A/N: Continuing directly from chapter 22 - Juliet is enjoying dinner with the Mittelos research crew; James finally has closure with Kate, and he wants to tell Juliet all about it…

The notification light on Juliet's phone blinked, but she wouldn't see her missed call for another hour or so. She was still engaged in lively discussion with fellow doctors Danielle Rousseau and Charlotte Lewis. Daniel Faraday and Alex Rousseau piped up when they had the chance - when they weren't occupied with the pictures of the new puppy on Alex's phone.

"Another round?" Richard asked the table, when the waiter came around to ask about refills.

Goodwin and his wife said yes a little too quickly. Rachel thought the wife was a real bitch, although Goodwin did seem to be flirting with every other woman at the table, so who could blame her? The other people on their end of the table declined, saying they'd be heading out soon anyway, so Richard checked the other side.

"No, thank you." Danielle said.

"Can I have one?" Alex whispered. For the fourth time, Danielle shook her head. Juliet smiled at Alex's pouting reaction.

"Juliet? Dan? One more?"

Juliet turned to Richard and shook her head as well. "If I have another I'll have to crawl home." she said.

"I'll have another!" Charlotte called out, since Richard hadn't called her name. Daniel shook his head subtly in Richard's direction. Charlotte noticed and scoffed when Daniel took the empty martini glass out of her hand.

"And speaking of too much to drink," Juliet said quietly to Rachel. "I'm going to the ladies room."

"Want me to go with?" Rachel asked as her sister stood up.

"I'm good." Juliet said, smiling her way.

"I should go too." Danielle sighed. "We'll be leaving soon." she said regretfully to Alex.

"Party pooper!" Alex sang to tease her mom as she left the table. Danielle squeezed her daughter's shoulder as she passed. When they were gone, Alex leaned toward Daniel and Charlotte. "Okay, so when you guys finally get a puppy…"

About ten seconds after Juliet left the table, Richard leaned closer to Rachel.

"Can I ask you something about your sister?" he asked privately.

Rachel nodded hesitantly, aware that Richard had downed a few tall glasses of beer already.

"And, please," he added. "Tell me to buzz off if I'm overstepping my bounds."

Rachel's smile was sympathetic. She had a hunch she knew what he was going to ask. He seemed to build up to asking it, not quite drunk enough to make a complete fool of himself but too desperate to let it be. He looked Rachel in the eye and asked as directly as possible.

"Do you think I have any chance with her? Any at all?"

"Well," Rachel started, telegraphing her regrets. "You know, she has a boyfriend in Los Angeles..."

"Okay." Richard nodded, taking that for what it was worth. He was aware of some mystery guy back home. A last, small shred of hope made him want to ask again. "In Los Angeles…" he repeated, as if there were some chance that the location of Juliet's sweetheart made their relationship less legitimate.

"They're very serious." Rachel explained. "They're trying to make it work long distance."

"And she doesn't need me interfering." Richard stated instead of asked, already knowing the answer.

"Right." Rachel said with authority. She did not mind making a definitive statement on Juliet's behalf.

"Okay." Richard said again, this time fully convinced. "I figured I would need your blessing anyway. And, I'm sorry if I made either of you uncomfortable."

"It's fine." Rachel said, keeping it light and friendly. "And, hey, I think my sister's pretty great. If you weren't interested, I'd think there's something wrong with you."

Richard laughed, and smiled appreciatively at Rachel. "Thank you. Really. This saves me a lot of embarrassment."

"Any time." said Rachel.

They maintained eye contact just long enough for Rachel to notice once again how handsome he was.

No, said the part of Rachel that knew Richard still had a huge crush on Juliet, even if he was man enough to back off and get over it.

Yes, said the part of her that was lonely and didn't care. She had a crush to get over too.

Juliet and Danielle exited their stalls at the same time, and approached the sinks that were next to each other.

"How do you like it so far?" Danielle asked as they washed their hands.

"Mittelos?" asked Juliet. They made eye contact in the wall mirror, and Danielle smiled her warm smile and nodded.

"I love it. Really, everyone has been so welcoming, and the facility is something I used to dream about."

They turned their faucets off, and Juliet took two paper towels out of the dispenser. She handed one to Danielle, who murmured a thank you in response.

"I only wish I'd known about it sooner." Juliet continued with a wistful smile. "It would have saved me a lot of grief and many lost years of research…"

"Well." Danielle said warmly, bringing Juliet back to the present. "The universe has its ways. Perhaps it wasn't the right time until now."

Juliet wasn't convinced that now was the right time either. She was glad she'd stayed in Los Angeles long enough to meet James. Danielle was right in that sense.

"And Richard?" Danielle asked casually, as they both tossed their paper towels into the garbage.

It caught Juliet off guard. Trying to be polite, Juliet smiled and threw Danielle a confused expression.

Danielle sighed. "It is difficult not to notice how he acts around you. I know you and I just met tonight, but Charlotte and I have discussed it too. I just want to make sure he isn't making you uncomfortable."

God, it really is that obvious. Juliet thought. At least I'm not the only one who sees it.

"Oh…" Juliet said aloud, not sure how to respond.

"Ironically, it is me who has made you uncomfortable." Danielle said. "I forget sometimes how much like a family we are, and you're still getting to know us."

"And I'm sorry if it takes me a while to adjust." said Juliet. "I'm not used to such a large family unit."

Juliet's remark made the corners of Danielle's eyes crinkle with a smile. "You and your sister seem very close."

"We are." said Juliet, comforted by Danielle's observation. "We had to stick together as kids. I guess we never really stopped."

Danielle nodded. "I think we all come from that sort of place." she said, and then she hesitated before continuing. "Richard's wife died quite a few years ago." she said bluntly. "No children. He seems to be married to his work now, which makes a real relationship somewhat difficult for him to find."

Juliet felt her eyes widening. Danielle shook her head apologetically, aware of how it must have sounded.

"I suppose I would be the mother hen of this little group of misfits. I just want to make sure everyone is alright. When Richard tells me about how much he misses his wife, I want to hold him. But I also want you to know that you are under no obligation to fill that role. We are a family, but we are also coworkers. He'll understand."

Though it may have been an awkwardly frank conversation to have upon a first meeting, Juliet also took great relief in knowing that Danielle knew all this and would support Juliet should things get even more awkward.

"I appreciate that." said Juliet, keeping it simple. "Thank you."

"We can't blame him for trying though, can we?" Danielle said as they walked out of the bathroom. "You're everything we hoped for and more, Juliet. As long as our big family doesn't scare you off, I think you'll be a great fit for the company."

With her ego boosted and her heart lifted, Juliet returned to the table with Danielle, who mentioned to Alex that it was time to head home.

Juliet would have sworn Richard was more polite than usual upon her return. More casual somehow, or simply not as desperate for her attention. Juliet made eye contact with Rachel as she returned to her seat. Her sister's expression would have been inscrutable had they not known each other all of Juliet's life. They couldn't wait to get to the car and dish on what had just happened.

The party broke up soon after Danielle and Alex left. Charlotte - who swore she wasn't that drunk - was escorted by Daniel, who kept an arm around the waist of his tipsy wife. Goodwin and Harper barely spoke or looked at each other. Goodwin almost seemed embarrassed by her, since she'd also had a good deal to drink. The effect was less charming than it was with Charlotte, since Harper drank to distract herself instead of to unwind.

"They were awful, right?" Rachel asked on the way home.

Juliet laughed, wishing she could have witnessed more of the Stanhopes' behavior since Rachel seemed so disgusted by it.

"I haven't officially met either of them," said Juliet. "But you know my instinct is to sympathize with the woman."

"Of course. It just seemed like the two of them were equally miserable."

"I feel like I talked to Danielle the whole time."

"First name basis already, huh?"

"I don't know Rachel," Juliet said, sarcastic. "You may have noticed how friendly they all are with each other."

"Oh, just a little." Rachel said in the same sarcastic tone.

Juliet laughed again. "Well. My side of the table was fun. Sorry you got stuck with the assholes."

"It wasn't all bad." Rachel admitted. "I got to sit next to Richard, at least."

"Yeah, thanks for that." Juliet said, throwing her sister a knowing look.

"That was the good part…" Rachel murmured suggestively.

The sisters giggled as Juliet pulled onto their street.

"I'm glad you had fun." Rachel added. "Aside from that one impending divorce, they really seem like a good group of people."

Juliet smirked at 'impending divorce' and took a minute to fill Rachel in on her conversation with Danielle. Rachel relayed her discussion with Richard, which left Juliet even more reassured.

"Glad we cleared that up separately." Juliet murmured. "There's nothing worse than having to turn your boss down for a date."

"Sometimes things just work out, Jules."

"I know, I'm just not used to that happening to me..."

The moment Juliet was in her apartment she took out her phone, intending to call James. She saw a notification for a missed call and a voicemail from him, and listened first to make sure nothing bad had happened. It was heaven just hearing a recording of his voice. But he sounded so serious.

Hey, baby. It's me. I was thinking about you. Wanted to hear your voice. You're probably still out with your new friends, but if you're up for it later I'd love to chat with you. I gotta tell you about something. Nothing bad, I promise. Just something I should have told you about a long time ago. I keep getting reminded of how much I love you, and I wanna make sure you know. I better hang up now, 'fore it cuts me off. I miss you, baby. I'll talk to you later.

Without letting herself worry too much, Juliet called him right after listening to the message. Two rings before he picked up. The brief agony of waiting.

In his living room, James muted the television and reached for his phone on the far side of the coffee table. He smiled when he saw who it was.

"Hey, baby." said James.

Juliet all but melted as she walked to her bedroom. She was still addicted to that voice, perhaps even more so now that she was deprived of hearing it in person.

"Hi." she answered, causing a similar reaction in James when he heard the happy smile in her voice. "I got your message. Is everything okay?"

"Yeah. I just gotta tell you some things. You at home?"

"I just got back." Juliet said, her tone more concerned the more James hesitated.

James shut the TV off and walked to his room.

"Why don't we lay in bed and talk." he suggested.

Juliet put her bag down just inside her bedroom door, and she smiled at the thought. Both of them laying in separate beds, across the country from one another, the closest they could get to laying together.

"Okay." Juliet said softly. While James insisted that she talk about her day first, she kicked off her shoes, pulled off her jeans and bra, and slipped under the covers. She told him about meeting an idol in Danielle, how Mittelos seemed like one big family, and how some of its members made the family seem a bit dysfunctional.

"You can't spell dysfunctional without a little fun, now can you?" James joked wisely.

Juliet giggled softly. "Are you in bed?" she asked him.

"Yeah. You?"

"Mm-hm. I'm all wrapped up under the covers."

"What are you wearing?" James asked in his sexiest voice, but Juliet had not forgotten.

"I'll tell you after you tell me what you were talking about in your message."

James smiled to himself. She knew him too well. And he was about to tell her the rest. He took a deep mental breath before he began.

"You know the other night," he began. "When you heard that girl asking for beer, and I said Miles had a friend over?"

Juliet's heart froze. That nagging doubt she'd shoved to the very back of her mind suddenly came back full force.

"Yeah?" she forced herself to say.

James closed his eyes, imagining the hurt and worried look on his girlfriend's face.

"That wasn't exactly the truth." he forced himself to say.

Silence on Juliet's end of the line made James feel awful, but he knew it was better to sting her with the truth now than hurt her worse later.

He told the whole story, from beginning to end, with every side note and all the backstory he felt necessary to paint the entire picture for her. So much of James and Kate's disastrous relationship had been tied to their separate pasts. It was hard to think of it as a relationship at all. It was more like a dangerous chemical reaction between elements that shouldn't be mixed. He explained as much of Kate's behavior as he could, blaming most of it on her childhood while not excusing the grown woman that was responsible for her actions no matter what had happened to her.

Juliet listened well, polite and quiet, and only asked questions when she needed clarification. She could be quite unreadable when she wanted to be. This made it difficult to gauge her reaction. She'd already known he'd been through counseling for anger management - a side of James she found hard to imagine - but he delved deeper into the details this time, to help explain his attachment to Kate, his feelings of responsibility, and his own shame over the whole mess.

Finally he caught her up to the present, with Kate humbling herself to a more mature James, and both of them finding forgiveness. When he was done, Juliet remained quiet. A little too quiet. She'd curled up on her right side, facing the door to her bedroom, and she was staring at nothing while she digested all of this new information.

"You okay?" James asked after a long pause in conversation.

"Yeah…" Juliet replied, though her voice was a little scratchy from being tired, and she sounded uncertain.

James waited, nervous after his confession. A weight had been lifted, but he would rather have continued to carry it than lose her trust.

"You know you can tell me anything, right?" she asked him.

James scratched at his chest, subconsciously touching his heart. Juliet took up such a big part of it.

"At this point, I've told you pretty much everything." he said. "But yeah, I know. You get why I didn't tell you right then and there though, don't you?"

"I do." said Juliet. "And I'm glad you were able to get some closure with her. It's just really hard, not being able to see you in person. I just have to trust that you're doing what you say you're doing, and not something else."

"I'm sorry, Juliet."

"Just don't lie to me. Please."

"That was the first and last time, I swear to you."

"…Okay." she said softly. It gave James relief but he knew enough about women to know that it was right when things got quiet that he should fear the most.

"You wanna yell at me a little?" James offered. She chuckled softly that time.

"I don't yell." she said, just like a woman who held the whip would say.

"No, you don't." James agreed. "Not in anger, anyway." he muttered with a half smile, satisfied when he heard Juliet's tiny, quiet giggle. "It just feels a little funny, not being in trouble over this."

"The first lie is free." Juliet deadpanned. "You do it again, I'll cut your balls off."

"There, that's more like it."

"And that's before I let Rachel take care of the rest of you."

"Okay, that's legitimately terrifying."

"Seriously, though…it means a lot to me that you told me everything, James. And that lying to me bothered you so much."

James chuckled. "It was eating me up inside. No joke."

"I can tell."

"And we both know how it would have gone if our roles were reversed." said James. "If I heard Edmund's voice over the phone I'd be on a plane right now, with my gun and a bullet with his name on it."

Juliet laughed out loud. "James," she said, scolding him with his name. "You already know all about my ex." she said. "No worries there."

"Yeah, and even if he wasn't a piece of shit, he's about as far away from you as I am."

"That's a positive, at least."

Juliet switched her phone to her other hand and turned over in her bed, wishing James was laying next to her in it. James heard her shifting around. He folded his arm underneath his head and stared at the ceiling, still trying to imagine what Juliet looked like alone in her bed.

"Damn…" James marveled.

The tone of it made Juliet smile. "What?" she asked.

"I'm just thinkin…" James started slowly. "A few months ago, Miles was the only one who knew that whole story. It wouldn't have crossed my mind to tell anyone else. Even if Kate showed up and smacked 'em in the face."

"I guess we should be glad I wasn't there." Juliet said wryly.

"Believe me, baby…she'd run scared from you."

Juliet smiled, pleased to hear it.

"It's not just that though." said James. "It's everything. You're my girl. I miss having you around."

It hurt Juliet's heart to hear it from so far away and not be able to hold him afterward. Her body curled up subconsciously, cuddling up to the idea of James in her mind.

"I miss you too." she said, almost whispering.

"So…you gonna tell me what you're wearing now?"

Juliet smiled. "You first."

"Oh, I see how it is…"

Juliet giggled quietly. James shifted on his bed, getting even more comfortable.

"Let's see here…" he sighed. "I still have my jeans on." he warned apologetically. Juliet tsked at him.

"I'm way ahead of you." she said.

"I was in the living room!" James defended himself.

"You are so full of excuses, James." Juliet said in her deadpan tone.

"Fine, I'll take 'em off." James complained jokingly.

Juliet hummed with approval, and listened to him pretend to make a big deal about getting up and doing it one handed.

"Down to my boxer-briefs now." he reported.

"Black?"

"Black."

"Oh, my favorite."

"Your turn." James insisted, tossing his jeans aside and settling back onto his blanket.

Juliet smiled and peeked under her covers. "They're purple…" she said of her underwear.

"Those little booty shorts?" James guessed immediately.

Juliet grinned. "Yes."

"Those are my favorite." he said.

"What shirt are you wearing?" Juliet asked.

"No shirt." James grunted as he pulled his t-shirt over his head with one hand. "What about you?"

"Tank top…"

"What color?"

"Turquoise."

"Low cut?"

"Could be worse." Juliet said in that wry tone of hers.

James smirked. He wanted it to be much worse.

"You wanna take it off for me?" he asked.

Juliet bit her bottom lip. He made it sound like a casual request, but his voice got a little lower, and he sounded confident about what the answer would be.

"Yeah." Juliet found herself whispering into the phone. He mm'd quietly in her ear, picturing her sitting up and slipping the tank top over her head one-handed. He heard the rustling, and waited for her to settle back down.

"Feel better?" he asked.

"It does." said Juliet. She heard him sigh deeply.

"...I want you to touch yourself." he said.

Juliet moaned softly, slipping her hand past her belly button and over her panties.

"You touching yourself?" James asked.

"Yeah." Juliet said breathlessly, cupping herself and rubbing her thighs together.

"Tell me what you feel." James asked gently, taking hold of his package over his boxer-briefs. He could hear the shift in her voice. He knew when she was turned on. "You wet, baby?"

"Yeah…" Juliet moaned. She was just starting to feel a damp spot on the fabric between her legs. If James kept talking like that it would only grow until it was soaked through.

"God, I miss that…"

"I wish you were here to touch me." Juliet said, keeping her voice low.

"Close your eyes, Juliet. I'm right there with you."

They talked each other through it, James' voice in her ear making it possible for Juliet to imagine it was him inside of her and not just her fingers. With the sounds she made in response, James could pretend the sock in his hand was the deep, warm pocket he missed so much. They felt satisfied for a few minutes, until they agreed it was time to go to sleep and realized they'd have to say goodbye for at least another night. Knowing there was someone in the world that cared about them that much made it possible to hang up the phone.