Alec heard her steady breathing first and listened to its rhythm with a newfound longing. He had never slept as soundly as he did last night, and found himself wondering if it was all because of her.

"Hey, sleepyhead," Max called, padding into the room.

From the way her feet hit the marbled bathroom tile, he knew she was barefoot and had just taken a shower, which meant he had missed out on the awkward conversation of who gets to shower first, and who has to turn around so as not to see the shower-er's nude form. And he had really wanted to have that conversation.

But in retrospect, or rhetorical retrospect as it were, she probably would have undressed and redressed right inside the shower stall, or maybe even the closet, just to avoid the entirety of the situation.

Alec opened his eyes slowly. Of course she'd be a natural vision in the morning, he thought. Her shark DNA makes her a shoo-in for queen of the non-sleepers, but her feline DNA makes that statement seem moot. She was a strange antithesis.

He tried to spend a little time taking in the sight of her, but she seemed to already be on the move. She was wearing her dark jeans and a long-sleeve, knit, deep purple pullover sweater. She looked both warm and cold.

"Jeez, from the way you've been sleeping, one might think you'd been drugged by your wife," Max teased.

Alec sat straight up in bed. "You drugged me?" He reconsidered his previous notion about how soundly he had slept and why.

"Had to find some way to get the bathroom all to myself." Max smiled wide and toweled her hair, trying to keep the wetter strands from dripping too much. "You know there are no doors in there except on the shower."

Alec stared into the vastness of the comforter and tried to remain calm. How could she do that?

"Gotcha!" Max said, giggling.

"Oh, thank god. I was about to be so pissed off at you."

Max crossed the room and reached for her boots. "Ah, well, now you can love me like a good husband should."

Which, of course, was a statement that sent thousands of potentially inappropriate images through Alec's mind. Oh, the ways he could love her like a good husband should.

"Which reminds me," he started. "There's something we need to talk about."

Max slipped one of her boots on and sat down in the chair facing the bed to tie the laces. "Oh? What's that?"

Alec swept the comforter off of his legs and swung himself around to the side of the bed, the act of which gave Max the whole of Alec's back muscles to stare at for the second time in less than twenty-four hours. She couldn't help but watch as he bent to grab his jeans.

"Well, we're married, now – and incidentally, if that's not a big sign of Logan's affection, I don't know what is – so we really need to look like we're married."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Max asked, snapping out of her trance at his sarcasm. "And, what's that supposed to mean?"

Alec smirked. "Which one?"

"Both."

"It means," he said, fishing in his pocket and producing a shiny ring with a couple of small diamonds on it, "that my bride needs a ring." Alec extended his arm out to Max.

With just one boot on, she hobbled over to him and reached for the ring, but before she could grab it, he shot his arm up into the air and held the ring high above his head.

"Hey!" she shouted, trying to reach up his arm to where the ring seemed to gleam and float effortlessly.

Alec caught her hand with his and pulled it in front of them. Without pause, he slid the ring on her finger, seeming to study the way their hands touched, and did not let go of hers. He looked up to her eyes for her reaction, but she was speechless, just staring at the ring. "Mrs. Crawford," Alec announced.

There was something in the way he said it that felt totally natural. But obviously this couldn't be natural, Max thought.

The paradox of Alec did everything to Max that she wished it didn't. He had named her his wife seemingly without any real emotion attached to it, but the emotionless-ness of it seemed to carry more depth than it seemed. She couldn't work it out in her brain.

Max stared back up at him, partially blushing from the scenario which just played out. "Mr. Crawford," she said, inadvertently leaning into him. Alec held his breath as she swayed closer, until their lips seemed only inches apart.

But when her ringed finger crept up his chest, much like the picture he had painted for her only two nights ago at Crash, he took in a shallow breath and then exhaled, trying to prepare for what might come next.

"Um, Alec?" she asked sweetly.

"Yeah?" he managed to mumble back.

"A toothbrush. Seriously. Look into it." With that quick quip, she smiled, spun around, slipping out of his grasp, and hobbled proudly back to the chair to address her left foot's lack of boot.

Alec stood, stupefied. He wondered what just happened, upset that a simple toothbrush could stand in the way of some unknown tension, and simultaneously thankful he had put his jeans on moments before the anticipatory events that followed.

Humorously defeated, Alec smiled and turned toward the bathroom. "A good wife would have kissed me anyway," he called.

"What time are we supposed to meet Biggs?" she asked, changing the subject and leaning over her knees to tie the laces on her other boot.

Alec cleared his throat. "Um, noon thirty. Oh, and I'll be in the shower if you want to join me."

As Max finished tying her footwear, she sat up in the chair and asked, "Hey, where'd you get this thing anyway?" She stood and maneuvered to Alec's side of the bed. She unconsciously went about making the bed.

He had heard her as he undressed in the hallway just outside the shower. He just didn't want to answer – at least not truthfully. "Ripped it off this old lady I delivered a package to a couple weeks ago. I was going to fence it, but –"

"-but turns out you grew a conscience and were hanging onto it to return it to her?"

Alec poked his head around the corner and watched as she smoothed the comforter over the bed, then sat down on it. God, she was beautiful. And deadly.

"You know they have people that do that, right?" he asked.

Max looked up to see Alec's face protruding from the corner. "Habit," she said, returning to staring straightforward, off into the shared hell of childhood they called Manticore. She stared for a full minute before she realized he was still looking at her. "Now would you please get ready? It's almost quarter 'til."

Alec opened the shower door and twisted the knob, sending an awesome array of quickly-heating water into the middle of the shower stall. He checked around the corner one last time to see if Max was still there, and found her admiring the ring. He smiled to himself.

When they arrived at Il Giardino, the two transgenics were taken aback by its beautiful design. It had various live plans throughout the restaurant, lots of natural light, marbled flooring and tabletops, thriving ivy, and rich-colored walls, draped in deep purples and greens.

"Is your friend here?" Max asked as they waited for the maitre'd to seat them.

Alec scanned the tables just as the maitre d' returned to his post to see them waiting.

"May I help you?"

"No, thanks, we see our party," Alec stated, ushering Max into the dining area.

She looked back and forth between Alec and the already-populated tables to see if there was any recognition on his face. He almost stopped them at one table with a young-looking businessman in a three-piece suit with wild red hair (but who Max found pretty cute). Turned out he had slowed down to let a couple pass them in the almost-crowded path between tables, but when he slowed, he turned toward Max. The couple bumped into him and he consequently bumped into Max. She lost her balance and started to topple backwards.

Alec caught her by the forearms and pulled her forward. "You alright?"

"Yeah."

Alec slid his hands down her arms and stopped at her hands. They were so warm on hers, despite the chill air of the restaurant, that it made her feel slightly hot – hot enough that she couldn't open her eyes completely.

"Thanks," she whispered lowly.

Being that close to him for the second time today made her feel weak with want.

Max wondered what was going on. Was she in heat or something? If so, that would be really bad timing, considering she had to share a hotel room with him. And a things she didn't know if she'd be able to handle it if she was in heat.

Alec moved his hands away from hers and turned so he was in the walkway. He led her to another table with note card on it, which, in beautiful handwritten calligraphy, read: Reserved. Mr. & Mrs. Crawford.

Alec pulled the chair out for Max and she sat down, hands folded politely in her lap. He then pulled out his own chair and seated himself. They both looked around the restaurant. Despite the fact that she wasn't sure what Biggs looked like, she assumed he was a tall, dark-haired, handsome man about Alec's age with a charming air about him, because as Original Cindy said, Manticore 'sure knew how to make 'em pretty.'

"So where is he?" she asked.

"Ah, I'm right here," came a voice from behind her. "Now what are your other two wishes?"

Max turned her body in the seat to see a tall, dark-haired man about the same age as Alec. He was wearing a nice black suit with a white dress shirt and a deep red tie. He smiled at Max before turning his attention to his old Commanding Officer.

He wasn't as handsome as she had expected. Or maybe he just paled in comparison to Alec. Or maybe this 'SuperCharm' was supposed to make him seem more handsome.

Max shrugged off the thoughts and stood to join the already-standing Mr. Crawford.

Alec reached out to shake Biggs' hand. "Biggsy!" he greeted. "How's it been?"

Biggs pulled him into a brotherly hug. "Missed ya, man. You going by 'Alec' out here?"

He nodded, but then remembered their aliases. "It's Tom Crawford," he said, very straightforward, and as if presenting her, turned to Max and added, "And this is my lovely wife, Katarina."

"Lovely, indeed," Biggs said, reaching for her hand.

Max smiled and shook his hand with a gentle squeeze. "Nice to meet you."

Biggs took his time shaking her hand and didn't let go right away. He stared into her. "You're an angel," he said.

She blushed momentarily. This wasn't the kind of stuff that usually worked on her, but she felt the need to respond. And she considered that maybe he had jackrabbit in his cocktail.

Max laughed out loud at the thought.

"I mean, for marrying this guy," Biggs added, breaking the handshake and slapping his friend on the chest.

Max shot a glance over to Alec and saw he was already watching her reaction. "You know we're not really-"

"Not really interested in Italian?" Biggs finished, looking around suspiciously.

Max caught on. "Right, no actually I love Italian."

"Awesome, then I have a shot!" Biggs said in a near-whisper.

Max looked down toward the table.

Alec did not like the way Biggs was acting one bit. "So what's going on, Biggs? Why the suit?"

The three seated themselves and Biggs leaned in toward them both.

"I run this restaurant," he said. "For about a year now."

"They don't care that you're, you know," Max started, trying to point to her barcode inconspicuously, "um, different?"

Biggs nodded. "I was on a deep cover when I first got here, and then I decided to keep on mission after Purgatory burnt to the ground. They never knew I was different."

Max was surprised. She was used to impersonating multiple people, even within the same day, but one false personality for years on end, now that was different. "How did you manage not to get caught?"

"Every two weeks I drive out of town and I see this wonderful woman over at Think Ink. She's the only normal one who knows about me."

"Besides Lola," Alec added with a knowing smile, simultaneously trying to passively remind Max that Biggs wasn't as charming as he considered himself to be.

Biggs blushed, instantly remembering the voluptuous woman from so long ago. "Well, yeah, besides her."

"You gonna tell me how you got that name?" Max asked, smiling flirtatiously. "Or you just gonna let me guess?" Max pretended to peek over the table and look down.

The corner of Biggs' mouth curved up as he raised an eyebrow. "Ask Lola," he said, looking down a moment in reminiscence. "Hey, you two hungry? I've got the kitchen preparing a delectable pasta dish for you. Should be ready any minute."

"As long as it's not Pasta Tricolore," Max said, thinking about Logan again. She glanced down at her wedding ring and thought about what Alec had said earlier.

She didn't understand why he would agree to send her and Alec on a mission together as a married couple, but with separate rooms. Or at least they were separate before the hotel screwed up. If they were supposed to be fighting, that wouldn't make for a very good alias – it would just attract all kinds of weird attention. Maybe he was trying to tell her something.

"So what's the deal with this member of your unit?" Max asked, not realizing how dirty she must sound.

Biggs looked over to Alec, his smile fading as Max coldly turned the subject onto the business at hand. He took a breath. "It's Trip," he said.

Alec shifted in his seat, anger building in his eyes. "Shit," he said. "What happened?"

"Trip?" Max asked.

Biggs addressed Max first. "Trip, as in 777," he said. "We also used to call him 'Lucky', but he didn't really like that one. Something about it being super girly."

'He' didn't really like that one, Max thought, repeating Biggs' words. Trip is a man. Max was both noticeably relieved, then immediately upset. "What's the plan?"

"The plan is to get Trip the hell out of there," Alec said, again as emotionless as earlier. Again, Max felt there was something buried underneath it.

Max spoke with urgency. "The plan has got to be that we get them all the hell out! We can't just pick Trip because he was in your unit. We need to get all those kids out of there, too!"

Biggs tried to calm them both down before they started garnering more than the table's share of attention. "Hey, guys, try to keep your voices down. Neither of my plans will work if I'm outed days before the job. I have a plan for both scenarios; I just needed more people to pull it off."

"Well then what's the plan, Biggs?" Alec demanded, slipping into his old role.

Biggs sat back in his chair and spoke quietly. "There's an event tomorrow night – they call it an Investor's Casino Night, held at the Lux. Strictly a black tie event, and strictly by invitation, which I got for you two."

He looked over to Max and smiled. "You'll have no problem pulling off a dress. The problem will be finding a dress that's as beautiful as you are – and finding a dress that won't put you on the wrong guys' radars."

Max sat back. "And who's the right guy?" she played. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the way Alec shifted in his seat.

Biggs smiled again – a really sweet smile.

Alec rolled his eyes. Was he like this with all women?

Max smiled, but retuned her attention to the matter at hand. "Who's collecting?"

Biggs gave her a stern look. "The Rose family."

Max didn't know anything about the Rose family and whether or not they would actually pose a threat to three adult and some adolescent transgenics. But the look in his eyes suggested this might be a difficult exit strategy. She considered calling Logan to see if his contacts knew anything about the Rose family that might help them.

"And how does Trip fit in?" Alec asked.

"Trip and the other boys are working as waiters," Biggs answered.

The other boys, Max thought. Trip is just a little kid. Max looked over to Alec, surprised, and if she allowed herself to feel it, touched by his urgency to help this little kid. She gave him a worried look.

"Trip's supposed to make the drops – which means he has to go up to the twelfth floor on the hour with an armed guard, and meet up with the younger Rose brother to handle the switch. But he's on probation for a screw-up last time, so if he doesn't perform-" Biggs trailed and stopped.

Then they retire him, Max finished.

A waiter approached their table. "We'll go over the rest tomorrow," Biggs said. "For now, let's eat. And then maybe later tonight we can all meet up at Tease for a nightcap?"

"Tease?" Max asked.

Nightcap? Who still says that? Alec wondered. He leaned toward Max and said, "See, honey? They named a bar after you!"

Max slapped him in the arm.

"Ow!"

Biggs chuckled at his friend's misfortune.

" You always make it hurt so good, Maxie." Alec smiled cockily at his friend.

" Ow!"