Leah stands there staring open-mouthed at them as Charlie hurriedly drags the covers over their naked bodies. "I um, I um, oh god, I am so sorry," Leah spins on her heels and rushes out of the room.
Charlie, blushing from embarrassment, turns to Joey, "I guess it's not so secret anymore."
Joey moves away from her and sits on the edge of the bed, her head in her hands.
"Joey, it's going to be ok, I'll talk to Leah, ask her not to say anything." Charlie grows worried when Joey says nothing. "Joey, please talk to me."
"This was mistake Charlie," her words slicing through the hearts of them both. "This should never have happened."
"Joey, please don't say that." Charlie moves behind her, wrapping her arms around her. "Joey, I have never felt or experienced anything like I just did with you and I don't want this to be a once off thing."
"Charlie, this can never happen again."
"Why not Joey, I wanted this to happen and so did you." When Joey shrugs off her arms and stands up, Charlie looks at her sadly, "At least I thought you did."
"We just got busted Charlie, soon this will be all over town."
"I told you, I'll speak to Leah, make sure she doesn't say anything."
"You can't guarantee that." Joey turns her back on her, unable to face her as she starts to dress.
"Joey, you can't just act like this didn't happen or that it didn't mean anything."
"That's not what I'm doing."
"You enjoyed this Joey, as much as I did."
"What if I did, Charlie, it doesn't change the fact that this is no longer a secret."
"You were the one who told me that this wasn't going to stay a secret for long."
"I also said I just wanted it to be us, without all the judgements and whispering."
"I'm pretty sure Graves and your sister already suspect or know, so now that Leah knows, what, you're just going to throw this all away?" Charlie asks in growing annoyance at Joey's refusal to look at her. "Joey, please tell me what's wrong."
Joey hangs her head, her shoulders slumping. "I don't know if I'm strong enough to do this," she says, finally admitting to herself that her sister was right, she wasn't ready for this.
Charlie jumps off the bed, hugging Joey from behind. Joey leans back against her embrace, closing her eyes as she revels in the contact. "I'm scared Charlie," her confession surprising Charlie, still not used to this side of Joey, so different from the brash and confident one.
"Scared of what?"
"I came here to investigate a cop's murder, not to become involved with someone." Joey shakes her head, "I wasn't looking for this."
"Neither was I." Charlie kisses her cheek. "We can get through this together," she tries to reassure her, a sudden chill coming over her that had nothing to do with her standing there naked.
Joey turns in her arms, "I need some space Charlie. Don't say anything," Joey says, placing her finger to Charlie's lips. "I have all these things going through my mind at the moment and I can't think clearly." Gently caressing Charlie's face, "Especially when I'm around you."
"Please don't walk away Joey," Charlie pleads.
Joey pulls away from her, "I'm sorry Charlie." Joey pauses at the door when she hears Charlie's soft words, "I'm falling in love with you." Her heart breaking at Charlie's heartfelt words, Joey refuses to turn around or say anything, closing the door to both the room and her own heart as she rushes past Leah and out of the house. Leaning against the car, she angrily brushes away her tears. Glancing back towards the house, she resists the urge to rush back into Charlie's arms and climbs into the car, almost hating Charlie for bringing this unwelcome complication into her life, for making her feel something again.
When Charlie doesn't come out any time soon, Leah knocks softly on the door, "Charlie?" Getting no reply, Leah opens the door to find Charlie curled around a pillow, crying. Leah sits on the bed, "I'm so sorry Charlie, I had no idea you were home and I heard the um," Leah blushes.
"You heard us."
"I knew Angelo was still away so I thought that Ruby or Nicole had snuck home and were up to something."
"It's ok Leah," Charlie says, feeling dejected. "I should have closed the door."
"I called Irene to watch the diner, so if you want to talk about this, then I'm here for you."
"I know how you feel about infidelity and you just caught me having sex with a married woman."
"I'm here as your friend Charlie, no judgements. Now, how long has this been going on?"
"Not long and this was the first time we had made love." Charlie hugs the pillow tighter. "I kept telling myself that this was wrong, that she's married and I'm engaged so nothing should happen and I really did try to fight this, but as soon as I'm near her, all I can think of is being with her and nothing else."
Leah is surprised by her words, never having heard Charlie speak like that about anyone before, including Angelo. "You really have fallen hard for her, haven't you?"
Charlie sits up, grateful she had put on a t-shirt as she looks at her with sad eyes, "I'm pretty sure I'm in love with her and I want her more than I've ever wanted anyone. She makes me feel things Leah, things I have never felt before and making love with her was so amazing that I never wanted it to stop."
"Then I really am sorry for barging in."
"This wasn't planned, the relationship, any of it and today, we just hadn't seen much of each other alone lately so we decided at the last minute to come home for lunch."
"Interesting lunch," Leah quips "And I think you just saw a whole lot more of each other and so did I." Charlie manages a chuckle. "I take it by the way Joey raced out of here she wasn't happy about being discovered."
"She just became so distant and was acting like it was all a mistake." Charlie wipes a tear from her face, "And now she says she's scared and wants space, but I think it's over."
"If this was your first time, maybe it was my walking in made it all that much more real and she panicked."
"Maybe. You don't seem all that shocked about us, I mean aside from walking in on us," Charlie blushes again.
"I certainly wasn't expecting such a demonstration, but I've seen the looks that pass between you, I just thought I was imagining it all."
Charlie shakes her head, feeling stupid, "And here we were trying so hard to keep this secret."
"Most people wouldn't notice, but despite our recent distance, we've been friends a long time and I know you Charlie. I guess now I know why you weren't missing Angelo," Leah muses as Charlie offers her a wry smile. "Is this what you really want Charlie?" Leah asks in a kind voice, wanting to make sure her friend had thought everything through. "Joey will be leaving once the investigations are over and she's married," she reminds her. "Do you know if Joey's even willing to leave her husband?"
"We've never talked about him, not really, but from what I've gathered, there's trouble in the marriage. Leah, I didn't enter into this lightly and I knew from the start that Joey and I may not last once the investigations are over," she says sadly.
"But things have changed, haven't they?"
Charlie drags her knees against her chest, "I told her I was willing to risk the pain just to feel this with her for as long as possible, but it's almost unbearable the thought of losing her."
Leah puts her arm around her. "Then maybe you should end this now, before you get in any deeper."
"It's too late because when she leaves, she's going to take a piece of my heart with her."
"Then you need to fight for her."
Charlie looks at her in surprise, "You're telling me to actively pursue a married woman and win her from her husband?"
"I don't approve of infidelity Charlie, but if Joey feels the same for you as you do for her, then by staying with her husband out of loyalty and not love, then she's not being fair to him or to herself, and that's not how I think a marriage should be." Leah grins, "And VJ would never forgive you if Joey left. He's done nothing but talk about her since they met."
"Ruby's the same."
"There is one thing I want to know Charlie, is there a child involved?"
"What do you mean?"
"You know exactly what I mean. Joey was great with VJ and the girls, but I noticed a sadness in her eyes when she was with them, like she was missing someone."
"I'm sorry Leah, it's not my place to tell you."
"I take that as a yes then. Don't worry Charlie, I won't say anything, but this is even more reason for Joey to work out where she belongs; with you or with her husband because kids pick up on things like that and it can make them very resentful if they realise that one of their parents isn't as involved in the marriage as the other."
"I know," Charlie says, knowing from her own experiences with her father's infidelities. "And I feel guilty myself for cheating on Angelo but being with Joey has made me realise that I can't marry him. I don't love him, at least not enough to marry him."
"Are you sure about that?" Leah asks.
"Deep down, I've known for a while that I can't marry him."
"Since Joey arrived?"
"I'd like to think that it was just my developing feelings for Joey that are to blame, but I've had my doubts ever since I said yes to him. If my father hadn't been standing there with him when he proposed, I think I would have said no." Charlie smiles wryly, "Joey accused me of marrying Angelo to please him and my father, even Georgina said something similar, but I just hadn't really wanted to admit until now that I had made a mistake by saying yes."
"You've only been engaged for a short time Charlie, but you've been together for over two years," she reminds her.
"I know that and I did love him, but I guess I always knew a marriage was never going to work. We want different things Leah, he wants kids, I don't, or at least I have serious doubts about wanting kids and for most of our relationship, he's been the one calling the shots." Charlie smiles fondly, "I guess I can blame Joey for that, she showed me how to stand up to my father and to be more confident in dealing with things, especially Angelo."
"She really has been good for you."
"She's made me realise that I was just going through the motions, doing things to please others, whether it made me happy or not. I just wish he was here so I could get this over with."
"You're really going to end it with him?"
"Even if I have no future with Joey, I know I don't have one with Angelo."
"At least Ruby will be pleased," Leah says, overjoyed that Charlie was finally seeing the light.
"Ruby's never really liked any of my boyfriends."
"From what I've seen, she absolutely adores Joey."
Charlie chuckles, "How pathetic am I that my daughter sees more than I do about the men in my life."
"I've met your father, so I know growing up with him couldn't have been easy, always trying to meet with his expectations, but you've given Ruby a loving and supportive upbringing, always encouraging her and it's allowed her to see things differently."
"He'll never forgive me for not marrying Angelo."
"If he cared for you Charlie, he'd want you to be happy no matter what. You're in your 30s Charlie, it's time to live your life the way you want to, to live your dreams without feeling guilty."
"It's not just that. Leah, what if I'm gay?"
"If?" Leah asks in amusement.
"Joey is the only woman I've ever been attracted to, for all I know she will be the last but it won't matter because my dad will hate me when he finds out. That's another thing my father and Angelo have in common, their bigotry and prejudice."
"They're not worth worrying about Charlie."
Charlie nods a little, putting her arm around her friend, "I've missed this, being about to talk to you."
"So have I, but I felt uncomfortable around here after what Angelo accused Roman of."
"Leah, did you believe Belle when she said that she was having an affair with Angelo?"
"Yes. I'm sorry Charlie, but she felt so guilty for cheating on Aden with Angelo."
"And do you think he assaulted her?"
"That, I'm not sure about," Leah says truthfully. "Belle was prone to dishonesty, but the guilt she felt for Aden's death was so real, which is why I believed her about the affair. I don't know if Angelo was the one who told Aden or Aden had just figured it out, but there was an affair, of that I'm certain," Leah tells her, thinking it wise not to mention that Belle had had an abortion.
"Did you and Roman ever blame Angelo for Aden's death?"
"What he and Belle did was wrong, but Aden had a drinking problem and it wasn't the first time he had gotten behind the wheel when he shouldn't have. Aden was responsible for his own death."
"How could I have been so wrong about Angelo?"
"You were in love and you wanted to see the best in him."
"Yeah, well now I'm wondering how much of what I've heard about Angelo is true."
"Charlie, everyone thinks he's a great guy and if it hadn't been for Belle, I'd probably still believe that and as long as you still believe in innocent until proven guilty, you should hold on to that. You can't be objective now, not where Angelo and Joey are concerned."
"I suppose not," Charlie says, still hoping that Angelo wasn't the man that Joey said he was.
"So what are you going to do now?"
"Shower and get back to work."
"Joey's going to be there."
"I know." Charlie sighs, "I'm going to give her the space she asked for, at least for the moment."
"And then?"
"And then we finally need to talk about her marriage and my engagement."
"You really do love her, don't you?"
"I hated her at first but I love her now, she's a part of me," Charlie admits. "The last few days have been torture, trying to find a little time here and there to be together and after making love with her, I have no idea how I'm going to survive the next couple of days, but I'm going to give her the time she needs to think things through and unless she tells me she still loves her husband and is never going to leave him, then I'm going to fight for her."
"I hope you win Charlie, because I like this new, confident you." Leah hugs you, "Not to mention that I've never seen you so happy as when you're with her, even when you're trying to hide your feelings."
"I just hope no one else sees that until we go public."
"Now, that is confidence."
"Not really, just acknowledgement that this is a small town and it's only a matter of time before it gets out, especially if Angelo and I break up."
"I don't know Joey that well, but I like her so you have at least one person on your side."
"Thanks Leah. I really should be getting back to work." Charlie climbs off the bed, "Oh and Leah, I really don't want you to be here alone."
"It's the middle of the day."
"This guy is dangerous and unpredictable, who knows when he will strike next."
"You're really worried, aren't you?"
"We kept the worse from the press, but it was bad Leah, much worse than the others, so please, be careful."
"I'll leave when you do."
"I won't be long."
Leah watches Charlie walk to the bathroom, hoping that Charlie was strong enough to break away from Angelo and fight for Joey. Leah shakes her head as she leaves the room, wondering why she was so supportive of Charlie wooing a married woman.
Stroking himself as he lies naked on his bed amid the dozens of photos he'd taken of her in the past few days, the impulse getting harder to ignore as he waits for the right moment when the whore would get what she deserved.
Having raced home to shower, Joey reluctantly heads back to work, feeling guilty for walking out on Charlie like that, but too confused to know what to do about it. Watson, noticing her sister's mood as soon as she arrives back from lunch follows her to her office.
"Where's Charlie?"
"How the fuck would I know," Joey snaps at her sister.
"You left with her."
"Well obviously I didn't come back with her," shutting the door in her sister's face.
"Fuck, I knew this would happen," Watson mutters, leaning against the door for a minute, trying to calm down, almost certain now that Joey had ignored her and started something with Charlie. "Why Joey, why are you doing this to yourself," she says softly, glaring at the young constable who was unfortunate enough to walk by at that moment, "You, I want a complete inventory of the stock in the storeroom."
"Yes Watson," he scurries away, not really wanting to know what had put her in this mood.