7

That afternoon, after everyone had left for the day, Lori approached Steve. He almost fumed when he saw her. The woman had just ruined his relationship with Chrissy, and she wanted to talk to him? Hell no. He was angrier than he'd ever been in his life, and Lori would be lucky if she walked away from him unscathed.

Lori inquired, "Hey, Steve, are you up for a beer after all the work is done here?"

Steve offered her a death stare and monotone, "Lori, I want you to get your things and get off the premises as soon as possible."

Lori scoffed, "What's got you all riled up?"

Steve retorted, "Gee, Lori, I don't know. It could be because an ex-member of the task force lied to my girlfriend and told her she'd slept with me, basically ruining our relationship. Not only is she leaving me, but she is also leaving Hawaii as soon as she can. I don't know. I guess that could be the reason."

"Look, Steve, let's face it. You were going to get bored with her soon and then what? You're a man who needs excitement in his life, and you'd have been sentenced to a life of drudgery. Do you really want that?"

"Lori, you don't know anything about me. If you did, then you definitely wouldn't have told my girlfriend all those lies."

"Come on. You can't deny that there's an attraction between us."

"There is nothing between us. Now get your stuff and get the hell out of here. I don't want to see you ever again. If you ever come near me or Five-0 headquarters again, I will make sure you regret it."

"You can't do that!"

"I can and I will."

Lori stomped away and grabbed her stuff. The wheels of her mind were already turning. So that's the way he wants to act, huh? Well, he's going to regret that soon enough. Then, he will see how much he loves me and needs me. I'll make him. He can't be with Little Miss Perfect. He might think he loves her now, but he will see the error of his ways. I will be the woman who brings Steve McGarrett to his knees.

That afternoon, because she was really confused as to what had transpired in the office that morning, Catherine gave Chrissy a call. She knew Lori had had something to do with it because she'd walked around smiling for the rest of the day.

Catherine asked, "So what the hell happened this morning at the office?"

Chrissy choked back tears, "Well, I found out that Steve has been sleeping with Lori since she came back. At first, I didn't believe it, but when she revealed some pretty personal details about Steve's bedroom, I knew it was true."

Catherine was baffled, "What? No, there's absolutely no way Steve was stupid enough to sleep with Lori."

Chrissy replied, "Apparently, he is. I mean, Lori knew exactly what color his sheets are, what they smell like, and what Steve keeps under his pillow while he sleeps. That sounds pretty incriminating."

"I agree with you, but it just doesn't add up. Steve has been avoiding Lori as much as he can since she came back. He's trying to figure out the best way to get rid of her."

"Maybe it's a cover so that no one suspects."

"Look, Chrissy, I hate to tell you this, but I think Lori has been stalking Steve. I've just been getting this weird feeling. If she'd just crept into his bedroom, she'd know all of that information."

"I guess, but Steve doesn't believe that I was just trying to get his attention by kissing Danny, so why should I believe he hasn't been sleeping with Lori? He doesn't get my trust if he doesn't trust me."

"Maybe if you guys just take a break, everything will cool off."

"It's too late. We broke up."

"No, Chrissy! You two are so perfect together."

"We were, but now we aren't. I'm leaving Hawaii in a couple of weeks."

"Don't leave. The two of you can work this out. I just know it. This is just a big misunderstanding."

"I wish it was that simple, but I think there's a lot more to it than that."

"So you're really going to leave?"

"Yeah."

"Well, make sure you say good-bye to everyone before you go. You know we're all really going to miss you."

"I know, and I'll miss you guys, too."

"I just wish you wouldn't give up on Steve this easily. I have a bad feeling Lori is behind all of this."

"If she is, she did a marvelous job of getting me out of the picture."

"Do a little more digging. You never know what you might find out."

That evening, Chrissy began moving some of her things into luggage. She wouldn't be leaving for L.A. for a couple of weeks yet because she had to give two weeks' notice at her firm and she had to stick around until that time was up. She just hoped she wouldn't have to run into Steve and his new girlfriend during that time. It was hard enough to deal with the thought of it; she didn't need the visualization to go with it.

As she packed, however, Chrissy began to notice that several of her things weren't in the house. Some of her clothes, pots and pans, and various items were now at Steve' place rather than her own. Crap. Now I have to see him again. What if she's there when I go to pick my stuff up? Will her stuff be in drawers next to mine? The thought of any of it made her sick to her stomach.

Later that night, as Chrissy tried to fall asleep, her thoughts came back to a reason Steve could have possibly cheated on her. Did Steve cheat because I was afraid to have sex with him? He was always really good about it when we talked, but maybe he just got tired of waiting. I mean, men do have needs. If that was it, he could have just talked to me about it. I would have listened, and maybe we could have tried it. I'm still not very comfortable with the idea of sex, but if it was for him, I would have done it. He should have known that, but he went to her instead. He got what he wanted in her arms, not mine. Maybe it was my fault.

Tears began to stream down Chrissy's cheeks for what seemed like the hundredth time that day. Despite the fact that she was mad, her overwhelming emotion was now sadness over the loss of a relationship she thought would go far. For the last six weeks, she had spent nearly every waking moment with Steve. Her whole life had revolved around him. Now, it was all over.

Not only was she crying for herself, but Chrissy was crying for Sarah, too. From the instant Sarah had met him, she'd liked Steve, and become even more attached to him during their two weeks in the safe house and beyond. During the last couple of days, Sarah had started asking questions. She wanted to know where Steve was and why she hadn't seen him in a while. Chrissy didn't have the heart to tell her that she was no longer with Steve and that they would be leaving Hawaii soon. Not only that, but Chrissy wasn't sure Sarah would understand all of that. Maybe it was for the best.

Chrissy decided that she would go to Steve's tomorrow and pick up all of her stuff after work. No, it wasn't going to be easy, but she figured it would be easier to get it over with. As long as Lori wasn't there, Chrissy wasn't too worried about it. She just hated the idea of seeing the two of them together. Lori would definitely make a big show of it if she was there, and Chrissy wasn't sure she could take it. However, if Lori was there, she knew she wouldn't have a choice. She'd just have to smile through it and pretend like everything was fine even though she was sure this would be the first and last time she fell in love.