Show: The Agency

Title: The American Family: Chapter 11

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

A/N: Thanks for the comments. Sorry for all the weird symbols in the last chapter… I

have no idea what was up with that.

*~*~*~*~*~*

McGinty's Pub (9:00 p.m. that same night)

Modern, upbeat Celtic music spilled through the open door as the tall, blonde-haired man

shouldered his way past a bunch of half-drunk merrymakers. He paused just inside the

threshold of the bar, his cold ice-blue eyes sweeping the crowded room. He spotted his

quarry, sitting with his back to the door, nursing a lager. His no nonsense stance caused

the people to part like the Red Sea for him and he had no trouble making it to the empty

barstool next to the man. He slid onto the barstool, caught the barkeep's eye and ordered

a Guinness.

As the barkeep set the dark frothy liquid in front of him he took a sip and winced in

appreciation of the bitter taste.

"Is there a problem?" the man asked. He spoke so softly, that without his battle-hewed

hearing, John-boy would have missed the words.

"Sorta," he replied, just as quietly.

The man turned to him, alarm in his eyes. "What do you mean?"

"The lass is gettin suspicious."

He didn't have to name who he was talking about. The other man arched a bushy

eyebrow. "What do you want me to do about that?"

"What we set out to do in the firs' place."

The other man almost choked on the sip of lager. "Already?"

John-boy nodded. "She did a visual sweep for bugs… it might only be a matter of time

before she actually finds 'em. I don' think we should waste anymore time. It's time we

got what we came 'ere for."

The man nodded. "Did you talk to the others about this? Don't you think it's too early?"

"Archer leaves for Ireland soon," he replied heatedly. "We have to move now if we want

to be positioned in time!" he hissed.

"Calm down," reassured the other man. "I've got it under control."

The look in John-boy's ice-blue eyes was pointed. "See that ye do. We want Terri Lowell

by the weekend." He finished off his stout and tossed a few bills on the bar and walked

away without a backward glance.

The man at the bar shook his head in mild disgust and a tinge of amusement at the other

man's attitude. He drained his glass as well, paid for his drink and left the bar.

*~*~*~*~*~*

It was late Thursday morning when Terri got a call on her cell phone.

"Hiya, beautiful." Michael's well-modulated baritone rushed over her ears and Terri

found herself grinning.

At the sudden appearance of Terri's little grin, Joshua arched an eyebrow pointedly. Terri

purposely spun her back to him and she missed the curious exchange between Joshua and

Lex. "Hi," she replied softly, unable to keep the smile out of her voice and off her face.

"This is a surprise."

"I know. But I was wondering if I could persuade you to have lunch with me this

afternoon."

"Lunch? This afternoon?" she was mentally running a list of things she had to do this

afternoon and many plausible reasons for why she shouldn't say yes floated through her

head.

"Yes," he replied. "Is that a problem? I mean do you have other plans?"

Terri knew she should say yes, but instead she blurted out, "No. I don't."

Michael breathed a sigh of relief. "Good," he chuckled. "I'll pass by your building and

pick you up."

Building? Oh crap! He was talking about the Department of Commerce building, of

course! Where he thought she worked. "No!" she exclaimed.

"Is that a problem?" he asked.

"Yes…no! I mean… on any other day it wouldn't be a problem," she lied hastily in

explanation. "It's just that I've got some errands to run this afternoon as well, and it

would make more sense if I took my car," she continued, nearly choking on the lie. "How

about I just meet you wherever?"

"Fine," he conceded slowly. "How about Mariano's? Around 12?"

"Great. That's fine. I'll see you then." She terminated the call, praising the heavens for

the ability to think fast on her feet.

She ignored Joshua's expectant look and when the older man opened his mouth to speak,

she shook her head. "Don't ask. Just don't ask."

*~*~*~*~*~*

At five minutes past twelve, the bow-tied waiter escorted her to a table in the far corner

of the casually chic restaurant. On catching site of her, Michael stood up and kissed her

cheek before pulling out her chair for her. "Hi," he said, sitting across from her. Terri

smiled in response.

The waiter poured her a glass of water, handed over the menus and took their drink

orders before leaving them in privacy.

"I must admit this is a pleasant surprise," Terri said, taking a sip of her water. "Twice in

one week? I must be a very popular gal," she joked, perusing the menu.

Michael grinned, his green eyes twinkling. "You certainly are."

The talked a little bit of their morning before the waiter came back with Terri's glass of

Zinfandel and Michael's Carlsberg. Terri ordered the grilled chicken Caesar salad and a

baked potato as did Michael.

"So what errands do you have to run this afternoon?" he asked.

Terri looked at him in confusion. "Errands?"

Michael arched an eyebrow. "Yeah. You said you had to run some errands this

afternoon… that's why you drove instead of letting me pick you up."

Terri flushed at her blunder. "Oh… yes, of course. I just have to pick up some stuff for

my son," she muttered noncommittally, taking a hurried sip of her wine.

"Oh, stuff like what?"

Terri's eyes widened as she stared down into her glass. "Oh, a gi for his karate class."

**Where did that come from?** she didn't know, nor she didn't care.

"Oh, he takes karate?"

"Yes," Terri replied, thankful that at least she wasn't lying this time. "His father thought

it would be a good idea to get him started early."

"Does he like it?"

Terri grinned. "Why so suddenly interested in a four year old's karate class?"

Michael shrugged. "Just curious. You're usually so open with everything but obviously

you get a little touchy when it comes to your son."

Terri flushed a little at the comment. It was true. "He's very special to me," she replied.

"I can see that." He took another sip of the lager. "What about his Dad?"

Terri nearly choked. "What?"

"Alex's father? Am I being too nosy…?" he trailed off, looking at her pointedly. "I mean,

you don't have to tell me."

"No, no. you have to forgive me. It's not very often someone asks me about my son… or

his father," she added as an afterthought. She paused as the waiter returned with their

plates. As she dug in with relish, she chewed over how much she should tell him. She

wouldn't hold back anything about Alex, but Stiles, of course, was another problem.

"Well… Alex is my joy… my life. He's the most important thing in my life," she paused

to look at him, the love shining in her beautiful brown eyes. "He's the reason I get up

every morning… he's the first thing on my mind when I wake up and the last thing I

think about at night. I know it's kinda cheesy and very, very cliché, but it's true. The

headaches, and skinned-knees and broken glass," she chuckled, "it doesn't really matter."

"I would love to meet him," Michael said pointedly.

Terri mulled over those six hopeful words. Should she allow the two to meet? Alex had

never met any of the few men she'd consented to seeing over the past years. Probably

because those dates were few and far between and nothing serious ever came of it. But

this *thing* with Michael was serious wasn't it? After all, she'd been seeing him steadily

over the past two weeks – she'd spent more time in his company in one day than the

entire time she and Stiles had been carrying on with their sexual escapades. This could

grow into something meaningful, and she wanted them to know each other.

She smiled, looking at him over the rim of her glass. "I would like that, too."

The two fell into companionable silence as they each finished their meal. As the waiter

brought Michael's Irish coffee and Terri's mocha he asked, "So are you gonna leave me

in breathless anticipation?"

Terri shot him a confused look as she took a sip of her coffee. "Huh?"

"About the other man in your life."

**Other man? What on earth is he talking about?** she thought confusedly.

Her confusion showed on her face because Michael chuckled. "Alex's father," he

clarified. "I mean… things must be either pretty good or pretty bad between the two of

you."

"Why would you say that?" she asked curiously.

Michael shrugged. "I mean, I don't hear you gushing about his virtues or screaming about

what a complete jerk he is. In fact… I don't hear you say anything about him at all."

Terri blanched inwardly. How could Michael know that she did all of her screaming

about A.B. Stiles' shortcomings in the privacy of her home, where she could spew every

four letter word she knew in description of a certain blue-eyed CIA agent? But he was

right… she didn't talk about Stiles… at all. He was a very touchy subject. How could she

explain that he was a CIA Agent and they'd had no real relationship, just mind-blowing

and often – she could kick herself – unprotected sex that resulted in a baby nine months

later after she'd been kidnapped by Chinese terrorists? That's right, she couldn't.

"Well…" she began slowly. "There's not much to tell. He works for the Government as

well… we had a very brief but torrid affair… we broke up. We have a kid… as you can

see," she chuckled uneasily, "there's really not much to tell."

"Are you still friends?"

*Friends?* Terri almost burst out laughing at that. She and Stiles had been partners;

comrades in arms; lovers, but they had never, *never* been friends. They were tolerant of

each other – for the most part – they had to be for the sake of their mutual love for Alex.

For the sake of appearance she nodded, swallowing the lie lodged in her throat.

"I hope you don't think I'm pushing you, Terri. I would never do that intentionally. It's

just that… I feel something very special could come of this. And if it does… I want to be

as much a part of your life as you would be a part of mine."

Terri smiled softly, but didn't say anything as the two finished their coffees. After he

settled their bill, Michael walked Terri back to her SUV hand-in-hand. They paused at the

driver's door and Michael tucked a fluttering strand of dark hair over her ear.

Terri smiled at him. "Thanks for lunch."

He returned her grin. "My pleasure," he replied, a hand dropping to her small waist.

Bending his head, he met her lips halfway. Their kisses had grown more comfortable –

less tentative, certainly not bland. Terri sighed as his tongue stroked the roof of her

mouth, sending shivers of pleasure shooting down her spine.

When he pulled away, he grinned at the dazed satisfaction in her eyes and he pecked her

lips once more for good measure. "What are your plans for this weekend?" he asked, both

hands loosely wrapped around her waist as they leaned lightly against the car.

"Nothing concrete, I don't think. Why?" she asked grinning, "you got something special

planned?"

"As a matter of fact, I do. Just pack your overnight bag tomorrow."

"Oh really? Where're we going?"

"*That* my dear, is a surprise," he replied, kissing her again. "But it's probably not what

you're thinking because I want you to bring Alex too, if you don't mind."

Terri burst out laughing as he stepped away from her, allowing her to unlock the door. He

had definitely made it known that he had wanted to meet Alex, she just wasn't expecting

him to put in the request so soon. But, despite her misgivings, she didn't feel alarm or

defensive about Alex as she'd thought she would. And so she nodded in acquiesce.

"I'll call you tomorrow," he said, as she started the motor. Terri waved in response as she

backed up the SUV and drove away.

*~*~*~*~*~*

Back at CIA Headquarters Terri could barely keep the smile off her face or the skip out

of her step. By God, she was even humming! The only misgiving she had was her

impending confrontation with Stiles. She had consented to bringing Alex with them this

weekend but only on the ride back to the office had she realized that it was Stiles' turn to

look after the four-year old this weekend.

She was dreading the confrontation all afternoon, balancing her happy feelings with her

feelings of dread. But she had not caught sight of Stiles all day. Neither Jackson, Joshua

nor Lex had seen him. Quinn, Reese and Gage were still in Washington in talks with the

President and his advisors. Finally, around four in the afternoon, she caught his familiar

swagger out of the corner of her eye as he strode into his seldom-used office at the far

end of the hallway.

Taking a deep breath, she gathered her wits and left her station and walked toward his

office. She knocked twice on the polished wood of the door and she heard a brusque,

"Come in," from the other side.

Stiles had been in a bad mood all afternoon. Quinn had called in to say that talks with the

President were not going well and, unless they could uncover and snuff out the threat,

Martin Archer would be dispatched to Ireland by the end of next week. Stiles was

fuming. By God, next election he was voting for the Democrats!

His mood brightened only fractionally as Terri appeared and shut the door behind her.

"What's got your knickers in a bunch?" she asked.

He gruffly relayed what Quinn told him and she frowned. Her news would not make his

disposition any better.

"What do you want, Terri?" he asked wearily, leaning back in his chair.

She knew that she could fib a little or flat out lie about what she wanted, but the sly,

vindictive woman in her wanted to stick it to him a little. "I'm going away this weekend

with Michael," she began, her eyes gleaming as Stiles sat up straighter, "and he wants to

bring Alex with us."

Stiles thought he heard wrong. He had obviously heard the first part and he did not miss

the undisguised gleam in her eyes, but she couldn't be serious. "Excuse me?" he asked,

blinking rapidly.

"I'm going away for the weekend…"

"I heard that part," he cut in forcefully. "I just thought you said he wants you to bring my

son with you."

Terri's eyes narrowed. "Yes, he wants to bring *our* son."

"No," he replied simply, getting up from the chair, and leaving her in the room.

Terri's eyes widened in shock that he left so abruptly. She jumped up from her chair and

hurried down the hall after him. "What do you mean 'no'?" she asked angrily, hurrying to

keep up with him.

"No means no, Terri," he shot back equally as forcefully.

Terri noticed the curious stares they were getting from the rest of the department and she

yanked Stiles into a dark OTS material supply closet away from the curious looks. She

snapped on the light overhead, bathing them both in dim golden light. "Why not?"

"Why not?" Stiles echoed incredulously.

"Yes, why not?"

"I don't believe you! You, who are so territorial about your visits comes to me and asks

me to give up the one time when I'm guaranteed spending some quality time with my son

so he can go off on some bonding ritual with your latest boyfriend?!"

Terri's mouth fell open. "It's not like that, Stiles and you know it!"

"Do I, Terri? Alex is my son, too. I can't keep rearranging my life and my schedule to

suit your dating pleasure!"

"You're not being fair!"

"No, *you're* not being fair, Terri! The answer is 'no'!"

Terri stepped back, her eyes narrowed. "You know what? I think you're just jealous!" she

hissed.

Truth was that he was seeing red with jealousy and anger. Coupled with his anger over

the Martin Archer incident, he was exceedingly prickly. And he took it out on Terri.

"Jealous?" he spit. "He's not the first man you've probably slept with on the first date

and he sure as hell won't be the last! But *my* son is not going to be spending the

weekend with you and him!"

Terri's palm connected with the smooth plane of his cheek so fast and so hard that both

of them flinched at the resounding crack in the now stifling silence.

"You're a real bastard A.B. Stiles!" Terri hissed. She turned her back to him and yanked

open the door to the supply closet.

Stiles gingerly brought a hand to his stinging cheek, swallowing the bitter taste of disgust

and regret in his mouth. **Damn, that's gonna leave one helluva mark!**

TBC…

A/N: I know, just when you thought things were getting a little better between those two,

it falls apart. R&R people, tell me what you think. The next chapter might take a while

because I'm leaving the country this weekend. I will most likely have access to a

computer where I'm going, just not the time to write regular chapters. I will try my best,

however. Ciao for now.

Cara