Author's Note: I had reserved this weekend for housecleaning and garden work. This happened instead. Apparently what I need is someone to review my housekeeping, and then maybe I'd do it more regularly! I think I'm addicted. So to all of you who've been feeding my addiction, thanks!

Chapter 5: Revelations

Lisbon felt like she was living in a dream. She couldn't remember the last time she'd enjoyed an evening this much. Sitting across a candlelit table from Jane, listening to him spin stories about their fellow diners, was apparently all she needed to forget her troubles. And he seemed happy—not just the lightheartedness she'd sometimes seen in him, but really, deeply happy. He was free of the self-imposed burden he'd been carrying since she'd known him, and she was amazed at the difference it made. He was still Jane, but he was more open, more relaxed. He even laughed. She had never heard him laugh like this before, and she loved it. She hoped she would hear a lot more of it.

And she really hoped she wouldn't be the one to make him stop laughing again. She would have to tell him everything soon, but she was selfish enough to want this evening to be about them, not about bleak possibilities.

"No thinking about work," Jane said sternly. "What you should be thinking about is dessert. Tiramisu? Or the triple chocolate concoction? Or both?"

"I don't think I can eat another bite," she admitted.

"Nonsense." Jane waved at their server and ordered both desserts, plus coffee for her and tea for him.

"That's a waste," Lisbon warned him.

"We'll take the leftovers home. I'll feed you a midnight snack in bed." He winked at her, and she felt her cheeks heat up, which just made him grin. After a moment, she smiled back.

While they picked at their desserts, Jane said, "When you're ready, I'd like to throw a small engagement party. Just for the team, and anybody else you feel like inviting. Would you be okay with that?"

"Sure." She was still having a hard time wrapping her head around this new role of fiancée. She hoped she'd be able to do so soon, because she suspected adjusting to marriage would be even harder. "But if we're going public, does that mean you're not coming back to work?"

"I'd planned to. Are we going to have to find our way around some ridiculous policy?"

"I'm afraid so. Of course, you could always go work for the FBI. Maybe you could at least keep them off my back."

Jane looked thoughtful. "Hm. I suppose they do need help sorting out Red John's network."

"I was joking," she said, a little alarmed. She doubted Jane would last a day in a federal agency. Well, maybe Homeland Security. If Kirkland was any example, they could tolerate a certain amount of rogue behavior.

"Relax, Teresa. I won't make any career moves without discussing them with you. But I think you'll agree I need to keep busy, and I doubt you want me to go back to my psychic con."

"Definitely not." That would probably be a deal breaker, she thought.

"That reminds me. Do you have any objection to spending the money I made doing that before? I haven't touched most of it. I promised myself I wouldn't spend it until Red John was dead."

"It's your money, Jane. I think you should spend it however you like." She was puzzled as to why he was asking her.

"But if we're getting married, it'll be your money too. So I want you to keep in mind that we have plenty. If you are no longer enjoying your job, you can quit. In fact, now would be an excellent time. We can start fresh somewhere else."

She stared at him. "You're telling me you have enough money that we don't have to work? Why have you been living like a vagabond all these years?"

"I told you, I decided not to use that money. And the pittance you were paying me was barely enough to cover the property taxes on my house. Which I'm planning to sell, by the way, so that will add enough to keep us comfortable for another year or two."

"How...how much?" she managed to ask.

"Hard to say. Most of it's invested, of course. But my net worth is somewhere north of ten million. Not rich by California standards, but plenty for two people who're used to state employee salaries." He took another sip of tea.

She sat back in her chair, stunned. He was not only unfairly good looking, fiercely intelligent, and incredible in bed, but rich too? It was a good thing he was such a pain in the ass, because otherwise he'd be damned near perfect.

"You're not going to freak out about this, are you?" Jane asked, looking closely at her.

"No." At least not in front of him, she resolved.

"Good. We'll spend some of it on the wedding and honeymoon, then. Have you given any thought to what kind of ceremony you want?"

"Not really." She tried to play it cool so he wouldn't realize how anxious the subject made her.

Fortunately, the server brought their check just then, interrupting Jane's scrutiny. She decided not to argue over who should pay, since he'd just finished telling her he had money, and excused herself to go to the restroom.

When she came out, he was waiting for her, and he slid an arm around her waist and stole a quick kiss before opening the outside door for her, takeout bag dangling from his hand.

"Thanks for dinner," she said. "I've been wanting to come here for ages."

"I know," he smiled. "This weekend we'll try the Thai place you've never gotten around to checking out."

"Oh." She grimaced a little. "Cho and I went last week. It was okay, but nothing special."

"So you've been hanging out with Cho while I've been gone?" She thought she heard a slight edge to his tone.

"We went there because it's so far from the office, and we didn't want to be overheard," she explained. "We were trying to figure out what the FBI was after, and what they were likely to find. We had a fight about who should take the blame."

"You had a fight with Cho? How does that work?" Jane asked, sounding amused.

"There's a lot of glaring and not much talking," she replied, making him chuckle. "Would you like to drive?"

"Still tired?" he asked, frowning a little.

"Yeah." She was actually nervous and hoping to distract Jane by letting him drive, but she was tired too, so it wasn't actually a lie.

He must have believed her, because he drove at a reasonable speed back to her place, then ushered her inside and locked up behind them. "I'll put the leftovers away if you want to go on up to bed," he offered.

"Okay." She took two steps toward the stairs, then hesitated. "You're coming up, right?"

She heard him chuckle as he set the leftovers in the fridge. "Right behind you, sweetheart."

Feeling a little ridiculous, she hurried to change out of her clothes and into a nightie she'd bought when she was young and still trying to impress her dates. It was a lovely wine color with black lace trim, but she wasn't twenty-six anymore, and it was tighter than she remembered. She tugged at it, hoping it didn't look as ridiculous as it felt.

Jane came in, shrugging out of his jacket but stopping on the threshold, transfixed, as he saw her. "Wow," he breathed. "Teresa, you could have brought me back anytime by texting a picture of yourself in that."

She couldn't help smiling at the admiration in his gaze. "Good to know, in case you decide to run off again."

"No need to worry about that," he assured her. "Next time I take a vacation, I'm taking you with me." He grinned, closing the distance between them and sliding his arms around her.

"Good." She kissed him, which she'd been wanting to do the whole drive home, and began unbuttoning his vest. When she was finished, she used it to tow him to the bed and pull him in after her.

Their previous night together had been driven by raw passion and urgency. This time, they moved more slowly, learning each other as thoroughly as possible. But finally the moment arrived when Lisbon knew she couldn't put off what she had to say any longer.

"You need to use a condom. There's a box in the nightstand."

Jane stopped kissing his way down her stomach. "All right," he said after a pause. "Did you stop taking the pill?"

"No. It's for your protection. I should have remembered the first time." Oh, she hoped she hadn't done him harm.

He stretched out beside her so their faces were level with each other. "You have something?" He was calm, and he stroked her hair, which always made her feel better.

"I don't know. My doctor says the chances are I'm okay." She took a deep breath. "When Red John painted my face with blood, he smeared it across my mouth and eyes."

"I know," he said softly. "I'm the one who washed it off you."

"My doctor says that put me at risk for catching any blood borne diseases Partridge might have had. My tests in the hospital came out negative, but sometimes it can take a while for the infection to be detectable. I went back yesterday, and she promised I'd have the results tomorrow."

"And that's why you've been upset," he murmured. "Because you might have HIV or something?"

"Yeah."

"Did they check Partridge's blood?"

"There was nothing, but I'm not sure I can trust the coroner's report. It just...it occurred to me that this might be what Red John intended, to make me sick so you'd have to watch me suffer."

"Maybe," Jane said. "But on the other hand, that seems a chancy way to go about it. I think you're fine. But I wish you'd told me you were worried."

"I'm sorry. I should have told you before we had sex the first time. I just wasn't thinking."

"That was on purpose," Jane said, kissing the tip of her nose. "I wanted to drive you out of your mind immediately so you wouldn't have a chance to talk yourself out of it." He rolled over to rummage in her nightstand drawer. "Do you have to go back to the doctor then?"

"No. They'll call me. I only have to go in if they find something." She searched his expression anxiously.

"I want to be there for you, whatever they have to say." He kissed her gently. "And no test result is going to change the fact that I love you. You know that, right?"

A tear escaped despite her attempt to blink it away. Jane caught it with his lips, then kissed his way to her mouth again. "Teresa, you know that, don't you?"

"Yes," she choked out.

"And I'm here for you. Whatever happens. I want to build my new life with you. I want to start every day waking up beside you and go to sleep every night in your arms."

She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him down to her, trying to convey in her kiss what she couldn't quite find the words to say.

When she released him, he pulled away for a moment to put the condom on. Then he began to make love to her in earnest.

"I like the old-fashioned wedding vows," he whispered in her ear. "With my body I thee worship."

She moaned, feeling the pleasure build inside her so intensely she was afraid it would shatter her when it was finally released. "We can...use those," she gasped out.

He groaned. "And with all my worldly goods I thee endow."

She wanted to say that she didn't care about his worldly goods, but she couldn't put the words together before her orgasm overtook her. Jane came a few moments later, and they lay tangled together, panting lightly.

"I love you," she said when she'd caught her breath.

"I love you too." He picked up a strand of her hair and began playing with it, twirling it around his finger. "And I want to marry you, the very instant you feel ready. But I'll try not to pressure you."

"Thank you. I'll try not to keep you waiting too long," she murmured. "But in the meantime, I'm okay with being engaged. I can't wait to see Cho's face."

He chuckled drowsily. "Me too."

mmm

Lisbon wasn't used to going about her morning routine with someone else there. This was another thing she was going to have to adjust to, she thought. Jane was doing his best not to get in her way, though his attempt at breakfast was stymied by her lack of groceries.

"I'd have gone shopping if you'd told me you were coming back," she said as they sipped their coffee and tea.

"We can do it after work," Jane replied. "Or, if there's nothing going on today, I can do it during work."

"Playing hooky on your first day back?" She shook her head at him. "Just because you're sleeping with the boss doesn't give you free rein."

"Not just sleeping with. Engaged to," he corrected, smiling.

Her heart sank. "Can we... I'd like to wait until I get my test results before we announce anything. If I'm sick, I need to deal with that first. Okay?" She gave him a pleading look.

He reached over and stroked her hair. "Okay. Whatever is easiest for you, my dear. But in return, I ask that you stop trying to hide things from me. Whatever news you get, I want to know. Right away."

"Okay." She couldn't say that it was none of his business, after all. This would affect his future too.

"Good. Now, Marie's. I couldn't find a decent blueberry muffin where I was," he complained.

Lisbon tucked her ring in her pocket before they left the house, glancing quickly at Jane as she did so. His mouth tightened, but he didn't say anything, and he was cheerful enough at Marie's, where the staff all knew him. When they got to the office, she was glad that all the attention was on him and the goodies they'd brought and she could just stand there listening to him talk about his vacation to the team.

Then her phone rang. She glanced at the caller ID, then at Jane, before murmuring, "Excuse me," and hurrying toward her office. "Hello?"

"Ms. Lisbon? This is Vickie from Dr. Talavera's office."

"Yes?" She reached the safety of her office and began drawing the blinds.

"We have your test results back. Everything came out negative. You're fine, and you don't need to follow up until your next regular checkup."

Lisbon sank onto the couch, relief weakening her knees. "Thank you," she managed to say.

"We'll see you next year, then. Have a good day!"

"You too." She hung up the phone and let her head fall back on the couch, saying a quick prayer of thanks.

When the door swung open, she wasn't surprised to find Jane there, looking her over anxiously. "I'm fine," she told him. "The tests were negative."

He dropped onto the couch beside her and grabbed her up in a crushing hug. "Thank God," he murmured into her hair.

She hugged him back, feeling a weight lift from her. She suddenly felt giddy. "Let's go tell them we're engaged."

Jane didn't want to let her go, keeping her close as he lifted his face from her hair to kiss her. She decided to make an exception to her resolve to keep things professional in the office and kissed him back with enthusiasm.

When they parted, Jane nimbly slid the ring from her pocket and held it up. "Teresa Lisbon, you are the warmth and light in my life. I have no home except where you are. Make me the happiest man on earth and marry me."

"Yes," she said, beaming at him as he slid the ring on her finger.

He slid the ring on her finger, grinning. "Now it's official. I didn't want to spend our entire married life hearing that I never really proposed to you."

She laughed. "I'll just have to find other things to complain about." Then she kissed him soundly before getting up and pulling him to his feet. "Come on. I want to hear the end of that story about you starting a surfing school."

"It only lasted a day," he chuckled. "Do you want to make a big announcement or see who notices first?"

"Let's see how long it takes," she replied.

It took Cho less than a minute to spot the ring. "Congratulations. What took you so long?"

"Don't look at me," Jane said as Grace grabbed Lisbon's hand to get a good look.

"Yes, look at him," Lisbon retorted. "We could hardly tell people when you weren't here."

"I see how this is going to go," Jane said. "Everything is always going to be my fault."

"Get used to it," Rigsby grinned.

Cho said, "Most things are your fault, so no real change then."

"When's the big day?" Grace asked.

"We're still in the early stages of this," Lisbon said. "We'll let you know when we figure it out."

Grace said, "Let me know how I can help."

"Thanks. Now, tell me what I missed yesterday," Lisbon said, feeling it was time she actually did some work.

"The FBI," Rigsby said. "Lucky for you."

"They confiscated all our Red John files," Cho said. "The order came down from the AG."

Grace added, "I made copies of all the computer files, of course."

Rigsby said, "I don't understand what they're looking for. We told them everything we know."

"I think," Jane said, "they've decided they can't trust anyone, including us."

"But we brought Red John down!" Rigsby protested.

"Ah, but his network still exists. What if we're part of it, and this was just a power play? Maybe we got rid of him so we could take over." Jane rolled his eyes. "It's the sort of thing people who don't know me very well think I would do."

Cho said, "Not just the people who don't know you very well. You were just so focused on Red John that you didn't think of it."

Jane's grin was somewhat alarming. Lisbon said, "The FBI is just unhappy that we got him and they didn't. They want a big bust to make themselves feel better. We will cooperate with them, and eventually they'll leave us alone. Understood?"

"Yes, Boss," everyone but Jane chorused. She glared at him, and he grinned at her.

"My dear, you cannot possibly expect me to cooperate with anyone attempting to persecute you," Jane said. "How did they get this ridiculous idea in the first place?"

She sighed. "Because Red John didn't kill me when he had the chance. They don't understand it. Neither do I, really."

"It's very simple. He wasn't ready for his game to end, and he knew it would all be over if he killed you. Because I couldn't go on if I lost you too." Jane said it as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

"You said...he was feeling playful. Or ran out of time," she said, frowning. "So that's what I told them."

"You weren't ready to hear the truth," he said.

She gave him a light punch in the arm, and he overreacted, yelping and rubbing at the spot like she'd actually hurt him. "Then you tell the FBI that," she ordered.

"I'll be happy to," he said. "Are you wanting your revenge on them by sending me to offer my services?"

"No," she said. "If they want to hire you, you should play hard to get until they make an offer you like." The thought of not working with him anymore made her sad, but at least she'd be going home to him at night.

Jane got a peculiar look on his face. Then he smiled the smile that always meant trouble. "An excellent idea, my dear," he said. "I'll be sure to do that."

Before she could demand to know what plan he'd just cooked up, the phone on Cho's desk rang. He picked it up and said, "Yeah? Okay. Got it."

"We're up?" Lisbon asked.

"Yeah. Body in a storage unit."

"All right, back to work then." She glanced at Jane, relieved to have him back on the job, however long it lasted. He smiled, setting his hand on her lower back as they headed for the elevator.

It was good to be back to normal.

Author's Note: Maybe it's the fact that I work in a field related to medicine, but when RJ smeared the blood across Lisbon's lips, all I could think was "I hope she doesn't ingest any of that!" So sorry if I grossed anybody out, but I needed to work this out so I can stop worrying about it.