Thank you so MUCH for the lovely reviews.

I am also sorry taking so long to update this story. *sighs*

Disclaimer: I don't own Lie To Me (yet, anyway)

... … …

"You can't always get what you want

But if you try sometimes you might find

You get what you need"

~~ Rolling Stones ~~

... ... ...

Cal thought Zoe was what he needed. That commitment was what he needed.

And so he had proposed to her.

Also because he remembered hearing from his mother say how she would love to have grandchildren. Just because she wasn't there to see Ems, it didn't mean she wouldn't be happy.

He knew she would. He knew she would be proud of him. He just wished he could be proud of himself. He just wished he had done this for the right reason. For love.

Was it too late to go after what he really needed?

… … …

"It's a pleasure to meet you."

Zoe's voice sounded as cold as the snow that had started falling outside and her smile looked as false as the huge Christmas tree that had been set up at the dining room.

Cal felt like rolling his eyes at her but he knew that that would only make things worse so he decided to ignore what he had just seen.

If it had been any other day, he would have probably gone for it and complained loudly about what she had just done, but today he was actually having a pretty good evening so he thought he should celebrate that, instead of throwing more ashes into the fire.

He took a deep breath as he watched Zoe sitting by his side and then turned around, ready to mouth a silent apology to Gillian.

Gillian, however, seemed to be pretty oblivious about what had just happened as her eyes were focused on Emily as the little one told her about the TV Shows she liked to watch during the winter break.

Cal studied her face closely. Had she missed the clues on Zoe's voice and face or was she pretending she had? He didn't know her well enough to tell but he would bet all his money on the second option.

Gillian wasn't stupid. She had noticed the you-are-a-threat-so-I-will-treat-you-like-one look as soon as the other woman had reached the table. She had noticed how Zoe had rested a hand over Cal's shoulder possessively. She had noticed the look on Cal's face once the hand made contact with his body.

She didn't have to be an expert to understand that things between them weren't going that well but she decided to stay quiet and ignore it because it was none of her business. She had just met the man, for God's sake. And besides, his daughter was the cutest thing ever and was certainly much more interesting than whatever was happening between the couple.

The room started filling in with people and so the chef, Hugh, came to welcome and have a word with a few people, making sure they were all enjoying themselves and were ready to have the best meal of their lives.

He had been serving them for quite a few years now and so he had quite a few great friends among the loud crowd of people who seemed to be always discussing work, even though that went completely against the Pentagon's goal.

"Gill?" He suddenly said as his eyes found what seemed to be a very familiar shape.

Gillian turned around, surprised to have heard someone calling her by her nickname. She almost jumped of her chair when she realized that it was Hugh who had just pronounced it with his incredible Irish accent.

"Oh God, I knew it had to be you." Hugh said as he approached the table, hugging Gillian close as soon as she stood up. "How are you, gorgeous?"

If Cal's attention had been caught by the fact that someone had just called her by a nickname and had caused joy to reach her eyes almost instantly, he had to fight hard not to raise his eyebrow questioningly as he heard him calling her gorgeous.

He couldn't possibly be jealous, could he? Of course not.

Right?

He had just met her like 5 minutes ago! What was happening to him?

"I am really happy to see you!" Gillian answered as she pulled away, looking straight into his green eyes before raising an eyebrow suspiciously. "And how are you, mister? Didn't hear anything from you since that last text message you sent saying that you were going to run away for a few weeks… what happened with Kate?"

"Oh, Gill, don't go all psychologist on me now, okay?" He joked. "I promise I will tell you but… later. Deal?" He asked, giving her his best smile before laughing as she shook her head in defeat as well as in acceptance.

"I didn't come here to talk about sad things… It's almost Christmas, Gill!" He quickly added, wrapping an arm around her shoulders and turning them around so that they were both facing the table. "How's everyone? Enjoying yourselves?"

"Yes, thank you." Zoe said, her tone sounding slightly happier. The fact that there seemed to be a man in Gillian's life made her feel slightly better about herself and her own marriage.

"Well, I am glad to hear that!" He said with a smile before leaning over and kissing Gillian's cheek. "Well, beautiful, I must go now and say hi to the gang… will see you later?"

"Of course. You know exactly where to find me, don't you?" She replied with a wink before sitting down as he winked back at her and turned around to leave.

"Oh God… I almost forgot!"

Gillian turned around to face him once again but this time she didn't stand up.

"Do you want your dessert first or will you be waiting till the end of the dinner like normal people do?" He asked, a grin playing on his face as he knew exactly what her answer would be.

"Just bring the dessert first, will you? Don't make me go get it at the kitchen… you know what happens if I walk into your lovely kitchen, don't you?"

"Oh please, don't! Stay exactly where you are! It was an innocent question." He faked a scared voice tone, causing her to giggle.

"Oh, can I have my dessert first too?" Emily asked.

Gillian looked at the girl and started biting on her lower lip as silence was the only thing answering Emily's question.

"Well, young lady… What do your parents think about this?" Hugh said, raising an eyebrow as he focused his attention on Cal and Zoe.

Cal seemed to be way too busy studying the interaction between Gillian and Hugh to answer and Zoe seemed to be quite speechless.

"Please, Mom…" Emily then said.

… … …

I know this looks like a weird place to stop but this is really one of those decisions that can change the whole thing between these four characters. LOL.

I hope you liked this chapter.

R&R if you feel like it.

See you VERY soon,

Tess.