Part II
iv. “You’re becoming quite a hot topic of gossip around here,” Jane said as he and Lisbon started a game of chess.
“Me?” Lisbon asked, trying to mask the look of shock on her face. “Why on earth would I be a ‘hot topic’ of gossip?”
“Oh, no reason at all.” Smirking, Jane knocked down one of her pieces. “Concentrate, Lisbon, or you’re going to lose.”
“Not until you tell me what your cellmates are saying.” Lisbon crossed her arms and gave him one of her commanding looks. “Besides, you probably wouldn’t have brought it up unless you wanted me to ask you about it.”
“Everyone thinks that you’re my girlfriend,” Jane grinned.
Lisbon frowned. “Why would they say that I’m your girlfriend? Are you saying something that would make them think that?” she asked defensively.
“No,” Jane told her simply. “But you are here quite a number of times, even for a cop. Can you really blame bored men for making assumptions about you being my girlfriend?”
Lisbon’s mouth opened and then shut as she gave a small shrug. “So, what did you tell them when they asked if I was your girlfriend?”
In all honesty she was actually quite curious as to what his answer would be. With Patrick Jane, one would never know what he would tell his fellow cellmates. Especially if he were bored.
Jane smirked. “Don’t worry, I set the record straight and told them that you were merely my keeper, not my girlfriend.”
“Jane!” Lisbon said looking slightly mortified.
“And then one man told me that it was just a different side of the same coin,” Jane continued. “So, I told them the truth.”
“And what was the truth exactly?” Lisbon asked, looking at him wearily.
“That you were my boss,” Jane said. “And my friend, they laughed at me about that. I guess most of them just can’t comprehend being friends with the police, even when the cop is somebody as beautiful as you are.”
Lisbon toyed with her queen, fiddling with it between her fingers, and avoided his gaze. “Is that all? I’m your boss and your friend?”
Jane frowned, looking at her thoughtfully. “That’s all? I thought you were happy with just being friends and co-workers. You’ve never been . . . don’t tell me that you’re going to turn into one of those women who start asking, so what are we really? I thought that we were good the way we were.”
She bristled just a little bit. “We’re good the way we are,” she reassured him quickly.
“So, you’ve never once considered that one day in the future that you and I - me and you - could be something more than we are now?”
Lisbon flushed slightly. “N-no, of course not-.”
“You never once thought to yourself that one day when Red John is gone and I have the closure that I need, that maybe I’ll decide that I want to move on with you? We’ll fall in love and then live happily ever after?”
“No!” Lisbon insisted, her cheeks beginning to show signs of turning pink. “I never thought it that way.”
“And you never read into any of the little things that I did for you?”
Averting her eyes away from his, Lisbon looked down at her hands. “Let’s get acquainted with the case, shall we? Aren’t you curious to know how it’s panning out?”
“I already know how things are panning out,” Jane replied a little more gruffly than he meant to. “You can turn on any news station and see how things in ‘the Patrick Jane case’ are panning out.”
Lisbon pursed her lips together and put her chess piece down. “I’m trying to keep things quiet, but you know Brenda and how determined she is-”
“Yes, I know Brenda,” Jane replied drily. “Don’t change the subject.”
Drawing her lips into a thin line and looking at him in the eye, Lisbon placed one hand over the other on the table. “Why do you want to talk about it? There’s really nothing to say, I’m your boss and we’re closer than most co-workers are. I’ve always been thankful for that, and I’ve never really wanted to change anything about that.”
“Fine, we’ll stop talking about it,” Jane said. “I’ll just have to take your word for it.”
She smiled, almost triumphantly. “Good.”
He leaned forward and lowered his voice. “But remember, I know everything about you, Lisbon. And I mean everything, including your deepest, darkest, most intimate secrets.”
“Jane!” Lisbon whispered, looking slightly mortified.
Jane grinned and leaned back, motioning to the chessboard. “After you, my dear!”
Lisbon looked at their game; she had suddenly lost all interest in playing chess. All she could think about was Jane and what everybody in the visitor’s area was thinking about them at that very moment. She had seen a burly man with a barbed wire tattoo snaking from his neck and into his orange jumpsuit looking at them with a stupid, all-knowing smile on his face.
“I really don’t feel like playing anymore,” she said.
“Okay,” Jane replied, looking slightly disappointed. “I guess you will be going now?”
“I have a whole bunch of paperwork to do at the office,” Lisbon answered, sliding off of the bench. “But I’ll be back, maybe tomorrow . . . maybe at the end of the week. It all depends on what my calendar look like.”
Jane nodded. “I understand. I’ll see you later.”
“Okay.” Lisbon smiled at him. “Bye, Jane.”
“Bye, Lisbon.”
Jane was so occupied with watching Lisbon leave that he didn’t notice one of his cellmates sidle up to his table and take the seat that she had just occupied. The cellmate wore a teasing, lopsided grin on his face.
“Have a good visit with your girlfriend?” He asked.
“I told you, Buzz,” Jane said irritably. “She is not my girlfriend.”
“Buddy, if she’s coming to see you all the time, then there’s something going on there. Normal girls just don’t come and visit jail birds like us almost every day,” Buzz replied. “Not unless they’re sisters, wives, mothers or girlfriends. And even then, we’re lucky if they visit us.”
Jane stood. “She’s just a good friend, Buzz. And I help her close cases, there’s nothing more and nothing less between us.”
But after years of repeating words similar to that, they had never sounded less convincing to his ears.
v. Lisbon walked into the prison with a bounce in her step and took a seat across from Jane with a huge smile plastered on her face. Eyeing her curiously, Jane smiled. He was quite delighted to see her look so . . . happy.
“You’re awfully cheerful today,” he commented. “Did something good happen?”
“Something wonderful happened!” she replied, leaning forward a bit. “Cho and Rigsby finally solved your case! You’re completely innocent!”
“I thought that we had already established this,” Jane said, smiling cheekily in spite of himself.
“We can prove it in the court of law now,” Lisbon told him excitedly, the smile on her face extremely contagious.
“So, who framed me, then?” Jane asked interestedly, leaning forward to look at her. He really wanted to know the answer, so he was anticipating her next few words like a child waiting for Christmas.
“Brett Partridge,” Lisbon answered promptly. “Apparently he’s been a disciple of Red John’s since he was a freshman in college.”
Jane looked mildly surprised for a moment, then his face lit up and he looked at her proudly. “That means you were right, then. Congratulations, Lisbon.”
She flushed with pleasure, a large smile adorning her face. “Thank you, Jane.”
“No,” Jane replied. “Thank you, if it hadn’t been for you believing in me then I could be facing a court date and spending the rest of my life in prison, eventually being put on death row. Thank you.”
“Maybe,” Lisbon agreed. “You never know, though. Maybe the jury would have found you innocent because of your testimony.”
Jane shrugged. “I guess we’ll never get a chance to find out. So, when do I get out of this joint?”
“Joint?” Lisbon repeated, laughing slightly and raising an eyebrow at him.
“If you stay around here long enough, you pick up on certain phrases,” he answered as he laughed too. “Come on and tell me when I’m getting out of here.”
“Tonight at the earliest, tomorrow morning at the latest,” Lisbon answered. “I just have to file some paperwork and then you’ll be home free.”
“I’m looking forward to it,” Jane said.
“So . . .” Lisbon started tentatively, looking at him almost shyly.
“So . . . what?” he replied, looking at her encouragingly.
“Well, what are you going to do now that Red John is dead and you’re getting out of jail?”
Jane sighed. “To be honest, I have no idea what I’m going to do. I always thought I was going to be killed by Red John, or kill him and go to jail for the rest of my life. I never made a backup plan, I didn’t think I’d have to.”
“Well, I guess it’s true then,” Lisbon said as she grinned at him with a teasing expression on her face.
“What’s true?”
“You really aren’t psychic after all.”
“That’s what I’ve been trying to tell you all of these years,” Jane replied in fake exasperation.
“Seriously though, I want to know what you’re going to do now.”
“I guess I’m going to try and move on,” Jane answered after thinking about it for a minute. “Get married again . . . maybe even start a family. I’m not that old, you know. And - if you’ll have me - I’ll stay with the CBI.”
“Of course I’ll have you,” Lisbon assured him quietly. “Life at the CBI just isn’t the same without you, and we need you there too.”
“It’s settled then,” Jane said happily. “I’ll be back tomorrow.”
“No,” Lisbon disagreed shaking her head. “I think you need to take some time to clear your head and relax a little bit. You barely had time to register that Red John had killed himself before you got arrested for his murder. I already cleared it with the Bureau and they said that you could have as much vacation time as you’d like.”
“I guess it would be a good idea if I took some time off,” Jane agreed. “I haven’t had a real vacation since the summer before my wife and daughter died.”
Lisbon looked a little surprised that he was agreeing with her, she had fully expected him to argue with her because she had taken matters into her own hands and made a decision for him. She took a deep breath and smiled at him.
“I hope you have a wonderful time doing whatever it is that you’re going to be doing.”
“You’re leaving?” Jane asked, looking a little disappointed.
“I have things that need to be done at the office,” Lisbon replied. “But I’ll be back to pick you up and take you wherever you need to go tonight or tomorrow. So, start making some plans. Okay?”
Jane nodded and grabbed her hand as she rose to leave. “Thank you again. I’m not so sure what I can do for you now.”
Lisbon grinned. “I’m sure that you’ll come up with something especially since you know everything about me, including my deepest, darkest, most intimate secrets.”
Jane’s lips twitched as she used his words against him. “See you later, Lisbon.”
“See you later, Jane,” she answered, walking away a few steps before turning back around to face him. “And by the way, you’re very welcome.”
iv. Lisbon was getting anxious; it had been two weeks since Jane had gotten out of jail and taken his mandatory vacation time. And now he was coming back, she had gotten a text from him the day before saying to expect him at work the next morning.
She wouldn’t admit it to anybody, but she had gotten up earlier than usual so she could arrive at the CBI before the rest of her team did. And she had taken extra care in putting her make up on and choosing her clothes for the day because she wanted to look nice for Jane when he saw her again.
The elevator door dinged open and she looked up from the place she sat on Jane’s leather couch, hoping to see her blonde consultant getting off it. But it was just Ron the CBI guy.
Ron the CBI guy waved and grinned at her. “Big day today, Agent Lisbon?” he asked.
“Yes,” Lisbon answered, unable to contain her grin.
“That’s what I hear,” he said. “Word around the office is that your man is coming back today.”
Lisbon’s cheeks flushed pink and she was just about to explain that Jane wasn’t exactly her man when the elevator doors rolled open again and Jane stepped into the bullpen. It took a great deal of restraint not to jump up and envelope him into her arms.
Instead, she got up like the mature adult she was and smiled at him. She waited for him to approach her, which he did in a matter of seconds. Behind them, Ron grinned and disappeared into an unknown part of the building.
“Hey Lisbon,” Jane said, producing Styrofoam cup and paper bag from behind his back. “I come bearing gifts.”
“It’s nice to see you again,” she said warmly, smiling at him welcomingly as she accepted his treats.
“It’s nice to see you again, too,” he replied, smiling at her in return.
They fell silent, examining each other for a long moment and an unspoken I missed you hung in the air between them. Maybe one day in the future, one of them would work up the courage to say it, but for the moment it would have to be assumed only.
“Let’s go talk in your office,” Jane said, finally breaking into the silence. “People are going to start showing up for work soon, and I have something rather important that I’d like to discuss with you privately.”
“Okay,” Lisbon agreed trying not to look puzzled as she followed him to her office.
When they got to office, he took his usual spot on her couch and patted the space beside him, silently inviting her to join him. She hesitated for a moment, before accepting. She settled in and tossed her paper bag on the coffee table across from where they sat, taking a deep sip of her coffee as she looked at him expectantly.
“Do you remember when you asked me what I was going to do now that Red John is gone?” He asked, not beating around the bush at all.
Lisbon balanced her cup on her knee and nodded as she watched him thoughtfully. “You said that you guessed you were going to try and move on, maybe find a wife and start a family.”
“Well, I know with certainty exactly what I want to do now,” Jane said, smiling at her.
Lisbon raised her eyebrows. “You do?”
“Two weeks away is long enough to realize certain things,” Jane replied. “And I realized a lot of things during my time off. One of them being is I really do want to move on and start a family again.”
“I’m very happy for you,” Lisbon said, feeling slightly disappointed for some reason she couldn’t quite put her finger on.
“Except I don’t want to date again,” Jane said. “That could prove to be more trouble than it’s worth.”
Lisbon frowned. “If you don’t date again, then how do you expect to find a woman to marry?” She had tried to make it sound as if she were teasing him.
“Because while I was away, I realized I had already found the perfect woman for me,” Jane answered, his eyes now searching hers. “A woman who’s seen the worst side of me and hasn’t run away. A woman who’s been there for me through all the good, the bad, and the ugly. A woman who’s proven to be like home.”
Lisbon chewed her lip. “She sounds like a dream.”
“I can assure you that she’s very much a reality, Lisbon,” Jane replied.
“Well, who is she?” Lisbon asked.
Jane looked at her teasingly. “I’m afraid that’s for me to know and for you to find out.”
“Jane. . .”
He shook his head and stood up. “Is there any tea? Or did you drink it all while I was away?”
“I just replaced it yesterday,” Lisbon replied, standing up and following him into the kitchenette. “You’re really not going to tell me who this girl is?”
Jane merely smiled at her as he got his tea down from the cabinet and filled the kettle with water. “Do you have any plans for this weekend?” he asked.
_The End_