A/N: Sorry for the delay! There's a bit of smut at the beginning, so if that's not your thing, please skip to the first line break. I hope you enjoy!

After their dance, she removed their dinner from the oven. Turning to sit the dish on the table, she realized that he'd only set one place setting. But there was also a very lovely bouquet of flowers sitting in the center of the table.

She pointed to the vibrant arrangement which prominently featured her favorite: daisies. "Where did those come from?"

"I got them for you. I wasn't sure I should come home empty handed...and I wasn't sure how many strawberry pies we needed in the house at one time." He smiled shyly at her.

"They're beautiful. Thank you. So then, are you not planning to eat?"

His shy smile turned into a grin. She knew well enough to place the "I'm up to something" grin. "I'm definitely planning to eat."

He leaned in and placed a hefty portion of meat and veggies on the plate. As he sat down, he took her hand and pulled her into his lap, wrapping his left arm snuggly around her waist. Ah.

"I hope you know I'm starving."

"Please. You will never starve as long as I'm around."

"Oh? I've never seen you make a meal." He gathered some of the roast onto the fork and placed it in her mouth.

"I know how to scavenge, and I know how to order takeout. We will be fine." He kissed her shoulder before he took a bite himself. His lips on her bare skin made her tingle. She realized suddenly just how vulnerable she was. Not long ago, she was curled into a fetal position weeping because she thought she'd lost him. Now, she was sitting here in his lap in nothing more than her underwear as he fed her dinner.

"Is there a reason I couldn't have my own fork though?"

"Yes. Because I wanted to feed you."

She grinned as he placed a potato chunk in her mouth. "You know I can feed myself, right?"

"And your point is what exactly?" The hand that was snaked around her waist suddenly, and without warning, pinched her ass. "I'm not doing it right?"

"No, it's fine. It would go quicker if I had my own utensils."

"The point is to share a meal together, Teresa."

"If you insist."

He pinched her ass again, which made her gasp. "I do insist. Patience, my love."

He shifted in the chair, causing friction between them, and eliciting another gasp from her as she pressed her thighs together. His grin told her that he knew exactly what he was doing.

"Are you teasing me, Patrick?"

"Not at all." She placed her right hand on top of his, bringing his hand down to the table. She found his lips and began kissing him. In hardly no time at all, he deepened their kiss as he caressed her side with his left hand. With someone else she may have been a lot more self-conscious, especially since they were in the middle of dinner, but as usual, she felt a level of comfort with him that made her throw all caution to the wind.

She tried to shift in his lap to straddle him, but he held her waist tightly so she couldn't move. She broke their kiss briefly and saw him shaking his head no. Before she registered what was happening, he was sitting her on the table. He wrapped her fully in his embrace, kissing her again. His fingers danced lightly over the cotton fabric of her panties as he drew a figure 8 over her center.

She gasped into his mouth as she felt her need build quickly. He continued touching her as she practically mewled for him. With anyone else, she might have been embarrassed by her reaction to simple touching, but not with him. His touches built a barely containable passion inside of her. Without notice, his lips left hers.

She groaned, looking up at him. His blue eyes, full of desire, scanned her body. She knew that look, and it filled her with excitement to the core. She took his hand in hers, running her thumb over the back of his hand. He lifted their hands and kissed hers before dropping it.

He pulled her closer to the edge of the table before getting on his knees. As he slid his hands into the band of her panties, she lifted her hips allowing him to remove them in one quick swipe. He began peppering kisses on her thighs.

She enjoyed his delicate nature, but she needed him. "Patrick...please."

Apparently, that was all he needed to hear because he inserted his index finger into her center. "Mmmm already so wet for me."

"Yes. Only for you." At that, he added a second finger and began pumping in and out of her.

"That's what I like to hear." As she began to moan, he began circling her clit with his tongue, sucking at her as he pumped his fingers in and out of her. She grabbed a fistful of his hair in her hands, trying to steady herself and not knock everything off of the table. Her first orgasm came fast and hard as she clenched around his fingers. He never stopped pumping or licking her, prolonging her pleasure and leading into her second orgasm. As he slid his fingers out of her, he peppered kisses onto her thighs again before standing and taking her lips once again.

She unbuckled his belt and yanked his pants and boxers down as he continued to kiss her, eliciting a groan into her mouth. She took his length into her hand and began to massage his cock. She was aware of where she was, but the fire he lit in her made her feel like a carefree teenager. She wanted-needed him-now.

He broke their kiss to step out of his pants. Without shame, her eyes followed him. The way his eyes met hers, never breaking contact as he unbuttoned his shirt, indicated he was playing to his audience. She quickly lifted her own tank top over her head and made quick work of her bra.

He took her hand and pulled her off the table and into his embrace, kissing her once more. Their kisses grew more frantic, making her think she would actually lose her mind if she didn't have him.

She pulled back. "Patrick. Bed."

He grinned. "But we're not finished with dinner." He kissed her once more before leading her over to the breakfast bar. "Bend over for me." He pinched her bottom again. While she would never admit it outloud, his commands sent a thrill through her.

Bent over and leaning against the counter, she was completely exposed to him as he kissed his way down her back. She wanted to scream "fuck me now," but if there was one thing she learned with him, it was that her patience was always well rewarded.

Without warning, his hand came down on her ass hard, causing her to cry out in surprise. His lips were on her shoulders again, peppering kisses along them. He slapped her ass once more, making her so lightheaded she nearly screamed. He slid his hand beneath her, inserting his crooked fingers inside of her and practically pulling her apart at her seams. This time, she did scream.

"I just wanted to make sure that we both agree that you are mine." The smug bastard was laughing! She couldn't wait for the payback on this one.

She twisted her head back, meeting his piercing blue eyes. "Sure, but just so we also agree that you are mine."

A wild look formed in his eyes. Without even blinking, he quickly removed his hand and thrust his cock into her. Obviously, her comment landed right where she wanted it.

They never broke their eye contact as he thrust into her, their hips wildly meeting each other. It was almost embarrassing how close she was already. From the increasing pace of his thrusts and the way his eyes were glazing over, she could tell he was too. Bracing herself on one arm, she reached her other hand behind her. She found the hand that had been steadying her hips and placed into her own. It didn't take much longer for her to find her release, his not much further behind hers.

Suddenly, he was pulling her back into his chest and kissing her neck. He whispered into her ear. "Of course, I'm yours, my love. I'll be yours for as long as you want me to be-and even then, I'll still be yours. I'm never going to leave you."

She smiled. "Careful. That's practically a vow."

He laughed as he released her. As he washed his hands, she slid her shirt and panties back on and grabbed her own fork. Even with her own fork, he pulled her back into his lap to finish their meal.

Pointing to her fork, he asked her: "Couldn't help yourself, could you?"

"Patrick Jane, I may be yours, but eating at this rate is likely to result in you losing a hand. And I really wouldn't want that."

He grinned at her as he kissed the side of her head. "I'm glad you love me enough to indulge me!"

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

The next morning, she woke in their bed alone. Well, she vaguely remembered him kissing her softly on the lips and telling her he had to go. Whenever he received a new shipment, it wasn't unusual for him to head out ridiculously early. At least he made her coffee before leaving!

Even though she and Patrick made up, the idea of going into the office made her feel sick. She flirted with the idea of calling out. Though, that would have made the rumors much worse. No, she'd have to go in and face down the prying eyes and loose lips. At least she could confidently tell them to forget what they heard.

There was also the matter of the case files from the day before that she didn't finish. She'd have to review Grace's work on the Cleary case to get it to the DA ASAP. Once again, she started her mental list of tasks to complete so she could hit the ground running. From her office, she sent the team a group message to just meet in her office this morning. She had a job to do, but it didn't mean she was ready to deal with anything that happened yesterday.

"Hey, boss." All three of her agents spoke practically in unison. From their mixed looks of sympathy and curiosity, it was best to just get it out of the way.

"You know that I don't like discussing personal matters at work, but I can see that you are all extremely afraid that you're walking on eggshells. Patrick and I talked last night, and we worked everything out. Everything is fine."

Rigsby received some sort of message that made him look at his phone. Noticing her glare, he immediately spoke up. "Sorry, boss. I'm glad everything is fine."

"No need to apologize. In fact, I should apologize. I allowed a personal situation to impact this team's professionalism and integrity, and it's my responsibility to ensure we stay on task."

"Are you serious?" She met Cho's rather stern looking glare.

Van Pelt spoke up. "She caused a scene in the office, and you're apologizing to us? I don't think you had any control over that."

She shook her head. Of course, her guys had her back. It didn't mean that's how everyone else in the CBI (and their spouses) would see it that way. "Admittedly, I did not anticipate ever meeting her and definitely not here. However, it has a certain look on me and maybe even for our team. So if you…"

Rigsby laughed out loud, looking down at his phone again. This time he did catch a glare from her. "I'm sorry, Wayne. Is there something you'd like to add?"

He looked guilty, like a child who had just had his hand smacked. "What? No. I'm sorry. I was off task for a moment, but you know Cho set everyone straight yesterday right?"

She immediately looked over at her friend. Yes, her friend. They'd worked together the entire time they had been at the CBI. He was the one who took her for celebratory beers when she got this promotion. It's where she asked him to join her team.

Cho just shrugged. "I reminded people of CBI's harassment policies and told them that repeating demeaning gendered language, or anything else in that ballpark, is a violation of that policy."

"Well, thank you all for helping to de-escalate a tense situation. Like I said, Patrick and I are fine. We've talked through this."

They all shared a nod followed by a brief pause. "I finished the Cleary file." Van Pelt handed her the case file, and with that, it was back to business as usual.

Well, business almost as usual. After she met with her team, she made her way to Minelli's office to apologize for not answering or returning his calls. Of course, Sam was there. Why wouldn't he be? She'd actively avoided him all day. She had no plan to return his messages; she needed time to think about whether they were cool after yesterday.

"Hey, boss. I was just wondering if you had a moment."

"For you, Lisbon? Always. Come on in." Sam made no attempt to move.

"I realize that you left messages for me yesterday, and I did not respond. I'm sorry for being unresponsive. I was dealing with a personal situation."

"I heard. I just wanted to make sure you were ok."

"I'm fine." From the corner of her eye, she noted that Sam looked at her curiously.

"You ran out of here in tears."

She turned sharply on heels to face him. "I did NOT run out of here in tears." As soon as she said the words, she realized how petulant she must've sounded.

He rolled his eyes. "And I'm the King of England."

Minelli ignored them. "Well, I wanted you to know that you could take the day to get your mind right if you need it. Take the time. I know you have it. I can get another agent to supervise if your team is called up today."

"Boss, thank you. But it's not necessary. I straightened everything out yesterday."

"Oh?" Sam was fishing for the story.

She smiled. "Patrick and I talked everything out last night, so yes, I straightened it out."

Once again, he rolled his eyes at her. "If you insist on tying yourself to that charlatan against my advice, I don't want to hear about it when you get burned again." This was precisely why she had no intent to return his messages.

"Maybe it's not for you to give her advice." Minelli looked at Sam sternly. "That's all, Agent Bosco."

Sensing his dismissal, he was out of their boss's office rather quickly. "Ignore him, Teresa. He means well, but you know your life better than anyone else."

She nodded. "I know. He thinks he's helping. Are we good?"

He nodded. "We are. Please let me know if there's anything I can do, even if it is just talking to this young man and explaining he needs to get his priorities right.."

She laughed, but he returned a very stern look, indicating that he took lining out Patrick, if necessary, very serious. "Ok, well, I have some case files to finish."

Walking back to her office, she stopped off for some coffee. As she turned around, she noticed that the bullpen was starting to look like a floral shop with several bouquets of colorful flowers, almost all of them featuring daisies, lining the bullpen. She approached Grace's desk.

"What is all of this?" Looking around, she noticed that half of her team was also missing. "Where are Cho and Rigsby?"

"I'm not exactly sure. Rigsby came and got Cho. Told me they'd be back soon."

A delivery person brought another bundle of flowers into their office space. She approached her. "Hi there! What is all of this?"

"It's a special delivery for Teresa Lisbon. I have a few more bouquets to bring up."

She blinked rapidly. "I'm sorry?"

"I don't have a card, but you must really have an admirer!"

She laughed nervously, but she caught Grace's wide smile. "I suppose so."

"I was told to decorate the floor and liven the place up a bit. They guy said something about bringing brightness to a special woman's life." The woman sent her a knowing smile.

She smiled at the delivery woman. "Ok, well, don't let me stop you."

She went to turn on her heel when she heard his voice. "Whoa. What is all of this? It looks like a flower shop threw up here!"

She sighed softly before steeling her posture and turning to her colleague. "Hello to you too, Ray. What can I do for you?"

He grinned. "I heard you had a little trouble yesterday. I was just coming to check on you and make sure you're ok."

"I'm absolutely fine!" She practically shouted, earning her a few passing glances from other colleagues walking past.

"Well, you know, if you ever need to talk or anything, I'm here." He placed his hand on her shoulder, but she quickly moved to shrug away from him. She noticed the look of distaste that she was feeling inside appear on Grace's face. Ray Haffner's desperation was the CBI's worst kept secret. Under no circumstances would she ever need to speak with him about anything not related to matters of the CBI.

"That's very kind of you, Ray. However, I'm fine."

She became distracted as she noticed another delivery person brought in a very large heart shaped edible arrangement made up of strawberries. "Is Miss Lisbon here?"

She waved to the woman. "That's me."

"My instructions were to deliver this one personally to your office. We have more coming."

"It's around the corner. Good Lord, how much did he send?"

Haffner raised his eyebrows. "A man who sends flowers and food to give his apology? Really?"

"Um, no. A man who sets the scene before he comes in person to deliver the apology." She looked up to see Rigsby enter the bullpen with Patrick, who was carrying a medium sized box with a bow on it. He approached them and extended his hand. "I'm Patrick Jane. And you are?"

"Ray Haffner."

"Ah!" He looked at Ray and back at her. Clearly, he caught onto what Ray was up to as well. "The vultures are already circling, huh?"

Ray's face drained of color. She smiled at Patrick. Not that she needed beef with Ray, but it was nice to see someone knock the smug smirk off of his face for once. The man was perpetually shooting his shot with her, and she was not at all interested. Not even in the depths of her desperation would she turn to him, but he kept at it. "Not at all. Agent Haffner was just asking if I needed anything. What's going on? What is all of this?"

"Um, just a moment." He stopped the delivery woman. "Are the flowers and arrangements all here?"

"Yes, this is the last round."

"Great." Sitting the box down, he pulled out two crisp $100 bills and handed one to each woman.

Both women thanked him in unison before leaving. Cho entered the bull pen with Bosco, Minelli, and several other agents who were on the floor yesterday.

Patrick looked to Cho. "Is this everyone?"

"I think so."

"What's he doing here?" Of course, Bosco had folded his arms and was already asking questions she didn't know the answer to, so she just shrugged in response.

"I can answer that, Agent Bosco. I've asked Agents Rigsby and Cho to help gather us all here today for a very important announcement. My name is Patrick Jane. I realize there was some unpleasantness yesterday when my ex-wife barged in here and caused a scene, saying some rather derogatory things about Agent Lisbon here."

She covered her mouth with one hand in slight embarrassment. She could feel her cheeks turning pink. She knew what he was doing, and it wasn't meant to embarrass her, but she hated being the center of attention. He reached out for her other arm and pulled her closer to him, wrapping his arm around her waist.

"I just wanted to come in and set the story straight. I know you guys tend to be a rather private bunch, but some details of her personal life were revealed yesterday in a very inaccurate, inappropriate manner. I am madly in love with this woman right here, and even though I am sure I will be regaled for embarrassing her in a moment, I wanted the office gossip to accurately reflect the situation. Teresa Lisbon is a lovely woman who is absolutely none of the things you may have heard my bitter ex-wife refer to her as. I apologize for the disruption I've caused, and any embarrassment that I've brought to her, in the office. As a show of good will and respect toward this office, I've had an assortment of fruit and pastries delivered to compensate. Please enjoy these snacks."

He kissed the side of her head. Ray was glaring daggers at him. A few of the agents started to clap, which led to more of them clapping. She heard someone call out: "You're going to make us look bad, man!" There was a bit of laughter after that.

Cho and Rigsby approached. Cho clapped Patrick on the back, as Rigsby shook his hand. Patrick spoke to them. "I owe you both big time. Come by any time, and I'll let you drive whatever is on the lot." Both men smiled at that.

She felt her eyes starting to water. She was definitely not crying right here. "Can we talk in my office?"

The hand that had been on her waist was now holding hers. She didn't even move to distance herself as she would have normally done in the office. He'd just made a very personal, public gesture to affirm that he loved her. The attention may have made her face flush, but it was an incredibly sweet gesture that confirmed their relationship. No need to hide from it now. He scooped the box up in his free hand.

On their way to her office, Minelli stopped them. "So you're the young man at the center of yesterday's events, then?"

He nodded. "I am."

Minelli looked him up and down as Sam rolled his eyes. Clearly, he was unimpressed with Patrick's public declaration. "Well, I expect that you understand how to treat a lady, and I expect that you will continue to treat Teresa well."

"I do, and I have every intention of treating her well." Minelli clapped Patrick on the back and sent them on their way. She blinked and noticed the shocked look in Sam's eyes. Surely, he thought he had an ally in their boss.

Patrick started speaking almost as soon as the office door closed and sat the box down. "I'm sorry I embarrassed you, but I thought the positive embarrassment might offset the negative embarrassment."

A single tear escaped her eye. "Only you would think like that, Patrick." She noticed that his face fell a little. Perhaps he expected to be chastised. Perhaps it is what that other woman would've done. She leaned in and kissed him on the lips, wrapping both of her arms around his neck. He brought his arms around her back.

"It was a very sweet gesture, baby. Thank you."

"You're not mad at me?"

"Not at all. I was a little embarrassed. Being put on the spot will do that to a girl though."

"Fair enough." He kissed her again. Remembering she was in her rather exposed office, she leaned out, placing a hand on his chest.

"So what's in the box?"

He smiled. "Well, it's a present for you. Open it."

She untied the ribbon and lifted the lid off the box. In the box, she found a golden necklace with a single, heart shaped emerald stone.

"It's beautiful. It almost looks real."

"Good. Because it is."

She blinked rapidly a few times. "Patrick…"

"I know. You're going to say it is too expensive, and you can't take it. The thing is that I'm not really giving you a choice on accepting that gift. It's yours."

She shook her head. "You don't have to ply me with a gift, especially not something so expensive."

"I'm not."

"You don't have to apologize with money. In fact, you have nothing to apologize for."

"I know that. It doesn't mean that I don't want to treat you with something small when you deserve the world." He took the box from her hand, removing the necklace. "Turn around."

Sensing any further protest was futile, she lifted her hair off her neck and turned around. He clasped the necklace around her neck, brushing his fingers lightly against her skin. Without prompting, she turned to face him.

"It looks gorgeous on you, sweetheart."

She touched the emerald. "I'll have to take your word for it. Thank you."

"Well, I should probably head back to my office and let you get some work done. If you don't get called out, I'd like to take you out tonight."

She smiled at him. "I'd like that."

With a goodbye kiss, he was out of her office. She stood still for a moment longer, wondering how she ever thought she could walk away from this perfectly imperfect man that she loved. He saw her in ways that no one had ever seen her or would ever see her again. It brought a feeling of warmth to her chest, but it also frightened her a bit. She'd given all of herself to him, begging him to take more. She'd never done that before. What did it mean for the future? Remembering the tasks she had to complete if she intended to have a work-free weekend, she tried busying herself with work. She'd leave those thoughts for another time.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

A little later that afternoon, her phone vibrated on her desk. Looking down, she smiled when she saw the picture of Tommy and Annabeth lighting up her phone. They were the closest in age growing up, and she always loved chatting with her niece.

"Hey, Tommy."

"Reese. How's it going?"

"Everything here is great. What's up with you? You don't sound so great. Is everything ok?"

"Yeah...well, no. It's Melanie. She left me."

"She left you?"

"Well, it's more like a mutual thing. We just aren't good together at all. She moved out a few months ago. She just filed for a divorce last week."

"My God. Tommy, I'm so sorry. Where's Annabeth?"

"She's...here with me. Mel said she couldn't be a mom to her and that it's best that she just stay with me anyway."

"Oh. How is she taking this?"

"She's confused, you know? She doesn't understand why Mel isn't around or why she hasn't called. But Reese, the thing is that I don't think I can do this."

"You can't do what?"

"I can't take care of her."

"Annabeth?"

"No, it's just too much. I need to get my life in order."

"Tommy, what does that mean? She's five years old! She can't take care of herself, and you can't walk away from her. I'm sure she's confused about her mom leaving, and it's an adjustment for her just like it is for you."

"I was just wondering...if you might be able to take her for a while."

"Take her? What are you saying Tommy?"

He sighed. "Can Annabeth come out and stay with you for a while? Reese, she loves you. She's always asking when you're coming for a visit. She misses you, and I think it would be good for her to stay with you for a little bit so I can get everything straightened out. You know, it would be good for her to be with a woman."

"What's a little bit, Tommy?"

"I don't know. Maybe a month or two."

"A month or two? Isn't school starting in a few weeks?"

"Yeah, but it's just kindergarten. You can put her in a school there. She'll be fine."

"Put her in a school here? Tommy, that takes papers."

"Papers?"

"Yeah, like guardianship papers. You know, the kind that give me permission to enroll her in school or take her to the doctor if she needs to go? And what does Mel think about sending Annabeth across the country for a few months during the school year?"

"Reese, she's not in a good place right now. She says that Annie has always been more mine than hers. She's saying she doesn't even know if she wants her rights anymore."

"What? She's abandoning her?"

"I don't know. I guess. I just think that it might help if she got out of here for a bit while I get everything back on track. So what do you say?"

She sighed. Of all the things she expected her brother to ask her for, this was not one of them. "What about having her stay with Stan for a bit? From Chicago to Sacramento is an awfully big transition, especially with school starting."

"Stan isn't that stable right now. He just got married. Please, Reese." Of course, Tommy's justification for sending his daughter across the country was that everyone else needed to get on with their lives while she was doing nothing and would love to take care of another little Lisbon.

"I think it would be ok, but I need to talk to Patrick first."

"Patrick?"

"My boyfriend."

"Oh that guy you were seeing? Well, it's up to you, not him."

"We live together, Tommy."

"You're living with some guy?"

"He's not some guy. We're in a committed relationship."

"You barely talk about him, and I'm not supposed to think he's just some random guy? Is everything ok?"

"I'm a grown woman, Tommy. He's a great man, and I am doing just fine. Besides, you didn't even bother telling me about getting separated until you needed something from me."

There was a bit of silence on the other end of the line. She didn't mean to throw it in his face, but it's not like he ever even asked questions about her life. None of them did. They just assumed that she was doing all right unless she said otherwise.

"Fine. It's your life, and you know what you're doing. I'd like to send her out over the weekend if that's ok."

"Send her out? This weekend? Like tomorrow or the next day?"

"Yeah, I'll get a plane ticket for her."

"Tommy, you can't just put a five year old on a plane! Like I said, we will have to have paperwork to put her in school here."

"I think I can take care of the paperwork, but I don't have time to drive her out there."

She sighed. Of course, he had a half baked plan to send his daughter across the country alone. She had no idea where her former sister-in-law was right now, but she'd love to have words with her, too. "Tommy, let me call you back."

Without waiting for a response, she hung up. She immediately dialed Patrick's number.

"Hey beautiful."

"Hey. How's everything going?"

"Great over here. Ready to see you again, though."

She smiled at that. "I have something to run by you, and unfortunately, I think I am going to throw a small wrench in your weekend plans."

"Oh? How so?"

"My idiot brother just called."

"Oh boy. It's always good when you refer to them as 'idiot brother' instead of by name."

"Tommy called. He wants to know if I can keep Annabeth for a while."

"His daughter?"

"Apparently, he and his wife are getting divorced. He wants to know if I can keep her for a bit while he gets his affairs in order or whatever."

"Oh ok. So are you going to keep her? And how long is a bit?"

"Well, I wanted to see what you thought about having a kid in the house. He's saying a few months. And she's starting school this year, so I am going to have to get her in school. I'll have to get all of that worked out."

"Teresa, she's your niece. She's family. If you want her to come out, bring her out."

"Are you sure? It won't bother you having a kid around?"

"Not at all. I'd never tell you that your family can't be around, but how exactly does that mess up my weekend?"

"Well, this is the 'idiot brother' part. He wants to put her on a plane out here by herself."

"A five year old? He wants to put a five year old on a 3 hour flight, alone?"

"Mmmhmm. And not only that, but he's not quite thought through the fact that I am going to need guardianship papers to get her on the plane and in school. I think I am going to have to fly out to Chicago over the weekend-which is not ideal considering a plane ticket will cost me an arm and a leg right about now. Actually, I might need to put in for emergency PTO early next week. I want to make sure everything is sorted out. And maybe I get there, we just resolve everything, and she stays at home."

"Ah. It's not a problem. Let's both go. In fact, I have a ton of points we can use for the tickets."

She was silent for a moment. "You don't have to come out with me."

"Oh. I didn't mean to invite myself along or be pushy. I just thought you might like the company. Besides, if his daughter is staying with us, I should probably meet your brother. I can stay home."

She closed her eyes. He was being supportive, and she prematurely shot him down. "No, it's ok. I'd love for you to come with me."

"Yeah?" She could have sworn she heard his smile.

"Yeah. It'll be nice. We'll see some of the sites. Are you sure you don't mind having a five year old around for an extended period of time?"

"Nope. When do you want to go? Tonight or tomorrow morning? How many days? I'll book the flights and hotel right now."

"You don't have to do all of that. Tomorrow morning is probably better so we can pack this evening. I should probably stay until Tuesday, or maybe we could just by single one way tickets? Price can't be much different now, can it? Let me know what my flight costs. We can stay with Tommy."

"Do you think he will be ok with us staying together if we're not married?"

She laughed out loud at that. "Who gives a shit if he's ok with us staying together? He's got a laundry list longer than mine. It will be fine."

"If you think, it's ok, then I'm fine with that. Love you, baby."

"Love you, too."

With that, she hung up and called Tommy to let him know the plan. Of course, Patrick was right. There was a little pushback on them staying at the house. Though, she wasn't sure if that was about them staying at the house or about them staying together. Even though he was the younger brother, he still gave her a hard time-until she put her foot down.

After talking to Tommy, she looked up a guy she went to school with who was now an attorney in Chicago. He gave her the information she needed to bring Annabeth to Sacramento. Like she thought, she needed to become her guardian which would require Melanie's approval, too. Hopefully, they'd be able to track her down easily. They might even clear all this up and Annabeth wouldn't have to come out to Sacramento. She loved her niece and would take her in, no questions asked, but it was a big shift for a little girl.

Before leaving her office, she let Minelli and Cho know that she would most likely be out all next week due to a family emergency. Minelli was right. She had the time, and she might as well take it. Annabeth would need time to settle in and adjust to this change. At least she had Patrick.