Summary – An alternate ending to season 2's "The Kiss." What if Jack had gotten Sue's attention instead of walking away?

Author's Note – I don't know American Sign Language (ASL). For the times when characters sign in this story, I've put that dialog in ALL CAPS.

Disclaimer – I don't own these characters. Just imagining that things had gone in a slightly different direction from the show.

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"Would…"

FBI Special Agent Jack Hudson mouthed the word as he watched his co-worker, Special Investigative Analyst Sue Thomas, head into her apartment building with her hearing dog Levi. Of course, she was unaware he was trying to talk to her, as her back was turned. But if he didn't get up the nerve now, he might regret it forever. "Sue," he called out, knowing Levi would have his back.

Sure enough, the faithful golden retriever reached up a paw to get Sue's attention that someone was speaking to her.

"Levi?" Sue looked down at him before turning around, confused. "Jack? Did you forget something?"

He cleared his throat, nervous. "I, uh, was wondering if you would like to get together sometime."

Her brows knitted. "Get together?"

"For coffee," he said. "Just… spend time together as friends."

"Friends," she repeated, trying to understand his meaning.

"Yeah. You know, like I sometimes hang out with Bobby outside of work. Or you go out shopping with…" he hinted, hoping she'd catch on.

She did. "With Lucy."

"Exactly. Friends get to spend time with each other outside of work, right?"

Levi looked from Jack to Sue and whimpered, pleading Jack's case. Jack was one of his favorite people, and he wouldn't mind spending more time with Jack.

Sue, however, hesitated. It sounded to her like Jack was trying to ask her out on a date without calling it a date. It was against FBI policy to date within the same unit. She would never want to get Jack in trouble. And yet, here he was, making the effort to ask her out anyway.

Was it because he'd kissed her? And not just any kiss, like the kind you greet friends with. No, it had been a spontaneous, full on the mouth, I don't plan on coming up for air kiss. But it had also been part of their cover story on the case they had just wrapped, pretending to be caught in an office tryst. It hadn't been real.

Or had it? He was trying to ask her out…

She must have hesitated too long because Jack added, "If you're not interested, perhaps Levi will take me up on my offer. What do you say, Levi?"

Levi barked an affirmative. Sue smiled, grateful for his canine support – and grateful Jack had made a point of inviting Levi. It was always easier couching things as being done on behalf of her service dog than herself. It made her nervous when things got personal. It made her nervous to think Jack could be interested in her that way. Then again, that kiss…

"I hear coffee is bad for dogs. Maybe I should be there, just in case it disagrees with him."

"You should," Jack agreed, smiling.

"What time will you… Sue asked, tapering off, trying to avoid any references to dating.

"We should meet somewhere. You know, like regular friends would. The coffeehouse on Delaware. Say, eleven?"

Sue nodded. "Sure. It's a… a plan."

Jack liked the sound of that, glad Sue had caught on that he was asking her out while avoiding using the word DATE. Ridiculous, really, but their employer wasn't leaving them much choice. "Yes. A plan. See you then."

He gave a short nod then hurried off, since they'd already said good night.

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At the appointed hour the next day they met at the coffeehouse. Jack held the door open for her and Levi. "After you."

They placed their orders and Jack told Sue to grab a table while he waited to pick up their order.

Now that they were actually here, on their non-date date, Jack found his mouth dry. For this was no ordinary date. In addition to the general "getting to know you better" talk of any first date, they also needed to discuss the proverbial elephant in the room – how to navigate this new status in their relationship without the others in their workplace catching on. Which, with Lucy Dotson in the picture, was virtually mission impossible. She was not just a co-worker, serving as the team's administrative "rotor" (office manager), but she was also Sue's roommate. Lucy had been trying to pair them up from the beginning, despite it being against the rules on fraternization. Jack and Sue would need to tread carefully - not exactly the stuff of romance.

Jack brought their cups to their table and put on a brave face. "This is nice. Getting together like this."

"Yes."

"So, what did you tell Lucy?" he asked nervously.

"I couldn't lie to her, Jack. I said I was meeting a friend for coffee, then left before she could ask me who."

He nodded.

There was silence between them as they drank their coffees. At the office they had no trouble finding things to talk about. but then again, the talk usually centered around whatever case they were working on or lighthearted office banter with their fellow co-workers. Yet now, when he had purposely asked her out to talk, he couldn't think of a single thing to say? This first date might end up being their last.

Sue, thankfully, bailed him out.

"So, what made you join the FBI? I mean, I know it's mostly due to your lackluster career as a hockey player, but why not stick to being a lawyer?"

The case they had just wrapped had involved corruption at a law firm, Callahan & Merced. Jack had put his legal background to use, posing as a lawyer with Sue as his assistant. It was the case which had led to them sharing their first kiss. Even going undercover as a married couple on an earlier case hadn't accomplished that.

"You saw what it was like. Always trying to impress people, to climb the ladder. The condescending attitude towards subordinates. The long hours and endless paperwork."

"So, you switched to the long hours and endless paperwork of the FBI."

Jack chuckled. He had walked right into that one.

"Well, you know, the FBI has its upsides. Catch the bad guy, save the day… meet all sorts of interesting people," he hinted.

He must've said it too casually, as she didn't pick up on the hint. Sue didn't always pick up on subtle clues due to her deafness. "By 'interesting people,' you mean people who have broken the law."

Okay, that was too subtle, he thought. Let's try it again. "I mean people with interesting backgrounds and skills. People you might never run into otherwise unless you worked with them."

This time she got it. "Like Levi." Levi pricked up his ears at hearing his name.

They were always doing this dance of deflecting. Never making it personal. Never wishing to go against the rules. Well, it was time to skirt the rules and make it personal.

"I mean like you, Sue. I definitely count you as an upside."

As he expected, she smiled shyly at that and reached for her coffee cup.

Jack also took a sip of his coffee, but, having succeeded in paying Sue a compliment, he was frustratingly tongue-tied again. He felt like he had regressed to his teenage years, trying to come up with the right things to say to his date without sounding buffoonish.

And that was the problem. It was a date. Except it wasn't. Or couldn't look too much like one. Maybe this was all a mistake…

Sue seemed to be reading his mind. Or his body language, which she excelled at interpreting. "Jack, I know this is awkward for both of us. We can pretend that this isn't…" Sue stopped to sign the word for DATE, then resumed speaking, "but it is. Isn't it?"

He sighed. Time to put it out there. "Look, Sue, I care about you. I admit that after kissing you the other night, I was hoping that I'd get to do that again sometime without it being a cover story. And at the same time, I feel ashamed that I used the excuse of being discovered to kiss you like that. That… that shouldn't have been our first kiss. I took advantage of the situation, and I'm sorry. I didn't want things to start off that way." He gave her a remorseful look, and to make sure there was no misunderstanding, he signed SORRY.

She took another sip of coffee and thought a moment before responding. "I'm not."

"You're not?"

"I'm not sorry. That you took advantage."

"Why not?"

"If you hadn't, then we might not be sitting here right now, and I wouldn't have heard you say that you want to kiss me again."

Jack couldn't believe his ears. She really didn't mind that that had been their first kiss? And even better, she didn't mind hearing that he wanted to kiss her again?

His elation was brief. He looked down at his coffee cup. "You know that we'd be breaking the rules."

"I know."

"And that this could end badly. You could be suspended. Or transferred. Or… fired."

"So could you."

Jack tried to make light of the situation, deflecting much as Sue had. "At least Levi would still have a job."

At hearing Jack say his name, Levi looked up, and Jack gave him a scratch behind the ears.

The silence was back, each of them preoccupied with their respective coffee cups.

Jack let out a breath. "So, we're really going to try this?"

Sue spoke and signed to emphasize her words. "Yes. I care for you too, Jack."

He gave a small smile at hearing her say that. "All right. Then we need to be smart about this. We're just friends getting together. We shouldn't see each other any more often than we would any other good friend."

"We can continue getting together with a group of friends. I could host another game night," Sue suggested.

"And Bobby's viewing parties on Sundays," said Jack. "This just might work, if we keep mixing in group activities with personal ones. But we'd still need to be careful. We couldn't be seen holding hands," he said dejectedly.

After a moment's hesitation, Sue said, "I could teach you to sign."

Jack was puzzled by the suggestion. "You're already doing that at the office."

"You don't understand. Sign 'my coffee is cold'."

Still confused, Jack nevertheless complied, and Sue looked at him critically. "That's not quite right," she said.

"It's not?"

"Give me your hands."

Curious, Jack leaned forward. Sue took his hands and guided him through the motion. "This is COFFEE, and this," she paused and adjusted again, "is COLD." Her instructions were not all that different from what he'd done initially, but in 'correcting' him like this, rather than demonstrating herself as she normally did, she'd found a way for their hands to touch in public.

Slowly she withdrew her hands from his, which gave him a slight caress in the process. Jack's breath caught at the sensation.

"Try it again," Sue urged gently, keeping up the pretense.

Still marveling at her touch – and her ingenuity – he repeated the phrase in ASL. "Better?"

Sue smiled at him. "Better."

Jack smiled back. "I guess you're right. Some personal tutoring couldn't hurt."

They finished their coffees brainstorming places they could meet – the zoo, the Smithsonian, a different coffeehouse that had terrific scones. It would be dating except Jack would never pick her up at her apartment, as that would be too obvious. They would always arrive and leave separately to leave the impression they were just meeting up as friends. Their first non-date date was no longer awkward. They were in this together, wherever it may take them.

"What will you tell Lucy… about today?"

"If she presses me, I'll say that I'm teaching my friend sign language. That will give us an excuse to get together regularly."

"And if she asks for a name?"

This was the tricky part. "I'll tell her that I'd rather not say, because I'm interested in him but things might not work out between us. And if she asks if it's someone she knows, I'll say that she's met him. It might keep her guessing for a little while, anyway."

Jack nodded. It would do, for now. Lying was par for the course as an agent in the field - fabricating identities, creating scenarios to catch criminals in the act - but when it came to personal lives, it stunk. Best to avoid it if possible. "And when she brings it up in the office, I'll play dumb and say what you do in your free time is entirely up to you."

As they exited the coffeehouse, Jack said, "I think that went well."

"I think so, too."

"So… I'll see you at work."

"Bright and early Monday," Sue agreed.

He looked down at Levi. "Make sure she gets home safely for me, will you, pal?"

Levi barked to confirm.

"Bye, Sue."

"Bye, Jack."

Jack turned and walked away, a smile on his face. He wasn't able to kiss her goodbye, but no matter. He had the memory of one kiss – a kiss which had prompted today. He knew for certain it was just a matter of time before they would share another.

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AUTHOR'S NOTE – I was going to leave things there as a one-shot, but then my mind kept wondering how this alternative reality might play out, so, stay tuned for more in Chapter 2…