Hello to all my readers! Thank you for the encouragement concerning the new 'mystery' in the story, I was a little worried about it seeming stupid. Now, please be sure to review at the end, and ENJOY!

After Mr. Lampton had showed Patrick and Lisbon the shirt, he had remained silent. Lisbon had carefully wrapped the shirt in a plastic bag from her purse(a cop could never be too prepared), and they had all gone quiet, barely registering the food they ate.

Once the food was eaten and bill paid, Patrick reassured Mr. Lampton that they would find his step daughter and whoever took her away.

Mr. Lampton was encouraged by this, and left the restaurant in semi-high spirits, considering the circumstances.

Patrick and Teresa did not talk to one another, and they both left in their own cars. However, they both knew that they were to meet back at Teresa's apartment to discuss the case and their 'marital problems.'

Once they both went inside, they settled on the couch. It seemed to be a silent debate over who got to start, but finally Patrick took the initiative, but not in the way Teresa would have liked.

"So, have you come to a decision about us?"

Teresa sighed. Of course Jane would start the conversation by pinning her down. "Kind of. But I do have a few questions that I have been wanting to ask you."

Patrick leaned back against the couch. "Alright, fire away."

Teresa took a moment to organize her thoughts before she began. "When did this whole 'comparison between wives' thing start?"

"When we were in the middle of the annulment debate."

"Why then? Why not the second we were married, or at least sober."

"When the annulment debate started I realized that I needed to decide if I really wanted to stay married to you. So, I began to think about my first marriage, about the qualities that I would want in a wife if I was to get married again, and so that is when I began to truly see the similarities and differences between these two marriages."

"What similarities and differences did you find?"

"Well, in my first marriage I was more self-centered and just wanting to have fun, ignoring the seriousness of life. It was like playing grown ups, but not fully understanding how wonderful my family and life was. Now, I have seen the darkest parts of humanity and know that it is a miracle that I wake up each morning with a gun shot through the heart. I can now see that having someone else to spend my life with is something that I need to treasure and protect. I know that helping others is a better goal than just making myself happy.

"As for similarities, you both have hearts bigger than the sky, always willing to help those who are downtrodden or abused by the system. You want to right the wrongs of this world. You can both look past my flaws, and yes, I know I have many, and find the good man within. Those are the two main similarities that I knew were important to me if I was to get married again."

Teresa sat silent for a while, thinking through her next question.

"And what about our child? How do you compare your two children?"

"I try not to. Mostly I just think back to what it was like to change diapers, deal with tantrums and read bedtime stories. I know that our child will be completely different from my daughter, a whole new spectrum of likes, dislikes and traits. It makes me nervous, not knowing what to expect this time around, but I know that it will be a fun adventure."

Teresa sat back and thought this all through. She did not expect that Jane would tell her anything but the truth. And she did not expect that he would tell her that he thought his first wife was a better wife, that he was just using her as a replacement, etc. She knew Jane well enough to know that his heart would never go in that direction. But why was she still worried about their marriage and child?

Teresa groaned slightly.

Of course. Because SHE was not entirely onboard with this marriage, and was probably, deep down, expecting this marriage to end badly. She was just a treasure trove of commitment issues, if any therapist wanted to tackle her.

But, maybe she should do something that she knew worked(most of the time): trust Patrick Jane. Rarely, if ever, had he let her down, so why should this be any different? Why did she continue fighting when she could just settle in and enjoy the new relationship that life had brought her. She needed Jane(really!), especially now that she was going to mother his child.

So, putting her mind to rest with decision, she told Jane what she wanted to do the only way she could.

She kissed him.

Alright then, we have this minor(ish) issue out of the way. I hope that I wrapped things up well, although I still have slight issues with this chapter, but it was the best I could do. Anyway, I wanted to note my opinions for next week's new Mentalist episode: HOLY COW I am so excited! It will be so cool, I just know it. Those of you who are not watching the show live on t.v., just rest assured that there will be a cool episode where we finally get to see a new side of Patrick Jane. Yay! Until next chapter, Li Li.