A/N: Closing in on my favorite scene. :D As always, if anyone read this, please feel free to leave a comment of any kind. All feed back is appreciated and read with relish.

Lucy unlocked the door to her quiet apartment, shoulders slumping as she slipped into the darkness. Her keys clattered in the bowl by the door, a hollow sound she'd never really noticed before. For the first time all day she was alone, the silence wrapping around her like a blanket.

It should have been comforting, after a long day of prying but well meaning questions from the Callaghan women. They wanted all the details. Did Peter sweep you off your feet? Has he taken you to Paris? When did you fall in love? And the worst one… How did he propose? Every time she was given the opportunity to recant, to confess her horrible lies, some affectionate pat on the shoulder, a twinkle in an old woman's eye, something would stop her. She didn't want to disappoint these kind hearted people.

The fact that they were so trusting, so easily deceived bothered her too. She wouldn't have felt nearly as bad perpetuating the falsehood if they hadn't welcomed her with open arms. Why couldn't they be the kind of people that hassled future in-laws? They were too kind.

Except Jack. He had his own suspicions, that was certain, but Lucy wasn't quite sure what those were. She wondered idly if Jack thought she was some sort of gold-digger. The thought made her smile. She was digging for treasure, hopelessly clawing for it, but it wasn't money she was interested in. Peter meant something else to her, something she would be terribly embarrassed to articulate out loud.

Lucy should have been angry that Jack had been snooping around, but it was impossible for her to muster any kind of indignation. He was totally on track with his suspicions, and if it had been for the fortuitous encounter with Peter's pencil wielding colleague, her stupid game would have been completely sunk.

Still, she found herself smiling. There was something about Jack that drew her to him, and it wasn't the same magnetic pull she felt for the rest of his family, it was definitely a creature of a different sort, the kind that set butterflies to fluttering in her stomach when he said her name, imbuing it with a hint of wonder. The soft, not quite gravelly, tone did the strangest things to her.

More than anything though, Jack amused her. Countless times in their short acquaintance she'd felt her cheeks tighten as an inescapable smile spread across her face, a little laugh bubbling up to the surface, warm and tingling as it broke free. How did he do that? He was so bumbling in his attempts to unveil her deception, she found it endearing rather than threatening.

Today though, he'd come startlingly close to the truth, even if his evidence had been somewhat off. She snorted, stifling a laugh at the memory of Jack hurling Joe Fusco's name at her. Oh, poor Joey, was it so ridiculous that someone could be with him?

As amusing as it was, the information Jack had gleaned made her nervous. She was very close to losing the family she'd gained.

She leaned forward, bumping her head against the wall in her tiny foyer. The Callaghan's were not her family. They were nothing to her. She had to tell them the truth and then disengage from this potentially hurtful charade. The mere thought had tears pricking at the back of her eyes, the loneliness creeping up against her back again.

A knock on the door behind her startled her from her melancholy thoughts. Who would be bothering her at this hour? She groaned, knowing only one person harassed her on a consistent basis. She reluctantly turned, eyeing the doorknob. If she was going to cut the Callaghans loose, it would probably be best to keep the few people who cared about her. Even if this particular person annoyed the hell out of her.

She grasped the knob, and swung it open, Joe's face filling her vision briefly before he pushed past her into the apartment, mumbling something about being 'stood up,' his hands thrown up dramatically to emphasize his point. This was going to be a fun conversation. She shut the door and followed him, casting her eyes heavenward, praying for the patience of a saint. To think, only seconds before she'd actually felt sorry for this unbearable man.

XXXX

Lucy was frazzled, first Joe's nonsensical rant about icecapades, then Saul inexplicably showing up to let her know that he'd heard everything she'd said to Peter, her mortifying confession to an unconscious man. She felt a little sick, even though he'd assured her he wouldn't say anything. It didn't help. She had no idea what Saul saw in her, or how he could see any merits in upholding this lie, but having a confidante somehow made the whole thing worse.

A heavy thump coming from the direction of her closet caught her attention, and she sprinted toward it, flinging the door open. "What are you doing!"

"I slipped…"

She tried not to laugh, instead schooling her face into well deserved outrage. Joe was frozen in place, his mouth hanging open, a look of absolute mortification in his eyes. Her delicate dress shoes clutched in his meaty paws, the tips of his huge toes just beginning to slide into them. "You're trying on my shoes!"

Joe fumbled for an excuse, while Lucy tried to process the scene in front of her. This could very well explain a few things about her neighbor. Her shoe clattered to the floor as he scrambled to his feet, but before he could continue his pathetic explanation, a knock sounded on the door again.

For someone who considered herself to be all alone, she sure had a unbelievable amount of people knocking at her door. This was getting ridiculous. This time she called out, not willing to open her door to yet another unwanted guest. "Who is it?"

"It's me, Jack Callaghan." The deep timbered voice she's been so recently contemplating floated through the paneling of her door. She groaned. This was the last person she needed to see, especially not with this tiny gorilla of a man lurking at her side. She ushered Joe back into her closet, none too gently (he was surprisingly compliant despite his protests), and dashed to the door.

She took a deep breath, fidgeting with the flyaways framing her face before she could muster the courage to grasp the knob. Swinging the door open, she felt surprisingly at ease. There was something about Jack that made her comfortable, enough to poke at him a little. Smirking, she said, "Hi… So, more questions?"

She was secretly pleased by the flash of guilty that momentarily clouded his eyes, and the speed with which that guilt was replaced by a contrite little smile made her feel a little lightheaded.

"No, I have an engagement present for you." HIs eyebrows shot up a little when he said the word 'engagement' but he was otherwise able to conceal his previous incredulousness.

Damn it. Now she was the one afflicted with a wave of guilt. She looked away from him, picking at the peeling paint along her doorjam. "Uh...you really shouldn't have." She pulled her bottom lip in between her teeth, unconsciously worrying at it.

She didn't catch Jack's adam's apple bobbing as he swallowed, or his chest rising as he took a deep breath. "I didn't. It's from my parents. It's furniture. You want me to bring it up?"

She was a little relieved, although she couldn't pinpoint why it would have been so disappointing for Jack to have gotten her an engagement present. She supposed there was a tiny part of her that liked this little war she had with him, picking at him when she had the chance, and vice versa. She could even feel the warmth creeping back into her cheeks as she looked at him again. "Oh…"

Her words deserted her, distracted as she was by the air inexplicably crackling around her, by her eyes' newfound tendency to wander to Jack's lips when she thought he wasn't looking. What was happening here? This wasn't the dreamy longing she'd felt when she'd seen Peter the first time, casually strolling down the sidewalk to the train. She'd thought for the longest time that that's what love at first sight felt like, and perhaps it was, but suddenly it felt trivial in comparison to the heady feeling starting to engulf her.

Jack's eyes darted back and forth, uncomfortable with the silence between them. "Uh.. was that Saul I saw leaving?"

Saul? Everyone in this family, friends or otherwise, just had the worst damn timing. Her mouth opened, but before she could utter a innocent denial, a fairly loud thumping noise carried into the foyer.

Jack heard it too, his curiosity piquing as he leaned forward a little. "Was that…?"

The scent of his cologne, something light that reminded her of fresh linens and the cold air immediately after it snowed, wafted up to her nostrils. The man was getting too close, in more ways than one. She uttered the first excuse that came to her mind. "Cat."

"Big cat." There it was again, his soft and totally non-confrontational disbelief.

She nodded, in the back of her mind cursing this particular 'big cat.' If she came home to a closet full of stretched out shoes, she was definitely having his father take the cost out of her rent. She had to get out of here before Joe came lumbering out into the open, ruining everything. "Um.. I think you should bring it to Peter's apartment."

"You don't know what it is."

"Well, you know, anything would look nicer in Peter's apartment." She laughed nervously, her fingers once again finding the doorjam. She suddenly felt claustrophobic, and would do anything to escape the confines of her Joe-infested apartment. "You know what? I'll come with you."

She quickly slipped out into the hall, staying any further protests Jack may have had. It was only after they'd taken a few steps, Jack's hand unconsciously finding it's way to the back of her elbow where it hovered protectively, that she realized she was still in the company of the source of her anxiety.

It wasn't just Jack's suspicion, either, but rather the giddiness that made her breathless sometimes when he dropped his guard and actually smiled at her. It was the soft way he said her name while looking away thoughtfully. She should have been running in the other direction, looking for an escape from this potentially sticky situation, but she was still trapped in the mire of her deceit. Like every decision she'd made since pulling Peter off the tracks, this one was fueled by two things. Her need to keep the Callaghans happy, and her own need to be close to someone. Only, the 'somone' in question had changed, and she wasn't sure what to do about it. She gave in and sank deeper.