Gabriel sat at a corner booth in Ernie's Diner, at 11:23 a.m., watching people pass by the window. His meal was finished and he had been in deep thought for awhile.

Was it just his imagination or were there families everywhere he looked. That young couple cuddling on the bench made Gabriel long to be held. The old couple holding hands and feeding the portly pigeons made him think about growing old with someone he loved. The kids coloring at the cafe across the street made him wonder about the day he would become a father. Gabriel realized this was all something he wanted.

He decided he would talk to Riley, try and convince her to give them a chance. Not the family and kids thing, not yet, but couldn't they just be honest about their feelings. Of course, their job complicated things. Gabriel sighed and mused that the chip in his brain could do many incredible things, but would it prevent him from following his heart.

Suddenly someone plopped down on the seat across from him, waking him up from his daydreams. At first a small part of him thought or at least hoped it was Riley. He looked up and was startled to see a woman he didn't know sitting across from him.

She was gorgeous and took Gabriel's breath away. Her sandy blond hair was a little longer then shoulder length. It was shaped slightly around her face and was wavy, maybe even slightly curly, and looked so soft. She looked about his age. She made a strange face and Gabriel realized he was staring at her (as he ran her face through facial recognition).

"Uh Hello" Gabriel said sheepishly whilst toying with the straw on his drink.

"I saw you sitting by yourself, looking rather lonesome, are you meeting your girlfriend here?" The woman smiled and she looked genuinely cheerful and friendly.

Gabriel shook his head and replied cheekily, "Nope I don't have a girlfriend, does your boyfriend mind you keeping a good looking guy like me company?" They laughed and stared at each other for maybe a bit too long.

"My name is Elly Merrick, by the way" she said at last, reaching out her hand for a handshake "and I don't have a boyfriend, so no one can tell me not to keep good looking men like you company."

"Nice to meet you Elly Merrick, I am Gabriel Vaughn" Gabriel said straightening up and flashing a smile as he went to shake her hand. He already knew her name and her job and was very pleased by her compliment so he asked the only question the chip couldn't answer. "And how does a beautiful lady like yourself not have a boyfriend."

She blushed and opened her mouth to speak, then stopped and decided to say "Thank you but I think it might be the fact that I am a single mom" She said that part nervously and seemed to be watching for his reaction.

Gabriel was just about to answer, he had already had seen this in her file. But Elly cut in, rambling,"I'm sorry.. that was awkward.. I shouldn't have dropped the mom bomb like that.. kind of kills the mood.. a turn off you know.. not that I was trying to turn you on.. what I am trying to say-"

"No, No that isn't a turn off for me" Gabriel laughed at her comments. "I love kids, I was married once. I always wanted kids but..but my wife didn't quite." He smiled at her, only a twinge of sadness in his face. Gabriel wondered if Riley wanted kids. Elly seemed the opposite of Riley and Amelia. She was forward, bubbly, and wearing bright colors.

Elly let out a breath, relieved.

They talked awhile and Elly revealed she was only a year older than gabriel and lived In the suburbs outside of the city. She was divorced also and had, wait for it, 6 kids. He pretended he almost didn't believe her (even though her hospital records confirmed it)but Elly explained she had three sets of twins. She had gotten pregnant when she was 19 so she married the guy. They divorced two years ago because he was never home, was addicted to his job, and slept with other woman. That wasn't in her file, Gabriel noted. Those were his favorite things to know about a person. The things you couldn't learn from a computer.

Gabriel talked about himself too and they joked around. Elly was easy to talk to and so funny and sweet. Gabriel enjoyed being with her and it kept his mind off of Riley. They exchanged numbers and when it was time to go Gabriel sad to have it end. But Elly had to go pick her kids up from school and preschool so he walked her to her car and opened the door.

"What a gentle man you are Mr. Vaughn" Elly chuckled and leaned in to give him a peck on the cheek.

As she pulled out, he smiled cheekily and mouthed call me while holding up the imaginary phone to his ear with a wink. She drove away laughing.

Gabriel had had an amazing time.

Elly was a sweet normal person and an open book. He hadn't been looking at the internet in his head or even the street cams nearby, as he has a habit of doing. He was just present, with Elly, in the moment, enjoying every second of it.

Not even Riley could distract him that much. Even his headache was of Riley… Gabriel looked at the napkin with Elly's number on it.

After what happened last night he , he really had a chance with Riley. Elly was a great person and he didn't want to hurt her feelings by not calling but he didn't need this number. He barely knew her and it would be dishonest. He loved Riley.

He checked his phone, no missed calls or texts from his partner. He shoved the napkin in his back pocket and checked his watch. 2:30 p.m. Gabriel still had time before he needed to report to Cyber Com. He would go home then hit the gym on Thompson street and then would head to work. He decided to shower at the gym and go to work straight from there. He tried to tell himself it wasn't a significant descion but he knew he was really avoiding Riley taking him to work today.

A little freedom was a good thing he decided and he slightly resented being protected by a woman younger then him. Sure, she was capable but so was he. A little privacy would be nice at the very least. It was very demeaning.

Gabriel arrived at CyberCom at 3:45 and headed up the elevator. He chatted with a few people on his way to his desk. He checked in with Nelson, who gave him some tasks to do and mentioned Riley hadn't arrived yet.

Which Gabriel already knew, because he had already checked the security videos for her face and then located her driving down Delaware Avenue maybe a minute away on traffic cams.