Chapter 21 – Dial H for trouble

'C'mon! We haven't done this in a long time,' said Mary.

'You need to have some fun,' stated Emily.

'Come with us to the club, just like in the old times,' Meredith tried to convince Lily.

'Alright!' the lawyer caved in and went to change from jeans and a t-shirt to a little red dress and the knee-high boots she loved so much.

'You're looking hot, Lil. Let's not waste time,' Mary actually dragged her three friends out of Lily's apartment.

Once inside the club the girls ordered a drink and then separated. Meredith and Mary hit the dance floor while the other two grabbed a table and attempted to have a conversation. A couple of minutes later a guy approached the table and asked Emily to dance with him. She stood up and with a wink to her friend, followed him to the dance floor. That's great! I'm always left alone. A very frustrated Lily walked to the bar and asked for a drink. And then another one. And just to be sure she'd drowned her sorrows, she gulped down the forth shot of tequila that night. She was going back to the table when she bumped into a man.

'Sorry,' she apologized without looking at him.

'It's okay, Lily,' he smiled.

She was surprised. How did he know her name? That was when she raised her eyes and after seeing his face, smiled too.

'Sheldon! What are you doing here? Don't seem like the club goer type.'

He shrugged. 'Neither do you.'

Lily gave him a half smile.

'You want to dance?' he asked into her ear so that she could listen despite the loud music.

Lily didn't like dancing but her friends had abandoned her and she had drunk four shots of tequila; the alcohol made her say yes before she'd even processed the information. Hawkes grabbed her by the hand and led her to the dance floor.

Once they were there they started dancing a few inches away. But then someone pushed Lily towards Hawkes and she had to put her hands on his chest to stop herself from falling. The tequila taking complete control of herself, she wrapped her arms round his neck. His arms snaked around her waist and soon enough they were grinding their bodies to the beat of the music. Had they both been completely sober, it probably wouldn't have happened. But they weren't, so they found themselves pressing their bodies together and moving sensually with the music.

The DJ started playing a new remix and Hawkes trapped her lips with his twice. That made Lily bolder, causing her to dance even more provocatively than before. He followed, not wasting any chance of touching her, his hands roaming over her body. When the song ended Lily took his hand and steered him to the door. Once outside she pressed her body flush against him and whispered into his ear how much she wanted to go home with him. Hawkes hailed a cab and they spent the trip to his place in silence.

After a few tries he got the right key and opened the door of his apartment. When they were both inside and the door had been locked they started making out and walking towards the bed, their hands exploring the other at the speed of light. They managed to fall on the bed with him on top and they clumsily removed their clothes. The couple was too drunk and too wrapped in passion to do things right so they ended up wasting a lot of time trying to take off their clothes. It didn't stop them from having sex, though and they found themselves enjoying it a lot.

That morning a cell phone started ringing, waking Lily up. She picked up the offending item and took the call.

'Yes?' she whispered both because Sheldon was sleeping next to her and because her head hurt a bit.

'Lily? Is that you?' Flack sounded very surprised.

'Who else would it be?'

'Why are you answering Hawkes' phone?'

'What? This is not his …' she looked at the display and realized Flack was right.

Hawkes had already woken up so she handed him the phone with a huge blush.

'Hawkes. Okay, that's great … thanks. Bye.'

'I'm so sorry! I thought it was mine. They look the same so I didn't …' she started apologizing but he cut her off.

'It's okay.'

'No, it's not. It's really embarrassing,' she was still blushing. Of all people, Flack had to be the one calling, just my luck! 'Do you have to go to work?'

'No, he was just updating me on the case. How's your head?'

'It hurts a bit, I'm not used to drinking. You?'

'Took an aspirin an hour ago. Sorry the phone woke you.'

'No problem, I should go anyway,' Lily sat up and started gathering her clothes.

'You staying for breakfast, right?'

'Sheldon, I … I don't think it's a good idea. But thanks for the offer.'

'Breakfast's the most important meal of the day,' he reminded her and got out of bed.

'I'll grab something on the way,' she clasped her bra and smiled; he was sweet.

'No, after the alcohol and the work out we had last night you shouldn't leave with an empty stomach,' that was the doctor talking. He lifted his shirt from the floor and gave it to her. 'You'll put this on, have breakfast with me and then after you get dressed you can leave.'

As it was an order and not a suggestion, Lily put the shirt on and they went to the kitchen.

'You got me thinking,' she bit her lip to repress a smile, 'when you talked about the 'work out' we had last night, was there a hidden compliment in the sentence?'

He looked confused and motioned her to sit on a stool while he made breakfast.

'As in … you're good Lily?' she raised her eyebrows and smiled.

'Wasn't my intention. But if you're fishing for a compliment: you did fine considering the circumstances,' he placed a glass of juice in front of her.

'What circumstances?'

'You were drunk.'

'No, I was just tipsy,' he gave her a look. 'I knew what I was doing, Sheldon. I remember everything that happened.'

'Would it have happened if you hadn't been tipsy?'

'Of course not, I'm not that bold. Would you have done it without a few drinks on you?'

'Probably,' he put two plates with waffles on the table and sat down.

She tilted her head to the side and smiled, a light blush spreading over her cheeks.

'That, Sheldon, was a very good answer,' he didn't say anything, just smiled.

They ate breakfast and talked about a lot things, the tone light and full of jokes and teasing.

'So, doctor, can I go home now?' asked Lily after they'd finished eating.

'Can I say no?' he asked flirtatiously.

'Depends, have you got good reasons?'

'How about …' he got closer to her, their bodies and inch apart and whispered in her ear, 'me wanting to make you scream as much as last night?'

'Mmm … sounds interesting, maybe some other time. I've really got to go home.'

'How can I persuade you?' their lips were dangerously close.

'I don't think you can.'

'You sure?' Hawkes kissed her in a way that left her panting.

Lily licked her lips and after looking at him straight in the eye, leaned in for another kiss.

'That means I've convinced you?' asked Hawkes once they had drawn apart.

'Rain check?' she asked apologetically and he nodded.

* * *

Flack was extremely surprised, to say the least. If Lily had answered Hawkes' phone it meant they were together. As it was Saturday at nine a.m., he could assume they weren't playing Scrabble. Nope. They'd been together.

It was quite unsettling, he had to admit it. His ex with one of his co-workers? Completely awkward. It was going to be very, very weird when he saw either of them again. It was a bit stupid, Flack knew she'd had other sexual partners before him; he just didn't want to know the details. To put a face with her new lover made his imagination run wild and that wasn't good. Not to mention his pride was hurt by the fact she'd moved on. Apparently he wasn't as memorable as he thought himself to be.

Truth be told, if he was to be objective, Lily had every right to move on. Flack had done the same with Devon. However, when pride gets in the picture, one hardly ever is objective and Flack found himself hurt and upset.

Of all the men in Manhattan she had to choose Hawkes. Why? To get back at him for breaking up? No, Lily wasn't revengeful. It had to be something else. 'Maybe she likes him …' said that little voice in his head that always played devil's advocate. He always thought the doctor was a bit too friendly with her but he would have never imagined she'd end up falling for him. Flack knew Lily well and he was sure it wasn't just casual sex. That was probably the worst part. It made him very jealous to know that she was replacing him.

What did Hawkes have that he didn't? Okay, so the guy was very smart. Flack guessed Lily liked being around someone with whom she could have a cultivated conversation. He'd only finished high school and couldn't name a chemical compound if his life depended on it. But he was good at his job, loyal, thorough … 'Maybe it's because he treats her right', that annoying voice again. He treated her right too! Okay, he'd been a jerk way too many times but he just needed another chance. Now that he knew a bit more about her past, things were going to be different. He sighed in frustration; Hawkes could give her everything he couldn't.

Flack had known from the beginning that she was out of his league. Somewhere along the way, though, he had tricked himself into believing he was good enough for her. Truth was: she deserved more than a seasoned cop who had a thing for weird ties and had seen too many dead bodies. Even if Hawkes was working at the Lab, he was a doctor. People admired and respected him just because of that word. Unlike him, he could probably mingle with rich people and Flack was certain he was one of those romantic guys. The ones who did flowers, candles, poems; the whole nine yards.

He thought Lily didn't need to be treated like a princess but he may have reached that conclusion due to his own inability to treat her that way. He just wasn't that type of guy. He could make a girl laugh or take her to bed in a second but he just couldn't make her feel special. Not that kind of special, anyway. The one where she felt she was the only thing in his world, that every beat of his heart whispered her name; it was something he'd never been able to do. He could chase a perp, crack somebody in interrogation but he could not make a woman feel loved. In moments like these that knowledge made his heart heavy. He would do anything to be for a day the kind of guy who could seduce a woman with a sonnet instead of a pick-up line.

He wanted to woo Lily with fancy words and pretty flowers but that wasn't him. He guessed he could buy her some flowers once … or twice. But poems and candles were out of the question. He was too manly for that. He would feel too uncomfortable and if she really loved him, she'd have to understand. It was only fair, if she wanted to be a princess, he wasn't her man.

* * *

As soon as Lily entered the door the phone started ringing. She picked up the receiver with a grunt.

'Yes?' she asked.

'Lil, you got a hangover from yesterday?' asked Mary.

'No, I'm just tired. I got home a minute ago.'

'Where were you? You were dancing with some hottie the last time any of us saw you.' Lily was silent. 'You went home with him, didn't you?'

'I did.'

'Aren't you always scolding us for leaving with a guy we don't know?'

'Ah, but see, I already knew Sheldon,' Lily informed her friend. 'That's probably the worst part,' she added as an afterthought.

'Spill, what's your story with him?'

'He works at the Crime Lab and was my client once.'

'Wait – so he works with your ex?' Mary laughed.

'Yes and guess what? Don called him today. Sheldon's cell phone looks just like mine so I answered it, can it get worse than that?'

'I think it was quite good. That way he'll see you can have any man you want,' Mary was amused. Lily never got in that kind of trouble so it was fun to see that sometimes she made mistakes too.

'Somehow, I don't think so. I find it pretty embarrassing and Don's going to think I'm sleeping around.'

'Ha, ha. You don't sleep around and he knows it. Now, how was your night with Sheldon?'

'Good, good. He's very sweet.'

'Okay, so he's bad in bed.'

'Believe me, he's not. You'd call him a stallion.'

'Really? Then why did you say he was sweet? That's like an euphemism for 'he sucks'. Please explain.'

'He made me breakfast,' Lily smiled. 'And he wanted me to stay a few more hours.'

'Are you telling me he didn't kick you out after having sex? That's not fair, you always get the nice guys!' Mary complained.

'He's very nice. I agreed to spend another night with him.'

'You did? Are you sick or something?' Mary joked.

'Why? You think I shouldn't?'

'No, no. I think it's great. It just isn't your style, that's all.'

* * *

Two days passed and Flack found himself entering the Crime Lab to talk to Lindsay. He greeted the cops at the door and one of them asked him if he could take a package to Hawkes. He agreed, grabbed the book with a folded paper on top that he had to deliver and waited for the elevator. Flack looked at the paper and the handwriting on one side of it caught his eye; he knew it too well. He didn't mean to pry but found himself unfolding the paper and reading it.

Here's the book I promised. It took a while to find it because it was gathering dust in a box but it finally gets to your hands. I hope you find it as useful as I did. By the way, thank you for Friday night – and morning – you're a sweet guy. I was wondering, how soon can I collect the rain check?

Have a nice day.

Love,

Lily

Flack was shocked, to say the least. First of all, why did Lily have an Organic Chemistry book? Secondly, the note confirmed his suspicions: she and Hawkes had slept together. Why else would she thank him for? 'You're a sweet guy…' he smiled in satisfaction; clearly Hawkes wasn't any good in bed. Lily had told Flack many times how passionate he was, that he was a stud, how fantastic he was in bed but she'd never used that adjective to describe his performance. Being 'sweet' between the sheets meant you didn't really know how to satisfy a woman. He smiled again with joy.

There was something that piqued his curiosity: 'how soon can I collect the rain check?' what was she talking about? He figured it wouldn't be anything good – for him – seeing as in the best case they were going to meet again. In the worst scenario that rain check included sex. And that wasn't good. He then focused his attention on the last five words: 'Have a nice day. Love'. He couldn't help but feel a bit jealous; that was what she always told him. Him, who'd been her boyfriend. Not some guy she'd slept with but her boyfriend. He felt a bit angry too. Flack had been really close to trying to fix things with Lily. He realized he loved her and what did she do? Sleep with one of his co-workers. Not that she knew his feelings but anyway, she'd ruined any chance of finding out.

The elevator reached the 35th floor and he got out. He first went looking for Hawkes but he wasn't around so Flack left the package in his office and left in search of Lindsay.

Sorry it took me so long to update, my internet went crazy and I couldn't log in. I apologize again. So Hawkes gets mixed into the picture! If somebody's still reading this, please leave a review with comments, suggestions, ideas, criticism or anything else you want to say. Reviews really make my day and I appreciate them immensely. C'mon; make me happy!

Thanks to sparkyCSI for all her work.