Screen Captures Courtesy of Swoopes For personal use and select distribution only © April 2002 by Amber Stockton A Little Sex, A Little Scandal - tagalogueWritten by Bill Froehlich & Mark Lisson (excerpts from the episode belong to them)
Amanda turned to go just as Randi arrived. Lee watched Randi glance from him to Amanda and heard Amanda say, "Hi....Randi." Randi had every reason to be upset, and she obviously was. This was the second time Amanda had been here when he had invited Randi over. "That's it!" She turned on her heels and stormed towards the elevator. "Randi! Randi, she...." Lee pointed at Amanda and started to go after Randi, then stopped. Going after her was a waste of time. "Oh, gosh. I'm really sorry," Amanda intoned softly as she looked over his shoulder into the apartment. "And you have your candles and your ... I think she misunderstood." "Yeah, I guess so." He looked again into the hallway then back at Amanda. "You want some cake?" They both laughed at the irony in the situation. Lee realized if he didn't laugh, he may give in to the frustrations of losing Randi. That might lead to his taking it out on Amanda, something she definitely didn't deserve. "Are you sure?" Amanda said once they both had their laughter under control. "Why not?" He shrugged. "Randi's long gone, and I would hate to see this delicious-looking cake go to waste. Besides, I'm certainly not going to eat it all." He didn't know why he had asked her to join him, but he told himself it was because he was fully expecting company tonight, and since he wouldn't have that, he wasn't in the mood to spend the evening alone. Amanda qualified as company, even if she wasn't the type of company he had anticipated, so he would make the best of it. "All right." He turned around and led the way into his apartment, and heard the door close behind him as he walked into the kitchen and set the cake on the counter. "I'll just grab us some small plates and knife and we can eat at the table." "Wouldn't it be better to take the cake to the living room?" Her voice carried from the other room, and he thought he detected a hint of discomfort in her voice, although he didn't know why she would feel that way. "Uh...yeah...sure," he called back. "Why don't you go ahead in there. I'll cut us two pieces and brew up some coffee." "Okay." The coffee was already in the maker, so Lee turned it on, then went back to the task of retrieving two plates from the cupboard, followed by a knife and two forks out of the drawer. He lifted the lid off the cake and inhaled the rich, chocolate aroma that immediately assailed his senses. If this cake was anything like the other things Amanda had made, he knew he was going to enjoy it. As he cut two pieces and placed them on the two plates, he recalled the odd sound to Amanda's voice a moment ago when she suggested that they eat in the living room instead of at the table in the dining room. He turned around to glance into the other room, and that's when he saw the candles and the vase of flowers on the table, as well as the two place settings at one end of the table. Now, it all made sense, and he chuckled at the thought of Amanda being nervous about sharing cake with him, surrounded by the reminder of the romantic evening he had planned. She went to such great lengths to remove any hint of a black mark on her reputation, and he actually found that quality in her very refreshing, especially compared to some of the other ladies who had paid a visit to his apartment. A glance at the coffee maker showed the coffee was ready, so he reached for two cups and lifted the pot from the plate to pour some into the cups. He added a spoonful of sugar to Amanda's and some cream to his, placed the forks on the plates, then hooked the cups over his fingers and carefully balanced one plate in each hand as he headed for the living room. "Here we are!" he announced. Amanda looked up and immediately reached for one of the plates. "Oh, here! Let me help you with that! You really didn't have to carry all of this in one trip. I could have helped." "Amanda, it was no big deal." He gave her a self-assured smile. "I've managed to balance much more than this. Remember, I've gone undercover as a waiter before." "Oh, that's right." A teasing grin played on her lips. "The man of hidden talents." She pointed at the two coffee cups he had just set on the table. "Which one is mine?" He smiled. "The one with the sugar." When she rolled her eyes at his joke, he handed her a cup. "This one." "Thank you." She took the cup from him, then reached for a plate and settled back into the couch. Lee removed his brown leather jacket and tossed it across the chair opposite the couch, then joined her and settled into the cushions. "You know, my training and skills have saved my skin more than once." "So have mine," she countered with a grin. Lee chuckled and shook his head, then cut a piece of cake and raised it to his lips. His mouth closed around the spongy moistness, and his eyes drifted shut as he savored the taste. "Mmmm," he moaned when he had finished chewing. "Amanda, this is delicious!" After a moment, he turned his head to look at her and saw that she was about halfway through her piece already. "You know, it really is a shame you didn't win that Mother of the Year contest. I don't think those judges realize all that you do for your family, not to mention how easily you seem to blend your life as a mother and housewife with your life at the Agency." She cast a sideways glance at him. "That's just it, Lee. They wouldn't be able to know about my life at the Agency, and since I was involved with this mess with Rita Holden and her 'clients,' it was doubly difficult to explain about the detectives and your appearance at my house, not to mention the recreation of Sudan in my living room and kitchen to help Philip with his report." She paused and looked directly at him as she raised a piece of cake to her own lips. "Thank you, though, for your vote." "Anytime." He smiled and gave her leg a pat, then immediately removed his hand as he realized what he was doing. Amanda didn't appear to notice as she continued. "You know, I still won't forget the look on Mrs. Woodrow's face at the baking contest when the detectives arrived to ask me to come down to the station. I knew I had to leave, so I asked her to put my cake in the oven for about forty minutes." Lee laughed and speared another piece of cake. "I'll bet she was surprised!" Amanda chuckled. "Yeah, you might say that! She consulted her manual and told me that she didn't think I could tell her what to do." "Let me guess, you came back with a line about that being a mother's job." For a moment, she looked at him, as if surprised that he would know something like that. "Hey! I may not have known my own mother well, but I'm well aware of the role that they play." She nodded and set her empty plate on the table, then picked up her coffee cup to take a sip and answer him over the rim of her cup. "Well, you're right. I told her that mothers made the rules, asked you to follow them, then let you know whether or not you did it right." "Yeah!" He nodded with a smile. "That sounds like you, all right!" He finished his cake, then set his plate on top of hers and reached for his coffee. "Well, at least this whole mess with Rita and her girls is over. I'm sorry Gelles had to get in the way of a bullet, and I'm sorry about your car as well as the flower shop, but it's all been repaired and set right again." "Yes, this case was certainly ... enlightening." Lee glanced at her and saw a hint of pink creep into her face and for a moment wondered about the reason. The conversation with Francine about the trick book came floating back to him, and he grinned. "Yeah." He cleared his throat. "You never know what you're going to learn in this business!" She finished her coffee with a final gulp then leaned forward to pick up the plates. "Thank you for the cake, Lee, but I should probably be getting back home. I need to put the boys to bed, and I don't want to make it too late." Lee reached out and put a restraining hand on her arm. "Don't worry about the dishes. I'll get them." He gestured towards the kitchen. "Do you want to take the rest of your cake home, or...." "No, you keep it." Although certain he imagined it, he thought he felt her shiver a little. There was no time to reflect; however, as she continued. "We have plenty of desserts at home. It's a little memento of the case, and one you can eat!" "Yeah!" he agreed with a laugh. His hand was still on her arm, so he removed it and cleared his throat, then stood. "I'm gonna enjoy each and every piece of that cake, Amanda. Thank you," he said sincerely. Amanda stood as well, and he took a few steps backwards to allow her to come forward and head for the door. He grabbed her jacket where she had hung it on the coat tree by the door and helped her into it. "Thank you," she said, her voice so low he almost had to strain to hear it. Reaching around her to open the door, he noticed her tense a little, but as with the shivering, it was gone before he had time to determine if it had really occurred or if he had imagined it. She stepped into the hall and turned to face him, raising her eyes to his. "Thank you for inviting me in for cake, Lee." As he looked down at her, his thoughts took a decided turn, and for one insane moment, he almost leaned down to kiss her. What are you thinking? This is Amanda for crying out loud! Clearing his throat and focusing his thoughts elsewhere, he smiled. "My pleasure. Drive safe, all right?" "I will." She smiled. "Good-night, Lee," she said softly. "Good-night, Amanda." He hoped the regret he heard in his own voice wasn't detectable. She didn't appear to notice she headed for the elevator, and he waited to see if she would turn around before disappearing inside. The doors opened and she stepped in, then pressed the button to go down. Just as the doors closed in front of her, she glanced up at him and met his gaze. Her expression was unreadable, but the evidence of a smile was on her lips, and he answered her with a smile of his own. It didn't make any sense. There was something about Amanda that had him thinking differently than he ever had before, and he couldn't pinpoint it. Maybe it was her talk of getting home to her boys that had him coveting the closeness they shared with their mother. Maybe it was her concern for his well-being and how she cared enough to help him make a good impression on Randi. Maybe it was just her innate goodness. Whatever it was, he found that he really did enjoy her company, and that scared him. Not just because they worked together, but because it meant something was beginning to change inside of him, and he wasn't sure he was ready for it. So, instead of allowing his mind to pursue the ramifications of such thoughts, he focused on who he would call for the next free evening he had. Randi was definitely ancient history, but there were plenty of others who would enjoy spending an evening with him. That thought brought back Randi's comment a few days ago about being the 'evening edition,' and he cringed for probably the first time when thinking about his lifestyle. What was wrong with it and why had he suddenly started questioning it? A glance back at the elevator doors, now closed, answered those questions. Amanda. Somehow, she had made him start evaluating his frequent dalliances, and although he was nowhere near the point of being ready to give up his way of life, he did realize that the frequency of his dates had diminished quite a bit in the last year. He really hadn't missed them much, either, and that realization had him concerned. Frustrated, he ran his hand through his hair in aggravation and turned to go into his apartment. This wasn't something he could solve in one night, but he was certain it would be something on his mind again soon. In the meantime, he had a call to make. (THE END) |
