though a brief one, not sure if he is as Jack as the phone conversation in the last chapter. Explicit spoilers for 'For The Defense' and 'Dignity'. Thanks to those readers who reviewed the previous chapter. I always love to hear from you even if you're reading this story months after it was published. Constructive criticisms always welcome. Thanks to my beta, Tripp3235.
Disclaimer: Not mine. All Law and Order characters belong to Dick Wolf and NBC. I'm just playing with them.
Offices of the Manhattan District Attorney, 1 Hogan Place, Tuesday, February 9
Tuesday comes and goes like a typical day at the office after a brief vacation. Even having kept up with the important emails all weekend, Mike and Connie now have to deal with all the other little details that could wait until their return to the office. Connie arrives first as she comes straight from home whereas Mike has to swing by his apartment to drop off his luggage from the weekend and change as he didn't think to pack something for Tuesday morning.
When Mike walks by Connie's desk and says his typical good morning. Connie doesn't even look up from her files before replying with her own morning salutation. Connie calls after him, "How was your weekend?" just a tad louder than necessary. Mike, who normally waits for Connie to come to his desk, walks up to hers to drop off a file before replying in normal tones, "I had one of the best weekends in a long time. You?"
Connie turns to look at Mike and says, "Had a good weekend. The red-eye return flight was cramped but what can you really do about that?"
"Here's the file for the Conway case. You might want to look at the latest motion from his lawyer." Mike walks back to his office whistling a tune.
After Connie reads through all her email, she looks at the Conway file. When she flips through to the motion attached to the file, she files a large post-it with Mike's scrawl on it.
I know I already told you but I had the best weekend with you. Waking up with you three mornings in a row has spoiled me. Now, I won't sleep as well without you. Want to spend a weeknight at my place this week? I don't think I can make it to the weekend without you. (Flip to the last page of the motion.)
Connie looks around to make sure no one is looking before flipping to the last page of the motion where there is another post-it note in Mike's scrawl.
If we're working late on the Woll convictions tonight, let me take you to dinner. I want-
Just then, Maureen, Jack's administrative assistant, appears out of nowhere with a beautiful bouquet of mixed flowers and says, "Looks like your secret admirer is back." Connie jumps and closes the file quicker than she ought.
"Sorry, Maureen. I didn't hear you. These are lovely." Connie is blushing furiously.
"Sorry, Connie. I didn't mean to startle you. There is a card there." Maureen is apologetic.
"I suspect that I know who they may be from," says Connie. "Thank you, Maureen." Connie smiles at Maureen.
"Oh, the secret admirer isn't so secret anymore." Maureen grins. Connie can almost hear the juicy gossip that Maureen will be sharing with others.
Suddenly a voice she doesn't expect says, "What lovely flowers, Connie." Jack has just arrived at the office.
"Apparently, they are from a not so secret admirer." Maureen pipes up.
"Ah, young love," says Jack. "Maureen, can you bring me the Greenberg file?"
Maureen leaves reluctantly and when she is out of ear shot, Jack says more quietly, "Mike has good taste in flowers. So what's this about wanting to transfer out?"
Connie looks around quickly before replying. "I'm concerned about conflict of interest, Jack." Connie then looks over at where Maureen is returning with the file that Jack asked for. "I'd rather discuss it at length tomorrow at the meeting."
"It can wait," says Jack. "I have to prepare for a meeting with the other DAs in the five boroughs anyway."
Connie turns to Jack with a grateful look and says, "Thanks, Jack."
Jack nods and says loudly, "Maureen, can you bring the Demichev file as well?" and heads to his office.
After Maureen passes her desk with both the Greenberg and Demichev files, Connie takes the card from the holder and sniffs the lilies. You are spoiling me, Mike Cutter. Connie takes the small card from the envelope. Thank you for the fantastic weekend, Love, Mike.
Connie quickly slips the card into her purse to avoid someone accidentally seeing what it said and then goes back to the post-it on the last page of the motion.
If we're working late on the Woll convictions tonight, let me take you to dinner. I want an opportunity to show you how much I love you outside the office. Remember your promise?
Just then, Connie's Blackberry beeps. Connie fishes it out of her purse and it's a text from Mike.
"Do you like these better than the roses?" The text asks.
Connie looks towards Mike's office and the door is shut, shades drawn.
Connie texts back. "I thought we agreed to tone it down at the office. I do like them though. Thank you."
Within thirty seconds, her text tone chimes again. "Well, it would be a waste to have them sent to your apartment, since you aren't there enough to enjoy them. I am glad that you like them. So do we have dinner plans for tonight?"
Connie jabs at the small keys on her Blackberry. "Yes, I want to keep my part of the promise. Why don't we make it a late dinner? How about tomorrow night for a stay at your place? I'm having dinner with my sister on Thursday night."
The next text from Mike comes almost instantaneously. "Sure. That works for me. I love you."
"I love you, too." Connie can't help but feel warm and fuzzy inside when she types that into the text window.
Connie then removes both Post-it notes from the file and put them in a personal drawer in her desk before doing some real work.
Around six in the evening on Tuesday, Mike comes by to Connie's desk and says, "Are you ready to tackle the last of the Woll work?"
Connie finishing her thoughts on an email turns to Mike and says, "Are we really almost done?"
"Well, of the stuff we've received to this point, we are," says Mike. "If more comes through, then it continues. Then there's the fallout from the Wallack appeal."
"About that, I heard back from the DA investigators and they will get on it right away," says Connie.
Connie turns on her screen saver and picks her notebook up with a pen and walks with Mike to his office where the Woll work is in boxes.
"I think we were in that top box in that pile on Thursday night." Connie points to the box that's labeled, "56 of 56" for Mike to take down.
Mike brings it down to his conference table, lifts the lid and looks for the mark they left in the files to identify where they got to. "Here we are. Just three files remaining. Can you believe it?"
"Well, it was a good exercise," says Connie. "Maybe we can have our lives back."
"I don't know. I like how it affected our lives. Don't you?" Mike smiles at Connie.
"Yes, but I would rather spend my evenings and weekends with you doing things other than going over appeals on Woll's convictions," says Connie.
"I don't know. We've done other things." Mike looks at Connie intently.
Connie looks back at Mike and says, "This past weekend was the first one in a long time other than during the holidays where the majority of it wasn't spend on those appeals, even then, we discussed the Wallack appeal several times including our flight out. It would be nice to have a weekend where it doesn't revolve around these appeals."
"Well, if we can plow through this, we should have next weekend free," Mike offers.
"Then let's plow through it because I have plans on Saturday and Sunday." Connie just wants to get it done.
"What are we doing on Saturday?" Mike looks at Connie puzzled.
"We aren't doing anything. I'm spending Saturday at the spa to get ready for Sunday." Connie smiles at Mike.
"Oh. Can I get a peek Saturday night?" asks Mike hopefully.
Connie shakes her head. "No. I want to surprise you Sunday when you come to pick me up just before lunch."
"So I don't get to see you from Friday until late Sunday morning. That hardly seems fair." Mike is visibly pouting.
"I didn't say we couldn't spend Friday night and Saturday morning together." Connie looks at Mike in hopes of getting her way. "I just said that I'm spending Saturday at the spa. My appointment isn't until one." Mike looks much relieved. Seeing that Mike isn't making any progress with getting to work. Connie decides to start looking at the first file and says, "If we don't want to spend Friday night and Saturday morning here, let's get through this."
After just a couple of hours on the last three files, they were finally done. Luckily, the three remaining cases were all open and shut ones. The appeals that were files were from left field and had no grounds to stand on. Connie stretches after she finishes reading through the file on her lap. Mike is still looking up a few things on the laptop and making notes, but soon he, too, is done and he put down his pen on the file folder he just closed. Mike stands to stretch and asks, "Ready for dinner?"
"Yes. Let's put these folders back into the box and I'll need to pack up for the evening."
When the folders are back in the box and put back into the pile, Connie starts to leave. Before she gets out of the office, Mike says, "I'll meet you at your desk in a couple of minutes." Connie nods.
Mike shuts down his computer, puts his Blackberry into his suit's inside pocket and reluctantly puts a file from the Edwards case into his briefcase. Since Connie wasn't spending the night, he might as well get some reading in.
Connie, when she gets to her desk, checks her email quickly and there's nothing new that's urgent, so she turns off her computer and puts all her files in the drawer left intentionally empty for this purpose and locks it. After putting her keyring on the key holder in her briefcase, Connie puts on her coat and brings a file from the Stuber case to read on the subway in the morning. Just as she was shutting her briefcase, Mike appears at her elbow. "Any place in particular?"
"Let's go back to Natalie's. It's close and food's good. I'm starving," says Connie.
"Let's go then." Mike gestures for her to lead the way.
As soon as they were out of sight of Hogan Place, Mike takes Connie's hand and holds it until they are at the cafe. Connie thought it was sweet. The cafe was pretty quiet by the time they showed up at almost nine o'clock. They found a booth in a corner away from most patrons. Pretty much as soon as the waitress took their order, Mike takes Connie's hands into his again. Since the past idyllic weekend, Mike has had a need to have skin-to-skin contact with Connie. It seems to have been heighten by their mutual agreement to be more discreet at the office.
"So are you ready for our meeting with Jack tomorrow morning?" Connie had been curious about that all afternoon.
"I think so. I'm sure if we take a mutual front approach, it will be easier. How did you approach him after the abortion case?" asks Mike.
"I asked to meet with him and then told him that I can't in all good conscience work with someone who could leave his soul on the umbrella stand. He dug a little deeper to find out my specific issues and we talked about where else I would like to work. He hinted at the fact that he wanted me to work things out with you, but didn't say outright that that was his intention. It wasn't until he brought you to my desk that I found out we had to work it out. I think that this situation is a little different. There is a specific conflict of interest at hand that must be resolved." Connie blushes at some of the things that she's had said to Jack about Mike.
Mike smiles reassuringly at Connie. "Mutual front is definitely the way to go. I'm just curious here. Do you still have issues with how I handled the abortion case?"
"Well, I still think that I would have shared the same information with the defense as I did. That hasn't changed, but I now accept that you have a different way of handling the situation than I do. You have to understand, Mike. That case caused a shift in paradigm for me. I used to be pro-choice throughout a pregnancy, but now I'm not sure I'm OK with late term abortions. When something like that happens, it's not unusual to do something out of character."
Mike nods in understanding but isn't sure how to contribute constructively to the conversation.
Connie brings the conversation back to the meeting with Jack tomorrow. "Jack spoke to me this morning when he came in. He didn't seem to be against the idea of us, but then there's Jack's history. He didn't seem to understand why we wanted to have a discussion about the whole thing."
"Well, I guess it's something that we need to convey to him then. He knows my view of the situation."
Connie gives him a puzzled look.
"This was all a part of the same conversation I had with Jack during the Woll trial."
"What did you say to him exactly during the conversation?" asks Connie.
Mike can feel a blush creeping into his features. "Well, I was complaining about how Woll just bragged that he had a sexual relationship with you and it evolved into my views about sleeping with coworkers and talking about sex lives with them. Which incidentally, I said I would never do and how sleeping with the boss and teacher demeans people, especially women. Yes, I am aware of the irony of our situation, which is why I thought talking to Jack could resolve our situation faster."
"When did Woll brag about my affair with him?" Connie furrows her eyebrows.
"Right after you offered yourself as a co-conspirator for the charges against him for Henry Lovett," says Mike.
"That son-of-a-bitch. He had no right to tell you about it." Connie is upset by this.
"You know that Woll is behind bars because you offered yourself as an unindicted co-conspirator, and all the work that was generated from his convictions as a DA is what brought us here. I think that it has worked out better for us in the end because, otherwise, I wouldn't have your love and that's what's important to me." Mike strokes the hand he's holding to emphasize his point.
Connie thinks a bit on what Mike has said. "You're right. Still he strikes a nerve."
Their food arrives soon thereafter and conversation in essence ceases until the food is consumed. After they share a coffee post-dinner, Mike offers to walk Connie to the nearest subway station where they will say their good byes. They make an agreement that Mike will arrive earlier in the day while Connie will arrive at her usual time.
As they are walking down the street, Mike says, "Would you mind if we went for a workout at the gym tomorrow evening? I usually try to work out three to four times a week, but with all the overtime we've put in the last few months, it has curtailed significantly. I'd like to go back to a decent routine again."
Connie agrees to Mike's proposal. "Sure. I wouldn't mind getting a work out in as well."
Just then they pass a small park and Mike sees a bench almost hidden among the trees. "This way."
"What's going on?" Connie has no idea where Mike is taking her but willingly goes along.
"This." Mike drops his briefcase on the ground and pulls Connie towards him for a kiss. Connie responds once she realizes what Mike wants. They kiss passionately for a while. When they finally come up for air with their foreheads touching, Mike says in hushed tones since the people on the sidewalk could probably hear them otherwise, "I've been wanting to do that since about noon. I really wish we were together tonight. I'm going to miss you."
"I'm staying over tomorrow night and we both have to prepare ourselves for the meeting with Jack tomorrow morning." Connie reminding herself as well as Mike.
Mike sighs. "I guess my fantasizing will have to do for tonight. I love you so much, Connie."
"I love you, too." This time it's Connie who kisses Mike and they make out until they hear a neighborhood church bell toll eleven times. Connie breaks the kiss and says, "We better be going. There's an eleven-ten subway train at this station and then the schedule goes hourly until tomorrow morning." They untangle themselves from one another.
"Alright. Do you have one of those wipes? I'm sure that I'm wearing your lipstick."
Connie hands Mike a wet wipe and proceeds to run her hands through her hair a few times. When Mike is done with the wipe, Connie takes it and wipes her mouth to remove her lipstick. There's no time to fix it so might as well take it off. While she's doing that, Mike is smoothing down his hair and shifting his coat a bit.
Once they are back on the sidewalk with their respective briefcases, they step up the pace of their walk. Mike walks Connie all the way to her platform, just in time for her to catch the train. They kiss quickly before Connie boards her train. Mike watches until her car moves away from sight before he walks off to his train.
A/N2: So two adults making out in a neighborhood park make sense? My reasoning for that is even though they spend a large part of their day at the office with one another, that because of professionalism and their conflict of interest situation that they need to keep it on the down low at the office, but they need some outlet and since they weren't going to spend the night at one another's place due to time constraints that they needed to get it out somehow and it wasn't going to happen at a restaurant. I personally found it kind of romantic and hope that you did, too. As always, would love to hear from you. :)
