Kate opened the door, and five people turned to face her. Roger was not one of them. She stopped abruptly, keeping her hand with the gun behind her back. She recognized Boris, who was standing beside Edward. She also recognized Stan White, who she had briefly met before at Roger's party on the island and had the courtesy of listening to him have sex in a bathroom in a bar a few days later. He didn't appear to recognize her, though, thankfully. He barely even looked at her. His interest was more on the guns on the table in front of him. There was a waitress there holding drinks, and there was one man she didn't recognize at all. He was simply looking at her, which unnerved her.

"Hey, hon," Edward said. "What are you doing in here?"

"I know you're doing important business, but there's been a report of unwanted guests downstairs," Kate said. "Six men. Just thought you might want to know."

"Thank you," Edward nodded. "I'll be right out."

Kate smiled and turned to go back out, moving her gun in front of her as she did so. She saw Lee standing outside and shook her head after shutting the door.

"Roger's in there?" he asked. "As in Roger Hastings?"

"He's not in there," she said. "I have to abort." She put her gun back quickly and grabbed Lee's arm, taking him down the hall with her.

"I have to do my job," he began.

"No, you're not. You've been made," she said.

"By who?"

"Me."

"What?!" he exploded, stopping and jerking her back. "You can't do that!"

"Tell Barney to get out," she ordered. "This is my mission, and none of you are going to ruin it for me. I have put in almost a year and a half's work into this, and I refuse to let you tear it apart because of your own agenda."

Lee stared at her, and she knew Drummer would be pissed that she had told him, but she was protecting the mission. She had to tell him.

"Move," she said sharply. "Now!"

She left him there, knowing she couldn't be seen talking to him. She went back downstairs to mingle, and she watched Lee come down and disappear. Edward wasn't too long coming with Boris to check for the unwanted visitors. Kate hoped none of the Expendables would be found.

...

"She's what?" Barney asked, not hearing correctly.

"She's undercover," Lee answered. He had put it together when she said it was her mission she'd spent the last year and a half on.

"No way," Toll said. They were back in the van outside now. Barney aborted the mission once Lee explained what happened.

"Hey, does that mean she isn't really engaged?" Caesar asked. Lee froze, thinking. He could be right.

"I'm sure we'll get the answers soon," Barney said. "So what do we do now?"

"Drummer," Lee said, getting it.

"What about him?"

"He's got her doing this. Roger was in the CIA's custody, and if he's out, that means he escaped. Drummer told Kate, and she's going after him for what he did to her and Reggie."

"Damn spooks," Barney muttered around his cigar. "You never get the whole truth from them."

"We have to help her," Lee said.

"Clearly she didn't want it or else she would have told us oh, I don't know, a year and a half ago," Barney retorted. "And she wouldn't have punched you in the face just now." He gestured to the bruising that was starting on Lee's cheek.

Lee said nothing as he watched people milling around outside. Kate was undercover. Kate had separated herself from him to do this. That meant there was a glimmer of hope that she still loved him, but he felt the anger in the pit of his stomach suddenly. She had hurt him. She had lied to him. She'd left him heartbroken. Was he really going to just forget all of that? He reflected on the way she'd looked at him earlier. There was still something there, he'd seen it. If Roger had been in there, maybe that was all she needed in order to come home. Maybe she would have come for him.

Despite his anger, he still loved her. He knew that. He just hoped he wasn't wrong about her.

...

Kate did her best to calm herself once she found the bathroom. Her hands were shaking, though. It had been too close, much too close.

"Argh!" she shouted, slamming her fist on the marble countertop and then instantly regretting it. She hissed in pain and shook her wrist as she began to pace. Where was Roger? Why hadn't he shown up? She wanted this to be over. She wanted to get her life back.

Seeing Lee had thrown her way off, and it brought back all her feelings for him in a rush. The confusion and hurt on his face was too much for her on top of everything else. She also felt horrible for hitting him too. That was gonna leave a mark.

"Are you all right?" a voice asked, and she turned to see a woman standing there in the doorway holding her clutch and giving Kate a wary look. She was in a purple silk dress that hugged her thin frame. Her blonde hair was curled to her shoulders, and her blue eyes were searching Kate's. She was at least in her 40s.

"Oh, yes," Kate said sheepishly. "I'm sorry. I just...got into an argument with...someone, and I'm feeling frustrated."

"Ah," the woman smiled. "I get it." She moved to the mirror and pulled out her makeup. Kate did some deep breaths and tried to pull herself together.

"I'm Tansley, by the way," the woman said, giving her a sideways look.

"Desiree."

"Is this your home?"

"Oh, no," Kate shook her head. "God, no." She laughed.

"Okay, good, because it feels like a museum in here," Tansley laughed back. "Like if I touch something, I'm going to get kicked out or arrested."

"It kind of does," Kate agreed, realizing. She started to relax a little. "It's Boris's place I think."

"Well, that explains it," Tansley said, shutting her compact with a snap. "I'll see you out there."

"Yes," Kate nodded with a smile. Her heart was hammering a little less, and she knew she needed to find Edward.

...

They were all still sitting in the van and waiting for further instructions. It was all Lee had to not go back in there, find Kate, and demand an explanation from her. He had his own thoughts and ideas about what was happening, but he needed to hear it from her.

"Yea?" Barney said, answering his phone. Lee turned his head to watch, and Barney sucked on his cigar while he listened to the person on the other end of the call. The others were in the back trying to stay distracted.

"Uh huh," Barney said. "Okay. Tomorrow. Got it."

He hung up, and Lee stared at him.

"What?" Barney asked, noticing.

"You didn't tell him about Kate."

"No," Barney shook his head. "I didn't. If he doesn't want us to know she's undercover, then I'm not going to willingly tell him we know about it. Do you want her to get in trouble?"

"No..."

"Then it stays with us," Barney finished for him. He craned his neck to look back at the others with a determined expression. "Right, guys?"

"Right," Toll nodded.

"My lips are sealed," Caesar promised. Doc made the same gesture with his finger across his lips.

"Kate who?" Gunner asked, playing dumb.

Lee sat there trying to regulate his breathing. What kind of situation had Kate gotten herself into? Was this really all so she could get Roger?

"Hey," Barney said, catching his attention. "This will all get sorted out."

"I hope so," Lee replied, spinning his knife on his finger again as he looked out the window and watched people from the party start to exit.

He saw Kate come out with the brown haired man wearing glasses. His stomach clenched. She was with Edward Nash. She was with one of the men Drummer wanted dealt with.
"She's in real deep," Barney said, noticing as well. "What do you wanna do?"
"Follow her," Lee instructed. He was going to find Kate and have a proper conversation. This wasn't over.

...

Edward dropped her off at her apartment, and she declined his attempt at inviting himself inside. He gave her a look of deep wanting as she finished kissing him and got out of the elevator. He walked her to her door anyway and got one more kiss out of her before she went inside. She had played the "waiting for marriage" card despite Drummer advising her not to, and Edward respected it most of the time. Other times he tried to get her to break her rule. She wasn't about to because none of this was real. She certainly wasn't going to be sleeping with him. Kissing him was enough. Letting him get handsy at times was more than enough. Edward repulsed her in every way. It was hard to not let that show on her face. She knew it was why he was speeding up their "wedding." He was getting impatient. She shook herself off as she walked down the hall to the bedroom. She took off her heels and pulled out her hair before realizing she didn't bolt the door behind her. She padded back to it and slid the bolt, feeling semi-safer.

She moved to switch on the living room light and promptly shrieked upon seeing Lee sitting in a chair watching her, hands folded with his elbows resting on his knees.

"Nice place," he commented.

"What are you doing here?" she hissed. "Are you trying to blow my cover?! You're damn lucky Edward didn't come in here with me!" Then she realized he probably slipped in afterwards since she had forgotten to bolt the door. She knew he was handy with lock picks.

"I want answers," he replied. "And I'm not leaving here without them."

"I can't get into this right now," Kate started, but he held up his hand.

"Drummer sent us here," he told her. "Why would he do that without knowing there was a risk I'd see you?"

"I didn't say I was working for Drummer..." she tried. So he had been sent here by Drummer. She felt confused. Why would Drummer have done that? He knew Kate was there.

"You didn't have to," Lee cut her off, leaning forward in the chair. "Roger was in the CIA's custody, and if he's loose, then that means the CIA lost him. Drummer is CIA, and he knows you have a beef with Roger. He hires you to go undercover and smoke him out. How am I doing so far?"

Kate hated to admit that Lee had nailed it, which was one of the things she loved about him. He was very smart.

"That about sums it up," she nodded.

"You're undercover with Edward Nash."

"Yes. He's a bottom feeder, but he's getting more connected and leading me to Roger and some unknown top dog Drummer wants."

"And you're engaged to this Nash person," Lee said slowly. She pressed her lips together. She knew where he was going with this. She'd want to know too, if roles were reversed.

"Yes," she replied. "But he thinks my name is Desiree Swift."

"Desiree," he repeated.

"I know," she smiled a little. "I miss that little girl sometimes." Babysitting the two young children of Debbie and Duke's had been one of the good days she looked back on fondly, mostly because it was the most relaxed she'd been in a long time. She noticed Lee was working his jaw, which meant he was trying to hold back something he didn't want to say or ask.

"Are you...?" he trailed off. He looked like he was in pain. She understood the question.

"No," she said quickly. "I'm holding out for the wedding night."

"I see," he said, his face instantly relaxing. She stood there looking at him, unsure of what else to say. There were many things she could say, but in that moment, just looking at him, she couldn't form the words.

"I'm sorry," she finally said. "For lying. Drummer said I had to in order to keep my cover."

"He has a good point," Lee nodded. "Not that I'm happy about it. I'm still pissed that you hurt me like that."

"I know, and I don't expect you to forgive me," she started.

"But I do," he cut her off. "I do because this is the job, and these things are sometimes necessary in order to get the job done. I'm not happy about it, and I'm mad, but I forgive you. I get it. I would have done the same thing."

"I regret not telling you," Kate offered. "I really do. I wanted to."

"You did what you thought was right, Kate," he said. "It's okay. Really." He offered her a small smile, and she looked relieved.

"It wasn't hard getting Edward to date me," she explained. "I came over here under the guise of looking for a new life, and he took me under his wing and got me a job with his friend, Boris. I played the doting girlfriend part well. The entire time, though, I was thinking about you. I just knew I had to do this, to find Roger before he hurt you, or me."

"A part of me suspected something," he admitted. "I tried to make sense of it all, and a piece of me considered maybe there was something going on. I couldn't see you just walking away from me, not after everything."

"And I wouldn't have," she agreed, "if this hadn't come up. I would have stayed with you. I wanted to be with you. I still do."

"Well, that's good to know," he said.

"It's almost over," she promised. "I'm so close. Then...then I can come home."

"Okay," he said back. When he got to his feet, she felt that feeling in her stomach every time she saw him or was around him. He stopped in front of her and took her all in. She stood there doing nothing, knowing that if she touched him, there was no stopping what would happen next. She saw the bruise forming where she'd punched him earlier and felt bad again.

"Be careful," he said quietly after a moment. She nodded, not saying a word. She felt like crying. She didn't want him to go. She didn't want to keep doing this. Suddenly, it didn't matter to her if she got Roger or not. She just wanted Lee.

He reached to touch the side of her face gently with the crook of his finger, and she felt like she was dying inside. When he stepped aside to leave, she let him go three steps before giving in to her desire and hurrying after him. She caught him at the door, grabbing his arm to twist him around and pushing him into it while reaching to grab his face and kiss him fiercely. Feeling him kiss her back and put his hands on her waist was enough. She started to pull off his dress coat when he stopped her.

"Kate," he said, moving to hold her shoulders. "There's nothing I'd rather do than finish this, but you can't break your cover now. Not after all this time."

"I don't care," she declared. "I don't. No one knows you're here. I sweep for bugs daily, and there's nothing. No one will ever know we did this."

"I just don't want you to get caught and hurt," he tried.

"I won't," she interrupted. "I promise."

She finished tugging off his dress coat and dropped it to the floor. He didn't resist. He also didn't resist when she untucked his shirt and started to unbutton it slowly from the top down, her eyes never leaving his. When she finished, he reached to touch her face and trace her skin along her jaw.

Kate let him continue for a moment before pushing against him again and catching his lips with hers. He pulled her up into his arms, and she wrapped her legs around him to hang on while he kissed her hard. His fingers running down her bare skin on her spine through the slit in her dress was making her shiver. Eventually, she took him to her room where she pulled off his shirt while he set her down underneath him and continued to kiss her. After a while, they stopped and just took each other in for a moment. Kate wondered what he was thinking. She was trying not to feel bad for everything she'd done to him. She moved to kiss his chest where his heart was, hoping he knew how sorry she was and that she regretted not telling him.

"I'm sorry," she whispered into his skin. "I'm so sorry."

"Don't," he said, making her look at him. "Okay? I know you didn't mean to hurt me." She nodded as he reached to cup her face and rub his thumb across her cheek. She closed her eyes as he kissed her gently, softly. It lasted ten seconds, and she opened her eyes to see him barely two inches from her face, his breath on her skin. She moved to touch her lips against his again, needing him. He reached to unbuckle her leg holster, taking it off and setting it on the nightstand before going back to kissing her and starting something she had only dreamed about every day since the last time they'd done it. About halfway through, she said it.

"I love you, Lee," she said. "So much. I just...I love you." He looked taken aback for a moment, but he kissed her softly and held her close against him.

"I love you, Kate," he said back. "More than anything."

Hearing it from him made her feel so relieved. He didn't hate her. He'd understood and still loved her. She flipped him over onto his back, unleashing everything she'd been holding in for so long. She relished everything she got back from him. His touch. His kiss. His skin. His words. Everything.

Afterwards, she held him tightly and felt like crying. It had been so long, waiting for this moment to happen again. He pressed his face into her neck, his arms around her just as tight. She didn't want him to leave, so when he started to, she stopped him.

"Just stay," she whispered.

"I don't think that's a good idea," he replied.

"You can leave early in the morning. Don't leave me here alone," she begged. Once she had him next to her, she didn't want to be alone. She felt so cold when she was alone. He looked at her, contemplating on what to do, and then he gave in, settling down behind her and pulling her against him to hold her.

It was the best sleep Kate had gotten in a very long time.

...

Barney looked at his phone. Nothing from Lee. He sighed, tapping his finger on it absently.

"You don't think they're...you know," Toll said. He'd moved to the passenger seat of the van by this point. The others were laying in the back trying to sleep. Doc kept pushing Gunner's foot out of his face, sighing loudly every time it came back and tapped him on the side of the head. His snores were deafening too. Caesar was out too.

"Oh probably," Barney sighed again. "I knew I should have gone with him."

"Surely he won't stay all night."

Barney looked at his watch. It was two in the morning.

"I am going to say yes," he commented.

"Damn it," Toll groaned, resting his head against the window. He despised sleeping in a vehicle. Barney didn't say anything as he adjusted himself in his seat. He sure as hell hoped that whatever Lee was doing, it was worth it.