Bo paced outside the office door mentally struggling about whether or not to enter. She knew she had to, it was the right thing, but, still, a part of her was reluctant. But as Ryan's behavior and remarks continued to cross the line, it became obvious that she needed to do something about it.

Honestly, it made her feel weak, helpless. She was a strong person who always took pride in handling her own problems. That was the worst part. The hardest to reconcile was the feeling of disempowerment. Anger boiled inside her, holding her hands firm on her side she stared at the closed door but didn't enter.

Exposing Ryan's behavior, in truth, would lead to her bad choice being used against her. Even though, it happened outside of work she knew that didn't matter it would be used as ammunition against her. No doubt the fact that she slept with her boss would be paraded around as proof that she was lying or asking for his comments and behavior. But it was her mistake to sleep with her boss, and now she would have to deal with the fallout.

She sagged into a nearby chair and pressed her fingers to her temple. She heard the click of the door and an older man waved her inside. With a forced smile, she followed behind him into the office.

The older man, in front of Bo, stared fixedly at her, waiting for her to speak. She folded her arms tightly over her body, unsure how to begin and handle the situation. For a few seconds, she glanced warily around the office.

"Lieutenant Dennis, what brings you by?" He pressed at last. The condescending tone in his voice when he said her name made her want to slap him, which surprised her.

Bo swallowed hard, hesitated and swallowed again, bracing herself for the monumental truth she was about to tell.

An hour later it was done, she told him everything and gave him several recordings she had of Ryan and her conversations. It was in their hands now. All she could do was wait it out and hope it was enough.

She took the rest of the day off. She pulled open the front door of the building. The cool fresh air struck her as soon as she walked out. The air was refreshing after the stifling air inside the HR office. Her body relaxed as she walked down the street, taking deep breaths. As she walked, she began to feel relieved about finally exposing Ryan. She had put it off too long, but now it was done. Despite all her worries, it felt good to do the right thing.

She fished out her phone from her pocket when it vibrated. Her father's voice came from the other end, and she groaned. She strained to hear over the sound of the busy street. He was talking at her, and if his tone was any indication, she had no choice but to come to his house for a meeting.

"Ok. I'll be there." She rushed to answer, cutting his lecture off. She hung up the phone and quickened her steps. If circumstances were different, she'd have ignored her father. But there was too much going on, and she had bigger worries that hug to her chest, so she relented.

XXXXX

Lauren loved walking through the city. It was a microcosm of old and new traditions, all variety of people walked shoulder to shoulder. Energy pulsed in every direction fueled by the activity of those all around her.

"Will you be my best man, Dyson?" Lauren asked Dyson with a smile as they strolled down the city block.

"Damn right. Who else?" He draped a friendly arm over her shoulder and squeezed. "Your bachelorette party is going to be amazing." He waved his hand in the air, with a huge grin. "I can see it now, strippers as far as the eye can see."

Lauren scoffed and wiggled away from his embrace. "I'm not objectifying women for entertainment, Dyson."

He frowned and shook his head, quickly. "It's not objectifying them; it's appreciating their beauty and bodies. There's a difference. Plus, they're getting paid."

She nudged into his shoulder as they approached the restaurant. "No strippers, I'm serious."

"Fine." He peered down at her with a questioning frown. "What about nude models?"

Lauren laughed, and lightly slapped his arm. "Isn't that the same thing just under a different name?"

Dyson shrugged and opened the door for her, letting her enter the cafe first. "You know Bo is going to have like a hundred strippers."

Lauren glared over her shoulder at him. "I'm not Bo."

"Man, I wish I was Bo's best man. Her party will be much more entertaining." He groaned, craning his neck looking for a free table.

Lauren blinked in surprise at the statement. "I'm fun, Dyson."

Dyson slid his eyes down at Lauren and guided her to a free table. "Sure, Doc."

They took their seats at a table by a large window in the crowded restaurant, and Lauren started flipping through her menu. "Thanks for buying me lunch."

He snatched the menu out of her hand and read it. "Who said I was buying?"

Tamsin rushed into the café and joined them. "I'm so hungry. I've been counting down the minutes until lunch." She grabbed the menu from Dyson. A variety of different delicious smells competed for her attention, making her stomach growl. She felt like her breakfast was so long ago.

"Help yourself," Dyson said, watching her greedily look over the menu.

She quickly glanced at him and then turned her attention back to the menu, her mouth tightening, her shoulders stiffened.

Lauren watched the tension that passed between them and folded her arms over her body. "What's up with you two?" She prompted after a moment of silence.

"Nothing," They answered in unison, not looking at each other.

Lauren's eyes brightened in amusement. "If I didn't know any better I'd think you two slept together." She said jokingly but paused when they both slouched in their chairs and shifted uneasily.

She stared at them for a long moment. "Well, it's none of my business," She added and grabbed her water glass, hoping someone would change the subject. Clearly, something was going between them that they didn't want to talk about, and she wasn't going to press.

Luckily, the server approached the table to take their orders and the awkward tension thawed.

They chatted while waiting for their food, and Lauren's attention drifted to the window in time to catch a glimpse of Chef Chad walking by the window. She waved trying to get his attention, but his head was down, and he didn't notice her.

Dyson followed her gaze and caught sight of the back of Chad's head as he walked away. "Who was that?"

Lauren frowned. "Just a chef I met a while back. I was surprised to see him; he hasn't been around much."

Dyson laughed at her. "Lauren, are you making friends with chefs around the city to get free food?" He gave his head a quick shake. "Shameless."

Tamsin sat her drink down and looked at Lauren. "I used to do that. Bartenders too. You'd be surprised what small talk and a smile can get you for free."

"You smile?" Dyson asked her with his eyebrows raised.

Tamsin paused in the act of turning away from him and frowned at the implication. She smiled, but what kind of weirdoes sat around smiling all the time?

Lauren glanced back and forth between them. "He offered to give me cooking lessons but disappeared before I could take him up on it," She said, answering a question no one asked.

XXXXX

Bo fidgeted in her chair in her father's office waiting for him. He was late of course. Her eyes drifted over the awards, family photos, plaques that decorated every inch of the walls. Her heart dipped a little when her eyes scanned past a picture of her and Kenzi as kids. Sometimes, growing up family photo day was the only time they saw their father for longer than a few minutes.

When he finally entered the office, he offered her a greeting. He had the type of voice that was low and booming and commanded the attention of the room.

With her eyes, she watched his movements as he walked around the desk and took a seat in front of her.

He turned serious and leaned closer to her. "It's been brought to my attention that you filed a sexual harassment complaint against your boss. Would you like to explain that?"

Bo scoffed and crossed her legs in frustration. "Wow, what a way to start a conversation. And no, I have no news of my own, thanks for asking," She said sharply.

He tilted his head, questioningly at her and she stared back frowning.

"Forget it," She muttered under her breath. She wasn't going to tell him about her engagement now, not after how he started the meeting. Her mouth tightened with irritation.

Undeterred by her reaction he continued. "Well, I read through the details and I-"

Bo cut him off. "Are you spying on me? How did you get access to a sealed investigation?" Her instinct was to storm out of his office in a rage, but she held her body still. "And so quickly?" Her frown melted into a scowl.

"I know many people, Bo. It's an important time in my career, and I have to keep an eye on everything and everyone." He kept his tone low, even and smooth.

"That's fucked up." Bo's irritation and anger were simmering just beneath her skin. Frankly, this meeting was starting to make her slightly sick in the stomach. "And illegal," She added quickly.

His eyes widened. "Language, young lady." He scolded.

Bo bit her lip to keep herself quiet as he proceeded, looking everywhere but at her father. "These type of cases, stir up a lot of negative feelings in a police department. They will try to discredit you any way they can." He narrowed his eyes at her as if making sure she understood what he was telling her. "It's much easier to paint you as the wrongful party than someone in a position of power."

"I'm telling the truth. I have several recordings." She began squeezing her fist tight until her fingers dug into her palms. Her father was crossing a line getting involved. She had already taken care of the situation, through proper channels.

"Technically, that should be enough, but that doesn't mean things will go smoothly. Nothing good will come out of an investigation like this." He clasped his fingers together and rested them on the desk. "The press will get a hold of this story, and they will spin it any way they want because you're my daughter. You don't want that kind of negative attention, especially after saving all those people."

She pushed back against her chair and sucked in a tense breath. She was exhausted; she didn't have the energy for this conversation. Tired of her father, tired of Ryan, tired of the unsolved case that hung over her. So, she let it hang there and said nothing.

"I'm afraid it's true, Bo." His eyes shifted to his phone, and he read his messages. "I have my people doing some digging into how to get Ryan fired without an investigation. It shouldn't take long for it all to go away for good."

"Not interested. You can't make this go away for your benefit, to protect your reputation." Bo said through a tense jaw. Her father was used to fixing all problems with power and influence, and that's not how Bo wanted to take care of her problems.

Bo squared her shoulders and prepared to argue further, but Rainer entered the office. His gaze met Bo's, and he smirked at her with a mixture of confidence and smugness. Harvey strode across the room over to him. "Rainer, you got here just in time." He patted his shoulder and smiled.

"Bo," Rainer gave her a nod of greeting with his eyes still locked on her.

Silently, Bo waited for her father's plans to be revealed, but before he could go into any details, he was called out of the room for another meeting, leaving Rainer and Bo alone.

"Shall we get to work?" Rainer asked leaning against her father's desk, crossing his legs in front of him.

"No," Bo answered shortly, her hands hovering over the armrest, preparing to leave. Just as she'd suspected, Rainer wasn't going to give up. She was too annoyed to deal with it at that moment, or any moment really.

Rainer crossed his arms over his expensive tailored suit and narrowed his eyes at her. "Have dinner with me tomorrow and we can go over the details. You have my word it won't be a lot of work for you."

"What would your word mean to me?" She asked, shoving herself out of the chair and taking steps toward the door.

His dark eyes crinkled. "I'm an honest person, you'll see, and this is important to your father."

Bo stared at the ceiling for a long moment, realizing they weren't going to leave her alone until she agreed. "Fine." She sighed out. "We can have dinner tomorrow."

"Perfect." His eyebrows quirked, and he pulled out his phone. "I'm emailing you the details right now."

"Perfect." Bo managed to force out past a clenched jaw and quickly marched from the office without another word.

XXXXX

Bo sank further into the bathtub, reaching for her phone to read her messages. She let out an exasperated groan reading a text from her father: I took care of it. She tossed the phone away, knowing he was referring to Ryan. She was caught between being relieved he was fired and frustrated that her father stepped in when she was handling it herself.

She pushed herself under the water and stayed there several seconds, savoring the feeling of the hot water on her face. After opening her eyes and wiping the water away, she saw Lauren leaning against the sink. The knots in her body eased as Lauren stared and smiled at her.

"How long have you been in there?" Lauren finally asked through a smirk. She knelt down on the bath mat, looking affectionately at her.

Bo reached for Lauren's hand and kissed her wrist. "Not long enough. It was one of those days, you know?"

"Do you want me to bring you your dinner so that you can stay in there?" She teased, combing her fingers through Bo's damp hair.

"No." Bo leaned her head against the side of the tub, closer to Lauren. "I want you to tell me about your day." She relaxed under Lauren's continued touch. "I just want to hear your voice." She closed her eyes and waited.

Lauren laughed softly. "It might be a little boring to hear. Lab work's not as exciting as catching bad guys."

Bo opened her eyes and grinned. "It's that, or you can join me." She invited with a hopeful brow wiggle.

Lauren trailed her fingers down between Bo's breasts. "Mmm, not this time. I'm perfectly content just watching you." She leaned in and kissed her, the front of her shirt getting soaked. The kiss heated Bo's body more than the water, touching every nerve ending.

They kissed for a moment, and Bo wrapped her arms around Lauren's shoulder, playfully tugging her forward.

Lauren pulled back slightly. "Are you trying to pull me into the tub?" She asked, laughing at the end.

Bo's eyes lit up with a mischievous smirk. "Yes."

Lauren swiped some water at Bo with her hand. Bo bit her lip and pulled on her again, but stopped when her phone vibrated on the floor. Lauren bent back and reached for the phone and handed to Bo.

Bo shook her head and didn't take the phone. "Just leave it. I'll look at it later."

Lauren raised her eyebrows in question and sat the phone down. "Might be important."

"No, it's not."

Lauren kissed the tip of Bo's nose. She pulled at her wet shirt and rose to her feet. "Don't stay in there too long or you'll miss dinner," She said, with her hand on the doorknob. "And thanks for getting me all wet," She added glancing down at her soaked shirt.

Bo laughed and winked before sinking into the water. "Anytime. It was my pleasure."

Lauren was gone, and Bo's phone continued to buzz on the floor. Irritated, she groaned and snatched it off the floor. She flipped through the messages, and they were all from Ryan, after a dozen different tirades, his last message was simply: You'll pay for this, slut.

She turned the phone off, picked up a large towel and dried off. She pushed all thoughts of Ryan and her father out of her mind before leaving the bathroom.

XXXX

Later that night, Bo sat on the bed going over the case details again. She had the files sprawled out in front of her. She rubbed her neck studying everything she could.

Without much to go on this case would be solved by running over every tiny detail, even the ones that seemed inconsequential. She ran over the details again, and again. A few times she came across the name of the landlord of the house where she was shot. He had been questioned several times, but there was no link found between him and the murders.

Bo put the man's information into her phone and decided to go and question him on her own. For the hell of it, what could it hurt? It wasn't her case anymore, but she could just talk to the man, she had to do something it was eating away at her.

Quickly, she put her work away when Lauren walked into the room. Bo's mouth turned up at the corners slightly. "Hey, there beautiful."

"Hey, yourself. Thanks for helping me with the dishes." Lauren squinted her eyes at her and tilted her head.

"Sorry," Bo said sheepishly.

Lauren snorted a laugh and climbed into the bed. She put her knees on either side of Bo's legs and straddled her. "You seem stressed. Anything you want to talk about?" She asked studying the lines of anxiety in Bo's face, and lightly brushing the hair off her face.

Bo held her eyes on Lauren, and for a moment, contemplated telling her about what happened with Ryan, but decided against it. "I have to have dinner with my father's campaign manager tomorrow night."

"So, you're going to work with him?" Lauren raised her eyebrows and waited. She was surprised Bo was moving forward with helping her father out; she seemed against it every other time they'd talked about it.

Bo shrugged, "I don't want to, but I don't want my father pestering me anymore."

"I'm sorry," Lauren whispered before pulling up the hem of her shirt. Bo watched the muscles of her stomach move as she stretched the shirt over her head. Bo laid her fingers on her naked stomach and Lauren tossed the shirt to the side.

"Hmm. Better already." Bo slid her hand around Lauren's body and rested it on her back, rubbing up and down slowly.

Lauren's eyes fell shut as her body arched into her touch. "You're so easy."

"Thanks, I think." Bo pulled Lauren close and held her. Lauren's warmth and softness soothed some of her earlier frustrations.

"I meant easy to please." Lauren sank into Bo's body, and they stayed like that for several minutes letting the day's stresses settle through their shared body heat and the comfort of their embrace.

XXXXX

AN

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