Lisbon woke the next morning to find Jane snuggled up behind her. He'd crowded her up to the edge of the bed, his arms around her waist and his face buried in the back of her neck.

She remained still for a moment, trying to decide what to do. God, it felt good to have him hold her like this. She flashed again on the sensation of his mouth against hers and had to fight the urge to turn and seek his mouth again. But no—she couldn't afford to start believing their own con. They weren't a couple. They were colleagues. They had a job to do. Besides, even if there hadn't been, there was still Red John and Jane's enduring grief and—

Lisbon sighed and resigned herself to the inevitable.

"Jane," she said softly. "Wake up."

Jane grunted and tried to bury his face deeper into her neck.

"Jane. Come on. Wake up."

Jane groaned, his voice drugged with sleep. "I don't wanna wake up. 'm comfortable."

"You're about to push me off the edge of the bed."

"No, 'm not," he said, only half coherent. But he scooted back closer to the middle of the bed, pulling her with him and then snuggling up behind her just as close as before.

"That's not what I—oh, never mind," Lisbon said, giving up on reasoning with him. "You're taking this undercover bit a bit far, don't you think?"

"But I like being under the covers with you," Jane murmured into her neck, still half asleep.

Lisbon felt herself flush.

Jane smiled into her neck without opening his eyes. "You're blushing."

A knock on the door interrupted them before Lisbon could defend herself against this charge.

Lisbon went stiff in his arms. "Who is that?"

Jane grunted in displeasure and tightened his grip on her. "Relax. It's just room service. Did you think Hightower was on the other side of that door, about to catch us spooning?"

"Oh, God." Lisbon was out of the bed in a flash.

Jane sat up, hair tousled, his expression decidedly disgruntled. "I was kidding."

"Yeah, the idea of my boss finding me in bed with someone who works for me is really hilarious," Lisbon said, hunting for her robe.

Jane sighed. "I suppose it's my own fault for putting that image in your head. But she was the one who sent us here, remember?"

"I doubt this is what she had in mind."

There was another knock on the door. Lisbon abandoned her search for the robe and went to answer it.

To her utter astonishment, Jane leapt out of bed and blocked her path. "What do you think you're doing?"

She looked at him as though he'd grown a second head. "Answering the door. What are you doing?"

"You can't answer the door like that," Jane said decisively.

Lisbon looked down at herself. She was wearing a t-shirt and a pair of cotton shorts, but she was hardly indecent. "Why the hell not?"

Because you look entirely too enticing," Jane said with conviction. "If the server is male, he might try to spirit you away." As though this were a perfectly reasonably thing to say.

Lisbon gaped at him.

"Besides," Jane added. "What if the server is the one who put the camera in here? You really want to give him an extra show?"

Lisbon's eyes narrowed. "If it is our peeping tom, I will arrest him and make him regret spying on a cop to his dying day. It will be the last show he'll get for the rest of his natural life."

There was another knock on the door, more insistent this time.

"Just let me handle it," Jane said hastily, shepherding her towards the bathroom. "I'll assess the server's potential as a peeping tom while you get dressed."

Lisbon left the room with an ill grace, but had to acknowledge it would be more convenient to make any necessary arrests while properly clothed.

Xxx

After Jane had declared the server innocent and they'd eaten a truly decadent breakfast looking out over the Bay, they headed downstairs.

Noticing the reluctant Lisbon lagging behind him on their way to the garden terrace where the group session was scheduled, Jane said dryly, "You know, you can't actually slow down time just by walking slower. Is the thought of talking about feelings for two hours really so terrifying to you?"

"Oh, shut up," Lisbon said irritably. "Like you'd willingly talk about your own feelings for that amount of time. I'm just dreading whatever embarrassing stories you're planning to make up about our fake marriage." She was certain they'd be tailored to maximize her embarrassment for Jane's entertainment. But recognizing that they had a job to do, she picked up her pace.

The rest of the group was already there when they arrived, seated on chairs arranged in a circle on the beautiful terrace.

"Hello," said a woman Lisbon didn't recognize. She was perhaps forty-five, a few silver threads creeping into her honey-colored hair. She wore glasses and a neat silk blouse, her overall appearance professional, but warm and attractive. "I'm Dr. Geissinger, the facilitator for today's session, and this is my assistant, Philip," she said, gesturing to a good-looking dark-haired man seated next to her, about ten years her junior. "You must be Patrick and Teresa. I understand you've already met the rest of the group."

"Oh, yes, we're old friends," Jane said, smiling warmly around the circle as he and Lisbon took their seats. "Sorry we're late, everyone. Teresa was a bit nervous about airing all our dirty laundry among a bunch of people we've just met. It took me a while to convince her to get over her cold feet. Just like our wedding day, right, darling?" He punctuated this by reaching over and squeezing Lisbon's knee.

Lisbon grimaced. And so it began. "Right."

"It's perfectly natural to be nervous, Teresa," Dr. Geissinger said. "I'm sure you're not the only one who feels that way. But I want everyone to know that this is a safe space. You won't face any judgment by sharing your feelings openly and honestly here. Okay?"

Murmurs of assent rippled around the circle.

Dr. Geissinger smiled. "Okay. I know it's a bit corny, but I'd like to begin with an icebreaker to get everyone warmed up. Then we'll get down to work. Sound good?"

Lisbon suffered through the icebreaker by spending most of it covertly studying her fellow group members' potential capacity for selling human beings like chattel. She also watched Dr. Geissinger and Philip with narrowed eyes. Dr. Geissinger seemed focused on keeping the session moving smoothly, but the taciturn Philip stepped out to take phone calls at suspiciously frequent intervals.

Jane, Mr. 'Retreats are nothing more than primitive brainwashing,' was charm itself. He participated in the icebreaker without a hint of mockery, teasing the other group members with perfect ease and chiding Lisbon to respond when she got too absorbed in her observations to remember to join in herself.

Once the ice breaker had mercifully ended and they'd all taken their seats again, Dr. Geissinger said, "Now that we've all gotten to know each other a bit better, I'd like everyone to share what they hope to get out of the retreat this weekend. What brought you here, and what do you want to take away with you when you leave?"

Silence. More shifting in chairs, avoiding eye contact.

Dr. Geissinger looked around expectantly. "Who would like to begin?

Shelly looked around the circle and took a deep breath. "I guess I can start, if no one else wants to."

"Thank you, Shelly," said Dr. Geissinger. "Please, go ahead."

Shelly avoided meeting her husband's gaze. "For a while now, it's felt like—we can't talk to each other. I mean—we'll talk, but it's like we're speaking different languages. I'd like us to be able to communicate again."

"Very good," Dr. Geissinger said. "Communication is the cornerstone of any strong relationship, and it can always be improved. That's something we'll all be working on in these sessions together." She turned to the unsmiling Isaac. "Isaac, what about you? What would you like to get out of this weekend?"

Isaac shifted in his seat. "Uh. The same thing, I guess."

Dr. Geissinger gave him an encouraging smile. "Anything else?"

Isaac considered this for a moment, then met her gaze squarely. "No."

Good for you, Isaac, Lisbon congratulated him mentally, before remembering he was one of her top suspects so far, no matter what nonsense Jane spouted about Heathcliff roaming the moors.

"Very well, thank you, Isaac," Dr. Geissinger said. "Andrea, Tony, what about you?"

Tony looked embarrassed. "Oh, well, we just came out here to have a good time. Neither of us have ever been to San Francisco, and it was basically a free trip."

"Yeah, we just wanted to see the town, do a bit of sightseeing," Andrea agreed.

"Yet you're here with us instead of walking across the Golden Gate," Dr. Geissinger pointed out gently.

Andrea let out a nervous laugh. "Oh, well, we wanted to take advantage of the opportunity, of course. But honestly, our marriage is fine. We just don't get much time to ourselves, with the kids to worry about, and everything."

"Okay, we'll talk about strategies to carve out quality time, too," Dr. Geissinger said, nodding. "I'm sure that's a challenge many of you have faced at one point or another." She turned to the next couple. "Yvonne and Michaela, what would you like to share with the group about your hopes and expectations for this weekend?"

"Well, I don't know about anyone else, but I for one am looking forward to the couple's massage," Yvonne said with a nervous titter. Next to her, a shadow passed over Michaela's face. Lisbon was roused from her contemplation of Yvonne as a potential suspect to feel a stab of sympathy for Michaela.

"Anything else?" Dr. Geissinger asked.

Yvonne cast an anxious glance at Michaela and looked down at her hands. "I did something terrible," she said, her voice low.

Lisbon listened intently. Could this something terrible have something to do with Sevechenko's operation?

Yvonne cleared her throat. "I suppose I want to find out if… if I'm worthy of forgiveness. Or if I've ruined everything and now it's too late."

"Thank you for sharing that, Yvonne," Dr. Geissinger said. "Michaela, would you like to respond?"

Michaela's mouth twisted. "I guess for me, I'm trying to understand how… I'm trying to understand. And to learn to forgive, if I can."

"Thank you, Michaela," said Dr. Geissinger. "Scott and Lisa, you're up next. Can you share with the group what you're hoping to get out of this weekend?"

A brief pause.

Scott cleared his throat. "I'd like to get back to a place where I can be in a room with my wife without feeling like my presence is causing her physical torture."

The rest of the group fell into an appalled silence.

Lisa, stone-faced, tutted and crossed her arms and legs, angling herself away from him.

Dr. Geissinger broke the silence. "Lisa, do you have anything you'd like to say?"

Lisa snorted. "What could I possibly have to say in response to that?"

"You don't have to respond to Scott's comment," Dr. Geissinger said. "I'd like to hear what you would like to get out of these sessions."

Lisa's expression hardened. "Pass."

Dr. Geissinger hesitated. "I encourage you to express yourself freely, Lisa, so we can get an understanding of your goals and expectations. But if you don't feel comfortable sharing yet, I'll respect your preferences."

"I don't feel comfortable sharing yet," Lisa said stubbornly.

Was that an option? Lisbon wondered if she might be able to get away with pulling the same line.

"Very well," Dr. Geissinger. She turned to Jane and Lisbon. "Patrick and Teresa, how about you? Would you like to share your expectations and goals?"

"Sure," said Jane. He covered Lisbon's hand with his own. "Teresa has difficulty with emotional openness," he confided to the group. "She has these walls she puts up, and won't let anyone in. Not even me. I want to learn what it will take for her to let me all the way in."

Lisbon narrowed her eyes. So he was going to play it that way, was he?

"Interesting," Dr. Geissinger said, making a note on the legal pad in her lap. Lisbon tensed. Why was she the only one getting a note?

Dr. Geissinger turned to Lisbon expectantly. "Teresa, your thoughts?"

Lisbon glared at Jane. "Patrick has a tendency to play fast and loose with the truth. Then after lying to me day in and day out to serve his own ends, he acts surprised when I tell him I don't feel I can trust him completely."

"Is that your goal?" Dr. Geissinger asked. "To be able to trust Patrick completely?"

"Of course I'd like to be able to trust him," Lisbon said, suppressing the urge to roll her eyes. "But I'm not gonna hold my breath."

Jane frowned at her as though this was all news to him.

"Mm," Dr. Geissinger said, making another note.

Seriously, now she had two notes? Lisbon thought.

"Thank you for sharing that, Teresa." Dr. Geissinger raised her head and looked around at the rest of the group. "All right, folks. Now the real work begins."