AN: Hey guys, thank you for all your lovely reviews, this is a filler chapter I guess, hope you like it anyway.

Jane spent the rest of the night trying to guess her favorite movie and to keep himself from touching her every minute or two; he found out he was attracted by her contradiction, or maybe it was her moody nature, that one that made her act unpredictability, even in the easiest circumstances. The way she was holding herself now, making almost impossible to him regain their previous intimacy, so easily reached before, was frustrating but challenging at the same time. He didn't know if her fear was the main reason behind that behavior, but another thing he found out was that he felt the need to respect her in all her complexity because he knew, deep down, that he wouldn't have found another woman like her. Especially considering that the woman in question was incredibly beautiful. He wasn't a superficial man, never been, but he was an artist, an aesthetics lover that admired beauty in all its aspects; Lisbon was one of those aspects, a mix of delicacy and pride, softness and angularity, the perfect muse. Even now when the knees pulled up on the couch, like a rebellious teenager and her eyes glossy due to the final scene of the movie, he assumed, she made a particular picture that he couldn't stop to admire.

"This scene is lovely." She said, eyes glued to the screen.

"It is." He whispered, eyes glued to her.

She turned toward him, smiling shyly. He looked at her for some seconds then approached her, covering a little her body with his; he kissed her forehead, her nose and her lips lightly, then he retreated a little bit, noticing the lovely blush on her cheeks.

"Do I really need to guess your favorite movie to take you out?" He asked serious, almost touching her lips with his own. She nodded amused. "You know that I'll spend all day tomorrow thinking about it?"

"Well, I find it difficult, considering that you'll probably spend the day photographing twenty-something skinny models with one leg long as two of mine." She replied back.

"I love that you are already so jealous." He teased her.

"I'm not." She snapped back.

"Of course you are, but don't worry, I'll get used to your short legs pretty soon." He said to her, playfully.

She hit him on his arm once and when she was about to hit him again, he circled her wrist with his hand, then he took the other one and put her arms above her head, pinning her to the back of the couch.

"Your legs are pretty perfect to me, I would like to see them a little more." He whispered in her ear.

"In your dreams." She said in response and he kissed her sassy mouth once again, more sensually this time.

"I should go now." He said, regretting his words almost immediately.

"Maybe you should." She sighed, her eyes never leaving his lips.

She led him to the door, fighting the urge to ask him to stay.

"I'll try to guess it before tomorrow night so I can take you to dinner." He said, before leaving.

"Don't worry, you have time, I'm already busy tomorrow night." She answered.

"Really? I thought we were exclusive." He said playfully.

"It's work stuff." She said, trying to hide that hint of apprehension in her voice.

"You know that you won't get rid of me easily, right?" He asked her.

"I don't want to." She said shyly and he loved her unusual display of sweetness, especially because he knew how much it had cost her.

"See you soon, grumpy." He greeted her, kissing her temple tenderly. She watched him walk away, then she left the door and reached him, taking his hand in hers; when he turned around, she took his face in her small hands, she went on tiptoe and she kissed him breathlessly.

"Wow, what was that?" He asked hoarsely.

"Goodnight Patrick." She said and then she returned inside.

"You need to wear a microphone." Virgil told her.

"There's no need, Virgil, it's just a dinner." Lisbon replied.

"A dinner with Thomas Volker, Teresa." He said.

"I know, but I won't exceed, it's just a first contact, I promise you, I'll be careful." She smiled at him.

"You don't need to do it, you know it, right? We can find another way."

"Yes, but I want to do it." She said, then she touched his shoulder to comfort him. "Don't worry, it's going to be all right."

"I hope so." He said, not convinced.

Lisbon hated to give his boss an avoidable concern, but she needed to go at the bottom of this whole situation as soon as possible, it was also a way to end a chapter of her life and to be totally ready to enter in the new one. The truth was that she wanted to totally surrender to that lightness and excitement that she had already experimented before and to do that, she wanted to be free from her demons, her recent ones at least. She thought about the man who was entering like a tornado in her life, picturing him around a thousand models while he was trying to guess her favorite movie and that thought made her smile. She was bothered a little by the models though, maybe because she hadn't taken care of her physical aspect a lot in the last years or she hadn't pampered herself with new clothes and expensive make up and now she just hoped it wasn't too late.

"Boss, the McKidd files that you wanted." Van Pelt said, entering in her office.

"Thanks Grace." She said to her.

"No problem." She was about to leave her office when Lisbon stopped her.

"Grace?"

"Yes?"

"Where do you go for shopping? Usually I mean." She asked insecure.

"Oh it depends of what I need." She answered surprised.

"Right, what if I need everything?" Lisbon told her.

"Oh, in that case.. do you want a list?" She asked, making Lisbon laugh.

"Why not." Lisbon said.

"You know, I could come with you, if you want." Grace said excited.

Lisbon wanted to refuse at first but Grace's sweet excitement made her change her mind. "That would be lovely, thanks Grace.. tomorrow after work?"

"Perfect" She said smiling and Lisbon smiled in turn.

After a day spent at work, Jane gave himself the pleasure to enjoy his daughter's company, an event that always put him in a good mood and that he hoped it could soon become a daily thing.

He knew that Charlotte already suspected something about their relationship, she was becoming too smart and he needed to find the right moment to make the first step; he didn't know though, that Charlie would have surprised him once again.

"Charlie, remember Teresa?" Jane asked her while he was cooking her something healthy, for once.

"Yes, your friend that you like." She replied, raising her gaze from the book she was coloring.

"Do you like her?" He asked tentatively.

"Yes, you like her, I like her." She said logically.

"But, would you be happy to have her as a friend?"

"Yes." She replied excited. "She needs to buy her own dolls, though."

Jane laughed, "you're right, I'll tell her that. Dinner is ready in five." He told her but he didn't know that her following words would have changed everything.

"Ok, daddy."

"Charlie, how did you call me?" Jane asked, his heart pounding.

"Paddy." Charlie answered, not meeting his eyes. He knelt down in front of her, tilting her chin with his fingers.

"Charlie, how did you call me?" He repeated softly.

"Daddy." She said in a whisper. Jane tried to hide how affected he had been by that simple word and he stayed focused on Charlotte instead. "Why did you call me daddy?"

"Because you are my daddy." She replied logically.

"Am I?" He asked, sounded absurd even to himself.

"Yes because you look like me a lot."

"Well this doesn't mean that I'm your daddy." He said, trying to follow her theory. "What about Pete and Sam?

"They're your helpers." She replied.

"My helpers?"

"Yes, like Santa Claus' elves.. they help you when you have a lot of work to do." She said, looking at him. "But, when you haven't work anymore, I can come here and stay with you and we have the Hamburger's night and the pizza's night and we can stay together."

He smiled at her, his heart totally melted. "Would you like to come here more?" He asked hopefully and she nodded instantly.

"Charlie, look at me." He said, gathering the courage that he needed. "You are right and I'm not surprised because you're the smartest little girl I've ever met." He begun, noticing with delight the gleam in her eyes after his compliment. "I'm your daddy but there is something more you need to know."

"What?" She asked, gripping his sleeve.

"I've not been a very brave daddy when you were little." He said, finding her eyes.

"I'm adult now." She replied, looking at him and he chuckled, amused.

"Of course you are, but in the past I misbehaved toward you." He explained to her.

"Why?" She asked curious.

"Well, I wasn't feeling very well and I kept you distant from me because I wasn't brave enough to keep you with me."

"There were only you and me when I was little?" Charlotte asked, her fingers still around his sleeve.

"No." He sighed. "There was also mommy."

"Mommy?" She said, her eyes big. "I really had a mommy?" She asked excited.

Jane tried to hold his emotions. "Of course you had a mommy, her name was Angela."

"She's dead?" Charlotte asked immediately.

"Yes." He replied, caressing her hair.

"I bet she was beautiful." Charlotte said, smiling.

"You have no idea how much, you look like her more than what you think." He explained to her.

"I want to see her." Charlotte said.

"Wait here." Jane took a pic of Angela from his wallet and showed it to her. "This is your mommy."

"Wooow." She said with an enthusiasm that made him laugh. "She's too beautiful, I don't look like her." She said disappointed.

"You two have the same smile." Jane told her.

"That's not true." Charlotte said sad.

"Come with me." Jane said, taking her small hand. He picked her in his arms and put her in front of the mirror of the bathroom, then he took the pic in his hand and put it near her face. "Ok, look at the mirror, now." He said to her. "That's it, now smile." He told her, tickling her slightly on the belly.

She squirmed a little under his arm, laughing, but then she settled down, smiling in front at her.

Her face was full of surprise while she kept looking at her reflection in the mirror, next to her mother's pic.

"We have the same smile." She almost screamed in his ears.

"Told you." He said, laughing.

"She's so pretty.. I want to put that thing that she has on her lips." Charlie said, pointing at the mirror.

"Here we are! No Charlie, you're too young for that." He said, looking at the two of them in the mirror, three of them, counting Angela's pic. That sight should have made him sad but at the contrary, made him feel a sweet melancholy that gave him an unexpected warm. He gave a last look in front of him and then he put the pic in his wallet again, still holding Charlotte in his arms.

"Let's go find a movie to watch while we're eating, little one." He said then.

"Frozen?" She said, expectantly.

"Something new, I see." He said, chuckling, then he put her down on the couch and went in the kitchen to take the food.

"Can I call you daddy?" He heard her asking from the couch.

"You have to." He replied, is voice a little rough while the first tears left his eyes. He dried them quickly and reached her on the couch.

"Will you keep me?" She asked him immediately. When she noticed his confusion, she asked again "will you keep me with you, now?"

"You're stuck with me, sweetheart." He replied, taking her in his arms.

An hour later, she was asleep, her head on his chest. He thanked, selfishly, her young naivety that had made her easily accept his behavior without a hint of rage or disappointment. He knew that those moments would have arrived in the future, when that naivety would have turned in adolescent rebellious, but he was happy now and he just hoped to have the possibility, one day, of forgiving himself in the process. He took the phone from the pocket of his pants and typed something. Notting Hill? Pretty woman? Rocky Balboa? The Exorcist?

He sent it to Lisbon and looked at her account's pic on the phone. He smiled then, realizing how lucky he was.

Lisbon smiled, reading the text she had just received, it helped her to release the tension a little bit, even if she needed to stay focused. She met Thomas Volker in an elegant terrace of Sacramento, in one of the most expensive restaurant of the town, at least her choice of wardrobe had been accurate. She wore an elegant black cocktail dress and despite the fact that she hated the idea of dressing up for a man like him, at least she didn't feel out of place; besides, she couldn't go out dressed in jeans and blouse or he would have quickly called her bluff. Everything had to seem like a normal date and she needed to pretend from the start. The thing she didn't pretend was that sense of awe she felt every time he looked at her or complimented her, making her feel like a piece of meat to devour quickly.

"I'm still surprised you accepted my invitation, Miss Lisbon." He said, sipping his wine.

"Please, call me Teresa." She said.

"Teresa." He pronounced her name with a strange innuendo. "You know, actually, I'm not that surprised after all."

"Why not?" She asked curious.

"Because you and me, my dear, are very similar.. and since I don't believe that opposites attract very much, I guess it's normal that we are attracted to each other." He explained, staring at her.

"How can you say that? You don't know me." She replied, trying to hide her irritation.

"Well, stop me if I'm wrong." He said, filling her glass again. "Teresa Lisbon, you are a free spirit, just like me.. you've never had a serious relationship, or better, you've never been in love because then you get bored.. you enjoy solitude because, at the contrary of what it seems or what you believe, you have a high concept of yourself, you estimate your person so much that you don't find anyone able to be at your level.. your real love is the chase, chase everything and everyone.. chase me, in a very stubborn way if I have to say, chase love? Maybe but then once you have found it, you don't want it anymore. You don't want the prize, you want the climb."

Lisbon tried to ignore how much those words had shaken her, especially because she knew that some of the things he had just said were sadly true.

"We are like Dustin Hoffman who takes away Katharine Ross from the altar and then looks at her with that uncertainty and that hint of disappointment painted of the face.. like to say, what now?" He added then.

"The Graduate." She said, almost whispering.

"Amazing movie, isn't it?"

"My favorite." She said weakly.

He smirked, raising the glass toward her to make a toast. "I guess I know you a little bit, after all."

It seems that Volker is playing with Lisbon's mind, but it's just the beginning! I hope you like the chapter, let me know, please!