A/N: Hey there! Thanks everyone for your reviews and all the follows and favs! You're so nice and that's why the next chapter is up now!

I'm having a little trouble at uni, so I hope you don't mind when the chapters take longer than usual. I try to write at least one to two pages per day.

A huge thank you to Idan, the best beta in the world and to totorsg for the lovely cover for this story!

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Oki doki, I hope you enjoy!

Liefs

(2) This beautiful creation

It wasn't the perfect day to go bridal dress shopping. The sky was light gray, full of clouds and humidity. It would rain again today, just like it had the other days since she'd gotten here.

Hopefully the weather would be a little nicer on her actual wedding… It would have been nicer in spring or summer, but Marcus had said he wanted to get married as soon as possible once she'd settled in back in D.C. No pressure of course. He never consciously wanted to pressure her, but he kind of did.

He'd been very sweet when he'd picked her up in the middle of the night on her flight from Miami to D.C, not asking questions, just holding her when she'd suddenly started crying back at home. She'd said she was just a little sad things had changed so fast, because she couldn't tell him the truth.

"If you want to talk about it, I'm here, Teresa, you know?"

"I do. Thanks."

She'd guessed he'd figured out something must have happened, but he didn't want to pressure her into talking, so they never had.

Then one night, two weeks after the disaster with Jane, he'd taken her out to this fancy Italian place where he wanted to celebrate their engagement properly. It was the night he'd finally given her a big diamond ring, which must have cost him three months' salary.

Marcus knelt down, a small smile on his face. She knew what was coming, was prepared to say the right word to him when he asked her.

"Teresa Lisbon, you have made me the happiest man I can imagine. Will you marry me?"

Jane would have called her Teresa Marie Lisbon. She wasn't even sure if Marcus knew her middle name and it bugged her. In the end, what did she know about him? Jane was right, they had known each other for only a few months and marriage was for life – at least it was for her.

But what did Jane know, the selfish bastard?

"Honey?" Marcus asked, his brows a little furrowed.

"Yes. Sure." He took her hand and put the ring on. It was a nice one, but a little too loose around her finger. Jane would have known her size.

Stop it, he's had his chance! Get it over with, she told herself and smiled at Marcus, who got up to give her a sweet kiss on the mouth. The other people in the restaurant applauded and the waiter came with the champagne.

She was supposed to be happy with a new life, a new job, a new city and a fiancé. So what was this ache deep down in her heart whenever she thought of the upcoming wedding?

He'd agreed on marrying her in Chicago in a heartbeat. Actually, it had been his idea.

"Do you have any preferences? Anything special?"

"I want my family to be there," she mumbled. Her brothers and maybe, if they had enough money, they could bring their families. It would be hard though for James to pay a flight for two adults and three children plus the hotel, plus…

"We could get married in Chicago, if you want to. I don't have a lot of family and my sister could come up there. What do you think?"

"Sure."

He wanted her to be happy, made plans with her, told her he had been saving the money over the years to show off a little if she wanted to. She'd agreed although she didn't want to, because she wanted Marcus to be happy.

"You know, my sister has been asking me for months if she could help us with the wedding. Would you mind giving her some stuff to do? I know you're busy with work, so you probably don't have the time to pick out the paper for the invitations or the decoration for the tables."

"Sure."

He'd risked so much with her, had given her his heart completely and now he was happy they would be getting married.

"I can't wait for you to be Mrs. Pike. You'll change your name, right? I mean you don't have to, if you don't want to."

"Sure."

When Marcus' sister Gina had sent them the first design for their wedding invitations, she'd bitten her lip and stared at it for over five minutes: The light pink paper with glitter, a pink bow, two white doves with a pair of golden rings and golden text.

We Do! Teresa Lisbon & Marcus Pike request the pleasure of your company as they celebrate their marriage Saturday, the 27th of October, 2014 at 11 am…

"You don't think Gina overdid herself, do you?" Marcus asked.

"No, it's fine… I'd probably have sent an email or text."

He laughed. "She asked me to tell you to make a list of the people you want to invite, so she can send out the invitations."

"Sure."

She'd tried to not think of Jane too often, but sometimes it was hard to just forget a person you've spent almost twelve years with. For some people it was easy to erase all the memories, pretend like nothing happened, but Teresa Lisbon had always been haunted by her past.

The chapter named Patrick Jane was no exception. She'd loved him, loved him with such a deep and caring love, she'd never felt anything like that for anyone. But he'd broken her heart multiple times, and there was only so much she could take.

If Miami had happened back then at the CBI, she'd have laughed it off, punched him in the nose maybe, but this time it was too intense. Too much had been at stake and she couldn't believe that one night he showed up on her doorstep with cannoli, telling her that her happiness was the most important thing to him, and the other night he'd tricked her into one of his schemes so she would stay with him.

She wondered how far he would have gone if things had worked out. Also, she wondered how far she would have let him go. Patrick Jane hung like a ghost over her life. He managed to get inside her head when she was working a case on her new job, he sneaked into her behavior….

She missed him and she hated it. So it was better to push all the memories and thoughts of him away once they appeared.

Since she was still in contact with Kim and Cho from time to time, she had a hard time not asking about him. Actually, when Marcus had asked her to make the list, she'd sat at the desk in her home office, a mostly empty piece of paper in front of her. It was the first time since she left that she'd asked how he was, when she was on the phone with Kim.

"He's doing okay," Kim had said, and she could picture him lying on the couch, brooding like in the old days. But back to the list.

Tommy + Annie, James + family, Peter + family, the Rigsbys, Cho, Minelli + Mae, Kim.

There was no Jane on her list. If things were different, Marcus wouldn't even be her groom, but he was. He didn't deserve to come after everything that happened, especially not after the call.

Yes, she'd received some calls from him after she moved, but she couldn't bring up the courage to answer him, so they went straight to voicemail. She'd listened to them, but after that specific one, she'd deleted them all.

When she'd given the list to Marcus, he'd thrown a quick glance at it, seeming somewhat pleased. It was probably because Jane was not on it, but she couldn't be sure.

The wedding date came closer and closer. They booked the flights, talked about the ceremony, picked put the rings. Life was rushing by so quick, she felt like she was in a bubble she couldn't escape from. Also, the air inside the bubble was becoming dangerously thin. She needed to breathe.

"Gina asked if you've already picked out a wedding dress and the bridesmaid dresses. She asks if you need any help."

"Sure," she answered.

Marcus looked at her, his brows furrowed. "If this wedding puts too much pressure on you, I'll buy the next available tickets to Vegas. Just say the word, okay?" He took her hand and kissed the finger with the too loose engagement ring.

"Yeah. Uhm, Marcus?"

"Yes, darling?"

"Tell Gina she can pick out the bridesmaid dresses. I would like to take care of the wedding dress myself."

"Of course, Teresa. You'll be a beautiful bride."

It was the first time she'd made a decision about her own wedding, besides saying "yes," and it was probably the last one she would make. That conversation had happened three months ago and now, three days before her wedding, she still didn't have a dress. She'd dreaded buying one until the last moment.

Lisbon took a deep breath, sticking her cold hands inside her coat pockets, not sure if it was the weather that made her so melancholy or the thought of the upcoming wedding. Wasn't the bride supposed to be filled with glee on the day she was going to buy her wedding gown?

But well, she wasn't a normal bride. "Love is Sweet" – Bridal Gowns And More was a tiny shop she knew, because her mother had bought her dress there back when she'd married her dad. It was too bad that the old woman who'd owned the shop and sold one of her wedding dresses to her mother had retired only a few months ago.

Still, when she entered the store, it still smelled like cotton candy and vanilla. The interior was a little different, but the new owner had kept some things, like the huge antique mirror with the golden frame and the ballerina music box on one of the stools. It played Swansea.

A young blonde woman looked up from her desk and gave her a friendly smile. "You must be Teresa Lisbon, right? Hi, I'm Lucy! Let's see what we can do for you. Coffee?"

"I'd love some," Lisbon answered.

"Great, make yourself comfortable and have a look around, I'll be right back."

Lisbon did as asked. She opened the buttons of her coat and hung it over a chair, not sure why she was so nervous. Since she'd started dating Marcus, she'd bought dresses all the time. A wedding dress was just a stupid dress, too, wasn't it?

She put her phone on silent, not wanting to be disturbed by anyone, especially not Gina, who'd finally managed to get a hold of her phone number. Gina wasn't a bad person, it was just… this wedding made her kind of over enthusiastic.

Usually, she'd have taken Annie with her, since she was staying at their apartment for the time being, but she was in school this morning. Also, she'd become kind of a pick pocketing know-it-all. Damn Jane for that.

"Is Jane coming to the wedding?"

"No, he's not."

"Why?"

"Because I didn't invite him, that's why."

The young girl raised an eyebrow, crossing her arms in front of her chest. "Why did you not invite him?"

"I don't think that's any of your business, young lady."

"That's too bad, I always thought you were friends."

"We were," Lisbon mumbled.

"You never talk about him anymore. What happened to the two of you? I mean, I haven't met Marcus and he seems like a nice guy, but come on. You know, Aunt Reese, I never took you for the kind of woman who would marry a guy she just met. What do you aim to achieve with this whole wedding spectacle anyway? You haven't decided one thing on your own, have you? That's all been this Gina's doing."

Annie was right, but she wouldn't give her the satisfaction of telling her. "You're just mad, because she bought that pink bridesmaid dress for you."

It made them both crack a smile. "I look like Miss Piggy! And I won't wear those stupid heels, I'll wear my boots, just so you know."

"I don't care what you wear, as long as you'll be there, Annie," Lisbon smiled affectionately.

"Dad and I just want you to be happy, Reese." She hugged her aunt and sighed loudly.

"I know," Lisbon whispered, caressing her hair, "I know."

Everybody wanted her to be happy, so why couldn't she be?

"Here's your coffee," Lucy announced and handed her the mug. "Have you found a dress you would like to try on already?"

"Uh… honestly I have no idea… there are so many," Lisbon explained sheepishly.

"I know what you're talking about, but don't worry, we'll find the right dress for you. When's your wedding going to be?"

"On Saturday." Lucy raised an eyebrow. Usually women came here months early to find the right dress for their special day, but well, there were always some exceptions.

"I was kind of busy," Lisbon defended herself. "You know, I live in D.C. and my family is up here. I arrived yesterday morning and there's just so much to do…"

"No problem, Teresa. May I call you Teresa?"

Lisbon nodded and took a big sip of the coffee. It was strong, which was good. She went over to the wall with the dresses then, all white, all next to each other. There were different forms and sizes, some with lace, and velvet, some with silk and tulle. Some were long, some short, some tight, some loose. She didn't want a short one, because it would be cold on her wedding day and she didn't want to freeze.

If they were unlucky, it could even snow for the first time this winter.

"I don't want a short one," she finally said, "and nothing that looks like I fell out of one of these kitschy wedding shows."

Lucy laughed, shaking her head a little. "We will find the right dress for you, I promise. How about I show you a few different cuts and you'll say whether you like it or not. Then we'll have a small selection you could try on."

"That sounds good." Lisbon smiled, walked over the chair and sat down, while Lucy picked out a few dresses. In the end, they narrowed it down to three dresses. One was in a floating cream colored white with one wide strap over the left shoulder and little silver stones in an ornament in the middle of the waist. The second was a bright white slim fitting strapless dress in a mermaid shaped design with a dipped neckline, lace around the torso and hips and a court hem made of shining silk, while the third pearl white dress had an empire waist with a v-neckline, an open back and little white shimmering ornaments on the hem.

"Very wise choice, Teresa. How about we put one on, so you get a feeling for which shape you like more?"

They walked into the only dressing room and pulled the curtain closed. Lisbon undressed herself except for the underwear and put the first one of the dresses on. She remembered the wedding picture of her mom and dad which used to stand over the fireplace in the living room. Her mother's dress had been beautiful, she'd even let her wear it this one time back on her seventh birthday.

Her mother had promised her she could have it when she got married if the next child was a boy. Otherwise, she'd have to argue with her sister. Well, she'd been happy Peter had turned out to be a boy back then. If she'd only known her father would throw everything away that reminded him of his late wife a few months after her death.

The only thing which had survived had been the picture above the fireplace until one night he'd been drunk, taken it and thrown it right into the fire. Except for her cross, there was nothing left that reminded her of her mother. Oh how she wished she could be here now.

She'd have the right advice, she always had.

"If you want to take a look at yourself, the mirror is outside," Lucy smiled. Lisbon nodded numbly, stepping outside the dressing room. The dress looked nice, but somehow she didn't feel it was the right one.

"It's beautiful, you look perfect!" Lucy exclaimed, "What do you say?"

"I… uh… it's nice." She caressed the fabric with her hand and put on a small smile. A bride was supposed to smile, wasn't she?

"Oh you don't have to decide right now, there are more dresses waiting for you. I know it's weird to see yourself in a wedding dress for the first time; it takes some time to get used to. Let's take a look at the other ones. You know, even if you can't find anything here, the wedding is not until Saturday, right? So you have three days left.

"I like the shape of the dress, but perhaps it would suit you if you wore something more form fitting. You have nothing to hide!"

They went back to the dressing room, where Lucy helped her undress. She was just about to close the zipper of the second dress, when they heard the melodic sound of the wind chimes over the door. Another customer.

"Just a sec!" Lucy called, closing the zipper and the little button of the wedding dress and smiled at Lisbon. "It's probably just another customer. I'll get right back to you. We're ready!" she exclaimed a little louder and slipped out of the dressing room. "Good morning, gentlemen, what can I do for you?"

Lisbon sighed, about to pull the curtain away, when she heard one of the men speak. "I'm Agent Cho, this is Patrick Jane, FBI. Miss Hall, we have to talk to you about your father."

She froze in her tracks, her heart squeezing violently, before it started beating like crazy. This was some kind of joke, right? The man had not announced himself as Agent Cho and his colleague Patrick Jane, had he? What were the odds of something like this happening to her at this time and this place? Probably a gazillion to one, but it had happened.

Lisbon tried to control her breathing and was suddenly very thankful for the small stool inside the dressing room. She had to sit down. Oh. My. God. Patrick Jane was here.

When she'd thought about seeing Jane again, it'd always been some weird coincidence in her imagination. Well, this was a weird coincidence, that much was true. But why? Why her, why now? She was about to buy her wedding dress for god's sake!

Memories from their last evening in Islamorada flashed inside her head. The case, the code, the hotel, the dresses, the moment she'd found out… the last time she'd seen him, she'd told him to leave, told him he was a selfish bastard who had no idea how to act like a decent human being.

While trying to control her breathing, she listened to what Cho and Jane had to say.

She didn't want to face him, not on such short notice three days before her wedding. What should she say to him?

"Hey Jane, nice to see you, I'm buying the wedding dress for my wedding in three days, to which I didn't invite you by the way…" God no, she couldn't do this! On the other hand, why did she care?

Whenever she'd been on the phone with Cho or Kim, she wondered if he'd asked about her. He hadn't.

Hopefully they would leave in a few minutes – she couldn't stay in here forever, since she had no chance to get out of this dress by herself. Stupid dress! She should get one with a side zipper, one she could get out of herself.

They were here because of a case, she could hear. It was good. This meant Jane didn't know anything about her upcoming wedding – or maybe someone had told him? Was he here to sabotage her wedding? No. He wouldn't do that, would he? He'd had his chance with her and hadn't taken it. It was over. Over!

Anger rose up inside her. He had no right to be here! She was done with him, she was… Once again her heart clenched, this time not because of Jane, but because she heard the very familiar name of Luther McKinnley. She knew this man... and he was Lucy's father? What irony.

She had two options now. Either she could hide out like a chicken and hope they would leave – which probably wouldn't happen any time soon, or she could bravely face her past. Lucy was just about to try to get them to leave when she took the little bit of courage which was left.

"It's okay, Miss Hall," she addressed her formally, pulled the curtain aside and stepped out of the dressing room.

In all her life, there had only been a few times when Patrick Jane had looked surprised. People were seldom able to throw him off his game, especially not her. He'd once told her she was like an open book to him, but this time, she'd done it.

"Hello Jane."

"Lisbon…" he whispered, staring at her like she was a mirage. His eyes wandered over her body, taking in the sight of her in the dress with such admiration it would have warmed her heart if things were different between them.

"Cho. Nice to see you." Even Cho looked a little surprised, although he was better at hiding it than Jane, who couldn't tear his gaze off her.

"Likewise. Nice dress." Lisbon cracked a smile at her former colleague and friend, before she stepped in front of the mirror, casually turning from side to side.

"It's not that bad, is it? I heard you were talking about a case with Miss Hall?"

"It's about my biological father, the old bastard was murdered," Lucy explained, annoyed. "I'm sorry for this. I didn't know you know each other."

"They're old… colleagues," she answered. For a moment the word friends had been on the tip of her tongue, but she didn't know what her relationship to Jane was nowadays, so she went with the safe alternative.

"Yeah, ugly serial murders in the last weeks. We were sent to take over the case from the FBI guys here. Sorry, but we can't tell you more. We'll get back to you, Miss Hall. It was nice seeing you, Lisbon. Jane, are you coming?"

Lisbon looked over to Jane, whose eyes were still locked on her. He hadn't said anything, hadn't made any attempt to touch her, just watched her, his eyes thick with emotion.

"You said the victim was Luther McKinnley."

"Sorry, Lisbon, but you're not part of the team anymore," Cho said in a professional tone. It still stung.

"I… I knew him."

Now three pairs of eyes were locked on her and she knew she had woken Cho's interest.

"How?"

"He… he killed my mom."