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The Next Day

Lee had woken up still thinking about Kate. Then Barney saved him from tripping over Toll's shoes and cracking his head open on the table when he went for coffee because he was still thinking about her and not paying attention to his surroundings.

"What's with you?" Barney asked, shaking his head.

"Nothing," Lee answered.

"Your special friend is here," Barney went on. "Down there. She said she'd wait for you to wake up."

"Oh," Lee said, looking to see Cindy down at the dock. "Okay." He decided not to get coffee and went down to join her instead.

"Hey," he said.

"Hey," she said back. She moved in to kiss him, and he had no time to stop it. He was trying to end it nicely when someone cleared their throat. They both turned to see Kate standing there. Barney was watching from the deck. Of course he'd let Kate walk in on this instead of giving him a head's up she was there. Asshole. Lee glared at him, and Barney just shrugged. He didn't bother hiding his smirk, which irritated Lee even more.

"Hello," Kate said.

"Hey," Lee replied. He felt awkward suddenly. Guilty. He wished he had been faster and dodged Cindy's kiss. He had no idea how to tell Cindy he wanted Kate when he wasn't even sure if Kate wanted him. It was all so confusing.

"Can we talk?" she asked, giving Cindy a look. "Alone?"

"It's okay," Cindy said, looking back and forth between them. "I have to freshen up anyway." She stepped back from Lee and headed towards the cottage. He heard Barney tell her where the bathroom was.

"What's up?" he asked.

"Reggie watched Roger's guys bury something last night when he was out for a walk," she said. "They saw him afterwards, so he couldn't get it, but I thought maybe you'd like to dig it up with me." Of course. It wouldn't be about last night or the fact they had started kissing only to be interrupted. She wasn't going to tell him what he desperately wanted to hear. It was about work. It slightly crushed him.

"Why would I want to do that?"

"Because," she answered. Lee snorted.

"You don't want to get your hands dirty," he said, gesturing.

"That's not why," she argued. "I just thought you'd like to help."

"Did you now," he said, a sparkle in his eye. Maybe there was something there. Maybe she did want to be around him. She just couldn't tell him that. Well, he could work with it. She crossed her arms and pressed her lips together.

"I thought you wanted to assist us," she said.

"Take Reg," he said, testing his theory. "I don't need to be there."

"Maybe I want you there," she replied. Lee was feeling slightly more hopeful. He watched her face carefully, but it betrayed nothing. Cindy was returning now, and Lee knew they wouldn't be able to speak of it in front of her.

"Fine," he caved. "When?"

"Dark."

"Fine," he said again.

"I'll come get you," she said, turning to go. Cindy waved at her as they passed, and she was soon back in his arms. Lee didn't really feel anything, though. He managed to avoid kissing her again, and soon enough, she had to go into town for something. He felt relieved. He said nothing to Barney, who was giving him the one eye brow raised look. Even Toll was watching him from behind his book.

Yea, he was definitely screwed up.

...

"What is happening?" Kate asked that afternoon, seeing Barney in his boat and tossing a rope into the water. Lee was sitting in the nose of the boat and watching idly. Toll was in the water.

"He's going wakeboarding," Reggie answered. "Nice!"

Kate had a sudden flashback to being a kid and doing such a thing with her family. She had been very good at it, but it had been a long time since she'd done it. Toll was calling out something, and Barney was saying he'd take that bet. It appeared they were making bets on how long Toll stayed upright. Kate read their lips. She noticed Reggie's borderline excitement next to her.

"You want to go," she realized.

"It would be so much fun!"

Almost as if Barney had heard them, he turned and looked over towards them. "You two wanna come?!"

"Yes!" Reggie called back.

"Oh, no," Kate started.

"Come on, Kate. It'll be good for us," Reggie said, giving her a meaningful look. Yes, it would make them look like they were truly on vacation. She hated that he was right.

"Fine," she sighed. "I'll go change." And lock up. She'd have her phone to make sure no one was sneaking in while they were gone. She came back out in her yellow bikini and a sleeveless, blue hoodie type cover up that went just to her thighs and had a V neck. She'd even grabbed their camera to give out the vacation vibe even more. Barney was at their dock when she got there. Reggie was already in the boat. He helped Kate in when she got there.

"We got 20 bucks that he doesn't even make it all the way up," Barney told them. "50 if he goes down before sixty seconds. 100 if he goes down before ten minutes."

"Steep betting," Kate commented.

"Go hard or go home," Barney chuckled. "Better sit down. This boat likes to tilt straight up til it planes out." Kate didn't need to be told twice. She let Reggie go sit up with Lee while she stayed beside Barney. She didn't trust herself to be near Lee right now. The way he was looking at her proved her point. Then he put his aviators on, and she couldn't see his eyes anymore. She wasn't going to lie and say seeing Cindy kissing him didn't hurt. She had noticed he had been working towards ending it, but the fact he let her do it still bugged her. Did he think he could fool around with both of them? She hadn't taken him to be like that, but did she really know him?

"Okay, Toll!" Barney called out. "Brace yourself!"

Kate saw Roger on his deck watching with mild interest. His guards were watching too.

"Bring it on, meathead!" Toll called back.

"Meathead?" Barney repeated, just for Kate to hear. He chuckled. "All right, asshole." He shoved the throttle forward, and Kate grabbed her seat to prevent from falling backwards. Lee and Reggie braced themselves as well. Kate turned to see Toll plowing the water, and then he was up.

"Shit!" Barney exclaimed. The first bet was out. She could see Lee counting, his lips moving. His lips. She stared at them for a moment, reliving the memory of last night, until she forced herself to look back at Toll, who was flying back and forth easily enough.

"Past a minute!" Lee shouted.

"Damn it," Barney said loudly. The boat finally planed out, and Kate started to laugh after seeing the faces Toll was making at Barney every time he whizzed to his side of the boat. She wasn't sure what made her do it, but she pulled up her camera and started taking photos.

"Whooooooo take that asshole!" Toll was bellowing, not that anyone could hear him in the boat. Kate read it, though.

"Five minutes!" Lee shouted. Barney was desperately trying to make Toll fall. It wasn't working, though. When ten minutes passed, Barney hung his head and shook it. He slowed down, and Toll eventually sank back down into the water.

"That bastard just gained 340 bucks," Barney said.

"440," Reggie corrected.

"Reg!" Kate admonished.

"What? I got into it," Reggie said, looking embarrassed. "But I only picked the one bet at least."

"He conned us," Lee pointed out. Toll was swimming towards the boat now.

"Who's next?" he called.

"I'll go," Reggie offered.

"You know how?" Barney asked.

"Oh yea. I used to go as a teenager a lot."

"Then go for it."

Reggie moved to the back of the boat. Toll hauled himself out after taking the board off. He handed it to Reggie before giving himself a shake. Kate instantly moved so as not to get wet. She found herself next to Lee in the nose of the boat.

"Hey," he said casually. "Thought you were avoiding me?"

"I wasn't," she answered. She faintly heard the others talking behind her. Her focus was on Lee, who was definitely taking her all in right now. She was doing the same thing to him, enjoying the fact he was shirtless again. The boat suddenly lurched, and she lost her balance. Lee grabbed her hand to stop her from falling backwards, but his pull forwards followed by the boat going back down made her land right in his lap.

"Sorry!" Barney called. "Elbow hit the throttle!"

"Sure it did," Lee muttered, disentangling himself from Kate. She felt surprised. Was Barney picking up on their tension?

"Sorry," she said, finally getting off.

"You okay?"

"Yea."

She sat to the left of him with about a foot and a half of space between them, her skin burning from his hands touching her. Reggie jumped off the back by this point and swam for the end of the rope. Toll was sitting next to Barney, watching Reggie.

"Got it!" Reggie called, getting into position.

"Here we go," Barney said loudly. Kate let out a shriek when the boat went up. Lee caught her right hand again with his left, and she reached with her other hand to hang onto his left arm out of instinct. In moments, the boat was level again, bouncing along the water, and she let him go. Each jolt made Kate lift up and down momentarily. She definitely preferred the seat Toll was in. He was leaning back, arms behind his head and looking pleased with himself.

"He's good," Lee noted loudly over the wind, making her look at Reggie. He was doing all sorts of flips and jumps. She felt surprised. How did she not know that he could wakeboard?

"He is," she agreed, taking Reggie's photo. She still felt Lee's hand in hers.

"Here," he said, putting his arms around her and resting his hands to hold the undersides of her arms to steady her so she could get a clear shot. His face was right next to hers. Once she recovered from that, she did get some really nice photos of Reg. She knew he'd appreciate them.

"Thanks," she said to Lee when she was done.

"No problem." He tucked a stray hair behind her ear, and the gesture itself surprised her at how tender it felt. She turned away from him, feeling her face grow hot, and she caught Barney grinning in their direction. She pretended not to notice. After a bit, Reggie signaled he was finished. She decided it was her turn.

"You wakeboard?" Lee asked, surprised.

"Yes. Don't be so shocked."

"I'm not. I just didn't expect it."

"Hold this," she ordered, handing him the camera. She took off her cover up shirt and stuffed it into the seat so it wouldn't go anywhere. She could feel Lee's eyes burning into her. Barney tossed her a life jacket, which she snapped on.

"Show 'em how it's done," Toll told her, patting the back of her life jacket hard so that she almost lost her balance. She jumped into the water, swimming to meet Reggie. He unhooked his feet and slid the board over to her.

"Have fun," he said.
"Oh, I will," she promised. In five minutes, she was up and skimming over the water. It made her feel like a kid again. She actually was having fun. It was nice for a change. She took one hand off and raised her fist.

"Whoooooo!" she screamed and then started laughing. She saw Lee holding the camera up, and she gave him a huge smile.

...

"What happened between you two last night?" Barney asked Lee. They were parked and anchored by rocks. Toll and Reggie were climbing up to jump. Kate was treading water and watching out of earshot.

"Nothing," Lee lied. He loved seeing this side of Kate. She was relaxed, having fun. It was making him have stronger feelings for her. It was also making him feel more guilt for letting Cindy kiss him earlier.

"The way you keep looking at each other says otherwise," Barney commented. "Spill."

"It was nothing," Lee insisted.

"Mmhmm. Sure, and I was born yesterday."

"Holy shit that's high!" Reggie yelled, making them look up.

"Don't break your neck!" Kate called up to him.

"Front flip or back flip?" Reggie was asking Toll now.

"No flips!" Kate ordered.

"You're not my mother!" Reggie called back. Lee was getting ready to jump into the water when Barney spoke again.

"There's something there," he said. "Don't fight it, Lee."

Lee ignored him and jumped. The water was a bit chilly, but he got used to it soon enough. He casually went to join Kate, who was watching Reggie with an anxious expression.

"He wouldn't, would he?" she asked him.

"Do what?"

"A flip!"

"He might..."

On cue, Reggie jumped and hugged his knees, flipping three times fast before straightening out into a dive seconds before hitting the water.

"Oh my God," Kate moaned. "He really is trying to break his neck!"

"He landed beautifully," Lee argued.

"His head almost hit that tree branch!"

"YEEEEEEHAAAAAAW!" Toll bellowed as he leaped into the air, falling like a stone into the water and making a large splash.

"You jumping?" Lee asked her.

"Um, no. I like being in one piece."

"It's not that bad," he tried.

"Forget it," she cut him off. "You go."

"Who says I want to?"

"All right, so don't make me feel bad about it then," she ordered.

"I wasn't!"

They were swimming next to the boat. Barney had gone to jump. Toll and Reggie were climbing back up after him. The wind turned the boat so that Lee and Kate were hidden from view.

"I'm glad you came out with us, Kate," Lee said seriously. She gave a slightly embarrassed laugh.

"Am I really a fuddy duddy?" she asked.

"No," he shook his head, chuckling. "You just are too serious all the time."

"I have to be," she said quietly. "Last time I had fun, I almost died." He wondered what she meant, but he didn't press. He assumed it had something to do with the CIA experience she had briefly shared about.

"I can promise you one thing, Kate," he said.

"What's that?" She was looking at him intently. They were very close to one another by this point.

"I won't let you get killed," he promised. He could kiss her. He really could. She was right there...

"Lee," she said, something in her voice. He decided to go for it when Reggie came into view.

"Geez, we thought you'd drowned," Reggie joked. Kate put space between them again.

"Are you saying I can't swim?" Kate asked him.

"Not at all..."

"Cos I can beat your ass right here right now," she went on. "Let's go, bud."

"Oh, it's on," Reggie agreed. They took off together, Kate quickly taking the lead. Lee felt slightly put out.

"He likes her too," Barney said, appearing. "You should have seen his face when you two were missing."

"Oh, I don't think..." Lee started.

"You didn't see it," Barney stopped him. He said no more as he pulled himself out and up into the boat. Toll did one last jump before joining them. Kate and Reggie finished their race, and Kate won. Reggie got out. Lee went last, and he turned to offer his hand to Kate, who took it. He could feel himself growing hot inside at the sight of her again. He handed her a towel quickly. On the way back, he noticed Reggie had planted himself in between Kate and him. Maybe Barney was right after all. Lee had no idea what that meant.

...

Reggie was feeling a bit angry at Lee. Was Cindy not enough for him? Did he have to go after Kate too? He'd seen the way they'd been around each other that day, and it made him feel nauseous. He hated that he couldn't just tell Kate how he felt. He was too afraid of the rejection, but what was the alternative? Watching her get with another guy who would break her heart just like Evan had? Reggie didn't think he could watch that. He kept his cool face on, though, so as not to give anything away to anybody. Maybe he would have to say something to her. Maybe she wouldn't say no. He would never know until he tried.

After Dark

Lee opened the door and found Kate standing there, flashlight in hand. Without saying anything, he closed the door and went down the steps behind her. They soon fell into step together. Kate didn't know how to talk about earlier, so she chose to ask about something else entirely.

"How is Cindy?" she asked carefully. "I'm surprised she wasn't out there with us today."

"She's fine," Lee answered. "She had things to do today."

Kate didn't know what else to say. She didn't want to admit that she was pretty sure she had feelings for him and was jealous of Cindy. That would make him gloat. Well, maybe. She wasn't sure.

They found the place in no time, and Lee started digging. After a while, Kate couldn't help herself.

"What do you see in the triple B?" she asked. Lee stopped and stared at her.

"The what?" he asked.

"The triple B," she repeated.

"What the hell is a triple B?"

"Big Blonde Bimbo," she answered. For a second, he said nothing, so she thought she'd pissed him off. But then he spoke.

"She is interested in me, and she's sweet, funny, and cares about people."

"And I'm none of those things?"

"Whoa," Lee said, stopping what he was doing and looking at her. "Where did that come from?"

"It's just a question..."

"You have made it very clear to me that you aren't going to fall in love with me, so the only thing on that list that you're not is being interested in me, and that's kind of important to build a relationship on."

"So what was last night?" she asked. She had to know.

"I don't know," he admitted.

"You took off," she reminded him.

"I know I did..."

"Why?"

"I didn't want you to reject me," he said. "Okay? I knew once we stopped you would take it all back, and I didn't want that."

"Fair enough," she agreed. He had a point. It seemed he knew her a little better than she anticipated because that was most likely what would have happened last night. Her own fear of letting him in that way was preventing her from telling him the truth about how she felt.

"And she's not the triple B that you are," he added. Kate bristled.

"Excuse me?" she asked.

"You know, Big Bossy Brunette," he said. Without thinking, she reached out to cuff him. He responded in shoving her back, and she toppled over. They both started to laugh now.

"You're a BSJ," she said from the ground.

"Oh, now this I gotta hear," Lee commented.

"Big Stupid Jerk," she said.

"That's not news to me," he said dryly, and he continued to dig while she pulled herself back to her feet.

"Ugh," Kate groaned as Lee started searching the dirt with his hands. "Why would he bury something? This is tedious."

"What are you complaining about?" Lee demanded. "You're not the one getting your hands dirty."

"It's why I have you," Kate commented with a smirk. He looked up at her, and she shrugged a shoulder at him.

"I knew it," he said. "I knew that was the real reason you asked me along."

"No comment," she smirked again. He moved fast and smeared the dirt on his left hand across her face and the dirt on his right hand down her shirt on her left side down to her waist. She opened her mouth in shock as he started to laugh.

"Lee!" she exclaimed. He smirked back at her and continued to search. She wiped at the dirt to get it off as she watched him. The real reason she asked him along was because she couldn't stop thinking about him and just wanted to be around him. He had a way of making her relax and be fun, and she liked it even though she didn't want to. Thunder rumbled overhead, and Kate looked up.

"Better hurry up," she advised. "You're gonna get drenched."

"If you helped, this would go faster," Lee said, slightly annoyed.

"You look like you've got it under control," she replied. He shot her another look while his hand finally connected with something.

"Oh," he said. "Hang on."

Kate bent down beside him to look. He looked at her, pausing.

"What?" she asked, meeting his gaze.

"Can I help you?" he countered.

"Just eager to see what you found," she replied.

"Finders Keepers," he retorted, pulling out a medium sized black bag. He put a hand on Kate's chest to prevent her from reaching to snatch it from him. It left another dirty hand print on her. "What did I just say?"

"I'm the FBI agent," she told him.

"CIA trumps FBI," he said.

"No way."

"Yes way."

"You're not CIA. You're...I don't even know what you are," she said, realizing.

"I'm under contract of CIA," he shrugged. "And you can't have it."

"Give it!"

"Oh, well, now I'm just gonna hand it over," he said sarcastically as he got to his feet. She stood up too and tried to jump for it. He held it above his head to get it out of her reach.

"Give it," she said again.

"What are you, five?" he asked, incredulous. "You spent too much time with Dustin yesterday." The thunder cracked louder over their heads, and Kate flinched. He took this opportunity to tuck it into his pants and pulled his shirt down over it.

"Let's go," she said. "Before we're barbecued."

Lee put the dirt back to make it look undisturbed before following her. They hurried down the trail towards her place when it started to rain hard.

"Great," Kate growled. They heard voices then, and they both turned to see two of Roger's men coming up on them. She froze. Had they been seen? She looked at Lee, who looked back at her with a little bit of concern in his eyes. She had dirt on her after all. They'd know. Kate wasn't even really sure what the hell she was doing, but it had worked before, so it could work again. She reached for Lee just as the two men came into view.

...

Lee was completely caught off guard by Kate grabbing the back of his head and pulling him in so she could kiss him. He recovered quickly, though, once he realized what she was doing because it was his own trick he'd done to her before. He slid a hand onto her skin at her waist and reciprocated, making it look as realistic as he could. It sure felt real to him. He could feel the bag they'd stolen from Roger pressing into his skin. There was something sharp in it. He stopped himself from wincing. He hoped the rain wasn't ruining whatever was inside, like evidence.

He heard the two thugs approach and slow their steps, but nothing was said, and they eventually disappeared onto Roger's property. He knew they were still watching, though. He stopped kissing Kate and touched her cheek gently, propelling her slowly backwards into a tree.

"What are you doing?" she asked quietly.

"Following your lead," he answered. He kissed her again, and she gripped his face with her hands before taking one hand to reach around to his back and grab a handful of his shirt. Lee was starting to forget that this was a fake display of affection as he slid his hands up her waist a little under her shirt and kissed her deeper, harder. In that moment, he wanted her more than he'd ever wanted anyone. From the noises she was making as he kissed her, he knew she did too. Then Kate pulled back and gave him a meaningful look.

"Come on," she said. He nodded. She took his hand to lead him back to her place. Lee felt eyes on him as he followed her up the stairs. He realized he didn't want to go inside because that meant stopping whatever was happening right now, and he didn't want to stop. He caught her waist and twisted her around, pressing her into the wall as he slid her arms above her head and kissed her again.

Kate gave a groan, and he shifted so his one hand held her hands up and his other went to slide his finger through the belt loop of her jeans and gave a slight tug, resting his thumb on her skin just under her navel. She jerked back with a sharp inhale, searching his eyes with hers. He moved in to press his face against hers, trying to get his bearings. They stood there just breathing for a moment until he released her wrists and brought both hands to hold her waist tightly, kissing her hard again. She wrapped her arms around his back and neck. Neither of them cared that they were drenched from the rain or that they could still be being watched.

"Lee," Kate said when he moved to kiss her neck after a bit, her voice sounding strained. Lee stopped and looked at her, and she mouthed "inside" to him. He nodded, kissed her again, and reached for the door, opening it without breaking the kiss. They stumbled inside and managed to shut the door, and Lee continued to kiss her even though they weren't being watched anymore. He had become too immersed in this moment. It appeared Kate had too since she was leading him to her bedroom. They hit the wall slightly as they went.

Kate moved to push him against the doorway of her bedroom, her face hovering in front of his while his fingers traced her sides on her bare skin. Was she really doing this? In that moment, it seemed she was. It just had been building for too long. She kissed him again, feeling his desire to continue as well.

"Kate?"

Kate pulled back instantly and put her hand on Lee's chest to stop him from moving into her again. They both turned to see Reggie standing there, and he was looking at them strangely. Kate stepped back from Lee, hugging herself. She felt guilty suddenly. Lee cleared his throat.

"Hey, Reg," he said, sounding a little sheepish.

"Was our cover blown?" Kate asked Reggie. "Did you see them do or say anything?"

"No," Reggie shook his head. "It was pretty convincing."

"Good," Kate nodded curtly before leaving and disappearing into the bathroom. Lee was left standing there with Reggie looking at him.

"I guess I'm hanging out here for a while," Lee commented after a moment.

"She was pretending," Reggie said back, ignoring him. "That whole thing. It was fake."

"I know," Lee said, a little disgruntled. He wasn't buying it, though. Certainly not after what had happened just now inside and out of view from everyone. Kate was no longer faking it; he just knew.

"Do you?" Reggie challenged.

"Yea, I do," Lee replied sharply now.

"She's been hurt enough," Reggie said quietly before going back into the computer room. Lee said nothing. He didn't know what to say anyway.

...

Kate was dizzy. She braced herself on the vanity and looked at herself in the mirror after she dried off and changed. It was supposed to be a cover. It wasn't real. Why, then, did she keep thinking about it and have to fight off the urges to go back out there and kiss him again? Why had she kept it going and tried to take him to her room? She turned on the taps and splashed her face with water.

She couldn't like Lee that way. She just couldn't. To do so would mean becoming vulnerable once more for someone to hurt her, and she couldn't go through that again. She knew that. She slapped her cheeks and shook her head. It was time to be businesslike again. She walked out of the bathroom and found Lee sitting on the couch alone. Reggie was typing furiously in the other room.

"Don't sit there wet like that," she said when Lee looked at her.

"Oh, sorry," he replied. "I'll just sit on the floor like a dog." He moved to do so and stretched out his legs, crossing his arms.

Kate made a sound in her throat, one of exasperation almost.

"Reggie?" she called. "You got any spare clothes?"

"No," Reggie called back. Lee just shook his head.

"It's fine," he said. "I've had worse."

"What's in the bag?" Kate asked, changing the subject. She had to. The desire to know what he was thinking was too strong. She didn't want to find out if he had been faking the whole kiss or if he had thought it was real too. She perched on the chair across from him.

"Right to the point," Lee commented. "All right. Fine." He pulled out the bag and held it up. Kate moved to join him, grabbed the bag from him, and felt a knife through the cloth. She reached to the drawer beside her and pulled out some gloves. Once on, she reached into the bag and pulled out a small dagger.

"Huh," she said.

"Why hide a knife unless you've done something with it?" Lee asked.

"I...I've seen this knife somewhere before," Kate said, frowning. She searched her memory but couldn't come up with the answer. It was going to bother her now.

"Why hide it in the bush?" Lee asked.

"I have no idea. You're a guy. Why do you do stupid things?" she asked him. He barked out a small laugh before giving her a shove, and she toppled right over, the second time that night. The knife clattered to the floor, having fallen out of her grip from surprise.

"Lee!" she admonished.

"Don't look at me," he said. "I'm just a stupid guy."

"Lee..."

He got up and walked away, closing the bathroom door firmly behind him. Kate propped herself up and wondered if he was upset. How could he be upset? Everything they'd done was a cover, it didn't mean anything. However, Lee's reaction now was proving her suspicion that he had wanted it to be real. She listened to Reggie still beating on his keyboard keys as though he was murdering them and looked at the closed door Lee was hiding behind. Maybe it did mean something after all. Maybe she wasn't the only one thinking things she shouldn't. She didn't know what to do with that.

...

Lee was confused. He kept thinking about how kissing Kate again had felt, and what was confusing him was even though it was a cover, it felt pretty damn real. He knew he'd been kissing the real Kate tonight, not the undercover Kate, and he knew she wanted it because of how she reacted, so why now was she acting like it never happened? Then he thought about Cindy and how interested she was in him, and he felt even more confused. He didn't want to stay here with Kate, who was ignoring the situation and being dismissive of him, and Reggie, who clearly was pissed at him for kissing Kate. It hadn't even been his idea! Not this time, anyway. It had been his idea the night before after their slow dance, and he knew she wanted to because she had reciprocated and would have gone farther with it if they hadn't gotten interrupted, but he also knew she would have rejected him right after, which put him into another circle of confusion all over again. Kate, he was learning, was a confusing human being.

"When you're done pouting," Kate said outside the door. "I found dry clothes for you."

He opened the door fast, making her step back with a startled expression. Then she held out the pants and shirt in her hand. He took it without a word and shut the door in her face again.

Thankfully, he and Reggie were roughly the same size.

...

Kate was cooking and watching Lee and Reggie out of the corner of her eye. No one was talking, and she could sense that Reggie was angry at Lee. She wasn't sure why. What did he have to be upset about? They'd gotten back in one piece with an important piece of evidence. She looked away when Lee met her eyes. She couldn't look at him without feeling hot in the face. She decided to put her attention back to the dagger and where it had come from and why she felt familiar with it. Nothing was coming to mind, though.

"Order up," she said once she plated the food and set it down in front of Reggie, who was now sitting at the bar. Lee was standing by the window, looking out.

"Smells amazing," Reggie said, digging into it eagerly.

"It's nothing really," Kate shrugged. Reggie gave a groan of appreciation in return. Lee sauntered back over to them at this point, and she handed him a plate as well, careful to not touch his fingers with hers. He went to the table and ate without saying anything.

"Caesar would be proud," he commented after a bit, making both Kate and Reggie look at him.

"Who?" Kate asked.

"Our other friend," Lee answered, continuing to eat. "He's kind of the chef of the group."

"Ah," Kate nodded. She went back to eating and did her best to ignore the desire inside of her that made her want to kiss Lee again. Once they finished, she was shooed away from dish duty by Reggie.

"I got it," he told her. "You cook, I clean."

"All right," she agreed, not arguing. She went to the living room where Lee was standing again.

"I imagine it's about time I should leave," he said to her.

"Okay," she replied. Lee looked over her shoulder at Reggie's back and then looked back at her.

"I feel like I got in the middle of something," he said.

"No," she shook her head. She felt baffled. In the middle of her and Reg? That was ridiculous. He didn't like her that way. They were partners after all. "And it was my idea, remember?"

"Right," he smiled.

"It really was just a cover," she explained, feeling it was needed. She wasn't entirely sure who she was trying to convince, though.

"Was it a cover last night?" he asked. She opened and closed her mouth. She had no idea how to answer because the truth would really complicate the situation.

"It's okay," he said when she didn't answer. "I get it."

"Lee..."

He pressed his lips into a tight smile and gave a curt nod. "Good night. Thanks for dinner."

"Lee," she said again, but he kept walking. She helplessly watched him go, and she didn't miss the look Reggie shot at him as he passed. She walked over to him once Lee was gone.

"What's with you?" she asked.

"What?" Reggie countered.

"You're pissed at him. Why?"

"I just think he's going to hurt you."

"It wasn't real, Reg," Kate assured him. "I did it to keep cover."

"It was real to him," Reggie pointed out. "That was very obvious on his face."

Kate didn't know what to make of this, and she felt bad that Lee would think it was real when it wasn't. He knew it wasn't. He had just acknowledged that. But he had a point in that it wasn't a cover the night before. She had also slightly lied in implying it was just a cover for her tonight. Oh, she was in a right mess now. Her head hurt a lot.

"Well, he knows it wasn't real. I made it very clear," Kate promised, knowing that wasn't exactly true. "Thanks for cleaning up." She patted Reggie's back and went to the office.

Reggie stood there staring after her before going back to cleaning up.