Chapter 02 Business as Usual

Steve sat at his desk and looked across the room. He had just finished speaking with his wife, and he wished he could hurry home to her right now. He knew that he was driving her nuts with his constant phone calls, but he worried about her, and he wasn't able to stop himself from calling her at least four or five times each day. She'd had a headache that morning when he left for work and that had caused him to worry even more. The threat of pre-eclampsia was hanging over him now, and although he tried to be laid back about it, he wasn't, he was terrified and when he wasn't bombarding his wife with phone calls he was doing the same to his dad or Jesse, asking question after question over and over again. When he wasn't annoying everyone there were moments when he could think rationally, and then Steve knew that his life would change, totally when their child was born and he was already looking to the future, his future, and planning changes.

With a sigh he wondered what it would feel like to work someplace other than North Hollywood, and realised that he couldn't imagine it at all. He had spent his entire detective career in this building, and although he knew that it was time to try and move on he also knew that he would miss it more than he had thought possible.

Cheryl was sitting at the desk just opposite him, listening intently to someone on the other end of the phone line and, unaware that she was being scrutinised, she made a couple of notes on the tablet of paper in front of her before listening to her caller again. They had grown together over the years, both becoming good cops, and he had no doubt that she would take and pass the lieutenant exams before long. Rae's desk was empty, but only because she was working from home so that she could look after her eldest daughter while Jesse took Anneya for a hearing test at the hospital. There had been some signs that the little girl could hear faint sounds, and although they all hoped and prayed for a miracle where she was concerned, they also knew that those faint sounds could be all that she ever heard.

Steve knew that Rae was planning, if Eliana let her, to work on the Red Rose killings while she was home. They were both still very concerned about their inability to catch Dominic Little, but they were also both so busy that it had slipped to the bottom of their pile of cases and they hadn't been able to do very much about it, not because they didn't want to but because, with no current killings, other things had taken precedence. Steve knew that his clear up rate was good, but he also knew that it would never be good enough until he got to write case closed across that one particular file.

The killings had been getting to him, finding a way past the wall he built around himself to keep those types of things out. Just the night before he had woken from a dream where he had been searching for the killer, finding red roses everywhere, and hearing Jo's voice call out as he tried to help the latest victim. Even now it made him shudder, and again he tried to push the feelings away, as he had done in the darkness of his room. He knew that Jo was worried about him, just as he was concerned about her. Their lives together had never been plain sailing, but they had always had the stability of their marriage to fall back on. Now that their baby was due in roughly three months, and Daniel was missing Michael, that stability was more important than ever, but Steve knew that Jo had secrets, things she wasn't telling him, and that too worried him.

The problems that Michael's departure had caused still reverberated through the household, and Steve had to admit that Juan had stepped into an almost impossible situation and taken it on with charm and aplomb. The one problem he couldn't overcome however was that he wasn't Michael and Steve admired the man for sticking at the job, and he hoped that now the first few months were over Juan would continue to work for them. He wasn't sure how much more upheaval any of them, himself included, could take.

The phone on his own desk shook him out of his contemplation and he reached out with a practiced hand, not even glancing in the direction of the receiver, but grasping it securely and putting it to his ear.

"Sloan here … yeah, that's me ..." He listened intently and his voice was so grave when he replied that Cheryl looked up from her own call at the sound. "I'll be about thirty minutes, my partner'll be a little longer than that, but we'll be there. Nobody touches anything; you need to contact Doctor Bentley at Community General, it has to be her, understood? Yeah, thirty minutes, give or take." He dropped the receiver back into its cradle; it wasn't just his contemplation that was over.

ooo

The bedroom door was closed, the candles were lit, and the ritual had begun. The magic of LA had worked, and now, on the bed before him were the clothes worn by a young woman as they had spent an afternoon out riding. He had spotted the stables on his way into town the week before, and hadn't been able to believe what he was seeing. There on the sign, which said Walters Stables and Livery, was a smaller line of lettering, proprietors Jo and Steve Sloan.

He had never doubted for a minute that everything he did had a purpose, and so he knew why the journey back into town had taken him on a slightly longer, more picturesque route. All he'd needed then was a young woman who wanted to spend time with him on a gentle cross-country hack. That too had been easy to arrange. A visit to a large specialist store had netted him a willing companion on his very first trip.

The date had been arranged, and Leigh Ann had been delighted to find that her handsome companion had it all planned out. He had made a picnic, included a nice white wine, made sure that the route they covered went into a quiet part of the countryside, not too far from civilization, but secluded enough that they could eat in private and he'd made sure that he could kill that way too.

It had worked, like a charm, he had let her horse run free, the smell of blood spooking the animal and almost causing him to lose control of his own mount. He had ridden his beautiful grey steed about a mile on from the body before letting it free as well, then he had made his way down to the highway and retrieved his car from its place in a corporation parking lot, packed the prize possessions in the trunk and returned home. All in all it had been a very pleasant and productive afternoon.

ooo

The mid afternoon sun shone down as Jo sat in the garden waiting for Juan to announce her visitor. She had been delighted when Michael had agreed to meet, and pleasantly surprised when he had said that he would come to the house. That had been almost two hours ago, and now she was more nervous than she would have thought possible.

"Excuse me, Madam, but Mr. Godwin is here to see you. Should I show him through?"

"Yes, please, Juan, thank you. If you could brin' out some lemonade in a little while I would be much obliged." Jo stood up, wiped her suddenly sweaty palms on her baggy top, which was tented over her wonderful bump, and then moved closer to the patio doors to greet her guest.

"Michael." All the hurt she had felt, the disappointment that her father could have cheated on her momma like he had, none of it mattered as she saw her old friend again and she held her arms out so that she could take him into a hug. "Oh, I have just missed you so much." The tears, which seemed a close companion of her these days, were threatening, but she forced them back, however delighted she was, she also needed to talk with Michael, to find out things that should have been discovered months ago.

"I am gratified that you feel that way, I too have missed you, Madam."

"Jo, Michael, please, call me Jo. You are, however hard it has been for me to accept, my brother, you can't call me madam any longer."

Michael just nodded his head slightly, and smiled, and then, as she indicated with her hand, he sat in one of the chairs around the white ornate patio table and made himself comfortable opposite her.

For a moment the silence between them was a little awkward, and Jo rushed to fill it. "So what are you doin' with yourself?"

"I am in the process of establishing a school for butlers, mada … Jo, it seemed an appropriate use of the money; I didn't want to fritter it away."

Jo's answering laugh was natural and relaxed, "Michael, you have never frittered anythin' in your life, as far as I know. Why would you start now?"

Again he inclined his head, almost, Jo realised, as if the only answer was 'thank you, Madam,' and he knew he couldn't say that any longer. For a moment Jo was stunned as she thought of what Michael had lost, she hadn't looked at it that way before, but all the stability in his life had gone when he had opened that letter, it was a testament to his strength of character that he hadn't, as he put it, frittered even a little of the money away.

"Michael, I need to apologise for the way I treated you when I heard your news. Steve an' Daniel were far more accomodatin' than I, an' it shouldn't have been that way. It's just, it's just that my daddy … how could he do that, Michael?"

"I don't know, Madam, he was away from home, maybe he was lonely, I know no more about him than you, significantly less, in fact, because you did spend some of your early childhood with him, whereas I didn't have that priviledge. I have taken the liberty of looking into his past a little since I left your employ, he was a complicated man, but fair I think ... I wanted to ask you, Madam … if you wouldn't object, whether there was a photo of him that you could spare me."

Jo knew that twice Michael had slipped into the habit of calling her madam, and she guessed that it would take a long time for him to change that. "Of course, I'll find you one before you leave. You, you will stay for dinner won't you? Daniel will be home from school in a little while, an' I know Steve will want to see you too."

The patio doors opened again at the moment and Juan came out, a tray with lemonade and glasses in his hands. He placed it carefully in the centre of the table, with the jug handle pointing towards Jo, and then he took a step back before beginning to speak.

"If it is acceptable to Madam, I will go and pick up Master Daniel from school."

"Yes, thank you, Juan, that's fine. But please, do me a favour, don't tell him we have a guest, just that I am in the garden."

"Very good, Madam, Sir." Juan looked across at Michael, and then backed a way a few more steps before turning and leaving the garden.

Jo had been watching Michael out of the corner of her eye, and now, a big grin on her face she couldn't contain herself. "Well?"

"Well, Mad … Jo?"

"What do you think? He isn't you, no one could ever replace you, but what do you think?"

Michael thought carefully for a minute or two before answering; he could see the amusement glinting in his sister's eyes, but he also knew that she was serious, she wanted to know his opinion of her new butler, and so with a small smile he began to speak.

"He answered the door adequately; I was expected so there were no problems there. The tray was deposited on the table in the correct manner; he is polite and treats you with respect. His shoes need polishing, and his shirt was ironed, but not steamed. I would also suggest a hair cut, but apart from that, and all things considered, I think he will grow into the job very well."

Jo had been unable to contain the grin, which was spreading across her face. "I agree on all of it, but the shirt, how do you know it wasn't steamed?"

"By the creases, they aren't as sharp as they could be. Jo," he paused, not really sure if he should continue or not.

"Yes," the banter had been light and welcome, but suddenly there was a serious look on her brother's face, and Jo had no idea where it had come from.

"I am sorry that I hurt you. It was never my intention to do that, but I couldn't in good conscience stay and continue working for you without telling you what had happened in England, not when I knew that I was suddenly a totally different person."

"I know, an' I'm sorry too. I shouldn't have asked you to leave the way I did, an' I certainly shouldn't have waited this long to contact you. I guess … when I think of my daddy I think of a hero, he wasn't big an' strong like Steve, but he was … impressive, he was impressive; I felt betrayed by what he did, but it wasn't your fault. The fault lies with people who are dead an' gone. I gained another brother, someone who I already love an' care about. I don't want to lose you from my life, Michael, but it's gonna take a bit of gettin' used to."

Michael knew that he couldn't expect any more, not yet at least, and he was just about to speak up when the sound of another voice was heard.

"Mom, I'm home … M!" There had been a pause as Daniel took in the scene before him and then he had rushed over to the Englishman, stopping just in front of him, not sure how to greet him.

"Daniel, it's a pleasure to see you again."

"See, that's him being informal!" Daniel laughed; he had told his mom about the visits he had shared with his uncle. First of all he had kept calling him Master, but gradually he had dropped it, mainly, Daniel felt, because every time he slipped back into old habits Daniel had charged him a dollar. Jo had been scandalized until, after two months, he had given his dad $46.00 for the police foundation.

"So, are you staying? Did Mom call you or did you call her? Does Dad know you're here?" Daniel pelted the two adults with questions until laughing aloud Jo leant over and gently placed a finger on his lips.

"Shhh, yes, he's stayin' for dinner, I called him, an' no your dad doesn't know he's here. Now, go do your homework, you can spend some time with Michael at dinner."

Daniel began to protest, but saw the look on both faces, put on a hard done by pout and pretended to storm into the house, moaning loudly about how unfair everything was, and enjoying the laughter he left behind him.

ooo

The sound of laughter filled the garden at Oak Place as Rae and Jesse sat watching their children. Anneya had happily gone off with Vicky and Eliana to play and her parents had been sitting at the large table on their patio, watching and talking about her at the same time.

"What did Doctor Knoll say?" Rae had been glad to have her memories to delve into during the day; it had meant that she hadn't fretted about what was happening with Anneya at the audiologists. The decision to stay at home with Eliana instead of being with Jesse as he took their other little girl into the hospital hadn't been taken lightly, but they knew that any distractions could affect the results they got, and so Rae had stayed away, knowing that by doing so she was actually helping the appointment to run more smoothly.

"He said that he agrees, there is some residual hearing there …" Jesse paused as he saw the hope flare in his wife's face. "Honey, wait, he also said that he wasn't surprised that she had recovered some of her hearing. Everything would have been jolted about when she fell, maybe she hit her head on each stair, we don't know, we'll never know, he also said that he didn't think that she would get any more hearing back."

The hope disappeared in an instant from Rae's face, and was replaced with a look so grief stricken that Jesse had just leant over and taken her into his arms, gently stroking her hair as he spoke. "Shhh, I know, I wanted it to be the start of everything getting better too."

"I … I just want her to have a normal life, what's wrong with that? Eliana has asthma, she's been hospitalised three times this year, and Anneya is going to go through life being unable to hear anything, or anything worth hearing, and it is all my fault. I should never have left them alone; she wouldn't have fallen if I had been with them. I should have put a stair gate up, that would have solved the problem, but no, not me, they're such a damn nuisance that I didn't bother." She tried to pull away from his grip but Jesse wouldn't let her.

"No, Rae, listen; you can't blame yourself for this, if I'd been home she wouldn't have been alone either, do you think I don't realise that? I left you to run this house and our family single-handed, if you want to apportion blame, which you seem to, I should be censured just as much as you. As for Eliana, asthma is endemic in LA; it's not the cleanest air in the world, in case you hadn't noticed, she will hopefully grow out of it, but if she doesn't she will gradually leant to deal with it herself, and she will be just as successful as she would have been without it; Anneya too, there is no way she is gonna lie back and let life go on without her. Look at her, Honey, even now, out in the garden; she is as much a part of that game as Eliana is."

The two girls were playing bowling, rolling the ball along a smooth piece of lawn towards the ten men placed just about four feet in front of them. They had been plain wood when Rae had bought them, but the two children, along with their carer and their mom, had spent a happy afternoon painting faces and clothes on them. Eliana had known what to do once it had been explained and had painted one of her mommy, one of her daddy and one of her Unki Teve. Anneya had painted squirls and splodges all over hers, but had laughed and grinned and obviously enjoyed every moment of the activity. The skittles had all been varnished to keep their artwork safe and now they were part of the most popular game in the garden.

As they watched Anneya picked up one of the balls and roll-bounced it along the grass, it hit two of the men, which wobbled precariously before falling over, taking another three men with them. She then clapped herself loudly and ran after her ball. Rae and Jesse looked at each other, she was happy now, and they intended to make sure that she was always that way.

The sound of the phone ringing in the house broke into the contented afternoon, and with a sigh Rae got to her feet and left the garden, she listened to her partner talking and knew that although she had somehow been expecting and dreading the call it didn't make it any easier to deal with.

As he watched his wife move across the patio towards him Jesse knew that their time together was over, and he watched as she fixed her badge and gun to her belt with a sinking heart. It seemed to him that every time they had a chance to be a normal family real life intervened and sometimes, like now, he wished he could prevent it from happening.

ooo

The crime scene wasn't visible from the road where Rae had left her car, but when she stood on the grass verge she realised that she could see down into the parking lot and the quiet place near a more popular one was the first sign that this was indeed another Red Rose killing. As she turned to look down at the victim she knew that there were no doubts, Dominic Little was back, and back with a vengeance.

"Steve, Amanda." Rae moved closer so that her partner and friend would both know she had arrived. "Sorry, it took a little longer than I planned, the roads were busy."

"They were, weren't they? I only just got here myself." Amanda straightened back up and carefully looked down at her knee. "Something is digging in me, I don't want to just brush it off, Steve, do you have a little bag?"

"Yeah, sure, hold on." He fumbled in his pocket and then carefully passed over a plastic container with a press fastening along the top.

"Let me." He crouched down in front of her with a pair of tweezers in his left hand and began to take the small sharp pieces of twig from the blue of Amanda's pants and drop them into the clear plastic.

"What's this?" The tweezers had a piece of almost pink gravel in them and Steve looked around to see if he could spot any more of it. When he couldn't he took another bag from his pocket and dropped it into that one, alone and maybe important.

"There is a slight boot imprint here, look." Rae, like Amanda and Steve, was standing about three feet away from a picnic rug, which was soaked with blood. The body laying on it was obviously female, young, and dead. There was very little hair on her head, and no clothes or identifying items around either.

"I would say not a hiking boot, there isn't a deep tread or anything, it's slightly pointed at the toe, and has a definite heel. Almost … I don't know, maybe like a cowboy boot."

"I'll get a cast made, the scene has been secured, and I decided on four foot around the rug for closer care and initial inspection. We need to watch where we're treading all round here though."

"Ok. Who found her?" Rae had looked but couldn't see anyone who looked like they didn't belong at the murder scene, no one who was deeply traumatized or upset. She knew that she would be traumatized herself by this, that the image of the young woman would add itself to the others she had seen and invade her dreams just as they did, but for now that couldn't concern her, for now she had to do her job to the best of her ability, she would worry about the nightmares later.

"Woman walking her dog, she's down in a patrol car giving an initial statement. I'm gonna have a word with her and then she'll be taken home. We can go visit with her later.

"The same as the first one."

"Pardon?" Steve looked nonplussed for a moment.

"The first victim, in LA, Jenna, she was found by a woman walking her dog."

"So she was." Steve dismissed the fact immediately, he knew that Rae was just thinking aloud, and as a fact it was immaterial, just a coincidence.

"I called Dad, he's been going over all the files for me, but he hasn't seen a murder scene yet. There are so many similarities each time that I wanted him to come see this one."

"Sure, no problem, a new set of eyes won't be a bad thing." Rae smiled; she loved working with Mark, but knew that Steve had tried to keep him away from the gruesomeness of this case from the beginning. She also knew that her partner tended to coddle him on occasion, and was sure that although he would be grieved by what he saw, and would take the images home with him just as they did, he would also be strong enough to compartmentalize them and work on the clues and not just the emotions of the case.

"Rae, can you make a note of any pictures that you want taken? She …" Steve paused just for a second, but it was long enough for both his friends to see how vulnerable he was feeling. "She was still warm when the black and white guys got here."

"Oh, God." Rae looked down at the young woman, who she realised now had probably died about the time she was thinking about a new victim and the guilt almost overwhelmed her.

"Rae?" Steve's voice was full of concern but Rae couldn't handle it, she realised that she had no idea how Steve would react to her flight of fancy and so she just shook her head mutely and moved away to be by herself for a moment or two while she pulled herself together.

"Amanda, Rae, Steve." Mark's voice brought her back to the moment at hand and she turned, a forced smile on her face to welcome her old friend.

"Dad, the main crime scene is about four foot around this blanket. In fact I think I'll put ribbon round this at six foot as well. Rae, do you have any?"

"Sure, in my boot, hold on." She turned and made her way back down the slight slope towards the sidewalk. She was glad of the extra few minutes the request would give her alone, but that request meant she missed the smiles that crossed the faces of her friends. Her accent rarely gave away her origins any more, but the occasional slip into British terms certainly did.

The smiles had gone by the time she returned and carefully began to lay the police tape around the rug. There were ribbons draped in the nearby bushes, preventing unauthorised personnel coming too close, but this was a further restriction, the grass was long and tangled in places, and all sorts of clues could be hiding there.

Steve looked around him, the arc lights he had requested were being set up, there were two tracker dogs sitting waiting for something to search for, his dad was helping Rae and, as they unrolled the tape, they were carefully looking at the area and making mental notes. Amanda was talking to one of her own colleagues about the pictures she would need taken, and as his eyes scanned the area expertly Steve noted with satisfaction that no one was unemployed. Finally, jamming his hands into the pockets of his jeans he sighed, it was going to be a long time before he saw home again.

ooo

The feel of his cell phone vibrating in his pocket had startled Jesse and he had reached for it, hoping that it would be Rae. The call ended before he had a chance to answer it, and his heart fell as he saw the identity of the caller on the screen. Susan. Sometimes she let him answer and would keep him talking about inconsequential things until he hung up just to get rid of her, other times she would hang up herself before he spoke to her. He didn't know what her game was, but he did know that he didn't understand the rules, and he didn't like it, not one little bit. He had loved her once, and would never do anything to hurt her, but she was hurting and scaring him and Jesse knew that if it didn't stop soon it would begin to eat away at him, and however strong he felt he also knew that he was still, and probably always would be, vulnerable to attacks from others.

Jesse got to his feet and made his way further into the garden where his children were now playing hide and go seek. The game, it seemed, was a bit beyond both girls, but they were enjoying running about and, as Jesse watched, he could see Eliana was making allowances for her sister, checking she was in front of her, if she wanted to do anything that included her Anneya could see what it was first and he smiled. There had been more problems for him and Rae accepting their daughter's limitations than Eliana.

"Vicky, I'm going out for a while, I don't think Mrs Travis will be home until much later in the evening, I should be back by about," he checked his watch and saw that already it was a little after five, "seven I hope." He keyed a familiar number into his phone as he left the garden, intending to sort his problem out once and for all.

ooo

Jo and Michael had talked for a long while about the discovery of his letters, the fact that he was a Walters, they had spoken of their feelings, and had generally cleared the air and become relaxed in each other's company again. By the time they were ready to eat the atmosphere around the dinner table had been very pleasant, even though Steve had been unable to get home in time to share in it. Jo had called Mark, but he too had been unavailable, and so it had been just the three of them who sat down together.

"Michael, finally, after all these years I got to eat my meal with you." Jo had smiled as she spoke, accepting a coffee from Juan with a slight nod of her head as she did so. "How ever many times did I try to get you to do this before?"

"I have no idea, but it would have been most inappropriate for me to accept." Michael watched the butler closely as he poured out the second cup of coffee and then quietly left the room.

"Yeah, I guess so. Could we … could we go into the library do you think, I would like to talk to you about a few thin's, unless you have to leave already?" Jo caught sight of the clock on the mantle piece of the morning room fireplace and saw that it was gone five.

"No, I have no where else to be this evening, and if you have a problem, Mada …" Michael smiled as he caught himself in a mistake, "Jo, I would be glad to help in any way I can."

"Shall we take our coffee through then?" Jo went to stand and felt Michael gently pull her chair out for her. "Thank you." She watched as her new brother picked up both cups of coffee and then together they walked towards a room she very rarely used.

Steve had called to say that he had another Red Rose killing and had no idea when he would be home, Daniel had finished his homework and was out with two friends from school, he had a curfew of nine in the evening, and so Jo knew that she had plenty of time to talk with Michael and try and get a few things straight in her mind.

The library was the grandest room in the house, and Jo loved it, but because it seemed so magnificent she tended to spend her days in other parts of her home. Now though she made herself comfortable on a deep gold brocade covered sofa that matched a lot of the other furniture her grandmamma had purchased during her lifetime. Jo preferred the modern furniture she herself had been gradually adding to the house. Her latest purchase was a sumptuous white leather sofa that resided in the main hallway. She felt that it made the house seem much more welcoming, although Daniel seemed to think that it was there as a dumping ground for all his school stuff.

"Jo, what is it you want to talk to me about?" Michael was a little concerned, his sister had been relaxed and happy throughout the meal, but now, now that they were away from everyone else, and she had mentioned a problem she had, there was worry and concern showing in her eyes.

"Do you remember, a long time ago, or it seems a long time ago to me, that my accountant, Renny was killed?"

Michael thought for a moment and then nodded his head, "Yes I do, Detective Banks was working on the case."

"Well, I had me a few problems over that, an' I have been tryin' to sort them out ever since. It seems that some of my money has been taken from where I wanted it to be, large enough amounts that I want to know where it's gone."

Michael wasn't quite sure if he understood what she was saying and after thinking for a moment he asked, what was to him, an obvious question. "What does Steve say about all of this or David?" Michael hadn't had very much to do with his new brother, the young man had called and welcomed him to the family, but he was sure that the silence since was due to the woman he was now, regrettably, able to call his sister-in-law.

Jo looked away, an expression of shame on her face. "They don't know, I haven't told anyone, but … Michael, you've always helped me in the past, I need you to help me again now."

For a moment Michael felt an immeasurable sadness descend upon him, he had thought that his sister had called because she wanted to see him, wanted to begin a new relationship with him, but now it seemed that he had misread the situation, all she wanted was his advice, which he would give freely, but somehow it wasn't the same, the whole afternoon and evening wasn't the same any more.

As if sensing what he was feeling Jo got to her feet and moved over to the armchair where he was sitting.

"Michael, I called you because you're my brother, I had no intention of askin' you about any of this it's just … it's just, I don't know who else to speak to about it. Steve, he'd listen, he'd help me, I know that, but he's never liked my money, he doesn't understand how much a part of me it is. This is more than just defraudin' me of a few hundred thousand dollars, this is an attack on me an' my family, please, Michael, help me sort it out."

"And David?"

"If I told David then she would know. I don't want her to have any more information on me than is absolutely necessary." Jo tossed her hair as she spoke, and Michael had to resist the temptation to laugh at her and fight down the urge to call Debbie Miss Prissy Knickers himself.

ooo

The coffee house, just down the road from the hospital, was almost empty when Jesse got there. He had arranged to meet with Susan during her main break from a two-to-eleven shift, and she had been sitting at a secluded table waiting for him when he arrived.

The look on her face as he sat down made him wonder whether it had been a mistake to meet with her, but he needed to get across that their relationship had been over a long while ago, and she was wasting her time trying to re-kindle it.

"Jesse, I knew that you would come, in the end, I knew you wouldn't be able to stay away."

The waitress brought over a cup of coffee and a Danish pastry and placed it in front of him before turning and moving back to the main counter. "I ordered for you."

"Susan, I didn't come to start anything, I came to finish it. You have to stop calling me."

She shook her head, "No, we are supposed to be together, I was wrong to leave, and you were wrong to go back to that woman. I know she is the mother of your children, there is loyalty there because of that, but you and I, Jesse and Susan, that's how it's supposed to be."

Jesse stood up, ignoring his drink and trying to do the same with his companion. "I shouldn't have come. Goodbye, Susan."

Vowing to change his cell phone number as soon as possible Jesse made his way across the room and out of the door, but as he arrived on the sidewalk he felt a hand on his shoulder and turned to feel Susan plant her lips firmly against his own and hold him there with a hand through his hair, he tried to resist her kiss, but was effectively trapped, and as he looked over her shoulder and pushed against her with his palms he saw Alex staring at him in horror.

A/N. The scene separators are being stripped from my chapters, again. I apologise, I will try to find a character that it doesn't happen to and then use that.