Warnings: Not many, really.
Disclaimers: I do NOT own anything. Although the 'guest characters' might be mine, but only if they fit their role. If not, then I don't :)
A/N: This chapter is light on the Shassie moments, but it was needed to move the story forward. Please review if the need arises to let me know how you like or don't like what I've written and thank you for reading!
Lassiter dropped his briefcase under his desk and watched as the conference room filled with the supervisors from every unit in the SBPD. He had seen this before, each time an officer came out or there were issues involving Internal Affairs, but this was the first time he would be the subject of such a meeting. He caught sight of O'Hara from her desk and she gave him a supportive nod before returning to the case file in her hands. Lassiter closed his eyes and thought about this morning with Shawn and the promise of dinner with his boyfriend. He took a deep breath and reopened his eyes to find Detective Starling walking quickly to his desk.
"What's going on in there, Lassiter? Lots of important people gathered for something, right?"
"Yes and I guess you'll find out after it's over." He finished his coffee and walked to the room's door, checking the knot on his tie before he entered."
Inside, were the supervising detectives for the gang, narcotics, vice and grab teams as well as a rep from both IA and HR. The chief coroner, the gun range supervisor plus the CSU shift supervisor was in attendance. Once he shut the door, he stood next to Chief Vick.
Detective LaTurneau, from the NARC unit, spoke up first. "Chief, why must we have one of these every time an officer comes out? We lose so much time just sitting around to get the latest name to add to our list of officers to try and not offend. It's getting ridiculous."
Instead of the Chief answering the question, however, the HR rep chirped in her response. "Detective LaTurneau, we have these meetings to be compliant with the rules that have been set up to keep the station a safe and amiable work place."
"Can we get started then? Where's the officer in question? Shouldn't he be here?"
Chief Vick got to speak this time.
"He is here." The supervisors all turned and looked around, their gazes not landing on anyone in particular and Lassiter noticed their confused looks. He held his chin high and straightened his posture even further. "Detective Lassiter is the officer in which this meeting is about."
There were a few random chuckles and guffaws until they realized that Vick was serious.
"Wait. What? Detective Lassiter, you are telling all of us that you are gay?" Detective Chase from Vice voiced his question and Lassiter answered.
"Yes. I am currently involved in a relationship that was brought to the department's attention through a case where photographic evidence was collected. I am here today, as per policy and procedure, making all of you aware of my status."
LaTurneau sighed and stood up. "Thank God. At least we don't have to baby some newbie who thinks his fresh baby emotions are going to get stepped on if he accidentally encounters an off-color statement. Come on guys, it's Lassiter. Now we know, as per policy. I've heard enough. I've got work to do."
Most of the department supervisors moved to leave the meeting, a few moved slower and took in the information given to them with shock or surprise. But a few even stopped to shake Lassiter's hand on their way out.
Lassiter turned to the Chief. "Well, that was short and uneventful. I'll be going back to work."
That was easier said than done. The daytime CSU shift supervisor stopped by his desk and hesitantly started asking questions.
"Are you sure about this, Lassiter? Really sure? It's not just a small befuddlement from that undercover assignment?"
Lassiter chuckled and images from earlier floated across his mind. "Yes, I'm sure Telford. It's not about the undercover detail, either. Trust me."
Officer Telford patted him on the shoulder and left.
Detective Sommers, however, was angry when he started in on Lassiter. He shouted his words at him and just stormed off before Lassiter could respond.
"Lassiter, we have worked together for ten years. I knew your wife. All that time and you've been hiding this? I hope he's worth all of this. I also hope you know what you're doing, you've just painted a huge sign on yourself."
"Okay. Well, I knew some people wouldn't be happy about all of this." He murmured to himself as he went to the break room and poured a cup of coffee. Lassiter was eager to begin the day, but being Head Detective, he had one more thing to do; he had to meet with the detectives in his unit.
He assembled them all in the bullpen as he would when he assigned the daily caseload and got on with it.
"This morning's meeting between the department supervisors was about me and some personal news that I need to now share with all of you. Some of you were here Saturday, and probably know what I'm going to say. For all of you who weren't here or didn't hear what had happened, I'm just going to say it: I'm gay. I am now in a relationship with a man. I was obligated to tell all of you for legal reasons, and now you all know. For some of you, it may pose a personal or ethical issue, but know that this will change nothing here at the station. I am still Head Detective, I will still make sure your cases are assigned and you will all still report to me. With the news being made, you all know your rights according to policy and procedure. Human Resources and Internal Affairs are both aware of my status and are probably prepared for any of you going to them with your concerns."
He cleared his throat and then handed out the new case files to the lead detectives. There were four new cases and three lead detectives that didn't already have multiple cases. He decided to take two for himself and Starling. Luckily, neither of them involved a bake sale slap fight; those had the potential of getting out of hand and he would never assign a new detective on one of those. He handed out the remaining ones, the detectives gave him uneasy or hesitant responses, but they all were still respectful and took the case files without question. Dobson and O'Hara were still working Shawn's break-in, so they did not get a new case.
Detective Lassiter returned to his desk and noticed that Starling had not followed him. He watched as the new detective spoke with the Chief. Starling didn't look angry, but he was pacing and raised his voice during the conversation. After ten minutes, Starling emerged from the office but just stood at the door and stared at Lassiter. Finally, he slowly made his way to Lassiter's desk.
Lassiter didn't know what the conversation was about, but he could guess. He let Starling take the lead, since he didn't know what had just happened or was decided in the chief's office.
Starling sat down in the chair next to his desk and for a few moments, he didn't speak. After a long sigh, Starling spoke to him.
"Did you know that in the entire state of California, no openly gay officer holds the rank higher than Sergeant? At least, until today, Detective?"
"What? Starling why would that be important to me? And why would that be the first thing you say to me after the scene you just made in there?"
"It should be important to you. It's important to many gay officers. It was important to my last partner in Ventura." Lassiter saw flashes of emotions cross Starling's eyes before the new detective inhaled and straightened himself up in the chair. "I feel even more honored to be partnered with you, Detective Lassiter." Starling leaned in and lowered his voice. "You're the first gay detective on the record books."
"Crap. Are you sure about that, Starling? Never mind."
Lassiter unlocked his bottom desk drawer and brought out his two extra gun cases. He took off his suit jacket and hung it on the coat rack before rolling up his shirtsleeves.
"Let's go shoot something. Seems we both need to vent on some paper targets and I need to assess your marksmanship skills."
"Yes sir."
Shawn walked into the Psych office and started going through the voicemail messages. He paused after the fourth message and took a trashcan basketball break. He felt antsy without his partner and best friend to talk to and didn't think that he'd benefit from talking to himself. So, he decided to look into some of the people that left messages; getting a little background before calling them back helped sell the whole Psychic Detective title.
While he did some reverse looking up of the phone numbers, his mind wandered over the events of the weekend. He couldn't believe how incredible it had been to take the lead, twice already, during sex. He had figured he'd be the taker of the relationship and nothing more. What a happy surprise turn this weekend had taken. Shawn felt as if their relationship had taken a few steps forward and that he'd gained some ground in the equality part as well. For the first time, ever, Shawn felt like a relationship truly was a two-way street.
It felt entirely different being with Lassie than the countless women he'd been with through the years and not just because of the whole 'man parts' reason. It was as if sex took on a different tone. With his girlfriends, Shawn had felt it to be nice and flowery, almost gentle; except for that one girl who was into bondage and whips that took on a more terrifying tone. But with Lassie, it felt like pure lust and passion and sweat. Lassie even growled and grunted. Shawn didn't feel the need to light aromatic candles or set the mood with music and clean sheets. This time around he was happy with hairy legs, evening stubble and the musky scent that was Carlton.
He also found it so against his own character to feel so comfortable in this new relationship. Shawn wasn't a believer in 'True Love' or 'Soul Mates', but he couldn't deny how easily he and Carlton fit into each other's lives. After years of aggravating one another at work, it didn't quite seem possible how easy it was. Shawn had his own key to Lassie's house and his car. For pineapple's sake, he would never have thought that was possible.
Shawn had gotten bored with getting detail bits about his prospective clients, so he decided to start apartment hunting. After about an hour, he noticed that he had saved the information on three bedroom apartments and for most of them he had jotted notes about what Lassie would think about the place; whether one of the extra rooms was large enough to fit Lassie's office desk or not, if the kitchen was big enough for the both of them to work around each other.
Shawn saved his list for future reference and resumed researching for the soon-to-be clients. He looked up at the clock, which read ten o'clock, he still had a couple hours before Gus would have finished his new doctor's route and wondered how Lassie was faring at the station.
The time spent in the gun range was both insightful and therapeutic. Lassiter was able to get an idea of how to help his new partner improve his accuracy and he was able to get rid of some stress. He also learned a bit about his new partner.
Starling opened up about his discussion with the Chief. His former partner had been told that he wasn't eligible for a rank advancement due to a promotion freeze. However, Starling was promoted the next month, with no mention of the so-called freeze. It was never spoken out loud that his partner's sexual orientation was the real reason. But after being told he wasn't eligible for the second time, his partner attempted to kill himself. He was discharged from the force for mental instability and Starling transferred to Santa Barbara right after.
"I started doing research about police departments and their policies. Found out that each city or county has their own guidelines, and as long as there aren't complaints of harassment or assault, it's normally just ignored."
"The Chief pretty much told me the same thing. If it wasn't for the fact that there is photographic evidence of my relationship in a case that IA got involved, I wouldn't have had to make it such a big deal. My partner already knew of the relationship and the Chief suspected, but I hadn't told her directly; she was willing to let it go unnoticed."
The two continued their conversation over lunch, which they ate in Lassiter's Crown Vic. The taco place was on the way to start their first round of witness interviews on their new cases.
Lassiter learned more about his new partner and what had sparked Starling's heated conversation in the Chief's office.
"I thought I was picked to be your partner for the reason that I had had a gay partner before. Turns out that I was wrong. Very strange set of circumstances, though."
"Yeah, I can see how it may have looked, but you do not have to worry. I am in no danger of trying to off myself."
Lassiter's phone chimed, alerting him that he had a text message, from Shawn.
"Excuse me, Starling."
Shawn: Are you at lunch?
Lassiter: Yes. Are you okay? How's the car?
Shawn: We're both fine. Baby koala, remember?
Lassiter: Good.
Shawn: How's the new partner?
Lassiter: Not so bad. Green, but actually okay.
Shawn: Okay, really? Do I need to step in and mark my territory?
Lassiter: No. Although it has been a while since you've left a mark.
Shawn: Actually, I left one this morning, but it's on your back, you can't see it.
Lassiter: But you can, right?
Shawn: You got it.
Lassiter: Was there something you needed, Shawn?
Shawn: Nope, just wanted to talk to my sweet Lassibear.
Lassiter: But you didn't call, so you aren't talking to me.
Shawn: Figured with your newbie, you wouldn't feel comfortable getting all mushy with me on the phone.
Lassiter: Didn't think about that. You're probably right, baby.
Shawn: See? That right there. You wouldn't have said that over the phone with Starling sitting next to you in the Crown Vic in front of that taco place you go to.
Lassiter: Are you spying on me?
Lassiter looked around the parking lot and spotted his black Fusion parked five spaces away.
"Starling, I'll be right back. I have to go deal with something."
"Okay."
Carlton approached the Fusion from the side, clicked the unlock button on his own key, opened the passenger door and sat down. Just as he got the door closed, Shawn dove over the console and planted a kiss on his mouth. Their tongues danced around each other and their hands roamed where they could, one of Shawn's somehow finding its way under his shirt, before they pulled apart. Shawn was still slightly petting his chest hair. Carlton smiled, and then asked, "What are you doing here?"
"Gus had a craving for tacos and I offered to pick them up. I know you like this place and it was your normal lunch hour, ergo..."
"Thanks Shawn. It's nice seeing you."
"You bet. You still sure I don't need to go over there and assert my presence on your new partner?"
"I'm sure. There's nothing to worry about there. By the way, can you look something up for me? Can you see if it's true that there are no openly gay officers ranked higher than Sergeant?"
"Um, sure, but that's not my usual Google searching style. There's usually a kitten or a labradoodle thrown into the mix."
"Whatever. Starling's statistic is unnerving."
"Why is that Lassie?"
"Because if it's true, you're dating California's first gay detective. Ever."
"Whoa. That's, that would be crazy, right?"
"Yes it would. I have to get back to work. I'll call you..."
"I know. Shawn's chauffeur services will be at your beck and call, Carly."
"It's gotta be Karma for all the times Guster's driven you around."
"I think it would only be Karma if I drove Gus around. But it would work out, if suddenly I got the urge to throw you into walls and threaten to shoot you."
"Try it and see how far you get, Spencer."
Shawn grabbed his suit lapels and brought him close enough to kiss.
"I'll think about it, Detective."
Carlton melted at the way Shawn said that word and growled before kissing him hard on the mouth. When they finally ended their kiss, Carlton got out, re-tucked his shirt, and straightened his tie and jacket as he walked back to the Crown Vic.
"Everything okay?" Starling asked him as he got back in the cruiser.
"Everything's great. Are you ready to get started on these witness interviews?"
"Sure."
Lassiter and Starling were returning to the station, Starling spoke up again.
"So, what do you do on the weekends, Detective?"
"I stay pretty low-key, Starling. If don't get called in because a body had been found in a lake, and there's not either a gun show or tournament or a reenactment going on, I pretty much stay around my house."
"A house sounds nice. Do you have a yard and a garage?"
"Uh, well, yeah. It is nice to not share a hallway with nosy neighbors. It's bad enough to share a property line and argue about which hedge is mine or theirs or if they could keep their squirrel feeder on the other side of their property."
Starling laughed and Lassiter glared at him. He hadn't told a joke, his neighbor really didn't have the common decency to realize not everyone wanted those furry vermin hanging around.
"Sorry. I didn't realize you were serious about the squirrel issue. I have been looking online to find decent restaurants and places to hang out, do you have any recommendations?"
"Well, the coffee shop down the street is better than the one across from the precinct. I think they assume since our coffee is terrible, that anything they sell would be better. Truth is, most everyone here runs to that place on their break since it's so close. The taco place on State Street is a pretty good value." Lassiter could tell that Starling was looking for a little more insight about Santa Barbara than he was providing. "You know what, I know someone who'd have better information for you. When I run into him, I'll let him know to talk to you."
He was thinking about Shawn and was pretty confident that he could give Starling plenty of advice about things in and around town.
"Thank you."
"Sure."
Once inside the station, Starling disappeared to the bathroom and O'Hara nearly ran herself to Lassiter's desk.
"Good news, Carlton! We have a lead and a suspect in Shawn's break-in."
"Great. When do you and Dobson bring them in?"
Lassiter wanted to at least observe the sicko's interrogation once they were in custody.
"Dobson's running his location now. It's Marshall. His prints were all over the photos in Shawn's apartment AND we have security camera footage that shows him picking up a photo order at the local photo mart."
"Marshall? What the hell? Was he that pissed about his suspension?"
"Must have been. So far we haven't been able to locate him, but looks like we're on the right track. Turns out that Marshall had used his badge to gain access to the Cathedral Station's security room. It's our guess that's how the photo of you and Shawn on the stage was obtained"
"Good work, O'Hara. Update me with anything new, okay?"
"You got it."
Lassiter sat down to think. Were the fight, the altercation with Shawn and his suspension enough motivation for breaking into Shawn's apartment and for following them? He guessed it must have been; he'd seen murderers with fewer motives. At least with his personnel file, there were plenty of places to start finding him.
The thought of Marshall's file made Lassiter remember the paperwork he still had to complete for Human Resources. One of which required him to change his emergency contact in the case he was hospitalized. He figured he could keep his mother listed, but she had the tendency to travel a lot. He thought he might need someone closer. Maybe O'Hara would let him add her to the form. His gut was suggesting him to add Shawn, but they had just started seeing each other, and even though he felt strongly about the man, Lassiter didn't think it was the right time to take that step, yet.
Besides, from speaking with Shawn, it sounded like he was going to be apartment hunting pretty soon anyway. Maybe by the time Shawn had found a new place and an actual address that could be added to the form, maybe by then he would be ready.
Starling came back to Lassiter's desk and dropped a notebook on top of it.
"The bartender lied. I just called the college and his instructor told me that the guy wasn't in class the day of the fire."
"Looks like we need to bring this degenerate in for further questioning. Let's go, Starling."
Once Lassiter and Starling brought the bartender in, the questioning got tense. Turned out the guy was a member of a White Supremacy Group, which, since a Hispanic member of the community owned the store that was burned down it meant the arson was now considered a hate crime.
Lassiter let Starling start the questioning and he got nowhere with the guy. He insisted that he no longer had ties with the racist group and had even removed most of his tattoos in his way of trying to prove that he was no longer a racist.
Lassiter had enough to let the guy stew in a holding cell until he could come up with a plan. His gut was telling him this was the guy, or he knew who started the fire. Lassiter reviewed the case file and came up with an idea.
"McNab!"
"Yes, sir?"
"I want you to escort Mr. Robertson to the holding cells. I'll send Starling with you. While he's there, start talking about how shocking the news from this morning is on the department and make sure to mention my name several times. I want this guy to know who I am when he's back in interrogation."
"Are you sure? I would never start rumors about you, sir."
"You aren't starting rumors, McNab. Besides, you'll be talking to Starling and he already knows too."
When Starling left the interrogation room and McNab started walking to the cells, Lassiter let Starling in on his plan.
"Just talk with McNab in front of this guy. I have to make a call and get the second part of this plan moving. I want his confession by the end of the day."
Lassiter walked up the stairs, back to his desk and dialed Shawn's number.
"No, Shawn, I'm not calling to have you pick me up. I'm still working, but I need you and Guster to come to the station. As soon as you can. Actually, I'm needing Guster's help, figured having you here, too, depending on how long this takes, we could go to dinner afterwards. Thanks."
He hung up his phone and went to the gun range to wait.
Lassiter had just finished his fourth target and was bringing it back to see how he'd done, when he heard Shawn clear his throat.
"Hey Lassie. Can see you are still lethal to the paper targets."
"Shawn. Glad you're here. Is Guster with you?"
"He's here at the station but he's upstairs, probably chatting up Jules."
Lassiter packed up his gun and rolled the paper targets before signing out with the range officer.
"Have you gotten a chance to look into what I mentioned at lunch?"
"Oh, you mean I was supposed to check it out within the last three hours? I thought it was just a suggestion to maybe look into it at some point."
"Shawn."
"As much as I do like you all growly, yes, I did look into some things. Turns out, Starling is right. If there are gay detectives in California, they aren't open about it. The mayor of San Francisco actually ran on a platform that included his promise to start more promotions. So, congratulations."
"Son of a bitch. That's all I need on top of everything else."
"What? I find it pretty hot. You're like a living legend. One day someone, maybe that Powers Booth guy you like so much, could play you in a reenactment."
"Fan-freaking-tastic, Spencer. And Powers Booth is an actor, not part of the reenactment group."
"Actor, reenactor; I've heard it both ways."
"I'm sure you have, Spencer."
Lassiter locked up the gun he used on the range and filled Guster, Shawn and Starling in on his plan while he un-rolled his sleeves and put his suit jacket back on.
Everyone seemed to understand his intentions; Shawn had a crazy grin on his face and Guster looked like he was just asked to eat something foul.
"Guster, are you on board with this? This won't work if you don't buck up. Let me know now if you can't handle it."
"No, Lassiter, I can do this. It just makes me feel uneasy."
"Don't worry. It's not like I'm going to jump you and start making out with you in the interrogation room."
"Thanks for that, Detective."
Shawn spoke up to that, too.
"Better not, there Lassie. That's my best friend. Don't become a Jerry Springer guest."
"No worries, Shawn." Lassiter brushed his cheek as he walked down to the interrogation rooms with Gus. He had asked Starling to get Robertson into room 'B'.
Shawn, O'Hara and Starling were in the observation room when Lassiter and Gus walked out. Charles Robertson cracked and confessed to starting the fire. It didn't take much; just a few casual brushes against Guster and at one point, Lassiter reached and held his hand for a moment. But what really pushed Robertson to confess was when Lassiter put his hands on the suspects shoulders from behind as he had done before in countless interrogations. Apparently being touched by someone who was gay and was openly holding hands with a black man was where the degenerate drew his line.
When he joined the others in the observation room, Starling piped up.
"How did you know that was going to work?"
"I read the file. The storeowner was a gay Hispanic and Robertson and his brother were seen in the area harassing the owner a couple of days before. I figured having you and McNab gossip about me coming out, using my name, that when I entered he'd already be on the defensive. Guster, you did a great job in there. Couldn't have done it without you. Thanks."
"Sure. Fine. But, let's not make it a habit. Being in a building with a White Supremacist is quite enough for me, let alone in the same room. Glad I could help, though. One more bad guy off the streets, right?"
"You got that, buddy." Shawn fist-bumped his friend and everything seemed to get back to normal with the group.
O'Hara had gotten a message from Dobson and rushed back to her desk. Starling was discussing nightclubs with Guster, Shawn and Lassiter held back as everyone else walked back upstairs.
Lassiter closed the observation room's door and planted a quick kiss on Shawn's lips.
"Thanks for coming to help out." He rubbed Shawn's shoulders and Shawn held onto his waist, looping his thumbs through Lassiter's holster tie downs.
"Sure thing, Lassie. Although, I didn't do anything, you used Gus to crack your suspect, not me." Shawn tried a little pout face and stuck out his bottom lip, which Lassiter leaned down to suck into his mouth.
"I'm just glad you're not the jealous type, Shawn. That could have gotten awkward."
Shawn laughed then replied. "I know you're too into me to go playing around and with Gus? Please. He'd probably run for the hills if you made a real pass at him. I think he secretly fears you; thinks you'd snap one day and start chasing him down with a sword or something ridiculous."
"That does sound rather ridiculous. Have you decided on dinner?"
"I am feeling in the mood for Italian food. How about Mario's? Jules seems to like their food."
"Sounds good. Their Chicken Parmesan is pretty good, too."
"You and that Chicken Parmesan. You're gonna turn into Billy Crystal's character in 'Forget Paris' always ordering the same thing, but whatever. Dinner out with my boyfriend sounds really great either way."
"Yeah, it does." He carded his hand through the back of Shawn's hair and gave him a slower, deeper kiss. "I have to process Robertson and then write up the rest of the paperwork for the Chief. It shouldn't take too long."
"Gus and I are going to go and talk to one of our new clients and then I can come back to pick you up. Is that good?"
"Great." Lassiter opened the door and the two of them stepped into the hallway as it erupted in a cacophony of catcalls and whistles.
"Busted, Lassiter! Not even one day goes by and you're making out with your little boyfriend on the job? For shame."
Lassiter felt the tips of his ears get red, not from embarrassment, but from anger.
"Get back to work, all of you."
He saw Shawn's eyes widen at both his tone and how quickly everyone dispersed and returned to work. "That was impressive, Lassie. And a lot hot."
"Spencer. Let's get back to work ourselves." He was still using his growly voice and he could have sworn Shawn just eeped out a squeak.
"Yes, Detective." Shawn mock saluted him with the wrong hand and followed him up the stairs to find Gus.
It was past seven o'clock when O'Hara stopped by his desk on her way out.
"You survived the day, Carlton."
"Yes, I did, O'Hara. Anything new on Marshall's whereabouts?"
"Nothing. No credit card hits, nothing from his cell phone. Dobson issued a BOLO, but we haven't heard anything yet. We have a uniform sitting at his apartment in case he returns there, but it's almost as if he's disappeared. I wanted to tell you that when Dobson and I went into his apartment, we found more photos of you and Shawn. Some of them were pretty *ahem* naked. Dobson and the Chief have done what they can to keep their exposure down to the forensics teams. They are supposed to get copies to you as soon as they can so you can identify location and dates. Sorry partner."
"No one just disappears. He might end up in a ditch or we'll pick him up for a traffic ticket, but he's somewhere and we'll bring him in eventually."
"Dobson wants to talk to you tomorrow about the possibility of putting a tail on you and Shawn in case Marshall's still stalking you two. He thinks if the guy's still obsessed with the two of you, that we could catch him while he's camped out watching you."
"Okay. I'll sit down with him tomorrow morning and see what he has in mind."
"I'll see you tomorrow, Carlton. Do you need a ride home? I didn't see your Fusion in your parking spot."
"No. I let Shawn use the car to give Guster a break from schlepping him around town. I'm about to call him so he'll pick me up."
"Oh. Okay. Good night."
"You too, O'Hara."
He finished the report and put it into the Chief's inbox. He saw that Starling was still working on their second case file.
"Starling. Go home. We'll pick this up in the morning."
Starling rubbed his eyes and instantly looked more tired than he did moments before.
"I didn't realize it was already so late." Starling closed the file and started collecting his things and Lassiter dialed Shawn's number as he walked back to his own desk.
"Shawn. Yes, I'm ready for you to come and get me from the station. I'm starving. No. No. No. Spencer! Thank you. See you soon."
"What was that all about?" Starling's voice so close behind him actually made him jump.
"He likes to push my buttons is all, Starling."
"Who? Shawn Spencer, the psychic that was here earlier?"
"Yes. One and the same."
"What did he want? Isn't it late for him to be helping on a case?"
Lassiter looked at is new partner in confusion. "You haven't figured it out yet? I thought after this afternoon, that you would have put the pieces together. Shawn's my boyfriend. His break-in case is the one that prompted the departmental meeting this morning and my coming out at work."
"Oh. Oh."
Lassiter watched as Starling mentally walked through the events of the day and when the realization finally hit him.
"Yeah. Sometimes, especially at work he can be downright irritating, but I've found out the hard way that the heart want what the heart wants. No matter where it comes from."
The two detectives laughed as they exited the station and Shawn pulled up as if on cue. Shawn rolled down the window and yelled out.
"So which of you two hot detectives called for a ride? I'm really hoping it the tall, lanky one with the killer ass."
"Shawn. Really? Sweet Justice." He turned to Starling. "See what I mean? Constant button pushing. See you tomorrow."
Shawn had gotten out of the car and gotten into the passenger seat by the time Carlton turned around and walked to the car. He smiled and then got into the driver's side.
"Thanks for letting me drive my own car, Shawn."
"You're welcome, Lassie. Now we're both hungry, let's go eat."
"I think I'm going to have to get you back for that bit in front of Starling, Shawn. We're lucky it was just the two of us out there tonight."
"I wouldn't have done it if there were more of your fellow officers mulling around, Lassie. Promise you that, but if you still want to punish me later, I guess I'll have to take what's coming to me." Shawn put his hand on his thigh and slowly inched it higher as Carlton drove. By the time he parked the car in Mario's parking lot Shawn was lightly stroking him through his pants.
He knew he could have swatted him away as he'd down many times before, but he decided he liked the attention, so just made like he was ignoring the touching. All the while it was obvious that he was just acting like he was ignoring it, though. His body gave that away for him.
Carlton got out of the car and readjusted certain body parts before he caught up to Shawn on the other side of the car. They joined hands and walked inside the restaurant.
Carlton had never had a more erotic dinner in a public restaurant. Shawn didn't seem capable of keeping his hands off. Carlton was pretty sure he even moaned into his own drink when, at one point, Shawn used the flimsy cover of Carlton's napkin to hide his hand's job of unzipping Carlton's pants and as the hand slid into his boxers.
"Shawn, have you lost your mind? Not here, baby."
Shawn whimpered, but removed his hand. Carlton zipped up and then pulled Shawn closer to him on the seat. Their thighs touched for the remainder of the meal and Shawn's hands kept up their teasing touches throughout the dinner.
When it was time to leave, Carlton was sporting such an obvious erection that even the cashier noticed as he paid the check. He blushed and gave her an uncomfortable smile when he saw her eyes widen when she noticed. He had never signed his name on a receipt faster just so he could turn away from her and leave.
"Hope someone gets to enjoy that this evening. Thank you, sir."
"Good Lord." He turned and joined Shawn just outside the restaurant door, where Shawn proceeded to snake his arm around him and put his hand in Carlton's back pocket and squeezed.
When he pulled into his driveway, unfortunately all the lusty, sex-filled thoughts screeched to a halt. On his porch sat a teenaged kid who looked like hell.
Both he and Shawn were out of the car faster than they could have communicated verbally to each other what they were doing.
"Are you okay?" Shawn reached the boy first and when he reached to inspect the bruising on the kid's cheek, the teen pulled away. "I'm not going to hurt you. I just want to make sure you're not bleeding."
Carlton recognized the kid and pulled his cell phone out of his pocket. He dialed the number that Cody had given him to contact his mom, but it went straight to voicemail. He left a message that the Head Detective of the Santa Barbara police has her youngest son at his house and to call back immediately.
Shawn had gotten the kid inside the house and Carlton yanked the piece of paper that had Cody's number written on it off the refrigerator.
He, again, had to leave a message and Carlton looked over the teenage boy that sat shivering on his couch. Carlton kneeled by the kid and Shawn brought a bag of ice wrapped in a towel.
"What the hell happened? Why did you come here?"
"Cody said that if I ran into trouble that I should come here. Which one of you is Mister Lassiter?"
Shawn pointed to Carlton and Carlton responded that he was who the kid was looking for.
"I'm sorry, kid, but what's your name? I only know you as Carol's son and Cody's brother."
"Bobby. My name's Bobby. I had nowhere else to go, Mr. Lassiter."
"Why aren't you home?"
"Because my mom's new boyfriend is the one who did this."
"What? Son of a bitch." Carlton stood up. "Where is he now?"
"I don't know. He came to the house looking for my mom. I had my friend over and when he saw us, he lost it and just started smacking me around. Jeff, my friend, took off through the back door. When I said my mom wasn't there, he stopped hitting me and then drove off. I couldn't reach my mom or Cody, so I came here. I'm sorry to bother you guys, it's just..."
Shawn sat next to Bobby and adjusted the ice pack for him. "It's okay. Detective Lassiter and I are going to take care of you until your mom can pick you up, okay? Where does your mom work?"
"She works nights at a bar called 'The White Stallion''. Thank you, for letting me stay."
Shawn walked over to Carlton and leaned in to talk to him. "His face is going to bruise fairly badly. I think he should have some Ibuprofen and then I can let him crash in the guest room. Is that okay?"
"That sounds perfect, Shawn." Carlton dialed the number for information to get a number for 'The White Stallion' and Shawn led Bobby towards the guest room.
When he finally got connected, he learned two things; one, 'The White Stallion' was a strip club and that Bobby's mom didn't just work there, she was one of the dancers.
"The things you don't know about your neighbors." He mumbled as he scratched the back of his head.
"Sounds like the title to a great book. I'd like to use that once I learn how to type." Shawn had crept up behind him and the sound of his voice had shocked him out of his internal thoughts. Although it was a light-hearted statement, Shawn's voice was lacking its normal jokey tone.
"I'm so sorry, Shawn, but I'm going to go and get Bobby's mom. She needs to know what happened. The manager I spoke with said she is scheduled to be working tonight." He pulled Shawn close and kissed him on the forehead, then the cheek and lightly on the lips before he headed out. "Keep the doors locked and don't answer the door. Just in case that reprobate returns and somehow figured out where Bobby went. You know where the guns are. Stay safe."
He tried to stay calm as he drove to the strip club. There was no excuse for an adult to smack a kid around. When he found the guy, he would make sure he realized his error pretty quickly.
Lassiter encountered slight resistance from the man at the club's entrance when he said he wasn't paying the cover charge, until he pulled out his badge. He made his way to the manager, who was pointed out to him by the guy.
He held his badge up again, when he reached the manager. "Excuse me. I'm looking for Carol Thomas. I spoke to you on the phone earlier about her?"
"Ah, yes. Sorry you had to make the trip. Turns out, Carol called in. She's not coming in tonight after all."
"Shit. Thank you." He turned around and smacked into a half-dressed cocktail waitress.
"Find what you're looking for handsome?"
"Not yet." He said dryly and walked past her. He dialed a number he had long ago memorized.
Juliet answered as he exited the club. "O'Hara, it's Lassiter. I need your help. Meet me at the station? I know, I'm sorry, but a matter has come up. Oh. Sorry." Apparently she had company this evening in the form of Spencer's business partner. "Look, I wouldn't do this unless it was important. I have a teenager at my house who's been beaten by his mother's boyfriend. The mom isn't at work; the manager said she called in sick, she's obviously not at home and we need to track her down. It's possible she's in danger with the asshat that bruised her kid's face."
He started his car and drove towards the station.
"Shawn's at the house with the kid, if Guster wants to go over and keep them company. Yeah, I'll call him and let him know to be expecting him to come over. Thanks, O'Hara."
Once he ended the call with Juliet, he called Shawn and let him know to expect Gus. Shawn had gotten both the license plates of the mom's car and to the boyfriend's car from Bobby.
The first thing he did when he arrived at the station was run the license plate of the boyfriend's car that Bobby had given Shawn. He pulled up the asshat's name and address. Lassiter called dispatch and sent officers to the address, in case the mom and the boyfriend were there. He then tried calling Cody, but once again the call went to voicemail.
He was in the process of getting the traffic light camera footage from the nearest intersection to their street when O'Hara arrived. He couldn't help but notice how flushed her skin was and that she had a small hickey on the spot that her collarbone met her neck.
"Sorry I had to interrupt you and Guster. But, if it helps you to not be so mad at me, Shawn and I were also interrupted by Bobby's appearance on my porch."
"How is the kid?" Her voice was filled with worry.
"He looks like hell landed on his face, Juliet. This asshat boyfriend of his mom's isn't getting away with this."
"Was the guy drunk? Why would he have hit the kid?"
Lassiter sighed as he told her about what both Cody and his brother had told him.
"Oh my God. Let's get this guy, partner. You have anything on the cameras?"
The two of them split the camera footage and before too long were able to figure the boyfriend had driven to a parking lot where a woman got into the car with him. Lassiter couldn't make out the woman's face, but from what he saw, it sort of looked like Carol. From there, it looked like the boyfriend was traveling in the direction of his residence.
Lassiter got a call from the uniforms he had sent to the location. They confirmed that the boyfriend's car was in the driveway. Lassiter told them to hold their position and that he and O'Hara were going to join them.
~END of CHAPTER 14~ More coming soon.