Sorry for the delay. My muses have been focussing on another story, which
should be posted early next week. Always assuming that I finish it on
time. In the meantime, here's part #15 of Essential.
"Hey, Sara, I need your help!" Gabriel's voice on her answering machine was laughingly urgent.
Sara's half-asleep mind registered the 'urgent' part, which automatically sent her lunging for the phone that rested beside her bed. Bracing herself on the table with one hand, she was lucky that she hadn't gone sprawling on the floor, she punched the button that would turn the phone on. "Gabriel?"
"Good, you're awake," he answered, satisfaction easily heard in his voice.
"Not really," she returned with annoyance. "Wanna tell me what's so important that you call me at," she paused and looked at the clock before continuing with a groan, "8 AM on my day off? Especially since you only left about five hours ago. God," she muttered in realization once she'd done the math, "four hours of sleep is not enough to function on."
"Can I help it if I missed your voice?" he asked half facetiously. When only silence met his question, he sighed good-naturedly. "Okay, not something you want to hear at 8 AM on four hours of sleep. I'll make a mental note of that."
"Gabriel, why did you call?" Please, she urged. Tell me the reason so I can go back to sleep.
"I already told you, I need your help. You're still in bed, aren't you?"
Startled by the non-sequitor, though unsure why that was exactly, Sara looked over at the twisted sheet that covered her body. "Yeah, why?"
"What are you wearing?"
Sara closed her eyes and wearily laid back down. "Why?"
"Curiosity. More fuel for fantasies. So I can torture myself with a mental picture," he instantly answered.
"Just for waking me up, I should tell you I have something lacey and slinky on."
"But you don't?" The question was asked in a mixture of disappointment and hope. He knew what she wasn't wearing, so what was she?
"No," she answered. "Why'd you call, Gabriel?"
"You're not being any fun," he told her, once again avoiding the question.
"I'm rarely fun on four hours of sleep."
"Oh, I dunno. I'm pretty sure that if I was over there we could find some fun things to do on four hours of sleep. You wouldn't even have to get out of bed," he offered.
"Gabriel."
"You ruin all my fun," he complained.
"Actually, you're the one who ruined your fun last night," Sara pointed out.
"Fine, castigate me for being a gentleman. Where's the mercy?"
Sara sighed and forced her eyes, which had fallen closed, open. "Want me to hang up on you, Gabriel?"
"No! Why would I want that?"
"Then please tell me why you called and said you needed my help."
"I'm going out later today and thought you might want to come along. You can help me keep track of everything. You know, put your cop skills to use."
"It isn't anything illegal, is it?"
"Of course not!"
"Can I get a few more hours of sleep?"
"Will one and a half do?"
"I guess it'll have to, won't it?"
"Yeah. Oh, and you might want to call Danny to see if you can pick up Jenny for her to join us."
"Jenny? Why?"
"We're going to the zoo," he answered with excitement in his voice. "Sleep sweet, love. I'll call you in a bit to make sure you're up."
Sara stared at the phone she still held, the buzzing of the dial tone easily heard. The zoo. He woke her up five hours after he left to go to the zoo. She dropped the phone onto the cradle and pulled the sheet higher. No doubt about it, Gabriel could be infuriating. Sweet, but infuriation. Admitting to herself that it was nice to hear his voice first thing in the morning, she drifted back off to sleep with a smile on her face.
"Hey, Danny, what are you doing today?" Sara, after getting an extra hour of sleep, was functioning fairly well. She'd purposely bypassed the other thirty minutes for extra caffeine; a trade off her body was used to by now.
"Why?" He asked suspiciously. "You want me to meet Mr. Mysterious? I finally get a last name to go with 'Gabriel?'"
"Not exactly. I know that Mija's probably going to spend most of the day out or over at a friend's house, right?"
"She's leaving in about twenty minutes. It's scary how well you know that girl's mind."
"Do you and Leigh are spending the day with Jenny, right?"
"We were planning to, yeah."
"How'd you like a free babysitter for your daughter and some time alone with your wife?"
"You're offering to baby-sit?"
"Gabriel called earlier, invited me to go to the zoo with him. Told me that I may want to call you and invite Jenny along. I'm pretty sure there'll be other kids there," Sara soothed.
"You want me to let a stranger watch my kid?"
"He's completely trustworthy, Danny. Strange, but trustworthy. You doubt my judgement?" She asked, partially hurt.
"Don't be absurd; Of course I do. Strange how?"
"Umm," Sara thought for a moment. Danny really wouldn't get the mummy heads in a glass case. Not without meeting Gabe first. Maybe not even after they met. "Same way I am," she finally decided on.
"Lemme talk to Leigh."
Sara waited for Danny's final answer, idly sipping the rest of her coffee. Her breakfast of freshly baked raisin scone lay on a plate in front of her. The other one was still in the white paper bag they had mysteriously appeared on her doorstep in. Within minutes, Danny returned.
"Leigh says it's a great idea and sweet of you to offer."
"Sweet," she muttered under her breath. "I've become sweet."
"Face it, Pez, Mr. Mysterious is good for you." Before Sara could comment on that, he continued. "What time do you need Jenny?"
"Well, he told me I could sleep till 9:30, so I'm assuming we'll be leaving between 10:30 and 11."
"We'll drop her off at your place around 10, okay?"
"Sure, no problem. See you then."
The phone rang again not five minutes after she hung up with Danny. Glancing at the clock, Sara picked it up. "Hey, Gabriel."
"Caller ID?"
"Psychic," she answered.
"Something else to put in the Witchblade file I have going, huh?"
"You have a Witchblade file?" She asked, diverted from the reason he was calling.
"Sure. I keep files on everything I research in depth, why?"
"I just. never thought you were keeping a file on it. Should I be worried about what's in it?" Or, more importantly from Sara's point of view, who might be looking for it that may hurt Gabriel.
"Nah, I tell you almost everything that's in it."
"It's that 'almost' that makes me worry."
He laughed. "Nothing to worry about. I promise. You seem pretty awake now."
Sara took another sip of her now refilled cup of coffee. "Another hour of sleep and coffee'll do that."
"Great. You even seem to be in a better mood. That'll really help you coping with today. Jenny coming?"
"Yeah, Danny said okay," she paused for a minute. "What do you mean, coping?"
"Oh, didn't you know? This is a test to see how well you cope with lots of kids. Kind of a can-you-be-a-good-mother-to-my-kids thing" Silence met his statement. "Sara? I was only joking, love."
"Right," she answered, feeling relief even if she didn't completely believe him. Mother to his kids? "Are we meeting there?"
"Borrowing my brother's van. I'll come by and pick you up, then we can swing over to Danny's and pick up Jenny."
"Oh, Danny's dropping her off here. We figured 10 would be a good time."
"Perfect. Be there around 10:30."
"See you then, Gabriel." Sara clicked the off button and absently laid the phone back on the table. Mother for his kids? Talk about a hit out to left field. Was that how he was seeing her? As a possible life partner? A wife?
Gabe stared at the phone in his hand. The buzzing of the dial tone could clearly be heard. He wasn't particularly upset over the fact she'd basically hung up on him; he'd done the same earlier. Nevertheless, he was mentally kicking himself. Mother of his kids indeed. Perfect kind of thing to scare her off. It wasn't that Sara would be terrible with kids. Her reserve may be seen as coldness to some, but she was a warm person under it. Kids would probably see right through the façade.
No, he was kicking himself for the test crack. It wasn't a test. It was just. fun. Going to the zoo with a bunch of rugrats to keep things interesting. Give his married siblings some time alone with their spouses. He'd asked after Jenny on an impulse. Jenny could have some playmates for the day and he may score some points with the as-yet-unseen partner.
With a groan he dropped the phone on the cradle and shook his head. He didn't have time to figure this out right now. He had a van and kids to pick up.
TBC
This chapter is basically just layout for the next one.. Sorry if some of you found it boring!
"Hey, Sara, I need your help!" Gabriel's voice on her answering machine was laughingly urgent.
Sara's half-asleep mind registered the 'urgent' part, which automatically sent her lunging for the phone that rested beside her bed. Bracing herself on the table with one hand, she was lucky that she hadn't gone sprawling on the floor, she punched the button that would turn the phone on. "Gabriel?"
"Good, you're awake," he answered, satisfaction easily heard in his voice.
"Not really," she returned with annoyance. "Wanna tell me what's so important that you call me at," she paused and looked at the clock before continuing with a groan, "8 AM on my day off? Especially since you only left about five hours ago. God," she muttered in realization once she'd done the math, "four hours of sleep is not enough to function on."
"Can I help it if I missed your voice?" he asked half facetiously. When only silence met his question, he sighed good-naturedly. "Okay, not something you want to hear at 8 AM on four hours of sleep. I'll make a mental note of that."
"Gabriel, why did you call?" Please, she urged. Tell me the reason so I can go back to sleep.
"I already told you, I need your help. You're still in bed, aren't you?"
Startled by the non-sequitor, though unsure why that was exactly, Sara looked over at the twisted sheet that covered her body. "Yeah, why?"
"What are you wearing?"
Sara closed her eyes and wearily laid back down. "Why?"
"Curiosity. More fuel for fantasies. So I can torture myself with a mental picture," he instantly answered.
"Just for waking me up, I should tell you I have something lacey and slinky on."
"But you don't?" The question was asked in a mixture of disappointment and hope. He knew what she wasn't wearing, so what was she?
"No," she answered. "Why'd you call, Gabriel?"
"You're not being any fun," he told her, once again avoiding the question.
"I'm rarely fun on four hours of sleep."
"Oh, I dunno. I'm pretty sure that if I was over there we could find some fun things to do on four hours of sleep. You wouldn't even have to get out of bed," he offered.
"Gabriel."
"You ruin all my fun," he complained.
"Actually, you're the one who ruined your fun last night," Sara pointed out.
"Fine, castigate me for being a gentleman. Where's the mercy?"
Sara sighed and forced her eyes, which had fallen closed, open. "Want me to hang up on you, Gabriel?"
"No! Why would I want that?"
"Then please tell me why you called and said you needed my help."
"I'm going out later today and thought you might want to come along. You can help me keep track of everything. You know, put your cop skills to use."
"It isn't anything illegal, is it?"
"Of course not!"
"Can I get a few more hours of sleep?"
"Will one and a half do?"
"I guess it'll have to, won't it?"
"Yeah. Oh, and you might want to call Danny to see if you can pick up Jenny for her to join us."
"Jenny? Why?"
"We're going to the zoo," he answered with excitement in his voice. "Sleep sweet, love. I'll call you in a bit to make sure you're up."
Sara stared at the phone she still held, the buzzing of the dial tone easily heard. The zoo. He woke her up five hours after he left to go to the zoo. She dropped the phone onto the cradle and pulled the sheet higher. No doubt about it, Gabriel could be infuriating. Sweet, but infuriation. Admitting to herself that it was nice to hear his voice first thing in the morning, she drifted back off to sleep with a smile on her face.
"Hey, Danny, what are you doing today?" Sara, after getting an extra hour of sleep, was functioning fairly well. She'd purposely bypassed the other thirty minutes for extra caffeine; a trade off her body was used to by now.
"Why?" He asked suspiciously. "You want me to meet Mr. Mysterious? I finally get a last name to go with 'Gabriel?'"
"Not exactly. I know that Mija's probably going to spend most of the day out or over at a friend's house, right?"
"She's leaving in about twenty minutes. It's scary how well you know that girl's mind."
"Do you and Leigh are spending the day with Jenny, right?"
"We were planning to, yeah."
"How'd you like a free babysitter for your daughter and some time alone with your wife?"
"You're offering to baby-sit?"
"Gabriel called earlier, invited me to go to the zoo with him. Told me that I may want to call you and invite Jenny along. I'm pretty sure there'll be other kids there," Sara soothed.
"You want me to let a stranger watch my kid?"
"He's completely trustworthy, Danny. Strange, but trustworthy. You doubt my judgement?" She asked, partially hurt.
"Don't be absurd; Of course I do. Strange how?"
"Umm," Sara thought for a moment. Danny really wouldn't get the mummy heads in a glass case. Not without meeting Gabe first. Maybe not even after they met. "Same way I am," she finally decided on.
"Lemme talk to Leigh."
Sara waited for Danny's final answer, idly sipping the rest of her coffee. Her breakfast of freshly baked raisin scone lay on a plate in front of her. The other one was still in the white paper bag they had mysteriously appeared on her doorstep in. Within minutes, Danny returned.
"Leigh says it's a great idea and sweet of you to offer."
"Sweet," she muttered under her breath. "I've become sweet."
"Face it, Pez, Mr. Mysterious is good for you." Before Sara could comment on that, he continued. "What time do you need Jenny?"
"Well, he told me I could sleep till 9:30, so I'm assuming we'll be leaving between 10:30 and 11."
"We'll drop her off at your place around 10, okay?"
"Sure, no problem. See you then."
The phone rang again not five minutes after she hung up with Danny. Glancing at the clock, Sara picked it up. "Hey, Gabriel."
"Caller ID?"
"Psychic," she answered.
"Something else to put in the Witchblade file I have going, huh?"
"You have a Witchblade file?" She asked, diverted from the reason he was calling.
"Sure. I keep files on everything I research in depth, why?"
"I just. never thought you were keeping a file on it. Should I be worried about what's in it?" Or, more importantly from Sara's point of view, who might be looking for it that may hurt Gabriel.
"Nah, I tell you almost everything that's in it."
"It's that 'almost' that makes me worry."
He laughed. "Nothing to worry about. I promise. You seem pretty awake now."
Sara took another sip of her now refilled cup of coffee. "Another hour of sleep and coffee'll do that."
"Great. You even seem to be in a better mood. That'll really help you coping with today. Jenny coming?"
"Yeah, Danny said okay," she paused for a minute. "What do you mean, coping?"
"Oh, didn't you know? This is a test to see how well you cope with lots of kids. Kind of a can-you-be-a-good-mother-to-my-kids thing" Silence met his statement. "Sara? I was only joking, love."
"Right," she answered, feeling relief even if she didn't completely believe him. Mother to his kids? "Are we meeting there?"
"Borrowing my brother's van. I'll come by and pick you up, then we can swing over to Danny's and pick up Jenny."
"Oh, Danny's dropping her off here. We figured 10 would be a good time."
"Perfect. Be there around 10:30."
"See you then, Gabriel." Sara clicked the off button and absently laid the phone back on the table. Mother for his kids? Talk about a hit out to left field. Was that how he was seeing her? As a possible life partner? A wife?
Gabe stared at the phone in his hand. The buzzing of the dial tone could clearly be heard. He wasn't particularly upset over the fact she'd basically hung up on him; he'd done the same earlier. Nevertheless, he was mentally kicking himself. Mother of his kids indeed. Perfect kind of thing to scare her off. It wasn't that Sara would be terrible with kids. Her reserve may be seen as coldness to some, but she was a warm person under it. Kids would probably see right through the façade.
No, he was kicking himself for the test crack. It wasn't a test. It was just. fun. Going to the zoo with a bunch of rugrats to keep things interesting. Give his married siblings some time alone with their spouses. He'd asked after Jenny on an impulse. Jenny could have some playmates for the day and he may score some points with the as-yet-unseen partner.
With a groan he dropped the phone on the cradle and shook his head. He didn't have time to figure this out right now. He had a van and kids to pick up.
TBC
This chapter is basically just layout for the next one.. Sorry if some of you found it boring!