Their Secret Pact – 13

A long silence ensued.

He was waiting for her answer. She was thinking over his question. It might take a while. It was quite a question… the kind a woman usually hears only once or twice in her lifetime.

"Well?" he prompted.

She didn't answer.

Marriage? Did she hear him right? And if she did, was he thinking clearly? He had been showing signs of being off the past week ...

"C.J.?" he asked, finding himself in a strange position of being nervous. The longer she remained silent the more nervous he became. Torture.

She was trying to grasp all that had transpired in the past week: a destroyed home, an orphaned teenager, and this very unexpected marriage proposal. There was also the injury to her hands which didn't seem like much of a problem until she tried to actually do her job.

While she continued thinking over her reply, Ashley had meandered onto the patio and saw the scene of this couple in a seemingly deep discussion. She was intrigued, captivated even, by the chemistry between these two ever since she first saw them together. They, in fact, reminded her of her late parents.

"Houston … marriage?" C.J. finally said.

Ashley's eyes widened. Then she quietly motioned with her arm, summoning the rest of the office crowd. When Murray started to ask, "What's going on?" she shushed him and pointed to Matt and C.J.

"Yes… marriage," Matt answered. "I think it's a great idea!"

Murray's eyes flew open wide. Marriage? Matt and C.J? The rest of the office crowd couldn't believe their ears either as evident when they traded looks of shocked expressions.

"I'm not sure. It's such a crazy idea," C.J. said as she turned around and inadvertently noticed the office crowd. Matt turned to follow her and spotted them too.

"It sure is crazy, risky even …" Hoyt ventured, his voice trailing off, signaling a possible change of mind. "But …"

"But?" Matt asked.

"It might work. If C.J. is willing to do it, that is."

All eyes turned and focused on her.

"Oh, great, guys. No pressure, right? Can I at least have some time to think about it?"

Matt looked to Roy and Hoyt for assistance. They shook their heads.

"We've got no time. Who knows what Masters has planned next and we want as much media attention as possible. It'll send the tabloid tongue wagging if Matt marries so abruptly after canceling a wedding with someone else. I can see the headline now: Famous Private Eye Announces Sudden Engagement to Long-time Partner In Crime."

C.J. hadn't felt this much peer pressure since high school. She took a deep breath.

"Okay, I'll marry you to catch whoever it is blew up my home …" she finally answered, causing Matt to beam. "But we're getting an annulment as soon as he's caught."

"An annulment?" he asked, erasing his smile and panicking. "We don't have to ..."

"Yes we do. We're not ready to get married. Heck, we haven't even …"

He grinned. "We could change that … easily."

She rolled her eyes at the same time the office crowd pretended they didn't hear Matt's comment and backed away, leaving them to talk in private.

"Houston, you know what I said about getting involved so soon after everything you've been through. I meant what I said. I haven't changed my mind."

"I know what you said and I know you meant it … but … well, can we just concentrate on trapping Masters' goons? We can iron out all the details later."

She folded her arms across her chest. No, this wasn't how she pictured she'd get engaged. She pictured a much more romantic setting – with flowers, wine or both – and definitely not at the office. Matt's offer – though mostly business related – was coming at a very unsettled time in her life. In fact, Matt had been moving way too fast lately… which is the way he always seemed to do things. Normally she could keep up with him, but this? Even this was a lot to ask from a well-seasoned partner such as herself.

"Do you know how much preparation goes into a planning a wedding... especially on short notice?"

He shrugged. "I guess it's a lot to ask but ..."

"It's a hell of a lot more work then running those names through Baby!"

He scowled.

"But even if you do that it's no guarantee they'll lead us to the perps. They could have been paid off. They could have nothing to do with Masters' latest endeavors. If there's no evidence on proof on them, if we don't catch them in the act, it'll be a waste of time."

At a loss of words to debate Matt she felt overwhelmed.

"You know, I uh … I need to get some air," she anxiously stated.

Matt looked at her curiously: they were outside, atop a high-rise. There was plenty of air…

"We are outside, C.J. …" he dared softly.

"Well, then … I …" she stammered nervously. "Can I have your car keys?"

"My car keys? Sure…I …"

As soon as he produced the keys, she grabbed them out of his hand and made a beeline for the elevator.

"C.J., where …" he asked, bewildered as to what she was doing. He started to walk towards the exit when Roy stopped him.

"Hold on, Mattlock. Give her some space. I think she needs some time alone."

When he arrived at the ranch later that afternoon, he noticed Carmela wasn't in her stall. C.J. must haven taken her, he surmised. Good. A horse ride was the perfect remedy for someone who needed time in the open air ... alone… to think … to breathe. He understood. He was in much the same spot a few days prior. In the meantime, he could use the time to help her out.

The restoration company assigned to salvaging her house phoned and said they could deliver some of her belongings. He was more than happy to meet them at the ranch.

By the time C.J. returned Carmela to the corral, they were long gone. He stood back a moment, looking over the closet in her bedroom, anticipating her reaction when she'd see her clothes arranged in an orderly fashion. Between the horse ride and the return of some of her belongings she would most surely be in better mood than she was earlier... he hoped.

She spent the better part of the afternoon thinking about Matt's proposal – yelling at her subconscious, scolding her self: why on earth wasn't she jumping for joy? A man she loves wants to marry her. Then she reminded herself the timing wasn't right, that her life was upside down right now, and … wait a minute: how dare he put her in this position!

She walked towards the house and saw evidence of Matt's presence – and started preparing her case. By the time she walked into the kitchen she was lit with questions.

"Hey C.J.!" he greeted her enthusiastically, unaware of the surge she was about to unfold on him.

"Don't start with me, Mattlock Houston," she ordered with a finger pointing to him.

"Huh?" he asked, completely baffled.

"I know exactly what you're up to!"

"You do?"

"Yes."

"Well … " he said, dumbstruck. "What is it?"

"You're using this case to get me to marry you. And you have no plans to file an annulment after the wedding, after this case is wrapped up."

"Well, I ..."

She cut him off.

"Aha! So it IS true!"

"Well … is it really such a bad idea. I mean …"

"It doesn't matter. You're breaking our pact … the one YOU suggested we make just the other night!"

"Well not totally … and I'm not doing it on purpose."

"Yeah right."

"I'm not."

"I don't believe you."

"It's true."

"Well I don't believe you!"

"What's it going to take to convince you?"

Their conversation had quickly escalated to a shouting match – unusual for these two. At a loss for words they just stood – staring at each other – waiting to see who was going to speak next. (A perfect time for Matt to make his move.)

"How 'bout this? he asked as he moved closer, placed his hands on her face and planted a kiss on her – a kiss with more intensity and passion than he had ever given to her.

She fought him at first, but quickly acquiesced when she realized how wonderful it felt. She remained there, enjoying the moment, forgetting all about slapping him or anything else her feminist ego wanted to do a few minutes ago.

And so they remained – lips exploring lips, bodies pressed together, arms wrapped tightly around each other. He surely wasn't letting go and truth be told, she didn't want him to. The impromptu make-out session was a moment of surreal closeness – the kind that usually leads to a more romantic activity… the kind that usually erases any doubts.

"Houston…" she breathlessly exclaimed when he finally released. He pulled her into his chest and wrapped his arms so tightly around her she could literally feel his heart beat against her. She rested her forehead against his chest and closed her eyes, savoring the moment. This sure was a lot nicer than fighting him.

"C'mon," he said, reaching for her hand. "I wanna show you something in the bedroom."

His statement caused her to quickly break her euphoric mood. She thrusted her hands against his chest and exclaimed, "Mattlock Houston!"

His eyes flew open wide. "Get your mind out of the gutter, Counselor!" he exclaimed, almost angry with her. "It's not what you think. What kind of guy do you think I am?"

She answered by folding her arms and hanging her head at him.

"Forget I asked that. Just … just come here. Okay?"

But she didn't budge.

"Please..." he pleaded.

She reluctantly caved and followed from several safe feet behind him. When he entered the room he stopped and pointed towards the open closet.

"See?"

She looked at the closet and in seconds, her eyes flew open wide. "My clothes?" she asked, rushing over, reaching in and thumbing through them. "My clothes are … how did you … when did you …?"

"While you were out riding Carmela and plotting against me, the restoration company called and asked where to deliver some of your salvaged belongings."

She shook her head and smiled. Damn. There was no reason to be mad at him now.