Chapter 7: A Woman Scorned

Jack and Bobby had just returned to their desks when Myles, D and Lucy walked into the bullpen.

"Hey guys," Lucy greeted them. "Where are Sue and Tara?"

"They went out for lunch," Jack answered.

"Well, it's good to see that you're keeping tabs on the little woman," Myles said sarcastically. D and Bobby laughed as Jack rolled his eyes.

"Stick a sock in it Myles," Lucy snapped. Myles looked at Lucy, his eyes widening in surprise.

"That was uncalled for. Tell me, what did I do to deserve your ire today?" Myles asked her.

"Hmm, let me see...it could be the fact that I've been stuck with you all morning, listening to your insipid rambling. I've had enough of you to last me all year." Lucy sat down at her desk and Myles walked away in a huff.

"Whoa, Luce. Are you okay?" Bobby asked her. "I know being stuck with Myles is enough to bring anyone to the end of their rope but are you sure that's all it is?"

"I'm fine," Lucy replied through gritted teeth. She began typing furiously on her keyboard, and all three men knew better than to bother her any further. Jack shook his head. It seemed like Myles always bore the brunt of Lucy's wrath. Apparently she saw Myles' cheating on her once upon a time as an excuse to use him as her personal verbal punching bag. Obviously something had made her upset and he knew that whatever it was, it likely had something to do with one of the male species, given her irritation with Myles today. Hopefully Sue would be back soon and then Lucy could vent to her roommate about whatever was bothering her.

As if on cue, Sue and Tara entered the bullpen at that very moment. They stopped talking as soon as they saw Jack, and Sue smiled in a way that left him with little doubt that they'd been talking about him. "How was Slappy's?" she asked him.

"Oh, you know. Goes down easily but leaves you with a nice case of indigestion," Jack told her. Sue wrinkled her nose at him. "Well, you asked," he said with a grin.

"Well, how about I make you a nice healthy dinner tonight to make up for it...how does that sound?" Sue asked, hoping he hadn't already made plans to go out with the guys. They really needed to talk, and she wanted to do it before she lost her nerve.

"Sounds good," Jack agreed. Sue smiled at him and didn't notice Lucy trying to get her attention, as her eyes were focussed on his. He pointed to Lucy, and she turned around.

"Hey Luce," Sue greeted her. "How was your meeting this morning?"

OK, Lucy signed. Can we talk in private?

Definitely, Sue signed back, nodding at her roommate with a look of concern on her face. Lucy linked arms with Sue, and the two of them headed in the direction of the boardroom.

"I wonder what that was all about?" Jack said curiously.

"My guess is guy troubles," Tara answered, looking at him. Knowing she'd just been to lunch with Sue and not having any idea what Sue had or hadn't told her, Jack saw something accusatory in her look.

"What's that supposed to mean?" he asked, trying to sound nonchalant--and not succeeding.

"I don't think she was referring to you, Romeo. Although, you may come up as a subject of discussion, come think of it," Bobby told him with a chuckle.

"No, I wasn't. I think you may be right though," Tara said to Bobby. "The guy troubles I was actually referring to are Lucy's, not Sue's," she said, raising her eyebrows at Jack. "Lucy had a date last-night with Don, that guy she's been seeing. Maybe things didn't go so well," she finished with a frown.
"That would explain her mood this morning," Dimitrius commented. "Poor Myles has been dodging bullets all day."

Sue nodded sympathetically as Lucy recounted her date from the night before. "Oh Luce, you're better off without him--the guy sounds like a jerk."

"He didn't seem like one until last night--he seemed really sweet. What's wrong with me, why do I always seem to attract the losers?" Lucy asked, looking depressed.

"Don't talk that way about yourself. You just haven't been looking in the right places, I guess. You'll meet someone, probably when you least expect it," Sue said, trying to comfort her. Sue truly believed that to be true. After all, it had happened to her, and she certainly hadn't been looking when Jack came into her life. She definitely hadn't expected the strong feelings she'd developed for him either.

"I can't wait until this case is over; I miss having you around to vent to when I get home from a bad date, plus you always seem to know exactly what to say to make me feel better," Lucy said with a smile. "Speaking of the case, how is it going being married to Jack again? I feel like we haven't talked in days!"

"Well, it's been so busy around here that we really haven't had much time to talk since I went undercover," Sue pointed out. "And it's going fine," she added hastily.

"Spill," Lucy said, instantly sensing that something was up.

"Really, everything's fine," Sue insisted. "In fact, we may get a real break in the case tomorrow night. We've been invited to dinner at the Ryan's. I'm going to wear a wire, and hopefully Sam and Mary will say something that will lead us to the kidnappers," she said, trying to steer Lucy's interest in a different direction.

"That's great but what I really want to know is: how are things going, living with Jack again?" Lucy asked eagerly.

"It's surprisingly easy living with Jack," Sue answered. "He's generous and considerate; that's not a problem at all. There's really nothing to tell," she insisted. She was determined not to blow the kiss out of proportion. As much as she disliked keeping it from Lucy, she knew that her roommate would definitely blow it out of proportion.

"Whatever you say," Lucy said, eyeing Sue suspiciously. "I just thought I caught a strange vibe coming from you two, but maybe I was wrong; though, I'm not usually wrong about these things, you know!"

"I know, but don't worry. Everything's fine," Sue said calmly, smiling at Lucy's doubtful expression.

"So you keep saying. Hey, do you want to do dinner after work?"

"Actually, I already promised Jack that I would cook him a healthy dinner tonight since he had Slappy's for lunch. Why don't you and I do lunch tomorrow?" Sue suggested. By then, she and Jack would have discussed their situation and she would feel better.

Deal, Lucy signed. "You know, if you keep spoiling Jack with home-cooked meals, he's never going to want this marriage to end. Maybe you wouldn't mind that though. He is a great catch, after all." She grinned.

"You never give up, do you?" Sue said, shaking her head and smiling at her friend.

"Nope," Lucy answered. Sue sighed, looking exasperated. "Look, I may not have any insight into my own love life but yours on the other hand..."

"But Lucy, I don't have a love life! David and I stopped seeing each other over a month ago and you know what? I'm perfectly happy being single right now. Why can't you just accept that?" Sue felt instantly guilty for her outburst as she watched the smile drop off Lucy's face like a mask.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to insinuate that there's something wrong with being single. I only want you to be happy, Sue."

"I'm sorry, too. I didn't mean to blow up at you like that. It's just hard for me to say the same thing over and over. Jack and I will never be a couple. It can't happen." Sue wasn't sure if she was trying to convince Lucy or herself. Either way, she knew it was true. There was just too much at stake.

"Okay. I won't bring it up again. It's just hard to ignore the undercurrent between you guys sometimes. You really have a connection that's hard to find but I promise that I'll let it drop," Lucy said, sadly.

"Luce, it's okay. You're right, there is something between Jack and I--now just isn't the right time to act on it. I don't know if there ever will be a right time. I'm perfectly happy right now, just being his friend. Choosing to change our relationship would just make things too complicated."

"You do have a point. I guess I just always feel like no matter how happy you are, a great guy to share things with would be the icing on the cake," Lucy said.

"I know what you're saying. And someday maybe I will find the right guy, at the right time and maybe I will get married. In order to be with Jack I would have to sacrifice my career and I'm not ready to go there, not now. Maybe not ever," Sue explained.

"I promise to let the subject drop, for now," Lucy told her. "But if things change..."

"I promise I'll let you know about it," Sue assured her friend, giving her a hug. She really hoped that when Lucy found out that she and Jack had kissed, she would forgive the fact that Sue hadn't confided in her right away. The last thing she intended to do was hurt anyone's feelings. Pulling apart, Sue looked at Lucy regretfully. "As much as I hate to say it, we should get back to work. I've got paperwork to finish." Lucy nodded and followed Sue back to the bullpen, unable to shake the feeling that her friend was keeping something from her.