Dot enjoyed torturing Steve over the next couple of weeks, letting him know whenever he would be meeting Kate and wondering out loud if tonight would be the night he got lucky.
Steve would spend those evenings at home alone, pacing, wondering what the hell Dot and Kate might be doing. He'd hate going to work the next morning wondering if Dot would tell him that he'd finally slept with his partner. So far it hadn't happened, but surely it was just a matter of time? AC-12 noted that Steve was in a permanent bad mood without Kate beside him and stayed clear of him.
Kate had shot him down when he'd tried asking her out on a date when he'd first set eyes on her. It had been before he knew they were partners. Why on earth would Kate not do the same to Dot? Steve wondered with a mixed sense of jealousy and wounded pride. Surely he had more redeeming qualities than the DI? Granted he had never really tried asking her out again which he was bitterly regretting now, but he had imagined her accepting whenever he did make a move. It looked as though he had missed his chance.
But he had been trying something different and working at being friends with a woman which he had never done before. New place to work, new Steve had been his plan. He had thought Kate had appreciated this technique but maybe not if she was happy to jump in to bed with Dot at the drop of a hat.
"Steve!". Steve looked up and saw the gaffer summoning him. "A word please," the Irishman instructed.
Steve reluctantly pushed himself off his chair and sauntered over to Ted's office, wondering what he was needed for.
"You free to meet Kate tonight?" Ted asked. "Dot's been held up in an interview,".
"Am I on the case now?" Steve asked interested.
"Afraid not," Ted replied. "Just a one off,".
'Typical' thought Steve. 'It's up to me to bail Dot and the whole of AC-12 out again,'.
"You free to do it or not?" Ted repeated.
"Yeah I'll do it," Steve agreed. He wasn't going to pass up an opportunity to keep an eye on his partner and make sure she was ok. He could also warn her off Dot.
Steve looked at his watch as he approached the underpass. 8:10pm. He was late which he was annoyed about. He'd got here early with the aim of taking a leaf out of Dot's book and buying Kate a hot drink but the stupid shop was shut. With all the occasions he had passed the shop on the multiple times he had met Kate here you would have thought he would have known the opening times!
He'd desperately searched for another shop but had drawn a blank, so now here he was arriving late and with no refreshment. Not a great start.
He saw Kate wrapped up against the cold, leaning against a graffitied wall and breathing in to her hands to keep herself warm as he approached. She turned at the sound of his approaching footsteps.
"Steve?" Kate said in surprise, not expecting her partner to be showing up.
Steve mistook her surprise for something else. "Sorry to disappoint you," he apologised sadly.
"I'm not disappointed," Kate replied, detecting he was in some weird mood.
"Dot couldn't make it," Steve explained. "Held up with an interview,".
"That's ok," Kate said, pleased to see Steve instead. She'd missed him.
"So what do I report back to him tomorrow?" Steve asked before Kate updated him on Dot's investigation.
Kate was just getting to the end of her report when the sound of more approaching footsteps could be heard at the opposite end of the underpass. Kate paused talking and both police officers turned to the sound before looking at each other, not sure what to do. They had only a few moments before either a member of the public or a police officer connected to the case was about to reveal themselves. This had never happened before.
Before she knew it, Kate was pushed up against the wall and Steve was kissing her. His tongue sought entry to her mouth and she was surprised that she granted him access. The next thing her brain registered was that Steve had managed to undo her thick coat and his hands were on her waist before one went lower to stroke her arse.
"Oh my god, get a room," the passer-by suggested to the couple as he walked on.
When the sound of his footsteps had disappeared Kate pushed Steve off her. She stared at her partner. "What was that?!" she asked incredulously, if not a little breathlessly. She was very surprised to find that she had actually enjoyed it a little bit but wasn't going to admit it.
"Sorry," Steve apologised. He wasn't quite sure what he had just done. "I...errr...," he stuttered as his brain tried to formulate a sentence, but it was proving quite difficult. "I...err...ummm," he tried again but kept thinking of Kate's lips against his. The curve of her buttock against his hand. "I... panicked," he explained, eventually. That sounded shit, a loud voice in Steve's head informed him.
"Panicked?" Kate echoed. She obviously thought the same.
"I just thought... what excuse could a man and a woman have for meeting down here and...that was the first thing that popped in to my head,".
Kate gave a wry smile to Steve. Typical man. "It's a good job that it's me that's the undercover officer isn't it?" She laughed and Steve knew she wasn't upset at what had just happened. "This does not make it back to AC-12," she warned.
"Of course," Steve agreed. "As I've already told you, I don't kiss and tell," he promised.
"Good,".
"Unlike Dot,".
"What does that mean?" Kate asked.
"Nothing," Steve replied quickly knowing he had said the wrong thing.
"No come on," Kate urged. "Dot's obviously said something," she said, worried at what had been said behind her back.
"Alright if you must know, Dot's insinuating that something's going on between the pair of you," Steve admitted.
Kate took Steve's news on board. Dot was paying her a lot of attention but that was all. She thought it a little presumptuous of Dot to be saying this
"He said he invited you back to his place for chilli," Steve continued.
"He did," Kate admitted. Steve raised his eyebrows at her candour. "What?" She demanded angrily. She had been about to tell him that she hadn't actually made it to Dot's house. She had got cold feet a couple of metres after deciding walking with Dot would be too risky. But seeing as Steve had jumped to conclusions she wasn't going to enlighten him now.
"OK, I know I'm in no position to tell you who you can and can't spend time with," Steve said, "but you can do so much better than Dot," he continued.
"Really?".
"You deserve it after all that shit with Mark," Steve continued. "You're an excellent copper, Kate, I'm just a bit surprised that you chanced your assignment for a...good time," Steve said.
Kate's slap echoed throughout the alleyway. How dare Steve accuse her of shagging on the job! She was not like him.
Steve held his cheek which was beginning to sting. "I probably deserved that," he said. Kate snorted. "Look, I've totally fucked this up," he continued, trying to apologise. "What I really wanted to say was just be careful around Dot. I don't know what's going on with him but I think he's trying to sleep with you to wind me up,".
"Think a lot of yourself, don't you?" Kate retorted. She was amazed at the size of Steve's ego. Heaven forbid Dot was paying her attention because he liked her. It had nothing to do with Steve.
"Pardon?" Asked Steve, not sure what he had done wrong now.
"Doesn't matter," Kate muttered getting upset. She turned and walked away before he got to see the tears in her eyes.
"Bye then," Steve said aware their meeting was now at an end. He wished he hadn't come now. The night was a disaster and his relationship with Kate the worse for it.