Chapter 11

Jennifer had been woken that morning by Matt, cuddling up to her and delving his hands underneath her pyjamas, stroking her warm skin and kissing her neck and shoulder. It was playful and immature and Jen had almost rolled her eyes at the way men seemed so much less able to control their lust than women could, but she'd held back from doing so and kept them closed instead, but smiled, letting him know she was awake, could feel him pushing against her, was aware of his roaming fingers. She knew if the day started like this then it was going to be a good day.

Their work day began the instant they walked into the building together. Duncan crashed into the lift beside them, a mere moment before the doors closed, slipping in just in time.

"Morning guys," he greeted them warmly. "God I need a coffee," he moaned before they'd even said anything back to him.

Jennifer just smiled, observing the way Duncan was practically still rubbing sleep out of his eyes. Even his sharp, expensive suits couldn't disguise his fatigue.

They got out of the lift a moment later and together the three of them walked into their workplace, branching off for their desks. Stanley was waiting for them, standing at the door of his office, preceding over his team with a watchful eye. "Get yourselves organised," he instructed as they unpacked their bags and hung their jackets over the backs of their chairs. "We're having a briefing in ten." He turned and walked back into the office, closing his door behind him, hoping to capture just a few more minutes of privacy. A few more minutes to deliberate over how to approach the rest of the day. Today above all days, he would have to put his diplomacy skills to the test. And with one of his own. He was not looking forward to it. He frowned to himself and decided to put it off until after the briefing.

Half an hour later the briefing Stanley had hoped would be lengthy, so that he could continue to put off the other task he had allotted himself for the day, was over. He didn't know why he'd thought it would be long – theirs was a simple homicide, well, what seemed like a simple homicide now, at the beginning of the investigation, and he and his team had simply discussed the few facts they knew, familiarised themselves with the victim and the suspects, threw around a few generic ideas – the same ideas they always threw around when beginning a new investigation, to try to build a picture and narrow things down – and then branched off to begin putting the pieces of the puzzle together. Duncan and Allie went to visit the victim's family and Rhys to speak to her friends. As they all made their way out of the briefing room, Matt and Jennifer sat side by side waiting for their instructions.

"Matt," Stanley begin, zeroing in on his sergeant. "I need to see you for a moment in my office."

Jennifer could hear Matt suck a breath in, nervous. She knew he hated confrontation, and going to Stanley's office, even if only for a moment, was like going to see the principal when you knew you'd done something wrong. She squeezed his hand under the table then looked back up at Stanley. "What about me Sarge?" she asked.

Stanley gave a slight shrug of his shoulders and a shake of his head. He seemed distracted, like he'd almost forgotten she was there. "Check out the backgrounds of the family, the victim, everyone." It was a very generalised instruction, and she felt miffed by it, but rose from the table and did as he asked, leaving the room to return to her desk and throwing a small smile in Matt's direction as she exited.

When she was gone Matt eyed his boss again, worried. "Meet me in my office in five Detective Ryan," came Stanley's firm words. Matt just nodded as Stanley exited after Jennifer.

Matt bought his hands up to the top of the table and placed them firmly on the smooth surface as he rose to standing. He didn't know why, but he was already shaking. Why am I so wound up? He thought to himself. He probably just wants to tell me some more details about the case.

He went back to his desk momentarily, noticing as he walked that Jennifer was no longer in the office, and he guessed that she'd decided to do a coffee run before she began her work. Smart move, he thought. Almost everyone out of the office – you won't have to buy many this morning Jen. He knocked on Stanley's door and entered only a second later.

Jennifer got all the way out onto the street and half way towards the coffee shop when she realised she'd forgotten her wallet. She cursed under her breath and spun around to start walking back towards her workplace, wondering for a quick moment if flashing her Freddy would've got her a freebie just this once, or at least convince the owner to trust her with an IOU until the next day. But her conscience wouldn't allow her to even try, and she walked quickly back to the Homicide building.

She stepped into the lift when she got inside the foyer and punched the button for Homicide impatiently, her brain becoming lethargic and annoyed that it had not yet been injected with its morning dose of caffeine. She clasped her hands in front of her and stared intently at the bright display of numbers lighting up above the door, flashing as the lift passed through each floor until finally it stopped at hers.

Her phone began to ring in the inside pocket of her blazer and she felt foolish for a second that she'd been able to remember her phone and her police identification yet not the one thing she truly needed for a trip to the coffee shop: money. She fumbled in her pocket to retrieve the ringing mobile. She pulled it out and looked at the screen. It was her mother. She hesitated, not really in the mood to answer, but as she forced herself to answer it she walked smack into someone solid.

"Nick!" Jennifer couldn't hide her surprise. Nor the way she completely fell apart in the seconds after she'd walked into him. She almost dropped her phone, struggling to put it on silent to ignore her mother's call. Then trying to slide the device back into the pocket she'd retrieved it from took two tries before she finally had it tucked away safely. It was momentously difficult to complete such a task when her knees went weak beneath her at the sight of him, and his hands were still on her body as they righted each other after their clumsy bump together right in front of the lift.

She looked at him. Straight into his eyes and further even. He appeared lost for words and as he battled inwardly to come up with something to say, Jennifer felt her lips tingle, remembering instantly how it had felt when he used to kiss her. The sting was so intense, so surprising to be feeling, that right then she desperately wanted to feel a kiss of his again, to cool and calm her mouth.

At last he spoke, but what he came up with was disappointing, for the both of them. "Jennifer." He gave a smile, cautious in its stretch and welcome. She much preferred it when he beamed big and wide, the way he used to when they were together. She remembered it fondly in the split second she stood dumb founded in front of him – how it lit up his whole face, made his eyes sparkle, gave him the most adorable laugh lines. She missed that smile.

She stood up a bit straighter, pulling the ends of her blazer down self consciously. It was a stupid thing to feel, but she suddenly had the urge to cover herself up in front of him, because she was another man's woman now. God that sounds dated and pathetic she thought, but she felt it all the same. It was no longer Nick's right to look at her in the way he used to, and she no longer had the right to look at him in such a way either. They hadn't been together for almost two years. Times had changed, they'd moved on. To girls with seasonal names.

"What are you doing here?" she asked quietly, completely forgetting her need to get her purse. Coffee was now the furtherest thing from her mind.

"I'm here for a course," he replied, every bit as politely as she'd asked her question. "I just came in to see Stanley." He felt like he needed to give a reason, prove well and truly why he was there. "He asked me to come."

Jennifer nodded, accepting his reason. She didn't know what to do though, or how to react. Should she be cold, pretend they were simply two detectives that didn't have a long and complicated history behind them? Or should she be friendly, remembering the way she'd broken his heart the last time she had seen him, and try to make at least small amends?

Before she could make a decision, her thoughts were interrupted by the opening of the door to Stanley's office and Matt exiting, his face pink in colour, worked up. He looked around the office, agitated, and when his eyes landed on Jennifer's he felt a moment of relaxation – she, the woman who had promised to never give up on him, was right there when he needed her.

But her face betrayed her when she looked back at him. She couldn't muster up a smile, only a shocked, almost petrified glance in his direction, and Matt quickly realised why. Before her stood Nick Buchanan. The moment of relaxation was gone.