Redemption

Chapter Forty-Nine

The diner was bustling with customers as lunchtime rolled around. Every table was full and people were still waiting for a table or ordering their food to go. Charlene and Nicholas had managed to land a booth along the window so they could look out at the sights of DC while they awaited the arrival of their daughter and her guest. They'd ordered their coffee and sat patiently as they watched the lunch traffic bustle about them. Danni would be arriving at any minute and that made both parents anxious.

Charlene had spoken to Bobby on the phone, but that had been for all of two minutes. Now, she was expected to have a conversation with the man and she knew very little about him. By the photographs in the apartment, her daughter seemed really happy with him, but Danni had made many mistakes with men. She was worried that he could be another one of those who could end up breaking her baby's heart. She didn't want Danni to have to suffer like that and hoped that she was making the right choice.

Her eyes ice-blue eyes scanned the diner, studying the patrons as they passed by. The mood of the small restaurant was calm, but that was due to change drastically. A sigh escaped her as her eyes rested upon her husband's medium-grey ones. Her brow creased in confusion at the expression she found there. It was one of silent calm; the kind before a violent storm. "What?" she asked when she saw that look.

His mouth opened like he was about to say something, but he closed it before shaking his head. "Nothing." He reached across the table, taking his wife's hand into his and giving it a squeeze. "It's just that I don't want this conversation to go south, like all of the others. I miss our daughter and we should be happy that she's been willing to turn her life around and do some good with it." With one more squeeze, he let her go before taking his coffee cup in hand and raising it to his lips. He took a tentative sip before setting it down again.

Nicholas loved his wife to death, but sometimes she could be a bit overbearing and overprotective of their daughter. One day, when Danni was in high school, Charlene had reduced her to tears. He thought it was because she was pushing their only child much too hard and called her on it. It was then that she explained why she'd done it. She told him that she wanted Danni to grow up to be an intelligent, sophisticated, and strong-willed woman. He had to smile at that memory. It seems like she got her wish, though it might have been at an extreme expense.

"You know," she began; her arms folded upon the table top as she leaned forward, "it sounds like you're blaming me for every argument we've ever gotten in." She tried to keep her face stern, but there was a hint of teasing in her eyes. Unfortunately, she didn't receive the same expression. The knowing look in his eyes told her this was no joke. "Okay, so maybe I push her a little more than I need to. I just want her to be happy."

He smiled reassuringly as he grasped her hand again and pointed out the window at a couple as they stood near their car. "I think she already is."

She furrowed her brow in confusion, but followed his gaze. The sight of Danni leaning against Bobby's government-issued car as he stood practically a head above her made her heart swell with happiness. The handsome young man's hand rested comfortably on her daughter's arm, while his other gently fussed with her chin as he tried lifting it. He was saying something to her, but whatever it was, she wasn't sure. It seemed to make Danni feel better and her eyes sparkled in a way Charlene had never seen before.

"Oh!" she said with surprise as she watched the tall Aussie lean down and place a comforting kiss upon Danni's lips. It was chaste, but it showed how much love and respect each had for one another. Perhaps she'd been worried over nothing.

"Now, do you understand what I'm saying?"

She nodded as she turned back to face him. A smile graced her lips. "They're adorable together," she gushed. It almost made her cry. It was a wonderful sight to see.

The matching expressions Lucy and Myles wore as they entered the bullpen discouraged Sue as she struggled to regain her composure. She was sure the tell-tale sign of heat was still evident on her cheeks, so she turned away and tried to focus on something else until the heat receded. Until then, she couldn't face her friends and only hoped Jack could sympathize to her embarrassment.

He did, awkwardly clearing his throat before turning to the agent and the rotor. He knew his face was still flushed and his lips might have been a bit swollen, but he would blush every time Sue was in the vicinity—no one would notice the difference. "I thought you two were eating out," he managed to say as he took his lower lips in between his teeth. His tongue lightly danced across it and he smiled. Her taste still lingered there and he held back the groan of pleasure that threatened to escape.

"I forgot my purse," Lucy explained as she opened her desk drawer and pulled out her handbag. Her eyes flickered to Sue in confusion. She noticed how her friend was avoiding them and wondered what they were interrupting. She hoped another fight hadn't ensued between her and Jack. They had become so much closer in the past week. It wasn't like she hadn't noticed, because she had. It was like a new life had been breathed into them and she was enjoying it.

"Did we interrupt something?" Myles asked. He noticed how Lucy let out a sigh of relief. He understood why. The tension in the room was thick. Of course, he couldn't sense anger. It was a good kind of tension, yet he was confused. They had interrupted something, but he knew they wouldn't come right out and say it.

"No," Jack said when he saw Sue finally turn to face them. Her cheeks still carried a light pink tint, but it only seemed like she'd put on too much blush this morning.

"Are you sure we haven't interrupted anything?" the rotor asked.

"Interrupt?" Sue asked as if thinking it over. With a shake of her head, she responded. "Nope." Her smile may have been a little too wide, but she couldn't help it. Jack's kisses always made her smile.

"Okay," Lucy replied before joining her companion. "We're going out to lunch. Do you want us to bring something back?"

"No. Um- Jack already brought me something." Her gaze flickered to Jack and hoped her smile didn't show what she was feeling, right now. She was wishing Myles and Lucy would hurry up and leave so she and he could continue what was so rudely interrupted. She tried not to blush at that thought. It was very tempting when the man of her desires was so close.

Lucy nodded. "Okay." She waved goodbye, joining Myles as the exited the bullpen together.

Jack let out a sigh of relief and a chuckle as he leaned against his desk for support. He smiled at Sue, who didn't return his happy grin. It didn't matter, though. Her mind could have been a million miles away and he still couldn't find her any more beautiful than after kissing her. Possibly after do other things that just involved the two of them, but kissing was fine for now. He really liked doing that. But, there was something about her distant stare that didn't bode well with him. They'd almost been caught, was she beginning to think this was a bad idea? "Hey," he said as he took her hand in his and pulled her toward him, "are you okay?"

She nodded before turned to glance back at the door. A small smile formed on her lips as her brow creased. She was trying to work out something in her mind that made absolutely no sense to her. He hoped she was willing to share. "I'm fine, but something is bothering me."

"What?" A lump had formed in his throat. The fact that she could turn this all around on both of them was frightening. He didn't want to go back to the way it was. He loved the here and now and he loved her. There. That was done. He loved Sue Thomas. Not as a friend, not as a teammate, but as the beautiful, wonderful woman she was.

"Uh, Myles- did it- did it look like he put his hand to the small of Lucy's back?" She cracked her smile wider at the thought that came to mind. Everything that she'd had questions to was finally beginning to make sense.

Jack didn't think it seemed as amazing as she did, though. Of course, she understood Lucy and Myles better than he did because she lived with the rotor. He knew the story of their past was a hot topic at one point, so maybe that was what had gotten the wheels in her mind to start turning. "So what if he did? I used to do the same to you all the time." And he was willing to put his hand wherever she pleased, at this point in time. Such a difference, there was, between now and before. Now, she wouldn't pull away from his advances and now he wouldn't have to settle for a simple touch when he could have so much more.

She looked directly into his eyes and grinned rather boldly. Her nose wrinkled in that cute, teasing manner he loved so much as she took her lower lip between her teeth. Her mouth moved closer to his until they were just a breath away from each other. She was tempted to leave him hanging with her finding, but she was sure he wouldn't care after their lips had made contact. She figured it would be better to tell him before that happened. "And look what happened to us," was all it took for her to say before she saw both recognition and disbelief in his eyes. She was definitely onto something, but it was certainly unexpected. He glanced back at the door in awe before turning back to the woman of his dreams.

"Excellent work, Thomas," he breathed, but made sure she could read him.

"Thank you, Hudson," she said before lightly brushed her lips against his.