THE DEAL

30 Compromised

Lisa stepped back to let the brunette woman inside. This felt like a social call, but the con-woman didn't want to get her hopes up too soon. 

"To what do I owe the pleasure?" Lisa asked, trying to sound casual when every fibre in her body was screaming. Jennie seemed restless. She didn't take a seat anywhere but rather walked around Lisa's small apartment, kneading her hands in front of her. Her back was towards Lisa so the con-woman just followed Jennie's figure carefully without ever getting too close. She didn't want to scare her away again, so she kept her distance and just watched her.

"Lisa, today...." Jennie raked her fingers through her hair, sighing. "for the first time ever in my carreer, I felt... compromised."

"Compromised?" The con-woman mirrored, frowning. 

Another heavy sigh followed from Jennie who still wasn't turning around. She stood in front of Lisa's big window front, looking out over the terrace and the city beyond. "I didn't know where you were or if you were ok and wether I got your message right or not. And usually, I can compartmentalize and focus on the job. Figure out a smart procedure to retrieve a missing undercover agent. But today... I felt something close to panic."

Lisa watched Jennie wrap her thin arms around herself in an attempt to hold on to something. And it was affecting the con-woman immensely. She desperately wanted to be the one holding Jennie together.

"Because you weren't in control...?" Lisa tried to ask really carefully. She knew it was hard for Jennie not to be in control. Maybe that had freaked her out. But the woman by the window shook her head slowly, which made Lisa's pulse pick up its' pace. Where was the brunette agent going with this?

"Because I didn't know if you were safe. And it has never been this bad before..." Jennie's voice had gotten smaller towards the end. 

Now Lisa began to understand what Jennie meant by compromised. Jennie's emotions had gotten the best of her, in a moment when only her head should have been taking the lead. There was a reason why field agents weren't allowed to handle cases that involved people they were personally close to. Emotions were compromising their ability to look at situations with a clear and neutral mindset. 

Lisa tentatively stepped closer now, looking at Jennie's face through the reflection in the dark window in front of them, going over the implications of what Jennie had just told her. And when she was close enough, she laid a light hand on the other woman's shoulder from behind.

"I'm ok. You got my message and did exactly what I needed you to do, to get me out of there. You're not compromised." She told the agent carefully. Even though it was hard for Lisa, she didn't want to assume things right away with Jennie. For all she knew, this was the moment Jennie told her she couldn't work with her anymore and she'd be sent back to prison the next morning. She couldn't yet let herself hope that Jennie was telling her, what she really thought she was telling her. That there were feelings. Despite their situation not exactly being easy.

Their eyes met in the reflection and Jennie finally turned around. "I think I am. And I think you are too." She looked up at Lisa, now standing so close in front of her. 

A hand came up to Lisa's cheek and stroked it lightly while the con-woman froze under the touch, barely daring to breathe. Their eyes were glued to each other. "You tried to make me jealous with Diana." Jennie whispered and Lisa pressed her lips together because that, in fact, was true. She had thrown her date and her kiss with the beautiful widow right into Jennie's face in a rather immature fit, not even two days ago. Looking back, that had been really unlike Lisa. She had been upset and she had lost her cool in front of the other woman.