3rd Person POV:

Claire frowned at the knock on her door. She glanced at the clock on her microwave wondering if time had passed faster than she thought. Nope still 8am...and her day off. Taking the pan of bacon she had been frying off the stovetop, she made her way towards the door. Silently she peered through the peephole of the door. A groan left her lips; eyes clenched shut in mental preparation. As the door opened Tony lifted his head up to meet her eyes.

"Um, hey…" he greeted lamely.

"What are you doing here so early?"

"I'm…..I'm here for the bacon?" Claire's lip quirked up involuntarily and she opened the door up a little wider.

"Why are you really here?" she prodded more seriously. Tony's easy composure dropped.

"I think we need to have an overdue conversation." With a nod Claire stood aside and held out a hand in gesture for him to enter.

"But for real though I want some bacon, I'm starving. I could smell it the second you opened the door." He commented, heading towards the kitchen. Claire rolled her eyes fondly and locked the door behind him. She paused, wondering if she really wanted to have this conversation. Claire allowed herself a moment to steel herself before following after him.

"Ha, ha, ha!…" Claire stood watching the grown man in her kitchen fan his mouth as he tried to chew the sizzling bacon. Tony glanced up at her sheepishly, finally able to chew the last of his food.

"It just came off the stove. Give it a few seconds." She scolded, walking past him and snagging the piece from his hands. Tony whined in displeasure but merely reached for another piece. Silence took over the room as Claire walked over to fill another cup of coffee before topping off her own. She walked back over and wordlessly handed him the cup.

"Thanks." He muttered, his eyes not straying from her as she placed herself on the other side of the island from him. Silence lapsed again. In the meantime, she scanned his features. He had day old stubble on his normally cleanshaven jaw, dark circles under his eyes, frown lines along his brow, and his hair was a bit askew as if he had been running his hands through it repeatedly.

"Did you get any sleep last night. You look like crap." Claire blurted. Tony blinked in surprise before shrugging.

"Not much. It's been a long couple of days." He pointed out dismissively. She nodded, not willing to poke at that subject. Now it was Tony's turn to observe her. He frowned as he scanned the bruise on her cheek. Now that her makeup was wiped off, he could properly see the damage done just a couple nights ago. Had it really been that long? The days had blurred together into one impossibly long day. At least for him it did.

"How's your head?" he inquired, tilting his own to get a better look at it. Claire blinked in confusion before remembering the blue blotch on her skin. Her hand lifted up to gently probe the spot.

"Oh, it's fine. Just a little tender. Not the worst I've had." She shrugged off with a small grin.

"And your arm?"

"Healing." She muttered, shifting on her feet anxiously. Tony nodded in a stiff manner, just as unsure how to proceed as she was. Silence lapsed once again.

"Any interest in spiking the coffee? Might make this a bit easier." Claire suggested halfheartedly. Tony's lips spread into a wry grin. He wagged a finger at her.

"Tempting….but I should probably do this sober."

"Well then let's get it over with. Couch?" Taking a large gulp of his coffee Tony led the way in that direction. Claire glanced over at her liquor cabinet almost longingly.

"You should be too!" Tony called from the other room as if he read her mind.

"I wasn't going to. It's only 8 in the morning, I'm not an animal." She grumbled sourly, following after him. Her companion rose a skeptical brow as she sat on the opposite end of the couch from him. Tony wiped his palms off on his jeans anxiously.

"I…uh…..I've gone over this a couple times in my head. But I still don't know how to start." He admitted.

"The beginning? It's cliché but I think it works." Claire pointed out. Tony tilted his neck, clearing his throat.

"Alright…..alright." he agreed, straightening up to face her.

"Um….Jenny approached me to do some undercover surveillance on La Grenouille. Just some small things at first. Tagging luggage or watching dinner meetings, ya know. Then she had me go further and befriend Jeanne. I could tell she was interested in more but I never planned to go that direction. We were dating at the time and I didn't want to jeopardize that." Claire bit the inside of her cheek as Tony stared at the floor. Both knew how much that had worked out in the end.

"Anyway Jenny didn't agree. She requested for me to date Jeanne to get to her father. I tried to get out of it and even suggested to bring you in on things…" that detail caught Claire's attention and she stared at him curiously.

"…but no luck. Instead, Madam Director thought it would be inappropriate for colleagues to date one another. She heavily suggested that if I didn't change my mind…that you may be transferred overseas to other…..more dangerous task forces." His eyes finally met hers.

"That…..that would have been ok…."

"Not to me it wouldn't." he cut her off insistently.

"You didn't need to defend me like that. I don't want to be a reason you compromise your own free will. I'll take whatever heat, but please don't do that." She insisted worriedly. Tony scowled and shook his head.

"What's done is done. I can't change anything now." He gritted out.

"Obviously I proceeded with the plan. Shortly after that….I…we um…."

"You ended things." Claire supplied bluntly. Tony nodded jerkily, glad he didn't have to say it.

"It wasn't great, and I tried to keep it tame. Obviously you know where that pent up emotion released….." he alluded, shooting her an apologetic glance. She pursed her lips, letting him continue. No need to re-hash old wounds.

"….After that I couldn't keep it up. So I committed to the pseudo relationship with Jeanne. I'll admit it was….nice I guess? Just having someone to be with. But it wasn't the same…." Claire slid closer to Tony, prompting him to pause and look at her. She swallowed thickly before continuing.

"Tony, I know you cared for Jeanne…"

"No, I didn't." She reached over and grasped his hand tightly, getting his full attention.

"Yes….you did. I don't know how much, but you did." She reiterated quietly. Tony's face fell conflictedly. This was definitely not how he wanted this conversation to go.

"I don't blame you for it. I know it certainly seemed like it when I found out…but I spoke in anger."

"Rightfully so by the way…"

"The double life…..it can be addicting. I get it. I mean, look at how we started out." she chuckled wryly. Tony's lips quirked up at the mention of the now bitter-sweet memory.

"It was an undercover op as married assassins that got us to the romantic stage. However, we chose to keep going when it was over. I don't think you've decided what to do with your double life yet." Tony frowned.

"How would you know that?" he protested weakly, unhappy with the direction of this conversation. Claire pursed her lips thoughtfully. She didn't want to upset him further, but he needed the push.

"I know about the note in your drawer…..the one she left for you." Tony eyed her warily.

"Did you read it?"

"What? No! I technically haven't even seen it. Just glimpses when you pulled it out of your desk when you think we aren't looking." She admitted. He ran a hand down his face, frustrated that he managed to pull it out in front of her. So much for subtle.

"I'm sorry."

"Don't be." She insisted gently, her consoling smile resembling a grimace. Beside her Tony blew out a frustrated breath.

"So, what now?" he inquired.

"I don't know…the explanation helped clear some things up." She paused the thought.

"But?..." Tony prodded in confusion. Claire ran a hand through her hair as she searched for the right words.

"….but it still doesn't change things for us….." he jolted in dismay.

"What?...Why not. I thought this would help…"

"Tony I'm a person with feelings. I can't just flip a switch and jump back into things with you again! Honestly I don't know if I want to."

"What does that mean?" he asked quietly, both of them having stood up while talking over one another. Claire hesitated.

"I don't know what I want…it's not fair to ask that of me, there's been too much emotional damage for both of us." She pointed out earnestly. Tony clenched his jaw.

"Then what can I do…I told you everything like I should have in the first place…..Jeanne isn't even in the city…." He sputtered, at a loss of what he could do to fix the situation.

"That's not the point. You're conflicted, I'm conflicted. We can't even think of going forward until that clears up." She insisted heatedly. Tony groaned in frustration.

"And how in the hell are we supposed to do that?!" he blurted. Claire's lips pinched up with the rest of her face as she thought.

"Time…" she settled on. His eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

"Not just for me. For both of us. I need time to learn to trust you again and you…..you need time to figure out what you really want." Tony wanted to argue but kept silent. She was right. They both needed time to process their new dynamic.

"I think it would be best if you headed home now." Claire whispered, rubbing her arm self-consciously.

"Right." Robotically Tony turned to leave. She followed behind him and held the door open as he exited.

"I'll see you around." He muttered politely.

"Get some sleep. Please." Claire insisted gently. Tony managed one last small grin before he left. At least she still cared about his wellbeing. But now what? He had a decision to make. Pursue Jeanne and what seemed like a committed, comfortable relationship…or drop the safe option and take a shot with Claire. It would take longer and there was no guarantee that they could even regain what they had before…..but was it worth it for him? Would it make things worse if he tried?