Hi,

While the next 3 chapters will be much more dramatic and action packed, I do have here Bobby / Jay and Jack / Sue returning - so I decided to keep it under the same story and not split it up.

Happy New Year!

Enjoy!

Nothing is as burdensome as a secret…

The colorful balls jumped joyfully at the center of the screen, grinning at her without teeth. She rewrote the program and the balls made two jumps before moving slowly to the side of the screen and piling up. A little more adjusting and they should look like smiling M&M's. She pursed her lips and yawned, removing her glasses and rubbing her eyes. It was probably time to head to bed. For the second time that week, she waited too long for him.

She saved the program and turned off her laptop, placing it on the coffee table. She headed for her bedroom and slipped off the silk negligee. There was no point in seduction when no one was there to enjoy it. Settling for an old, grandmotherly, T-shirt she dove under the covers.

She wasn't sure how long she slept before the knocking on her door woke her up. A little disoriented, she headed towards it, opening it slowly after peeking through the peephole. She was more then a little shocked when he tumbled inside, nearly collapsing on one of the chairs. The sight of his bloody lip and bruised cheek made her nauseous and yet she kneeled beside him as he leaned backwards in the chair.

"Bobby?"

"I'm fine, Jay." His tone of voice was resigned and she fought the feeling of insult that rose inside of her. If he didn't want to talk, why did he show up in the middle of the night?

"You're bleeding." She replied. "Do you want me to call someone? Does Jack know?"

He visibly tensed, catching her hand as she moved towards the phone. "I had a meeting with a snitch and it went a little sour, that's all. There's no need to wake Jack and Sue over this, I'll tell them in the morning."

Jay looked at the clock on the wall. "It's 4 AM."

"So?" Bobby snapped. "You know my working hours aren't exactly routine!"

She quenched her angry reply before it could surface. "I'll get you some wet towels."

"Juliet." He called after her, sighing when she didn't reply. He handled it the wrong way. His hands were tied and he couldn't find any way out.

Jay heard his quiet call and promptly ignored it. She always got fluttering in her stomach when he called her by her full name. He called her like that the first time they made love and ever since then, every time he called her by her full name she would remember that wonderful night and turn into a melting puddle. He realized it fast enough and would skillfully use it against her when they were in public or when he wanted to persuade her to do something.

But not this time, she decided quietly. He had been acting strangely for more then two weeks now and she was unhappy with his bursts of anger. She knew he couldn't tell her much about his job but he seemed detached from her in other areas too. She gave him the wet towels and didn't even offer her assistance, choosing to go back to sleep. "I'll be in the bedroom if you need me." She said quietly, leaving him staring after her.

He wanted to shout out that he needed her and badly but the last couple of hours surfaced in his mind and he held his tongue, swallowing the bitter taste in his mouth and heading towards the bathroom. He cleaned the blood from his lips and winced as he placed the cold cloth against his swelling cheek. The lip should be fine in the morning but he needed to figure out a way to hide the bruising on his cheek. He eyed the tube of makeup with narrowed eyes before washing his face one more time and heading towards the bedroom.

Bobby sighed when he realized she was already asleep, safely cocooned under the heavy covers. He heard drops of rain starting to fall and cuddled closer to her, covering himself with a woolen blanket. Lying on his side, he reached out for her rich hair, tangling his hands in the soft curls. He noticed the silk negligee and groaned quietly. It has been a long time since they were together and as a new, in love, couple it was unacceptable.

They would celebrate their three-month anniversary in a few days, three months since they reunited at Jack and Sue's wedding. He moved his hand away from her hair, traveling lower, sneaking beneath the blanket. He sought the warmth of her body, his hand sneaking under her shirt and caressing the smooth skin. She moaned, the hoarse sound sending waves of arousal through him. He continued his caresses and she arched closer, another sigh escaping her lips. "Shhh…" He whispered to her ear. "Sleep, Jay…I love you." Wrapping his arms around her, he closed his eyes, surrendering to sleep.

"WHAT?!" Jack's shout echoed through the bullpen and efficiently gathered everyone's attention; even Levi raised his head before placing it under his paws as Jack continued his tirade. "Well, you tell them to keep looking! We did not waste three weeks on this case just so it could go down the drain because C.S.I couldn't find enough evidence!" There was a pause in which Jack's features turned more and more livid. "Then get someone who can!" He hissed loudly, slamming the phone.

The silence was too loud as they all waited for an explanation. Sue was the first one who dared to approach the subject, knowing that although her husband was sometimes hot tempered, he rarely lashed out at an innocent person. "Jack?" She prompted gently.

"We don't have enough evidence to get Morino."

The bullpen erupted with cries of protest, but Myles's was the loudest. "We cleaned that place with a tooth brush, we know he was there, they didn't find anything?"

"Nothing, they say the scene might have been fictional or corrupted." Jack sat down in his chair, supporting his head with his hands.

Once again, Myles' baritone voice overcame the chorus of protests. "Corrupted?!"

Jack shook his hand. "Crash, lets go have a look at the warehouse again, maybe we can find something we overlooked."

"You think?" Bobby creased his brow. "After two weeks?"

"We can't let him get away!" Jack exclaimed.

"Unfortunately, we don't have the time to do it." Dimitrius spoke quietly. "We've just been assigned to a new case." He waved the groans away with his hands and gave Tara the first details. "Arms trade."

They discussed the case until lunch came, agreeing to head out to the streets afterwards. Jack and Sue caught up with him as he waited for the elevator. "Bobby, would you like to join us for lunch?" Sue offered, leaning against Jack's chest as he hugged her.

The Aussie grinned at her. "No thanks, Sheila, I've got my own lady to surprise with lunch today."

Jack and Sue nodded with understanding and they parted ways outside the Hoover building. He and Jay planned to eat lunch together after her meeting with a client and he knew that although they hadn't discussed it yesterday, odds were that she would eat lunch there, just because she loved the little café. He paused for a moment before taking a few steps back and entering a flower shop. It was best to be prepared.

He walked ten more minutes before he entered the coffee shop, spotting her immediately as she sat beside the window, engrossed in her notes. He approached her slowly, the bouquet of red roses in front of his face. "Special delivery for Miss Morgan."

She cocked her eyebrow at him. "Tell Bobby Manning he's gonna have to do better then that."

He lowered the flowers and smiled sadly, a sense of déjà vu overpowering him. "I'm sorry for last night; I didn't mean to snap at you." He paused. "I had a rough two weeks but now…I think I'm okay." Jay took the flowers and he sat down in front of her. "Have you eaten already?"

"Well, you are late." She chuckled, signaling the waitress to come over to take another order. Bobby ordered something with meat and they lapsed into silence. Jay took a look at his cheek. "Is that makeup on your cheek?"

Bobby stared at her for a moment. "Look, what I did last night…it was my own mistake, I don't want to drag Jack into it, there's no use. Besides, everything is over now…Jack doesn't have to know everything."

"Okay." She dropped the subject and he immediately asked her about her meeting. She showed him some of her ideas while he ate and he laughed at the jumping M&M's, suddenly craving some chocolate. "I know you can't tell me much about your work and to tell you the truth, I'm not sure I want to know everything but…well, I could see you had something on your mind lately…is it over now?" She returned the conversation backwards, watching as he bit his lips nervously. She really wanted to kiss his cares away.

"It's better now, that's for sure."

She pursed her lips and he marveled at the glint in her eyes. "Does it mean we'll have some time for ourselves?" He nodded his head. "Alone time, perhaps?" She elaborated further. "I did buy some new things from 'Victoria's secret'…"

"Check please!" He immediately raised his hand and signed to the waitress, grinning when she started to giggle.

They decided to have some sandwiches for lunch, but Sue was surprised when Jack ordered them to go and practically hurled her back to the car. She giggled when he quickly pulled out of the parking place. "Jack, where are we going?"

He waited until he stopped at a traffic light before turning his head to face her. "In the last couple of weeks we barely had time for ourselves." She nodded her head, smiling when he shook his head with frustration and continued driving. The next stop at a traffic light was five minutes later. "I thought we could have a private lunch since we're heading to the streets afterwards and we might be home late. Alright, I'm driving…" The last remark was meant for the driver behind him who started honking.

They had a stream of green lights and made it back to their apartment in no time. When they entered inside, he asked her to wait in the living room while he set out the table. When he came to get her a few minutes afterwards she found that he set an intimate lunch with flowers and candles. They sat to eat, discussing anything but their recent case. When they finished their sandwiches, Jack pulled out the last piece of chocolate cake from the refrigerator and they shared it.

Sue grinned because he grinned and she recognized the glint in his eyes, one that promised an adventure. "What are you up to?" She asked, chucking at his hurt expression.

He moved towards her, helping her to her feet and leading her to their living room. "What makes you think I am up to something?" He asked innocently, his fingers slowly climbing up her spine.

She shivered and his grin widened. "You have that glint in your eyes."

"A glint?" His mouth was close to hers, his breathe tickling her. The delicious brown in his eyes turned darker when she licked her lips with anticipation. "I don't have a glint." He breathed, pulling her closer to him, her curves fitting his body as he pressed them closer. "How long do we have before we're meeting Howie?"

Sue looked at her watch. "An hour and a half."

"Plenty of time." His lips finally met hers and she responded immediately, tangling her fingers in his thick hair while he slowly moved them towards the sofa, his hands busy with the tiny buttons on her shirt. She wasn't too far behind, already attempting to remove his shirt from his shoulders, groaning when he refused to stop touching her. Distracting him, she placed a kiss just below his ear lobe. "Jack?"

"Hmmm…"

"You planned this, didn't you? That's why you asked Lucy to keep an eye on Levi…"

It took a few minutes of kissing before he managed to answer her question. Yes. He signed to her hand, wondering why he couldn't plan it so that she would wear a skirt to work instead of those hard to remove pants. She giggled and pulled him back to a kiss, passionate and consuming.

His lips left hers and traveled lower to her neck, nibbling and tasting before making the journey to her lips once more, her taste addictive. His hands left her rebellious shirt and cupped her face, deepening the kiss, his body aching to feel her. One of her legs wrapped around his waist and he whispered her name as he moved lower in his explorations, hearing his own name echoing in the room.

She moved her hands down his chest, amazed the simple touch could make him shudder. His skin was feverish under her touch and the heat consumed her, desperately craving more. She moved to his belt as she restlessly sought more contact, her lips finding his and exploring hungrily.

He groaned when he realized that her clothing removal skills were obviously better then his, finding himself with nothing on but his boxer shorts. She giggled. "Come on now, Hudson, the clock is ticking." She teased, taking advantage at his shocked situation and somehow escaping from his arms and heading towards the bedroom. "Are you going to join me?"

He laughed, it seems like lunch was turning out to be his favorite meal of the day.

They took her car to his apartment and he made her drop him off in front of the apartment building, giving him some time to create a romantic atmosphere while she looked for a parking space. "I hate your street." She came flying through the door. "I always have to make at least…" He enveloped his arms around her, half picking her up off the floor, his mouth finding hers and immediately taking possession, heightening their senses.

Jay deepened the kiss; the heat from his body enveloping her as he slowly unbuttoned her coat and it fell to the floor. Bobby sought further contact, exploring her mouth while his fingers were busy with her shirt, slowly removing it and pulling her towards his bedroom. She smiled when she saw his room. The blinds were shut and the drops of rain hit them gently. A lone candle stood in the corner, providing a sensual lighting as the flame flickered.

Bobby took his time with removing their clothes, chuckling at her enthusiastic willingness to help. He missed her touch in the past two weeks but still couldn't bring himself to touch her while he felt so morally corrupted. He knew what he did was wrong, knew that fear drove his actions, knew that his past would raise its ugly head over and over again and he didn't want to hide it from her…so he kept his distance; emotionally and physically.

Her lips on his throat brought him back with a delighted moan, she knew exactly where she was going, effectively shutting down his mind as her lips scorched a trail of fire from his shoulder (how on earth did he lose his shirt?) to his ear, nibbling on the ear lobe. "Should I leave a mark?" she whispered, her voice husky.

He wanted to say no but nothing articulate came out and he groaned when her sweet lips moved lower to his chest, continuing on her constant quest to drive him insane. "Maybe I'll leave a mark in a place you don't need makeup to hide it…" He chuckled and she raised her eyes to meet his. "Ah…there is still some blood left in your brain…" She squealed when he flipped them over, her body aching to feel his as he stretched above her.

"Maybe I could leave some marks of my own." He teased. "After all, you don't have any meetings with clients in the next couple of days." Jay gasped as his lips trailed down her neck and his hands trailed even lower. He nibbled on a spot and she arched towards him, a sigh escaping her lips.

He traveled higher to her ear and then bit gently before lifting his gaze and looking at her, slowly caressing her cheek with the back of his hand. She opened passion filled eyes and gazed at him with a smile. "I am sorry for the past two weeks, I promise to never shut you out like that again."

"You know that I'm always here if you want to talk, even if you can't tell me everything." She paused. "I love you, you know that."

"I love you too…I haven't said it enough in the past two weeks." He kissed her lips gently, deepening the kiss, leisurely exploring her mouth. She met him with equal ardor, desiring the sweet contact that seemed to be missing in the previous two weeks. Her stomach fluttered when they both slowly undressed each other, anticipation rising in her womb as all thoughts slowly disappeared.

His entire essence focused on the moment, registering every beat, every sigh, every move that caused her pleasure. They were a perfect match from the start and yet every time they loved each other he learned more. He sighed into her neck, their bodies still feverish, their breathing still labored. They were beautiful, what they had was beautiful, even when they wanted nothing but a passing release. He raised his head and smiled fondly, leaning down for a kiss. "You're gorgeous…I love you."

Jay allowed herself the luxury of dozing off in his apartment, surrounded by his scent. She smiled into the pillow, trying hard to quench the girly giggle that was about to surface, she was unbelievably happy and now that he was gone, she realized that she missed his touch. "For heavens sake…" She groaned. "He just left an hour ago, get a life and you can jump on him when he gets home." A sly grin appeared on her lips, Oh she would jump on him…with her new, very seductive, black negligee that came with a very seductive thong and matching stocking and garter belt.

She felt her cheeks flushing as she imagined his reaction, her hands moving to caress her stomach as more fluttering started. She never intentionally tried to seduce him and the thought of what might happen caused her to squeal into the pillow, laughter bursting from inside of her. She sighed before getting up from his bed and heading towards the shower, turning the cold water on.

They planned to spend the night in her apartment and although it was a good hour drive from the Hoover building and his apartment, he still didn't mind driving to see her. They divided the nights between them so that Bobby wouldn't have to drive far all the time. Bobby already considered that they should think about moving in together, considering the fact they rarely slept alone but he thought it might be too early to suggest it and he gladly endured the driving.

Freshly showered, he skipped down the stairs and headed towards his car, pausing when he saw the man who leaned against it. Narrowing his eyes, he made a point of showing that he carried a gun and the man merely chuckled at the sight of him. Bobby touched his still throbbing cheek. "I thought our business was finished."

The man shrugged his shoulders and Bobby tensed as he felt a presence behind him. Two men grabbed him from behind. "Let's go for a little ride, agent Manning." He struggled when they pushed towards a large limousine but they overpowered him and the car slowly merged with the evening traffic.

Bobby stared at the man who sat in front of him and then at the two men who sat beside him, there was no way he could get out of there. He pursed his lips. "What do you want?"

John Morino smiled. "You did a fine job, Manning, you really did. I'm almost regretting I gave you that little…demonstration last night." He paused for a moment. "I have a friend who needs some help…"

"Like hell! We had a deal." Bobby spat.

Morino nodded his head. "That's right…and now we're making a new deal. Do what I say and that little artist of yours gets to live a little longer."

It took a moment before Bobby understood what he meant. He snorted. "I was going to break up with her anyway."

"Oh yeah?" He tossed a brown envelope into Bobby's lap.

Bobby opened the envelope and gaped at the pictures that were inside, fighting the bile that rose in his throat. He chuckled as he scanned the pictures. "Just some harmless fun while I can still have it."

Morino grinned. "Not from the sounds of it."

Bobby lowered his gaze to the photos again, clenching his jaws to keep from cursing loudly. The picture made the entire scene look dirty and the thought that someone heard them was even more sickening. One of the men beside him whistled softly: "My, my she's quite a looker isn't she…seems pretty wanton with her head thrown backwards like that…"

"You son of a…" Bobby lunged forward, halting any movements when he stared down the barrel of a gun.

"Here's the deal." Morino spoke. "I have a friend who sells weapons, you make sure no one will find him dealing and you can keep your little fun…" His lips curled into a smile. "If he gets caught, I will make sure you can see her when she dies." The limousine screeched into a halt and he was pulled outside, stumbling on the sidewalk before regaining his balance, watching as it drove away, the brown envelope still clutched in his hand.