Edited to add missing section is chapter 2

Notes – This was just going to be a one-shot, but then I decided to incorporate some drabbles I had already written on a D/E forum. This chapter tells a little about what they were thinking Post-Candy and Post-Eating Away.

Working with someone you're crazy about is harder than it looks, Danny thought as he tried to focus on his paper work. Suddenly, he had a new appreciation for Martin and even, Samantha. They had worked side by side for months, while they were in whatever kind of relationship they were in, and Danny only knew about it because he'd caught them in a few moments here and there.

This is why Danny had always vowed never to get involved with someone at work, especially with the kind of work they do. How could he not want to greet her each morning with a kiss? How could he not be more and more worried when she is put in dangerous situations? It wasn't in Danny's make-up to keep this kind of thing a secret – not that they were really keeping it a secret. Before Sophie's kidnapping, they had made a habit of leaving together after work. And anytime they could get away for lunch, they would. So everyone knew, but he and Elena still tried to keep things professional. They'd done a good job of it when they first got together. But now that they were getting closer again, it was getting harder.

Truthfully, his feelings started long before he'd kissed her. The moment Carlos had introduced them, seven years ago, he'd thought she was the most beautiful woman he'd ever seen. But then, things went south with Carlos and Elena, and Carlos painted her as a tease that never let him see their daughter. Danny had known there was likely more to the story, but he had supported Carlos as any friend would.

Then, Elena had come to work for the team. At first, he'd found the situation highly amusing, because she was clearly not happy about working with him. But very quickly, those feelings subsided. He'd realized that she was just a hard-working agent and mother who was doing her best. And Danny grew to respect that immensely. That respect turned into a good working relationship and eventually, just like with the rest of the team, he'd considered her a friend.

That's where things started to get complicated because she was now a friend who he had always been attracted to. As it turned out, that had sent Danny down a road where his feelings for her deepened day-by-day.

He had no idea how far gone he was until they worked on the case of the missing stripper. He almost couldn't believe it when Jack had told him that he was going to send Elena undercover. This idea had seemed preposterous, but then he'd remembered that she'd had experience with this type of undercover work when she worked on the vice decoy squad.

When Jack had told him to be Elena's back up at the club, he'd almost laughed. Working undercover at a strip club screamed cheesy 80's cop show, but Jack seemed to think this was their best shot at finding their missing person. And after Danny had met Noah, the missing person's son, he'd suddenly felt very compelled to reunite him with his mother no matter what.

Staying focused on the job became even more complicated when he and Elena had to "perform" for the sleazy guy who supplemented his income by blackmailing clients with sex tapes. Even though Danny had tried to make light of the situation to make Elena comfortable, he couldn't help but come away from the experience feeling more attracted to her than ever.

Danny watched the cab drive away and the nervous feeling in his stomach started to subside. He couldn't remember the last time he'd felt that feeling…the feeling of being nervous around a woman. He'd felt attracted. He'd felt the physical need to be with someone. But it had been forever since he'd felt nervous.

There was a girl in college once. He'd thought she was too good for him, but he asked her out anyway. He'd thought he could fake it. He'd thought he could make her fall for him. He'd done a good job of it for a while. She'd thought she'd fallen in love with him. But before too long, she'd seen his true colors. She'd gotten tired of the drinking, the mood swings and the hangovers. She'd left without turning back, even thought he'd promised her that he'd get help. She turned out to be as smart as she was beautiful.

The cab faded from view, but he was still stuck to the same place on the sidewalk. He'd wanted to kiss Elena again, but he'd settle for touching her one last time by brushing her cheek ever so slightly.

After that night, Danny had done all he could do to stifle his growing feelings. Asking Elena out would be too complicated. They worked together. She had a kid, his old friend's daughter. It couldn't possibly work, he'd thought to himself. But the more time that had passed, the harder it had become to ignore his feelings.

When Carlos had forced him into situation where he had to admit his feelings, there was no turning back. He'd grown to care so much for Elena that he couldn't possibly betray her by staying loyal to his old friend. Making that decision to stand by Elena set off a chain reaction of events, some good and some very bad, but all had led to where they were at that moment – with him being more in love with her than ever before.

"It's what he didn't do that turned me on more," thought Elena as she tilted her head back in the cab. Sure he was a good kisser, but she'd kind of expected that. He'd moved in the sexiest of ways. She'd expected that as well. But it had been when he touched her or, rather, hadn't touched her that had made her crazy.

They both knew the score. They were being taped. This was their job. But everything about it still felt really good, and inevitably, they got caught up in the moment. When she was on top of him and kissing him, she felt his hands graze the small of her back, but just as quickly he'd pulled them away. Instead, he'd held his hands back on the pillow or touched her hair and face, but had been very careful not to touch her body.

Feeling his fingers graze her skin like that almost sent her into orbit, because she knew in that moment what he'd be capable of if they weren't two agents working on a job. She knew that if he had touched her, then they both would have lost all control.

Opening her eyes to stop herself from fantasizing, Elena shook her head. She shouldn't be thinking like this. She shouldn't let herself get caught up in him. Working together made it a bad idea. Their history made it an even worse idea. And yet, when he touched her cheek at the end of the night, all of that was very far away. And once again, it was what he hadn't done that had affected her even more.

Elena stood in a kind of trance-like state as she thought about the night that Danny had helped her get Sophie after working the tragic case of the missing stripper. Before that night, she'd only thought of Danny as someone whom she had become friends and colleagues with. Of course, she'd always thought he was attractive, sexy even, from the moment Carlos had introduced them all those years ago. But his friendship with Carlos and the fact that he'd written a letter of support when Carlos had filed for visitation when Sophie was a baby had made her hate Danny. She hadn't imagined ever overcoming those negative feelings – that is, until she started to work with him.

When Elena had been assigned to Jack Malone's team, she had prayed it was temporary, mostly because a job on Jack's Malone's teams meant long and unpredictable hours, whereas a job in white collar would be the nine-to-five work that would make her a more dependable mother. The other reason she dreaded working on Jack's team had been because she knew that Danny Taylor had worked for Jack for several years. She hated the thought of working with the cocky, arrogant, old friend of Carlos's.

But when Jack made it clear that the transfer was permanent, she knew she had to get over her negative feelings very quickly. She and Danny would have to work together whether she liked it or not. As it had turned out, it was much easier than she had anticipated. Was he still a bit cocky and arrogant? Yes. But behind all of that, Elena had found a deeply compassionate, smart agent who she, more often than not, learned a great deal from. He'd grown so much from the man that Carlos had first introduced her to. Sometimes, Elena found herself almost emotional when she would witness his compassion in action, like when he'd comforted Cole Warren in his last moments alive at that bus station.

In short order, she'd forgotten about Danny's loyalty to Sophie's father. That's why she had been completely thrown off guard when her lawyer had informed her that Danny was on Carlo's witness list. And then all the good will and respect she'd felt for Danny came to a screeching halt.

When she had confronted Danny, telling him that Carlos had intended to fight her for custody, she could see the confusion and regret in his eyes. But it hadn't mattered to her. All that had mattered was Sophie. So when he had come to her that night in the office to tell that he wasn't going to support Carlos, she had been so relieved and touched by his change of heart. When she'd asked him why he had changed his mind, she had been caught completely off guard when he'd come toward her and kissed her. But as unprepared as she was by his display of affection, she couldn't help but respond to him. Deep down, she'd been yearning for another moment like this since that night of their undercover operation. She knew it would get complicated, but in that moment when he kissed her, she didn't care.

To say they had been lost in the moment was an understatement. They had completely forgotten that they were in the middle of the office. As their lips parted and he looked in her eyes, he smiled. She could tell he was almost relieved that she had returned to kiss.

He was about to say something when they heard the sounds of voices coming down the hallway. As if they were two teenagers, the jumped apart only to find that the voices were coming from two maintenance workers.

They both laughed slightly as the two people walked down the hallway.

Danny started to speak first. "I, um—"

Raising her hand to stop him, Elena bit her lip before responding, "Before you say anything, think about what I just said. This isn't a good time for me to get involved with anyone, let alone…you, Danny."

Danny sighed deeply and then ran a hand through his hair. "Don't you get it yet?" he asked he stepped towards and put his hand against her cheek. "I'm already involved."

Rolling her eyes, Elena smiled at the memory.

"What's so funny?" Samantha asked as she walked up beside her in the break room.

Shaking the memory from her head, Elena responded, "Nothing."

"You know for someone who's been going through an awful lot, you seem to be handling it really well," Samantha said as she poured a cup of coffee.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, you look happy again. I'm glad you aren't letting the fact the Carlos got off bring you down."

"It's hard, knowing he's out there, but there's nothing I can do except keep Sophie safe."

"Yeah, but that doesn't explain the dreamy look on your face when I walked in here."

Elena smiled again. "It's…it's—"

Samantha smirked. "It's good that you are letting Danny help you through this."

Closing her eyes, Elena let out a small sigh. "It is good. It's really good."