Lucy would have recognized that laugh anywhere. Ashley. Her laugh was so bright and bubbly it was impossible to forget.

Even with her back turned. Even in a busy downtown cafe. Lucy knew it was Ashley. She winced slightly as she grabbed her coffee from the barista and turned towards the laughter, knowing that Tim was probably sitting with her and was likely the cause of her gleeful eruption.

Despite everything that had happened with Chris, Lucy hadn't been able to get Tim off her mind...

...How warm and solid he felt in her arms when she kissed him and the smell of his skin.

...The vulnerability in his eyes when he asked if they should talk because it didn't feel like pretend anymore.

...The intensity of his stare when he followed her through the door of her apartment.

...How distant he'd sounded when he'd told her to go to undercover school because it was time to move on...

The thought of what could have been gave her a lump in her throat. Fear, desire, disappointment... maybe all three, she wasn't sure.

The cafe was packed with people. Rich aromas of fresh ground coffee and warm, buttery baked goods filled the air. As Lucy turned, it took only a few seconds to locate the source of the laughter in spite of the noise and bustle of the crowd. As expected, beautiful, bubbly Ashley was sitting at a table by the large front window. Her hand resting on the arm of... NOT... Tim.

Wait. What?!

Ashley was sitting, flirting, laughing... with not Tim. Handsome and blonde... but definitely not Tim.

Lucy stood there in shock for a second. Then anger started to build within her. She took a sip of her coffee while she tried to figure out what to do. Should she leave and pretend she hadn't seen anything? Confront her? Leave and tell Tim?

As Lucy wrestled with indecision, Ashley got up from the table and headed towards the restroom. Perfect. Lucy put her coffee down on the counter and walked across the cafe and followed her in.

"What exactly is going on here Ashley? You know that Tim doesn't deserve something like this," Lucy accused, grabbing Ashley's arm once they were through the door.

"Jesus, Lucy. You scared the crap out of me," Ashley said spinning around to look at Lucy. She paused for a moment studying Lucy's expression of anger and concern.

"Oh... you really don't know do you," Ashley continued, genuinely surprised.

"What? What don't I know?" Lucy demanded impatient.

"Tim and I broke up weeks ago..." Ashley said, then paused looking right into Lucy's eyes. "Because of how he feels about you."

"I don't know what happened while you were undercover, but he was different after that last trip. He was distant. Distracted. I thought maybe it was Rosalind, but... it was you. I can't pretend that it was a surprise. I'd seen the chemistry between you two. But this, this IS a surprise. He didn't even tell you that we'd broken up. Crazy."

"If you're ready to release my arm officer, I'd like to get back to my date. As you saw, it was going pretty well," Ashley said as she pulled her arm from Lucy's grasp and pushed past her through the door and back into the cafe.

Lucy stood there. Stunned. Trying to wrap her head around what Ashley had said.

The lump in her throat was back. A ball of fear, of hope, of desire, along with guilt over how strong her feelings for Tim really were, despite her relationship with Chris.

Why hadn't Tim said anything? No only had he not told her, it felt like he'd been pushing her away. Actively creating some distance between them. "Fuck," Lucy swore to herself out of frustration, as she pushed through the restroom door and back into the cafe.