"Guess we know what Lily got up to during her walkabout," Jane said ruefully an hour later, back in Lisbon's apartment. "That day she escaped before that horrible man locked her in that closet."

Lisbon collapsed on the couch next to him. "Puppies," she said balefully. "Jane…what am I going to do? I can't take care of five dogs, or ten, or however many puppies are in a litter. How many puppies are in a litter?"

"I think it depends on the breed," Jane said.

"I should have asked the vet," Lisbon said. "I can't believe I didn't think to ask something so obvious."

"We can call her tomorrow."

"I just hope there aren't a hundred and one," Lisbon said darkly. Jane had relented and they'd ended up watching 101 Dalmations a couple of nights earlier.

"Fifteen would be quite enough," Jane agreed.

Lisbon looked over at him in panic. "Fifteen! You don't think there will be fifteen, do you?"

"No, of course not," he assured her. "I was referencing the movie. Could be Lily only has three or four, for all we know."

"Still," Lisbon said. "Jane, what about her rib? Do you think she'll be okay? It couldn't hurt the puppies, could it?"

"The vet said her rib should be healed before the puppies come," Jane soothed her.

Lisbon stroked Lily's head. "Poor thing. It can't exactly be comfortable to have puppies growing inside her while she has a broken rib, even so."

"We'll take care of her," Jane said. "She'll be all right."

"What about the puppies, though? I'm serious, Jane. There's no way I can keep all of them. I'd have to move out to a farm." Lisbon looked as though she were seriously considering this as a possibility.

"We'll find them homes, of course," Jane said.

Lisbon turned her head to look at him. "We will?"

"Nothing easier," Jane said with confidence. "Everybody loves puppies."

"But not everyone likes taking care of them full time," Lisbon argued. "Puppies are a lot of work."

"Lisbon, will you please relax? Do you really think I'd let any of Lily's puppies go to someone who wouldn't take care of them?"

Her shoulders slumped. "No."

"I promise you, Lisbon," Jane said. "Every one of Lily's puppies will go to a safe, happy home where they will be cherished and looked after with the utmost care."

She looked at him a long moment, then surprised him by leaning over and hugging him. "Thank you, Jane," she said in his ear, and the hair on the back of his neck stood up again. She pulled away. "I—thank you."

"Whatever for?" Jane said, somewhat off balance from the hug but quite pleased.

She bit her lip. "I know I give you a hard time a lot of time, and you make me crazy with your lies and your tricks, but there are certain…zones where you're there for me one hundred percent. It means a lot, to know I can count on you in those specific zones."

"What zones would those be?" He was curious about her interpretation.

She fidgeted. "I don't know. Ice cream. I know you'd do damn near anything to protect me and the team and our jobs. Obviously if I ever needed help hiding a body, you'd be the first person I'd call." She looked down at her lap. "And I know you will not only help me find people to take in the puppies, but you'll be able to tell if they are going to good homes and you'll help each puppy go to the person who needs that puppy and who will love it the most. So I guess I'm glad I can count on you to…con my co-workers and neighbors into adopting dogs they never asked for."

Jane grinned. "Teresa, I'm touched." He paused. "Does this mean we get to do another trust fall?"

She shot him a look. "Absolutely not."

Xxx

On Monday, Lisbon was back at work.

Jane tapped lightly on her doorframe and entered, his hands behind his back. Lisbon was at her desk, her lower lip jutting out in an unconscious scowl as she typed at her computer.

"Good morning," he greeted her. "Ah—missing Lily already, huh?"

"No," she said unconvincingly. "I've barely been away from her for more than an hour."

"So? You've been through an intense bonding period. Natural for you to miss each other at this first separation."

Lisbon bit her lip. "You think she misses me? Do you think she'll be lonely, stuck at my place all day without us? I mean—without me?"

"She definitely misses you," Jane said. "But I'm going to go over to visit her later this morning, so she won't be too lonely."

"You are?" Lisbon said hopefully.

"Yes, while you're in that budget meeting. And if you felt like running home for lunch for once, I could pick us up some sandwiches so you have more time with her before you have to get back here. And Shayna said she would stop by this afternoon and play with her for a bit, too."

"That sounds nice," Lisbon said. "Will you get her another rawhide bone while you're out? She already went through the last one."

"Sure," Jane said, pleased to have secured her tacit cooperation with this plan. "In the meantime, I have something for you."

"Yeah?" She looked up at him curiously.

He produced a framed photo of Lily from behind his back and handed it to her. "For your desk."

Lisbon placed the photo next to her computer monitor, clearly touched. "Thanks, Jane."

"You're very welcome."

She bit her lip again. "I'm being silly, aren't I? She's a dog. She'll be fine."

"She was hurt, she's pregnant, and she's adjusting to a new environment. Of course you're worried for her."

"I can't stop worrying about that rib," Lisbon said. "What if she gets anxious being alone so much and overexerts herself while I'm not there to calm her down?"

"She'll be all right," Jane said. "I'll check in with her as often as I can, and you can start going home a bit earlier when we're not in the field. Work from home more. In between, we have our rota of willing checker-uppers on," he said, referring to the neighbors he'd persuaded to help look out for Lily when he and Lisbon were out on a case.

"You're right," Lisbon decided. "Working from home more is a good idea. And it's helpful to know there are other people looking out for her, too."

"Speaking of which…" He cleared his throat. "Is it okay with you if I hang on to the copy of the key you gave me so I can go over and check on her while you're in all your boring meetings? Not just for today, I mean."

Lisbon looked taken aback. "Uh. Yeah. I guess." She thought about this. "Yes," she said, more firmly. "Thank you, Jane. I'm glad to know you'll be checking up on her. I feel like I should be telling you that you should be working during those times, but I know you're not going to listen to me anyway, so I'm glad you'll be helping Lily instead of pissing off someone I'll have to apologize to later."

He grinned. "You underestimate me, my dear. Surely you know I'm perfectly capable of doing both if I really set my mind to it?"

"Shoo," she said, but she was smiling as she said it.