Title: Small Steps Autor: Tracy Disclaimer: The characters in this story are not mine. The idea is mine, but the people in it belong to David E. Kelley. No harm was intended in using these characters. I am simply amusing myself and a handful of other people as well. Please don't sue me, because I can't afford it. Summary: This is just a little piece of fluff to pass the time. It is no where near the kind story of "Shattered Glass" was and should not be as long, either. But I am rambling....... This story starts long before The Practice ever aired. It's about how Lindsay came to work for Bobby and how their relationships, both professional and personal started. If I mess up some of the facts that were ever shown on the show, I'm very sorry. It's been a long time since I've seen the episodes from seasons one and two and my memory is not wonderful. Anyway, I hope you like it! _______________________________________________________ Bobby Donnell looked at the mountains of paperwork piled on his desk. "This is ridiculous" he muttered to himself. He had way too much work for any one person to handle. "Rebecca!" he yelled. Rebecca appeared in the doorway not two seconds later. She knew that when Bobby yelled for her like that, his frustration level was through the roof already. Far be it for her to add any additional irritation to her already very irritated boss. "Yes?" she asked sweetly. "How are we doing on qualified applicants for another associate? Eugene and I are starting to drown in paperwork." Bobby was desperate for another lawyer to take on some of the workload they'd had for the last six months. At first, he hadn't thought the work wouldn't last and that together, he and Eugene could handle it. But the cases were only multiplying and showed no sign of letting up. Something had to be done. "Well, we had a few calls, but nobody sounded too great. I've scheduled two interviews for you tomorrow. Hopefully, one of them will be acceptable." Rebecca didn't sound very hopeful. "Who are they? What are their backgrounds?" "Hang on." Said Rebecca as she went to get the applications off her desk. She came back with a handful of papers. "The first one is some guy named Fred Dettweiler. He's been clerking for a judge the last six months and has now decided he wants to be a defense attorney. He said, and I quote, 'might as well be where the money is'. He doesn't sound like a winner to me." "Great. And the second one?" "Better. A woman. Pretty young, I think. She graduated with honors from Harvard Law. Her name is...." Rebecca shuffled the papers in her hands, "...Lindsay Dole." "What's her experience?" "Not much." "Wonderful. Such fabulous choices. Meanwhile, we've got more work than we can handle." "Well, I checked around on these two a little. Dettweiler's not too impressive. Courthouse chatter says he's a pretty lousy clerk and got a pretty lousy attitude, too. I didn't come across anyone who had anything nice to say about him." Rebecca had a lengthy chain of friends in the court system. She could find out almost anything about almost anybody. "And the woman...what was her name?" Bobby was listening with half an ear while he looked for a file on his desk. "Lindsay Dole. Well, she's interesting. She's well liked and being courted by a couple of the larger firms in town. The DA's office would love to have her, too. She especially strong on Constitutional issues. She hasn't committed herself to anyone, yet. She's still checking out her options." "If she's got offers from some of the bigger firms, why is she looking here? We certainly don't qualify as a big, flashy firm. I doubt we could even pay her a much as they can." Rebecca smiled "Apparently, she's heard good things about you and Eugene. She told someone in the DA's office that she likes the idea of helping build a small firm up to a bigger firm. But you're right. We can't pay her anywhere near what those other guys are probably offering." "Well," said Bobby, locating his file "let's see if she's worth anything before we start trying to decide if we can afford her." _________________________________________________________ Lindsay Dole took a deep breath as she stood outside the door of the law offices of Donnell and Associates. "This interview should be a piece of cake compared to the others." She thought "At least there won't be seven people interviewing me like at Reese, Bernard, Matthews, Matthews and Chaney. This is just one guy. How bad can it be?" Interviews always made her nervous. So far she had three offers from some very impressive firms in Boston. But something told her to keep looking. Standing in the dingy hallway of the building that housed Bobby Donnell's firm, she doubted very much that this was it. With that thought in mind, she opened the door. "Hello. How can I help you?" Rebecca asked. "I'm Lindsay Dole. I have an interview with Mr. Donnell at two o'clock." "Oh hi! I'm Rebecca Washington, Bobby's, uh, Mr. Donnell's secretary. Have a seat. I'll tell him your here." "Thank you" Lindsay smiled. She liked Rebecca instinctively. She hoped she could say the same for Rebecca's boss. Rebecca came back from Bobby's office. "He's with a client. Could I get you some coffee or a soda or something?" "No, that's okay, thanks." Answered Lindsay. "Okay. He should be done soon." "No problem." Replied Lindsay. As Rebecca went back to her desk and began to work, Lindsay surveyed the office around her. Musty, gray walls, with cracks and some seriously old flooring was not the mental picture Lindsay had in mind when she heard about this firm. Courthouse rumor said that Bobby Donnell and Eugene Young were two of the best attorneys in town. She had pictured a small office space in an older, quaint building. She had not expected the office to look like a condemned building. She wondered where Bobby Donnell was putting his money if he was such a good lawyer. "It's not much to look at, I know," said a voice, startling her out of her thoughts. Lindsay looked up into the most amazing blue eyes she had ever seen. She smiled and said "You must be Mr. Donnell." "Nope," answered the man "Well, technically yes, but only to teenage clients and angry judges. You can call me Bobby. Most everybody does." Lindsay extended her hand. "It's nice to meet you." Bobby shook her hand and said "Let's go into my office." As Lindsay followed Bobby Donnell into his office, she could not help but notice that Rebecca Washington had a small smile on her face. "I wonder what that's about?" she thought. "Good luck." Rebecca said, her smile growing wider. Lindsay smiled back and went into her interview. _________________________________________________________ "Well, now, Ms. Dole, my first question is a pretty easy one. Why are you here?" "Please call me Lindsay." "Okay. Lindsay, why are you here?" Lindsay considered the question for a second and then gave Bobby a totally honest answer. "Because I hear you're one of the best. And I'm really only interested in working for the best." Bobby was inwardly pleased, but did not show it. "Okay. I see you graduated from Harvard Law. Very nice. I also hear two of the top firms are interested in you. Is that true?" "Not exactly." Lindsay was embarrassed. "It's actually three now. I received another offer this morning." "So why don't you accept one of the three offers?" "I'm not sure. I think I'm waiting to see how I feel after all the offers are in." "Well, I can't offer you what those big firms can. But I can offer you some things that they can't. You'll be trying cases almost instantly, which will not happen in those other firms for a few years. We're small, but good. We have a great support system, which you may find missing in the larger firms. We fight for the underdog here. It's not always about the money, but rather it's about making a difference. You definitely won't find that in the big firms. You'll be treated with respect, instantly on par with me and Eugene. We don't play favorites among lawyers here and seniority is a non issue. If you do your job, you'll be fine. And you can bring in your own clients, which I know is not allowed at those bigger practices. If money is an issue for you, however, then this is not the place for you to be. I can't give you what they can, and a lot of our work is pro bono. But, if you became a lawyer to fight for justice and truth, then this is the place to be." "Okay." said Lindsay, unsure of how she should respond. Bobby stood up and extended his hand to her. Lindsay stood up, too and shook his hand firmly, thinking that this was the strangest interview she'd ever been on. "So, Rebecca will give you the salary scale on your way out. You can call me when you've made your decision." "Don't you want to ask me any more questions? I mean you did most of the talking." Lindsay was totally bewildered. "No, I don't have any more questions. I've done some checking on you. You're a good rookie prospect with an excellent background. I'm sure you'll do fine where ever you choose." Bobby ushered her out of his office. "I just hope you'll consider us a one of your choices." "Well, I'll let you know." Said Lindsay as Rebecca handed her some papers. "Thank you for your time." "Thank you." Said Bobby as he watched her close the door and go toward the stairs. "You offered her the job?" asked Rebecca. "Yeah. I think she'd do great." "And you think she's cute, too." "Yeah.....NO! I mean.....Was she pretty? I didn't really notice." Bobby was looking at the floor. He never could look at Rebecca when he lied. "Yes, she was pretty." Answered Rebecca, letting him off the hook. But then she said "You do know that if she does come to work here, it's going to be a matter of look but don't touch. Rule number one: No sleeping with clients or coworkers." Bobby decided to tell the truth to his friend. "That's why I half hope she turns the offer down. Then maybe I could do more than look." Rebecca smacked him on the arm. "I thought you didn't notice how pretty she was. You are so hopeless, Bobby Donnell. What about that Krista woman you were seeing?" "Over. She wanted to get serious. She was starting to talk about the suburbs and babies. Sorry, but I'm not interested in any of that." Quickly, he changed the subject before Rebecca smacked him again. "Have you seen the Chisholm file?" And with that, the matter of Lindsay Dole was all but forgotten. _________________________________________________________ Lindsay stood on the street, trying to decide whether to go home or to go visit a friend. She was still confused about the "interview" she'd just been in. "What was that?" she asked herself. She'd never been in such a weird interview. But on the other hand, something about working for Bobby Donnell appealed to her. And those eyes........... "Snap out of it, Lindsay." She said out loud to herself. "Bobby Donnell's eyes have nothing to do with who you end up working for." But in her heart she knew those eyes had earned the firm of Donnell and Associates more consideration than she otherwise would have given it. __________________________________________________________________________ Okay, part 2 coming soon. It's a bit different than my last story, kind of a lighter tone, so I'm curious what you think. Email me with comments or feedback at only1misstracy@cs.com or you can leave me a message on the message board. Thanks a million! Part 2 "Small Steps"....___________________________________________________ "Bobby Donnell? You went to see Bobby Donnell?" Helen Gamble looked at her friend in total amazement. "Yeah. What's wrong with that?" Lindsay asked, sitting across from Helen in the courthouse cafeteria. "Lindsay, you know what kind of people Donnell and Associates defend, don't you? I mean, we are talking about some very shady people, here." "Hey, lawyers like those guys with clients like that are every bit as important as any other kind of lawyer with any other kind of client. Besides, I heard it was a good firm and I wanted to check it out for myself." "They are pretty good, Linds, but no where near some of those big powerhouses who have called with job offers. You always said you wanted to work in a big, prestigious firm and have client lunches and a secretary." "I was kidding when I said that." Lindsay countered. "No, you weren't." "OK, half kidding. But the thing is, Helen, I thought I did want those things. Until I started to think about why I wanted to be a lawyer in the first place. The system of justice is incredible. I want to be an active part of that system. I don't want to do the scut work of some fat old partner in a big name firm. I want to do my own work on my own cases. I want to fight for the innocent and protect the rights of everyone, even the guilty. I know it sounds preachy, Helen, but I want to make a difference. I don't see that happening if I work for the bigger firms." "Oh, my God." said Helen, sounding stunned. "I've heard of it but I've never actually witnessed it until now." "What?" asked Lindsay "The Bobby Donnell curse" "Excuse me? The what?" "The Bobby Donnell curse. It's the stuff courthouse rumors are built on." "Helen, what are you talking about?" "Rumor has it that when Bobby Donnell aims those beautiful blue eyes at a woman, she loses all of her common sense. It's been said that he prefers to try his cases in front of women judges and largely female juries. I see the curse has settled upon you." "Shut up, Helen. I didn't even notice the color of his eyes" Lindsay lied. "Lindsay, I know you better than that." Helen smiled. " Are you going to take his offer?" "I think so. Something about it just feels right. Something about those other firms felt wrong." "I bet your hoping Bobby Donnell himself feels right, too." Helen teased. "HELEN!!" Lindsay threw her napkin across the table, hiding the fact that Helen was exactly correct. ______________________________________________________________________ "Lindsay Dole on line one for you, Bobby" Rebecca held the phone out as Bobby walked by. He took it from her and tried to ignore the grin on her face. "This is Bobby......Oh yes, Lindsay. How are you? Uh-huh.... Uh-huh. Okay. Great. Monday, then. Good-bye." He hung up and looked at Rebecca. We're going to need another desk, chair, phone and whatever else you think she'll need. And let's flag some cases for her to work on. Nothing too high priority, but important enough to make her feel like she made a good choice." He stopped and looked at his secretary. "What are you smiling at?" "Nothing." Answered Rebecca, secretly thinking of the legendary Bobby Donnell curse. She wondered if Bobby would be able to stick to the "no sleeping with co- workers rule". Moreover, she wondered if Lindsay Dole would. Rebecca and Bobby had always just been friends, but she knew that most women fell for those big blue eyes like they'd been hit by an eighteen wheeler. "She starts Monday." Said Bobby. "Who starts Monday?" questioned Eugene Young as he walked through the door. "Lindsay Dole, our new associate." Bobby replied. Eugene looked at Rebecca and asked "Young and cute?" "Very." She answered. "Her being cute has nothing to do with me hiring her. She's got a good background. Honors from Harvard Law, for crying out loud. All the big firms wanted her, but we got her." Bobby was a little sensitive to the teasing because inside, he knew that Lindsay being cute WAS at least PART of the reason he had hired her. "So let me get this straight. She's smart, good and had better offers from better firms, but she's coming to work here. Is that right?" Eugene wanted to know. "Yes" Bobby answered. "Then she must have thought you were cute, too." Eugene chuckled, heading towards his desk. Rebecca laughed as well, as Bobby shook his head and went back to his office. ____________________________________________________________________ Part 3 of "Small Steps"........................................................................ ............ Lindsay could feel the little hairs on the back of her neck stand up on end as she sat at her desk. She was going over a particularly gruesome crime scene description of a very blood murder, but that was not what was giving her chills. She could feel somebody watching her. Eugene had a particularly creepy client in the conference room who made Lindsay shudder whenever she saw him. She always felt uneasy when he was around. And now she could feel him looking at the back of her head. At first, she thought she could ignore it. But as she became increasingly freaked out she knew what she had to do. She would have to look him in the eye. Her father had always said the way to conquer fear was to face it head on, stare it down and beat it. Lindsay had used that strategy many times in her life, and found it to be true. Although, she had to admit that sometimes staring murderers in the eye was unnerving to say the least. She swiveled her chair around to catch Eugene's client looking at her. "Bobby!" cried Lindsay, surprised to find herself eye to eye with her boss. "What.....what....." Lindsay sputtered. "I was just coming to ask you if you had the Myers file." "Oh. Um...yeah, it's right here." Lindsay handed him the file. "Thanks. Are you having any luck with the Kaufman case?" "Nope. Judge threw out my motion to suppress. We go to trial Wednesday and I've got no defense strategy at all. It would help if I didn't know he was guilty, but I do. So that means I'm stuck with what I know, a DA who won't deal and a client who doesn't feel one bit sorry for killing his girlfriend. I would not call any of those things luck." "Neither would I" Bobby smiled and Lindsay could feel her heart melt into her shoes. "Listen, I had dinner plans tonight, but they got canceled. I'd be happy to help you out if you want to stay late. Maybe together we could come up with a winning strategy for you." Lindsay swallowed and felt her heart beat faster. "That would be great, Bobby. I could use the help." "Ok. I have a deposition at four o'clock, but I'll meet you here after." "Ok." Lindsay answered, as he walked back into his office and shut the door. "Lindsay, what the hell are you thinking?" she asked herself furiously. "This is a bad idea. You should NOT accept an offer to work late with a man you have a gigantic crush on. Being alone with him might mean you'll do something stupid.......like try to kiss him. You should tell him you've changed your mind." Lindsay stood up to go tell him exactly that when she remembered something. Bobby had been staring at her. "What does that mean?" she wondered. She'd thought she'd caught him at it before, but always figured it was wishful thinking on her part. After all, what woman wouldn't want Bobby staring at her with those eyes.......But now she was sure he was looking at her, and she wondered if all her wishful thinking was coming true. She sat back down, deciding that maybe working late with Bobby was not such a bad idea after all. _______________________________________________________ Bobby closed his office door behind him and crossed over to his desk. He picked up the phone and dialed. One ring....two...three... Bobby grew impatient. "C'mon" he growled into the phone. "Hello?" said a female's voice from the other end of the line. "Hi, Gina, it's Bobby." "Hey, Good Lookin' " purred the voice "What's up?" "I'm sorry. I'm going to have to cancel our date tonight. I've got a new case, and I've got to work late." Bobby lied to the woman without one ounce of guilt. "Okay, Sugar. As long as we're still on for Friday night." "Of course. Thanks for understanding." "No problem." "Bye." Bobby set the phone back in it's cradle and looked out the window. "Why did I do that?" he wondered out loud, although he secretly knew why. He wanted to work late with Lindsay, to be close to her. He liked her, and part of him was kicking himself for it. "She's my employee for pete's sake" he thought, but that didn't stop the way he felt when she was around. And he knew that as much as he wanted to kiss Lindsay he shouldn't. She was so pretty. And she was so passionate about her work. He wanted to experience some of that passion for himself. But he knew that couldn't happen. So why did he offer to work late with her tonight? "Because you are secretly hoping she feels the same way about you." He said to himself. And while he knew he could not make the first move because he was her boss, he hoped that Lindsay would. He shook his head and groaned inwardly. Why did the one woman he could picture having a serious relationship with have to be someone who worked for him? He put his head in his hands and thought "Relax, Bobby. For all you know, she might not feel the same way about you as you do about her." And with that, he started to gather his files for his deposition. _______________________________________________________ Ok, it's turning out to be longer than I thought. Feedback is welcomed, as always. Thanks for reading. Part 4 is coming soon. "Small Steps" part 4_______________________________________ Bobby looked at Lindsay from across his desk. She was sitting on the couch, focusing intently on the file in her lap. She tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear as she made a note in the margin. "God, she's beautiful." he thought, and then mentally kicked himself. He knew he should be out on a date with Gina, instead of in a late night work session with his attractive co-worker. Gina was a safe date. No strings, no expectations, no complications. And no affection. Not like what he felt for this woman sitting in front of him. Where it came from, he wasn't sure. Admittedly, he had thought she was pretty when he hired her, but now, three months later, that original attraction had only grown stronger. He was becoming increasingly aware of the smell of her perfume in the air and the scent of her shampoo whenever he read over her shoulder. His day always went better when he was on the receiving end of one of her dazzling smiles. He liked to be the first one in the office so he could be there when she got to work and he very rarely left before she did. She occupied a good portion of his thoughts and daydreams throughout the day, and even entered his dreams at night. "This is getting dangerous" he thought as he squirmed in his chair. "If you don't cool it, Donnell, she's gonna be on to you." Just then, Lindsay looked up and met his eyes. He held her gaze for a moment and then asked "Find something?" "Um, yeah. I think so, actually. Remember how the police found the murder weapon in the pocket of a jacket hanging in the coat closet?" Bobby nodded, so Lindsay went on. "Well, I'm looking at a copy of the search warrant and I think I may have found a way to get the knife suppressed." "How?" "The warrant was a look-see warrant only. The police were only authorized to look at things out in the open, such as kitchen knives on the counter, desktop paperwork, that kind of thing. They were not authorized to actually SEARCH anything. Therefore, the knife should be out." "But a witness saw Kaufman wearing the jacket when he stabbed his girlfriend, right?" "True. But the warrant did not say they were looking for the jacket. They supposed to be looking out in plain view for any obvious evidence. Searching jacket pockets in closets is a far cry from plain view." "Well, congratulations Ms. Dole. I think you may just have found the legal loophole you need to put your client back out on the street." "Don't party yet, Bobby. I've still got to win the motion. Although, I won't be sorry if defending Jeff Kaufman isn't my first jury trial." "Well, let's get to work on your motion, then," said Bobby, walking to where she was sitting. "Shove over." Lindsay moved over and dumped a pile of papers on to the floor to make room for Bobby. She could hear her heart beating so loudly that for a second she almost wondered of Bobby could hear it too. She handed him a copy of the warrant. And then it happened. As Bobby reached to take the paper from Lindsay, he brushed her hand with his. Lindsay felt all the nerves in her arm tingle wildly from his touch as she pulled her hand away. She didn't dare meet his eyes, for fear of exposing her true feelings. She looked down quickly at her lap, attempting to appear busy. Just then she felt Bobby's fingers under her chin, tipping it up so she was forced to look at him. And when her eyes locked with his, Lindsay swore she could actually feel her heart stop beating. "Bobby......." she whispered, at a loss to say anything else. She saw something in his eyes that made her know what was about to happen. And while she knew it was probably not the wisest choice logically, she also knew she was powerless to stop it. Powerless, because she wanted it so much. She knew Bobby Donnell was about to kiss her. But she could also see the question marks in his eyes, along with a desire that matched her own. She could see that he would not kiss her until he knew she wanted him to. And she did want him to, more than she had ever wanted anything in her entire life. She raised her hand and touched his face, stroking his cheek with the back of her hand. He closed his eyes at her touch. "Lindsay, are you sure?" he asked, opening his eyes and hoping she would say that she was. "Yes......I'm sure." "It could change things." "I know." But she didn't care. All she cared about was what was about to happen between them, right then and there. She closed her eyes, as he leaned towards her. It was like a million little explosions through her entire body. She had never experienced anything like it. Every nerve was on fire, goosebumps raced up and down her body, everything tingled inside her. She deepened the kiss by wrapping her arms around his neck and pulling him closer to her. Bobby responded eagerly. His hands were entwined in her hair now, completely lost in the feeling of her body so close to his, her lips on his lips. Shivers ran up and down his back and fireworks went off in his heart. Everything came alive inside of him. Slowly, slowly, Lindsay pulled back, not really wanting it to end. Bobby looked at her, his eyes dancing with an emotion he could not name. He tucked a fly away strand of hair behind her ear for her and smiled. She smiled back, somehow being vaguely aware that this was a defining life moment for her. She could not explain why, but she knew that her life would never be the same now. "So, what now, Counselor?" asked Bobby. "That would be the million dollar question." she answered as he moved in for another kiss. _______________________________________________________ Hee-hee. This is fun. Part 5 is on the way. Feedback is adored as usual. Thanks for reading! Small Steps Part 5...................................................................... Lindsay lay in bed that night, alone. She stared at the ceiling while rerunning that first kiss in her head over and over again. It had been more intense than she had ever dreamed and she wondered if that was because Bobby has also been fighting the attraction for so long. When he kissed her, all sense of right and wrong went out the proverbial window. She did not care at that moment that he was her boss, or what the others in the firm would think. She did not stop to consider some of the ramifications that might come from beginning a personal relationship with him. All she knew was that he had been kissing her and that it had been the sweetest, most passionate, most amazing kiss in her entire life. It was, in a word, incredible. Things had grown more heated as they continued kissing. Bobby's hands roamed over her body, trailing over her face, neck and back. Lindsay had responded equally, running her hands through his hair and down his back. He began to kiss her jaw line and nibble on her ear as she quickly discarded his tie. And then he had stopped. Lindsay sighed as she now lay in bed. He'd pulled back and said the words she knew were true but had not wanted to hear. "We can't do this." She'd nodded slowly as they straightened back to sitting positions on the couch. She knew, of course, that he was right. But that didn't mean she wanted to stop. "Okay." She'd said, as she fixed the buttons on her blouse. "Lindsay......" "Look, Bobby, it's late, you know? We're both tired and overworked. What just happened was......poor judgment, that's all. It doesn't have to be a big deal. We'll just pretend it never happened." She sounded logical, but inside she felt like her heart was dying. "Can you do that?" He asked, avoiding her eyes. "Sure. I mean, it was just a mistake." Lindsay thought she might choke on her own words. "Nobody has to know." "Okay." Bobby answered as Lindsay began to collect her files. She made herself very busy in an effort not to look at him. She was sure that if she caught sight of his beautiful eyes, she would burst out crying. And she knew he was watching her, trying to see if everything really was okay. She closed her briefcase and stood to leave. She forced herself to look at him and smile. "See you, tomorrow." She managed to say as she opened the door. "Lindsay, I........" Bobby searched for something to say. "I'm sorry." Lindsay looked at him for a second and then walked out the door. And as she lay in bed, just a short while later she contemplated exactly what he was sorry for. Was he sorry he'd kissed her? Or was he just sorry that they had stopped? Maybe he was sorry he was attracted to her. Or was he even attracted to her? She didn't really know that for sure, either. All she knew was that the one thing she wanted so desperately was the one thing that now seemed farther away than ever. She began to cry as she recognized a truth she'd denied for the last three months. She was falling in love with Bobby Donnell. _________________________________________________________ Halfway across town, Bobby sat with his chin in his hand, trying to get a handle on what had just happened between he and Lindsay. "I cannot believe you did that, Donnell. What were you thinking?" He asked himself. It was a huge mistake to begin a personal relationship with a coworker, an even bigger mistake to start one with someone who works FOR you. But she'd looked so beautiful sitting next to him on that couch that his rational side shut down. He'd wanted nothing more than to kiss her and when he saw the acceptance on her face and heard her saying it was okay, he couldn't help himself. It had certainly been the most true passion Bobby had felt in a long time. There had been other women, he was a far cry from celibate, but the fire behind this kiss with Lindsay had been unexpected. He had found in her lips a surprising passion, mixed with beauty and desire. But it was more than just desire and lust. It felt right. Like this was the woman he was supposed to be kissing. He had never experienced anything like it before. It was like finding home. Kissing Lindsay had brought a fulfillment and a peace he had never known before. But out of nowhere, fear took over, and he'd pulled away. He groaned and closed his eyes as he thought about it now, just a few hours later. He'd wanted Lindsay so badly, but was afraid of what a relationship with her might involve. Bobby had never been good at relationships and he had suddenly realized that's where he and Lindsay were heading. And he was afraid that with his penchant for ruining perfectly good relationships, he'd eventually push her away. He didn't want to do that to her. He valued her too much as a friend for that, respected her too much as a person. So he'd stopped. He let her believe it was because of their working relationship because it was the easy way out. He'd felt stabs of pain in his heart when he saw the hurt look in her clouded eyes, but he truly believed it was the best thing. "It would never work out." He thought, trying to convince himself, while avoiding the truth that was glaring him in the face. He was falling in love with Lindsay Dole. Well, well, this is going on longer than I thought it would. Hope you are enjoying it. Feedback, as always, is appreciated. Thanks for reading! Part 6 And now on with the show.......................................................................... ..... Lindsay stepped into the office the next morning with new resolve. She had decided as she drifted off to sleep the night before that she was not going to give the kiss she had shared with Bobby another thought. Admittedly, it was the best damn kiss she had ever experienced, but Bobby was not interested in having anything with her other than a professional working relationship. He'd made that very clear when he'd pulled away. She had talked herself into believing that she could go on as if it never happened. "How hard could it be?" she asked herself. "Good Morning, Lindsay." Lindsay looked up and realized exactly how hard it would be. "Good Morning." She responded, swallowing what she thought might be her heart in her throat. "How are you?" "Good. How's that motion to suppress the knife coming along?" "Good. I worked on it some last night." "When I couldn't sleep." She added silently to herself, not wanting him to know the effect their passionate encounter had had on her. "I filed it with the clerk on my way in." She desperately hoped he would go back into his office and stay there the rest of the day. Looking him in the eye was a bit more difficult than she had expected. "Good. Look, um......" Bobby shifted uncomfortably and lowered his voice a little "....do we need to talk?" "No. Everything's fine." Lindsay looked over at Rebecca's desk and saw Rebecca looking in their direction. She lowered her voice, too, and said "And I don't think we should be discussing anything out here. If we don't want this to get out, we shouldn't bring it up at all." "In my office." Bobby said, loudly and pointedly, a subtle reminder to Rebecca to stop eavesdropping. Lindsay stood and followed Bobby into his office. She dreaded the conversation they were about to have almost as much as she had dreaded coming in to work. Bobby closed the door behind them and said "Have a seat." Lindsay pulled up a chair, specifically avoiding the couch. Bobby perched on the corner of his desk. "Are we going to have horribly stilted conversations like the one we just had every day because of what happened last night? Because I never meant to create a problem." Lindsay stared at Bobby unbelievingly. "You didn't think kissing me the way you did and then telling me 'Never mind' was going to create a problem?" She shook her head. "Unbelievable, Bobby." "If I remember correctly, you were equally involved in the kissing. I don't remember you objecting to it." "Spoken like a true lawyer." Lindsay was angry now. "I am not one of your little flavors of the week. What happened last night should not have happened and maybe we are both equally to blame. But I am not the kind of woman who can just act like it didn't happen." "Last night you said you could." "Last night I was so humiliated I would have said anything to get out of your office with any dignity intact." "Humiliated?" Bobby's anger matched Lindsay's now. "Kissing me is humiliating?" "That's not what I said." "That is what you meant." "No! What I meant, Bobby, was that I wanted that kiss to happen, maybe even more than you did. But I would never, EVER, have kissed you if I had known that two minutes later you'd be blowing me off." "I did NOT blow you off!" "Then explain to me why I feel so rejected." "I said I was sorry last night. We agreed it was a mistake." "It was a mistake. And we can't take it back now. But don't expect everything to be the same as it was before, Bobby. You said yourself it could change things. Well, it did. So don't expect me to waltz in to work every morning acting like we didn't share something special." She paused, realizing she was saying more than she intended. But she went on. "And I dare you to sit there and look me in the eye and tell me that it wasn't special, Bobby. Because you felt it, just as much as I did." "Lindsay....." Bobby hesitated, then continued. "I'm sorry you feel rejected. And I'm sorry if I've caused you to feel uncomfortable in any way. But I think you are reading too much into what happened between us. It was a mistake, made by two tired people, working in close quarters. That's all. It didn't mean anything." Lindsay stood, unsure her legs would hold her up. "Speak for yourself, Bobby Donnell." She threw the door to Bobby's office open and stormed out. She grabbed her coat, purse, and car keys off her desk. Ignoring the curious stares from Rebecca, she pulled the door to the office open and stalked out, slamming it as she left. _______________________________________________________ Part 7 should be posted tomorrow, unless aliens abduct me between now and then. It will most likely be about Bobby's feelings the day after their encounter. Feedback and suggestions are adored as always. Thanks for reading! ~Tracy Part 7 of "Small Steps"........................................................................ ............ Bobby watched as Lindsay slammed the office door behind her. He'd had no idea she would react this way. "Oh, c'mon" he thought to himself. "You should have known. You knew it was a bad idea when you kissed her and you went ahead and did it anyway. What did you expect her to do? Pretend it never happened?" But the truth was, that was exactly what he wanted her to do. They could NOT have a personal relationship. The thought of it was ridiculous. He was her boss, for crying out loud. But he'd wanted so much to kiss her that he'd gone ahead and done exactly that. And now, the day after he'd stopped what would have undoubtedly become more than kissing, he was trying to put everything back in place. He was trying to be calm and rational and adult. It was just some kissing. It happened between people all the time. It did not have to mean as much as Lindsay was making out of it. It was a mistake. "Wasn't it?" he wondered out loud, for something Lindsay said had struck a nerve. He stared blankly out the window as her words echoed in his ears. "So don't expect me to waltz into work every morning acting like we didn't share something special. And I dare you to look me in the eye and tell me that it wasn't special, Bobby. Because you felt it, just as much as I did." He had felt something special. He'd denied it to himself until he saw her sitting at her desk that morning. He'd felt his heart begin to race just looking at her. It had been the most amazing and passionate kissing he had ever experienced. But that still did not negate the fact that they had made a mistake, shown poor judgment. But now she felt humiliated and rejected, not at all what he had intended. "Imagine how she would have felt if you'd actually gone any further." He thought, envisioning the wrath she would have wrought if they had actually slept together. Because an actual relationship was out of the question, whether they'd had sex or not. "Whatever you did, go apologize." Said a voice from the doorway. Bobby looked up to see Eugene standing at his door. "Excuse me?" "Whatever you did to Lindsay, go find her and apologize." "What makes you think I did anything?" Bobby was defensive. "Whenever I see women crying in the lobby of this building I know it's one of two things. Either they just finished meeting with the marital counselor upstairs, or you gave them some bad news. Since Lindsay's not married, it had to be you." Eugene looked at his friend and boss. "And I don't want to know what you said or did, either. Just apologize, okay? Because she's good, and we need her here." Bobby stared at Eugene. "Did she say she was quitting?" He couldn't imagine coming to work every day without seeing Lindsay. "She was muttering something about there being plenty other law firms in town. Then she asked me to tell my 'jerk boss', her words, not mine, that she would be out the rest of today and tomorrow, too." "Great." Said Bobby under her breath. "Did she happen to mention where she was going?" "Nope. But you better look hard, my friend. Because whatever you did, you screwed up bad and you need to fix it." And with that, Eugene turned on his heel and left Bobby alone with his thoughts. "Crap." Whispered Bobby. This was just perfect. He needed to find her, although he wasn't sure what he would say when he did see her. He'd apologized before. That had only seemed to make her angrier. What could he do to make her feel better without backing down from his position that the whole thing was a mistake? And that it should not happen again? He strode out of his office and past Rebecca's desk. "I'll be back later." She started to ask him what was going on, but then thought better of it and merely nodded. Bobby climbed into his car and started the engine. "Where would she go?" He asked himself as he backed out of the parking space. He sped toward her apartment, all the while trying to reach her on her cel phone. "Come on, Lindsay. Answer the phone." Then realizing she would never pick it up when she saw it was his number calling, he threw his phone down in disgust. It seemed every traffic light on the way to Lindsay's was red. As impatient as he was to find her and set things right, he still was not sure what he would say when he saw her. He was desperately sorry he'd upset her, but he wasn't sure exactly just what she was upset about. They'd both agreed that kissing had been a mistake, and that it should never have happened. Bobby almost hit the car stopped in front of him when he remembered something else she had said. The thing he was now sure had made her the angriest. "I am not one of your little flavors of the week." "Oh, God." He sighed out loud. ".....I wanted that kiss to happen......I would never, EVER, have kissed you if I had known that two minutes later you would be blowing me off." He now knew with certainty that Lindsay had wanted more out of their attraction than he could give her. And he knew that above all, her problem was that she now felt humiliated for letting her feelings show, for feeling something he did not feel in return. She felt stupid and embarrassed and humiliated. He had to find her. He had to explain that them not having a relationship had more to do with him than her. If there was a woman in this world Bobby could envision having a serious relationship with, it would be Lindsay. But Bobby was bad at relationships, and he wasn't about to screw up his friendship with her trying something he knew would ultimately fail. "If your friendship with her isn't already screwed up beyond fixing." He groaned out loud as he stepped on the gas to go find her. _______________________________________________________ Part 8 should be up soon. Feedback, suggestion & comments are warmly welcomed as usual. Thanks for reading! Part 8____________________________________________________ Bobby impatiently rang the buzzer in the lobby of Lindsay's building. He pressed the button over and over again without success. "Think, Donnell. Where else could she be?" He muttered under his breath. He flipped open his phone and called Rebecca. "Bec, hi. Listen, do you happen to have any phone numbers for Lindsay that I don't know about? Like maybe her parents or an emergency contact of some kind?" He listened to her response on the other end of the phone. "We don't get emergency contact numbers from our new hires? We should, with all the psychos in this business. Okay, so no other number. She didn't happen to check in, did she?.....No. Okay, thanks." He hung up, still standing in the empty lobby staring at the label next to the buzzer. "DOLE" it said, in all caps. "Smart girl, Lindsay." He thought absently. "Never put your first name on a doorbell. People will either know you live alone, or use your first name to try to make it seem like they know you so you'll let them in. And with what we do for a living, you never know what freaks are trying to find you." Then he had to laugh at himself. "Kind of like THIS FREAK who is trying to find you. But where the hell could you be?" Just then a woman holding a baby, a diaper bag and a dog on a leash came out of the building. With an ulterior motive, Bobby held the door for her after she pushed it open. "Oh, thank you!" she said as she hurried past him. He smiled and watched her round the corner, then quickly walked into Lindsay's apartment building. He found her apartment easily, knocked on the door and waited. He didn't hear anything, but something told him she was in there. He knocked again and this time got an answer. "Who is it?" "Lindsay, it's Bobby. Please open the door." "I don't think so." But her the fight in her voice was gone. "Lindsay, please. We need to talk about this." "I think you've said enough." "I said stupid things. Please? I need to explain myself better." He was rewarded with the sound of the lock turning. He was shocked to see her face. Her eyes were red and swollen from crying. Her cheeks were tear stained and she was a ghostly shade of pale. He wondered at that instant if he really could make this better. "So talk." she said, behind clouded eyes. "Can I come in?" He was half pleading with her. She opened the door the rest of the way and he entered her apartment. "Before you say anything, I want you to have this." She handed him a sheet of paper. He scanned it quickly and looked up at her, dread filling his chest. "Your letter of resignation?" "Yes." "Lindsay......." "Look Bobby, between last night and this morning I said and did some things which I feel cannot be overlooked by you or me. I don't think I should work for you anymore. I mean, I kissed you for pete's sake. And who know where it would have gone if you hadn't put a stop to it. And then this morning, I was a complete idiot, yelling at you like that and storming out of the office. I can't explain what my problem is, I just know that I have one. And I think it would be better if I didn't work for you anymore." "Lindsay, slow down." "I'm sorry, but nothing you say will change my mind. This is how it has to be." "I don't accept that." "Pardon me?" "I don't accept that we can't fix this and, as your boss, I refuse to accept your resignation." Bobby ripped the letter in half, and then half again. "I think we can set things right. Just hear me out." Lindsay was torn. She could not imagine working for anybody but Donnell and Associates, but she could not fathom working for Bobby anymore, either. "I'm listening." She said, guardedly. He smiled, knowing getting her to listen was half the battle. " First of all, you did not kiss me. We kissed each other. And while I still think it was a mistake, I won't deny that it was an incredible experience." Lindsay ducked her head, but not before Bobby saw her cheeks flush and a small smile cross her face. "However, we do work together and I think we both know that means this cannot go anywhere." "Would you want it to go further if we didn't work together?" Lindsay hesitated before asking him such a loaded question, but her curiosity won over and she had to know what his answer would be. Bobby thought his answer through carefully before he said it. "No, but not because I'm not interested in you. It would be because I like you, Lindsay and I'm bad at relationships." "Come again?" Lindsay was confused. "I screw up in relationships. I can't conduct myself the way I'm supposed to. I'm a lousy boyfriend. I like you and value you too much to ever be that way to you. But that's my history, and I am afraid that I would hurt you. And if we are arguing like this over what happened last night, imagine how it would be if we were actually involved. It would be disastrous. I don't want any relationship I have with you to be disastrous." Lindsay considered what he was saying. "Then, last night wasn't totally meaningless to you?" "No, but I don't think it should mean too much, either. Regardless of the attraction we feel for one another, it was a mistake. I can live with it. What I can't live with is you quitting. The firm needs you and I need you. Just not in the way I think you might like." "Well, you certainly have a high opinion of yourself." She teased gently, but then became serious. "I guess it's a bit of a school girl crush. I'm sure it will go away with time. I'm just really ashamed of how I behaved." "Forget it." Answered Bobby. "I'll try." "Good. Will you be in tomorrow?" "Yeah, I'll be there." "Okay." Bobby breathed a sigh of relief as he opened the door to the hall. "Bobby?" "Yeah?" "Thanks." He smiled at her. "See ya tomorrow." "Yeah, see ya tomorrow." Bobby shut the apartment door, knowing he would be in the office early the next day, just so he could see her come through the front door of the office and give him one of her gorgeous smiles. _________________________________________________________ Part 9 will be up soon, probably tomorrow. Feedback and all that other good stuff welcomed as always. Thanks for reading! Part 9 of "Small Steps"_______________________________________ Lindsay stood on the street in front of the building that housed Donnell and Associates. She still felt a little embarrassed about what had happened between her and Bobby. "Get real, Lindsay." She told herself sternly. "You're more than a little embarrassed. Try totally mortified." But the truth that was when Bobby had flashed those baby blue eyes at her and practically begged her to come back to work, there was no way she could refuse. She had lied and told him it was a like a school girl crush and she would get over it. But Lindsay knew she would not be able to get over what she really felt for Bobby for quite a while. "Because you're in love with him." She tasted the words on her tongue for the first time and they were bittersweet. She took a deep breath and pushed open the door to the building, resolving to do her job and try very hard not to think about Bobby. She pushed the elevator button and wondered just how successful she would be at thinking of anything else but him. _________________________________________________________ Upstairs, Bobby settled himself behind his desk. He had made a pact with himself to do everything he could to forget about the passionate minutes he had shared with Lindsay. He figured the sooner they could both push it from their minds, the sooner things would return to normal. And then she came through the office door. "Good Morning, Rebecca!" He heard her say. He never heard Rebecca answer. Suddenly and unexpectedly their first kiss was replaying in his mind. He could almost feel her lips on his, the sweetness and peace they had brought him. He could feel her fingers trailing up and his back, winding in his hair......... "Good Morning, Bobby." He snapped out of his memory at the sound of her voice. "Hey." He said, smiling softly at her standing in his doorway. "I have court at ten o'clock to present my motion to suppress the knife. I think I'll win it. Judge Hiller is pretty big on proper police procedure, isn't she?" "Yeah, she is." Bobby looked up and locked eyes with Lindsay. "Damn, why does forgetting what happened seem totally impossible all of a sudden?" he wondered to himself. To Lindsay he said "I'm not doing anything until noon. Want a cheering section at your hearing?" Lindsay considered his offer. "No, that's okay. I think it would make me more nervous today than it usually would, ya know?" Bobby nodded. "Okay. Good luck, then." "Thanks. Not just for your good luck wish, but for everything." "I'm just glad we could work it out." She smiled one of those amazing smiles that made everything else in the room seem dim by comparison. "Me, too." And she turned and went to her desk, closing his door as she left. As soon as the door was shut, Bobby let out a groan, and put his head down on his desk. Erasing what had happened between them was an impossibility, that much was certain. But after seeing her now, Bobby didn't think moving past it was going to be a whole lot easier. Little did he know that Lindsay was sitting at her desk thinking the exact same thing. _________________________________________________________ "And so, Your Honor, the warrant was insufficient for the methods by which they found the knife. Without the knife, they have no case. It deserves to be thrown out." Lindsay was arguing her case when Bobby slipped into the courtroom. "You want me to throw out the evidence and the entire case? One motion at a time, please, Counselor." "Your Honor, if you agree that the search that turned up the knife was in fact a violation of the specific guidelines in the warrant, then you must also agree that the knife be suppressed." "Your Honor," objected the DA, "the police had a good faith belief that the knife was in Jeff Kaufman's apartment. They had a witness statement that said Kaufman was wearing the jacket when he committed the murder. They felt their search was within the scope of proper police procedure." "The witness said he THOUGHT he saw somebody who looked like Kaufman wearing the jacket. He wasn't sure it was my client." "The warrant didn't say they were looking for the jacket?" inquired the judge. "No, Your Honor." Answered Lindsay. "Nor did it say they were looking for a knife." "Well, it sounds to me like the police made a mistake. The motion to suppress the knife is sustained." "Then Your Honor....." "I'm already ahead of you, Miss Dole. Due to lack of evidence, this case is dismissed." Lindsay nodded, satisfied at the outcome of her motion. She shook her clients hand, and warned him to stay out of any further trouble. She then sat down at the table to go over some paperwork before a bail hearing she had scheduled that afternoon. Bobby sat in the back of the room as it quickly emptied of everyone except he and Lindsay. He did not let her know he was there, unconsciously deciding just to sit and watch her instead. He knew by her posture that she was concentrating on whatever she was working on. She absently tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear, a motion Bobby found familiar and endearing. He noticed that her hair shined, even in the dim light of the courtroom. He saw how perfectly straight she sat, with her legs crossed at her ankles. And although he was sitting behind her and could not see her face, he could imagine how beautiful she looked as she concentrated on the papers in front of her. He imagined her blue-green eyes darting over the words, her brow furrowing as she read things she disagreed with. He imagined her mouth as it puckered, reacting to something in the words she didn't like, as if the words themselves tasted sour. "Knock it off and get out of here before she catches you staring at her." He admonished himself, but he didn't move. He just kept watching her, fascinated. And suddenly, he found himself aching to kiss her again, to feel that wholeness that only she could bring. "Are you going to sit there in silence all day or are you going to tell me what you're doing back there?" Lindsay interrupted his thoughts. Bobby snapped out of his thoughts to find Lindsay looking at him from her chair. He smiled sheepishly and got up to go sit next to her, wondering how he was going to explain himself. "Good job on the motion." He said instead, taking the chair next to her. "Thank you." Lindsay paused. "What were you doing back there, Bobby?" "Thinking." "About?" she was careful not to look at him. "Us." "There is no 'us', Bobby. Remember? You're bad at relationships." "Yeah, I know." "So what's going on, then?" "It's just not as easy as I thought it would be." Bobby confessed. "What's not as easy as you thought it would be?" Lindsay felt her heart beat faster. "Getting past what happened." Bobby took a deep breath and went on. "The truth is, Lindsay, I haven't been able to put it out of my mind. I mean, here I am telling you to forget it and go on, and I can't even do that myself." Lindsay nodded, temporarily rendered speechless because her heart was beating in her throat. "I'm sorry. I never meant to create this mess. I never should have kissed you. I never should have let any of that happen." Lindsay found her voice. "I seem to remember you saying that we kissed each other. This isn't anybody's fault. It just happened, that's all. You don't have to apologize to me." Bobby smiled weakly. "It probably won't help anything for me to say this, but the only thing I'm really sorry for is that we have to pretend it never happened, and that it may have caused you to be hurt. I'll never be sorry for what happened, just sorry for the fallout from it." "Well, who says we have to be sorry?" Lindsay looked up to peer into Bobby's eyes, trying to decipher what she saw there. " I mean, we're two adults, Bobby. We don't have to answer to anyone but ourselves. If neither one of us is sorry for what happened between us, then what's the problem here?" Bobby tried to read Lindsay's expression without success. "What are you saying?" "Why is what happened that night a bad thing? Two consenting adults shared a few passionate kisses. What's wrong with that?" Bobby mulled over what she was saying, trying to grasp what she was getting at. "So, you wouldn't mind if it happened again?." "Mind?" Lindsay almost laughed. "No, I wouldn't mind. As long as we agreed that there would be no strings attached to anything that may happen between us, I would definitely not mind. Would you?" "No. No, I wouldn't. I'm not saying it SHOULD happen again, I'm just saying that IF it did, it doesn't have to be a bad thing." "Right." Lindsay nodded. "Two adults, leaving the door open to all possibilities." "Okay." Said Bobby, feeling oddly delighted. "Okay." Smiled Lindsay, feeling equally glad. And with that agreement, they gathered her papers and walked toward Bobby's noon appointment, both of them unsure as to what would happen next. _________________________________________________________ Hope you liked it. Part 10 just might be the last installment, but I'm not sure yet. It's going to take a couple of days before I post it, so don't hold your breath for it. I wouldn't want to be responsible for anyone's death. Feedback, comments and suggestions are welcomed and adored as always. Thank you for sticking with me! "Small Steps part 10_________________________________________ Lindsay tapped her pen against the pile of paperwork in front of her. It was a quarter to six on a Tuesday night. Half of her wanted to go home and forget about finishing her case file updates, and half of her wanted to stay and get it done. Both halves had ulterior motives for their positions. It had been two months since she and Bobby had agreed to leave the door open to whatever might happen between them. Things had remained a little tense at first, both of them waiting to see where things went. But eventually, they had each settled back into the routine of work, and the atmosphere between them had gotten back to normal, almost like nothing had ever happened. Everything was nearly as it had been before. Part of Lindsay liked it that way. She knew that not sleeping with Bobby was the smart way to go. No complications and no problems. This way she could come to work, do her job and not be distracted by a personal relationship. But the other part of her was still hoping he would make a move, give some kind of cue that he wanted to be with her. She knew it might create a problem later on, but sometimes, especially when he focused his eyes on her, she did not care one bit what problems it might bring. She wanted him, even if it was more or less a relationship of proximity and convenience. They were close to each other and relatively attracted to one another and both willing. She knew she should try to think logically, rather than lustfully, but when it came to Bobby, Lindsay often felt all logic was lost. And that was why she was considering working late tonight. It wasn't that what she was doing was all that important, on the contrary it could easily wait until tomorrow. But she had overheard Bobby telling Rebecca he'd be in the office late tonight, and she felt that if she stayed late too, then maybe............ "Don't be an idiot, Lindsay." She sighed to herself. "Go home and be alone. Quit thinking about Bobby. Get over it. It's not going to happen." But she still could not manage to get up and get her coat and go home. She just kept sitting there, hoping against hope that maybe tonight something would happen with Bobby if she just stayed late enough. _________________________________________________________ Bobby peered out of his office to see Lindsay sitting at her desk, apparently deep in thought. He wondered what she could be thinking about. He didn't dare entertain the notion that she might be thinking about him. "Just because you spend half your day thinking about her, does not mean she thinks even one second about you" He scolded himself. He blew out a big breath of frustration. In the last two months, absolutely nothing had happened between him and Lindsay. There hadn't been much opportunity for anything to happen, and his brain knew that that was a good thing. But his heart really wanted something else. And as he watched her, he began to hope that perhaps she would stay late tonight. Maybe tonight he could kiss her again, feel her soft, beautiful lips on his. Maybe tonight he could hold her close to him, entwine his hands in her hair, smell her perfume. Bobby was lost in his thoughts when Rebecca appeared in his office."Goodnight, Bobby." She said, jolting him out of his wishful daydreaming. "What?" "I said goodnight." "Sorry. Goodnight, Bec." She smiled at him at left his office, saying good-bye to Lindsay as she left the office entirely. Now everyone was gone but he and Lindsay. He wanted so badly to move things forward with her, but she had made no moves since they had said they would leave the possibilities open. She had done nothing to suggest to him that she was, in any way, still interested. And so he sat in his chair and waited, not finding the courage to go out and make the first move. _________________________________________________________ At eight thirty, Lindsay had finally had enough. "The man has not even come out of his office!" She fumed inwardly. "He has barely said three words to me from in there in the last two hours. This is ridiculous." She stood up, got her purse and coat, and went to Bobby's office to tell him she was leaving. "I'm going." "You are?" Bobby practically leapt out of his chair, seeing another opportunity with Lindsay slipping away. "Yeah. I'm kinda tired, so........." she trailed off. "Well, I'm about done here, so if you want to wait a few minutes, we can walk out together." Bobby was actually nowhere near finished with his work, but he was secretly hoping Lindsay would let him walk her out. "Sure. That'd be great." Lindsay smiled at Bobby and he felt his heart pound a little faster as she accepted his offer. "Ten minutes, tops." "No problem." She answered as she crossed over to look out the windows of Bobby's office. "What are you working on?" She asked absently, her mind actually thinking of things other than work. "Oh,just a standard breaking and entering not guilty plea. Opening arguments are tomorrow. Eugene was going to do it, but I've handled this client before, so I took it." "And?" "He did break and enter, but the case against him is circumstantial at best. It's a two day trial at the most, but it just came in yesterday, so I've got to get this done." "Why did you get it so late?" Lindsay knew they were both making small talk to pass the time. "He had representation, but his lawyer withdrew from the case yesterday." Bobby was holding something back, and Lindsay knew it. "Why'd he withdraw?" Bobby was embarrassed. "Because he said he was tired of being compared to Bobby Donnell. I guess the client was impressed last time I represented him. The lawyer told the client that if I was so great, he should have hired me." "So he did." "Yeah, at the last minute." "Can you get a continuance?" "Nope. This case has been continued three times already. Judge said we should be ready to go." "That seems unfair." Lindsay turned to look at Bobby and caught him looking at her. "Your not working much." She pointed out as he shifted his gaze from her to the papers on his desk. "I'm distracted." He responded, swallowing his nerves at having her so close. She looked back out the window. "Sorry." "I'm not." Lindsay could feel Bobby standing directly behind her now. She closed her eyes as she felt his breath on her ear. "Lindsay......" Bobby whispered as he turned her around to face him. Lindsay opened her eyes to find Bobby looking at her intently. And when she locked her eyes with his, she knew what he was waiting for. "We're two grown adults, Bobby. We can handle this. There won't be any strings attached. This isn't a relationship. It's two consenting adults, easing a little bit of loneliness. It won't carry any obligation for either of us." Bobby cupped Lindsay's chin in his hand. "Are you sure you want this?" She nodded, her brain devoid of any speech as he softly brushed her cheek with the back his fingers. "If you meet someone, we'll call this off, okay? I wouldn't want to be responsible for keeping you from a relationship with someone else." "No commitments, no strings." Lindsay whispered, finding her voice. "No strings......" Bobby repeated, leaning in to find her lips with his. An explosion happened then that neither of them had ever experienced before. Their lips connected again and again, their hands exploring places that had previously been off limits. Bobby pulled Lindsay close to him and ran his lips over her neck. She sighed and wound her hands in his hair. And then he stopped. Lindsay could not meet his eyes, horribly afraid of what he was about to say. "I feel like I've waited forever for this." His voice was deep with passion. "Me too." Lindsay answered breathlessly, relief and joy flooding her heart. "Then let's not wait anymore." He said, kissing her softly and leading her towards the couch. And that is where, together, they shared a passionate and incredible experience that would ultimately alter their lives. _______________________THE END__________________________ OK, that's it! Hope you liked it. Feedback is my favorite thing besides chocolate, so let me know what you thought at only1misstracy@cs.com. Thanks for reading!