Chapter One: Gravity

Something always brings me back to you

It never takes too long.

No matter what I say or do

I can still feel you here

Til the moment I’m gone

 

Wisteria woke up to an empty bed once again.  She didn’t even know why she kept getting her hopes up about him.  She knew Justin was up to no good when she first met him; that he was a womanizer who was only out to get what he needed.  She knew that no woman other than his mother came above his job.  She knew this and still chose to get involved with him. 

*****

(3 months prior)

“I can’t believe I let you drag me to this seedy ass place!” Wisteria exclaimed, shoving her friend Morgan playfully in the shoulder.  The two of them had just finished a long week at the job and were well overdue for a night out.  They were new in town and as per the recommendation of a co-worker they’d ventured into ‘Delia’s’; apparently this place had the best drink and the hottest bartenders.  Well one of those statements was definitely true, the drinks here were strong enough to knock down a healthy horse, but the eye-candy in the establishment was definitely geared towards men. 

“Wanna refill?”

Wisteria looked up and saw a busty blond smiling at her and grimaced. 

“No thank you, I think I’m ready to close my tab actually.”

“Okay, I’ll ring you up,” the perky blond replied.  Wisteria watched as the bartender began calculating her total when she heard felt Morgan jab her side.

“Ow!  Shit!  What was that for?”

“Oh man up,” Morgan began, “and don’t look now, but I think ‘Ol Blue Eyes is checking you out,” she said, nodding her head in the direction diagonal to them.  Out of instinct Wisteria did the exact opposite and felt another jab in her side.

“I said don’t look!” Morgan whispered. 

“It’s not like he saw me anyway.”

“He’s coming over here.”

“Shut the front door; no he’s not.”

“Yep, and I think I have to go to the restroom,” Morgan smiled.

“NO!  You can’t leave me here!  What if he’s some kind of psycho drug dealer or something!?” Wisteria whispered just as Morgan was making her exit. 

“Have fun,” her friend said, wiggling her fingers ‘bye’.

Wisteria rolled her eyes and sighed heavily; Morgan was going to pay for this.

“Is this seat taken?”

Wisteria looked up when she heard the deep velvet voice. 

Good lord.

She couldn’t take her eyes off of his deep cobalt irises and a full half minute passed before she was able to respond. 

 

You hold me without touch.
You keep me without chains.
I never wanted anything so much than to drown in your love and not feel your rain.

 

“No…well yes, but she left so I guess it’s not,” she blushed.  Out of habit she checked his left hand as he pulled out the chair to sit down and smiled inside when she didn’t see a ring. 

“Long day?” he asked.

“Long week,” Wisteria replied, sighing again.

“I feel you.  I’m Justin by the way,” he said, extending his hand to shake hers.

“Wisteria,” she replied before his warm hand enclosed her own.  His hands were the perfect masculine mix of rough because he’d actually done manual labor and smooth because he knew how to moisturize them. 

“Nice to meet you, Wisteria.”

“Same to you.”

“Can I buy you a drink?”

Wisteria was just about to answer when that damn perky blond bartender chose the perfect moment to come back over with her receipt.

“Here you go, ma’am,” she said, not even bothering to look at Wisteria as she spoke.  She wasn’t immune to Justin’s looks either.  In fact, it seemed like no woman in the bar was.  Wisteria looked around and saw quite a few pairs of eyes on the two of them and suddenly felt a slight pang of unexpected jealousy. 

“Oh you were closing your tab?” Justin asked, not paying attention to the bartender staring at him.

“Um…yeah,” Wisteria stammered, “I know my limit and I hit it about two drinks ago,” she chuckled and Justin joined in.

“Well here, let me take care of that then,” he said, grabbing the envelope and pulling out his wallet.  Wisteria couldn’t help but notice him riffle through a few $100 dollar bills before pulling out three $20 bills and placing them in the black envelope on top of her receipt.

“That’s far too much, I can’t just let you pay for that,” Wisteria said, placing her hand on top of his as he placed the black folder back on the bar.  She felt a current of electricity course through her body as soon as she made contact with his skin, and from the look of shock that flashed across his face she was sure that he felt it too.

“Well how about you treat me to dinner then.  I cover these and you cover dinner?” he asked with a sly grin.  Wisteria couldn’t help the blush that grew on her face.

“I don’t know, I have a really crazy schedule.  I’m not sure when I’ll be free again.”

“Well here, let me see your phone.”  Wisteria hesitated at first but handed over her Blackberry.  She watched as Justin programmed his phone number and Blackberry Messenger PIN in her phone and called his own Blackberry.

“How about you call me the next time you have some free time?” he asked, still smiling.  Wisteria could feel her panties getting damp and nodded. 

“That sounds like a plan to me.”  Justin rose to his feet and took one of her delicate hands in his own before kissing it.

“Until then, ma’am,” he said before turning and walking away.

Be still my fluttering heart.

***

(Present Day)

Wisteria reminisced about that first date while she lied there in bed.  Justin was a perfect gentleman, picking her up and bringing her flowers.  He even let her pick the restaurant, but ordered for the two of them when the waitress showed up, and he somehow knew that she would favor the Shrimp and Chicken Alfredo over everything else on the seafood menu.  They enjoyed their time together and spent the evening talking about everything from their childhood to their favorite drink at Starbucks.  The only topic that they didn’t broach was their occupations.  Wisteria didn’t want to ask him about his line of work out of fear that she’d have to reveal that she was currently training to become a DEA Agent at Quantico.  That evening ended with a searing kiss and a promise of a second date in the near future. 

Well as the old saying goes ‘one thing led to another’ or ‘one date led to another’, and then a couple other ones in their case and within a month they were seeing each other exclusively.  As much as Wisteria denied it, to herself even, she was falling for this guy; and that was a very dangerous thing to do in her line of work. 

***

(1 week prior)

Wisteria tried to hold it all together as she finished her polygraph test, standard procedure for all new agents.

“So I’m just going to ask you a few questions to get a base line reading, okay?”  she nodded and smiled at the middle-aged man.  He had kind eyes and mousey hair and those features might have previously led her to believe that he was harmless; but that wasn’t true as she learned in training.  Quantico made her hone in on her skill of discernment and taught her not to be too quick in thinking someone wasn’t a threat.  A drug kingpin could be your elderly next door neighbor, your mother, or even your boyfriend!

“Is your name Wisteria Barnett.”

“Yes,” she replied firmly.

“Are you 25 years old?”

“Yes.”

“Is your birthday November 23, 1984?”

“Yes.”

The questions droned on for about an hour before the interviewer told her that he had one final question to ask then she’d be free to go.  Wisteria sighed and smiled, happy that this process was about to be over.

“Shoot,” she chuckled.

“Do you have any relationships or ties that would prevent you from doing your job to the best of your ability?” 

 

Set me free, leave me be. I don't want to fall another moment into your gravity.
Here I am and I stand so tall, just the way I'm supposed to be.
But you're on to me and all over me.

 

Wisteria was silent for a half-second.

“No.”

***

(Present Day)

Wisteria sighed and rubbed her eyes before sitting up in bed and picking up her agency issued Blackberry.  After President Obama was able to get a secure one the other federal agencies decided to up their technology, and as a result everyone’s new way of communication was through that smartphone.  She typed in her password and unlocked the keypad before checking her emails and seeing that she had a meeting that morning…in an hour.

“Shit!” she exclaimed, throwing the covers off of her naked form and rushing to the bathroom.  Forty-five minutes later she was parking her black Toyota Camry, taking off her prescription sunglasses and replacing them with her burgundy frames.  Wisteria grabbed her purse, tote and travelling coffee mug before heading inside the federal building.  She didn’t want people to blame the new girl’s tardiness for the delay of that morning’s meeting.  Stopping by her desk Wisteria dropped off her tote and grabbed her netbook out of it so that she could take notes.  She walked in the conference room right before her director and was seated and turning on her netbook when he started the briefing with a picture of the suspect they were after.

“This is Justin Timberlake, the drug lord I’m assigning to you newbies.”

Wisteria’s jaw dropped.  Right in front of her on the screen were the same cobalt eyes that caught her attention that night at ‘Delia’s’ and the same pair of eyes that captured hers as they made love the night before.  They were Justin’s eyes; her Justin’s eyes. 

Wisteria thought back to what she asked Morgan on that now infamous night.

“But what if he’s some psycho drug dealer or something!?”

…little did she know.

Chapter Two: Love is Blind

"Justin has managed to do what we thought was impossible and infiltrate the Black Mafia," Director Sanchez began, "He was able to use his connections from his hometown."

Millington, Tennessee.  Wisteria knew this from the many stories he told her about his childhood.

"Millington, Tennessee; it’s a small town right on the outside of Memphis.  We were able to gather some intel and apparently he went to high school with his mafia connect and the two of them hooked up again at their 10 year class reunion.  Justin's still moving up in the ranks, but he's definitely pushing enough cocaine to make a blip on our radar."

Wisteria watched as images of Justin flashed across the screen.  In a few he was making what she assumed was a drug deal, but in most of them he was talking to an attractive black guy around his age.  She saw a few images of him watching the young black guy rough up a woman who appeared to be a hooker.

Well people don't see
What I see
Even when they're right there
Standing next to me

Wait, he's into prostitution?  Of course he was.  Wisteria had studied the Black Mafia for a brief point in her graduate career.  They were known for many illegal things, but cocaine and prostitution were at the top of the list.  And a lot of times it was underage prostitution.  She shivered and it wasn't because of the temperature in the room.

It’s too bad ‘cause love is blind
It’s too bad ‘cause love is blind
It’s too bad it don't matter baby
It’s too bad, so sad

"We subpoenaed his bank accounts, but we're still working on his phone records," the director began and Wisteria felt her heart drop.  She couldn't let them do that; their relationship would be made known to the agency and to then the courts and she would lose her job and possibly her freedom if they brought accessory charges against her.  Wisteria was frozen in place, breathing through her nose so that her nervous habit of word vomit wouldn't get her arrested right then and there.

"So here's the plan, we're gonna need someone to go undercover.  Timberlake might be new in this organization, but he's no amateur in the dope game.  He's good and we need some concrete shit on him before we can bring him in.  Keep in mind, he's a pawn, not the king, but we need him so that we can get to the king.  Timberlake runs a tight crew so sending in a guy is out of the picture.  I need one of you ladies to pursue him.  I don't care if you want to be a prostitute or bump into him at a bar, I'll leave the specifics up to you and the FBI's fake identity crew.  We're doing surveillance on him now, tracking his movements and his online activity to see if we can get a hint of the type of woman he finds attractive and we'll go from there.  But by the end of this week one of you lovely ladies will be going undercover."

Wisteria was really nervous now.  If by a slim chance a picture of her didn't show up on his computer, or they didn't get his phone records, she'd have to go up against the 5 other women in her department.  Justin had always joked that she wasn't the type that he usually fell for, but her personality and doe eyes drew him in.  Wisteria considered herself somewhat exotic, she was mixed with Black and Dominican, but her hair and green-ish hazel eyes was where the exotic features ended.  She had a cute shape, her mother's hips and behind and the ample breasts that ran on her father's side of the family, but she didn't compare to some of her other co-workers...in her mind at least.

Just then something that the director said registered with her.

"Sir," she said, raising her hand, "did you just say that we'd be working with the Bureau on this case?"

"Yes, drugs and prostitution aren't the only things the Black Mafia is known for.  We need each other's help on this."

"Oh okay," Wisteria smiled weakly.  Great.  This meant that Morgan would probably be in on this since she's in the Bureau's fake identity department.   Wisteria smiled softly, happy that her friend was putting her counterfeiting skills to good use, legally.  That girl was personally responsible for hundreds of fake IDs between high school and undergrad, and it was a good thing that she was doing it for the right side of the law now.

Wait, if the FBI’s identity department was working with them, then that meant that Morgan was working with them.

“Duh Wisteria,” she scolded herself mentally, “we’ve already established that.”

It meant that she would be seeing this case and would instantly recognize Justin.  Morgan wasn’t dating him and would have no hesitation bringing him in…if she remembered who he was.  It had been three months since she’d seen Justin and maybe she’d forgotten about him in the midst of all that Quantico training.  Shit Wisteria barely got to see him herself between their crazy work schedules.  They never had revealed their occupations to each other; Wisteria because of the confidentiality agreement the agency made her sign and Justin because…well because he was a “dope boy” as her director put it affectionately. 

 

It’s too bad ‘cause love is blind.

It’s too bad ‘cause love is blind.

 

Wisteria needed a plan of action and she needed one quickly.  She knew that the agency was conducting a surveillance watch on Justin and she had to make sure that she didn’t show up in any of the data.  The two of them had a date scheduled for that night.  Nothing too serious, probably just meeting up for drinks at ‘Delia’s’ and then back to one of their places for dinner and dessert.  They weren’t your typical couple, in fact Wisteria wasn’t even sure if they were officially a couple.  They hadn’t given each other a title, feeling that they were too old to be referring to themselves as “boyfriend/girlfriend”.  So far it’d worked out perfectly; they hadn’t been to any functions together, nor had they had to introduce the other to another person.  Come to think of it, Wisteria hadn’t referred to him as anything other than the few petnames she used and ‘Justin’.  Vice versa worked in his case.  They usually kept to themselves when they were together.  They didn’t get to see each other as often as they wanted to because of their jobs.  Wow, Wisteria just realized that she’d referred to what Justin did as a ‘job’.  Yeah, she was in deep, really deep.  Too deep.  She was so lost in her own world that she didn’t catch the end of the briefing.  It wasn’t until she saw people packing up their belongings that she snapped out of the trance-like state she was in and followed suit.  Wisteria shuffled back to her desk and pulled out her personal Blackberry and BBM’d Justin.

| I don’t think I’m gonna make it tonight.  We’re starting a new project at work and they need all hands on deck L |

She watched as the message went from ‘delivered’ to ‘received’, and it wasn’t long before he responded.

| You can’t even get together for dessert?  I had a special treat for you.  ;) |

Wisteria felt her panties get damp at the mere mention of a surprise from him.  She typed a quick response.

| L damn.  No, I can’t tonight, but maybe tomorrow? |

| let me check my schedule, but I think we could make something work. |

Wisteria couldn’t fight the grin that was growing on her face.  This man was a dangerous criminal; a dangerous criminal who was in cohorts with an even more dangerous criminal.  The thought of what he could do to her body wasn’t supposed to intrigue her. 

***

Justin was sitting by himself at the bar twirling the red cocktail straw in his Jack & Coke when he heard someone walk through the door of Delia’s.  He looked up for what felt like the hundredth time that night and for once again a look of sadness crossed his face when he realized that it wasn’t Wisteria walking through it.  The two of them had made plans to meet up at the bar for 8pm and then head back to his place for dinner and dessert…but that was a half hour ago.  He checked his phone for the thousandth time and he didn’t see anything from her.  No missed calls, no text messages, no BBMs, no emails, no nothing.  He sighed and flagged down the bartender, getting ready to close his tab for the evening and go home. 

“Hey, don’t I know you?”

Justin looked up and saw a petite caramel-toned woman with bright eyes staring at him.

“You do?”

“Yeah, your name is Justin, right?”

Justin’s body tensed.  It usually wasn’t a good sign when a complete stranger knew his name.

“Who wants to know?” he asked in a cocky tone and watched Morgan chuckle.

“You’re dating my best friend, Wisteria.  I recognize you from the wallpaper of the two of you on her phone,” Morgan smiled.  Justin exhaled the breath he didn’t realizing he was holding. 

“Yeah,” he chuckled softly, “and I think I’m being stood up by her now,” he said, lowering his head.

“What?  Why would she stand you up?”

“She said that they’re starting a new project at her job and they needed all hands on deck.”  Justin watched Morgan cock an eyebrow and raised his hands defensively.

“Hey, that’s her words not mine,” he said, showing Morgan the message Wisteria sent him the previous day.  Morgan understood immediately; she’d been assigned a new case by the agency. 

“Well look, how about I have a drink with you instead?  I know I’m not Wisteria, but I think I’m pretty damn good company,” Morgan said, smiling brightly at him.  She watched as Justin pondered over the thought before agreeing.

“Well I guess it couldn’t hurt.  Hell, I might get some dirt on her,” he laughed and Morgan joined in. 

“Naw uh, I’m not getting my tongue cut off for revealing that girl’s secrets.”  Justin signaled the bartender and told her not to close his tab and to get Morgan a glass of whatever she wanted to drink. 

“So you’re not going to tell me anything about your girl?” Justin questioned, flashing one of his infamous lady-killer grins.

“Nope, and don’t try that move on me mister, Wisty told me about you and that coy grin you use to try and get your way.  It’s not going to work on me,” she said with a laugh. 

“Damn, the Timberlake grin usually never fails me.”

“Wait,” Morgan said, laughing harder, “You have a name for that?  I’m too through!”

“You mean to tell me that that’s not normal?” Justin asked.

“No, it’s not,” Morgan replied, still laughing. 

“Well damn,” he said, lowering his head with his grin still on his face, “I guess I’m not normal.”

“Nope, you’re not,” she replied, smiling, “You can’t be if you’re dating Wisty.”

“Hey, don’t talk about my girl now,” Justin chided.

“Whoa!  Your girl?”

Her question made Justin pause.  He hadn’t realized that he’d said that, that it’d flowed so easily from his mouth. 

“Yeah, my girl.  I said it,” Justin responded boldly and smiled.

“Well let’s propose a toast to ‘Your Girl’.  Hopefully they’re not working her to hard at the office,” Morgan said, raising her glass to meet his.

 

***

 

Wisteria sat at her desk, twirling a pen with her fingers and finishing up her third Dr. Pepper that evening.  She couldn’t believe that she was still at the agency and that she was going over her boyfriend’s  case file.  She sighed.  Her brain was going haywire as she tried to make up her mind if she wanted to be the one going undercover to get him or if she wanted to let someone else take that role.  On one hand if took the assignment she’d had an excuse to hang out with him and not have to hide it, any pictures that surfaced could just be pinned on her “doing her job”; but she couldn’t let herself fall any further with him than she already was.  After all the man was looking at a few decades behind bars with the charges they had on him.  But on the other hand she could make a clean break now, quit him cold turkey.  But was that what she really wanted?  Wisteria’s personal Blackberry buzzing with a BBM from Justin.

 

| Guess who I’m having drinks with?|

 

She stared at the device with a raised eyebrow for a moment, trying to figure out who he could be with at the bar.

 

| Well I know it’s not me, and I’m sorry.  The office needed me.|

 

She knew that she didn’t answer his question, but sent the message anyway. 

 

| It’s okay, I understand that work gets like that sometimes.  But I want you to guess who I’m with.|

| I don’t know, Barack Obama? Lol.|

 

Wisteria couldn’t help but laugh herself when she sent the message.  She waited to see the ‘is writing a message’ under Justin’s BBM name, but didn’t see anything…until her phone started ringing.

Morgan

She watched as a picture of her and best friend flashed on the screen and answered her phone.

“What’s up girl?”

“Close, but no cigar baby,” Justin replied.

“Why are you calling me on Morgan’s phone?” she asked a bit too loudly.  Wisteria lowered her tone before asking her next question, “Is that who you’re with at the bar?”

“Yep, she came to keep me company when you stood me up,” Justin laughed.

“Hey, that’s not what happened and you know it, mister!”  Wisteria laughed when she heard her best friend in the background.

“You cheating on me already?” Wisteria asked jokingly.

“Me?  Never!” Justin began, “In fact, I’m going to show how faithful I am to you tonight.  Meet me at your place in an hour.”

“Jus—” Wisteria had to stop herself before she finished his name, “Babe, I’m not sure if I can do that.  I’m not finished up here.”

“Well hurry up and finish and meet me at your place in an hour.  I’ll see you then.”  Justin didn’t give her a chance to respond before he hung up the phone.  She pulled the phone away from her ear and stared at a screen for a few seconds before tossing it into her tote.  She shut down her netbook, closed his case file and grabbed her work Blackberry, tossing all three of those into her tote as well.  It made no sense for her to stay there all night doing something that she could do at home, after Justin left of course.  It’d been a long day and needed to relax, and Justin was good at. 

That night the normal 20 minute drive home seemed like it went faster than usual, and in no time she was charging both phones, choosing a smooth playlist to listen to while she took a soothing bath.  She’d already told Justin to let himself in with the spare key and was expecting him to be there in any minute. 

 

I'm on my way home 
About to hit the exit
Do you need some
‘Cause I know you had a long day, whoa
Do you miss me?
‘Cause I miss you
And that sexy little thing
You make your lips do
Way your hips move
Keep me thinking about the
Love I wanna give you

 

Wisteria was adjusting the bun in her head when she heard the front door open and Justin say “Honey I’m home!”  She giggled and called for him.

“I’m in the tub!”  She heard him drop his keys on her kitchen table, his normal routine, before hearing his footsteps approaching her bedroom.

“Long day?” he asked, peeking his head in the restroom where he saw her up to her neck in bubbles. 

“Understatement of the year,” Wisteria replied with a small smile. 

“What, no candles?”

“Didn’t feel like lighting ‘em.  I’m lazy,” she giggled lightly.

 

“That’s not laziness, you’re just tired.  Where’s your lighter, I’ll do it.”

“First dresser on the right.  Look at you trying to set the mood.  Just how much did you have to drink, mister?”

“Just enough beer so that the goggles are now working.”  Wisteria scoffed and threw a handful of bubbles at him.

“I resent that!” she exclaimed.

“I’m kidding!” he laughed, “I don’t need alcohol to find you attractive, even Stevie Wonder can see how fine you are.”

“Wow Timberlake, where did you hear that line?  1994?”

“Hardy har har,” Justin mocked, “And to think I was going to come over there and give you a massage.”

“Ooh!  I’m sorry.  I take back everything bad I said.”

“Naw uh, too late.”

“Please.  I love you, please!” the words were out of her mouth before she had the chance to think about it.  It was as if time stood still, neither she nor Justin moved as her words hung thick in the air.

“You love me?” Justin asked, a cocky grin growing on his face.

“Maybe,” she replied, smiling, “it depends on how you feel about me.”

“No it doesn’t; you love me,” he responded.

“Don’t be a smug asshole about it.  I might as well take it back since you obviously don’t feel the same way about me,” Wisteria said, her smile faltering.  Justin walked over and squatted next to the stand-alone bath tub.

“Now who said that?” he asked, stroking her cheek sweetly.

“You did…well you didn’t say that you loved me,” she said, leaning into his touch but still a little hurt that she’d put her feelings out on the table and he hadn’t said it back.

“Well I do love you; I thought you knew that, silly girl.”

“How the hell am I supposed to know that if you don’t say it, goober!” Wisteria laughed.

“Actions speak louder than words, sweetheart.”

“Well aren’t you full of Chinese proverbs today,” she joked. 

“Says the woman who keeps spewing one-liners,” he retorted.

“Touché.  So, you mentioned something about a massage earlier…”

“Ah yeah, I vaguely remember saying something about that,” he said, moving behind her and getting to work on her neck and shoulders. 

 

And tonight I got your
Neck, shoulders, back 
Baby I'ma touch on all that
Once I pull in the garage
Once I hop up out the car
 

You gon leave your
Dress yes 
Baby fall back
Tonight I'm gon be working all that
Lose the panties and the bra
I'ma start with a massage

 

“You’re really tense; I guess you weren’t kidding when you said that you had a rough day.”

“I told you,” Wisteria half moaned. 

“Well I think I have a way to get rid of this tension, because I have a feeling that your neck and shoulders aren’t the only places on your body where it is.”

“Oh no, I’m aching all over,” she said with a smirk.

“Really now?”

“Yes, I’m so sore.”

“Not yet you aren’t,” he said, lifting her out of the tub and removing the hair tie that was holding her bun up.  Justin wrapped her towel around her before he carried her to the bedroom and placed her in the center of her king-sized bed.  He patted her hip lightly and told her that he would be right back before disappearing back into the restroom.

“What are you doing, Timberlake?”  Wisteria waited for him to voice his response, but that didn’t happen.  Instead he strolled back into the bedroom with a bottle of vanilla scented massage oil.

“Have you been snooping through my cabinets?  I could’ve sworn I had that hidden away somewhere.”  Justin chuckled softly as he towel dried her. 

“You don’t have to do this, you know that right?”

“I know,” he began, smiling at her, “I want to.  Now lay back.”  He started at her feet and worked his way up her right leg, paying special attention to her calf before repeating his actions on her left leg. 

“Flip over,” he said softly once he’d reached her hip.  He made sure to avoid the area where she needed him the most.  She was already writhing and wet and he was trying his hardest to not give into temptation and take her then.  Wisteria turned over so that she was lying on her stomach and moved her hair over beneath one of her shoulders.

“Let me know if I’m too heavy,” Justin said as he straddled the back of her legs and eased his body weight onto her.

“You’re fine,” Wisteria replied before she felt him place a feather-light kiss on each of her shoulder blades.

“Mmmm,” she moaned.

“Have I ever told you that your skin reminds me of café au lait?”

“No, you haven’t.”

“Well it does, and I love café au lait.”

“And you love me too,” she said, beaming into her pillow.

“That I do,” he confirmed as he poured more oil into the palm of his hand and warmed it up a bit before rubbing it into her tense shoulders.  Wisteria was slowly becoming putty in his hands, relaxed but felt every nerve ending standing on edge out of want for him.  She felt him work his way down her back and when she felt his palms kneading her lower back she lost all reserve and moaned…loud.

“Justin.”  He moved off of her and turned her over, noting the lust burning in her eyes.  Wisteria threw an arm around his neck and pulled him in for a searing kiss.  She needed him in the worst way, and was sure that he could feel that from the dampness that was pooling between her legs. 

“You’re wearing too many clothes,” she said between pecks.  She helped him take off his navy blue button down and black slacks and smiled when she saw him straining against the confines of his boxer briefs.

“Come here, you,” she said, pulling him by the waistband of his underwear.

Chapter Three: Love Faces

 

Wisteria woke up the next morning knowing exactly what she had to do.  She stared at the ceiling, relishing in the moment she was sharing with Justin; his arm thrown haphazardly around her lower stomach and his face buried in one of her pillows.  She watched as his back rose and fell in a steady rhythm as he slept soundly…or so she thought.

“Are you staring at me again?” came a groggy voice.  Wisteria smiled softly before leaning over and kissing his temple affectionately. 

“How do you do that?” she asked, “How do you know when I’m watching you?”

“I have eyes in the back of my head,” he joked, eliciting a laugh from the both of them.

“No, you’re just a creature of habit, Babygirl.”  Justin rotated his head so that he was facing her and puckered his lips for a kiss.  Wisteria complied and their kiss ended with a soft pop before Justin flipped over on his side and playfully attacked her, peppering her face with wet kisses.

“Justin!  Stop!” Wisteria laughed, but Justin continued in his attack until he was straddling her and they were both out of breath.  For a moment the room was silent aside from their heavy panting until Justin stroked her cheek sweetly.

“You look absolutely stunning in the morning light,” he said sincerely.

“As opposed to every other light?” she joked and Justin sighed and rolled his eyes, getting off of her.

“There you go playing again; I was just trying to compliment you on how beautiful you are and you gotta turn it into some joke.”

“Aww, I’m sorry baby,” she said, throwing her arms around his neck and burying her face in his shoulder.

“You know I love you and your compliments.”

“Well you have a fucked up way to show it.”  Justin tried to keep a straight face after he said that, but couldn’t.  Pretty soon they were both rolling with laughter.

“We’re a hell of a pair aren’t we?” Wisteria asked, looking into his cerulean orbs.

“Yep, but I wouldn’t have it any other way.  Oh!  Before I forget, my mom’s coming into town next weekend.”

“Okay, do you want me to stay away for those days?” she asked, assuming that his mother didn’t know about the two of them.

“Stay away?  Why would I want you to do that?  Goofball, thy name is Wisteria,” he chuckled, “No, I want you to meet her.  I told her about us and she’s dying to meet the woman who ‘tamed me’,” he said, making air quotes on the last two words.

“Tame you?” Wisteria asked quizzically.

“Those were her words, not mine,” he replied, grabbing her right leg and throwing it across his waist so that she could straddle him.  Wisteria glanced over at her bedside clock and saw that she had about an hour and a half to get to work for that briefing.  If she started this with Justin now there’s no way that she’d make it to the meeting on time…or even at all.  He didn’t believe in quickies and she didn’t blame him.  Why would he want to rush through something he was so good at?

“Babe I can’t,” she protested, trying to slide off of him but stopped when she felt his hands on her hips.

“What?  You’re not still sore from earlier are you?” he asked referring to their middle-of-the-night romp.

“Cocky much?” she asked, slapping his chest playfully.

“No, I have to go to work; like actually be there on time and shit,” she continued.

“Can’t you call in sick?  Tell them you have the flu or something?” Justin asked.

And risk another female agent being assigned to this case?

“No, I have to go in today; but if you want I’ll think about calling in tomorrow.”

“Think about it?” he asked.

“Yeah, that all depends on how good you are tonight,” she said with a wink before getting off of him and making her way to the restroom to start her morning routine.

 

***

 

Much to her surprise Wisteria didn’t have to do the spiel she’d prepared in the car on the way to work at the meeting.  She thought that she would have to when the director told her department that his decision was down to two women, Casey, the perky blond who fit Justin’s type perfectly and Wisteria.  When he told them that he’d chosen Wisteria in the end because her background led him to believe that she’d be able to pull Justin faster than Casey, Wisteria’s jaw dropped.  If only he knew how on point he was.  After the briefing she was sent off to the FBI’s identity department to Morgan, only to find her just as shocked.

“Shit!  I mean, I don’t know what to say.  I’m happy that you were the one chosen, but damn are you gonna be able to bring down your boyfriend?” Morgan asked in a hushed tone once the two of them were alone in her office.  Wisteria collapsed in the nearest chair and buried her face in her hands.

“I don’t know Mo,” she began, “I mean who wants to see their boyfriend, the love of their life go to jail?  I know that if someone’s done the things that we have intel of him doing then he needs to go to jail, but I don’t want him to.  I don’t want him to take the fall because of the asshole he answers to.”  Morgan nodded, agreeing.  She found out Justin’s occupation the same day Wisteria did and to her surprise it didn’t change her opinion of him.  He was still the best thing that ever happened to her best friend romantically; he just so happened to mixed up in the wrong crowd.  There had to be a reason why he was in that industry though.  No one grows up with the dream of dealing heavy narcotics and human trafficking.  Somewhere along the road something must have happened that forced him into this life.  Morgan decided that while Wisteria was doing recon work she’d do a bit of her own.

“So,” Morgan began, clapping her hands together, “Your new identity.” 

After having a talk with the director Wisteria decided that the best way to set up her ‘meeting’ with Justin was a bar.  It was a public place that she wouldn’t have to wear a wire to, and it didn’t hurt that they planned on meeting that night at Delia’s anyway.  Sanchez laid down some ground rules: by no means was she allowed to invite Justin back to her place, if he initiated that she was to make up an excuse and see if they could go to his place instead.  Which was also fine since she liked his house more than her rental.  She made a promise to check in every hour in exchange for not having to wear a wire on this first encounter, and they’d determine at the briefing the next morning if she’d be required to wear one at all.  The tech department made sure that her work Blackberry was up to date as far as software and GPS went.  They told her that all she had to do was hold down her ‘H’ key for 5 seconds and she’d have back-up in moments.  Wisteria didn’t think that she’d need it, but it was definitely good to know.  The easy part was finished.  She’d gotten the assignment, and now she had to make sure she didn’t mess things up. 

 

***

 

(2 weeks later)

 

Wisteria slumped in the driver’s seat of her Camry and sighed heavily.  She’d just put in a long day at the office…if you could call it that.  She spent most of the day briefing her unit with the progress she’d made with Justin.  She was sure that she’d shocked the hell out of them when she told them that she’d be meeting his mother that evening.  Casey had even commended her on how fast she worked.

“You got skills girl, I don’t think that I could even have worked my way into his life like that this quickly,” were Casey’s exact words.  Wisteria couldn’t do anything except smile nervously and say ‘thanks’.  If her co-workers knew the truth she’d be thrown in jail…but she didn’t want to think about that now.  Right now she had to focus on getting physically and mentally prepared to have dinner with Justin and his mother.  According to Justin his mother was God’s gift to the world and he put no other woman above her.  He was a self-proclaimed ‘Mama’s Boy’ and was perfectly fine being one.  He loved and adored his mother and would do anything to make sure she was safe and happy.  She had a little over 2 hours to go home, shower, change and meet them at Justin’s house.  He told her that his mother was cooking for them, that she even insisted.  So now Wisteria was speeding home to find something that was not only ‘Mom appropriate’ but comfortable enough to spend the entire evening in. 

Thanks to the major progress she’d made with the case Wisteria was able to convince her director that she didn’t need back-up tonight.  There was no way that Justin was going to do anything to endanger his mother, or even her, but she wouldn’t let them know that.  She made it to Justin’s house with 20 minutes to spare and was surprised when she found out that dinner was not only already ready, but Ms. Harless had prepared a spread.  As soon as Justin opened the door for her she could smell the delicious aroma of the Southern food, but didn’t realize how much Lynn had prepared until she saw the numerous dishes on the dining room table as she followed Justin into the kitchen where his mother was. 

“You must be Wisty,” Lynn said, wiping her hands on the apron she was wearing and approaching the young woman for a hug. 

“Yes ma’am, it’s so great to finally meet you Ms. Harless,” Wisteria replied, letting the older woman envelope her warmly.

“Call me Lynn, shoot you might be calling me ‘Mom’ pretty soon if you keep up what you’ve been doing,” Lynn said winking at her. 

“Momma,” Justin exclaimed, embarrassed.

“Don’t pay him any mind, hon.  He’s acting like we haven’t talked about this before.”

Wait, Justin’s talked to his mother about the possibility of marrying her?

“Mom!” Justin exclaimed louder.

“Hush boy,” Lynn said, silencing her son before taking Wisteria by the arm and guiding her to the dining room.

“I didn’t know what you liked so I just made a few things,” Lynn said, pointing the dishes on the table.  A ‘few things’ to the woman consisted of fried chicken, pork chops, potato salad, macaroni and cheese, green beans, cornbread, and mustard greens.

“Oh wow, you didn’t have to do all of this,” Wisteria told her.

“It was nothing, child.  I cook like this all the time at home, ask Justin.”  Wisteria hadn’t noticed when he walked into the room but saw him standing in a corner and nodding in agreement to his mother’s statement.

“And I made some sweet tea, it’s in the fridge.  Justin, baby, do you want to go get us some glasses?”

“Yes ma’am,” Justin replied before going back into the kitchen to get their drinks. 

“Have a seat,” Lynn instructed Wisteria, “Take a load off.  Justin told me that you had a long day today.  Don’t let that job of yours stress you out honey,” Lynn said as she and Wisteria sat down at the table. 

“It’s not that bad, today was just a little long.”

“He tells me that you have days like this regularly though.  Don’t let them work you too hard, you don’t need all that stress on your body this early in life.  How old are you anyway?”

“25.”

“Mom,” Justin interrupted sternly, “can we please not do this now?  Let’s just enjoy this wonderful dinner you made and save the 20 questions for after dessert.”

“There’s dessert?” Wisteria asked.

“Oh yes, I made peach cobbler and picked up some vanilla ice cream.”

“Yep,” Justin said grinning, “It’s my granny’s recipe.  You’ll love it.”

Dinner went better than Wisteria expected.  She got to see a side of Justin that she’d never seen.  With her he was usually the one taking charge of the situation, something that she loved, but with his mother he let her take charge.  She got to see his ‘Mama’s boy’ side and it was cute.  She could definitely see the love between the two of them.  Lynn put her foot in that food and it was absolutely delicious.  Wisteria volunteered to do the dishes since Lynn cooked and Justin joined her. 

“Do you think your mom wants another piece of pie before I put this in the fridge?” Wisteria asked she put the leftovers in Tupperware containers.  

“Naw, she’s probably washing her face and brushing her teeth and about to call it a night.”

“Something that I’m going to do when we finish up with this,” Wisteria said from behind the refrigerator door. 

“I don’t think you should be driving home if you’re that tired,” Justin replied, scrubbing the plates in sink.

“If that’s your way of asking me to spend the night you need to do better,” she laughed.

“What?  I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he said sheepishly.

“Umm hmm,” she said, walking over behind him and wrapping her arms around his middle.  She rested her head against his back and relished in this moment with him.  She slowed her breathing down so that it matched his strong heartbeat and stayed there, feeling his muscles contract while he continued washing the dishes.

“You seem pretty comfortable back there Ms. I’ll-wash-the-dishes-for-you-Lynn,” Justin chuckled. 

“Hey,” Wisteria began, pinching his side, “It’s not my fault that you’re so much better at doing those than me.”

“Umm hmm, I think you just like feeling me up.”

“You know me so well, babe,” Wisteria joked, “Do you want me to help you?”

“Naw, I’m good.  I was just playing with you,” he said, turning his head to the side and capturing her lips for a quick kiss.  It was moments like these that made her really hate that he was a wanted by her agency.  Not wanting the think about the topic any further she shook her head and rubbed her hands along his taut abs.

“Are you almost finished?  I’m think I’m ready to turn in,” she faked a yawn as she heard him drain the dishwater that was in the sink.

“The rest of these can go in the dishwasher,” he said a bit anxious and Wisteria giggled softly.  She’d never seen him like this before.

“So you’re gonna spend the night then?” he asked, hopeful.

“Yeah, I’m far too tired to drive home,” she replied in an exaggerated southern accent.

“Well then,” he said, playing along, “I guess I’ll just have to help the lady upstairs and into bed then.  I wouldn’t want you to pass out right here.”

“That would be the proper thing to do,” Wisteria said before Justin scooped her up in his arms and carried her upstairs to his bedroom.  He closed and locked the door behind them and watched as she walked towards his closet.

“Do you have something I can sleep in?  I didn’t pack an overnight bag.”

“Yeah, you want one of my t-shirts?”

“That’s fine, I’ll get it later.  I just don’t want your mother to accidentally walk in here in the morning and see me lying naked in your bed.”  Wisteria watched as Justin’s facial expression went from confusion to lust in seconds.  She stepped out of her shoes and slowly walked backwards to his bed, curling an index finger in a ‘come hither’ motion towards him.  Justin complied immediately, pulling off his button down and wifebeater in one sweep.  He kicked off his shoes and within seconds he was standing in front of her and she sat on the edge of his bed. 

 

Girl I'm so glad you came over
I wanna tell you 'come closer'
But I don't know if you feel, like I feel
Tell me girl

 

Wisteria didn’t know what came over her.  She’d never done this, had sex with a guy while his mother was in the house, let alone down the hall; but she wanted him.  She needed him. 

“Please tell me your mom’s a deep sleeper,” she said as she pulled him in for a searing kiss.  Justin nodded into her lips as his left hand came down to rest on the mattress next to her and his right hand griped her neck, bringing her closer to him.  They explored each other for what felt like hours before Justin pulled back and stroked her cheek gently, something so simple but did so much to her.

“I love you,” he whispered.

“And I, you,” she replied, pulling her top over her head and scooting back to the center of his bed.  Justin took it as an invitation to join her and climbed on top of her to resume their intimate tongue wrestle. 

 

Don't it feel good when I touch on it
Wouldn't it be nice if all night I was in you
Come kiss me, come with me
Down the hall to my bedroom
Tonight we'll be
Making love faces

 

Justin’s hands skimmed down her side until they reached the waistband of her jeans.  He lifted up so that he could take them off before she returned the favor for him.  The two of them were lying there in their underwear making out like they were teenagers again and Wisteria couldn’t be happier.  This man was her world; she didn’t care what the agency said about him.  She would find a way to clear his name, she had to. 

“Is something wrong?”

Wisteria was brought back to the present when she felt Justin questioning her as he placed open-mouth kisses around her navel.  She couldn’t believe that she was daydreaming when she had this Adonis on top and vowed to never let it happen again.

“No, nothing at all,” she reassured him.

“Good,” he replied before fingering the waistband of her red boyshorts. 

“These have got to go,” he whispered as he pulled the fabric down and off her legs. 

 

Take 'em off please
Oh down on my knees
Ohh, You're right in front of me
Don't have to pay for my attention
Can you hear me is you listenin?
Baby be real with me

 

He kissed his way up her right leg and down her left before kissing her where she needed it most.  His nose rubbed against her pleasure nub and she almost came right then.  Justin licked her folds once, twice, three times before pulling the lips apart and putting his tongue in her sex.  Wisteria’s body reacted immediately, her back arching and her hands finding the short curls on his head.  She let out a low guttural moan, suppressing the scream that she wanted to let out. 

“Oh god.”

She was close.  So close, and he could feel it but didn’t stop in his assault.  Her walls were constricting around his tongue and he could feel her body vibrating from the oncoming orgasm.  He gripped her hips lightly and lapped all the juices that poured from her as she rode the wave of ecstasy that came over her.  Both of their breaths were ragged when he finally made his way up to her lips to let her taste how delicious she was.  Wisteria moved to straddle his waist, rubbing her already sensitive nub against his hip bone in the process and almost came again.  She felt his erection against the crack of her behind and readjusted herself so that it was positioned at her entrance.  Sliding down slowly, she sighed in contentment when he was buried deep inside her.  She began rocking, keeping a slow and steady pace and heard a groan slip through his lips.  Looks like she wasn’t the only one holding back because his mother was down the hall.  She felt him grab her hips and guide her into her a faster pace, sliding her body up and down and rubbing against her g-spot. 

 

The way you bite your lip
Is that your way of tellin' me you like it?
Mmhmm, if I'm the best you ever had girl in your life
Say mmhmm, and when your eyes roll back in your head
Shakin' your legs

 

She was close again and so was he.  Wisteria stopped her soft bouncing and ground her hips into his as she toppled over the edge.  She felt him spill inside of her and collapsed against his chest.  Neither one of them said a word, there were none to say.  She rolled over off of him and curled up against him, throwing a leg between his and an arm around his middle.  Justin smoothed her hair back and kissed her forehead before reaching over and turning off the lamp that he didn’t realize was on and drifting off into a deep sleep. 

Chapter Four: Love All Over Me

 

| I know why he’s doing it. |

Wisteria stared at her phone, frozen in place.  It was a BBM from Morgan, something she wasn’t expecting to see this early in the morning especially since she told her that she was spending the evening at Justin’s.  She was up early cooking breakfast since Lynn had cooked dinner last night and was in the middle of flipping a pancake when she heard her personal Blackberry vibrating, indicating she had a message.  Wisteria took the finished pancake off the skillet and placed it on the waiting plate before taking off the apron and making her way to Justin’s study.  She closed herself in the room and called her best friend who picked up on the first ring.

“What do you mean?”

“Well ‘good morning’ to you to,” Morgan chuckled.

“You know what I mean.  Elaborate missy.”

“I was looking through his file and saw that he had no criminal record until the age of 22.”

“Yeah, I saw that too,” said Wisteria.

“Which was 5 years ago.”

“Okay…”

“Around the time that his mother was about to lose her house.  I went back and searched her financial history and her home in Memphis was about to be foreclosed.”

“Okay…” Wisteria said, still confused.

“Please tell me that something’s going to click soon in that pretty little head of yours,” Morgan sighed.

“So you’re saying that he started dealing to help his mom?  That timeline proves nothing, it’s just a coincidence, Mo.”

“Is it though?  The man didn’t even has a parking ticket before then and then all of a sudden all her bills are being paid in cash by him and he gets booked for a misdemeanor for illegal possession.  Come on Wisty, the signs are there hun.  You already told me that the kind of son who’d do anything for his mother, do anything to keep her safe and happy.  Maybe he found out about her money problems and wanted to help, but that 9 to 5 he had wasn’t going to cut it.  He quit his job in May of that year and was busted in August for possession.  They let him off with a fine and that’s when he came here.  But according to my sources he’s still sending her cash to pay her bills every month.”

“Do you think she knows?” Wisteria asked.

“I think she doesn’t want to know.  I think she’s in denial, I mean what mother wants to think that her son is a drug dealer?”

“You have a point.  So what do we do now?” Wisteria asked, running a hand down her face. 

“I don’t know, but I don’t think that he needs to be brought in and used as a scape goat.  He got mixed up in the wrong crowd Wisty, that’s it.”  The two women exchanged a few more pleasantries before Wisteria hung up the phone and made her way back to the kitchen to finish cooking breakfast.  Half an hour later she was joined by Lynn with Justin not too far behind her.

“Did you do this?” Justin asked between a yawn.

“Yep, I couldn’t sleep any longer and decided to get up and make us breakfast.”  He kissed her forehead sweetly and grabbed two pieces of bacon off of a plate.

“Well it looks delicious,” Lynn commented, eyeing the spread.  There was scrambled eggs, pancakes and waffles, sausage and bacon, biscuits and orange juice.

“You really outdid yourself, honey,” the older women said.

“Not really.  I love options at breakfast and Justin had everything I needed so I just whipped up a few things,” Wisteria smiled.

“Well it’s gonna have to be the two of you for this meal.  I have to run an errand real fast,” Justin said.

“At 9am?” Lynn questioned.

“Yeah, sorry Mama.  I’ll be back soon though.”  He kissed the top of her head and ran back upstairs to change and leaving out the front door 10 minutes later. 

“Looks like it’s just us girls then, huh?” Lynn asked, loading her plate and sitting on the barstool next to Wisteria.

“Yes ma’am,” Wisteria smiled.

“This is really good,” Lynn said between bites of food.

“Thank you, it’s not as good as what you made last night, but I’m working on it.”

“Baby, I’ve been cooking longer than you’ve been alive; you’ll get there,” Lynn joked.

“I hope so.”

“And if you keep cooking like this you’ll definitely be able to keep my boy.  That boy is head over heels for you, and I can see why.”  Wisteria felt herself blushing.

“I’m serious.  You’re beautiful, charming and you have a good head on your shoulders.  You’re probably the best thing that’s happened to him in a long time,” the older woman said, patting Wisteria’s knee affectionately. 

“That definitely goes both ways,” Wisteria said, looking the woman in the eyes.  Justin had his mother’s eyes. 

“Justin’s a great guy,” she began, “I am so lucky to have him in my life.  You raised a fine young man, Lynn.”

“I did what I could,” Lynn laughed, “But you’re helping shape him into the man he is now.  When he called and told me that he was dating you he spoke in a joyous tone that I hadn’t heard him speak in in years.  When he looks at you I see the adoration in his eyes.  He looks at you like I’ve never seen him look at another woman.  He loves you, Wisteria.

 

Must not have been paying attention
I stepped right on it didn't even notice how deep I was
I went from the ground to the top of the cloud
And now as I look down I see where I fell into your arms
Now I got love all over me

 

“And I love him.”

“I can tell,” Lynn smiled, “You two are good for each other.  A mother knows things like that.”

Wisteria was blushing again.  She looked down and continued eating, hoping that Lynn would follow suit, which she did.  Wisteria wasn’t sure if she was going to like the way this conversation was going to end.  How do you go about tell the mother of the man you love that he might not be a free man much longer?  How do you tell her that you work for the very agency that wants to make an example out of him, to use him as bait to get to a bigger drug lord?  Wisteria lost her appetite then.  She pushed her plate away and stood up, making up an excuse that she had been eating while cooking and was now full.  She excused herself and went back up to Justin’s room.  Sitting in the middle of his bed she let the tears that she were holding back fall silently. 

BUZZ!

Wisteria jumped out of the bed and searched for her purse.  Finding it she pulled out her work Blackberry and saw a one-lined email from her director. 

 

We have what we need.  I need you to get back to the office.

 

Now she really felt sick to her stomach. 

 

***

 

“Thanks to the intel that Barnett’s gotten us, I was able to get a search and seizure warrant for Timberlake.”

Wisteria stared in horror as her director briefed the room. 

“In 36 hours we’re going to search his home here and take him into custody,” Sanchez continued and Wisteria fought the urge to stand up and scream ‘NO!’  Being with Justin had truly changed her.  Never before in her 25 years of life had her moral compass ever faltered, but when it came to this man; she didn’t care about right or wrong. 

 

Even my skin is changing oh

You put the color back in my life
And now where there was black and white
you're becoming iridescent

 

She had 36 hours to do something, anything!  She thanked heaven that she didn’t have to worry about getting Lynn out, the woman was getting on a plane back to Memphis in a few hours; but that still left Justin.  The rest of the meeting was a blur, Wisteria was too concerned with getting home and wracking her brain some more.  What she was considering doing was illegal.  She’d definitely lose her job if anyone found out, but that would be the least of her worries.  She’d be facing felony charges as well if any of this got out.  Was it worth it?  Was he worth it?

Chapter Five: Fly Away

Should I change my life?

Or miss my flight?

Wisteria couldn’t believe that she was actually doing this.  She could lose her job over this.  Shit, she could lose her life over this.  She looked down at the boarding pass that she was holding onto for dear life and sighed.  The words ‘One-way’ and ‘Non-refundable’ stood out like sore thumbs against the rest of the text on the sheet of paper.  Well, that was it.  The ticket was bought and paid for, with cash of course because she didn’t want a paper trail.  The fake passport weighed heavily in her hand.  A new identity on foreign soil where the United States had no extradition rights.  a chance to start over from scratch, to give up on everything that this life held, all of the achievements and mistakes.

 

Since I was a little girl I knew what I wanted.

One day I would see the world and make my mark on it.

Put in time, sacrifice; never thought of thinking twice.

Since I was a little girl I dreamed.

 

Wisteria looked up as she felt a warm hand close around hers.  She looked in its owner’s blue eyes, eyes that didn’t look so different from hers.  Eyes that were full of pain and love.  Full of sorrow and happiness.  Eyes that were full of concern.  Eyes that belonged to Justin, her Justin.

 

Now I’m standing with you in this terminal

With a ticket so far from your love.

 

She couldn’t let him go down for the mafia.  After learning that he only started dealing to pay off his mother’s debts Wisteria decided that she couldn’t let him take the fall for the king when he was just a pawn in a game that he didn’t even want to play.  She knew how much Lynn meant to him, knew that he’d do anything to take care of her and make sure that she was okay.  Was it right that he was dealing narcotics?  No.  Was it illegal?  Definitely.  But was his reasoning behind doing so justified?  Yes, in her mind at least.

***

{Earlier that morning}

 

My alarm clock in the morning said you gotta go now

Tomorrow we will be waking up separately

 

Wisteria lay in bed counting the 300 cracks in her ceiling for what seemed like the fourth time that night.  She glance over at the LED screen of her bedside alarm clock.

1:15am

The bright blue lights stood out in her slightly dark bedroom.  It was a clear night outside, the moon giving her room a soft illumination.  She wished that her mind was as clear as the city sky was that night.  She hadn’t gotten a wink of sleep, too worried about Justin and the bust that her unit was going to do on his house in just a few hours.  Her director gave her the orders to sit it out, not wanting to blow her cover; but Wisteria didn’t think she would’ve been able to go even if he hadn’t.  She didn't think that she’d be able to see the man she loved go down for something that she felt that he had no control over.  Meeting his mother and spending time with the older woman allowed Wisteria to see why she meant so much to Justin and why he meant so much to her.  Wisteria couldn’t hurt Mrs. Harless like that; couldn’t make her suffer any more than she already had.

How can you measure the promise of love

When it’s weighing against a chance that comes once?

How can I leave when I know he’s the one?

When the dust settles he might not be here.

 

She picked up her personal Blackberry and held down the letter ‘J’.  Someone answered after the second ring.

“Pack everything you can in a carry-on and meet me at the airport in 40 minutes.

“What?  Why?” the voice asked groggily. 

“I’ll tell you everything you need to know when you get there; trust me and just pack please, Justin.

“For how long?”

“For a while; 40 minutes okay?”

“Okay.”

 

***

 

“So you’ve known this whole time?!” Justin exclaimed in a harsh whisper after Wisteria told him about the bust that was about to happen at his place in few hours.

“No, I was still training in Quantico when we first met.  I didn’t know about you, well what you do until about six weeks ago.  I was told to get as close to you as possible, get you to trust me so that we could use you to bring down the higher ups.”

“And what about me?  What were they planning on doing with me?” Justin asked, his body literally shaking in anger.  Wisteria couldn’t answer him audibly.  She lowered her head and was silent for a beat as she felt the tears well up in her eyes.

“I couldn’t let them do that to you.  It wasn’t your fault, you were just trying to help you mom and got in way over your head.”

“I knew what I was doing when I got in the dope game, babe,” Justin said, stroking her cheek affectionately.  He’d had his share of women in his lifetime, but this was the first time that one of them actually put his well-being above her own.  He wrapped his arms around her, enveloping her in a warm hug. 

“So you bought me a plane ticket?” he asked, kissing the crown of her head sweetly.

“Yes, and Morgan took care of a passport for you.”  Justin stepped back and gave Wisteria a curious look.

“Hey, she wasn’t always using her skills for the right side of the law,” she said, smirking.  Justin used the pad of his thumb to wipe away a tear that Wisteria didn’t realize escaped and kissed the tip of her nose.

“I don’t want you to leave, but I know you can’t stay here,” she said, her voice on the edge of breaking.

“I don’t even know how to thank you for this,” he said, looking her squarely in the eyes.

“Go and take care of yourself.  Promise me that you will,” she said, sniffling.  The waterworks were about to start any second now.

“I will, and I will send for you as soon as I can.” 

“You don’t have to do that,” she said, crying now.

“I know I don’t have to, but I want to.  I love you and I don’t even know what you’re risking telling me this and helping me get out the states.  Shit's liable to hit the fan and I don’t want you to be in the midst of that.”

“I’ll be okay; my office doesn’t know anything I don’t want them to know.”

“Yet,” Justin added. 

“They won’t know.  I’ll be okay,” she said, locking eyes with Justin for what could be her last time. 

 

Now I’m standing with you, in this terminal

With tickets so far from your love.

Can I have one more kiss, one more touch

I just can’t get enough of you, but I’m in a rush

 

“This is the first boarding call for flight 2567 to the United Arab Emirates.”

 

There’s a plane waiting up for me right at Gate 23

Should I change my life,

Or miss my flight?

 

Both Justin and Wisteria looked up when they heard the announcement over the loudspeaker.  That was his flight, he was in the ‘C’ boarding group so they had a few more minutes to stand like they were, in each other’s arms holding on like they’d never get to do it again.

“I love you,” Justin said barely above a whisper and Wisteria could’ve sworn she heard his voice crack.

“I love you too,” she cried.  She, unlike him didn’t give a damn if anyone saw or heard her crying.   She looked up when she heard the attendant call for group ‘B’ to board. 

“It’s almost your turn.”

“Yep,” Justin said, nodding and not sure what else to say.  What could you say to the woman you love who just risked her career and life to save yours?

“Take care of yourself, love.  And take care of Mom too,” he said, a lone tear slipping down.  Wisteria nodded and kissed his lips firmly.  The lip-lock felt more like a “see you later” rather than a “good-bye” and Wisteria prayed that it was true.

“I’m going to send for you when everything dies down, okay?”

Wisteria nodded and watched as Justin wiped the tears off her face before kissing each closed eyelid. 

“Thank you,” he said, “for everything.”

“Thank you, for everything as well,” she smiled.  The attendant called for his group to board and held his hand until the very last moment.  She watched as he lifted her palm to his lips and placed a light kiss to it before mouthing ‘I love you’ and disappearing down the hallway.

Wisteria couldn't stop the tears as they poured from her eyes on the drive home. She would've had to pull over and calm down had she not known the city like the back of her hand and had the training she'd gotten from Quantico. She was probably able to drive blindfolded now thanks to that place.  She pulled in her driveway a little after 3:40am and killed the engine.  In less than 2 hours her unit would be barreling through the front door of Justin's home, but he wouldn't be there.  She didn’t think he’d be out of the states yet but she knew that he would be safe.  Gathering her belongings Wisteria made her way into her home and dropped her purse and keys on the kitchen table.  She walked in the living room and collapsed on the couch, throwing her head back and sighing.  If she knew her director as well as she thought, she’d be receiving a call from him as soon as they realized that Justin wasn’t home.  He’d be yelling at her asking where Justin was and would yell even more when she would tell him that she didn’t know.  She racked her brain, trying to remember what would come next according to protocol.  Since she was given the assignment to get close to him she’d probably be interviewed by Internal Affairs, probably a lie detector test.  That was okay though, she learned how to beat those during her training.  Due to budget cuts the government combined some of the DEA and FBI training in Quantico and as a result everyone was now being trained in how to be a polygraph test.  That machine was the least of her worries though.  Her reputation would be shot to hell once everyone realized that Justin was gone.  Her director had taken a big risk in assigning her to this fresh out of the academy, and according to them she’d fucked up…royally.  Wisteria sighed.  She didn’t care.  How the hell was she supposed to know that the guy that they were after was her guy?  It was too late to have second thoughts about helping Justin out now, and even if it wasn’t too late she didn’t think that she’d change her mind.  Justin had gotten roped into this and she didn’t care what he had to say about it, but he’d gotten in way over his head.  He didn’t deserve to go to jail for helping out his mother, speaking of which she realized she had to tell Lynn what was going on.  Wisteria stood up and walked to her bedroom and grabbed her netbook before creating a new Gmail account and composing an email to Lynn.

 

He’s somewhere safe and he loves you.

 

She hoped that the woman would understand the simple email as she pressed ‘Send’ and shut down her computer.  Her body begged for more rest, but her mind wouldn’t allow it.  Wisteria went in the kitchen and put on a pot of her favorite brew of coffee and pulled out all the case files she had on Justin.  She scattered all of the paperwork on her kitchen table and combed through all seven folders.  It wasn’t like she needed the refresher though, she knew those files like the back of her hand, knew everything about Justin like the back of her hand.  Besides, it wasn’t that data that she had to worry about anyway.  She went and grabbed her personal Blackberry and shattered it to pieces, making a mental note to personally take it to the city dump and to go pick up a replacement phone.  She was sure that the department would confiscate all her belongings when she went in for her Internal Affairs interview and polygraph and she didn’t want them to be able to pull anything from her phone.  It was her way of purging herself of him, getting rid of the notion that she’d ever see him again.  Sure he said that he’d send for her when things died down, but how was she to know that he was telling the truth?  And even if he was telling the truth, how would he know when things died down?  The best thing to do was not to get her hopes up and call it what it was.

“A short, but amazing love affair,” Wisteria said to no one in particular and she slid the phone pieces into a plastic bag.

***

(Four Months Later)

 

“Stupid stapler,” Wisteria mumbled as she disassembled the device that was stuck on the stack of papers she was trying to attach.  Just as she predicted she was quickly assigned to desk duty after her interview…scratch that interrogation by Internal Affairs.

 

***

(Four Months Prior)

“Have a seat Ms. Barnett.”

Wisteria smiled nervously at the stern blond woman who was performing her polygraph.

“I’m Jennifer Nixon from Internal Affairs, I’m sure your director informed you that we’d be administering this today?” the woman asked.

“Yes,” Wisteria nodded.

“Good, well this will be quick.  We just have a few questions about your Timberlake case.”  Wisteria watched as Ms. Nixon attached the wires and sensors to her body before turning on the machine.

“I’m going to ask you a few questions to establish a baseline, okay?”

“Yeah, that’s fine,” Wisteria answered, mentally preparing herself for this.

“Is your name Wisteria Barnett?”

“Yes.”

“Is your birthday November 23, 1984?”

“Yes.”  Wisteria could’ve sworn that she’d gone through all of this before she joined the agency.  Do they have a standard list of questions or something?

“Were you working the Timberlake case?”

“Yes.”

“Did you have anything to do with what happened the morning of the bust on his residence?”

A week had passed since that and she’d been briefed on what happened when her unit raided Justin’s house.  They’d gotten there and found the front door unlocked and the house empty as far as people went.  Justin made sure that his guys didn’t have any physical evidence that could pinned to them and told them to lie low after giving them each ten grand.  He’d left the few kilos that were at the house there and of course Wisteria’s unit found them.  Justin took all the cash that he had stashed at the house with him, a little over $700,000 when he’d met up with her at the airport. 

“No,” Wisteria said without missing a beat.  She spent the night convincing her mind and body that she didn’t, forcing herself to believe that she didn’t do anything to change the outcome of the drug bust.  She must have done just that because she noticed the look of shock that passed on Jennifer's face when the screen showed that she was telling the truth. 

“You had nothing to do with your unit not being able to find and put Mr. Timberlake into custody?”

“No, I did not,” Wisteria said soundly. 

“Yes or no answers, please,” Jennifer said, curtly.

“Well in that case, no,” Wisteria repeated.

The interrogation went on for another half hour before Wisteria figured that Jennifer believed her; and when she finally left the room her director pulled her into his office and gave her a new assignment, desk duty.

 

***

(Four Months Later)

 

Sitting at her desk Jaclynn struggled to detach the stapler from her stack of papers.  She was getting frustrated and was ready to throw it all in the trash can when she felt her personal Blackberry vibrate in her dress slacks.  She pulled out the lilac colored phone, the customer service representative told her that they didn’t have any of the black ones in stock to send her out as a replacement, and saw that she had a Blackberry Messenger notification.  She opened up the app and saw that she had a new contact request.

 

Randall has requested that you add his/her to your contact list.

 

Jaclynn glanced at her phone confused.  She didn’t know anyone named Randall, and the last time she checked she didn’t make her BBM Pin number public knowledge.  She hesitated, but finally pressed the ‘Accept’ button.  She waited until the contact cleared and smiled when she saw the University of North Carolina’s mascot show up as Randall’s contact avatar.

 

[I didn’t think I’d ever hear from you again.]

 

She sent the message and watched as it went from ‘delivered’ to ‘read’ and saw that he was writing her back.

 

[I told you that I’d send for you when things died down, babe.  What, you didn’t believe me?]

 

It was Justin!  Wisteria could feel her heart pounding through her chest with joy.  She’d written him off after he made no attempt to contact her in the past four months, sure that he’d found someone else and that she was the furthest thing from his mind.  She rose from her desk and made her way out to her car, claiming that she was going to lunch.

 

[ To be honest, I thought you’d forgotten about me by now. ]

[ I could never forget about you. ]

 

Wisteria smiled as she read his message.

 

[ I miss you so much. ]

[ And I miss you too, so we’re going to change that. ]

 

Wisteria was confused.  She hoped that he didn’t mean that he was back in town.  Things might have calmed down, but that didn’t mean that it was okay for him to show his face.  He was still a wanted man.

 

[ And how do you propose that we do that, sir? ;) ]

 

She stared at her phone, waiting a few minutes before she saw his response. 

 

[ You have three hours to get to the airport.  You know the drill. ]

[ Three hours?!  What am I going to do about my job?  About my family? ]

[ Quit.  Three hours babe. ]

 

Wisteria was once again confused.  She was torn between giving up everything that she’d worked for and going off to be with Justin or staying at her job living in fear that one day they’d figure out that she was involved in a wanted man escaping and throwing her in prison.  But she wouldn’t just be leaving behind a job, she’d be leaving behind her family and Morgan.  Was she willing give up all of that for Justin?  For love?  She stepped out of her car and walked back into the agency’s building, stopping at the front desk and composing an email to her director.

 

I quit.  I’m better than this desk duty shit and you know it.  All of your property is at the front desk.

-          Wisteria

 

She sent the message and handed over all of her agency issued property before turning on her heels and leaving the building for the last time.

 

***

WELCOME TO THE UNITED ARAB EMIRATES

 

Wisteria looked up at the sign as she exited the plane.  The flight had been long, but it had given her time to rest and fully understand what she’d done.  To understand that she might not speak to her family members or friends for a long time, if ever again.  But she was willing to give all that up for the man who was standing five feet away from her with the biggest smile she’d ever seen.  Wisteria dropped her carry-on where she stood and took off on a full on sprint to him.  She jumped in his arms and placed sloppy kisses all over his face.

“Justin!” she exclaimed, not afraid to use his name for the first time in months “I’ve missed you!”

“I can tell,” he laughed, placing her back on her feet and cupping her face in his hands. 

“I can’t believe you actually did this,” she said, fighting back tears.

“I told you I would.  Besides, my life has been hell without you here.  And I owe you.”

“You owe me nothing,” she told him.

“I owe you my life.”  Wisteria started crying.

“No, I owe you mine.”  He kissed her lips sweetly.

“Wow, I still can’t believe we’re actually here.”

“Well believe it Babygirl.  Welcome to our forever.”