The following morning, Bobbi woke up with the shock that it was nearing midday here- She hated time differences. She quickly showered before she dressed in a chosen short grey business skirt, a white blouse and high heels. She slide on her matching grey blazer. She called S.H.I.E.L.D. and updated them with her current approach and estimated time frame. She then made her way to the hotel where he was staying, hoping that he hadn't already left and that she hadn't missed her window of opportunity to see him directly. Without hesitation, she walked straight up to the front desk, "I am looking for a Mr. Lance Hunter."
"May I ask who is asking?" The front desk lady asked.
"Bobbi, if you could let him know that I've come to return his jacket, please," Bobbi replied, before walking off and sitting down. She noticed the woman huff, but as she wasn't given any chance to reject the request, she called up to Hunter's room. It only took five minutes before the elevator opened and Hunter walked out, she stood to greet him, "I came to return your jacket."
Hunter reached her and accepted the jacket, "Thank you. I apologise for yesterday, I wasn't thinking."
"Yes- I've never had anybody give me their jacket, tell me to stay-put and run off," Bobbi admitted. She had them running off, but never after giving her their jacket.
"That was definitely bad judgement on my end, I don't blame you for leaving. May I make it up to you, with lunch?" Hunter asked as he checked his watch.
"Only if you promise not to run off again, this is your only chance," Bobbi replied.
Hunter laughed, "I promise. Give me a few moments to collect my wallet from upstairs."
"Of course, I'll wait here," Bobbi replied with a smile as she took a seat, to emphasis her point about staying. "I won't leave this time," she added when he hesitated leaving her there. It was as she was checking her phone, that she noticed William Keane enter the hotel. He was occupied on his tablet, and Bobbi could just sense that his tablet would hold the location of the prison. Although, she would probably compromise her mission if she interacted with him and Hunter saw, what chances would there be for her to be interested in two undercover S.T.R.I.K.E. agents. It was a good thing she didn't approach him, because a second later Hunter reappeared. Bobbi instantly stood, smiled and maintained eye contact with him. He headed straight towards her, but suddenly stopped when he encountered Keane. She hovered for a moment before approaching them both, "If you're busy-" she started.
"It's fine, Bobbi. I'll just reschedule," Hunter replied, offering her a smile before looking at Keane. "Collaborate with Booster, email me the report tonight." He said to the older male.
Bobbi suddenly considered the strange circumstance that Hunter, who was only two years older than herself, was the director of an organisation very similar to S.H.I.E.L.D.. So far she had observed that he was a normal guy, who didn't look nearly as skilled or experienced as she believed somebody should be to take on such a large responsibility. Her mind drifted off to what his file said and she realised that there was next to no information about him in his file. She wondered how that was even possible as she walked out of the hotel with him, "Are you sure I'm not pulling you out of an important meeting?" she asked, glancing back at the disgruntled Keane.
"Not at all," Hunter insisted, before placing a hand on her lower back and leading her across the road to a nearby diner. "I have been dying to go to this diner since mentioning it to you last night."
Bobbi smiled, "It looks lovely. Diners sometimes produce the best service and homemade food." Hunter nodded in agreement as he held the door open for her. "Thank you," Bobbi said with genuine gratefulness.
"You're welcome, I still need to make up from running away from you last night," Hunter replied as he followed her in. He selected a booth which had a perfect view of the whole diner and exit, but still offered them privacy. She smiled as she slid in opposite him. "If you're free, I could show you around the area later?"
"That would be lovely," Bobbi replied, "I wouldn't mind finding a nice place to take a jog." She added.
Hunter smiled at her, "There is this lovely park which has a really long jogging route. Although, that is quite a drive away- nevermind."
Bobbi laughed, "That was very helpful, maybe I wouldn't mind the drive." she countered his initial reasoning.
"Interesting, you must really want that jog," Hunter piped in as he handed her a menu before collecting one for himself.
Bobbi simply nodded in reply, they fell into a comfortable silence as they both looked over the menu. She could be sensible and order something healthy or order something more satisfying, when the waitress approached them, she glanced at the menu and decided to just go with the salad.
"May I take your order?" The waitress asked.
Hunter looked at her, but she indicated for him to go first, "Chicken burger and fries, and a coke."
The waitress nodded before turning her attention to Bobbi, "Same."
"A girl who isn't afraid to eat a burger on the first date, is a girl I like," Hunter grinned as he placed his menu to the side at the same time she did.
"Date? Is that what this is?" Bobbi teased.
"You didn't get the memo?" Hunter joked causing Bobbi to actually laugh and shake her head. "You have a beautiful laugh," he commented.
"Thanks," Bobbi replied, lips still turned up. "How long are you staying at the hotel?" she asked as their drinks were set down, "Thanks."
"Thanks," Hunter said to the waitress before looking at her, "Just last night, I thought it would be best to have a hotel close to the party, then it didn't matter how much I drunk. I could just walk there afterwards."
"That is rather sensible. Do you do that a lot? I'm sure it would be expensive, why not just hail a cab?" Bobbi asked him as she took a sip from her drink.
"You need to call them here and then wait outside, they only tend to wait at train stations and airports. And even then, sometimes you have to wait," Hunter informed her with a shrug before adding, "And sometimes, I'm not entirely trusted with my own phone."
Bobbi laughed, "You barely even drunk last night, what was it? Two sips?" she questioned.
"I am sure it was gulps," Hunter countered, the playfulness in his voice and eyes.
"Oh definitely," Bobbi agreed playfully. A small frown suddenly made its way onto her face when she remembered that this wasn't a real date. She was saddened because she really liked Lance Hunter and wished that this was a real date- not that she ever agreed to go on one. She let out a sigh at the thought.
"Are you okay?" Hunter asked, his voice reeking with instant concern over her sudden change of emotion.
Bobbi quickly replied, "Yes, just thought about work; they suck the life out of you, you know?" She looked up at him to see him give her a sympathetic smile, "I have the day off, so I'd rather not think about work."
"Maybe I could help keep you distracted from it," Hunter suggested.
Bobbi smiled at him, "Sounds perfect." The waitress returned with their food, placing it down in front of them. Bobbi smiled as she took in the smell of the food, "And this smells perfect."
Hunter's smile remained on his face as he took a dramatic whiff of the food, "I will have to agree with you on that matter."
A silence spread between them, but it wasn't awkward or uncomfortable. They both ate in silence as they sent random looks at each other. After a while, he started pulling faces at her and after a few minutes of laughing at him, she responded appropriately by matching his faces. In the end the remaining fries had gone cold and they accomplished nothing but pulling faces and laughing at one another; this was definitely one of the strangest and most carefree dates she had ever been on, if one would classify this as a date.
"Did you want pudding?" Hunter asked her, his voice sounding strange after the long silence.
Bobbi laughed and shook her head, "No, thank you."
Hunter nodded, "Can I have the check, please?" He said to a passing waitress.
"This has definitely been an interesting meal," Bobbi pointed out. "I won't forget it in a hurry, very memorable."
"That was my intention, a girl like you must have a lot of-"
"Excuse me, a girl like me?" Bobbi suddenly said, interrupting him. What kind of girl did he think she was.
"Yes, a very attractive woman. Any guy would be crazy to not throw himself at you, I didn't want to be one of the goons who fall into the background." Hunter replied with ease. Avoiding any potential argument after categorising her.
Bobbi smiled, "You definitely do stand out, Lance. That is for sure." She informed him as she pushed her food to the side and leant forward on the table, "Now about about we get out of here?" she suggested, her foot sliding up his leg.
Hunter smiled and instantly stood up, "Let me go and pay." He walked over to the waitress, waited for the receipt and paid by card before walking back over to her. "Ready when you are."
Bobbi stood up, adjusting her pencil skirt which had risen slightly, "I'm ready."
Hunter rested a hand on her lower back as he led her out of the diner and across the street to his hotel.
"What time do you need to check out of the hotel?" Bobbi asked, even though she was still focused on a long term mission, going up to his hotel room usually would involve sex; she still had to decide how far she would go for the mission. In the past she refused to go further than kissing a allowing his hand to wonder a little. Although, she felt surprising close with Hunter, unlike any other target; in fact, it was a sudden closeness she only felt with two people before and one of them she had married in a drunken state. Regardless, she wanted to analyse her window in the hotel to see if she would have a chance getting the intel instead of committing to a longer mission. It was easier to complete missions when there was no connection with the target; she was already compromised by even liking him.
Hunter slipped his phone out of his pocket and checked the time, he looked at her, "About 45 minutes." He confessed.
Bobbi stopped suddenly, "45 minutes, you're crazy." She announced in the lobby of the hotel, if he thought that she was just going to be a very quick booty call, then firstly there was no way she could complete the mission, and secondly, he really felt she was willing to do that. She held her head up a little higher when she noticed she caught the attention of a few individuals.
Hunter gently guided her towards the elevator, "We're just here to collect my things, okay? You don't mind an additional 30 minutes drive back to my home, do you?"
Bobbi considered the invitation, she knew she was going to accept before he finished talking but she couldn't seem to eager. She forced herself to focus on the mission, going back to his place was perfect, all she needed was three free moments lasting five minutes each time to get the mission done. She turned her whole body towards him after they stepped into the elevator, a smile plastered on her face, "I accept." She stated formally before pressing her lips against his with passion. She felt one of Hunter's arms hold her against him as he leaned over and pressed his floor button. She couldn't help but moan into his mouth when she felt herself being pressed against the cold metal of the elevator. The smirk which made its way onto her face was automatic at the awkward cough from an older male who was short and wore thick glasses who entered the elevator. She looked down holding back a laugh when Hunter pulled back and had the decency to look embarrassed with his actions.
"My apologies," he told them as he released her and waited until they reached his floor. Bobbi couldn't help but laugh a little more at how polite he was being, definitely not something she would have expected from his file, then again, he was the director.
Bobbi allowed herself to be pulled out of the elevator, the second it reached his floor and into his room. She dropped her purse onto a nearby counter and kissed him. They were alone and she needed to seem like she really did want him more than she wanted to go back to his home. She felt his arms wrap around her, making them flush with each other. The adrenaline and thrill from getting caught in the elevator was still rushing through her body as it was, which fuelled the intense and passionate kiss between them. She moaned as his lips travelled from hers to her neck, her head went back. She knew she should stop, remind him that he only had 36 more minutes to check-out before he was charged extra. She allowed him to guide her backwards and her thoughts are confirmed when the back of her legs hit the bed. As she opened her mouth to stop the session, his lips returned to hers, absorbing her back into the intimate moment as she unbuttoned his shirt and one of his hands made its way up her bare thigh. Her fingers grazed his chest and she decided to forget about the mission for the moment and just concentrate on the moment between her and Hunter. She told herself that she was still in control and could stop at any time; although she knew that as she pushed Hunter down onto the bed and straddled him, that she would not be stopping unless somebody walked through that door. On this rare occasion, Bobbi decided to forget about the mission she had to do and did what she wanted to, not caring about the repercussions of her actions.
