This is a work of fiction. No copyright infringement intended.
Hunter and its characters belong to someone like Stephen J Cannell
Unfinished Business originally written by Morgan Gendal
OK - we all saw Unfinished Business right? So why did it happen? And what happened after? It helps if you can pretend that nothing from Streetwise onwards happened, except maybe in our nightmares. ;)
UNFINISHED BUSINESS - the whole story.
Chapter 11
It was almost eleven by the time they pulled up in front of McCall's house. The silence had become almost awkward. Walking along her front path she thought desperately for something to say to get the ball rolling. "Been quite a week," was the best she could come up with. Hunter nodded thoughtfully. "Glad this case is over with." "Me too." They lapsed back into silence as she unlocked her front door. Rick decided he could wait no longer. "Look," he blurted, "I want to apologise to you again. This should never have happened. This is a monumental blunder on my part, and I should have confronted the issue from the outset." "I had my part in it too, you know?" she conceded. "I'm sorry. I apologise." She was embarrassed by the way she had behaved this week. "We have to make a pact," Rick decided. "Anything like this ever happens again, we speak up immediately." "Absolutely. No matter what it is, no matter what comes up. Confront it, and talk about it right then, OK?" Dee Dee held out her hand. "It's a deal." He took the proffered hand and held on to it with both of his. Gazing down at her he thought again how close he had come to losing her. It was an unpleasant thought. "Want to come in for coffee?" she asked softly. Rick froze, uncertain of what she meant, uncertain of what he wanted her to mean. Then he noticed Dee Dee freeze too, like a deer caught in headlights, as if she had just realized what she had said. For once he found himself stuck without a comeback. Over the years he had perfected the smart-arse reply as a means defuse the sexual tension that could just spring upon them out of nowhere, even if he thought it was mostly one- sided. This time there was no doubt she was feeling it too. So, while his brain stalled in neutral, his body took charge. Tugging on her hands, still clasped in his, he drew her closer until she was close enough to kiss. As she made no move to stop him, still gazing up into his eyes as if mesmerized, he disentangled their fingers and placed his hands on her shoulders. Closing the final distance he claimed her lips with his. Kissing her was still the small piece of heaven he remembered. With his body suitably occupied, his mind suddenly snapped out its fugue state and regained control. What are you doing? Are you nuts? You're going to ruin everything! He straightened up with a jerk, breaking the kiss and holding her at arms length. "We can't . I can't do this." His voice was so ragged he barely recognized it. "I can't," he repeated, then turned and fled back to the safety of his car. But he wasn't fast enough to miss the look of hurt and confusion that was written across her face. Nor to hear her whisper "I'm sorry," almost to herself.
"Do you want to come in for coffee?" She heard the words and saw Rick freeze before she realized she said them aloud. Did I really just say that? The intense look on his face held her spellbound as he slowly drew her closer. She knew she should stop this now, for so many reasons, but couldn't. I want this, she realized. Not just for one night. Forever. His kiss was gentle, but every bit as intense as she remembered. When he thrust her suddenly away, murmuring that he didn't want this it felt as though she had been punched in the stomach. She found herself struggling to draw breath. This is all my fault. In other circumstances the speed with which he turned and ran may have been comical. But it wasn't. It wasn't funny at all. Barely holding back the tears she let herself in the front door, automatically locking it behind her. Numb, she sank to the couch and let the tears flow. She felt like six years of partnership, of friendship was tumbling down like a house of cards. They had set the wheels in motion three years ago. Had they been fooling themselves, waiting for the other shoe to drop? Damn you, Rick Hunter. Damn you for making me forget my vow never to fall for another cop again. And damn you for not knowing what you want from one minute to the next. But suddenly she could see the walls that had grown up between them over the past three years. Walls that had not been there since the early months of their partnership. Once they would spend several evenings a week together off duty - having a meal, catching a movie, or just hanging out - now there was only the occasional get-together, usually with friends. Conversations which had once been littered with light-hearted sexual innuendo and flirtation now rarely ventured further than work, or anything similarly 'safe'. How could she have been so blind? He had been retreating, centimetre by centimetre ever since they had slept together. It had been so gradual that only now was she seeing it. And she wasn't sure she wanted to know whether it was because he wanted to make sure it never happened again, or if he was afraid it would. Aware that she was becoming melodramatic she sighed in frustration. The initial panic and humiliation was beginning to subside. She was still afraid of what was going to happen to their partnership, and she was confused by Rick's attitude. Charlie once complained that he had the emotions of a giant redwood, and while she agreed that he had never been an open book, she'd never had much trouble reading him. But now . Rubbing her eyes wearily she rose and headed to bed, resolving not to let Rick Hunter rob her of another night of sleep.
OK - we all saw Unfinished Business right? So why did it happen? And what happened after? It helps if you can pretend that nothing from Streetwise onwards happened, except maybe in our nightmares. ;)
UNFINISHED BUSINESS - the whole story.
Chapter 11
It was almost eleven by the time they pulled up in front of McCall's house. The silence had become almost awkward. Walking along her front path she thought desperately for something to say to get the ball rolling. "Been quite a week," was the best she could come up with. Hunter nodded thoughtfully. "Glad this case is over with." "Me too." They lapsed back into silence as she unlocked her front door. Rick decided he could wait no longer. "Look," he blurted, "I want to apologise to you again. This should never have happened. This is a monumental blunder on my part, and I should have confronted the issue from the outset." "I had my part in it too, you know?" she conceded. "I'm sorry. I apologise." She was embarrassed by the way she had behaved this week. "We have to make a pact," Rick decided. "Anything like this ever happens again, we speak up immediately." "Absolutely. No matter what it is, no matter what comes up. Confront it, and talk about it right then, OK?" Dee Dee held out her hand. "It's a deal." He took the proffered hand and held on to it with both of his. Gazing down at her he thought again how close he had come to losing her. It was an unpleasant thought. "Want to come in for coffee?" she asked softly. Rick froze, uncertain of what she meant, uncertain of what he wanted her to mean. Then he noticed Dee Dee freeze too, like a deer caught in headlights, as if she had just realized what she had said. For once he found himself stuck without a comeback. Over the years he had perfected the smart-arse reply as a means defuse the sexual tension that could just spring upon them out of nowhere, even if he thought it was mostly one- sided. This time there was no doubt she was feeling it too. So, while his brain stalled in neutral, his body took charge. Tugging on her hands, still clasped in his, he drew her closer until she was close enough to kiss. As she made no move to stop him, still gazing up into his eyes as if mesmerized, he disentangled their fingers and placed his hands on her shoulders. Closing the final distance he claimed her lips with his. Kissing her was still the small piece of heaven he remembered. With his body suitably occupied, his mind suddenly snapped out its fugue state and regained control. What are you doing? Are you nuts? You're going to ruin everything! He straightened up with a jerk, breaking the kiss and holding her at arms length. "We can't . I can't do this." His voice was so ragged he barely recognized it. "I can't," he repeated, then turned and fled back to the safety of his car. But he wasn't fast enough to miss the look of hurt and confusion that was written across her face. Nor to hear her whisper "I'm sorry," almost to herself.
"Do you want to come in for coffee?" She heard the words and saw Rick freeze before she realized she said them aloud. Did I really just say that? The intense look on his face held her spellbound as he slowly drew her closer. She knew she should stop this now, for so many reasons, but couldn't. I want this, she realized. Not just for one night. Forever. His kiss was gentle, but every bit as intense as she remembered. When he thrust her suddenly away, murmuring that he didn't want this it felt as though she had been punched in the stomach. She found herself struggling to draw breath. This is all my fault. In other circumstances the speed with which he turned and ran may have been comical. But it wasn't. It wasn't funny at all. Barely holding back the tears she let herself in the front door, automatically locking it behind her. Numb, she sank to the couch and let the tears flow. She felt like six years of partnership, of friendship was tumbling down like a house of cards. They had set the wheels in motion three years ago. Had they been fooling themselves, waiting for the other shoe to drop? Damn you, Rick Hunter. Damn you for making me forget my vow never to fall for another cop again. And damn you for not knowing what you want from one minute to the next. But suddenly she could see the walls that had grown up between them over the past three years. Walls that had not been there since the early months of their partnership. Once they would spend several evenings a week together off duty - having a meal, catching a movie, or just hanging out - now there was only the occasional get-together, usually with friends. Conversations which had once been littered with light-hearted sexual innuendo and flirtation now rarely ventured further than work, or anything similarly 'safe'. How could she have been so blind? He had been retreating, centimetre by centimetre ever since they had slept together. It had been so gradual that only now was she seeing it. And she wasn't sure she wanted to know whether it was because he wanted to make sure it never happened again, or if he was afraid it would. Aware that she was becoming melodramatic she sighed in frustration. The initial panic and humiliation was beginning to subside. She was still afraid of what was going to happen to their partnership, and she was confused by Rick's attitude. Charlie once complained that he had the emotions of a giant redwood, and while she agreed that he had never been an open book, she'd never had much trouble reading him. But now . Rubbing her eyes wearily she rose and headed to bed, resolving not to let Rick Hunter rob her of another night of sleep.