Hank leaned back in his chair as Caitlin remained standing against the door.
"You're moving on up in the world I see", said Hank.
"They came looking for me. I don't recall CPD doing the same".
"You used to hate the FBI"!
"I used to have a family, a husband, friends, a job… a lot of things have changed Hank, in case you'd forgotten".
It was a simple sentence, but it hit him hard.
"You quit, remember", he tried to fight back in his defense but it was obviously useless.
"I didn't have a choice. Either I quit or Crowley would have put me out of a job herself. I guess I preferred making things easy on everyone, keep the family name's reputation. I guess I figured that if I went down quietly, she'd spare you and your job. I guess you were the big winner in that game cause you're still here and up until a couple of months ago, I was the wreck with no job".
He said nothing.
"However, I do recall you keeping the team on a tight leash during Antonio's case, I wonder how Jay managed to slip out of here on his own, without a partner and end up in my custody to kill? Marcello Lombardi is not someone you want to mess around with. He has a thing out for killing cops and federal agents, with no apparent reason. He's an exterminator. I would have thought after what had happened to Antonio, you'd keep better tabs on your unit"!
He stood enraged but no words came out of his mouth. There was nothing he could say.
"That's alright. I didn't expect you to say anything to that. I know the way out".
She grabbed the doorknob. "Cat… thanks".
She turned around. "I don't owe you anything. Jay saved my life twice, I still owe him. But don't for one second think I did this for you or your unit".
She walked out and found herself nose to nose with Hailey Upton. "Who are you"?
"Detective Upton and you"?
"Stay close to your partner or else, I'll become your worst nightmare"!
Upton blinked a couple of times. She had been late into work that day and literally had no idea what had happened.
Cat was about to go into the kitchen and talk to Alvin when Kenny walked in.
"Cat, we need to get out of here and head back to Marcello's or we're busted".
Adam stood and looked at Kenny. "You're in on this too"?
Kenny nodded and looked at Caitlin. "Cat come on"!
"Just give me a sec".
She walked hastily into the kitchen and stood in front of Alvin. "Please don't hate me. I'll explain everything tonight". She planted a soft kiss on his cheek. He looked her deep in the eyes and saw that she wasn't faking her guilt.
"Get outta here"! he said understandingly.
When she reached Kenny, Adam got in their way. "We met up once a week for beers and you never told us about this or Caitlin. Man, I thought we were friends"!?
"Drop it Adam", said Jay as he headed back upstairs. "They're only doing their jobs".
Jay looked at Kenny then at Caitlin.
"I still owe you one", she said to Jay.
"Let's hope you never have to". He turned his attention to Kenny. "You watch over her".
"I'll guard her with my life, but in all honesty, she's more the one to have my back than the other way around". Kenny looked at Adam who seemed pissed off.
"When this whole thing is over, we should all go and have beers. It'll be my treat".
That evening at almost midnight, Caitlin walked into Alvin's apartment. She was exhausted from the strain of her day, but also the emotional side of things.
He was waiting for her in the living room, like a father waiting for her daughter to arrive around curfew. He noticed she had changed and was wearing a black fitted dress and black high heels. She wasn't wearing any pantyhose, but with her toned and tanned legs it wasn't needed.
She walked over and sat down on the coffee table just across from where he was sitting.
"I'm sorry. I couldn't tell you anything without putting you at risk or compromising the operation. You know it has nothing to do with any lack of trust".
"How long have you been back in Chicago"?
"Two weeks".
"And before Hawaii"?
"Dallas, Miami, LA, NYC. We were putting this operation together. Hawaii was just a way for the FBI to give us some time to ourselves before what could have been a long undercover stunt".
"Us? Let me guess Kenny"?
"It's not what you think".
"Jay said he saw the two of you kiss. Are you together"?
"Our aliases are together, yeah, that's also why we went to Hawaii together, to get to know each other better and make it so that our story was believable".
"Fine", he said as he stood up and headed towards the kitchen.
She followed him. "What the hell is that supposed to mean"?
"Just watch your back. Remember, I've been in one of those undercover gigs where you need to get involved and then I learned I had a daughter I didn't even know about".
"I'm being careful Al. The only reason I came here was that I want to keep my sanity and be around you because I know you get me, you understand me and Kenny and I get some space. So if this is going to be a problem for you, let me know now and I'm out of here".
"Not a problem", he said bluntly.
She took a step back as she watched him grab a glass and a bottle of whiskey. "Why am I even justifying myself to you. You're not my father, you're not Hank and you're not my boss"!
She turned and walked away. She grabbed her coat and handbag and headed for the door as he opened the bottle of whiskey. He paused for a moment, then put the lid back on the bottle and headed after her. He arrived just as she was opening the door. Being taller than her, he placed his hand up on the door frame and closed it.
Stunned, she looked up at him.
"Don't go". He took her coat from her hands and her handbag and placed them on the armoire. "You're right, I'm not your father, I'm not Hank and I'm definitely not your boss and I'm glad I'm not, even if sometimes I wished I was because it would make things so much easier on me".
Caitlin looked at him inquisitively.
He put his hand on her face. "You're right. I get you, I understand you just like you do for me. And I've battled this for a while now and I'm still trying to figure out when you started to take such an important part in my life. How you managed to ease your way into my callous heart and soften it"?
Still with his hand on her face, he placed the other one around her waist as his heart pounded in his chest. He pulled her into him. He held her against him for a few seconds. She pulled back gently and slightly away from him but not breaking his hold on her. She looked up at him.
"Cat, you brought meaning back into my life, you brought me back to life"!
She searched his eyes. He placed a finger underneath her chin and as he raised it up, he lowered his head and gently his lips met hers. It was a soft and gentle kiss. She had been hesitant at first and scared. Aside from Kenny, for whom she had no feelings for whatsoever, she hadn't kissed any other man since Antonio. All this time, she had been scared of how she would feel when she would kiss a man for the first time, a man she truly cared for. Would she feel guilt, remorse, anger, sadness? But as Alvin tightened his hold on her and his kiss became more intense, she realized that she felt none of those things. That, on the contrary, there was nothing more she wanted.
She parted her lips and her desire for him rose as she felt his tongue meet hers passionately. Their tongues danced with one another for a while as she passed her hand underneath his black t-shirt and his hand dug into her hair. He slowly pulled back and looked at her.
"Cat", he said as he drowned his eyes into hers.
She put her finger on his lips to hush him and took his hand. She led him through the living room into the bedroom. Once inside she removed her heels and unzipped the back of her dress. She gently pulled the front away from her chest and it slid off revealing a beautiful black lace corset and tanga thong. As he looked at her in the dim light of the room, he felt his already growing manhood harden more. The vision of her standing there in front of him was something he would never forget and he realized how he had yearned for her these past months. He took her into his arms again and fervently kissed her. He let her break free for a moment as she removed his t-shirt then went back in for more as his hands slowly discovered the parts of her body that were available to him. She undid his belt and undid his jean button and zipper, letting it fall to the ground. He stepped out of them and watched as she sat down on the edge of the bed. As he leaned in, one hand firmly placed beside her on the bed, she followed him and leaned back to a fully laying position. There, over her, he managed to visit every part of her body with his hands, lips and tongue. She moaned and shivered with pleasure upon his every touch and when he gently slid into her, she felt as though she was going to explode. Their lovemaking was not hard and fast, it had been the complete opposite. It had been soft, passionate and long. When they climaxed together and collapsed in each other's arms, both knew that not only there were no words to describe what they were feeling, but that neither of them wanted it to end!