Chapter Six: Payback

Murdock sighed in exasperation for the hundredth time as he watched Face flirt with the saleslady in the mall. The shopping trip was to be a simple in and out of the shop with a new shirt to replace James' old one because his best friend, whom he could very happily strangle at the moment, couldn't bear to look at the mustard stain any longer. Why, oh why didn't he keep a stash of extra clothes in the van like Face did?

"Your eyes are very striking, Josie. They look like crushed sapphires when you smile," Templeton said as he reached in to push a strand of her blonde hair back behind her ear. The beautiful, (and yes - she was gorgeous), girl blushed and giggled. Murdock felt tempted to roll his eyes, but didn't want the young woman to think it was aimed at her.

Not that she would look away from Temp long enough to notice.

As soon as the debonair conman started harping on about how this girl had the most beautiful blonde hair, which appeared as if Zeus himself had come down to Earth and spun it from the finest gold, James decided a retreat was in order. He left the two to make moony eyes at each other alone before he suffered an aneurism, stroke, or heartburn. Or even jealousy, as it had been a very long time since he'd gotten laid. Maybe he should be looking for some cute girls of his own.

Murdock decided to start looking in the food court since he was feeling a bit peckish.

One hour, (and one double deluxe hamburger), later, Murdock had decided that girls liked looking at the mustard stain on his "Beam Me Up, Scotty" t-shirt even less than Face did. Speaking of the lieutenant, Murdock swung back by Gap to see that… yes, Josie still had his best friend's undivided attention. He shook his head before heading off to the bookstore.

H.M. wanted to see if there were any new aviation magazines on the rack. He also wouldn't mind picking up a new novel or two to take on the long drive to their next job in Tennessee.

This was ridiculous! Murdock has spent the last who knows how long wandering around the mall while Temp put the moves on a girl in a clothing store. It's not like he was even going to have time to get busy with her before they left town tonight! There were so many things he could be doing back at their current safe house… okay, maybe not. But even being threatened by B.A. was more fun than watching his best friend try to score.

Standing outside of Gap, Murdock pinched the bridge of his nose in exasperation. He considered going to see a movie, but figured that would be asking for trouble when Face noticed him missing from the store. If… he corrected himself, if he noticed him missing. He could tell him, but Templeton hasn't yet responded to any of his questions or comments in the midst of his flirting.

A quick glance at the mall clock had him steeling himself to end this charade once and for all.

He straightened his cap and approached his friend with determination as the cute girl was attempting to sell him a polo shirt.

"This would look so good on you, Templeton! The blue makes your eyes almost glow!" Josie giggled as she turned him toward a mirror.

Anything Face would have responded with was cut off as Murdock rammed into him, causing him to bend over with an "Ooof!"

Squeaking with surprise, Josie watched as Templeton's friend wrapped his arms around the back of the other man's legs and stood shakily. She could only stare in shock as the man in the ball cap left the store with a very angry, (if the red face and cursing was any indication), blonde man draped over his shoulder.

Too bad she hadn't had time to give him her number before he was abducted by his friend.

End

Thanks again to all who read/reviewed this, and especially to thecathedral22 for giving me this awesome prompt to fill!