Chapter 11 "Something More"
"Are you sure about this?" Jessie asked from the kitchen.
"Stop worrying!" Elliot hollered from the living room. "There gonna love you!"
"I'm only seven years older than Maureen! She's not gonna like me." Elliot shook his head and hoisted himself off the couch. Jessie had opted to make dinner that night.
"What's that?" Elliot asked, wrapping his arms around her waste and kissing her shoulder.
"Taco soup." She answered.
"You make weird things for dinner in Texas."
"Ya'll kill me with this 'dinner' crap. Sounds too damn formal. This here is supper." Elliot laughed. He loved her accent.
"Maureen ain't gonna like me." Jessie said flatly, turning the burner down to simmer. Elliot shrugged.
"Maureen doesn't like much of anything."
"She'll argue I'm too young." She pointed out.
"Jess, she wouldn't like you if you were a thirty-five year old frump." Jessie figured that was true. Elliot and Kathy had only been divorced for a year. Of course they were going to hate her…especially Maureen. Oddly enough this didn't settle her nerves.
Elliot had just finished setting the table when the back door flew open and four voices yelled "Dad!" and rushed in. Lucky for Jessie that the four Stabler kids were so excited about seeing their father that they didn't even notice her in the kitchen.
"Daddy we've missed you!" Elizabeth squealed, leaping on her dads back.
"I missed you guys too sweetheart." Elliot smiled as he felt a sloppy kiss to his cheek.
"Hey dad?" Dicky said after hugged his father. "Who's the lady in the kitchen?" Jessie froze as four sets of eyes fixed themselves on her. She smiled nervously.
"Hi," She said and stupidly waved. Elliot grinned and let his youngest daughter slip off his back.
"Kids, I'd like you all to meet Jessie Harper, my girlfriend." Jessie smiled.
"Hi Ms. Harper!" Elizabeth exclaimed. "My name's Elizabeth, but everyone calls me Lizzy."
"Well hi Lizzy." Jessie came out of the kitchen and walked nervously into the living room. "You can call me Jessie."
"This is my oldest Maureen." Elliot put his arm around the tall blonde standing next to him.
"Ell, I know who they are. I've seen all the pictures." Jessie laughed. "You're Kathleen I take it." Kathleen was a little shorter than her older sister, her hair a lighter blonde, and blue eyes. Jessie noticed Kathleen looked more like her father than Maureen.
"Dad," Maureen's tone was sharp and defiant. "Did you adopt someone without telling us? She can't be much older than me." Elliot glared at his oldest.
"Very funny Maureen." Elliot said. Jessie blushed.
"You're right. I'm twenty-six." Jessie said evenly. Maureen's face turned a bright red and her jaw set. Well, she may not look like Elliot, Jessie thought, but she sure does act like him.
Kathleen didn't look thrilled either but she was more visibly calm than Maureen. Kathleen figured if her dad was happy then she could be happy too.
"What's that wonderful smell?" Lizzy asked, her eyes lighting up. Jessie smiled.
"I made something special for supper. Are ya'll four hungry?" Dicky and Lizzy nodded their heads wildly. Kathleen shrugged and Maureen just glared at her.
The kids took their things to their rooms and Elliot brought the pot of soup out of the kitchen and placed it in the center of the table.
"What is it?" Maureen asked in disgust.
"It's called Taco Soup." Jessie said flatly. Elliot could tell Jessie's patience with his daughter was running thin.
Elliot filled his bowl and everyone followed suit. Elliot took a hesitant bite. It smelled good but smells can be deceiving. But the second the soup hit their tongues he was pleasantly surprised.
"Jess, this is amazing!" He praised, eating another spoonful. Dicky and Lizzy had already begun to dig in. They agreed with their dad, Taco soup was amazing!
Kathleen was the next to try. "Wow," She said. "This is really good Ms. Harper. Thank you!" Jessie smiled.
"You're welcome, and please, call me Jessie." Kathleen smiled back. Maureen ate silently, not willing to admit that Taco Soup was pretty good.
"So, where'd you come from anyway?" Maureen asked, not looking up from her bowl.
"I'm from Texas." Jessie answered as calmly as possible. Jessie had lots of patience when it came to certain things, but not bratty, snobby, rude kids who thought they were cute.
"Oh, that explains the hillbilly accent." Maureen said, looking up to give Jessie a fake sweet smile. "I bet you had never even been in a city before."
"Actually," Jessie dropped her spoon with a clank. She'd had just about enough. "I worked as a detective in the Dallas Police department, one of the largest cities in Texas. I worked with dangerous people everyday. Cruel gun slinging, drug dealing, murdering gang members." Jessie's voice kept rising and rising. "So don't jack with me kid."
Maureen's glare broke and she actually looking a bit frightened. "And one more thing! I'm a red neck! Not a hillbilly! Believe it or not there is a difference!"
There was a long stretch of silence before Maureen had the courage to speak.
"What's the difference?" She asked, her voice small but curious. Jessie smiled and for the rest of supper (dinner) Jessie explained to the Stabler kids the huge differences in being a red neck and being a hillbilly.
The rest of that night went without incident. The kids opened their gifts and gave their gifts to their father. Lizzy felt bad that she hadn't gotten anything for Jessie so she instrumented her father to share his presents.
For the kids benefits Jessie and Elliot slept in separate beds for the first time in weeks, though Elliot did sneak into her room to kiss her good night. He made her feel like a teenager again.
The next morning, before the kids left, Jessie and Maureen had a quick talk. Maureen apologized for being a snot and told her to take care of her dad. Maureen even hugged Jessie goodbye!
"Wasn't that bad, was it?" Elliot asked Jessie that night while they were laying in bed.
"Not after Maureen mellowed out." Jessie laughed. Elliot kissed her shoulder and Jessie rolled over.
"I missed you last night." Elliot whispered.
"Well, I'm here now." Jessie smirked, kissing Elliot gently. They were about an hour late for work the next morning.
Things were stressed at work. The days were going by so quickly; Jessie barely noticed that it was already almost February. Elliot's kids came by a few more times within the next three weeks, Lizzy begging for more Taco Soup.
Jessie and Elliot seemed to of fallen into a comfortable routine… or at least comfortable for Elliot. Jessie was constantly haunted. Every time she told Elliot she loved him she felt guilty and unsure. When they made love the image of her kissing Fin would come into her mind.
She was in constant battle with herself to block Fin out. Since their mistletoe incident Fin and Jessie stayed away from one another. Fin no longer asked her to ride along with him to go get food or coffee. Truthfully, Jessie and Fin didn't speak unless they were working on a case. This tension didn't go unnoticed to the other detectives…especially Elliot.
"So what's the deal with you and Fin?" Jessie gave him an annoyed glance. They had just walked through the back door after a long stressful day at work.
"There is no deal." Jessie said, taking off the jacket Fin had gotten her for Christmas. She looked at the jacket for a few fleeting moments (moments that Elliot noticed) and shook her head. She went into the kitchen and got herself a glass of water.
"Why wont you talk to me about it?" Elliot asked, trying to wrap his arms around her waste. Jessie shrugged him away and leaned against the bar.
"Because there ain't nothing to talk about!" Jessie exclaimed.
"You two talked a lot before Christmas." Elliot pointed out. Jessie simply shrugged and took a drink of her water.
"Things change." She said flatly.
"I think he's got a thing for you." Jessie put her drink down on the counter and walked angrily out of the room.
"Drop it Elliot." Jessie yelled, stomping up the stairs. Elliot followed her.
"And you know what I think?" Elliot yelled. Jessie went into her room and slammed the door, but of course, a closed door wasn't going to stop Elliot. He stormed in and Jessie just sat on the edge of her bed, glaring daggers at him.
"You know what I think?" Elliot repeated. Jessie just looked at him. "I think you've got a thing for him too."
And that was when Jessie lost her temper.
When Jessie lost her temper she didn't lose it like most people did. Jessie stayed quiet and usually tried to get as far away from whatever made her so angry in the first place.
When Jessie was in high school she got into a fistfight and nearly sent another girl to the hospital. From then on she used the "walk away" method as a way to control her extremely bad temper.
Jessie got her duffel bag out of the closet and looked in her closet carefully. What should I wear tomorrow, she thought? Jessie found a pair of jeans and a nice shirt and then stuffed them into her bag.
She got some clean underwear, socks, makeup, and her toothbrush. She made sure to grab her cell phone and the address book Casey had given her for Christmas.
"Where the hell are you going?" Elliot asked. Jessie ignored him and called a cab. "Jessie, you don't know your way around the city!" She continued to ignore him.
Jessie double checked her bag to make sure she'd have everything she'd need for work the next day. She made sure she had her badge and then headed down the stairs. She got her shoulder strap and gun off the coat wrack and put it on and then put on the jacket that Fin had gotten her, and then she headed out the front door.
Elliot followed her out onto the front porch, yelling at her as she got into the cab. "Jessie, this is stupid! You don't know where you're going!" Jessie turned back to Elliot and just shook her head. She got into the cab and gave the driver the address. Little did Elliot know, Jessie knew exactly where she was going.
John was sitting comfortably in his lazy boy, reading a book, and nursing a cup of tea when his cell phone rang.
"Damn it, I hope they ain't callin us in." Fin grumbled from the couch. He'd came over to John's after work (after going home to get a change of clothes). He hadn't wanted to go home and be alone that night. So there he was, watching a football game and drinking a beer, relaxing and trying to keep a certain female detective off his mind.
"Munch," John said irritated.
"John?"
"Jessie? Are you okay?" Fin looked up and glanced at John in semi-panic.
"Yeah, I'm home. Why?" John waved his hand in Fin's direction so Fin would relax.
"Do you have company or anything?"
"Well yeah, sorta…"
"Are you busy? Like, having sex?" John made a sour face.
"It's Fin."
"Answer the question!"
"Jessie!" Just then the doorbell rang. John was mumbling something about smart ass's when he opened the door and saw Jessie standing in his doorway. They both shut their cell phones and put them in their pockets.
"Can I crash on your couch tonight?"
John ushered Jessie in and shut the door.
"Are you alright?" Fin asked, putting down his beer and standing up. Jessie was a bit surprised to see him there, and for a split second thought about leaving, but then decided not to. She didn't really have anywhere else to go…
"Do I look that bad?" Jessie cocked an eyebrow. John and Fin shook their heads and Fin took her duffle bag and put it next to his own. John's apartment was a refuge for the lonely and pissed off.
Jessie didn't look like she'd been crying but she did look upset. When she was upset or sad Jessie had this look about her. She didn't cry but everyone could always tell when she wanted to.
"Me and Elliot got into a fight." Jessie mumbled. She plopped down on John's leather sofa and looked around the room.
John's apartment was somewhat a nice size for just one person. The living room was spacious with a nicely sized window, leading out on to a balcony. The room had a large bookcase overflowing with books and newspapers. Jessie would bet her life savings that John had read every single book on his bookcase.
"Have you eaten?" John asked in an accusatory tone, glancing at her from over his glasses. Another thing John noticed about Jessie was she didn't eat when she should. Jessie shook her head guiltily.
"Chinese it is." Said Fin, pulling out his cell phone. Jessie raised a questioning eyebrow. "What? I got the take out number on speed dial." Jessie rolled her eyes but smiled a little. Fin smiled back and commenced ordering their late supper.
A half-hour later Jessie, Fin, and John were laughing over some rice and sweet and sour chicken.
"So you've actually tipped a cow?" John asked curiously.
"Yeah, it's fun. Illegal, but fun." Jessie flashed a devious grin.
"Why is it illegal?" Fin asked, taking another spoonful of rice. John glared at him. "I'm a growing boy." Fin said in his defense. Jessie giggled a little.
"In Texas it's not smart to mess with someone's cattle. It's a good way to get shot though, if you're suicidal." John and Fin both looked at her like she was insane. She sighed. "Cattle is worth a lot of money. Money is important on a farm or ranch. You can kill a cow when you tip it over."
John and Fin gave a collective "Oh," and Fin reached for more chicken. John slapped his hand with a chop stick.
John and Fin made for the perfect partnership. Both witty and stubborn, they were a perfect match. Jessie felt a wave of homesickness. She missed having her own partner. Yeah, having everyone as partners was fun, but she still missed having that one person, that one best friend, that you could always lean on.
I guess I should feel lucky, Jessie thought. Whenever I get pissed at one I'll always have someone to go to.
"So, wanna talk about the fight yet?" John asked when conversation came to a stand still and the food was gone. Jessie shrugged.
"Elliot was being a jackass." She mumbled.
"Well that's nothing new. What got him started this time?" Fin asked. Jessie laughed dryly.
"You." She said to Fin. Fin raised his eyebrows in surprise. "He thinks you have a thing for me. I told him he was nuts. I mean, apparently you date lots of woman, so why would you have a thing for me?"
John started to laugh hysterically. "You haven't had a date in months!" John said in between chuckles. Jessie turned her stare sharply to Fin. That son of a bitch!
The room went deathly silent. John could tell he'd just said the wrong thing at the wrong time. Oh well, he thought.
"Well kids, I'm off to bed! Jessie, just use the throw blanket that's on the back of the couch. Take a shower if you want." John said, pointing to the bathroom door. "Fin, you get to sleep on the floor."
John exited the room with a bit of a smirk. Now that Jessie knew that Fin was full of it then maybe this was just the opportunity Fin needed to confess his feelings to Jessie.
Jessie picked up her duffel bag and stormed into the bathroom. She took a quick shower, brushed her teeth, and changed into a pair of pajamas. By the time she came out she was a bit calmer.
Fin had changed into a baggy t-shirt and just his boxers. Jessie decided to ignore him. She lay down on the couch and pulled the blanket over her. She closed her eyes, but she couldn't get the fact that Fin was laying on the floor directly below her out of her mind.
She peaked down and saw that he was laying there, his hands behind his head, with no blanket or pillow, and was just staring at the ceiling, unaware of her attention. Jessie decided to take pity on him. She wadded up the blanket and threw it on his face. He jumped in surprise.
Jessie rolled over so that her face was facing the back of the couch. She was almost surprised to feel Fin lay the blanket back over her. He let his hand touch her cheek gently. Jessie felt herself shudder.
Fin lay back down on the floor with a groan. I'm getting old, he thought. No sooner as he lay back down did the blanket come crashing back down onto his face. This time he threw it back at her. This continued for a good five minutes before Jessie gave in.
"Fine, but at least take a damn pillow!" Jessie snapped, slapping him in the face with a throw pillow from the couch.
"Fine!" Fin said back, putting the small pillow underneath his head. And then they both busted out laughing. Jessie turned over and peered down at Fin.
"You're an ass." She said seriously.
"I know." Fin said quietly.
"You never had a date for Christmas." Fin shook his head. Fin leaned up on his elbow with one arm and attentively reached for Jessie's hand with the other.
"I'm sorry." Fin said sincerely. "I didn't want to look pathetic because I didn't have a date." Jessie rolled her eyes.
"That's stupid! I didn't have a date either!"
"Yeah, but you were new and I just didn't want you to think I was fishing for a date."
"So you assume I wasn't the one fishing for the date?" Fin raised his eyebrows and nearly fell over in surprise.
"Were you?" He asked. Jessie shrugged.
"It doesn't matter now." She muttered. Fin sat up and moved closer to Jessie, who was still lying down. He kept a hold of her hand and ran a shaky finger across her jawline with the other.
"It matters to me." He said, his voice low.
"Why did you say what you said Christmas Eve?" Jessie blurted out. She couldn't lie and say that she hadn't wondered that so many times.
"Because you're Elliot's girl and…" Fin shook his head and looked at their hands.
"And what?" Jessie whispered. She wasn't sure if she was ready for the answer but she had to know. Fin looked into her eyes and Jessie nearly gasped at the intensity of his gaze.
"And I wished you were mine so bad that it hurt." Fin whispered. Neither moved. Neither dared to let out a breath.
"Don't have sex on my couch!" John yelled from his room. Jessie and Fin both laughed. Leave it to John to break an awkward silence.
"You're just jealous cause you can't let laid on your couch!" Fin yelled back, still laughing.
"You're right. I get laid in my bed!" John retorted.
"Shut up Munch!" Jessie and Fin yelled collectively. They both looked down at their hands. Their fingers were still strongly linked together.
"We should get some sleep." Jessie mumbled shyly. Fin nodded. Jessie lay down and shut her eyes. A moment later Jessie felt a feather light kiss on her cheek.
"Good night." Fin whispered in her ear. He then laid down and a few minutes later they were both fast asleep…and still holding hands.
