Rated: NC-17

ERASE & REWIND...VERSION 3, PART 10

"AREN'T WE ALL?"

BadGirl had been almost as hesitant to accept the idea as he had been to suggest it…but here they were, driving through suburbia in his (she had to admit, damned impressive) car.

He wasn't her type; she didn't go for the guy with the Mercedes with leather interior, the money and perfect suits and shined shoes.

But my God did he make it all look good.

She struggled to keep her eyes to herself, listening to him yap on his cell phone about another case, another meeting, another warrant or appeal proceeding...all the while doing her best to resist the urge to snatch the phone away from him and toss it out the window.

He just didn't switch off.

Dread filled her stomach imagining listening to him talking on the phone with this same maddening level of energy throughout the night. She'd have no choice but to hang herself in the bathroom.

She already knew what his office was going to look like when they reached his house, could imagine it in perfect detail. Every other room was bound to be immaculate…like something out of a catalog, items left out for display, not for actual use…there would be photos on the wall of happy times and achievements for people to look at and think everything was well in his world…

But not his office…

His office would be at the center of it all, private and locked away from prying eyes, cluttered and chaotic, no semblance of perceivable order …

With an arched brow she looked over at McNorris and realized that his home would be exactly like…

Him.

"Alright, I gotta go. I'm pulling in to my driveway now. Uh huh…uh huh…alright, I'll talk to you later." He flipped his phone closed and she fought back a smirk seeing the residence they had arrived at.

"This…" BadGirl said, pointing out the windshield as she leaned forward to get a better look. "Is your house?" She asked incredulously.

"Yeah." He answered distractedly, but catching the amusement in her face out of the corner of his eye he sighed. "Why?" He asked, getting the feeling he didn't want to know the answer.

"Huh? Oh nothing…nothing…It's great. Yeah, I really like it. It's so…what's the word I'm looking for?" She tried to maintain a straight face. "Pink."

McNorris opened his mouth for a second, about to argue that it was not…until he leaned his head to the side and realized he hardly ever looked up from his mail as he entered anymore.

"Shut up." He said with a smile. "I didn't pick the damned color."

She struggled not to laugh at him as they climbed out of the car, going to get her bags out of the trunk.

Suburbia skidded to a halt as she stretched, her miniskirt coming dangerously close to indecency as she looked around the street. She could have sworn sprinklers froze and dogs stopped barking as the land of perfectly manicured lawns and flowers tucked neatly in window-boxes noticed her arrival.

A neighbor across the street who had been walking toward their front door from their car was staring at her openly and she curled a lip.

"What the fuck is this guy's problem?" She asked as she motioned to him, her voice intentionally loud enough to carry to the gaper's ears.

McNorris' eyes widened and he pulled her over to him by her elbow, muttering through gritted teeth. "For the love of God, behave yourself" as he waived to the man across the street.

She rolled her eyes and put her hands on her hips, tilting her head to the neighbor in a quick 'greeting' that could also be taken for, "if you're feeling froggy then leap, bitch."

"Here." He said and without warning all of her bags were being dumped on her.

"Damn, all that?" She asked in amusement.

"Maybe if you're carrying everything you won't be able to start a fight." McNorris said, turning and starting up the walkway to his front door.

"Oh ye of little faith…I could be carrying a refrigerator on my back and still manage to start a fight." She said happily as she tagged along behind him.

They entered the house and she grinned. "Yup, just like I thought it would be."

He cast her a confused look as he set the alarm but she just shrugged it off. "Where am I putting these?" She asked, shifting the bags in her arms impatiently.

"I guess…umm…" He started to point up the stairs and stopped for a second, once again having to think of a detail of the arrangement in the spur of the moment. "I guess you'll be taking my room…I'll stay in the guest room since it's at the top of the stairs." He left unsaid that it would give him a better chance to stop an intruder before it was too late, but she got the hint.

"Sounds good." She said and started up the stairs without another word.

McNorris stared at her for a moment, a little thrown that she hadn't waited to be taken. Falling in behind her on the steps allowed for more of a view than he'd bargained for…and what a view it was. He smiled as he bit his lip.

Oh yes, he was in trouble.

Tremendo problema…

"Earth to McNorris….did you hear me?" She called as he reached the top of the stairs.

He shook his head to clear his thoughts, letting out a 'hmm?' as he realized she had said something while his mind was busy thinking about her thighs in that tight little skirt that could so easily be slid up and…

"I'm sorry, what?" He asked, giving her that million dollar smile again and she sighed.

"You're a little out there, aren't you?" She asked with a mischievous grin. "I said, 'how long have you been separated?'"

"What makes you say…?" He began, he'd taken down all the pictures of her by now...stopped wearing the ring...none of her belongings were still there...

BadGirl only rolled her eyes.

"Look, you didn't pick out the pink exterior paint just like you didn't pick out that sofa down there…or any of the furniture, for that matter. There's a recliner set up next to the window in the living room with a light and table beside it for reading and I know damned well you never stop working long enough to do that. You've still got an indent on your finger where your ring used to be...so you were married a few years at the least...and you still leave enough room for a car in front of yours when you pull in to the drive way." She tilted her head at him. "She used to get home before you, I take it."

McNorris leaned against the wall and eyed her suspiciously. "You…" he breathed as he pointed at her "…are a lot more than you let on to being."

"Hmm…aren't we all?" She said with a wink and turned from him, pushing the door open to his bedroom and disappearing within.

It took him a long moment to follow.

She was hopping up onto the bed as he entered, looking around for a moment before leaning over the side to fish something out of her bags…

And yet another view he hadn't bargained for.

He arched a brow and tried to contain his smile.

A moment later she sat up with a bottle of rum in hand and he was somewhat thankful that at least she didn't have whiskey.

A scantily clad blonde in his bed with a bottle of Jameson was likely to be his undoing.

She took a swig as she leaned against his headboard. "Mmm..." She mumbled, her lips wanting to speak before she'd even swallowed the rum and he smiled knowing whatever popped into this girl's head always seemed to make a direct run for her mouth. "This is going to be worse than prison." She said after she'd downed the alcohol. "At least they have basic cable there."

He laughed that she'd already noticed the lack of a cable box beside his television and nodded. "I never have time to…" He trailed off and grinned. "But never mind, you already know that."

"So what now? You go 'work' and I sit up here and count the nosey neighbors out the window?" She asked with a smirk.

"Something like that." He said. "I'm ordering food, what are you in the mood for?" He asked.

BadGirl arched a thoroughly amused brow, that mischievous smile spreading across her lips as she made herself comfortable against the pillows.

McNorris just shook his head and closed his eyes. "I'm not going to take the bait and change that question to, 'what do you want to eat?' So Chinese it is."

She laughed at the direction he'd taken with that one and took another large gulp of rum as she watched him leave the room.

But once she was alone she fell back to chiding herself for being…herself.

It wasn't right.

Guilt washed over her every time she opened her mouth and spoke her mind with McNorris. Like she was forgetting Esteridge too soon…but to a small corner of her fractured and tormented heart this was Esteridge, despite her mind facing the fact that it was someone else.

This wasn't her smoldering Lieutenant. This was David, a hot shot, fast talking DA with something to prove to the world.

But damned if she wasn't burning up for him, too.

She sighed and came to one conclusion…she was going to need a lot more rum…