AN: I guess I'm going to have to keep apologizing. For those of you who keep reading despite my long sabbaticals, I appreciate it greatly. Thank you! I continue to be busy. It's sort of one of those periods of life where everything seems to be changing. It's amazing how much time it takes to navigate even good changes. Additionally, I seem to be having a problem getting where I want to go with this. But I promise, I'm constantly thinking about it, if not writing it, so there's no danger in my not finishing. Besides, we are in the home stretch now.
Chapter 11: Pushing the Limit
December 24, 1985
"Come on, Mom" Jamie whined from his place on the couch. "You promised," he continued, but stopped as his mother entered the room to give him a disapproving glance.
"Okay, Jamie. You're right. I promised one present a piece tonight. Go ahead." Amanda smiled warmly at the two boys, glancing up to include Dotty and Joe in the smile as Philip and Jamie began looking through the gifts at the bottom of the tree in an effort to find the best ones.
Joe and Dotty sat on the couch together, talking and laughing as they watched the boys. Amanda tried to keep her thoughts on the boys, but found she was a bit distracted. A slight tapping on the kitchen window caused her to shift her eyes in that direction. A pair of smiling eyes attached to a roguishly handsome face watched her. She got up and went to the back door, letting Lee in. As he entered, she grabbed him in a tight hug, whispering softly, "Where were you? Mr. Melrose said you missed your last check in. I was worried sick!"
Placing a chaste kiss on the tip of her nose, he whispered back, "I'm fine. I got it, Amanda. Everything's set for tomorrow."
They smiled at each other as they entered the living room to see Philip and Jamie glaring at each other.
"You did that on purpose," Philip accused after a pause.
"I did not, but you…" Jamie started to respond, when Philip took a step closer.
"Boys!" both Joe and Amanda said strongly.
Philip took a small step away from Jamie. Then turning to Amanda, he nearly whined, "Mom, he stepped on the…"
"I didn't step on it. I fell on it when you pushed me!" Jamie cut in. His words were strong, but his lower lip trembled.
Amanda turned to Dotty and Joe hoping one of them had seen the incident. Dotty shook her head slightly, indicating that she had not been able to make out exactly what had happened in the scuffle.
With an exasperating sigh, Amanda turned to the boys, "Okay, that's enough present opening tonight. We'll talk about this tomorrow. For now, it's late. Go up and get ready for bed."
Walking past the adults, Philip mumbled a greeting to Lee as he passed, and as the boys ascended the stairs the fighting could be heard. Walking to the foot of the steps, Amanda called out loudly, "Okay! I said, 'Enough', boys!"
****************************************************************************
The house was quiet. The boys had long since gone to bed, Dotty following shortly, and Joe had left as well. Amanda and Lee sat quietly on the couch, watching the snow fall outside. Softly, so as not to disturb the peacefulness of the moment Amanda said, "I'm glad you were able to come today, even if just for a few minutes."
Lee smiled, "Me, too. It was good to be here." For a moment his mind wandered to moments spent with Doug and Maddy over Christmas. Suddenly a thought occurred to him. "Can I borrow your phone?" he asked.
"Sure," Amanda smiled at him.
There was silence for a moment while Lee held the phone to his ear. Then in a soft, almost shy voice, he asked, "Maddy? Hi, it's Lee. Lee Stetson.… Good, and you?… How are the girls?… That's good to hear.… Yes, I am.… Well, I really just wanted to wish you and the girls a Merry Christmas.… Thank you… I will be, Maddy. I promise. Bye, now."
Amanda watched the conversation from the couch, and when he turned around her eyebrows were raised. From the conversation it was clear that was not one of Lee's girlfriends. Reading the question in her eyes, Lee said, "That was Maddy. Her husband was my partner a few years back." There was a slight pause while he joined her on the couch again. "He past away a few years back."
Amanda gasped, but then tried to hold back her shock. Lee reached for her hand, although he wasn't sure which of them he was trying to comfort. At the contact, Amanda moved closer and wrapped her arms around him.
Lee responded and the two sat holding each other. No words were spoken, but Lee could hear Amanda take large, shuddering breathes, and knew she was once again dealing with his mortality. Things had changed between them, there was no question.
As she said, Amanda had begun to pass off her responsibilities at Necessities for Life off to her Vice President. She had yet to determine what she wanted to do instead. In the interim she had been putting in a few hours each day at the Agency. Billy had been so impressed with her over the course of the case with Joe, he had offered her the job before knowing that she was looking for something. She had accepted, but explained that she had little interest in becoming a permanent part of the steno pool. Once hearing of her skills, Billy agreed it was not the right fit for her. However, neither of them was sure what the right fit was. Billy suggested perhaps agent training, but the next class was not starting for a few months yet. So the agreement that they had come to had Amanda working part time in the steno pool, perhaps helping Lee out in the field from time to time with some lighter things, and eventually training to be an agent.
They hadn't been working together a lot, but just having her in the Agency had changed the tenor of their relationship. Amanda was much more aware of what Lee's job entailed and thus how much danger his life was in. Lee, for his part, just on the few occasions he had worked with her, had learned quickly that Amanda King was not the shy girl he remembered. With as much clarity as that thought may have had before, it was all the stronger now. She was quick-witted and calm in dangerous circumstances and she seemed to have amazing instincts.
Their relationship seemed older now – more mature, like adult friends. Which, Lee supposed, they were. Even childhood friendships have to grow up. His friendship with Amanda had been helped along quite a bit by the eleven year hiatus, and so was almost completely different from what he remembered.
Still, there were times like this, when Amanda felt like exactly who she was – an old friend.
May 20, 1986
From within his bathroom, Lee listened to the talk outside. He could hear little except for chatter and laughter. Sometimes he could distinguish one voice from the other, but never determine the words. He whistled while he washed his face. He was happy today, things were looking up.
He had made some changes in his life recently and it looked like they were working out. After his umpteenth attempt at a date with Christi and the subsequent rejection, he had flat out asked her why she kept saying no. He was surprised at both the reply and her honesty. It wasn't that Lee hadn't considered that some people may not approve or want to participate in his current lifestyle. Clearly he had. It was simply that he started to look around at the people who disapproved.
He liked Christi – he actually liked her more after their chat. At first he wasn't even sure why, but later he realized that it was simply respect. He hadn't respected her before, he had barely known her. Now that he did know her a little better, he realized how likeable she was, not simply to the eyes, but to him as a person as well.
Of course, while Amanda had not said as much, he knew that she, too, disapproved of his current choice in dating partners. Which when he thought about it in light of his conversation with Christi, made him question – why did it not bother him that his closest friend did not approve of his actions?
The best answer he had come up with was that some part of him, hidden deep within perhaps, also did not approve of his behavior. But he had come to see it as a way of surviving, of making it from day to day. With Amanda in his life again, however, he wondered if he even needed it. Dates used to be his way of having some small semblance of a life outside of work, but now he had Amanda and her family.
After his chat with her, he'd even had lunch with Christi once or twice (all platonic, of course).
All of this, however, may not have mattered at all had he not met Leslie. She as at an embassy party he had attended two weeks ago (surprisingly with Christi – now that they were friends she was much more likely to say yes). The two had chatted briefly, but Lee hadn't thought about it much.
Leslie called him two days later, shy and unsure. She said she hoped she wasn't being too forward, but she had enjoyed talking to him during the party and wondered if they might get together again sometime. Lee agreed, and had been having more fun than he would have expected getting to know Leslie. She was perfect. With her security clearance, she had already known who he was, she traveled a lot as she was a translator, so knew many of the same places he did, and of course, she was pretty and pleasant.
Surprisingly, Leslie and Amanda had also been getting along very well. Lee was almost hesitant to introduce them, remembering vividly the way Eva and Amanda had clearly upset each other. But after three dates, Leslie said she was tired of hearing about Amanda and not having a face to put with the name. So, he had set up dinner for the three of them and watched in amazement as the two women had become fast friends.
Entering the kitchen of his apartment now, he caught them in mid-joke. Amanda was bent over a pot, stirring it quickly, while Leslie appeared to be sautéing something. Sniffing, Lee realized he was in for a treat – both women were good cooks, and clearly had done a good job of pooling their talents.
He started to ask what the joke was, when both Amanda and Leslie turned to him. Turning to each other quickly, they nodded, and then looking back at him: "I could while away the hours…"
Lee suddenly realized he may not like Amanda being friends with his girlfriends.
To Be Continued…
