Redemption

Chapter Four

The bullpen was virtually empty, except for the few agents that decided to stagger. Of the team, Bobby was the only one at his desk. Sue had taken Levi for his walk, D was talking to Garrett about a new case with Jack at his side, while Tara and Lucy were off picking up lunch and Myles was busy finishing up a case he'd been doing on the side.

With a heavy sigh, he threw down his pen and stared at the paperwork in front of him. He'd been trying to catch up on everything or Randy would be bothering him for it. But, as hard as he tried concentrating on it, the more his mind wandered. He didn't know what was making him more frustrated these days; all of this paperwork or he and Danni always getting interrupted when they were alone.

Maybe what they needed was a quiet night for just the two of them. It was something they've needed for a long time and even with their anniversary only days away—one he'd been planning such a romantic evening for—he felt that they needed some time for themselves. He considered the option for only a moment, before he decided how great of a plan that actually was. He made himself a note to call her as saw someone enter the bullpen out of the corner of his eye.

He took a sip from his cup of coffee and looked up at the visitor, only to spit the liquid out the second his eyes set upon the woman. He coughed loudly as he swallowed the rest of the liquid in his mouth. He stared in shock at her smiling face as she laughed at him.

"That's not the greeting I was expecting, Special Agent Manning," she said with a chortle. She crossed her arms over her chest as she stood only a few feet from his desk. "Did you miss me?"

He continued to stare at her as he tried to figure out what to say. The problem was that the words just wouldn't come. "Darcy?" was all he was able to ask.

She smiled at his dumbfounded look. "Don't act so surprised. I left a message with Lucy yesterday saying that I was in town. I was sent to investigate this triple homicide, so I decided to visit." She saw him furrow his brow in confusion. She knew what that meant. "You didn't get the message?" He shook his head as he got the bearings to get to his feet. He scooted around her so as to avoid direct contact and went to refill his cup with more coffee. Unfortunately, she followed. "Oh, well. It doesn't matter. All that matters is that we've met up and we can get reacquainted." She leaned up against him and rested her hand flat against his chest. She looked into his eyes as she felt the muscle underneath her. It was certainly more defined than she remembered and she couldn't help but give a look of approval.

Her obvious flirting was making him very uncomfortable. He loved Danni and even the presence of Darcy D'Angelo wouldn't make his feelings waver. He'd loved the woman before him once, but that was then. He cleared his throat as he looked at her with a serious stare. He wanted to get his point across with nothing getting crossed between them. "Look, Darce, I've been seeing someone and I care about her a lot. I love her."

She would be lying if she said she wasn't surprised. The fact that he'd already found love was disconcerting. But, no matter what, her feelings wouldn't change. She regretted leaving Bobby behind and she would do anything to get him back. "Oh… That's all right," she said with a smile. "I didn't really expect you to stay single for that long. I'm sure she's just wonderful."

He nodded. "She is." He finally realized that her hand was still upon his chest when he heard someone clear their throat. He took a step back and looked up to see Tara and Lucy staring at him. How long they'd been standing there, he didn't really want to know, because he was terrified of what they'd seen. He was just thankful that they had come when they did. He was sure, if given the chance, Darcy would have pounced on him. He recognized that look of wanting in her eyes and was afraid that she would do something against her better judgment; if she had any. "Look, who's come to pay a visit," he said as a deep blush filled his face when he saw the expression on Lucy's.

She was staring angrily at him as if chastising him with her mind. She happened to like Danni and liked the person Bobby was with her. If he was dumb enough to make a mistake like go back to Darcy, he deserved her. She tore her angry gaze away as she answered her phone and left Tara to take her place.

"Lunch?" she asked forcefully as she thrust his order into his stomach.

"Thanks, Tara," he said with a strain to his voice. He knew she would have hit him harder if given the chance. Bobby was like a big brother to her and he needed a slap when Darcy was around.

"Uh, Bobby, Detective Talbot is on the way up," Lucy said as she hung up the phone. She crossed her arms over her chest and gave him a stern look as if telling him to get Darcy out of there. She didn't want to see Danni's reaction to the ex-girlfriend, because it most likely wouldn't be good. As far as she knew, she wasn't the jealous type, but yet again, this scenario had never come up.

"Great, that's just what I need right now," he muttered, though none of the women seemed to hear him. "What for?" He was clueless as to why Danni would show up. As far as he could remember at this point, she wasn't meeting any of them for lunch because of the new case that they were being assigned.

"Something about a bunch of classified files," she emphasized the word 'classified' and turned her gaze to Darcy as another signal for him to usher her out of the bullpen.

Bobby looked as if he'd just be struck by lighting as his brain returned to his body. The shock of Darcy's visit had finally worn off and now realized that there were other people in his life. "Right. Jack said something about a transferred case."

"Wait," the visitor said. "Are you guys talking about Tal; that Metro Detective?"

Tara furrowed her brow in confusion. "You've heard of Tal?" Since Darcy had been in Los Angeles for almost two years, Tara hardly expected her to know of Tal.

"I went to New York about three months after I moved to LA. I'd heard a bunch of stories and I heard he transferred. I just never knew where he went. I've always wanted to meet him." Her eyes lit up as she looked at Bobby as if asking if she could stay and meet him.

Tara and Lucy shared the same amused expression and giggled at the fact that even Darcy thought Tal to be a man. It seems like Danni's position in New York was basically the same as hers in DC. There was so much secrecy around her; either that or she was becoming a legend in her own right. Boy she was going to get the surprise of her life when she found out who Tal really was.

Bobby shook his head as he rolled her eyes. He knew that look as well and it wasn't going to work anymore on him. "We have to deal with this in private, Darce. Classified material is definitely something we don't want leaked." He rested a hand upon her arm to show her the way out, but she pulled out of his grasp and stared at him.

She considered arguing with him, but she couldn't think of a good argument when she looked into those gorgeous blue orbs of his. "You know I wouldn't have revealed anything, Special Agent Manning." Her flirting continued, which Tara and Lucy definitely seemed to notice and rolled their eyes at her. That 'Special Agent Manning' thing wasn't going to work on him anymore and it made them laugh even harder.

"I know, but rules are rules." He stared firmly down at her as if putting his foot down and she knew she had to give in.

"Fine. Maybe we can catch up some time. I'm in town for a good while. My cell's still the same, so don't hesitate to give me a call." She winked at him and ran her index finger under his chin as enticement before she slinked out of the bullpen, passing Sue and Levi in the process.

"Was that who I think it was?" she asked. Tara and Lucy only nodded as all three women set their eyes upon the handsome Aussie. Sue shook her head at his blushing countenance. "I don't even want to know, do I?" This time, Tara and Lucy shook their heads and they finally tore their gaze from him and went to dig their lunch orders out of the two large paper bags that were sitting upon Lucy's desk.