CAN I GET A WITNESS?

CHAPTER 3: RIGHT NEIGHBORLY

AN: Howdy. Here's the next installment for your reading pleasure. Enjoy!

For Earnie: New fake names for our fugitives are as follows - Walter is Josiah or Joe, Paige is Jessica, Ralph is Julian, Cabe is Carl and Allie is going by Shelly. I only use their fake names in dialogue and when I do, I will put single quotes around them. When they are thinking or talking to one another, I will generally use the names we all know and love.

oxoxoxoxoxo

"So, how long have you two been married?"

"Huh?" Paige's head snapped up at the question. She'd been unprepared for a visitor, but felt it would be even more conspicuous if she pretended not to be home for the forth or fifth time this lady had tried to visit. Now she was so nervous she couldn't recall the back story she was supposed to tell and she could feel the sweat gather under her arms making her shirt stick to her. Great. Not only was she being unfriendly and acting dense, she probably smelled bad too.

What happened to the old Paige who used to seamlessly run cons with her mother? The one who'd coolly walked into the UN with a fake pregnant belly full of contraband? What happened was a renewed distaste for lying, that's what. "Oh, um…"

"I'm so sorry," her sunny-haired, forty-something next door neighbor said, looking crestfallen and more than a little pink in the face. "I didn't mean to pry. I only assumed… because you have a son about our middle daughter's age. But I see you aren't wearing a ring…"

Paige rushed to reassure her. "No, I'm sorry. I'm a little out of it. I had surgery right before we moved here. Um, 'Joe' and I have been married…, uh, fifteen years. We separated for a little while before I, uh, got sick." As she related the back story she'd finally recalled she also tried to remember not to talk too fast or offer too many details or touch her nose or look up and to the right even though the woman wasn't a genius behaviorist like the person who taught her about those tells.

"Oh, no! Are you doing okay? Is there anything you need?"

This woman was so incredibly nice. Paige picked at the coffee cake her neighbor - she thought she said her name was Susan - brought over as a welcome gift. "No, thanks. I'm improving every day. Slower than I want to, but I'm getting there. It's hard watching my family do all the work around here, but my husband won't allow me to lift a finger. My being… sh, uh, sick really scared him."

Suzanne. That was it.

Suzanne leaned toward Paige and smiled knowingly, "Maybe I should try having surgery. I wouldn't say 'no' to a little of that treatment myself. If you don't mind my asking, was it your illness that made the two of you decide to get back together? Was it one of those blessings in disguise things? You can tell me to shut up if you don't want to say. I know I'm being that cliché nosy neighbor right now."

"It's no problem. I've got nothing to hide." That might be the biggest lie yet. "It's a pretty typical story, really. My, um,… 'Joe' was obsessed with work. I felt like a single mom for years. We no longer shared any of the same interests. You know how it is." Paige shrugged. At least she could mingle a few truths here and there between the falsehoods. "We had this big blow up and I walked out. I acted like a total jerk too. I threw all of his worst fears in his face and I even tried to destroy his business." At Suzanne's appropriately appalled look, Paige nodded. "I know. Right? It was awful. I was awful. It just hurt so much that he valued s-some…" - oops, she'd almost said 'someone' – "something more than me and… 'Julian'. I wanted to hurt him. So I did. Then when I got… um, sick, we both remembered what was truly important to us. Part of the reason for coming here was to get away from the rat race and reconnect as a family. It's been good for us so far."

Suzanne reached over and patted Paige's hand. The sympathetic gesture caused her throat to grow tight. She stuffed a bite of cake she didn't want into her mouth to stem the flow of lies. She pasted on what she prayed was a convincing smile. "This is really good. Nice and, uh, moist. Thank you."

"You're very welcome. It's so easy. I'll give you the recipe. Plus, it gave me an excuse to get a good look at the new neighbors." Suzanne winked, "And I'm very pleasantly surprised. Goodness. I know I'm coming off like a busybody. I'm really not. I'm just so happy to have another adult female around to talk to. Us old married ladies gotta stick together, don't we? And I'm not going to let you give yourself a hard time about your marriage mistakes. It's a learn-on-the-job process. None of us know what the heck we're doing when we go into it all young and bright-eyed. For instance, it took me a long time to learn when you're married and you deliberately hurt your spouse it actually hurts you in the process. By the time I learned that particular lesson it was nearly too late. Girl, I've been there. Oh, and best advice my mom ever gave me? When you're mad at your husband, do something nice for him."

Paige replied bitterly, "The only advice I ever got from my mom was 'Don't get caught. And if you do get caught, lie.'"

"She sounds like a real piece of work."

"You don't know the half of it."

"Oh and by the way, when I said to 'do something nice', I didn't mean bake him a cake with a laxative filling either." The two women laughed together. Paige thought how wonderful it was to find someone a little older than her who'd been in the trenches of lasting love. Who'd stuck it out against the odds and discovered how rewarding it could be. She realized she'd never had a good example of marriage in her life. Her parents sure didn't provide a great model to follow.

"Anyway, as I was saying, feelings follow actions," Suzanne continued, "It's true. Hang in there, sister. Marriage is tough, but it's worth it. It really is. You have to endure the hard stuff to get to the good stuff. Hey, you guys are going to need some couple friends. You know, to support you. That's really important too. Why don't you come on over for dinner on Saturday? Bring your in-laws and Julian too. I'm sure my girls would love to meet him. It would be good for him to have a few familiar faces around when he starts school in a few weeks."

Paige was surprised to find she really wanted to go. So surprised and pleased to be invited she found herself agreeing before she really thought about how Walter would react to the idea.

oxoxoxoxoxo

She felt more than heard him sidle up behind her. He gently placed his hands on her hips as she stood at the kitchen sink. The warmth of his body as he pressed his chest to her back and feathered a few kisses on her neck caused her to shudder and her knees to go wobbly. She knew the light-headedness had nothing to do with blood loss this time. It was simply her usual reaction to his touch; his nearness. The same reaction she'd always had when he was close. Only it seemed much stronger now.

Now that she'd faced her own mortality. She'd been at risk plenty of times on Scorpion missions and she'd never once thought she might actually lose her life. Because when they'd first met, Walter guaranteed he wouldn't let anything happen to her. After she'd walked out on him, there were no more guarantees. So when she'd been shot, for the first time, she knew there was a very real possibility she could die. Now that they'd found their way back to each other again, she refused to take her absolute faith in Walter for granted again. Walter would protect her, and more importantly their son, with every idea in his incredible brain, every breath in his body, with his very life if it came down to it. She was working on forgiving herself for ever doubting him. Part of her penance would be spending the rest of her life, however long it turned out to be, proving to him that he wasn't inadequate in any way. That he was enough. That he was completely loved just as he is. No matter what.

Paige tilted her head so his lips had better access. Her body automatically leaned into his, fitting perfectly. She hummed in pleasure.

"I thought I told you I'd do the washing up once the cows were tucked in for the night. Cabe and Allie have already retired to the bunkhouse and Ralph went upstairs to his room, so there was no one to keep an eye on you." He tsked softly and his whispered words tickled her ear making her feel shivery. "You're being very naughty again."

She dropped the wash cloth into the soapy water and turned to face him, looping her arms around his neck. "It was only a few pots and pans. Am I in big trouble?"

Walter's arms encircled her waist and he slid his hands into the back pockets of her jeans. He touched her lips softly with his. Once. Twice. Not nearly enough. Her toes curled in her slippers. "You leave me no choice. I think I'm going to have to send you to your room early."

Paige grinned impishly at him. "I'll go quietly if you'll come with me."

OXOXOXOXOXO

In the past, Paige found life went more smoothly if she introduced new ideas or relayed difficult news to Walter when they were basking in the afterglow of a mutually gratifying bout of sex. Their sexual chemistry was phenomenal and he was usually much more open to new information during their prolonged cuddles afterwards. They could and often did discuss anything freely during those times.

"You did what?!"

Maybe not this time, however.

"It's not the end of the world, Walter. It's dinner." Paige sighed. When he rolled away from her, she scooted up to prop her back against the headboard. "And I'd really like to go." She hugged a pillow to her chest. While the sight of her naked body often distracted him enough that he would agree to a lot of things, she didn't think the strategy would work in this case.

"What happened to keeping a low profile? We don't know these people or who they might be working for. They could be our single point of failure…" Walter hopped up, yanked on his boxers and paced around the bed muttering. His hair was sticking up on one side where she'd been tugging on it earlier. She would've thought it was cute if they weren't in the middle of an argument.

Okay. She thought it was cute anyway.

"Suzanne is a secretary at the elementary school and has been for years ever since their youngest started kindergarten. And Scooter is a rancher. I'm pretty sure they aren't on the payroll of the LA County prosecutor's office or the US Marshals or anyone worse. They've lived here their whole lives. If it makes you feel better, you can run a deep background check on them now that you guys have your secure network up and running."

"I already did. On all the neighbors and many of the town's residents. They all appear to be legit but what if one of their kids innocently posts pictures of Ralph on social media? Or what if they tell someone who knows someone? You'll just have to call and cancel. Say you aren't feeling up to it."

If he kept this up, Paige was going to have to bake him two cakes. She bit the inside of her cheek for a couple of seconds to keep herself from saying something she might regret later.

"Walter, I can't call. We don't have a phone, remember?"

"Semantics. Then I will go over there and simply explain…"

"You will do no such thing. Suzanne is just being nice. She doesn't have some nefarious plot to reveal our true identities or our location. Ralph and I are going and that's it."

"No! I forbid it!" He knew he'd gone too far when she went dead quiet and he stopped pacing long enough to see the furious look on her face. He quickly back-pedaled a bit turning his words into a plea. "How can I keep you safe when you won't listen to me?"

"Excuse me? Forbid? Walter, I'm trying to give you a pass because I know you're really scared for Ralph and that's the place I believe this is coming from. I also know me getting hurt has you all shaken up. I get that too," At his skeptical look, she hastened to add, "But you can't lock us up in this house until the trial especially if we don't get a trial date for a couple of years. Plus, I'm not sure it's any less suspicious to hide from the neighbors than it would be to act friendly. How are they supposed to buy that we're here to start a new life and reconnect as a family if we're holed away and refuse to socialize? It'll make our circumstances all the more curious because that's not how things operate in a community this size. People depend on one another out here. It's not like LA where you can be anonymous in the crowd."

"We should've stayed in LA then," he groused. She knew she'd won the battle when he slumped down on his side of the bed and asked, "What kind of a stupid name is 'Scooter' anyway? It sounds more like a mode of transportation for octogenarians."

Paige chuckled. "I don't think that's his given name. I'm pretty sure it's a nickname."

She knee-walked up behind him and circled Walter's shoulders with her arms. She dropped a kiss on the back of his stubborn head. He didn't move away from her, but he still looked grumpy.

"What am I supposed to talk to this 'Scooter' about anyway?" he asked in a sullen tone.

Paige moved around to his side and grabbed his face, turning it toward her so she could kiss him on the nose. His gaze flitted down to her bare breasts then back up to meet hers. She smirked knowingly. "How about ranching? Maybe he could give you lessons?"

His eyebrows shot up. "We're doing fine on our own. I'm sure we're going to be great at this ranching thing. Those books Ralph checked out were very helpful."

"Says the guy who I saw running around behind the herd yelling, 'Shoo! No! Don't go that way, stupid cow!' when I was sitting on the back porch shelling peas today." Paige giggled a little before turning it into a cough. Then she placed an apologetic kiss on his lips when he gave her a sour look.

With her hands still on his cheeks, she said earnestly, "If it gets weird, we'll go home. Okay?"

She swallowed his reply with a firm kiss on his mouth, taking it as a yes.