The weekend passed uneventfully, Gillian dividing her time between the hospital and her latest cases, but following Monday morning began in the worst possible way – a fight with Alec. They had been going back and forth over the sale of their house, which was stipulated in the divorce settlement, until their disagreement over whether to sell now or wait for the economy to improve escalated into a full-blown argument. At that point, unable to behave like the adult he claimed to be, Alec had hung up on her. And to top it off an early meeting at Treasury meant she hadn't had the time to look in on Cal. Irritably Gillian turned off her cell and sought the relative sanctuary of her office.

She finally emerged long after lunchtime, and was about to turn down the hallway in search of food when she spied a light on in Lightman's office. Curious, she went to his door and looked inside.

Sitting at his desk, staring up at a video image on his wall screen and wearing a Washington Nationals baseball cap that only half-covered the bandages still swathing his skull, was Cal.

Gillian strode into the room, incredulous. "What are you doing here?" she demanded.

With a click of his mouse he froze the video. "Hospital discharged me this morning. Thought I'd come in and get something useful done. Hello to you, too," he added.

But she wasn't in the mood for niceties. Instead her eyes were drawn to the stark white bandages peaking out from beneath his rather ridiculous looking cap. Just last week he had been in the ICU… "You should be at home," she scolded. "Resting."

He wrinkled his nose dismissively. "Got things to do."

"While I can," he added, and Gillian swallowed hard. His words were a sharp, vivid reminder that they didn't yet know about the cancer, if he was going to be ok.

She pushed the thought away, refusing to let the gnawing fear seep in. Changing the subject: "How did you get here? You didn't drive, did you?" He wasn't supposed to drive for at least two weeks yet.

He shot her a look as though to say his prize pupil was disappointing him. "I had Zoë drop me off."

She tried to suppress the little spark of hurt and betrayal his words ignited. He'd asked Zoë, when she would happily have done it herself – and after all, she worked here. Or didn't he want her to? Over these recent days she'd felt closer to him than ever before, and all her experience as a psychologist told her that the bond between them had deepened on both sides, not just her own. But was she just being selfishly myopic, only seeing what she wanted to see? She hoped, she desperately wanted to believe, that wasn't the case. "I would have – why didn't you let me know?"

She was certain that he noticed her reaction, but he chose not to call her on it. "I tried, but your cell went straight to messaging."

She closed her eyes briefly, annoyed with herself. "I turned it off." She sighed. "I had a fight this morning with Alec," she clarified in response to his querying look.

"Ah." The word was short, bitten off, his voice carefully neutral yet she could hear the underlying anger that vibrated through it. He had always been so protective of her when it came to Alec. In the past his interest in her private affairs had often exasperated and even annoyed her, but now she found herself unexpectedly touched as she felt his staunch, unwavering support like something vibrant and alive between them.

"We're getting rid of the house – it's the last part of the…of the divorce, and while I want to sell now he wants to wait. We ended up having a fight," she went on tiredly, "and instead of acting like a grown-up he hung up on me."

Cal's eyes darkened. "I'm sorry, luv. Divorce's difficult enough to make any of us act like children," he said, and she knew he was speaking from personal experience. "'Cept you, of course. But that doesn't give him the right to make the process any harder than it already is."

She smiled wanly. "In some ways he's just making it easier."

"Yeah," he agreed with a sympathetic quirk of his mouth, and she knew he was speaking from experience there as well.

But she the last thing she wanted to dwell on was Alec and the last bitter dregs of her divorce when it was infinitely more pleasurable to see that Cal was back on his feet and out of the hospital. Even though he should be at home recovering and not sitting here in the office.

"Anyway, you're just trying to distract me," she mock-accused him, attempting to lighten the mood.

His face was smug. "Worked, too."

She bit down on the answering smile that tried to sneak across her lips. "Yes, well, are you going to go home? Or am I going to have to call Emily?" she added threateningly, trying to look severe and serious but somehow not quite able to keep a straight face.

"All right," he replied, giving in with better grace than she anticipated, "just another half hour and I'll call it a day, deal?"

Gillian knew it was the best she was going to get. "Deal."

"Right, then." He stopped, hesitating, then shooting her a quick glance, "Uh, thought you might wanna know – we'll be gettin' the test results back tomorrow."

"Already?" A stab went through her of equal parts anticipation and fear. "I thought we weren't going to know for a few more days."

"I guess they pushed it through. High priority."

Was that a good sign or a bad one, she wondered.

"Anyway, I have an appointment with the oncologist first thing in the morning." He tilted his head and gazed at her sidelong. "Could use a ride," he noted, an unspoken question underlying his tone.

Gillian looked at him sharply. To her surprise his normally hooded eyes were fully open and met hers with a simple, unguarded expression of hope lurking within them. She could see without a shadow of a doubt that this wasn't any sort of game or a ploy, and that he wasn't just trying to make her feel better about this morning. Cal…he genuinely desired that she go with him.

Her heart gave a flutter and then leaped into her throat. The realization thrilled her, that however this came out, whatever the verdict the test results would give, it was she – not Zoë – whom he wanted with him when he got the news.

For a moment her vision blurred. She blinked hard to clear it, pressing her lips together. Having to taking several steadying breaths before the words would come. "Yes, of…of course, I'd be happy to."

He nodded, a rare, dazzling smile lighting his eyes. "Good. Give me a lift home today, too?" Now there was mischief in his face plain enough for the smallest child to see. He was clearly cognizant that he was pushing his luck, and in fact was doing so deliberately to tease her.

Knowing that he knew that she knew that he knew full well what he was up to, Gillian just laughed.

----

TBC