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Jane was watching Lisbon. Had been watching Lisbon with great attentiveness since before the case-closed pizza even arrived, and was continuing to do so even as he dug out a slice of cheese pizza for himself.
Cho knew this because he was watching Jane, something that Jane surely would have noticed if he weren't so intent on Lisbon.
It was Lisbon's new boyfriend, he decided at last. That's why Jane was so focused. He wanted to know how the relationship was going. Cho was a little curious about that himself--he hadn't seen Lisbon in a relationship since his early days at the CBI and he wondered how it would progress--but he'd never admit it out loud.
Mystery solved, Cho turned his attention to the pizza. It wasn't that he was worried about the reasons Jane was watching Lisbon; he was just...curious. Plus it was always safer to know what was holding Jane's attention on any given day.
Across the room, Lisbon laughed at something Jane said. Cho attacked his pizza with greater ferocity. Lisbon's new boyfriend wouldn't stand a chance if Jane didn't want him to, he thought.
He was contemplating the possible merits of another slice when Fischer returned, grim-faced, carrying a file folder.
"We have a problem," she announced. "Jane was right." She looked over at Jane as she said that, raising the folder in a sort of resigned salute. "The crime scene team found more of Harris's tapes, and it turns out Harris had more on Reed than just embezzling." This was why the FBI had wanted Jane, because he was right more often than not, but she clearly wasn't happy about it this time.
Actually, Jane didn't look too happy about it either.
"What else did he have on them?" Lisbon asked.
"Their daughter," Fischer said. "Or more specifically, how they acquired her."
"She was adopted," Lisbon said. "We saw the records."
Fischer shook her head. "We took a closer look. They're all fake. The adoption agency they claim to have used doesn't exist." She set the file down on the table beside the boxes of pizza. "We need to find out where that baby came from."
"Well, we can't ask Harris and the Reeds aren't going to talk," Jane said. "So we'll have to try something else." He paused thoughtfully. "Daniel Reed is an organized man. Obsessively so. Did we find any unidentified keys in their house? The kind you use for a safe deposit box?"
Fischer flipped through the file. "Yes."
"Then that's where we start."
Reed's safe deposit box proved to hold mostly financial and insurance papers. The one exception was a business card for a Melinda Grey.
"She's an attorney," Lisbon said. "Specializes in estate law."
Jane picked up the card, rubbing his thumb across her name. "Tasteful. High quality. Discreet. " He flipped it over in his hands. "This is it."
"They could have just used her for their wills," Cho said. He knew Jane was probably right--Jane was usually right--but he liked to see if he could get a reason out of Jane. He guessed the odds were about fifty-fifty as to whether Jane would explain this time.
"They may have used her for their wills too," Jane said, "but they definitely used her to get Chantelle."
Apparently the odds were against him today.
Fischer sighed wearily. It had been a long case for all of them. "Then I guess we need to pay her a visit."
"Oh, please," Jane said, leaning back against the table. "She's not going to talk to you, and you don't have any sort of evidence against her."
"Well, what do you suggest then?" Fischer wasn't bothering to mask her annoyance. She really must be tired.
"Obviously someone will have to go in undercover," Jane said in his most reasonable tone. "Pretend to be looking to adopt a child."
Cho leaned back in his chair and suppressed a grin at the slightly panicked expression that flashed across Fischer's face before she brought it under control. Clearly she'd caught on to the meaning of that particular tone.
Lisbon, of course, already knew. She backing away, hand held up in a futile attempt to shield herself from Jane's latest scheme. "Oh no," she said, not waiting for the catch. "I went undercover last time."
"We all did," Fischer said quickly.
"Relax," Jane said. "Neither one of you is going undercover this time."
"We aren't?" Lisbon said skeptically.
"Of course not," Jane said. "We're dealing with people selling black market babies who know that one of their couples has just been arrested for embezzlement and murder. If I showed up with either one of you, they'd know immediately that we were law enforcement." He paused, head cocked. "Or at least they'd know that you were."
"Hey!" Lisbon protested.
Fischer still looked wary. "So what's the plan, then? You can't go in by yourself."
"I'm not," Jane said. "I'm going in with Cho."
Cho straightened up abruptly. "What?"
"Well, it makes sense," Jane said. "Any straight couple that shows up is going to be suspect, but they'll never believe the FBI would send in a gay couple. It's perfect."
Cho briefly considered objecting, but on what basis? Because he liked looking at Jane just a little too much? Because he was afraid that if he spent too much time alone with Jane, Jane would figure it out? Because he wasn't sure how he wanted Jane to respond if Jane did figure it out? "He's right," Cho said. "It makes sense."
"All right," Fischer said. "Call her and set up a meeting."
"It's going to take a little more than that," Jane said. "Remember, these people are going to be suspicious." His lips curved into a wide smile aimed directly at Cho, and for a moment Cho was sure Jane knew everything. "We're going to need to lay some groundwork."
***
Cho was in hell. Or possibly heaven. He couldn't quite decide which.
He was sitting on an expensive leather couch in an office just as tasteful and expensive as Melinda Grey's business card. Jane was sitting beside him, thigh flush and warm warm against Cho's. Cho kept his expression deadpan as Jane leaned in closer, arm tightening fractionally around Cho's shoulders, and widened his smile.
"We finally realized we weren't complete with just the two of us," Jane was saying. The hand that wasn't resting on Cho's shoulder reached down to clasp his hand. Cho resisted the urge to pull free and cross his arms, and tried to focus on what Melinda Grey was saying.
She offered them a practiced, sympathetic smile. "I've heard that story again and again," she said. "But I do feel compelled to point out that there are...cheaper ways to go about this than us."
Jane frowned. "Yes, but those take years," he said. "And you never know what you're getting."
"There are sometimes limits," Grey agreed. She gave them an appraising look, manicured nails tapping against her desk. "You understand there's still a process to go through with us? Financial accounts--"
"We can pay," Cho said flatly.
"--and a home inspection," she continued smoothly. "We do need to make sure we're not sending any of our children into...unsuitable environments."
"Of course," Jane agreed cheerfully.
"How long?" Cho asked.
"I'm sorry?"
"How long will it take?" Cho repeated. This time he did cross his arms, pulling away from Jane enough to straighten up into a slightly more intimidating posture. "We came to you because we heard you get things done quickly. Now you're saying we have to wait. How long?"
"Darling..." Jane protested beside him.
Gordon smiled again. "Not long," she said. "Maybe a week. Our exclusivity means that we can send people in quickly."
"Perfect," Jane said, smiling.
He kept a hand on Cho's arm all the way out of the building, not dropping the act until they were in the car. "You could have played along a little more, you know," he said as he buckled his seat-belt.
"I did play along."
"These people do not like to be rushed."
"You could have brought Abbott along instead," Cho said flatly, starting the car.
Jane's grin was lightning-bright and just as brief. "I could have, but what fun would that have been?"
And there it was again. Heaven or hell? What did Jane mean by that? Did he know the effect of his smile? Was all the affection an act, or was there something real underneath it? With Jane, you could never tell. Which was one of the reasons Cho wasn't sure which answer to hope for. Not that that would stop him from responding if Jane ever did make the first move. He knew himself well enough to know that.
Two years apart ought to have been enough time to get over Jane. To move on. And Cho had tried to move on. He'd dated several women in between preparing for Quantico. He'd even briefly--and discreetly--tried dating another man. None of the relationships had lasted longer than a couple of weeks. Cho had attributed it to his need to focus on developing a new career path, and hadn't allowed himself to think too closely about other possible reasons on the grounds that there was no point in thinking about what he couldn't have.
He hadn't expected to ever see Jane again.
"Abbot won't let us keep the apartment for a week," Cho said.
"We won't need a week," Jane said confidently. "They already know we have the Reeds, and they know that sooner or later, we'll come after them. They'll be looking for some money to help them relocate. I give it three days at most before we finalize the deal. Probably less."
Cho wasn't sure whether to be relieved or disappointed.
Abbot balked at the two weeks Jane started with, and then accepted Jane's revised prediction of four days with gratitude. Cho stood by during the negotiations and wondered what it was going to be like spending four nights alone with Jane. Presumably in separate beds, but still.
The apartment situation dealt with, Cho returned to writing up his report on the Reed case. Jane hovered for the first five minutes, then fled when Cho threatened to put him to work. Cho kept typing until the rest of the team was gone, then went in search of Jane, whom he found on his couch, reading a newspaper.
"Time to go," Cho said. He glanced up at the clock. It was later than he'd thought. "We can stop for supper on the way there."
"Very romantic," Jane said with a grin. He uncrossed his legs and stood up. "Lead the way."
As he pulled into a parking lot a few blocks from "their" apartment, Cho was grateful that his rule against consultants driving meant that he got to pick the restaurant. And that meant nothing remotely romantic.
Jane followed him inside the sports bar without comment. Sitting across from Jane in the crowded bar, both of them eating burgers, neither of them able to talk over the noise, Cho could almost pretend that this was a regular mid-case meal and not an undercover assignment.
The illusion held up until they got to the apartment. It was a two-bedroom apartment--necessary for the illusion that they had space for a child, but convenient for them as well--tastefully and professionally decorated, and containing absolutely nothing that Cho would have chosen for his own home. He wondered if it reflected Jane's taste at all.
Cho watched as Jane slipped off his shoes and began moving around the apartment, touching this and rearranging that. Was this how Jane was in his own home? Constantly on the move, unable to settle? Or was this a product of being in a strange environment? And was this Jane as he was now, or had he always been this way? Cho still wasn't sure how close this Jane resembled the Jane back at the CBI. How had killing Red John changed him? Or two years of exile? He really didn't know this man at all.
Another good reason not to rush into anything.
After a few minutes of watching Jane, he shrugged and picked up the bag he'd dropped off earlier in the day. "Goodnight, Jane."
Jane looked up from the fireplace mantle where he was adjusting a staged photo of the two of them. "Oh. Goodnight."
Jane had arranged for them to receive cover jobs as well as a cover home, courtesy of FBI resources. Cho spent the day sitting in a state government office, typing up more case notes. He wasn't sure what Jane was doing; Jane had been characteristically vague about that, saying only that he'd see Cho that night.
By six o'clock, the office was empty. With a sigh, Cho shut off his computer and stood up. "One day down," he said out loud. It occurred to him that some people would enjoy having an opportunity to spend extended time alone someone they were interested in. He suspected none of those people were interested in Patrick Jane.
The smell of food hit as soon as Cho opened the apartment door. He stepped inside, carefully closing the door behind him, and made his way to the kitchen, noting with some trepidation the flowers and candles that adorned the dining room table. Jane looked up from the stove with a smile.
"Darling! You're home." His smile had a sardonic edge that belied the words.
"What is this?"
"Celebratory dinner," Jane said. He set down his spoon and enfolded Cho in a hug. "We had visitors while we were out," he said in a low tone. "They left us a present. Video and audio."
Cho returned the hug automatically. "Where?"
"I'm no expert, but I'd say the bathroom and bedrooms are clear," Jane said quietly. He pulled back and pasted a smile back on. "Dinner will be ready in a few minutes."
Despite the surveillance, dinner proved less awkward than Cho had feared. Talk of work was out, but Jane kept up a light amusing discussion of current events and his day at the office that left Cho wondering what he'd actually been doing all day. They did the dishes in companionable silence. Afterwards, Jane suggested a movie, which Cho readily agreed to. Anything to keep them from having to talk and possibly slipping up.
It was going very well, right up until Jane let his head slide down onto Cho's shoulder. Cho looked at him sharply. Jane smiled cheekily, then slid down until he was lying on the couch, head resting on Cho's lap. Cho froze, eyes fixed carefully on the TV.
Jane knew, he thought. Of course Jane knew. Jane had reached down into Cho's childhood memories to pull out his secret desire for Mexican jumping beans; how could he not be just as aware of Cho's adult desires? But why hadn't he said anything before this? There'd never been a hint of interest nor a word of rejection. Not even a flirtatious smile to try and win Cho over to some ridiculous plan. Why now?
He felt Jane shift in his lap and looked down automatically. Jane winked and mouthed the words "play along," then turned his head back so he could see the TV.
Relief battled with disappointment. It was an act for the cameras. Of course it was. If Jane had known, he would have done something about it by now.
Cho looked down again, considering. Play along, Jane had said. He lifted one hand and hesitantly let it rest on Jane's head, stroking his hair lightly and watched Jane carefully for a reaction. For a moment, Jane just lay there, and then Cho swore he could see him relax. A minute later he closed his eyes. Cho kept going, attention more on Jane than the movie.
The first few weeks after Red John's death has been a mess of fear and worry and confusion. Hoping Jane got away. Watching as the CBI was dismantled. Hoping Jane wouldn't get caught.
It wasn't until later that he realized just how much he missed seeing Jane every day.
Bedtime was going to present another problem, Cho realized. Going into separate bedrooms was clearly out of the question with cameras watching them. Maybe if he picked a fight? Although that would be a bit awkward after the evening they'd had.
Jane stirred in his lap, sitting up and stretching. "Time for bed," he said, standing up, and it was too late for any other option. Cho followed him into the master bedroom. At least they'd both left their things there in case of a surprise visit, so he didn't have to try and come up with a reason his clothing was in the other bedroom.
They took turns in the bathroom, each taking the opportunity to change while the other was out of the room. Cho went first, and when he came out, he found Jane sitting on the bed, looking pensive.
"All yours," Cho said.
"Have you ever thought about how your life could have been different?" Jane asked.
"Different how?"
Jane stood up from the bed and turned toward the bathroom. He leaned in as he passed Cho, kissing him, pressed up against him for the briefest moment, then went into the bathroom.
Cho stared at the closed door, and then at the bed. No cameras in the bedroom, Jane had said.
He sat on the bed to wait.