A/N:Sorry about the typos... Sometimes I want to get my story out really quick, so I don't have the patience to proofread stuff more than once. Anyway, this chapter isn't one that will take us closer to the resolution of the case, it's just a side-note sorta thing. It's a Jared/Ellen chapter, clean, but - be warned - not very classy... Again, I'm super excited about this story because I know where it's going (story-wise, not romance-wise.)

"So Dan is set to find out everything he can about what happened. James' preliminary hearing is in two days… I doubt we'll be any smarter before Dan gets back though," Peter summed up after a late day at work. "What we have now is five… six… seven witnesses describing heated arguments between the victim and James."

He flipped though his files, skimming though the testimonials.

"… a murder weapon, registered to James…"

He flipped a few ore pages.

"… and no alibi for the night of the murder."

Jared let out a sigh.

"I hope Dan finds something we can use, or we're screwed," Peter added.

"I mean the guy's kinda coocoo, but you gotta admit, he brings results," said Peter after getting no response from Jared.

Jared shrugged.

"I guess." He then looked around. "Hey, have you seen Ellen?"

"Not since this morning, why?"

"Isn't it strange that she let herself be talked out of this case so easily?" Jared asked as he walked over towards Peter.

"What do you mean?" Peter closed his files and put them in his briefcase.

"Think about it. If it was you or me, we would have fought like crazy to take the case of someone we supposedly care about. She says she's close to this guy… I don't get it."

"Don't overthink it. It's Swatello. We know she's a borderline psychopath." He picked up his briefcase, walked toward the door, placed his fingers on the light switch, and looked at Jared, who was still standing in the office, looking at his phone. "Can we go?"

"Hold on, I have to take care of something. I'll catch up with you later," said Jared, as he patted Peter on the shoulder and paced out of the office.

"Booty call?" Peter yelled after him.

"I wish" he heard the faint response.

….

"I knew I'd find you here," Jared took a seat on the barstool next to Ellen. "I'm surprised you don't have any case files on you, I thought you only came here to work."

Then he noticed something. Not only was she sitting alone with her glass of wine, but she took much longer that unusual to react. He then noticed the almost empty bottle of wine next to her, and by his guess, it wasn't the first one.

She flashed him the biggest smile ever.

"Hi." She leaned on her arm, which started slipping and she caught her head a split second before it hit the bar. "Since when is this so slippery?" She then looked at the bartender, and raised her voice: "Hey, you! I'm a lawyer. I could sue you for every last penny you got."

Jared looked at the bartender apologetically but the man was experienced and he smiled at Jared. He also flashed a smile at Ellen and said an "I'm sorry, it won't happen again."

"Better not. Can I get another one of these?" She asked as she poured the last half glass out of the bottle.

Jared signaled the bartender to cut her off.

"I think you had enough," Jared looked at her with concern in his voice.

"I never come over to your place to stop you from drinking." She took a big gulp of the wine. "Then again I'm never invited to any of your get-togethers," she shot him an annoyed look.

"You know you have a standing invitation to all our parties," he then looked at her almost worried. "Is something wrong?"

"Well… You mean besides the fact that I don't get party invites?" she asked smiling. She does smile a lot more when she is drunk, Jared noted.

"Again, Peter and I would love to have you at parties. Honestly, I never knew you could be this fun." He grinned.

She stuck her tongue out at him.

"Look. If you want to get involved in James' case, me and Peter would be more than happy to share everything we know with you. Of course, you would have to talk to James too, you know attorney client privilege and all, but I think you could convince him. I mean the more lawyers, the better, right?"

"Don't you think if I thought I was good enough I would have done everything in my power to convince him?" she looked in his confused eyes.

"Wait, what? You think you're not good enough? What does that even mean?"

"The only reason I got a promotion in the office is because you guys put in a good word for me with Gingald. So basically, if I wouldn't have slept with you, I would still be stuck prosecuting hookers. Then even after everything went down, people thought I was sleeping with someone in power. And not that I care, cause I DON'T…but it was getting around the office and if I wanted to keep a shred of dignity and prove to everyone that I'm good, I had to leave," she took the final gulp from her glass. "And then this job… I had such high hopes," she laughed. "And I guess it just sucks that I don't get to deal with any of the major cases, you know" she looked in Jared's eyes.

He never really thought about why she chose Infeld Daniels over her old job. This is the first time he realized that she had a good reason to leave and now she's stuck on the sinking ship together with him and Peter.

"You know… There's one case we're currently working on, that we could use your help with."

She looked at him with skepticism in her eyes.

"Don't patronize me," she raised her glass to take another sip, forgetting that it was already empty.

"I'm not. Look, we think James is hiding something. And, while we don't think he killed the guy, whatever he's hiding could be the key to getting him off." He figured a white lie couldn't hurt, seeing as they have been dumping all the joke-cases on her lately. She needs to be on this case, even if she doesn't see it.

Ellen started laughing. Jared looked at her. "What?"

"Getting him off?" she could barely control herself.

"Wow alcohol does turn everyone into a 12-year-old…" he looked at the bartender, signaling for the bill. After he put the cash on the bar, he reached out to Ellen.

"Common, let's go." He tried helping her get up from the stool, but all he managed was to break her fall when she spun off.

"Oh my gosh, are you okay?" she asked, laying on top of him.

"Yeah I'm fine" Jared smiled. "We should do this more often. You and me. Drinking."

"I was drinking. You had a beer," she said as she tried to push herself up. Her face then showed an expression that Jared knew very well, but has never seen it on her before. He had about two seconds to get out of her way before the wine she drank half hour ago hit the floor.

He got up and moved closer to hold her hair back.

"Hey! Get her out of here. I'm not cleaning that shit up." Said the bartender looking at the two.

"Dude, chill. She's having a rough night, alright? Here's $50 for your troubles." Jared tried to pick Ellen up after she seemed done with redecorating the bar's floor.

"Common, I'm gonna take you home."

They got in a cab outside the bar. Jared had a fleeting thought to get Ellen back to her own place but he really didn't want to leave her alone. He decided that the beach house is as good a place as any for a drunk woman.

"By the way," Ellen said on the ride there. "Thank you."

"For?" Jared looked at her confused.

She seemed to be a lot more coherent but nowhere near sober.

"Just coming out tonight to see how I was doing. Paying for my drinks. Holding my hair back. Making sure I get home safe." She smiled at him, and gave him a kiss on the cheek.

He smiled back. As he helped her get out of the cab, she looked at him with her usual expression. "Tomorrow, I'll deny I ever said that."

"I know you will." He smiled at her.

"Hey, this is your house." She looked at him confused.

"I know."

"Why am I here?" she looked at him with an annoyed expression.

"My house is nice, and I can make you the best hangover smoothie in the morning."

Since the cab had already left, she let out a sigh. "Fine." After they entered, she stumbled over to the bathroom. As she walked across the living room Peter looked up from the TV.

"No party tonight?" Jared asked.

"Nah. You weren't here. Plus I'm too tired…" Peter handed a beer to his friend.

"Dan back yet?" Jared took a sip of his beer.

"Nope. But I wouldn't worry."

"Who said anything about worrying?" Jared took a seat on the couch next to his pal and took another sip of his beer. "I was hoping we'd know something new by now."

"Well, we don't… By the way… Was that Swatello?" He looked towards the bathroom.

"Listen, it's not like that," Jared started. "I went to this bar and…"

Ellen walked out of the bathroom wearing nothing but her bra and panties.

Both Jared and Peter's jaw fell, forgetting what they were talking about.

"Oh Peter. Hi, I didn't see you there." Ellen smiled at him.

"Ellen," Peter took a sip of his beer, and realized he was staring at a woman his best friend was sleeping with. He suddenly felt very uncomfortable, and tried his best to look at everything but her. It was rare that something got him this uncomfortable.

Jared, on the other hand had no problem looking at her.

"Which one is your room?" Ellen asked, seemingly not minding at all that she wasn't wearing much in front of the two.

Jared pointed, not taking his eyes off her.

"Thanks," she started walking. She turned around "Oh by the way, I used a toothbrush from your bathroom, cause I couldn't stand my mouth tasting like vomit."

"Which toothbrush did you use?" Peter asked, still looking the opposite direction.

"The blue one." She said as she walked into Jared's room.

"Wonderful." Peter took another sip.

"I'm gonna go and check on her," Jared said, as he got up the couch and started walking toward his room.

"Yeah, okay," said Peter, still feeling uncomfortable.