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Of all the things Parker had expected Hardison to do, the first hadn't been to laugh and pull out his wallet.
"Mama, not everybody's going to write long love letters like the ones we reclaimed last week," he said. He pulled out a worn and creased post-it note and held it out to her. "Sometimes short and sweet works just as well."
Parker took the offered note and smiled at the "I pretzel you" with a drawing of a pretzel where a heart would be in her handwriting. "I know. It's just - he does so much for us, you know, with fighting the bad guys and cooking us food. I want to make sure he knows how much we appreciate what he does and that we love him too."
Hardison plucked the note out of her hand and put it back in his wallet before sliding a pad of post-its, a sharpie, and a pen across the table. "I think he would appreciate these as much if not more than those long letters, seeing as how these are much more your style."
Parker smirked. "And your style would be using lasers in cooking and drinking orange soda all the time?"
Hardison laughed. "Gotta give the man something low stakes to complain about." His expression turned serious. "But we gotta remember - just because we have certain feelings towards him and are ready to act on said feelings and he's said he feels the same, it's still gonna take some time for him to catch up and be as comfortable in this relationship as we are."
Parker nodded and fidgeted with the sharpie. "I know."
"I know you got this," Hardison said as he stood and moved to stand beside her. "You've been great as our mastermind and growing Leverage International the past few years. Now let's go steal our boy's heart." He bent down to kiss the top of her head before heading over to the bar and his laptop.
Parker blew out a breath and absently tapped the sharpie against the table with one hand and rifled the open edge of the post-its with her opposite thumb. She knew Hardison was right - this should be easy, given how much she'd grown into other abilities, not just thievery, but also with understanding the whole emotions thing, and how well she knew Eliot.
That was the part that worried her. If he didn't actually feel the same way, they could lose him - as a friend and as part of the team - and she couldn't bear that. So she decided to start with a bit of info gathering and go from there.
Over the next few hours three post-its were placed in the kitchen in succession as Eliot worked on weekly food prep and the day's dinner. Parker watched from her secluded perch as Eliot found the first one on his knife block - "Do you like us? Check yes or no." An amused smile tugged at the corner of his mouth as he pulled a pencil out of his pocket and made a mark before grabbing a knife. She quietly dropped down and grabbed the note, happy to see he'd checked yes, placed the second note in the utensil drawer and high-tailed it to continue watching.
When he found the second note - "But do you like us like us? Check yes or no" - there was an affectionate eye roll and he quickly ticked a box before grabbing a spoon and shutting the drawer. Parker quickly dropped down to retrieve the note and after a quick glance at the yes check, placed the third note - "Do you love us? Check yes or no" - over the stove's power button and disappeared.
Eliot's brow furrowed when he found the third note. He plucked it off the stove and stared at it for a long moment before he scribbled something at the bottom, turned the stove on, and replaced the note. When he moved away, Parker quickly grabbed the note and secreted herself away again. At the bottom, he'd made a third option and ticked the box next to maybe.
This called for more information. True, he could love them without being in love. But saying you *like* liked someone usually meant romantic love. It could be he'd never really thought about it. Or that he didn't want to lose them like they didn't want to lose him.
Parker scribbled another note "Will you go on a date with us? Check yes or no" and placed it on the tea kettle before leaving the kitchen entirely. When Eliot knocked on her door for dinner, she found the note with another maybe checked.
The next day there were a few post-its stuck to Parker's planning board - which made her smile. And they all ended with "Check yes or no" - which turned her smile into a grin. "Will I have to fight bad guys?" "Will there be food?" "Will I have to cook it?"
Parker plucked the notes off her board and answered them in order - No, Yes, and No - before sticking them on Eliot's coffee beans, grinder, and French press. She added one of her own to his mug - "Does this Friday at 7pm work? Check yes or no" - before skipping off to make a phone call.
While researching the first job that had brought them to New Orleans, Parker had learned by accident that another of Toby's students, from the same time Eliot had been with him, had done well for himself and had a thriving restaurant in the city. She'd held on to the information, since they hadn't had time to visit then, but now that they'd settled in it seemed like a perfect opportunity. At the very least, they'd have a good meal and Eliot would be able to renew a friendship.
******
"Where are we going?" Eliot grumbled. He honestly wasn't sure why he'd agreed to go on the date. The fact that he loved them wasn't a question - he'd been in love with them for years at this point. And if they felt the same way about him, why couldn't they just all call it and go on as they had been - with the intimacies attached?
"You'll see," Parker replied over her shoulder with a grin.
"She isn't really going to throw us off a building and this is all a ruse?" Eliot whispered to Hardison.
Hardison's eyes widened. "As far as I know, this is really just supposed to be dinner. She told me all about the restaurant and she's very excited about it."
"Yeah, a restaurant she apparently can't find!" Eliot snarked at Parker.
"I can find it! It's right there!" Parker gestured to the restaurant across the street.
"Wha- Parker!" Eliot bit out. "We parked right over there!" He jabbed a finger in the direction of where they'd parked a block away. "Where the hell have we been going for the past twenty minutes?"
She just smiled and headed across the street. Both Eliot and Hardison rolled their eyes and headed after her.
Eliot automatically looked around as they entered, taking in points of egress, possible weapons, the medium size of the crowd. There was something familiar about the place that niggled at the back of his mind, but it wasn't distinct enough for him to place it. They were quickly seated at a table near the kitchen and Eliot eyed Parker and Hardison suspiciously when they sat on either side of him, but he perused the menu in lieu of saying anything right away.
Once their orders had been taken and the waiter had brought their drinks, Eliot leaned forward, put his forearms on the table and interlaced his fingers. He looked at Parker and Hardison for a long moment each, pleased that neither flinched or looked away. "Okay, what is going on with you two? You've both been acting squirrelly since before we moved here. And if I didn't know any better, there's something up with this restaurant."
"Now those are two different things," Hardison replied.
Parker added, "While we all were looking for a new place to set up headquarters, Hardison and I talked a lot about what we wanted in a place and what you would want - aside from all the logistical stuff. And in the process, we realized that we have feelings for you. Like *feelings* feelings."
Eliot rolled his eyes. "We've already talked about this, Parker. I feel the same way about you and Hardison as you two feel about each other and me. But feeling that way and acting on it are two different things and I need time to process that I can have this."
"We know, silly," she replied, giving him a 'no duh' look. "I also found this place while we were looking and while it wasn't a deciding factor, it did help. Consider it a gift from us to you to help show how serious we are about including you in our relationship."
Eliot's eyes snapped to Hardison. "Damnit, Hardison! You gotta stop buying me restaurants!"
Hardison held up his hands in surrender. "Don't look at me. I had nothing to do with finding this place or any actions on or against it."
Parker laughed. "Nothing's happened to the restaurant - aside from it doing well in its own right. We - I - thought you'd enjoy coming here because of the chef. His name's Tyler and he was one of Toby's students the same time you were. I thought you'd like to reconnect." A quick look of uncertainty crossed her face before she grinned again.
Eliot couldn't help the swell of affection he felt for Parker. He unlaced his hands and held one out to her and she nervously took it. He gave it a gentle squeeze. "You done good, Parker. Tyler and I weren't close - not that I was close with anyone back then - but he was a good guy with a lot of potential. I'm glad to see he's doing well for himself."
Their food came out and they ate in comfortable silence. Parker and Hardison swiped bites of Eliot's meal and he had to tamp down his desire to pull his plate close and bat their forks away because damn it was good. The only thing that kept him from doing so was being able to steal bites of their food too - which were also amazing.
When they were done, Eliot told the waiter, "Send our compliments to Chef - the food was amazing."
As the waiter nodded, Parker asked, "Is there any way we could do that ourselves? Or are they too busy to come out?" She eyed the dining room - which had filled since they'd come in.
"I'll check and see," the waiter replied, as he took the check and Hardison's credit card.
A few moments later, Tyler came out of the kitchen, his eyes doing a quick scan of the dining room before he made his way over to their table, a neutrally pleasant expression on his face. "What can I do for you?" he asked, placing a hand on the empty chair.
"We wanted to thank you for a great meal," Parker replied. "I'd heard about this place when we were considering moving here and when Eliot," she placed a hand on Eliot's forearm, "mentioned you and he had studied under the same chef, I knew we *had* to come because he's an amazing cook."
Tyler focused on Eliot and his eyes widened in surprise, as if seeing him for the first time. "Eliot Spencer! How the hell are you, man? We all thought you fell off the face of the earth!" He came around the table and Eliot stood and they gave each other a tight hug.
"Nah, man," Eliot replied when they pulled apart. "Just got involved in some stuff that required a low profile."
"Well, you look good! Whatever you're doing is definitely agreeing with you."
Eliot automatically looked at Parker and Hardison and smiled. "Yeah, I'd say it is. I've had some good people at my back the past few years and had a chance to balance the scales a little."
"I'm glad to hear it. I have to get back in the kitchen, but we need to catch up soon! I'm here most days, so stop by whenever. Or call and we'll set something up. It's great seeing you again."
Parker and Hardison stood and Hardison put his wallet back in his pocket as Tyler headed back into the kitchen. Eliot shook his head fondly at them.
"Was it a good surprise?" Parker asked as they exited out onto the street.
"You have no idea," Eliot replied, putting an arm around her shoulders and pulling her close to kiss her temple. If this was a declaration of love, he could get behind this.
Once they were in the car, Parker pulled out a post-it note, turned around and reached back to stick it on Eliot's chest. He pulled it off in amusement and read the note. "Did you have a good time? Check yes or no."
Eliot grinned. "Yes, Parker, I had a great time. Maybe once we get home, I can start showing you how much."