Tell Him I Love Him

4. I Got Your Messages

The alley was dark, but Tim could still see the intensity in Lucy's eyes when she said, "Get out of here."

He was taken aback by the way she ordered him to LEAVE. "I'm not going anywhere," he finally replied.

"I'm sorry," she whispered, and she tried to step away. Tried. But, he was right THERE, and she had spent MONTHS without him, and he looked like he had not been sleeping or eating properly, so she had questions to ask and demands to make about how to better take care of himself, but she had a JOB to do.

"Lucy," he breathed, noticing the way her eyes could not settle on a single point. He turned around and saw that the alley was empty. They were alone.

"You've got the wrong person. I'm Jasmine," she recollected herself and tried to stay committed to her undercover persona.

"PLEASE," he pleaded desperately. He just wanted to have a few more minutes with her at least.

Finally, she had the wherewithal to FOCUS and stepped back two paces. "I'm so sorry," she said with so much anguish in her voice, and she saw the way Tim's heart was BREAKING right in front of her. Lucy wanted to just reach out and hug and kiss him and REALLY tell him she loves him, but she had a job to do, and this run in was already bad enough.

Tim was at a loss. There were a million things he had wanted to tell her since she left- updates on Tamara, how he had become a fan of a trashy reality show, the adorable way Kojo has been sleeping next to Tamara, everything that reminded him of her, but more importantly, that he LOVES her. But, she moved so quickly away from him he could not find the words before she was just GONE, and he was standing in an alley by himself.

He had not seen her in 95 DAYS! And now...now he was alone again with the knot in his stomach clenching IMPOSSIBLY tighter. He swallowed hard to avoid crying before walking back to his truck and driving with shaking hands over to Lucy's apartment where he climbed into bed alone. Tim tossed and turned, but sleep would not come. All he could think about was the way his girlfriend sent him away after only holding him for a few moments. He shut his eyes trying to remember the sensation of her chest pressed against his and her small hands gripping him tightly and to recreate the moment, he wrapped his arms around her pillow and cradled it like he wished he could be holding her, and Tim finally let himself cry for the first time in 95 days.

96 DAYS

Tim followed protocol and reported what happened to Grey, and he prepared himself for a lecture.

Was Grey upset? Absolutely. Yet, there was a part of him that understood and felt sympathetic for Tim's situation. He gave the younger man a somewhat disappointed look and sighed, "You completely went against protocol."

"I know."

"When one of our own is undercover, you aren't supposed to act like you know them."

"I know," he repeated quietly.

"You called her by her real name and hugged her in public."

"I know," Tim scratched his head.

"We have to tell Foster. It's his operation."

"I know."

"Stop saying 'I know'. You're making it tough to be mad at you," Grey admitted and crossed his arms.

"Sorry, sir," Tim apologized and looked down at the ground.

Just as Grey was trying to come up with a plan, he was rudely interrupted by someone barging into his office.

"Are you KIDDING me, Bradford?" Noah snapped as he barreled right into Tim's face.

The sergeant was too tired and felt too guilty for what he did that he didn't know what to say. "I'm sorry."