When Danny returned to work, he couldn't mask his bad mood. His co-workers knew just by looking at him that he needed space, so they stayed out of his way. Jack also noticed Danny's foul mood, so he gave him a stack of phone records to sift through from a cold case. Jack knew that Danny was in no frame of mind to work with the others or be out in the field. He wanted to ask Danny what was wrong, but he knew from past experience that it would be a futile effort.
Danny became so focused on matching the phone records, that he didn't hear Martin calling his name three times. "Danny…Danny….Danny."
He finally looked up and answered in an annoyed tone. "What?"
"Karen Washington is down in the lobby asking to see you again. She says it's about her daughter's case."
He sighed heavily. "You can have my first born if you go down there and tell her I'm not here."
Martin laughed thinking that it was another of Danny's jokes and walked away.
"Thanks a lot," Danny mumbled as he got up from his desk to head downstairs.
As Danny approached Karen Washington, she was sitting in a waiting room chair. He couldn't help but notice that her skirt was about three inches too short and she was wearing four-inch heels. This struck him as strange because usually she always came to the office in impeccable, professional dress. On this afternoon, she looked like she was ready for a night out clubbing. Danny thought the she looked much younger in the outfit.
"Mrs. Washington."
She stood and straightened her skirt. "Thank you for seeing me. I wasn't sure you would."
"What can I do for you now?" he asked wanting to expedite the encounter.
"Well, first, I wanted to tell you that I was sorry for hanging up on you. You were right. I have become too dependent on you. You're not the only person who can find my daughter."
Danny nodded his head. "I'm glad you understand that now."
"Also, I hired a PI. The one you recommended on the list you faxed me. He seems quite competent."
"He's the best from what I hear. That's good, Mrs. Washington," he responded feeling encouraged by her progress.
"That brings me to the actually reason for my visit. Since I've hired the PI, and I won't be bringing any more leads to your team…then I was thinking that there wouldn't be a conflict of interest anymore."
Danny was perplexed. "Conflict of interest?"
"Yes. You know…for us. There's no reason we couldn't go out."
His head snapped back in surprise as he stifled a sigh. "I told you before--"
"You said it wouldn't be appropriate as long as your team was working my daughter's case. You don't have to work on it anymore."
"It still wouldn't be appropriate, Mrs. Washington."
"I don't understand."
"Mrs. Washington—"
"Danny," she interrupted as she grasped his arm with her hand. "Don't fight this. There's been something between us for quite some time."
He shook his head in disbelief. "Mrs. Washington, I've tried to be polite. I've tried to be professional, but now I'm afraid I have to be blunt," he said as he pulled his arm out of her grasp. "I'm not interested in pursuing a relationship with you. I'm sorry."
She looked like he slapped her. "Oh…I…I…guess I misunderstood," she replied as she started to walk away from him. "I'm sorry," she said as she quickly walked out of the room.
Danny shook his head as he wondered if the day could get any worse.
Outside the glassed-in waiting room, Jack and Samantha were returning from a quick coffee break, when Jack stopped to watch them in the room. "Mrs. Washington is here for an update again," he said matter-of-factly.
Samantha gave him a sidelong glance and mumbled, "Yeah, I bet she wants an update."
"What?" Jack asked as he looked over at her.
"Nothing," she replied. And then they both watched as Mrs. Washington took hold of Danny's arm and he shrugged it away moments later.
"What's that about?" Jack asked giving Samantha a confused glance.
"I don't know," she answered. "She probably just frustrated since there is nothing new about her daughter." She didn't like lying to Jack, but she didn't want to betray Danny's confidence even though she knew it would be for his own good.
After he ran into Karen Washington, Danny checked his phone messages. Anna left a message telling him their plans had changed and she needed him to meet her at a hotel bar uptown. They were supposed to meet at Russo's, their favorite Italian restaurant, for dinner. He wasn't sure why she changed the plans, but he didn't question it. He just gathered his things and grabbed a cab uptown.
He arrived at the Ritz Carlton hotel bar to find Anna sitting at a table playing with a napkin. She'd ordered them both club sodas with lime. "Hey. Why the change of plans?" he asked as he gave her a quick kiss and then sat down.
She could tell he was preoccupied and not in the best mood because of the quickness of his kiss and thefrown etched on his brow line. "Hi…I…uh…I'll explain in a minute. How was your day?"
"My day? You really want to know?"
"Of course," she replied sincerely.
"It kind of sucked," he responded with a smirk.
"You want to talk about it?" she asked hesitantly.
"Not really. I was actually looking forward to just having dinner and then going home and crashing."
She looked down and took a deep breath. "The reason I asked you to meet me here is because my dad and Christi are in town tonight. He really wants us to meet them for dinner in about twenty minutes at that sushi place across the street."
"Why didn't you just tell me this in your message?"
"I didn't want you to find an excuse to skip it. I know the last time we saw them…it wasn't exactly comfortable. And that was my fault. This time, he knows about us and he knows that we are serious. And he wants to get to know you better," she said as she smiled slightly.
After dealing with his brother and Karen Washington, Danny was in no mood to spend an evening under the scrutiny of Anna's father, especially since they were having troubles of their own. "I'm sorry, but of all nights to spring this on me…this isn't the night."
"Come on, Danny. We'll have dinner and talk for a while and be home in two hours. It will be painless."
"Painless…right. Why couldn't he tell us he was coming before the last minute? I don't get it."
"I don't know. He just called me late this afternoon. This means a lot to me."
He rubbed his eyes and sighed. He was still angry with her because of the fight about Raffi. And he knew she hadn't told him everything because of the things Raffi had said. But he had a hard time saying no to her. "I guess I'll go. But you'll have to let me know the rules with Christi," he said sarcastically.
"What is that supposed to mean?"
"You tell me. Can I look at her? Will you get pissed if she looks at me the way she looked at me in Hamptons? Should I talk to her or not? Can I shake her hand? I need to be clear so I don't exceed any boundaries."
"That's not fair—" Anna started to respond in a slightly raised voice.
"Not fair?" he interrupted. "The last time we saw your father's wife, we ended having a huge fight, and you accused me of being incapable of controlling myself around women."
"I didn't say that. I told you I felt insecure."
"Well I don't feel like dealing with your insecurities tonight," he said warily.
Anna shook her head. "If it's going to be that hard for you, then don't bother," she said as her voiced cracked with emotion and she rose from the table. "I don't want you there if you are going to act sarcastic and cold."
Danny looked up at her and started to rise from the table, but she stopped him. "No…don't. You don't want to come. You're obviously still pissed off at me. That's fine. Don't come. I shouldn't have asked you in the first place," she said as she walked out.
Danny sat back down and ran a hand through his hair. He must have sat there for fifteen minutes before deciding what to do next. He thought that Anna should've known better than to have a fight with him in a bar. He finally found the strength to get up and find the nearest AA meeting. Since he'd been with Anna, he hadn't felt the need to go as often as he used to, but he knew he needed to go tonight because he kept wishing that the club soda tasted like a vodka tonic.
Just as he rose from the table, someone approached him.
"Is this seat taken?" Karen Washington asked as she sat down in the chair across from him and put her Cosmopolitan on the table.
"What are you doing here?" he asked in a confused and annoyed tone.
"I could ask the same to you. What a coincidence," she said with a sly smile.
"Did you follow me here?" he asked.
She laughed. "As a matter of fact…yes…I did. And when I saw you with that very attractive young woman…it all came together. You should have told me you have a girlfriend. Everything makes sense now. I'm so relieved."
Danny shook his head. "She has nothing to do with it. Whether I have a girlfriend or not, that doesn't change the fact that this isn't right."
"What's not right? We're just talking, Danny."
"I should go," he said, but before he could rise she put her hand on his.
"Have one drink with me. Just one…and then I'll never bother you again. Please…Danny," she pleaded turning serious all of a sudden.
He sat back down uneasily. He figured one drink wouldn't hurt if it meant she would leave him alone.
"Good. Now what are we drinking?"
"Club soda," he answered.
"Oh we can do better than that," she said motioning to the waitress. "I bet you are a scotch man."
"I don't drink."
"Oh come on, Danny. One drink won't kill you. I won't tell your little girlfriend," she said and then she ordered the most expensive scotch on the menu.
Danny sighed heavily. He knew he should get up and leave but something made him stay at the table with her.
"Tell me about your girlfriend. It looks like you had a fight."
"We didn't. We're fine. We're very happy," he said and then felt his stomach go in knots when the waitress put the scotch in front of him.
"I bet you are. You are probably an attentive, sweet boyfriend. I can just imagine it."
He wanted to say that he wasn't very sweet to Anna that night, but didn't say it. "What do you want, Mrs. Washington?"
"Well, first, I want you to call me Karen. And then I want us to have a drink together. How did you meet her?"
"Who?" he asked confused again.
"The girlfriend."
"College. We met in college."
"You're kidding? I don't believe you've been dating the same woman for that long."
He shook his head. "We broke up a long time ago and recently got back together," he answered not quite sure why he was still talking to her. Being in the bar with Karen and a drink sitting in front of him was like standing in front of the abyss. He was scared and thrilled all at the same time. He knew he should walk away, but he was so tempted to take the leap.
"That explains a lot. Are you in love with her?"
"Yes. Very much," he answered emphatically.
Karen laughed. "Sounds like you are trying to convince yourself of that," she replied. "Do you remember when I came to see you at your office that day. I brought you the article and you tried to act so professional? Do you remember what I told you that day?"
He remembered but he didn't want to admit it. "No."
She smiled. "I told you that I'm attracted to you. Are you attracted to me?"
His first reaction, for some reason, was to say yes. She was completely different from Anna with a sexy, sophisticated, worldly quality. But he shook his head. "It's doesn't matter…"
She interrupted him. "You don't have to answer. Knowing you are in a relationship fills in so many blanks. What if I told you that I'm not looking for commitment? What if I said that you could keep your sweet girlfriend and have me at the same time. No strings attached. I know I don't look like her…I don't have her youth and wholesomeness going for me, but I guarantee I can make up for it other ways. I've been attracted to you for two years. I've been curious about you for just as long. One night…Danny. Then…if you ever want me again…"
He shook his head again. "I love my girlfriend, and next to her…my job is the most important thing in my life. I won't jeopardize either of those for a fling."
"Then why are you still here? You could have run after her, but you didn't. You could have walked away at any time, but you haven't. You're still here. We could just be what the other needs…just for a few hours. You want to take that drink, and then you want to take this and meet me upstairs," she said as she slid a hotel room key card across the table. "No strings attached."
She rose from the table and he watched her walk toward the hotel elevator. He took a deep breath as he picked up the key and inspected it. And then he looked down at the expensive glass of scotch. He wanted to escape. He wanted to forget about his brother and his problems with Anna. He wanted to forget about all the work and heartache it took to be a committed relationship. He tried to will himself to find a reason not to drink the scotch and follow her upstairs because getting drunk and losing himself in someone was sounding more and more appealing.