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Cooper Crazy
(7/22/05 7:56 pm)
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Giving In - Chapter 14
“Hey sleepyhead, wake up,” Gus whispered in Harley’s ear early the next morning after he got out of the shower.
Harley mumbled and rolled over to face him, struggling to open her eyes, “Why are you up already?” she asked.
“I want to be at the station when Franklin gets there so I can talk to him before he gets busy,” Gus answered. “Are you going to sleep a little longer?” he asked and Harley nodded. “Okay, I’ll see you at the station then when you get there,” he said and kissed her cheek before he got off the bed and got dressed.
“Call me when you’re done if I’m not there yet,” Harley said when Gus came over to kiss her goodbye.
“I will,” he replied and left the room. As he walked down the hallway, he heard a small voice making truck noises and pushed open the door to the boys’ room. Zach was lying awake in his bed running a truck over his blankets.
“Hey, what are you doing awake already?” Gus asked quietly so he wouldn’t wake up Jude.
“I’m playing,” Zach replied. “Where are you going?”
“I’m going to go to the police station and talk to Mommy’s boss,” Gus answered.
“Is Mommy going with you?”
“No, not yet, she’s still in bed,” he replied.
“Can I go sleep with her?” Zach asked.
“I bet she would love that,” Gus nodded and lifted Zach into his arms and took him down to Harley.
“Hey you,” Harley said as Gus lowered him onto the bed and she enveloped him into her arms.
“Gus said I could sleep with you Mommy,” he said as he looked up at her.
“Well, how could I say no to this adorable little face?” she smiled and kissed the tip of his nose. “Are you going to go to sleep though?” she asked and Zach nodded. “Okay, then say goodbye to Gus and go back to sleep.”
“Bye Gus,” Zach waved then closed his eyes tightly and snuggled into Harley’s side.
“I’ll see you later,” Gus said and leaned down to kiss Harley again before he left the house.
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“Aitoro, you’re alive,” Franklin said indifferently as he strolled past Gus who was sitting outside of his office waiting for him.
“Yes, Sir, I was wondering if I could talk to you for a few minutes,” Gus said as he got up and followed him into the office.
“Make it quick, Aitoro,” Franklin sighed and sat down at his desk, inviting Gus to sit across from him.
“Thank you, Sir,” Gus said as he sat and did his best to be respectful and put his best face forward. “I’m quitting the Bureau as soon as I get back to D.C. and I was hoping there would be a position available for me here with the Springfield PD,” he began and Franklin looked up at him over a paper he was reading.
“You’re quitting the Bureau? Why?” he asked. “Are you sure they’re not firing you again?”
“No, I’m putting in my resignation tomorrow. It’s just not where I want to be right now in my life. I want to move back to Springfield,” Gus answered.
“Why?” Franklin asked again.
“My life is here now and it’s where I want to stay. I would like it if I can have a detective position here,” he said.
“Well, I don’t really have any openings right now and it’s just not in the budget to add another person,” Franklin replied.
“I won’t be done with the Bureau for a few months, it’s not like it has to be an immediate job,” Gus added.
“I’ll be honest with you Aitoro, you’re a loose cannon most of the time, but you’re good at what you do and we would be lucky to have you, I just don’t have anything here for you right now. If anything opens up, you can certainly apply for the position, but…”
“…but I am unemployed when I moved back here,” Gus finished and Franklin nodded as they heard a knock on his door.
“Come in,” he said and an older man stuck his head in.
“Can I talk to you Chief?” he asked and Franklin motioned him in.
“We’re done here, sorry Aitoro,” Franklin said as he stood up and shook Gus’s hand.
“Aitoro? Special Agent Aitoro from the FBI?” the man asked and Gus nodded.
“So I guess that means Cooper is back too, right?” he asked.
“Yeah, she’s coming in later this morning,” Gus answered and Franklin looked at him strangely. “You must be her partner.”
“Yeah, Sam Avery,” the man introduced himself and shook Gus’s hand. “She’s coming in later you say? That’s good, I want to tell her myself,” the man said.
“Tell her what?” Franklin asked.
“That I’m retiring,” he answered and Gus got a big smile on his face.
“You’re retiring? When?” Franklin asked.
“Well, in a few months. I’m moving to Florida to be with my son and grandkids.”
“How nice,” Gus replied, smiling at Franklin who shot him a look.
“When did you decide this Avery?” he asked.
“I’ve been thinking about it for awhile, finally decided to just do it. I do have a few more months so I can get my thirty years in though, if it’s okay.”
“Absolutely,” Franklin nodded as they all heard a knock on his door. “Come in.”
“Hey Chief,” Harley said as she peeked her head in. “Hey Avery, how’s it going?” she asked as she came all the way into the office.
“You’re just in time for the big news,” he replied.
“Oh yeah? What big news is that?” Harley asked.
“That I’m retiring,” he answered.
“Oh…” Harley said, trying not to sound too excited – she liked Sam, just not as a partner and she was excited about the possible opening for Gus. “When did you decide this?”
“I’ve been thinking about it lately, but I just decided this week,” he answered.
“Oh, so it’s not because you just can’t live without me, huh?” she teased and he laughed.
“That’s exactly it,” he nodded. “So tell me, how was your trip?” he asked.
“Oh, it was…interesting,” she replied. “Why don’t you come fill me in on what I missed – these two look like they’re in the middle of something,” she suggested and ushered Avery out the door.
After they were gone, Gus turned and looked at Franklin smiling.
“It’s your lucky day, Aitoro,” he sighed. “But before I tell you that you have the job, there are a few things we need to discuss.”
“Absolutely. Shoot,” Gus said.
“You and Cooper – what’s going on?”
“What do you mean?” Gus asked, trying to play dumb.
“Are you a couple?”
“Umm, uh, well…” he sputtered.
“Look, I don’t need to know details, all I need to know is that nothing will interfere with your work. You’re partners, you watch each other’s back. I don’t want personal issues getting in the way of that, and if they do, you’re the one who’s gone. Got it?” Franklin said.
“Understood,” Gus nodded.
“You might not have the job right away when you finish with the Bureau,” he reminded Gus.
“That’s fine,” he replied.
“I’ll be in touch then.” Franklin said and stood up to walk Gus to the door.
“Thank you,” Gus replied and shook his hand before he left the office.
He thought about going right over to Harley’s desk but he didn’t want to appear too obvious, so he went to the coffee machine instead, Harley’s eyes following him. He poured himself and cup of coffee and one for Harley, made with two sugars and light cream, just like she liked it. He turned around and saw her smiling at him from her desk.
“Coffee?” he offered and she took it before he pulled a chair over to close to hers from another desk.
“Thank you,” she said. “So what’s going on?”
“Well, you’re looking at your new partner,” he answered quietly. “When the old one leaves, at least.”
“That’s great, I mean, I was just hoping you could work here, it’s even better that you’re working with me,” she replied.
“That’s exactly what I thought,” he smiled. “Actually, until your partner came in and told Franklin he was retiring, I was going to be unemployed when I got back here.”
“What would you have done if you were?” she asked seriously.
Gus shrugged, “Probably be a PI. Open up my own agency.”
“You’d be good at that, but I’m glad you’ll be here for a little while at least,” she said.
“Me too,” he nodded. “Hey, can I check my email?”
“Yeah sure,” she agreed and moved over so he could use her computer.
“Oh boy, my boss is angry,” he laughed a few minutes later.
“What?” she asked and peered over his shoulder at an email from his boss asking where he was and why he didn’t come back with the other agents. “What are you going to tell him?”
“That I needed the extra days to recover,” he replied. “And I did, I believe I recovered very well,” he teased.
“Yes, you did,” she smiled and started to lean over to kiss him but stopped herself. “Damn,” she laughed.
“I know, it took everything in me not to kiss you when you walked into that office,” he sighed.
“I think we’re going to be in trouble,” she shook her head.
“You busy right now?” he asked.
“Not really, why?”
“Well, I was going to start my report for the case, that way I have something to give the boss when I get back. I was thinking if you weren’t busy this morning you could help me, we could go to the interrogation room, have some privacy…” he suggested.
“I can do that,” she nodded. “Let me just make sure Franklin doesn’t have anything for me.”
“Alright, I’ll go back there and if you’re not there in five minutes, I’m coming out to get you,” he teased and took his coffee and briefcase down the hall.
Harley checked in with Franklin and grabbed two more cups of coffee before she joined Gus in the interrogation room.
“Need some more caffeine?” she asked as she shut the door behind her.
“Oh yes, thank you,” he replied as she set the coffee down on the table and he pulled her into his lap.
“I need some more of you too,” he added as she wrapped her arms around his neck.
“I am all yours,” she replied and kissed him deeply. “I wish you would have woke me up before you got a shower this morning. I would have joined you.”
“Well, if I had known that, I wouldn’t have let you sleep in,” he said, kissing her neck. “You must not have slept long though.”
“No, Zach was being uncooperative and Dad showed up not long after you left, so I just got up and came in.”
“Is your dad staying with them?” he asked.
“He’s taking them to Company when they were up and ready. But I told him we would come and relieve him during lunch. Do you mind?”
“Not at all. You know, I…well, I really love those kids,” he replied. “They’re fun and cute and I like being with them. And I love watching you with them, you’re an amazing mother.”
“Thank you,” she smiled. “I’m glad that you care about them, that’s important to me. You’re not just in my life, you know? You’re also in my children’s lives and in a lot of ways, how you treat them is even more important than how you are with me. And you’re amazing, you take the time to pay attention to them and you talk to Zach and play with Jude. It really means a lot to me. Thank you.”
“You don’t have to thank me, Harley. I never thought of doing anything differently,” he replied and she kissed him softly.
“This probably isn’t a good position to be in if someone walks in,” she said and got off of his lap and sat in the chair across the table from him.
“Okay, so this report…” he began. “Do you have those notes from earlier in the week? I thought I had them, but they’re not in my briefcase.”
“Oh yeah, I think I do,” she answered and shuffled through her folders until she produced a sheet of hotel stationary. “Here,” she said as she pushed it across the table to him.
“Thanks. My boss likes detail, down to the name of the street we were standing on,” he rolled his eyes and started writing.
“Can I ask you something?” she asked a few minutes later and he grunted his agreement. “What are thinking?”
“What do you mean?”
“About this case, Danny Santos, anything?” she urged.
“Well, I’m not really convinced the Santos family is involved,” he shrugged.
“Do you really mean that or are you just saying that for my benefit?”
“I really mean it,” he assured her. “It just doesn’t make sense to me. I think it’s possible someone is throwing their name out there either to help themselves out or to frame them, but I really don’t think they’re involved.”
“Well how are we going to find out if they are or not?” she asked.
“I don’t know. But we will,” he smiled as the door opened behind him.
“Hey,” Frank greeted and came over to kiss Harley on the cheek.
“What’s up?” she asked.
“I wanted to see if you were free for dinner tonight. I’ve missed you,” he said.
“I am absolutely free. We’re on,” she agreed.
“Good. Well, I’ll let you guys work,” he replied and left again.
“He really loves you,” Gus remarked when they were alone again.
“Yeah, he’s great. I don’t know what I would do without him,” she sighed.
“It’s nice that you have someone like that in your life, someone you can always count on.”
Harley nodded, “Yeah. Do you have someone like that?” she asked cautiously.
“I used to…my dad,” he finally answered. “But I don’t really have any friends that I can talk to like that.”
“You’ve never had a girlfriend that you talked to about …anything?”
“No,” he shook his head. “Harley, I’ve spent the past twenty years of my life going after the Santos family. That was all that mattered to me, I mean, I’ve had girlfriends, but none that were serious, none that I wanted to share anything with.”
“Well, now you have one, at least I hope you do. I want to be the person that you can talk to about anything, okay?”
Gus nodded, “You already are,” he said quietly. “You know, you’re the first person I’ve said ‘I love you’ to since my father died,” he confessed. “I’ve never felt this way about anyone before, I guess I was just waiting for the right person,” he smiled.
Harley didn’t say anything in response, but stood up and walked around the table to where Gus was sitting. She took his hand and pulled him up to her then wrapped her arms around him in an embrace.
“I’m glad that I’m that person,” she finally said as she pulled her head off of his shoulder and looked into his eyes.
“Me too,” he replied as he stroked her cheeks with his thumbs before he placed a soft kiss on her lips.
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