A/N: First of all I'd like to wish you all a very Merry Christmas! And hope you are having a great time. I really apologize for the delay in the update. Last but not the least, I want to thank you all readers and reviewers, Shirahane Aikawa, mlivingston1432, KenLaraLaura and Orel Havi, for your all your support.

Chapter 13

(Leon's POV)

I woke up when the sunlight hit my face and I noticed Lauren, who had stayed back last night, wasn't by my side. I turned back to listen for any noise from the bathroom, but it seemed it was unoccupied. I lied on my back and stared at the ceiling for a bit, but I couldn't do it for long, since I had to report to work. I got off the bed and headed for the shower, knowing Lauren she might already be up and maybe downstairs possibly having her breakfast.

I dressed in my work clothes and descended down the stairs, pulling on my jacket. When I entered the kitchen, I found Lauren instructing Kate to set the small table in the kitchen. When they noticed me, Lauren smiled brightly and Kate had more of a neutral expression. Lauren moved to kiss me, and wished me morning, once we parted. She looked happy for some reason, as she walked me to the small table, where Kate had already set the breakfast.

"I thought it would be romantic, if we had breakfast properly for once", Lauren smiled at me. I looked at the breakfast and for some reason turned my head just a little to look at Kate, who was standing near the counter. She was looking at Lauren and smiling, "What are you waiting for come on", Lauren tried to drag me to the small table but for some reason I was getting an ominous feeling about all this.

I again looked at Kate and she shook her head vigorously escaping from Lauren's eyes, as the latter woman took a seat on the table, and that only meant one thing that the breakfast on the table was prepared by Lauren, "I guess, I feel a little sick. I'll just stick to the coffee", I said moving towards the counter and Kate handed me a cup of coffee.

"We have coffee here", Lauren said, as I took a sip, and I looked back at her, holding a cup and giving me a bright smile.
"Ah well I already drank from this one", I made an excuse to save myself from drinking the extra-sweetened coffee that Lauren prepared; "Besides it's the same right?"
"Yeah it is", Lauren said, taking a sip of her coffee. She disguised her cough and took a bite of her omelet, "It's really nice, you sure you don't want to eat this?", she praised her own cooking, but clearly her voice didn't conform with her words.
"No, I don't really feel hungry", I told her with a shake of my head, as Kate put a plate of omelets and toast in front of me. It looked really appetizing and mouthwatering.
"Hurry up and eat, she's not looking this way", Kate said to me in hushed up voice, so that Lauren doesn't hear her.

As I grabbed the knife and fork, a phone ring startled me as well as Kate, and we looked back at Lauren. She looked at her phone and took the call. She got up from the breakfast table and started talking to her friend, while roaming around the kitchen. It didn't give me a long enough opening to have my breakfast. She'd not only misunderstand but may even cause a scene early in the morning, if she caught me having breakfast that was prepared by Kate. But since I already have a hectic schedule today, I wasn't really looking forward to the drama.

"Stop watching me and eat your breakfast", Lauren almost snapped at Kate furiously.
"Yeah, I am sorry", Kate said looking away from me and started to eat the breakfast that was meant for me, "I am sorry!", she apologized, as Lauren continued to talk on the phone.

I watched Kate starting to eat the breakfast, which was meant for me, and I couldn't help but feel hungry. She reluctantly folded the omelet with an apologetic look on her face. I sipped my coffee, guess today I'll have to go to work without breakfast, but well it won't be the first time. And besides I was trained to go on without eating anything for a few days, plus I'd just have to wait till lunch time to eat something, so I guess I'll be fine.

Kate again looked over my shoulder, "Open up!", she muttered to me in a tone of urgency.
"Wha…", I was asking her, but she shoved the rolled up omelet in my mouth.

I coughed a little, as I tried fit the omelet in my mouth, chewing it as fast as I could, when Lauren spared me a look and I sipped my coffee to disguise the fact that I had something in my mouth. When I turned to face Kate she was holding a buttered toast to me. Not thinking twice I took a bite off the toast she had in her hand. Somehow Lauren being busy on the call gave me enough time to eat the breakfast that Kate had prepared for me. Although I couldn't really enjoy it leisurely like I always do, but well it was better than having nothing in the breakfast.

As I finished my breakfast, Lauren finished her call and let out a very depressed sigh and slumped on the kitchen chair next to mine, "What happened?", I asked her out of concern.
"My friends want me to come with them on a trip to Florida", she told me with a sigh, "Go clean that up I lost my appetite", she added to Kate in a sharp tone.
"That's a good thing isn't it?", I asked her a little doubtfully, as Kate moved to clean up.
"No, of course not", she almost snapped at me, "I don't have money for this trip. If I am going, I want to enjoy; I don't even have money to buy tickets."
"Oh I see", I said in realization.
"I wish I could go though", she said dropping her head on to the counter sadly.
"So go then", I encouraged her.

"Were you even listening? I don't have money!", Lauren looked at me annoyed.
"How about I finance your vacation?", I suggested with a shrug.
"Really?", she said smiling at me beautifully and I affirmed it with a nod, but then her expressions changed suddenly, "No, it would be too much. I'll go some other time."
"It's fine", I said trying to cheer her up, "It would be fun to go with friends."
"Hmm… true", she said giving it a thought, "Okay, but it's just borrowing money. I'd return it to you when I get money."
"Sure", I agreed not wanting to hurt her self-respect.
"Umm… so when can you arrange the money?", she asked me a little hesitantly, "You know I'd have to prepare for the trip and all, so the earliest the better."
"I'd transfer it to your account by today, alright?", I told her with a smile.
Lauren hugged me tight, "You're really a great boyfriend", she said and kissed me.

Lauren got pretty excited for the trip and began telling me all about her plans for the trip, as we moved to head to work. All through the drive she told me all she knew about Florida and how she always wanted to go enjoy the beaches there. She would thank me, or mention that it would be great if I could come too, or just request me to come along, in between all this and then continue with telling me about her plans once again. It really seemed like it was her dream to have a vacation in Florida and seeing her like this made me more than happy.

(Kate's POV)

I set the curtains on the windows of the living room and then moved to arrange the books on the bookshelf that was in the corner of the living room. I was currently helping Claire to set things up, at her new place. So, after sending Leon to work, I've been here since morning and all of mine and Claire's time went in setting up her apartment. Luckily, she didn't have too much stuff and it just took us a single day to get everything done.

"Hey I am ordering pizza, which toppings do you want?", Claire asked with the cordless receiver in her hand.
"Anything is fine", I told her, arranging her books.
"Okay then", she said, dialing the number and ordered the pizza for us, "I am so hungry. I haven't ate anything since the breakfast that you got for me", she added slumping back on the couch.
"You just have to wait 30 minutes", I said to her, as I put the last of her books on the shelf.

"So Leon will be coming to pick you up?", Claire asked me all of a sudden.
"No", I replied, relaxing on the couch and Shadow came to settle next to me, and I petted him.
"He did drop you in the morning, right?", she asked me, with a hopeful smile.
"No, I took a taxi here", I told her shaking my head in negative, "He's really busy with his work nowadays. I often find him sleeping on the couch."
"And what about his girlfriend?", Claire asked me and Shadow gave an angry bark, as she was mentioned, "Tell me that he's thinking to break up with her."

I couldn't help but laugh at that, "Well I haven't seen her in almost two weeks, but they are still together. I suppose she's just very busy, getting ready for her trip to Florida, to make a visit", I told her.
"Florida?", Claire repeated and then her brows came closer, as she frowned, "Leon's not going, is he?"
"No, he isn't, I suppose. She's visiting with her friends", I replied, remembering the conversation Leon and Lauren had that morning.
"And let me guess Leon is paying for her trip", Claire more of stated than asked, "I can't really believe her!", she seemed a little pissed now and I gave her a confused look, "Last year she went to Vegas and guess what Leon paid for that trip too."
"Well she said she would return it", I told Claire about what Lauren said.

"Yeah right!", Claire said sarcastically rolling her eyes, "That's what she always says. Leon's should be better off without her. He would be much more happier with you."
"Claire", I said getting her obvious hint.
"I am serious, just once try to tell him how you feel", she tried to persuade me once again.
"Claire, please we have discussed this over and over, and I am really tired now", I almost whined to her.
"And it's the perfect time for me to nag you about it", Claire said with a smile and I tilted my head to a side giving her a serious look, "Okay I won't say a thing", she sighed and kept her silence for a while, "Hey", she called my attention once again.

"What?", I asked her, as she gave me an excited look.
"What if Leon fell in love with you?", she asked suddenly seemingly more energetic about the thought.
"He won't", I said to her plainly and she gave me a displeased look, "Do you think he's a guy who would look at other women that way, when he's already dating one?"
Claire thought over it a little, "You've got a point there", she agreed with me.

Claire sighed in disappointment and didn't say anything. She held a cushion and seemed a little thoughtful, so I didn't disturb her thoughts. She was sincerely concerned for Leon and she really cared about me as well, and I was really grateful to her for that. The doorbell made her look at the door and she was a little slow to react, since I was already moving to the door by the time she started to get up.

"I'll get it", I said to her. I opened the door for the pizza delivery guy and received the pizza.
Claire paid for the pizza while I got plates for us, "You know…", she said as I opened the pizza box so we could start eating.
"What?", I asked her with a smile as she took a seat on the couch.
"Maybe Leon cannot see you, when he's together with Lauren, but I hope Leon can see your love", Claire said smiling beautifully at me, "I mean he doesn't have to be single to see your love, feel it or be in love with you. He probably won't look for love in other women, when he's dating Lauren, but I hope and pray to god that your love reaches him and touches his heart."
"That's a really sweet thing to say", I said to her with a smile as well.

We didn't talk much on the topic anymore and our conversations were mostly trivial, as we enjoyed the pizza together. For a change, Claire told me about her family back at her home town. After having my dinner and hanging out a little with her, I headed for home, before it was too late. I had to take care of few things at Leon's place, which included making dinner for him, after all I was his caretaker, and if I don't take care of him or his house there was no point in me being here.

(Leon's POV)

I read through all the data from the files, that were scattered on my desk, to figure out a way to achieve my objective, but nothing in the immense amount of information, piled in front of me, was worth of any use to me. It was making me a little frustrated and my head ached a little from just going through all these files. I relaxed on my chair and closed my eyes trying to recall the details in my head, in attempts to find something of importance. And just then my phone rang, interrupting my chain of thoughts and disrupting my concentration.

I opened my eyes and looked over my desk trying to look for my phone amidst the piles of files that were open at my desk. I found it at the farther end of my desk. I grabbed it and looked at the number, as the call was down to its last ring. The name on the screen made me smile. It was Lauren, she had already left for Florida a few hours ago and I had personally seen her off at the airport.

"Hey babe", I answered the call with smile; "You reached the hotel safely?"
"Yeah the flight was tiring but this place is really great!", Lauren replied with an evident enthusiasm in her voice, "I can see the beach from my room and it's really romantic, I wish you were here", she spoke in a seductive way.
"And what will you do, if I was there", I flirted back relaxing on the chair.

Lauren and I talked on the phone for a while, which kind of served as a stress buster and a break from my work. She got off saying that they were planning to head out to explore the city already. I kept my phone aside and relaxed on my chair stretching a bit. I really needed coffee to get my brain back to work. And as I was about leave my chair, Kate knocked on my study door and let herself inside, with Shadow following her.

"I thought you might want some coffee", Kate said with a charming smile.
"How did you figure it out?", I asked, as she walked to me.
"Well you've been working after you had your lunch", she said holding the tray in front of me.
"Thanks!", I said taking the coffee mug off the tray, thinking she really was thoughtful.
"Call me if you need anything then", she said starting to move out. She bumped into the corner of the table, knocking down the file, which was half hanging of my desk. I moved to get it, when she stopped me, "I'll get it; it's not something confidential, is it?"
"Not really", I replied, as she collected the papers off the floor.

"Tony Mathews?!", Kate muttered and I looked at her; she was holding the photograph of the subject I was studying about.
"You know him?", I asked her sitting straight and she stood up with the file in her hands.
"Uh well… not really", she told me, putting the file on the table, with a face that clearly said she was hiding something.
"Care to elaborate?", I pressed on the topic.
"Well he and I were in the same institute", she replied with a shrug.
"What can you tell me about him?", I asked her keeping my cup down, this might be the lead I was looking for.
"Nothing", she shook her head, "We studied two different fields. He was in molecular medicine and I studied human medicine."
"But you still know about him", I said pressing on the fact.
"Yes, but…", she began but I cut her in between.

"I want you to tell me everything you know about him", I asked her in a tone of urgency, "His friends, any small event or any detail that you remember or that stood out. It might help us."
Kate gave me a confused look before starting to speak, "Well I don't know much about him. I only know of him because he was…", she paused for a bit maybe trying to organize her thoughts or trying to search for words, "Weird and eccentric?!", she completed her sentence.
"And?", I tried to encourage her to tell me more.
"Well I don't know", she shook her head a little nervously; "I didn't really know him. We had same classes and all, but he was very recluse. He never socialized with anyone and I don't recall seeing him with anyone either. But he was nothing less than a genius…"
"Genius?", I repeated wanting for Kate to elaborate on it more.
"Yeah well that was the weirdest thing about him. He often seemed to be not paying attention in classes, but he still aced everything", she recalled, "I often saw him in library, so I guess he studied a lot. I guess he was studying to be a geneticist."
"Did you ever talk to him?", I asked, looking at her over my coffee cup.
"No, never", she shook her head in negative, "We just wished each other morning or similar sometimes crossing paths but that was it, nothing too personal."

After listening to Kate, I got thinking about all the information she had provided me with. There was nothing she told me that I didn't already know about. He was a top class student at his university; we didn't know if he had any friends or past girlfriends, and he was a geneticist. I tried to think of something that I was missing, when Kate asked if she could leave and I gave her a nod that she could. I blankly stared at her lost in my thoughts, when I realized the thing I was missing.

(Kate's POV)

"Kate", Leon called out my name as I reached the door.
"Yeah?", I halted at the door to listen to him.
"Did it happen often?", he asked me with a pensive look.
"What?", I responded not getting his question.
"Did he greet you often?", Leon stated his question clearly.
"Umm… once a day maybe", I replied with a shrug, "But that's normal right?"
"It is", Leon said with an incredulous smile, "For normal people greeting their acquaintances is normal, but for him I guess it's something rare", he searched for something among the files, knocking some down to the floor but he didn't seem to care anymore.

I saw Leon get his phone and dial someone's number. I still had a lot to do and it seemed he didn't need me anymore, so I left him in his study. I got a little occupied doing my work and when I moved in the kitchen to prepare dinner, Leon walked in the kitchen smiling so charmingly that it made my heart flutter and I couldn't help but mirror that smile of his. He took a seat on the kitchen chair and I snapped myself out of just looking at him, and resumed my work.

"Hey", Leon said to get my attention and I hummed in response, "You interested in being a spy?"
I let out a brief laugh, "What?!", I asked him with a confused smile.
"I am offering you to work as a spy", Leon explained himself more clearly, "Temporarily of course."
"You can't be serious right?", I asked, it seemed like a great joke.
"No, I am serious", Leon said with a serious expression, "You'll be like secret government agent. So are you down for it?"
"No", I replied without even thinking twice on the matter, "The idea is something suitable for a movie. It might sound exciting but it's far from that in real life. I appreciate what you people do for the country and us, but I don't want to get involved. I am sorry!"
"I understand", Leon said in an understanding tone, but I could see that he was really disappointed about me denying his request.

Leon lifted himself off the kitchen chair and started to move out of the kitchen. I watched him leave and I don't know if it was my imagination, but he walked slower than his usual pace. He didn't push me, but maybe he really needed my help. I really felt bad watching him leave like that and couldn't help but feel angry at myself. Seeing him like that, made my chest ache a little. I took a deep breath and tried to remind myself of my responsibilities. It was not to go spy for the government, but it was to work as a housekeeper for Leon.

I looked at his back again and I knew I might regret all of this but I called out his name, "Leon!"
"Yeah?", he turned to look at me and I could see he was looking at me the same way he always did, even when I disagreed to help him, just little while ago.
"What do I have to do?", I asked him letting out a heavy sigh.
"Nothing much, just go and talk to this Tony Mathews guy", he replied moving back to me.
"But anyone can do that, right?", I asked Leon feeling slightly anxious, "Why me of all the agents?"

"The thing is I suspect that he might have had a crush on you", Leon told me with an awkward smile, "So maybe you can ask him about his research and let us know what's it all about", he gave me a serious look, "We can definitely get another agent to do that job but it might take a lot of time for them to make him talk, since he's very anti-social, but you might be able to make him talk in a single meet or two."
"You're thinking too much, he just…", I tried to tell him that he was putting too much hopes on me.
"Maybe I am but it's the only lead we've got, after putting him under surveillance for past six months", he said to me with a tired smile, "I really need your help, it's a matter of maybe global threat."
"Okay", I said again letting out a tired sigh.
"So would you help?", he asked me in confirmation.
"Yes, I just have to talk. I guess I can do it", I told him with a smile.
Leon smiled at me, "I'll just go and inform my superiors then", he said getting his phone and I gave him a nod.

Leon dialed a number on his phone and walked out to living room to talk. I again let out a sigh; I was really hopeless with this love. I wasn't even able to say no to his request, knowing that it might be dangerous, and here I was hoping to fall out of love with him. But then again it felt a lot better after I agreed to help him out. I guess loves makes you enjoy even the simplest of things. I smiled at my hopelessness and got back to making dinner.

A/N: Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoyed it. I apologize for any typos and grammatical mistakes that might have caused an inconvenience in understanding the chapter. Please feel free to share your views; I really look forward to it. My next update will be delayed as well. Hope you are enjoying your Christmas and having a great time!