A/N: I'm glad everyone seems to like what I'm doing with this story! This first scene is actually something I pictured a few weeks ago and it's what started the whole Nancy and Joe acting like a married couple thing. I thought, "Hmm, wouldn't that be interesting?" And so, the new story was born! I hope everyone enjoys the update!
Quintessential Bliss
Chapter Five
Joe stifled a yawn as he stood in his living room early the next morning, "Van, we should probably get going soon."
"I know," Vanessa said biting her lip and studying the couple in front of her. "It's just so wrong; it's obvious you guys don't belong together."
"To you maybe," Joe laughed and slung a friendly arm around Nancy's shoulders. "But we're going to be meeting people we've never met before."
"Oh, don't do that!" Vanessa cried and rushed forward to push Joe's arm off of Nancy's shoulder. She tried to put it around Nancy's waist instead but Joe quickly jerked away.
"What are you doing!" he cried sounding panicked.
Vanessa rolled her eyes, "Joe, she's your wife."
"No she isn't!" Joe shoved his hands in his pockets.
"Yes, she is Joe. At least until you guys solve this mystery and come home." She turned and mock-glared at Nancy, "Then I want my man back, home wrecker."
Nancy laughed and held up her hands in surrender, "I understand."
Vanessa stood back again and squinted her eyes, "Something is just not right. You guys just don't look like a couple; you don't look like you guys belong together."
"Why not?" Nancy looked from Joe and down at herself. There didn't seem to be anything wrong.
"Hold on," Vanessa ordered and ran out of the room.
"What is she doing?" Nancy asked and checked her watch. "We're going to be cutting it pretty close with the plane."
Joe shrugged, "I learned a long time ago to just let Vanessa do what she wants the first time; you get things done a lot faster."
"Sounds logical," Nancy laughed and turned when Vanessa came running back into the room with an armful of stuff.
"Okay Joe, strip," she ordered and dumped the things she carried onto the couch.
"Uh, babe….as much as I love you…" Joe began but Vanessa held up a hand.
"You've got a plane to catch, right? Take off that t-shirt. Now," she gazed at him sternly and he quickly complied.
"Put this on," she held out a white button down collared shirt and Joe slid it on and began to do up the buttons. "Now this," she said when he was finished and held out a tan pullover.
"Van!" Joe groaned. "You said that after that dinner with your family I'd never have to wear that thing again!"
"Do you want people to believe you and Nancy are married or not?" Vanessa demanded. He moaned and groaned but he pulled the sweater over his head. Vanessa looked at him again with a critical eye, "you can keep the jeans, but you've got to change out of those tennis shoes." She turned back to her pile, "put these on."
With more mumbling and complaining Joe pulled the brown dress shoes on. Meanwhile Nancy stood off to the side and laughed at Joe's obvious discomfort with the clothes. "What are you laughing about?" Vanessa said, "You're changing too."
"I am?" Nancy looked down at her sensible pumps, black dress slacks and light yellow top. "What's wrong with what I'm wearing?"
"Nearly everything," Vanessa said with a laugh and turned back to her pile. "You guys said you're going to an upper crust type neighborhood right? That you want to be accepted right away into the fold AND you need to look like a couple."
"Now that Joe has changed, I think we match perfectly," Nancy grinned cheekily at Joe.
"Where did you buy those shoes Nancy, 'I'm A Sensible Person Who Spends Her Money Wisely Dot Com'?" Vanessa came at her with a pair of black high heels.
"Um…" Nancy looked at her shoes, "no. I don't remember where I got these. I thought they were cute!"
"They are, if your name is Nancy Drew," Vanessa laughed. "If your name is Nancy Livingston and you make a gazillion dollars as a lawyer, you'd never even look at a pair of shoes with that kind of price tag. These shoes however," she shook them at Nancy, "are perfect. Also, if you lose them, break them or bring them back in less than the perfect shape in which I have given them to you I will have to hurt you. They were that expensive."
"What's the point?" Nancy mumbled but put the shoes on anyway.
"I see what you're talking about Van, the shoes make her look a lot better," Joe laughed when Nancy stuck her tongue out at him.
"And these," Vanessa grabbed Nancy's wrist and clipped on a few bracelets then pushed a pair of earrings into her hands. "They're not real, but unless someone looks really closely, they should be okay until you can get your hands on some of those fabulous government pieces."
"Okay," Nancy said finishing with the earrings, "do we pass your inspection now?"
"One more thing," Vanessa walked behind Nancy and began twisting her hair up off her neck. "Nancy Livingston doesn't let her hair just hang down unless she's in a super relaxed environment. You need to make a good first impression." With a few twists and turns and carefully placed pins Nancy's hair was soon pulled back from her face in an elegant up do. "I think that will do it," Vanessa stood back and studied them both again. "So much better," she nodded in approval.
"Well, I just hope you guys don't stand together like that in California," she said after a minute. "You look like a brother and sister."
"Hate to break it to you Van," Joe said dryly, "but that's basically what we are."
Vanessa shrugged, "I'm just trying to be all the help I can be…considering I have to stay here at home and worry while you guys go off to help Callie." She shot Joe an injured look.
"Look, Van…I explained it to you last night. It's dangerous and it would be bad for Callie's fiancé if you just showed up out of the blue. It's bad enough that Frank is there right now." Joe took Vanessa's hands in his.
"I know," Vanessa shook her head, "I know. The waiting and not doing anything just sucks, that's all."
"We'll be back before you know it," Joe assured her and gave her a lingering kiss. "But we have to go or we'll miss our plane."
"Alright," Vanessa kissed him again, "you look very handsome."
"I feel like an idiot," Joe laughed.
A few minutes later they were heading out the door and Vanessa put a hand on Nancy's arm to hold her back. "Nancy?"
"Yeah?" Nancy stopped and looked at Vanessa.
"I know it's going to be strange acting like you're married to Joe and with Frank being right across the street…" her voice trailed off and she looked uncomfortable. "The most important thing is that Joe comes home safely…that you all come home safely."
"I understand," Nancy leaned over and gave Vanessa a powerful hug. "I promise I'll bring our boys home in one piece."
"See that you do," Vanessa replied.
Joe's hand clenched around the piece of paper in his hand, the note had been stuck to his windshield this time. It was somehow so much more personal to see the white card sticking out from under his windshield wiper rather than have it come in the mail at home or at work.
Was the person still around? Watching? Waiting to see his reaction? He was only glad that Nancy had hung back to talk to Vanessa for a second longer otherwise she would have seen the paper and would have asked questions. Questions Joe had no intention of answering, ever.
Joe didn't even look at the paper; he just shoved it into the pocket of his jeans and worked hard to get his facial expressions under control.
"Hey husband, ready to go?" Nancy said from behind him.
"Yeah," Joe turned to face her and he could see the alarm cross her face.
"Whoa, Joe are you okay?" Nancy asked and took step forward.
"I'm good," Joe tried for a smile but even to him it felt strained.
"Are you sure? What happened?"
"Nothing," Joe shrugged and tried to look calm.
"Okay," Nancy looked at him suspiciously, "Do you want me to drive?"
The offer was enough to help Joe focus a little. He laughed, "Yeah right, nobody drives my baby."
On the way to the airport Nancy resolved that at the first chance she was going to tell Frank about the look on Joe's face when she had come up to the car. It had been a look that Joe Hardy rarely, if ever, wore: a look of pure hurt and desperation.
Frank groaned and sat up stiffly from his awkward sitting position on the bed. His computer hummed faithfully on his lap, the screen saver bouncing around cheerfully. Frank rubbed his gritty eyes and rolled his shoulders to try and get the kinks out.
He had fallen asleep sometime in the early hours of the morning after getting nowhere on the case. Picking his laptop up off his lap he set it on the bed and got up and stretched. He changed his clothes and wandered downstairs to the smell of fresh coffee.
"Good morning," Callie said from the kitchen counter. "Coffee?"
"Can I get it in an IV?" Frank asked.
Callie laughed, "Sorry, we're fresh out of IVs here, but I could get you a big mug."
"I'll take it," Frank said. "Thank you," he said sincerely when she passed him the cup.
"Late night?" Callie asked knowingly.
"Yeah," Frank confessed. "I thought I'd find the information gold mine and then…" his voice trailed off.
"Then what?" Callie asked.
"Then nobody else would have to be put in danger," Frank replied and sipped his coffee.
The phone at Callie's elbow rang then and she picked it up, "Hello?" She was quiet for a few minutes, "sounds good. I'll see you then." She hung up the phone and sighed. "Our new neighbors will be here this afternoon around one o'clock, their moving van will be arriving at approximately 10 am."
"You guys know their arrival times?" Frank asked.
"That's how they work around here," Callie shrugged. "You don't notice how weird it is until…"
"Until you notice," Frank suggested.
"Yeah," Callie sighed.
"Cal," Frank set his mug down on the counter. "Your new neighbors…I know them. Well, actually, you know them too."
"I do?" Callie's eyebrows raised in surprise.
"Yes, it's Joe and Nancy. We just have to act like we've never met them before. Their names are Joe and Nancy Livingston," Frank refilled his and Callie's coffee cups.
"I know," at Frank's look she explained, "I know that their names are Joe and Nancy Livingston, just like I know when they're going to get here. I just…never made the connection. Weird."
"Yeah," Frank agreed.
"Well, this will be interesting," Callie took a sip of her coffee and laughed for the first time in two days.
"Well," Nancy looked at Joe as they stood on the sidewalk at LAX. "The Gray Man said the car would be parked and waiting for us in lot C space 324."
"He also said that we could be under surveillance, so come here honey," Joe grinned and grabbed Nancy's hand.
"I'm really going to have to work hard not to laugh when we hold hands," Nancy said laughing quietly.
"Me too," Joe replied and led the way to the right parking garage. "Space three-hundred and four, space three-hundred and five…" Joe's voice trailed off as his eyes scanned the row of cars and fell on one in the distance. "No way," he whispered.
"Oh no," Nancy groaned. Squeezing Joe's hand tightly she stopped him from rushing forward, "Joe, remember someone could be watching us. Don't act like a little boy in a toy shop, this is the car that you drive…it's old hat to you."
Joe didn't seem to have heard Nancy and he started yanking on her arm, "Joe!" she whispered loudly, "Snap out of it!"
"What?" Joe asked and looked at her.
"Be cool!" Nancy ordered.
"What?" Joe repeated. "Oh…oh yeah. I'm cool. Don't worry, but could you pick up the pace a little?"
Nancy laughed, "Sure thing honey."
"It's so beautiful," Joe said reverently and stroked a hand across the rear fender of his car. He pulled out the keys and unlocked the doors. "This thing is custom!"
"Whatever that means," Nancy laughed and pulled open the passenger door. Joe soon followed and sat in the driver's seat next to her.
Joe turned and shot Nancy a huge grin, "Get ready for the ride of your life Nan." He turned the car on and the low purr of the engine had him laughing, "It's beautiful!"
"Put your seatbelt on," Nancy said sternly as they pulled out of the parking lot.
Joe laughed, did as he was told and stepped on the gas.
An hour later Nancy sat next to Joe on the side of the freeway covering her mouth with her hand, trying and failing to stifle her laughter.
"Shut up Nan," Joe said staring straight ahead.
"I didn't say anything," Nancy said between her laughter.
"Stop laughing," Joe ordered.
"Okay," Nancy continued laughing.
"It's not funny," Joe said, still staring straight ahead.
"Yes it is…it's hysterical," Nancy kept laughing.
"I was barely speeding," Joe said gritting his teeth. He waved at the State Patrolman as he pulled out from behind Joe and headed back down the freeway.
"You were going ten over," Nancy reminded him.
"Exactly, I was barely speeding," Joe shrugged and tossed the ticket he had just received on the dashboard. "I'll make the Network pay for it. It's their fault anyway, they're the ones who gave me this car to drive." He shot Nancy a quick grin and merged back into traffic.