So, it's been a while, I know. However, I'm a perfectionist and wanted this chapter to be perfect for our return to Aubrey and Jessica after the end of Lachelle Nepper's Love & Carbonite. I hope you enjoy this newest chapter.
Synopsis: This chapter is a continuation of the end of Love & Carbonite. If you need a refresher, read Ch 130: Home At Last.
April 24, 2017 7:30 AM
Shortly after Booth's phone call, Aubrey and Jessica, along with the Homicide SAC and the lab, were in Maryland's Harmony Hall Park working their crime scene, an area around an old well.
Outside of it, Hodgins and Cam were inspecting three toes and what remained of two charred arms on a tarp covering the rain-soaked grass. Next to them, Brennan carefully removed a mix of charred body parts and objects from a large bucket before looking down inside the well. "Ms. Warren, do you see anything else of an evidentiary nature?"
Down below, Jessica saw a burned-out bottle with what looked like a small piece of cloth. Carefully, she picked up the burned item and sniffed it before holding it up. "Looks and smells like a Molotov cocktail. It's probably what was used to barbecue the vic before the rainstorm put the fire out. Man, what a nasty way to go."
"Ms. Warren, that is a plausible hypothesis, but we shouldn't speculate until Dr. Hodgins examines the evidence." Brennan lowered the basket down to Jessica. "Here are more evidence bags. Continue to collect anything else you can find and come up. It is supposed to rain again, so work efficiently."
Jessica began searching the nooks and crannies of the well. "I'm on it, Dr. B."
Several yards away, Aubrey and Booth separately talked to each park ranger who found the initial body parts leading to the well. After a few minutes, they joined up to compare notes.
"My guy said he saw smoke while sitting at their booth. However, by the time he arrived it was raining, and he didn't see anyone running away." Booth shook his head. "Of course, he saw nothing suspicious before then."
Aubrey put away his notebook. "My ranger said the same thing, just like they had no idea about the bags of cocaine the techs found scattered in the bushes. They may just be lazy at their job, but this could also be a drug deal gone bad that they're in up to their necks."
"Yeah." Booth stepped around a small mudhole in the wet grass. "Sorry I had to pull you into a case on your first day back to work, Aubrey. Because of the drugs, I needed someone from Major Crimes, but Genny had an early morning OB appointment."
"It's all right. Jess and I have to get back into the grind sooner or later." Aubrey pointed at Booth. "I just can't work late tonight because my wife and I have plans later if you know what I mean."
Booth saw the glimmer in his friend's eyes and held up his hand. "Stop!"
"Sorry, Booth." Aubrey shrugged. "It's just that our honeymoon was too short…and…you know how it is after you get home. I want Jess like…always…"
"The honeymoon is always too short, and of course you always want to be with Jessica. You two are newlyweds, you love her, and for some reason she loves you." Booth began chuckling at Aubrey's irritation. "Now, no more about your weird sex life, Aubrey. I know too much about it as it is."
"Hey, Jess and I keep our sex life private and it's not weird. We just like to try new things and be creative…which is easy when your wife is as flexible as mine thanks to yoga." Aubrey heard Booth growl. "Oh fine, I'll shut up about it, but you were right about one thing, Booth."
Booth exhaled loudly, afraid of the answer. "What's that, Aubrey?"
Aubrey looked around and lowered his voice. "The sex is so much better since we got married."
Booth sighed in relief. "Yeah, there's just something about being with your wife, Aubrey…making love with your wife, the woman you love is—"
Aubrey couldn't stop himself. "Hell yeah. Since the wedding, we've been on fire! Like last Monday when we spent the whole day in bed, we tried this new thing where Jess bent back into this yoga bridge position and then I—"
"Aubrey!" Booth barked when they arrived at their SUVs.
"Okay…sorry." Aubrey chuckled before watching Jessica assist Cam with adding remains into a body bag. "Great sex aside, being married is really awesome, Booth."
Booth looked over at his wife and smiled. "Yes, it is, Aubrey."
*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*
An hour later, Aubrey escaped the now torrential April rain as he pulled into the FBI garage and into his designated parking spot. Getting his stuff, he headed inside the employee entrance while whistling The Imperial March as he contemplated his day.
On top of the case he caught this morning, he had to catch up on the large pile of administrative crap that he knew was waiting for him on his desk. There was the weekly division meeting at 9:00 and then a 11:00 teleconference with Hacker regarding his May budget. He also had to email HR on how to add Jessica to his insurance and FSA policies. On top of that, he had to complete next month's duty roster and then do case audits.
He had a busy day today, but that was all right, because tonight, he was going home to his beautiful, amazing, sexy genius wife of ten days.
Aubrey sighed as he thought of his new bride. Instead of paperwork and dead bodies, he wanted to be back in the Blue Ridge Mountains, hiding out with Jessica in their cabin doing nothing but making love for hours. However, their honeymoon was over, and it was now time to concentrate on criminals, internships, budgets, dissertations, their cat Skinner, and the other minutiae of real life.
Grabbing coffee in the break room, he was frustrated when his search for a donut turned up empty. Heading to his office, he made his way through the bullpen, greeting a few of his agents along the way. Getting situated at his desk, he spotted the framed wedding photo of him and Jessica that had been left there by Angela while he was on vacation. Picking it up, he gazed at it for a few minutes.
They held each other close, with Jessica looking amazing in her wedding dress, her pearl necklace accentuating the gown's simple elegance, and her hair down with Angela's comb in it. The sunny day made his wife's red hair stand out, making her the most beautiful bride there ever was. He didn't look bad himself in his custom-made gray suit.
Making room on his credenza, he displayed the photo prominently for all to see, and after finding a leftover package of Brown Sugar and Cinnamon Pop Tarts in his stash, he ate his treat while he turned on his computer to read his messages.
Opening his email, the SAC flinched at all the messages from when he was gone. Cleaning out the non-important ones, he read Deputy Director Stark's email reminding all the SACs about the field office's quarterly review meeting scheduled for next Tuesday morning. There was also one from Genny inviting him and Jessica to a small dinner party she and Hunter were hosting Saturday night. Making a note to check with his wife later that day, he gave a tentative yes to the invite, knowing Jessica would want to come if they could.
Throughout the next hour he tackled his paperwork until the division meeting, where his staff and a just arrived Genny officially welcomed him back with his favorite quad shot cappuccino with cinnamon. When the meeting ended, a now hungry Aubrey headed to the communal break room for more coffee and his mid-morning snack before being joined by Genny.
"It's nice to have you back, Boss."
"Appreciate that, Genny. How are you feeling? I don't see your daily cup of coffee."
"The morning sickness is almost gone and I'm holding off on the coffee until later today." Genny grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge. "Did you want to meet now and talk about last week?"
"Sure, I'll meet you in your office. I just need my mid-morning snack."
Genny walked out laughing as Aubrey stared at the vending machine deciding on what to have. However, he was interrupted by a text.
Step away from vending machines, Superman. I put your fave Canadian jerky in your laptop bag 4 your AM snack. C U at lunch.
"I don't know how the hell she always knows when I'm eating, but my wife is awesome." Aubrey poured a quick cup of coffee and began whistling the Star Wars Theme back to his office.
*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*
Standing at the water tank, Jessica quickly adjusted her ponytail. Peeking in the small mirror nearby, she decided she looked all right before she felt her phone buzz. Taking it out, she smiled at Aubrey's return message.
Thx 4 jerky. Can we have lunch here 2day? Lots of BS to catch up on.
Jessica quickly responded with her order. Call it in 2 RD. Will pick up & bring at 12:30. Luv u.
The response was almost immediate. Luv u 2 Jess.
Putting on her long heavy gloves, she began humming Lay Lady Lay as she continued to prep the enzyme bath. It was pure luck that the part of the decedent's artificial hip they found earlier in their examination gave them the serial number. Thanks to that, Angela quickly ID'd the victim as a French national. Hopefully, his medical records from the Sorbonne would arrive online within the next hour.
Carefully, she used tongs to add what remained of the victim into the tank. Setting the timer, she started the bath before heading to the nearby intern study room. Sitting at her small desk, she began typing her notes into her tablet when she glanced at the small plush skunk her husband gave her this morning. He had big blue eyes just like her husband, and a reminder of a pleasant memory of a picnic she and Aubrey would always treasure.
Hearing thunder, Jessica looked up at the skylights and saw rain pelting above. Shrugging it off, she went back to work before stopping once again to look at her left hand and admire her jewelry.
Her red wedding ring was unique and non-traditional, but it also complemented her engagement ring, an heirloom that originally belonged to Aubrey's maternal great-great grandmother. She admired the recessed design of the diamonds and ruby in the center, enabling her to wear it under a pair of gloves. Someday, per family tradition, it would be passed down to her and Aubrey's first born daughter.
"Of course, whether we have any girls is up to Aubrey's swimmers, but I'm sure we'll have at least one. My husband is an extremely ambitious man. We have plenty of time for all that though." Jessica chuckled until she heard her name and turned around. "Yes, Dr B?"
"I wanted to let you know that due to power issues at the Sorbonne, the decedents' electronic medical record will not be here until at the earliest late this afternoon. I will be leaving around 4:00 today to pick up Christine from her afternoon program and Cam said you're welcome to leave then too if you like unless you want to stay until 5 PM."
Jessica debated. "I may take you up on that. I do have the rest of our laundry from our honeymoon to catch up on and some grocery shopping to do.…I think I'll leave at 4:00, too."
"Very well." Brennan began walking away. "After you clean and complete your examination of the bones, Ms. Warren, email me your findings. Perhaps we can at least get cause of death while we wait for the medical records."
"I will, Dr B." The redhead said with a smile before going back to her task.
*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*
Over two hours later, Jessica arrived at the Hoover with lunch. Saying hi to everyone in the bullpen, she balanced a drink tray with her Coke and Aubrey's chocolate shake as she made her way to her husband's office. Observing him engrossed in a file, she called his name, but he didn't respond. Amused, she walked up to his desk and spoke louder.
"Do I have to flash my breasts at you to get your attention?"
Startled, he looked up to see his bemused wife holding a large bag and a drink carrier. "Shit, I'm sorry, Jess. I'm just going over my notes from when I talked to the park ranger earlier. Booth and I think those guys are who blew up our vic today." Aubrey winked at her. "As for the other thing, your ass will always get my attention."
The couple came together in a kiss before moving to the round table. After Aubrey sat down, Jessica handed him his triple chili cheeseburger, fries, onion rings, and fruit salad. After setting up her own lunch, the forensic anthropologist saw her husband watching her and blushed.
"Superman, you're staring at me."
Aubrey finished his bite of his cheeseburger. "Uh yeah…because my wife is hot."
"Thank you. My husband is cute, too." Jessica took a bite of her club sandwich. "You know, this is our first post honeymoon lunch together. This is nice."
"It is indeed." Aubrey said. "So, what do you want to do about dinner? All we have are frozen dinners, some fruit, and half a carton of eggs from the cabin."
"I'm going shopping after work and I was thinking of picking up some Parmesan and Gruyere cheeses along with spinach and mushrooms to make Alfredo tonight. I may make some homemade garlic knots, too."
"Sounds good." Aubrey replied. "Then later we get to have naked cuddling."
Laughing as she recalled earlier in the morning, Jessica nodded. "Yes, Aubrey, then we get to do naked cuddling."
"Yeah, buddy." Aubrey took another bite then realized what his wife didn't say. "Wait, no chicken or meat with dinner?"
Jessica put her sandwich down. "Aubrey, come on, we go through this every week. Is it really that big of a deal to have one meal without meat?"
"I guess not, Jessica…" Aubrey replied. "But you asked me to do that during make up sex. I'll agree to just about anything like that."
"Okay, I'll tell you what." Jessica took one of her husband's fries and dipped it into his side of garlic mayo. "Shrimp tonight, but we're doing vegetarian tomorrow and on Friday, you can make me a steak dinner on your fancy grill…"
"Our fancy grill..." Aubrey drank from his chocolate milkshake.
"Our fancy grill…" A mischievous Jessica continued speaking. "…with a special Aubrey dessert either on our kitchen counter or you boffing me against the pantry door again."
The agent's only reply was to choke on his shake in surprise. Scared, Jessica ran over to her gagging husband and raised his arm. "Superman, are you okay?"
"Yeah, Honey. Sorry." Aubrey wiped his mouth and smirked at his wife. "I would enjoy making you dinner Friday night. As for your dessert, wear that really sexy black push up bra you wear on our date nights and those awesome crotchless panties and I'll make it one to remember."
Jessica was surprised. "Not the green bra and shoes?"
"Variety is the spice of life…and I like easy access." Aubrey smirked. "I'll even wear my special Darth Vader boxers…"
"You're so naughty, James Aubrey." The redhead gave her spouse a kiss. "I think that is a satisfactory arrangement."
Just as the redhead sat back down, Aubrey grabbed something off his desk and brought it back. "Oh, while you're here, I need you to fill out a few forms so I can turn them into HR before I leave tonight. It's so I can add you on my health insurance and stuff."
Wiping her hands with a napkin, Jessica took the papers Aubrey handed her across the table. Reading through them, she looked up. "You're still cool if I don't change my last name to Aubrey, right? Although I may hyphenate it to Warren-Aubrey at some point later in the future, but at least professionally I want to remain Jessica Warren. Like we talked about before, our kids will be named Aubrey. I just hate all the hassle with changing my name…although I will have one, too if I hyphenate it…"
"Jess…Jessica!" When Aubrey had his spouse's attention, he smiled. "We talked about this already. Whatever your last name is doesn't change the fact we're married." Aubrey said. "People who want to make something about it can kiss my butt."
"My hero." Jessica chuckled as she filled out the forms.
*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*
Two hours later, Caroline Julian walked into Aubrey's office and pulled something out of her briefcase. "Here you are, Cher. One certified marriage license."
"Caroline, you're awesome." Aubrey took the form. "Thanks for getting it to me so quickly from the Alexandria County Courthouse. HR needed a copy of it for proof of our marriage and it usually takes 10 - 14 days to arrive by mail."
"You're welcome and of course, I'm awesome. Now, don't lose it or you're paying the $10.00 for another copy, young man. Now, tell me what you have so far on that fellow that got charbroiled in that old well this morning. Seeley says it looks like those park rangers are involved."
They talked for several minutes and when Caroline was satisfied, she left as Aubrey made a copy of his marriage license. Circling back, he grabbed the forms Jessica filled out earlier and headed out for his final task for the day. Taking the stairs to the 2nd floor, he took the steps two at a time, chuckling as he remembered Hunter's excitement two months earlier as he prepared to do the same thing.
"This stuff is pretty exciting now that Jessica is my wife." Aubrey laughed. "My wife...man, I love saying that."
He still had a spring in his step when he entered Human Resources. As he waited for the HR rep, the door opened and his giddy mood changed as he locked eyes with Karen Delfs. His hopes of ignoring her were dashed when she walked up to him.
"Hi Aubrey."
"Karen." Aubrey said warily before looking back at his documentation.
The profiler's hopes for Aubrey's forgiveness fell as she felt the chill in the air. However, she knew she'd have to take the first step. "I haven't seen you around the Hoover for a couple of weeks. How are you?"
"Fine." The agent said, keeping his voice neutral.
"How's Jessica?"
Aubrey continued to read his papers, hoping the profiler would take the hint. "Surprised that you even care, but she's fine."
"Of course, I care about how Jessica is doing." Karen put a smile on her face as she continued talking. "So, I'm here because I'm off suspension and I need to have an exit interview and I have some paperwork to complete so I can get my credentials back before I go on to my new assignment at the Buffalo field office on May 1st. What brings you here?"
"Paperwork." Aubrey stated blandly, maintaining professionalism to keep from saying what he really wanted to say to the woman. 'She has some damn nerve chatting with me after what she did to Jess and all those other people.'
Before Karen could respond, a middle-aged woman came out of the office. "Hello, Agent Aubrey. Is that the paperwork we discussed in your email this morning?"
"Yeah, Lynn. My wife filled in her sections earlier at lunch." Aubrey went around Karen and handed them to the woman. "As you requested, a copy of our marriage license is also in there. Because I made Jessica my beneficiary to my Thrift Savings Account and life insurance two months ago, no changes were necessary for those, right?"
"Correct." Lynn quickly looked through everything. "Okay, we're all set Agent Aubrey. I'll take care of this tomorrow and Jessica should be active on your medical and dental insurance as well as your flexible spending account as of May 1st."
Relieved, Aubrey smiled. "Great. Thanks for doing all this so fast."
The HR Specialist smiled. "Not a problem, Agent. Congratulations on your new marriage."
A stunned Karen listened in on the conversation before reluctantly looking at Aubrey's left hand. Spotting his wedding ring, she held her emotions together until they were alone. "So, you and Jessica got married?"
"Yeah. Jess and I got married on the 14th. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have work I need to catch up on after being off on my honeymoon and I want to go home to my wife at a decent time tonight."
Aubrey walked out the door and was halfway to the stairwell when he heard his name. Warily, he turned around. "What?"
"I just wanted to say again how terribly sorry I am for everything that Jessica experienced with Gerald." Karen began wringing her hands. "She didn't deserve what Gerald did to her."
"You're right. She didn't." Aubrey said impatiently. "Excuse me."
"Aubrey, wait, please." When he stopped, Karen began pleading her case. "I know I've messed up really badly, but you have to understand that everything I did was because I cared about you. You came to me after Jessica broke up with you, remember? You turned to me because you needed me…."
"Yeah, I accepted your offers of food and support after my girlfriend dumped me and listened to your advice because I thought we were friends. What a joke that was."
"Aubrey, of course we were friends…"
"Some friend you were. You gave me what, two weeks…before you began pushing for you and I to be more than friends? When I chose to get back together with Jessica instead, you got pissed and schemed to get her out of my life permanently so I would fall into your arms. When your lies and flaunting of Steve wasn't enough to break us up again, you used Gerald Maxwell's hatred of Jess to get back at her for not only being with me, but also for Steve dumping you, and the fact that the folks at the lab didn't want to be friends with you."
Aubrey's last comment struck a nerve. "I didn't intend for Jessica to be sexually harassed by Gerald. I would never have talked to him if I had known his history."
"Jessica was more than sexually harassed, Karen." Aubrey crossed his arms, ignoring Karen's excuses. "That son of a bitch severely beat her and then attempted to rape her as he slowly strangled her for kicks. He even urinated on her to humiliate her. Cherry picking the events doesn't make you less culpable."
Karen figured that time would help lessen his bitterness, but she saw that his anger was still as raw as it was back in January. "Aubrey, I was just trying to protect you from getting hurt by Jessica."
"You didn't do all this to protect me. You did what you did for yourself!" Aubrey shook his head. "The worst thing about all of this is that I was stupid enough not only trust you as a friend but also encouraged Jessica and everyone at the lab to be your friend."
Karen grabbed her shoulder bag for support. "The lab people were a little clique who didn't want me around because they preferred Jessica. I get it. As for Jessica, traditionally, women usually don't actively try to be friends with their rival, so I figured that she just tried to be my friend because she was threatened by my friendship with you. "
"You weren't Jess's rival, Karen, because there was no competition except in your mind. As for the lab, they are a family, but they are always welcoming to new people if they are respectful to others. However, your attitude towards Jessica and sense of entitlement are what drove them away, Karen. It's sad because good friends are hard to come by, and they're the best I've ever had. Booth, Dr. B, Angela, Hodgins...all of them are my family."
"I know good friends are hard to come by, which is why I've always enjoyed being your friend."
Aubrey sarcastically laughed. "We're not friends anymore Karen. I'm not friends with people who use their education and people's weaknesses against them when they don't get their own way."
"I'm not a monster, Aubrey!" Karen desperately retorted. "I felt betrayed by you because I felt used and thrown aside as soon as Jessica decided she wanted you back and I thought you deserved better than her. At the time, I wasn't in the right headspace and I was so angry. I know I made a mistake with Gerald Maxwell—"
"A mistake? Driving a car right when you should go left is a mistake, Karen." Aubrey grew even more annoyed with Karen's excuses. "You were rightfully pissed, but instead of taking it up with me, you went after Jessica. What you did with Gerald…it led to that son of a bitch going after six people, not only putting their lives at risk, but also the life of Angela and Hodgins' unborn child."
"But they didn't die, Aubrey. You, Steve, and Agent Shaw saved everyone. I heard Angela gave birth to her son a few weeks ago and they're doing fine. Everyone is okay and Gerald is in prison where he belongs." Karen wiped away a tear. "I know it will take some time for everyone to recover from what happened…"
Aubrey shook his head at Karen's inability to understand. "That might be difficult for Oliver Wells, Karen. He has permanent brain damage from Gerald's assault. He should be a vegetable, but his stubborn and egotistical ass has defied the odds. However, he will have physical and mental challenges for the rest of his life."
"I didn't intend…I just wanted you to…I didn't mean for everything to happen." Karen saw the anger in the man's eyes and flinched slightly. "Aubrey…I've had mandatory counseling and I'm being punished by the FBI with an involuntary transfer from DC. I'll do whatever I have to do to make things right. Please tell me how I can make things right…maybe even for us to someday be friends again? Maybe even have a second chance with the group?"
"You didn't just wreck some of Jessica's property or speak out of turn, Karen." Aubrey spit out. "You encouraged a narcissistic misogynist to go after Jessica, a woman with whom he had an antagonistic history, using lies and bullshit to egg him on because in your twisted mind, I owed you a romantic relationship. That's not something I can just shake off and forget about. As for Booth, Dr. B, and everyone else, you're more than welcome to give them the same half-baked apology you're giving me right now, but because of all the shit you pulled, they want nothing to do with you unless it's on a professional basis."
"Aubrey, my apology is sincere. I never wanted Jessica hurt. Surely knowing my original intentions means something to them…to you..."
"You may have not intended for Jessica and the others to get hurt, Karen, but they did." Aubrey pointed at the psychologist. "You can't just apologize and expect everyone to pretend that none of it ever happened. You messed up and the consequences are your burden to bear."
Aubrey saw he made his point and reached for the door. "I made the mistake of being friends with you once and it almost cost me everything I care about. I'll never make that mistake again."
"Aubrey, please…"
The agent started to head out but stopped and stared down the profiler. "Oh, just so we're clear. Jessica has never been or will be less than what I deserve. The truth is that my wife is more than I will ever deserve, Karen."
Going through the doors, he stomped up the stairwell to the 4th floor. He wasn't ready to forgive. Maybe someday he could, but he would never forget.
*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*/*
Three hours later, Aubrey walked in the door as Kelly Clarkson's Mr. Know It All played in the house, grateful to be home after the gridlock he encountered. He was greeted by Skinner who wrapped himself around his legs. "Hey Boy, I missed you, but I want to see your mom."
The agent walked around the cat through the living room to their open kitchen where Jessica adding grated cheese and other items inside a pan. Coming around, he gave her a kiss on her cheek. "Hello, Wife."
"Hello, Husband." Jessica said. "Your timing is perfect. I could use a helper in the kitchen to sauté the shrimp and throw the pasta in to cook. I've also got a nice Chardonnay to enjoy."
"Cool. I'll change and be right back." Aubrey said before giving her another kiss. Looking at the dining room table, he saw a box with a set of papers nearby. "Are these our wedding photos?"
"They are, Superman. Angela brought them in for me today and the paperwork for you to fill out to go on my health insurance is next to them. Now, change and come help me."
Upstairs, after securing his pistol, he changed into his favorite Star Wars t-shirt and jeans. Heading back down, the couple worked together in the kitchen preparing their meal while they enjoyed wine and each other's company. After mixing all the ingredients together the couple had their dinner at the center island.
"A toast…to our first married non-leftover dinner at home." Aubrey said.
"Here, here." Jessica said.
The couple drank before eating their dinner while sharing their day. "So, the park rangers were working with our vic in a drug ring?" Jessica asked.
"Yep. Once you sent back the cause of death, Booth and I dragged them in and they confessed. The vic caught onto them stealing drugs and when he confronted them, they shot him and dumped him in the well. Then one threw in the Molotov thinking he would be obliterated. They didn't count on a rainstorm putting out the fire." Aubrey looked down at the counter for a second. "I ran into Karen at HR today."
"Oh…" Jessica listened as Aubrey recounted his confrontation with her. "Seriously, she asked to be friends with you again?"
"Yeah." Aubrey twirled the wheat linguine on his fork. "I can't forget what she did, Jess. I just can't. She hurt you."
Jessica knew what her husband was not saying. "She hurt you, too Aubrey."
"I trusted her, and she lied to me. Then, she took her anger at me out on you. What burns me the most is that even now, she still downplays what she did and wants everyone to forget about all the shit she started so we all be friends again. Maybe someday she'll face up to the damage she caused, but she's not worth caring about anymore." He felt comforted when Jessica took his hand. "Sometimes, I still think wonder about what would have happened if Genny, Steve, and I didn't get to the lab when we did..."
Jessica moved her hand on her husband's shoulder. "But you did, Superman. You saved my life…you were my hero. We're okay now…we're together…and we're married. In a way, we should thank her."
Aubrey almost spit his wine out. "What? Are you nuts?"
"Hear me out, okay?" Jessica said. "Take Karen out of the equation and we'll never know if we would have gotten this far. At the very least, she helped us realize how much we meant to each other."
The agent put his glass down. "Is this your polite way of saying we should forget what happened to you and be her besties?"
The anthropologist smiled. "No, I'm agreeing with you that she doesn't matter. Now, do what you feel is best. I'm electing to move forward."
Aubrey smirked. "So, you want to be friends with her again…"
"Oh hell no." Jessica laughed, followed by her husband until their mirth calmed down. "So, Aubrey, there's a Cubs game on tonight."
"I know, but I set the DVR for it." Aubrey's finger gently traced across Jessica's breast. "We have other plans tonight."
"Yes, we do, Aubrey." Jessica chuckled once more. "Since you helped with dinner, I think you deserve a special treat. I picked it up at Mr. Leonelli's store just for you."
Thinking about his wife moaning under him as he plowed her in their bed, Aubrey grew antsy and held his arms out. "You naked is my favorite treat. Come on, Jess. I've been thinking about us all day today. We're newlyweds…we're supposed to have sex like all the time..."
"We had sex all the time before we got married, James. That's never going to change. Now, do you want your treat or not?" When Aubrey nodded, Jessica reached in and pulled out a cheesecake. She held it up, appreciating her husband's eyes lighting up like a Christmas tree. "What do you think, Special Agent? Want to have some cheesecake with our naked cuddling?"
Aubrey's eyes lit up. "Hell yeah!"
"You're going to have to catch me first!" Jessica giggled as she ran towards the stairs.
"I love being married!" Aubrey was hot on her heels, both laughing as they disappeared upstairs for the night.
There's a new item under The Aubrey Chronicles' Pinterest Board on MIBonesFan's Pinterest Page. Check it out.