Sorry guys, I really have been late on everything. I'll try to update my other stories soon since I'll soon return to my beloved laptop in France instead of working on the netbook -_-. Anyway, hope you enjoy this till the next chapter ^^"

Disclaimer: if I owned Mentalist or P&P, I wouldn't have to worry about my bank account and I'd be very, very old. Unfortunately and fortunately, I am neither :P Mistakes are mine, but hope you'll enjoy this (won't blame you if you don't :P)

Glare and Mockery

7

Lisbon glanced outside the window. The sun was slowly rising and the sight, once again, stole her breath away. Returning her attention on her cousin, she contemplated the still form deep asleep, buried under countless covers. If Grace knew she had deserted her own room to spend the night in hers, she would worry and suspect something was going on. And for good reasons. The previous night, Lisbon had awakened about the same time she had the previous day and had clearly heard the footsteps stopping behind her door. For a few moments, she had not known what to think. Was it Jane again? Why was he halting in front of her door? Was he intending to knock? What should she do if he did?

Her wonders ceased when the footsteps faded away. But still, the knot of anxiety remained. What if he came back? She had fled to her cousin's room for safety, knowing sleep would not find her after this.

The whine of a horse in the afar caught her attention and she scanned the landscape in attempt to identify its origin. It took her a few seconds to spot a lone rider heading towards the mansion, pushing his horse at its extreme limits. The man slowed down as he arrived and from her position, Lisbon recognized the blond curls shining in the sun. Jane jumped off his saddle and, holding the horse's reins, walked inside the yard. His butler appeared and hurried towards the newcomer to take care of the animal.

The young woman crossed her arms and leaned against the window frame. Jane said something to the Asian man and ran his hand through his hair, messing them a little more. For a few seconds, his shirt opened to uncover his chest, skin glimmering under the sunlight. He must have been sweating a lot, she thought concentrating more on his silhouette. The shirt was sticking at him like a second skin and when he stretched his arms, involuntarily exposing more skin got to the fresh air, her heart skipped a beat. Broad shoulders, a nicely defined chest, strong arms...Her cheeks flushed slightly and Lisbon was half glad when he put on the coat his butler handed out to him. As insufferable and annoying the could be, Jane remained a very handsome man.

Suddenly, he glanced up in her direction.

From this distance the blond man couldn't possibly figure out her face, but Lisbon still felt the wave of embarrassment of being caught red-handed watching him. He stood still and kept -seemingly- looking at her. The young woman had a hard time detaching her gaze from his figure. She could almost picture the expression over his face, wondering who was the lonely figure standing behind the window...

The sound of ruffling sheets made her look away. In the bed, Grace was moving, slowly waking up. Lisbon immediately rushed by her side. The redhead blinked heavily and frowned at her sight.

"I am pleased to see you but please tell me why aren't you in your room?" Her sleepy tone was mixed between disapproval and curiosity.

"Don't worry Grace." Lisbon replied soothingly. "I woke up early."

It was a half-lie and obviously her cousin did not believe her, for she asked worryingly:

"What is bothering you Teresa?"

The dark-haired shook her head and smiled tightly.

"Nothing. If you feel better, perhaps we should leave soon, don't you think?"

-GM-

"Are you sure this is not premature?" Risgby asked with a hardly restrained heart-broken expression on his face. Both Van Pelt and Lisbon smiled gently, although the redhead's eyes held some disappointment too.

"Grace is well enough to travel now" Lisbon spoke carefully. "And we would hate to abuse of your hospitality any longer."

Her sentence was received with a vehement protest from their host, a hint of satisfaction from Sophie and indifference from Jane; although the brunette couldn't really tell...since his kiss two nights ago -and the moment of staring this morning, she avoided his gaze at all costs. They were sitting outside around a fuming cup of tea, enjoying the warmth of the mid-morning sun. Van Pelt spoke in turn:

"We will forever remain grateful for your generosity, sir." At the gentleness of her tone, a genuine smile grew on Rigsby's face.

"The pleasure was all mine. I am glad you are no longer suffering." The redhead smiled again and the two shared a long, smitten-like look. Sophie discreet coughing brought them back to present. "When is your coach suppose to arrive?" the tall man asked, blushing slightly from his momentary distraction.

"Tomorrow morning" Lisbon almost laughed at the relief on the man's face, knowing they were not departing the very day. "Aunt Rebecca has use of the horses this afternoon" she added, although the brunette suspected her aunt wanted to delay their return as much as possible.

"Good, good" the tall man muttered, nodding thoughtfully, and Lisbon wondered if he was trying to find a reason for them to stay too. The table remained silent a few seconds before Sophie commented on the french croissants they had been eating for breakfast. Grace agreed they tasted delicious and added she knew a little salon downtown that served pastries. Rigsby was immediately back in the conversation, naming a few chefs he had come to know over the years and that were, according to him, unbeatable in their domain. After a few minutes of amusement at their passionate culinary interaction, Lisbon started to get bored; she had no particular knowledge of their subject of conversation, and nether had the desire to change it. She excused herself from the table and decided to head to the library in search of a book to read. Her absence was barely noticed by the three. Jane however...

-GM-

From the door, Jane watched Lisbon's silhouette moving slowly in front of the shelves of the library. A little after she left the table, he had decided to follow her example and retreated in turn under the pretext of wanting to write a letter. He knew Sophie would have followed him, if it wasn't for her brother asking details about a restaurant somewhere in the south. The blond man had then headed to the library, knowing the strong probability to find her there. And once again, his instincts had been right. The brunette was scanning the titles of the books on the shelve, hunting for something she would judge appropriate for her mood. Her gaze settled on a medium-sized volume and, after pulling it out of the perfect rank, headed towards the couch close to the window. He waited until she was seated and had turned a few pages to make his entrance. Engrossed in her reading, she did not hear him approach.

"Are you leaving because my presence makes you uncomfortable?

Her shoulder tensed as she slowly detached her eyes from her page to meet his gaze. Had he not be his usual observant self, he would have missed the slight pink over her cheeks. So he did affect her, he thought with an inside smirk. But to his great satisfaction, she managed to regain her composure as quick. Jane held a great respect for people having a good self-control, even though he was pretty sure she would not appreciate the compliment coming from him.

"Of course not Mr Jane" the young woman replied, her voice perfectly steady. "Grace and I thought it would be inappropriate to stay any longer now that she had recovered, and your presence does not make me nervous. Why should it?"

The blond man shrugged and sat on the opposite side of the couch she was sitting in. As he expected, her spine straightened. He smirked.

"Perhaps because I acted a little too freely upon your person the other night."

Lisbon's jaw tightened as she concentrated hard on the book at hand, apparently firmly decided to ignore his baits. Her behavior amused the man even more; ignoring him would have probably worked after a while, but he knew Teresa Lisbon would not be able to remain silent if he teased her a little more. "Have I offense you so badly?"

The brunette snapped her book shut and stared at him intensely. The fire in her eyes almost made him shiver.

"I do not belong to that cast of women who would gladly receive your attentions, Mr Jane. Did you come here for the sake of your amusement again?"

Jane shrugged noncommittally.

"Perhaps I did. Although we share many passions, gastronomy is not something I enjoy discussing with Rigsby. Right now, I am enjoying your company much more."

"Heavens" she swore with a hardly disguised annoyance. "What have I done to encourage your interest?"

Jane's grin widened: "You have been yourself; a diplomatic yet tempered and adventurous beautiful young woman." before she could react, he caught her hand and brought it to his lips. "And I have to confess, I will miss your presence. Of all of my acquaintances, you are without a doubt one of the most entertaining."

Lisbon's cheeks flushed crimson as he pressed his mouth against her palm. The moment he released her, she threw him a sharp glare, stood off the couch and hurried towards the door.

"Miss Lisbon!" he called after her. The young woman halted, sighed and turned back to face him. He scanned her thoughtfully again, took in her slim and lean figure, her dark hair falling over her shoulders, her pale skin and green eyes. The man shifted more comfortably on his seat and blurted: "If I knock at your door tonight, will you let me in?"

He knew the statement was overly suggestive from his part, but he could not help himself; the young woman had obviously dealt with people like him before and he felt comfortable enough to drop comments he would have never dared to voice with anyone else. So he was slightly taken aback when Lisbon did not explode in anger as he expected her to, but looked extremely upset, shocked and...sad?

"Unbelievable" she muttered, before turning away from him and leaving the room.

As she exited, Jane thought he had perhaps gone too far, and surprised himself by feeling guilty about it.

A bit short, I know, but next chapter should be a little bit longer. In the meantime, let me know what you think of this one ^^"

Thank you for reading so far!