Chapter 87 - Reaction

After the short ride back to Mike and Colin’s office, Cate and Jon bid the two men farewell. Jon grinned widely as he promised to inform Mike as soon as he knew when he was returning to the Center, so they could do more extensive bomb training. That was one promise he intended to keep, for he had thoroughly enjoyed the morning’s lesson. After one more round of handshakes, Cate and Jon walked out to her Mustang.

Cate popped the trunk and rummaged around in her gym bag, pulling out a towel. She held it out to Jon, and he gave her a puzzled look. Despite his earlier excuse that he didn’t want to get the Mike’s truck wet, Jon had modestly replaced his shirt before climbing into the vehicle for the drive back to the office.

“You needed this?” Cate asked quietly. She had managed to compose herself on the ride back, and she realized how close she had come to yielding to Jon’s temptation.

Now that she had had a little time to think about it, she realized just how much he had pushed her buttons on the arson range, with his naughty teases and his strutting around in the firefighter gear, then with his attempted seduction in the gear room. And she was a little pissed. Yesterday, though he had warned her that he intended to pursue her when they weren’t working, he had promised that he would be professional during training. He had clearly and intentionally ignored his promise this morning.

“Yeah, thanks,” Jon answered. He moved around to the back of the car where Cate stood, then reached up to the back of his neck and pulled his t-shirt up over his head. He dropped the damp shirt onto the Mustang’s bumper, then reached out to take the towel from Cate’s hand. He glanced at her face, expecting to see the little flicker of desire that always crossed her expression when she saw him bare-chested. But instead he saw that her lips were pressed together in a firm line, and her eyes were slightly narrowed.

Jon was surprised by Cate’s stern countenance. After the moment they had shared in the gear room, he was certain she was softening toward him. He was hoping that as the day progressed and they spent more time together he would be able to reason with her. His plan seemed to be on track… until now.

Cate watched silently as Jon shook out her towel, then scrubbed it across his chest and stomach. He drew it over his shoulders and dried his back, then quickly rubbed it over his damp hair. After a quick swipe across his face, Jon held out the towel to Cate. “Thanks,” he said softly. He looked down at his wet shirt, then back at Cate. “You don’t happen to have a dry t-shirt, do you?” he asked.

Silently, Cate reached into her bag. She dug around for a moment, then pulled out a blue PT uniform shirt. “Here. It’s a medium, so it might be a little snug,” she replied.

Jon took the shirt from Cate, hesitating for a moment as his hand brushed over hers. He looked into her eyes and saw no reaction. Shit, did I push her too far back there? Jon thought, starting to worry a little. He pulled the t-shirt over his head and tugged it down over his chest. It was a little tight, but no more so than some of the t-shirts he wore onstage. At least it was dry. Jon closed his eyes for a brief second as he breathed in the familiar, sweet scent. And it smells like Cate, he thought with a little smile.

“Thanks,” Jon said softly. He gave Cate a questioning look. “This isn’t your only one, is it?” Cate was still clad in her sports bra, her damp t-shirt hanging from her belt.

“I have another set of PTs at the office,” she replied evenly. “I’m gonna change as soon as we get back there, anyway.” She couldn’t help but draw her eyes across the soft fabric of her t-shirt stretched tightly across Jon’s broad chest. “If you want, I can pull you a larger shirt from the supply room when we get there.”

“My gym bag’s in my rental,” Jon replied. “I have my PTs in there.” He was starting to get a little unnerved by Cate’s reserved manner.

Cate shrugged. “Okay,” she said simply. “Let’s go.” She reached over to the bumper and picked up Jon’s wet shirt, tossing it into the trunk of her car with the damp towel. She pulled her own wet tee from her belt, adding it to the pile, then closed the trunk. She and Jon moved to the front of the vehicle and climbed in.

Neither spoke as Cate guided the car out of the lot and onto the Center’s perimeter road. After several minutes, Jon looked at Cate. “Do you have my Berry?” he asked quietly. “I’m expecting a call. I need to check my messages.”

Oh FUCK! Cate groaned inwardly. She had forgotten about the boneheaded mistake she had made before they had gone to the range, when she had intercepted Jon’s call from the Legal Office. Now it was time to confess.

“It’s in my range bag, in the back seat,” she answered. “You should be able to reach it.” Cate kept her eyes on the road as Jon turned his body toward her, reaching behind her seat to grab the black nylon bag. He pulled it forward onto his lap and looked down into the bag’s open mouth. He reached in and pulled out his Blackberry, then dropped Cate’s bag on the floor between his feet. Cate felt her pulse quicken a little as Jon pushed a button on his Berry, then frowned slightly as he regarded the screen.

Cate took a deep breath. “Um, Jon…” she said, her voice wavering just a bit. “I… um… I have a message for you. You need to call Chris Leighton at the Center Legal Office.” She cringed inwardly, waiting for his rebuke for her invasion of his privacy.

Jon turned his face toward her, his confusion evident. “What?” he asked. “What do you mean?”

Cate groaned slightly. “Jon, I’m sorry…” she blurted out. “I accidentally… answered your phone. When I was bringing it back to the car.” She felt a flush of shame creep to her cheeks. “I didn’t mean to. It was in my hand and it rang, and I just automatically… answered it.” She glanced sideways at Jon, and her heart sank at the look on his face. His eyes were narrowed and his jaw was set, his expression stormy. “I’m sorry…” she repeated weakly.

“What was the message?” he asked tersely. Shit, I hope this Chris person didn’t say too much…

Cate swallowed hard at Jon’s tone. Even though she was annoyed by his actions on the arson range, she was more ashamed of her mistake. She knew she would be unhappy if someone else answered her private call; she deserved his ire now. “She… she just wants you to call her as soon as possible.” Cate answered meekly.

“She?” Jon asked, stalling as he tried to contain his concern. It wouldn’t do for Cate to learn too much about the proposal he had made to the Director. That was something that had to be kept under wraps, at least for a little while.

“Yes… Chris… Christina.” Cate replied. “She’s a friend of mine.” Oh, God… he’s pissed.

“What else did she say?” Jon’s voice was sharper as he tried to hide his rising panic. She’s Cate’s friend… oh FUCK!

Cate shuddered slightly. “Um… just that she has a couple questions for you about… about a proposal for the Director.” She glanced again at Jon and almost cowered under his stern glare. “Something about needing to talk to you as soon as possible because she has to give her review to the Director after lunch.” Cate drew in a deep breath. “Jon… I’m really sorry. Honestly. I wasn’t trying to snoop or anything.”

Jon ignored her apology. “That it?” he asked icily. “Did she say anything else? About the proposal?”

Cate shook her head. “No. Just that she needs you to call her right away. I told her you were on the bomb range, so you’d call her over lunch.” She heard Jon exhale sharply, then in her peripheral vision she saw him lower his head to push a few buttons on his Berry.

“I don’t suppose you have her number?” he asked snarkily. “Since you took the call I don’t have the extension captured in my phone. It shows as the Center’s main number.”

Cate felt a flash of temper at Jon’s tone. Though she felt awful about her mistake, she had apologized. She could handle a little of his anger, but he didn’t have to be snotty. “Yeah, I do have her number,” she responded. “Back at the office.” She shot a look at Jon. “I’m sure you can wait until we get back there in about two minutes to call her,” she replied, an edge to her tone.

“Well, guess I have to, don’t I?” Jon replied bitchily. Fuck, I hope there isn’t a problem, he thought fervently. I need to get this deal done, right fucking now...

Cate bit back her retort and kept her gaze trained on the road. They remained silent, a cloud of tension hanging over them, until they returned to the FTB offices. Cate pulled the Mustang into her reserved spot in the lot. Before she could even put the car in park, Jon pushed open his door and practically jumped out of the passenger seat, then closed the door with a slam.

Cate’s eyes widened at Jon’s action. She had expected him to be angry, but now he was acting like a spoiled, pouty child. She watched in her rear view mirror as he strode away from her car, headed toward his SUV. She felt her own temper rise. Fine. Be a fucking dick, she thought. I’m done apologizing. She grabbed her range bag from the floorboard where Jon had left it, then climbed out of the car. She slammed her door and stalked into the building, not waiting for Jon.

Cate went directly to her office and tossed her bag on the couch. Rounding her desk, she pulled her Center phone directory out of the top drawer. She thumbed quickly through the name index until she found the “L” section, then located Chris’ number. She scribbled the number on a post-it note, then ripped the little yellow square from the pad. Shoving the phone book back into the desk drawer, she straightened and turned toward her office door just as Jon appeared in the doorway.

“Here,” Cate growled, thrusting out her hand toward Jon, the note between her fingers. She gave him a glare as he took the piece of paper from her, then she pushed past him into the hallway. She stalked quickly down the long hall toward the locker room, then angrily shoved her way through the door.

Jon watched Cate’s departure through narrowed eyes. When she disappeared into the locker room, Jon sighed, his rigid posture slouching just a bit. Damnit, he swore silently. Just when he thought he was making some progress with Cate, that she was beginning to respond to him, he had fucked up. Jon stepped into the office and angrily flung his duffel bag onto the couch beside Cate’s range bag.

Jon wasn’t angry that Cate had answered his Berry. Hell, he could care less if she had snooped through every call log and message and e-mail he had stored in the little device. His harsh response to her admission hadn’t come from anger; it had come from panic.

If Cate had intercepted a call from anyone else other than a representative of the Director, he would have laughed it off. But this had been too close for comfort. He couldn’t let her find out what he was planning, or she would never come to trust him. Danny had warned him, but Jon couldn’t help himself. He was acting against Danny’s advice.

Looking at the clock, Jon saw that it was almost 12:30 pm. Shit, I’d better call this Chris person back, Jon thought. If the Director had asked the legal office to give him their review after lunch, as Cate had said, he didn’t need to hold up the process. He was already pushing his luck, trying to get this deal closed before he had to leave on Friday.

Jon looked at the phone number Cate had scribbled on the post-it, then started to punch it into his Blackberry. Before hitting the call button he hesitated, realizing that Cate could return any minute and overhear his end of the conversation. Jon quickly left Cate’s office and strode down the long hall toward the building’s back door. This was one call he needed to make in private.