Disclaimer: These characters belong to Shoot The Moon Productions. I am not going to take credit for them because that's not what I am here for. I am just using them for my vivid imagination.
Rating: PG-13 for a few bad languages.
Summary: Amanda and Lee deal with the events up to that 'kiss' in the Q-Bureau. And the thoughts right after the 'Kiss'.
Authors notes: This is just my thoughts of what could have lead up to the inevitable kiss in the Q-Bureau and just after that.
Time Frame: Right after the brief kiss at the tag of Dead Men Leave No Trails and continues just after All the Worlds a Stage.
Authors Notes 2: I tried to stay within cannon of the show. I am sorry if I didn't do that. But I believe it is within cannon.
Archive: It will be at my sight and here. Anywhere else please let me know.
I want to thank my two beta readers. They really helped out and I
think I am getting the hang of using two beta's. So thanks gals ya
know who you are.
(Just after the brief kiss)
Amanda is standing outside with a grin on her face. She hadn't heard her mother call her, again.
"Amanda, are you outside? Amanda!" Dotty calls again.
Amanda finally comes off of cloud nine, turns and walks into the house to her awaiting family. They begin to tell her about their trip and Dotty asks her questions about the silver sports car outside the house. As she is trying to listen to what they are telling her she begins to think back to the 'almost' kiss on that very sofa she is sitting on.
"Amanda, are you listening to me? I swear you are just like a kid, you never listen when someone is talking to you. Amanda are you sick or something? If you are maybe you should go to your room and get some rest. Amanda!" Dotty says, still trying to get her attention.
"Mother, I am fine, I just have something on my mind is all. And I have listened to what you and the boys have been telling me. And it sounds like you all had a good time. So don't worry I am not sick. But I think I will take you up on your offer to go to bed. I have had a big day and am a little tired. Goodnight, Mother." Amanda says quickly to avoid anymore 'questions' about Lee's car. She heads upstairs to her room.
The next day Lee walks in to the Agency with a bound in his step. He gives Mrs. Marsten a big smile as he takes his badge and walks towards the elevator that leads downstairs to the main part of the Agency. As he gets off the elevator, he smiles knowing that just through the bullpen doors Amanda will be sitting in her little cubicle area.
As Lee walks through the doors his smile disappears and a frown appears on his face. He scans the room looking for the object of his 'affections', but not seeing her any where. He begins to walk towards Billy's office, when he almost knocks Francine off her feet.
"Whoa, Lee, where's the fire?" she says, as she grabs Lee's arm to prevent herself from falling to the floor.
Lee grabs Francine's hand to catch her fall. "Sorry Francine, I didn't see you coming."
"Yeah, I could see that. So what's the emergency that you'd have to bowl me over?" she says as she is straightening her dress.
"Nothing, I was just headed towards Billy's office when you ran into me. Now if you will excuse me, I have things I need to do," he says as his eyes are stilling scanning the bullpen.
This doesn't go unnoticed by Francine. She says rather sarcastically, "She's not here Lee. I don't think she is going to come in today. Maybe she has finally realized that this isn't her type of lifestyle. Why don't you just forget about her and get a new partner."
Lee just glares at her with a look of 'don't even go there' at Francine. "Knock it off Francine, will you? Amanda has come a long way, since she first started here. She has saved my butt on several of occasions and I think, if I am not mistaken, she has saved yours too. Now if you will excuse me, I am going to go talk to Billy and see if he has heard from her." And with that Lee walks over to Billy's office leaving her standing there with her mouth hanging open.
Lee strolls into Billy's office without knocking and says, "Billy have you seen or heard from Amanda? She isn't at her desk and we were going to help each other on our report for the Sali case."
"Well, good morning to you too, Lee. And how is your day going?" Billy says with a slight teasing in his voice.
"Good morning Billy. Now have you heard from Amanda this morning? She isn't at her desk."
Billy sits there smiling at his best agent. 'He is definitely in love.' Billy thinks to himself. "Yes Lee, I have heard from her. She is going to be late today because one of her sons has a dentist appointment. Now you can relax Scarecrow, she is just fine."
Lee relaxes knowing that she is just with the boys. He turns to leave the room when he hears Billy.
"Lee, is there something going on between you and Amanda?"
Lee swings around, with a quick jerk, and says, "What, what makes you say that, Billy?"
"Well, you come bursting in here demanding to know where she is. You seem to get just a tad bit upset if she shows an interest in someone else. Lee I can see the change in you, now is there something I should know?" Billy says, as he sits there waiting for him to answer.
Lee stands there thinking about what Billy has just said. 'Should I tell him? I mean I could use someone else's opinion on this. No I can't, I don't even know what's going on. How can I expect anyone else to understand what's going on?' "Ummm... No Billy, there is nothing going on between us. I was just concerned for a friend is all. Is there a law against friends being concerned for one another?" He finally answers his boss.
Billy not believing a word he is saying, decides to let it go for the time being. "All right Scarecrow, you can go."
Lee leaves Billy's office and goes to his office, up in the Q-Bureau. Just as he is ready to walk up the stairs he stops and says, "Mrs. Marsten, can you have Mrs. King come up to my office when she comes in?"
She looks up from her paper work and says, "Sure, Mr. Stetson, shall I give her a reason you would like to see her?"
"No, just have her come up if you will." And with that Lee, walks up the steps that lead him to his office and waits for Amanda to come up.
A couple of hours later Amanda arrives at the Agency with a smile on her face. She greets Mrs. Marsten as she accepts her ID badge from her and heads towards the elevator that leads downstairs.
"Oh, Mrs. King, Mr. Stetson would like to see you up in the Q-Bureau room."
Amanda stops and turns took look at the lady she used to be so nervous around and says, "Thank you, Mrs. Marsten." She heads up to the Q-Bureau and Lee.
Lee, sitting in his office. He is trying to concentrate on his work, but isn't doing a good job of it. Just then he hears a knock on the door. "Come in."
"Good morning Lee," Amanda says as she walks into his office with a smile as wide as her face.
Lee looks up from his paper work and grins wide. "Hello Amanda, how are you this morning?"
Amanda walks over to his desk and replies, "Just fine Lee. I had to take Jamie to the dentist this morning, that is why I am late. Mother and the boys said they had a great time on their trip. She kept asking me about that silver sports car last night. She gets so inquisitive when it comes to stuff like that."
Lee continues to smile as she does her normal rambling. "So what did you tell your mother about my car?" he asks her.
"Oh, that it must have belonged to someone visiting a neighbor or something. She seemed to accept that and didn't ask anymore questions."
Lee stands up, walks around his desk and takes Amanda's hands in his. He begins, "Amanda, about last night...." Just as he is leaning down to kiss her, he hears a door slam outside and then his office door opens. Francine walks in with a smile, like she had caught them doing something.
"Well, well did I interrupt something here? Good morning Amanda, I see you finally showed up for work today. Lee was really worried about you this morning, he couldn't get his mind off you and on to his work all morning long," Francine says with a slight condescending voice, as she walks over to where they are standing.
"Knock it off Francine!" Lee says, with gritted teeth.
"What, tell the truth? Come on Lee, you almost knocked me down looking for her this morning," Francine continues, as she eggs Lee on.
Amanda, in the meantime is standing there taking this all in. 'Did he almost knock Francine down looking for me? Did he really miss me this morning?' she thinks to herself.
Lee getting a little miffed at Francine, replies, "I did not almost knock you over Francine. You ran into me, I happened to be standing still when you came barreling down the hall."
"Whatever Lee, I just came up here to talk to you." She turns and looks at Amanda and says, "Sorry Amanda, but this is out of your security clearance."
"Francine!" Lee says, sternly. "She is my partner."
"I know that Scarecrow, but this assignment is above her security clearance and she can't be here to hear this."
"Francine!" Lee says again, just a little louder, exasperated that she is treating Amanda like a nobody.
Amanda decides to calm Lee down and make a nice retreat before she says something to Francine she will regret. Touching Lee's arm she says, "That's okay, I have some things to do anyway. I will catch you later." She turns towards the door and begins to walk out.
"Amanda." Lee calls out just as she is walking out.
"Yes," she replies.
"Can we have lunch today? I mean if you don't have any plans," he asks.
"Sure, I have no plans for lunch, see you at noon." She then leaves his office thinking about what just about happened before Francine walked in.
Lee watches Amanda leave then turns to Francine. "So what is it you wanted to talk to me about, Francine?"
"I am working on a Embassy security for the President of Egypt. And it has to be so tight there, that they are only allowing a few Federal Agents and dignitaries there. I need you to help me come up with some people they will let me put in to protect them. Can you help?" Francine says as she paces up and down worrying about this case.
As Lee and Francine are up in the Q-Bureau talking, Amanda is down in her little cubical thinking of what has been going on between her and Lee. 'What is going on with us? Is there ever going to be a moment we can finish what we start? Just when we are ready to explore our feelings, someone is interrupting us. Just for once I would like things to go just a bit farther than an 'almost' kiss.'
The rest of the day went by pretty quick. Lee and Amanda weren't able to have lunch together because Francine kept him busy all day. By the end of the day, Amanda had gone home to her mother and boys and Lee had missed her by just minutes.
"Damn, I wanted to ask her out for dinner tonight. When are we ever going to get a break?" Lee says out loud in an angry tone.
Just then Billy walks up behind him and asks. "Who you talking to Lee?"
"Oh, uh, Billy. What did you say?" Lee fumbles over his words.
"I said who were you talking to? You said something about dinner and never getting a break."
Lee thinks fast as he says, "Oh just someone, Billy. I missed them anyway. So, what are you going to do tonight with Jeannie gone?"
"Just a relaxing evening at home is all. You want to come over for awhile, Lee?" Billy suggests.
"Thanks, but no, I think I will do the same Billy. Maybe some other time, okay."
"Okay Lee, whatever you say, see you Monday." Billy then gets into his car and heads for home.
Lee hops into his car and begins to head home when he finds himself, about ten minutes later, on Maple wood Drive. He parks just down the street and stares at the house in question. After about another ten minutes he gets out of his Corvette and walks around the back of her house and peaks into the kitchen window.
There was Amanda, sitting at her kitchen table, talking to her mother. She looks so cute in her sweat pants and t-shirt. As Lee is staring into her house he thinks of what it would be like if he was in there with her.
'I would be sitting behind her nibbling on her neck, venturing further down to her...' Stop it Stetson, this isn't doing you any good.
Just then Dotty gets up and says, "Well Amanda, I think I am going to head up to my room."
"But Mother, it is still early, are you sure you want to go to bed now?"
"Yeah, I think so, I haven't felt too good all day long. I think I am going to turn in and get some rest. Since the boys are spending the weekend with their father, this will give you some time to be alone," Dotty continues, as she stretches her arms out. "Good night sweetheart." She then kisses Amanda on the head and goes upstairs.
Amanda walks into the den and sits down on the sofa, turns on the TV and begins to watch a movie. Just then she hears a slight tap on the patio doors. She walks over and opens them to a smiling Lee.
"Lee, what are you doing here?" she says, excitedly.
"Well, I missed you before you left today and I thought I would stop by and see how things went today," Lee replies as he stares deep into her eyes.
Amanda stares back into those eyes, that she thinks are so beautiful and says, "Things went pretty well. I was busy doing that report most of the day. Then Billy had me doing some paper work for him since Francine was busy with that 'high security' case she is working on. Then when you never came to pick me up for lunch I figured you were too busy so I just worked through lunch. After work I never saw you so I came straight home to see the boys off with their father."
Lee gazes on at her as she does her talking. He smiles as she stops and says, "How do you do it Amanda? How do you talk so much and not take a breath?"
She begins to laugh at what he says. "Talent Lee. Nothing but talent. Maybe I can teach you someday."
"I would like that, maybe I can confuse the enemies like you do."
"All right Stetson, what are you doing here really?" Amanda inquires, as she begins to giggle at his comment.
Lee begins to feel uncomfortable. 'What am I doing? She is just a friend. Why do I want to spend time with her?'
"Lee, is something wrong?" She asks him.
"Uh...Oh...I'm sorry Amanda I was just thinking. Actually I was going to ask you to go out for dinner. You know, since we missed lunch together. But I guess it is kind of late for dinner, huh?" he says as he tries to recover from his stumbling over his words at start.
"Yeah, it is. I'm sorry Lee, maybe I should have stuck around before I went home today. But I wanted to make sure I caught Joe before he took off." Amanda says, as she feels kind of sad since she left work without trying to find Lee.
Lee, sees the sad look on her face and says, "No Amanda, don't apologize. It was kind of a last minute thing for me. I guess I kind of missed you and wanted to spend a few minutes with you tonight."
Amanda smiles at Lee's confession. "You missed me?" she inquires.
"Yeah I did. But I guess that's what happens when I let Francine kidnap me for the day," he jokes as they both begin to laugh.
"Well, I had better get going. I just stopped by to see how you were and to say good-night." Just as Lee leans in to give her a kiss on the lips, they hear Dotty coming down the stairs.
"Amanda, do we have any vitamin C?" Dotty calls out.
Lee backs away from Amanda and says, "Not again. Damn it when are we going to get a break?" He then takes off and disappears into the darkness.
Monday comes and Amanda comes in late because of the boys. Lee had been looking forward to seeing her all morning. He hadn't seen her since Friday night. He had spent most of the weekend warding off all the calls from women he 'had' dated. They still called him hoping he would want to go out for a good time. But Lee wasn't interested in anyone but Amanda.
About ten O'clock Amanda comes strolling into the Agency. She was a little disappointed that Lee hadn't called her all weekend. She would jump every time the phone would ring. When Monday came rolling around she had decided to not read to much into what was happening between her and Lee. She takes her badge from Mrs. Marsten and gets on the elevator and rides it down to the main part of the Agency. As she walks into the bullpen she sees Lee standing there talking to one of the female workers. They seem to be laughing and having a good time. Amanda's smile fades from her face when she sees the spectacle. She strolls over to her desk and begins to go through the paper work that is on it.
Lee notices Amanda walk into the bullpen and tries to get away from the woman he is talking to. She keeps her claws 'dug' into him firmly as she talks on. Lee, trying not to be rude politely tells her that he has to get to work. He then walks over to Amanda's desk and says, "Morning Amanda. How was your weekend?"
Amanda looks up from her computer and replies, "Hi, Lee. My weekend was pretty good. How was yours?"
Lee notices the slight dejected sound in her voice. He tries to figure out what he has done to make her upset with him. "My weekend was kind of boring. I spent it at home watching movies and just relaxing," he tells her hoping she doesn't think he was out dating or anything.
Amanda just shakes her head in acknowledgment in what he had said. She still couldn't get that scene that she had seen when she walked into the bullpen out of her head. Then she began to continue working on her paper work.
Lee, still catches the avoidance in Amanda and decides to let it go for the time being. He tells her that he is going to go up stairs. "See you later, Amanda."
That day and the rest of that week went by slowly for Lee. Amanda had been acting very strangely towards him since that Monday and he couldn't figure out why. Every time he would try and talk to her about what was wrong she would change the subject. By the time Friday came Lee had decided he couldn't take the silent treatment from her anymore.
Sitting up in his office he says quietly to himself, "I have to find out what happened. Every since she came into work Monday she has been avoiding me. Tonight I will take her out for dinner and I will find out what is wrong."
As Lee was heading out to his car he catches Amanda just getting into hers.
"Amanda, hold up." He calls out.
She sees Lee walking towards her and she smiles. 'Maybe I am taking all this too personally. I mean we aren't a couple. We're not even dating.'
Lee hikes up to her and says, "Thank goodness I caught you before you went home."
"Really, why is that?" she asks, curiously.
"Well, I was wondering if you would like to go out for dinner tonight? I mean we haven't really spent much time with each other lately and I think we need to talk." Amanda thinks about what he said. Then thinks that maybe they need to talk. It has always helped in the past. "Sure, I guess we can. Mother was going to take the boys out for pizza and I was just going to stay home alone tonight."
Lee smiles at her acceptance. "Okay, how about seven tonight?" he asks.
"That would be fine, I will be ready."
Lee helps her into her car and tells her he will see her that night. Then he gets into his car and heads on home to get ready for the evening. "Tonight I will kiss her. And no one is going to stop me," he says to himself as he pulls out of the parking lot.
That night Lee had been pacing his apartment floor for an hour waiting for the time to leave to pick up Amanda. Then about fifteen minutes before seven he decides to take off.
In the meantime Amanda had been trying to decide what to wear that evening. She finally decided on a black dress with spaghetti straps. It came to just below her knees with a low back, but didn't show too much off in the front. She didn't want to push things with Lee. If this was going to be the night she wanted him to make the first move. Just as she put the last few touches of makeup and perfume on she hears the door bell ring. She rushed down the stairs to answer it.
As she opens the door Lee is standing there looking more handsome than she remembered. He was wearing a dark blue suit with a blue striped tie. 'I always liked him in his dark suits,' she thinks to herself.
"Lee, hi. I am surprised you came to the front door, come in." She steps aside for him to come in.
"Hi, Amanda. Yes I decided since your mother and the boys were not going to be home that coming to the front door would be safe." As he walks in, he notices how beautiful Amanda looks. He takes in her black dress and her gorgeous legs. He then looks up her body to her face. 'Man does she look beautiful.'
Amanda turns around and looks at him. She notices that he is staring at her and says. "Is there something wrong? Lee, is there something wrong?"
Lee finally comes off this cloud he was on when he looked at her. "Uhhh...Ohhh...Amanda I am sorry, no everything is just fine. You look beautiful, tonight, Amanda," he says as he kisses her hand.
Amanda, blushes as he says that. "Thank you, Lee. You look very handsome tonight too."
As they stand there gazing into each others eyes, the phone rings, startling them. "Hello." Amanda says as she picks it up.
"Oh, yes Joe....Oh okay, thanks for letting me know...Huh....Yes, okay we will see you on Sunday then. Goodbye, Joe." She then hangs up the phone.
Lee in the meantime had been listening to that conversation, at least Amanda's half of it. 'He had better not ruin this evening for me, us. This will be a great evening if no one interferes.'
"That was Joe, he said he was going to take the boys to a ball game Sunday and said he might be late dropping them off," Amanda offers as she sees Lee begin to fidget.
Lee smiles as he realizes that their evening isn't ruined. "Well, we had better get going. We wouldn't want to lose our reservations."
"Okay, let me get my shawl." She walks over to the sofa and picks up her wrap and Lee helps her put it on.
As he puts it on shoulders his fingers slightly graze them. He walks closer up behind her and smells her perfume. He finds himself tempted to kiss her neck but stops himself from doing it.
"Okay lets go," he says as he quickly steps away from her.
As they walk out the door Amanda shivers as she still feels Lee's fingers on her shoulders. Lee helps her into his car and they ride to the restaurant in silence.
They pull up to the restaurant and Amanda looks at him. "Nice place, 'Lorane', I've heard of this place. It's a real nice place to eat and have a few drinks at."
"Yeah, not too flashy and not too dumpy," Lee says, as he smiles with a wink.
Amanda chuckles at what he had said, then turns away as the gaze he was giving her was getting intense.
"Well, let's go in and have a nice evening." He gets out of his car and walks around and helps her out, by taking her hand in his. Her shawl falls off her shoulder and he puts it up as his fingers once again graze across her shoulders again.
Amanda shivers again to his touch. 'I don't know if I can take it anymore, if he does that again.' She thinks to herself as she smiles at him.
As they get seated at a booth Lee takes Amanda's hand in his and begins, "Amanda, I...." Just then the waiter comes up and asks if they would like a cocktail.
Lee pulls his hand out of hers and glares at the waiter and says, "Uh... Yeah I will have a glass of your best wine....Amanda what would you like?"
"I will have the same, thanks," she answers Lee as she looks at the waiter.
The waiter leaves and Lee tries again with what he was going to say. "Amanda, I wanted to say...." But again he is interrupted by the waiter returning with their cocktails. Lee is getting very agitated by now with the interruptions that have been happening lately.
Amanda notices the agitation in Lee's posture. He had been getting tense and uneasy every time he had been trying to get close to her. She takes his hand and gives it a slight squeeze to calm him down.
Lee feels that gesture from Amanda, looks at her and smiles. "Thanks." He says to the waiter and then turns to Amanda. "How about a toast?"
"Sure."
"To an interesting relationship." Lee says, as he puts his glass up in the air.
Amanda looks at Lee as he says the toast. She raises her glass and clinks it to his, then takes a sip of her wine. 'Why would he toast that? Does he want a relationship with me?'
"Amanda, are you all right?" Lee asks as he sees the strange look on her face. "Amanda!" He says again.
"Huh, what?" She finally says, as she comes back to the table from her thoughts.
"Is everything okay?"
Amanda gazes into Lee's eyes, and notices something there she had never seen there before and smiles. "Yes, I am fine, I guess I was just thinking."
Lee also notices the she isn't distant from him anymore. 'Maybe I should just let it go, for awhile. I mean we aren't even dating anymore. Besides I think I know why she was upset. I was kind of flirting with that girl Monday when she walked in. Well flirting isn't the right word, she was flirting with me. But it might have looked like I was flirting with her. But Amanda seems to have gotten passed that. So I will just let it go and hope we can move forward in our relationship.' Just then the waiter comes to the table and shakes Lee out of his reverie.
The waiter comes back to the table and takes their order for dinner. They sit there waiting for their dinner to come and talk about nothing important. Amanda tells Lee about the boys and the weekend they are suppose to have with Joe. And then she rattles on about her mother and her mothers current beau.
"Yes, he's a lawyer, with a new law firm in town. He's a senior partner and mother has talked about nothing but him for a whole week. Oh Lee, you should hear her go on and on about him. I don't know where she gets it from, but she can talk without taking a breath and still know what she is saying." Amanda takes a big deep breath and continues. "And she seems to be really serious about him too. I haven't seen her this happy in a long time, not since....." she pauses then goes on. "Since daddy was alive. I am glad she finally found someone she can be happy with and fill her life with joy." Amanda stops and begins to think about her father.
"Amanda, you okay?" Lee asks.
She looks up at Lee and grins. "Yeah, just thinking of my father. He was such a good man Lee. You would have liked him."
"I think I would have Amanda. You are his daughter." He takes her hand and gives it a slight squeeze. Just as he opens his mouth to say something the waiter comes back with their meal. He shakes his head to the timing of the waiter 'again' and accepts his dinner with a smile.
They eat their meal in silence as they steal glances at each other. After they finish their dinner the waiter brings in their dessert. "Lee, I am not sure I can eat this," Amanda says, as her eyes grow big over their Chocolate Mousse.
"I tell you what Amanda. Why don't you eat what you can and I will finish what you can't, deal?" He winks at her as he says that.
She smiles at him and replies, "deal." Then begins to eat her dessert.
At ten o'clock they were done with dinner and Lee had suggested going to the lounge for a few drinks. Amanda had accepted and they found themselves in a booth in the corner near the back.
Lee tries for the third or fourth time to tell Amanda what has been on his mind all evening. "Amanda, I....." But again he is interrupted by the waiter to ask them for their drink order. Lee gives them their order with gritted teeth and the waiter left quick to retrieve the drinks.
They sit their in silence waiting for their drinks. A few minutes later the waiter brings them their drinks and they accept them with a smile. Amanda takes a sip from her glass as Lee watches her. He notices when she takes the glass away from her lips, there is a drop of wine left on her mouth. 'I really would love to kiss that off her lips.' He then shakes his head after thinking that. 'Stop that Stetson, this is Amanda, your friend.'
"Would you like to dance, Amanda?"
"I thought you would never ask," she replies with a big smile.
Lee walks around the booth and hold his hand out for her to take it. She accepts it and they walk out to the dance floor. Lee puts his right arm around her waist and takes his left hand and puts it in her right hand. They begin to dance with distance between them.
Lee stares at her lips again, wanting to kiss her. 'God would I love to taste those lips. But would she slap me if I just kissed her? Or would she let me kiss her.'
Amanda in the meantime is gazing at his shoulders. 'What I would give to lay my head there. To smell his cologne and maybe nuzzle his neck. What would he do if I just laid my head there?'
Lee begins to pull his head down to kiss her when another couple bumps into them.
"Excuse me!" says a handsome gentleman.
"Yes, excuse us....Lee, Amanda, what brings you two here?" Francine shouts over the music.
Both Lee and Amanda just stare at Francine, not knowing what to say.
Finally Lee gets his voice. "We are having dinner and relaxing, Francine. What are you doing here?"
"Well, I am here on a date. This is Tim Matters. Tim this is Lee Stetson and Amanda King, a couple of co-workers," Francine says, as she introduces Lee and Amanda.
Amanda not sure if she should say anything remains silent.
"So are you two under cover Lee? I mean I can't believe you would be out having dinner with 'her' without being undercover," Francine says, as she points at Amanda.
Lee, in a rather loud voice says, "No, Francine, we are just having dinner. Two friends having dinner, is there a law against friends enjoying each others company?" His jaw tightens with each syllable.
"Well, excuse me, Lee. I was just asking." Then Francine turns to her date and says, "Come on Tim, let's get out of here. We are not welcome." And with that Francine turns on her high heals and storms out of the lounge.
Amanda in the meantime had been unusually silent through the whole ordeal. She even bit her lip on Francine's comment about her being Lee's date. But when she sees Francine walk off she begins to laugh. "Poor Francine, she seemed a little miffed. Think she will get over it?" her laugh gets just a little more intense.
Lee turns and looks at her and begins to laugh along with her. "Oh yeah, she will forget about it before morning. One thing about Francine, if she doesn't like someone she forgets about them quickly."
"Well, it's a good thing she doesn't like me, I don't really want to be remembered by her." They both laugh at what she had just said.
They walk back to the table and sit down. All of a sudden Lee gets real serious. "Amanda, about what Francine said. You know about you being my date and me not wanting to be with you without being undercover. Well, I just wanted you to know that...." He chokes on his words.
"Lee, I know that isn't true. I like spending time with you and I know you like spending time with me, even when we aren't undercover." She answers his own question.
The waiter brings them another drink after Lee signals him earlier for him to bring them. They sit there and drink it slowly as they watch each other with intense gazes. Just then Lee interrupts the silence. "Amanda would you like to dance again?"
Amanda not wanting to spoil the evening, but knowing that it is getting late she says, "Oh Lee, I would love to but it is getting late. Maybe we could do this again some other day."
Lee's smile fades from his face as she turns his dancing invite down. Then he says, "Your right Amanda, it is getting late." He stands up and helps her to her feet. Amanda turns and pulls her wrap over her shoulders and then picks up her purse and they both walk towards the door out into the cool night air.
The ride to Amanda's was done in complete silence. Both Lee and Amanda were in their own little world. Lee thinking of how much he wanted to kiss her tonight and Amanda thinking of how much she wanted him to kiss her.
By the time they reached Amanda's house they both had let their imagination run wild in their minds. When Lee pulled up in front of her house they both blushed at what they had been thinking, and avoided looking at one and other. Lee gets out and walks around the to help her out. They walk up to the front door, not realizing that the lights in the house were on, they stop turn, and look at each other.
"I had a great time tonight, Lee."
"Me too, Amanda, even when Francine came into it." He begins to laugh at the memory of the event.
As they both begin to gaze into each others eyes, Lee leans forward to kiss her. Just then they hear Dotty call Amanda's name.
"Amanda, is that you?" Dotty says.
"Damn, not again," Lee swears as he kisses her slightly on the lips and rushes out of sight and speeds down the road.
Dotty opens the door and sees Amanda standing there with her fingers on her lips and says, "Amanda are you okay?"
"Yes Mother, I am just fine. I was just saying good-bye to a friend."
Dotty, looks around and wonders if her daughter is delusional. "Amanda, I hate to tell you this but there is no one out here, but you. Are you sure you are okay? Why don't you come in and rest?"
Amanda goes into the house, still dazed about the whole evening. 'We were going to kiss, if my mother hadn't have come out. Why don't we ever get a break?'
"Amanda, are you sure you are okay? Your acting awfully strange."
"Mother, I am fine, I just had a great evening and I was just thinking is all. Don't worry, about me. Now tell me about your evening with your lawyer friend." She tries to change the subject with her mother.
Amanda sat and listened to her mother for the next hour talk about her night. She was really glad that her mother had let go of what had happened earlier. The rest of the evening went by quickly as Amanda and her mother talked for quite awhile and then went to bed.
The weekend seemed to pass slowly for both Lee and Amanda. They didn't see each other the rest of it. Lee was helping Francine out with that high security case she was on and Amanda was helping her mother with the gardening or whatever needed to be done around the house.
Monday came and Amanda couldn't wait to see Lee. She walked into the Agency foyer with a bound in her step and a smile on her face. "Hello Mrs. Marsten. Is Mr. Stetson in?" she asks.
Mrs. Marsten looks at Amanda and smiles, 'She really has it bad for the infamous Scarecrow, doesn't she?' "I'm sorry Mrs. King, but Mr. Stetson hasn't come in yet. Would you like me to tell him your looking for him?" She inquires.
"No that's okay I will see him when he comes in." She then gets on the elevator and down to the bullpen.
Down in the bullpen Amanda is working diligently on a report for Billy. She hadn't see Lee walk into the room and come up behind her.
"Good morning, Amanda."
Amanda jumps as Lee says that. "Lee, I wish you wouldn't do that to me. You nearly scared me out of my wits. I hate it when you sneak up on me like that," she says as she tries to catch her breath after being startled.
Lee, smiling, knowing he can still sneak up on her like that. "I am sorry, Amanda, I just couldn't resist."
"Well, I guess I can forgive you this time. But don't let it happen again, Stetson," Amanda says as she begins to laugh at the situation.
"What, no good morning to you too, Lee?" He says, trying to sound hurt.
Amanda looks up at Lee, and smiles. "Good morning to you too Lee. How was your weekend?"
"Kind of boring, I missed my best friend. Francine had me busy with that case she is working on that I didn't have time to call my friend."
Amanda stares up at Lee with a surprised look on her face. 'Was he talking about me? Did he miss me that much?'
"Amanda, do you have plans for lunch this afternoon?" He inquires, shaking her out of her thoughts.
"Oh....Huh....Lunch yes I would love to have lunch with you. What time would you like to go?" She says as she tries to recover from her thoughts.
"About one, if that's okay with you."
"One it is then, I have to finish this report then I have a couple of files to run across town for Mr. Melrose. I should be back before then."
"Okay see you at one." Lee then walks away and heads up to the Q- Bureau.
At one Lee is waiting patiently for Amanda to come back to her desk. He asks several people if they have seen her and they told him that she hasn't come back yet. He then heads into Billy's office.
"Billy, have you seen Amanda? We were suppose to have lunch together at one and..." He looks at his watch. "It is after one now. Have you heard from her?"
Billy looks up from his paper work he was doing and says, "yes Lee, she called and said that one of her boys had fallen down and gotten hurt at school and she wanted to take the rest of the afternoon off..." He pauses then continues. "Oh, by the way she told me to tell you that she wouldn't be able to have lunch with you today, and that she is sorry."
Lee gets a worried look on his face when Billy says that one of Amanda's boys was hurt. He leaves the office in such a hurry he didn't even hear Billy call his name. Within minutes he was at Amanda's house and sneaking in the back yard. He walks up to the kitchen window and he looks in. There she was sitting at the kitchen counter, beautiful as ever. He looks around to make sure he won't get caught and then whispers her name out.
"Amanda."
She looks at the window with a smile. "Lee, what are you doing here?"
"Well, I heard that one of the boys had gotten hurt and wanted to make sure everything was okay. So who got hurt and is everything okay?" He asks as he watches her move around the kitchen. "Oh, everything is okay. Phillip just got hit by a soccer ball is all. He will have a black eye for a while but he will live. Lee, I am sorry about lunch, I just thought I should spend time with Phillip this afternoon. Maybe we can do lunch tomorrow, if that is okay with you."
"Yeah that is great. Well, I had better get back to the Agency, I think I heard Billy call my name as I was running out of his office earlier. I will see you tomorrow Amanda." He then turns and leaves feeling better that it wasn't to serious about Phillip.
The next morning Lee is called into the Agency early. Billy needed to see him about something that could be serious if not taken care of right away. It had to do with Nuclear Detonators being smuggled through Food for Flight. He wasn't thrilled about the case but he knew he had to do it. It is what he did for a living. He called Amanda and told her they had a case and she needed to pack for at least a couple of days. The case was intense for Lee but he got through it, thanks to Amanda.
After that assignment, Amanda spent the weekend with her mother. The boys were spending the weekend with their father, so she took the opportunity to spend quality time with her mother.
The following week Lee spent doing odds and ends in the Q-Bureau. Amanda in the meantime was taking a breaking and entering course with Leatherneck. Leatherneck was very impressed on how quickly she has picked up on everything. She was able to pick locks that was pretty difficult and she is now working on handcuffs.
She had been working on all kinds of locks all week. And wanted to go to something more challenging. So Leatherneck put some handcuffs on her and was guiding her through it when Lee walked in. He was amazed at how quickly she was able to get herself out of the handcuffs so quickly.
"Billy wants to see us down in the bullpen, that is unless you're still tied up?"
She works quickly to get the other side of the handcuffs off and says, "Nope, I'm available."
Lee shakes his head as she says that. 'She is amazing, isn't she?' he says to himself.
Billy tells them they have an assignment. Of course Francine isn't too thrilled when Amanda gets to help Lee out with it. But since Amanda is familiar with Martinet and his work Billy feels she is best for the job.
While Lee and Amanda are finding out information on the case Amanda finds herself becoming the understudy.
Amanda is up in the Q-Bureau rehearsing her lines with Lee. He decides to change a couple of the lines. And with the kidding around they are about to kiss. Just then Francine walks in and interrupts them. They both jump apart as the door opens.
"Uhhh...We've got those Embassy tapes ready, but I see you've got your hands full." Francine says as she sees the two in a compromising situation.
"Rehearsing." Amanda tries to cover.
"Yeah." Lee chimes in.
"Just rehearsing." She says again trying to get Francine to believe her.
"Oh...When is opening night?" Francine says, not believing a word they say.
"A little joke." Francine giggles as she walks out of the room. Leaving Lee and Amanda a little embarrassed that they almost got caught.
That night Lee is trying to decide if this is the time to move forward with Amanda. He doesn't know if he can hide the way he is feeling about her any more. Every time they try to kiss, someone is always interrupting them. "Damn it, why is it we can never get a break?" He walks over and plops down on his sofa and says, "I have never wanted to kiss anyone as much as I want to kiss her. Why is so difficult for us to get that far? Why can't I just kiss her, without being taken back when someone walks in on us?"
The rest of the case went by pretty quickly. They got the case solved and neither Lee or Amanda got to seriously hurt. They both went their separate ways for debriefing. Amanda had finished first and went up to the Q-Bureau to wait for Lee. She waited for almost an hour and when he never showed up she decided it was getting late and needed to get home.
A couple hours after Amanda left, Lee finally is done with his debriefing and his report to Billy and heads up to his office hoping Amanda is still there. He is disappointed when she is not there. Eyeing a note on his desk he picks it up and reads it.
Lee,
I am very sorry I couldn't stay here and wait for you. I know Mother and the boys would have gotten worried if I stayed too long. I will see you tomorrow.
Oh by the way can you give me a ride into work tomorrow? Mother needs the car for her errands.
Thanks a lot.
Amanda
That night Lee paces up and down his apartment floor. He is trying to figure out where his relationship with Amanda is going.
"I think about her all the time. I imagine kissing her and...." He shakes his head after he says that. "Stop thinking like that, Stetson. She isn't one of your women you used to date. This is Amanda I am thinking about." He continues his usual pacing up and down the floor.
Finally, smacking his hand with his fist, he says, "damn it, we both know what we want. At least I know what I want, and that is Amanda. We have been interrupted so many times, sometimes I think it is just a dream I am having. Tomorrow.... Tomorrow is the day. I can't take it anymore, wanting more than just a handshake, I want to kiss her. And I'll be damned if anyone is going to stop me."
The next morning Lee picks Amanda and heads off to the Agency. He is pretty quiet throughout out the trip to work. Amanda had been taking glances at Lee the whole time, trying to figure out what is bothering him. When they had gotten to the Agency, Amanda finally broke the silence.
"Lee, what's going to happen to Martinet?"
Lee begins to tell her about Martinet and how he will get therapy. When they reach the Q-Bureau, Lee begins to get a little nervous. 'It's now or never, Stetson.' He thinks to himself.
As he opens the door for her he says, "Amanda."
She turns and answers, "yeah."
"You know... You and I have a lot to talk about," he says as they both are nervous about where this line of talk is going.
"Yeah."
"Yeah."
As Lee walks towards her he says, "we have been.... getting to know each other for what....?"
They both say in unison. "Three years."
"And I think...There is a lot about you I don't know. I'm sure going to enjoy trying to find out." He then leans in to kiss her when they hear the door outside slam shut.
"Is Lee in the Q-Bureau?" Billy asks Francine as she walks out of a room down the hall.
"Yeah I think so." Says Francine.
Lee, getting tired of being interrupted time and time again. Walks over to the door and slams the dead bold locked.
Billy, as he tries to open the door notices it won't open and says, "Lee, Amanda!" Then knocks on the door.
Inside the office Lee says, "No, not this time." And shakes his as he walks back over to Amanda. Who is standing there surprised of Lee's actions.
In the meantime Billy and Francine are outside the Q-Bureau, trying to hide the surprise that they didn't answer the door. Billy smiles at Francine then they both walk down the hall to the door leading to the Georgetown Foyer.
Back in the Q-Bureau, Lee is standing in front of Amanda. Her hands are in his and they are both looking very nervous. They both smile at the situation then they kiss. She pulls back as they both look at one another then they kiss again. This time it lasts longer and more passionately.
After what seems like forever, they finally part, but only to breath. Amanda feels like she could faint. 'Wow, I never thought it would be like this. The rumors are true, he is a great kisser.'
'Whoa. She has the softest lips I have ever kissed. And the way she felt against my body, whoa boy.'
As they are both reveling in their own thoughts they are interrupted by the phone ringing.
Lee rushes to the phone and in a harsh tone says, "What?"
"What? Is that a way to answer the phone, Scarecrow?" Billy says with a smile on his face. "Oh sorry Billy, I guess I lost my head." Looking back at Amanda he smiles at her and winks.
Amanda still trying to recover from the kiss, smiles shyly at Lee. As Lee is on the phone with Billy, Amanda sits down on the leather sofa in his office. She still can't get over what Lee did. 'He actually locked the door on Billy. Then he kissed me, oh my gosh did he ever kiss me.' She puts her fingers up to her mouth as she thinks that. She doesn't even notice Lee has finished his conversation with Billy and is sitting next to her.
"Hey, a penny for your thoughts," he whispers seductively in her ear.
She shivers from his words in her ear. Turning towards him she smiles and says, "it's going to cost you more than a penny to know my thoughts. Inflation you know."
"Mmmmm....How bout dinner tonight? Maybe a couple of drinks at my place afterwards." His words meant more than what he said but he didn't elaborate on them. He wanted to take things slow with this one. Amanda was very special to him and he wasn't going to mess things up with her.
"Sure, I would love it. What time would you want me to meet you?" She asks all excited and nervous at once.
"Nope, I will pick you up. Didn't you say your mother and the boys were going to be gone for the evening? How about I pick you up at seven tonight?" Lee says as he gets excited himself, knowing this is the beginning of an interesting relationship.
"Okay, seven it is." She pauses then says, "Lee?"
"Yes, Amanda."
"I think this is going to be an Interesting Relationship we are going to have," she says with a serious look on her face.
"I think your right Amanda. I think your right."
And with that they head down to Billy's office to see what it is he wanted. Both knowing that things won't ever be the same between them but it will be 'Interesting'.
The End.