"So, you can get out of here in 4 days." Veronica smiled at him.
"I know, another two weeks without work."
"I know."
"Have physical therapy though."
"I can help you out with that."
"Mr Lane." The doctor said when she walked in. "I hope you don't mind, this is my husband you're my last patient before dinner."
Ed shook his head. "Don't mind at all."
She turned around and shoved her husband.
"Right sorry."
Veronica looked up at the familiar voice.
"Mr Lane, I'm Jeff." He extended his hand and Ed shook it. He then turned towards Veronica. "Hi.. Veronica." He said surprised.
"Hey, Jeff."
The doctor looked up at them. "You two know each other?"
"Yes, he used to be my professor."
Ed sat up. "So, this is your criminology professor?"
"Used to be, yeah."
Ed looked him up and down.
"It's nice to meet a student of Jeff's."
"Former, student." Both Jeff and Veronica said.
She smiled at Veronica. "I'm Betty, nice to meet you."
"It's nice to meet you too." She turned to Jeff. "So I guess you got married huh?"
"Yeah, 7 years ago."
"Hmm." She looked up at Jeff and then at Betty. "Weren't you in Africa or something?"
"Yeah, doctors without borders. Jeff told you about that?"
"Yeah, after I graduated." She got up. "Anyway, I'm going to get some dinner."
Jeff turned to her. "Mind if I walk with you? I'd like to know what you do now."
"Uuh, yeah okay.. sure." She smiled at Ed. "I'll be back in half an hour or so." He nodded.
"So, how are you?" Jeff asked the second the door was closed.
"Since you dumped me, told me you had a fiancée and slammed the door in my face? Just great."
"Veronica.."
"You didn't tell me you were engaged.. I thought we were in a relationship."
"I liked spending time with you."
"Then why didn't you tell me?"
"Like things weren't hard enough? Sneaking around behind your mothers back? Not even mentioning you were a minor for half the time. And then your mother actually did find out and all hell broke loose."
"Don't blame this on me or my mother. No, it wasn't easy but what broke it, was the fact that you had a damn fiancée!"
"You're mad?"
She stopped and turned towards him. "Of course I'm mad!"
"Is it because I was engaged, or the way I told you?"
"Both, but mostly the way you told me." She continued walking. "What did I do wrong?"
"Excuse me?"
"With us, I don't want to do it again."
"Nothing."
"There must've been something, otherwise you'd either have told me or broken off the engagement."
"I loved you, but staying with Betty.. it was just the right thing to do."
"The right thing to do is not sleeping with your 17 year old ex-student."
"Still passive aggressive, huh?"
She smiled at him. "Shut it."
"Admit it."
"I'm not going to admit it."
He smiled. "So you told your new boyfriend about me?"
"What..?"
"The guy you were visiting?"
"Ed?"
"M-hm."
"He's.."
"Don't start like that, I know you. What did he have, a heart attack?"
"He got shot, because big, strong, tough, brave cops get shot at."
He smiled at her. "Big, strong, tough and brave? Wow. Trying to intimidate me?"
"Jeff.."
"I'm a good profiler, you know I am."
"I'm aware, it's annoying."
He smiled at her. "You seemed happy-ish." She raised her eyebrows at him. "Not as happy as you were with me.. but happy-ish."
"I'm happy with him."
"Right.."
"Maybe I'm not too happy because he's in the hospital, or because you came in. Or because we were talking about his ex-wife before you came in."
"Right, so you've told your mother?"
"Uuhm.."
He chuckled. "Of course you haven't, if it's serious.."
"I will.. it's just.."
"Complicated?" She smiled at him and went to stand in line to pay for her sandwich. "Everything that involves you is complicated."
"Jerk."
"You don't mean that." He smiled at her.
"No, I don't. Which also makes you a jerk."
They sat down at a table. "Were you okay, after we broke up?"
She shook her head. "No, I wasn't. I went to France not long after you, broke me."
"Broke you? Little melodramatic there." He took her hand. "I'm sorry, for the way I treated you."
"Are you?"
"Yes."
She took him in and nodded, he wasn't that good of a liar.
"I'm sorry for breaking up with you the way I did, I'm sorry for not telling you. I'm sorry for hurting you." He let go of her hand. "So what do you do now? FBI? I always thought you'd do great there."
"I'm a chef."
His brow furrowed. "In a restaurant?"
"Yes, I went to France, India and Italy after you broke me." She smiled at him.
"Are you just as good a chef as you were a profiler?"
"Better." She finished her sandwich. "How about you, still a teacher?"
"Yeah, haven't met anyone like you though."
"So, no sleeping with minors?"
"No, I haven't cheated on my wife. But I didn't mean that, I meant someone with your mind."
"Right, because you liked me for my mind."
He smiled. "At first. So what restaurant do you work at? I'd love to taste something of yours."
"Not going to happen."
"Come on, Veronica."
"No."
"Ronnie, come on. You know you want my opinion."
"I don't."
"Yes you do,"
She sighed and got up. "Bella Gusti. I'll drop by in one of your classes, see if you still got it."
"Of course I still have it." He smiled and grabbed his phone. "See you around, Veronica."
"See you around, Jeff."
…
"So that was your professor."
"Yes."
"You still like him."
She sat down next to his bed. "Yes."
"Do you still love him?"
"No." She took his hand. "I really don't."
"But you still like him, after what he did to you?"
She smiled and nodded. "I loved the man for years, been in his bed way more than once. That doesn't go away because he breaks my heart."
"You're sure you don't love him, you can tell me if you do.."
"I'm sure." She kissed him gently. "I love you, Ed."
He smiled, they'd been dating for a long time but that was the first time either of them said it out loud. "I love you too, V."
…
"Can you help me change my bandage?"
He had been discharged yesterday, he was still not allowed to work and he had to stay in bed or on the couch.
"Sure." She smiled and got up to grab the kit they gave him. "Don't need me to wear a nurse's costume, do you?"
He took off his shirt and lay down on the couch."Well.."
She smiled at him. "I'd hit you if you weren't hurt. Slowly or rip it off?" She asked referring to the current bandage. She sat down on the ground and put her hands on his stomach.
"Rip, can't be worse then.. ouch.." He glared at her.
"Hurts less if you don't see it coming." She studied the wound for a second. "Looks good."
He laughed. "You've got a medical degree now?"
"I know what to look for.." She applied the new bandage. "I asked Betty."
"Jeff's wife.."
"Chill Ed, I'm not interested in the man."
"That's what you say now.."
She sat back down next to him. "It's just you I'm interested in, don't you know that by now?"
He nodded but Veronica noticed he didn't seem to believe it."Yeah, I love you."
She kissed him softly. "Love you too." She extended her hand. "Come on, time for bed. You need your rest."
He got a glint in his eyes. "Bed, or sleep?"
"Sleep, you're not allowed to use your abdominal muscles just yet."
"I don't need my abs.."
"Wanna bet?" She pulled him up and kissed him. "You can handle another week without sex."
He grumbled. "Wanna bet.."
…
"It's been a week.." He said, taking off her shirt. "I think I was promised sex if I survived the week."
"I so didn't.."
"You so did."
He pulled her on his lap. "Now, we can do this here.."
…
"Can you get the door?" Ed called from the shower. "Probably some delivery guy or something."
"Sure." She got up and put one of his dress shirts and his boxers on. She walked to the door and opened it, but froze when Greg stood there. "Uuhm.. hi.."
He took her in. "Hi, you know.. I could've sworn my best friend lives here, and not your friend Angela.." He stepped inside and left the door on a crack.
They could hear Ed talk from the bedroom. "So, I'll drop you off home soon. Greg's coming by in an hour and we don't want.." He walked in but froze when he saw Greg. He gripped the towel around his hips a little tighter and looked between Veronica and Greg. "Greg, hey.. what are you doing here so early?"
A/N Oeh… how will they talk themselves out of this?