Chapter Three (New)
Lee stood in front of the window of the Q Bureau and stared out at the street traffic, not seeing it. It had been more than six weeks since he and Leslie had been married, and it had been a miserable six weeks. He and Leslie had honeymooned in the Bahamas, and while it was an enjoyable honeymoon, Lee was restless. Since his wedding he wasn't feeling very friendly with anybody and he knew the one reason why not.
Amanda.
He really had expected her to show up at his wedding. Even though his heart told him otherwise, he was sure to see her run in late and be there for him. It had been a severe blow to his heart to find out she had not changed her mind. He had gone through the motions of the wedding on auto-pilot. When he'd lifted Leslie's veil to kiss her, Amanda's face swam in front of his eyes and the kiss he'd given Leslie definitely left something to be desired. Then, at the wedding reception, Billy had sprung more bad news on him.
"Sorry to have to tell you on your wedding day Scarecrow, but Amanda's left." Billy said sadly handing Lee Amanda's transfer papers.
Amanda had transferred to the New Orleans division. She would be handling task force work. She had requested to finish her formal training and indicated she would like to work undercover alone. Lee looked at the transfer papers and sighed. Amanda would never make it as a loner. She just didn't have it in her. He shook his head and handed the papers back to Billy.
"This is all my fault." Lee said. "I should have never gotten as close with her.. Lee trailed off.
"Lee, I don't ever want to hear you say anything like that. I thought putting you two together would be good for you both." Billy said. "I just wanted you and Amanda to be happy."
Happy, Lee thought. Will I ever feel that way again???
____________________________________________________________________
Amanda sat in the classroom of the Big Easy Gaming and Bartending School. She had been a "student" here for over six weeks. She was posing as a student dealer on her first big assignment alone. She was enrolled as a student dealer to learn poker and blackjack in order to get a job in a casino. She was investigating the casino for money laundering and terrorist activities. The big casinos in town were always full of international millionaires, foreign tourists, and other government employees looking to blow off steam and lose their money in the process. Amanda would go through the school, get a job in one of the local casinos, and figure out where the money came from and who was their American contact. Amanda was sitting at the blackjack table trying to understand the basics of the game as her instructor schooled the table on reading hands.
"OK Amanda, read the hands on the table." her instructor said.
"There are 17, and 15, and 20, and a blackjack." Amanda said looking at the hands dealt out.
"Very good." said her instructor. "Now what does the dealer have?"
Amanda glanced down at the table. For practice, she was in the dealer position. She had a 10 of clubs face up on the table. She cupped her hand around the cards as taught, and peeked underneath. She raised her head and turned over the down card with a flourish.
"Dealer has Blackjack." Amanda announced, showing the Ace of Hearts.
Amanda banged her fist lightly in front of the blackjack hand announcing a push. She collected the losing "bets", played with play money at school, from the table. After she collected the losing bets, she scooped up each player's hand, then the dealer hand, and placed the cards back in the box. She clapped her hands and showed them to the table empty. As she left the blackjack table, her instructor stopped her.
"Amanda, I've arranged for you to have an audition this week." He announced. "I know you've got a couple more weeks in the game, but you've caught on to the game so fast, I think you're ready." the instructor said.
"That would be great, thanks!" said Amanda.
"Besides, these casinos are so understaffed, they could use all the help they can get right now." her instructor said.
"Thank you so much." Amanda beamed, "I'll try to do a good job." she said.
"You'll be fine, just don't get nervous." her instructor said.
Amanda gathered up her books and made her way down the stairs and out the door to her car. September weather in New Orleans wasn't anything like Arlington, she thought as she made her way to her car. Her new Pathfinder was parked on a side street next to her school, heat shimmering off its' hood. As she started the car and cranked up her A/C, she smiled to herself. She was going to get an audition sooner than she'd hoped. This would be her chance to get inside the casino sooner than planned. She turned down the A/C a notch and headed to her field office. Her boss at the Agency would be very happy things were going so well.
Lee was at his desk, finishing up the paperwork on the Tremell case, a job he hated. Not only was Tremell the sneakiest counterfeiter in the Northern hemisphere, he had been quite difficult to bring in. The first time Lee arrested him, his equally slick and slimy lawyer sprung Tremell on a technicality. Then, after Lee had dotted all his I's and crossed all his T's, Tremell decided to play Houdini and disappear. It was only after threatening every one of his contacts on the street that one of his "family" got word where Tremell was hiding. Lee had to go and visit the escort service that Tremell had arranged for and get his girlfriend "Cookie" to lead Lee to where Tremell was hiding. Lee had wasted a good week on bagging Tremell and now once this paperwork was finished, Lee wanted nothing more than to go home to some peace and quiet. Lee was fishing around in both Q Bureau desks for some correction tape when his eye caught something. He curled his hand around it and brought it out.
It was a barrette that had belonged to Amanda. He remembered the day she'd taken it off. They had been working on the Atherton case, the jewel thief that had hidden over a half million dollars' worth of jewels in the basement of a remodeled house in Amanda's neighborhood, unbeknownst to Lee and Amanda. Atherton had been spotted around Amanda's neighborhood waiting for the right time to go back and get the jewels. Lee and Amanda had searched the house all day, a house with no air conditioning on yet, and found nothing. When they had come back to the Agency, Amanda had undid her hair from the barrette upstairs in the Q Bureau, saying the A/C in the Agency would hopefully dry her hair. When she had taken the barrette out and shook her hair loose, Lee had thought he was going to lose it. Her hair was damp on the ends from her perspiring in the warm house, and when she pulled her hair loose, the ends clung to her face and cheeks, giving her a tousled look. Lee's control was tenuous at that point, he remembered. Lee had been feeling a little flushed himself after that. He held the barrette in his hand and went to stand by the window again. Lee tried not to think about Amanda like that anymore. She was part of his past and she seemed happy with that. Billy kept in contact with her and even Francine was going to be sent to New Orleans as part of the undercover task force. Lee never asked Billy about Amanda, even though Billy volunteered that Amanda was doing great in New Orleans. It was all Lee could do not to jump on the first plane to New Orleans whenever he had those dreams.
Dreams of him and Amanda. Amanda touching him, kissing him, whispering softly to him. He and Amanda getting married. Seeing Amanda in a beautiful white wedding gown, Philip and Jamie giving her away. Her mother crying softly as he and Amanda recited the vows that would bind them together forever. Lee dreamed of he and Amanda in bed together, as husband and wife, sealing their love together. Lee saw Amanda pregnant with their children, cute boys with their mother's eyes and his hair; adorable little girls with curly hair and deep hazel eyes. He would awaken from these dreams in a cold sweat, uncomfortably guilty even though nothing had happened with him and Amanda. Lee only knew he shouldn't be having these dreams. Not with Leslie lying right beside him.
Leslie. She turned out to be more of a puzzle than a wife. Right after they returned from their honeymoon, Leslie announced she would be traveling on more overseas trips with different ambassadors. First, she'd gone to France for two weeks, now she was in Russia for almost four weeks. Lee also discovered that she had turned a cold shoulder to him. When they had gone on their honeymoon, Leslie was warm and receptive in bed, not that Lee would have noticed. However, when they returned, Leslie informed him that she would sleep in Lee's guest bedroom and for him not to disturb her. Lee agreed readily, too readily, in Leslie's opinion. She and Lee quarreled bitterly over her decision. Leslie accused Lee of still having feelings for Amanda. This argument, just before Leslie's departure, had not sat well with Lee. Lee knew Leslie was waiting for him to call and apologize and reassure her that his feelings for Amanda were long gone. The only problem was, Lee thought, how do I tell her they're not?????
Lee stood in front of the window of the Q Bureau and stared out at the street traffic, not seeing it. It had been more than six weeks since he and Leslie had been married, and it had been a miserable six weeks. He and Leslie had honeymooned in the Bahamas, and while it was an enjoyable honeymoon, Lee was restless. Since his wedding he wasn't feeling very friendly with anybody and he knew the one reason why not.
Amanda.
He really had expected her to show up at his wedding. Even though his heart told him otherwise, he was sure to see her run in late and be there for him. It had been a severe blow to his heart to find out she had not changed her mind. He had gone through the motions of the wedding on auto-pilot. When he'd lifted Leslie's veil to kiss her, Amanda's face swam in front of his eyes and the kiss he'd given Leslie definitely left something to be desired. Then, at the wedding reception, Billy had sprung more bad news on him.
"Sorry to have to tell you on your wedding day Scarecrow, but Amanda's left." Billy said sadly handing Lee Amanda's transfer papers.
Amanda had transferred to the New Orleans division. She would be handling task force work. She had requested to finish her formal training and indicated she would like to work undercover alone. Lee looked at the transfer papers and sighed. Amanda would never make it as a loner. She just didn't have it in her. He shook his head and handed the papers back to Billy.
"This is all my fault." Lee said. "I should have never gotten as close with her.. Lee trailed off.
"Lee, I don't ever want to hear you say anything like that. I thought putting you two together would be good for you both." Billy said. "I just wanted you and Amanda to be happy."
Happy, Lee thought. Will I ever feel that way again???
____________________________________________________________________
Amanda sat in the classroom of the Big Easy Gaming and Bartending School. She had been a "student" here for over six weeks. She was posing as a student dealer on her first big assignment alone. She was enrolled as a student dealer to learn poker and blackjack in order to get a job in a casino. She was investigating the casino for money laundering and terrorist activities. The big casinos in town were always full of international millionaires, foreign tourists, and other government employees looking to blow off steam and lose their money in the process. Amanda would go through the school, get a job in one of the local casinos, and figure out where the money came from and who was their American contact. Amanda was sitting at the blackjack table trying to understand the basics of the game as her instructor schooled the table on reading hands.
"OK Amanda, read the hands on the table." her instructor said.
"There are 17, and 15, and 20, and a blackjack." Amanda said looking at the hands dealt out.
"Very good." said her instructor. "Now what does the dealer have?"
Amanda glanced down at the table. For practice, she was in the dealer position. She had a 10 of clubs face up on the table. She cupped her hand around the cards as taught, and peeked underneath. She raised her head and turned over the down card with a flourish.
"Dealer has Blackjack." Amanda announced, showing the Ace of Hearts.
Amanda banged her fist lightly in front of the blackjack hand announcing a push. She collected the losing "bets", played with play money at school, from the table. After she collected the losing bets, she scooped up each player's hand, then the dealer hand, and placed the cards back in the box. She clapped her hands and showed them to the table empty. As she left the blackjack table, her instructor stopped her.
"Amanda, I've arranged for you to have an audition this week." He announced. "I know you've got a couple more weeks in the game, but you've caught on to the game so fast, I think you're ready." the instructor said.
"That would be great, thanks!" said Amanda.
"Besides, these casinos are so understaffed, they could use all the help they can get right now." her instructor said.
"Thank you so much." Amanda beamed, "I'll try to do a good job." she said.
"You'll be fine, just don't get nervous." her instructor said.
Amanda gathered up her books and made her way down the stairs and out the door to her car. September weather in New Orleans wasn't anything like Arlington, she thought as she made her way to her car. Her new Pathfinder was parked on a side street next to her school, heat shimmering off its' hood. As she started the car and cranked up her A/C, she smiled to herself. She was going to get an audition sooner than she'd hoped. This would be her chance to get inside the casino sooner than planned. She turned down the A/C a notch and headed to her field office. Her boss at the Agency would be very happy things were going so well.
Lee was at his desk, finishing up the paperwork on the Tremell case, a job he hated. Not only was Tremell the sneakiest counterfeiter in the Northern hemisphere, he had been quite difficult to bring in. The first time Lee arrested him, his equally slick and slimy lawyer sprung Tremell on a technicality. Then, after Lee had dotted all his I's and crossed all his T's, Tremell decided to play Houdini and disappear. It was only after threatening every one of his contacts on the street that one of his "family" got word where Tremell was hiding. Lee had to go and visit the escort service that Tremell had arranged for and get his girlfriend "Cookie" to lead Lee to where Tremell was hiding. Lee had wasted a good week on bagging Tremell and now once this paperwork was finished, Lee wanted nothing more than to go home to some peace and quiet. Lee was fishing around in both Q Bureau desks for some correction tape when his eye caught something. He curled his hand around it and brought it out.
It was a barrette that had belonged to Amanda. He remembered the day she'd taken it off. They had been working on the Atherton case, the jewel thief that had hidden over a half million dollars' worth of jewels in the basement of a remodeled house in Amanda's neighborhood, unbeknownst to Lee and Amanda. Atherton had been spotted around Amanda's neighborhood waiting for the right time to go back and get the jewels. Lee and Amanda had searched the house all day, a house with no air conditioning on yet, and found nothing. When they had come back to the Agency, Amanda had undid her hair from the barrette upstairs in the Q Bureau, saying the A/C in the Agency would hopefully dry her hair. When she had taken the barrette out and shook her hair loose, Lee had thought he was going to lose it. Her hair was damp on the ends from her perspiring in the warm house, and when she pulled her hair loose, the ends clung to her face and cheeks, giving her a tousled look. Lee's control was tenuous at that point, he remembered. Lee had been feeling a little flushed himself after that. He held the barrette in his hand and went to stand by the window again. Lee tried not to think about Amanda like that anymore. She was part of his past and she seemed happy with that. Billy kept in contact with her and even Francine was going to be sent to New Orleans as part of the undercover task force. Lee never asked Billy about Amanda, even though Billy volunteered that Amanda was doing great in New Orleans. It was all Lee could do not to jump on the first plane to New Orleans whenever he had those dreams.
Dreams of him and Amanda. Amanda touching him, kissing him, whispering softly to him. He and Amanda getting married. Seeing Amanda in a beautiful white wedding gown, Philip and Jamie giving her away. Her mother crying softly as he and Amanda recited the vows that would bind them together forever. Lee dreamed of he and Amanda in bed together, as husband and wife, sealing their love together. Lee saw Amanda pregnant with their children, cute boys with their mother's eyes and his hair; adorable little girls with curly hair and deep hazel eyes. He would awaken from these dreams in a cold sweat, uncomfortably guilty even though nothing had happened with him and Amanda. Lee only knew he shouldn't be having these dreams. Not with Leslie lying right beside him.
Leslie. She turned out to be more of a puzzle than a wife. Right after they returned from their honeymoon, Leslie announced she would be traveling on more overseas trips with different ambassadors. First, she'd gone to France for two weeks, now she was in Russia for almost four weeks. Lee also discovered that she had turned a cold shoulder to him. When they had gone on their honeymoon, Leslie was warm and receptive in bed, not that Lee would have noticed. However, when they returned, Leslie informed him that she would sleep in Lee's guest bedroom and for him not to disturb her. Lee agreed readily, too readily, in Leslie's opinion. She and Lee quarreled bitterly over her decision. Leslie accused Lee of still having feelings for Amanda. This argument, just before Leslie's departure, had not sat well with Lee. Lee knew Leslie was waiting for him to call and apologize and reassure her that his feelings for Amanda were long gone. The only problem was, Lee thought, how do I tell her they're not?????
