Disclaimer: I don't own the situations or characters portrayed herein. I'm just playing with them for a while.
The Man who Died Twice Part 1
He hadn't realized just how fulfilling being in an actual relationship would be, and they had only been engaged about a month.
They'd spent all their time at Pine Top the same way they used to spend their few precious evenings together in the months before the Adi Birol case: slow dancing to old records, snuggling in front of a crackling fire in the fireplace, and talking about everything from the past to the present to the future. Their conversation had been comfortable; their silences companionable ones. It was a glimpse into how easy a marriage could be.
When they returned to D.C., he had started clearing out his apartment (though they ended up doing even that together). It led to several hours' worth of serious talking, where they rid themselves of their remaining uncomfortable secrets along with the detritus of the years. It was a glimpse of how hard a marriage could be. On the plus side, the only things that remained had no bad memories attached to them, regardless of how or when he had acquired them.
He started thinking about a wedding. She'd already had one, but he never had. He didn't have to work hard to imagine Amanda in a white dress: he had, after all, "married" her already once before. She'd been lovely even then; even before he knew he loved her, he felt an odd wistfulness for the kind of relationship they had now.
He started looking at houses. The Arlington house was homey and welcoming, even if it did have one of the weirdest layouts he'd ever seen in his life. But it had become quite well-known in the international intrigue community, and staying there after marrying would be the equivalent of painting a gigantic target on the little house and all its occupants.
Speaking of occupants...
Phillip probably would take him at face value as "Mom's boyfriend", or even as "one of those film people", but Jamie was observant. He would not forget that it was Lee's fault Amanda had to go on the run. Would he put together the pieces, that Lee Stetson was also the same guy that showed up at his school and beat up the man who had been threatening him? Would he realize that he was the one who burst onto the stage at Parisian Intrigue? And going even further back, would he remember Mr. Sampson, who had such a short sojourn in his neighborhood? Would he remember the panic in his mother's voice when Lee showed up at Moby's Dock, that long-ago October day when they first met? Jamie had gotten a really good look at him. He remembered being uneasy for a second, because the kid definitely looked like he was memorizing his features.
He knew Jamie wouldn't know that he was the one to get Pretzel the Clown for his birthday party, or find Captain Galaxy for Phillip's, or buy the new bike to replace the one the Stratford hit. Jamie didn't know that he'd been the one to provide groceries during the time that Amanda had been legally dead, or that his delay in filing her paperwork allowed her a day off to spend with the boys. Nor did Jamie know the countless times he'd put his own life in jeopardy to ensure that Amanda came home.
He had a lot to do, before there could be a wedding or a new house.
He came back to reality with a heavy sigh. He'd been so lost in his thoughts that for the past ten minutes he had been staring at a newspaper ad for a gorgeous Rockville house. He was supposed to be heading down for a meeting in the bullpen, though, so he rose reluctantly and left the Q Bureau.
He took the newspaper with him.
