It is the first day in the life of DC Gail Stephens. How wonderfully different it feels to be out of uniform. Though, as the only female member of the CID in Causton, she is still uncertain of the correct dress code. And she probably shouldn't be surprised that her sergeant, DS Ben Jones, isn't much help in that respect. Men rarely are. Yet Ben's opinion counts for a lot in Gail's mind, for she rather likes her colleague. Not that she'd admit it, but they get along very well. And you never know where that might lead.
So when Ben suggested they celebrate her promotion with lunch at the pub across the street, she beamed at him happily. And it's been nice to sit there, chatting with him.
Yet as they leave the pub, Ben sends her back to the station alone. "You go ahead, Gail, I still have a little errand to run." He checks his watch and winces. "And I'd better get going."
Gail nods. "Glad it won't be me returning late from lunch on my first full day in CID," she comments with a grin.
Returning the grin, Ben hurries off. And hurry he does for Gail has only just gotten back to her paperwork when Ben walks in, holding a lovely bouquet of flowers.
As he walks towards Gail with the flowers, her eyes go wide and she smiles at him. Only to be disappointed.
"Could you find me something to put these in for a couple of hours, Gail?" He pushes them into her hands, oblivious of her disappointment. "Thanks."
"Oh, yes, sure." She tries not to let her feelings show as she takes the flowers from him. "Surely there's a bucket or something around."
It takes her longer than expected to find a suitable pot, though. All buckets are much too big, so she ends up using an old coffee pot for a vase.
She takes the flowers back to the CID, not sure what would happen to them if she left them in the tearoom. She finds Ben sitting at his desk with his back to her and that means he's also sitting directly opposite their boss, Detective Chief Inspector Tom Barnaby.
It's this setting, that gives Gail an idea for revenge on Ben for using her like this. She walks up to his desk and puts the flowers down on his desk. "Thanks again for taking me out to lunch, Ben. It was lovely. And sorry about the coffee pot, it was all I could find."
She makes sure the DCI can see the broad smile she aims at Ben before she retreats to her own desk.
"Lovely, was it?" She hears Barnaby ask, obviously not aimed at her, but at Ben. And she can just picture the smirk on the DCI's face as he, as she had hoped, jumps to wrong conclusions. Unfortunately at this point her phone rings so she misses Ben's reply.
Two days later, Ben returns to the office from an interview with the business partner of a victim with a box of chocolates in his hand.
"Where's Gail?" He asks, as his eyes fall onto her empty desk.
Tom Barnaby looks up from the documents he has been studying and takes in the picture of his sergeant, a box of chocolates in his hand, looking for his female colleague. "Working, as you should have been," he replies with pointed glance at the candy.
Ben gives his superior an odd look, not sure what the DCI is aiming at until he drops the box of chocolates onto his desk and notices Barnaby's eyes following the box. "Oh, that? I just didn't want to leave them in the car any longer, it's getting too hot."
Barnaby doesn't so much mind Ben stopping to buy something along the way, he has done that often enough himself, but after lunch and flowers earlier this week, he wonders if there is something going on between his team members that he should be aware of. He knows the two younger detectives get along well. Is that turning into more?
"So what is Gail working on?" Ben interrupts his thoughts.
Tom decides to keep an eye on his subordinates but not to say anything just yet. "Oh, one of those things that require a female touch."
"Ah," Ben says, knowingly. "Not my old friends again, I hope?"
"Oh, no. Would you believe it, there are more people in Midsomer who spend their free time having shouting matches with their neighbours."
"Absolutely, Sir," Ben says as he sits down to look through his notes from the interview, secretly glad he's not the one who has to deal with arguing neighbours any more.
A couple of days later, Gail is chatting to WPC Sharon Murray, a former colleague and good friend, when Ben walks by, saying hello and smiling at Gail.
"You quite like him, don't you?" Sharon asks as once Ben is out of earshot.
Gail actually blushes a little. "Is it that obvious?"
Sharon giggles. "To me it is. But I doubt he noticed."
"Oh?" Gail isn't sure if that's a good or a bad thing. "Well, men can be quite daft that way, can't they?"
Sharon looks at her friend with a more serious expression on her face. "Or they're simply not interested."
The way she said interested makes Gail listen up. "He's got a girlfriend, right? He bought flowers and chocolates last week, I bet he's trying to seduce his new flame."
Sharon snorts. "Hardly. You mean you really have no clue? You've been working with them on and off for a while now!"
Them? Who is her friend talking of, Gail wonders. "No clue of what?!"
Checking left and right for eavesdroppers before she leans closer, Sharon explains, "It's all over the station that the DCI likes his Sergeant a great deal. I can't believe you hadn't heard!"
Gail looks at her, dumbfounded. "Likes?" She echoes before something clicks and her expression turns to disbelief. "What – the DCI and Ben?" Inadvertently she looks in the direction Ben has walked off to just a minute earlier. "No, never," she insists.
"Just because you don't like it doesn't mean it's not true. Apparently the DCI likes younger men, the old DS, Troy..." Sharon can tell from Gail's expression that she doesn't need to finish the sentence. "But you haven't heard that from me."
Gail just stares down the corridor. How could she not notice that?
"Sorry, gotta run, Gail," Sharon says, laying a hand on her friend's arm for a moment before heading off to start her work day.
"Yes, of course. See you around," Gail replies before she walks to the CID office in a bit of a daze.
Over the next days, Gail tries to observe her two superiors as secretly and inconspicuously as she can. But Ben notices her looks a couple of times and as the looks he throws her in return change from confused to annoyed, she decides to try a different approach.
"How's it going with your new girlfriend, Ben?" She asks him outright, as they sit in his car.
Ben is so taken by surprise by her question that he takes his eyes off the road for a moment.
"Ben!" Gail exclaims as they come dangerously close to the fence at her side of the narrow road.
Ben corrects himself immediately. "What on earth are you talking about?"
Gail turns in her seat to face him. "The flowers and chocolates the other week? It's a bit of a cliché but maybe she likes that kind of thing?"
Understanding grows in Ben's mind. "They were for my granny! She was in hospital for a couple of days," he explains.
"Oh. Yes, I'm sure she's the generation who likes getting a box of chocolates," Gail replies, unwilling to feel embarrassed by her mistake. His granny – why didn't he just say so in the first place? "Nothing serious, I hope?"
"No, she's fine again, back home, too."
"Good. I'm glad to hear it," Gail replies and she makes herself count down from twenty, slowly, before she asks her next question. "So... no girlfriend then?"
Ben briefly looks over so she can see he's rolling his eyes. "No."
"Oh. Why not?" She manages to make it sound totally innocent.
"Don't tell me dating a copper is a turn on for other guys, because your sex doesn't seem to like it much at all."
"Some don't mind," Gail says.
"Suppose so. Haven't met any of them yet, though." Ben gives back, sounding rather grumpy by now. "The moment you abandon your date for a corpse, the date usually turns sour."
Gail can't help but laugh at that. "God, if you tell it to them like that, I'm sure it does!"
And her laughter is so catching, soon they're both chuckling. At least Gail now is convinced that Ben is interested in women, so he's definitely not gay. He could still be bisexual. But she's not sure how to bring that up. Especially not what Sharon told her. She still can't see it herself, only that Ben is like a puppy when it comes to the DCI, following him around more loyally than might be good for him at times.
Gail and Ben's friendship grows over time as they work more closely together but much to Gail's dismay, Ben either doesn't recognise her attempts at flirting or he decidedly ignores them. Is there someone occupying the sergeant's heart after all?
Then, one day when the DCI is out of town, Ben suddenly invites her out for lunch at a lovely pub. What better chance for some more research into the matter?
"Have you been here before, Ben?" She asks, fishing for information.
"No, but I wish I had," Ben gives back, obviously enjoying the time off and the sun in his face.
"Do you have lunch out with the DCI sometimes?"
"Nah, never really. Maybe catching a drink along the way, but actual lunch? Nope." He looks at her. "He probably wouldn't approve of this, either."
Jealous? It's the first reason that Gail thinks of, but she's aware there probably are other possible reasons. "Oh, why's that?"
Ben grimaces. "Nothing to do Jones?" He asks in as close to Barnaby's tone as he can manage and Gail laughs.
"He's keeping you on your toes, isn't he?"
"Right of the senior detective, I suppose."
Gail smiles at him. "Of course you jump at his every word."
"Oh, because you so wouldn't," Ben gives back. He knows how hard Gail tried to get on Barnaby's good side to get promoted to CID.
She shrugs. "I don't think he likes me as much as he likes you."
Ben gives her a quizzically look. "Really? He doesn't know you as well yet, I suppose."
"And how well does he know you?"
"What do you mean?"
"Oh, I don't know. Do you talk much outside work? Does he know Ben Jones or only DS Jones?"
Ben considers that question. "Mostly DS Jones, I suppose." He starts to grin, "Though I must have told him half of my family history by now. Comes with being the local boy, my folks have all sorts of knowledge about the history of the area that comes in handy at times."
They talk some more and soon their food arrives. But before they can enjoy it, Ben's mobile rings and of course it's the DCI. And of course he is aware of the fact that his sergeant is not, as he had expected, hard at work at the office, but has decided to take an extended lunch break somewhere. Ben looks guilty at being caught out and briefly Gail wonders if he feels guilty for being caught out at what be considered a date, even if she has given up hope on that herself by now. But it turns out it's really just about work and them not being at the station when they're needed.
"Was he very mad?" Gail asks as they make their way back to the station.
"Mad? Not quite the right word. Angry to some extent, yeah. Best to make up for it with some good results before he gets back."
But Gail and Ben are not the only ones whose thoughts are lingering on the brief phone call. Tom is sure he heard ducks. And at the office they told him Jones had gone out for lunch with Stephens.
Of course office romances aren't forbidden, but they can turn into a problem, especially when one of the couple is a direct superior of the other. So the DCI decides to extend some advice to his sergeant when the chance presents itself.
It does present itself when they're dealing with the paperwork any case requires once it is solved. And conveniently Gail has been sent off on a brief errant by Ben.
"Look, Sir, about that lunch the other day," the DS starts when they're alone.
"Ah yes, I had been meaning to have a word with you about that myself. You first, though," Barnaby replies, putting his reading glasses down.
Ben swallows before he continues. "I had my mobile phone with me and left a note here where I could be reached. We weren't far away and it was quiet here at the time, we weren't making any progress so I thought..."
"You thought you'd sneak off for a little tête-à-tête," Barnaby finishes the sentence for him.
Which is not what Ben had intended to say. "I thought it wouldn't hurt to – for once – get a proper lunch." He looks at his superior more confused than remorseful now.
"With Stephens," Barnaby prompts.
"Well, why not?"
"Yes, why not? Well, for one thing, your lunch break doesn't really allow for extended leisurely lunches."
"As I said, it was quiet here..." Ben starts to defend himself but can tell there's no mercy to be expected on that charge. "And secondly?" He asks, wondering what else is to come. Setting a bad example to a subordinate?
"Just a word of advice, Jones. Be careful with regard to Stephens. You two are working closely together."
"Sir?" Ben asks, not getting what Barnaby is hinting at.
"I don't mind if you two... you know. Just... consider the possible consequences."
Neither of them has noticed Gail returning to the office, but she heard half of the conversation and as this seems to be about her as much as about Ben, she decides to speak up.
"You mean there might be a new rumour starting about Ben and I, just like the one about him and you, Sir? With just as little truth in it?" It's the safest way she can think of putting it, not accusing anyone, yet setting things right; and hopefully finally getting a confirmation that the story of Ben and Barnaby is nothing but a silly rumour.
Ben looks up at her, groaning. "Oh God, is that story about me now?"
But before she can do more than nod, Barnaby says, "Exactly, Stephens. I see we made you a detective for a reason." And with that, he puts his reading glasses back on and very pointedly focuses on his paperwork.
While Ben still gives his superior and odd look, Gail turns and heads back to her desk, smiling. Touché, she thinks.