A/N: After a lot of consideration and encouragement from both my beta firstdown and fellow writer Entwife Incognito I've decided to post the rest of this story un-betaed. My beta is extremely busy at the moment and doesn't have the time to edit my work. I'm very busy as well being close to the finishing stage of my doctoral thesis and thus the thought of searching for a new beta doesn't appeal to me right now. I know that this might mean that there'll be more mistakes in my work from now on and things that might sound unidiomatic due to English not being my first language, but I ask you to bear with me anyway. I've already written the whole story and without having to wait for edits, I'll be able to post more frequently and longer chapters as well.
Considering how fast the plot developes this season, I'd like to finish posting this fic and its conclusion before the whole Red John arc has played out on screen. I know that my fic is totally AU and I never claimed that it would foreshadow canon events. But I'd still like for you to have a chance to read my version before everything about canon Red John has been revealed by Team Heller. So prepare to get updates very often now and please try to overlook my mistakes. I try as hard as I can to go over everything again and find the most obvious things, but I'm aware it won't necessarily mean, there aren't stupid mistakes left anyway.
I want to take this opportunity to thank firstdown for all the time and effort she's put into my work. I wish you all the best for your own projects, my dear. I appreciate what you've done for me and I hope that all the wisdom you've tried to install in me about writing in general and my most noticeable shortcomings in that respect in particular will pay off now that I'll be editing my own work.
Now finally on to the story. Warning: There will be some explicit sexual content.
Three hours later all the occupants of the Hightower residence sans Patrick Jane woke up to the smell of coffee and pancakes. The landlady's first thought upon realizing what had raised her was very much connected to her last dream. It had been a very pleasant albeit totally inappropriate one, featuring a certain consultant in a staring role. Still half asleep she therefore imagined the man of her dreams – literally – making breakfast just for her after a sinful night together.
The second thought accompanied her waking up fully and was followed by her blushing furiously remembering her first one. It also contained her understanding that the poor man obviously hadn't managed to get much sleep that night.
She got up, picked out clothes for the day and went into her en-suite. While showering she reminded herself strictly to pull herself together and stop her silly infatuation with Patrick Jane. How the hell was she supposed to act normal around him (and Teresa) while harboring inappropriate thoughts and a deep attraction to him?
That damn dream! What was her subconscious mind trying to tell her anyway? Well, she wasn't stupid. Of course she knew what it meant. She was falling for the guy – that's what it was telling her.
He had at least an inkling about the nature of her feelings already, but with her vivid dream still so fresh in her mind it would be just about impossible to hide her true state from the perceptive bastard. This was beyond embarrassing and she felt like a stupid teenage girl about to encounter the most popular boy of the school who she happened to have a huge crush on. Damn, damn and double damn! Why couldn't the man have a potbelly and knobbly knees? Or be as dumb as a post? Or at least still be all cynic and aloof?
Hightower finished with her business, dressed, and steeled herself for an awkward encounter in her kitchen. She was obviously the first one down – damn, she thought again – and was greeted by the blond man with a friendly smile. "Good morning, Madeleine. Did you sleep well? Coffee or tea?"
She decided to ignore his first question to avoid blushing and opted for a verbal jink instead. "It's really strange to feel like a guest in my own house. Oh, and coffee, please."
"Sorry," Patrick replied with a sheepish grin. "I do have a habit of making myself at home wherever I am. I don't mean to be invasive." He handed her a mug with coffee prepared exactly the way she liked it. "You probably shouldn't have let me set foot into your kitchen in the first place. I took that as the go ahead to obtain world domination," he continued merrily.
Madeleine took a quick sip from her mug to hide the effect his fingers touching hers had had on her while he'd handed over the beverage. It had felt like a spark of electricity racing through her veins. God, she had it really bad!
Jane sensed her unease of course, but wasn't sure about the cause. He could only surmise that their late-night meeting had unsettled her and made her uncomfortable, as had his taking liberties in her home. She was a very professional woman and liked to maintain a distance to the people she worked with – a lot like Lisbon in fact. But many lines had been crossed during the last days and he had decided that this was exactly what was needed to win against his/their nemesis. They had to trust each other and stick together. Fighting on his own hadn't worked very well in the past and he himself had probably handed Bertram his best weapons in the past by keeping secrets and nearly destroying his team/family. Not anymore.
Therefore it was mandatory to clear the air with the former supervising agent in front of him. He had to assure her that she needn't be ashamed of anything that had been exchanged between them last night. What he didn't know was how to achieve that. Putting her at ease was probably the best he could do right now because very soon they wouldn't be alone anymore and consequently they didn't have the time to have a real talk. "Lisbon will be down with us any minute now," he informed her. "Last I heard, she pulled the boss-card and won first rights to the bathroom." He grinned proudly.
Madeleine forced a smile on her face and took a calming breath. She had to pull herself together, she chided herself. Her behavior was ridiculous and immature and Patrick had naturally already picked up on her discomfort. "I should go upstairs and show Van Pelt to my en-suite. I sure as hell don't want you boys in there, but she's welcome to use it, as is Teresa. I'll be back shortly."
"Yeah, you do that. I'll lay the table in the meantime, if that's alright with you?" he inquired carefully.
"Of course, Patrick." She turned to leave but stopped in the doorway and addressed him once more, "I didn't mean to imply that your efforts to provide us all with food are disagreeable to me. You're most welcome to use the kitchen while you're all staying here. I'm in fact thankful that you've taken over my duties as the host. I'm not particularly good at it anyway." With that she went upstairs and left behind a slightly puzzled mentalist, but had at least won some time for herself. This was inacceptable. Somehow at some point during the last few hours she'd lost her mind completely. How the hell was she supposed to get a grip on herself?
Going up Madeleine met Teresa on her way down the stairs. "Good morning, Teresa," she greeted her slightly awkwardly, a fact that slipped the other woman's attention completely.
"Morning," Lisbon grunted in return, her whole concentration focused on the shortest way to her first coffee of the day.
Hightower on the other hand cringed at the tone. She misinterpreted Lisbon's shortness to be a result of the conversation she'd had with the woman's boyfriend last night. She had no idea how much the senior agent might have overheard and now she assumed the worst, forgetting that Teresa had been half asleep at the time.
Consequently she was very astonished by the sight she encountered when she came back into the kitchen about five minutes later – nearly tiptoeing in her attempt to de-escalate the situation if necessary. Lisbon was snickering and smiled in Madeleine's direction. "Gosh! Patrick just told me, I put up quite the show for you last night. I can't even remember getting up, let alone falling asleep in your living room." She turned to her boyfriend and poked him in the chest. "Though I'm sure that little jerk here outrageously exaggerated the scene I supposedly caused. So for my peace of mind, Madeleine: I didn't climb on your coffee table and sang, did I?"
Hightower felt like hugging Jane – and not for THAT reason either. He'd obviously sensed her unease and had come to the conclusion that it had been caused by their nightly encounter. That wasn't entirely correct, of course, but close enough. And now he'd actually given her the perfect out and made it clear that Teresa had no idea about the subject of their talk.
He'd truly changed and she was very thankful for his consideration. On the other hand this didn't really help with her other problem. Unknowingly he'd just made himself an even greater temptation.
Madeleine realized that she'd been lost in her thoughts again and that her continued silence might make Lisbon suspicious. A look into the face of the other woman told a different story. She seemed utterly embarrassed. "Oh no, please don't tell me he didn't lie!" the green-eyed agent exclaimed.
"No, no, of course he lied, Teresa," Madeleine hurried to reassure her. "You didn't do anything like that." With a wink in Jane's direction she said, "Shame on you, Patrick, for telling her such nonsense. Is that a way to treat your girlfriend?"
He grinned deviously. "Ah, but at any other time she wouldn't have believed a word of it. I only get the chance to play her like that once a day: between her first and her second coffee. Before the first one, she's barely literate and so grumpy, I avoid talking to her altogether because I value my physical integrity."
Lisbon glared at him and punched his arm, which elicited a look from him in Hightower's direction conveying 'See? That's what I'm talking about'. Otherwise he seemed completely unfazed by Teresa's reaction and continued merrily, "After the second one she's reached her top detective mode and is as sharp as a razor. Which only leaves the short period in between. And a guy has to have a bit of fun once in a while, doesn't he?"
His lover tried to reward his insolence with another punch, but he intercepted her fist and brought it up to his lips instead, bestowing a tender kiss on the back of her hand. "Grrr," Lisbon replied. "I hate it when you do that. I never manage to stay mad at you when you do."
"That's the beauty of it, my dear. Well, amongst other things of course." He bent down and pressed a small kiss onto her pouting lips. "Here, have another sip of your coffee. You've only had one and a half mugs. Still some way to go until you're in peek working condition." He handed her coffee back to her, which she'd placed on the counter while hitting him.
Madeleine watched the exchange with both amusement and resentment. Why did they have to be so damn cute together? And why couldn't she simply hate Teresa for having what she'd just found out she wanted for herself – so very much? Why was she enjoying this at the same time as feeling an almost desperate sense of yearning to have this too?
Her marriage had never been like this. They'd married rather young and mostly because it had been convenient. It hadn't been big love. They'd both been ambitious and seemed to share similar views, had compatible goals and liked each other well enough.
At first it had seemed like the perfect match. Their career plans had worked out well, they'd gotten the two children they'd aimed for and had bought a nice house. They'd not been particularly happy or affectionate with one another, had argued on occasion, though mostly they'd co-existed quite peacefully and managed to sustain a stable home for their children. It had all been very mature and rational, just like their whole relationship had been right from the start.
They'd even agreed to have a somewhat open marriage, allowing them to have an affair here and there, both believing it might spark their mutual sex life which had been nearly none existent ever since Will was born. She for example had had a fling with one Rance Howard – nothing serious, no deep feelings involved, just sex. But boy, had the whole thing come back to roost! It had nearly destroyed her career, not to mention her life. It had given Red John the perfect opportunity to frame her. Come to think of it – it was the very cause of the situation she currently found herself in.
Anyway, that had been the reality of her marriage: convenience and the illusion of a functioning family. But then her husband had fallen in love with another woman. Naturally, she'd had no chance to compete with that. And it was only now that she fully comprehended why because at this very moment she herself was experiencing those very feelings for the first time in her life.
Unfortunately her feelings weren't reciprocated and seeing Patrick so happy with another woman hurt like hell. Still, she couldn't hate Teresa because she liked and respected her too much for it. Now she didn't know how to deal with the situation and was very relieved when both Van Pelt and Cho entered the kitchen and Jane started to hand them dishes to carry over to the dining table.
Hightower ended up being the last one in the room with him. Jane gave her a plate with a stack of pancakes on it, stepped closer to her and asked with both worry and understanding in his voice, "Do we need to talk, Madeleine? You're still very uncomfortable, actually even more so than earlier this morning. If I offended your sensibilities in any way I'd be glad to know how, so I can avoid to repeat it in the future."
She blushed and looked down, ashamed and feeling caught. Tears threatened to fall from her eyes and she wished to be anywhere but in this close proximity to him. "No," she said gruffly, unable to utter another word, too afraid to lose it completely. She left the kitchen and made it into the dining area of her living room, taking several deep, calming breaths on the way. She'd collected herself enough so as not to draw the attentions of the agents in her home. Patrick was a different matter altogether but that was a lost cause anyway, she figured.
She used the lively conversation going on around the table to ponder her options. Maybe she really needed to have a talk with him, clear the air. But she had no idea how. She doubted, she could lie to him without him seeing through it at once. Outright confessing her feelings on the other hand sounded just as impossible. Still, with Red John looming they all needed to be in top form. She couldn't afford such distractions right now and in the state she was in at present she couldn't concentrate on the things most pertinent at the moment.
Finally she came to a decision. It would be awkward and wasn't ideal but she had to get the whole matter off her chest. "Agent Lisbon? Could I have a word with you in private?" she asked when they'd almost finished breakfast.
"Sure," Teresa replied, brows raised, looking puzzled both at the request and the formal addressing.
Madeleine got up and motioned for her to follow. They went upstairs and into the children's playroom – the only place she felt was neutral enough for this conversation. Sitting on the kid's chairs was slightly awkward, but fortunately both women were on the smaller side.
"Agent Lisbon, well, I mean Teresa, thanks for joining me," Hightower started uncertainly.
Lisbon eyed her warily. "What's up, Madeleine? You've seemed a bit off all morning. Did something happen? Do you have any new information on Red John or something? Bad news, perhaps?"
"No, nothing of the sort. I'm sorry, I've made you worry like this. No, this is a personal matter." She stopped, sighed and didn't know how to continue.
"What did he do now?" Teresa asked with exasperation. "This has Jane written all over it. Am I right?"
Another sigh escaped the dark-skinned woman. She shook her head no. "It's not his fault, well not intentionally at least." She blushed and avoided Lisbon's eyes. "God, this is so embarrassing! I don't know what to do anymore. I've never… this is just ridiculous. How am I supposed to function like this? This is just so humiliating." She hid her face in her hands, tears finally escaping her eyes.
Lisbon carried her chair over to her and put her arm around Madeleine's shoulder in an attempt to comfort her. "What's wrong? How can I help?"
Hightower tried to pull herself together and managed to compose herself enough to continue, "You can't help me. You're actually the last person who could possibly help me, but I need to talk to someone and there's no one else and you're going to despise me afterwards and I don't know what else to do…," she rambled helplessly.
"Madeleine, please. What's bothering you? I promise, I won't judge you for whatever you're going to tell me. Just talk, okay? I'm sure you'll feel better afterwards," Teresa reassured her kindly.
"It's Patrick," her former boss started to say.
"I knew it! What did he do? I'm gonna punch his nose, I swear! How can he put you in such a state at a time like this? I'll…" Lisbon ranted angrily.
"Stop, no!" Madeleine interrupted her. "Please, it's not his fault, really. Please, Teresa, this is difficult enough as it is. Just let me explain, okay?" She cast a short pleading glance in Lisbon's direction and got a confirming nod. "Okay," she went on, lowering her head again, too ashamed to hold the other woman's gaze. "I have to admit that something like this has never happened to me before and it has thrown me completely. I've tried to rationalize and I know it's totally inappropriate and more than inconvenient, but I just couldn't stop it. I'm so sorry, Teresa. I really am."
Lisbon still didn't actually know what the other woman was trying to tell her but the picture forming in her mind right now was so outrageous that she blanched. This couldn't be true, it just couldn't, not Patrick. He would never… She knew that. But she had to know for sure. "What the hell did he do with you in the living room last night, Mrs. Hightower?" she asked with cold dread in her voice.
"Nothing!" the dark-skinned woman exclaimed in alarm. "God, no! Please don't think for a moment that he did anything. Please, Teresa, you got it all wrong. He didn't do a thing. He never would. I'm making such a mess of this." New tears ran down her face. "I'm so sorry. This is bad enough as it is and I've made you believe the worst now and, oh god. It's just that we talked last night and he was so different. Nice. Mature. Open. And it was the first time I've seen him in anything casual and he's just so damn beautiful and I've always kind of liked him but now it's turned into so much more and I can't stop it and I'm so sorry," she pressed out between sobs.
"You've fallen in love with Patrick," Teresa whispered totally flabbergasted. "You're in love with my boyfriend," she repeated a bit louder, trying to make more sense of it that way. "Oh my god! You have feelings for him." She jumped up from her chair. "You can't have him, he's mine," she said possessively.
"I know that," Madeleine replied defeated. "Don't you think I know that? Why do you think it hurts so much? I've never ever felt anything like this before. I thought it was just some superficial attraction, but it changed." She wiped her eyes and looked up at Teresa with hurt and despair. "Suddenly it changed and I couldn't put a stop to it. I tried. I really did. But now I see him and all I want is to have what you have and I know I can't and it's driving me crazy." New tears escaped her eyes. "He's so beautiful and he loves you so much and it hurts, but you're so cute together and so happy. But it still hurts." She sniffed.
Lisbon handed her a hanky she found in the pocket of her blazer only realizing that it was one she'd pinched from her boyfriend when it was too late to take it back. Fortunately the other woman was too upset to notice the embroidered 'PJ' decorating one of the corners.
What a mess, she thought. Not that she couldn't understand Madeleine's feelings. She was after all in the very best position to share the sentiments, but she'd never expected to be confronted with a situation like this. And she sure as hell wasn't willing to share. Patrick was hers and hers alone.
She knew she'd made a good catch and that there were quite a few women interested in her lover, but theirs had only ever been an abstract, superficial, and somehow in her eyes almost a theoretical attraction. But this was very real and Madeleine was someone she cared about. Furthermore, she knew that Patrick held a lot of respect for the other woman.
She didn't for a second believe that Hightower was a serious rival or a threat. No, she knew that her boyfriend had only eyes for her and wasn't the least bit interested in other women (even if she'd had a millisecond of shock earlier at Madeleine's first fumbling words. But that had been caused exactly by her complete disbelief). He loved her, only her. There was no doubt about that in her mind.
Still, this situation was prone to be awkward. It wouldn't take Patrick very long to figure out the truth and then it would be all tense between those two. That was the last thing they needed right now. They were only a small group of people fighting against a well connected enemy. They needed to stick together.
She sighed. What was she supposed to do? And why had the other woman told her of all people? Coming to a decision she addressed the distressed woman in front of her, "Madeleine, we need to inform Patrick. Talking things out is the only viable solution to this mess that I can see right now."
Hightower had composed herself a bit and nodded hesitantly. "I know. I thought so myself but I couldn't bring myself to talk to him. He offered his ear, actually. Sensed I was uncomfortable and suspected he'd offended me somehow. And he was all sweet and understanding. God, I just had to get away." She sighed and shook her head. "I can't tell him, Teresa. I just can't. It's too humiliating. I'm a mature woman and I act like a silly teenager. I don't recognize myself right now."
Lisbon cast her a sympathetic look. "You've really never been in love before, have you?" The other woman shook her head no once again. "Well, being in love is a lot like turning into a pubescent teen. At least it felt quite a bit like that this time around. As this is actually only my second time and I still was a teen the first time around, I can't really claim to be an expert. And with Patrick it was more of a gradual process anyway. With a lot of ups and downs, let me tell you."
She snorted in remembrance of her rather interesting relationship with Jane over the years. Then her face turned dreamy. "But when we finally admitted our feelings it was like fireworks. I felt all giddy and I still do a lot."
It was only now she noticed the pained expression on Madeleine's face and apologized for being so insensitive. "No, Teresa. It's alright. It's good to know that what I'm feeling is, well, normal in a way." She sighed. "Would you explain the situation to him? I can't do it myself. I'll leave for work with my new shadow, agent Rigsby, so you can tell him while I'm absent. Would that be acceptable for you?"
"Yes. It's not ideal but I see no real alternative. You should probably take a trip to the bathroom first though. It's quite obvious that you've been crying, I'm afraid."
"Thanks for being so understanding. And please believe me when I tell you that I'd never do anything to jeopardize your relationship with him. If I could, I'd just switch off my feelings and stop acting like an inane fool."
Hightower got up from the chair ready to leave with her face still turned to the floor in shame. Lisbon felt very bad for her and a wave of compassion came over her. With determination she stepped over to the other woman and pulled her into a bear hug. "It's gonna be alright, Madeleine. I'm not mad, okay? It's a difficult situation but we'll pull through, right?"
The embrace was a bit awkward at first, both women not being the hugging type, but after a few moments Hightower melted into it and drew real comfort. "Thank you, Teresa," she whispered. "And I'm really sorry I've caused such a mess."
"I'm the last one not to understand your attraction, remember? I know how very lucky I am to have him. I love him more than I could ever express with words. He's the best thing that's ever happened to me. And I'm not making this any better right now, am I? Sorry."
"No, it's fine." Madeleine murmured. "I'm glad you don't hate me and treat me normally. I needed to hear that. Maybe it'll force me into stopping this nonsense."
"Believe me, it's not gonna be that easy. Before we got together, I'd been trying to get him out of my mind for years. But you're probably right. It's best to face things head on. I'll talk with him. He can be astonishingly mature." She had to grin but turned serious again immediately. "He won't give you a hard time for it, I promise."
Hightower ended the hug and finally dared to face Lisbon. "I know he won't. He noticed some of my attraction last night and he was really nice and gentlemanly about it. So he isn't entirely clueless. It's just that things somehow culminated into so much more during the last hours. I had this dream-", she blushed, "-and it all somehow got out of hand afterwards."
Lisbon nodded kindly. "Why don't you get ready for work and I deal with the rest?"
Madeleine gave a nod of her own and left the room.
Teresa stayed a while longer. She needed some time to think and the other woman would need a moment or two in her bathroom as well. Better to wait a bit before her necessary talk with Patrick.
About ten minutes later she made her way downstairs. She found her team gathered in the living room and asked Rigsby to get ready to leave with Hightower shortly. The tall agent got up from the armchair with a suffering sigh. "So, I'm still not going to be part of the action? Not that it's horrible at City Hall, but it's getting a bit boring."
"Sorry, Rigs. I'm afraid, you'll have to spend another day eating cake and charming the secretaries," Lisbon replied with a mock-apologetic look.
Wayne left to put on his shoes and jacket and the occupants of the living room could hear him exchange a few words with Madeleine, who'd obviously come down as well. A moment later she stepped into the doorway and wished everyone a nice day.
Fortunately she looked composed and professional, Lisbon thought, all traces of her nearly hysteric outburst had vanished. When she was sure the other woman had left with Rigsby, she turned towards Patrick. "Jane? A word, please." She motioned with her head for him to follow her upstairs.
The consultant raised his brows, shrugged his shoulders in the direction of Cho and Van Pelt who had cast questioning glances at him which clearly conveyed 'What have you done now?' and followed his girlfriend.
Teresa went to the guest room they'd been using and sat down on the edge of the bed. With a pat to the spot beside her she asked him to do the same.
Patrick obeyed and sighed deeply. With a resigned voice he said, "Let me guess. She wants us out of the house because I overstayed our welcome, making myself too much at home in her kitchen."
She took one of his hands and intertwined it with hers. "No, Patrick. That's not the problem."
"You sure? She has been fidgety all morning ever since I offered her a coffee in her kitchen. She made a slightly grumpy remark about feeling like a guest in her own home. And I know I have a bad habit of invading others' privacy." He looked down in his lap, a bit ashamed.
Teresa let go of his hand and started to caress his cheek instead. "You didn't do anything wrong, Patrick. And I doubt that she has any problem with you looking after our stomachs. On the contrary, I think it's safe to say that we're all very grateful for it. But we do have a situation and I don't really like to bother you with it particularly with the whole Red John mess we and especially you are already dealing with, but I guess it can't be helped."
He looked up and searched her eyes. "That's all pretty ominous, Teresa. What's the matter? Just tell me, you're making me nervous."
She bent over and closed the gap between their faces. Her hand wandered to the back of his neck, pulled his mouth to hers and kissed him deeply with both passion and tenderness. "I love you, Patrick," she said warmly afterwards. "Very much."
He smiled widely, eyes shining with happiness at her declaration. "I'm certain, I'll never get bored of hearing that." He looked her deep in the eyes. "I love you too, Teresa. With all my heart."
Remembering that they'd been in the middle of a serious talk he took hold of her hand and eyed her encouragingly. "Love, what's that other thing you wanted to tell me? Not that I wouldn't rather be kissing you, but it sounded kind of urgent."
"You're right and I guess I'm procrastinating." She sighed deeply. "I think it's best not to beat around the bush and rip the band-aid off in one go, so to speak."
Patrick snickered. "Sorry, my dear, but you haplessly mixing together metaphors sounds very much like an attempt to postpone the inevitable. Come on, it can't be that bad."
"You have no idea… Alright, no more delaying. Well, it seems like Madeleine has allowed herself to succumb to your charms."
He raised his brows. "That's all? I already know she has a soft spot for me. Where's the problem?"
Another sigh escaped her. "It's a bit more than that, Patrick. I'm afraid she's head over heels in love with you."
"What?!" he exclaimed. "You've got to be kidding me! I know, she's attracted to me but surely it's not more than that? You must've misinterpreted something, right?
She shook her head in defeat. "No. I'm certain. She's completely beside herself. She even cried, Patrick. It's serious and it's the last thing we need right now." She sighed yet again. "She was almost hysterical and this in a situation where we all need to be as collected as possible. And she knows that, which makes it even worse because she couldn't control it anyway. That should make it clear just how serious it is."
"Damn," he mumbled. "I don't know what to say." His brow was furrowed. "Did I lead her on or something? I didn't mean to, Teresa. Honestly." He took a deep breath and continued, when he saw that his girlfriend seemed just as speechless. "I can't say I have much experience with situations like this. Women don't usually develop such feelings for me. What am I supposed to do?"
Lisbon snorted. "Women fall at your feet all the time, Jane. Don't tell me, you don't know how to deal with it."
He searched her eyes carefully. "That's not true, Teresa."
"Like hell it isn't," she retorted grumpily. "I've known you for nine years and I see women swoon over you left and right all the time. There's a reason why you manage to play any crowd with ease. So don't try to act coy with me."
"Teresa, please. That's not what I meant. I know I have a certain charm and I even admit that I'm not above using it to my or the team's advantage. Or that I abused people's superficial attraction to me during my psychic days." He looked a bit contrite. "But that's an act and I usually manage to control their reactions. It's nothing more than tricks and illusions, smoke and mirrors. Mesmerizing people is just a way to manipulate them, like putting a spell on them. I know I'm good at it. But I promise you that I've always prevented people from really falling for me. It's imperative to maintain some distance if you don't want things to get messy."
She squeezed his hand. "Sorry, Patrick. I shouldn't pressure you like that. It's just, well, sometimes I'm not sure, even with all your perceptiveness, if you're aware of your real effect on women." She eyed him a bit gingerly. "I know I'm not impartial of course, but do you have any idea just how charismatic you are?" She blushed. "In many cases you might manage to keep people at bay with your acerbic comments. I mean, your tongue can be a real weapon at times, but when you are in an agreeable mood you're all around drop-dead gorgeous, Patrick."
"Geez, Teresa." He looked completely abashed.
"Well, it's the truth. And now that you've started to be less abrasive around friends and more inclined to shed your masks, it's no wonder…"
"So it is my fault after all. I shouldn't have encouraged her by being all nice and open. Damn," he interrupted her in agitation and pulled at his hair.
She sighed yet again. "Jane! Please stop this inane blabber. It's certainly not your fault. You have a right to be yourself around others. Whatever results from it isn't your responsibility. All I'm saying is that I can understand where Madeleine is coming from. She has been attracted to you before and now it's turned into more because she's noticed that you're actually beautiful all over, not only on the surface."
"Can you please stop it with all the compliments? It's embarrassing and it's really starting to make me uncomfortable. How the hell am I supposed to act around others after this? You make it sound like I'm some kind of walking sex-bomb or something. Geez!"
Teresa couldn't help herself. She giggled and pecked him on the lips. "Well, I tend to think so," she teased him. Composing herself she added, "But we should probably focus on the problem at hand and leave the sweet-talk for later." She winked suggestively and he groaned. "Poor Patrick, the most eligible bachelor of the year."
"I'm not a bachelor," he complained. "I'm very much spoken for and if anything, I'm a widower. So there." He pouted and she gave him another peck on his adorable lips.
"Well, back to our current problem, imp. And in all seriousness: Madeleine has it rather bad and from what she said, it's the first time she's ever been in love. So this is prone to be extra hard on her. Any useful suggestions?"
"You could tell her that I snore and drool, steal the comforter and that I'm a total disaster in the sack," he offered.
She punched his arm. "Serious and useful suggestions, you idiot. Discussing my sex life with her is most certainly not on the agenda."
He grinned sheepishly. "Sorry, couldn't resist. And I don't have any good ideas. Normally, I'd suggest keeping my distance would be best, but it's kind of impossible right now with us all living under the same roof. I could take a motel room or something though. I don't think I'm in any immediate danger from Bertram." With a sarcastic voice he added, "Or should I rather say uncle Joseph?"
"No, that's out of the question, Jane. We're gonna stick together until this is all over. Don't even think of it."
"Yeah, well. But it's gonna be real awkward otherwise. It's Friday today. We're going to be in even closer proximity during the weekend, all penned up here. I'm willing to stay in this room as much as possible but I can't avoid contact with her altogether."
"And it certainly wouldn't be fair to you. This isn't your fault and you shouldn't be punished for the situation and it sounds quite a bit like a grounding." She sighed in resignation. "Maybe it would be best if you confronted her, made it unmistakably clear that you're not interested. I don't know. I mean intellectually, she already knows that. What do you think? You're usually good at this whole psychological stuff."
"Well, one thing's for sure: I'll never leave the bedroom in my sleeping attire again! But seriously, I think I should act normal around her and so should you. And I suggest informing the rest of the team and possibly J. J. about the state of things as well. She'll feel humiliated and I'm sorry about it, but maybe that's exactly the kind of confrontation she needs to get over it. She's a proud woman and this would surely scratch at her ego. It might help her regain her poise." He furrowed his brow. "I admit it's a bit cruel and I don't wish to hurt her even more, but no matter how you look at it, she's never going to get what she wants anyway. So maybe your band-aid metaphor applies after all."
She pulled him into a hug. "I love you, Patrick and you're a good man. I hope you know that. And I think you might be right. We don't have the luxury to let this turn into something bigger. Maybe the brutal method is actually the best one."
He sought her lips for another deep kiss. "You know I only love you, don't you, Teresa?" he asked afterwards, caressing her cheek tenderly.
"Yes, I know. I trust you. I didn't think even for a second that you led her on or something. You're just totally irresistible without even trying. And I'm so glad you're mine." She pulled him into another kiss, buried her hands in his curls and moaned with heartfelt satisfaction.
She suddenly felt fingers at the button of her pants and before she really knew what was happening, she was naked from the waist down. He really had the hands of a magician which was further proven by fingers entering her core and driving her mad with arousal. She panted into his mouth, their lips never fully losing contact. She hadn't even realized he'd removed his pants when he pulled her onto his lap, positioned her and lowered her onto his waiting erection. They both caught the others' moans in a kiss.
She bent her legs, crouching over his lap, so she could participate actively in their joining. He grabbed her hips and guided her up and down, setting a pace that would lead to completion fast. This was what they both wanted and needed and what's more, it was the only thing they had time for right now. They should've been at work at least thirty minutes ag, but at the moment they couldn't care less.
Their movements turned frantic soon and only minutes later they both came forcefully, she first and he just seconds later. They shared another open mouthed kiss while coming down from their high. She had her hands tangled in his hair, his hands had sneaked underneath her blouse and caressed her back with gentle strokes.
"We have to go to work. The others are waiting." She finally broke the silence with a sigh. "They've probably started to worry. We've been up here for quite a while."
"Or they might assume we've been doing what we just did the whole time," he provided with a sly grin.
She blushed. "This is really ruining my reputation, Jane. They're my subordinates. I'm not comfortable with them speculating about my sex life," she grumbled into his chest.
"Yeah sorry. Guess that would be my doing, what with my lack of self-control last night. I'd assume, they avoided to think about us together in any concrete form until then. I know, you're not really okay with it but in a way I think it'll actually be good for them to see you as a human being. Your perfection can be a bit intimidating."
"My perfection?" She snorted. "Really now, Jane. What's that supposed to mean? I'm far from perfect."
"To me you are. Perfect that is." He looked into her eyes with pure adoration. "But what I meant was your position as a leader. You've been rather, well, offish, kind of. Always very professional, not showing any weaknesses. It's been hard for them to measure up to your standards and frankly, sometimes that's been detrimental to their own performances. Not Cho though. He respects you but doesn't find you intimidating."
Her face showed astonishment. "Do you really believe that? You've never said anything before."
He nodded. "Yes, my dear. I think as awkward as it was – our little encounter with Wayne in the hall last night was rather cathartic for our tall friend. You do know that he's somewhat awed by you, don't you?" She agreed with some hesitancy. "And I didn't tell you before because I know how important your position is to you and I didn't want to criticizes your command performance. It's a touchy subject and maybe I'm just too much of a coward, too afraid of your wrath and your fist."
He grinned sheepishly, but she encouraged him to go on. "Anyway, you're great at what you do, just sometimes maybe too great, if you know what I mean. Now you finally appear a bit more human and that's a good thing. That's why I'm telling you now, so you know something good came out of it after all."
She looked only partly convinced but decided to think on the matter some more. Maybe he had a point. But right now they really had to leave.
She got up from his lap and grabbed a tissue from the nightstand to clean herself up a bit before getting dressed again. He followed suit and after inspecting one another for any visible traces of their recent activity and finding none they went back down to the living room.
TBC
Reviews are always welcome. And please feel free to point out mistakes.
