A/N: A dynamic I wanted to explore.. Thanks for reading, I appreciate feedback! AU during season 1

"Any ideas, Jane?" Lisbon glanced in the consultant's direction before returning her eyes to the road.

They were driving across town after interviewing the victim's family in their latest case. Molly Jones was found murdered in a town about two hours south of Sacramento. To avoid an overnight stay, the team split up to talk to as many friends and coworkers as possible in one day. As usual, Lisbon paired up with Jane. So far he had been quiet. Too quiet. He was spending way too much time in his own head lately.

Jane roused himself and turned his head away from the window. "Ideas?" he repeated neutrally. He studied her profile and Lisbon smiled in what she hoped was an encouraging manner. A small gleam lit his eyes. "Sure, I've got ideas." He stretched dramatically and then drew one outstretched hand from her knee to her thigh before settling it there. He smiled satisfactorily before squeezing gently.

Lisbon frowned and pushed his hand away. "I mean about the case, we're on the clock."

Jane glanced pointedly to the empty back seat. "There's no one here to tattle. A little human contact is good for you."

Lisbon sighed. "We've had this discussion before."

"Nothing personal during active cases," Jane intoned along with her. "You may have noticed we don't get a lot of downtime between cases - if at all."

She took her eyes off the road just long enough to send him a glare. He raised his hands in surrender. "Just sayin', it's been awhile," he muttered.

"Can we get back to the case, please?" she said, more harshly than she intended.

"Sure, yeah, the case," he answered flippantly. The car was quiet for a moment as he thought, tapping a finger on his lower lip. He put his hands down and turned to look at her. "The family wasn't hiding anything. This will be an easy one. Probably the boyfriend."

Lisbon sighed. "The victim didn't have a boyfriend."

Jane blinked, but continued unfazed. "Secret boyfriend, co-worker, jilted barista. It'll come out easily enough."

"So you've got nothing," she clarified as they pulled into a parking space.

"Not nothing," he said, offended. "We haven't met the suspect yet. It'll be obvious when we do. I bet you won't even need me."

Lisbon turned off the car and unbuckled her seatbelt before turning in his direction. "So you're just going to watch me work?"

Jane leaned in and met her gaze, smiling. "Tempting, but no," he emphasized the word with a tap on her nose. "We are going to close this one fast, and then I am going to get all sorts of personal with you." His eyes roved over her body suggestively and Lisbon couldn't help but smile back.

"Glad to hear it," she replied, a challenging twinkle in her eye.

X

The day did not pan out as Jane had predicted. By evening they had no leads. That in itself was nothing unusual at this point of an investigation, but Jane's attitude had gotten more and more dismal as they crossed suspects off their list.

As they got back to the CBI after their last interview, Jane followed an irate Lisbon through the nearly empty bullpen into her office. The others had already finished their interviews and headed home, planning for a fresh start in the morning. Lisbon went straight to a filing cabinet and efficiently yanked out some forms that she dropped on her desk. Jane hovered in the doorway, his hands stuffed in his pockets, his eyes following her angry movements.

"You just had to provoke him, didn't you?" she spat out as she crossed behind her desk and pulled out a pen.

"He was concealing guilt," he reminded her.

"Because he was snubbing the victim while he planned a surprise birthday party for her next week."

Jane shrugged. "Stressful things, birthday parties. I'm telling you, Lisbon, she found out he hired a stripper and they had a big fight about it. This was a crime of passion."

Lisbon rolled her eyes. "He was having the party at work - at the toy store. Her body was found across town in a public park. No obvious connections. You're looking for things that aren't there to fuel your own agenda. It's not getting closed today. And now I have to fill out these complaint forms." She dropped into her chair and pulled the top form closer. She started scribbling at it fiercely.

"Who has an adult party at a toy store? Definitely something fishy going on there."

Lisbon didn't look up from her writing. "Go home, Jane."

He turned, but surprised her by closing the door instead of going through it. He took one step towards her and looked at her longingly. "Can I come over tonight?"

Her pen paused and she looked up at him, her brow furrowed in confusion. "We have a case. I'm working."

"That won't take all night. I'll bring snacks, you pick the movie."

He stepped further into the room and her pen dropped, her confusion increasing at Jane's open expression. He looked vulnerable. "That's not how we operate." She said carefully. Her expression shifted. "Are you trying to manipulate me?" she accused. "We have rules for a reason, Jane. If this is going to interfere with your work performance -"

His eyes widened and he held out his palms to her, showing submission. "No. I just don't want to be alone tonight. I was hoping-"

Lisbon put her hands on her desk and stood up abruptly, leaning towards him menacingly. "If this is about a warm pair of arms, you could easily pick up any of the women at the sports bar-"

He came closer, maintaining his submissive gesture. "It's not. It's about spending time with someone I care about." He narrowed his eyes. "I thought I made it perfectly clear that I'm exclusive with you. And if I was looking for easy I would never have propositioned my boss." His lips quirked in a smile.

She straightened and crossed her arms, putting more space between them. "No, you like the challenge." She looked away uncomfortably.

Jane thought for a moment, his head cocked to the side. Then he nodded subtly. "You do challenge me," he conceded. "And you inspire me. You're great at your job, the whole team adores you. And," he smiled as she looked back to him. "You have a great a—".

The cupping motion he was making with his hands made Lisbon's eyes widen. She glanced at the closed door and she instinctively lowered her voice, interrupting him. "This is not the place to discuss that," she hissed.

He grinned at her. "So I'll see you later - in an hour?" He whirled away towards the door.

Lisbon closed her eyes briefly to maintain her composure. When she opened them again they held a flicker of compassion. "We're in the middle of a case," she repeated firmly. Jane turned back and frowned slightly. She added softly, "I know you were hoping for something different tonight-" Jane shook his head and looked like he was about to speak, but Lisbon raised her voice and powered through. "You've been off all day. If it's not about the case, and it's not about this," she gestured between them, "then what's going on?"

He pursed his lips and held her gaze. She could see the moment he closed himself off from her, his openness replaced with a cool hardness. He lifted one hand with his pointer finger outstretched and moved it in a circular motion, drawing attention to the room. "Nothing personal at the office," he said coldly.

"Jane," she protested, sounding just a bit whiny.

"We have rules for a reason," he echoed her words back to her. They maintained their stare for a few tense moments. "I'm going for a walk," he informed her. "I'll see you in the morning." And then he abruptly turned and strode away.

Lisbon dropped back into her chair and sighed heavily, holding her head in her hands. She eventually shook herself out of it and scowled at the form as she picked up the pen again.

X

Lisbon did not sleep well that night. She had gone looking for Jane, but couldn't find him. She was an independent woman and the fact she couldn't get him out of her head made her grumpy. Their arrangement was simple. They closed cases, then they indulged in some personal interaction.

Most times he would show up at her place with takeout, every once in awhile they met at the bar where it started.

But it was always about the sex.

Sometimes cases overlapped, or paperwork had to take precedence, but it seemed like those boundaries were failing more and more often. Lisbon had mixed feelings about that. She liked having sex with Jane, but she felt like she was losing control. She grasped at the rules she had imposed when things changed between them.

The first time had been innocent enough. She wanted a couple of drinks after a hard case. Jane knew it was unusual for her to go to a bar, so he had followed her inside. She wasn't sure why he'd been following her in the first place. Maybe his intentions really had been pure, but he had paid for a couple of rounds and they both got distracted passing the time with silly observations and small talk. They ended up drinking more than they should. The football game switched to a half time show on TV and Jane insisted that he wanted to dance. He held her close even though it was a marching band playing and there was no dance floor. That was when the details got a little hazy.

She couldn't quite remember who had initiated the first kiss, but she definitely remembered what happened after. Waking up with Jane in her bed was mortifying. As she laid there under the blankets, frozen with embarrassment, he had effortlessly made her laugh and charmed her into another round. They had the day off and he lingered. It was a good day.

Back at work a couple days later, she nervously waited for him to make an inappropriate comment and rat them out to the team. Instead, after a full day of business as usual, he graced her with a simple wink and a smile in her office before he left for the day.

She kept telling herself it was a one time thing. Over the next couple of weeks they never alluded to what had happened. But the next time they closed a case and the weekend loomed ahead of them, he showed up at her door. He looked at her with heat in his eyes and Lisbon couldn't think of a reason to turn him away.

Jane had complied surprisingly well with the rules she set up. It was important to her that they remain professional at work. No one could suspect they were together. They soon settled into a routine. It had been running smoothly this way for several months now.

But now all it took was one off day and his vulnerable eyes and she was confused as hell. She wasn't sure if she should be concerned as his boss or his… what? Lover? Girlfriend? They hadn't bothered with labels. She liked Jane. She enjoyed working with him and their intimacy in the bedroom was a glorious perk. But it was a tryst. An engagement of convenience. They didn't date, they didn't talk about anything deep. It worked for them. What was Jane doing, messing with the system?

Lisbon rolled into work later than she'd like, though still within the bounds of normal. She saw Jane's car in the lot and cursed her heart for it's traitorous lurch. She was not going to let her confusion about Patrick Jane disrupt her work day. They needed to talk things through, but it wasn't going to be while they were on the clock. She took some deep breaths and exited her car. She strode into the bullpen to check in with her team. Jane's couch was conspicuously empty. She walked past Rigsby and Van Pelt so she could turn her back on it to address them.

"Hey guys. Any developments with the case?" she asked with a plastered on smile.

They looked at each other before turning to her. "Uh, Jane said he would call you," offered Rigsby.

"He went over our notes from yesterday and he found a lead. It looked promising. Cho went out with him," explained Van Pelt. "They left twenty minutes ago."

Lisbon's face fell and she pinched the bridge of her nose as a headache suddenly came on.

"You okay, boss?" ventured Van Pelt. "It's just that Jane seems off recently."

"Yeah, almost like he's trying to distract himself from something. We figured it was better for him to be busy, rather than moping around here."

Lisbon froze and considered the date. He had implied there was a personal matter, but she had been distracted. There wasn't an obvious Red John connection, so probably something more obscure… anniversary or birthday? Something clicked. "Damn," she muttered. "Do you know where they are going?" she asked.

"All I have is a name," answered Van Pelt. She checked her computer. "Glenn Dorman. He's a bartender at Lucky Strike bowling alley. Our vic was part of a league there."

"Look up some addresses for me, I'm going to meet them." She started towards her office.

"What's up, boss? What's the concern?" asked Rigsby as Van Pelt started typing.

She whirled around and spoke as she walked. "For whatever reason, Jane really wanted to get this thing closed yesterday. If he thinks this is the guy he probably has some ill advised plan in place to entrap him. The more eyes on him, the better."

"You want me to come along?" Rigsby offered.

"Nah. Keep digging through the evidence, call me if there's anything else I should check out while I'm there."

In her office she quickly flipped through Jane's file. "Damn," she exclaimed again. She put the file back in it's proper place and grabbed a few things for the road. She tried to call Cho but it went to voice mail. Van Pelt supplied her with the addresses to check out, and Lisbon left. She was half an hour behind them. She knew Cho was driving, so she might have a chance to catch up.

X

A couple hours later she pulled up in front of the suspect's house. The neighborhood was quiet and there was no CBI-issued vehicle out front. She tried to call Cho for what felt like the millionth time, but he still didn't pick up. She approached the house and rang the doorbell. A woman answered the door.

"Can I help you?" she asked cautiously.

Lisbon flashed her badge. "CBI, ma'am, I'm looking for Glenn Dorman."

"Some other folks were just here looking for him. He's at work."

"At the bowling alley?"

"Yeah. Is my husband in some kind of trouble?"

"I really couldn't say. Thanks for your help."

"Sure," she replied, but Lisbon was already heading back to her vehicle. She checked the address and peeled out.

X

Lisbon found the bowling alley and parked crookedly by the main entrance. She stopped the engine and jumped out of the car. As she walked briskly toward the building, sunlight reflected off the door as it moved outward. She pulled her gun. She stopped and replaced it in relief as Cho calmly walked through the door towards her. He was leading a man in handcuffs.

Cho paused when he saw her and the man stopped without complaint, his eyes wandering away in disinterest. "Hey, Boss," said Cho.

Lisbon nodded, still catching her breath as the brief adrenaline rush faded. "Where's Jane?"

"Skee-ball."

Lisbon smiled briefly then straightened, all business. She indicated the suspect. "This Dorman?"

"Yeah. We asked him a few questions, then he punched Jane in the nose and tried to run. Taking him back to Sac."

Her mouth twitched. "Did Jane deserve it?"

Cho looked at Dorman, but the man continued to avoid his gaze. Cho turned back to Lisbon and nodded curtly.

"I'll grab Jane and follow you back."

"Okay," he acknowledged. "I'll call it in." He put his free hand into his pocket, then frowned and patted his other pockets. As if on cue, Jane appeared at the door and walked purposely towards Cho with his hand outstretched. Cho grabbed his phone from Jane's hand.

Jane pointed at it and then stuffed his hands in his pockets. "Boss has been trying to reach you," he said glibly.

"Next time check in with me before you take Jane to follow a lead," instructed Lisbon.

"Yes, boss. Won't happen again." He glared at Jane, then walked the suspect to the SUV and secured him in the backseat.

"Hey, Lisbon, what brings you out here?" Jane asked innocently.

"You okay?"

He touched the end of his nose lightly. "Never better. I told you this would be an easy one."

"That remains to be seen," she said evasively.

"Oh please, if this guy had been on our interview list yesterday, this case would already be wrapped up." He leaned forward. "Obvious."

She shrugged. "I don't see it."

"You will." He brushed past her and got into the passenger side of her car.

Lisbon sighed and looked over at Cho's SUV. Cho raised a hand in a brief wave. He was ready to go. Lisbon waved back and got into her car. Jane had slightly reclined his seat and was curled away from her, his eyes closed.

"Jane?" she asked, considering broaching their conflict. It was a long trip back.

"Tick tock, Lisbon," he mumbled, not moving from his position.

She pursed her lips and switched to a safer topic. "You took Cho's phone, you shut me out, Jane. This is my job."

"Cho had no problem handling this. He's a good agent."

"I'm not denying that, but it wasn't your call. We can't let our personal issues affect our work. That's what the rules are for."

"Would you have driven out here if we hadn't fought last night? Is this really the best use of your time?" He still hadn't opened his eyes, but he gestured to the now empty parking spot next to them. "Cho's getting ahead of you."

She sighed again and put the car into drive. Jane slept the whole way back to the office.

X

Back at the CBI, Van Pelt and Rigsby had compiled a complete file on Glenn Dorman. Cho ran him through processing, then stuck him in an interrogation room before coming out to check in with the team.

Cho flipped through the file, then looked at Jane. "What's the angle on this one?"

Jane rocked back on his heels. "Do you know what one of the the hottest toy crazes is right now?"

"No."

"Slime," he drew out every letter in the word with a flourish. "You can get it in all sorts of colors and consistencies, glitter, glow in the dark. You can even make your own. Sky's the limit."

"Okay." Cho glanced at the team and saw they were equally confused. "What's that got to do with our case?"

Jane grinned and spread his hands theatrically. "Everything. Let's go get a confession." He motioned for Cho to follow and walked off towards interrogation.

Cho looked to Lisbon. She thought for a moment, then nodded her assent. "Might as well see where's he's going with it. He's usually right," she conceded.

"He's been weird though lately, right?" asked Rigsby.

"Something about this makes sense to him. If it's a win, it's a step towards normal," Lisbon pointed out.

"What if it's not?" intoned Cho.

Lisbon sighed. "Then I take the fallout. You want this interview?"

Cho studied her briefly. "Yeah, I got this one."

The whole team walked together to the interrogation room. Jane was waiting impatiently and Cho pushed through the door, letting him follow. The others filed into the adjoining room to observe.

Ten minutes later Jane had outlined his theories and scored a confession. Cho stayed to finalize some details while Jane stood triumphantly and walked out. Rigsby and Van Pelt came out from observation to return to their desks.

"Impressive, man," Rigsby complimented him.

"You nailed him," added Van Pelt.

Jane nodded and waited for them to pass. Lisbon showed up next and he fell in beside her, his hand at the small of her back. "You put all that together from a few notes?" she asked.

He half shrugged, enjoying the praise. "I did tell you it would be an easy one."

They arrived at her office and Jane followed her in. "You closed it," she stated as she shut the door behind them. They stood awkwardly in the middle of her office. The blinds were down and they had a small amount of privacy.

Jane rubbed his thumb along the side of his finger and nodded. "It's closed," he echoed.

"I…" she started, then hesitated. She found her resolve and started again. "I went by your place last night."

"Oh?"

"I thought about waiting for you, but -" She deflated a little. "Is that really where you live, or did you give HR a fake address?"

He smiled weakly. "There's a reason we always go to your place, Lisbon."

She nodded and looked down at her feet. "I also figured out why you've been out of sorts lately."

"You've been busy," he murmured and looked away. He inhaled a sharp breath. "I've been doing better, but sometimes…"

Lisbon waited a minute, then asked softly. "How old would she have been?"

He blinked a few times and swallowed thickly. "Eleven."

Silence grew between them. Lisbon cleared her throat. "How often do you use me to forget?"

He looked up and was surprised to see tears in her eyes. He stepped towards her. "I don't-"

She moved away, staying out of his reach. "Because I'm fine with casual, I like our arrangement, but I don't think I could handle that, Jane. I'm not-"

"Lisbon. Teresa!" he cut through her ramblings. "You're not a distraction, or a replacement. It's never been casual for me. But I'm also not exactly looking to move on. I'm just.. I'm just trying to get through each day. And having you in my life… it helps. A lot. I really wasn't looking for our usual arrangement last night. I like spending time with you and I needed a friend. I tried to clear your schedule and fit into your rules. But it didn't work out."

Lisbon wiped at her eyes. "And I was stuck in boss mode."

He moved closer and she let him. "You're a great boss," he affirmed, reaching up to trace a single tear off her cheek.

"No, a good boss listens to her team. We all have triggers, and we all have bad days. I shouldn't have gotten defensive. It's just that you break so many rules on the job-"

"But I don't when it's important," he interrupted. "I know the boundaries are important to you, Teresa."

She tried a smile. "I know. I should have recognized the difference. I'm sorry."

"Forgiven," he stated, wrapping his arms around her. Her arms were trapped against his chest, but she breathed in his scent and relaxed against him.

"Did we just have our first fight?" she asked.

He chuckled. "We fight all the time," he pointed out.

She pulled back. "You know what I mean," she huffed. "When did this become a relationship?" she sounded slightly offended at the idea.

Jane smiled at her gently. "We're not sleeping together in a void, Teresa. We work together very closely. As much as you try to avoid it, one affects the other."

She kissed him. It was a chaste pressing of their mouths, but the fact it was in her office, with their coworkers on the other side of these walls… it took his breath away.

She pulled back and looked up at him, pleased that she knocked him off balance. "Come over tonight?"

He fought to recover. "I'd like that."

"Good. Now, I have some paperwork to do. Get me some coffee?"

He held her gaze. "A hot beverage is definitely in order," he agreed.

"Coffee, Jane. I want coffee. The good stuff."

His eyes twinkled. "Yes, ma'am." He leaned in. "A kiss for the road?"

She glared at him, but without much heat to it. "Don't push it." She suddenly looked earnest. "Jane… whenever I'm home, you're welcome there."

He rested his forehead against hers, his breathing suddenly loud and slightly ragged. "Thank you." He pulled back and they smiled shyly at each other. He couldn't resist swooping in for a quick kiss. Then he stepped back before things could get out of hand. "Coffee," he stated. She nodded. He turned towards the door and schooled his features. He tugged on his lapels, straightening his jacket. Then he shrugged himself into motion and strode out of her office.

He walked out to the bullpen and stopped, putting one hand on Rigsby's desk for attention. "I'm going on a coffee and pizza run. What does everyone want?"

Cho put his phone back on the receiver noisily. "It'll have to wait, we caught one." He stood up and went to inform Lisbon. Jane looked after him forlornly.

"It never stops," Rigsby muttered, quickly straightening the paperwork on his desk.

"You okay, Jane?" asked Van Pelt carefully.

Jane straightened and shrugged. "It's the job," he stated. "Let's get this started so we can go home tonight." He followed Cho.

Rigsby raised his eyebrows and shared a look with Van Pelt. "That almost sounded normal."

"He's back," she grinned.