Author's note: So, taking just another tiny step backward in time to explore Lee's activities after leaving Billy's office as well as Amie's after leaving the bullpen. The flashback scene in this one is to outline Lee's version of events leading up to Amanda's arrival with Leah to take Lee out to lunch as mentioned in chapter 13.
After leaving Billy's office, Lee, knowing that he still had some time before Leah needed to be picked up from her cheerleading practice, took a detour before leaving the office. If Amanda had found Phillip, he had an idea how she'd done it. After a few minutes with Leatherneck and another few on the computer to gather the information that he needed, he was about to leave his office just as Amie walked in and nearly walked right into her.
"I was just looking for you," Amie purred suggestively as she laid a hand on his shoulder.
"Sorry, Amie, man on a mission," Lee said as he attempted to move past her into the hallway.
"Not until tomorrow," she reminded him as she slid both arms up his chest and linked her hands behind his neck.
"Yeah, I know, but I've still got some things here in the office to wrap up before leaving tomorrow," He said in an apologetic tone, feigning disappointment.
"Too bad," she replied with a pout as she lowered her arms.
Still attempting to play his cover, he winked at her and said, "This shouldn't take too long. Maybe we can catch up later." He then scooted past her through the doorway.
"Count on it," she said gleefully as she watched him walk away. Once she heard his footsteps fading down the hall, she made her way to his desk and began typing furiously trying to figure out what his meek little wife was up to. "My, my, Amanda, you have been busy." She then frowned as she came across a file that she couldn't open. "Damn! Password-protected!" She sighed. "Think, Amelia. Think like a goody-goody housewife. What would she use as a password?" She then proceeded to try all of the names of the children to no avail. While she abhorred children herself, she'd heard Amanda prattle enough about her children to know all of their names. "Now what?" Another thought occurred to her. "The ten-year anniversary thing is a big deal to her." She tried every combination she that could of the Stetsons' wedding date and anniversary date only to find that she was still locked out.
Sighing in frustration, she picked up the phone and began dialing and when it was answered, she said sweetly, "Hi, Mrs. D'Angelo. I need to put together a background profile on our ringer for tomorrow's round at Station One and it would help if I had her actual background profile as a starting point." She paused as she listened. "Oh, you already heard. Yes, Amanda Stetson. I'll need it as soon as possible."
While Amie was trying relentlessly to break into Amanda's files, Lee was driving back toward Georgetown University, his thoughts in turmoil at what he had to do and feeling repulsed at the memory of Amie's touch and even more so that he was going to be forced to pretend he enjoyed her attention after years of rebuffing her advances. How was he going to get through this and make it convincing when the mere thought of it made him sick to his stomach? He reflected back on the first time he'd told her to back off.
Monday, December 28, 1987, 12:15PM
Lee sighed as he stared at the uncooperative computer screen, and then paused in his typing as he rolled his neck around to alleviate the stiffness that had set in after an hour or more of sitting there and getting no results on the newest case he was working on. He hated this part of the job and desperately wished that Amanda were here as she was so much better on the stupid contraption than he was. He ran a hand through his hair, and then began to knead his stiff neck muscles in an attempt to loosen the tension.
"Here, let me help," A female voice suggested next to him and before he knew what was happening her long fingers were massaging his muscles. It seemed innocent enough at first, but then when she whispered suggestively in his ear, "I can help you with anything else you need too," he bolted from his chair and glared at her.
"I don't need your help with anything that's not related to work. You got me?"
"But isn't that what a partner's for? To help each other out with whatever they might need help with?"
"Let's get one thing straight right now; you're only here until Amanda comes back from maternity leave. She's my partner and always will be."
Amie chuckled softly and replied, "Ooh, someone's bitter. Just because your partner went and got herself knocked up and left you holding the bag, don't take it out on me."
Lee approached her menacingly and retorted, "Let me clarify something for you. Amanda didn't get herself knocked up. It takes two, you know."
"Oho, I see what's going on here. I've heard all about you through the grapevine, you know, the eternal ladies' man. Is that what this is about? She's the one woman you couldn't land and now it just burns your ass that she's obviously been busy with someone else."
It was his turn to laugh. "Well, Amie, maybe you should listen to your grapevine a little more closely," he suggested with an impish grin. He then reached around her and plucked a framed photo from his desk, thrusting it in her face. "You see this? This was taken at last year's New Year's Eve party at the Soviet Embassy. Amanda and I go to that party together every year and we will be again this year in just a few days, as a matter of fact."
Amie scowled while she looked at the photo of the pair, clearly happy together and then shook it off with a nonchalant, "So what?" as she set it back down on the desk.
"I'm just saying that as a trained agent, especially one who's going to be responsible for training new agents, you should make sure you have your facts straight before making assumptions."
"It's not an assumption that the two of you were arguing about her going on maternity leave last week," Amie pointed out. "We were all in Billy's office and heard what was going on. It was obvious that you weren't too happy about having me assigned as your partner."
"And getting less happy about it by the minute," Lee grumbled as he crossed his arms. "I have a partner and I don't need another one, especially one like you!"
"Oh, now, don't be that way. If you give me a chance, I think you'll find that I'll be the best partner you've ever had," Amie cooed as she sidled up to him again, running her hands up his closed arms, her leering look making it clear to him that she was interested in being more than just his work partner.
Lee backed up to get away from her, but had nowhere to go with the chair in his way so ended up backing up to a half-sitting position on the desk. "Do you see this?" He said pointedly as he held up his left hand, making his wedding band clearly visible. "This means that Amanda is my partner...for life! It doesn't matter that she's not here right now. She is my partner, now and forever!"
"Amanda?" she questioned.
"That's right," Lee sneered and then laughed sardonically. "So, it seems you didn't learn everything from the grapevine. I'm not the ladies' man that I once was."
"Oh, I'd heard that you were married, but I just didn't realize it was to her, so her pregnancy-"
"That's right!" Lee said victoriously. "The babies she's carrying are mine! That's why we were arguing. I wanted her to take her leave so that she could get some real rest. She hasn't been sleeping well at night because she's so uncomfortable. You add that to working and three kids at home and she has been getting more run down that she should be this close to her due date."
"Well, if you ask me, that's her own fault that she's in that condition," Amie fired back. "She did it to herself."
"No, I did it to her," Lee gave her a challenging grin and a wink, his double meaning obvious to her.
Instead of being thwarted by Lee's response, she only persisted, shooting closer to him and sliding her hands up his thighs. "That's very sad for you then. She's in no condition to take care of your needs the way that a "partner" should, not that you'd even want her to the way that she looks. I mean, it's not as if you could get your arms around her, anyway."
Lee removed Amie's hands from his thighs and pushed back forcefully on her shoulders causing her to fall back against the shelving unit behind the desk and retorted, "That's where you're wrong. Amanda knows exactly what I need when I need it. You obviously don't."
"But I could if you gave me the chance," she replied in a lilting voice undeterred by Lee's protests as she approached him again.
"I said no," Lee snapped.
Lee again pushed at Amie just as he heard the patter of tiny footsteps coming down the hall and a cry of, "Daddy, daddy, daddy," followed by Amanda's motherly voice, saying, "Leah, Sweetie, slow down."
He breathed a sigh of relief, leapt to his feet and said happily, "There's my two favorite girls." He then greeted Leah with, "Hey, my little princess," as he swept her into his arms, a bright smile on his face. In an effort to make his point to Amie, he reached for his wife, sliding one hand to caress her rounded stomach while he gave her a deep, romantic kiss, pouring all the love he held for her into it that kiss.
They were interrupted by a cry of protest from Leah and a snarky comment from Amie to which he rolled his eyes and glared at her. He thought back to what he'd said about Amanda always knowing what he needed and her timely arrival only reinforced that belief in his mind. She'd shown up just in time to keep him from knocking Amie flat on her ass.
His mind back in the present, he parked his car and consulted the campus map he'd printed out as he was now on a part of it that he was somewhat unfamiliar with having never had a need to be here as Jamie didn't have any classes here. He'd only been to this portion of the Georgetown's grounds once, years ago with Amanda. God, he needed Amanda. She'd know right where to go since she'd spent a lot of time here during the early years of her first marriage.
That thought filled him with a pang of dread wondering just what Amie had been talking about regarding Amanda and Joe. That thought had him once again pulling out the envelope he'd threatened Joe with. He pulled out the photograph inside to look at it once again. He gave a soft chuckle at the look on Joe's face of half-amusement, half-nervousness as an African woman clad in a grass skirt and only a large ornamental necklace covering her bosom leaned over him as she clasped his hands tightly. He knew the photo was much more innocent than it looked as she'd only been trying to convince to rise from his seat so that she could teach him their tribal dance at the behest of her husband, the Prime Minister of Estoccia, but the photo looked damning all the same by the position they were in. It had even created a tiny bit of a scandal in the underprivileged nation, being published in their local paper, until their leader had made it quite clear that he trusted Joseph King with his life.
He put the photo away and shook his head with a chuckle reminded of how once in England, Amanda had been the unwitting target of the paparazzi when she'd accidentally become embroiled in a sex scandal herself. He smiled at the memories of how angry she'd gotten with him when he'd told her how ridiculous he thought it was and then later how she'd explained to him why she didn't believe that Lady Bromfield was in love with her husband, the look she'd given him and the way she'd touched him then making it all too apparent that she knew what she was talking about. "God, why didn't I tell her that I loved her then?" He scolded himself. It would have been the perfect opportunity.
He consulted his map and the class schedule that he'd retrieved from Georgetown's computer records as he tried to get his mind back on track. He exited the vehicle with a firm nod once he was sure he knew where to go and began walking through the busy campus until he spotted his quarry. He chuckled softly again as he spied the leggy brunette walking at a fast clip away from the law library as he recalled that she'd inadvertently been responsible for him finally confessing his feelings to Amanda. He quickly caught up to her, grabbed her firmly by the arm, spun her around to face him and said, "Alright, Sonja, I wanna' know just what the hell kind of game you're playing with my kid!"