Tough Love

Chapter Fifteen

Yay! I managed to get this chapter finished. I hope you enjoy it. Let me know what you think.... please? :-)

Chapter Fifteen

(Eli's POV)

I stretch my back out. I've been sitting for the last hour filling in paperwork and I've stiffened up. I head to Dani's desk, thankful I'm pretty much done.

I smile when my eyes settle on her beautiful face. “Hey sweetheart.”

“Hi, sir.”

“You ok?”

“Yes sir. You?”

“Ready to get out of this place. How about you?”

“I have to get through these files before I can go.”

“Anything I can do to make it go quicker?”

“No sir, thanks though.”

“You want coffee or anything? Actually, have you eaten today?”

I see her face turn a tinge of pink, so I know that would be a no.

“I'll go pick you something up.”

“It's ok, sir. Thank you. I have some fruit in my drawer.... Are you going to Cameron's apartment?”

“Er, I haven't really decided. Do you want to go?”

“Oh, no sir. I have too much work to do. It's going to take me a while, so you don't need to wait. I think he's expecting you though.”

“Yeah, I suppose I should show my face. You sure you're going to be ok by yourself?”

She smiles a little, but I notice her eyes look sad; even sadder than usual.

“Baby? What's wrong? Something happened, didn't it?”

“No sir.”

I shoot her a questioning look and say, “Really? You look sad.”

“Just tired, sir.”

“How long will all this take to finish up?”

“A couple hours.”

I nod. “I'll go to Cam's for a bit and then I'll come back here to pick you up, yeah? We can get some take out for dinner. What do you say?”

“It's ok, sir. You don't have to cut your time short just because of me. I'll be ok.”

“Maybe, but I want to spend time with you. It's been a long day and I'd rather finish it in your company than the guys'. I'll call you when I'm on my way back, yeah?”

“Ok, sir. Thank you.”

“I'll see you in a little while.”

“Bye sir.”

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(END of Eli's POV)

I sigh when Eli has left. I thought he was going to keep pressing the issue. I didn't want to tell him about what the Captain said. I didn't want to cause problems between them, besides, the Captain was right. It was my fault. I should have checked the data earlier, I should have given it to Eli or Ash first thing in the morning. I know never to make that mistake again. I close my eyes briefly before getting back to work. I have a massive stack of files to get through before I can go. It does seem a little ironic that the one with the photographic memory and the ability to speed read is the only one left working on the whole floor.