Archive of Our Own ^beta

Slamming his phone down on the receiver, Peter snarled as he swept the papers off of his desk. A binder found the floor with a loud, sudden slap, left with its cover lopsided in its new position. When he reached for the cup of pens, Lindsey finally reacted, reaching out and placing her fingertips against his knuckles.

”You're agitated.” As if it wasn't obvious , but he knew why she had to make the statement. “Is he still not answering?“ 

” No , he's not .“ And Peter had been trying to get a hold of that incompetent asshole for the better part of an hour, now. Hoffman should have had his phone on him, or should have been at the office at some point; being so blatantly ignored right now was driving Peter up a goddamn wall , ”It's almost like he's doing this on purpose.“

”He could be busy working on the—“

”As if his part is more important than us catching up on this. If he has something that’s so pressing about the case, he should have called me.“ Not us . Me .

Lindsey watched the way that his jaw clenched, the muscle beneath his skin rippling, with a raised eyebrow. There was no denying that Peter was always the least patient man in any room he'd ever been in. She'd been his partner long enough to know that he didn't like to be left to his own devices. He liked to have answers; questions made him anxious, and anxiety made him angry .

”If he's found something,“ Peter continued, biting his words out through gritted teeth. Taking in his expression and all the little microexpressions that flitted around behind it, Lindsey tipped her head up to regard him with a studious look on her face ”Then he should know I should be the first person to call.“

”What if he's at lunch?“ 

The question caught him off guard and he sputtered for a few seconds before he paused, staring at his partner like she'd just started growing a moose out of her ear and had yet to notice. With his lips parted like that, the storm clouds in his eyes swirling, and the way his Adam's apple bobbed when he gulped, he almost looked concerned . After a moment, Lindsey’seyes searched his face and she finally blinked a couple of times in rapid succession. 

“... Peter , you like him.” It burst from her lips before she had the chance to stop it, and Peter immediately shot both hands up in a placating gesture. He was backpedaling before the words even left his lips, and she knew immediately that she was right.

“Hey, now, don't take this out of context! I could never --”

“Oh, come on, don't you try to deny it. I know he’s your type. You do like him. Your face says so.” For a second, she could see the desire he had to punch himself in the face to avoid this conversation. If one knew Peter, he was easy to read, and right now he was at a loss for words. Trapped somewhere between irate and huffy, he wavered for just a second as he tried to think his way out of having to admit to anything of the sort. There was no reason for him to like Hoffman at all, in any way, shape, or form, and to be called out for it right now was troubling, at best.

When he didn't have anything to say, Lindsey offered him a little, knowing smile. He stood back from the desk, placing his hands on his hips as he twisted the trunk of his body a few times. Peter didn't like being sedentary, he moved a lot, as much as he could, always needing to be doing something. It was no surprise to her that he needed to do something with his body to mitigate the feelings swirling in his chest right now.

“It's okay, you know.” She finally stated, walking over and settling on the corner of his desk with her hip, “If you like him. He's handsome.” The tone in her voice didn't leave out the I'm sure that Peter heard hiding beneath her words. Their tastes had never coincided with his knowledge, and he had a feeling that that would continue, especially with his latest fixation being on Mark Hoffman . 

Sure, he was a decorated detective, a man with more than a clue, and handsome to boot, but... 

Peter was working . He'd never had such a draw to someone he worked with before. Lindsey knew it, and he knew it, and it wasn't something that he thought he needed to mention.

“I shouldn't.” It was all he could think to say here, “There's... It doesn't... This is about the case. I don't need anything from him but an update on what we're working on together.”

That knowing smile turned softer and Lindsey just nodded. One could lead Peter to water but making him drink was like pulling the teeth of a rabid tiger without a sedative. She figured it wouldn't be long before she'd be able to help him grow more comfortable with the idea of whatever he was feeling. The way he'd been clearly agitated by a lack of Mark all afternoon told her that he was already getting attached. 

Whatever their interactions were like when they were alone, they'd done a number on him.

“Of course you don't.” She said sagely, sighing a little as she reached down to straighten out a few files on his desk, “And when you hear from him, you'll let me know. Maybe you should check on him.” 

“What do you think I've been doing?” 

“Calling him nonstop for an hour.” Supplying her words unhelpfully, Lindsey turned her eyes back on her partner with her lips pulled to one side of her face, “Drop by his office. Maybe there's a clue as to his whereabouts there. You’re not a detective, but investigation is your strong suit.”

It... Wasn't a bad idea. Peter didn't know if he wanted to go and find out that Mark had been fielding his calls, though. Part of him wanted to go and sleuth it out, and part of him just wanted to throw things over it. He didn’t know which side he’d listen to in the end.

“...I'll go later.” The mock-dismissive tone made Lindsey chuckle a little, and she leveled him with an amused look. Catching her eye again, he huffed, crossed his arms over his chest, and gazed just past the side of her head. Of course , he’d sulk, now that he’d been caught. 

“You should go talk to him, now.“ Lindsey added instead, ”I think it'll be worth checking in with him. I know that you've needed to talk to him for most of the afternoon. If he's just eating lunch maybe you can eat with him.“ 

Sneaky, she was trying to be sneaky , but they both knew that Peter liked things given to him straight. The man liked succinct, clear answers, and it drove him insane when he didn’t have those things.

”He wouldn't want to have lunch with me.“ Was that a hint of hurt in his voice? Surely not, but the way he wouldn’t look at her after he said it told her all she needed to know. His gaze had shifted entirely to the window, and Lindsey knew what that meant.

”Maybe so, but there's no harm in offering.“ Smiling brightly at him, Lindsey rose from his desk and rounded it to stand in front of him; he dropped his gaze to his shoes, ”You can do it, Peter. Just go see him.“

”You expect me to talk to him about something other than work?“ Incredulous, Peter’s eyes were the only thing that lifted to look at her. It was cute how he looked like a dog that knew it had done something wrong and was trying to get out of trouble.

”If you want something bad enough, it'll come out.“ Shrugging, Lindsey clapped a hand on his arm and gave it a squeeze, ”At any rate, I’m going to take lunch. I suggest you do, too.“ 

With that, she left him standing in his office alone, cheeks ruddy and mind fuzzy. No, this was stupid . He wasn't really considering this, was he?

Twenty minutes later, he knocked on Mark's office door before letting himself in without waiting for confirmation. With him came the scent of burgers and fries, and he purposefully didn't make eye contact when he spoke.

”You've been screening my calls.“ He accused, finally looking up only to find the office empty. 

Damn it.