The Mentalist - What if?

Chapter 7

Very early next morning, they'd drove along the coast until they reached a charming little town, far enough from home but not too far to get back in a hurry if they needed to; they had already rented a beach cabin the night before and picked up the keys from the main office on site. Having stopped at the store on the way in to grab the groceries they would need for a few days, they pulled up outside cabin and took in the breath-taking scenery behind it.

"It's beautiful" Lisbon said softly as she rested her head on his shoulder as his arm wrapped around hers.

"You feeling okay?" He asked, knowing she had been throwing up since the early hours, including stopping at least twice on the hours journey.

"Hmmm, just a little tired; how did you find this place?" She asked as they stood watching the ocean.

"I did a lot of driving around after...stumbled across it one night and when i thought about getting you away for a few days, seems the perfect place"

"It is" she agreed, trying to hold back a yawn, unsuccessfully.

"Let's get you settled and i'll grab the stuff and make you something to eat"

"I can help"

Knowing she wouldnt give up, he handed her the groceries whilst he grabbed their cases; leaving them in the bedroom, he headed into the kitchen where he started making pancakes. By the time they were ready, Lisbon was all but falling asleep on the dining table; setting the plates down, he knelt next to her and brushed her hair back.

"Teresa, breakfast and then you can nap" he whispered.

"Hmmm"

By the time lunch came around, Teresa was feeling much more awake and normal; tying her hair back, they took a slow walk along the beach towards the shopping promenade.

"The nap helped i take it?" He asked.

"Yeah, it did; baby liked it too" she said, resting a hand against het stomach as her other held his.

"Good; a few more weeks and you should be pass the sickness stage"

"I hope so; dont get me wrong, i'll love it unconditionally but...i just feel like anything can go wrong"

"If it does, we'll deal with it but you need to think positive; let's just enjoy the next few days"

She nodded and snuggled into him as they approached the promenade; stopping at a diner on the pier, they took a seat in a booth as the waitress took their order and disappeared. After placing their drinks on the table and going to serve another customer, Patrick took Lisbon's hand, causing her to look up from her mug.

"What you thinking about?" He asked.

"You tell me; thought you could tell everything just by looking?" She quipped, not meaning for it to sound so harsh.

"You dont like it when i analyse you"

"I dont like a lot of things but you do it anyway" she put back to him, again, harsher than she mean.

"I am trying to hold back a little on the things you dont like"

"I know" she sighed. "I know you're trying; i'm sorry, i'm all over the place at the minute"

"What's going on? You need to talk about it; think about your blood pressure"

"Doesnt matter" she insisted, finishing her drink and leaving.

Dropping some money onto the table, he followed her out but she'd already disappeared from his sight; worried about her, Jane decided to take a walk round and ended up finding a cute little store. By the time he'd got back to the cabin, Lisbon was curled up on the bed, tears falling from her eyes; sitting next to her, she allowed herself to curl into him, sniffling.

"Sorry..." she whispered.

"Ssh, it's okay; i dragged you out of bed too early this morning. I dont blame you for snapping..."

"I didnt mean what i said"

"I know you didnt" he said, running his fingers through her hair.

"I was frustrated and took it out on you" she said, wiping her eyes. "I just needed some time alone but then i came back here and i was lonely and sad and...i needed you but you werent here because i pushed you away..."

"You didnt push me anywhere; i tried following you and when i didnt find you, i started walking back and found this store. I got something...for the baby"

Hearing her sniff and lift her head, he pulled the surprise out of the brown paper bag; the said item was in fact a grey stuffed bear, holding a heart that said: 'cant wait to meet you mommy x'. Holding it her hands, she pulled it close to her chest and broke down once again; he held her close and let her get all her emotions out. It was no surprise to him that she was asleep in minutes; realising neither of them had eaten since breakfast, Jane carefully slipped his arm from under her body and kissed her forehead before leaving the room. He knew Teresa liked to have comfort food when she felt sad so he decided on making roasted lamb with all the trimmings; he'd just pulled the lamb out of the oven to rest when he heard the bedroom door open. He turned round as Lisbon appeared round the corner; her clothes were wrinkled, her eyes still laced with sleep and her hair a mess but to him, she had never looked more beautiful.

"That smells nice" she said, her arms hugging herself with the bear still close to her.

"It wont be long; feeling better?" He asked, handing her a mug of tea.

"Just tired" she answered as she took a seat at the table, the bear safely in her lap.

"That's your body's way of coping with the changes; physically, you're fine. The worrying is just going to raise your blood pressure; try and forget about everything else, at least for a few days, eh?"

She nodded as carried on serving the food.