Pictures

Justin's eyebrows rise as he realizes nothing was wrong but he can sense Beth stammering just a little as if she were trying to keep him on the line. Odd.

"No, no... I don't care that you have my number. I don't mind any call that's not for tech support or a leaky roof."

Beth's question about the dog confirms that she wanted to continue the conversation... but why? She had no real purpose to have called him?

Justin could remember the first day they'd met. If he'd had to sum her up from just their first meeting, he would have described her as strong, tough, confident and alone with a purpose. And now, he would say the same things, but only to describe her outer shell. It was lonely, dark and timid on the inside and he was getting glimpses of it every now and then - tonight especially.

She was being pretty timid though - was he seeing more of that now because she was starting to trust him? It might seem backward to some - that someone would become more shy or timid after getting to know someone else. But it made sense to Justin. When they'd first met, she'd had no reason to be timid because there had been no risk of conversation or further interaction. But now they saw each other almost every day, and she was being forced to interact... to trust. And naturally, her timidness came forth.

Justin ambles over to the couch and eases down, his mind working on what to say and how to say it. He truly was glad she called - it showed growth and he was pleased.

"Dog's are great. They were pretty antsy by the time I got home but they survived the day alone. We roughhoused a bit then I sent them off to bed in their doghouses."

He fiddles with the television remote, keeping his hands occupied. "And me, I'll probably be up for another several hours, reading, cleaning and who knows what else. Normally I woulda been home hours ago but I went over to Ma's for supper. Wouldn't you know it, she actually invited a woman over without telling me? Talk about awkward."

He smirks and shakes his head even though Beth couldn't see him. "She's like that though - my mother. Loves me to death and I mean to death. Sometimes though I think she gets a few too many crazy ideas in that Greek head of hers and there's no telling what she's going to do next."

He glances up to the wall to see a picture of him and his brother when they were about high-school age, standing with their mother for their church photos. "I think sometimes she gives me a double portion of oddities since she can't deal any of them out to my brother."

Justin rarely talked about his brother. It just wasn't something he did. Hearing Danitza bark, he gets up and goes to the window to look out but sees nothing. "So how was your day?"

He knew Beth's routine... hospital, work, home... but if she wanted to talk, he was here and he'd keep up the conversation for as long as she wanted.


Being greeted with such gladness, Eli can't help but smile and gather Scarlet into his arms, his leather jacket squeaking with the movement. Her kiss to his ear makes him nuzzle into her, chuckling. "Mmm...."

As she draws back, he looks down into her eyes, his hands coming up to cradle each side of her face. "You may get to claim me, but I think I'm the lucky one."

Leaning down, he gives her lips a tender, passionate kiss. "I missed you." Smiling, he straightens and takes off his jacket, hot in the sun if he wasn't riding his bike. "And... I've got something for you."

Getting into his saddlebags, he rummages for a minute before pulling out a small pack of pictures. He waves them in the air before handing them to Scarlet. "I had to show you pictures of one of the best paint jobs I've ever done. And no, I couldn't wait to show you." Not only did he have the pictures he'd taken in the garage after finishing with Roth's car, but he'd gotten a snapshot from someone else, who had caught an angle of Roth at the race when his car had been uncovered.


"It's okay." Reese puts his arm around Angelica's shoulders as he ambles back towards her office before going to his own. "We can do what we can to keep him here and I could arrest him any time I wanted to even if he doesn't think so but... if he puts up too much of a fight, I'd rather put Bret, Charlotte and the baby in protective custody than put up with a riot around here. Speaking of which..."

Making it to her doorway, he stops. "...we can do dinner but if you get that call that the baby's come, we can skip on dinner and go see them instead."