Someday

Chapter One

The lightning lit up the sky like the Fourth of July. The rain was falling heavier than it had in a very long time. Thunder rolled for hours on end. The night grew darker and darker. The bathroom door was always open and the small nightlight illuminated the room just enough to make him feel comfortable. He knew the chances of a black out were getting better with every lighting strike so he checked his lighter one more time before he set it on his bed side table with a pillar candle he had dug out of the closet earlier. It had been a long couple of days. The job they did lasted longer than it should of and took a hell of a lot more muscle then they thought it would. Parker had been close to getting caught and when he went to pull her out he got caught up in the fight and nearly got busted himself. That was sloppy and he knew it. He felt the coldness of the ice pack before he heard the person who put it there.

"Do you ever knock?" Eliot didn't open his eyes.

"Thieves don't knock. I think it's a rule or something." Parker sat down on the other side of the bed.

"I guess that ruins the whole concept." He answered.

"You should call Kenna." Eliot had heard that every day for the past month and a half. Usually she didn't tell him at four in the morning but I guess she had forgotten to with all the close calls they had today.

"Kenna needs a fresh start and a good man. I'm neither."

"But you had sex with her." Eliot groaned.

"Parker…just because people…have sex it doesn't mean they even like each other."

"But you like Kenna."

"I like Kenna. I might even love Kenna, Parker but no one else needs to be pulled into my life."

"You need her in your life. I like her in your life." Parker lay down next to him and stared at him. His eyes were closed and his hair was all messy. "I wish we could have kept her."

"Parker, Kenna isn't a puppy." She smiled and laid down flat on her back and looked at the ceiling.

"I know that. But she was nice to have around. And she was house broken." Eliot chuckled.

"Go to sleep crazy girl. Tomorrow is another day." Eliot fell asleep and dreamed about good things for once. Blond hair and shining brown eyes. Whispers in the dark and mind blowing sex and taking one beautiful woman on the wildest ride of her life.

o/o/o/o/o/o/o/o/o/o/o/o/o/o

When Eliot awoke Parker was gone. She came in and out of his apartment like…well a thief in the night. The lights were on and the day was as dark and gloomy as the night before. He was hoping for a nice quiet Sunday but when he got to Nate's it was nothing but quiet. Hardison and Parker were fighting over some game they were playing and Sophie and Nate were loudly disagreeing on something in the newspaper they were reading at the table. Before anyone noticed Eliot slipped out the door and headed to the coffee shop down the street.

The walk in the misty rain was starting to clear his head. He walked down the sidewalk not really seeing the people around him but knowing that they were there and that at any moment one of them might turn on him. It was a dangerous life he lived and wouldn't wish it on anyone but he was lonely. Rainy days made it worse. It seemed like everyone had someone on a rainy day. Couples walked down the street holding umbrellas and each other. It was kind of sickening if you asked him. A small sound made him stop in his tracks. It was a voice. A voice he knew but couldn't put his finger on from where. He took a step back and the door of the old fire house was open. There were two people under the ambulance parked in the bay. One was a woman he could tell that much. He took a step closer. A tall blond firefighter stepped out of the office just inside the door.

"Something I can do for you?" The man asked Eliot.

"No. I thought I…sorry just thought I saw someone I knew." Eliot stepped out of the door and headed down to the café next door. He was losing it. Now he was hearing Kenna's voice in his head when he was awake. It was bad enough that she haunted his dreams but now she was there when he was awake too. Eliot sat in the corner booth with his eyes on the front door like always. Things were not going like they should. Maybe he would call Jodi later and check on Kenna. He knew that he would have to confront his memories sooner or later but he just wasn't ready yet. The waitress came and took his order and he grabbed the paper and prayed for a quiet breakfast

o/o/o/o/o/o/o/o/o/o/o/o/o/o/

Eliot was gone. His bed was made, his clothes were in the hamper but he was gone. Parker looked around the room. The lighter and the candle still sat on the bedside table. He didn't go far because next to his knife his lighter was his best friend. He hadn't made coffee in his own apartment this morning so maybe he had gone out for some. There was two ways he would have gone. Three blocks up to Starbucks or two blocks south to the Three Alarm Café. Parker started to panic. If he went to the Three Alarm…he would have to pass the fire station and if he passed the fire station….

"Alec!" Parker ran out of Eliot's apartment hoping she wasn't too late to.

o/o/o/o/o/o/o/o/o/o/o/

The bell on the door rang just after Eliot got his eggs. He glanced up to see a group of firefighters picking up a coffee order. As he went back to his eggs he heard a woman laugh. Not just any woman. McKenna Shane Hawks. Looking up again he saw her. Her honey blond hair up in a pony tail. She was dressed in a paramedic's jump suit and she looked like a mirage. But she was real and she was standing not twenty feet from him.

"Kenna." To him it sounded like a whisper but she turned around and looked at him. Tilting her head she looked at him, smiled and turned back to the man she was talking to. Was she really going to pretend she didn't know him or was she making an excuse to walk over and talk to him? It seemed like an eternity….

o/o/o/o/o/o/o/o/o/o/o/o/o/o/o/o/o/

"You were supposed to tell him last night." Hardison walked down the street as fast as he could without losing Parker in the swarm of people just leaving church services at the chapel a block from the fire station.

"He wanted to go to sleep. I tried to tell him. Well at least I tried to get him to call her."

"When has that worked? For weeks you tell him and tell him and he never calls her. How hard was it to say 'Hey Eliot…Kenna got a job…want to know where…at the fire station on the next block.' How hard Parker?"

"When has Eliot ever made anything easy?" There was a group of fire personal coming out of the diner. Hardison said a little prayer that Kenna had the day off. He pulled open the door and saw them. They were both standing at the back of the diner. Eliot's eyes full of rage.

"Oh this is so not going to be good." Parker looked around him and saw the look on the hitters face.

"Maybe we should just let them…you know…say hello." Parker started backing out of the café but Hardison pulled her back in. They stood and watched the drama unfold.

"Kenna." Eliot ground out.

"Hey cowboy." She answered with her southern girl drawl. "I bet you thought you wouldn't see me again so soon."

"What are you doing here?"

"I got a job with the Boston Fire and Rescue."

"How long have they known?" Eliot asked as he looked over her shoulder and saw the thief and the hacker standing at the front door. Kenna turned and saw her two new friends. Turning back to him she shrugged her shoulders.

"A week. I told them not to tell you that I was in town till I decided on the job." She answered coving her ass and theirs. "I still don't know if I'm going to stay. All this rain." Kenna shivered. Eliot flinched. Kenna hated the rain. Even worse she hated the thunder and the lighting that came with it. Last night must have been hard on her.

"It's not always like this."

"I heard it was the wettest spring in Boston history." She looked at her old friend. His face still full of anger. "I'm sorry I didn't call."

"It's your life sweetheart. You don't have to check in with me." He tried to sound like he didn't care what she did but it sounded more like he was hurt that she didn't want him to know that she was in the same town.

"Things didn't end well the last time we were together."

"Then maybe we should just stay clear of one another. It's a big city." She looked at him.

"You really think that's the best way to hand this. Just keep out of each other's way and it'll all be good?"

"Yeah, I think that's the best thing for both of us." Kenna chuckled.

"You got it baby." She turned and headed out the door; she turned and looked back at him. "Call your sister. She needs to talk to you." Kenna gave Hardison and Parker a quick hug and headed back to the fire station and Eliot sat back down and finished his breakfast.

"We'll it could of gone worse." Parker said to Hardison.

"Yeah, the place is still standing." He replied and they both turned and left leaving their hitter alone to wallow in his own grief.

0/0/0/0/0/0/0/0/0

Eliot stared at the phone in his hand for nearly an hour before he got the nerve to dial the number he knew by heart but never put in his phone. If he got caught he didn't want anyone to know about Jodi. If they did they would use her and Kyle against him and that wouldn't be a good thing. Dialing, he put the phone to his ear, leaned back and closed his eyes.

"Hello." A young boy's voice sounded in his ear.

"Kyle?"

"Yeah, who's this?"

"It's your uncle Eliot."

"Really!" The boy was excited. "It's been like forever."

"Yeah it has been buddy. I've been swamped at work but I guarantee I'll be your way soon and we can go fishing at that little spot not too far from your grandma's."

"Sounds great. Do you want to talk to ma?"

"You bet. Take care Kyle."

"You too Uncle Eliot." He heard the boy yelling for his mother and his mother telling him to quit yelling.

"It's about time your sorry ass called me."

"Good afternoon to you to baby sister."

"Have you talked to our girl?"

"Briefly. We're not seeing eye to eye on things lately. One being the fact she moved to Boston without telling me."

"Last I heard it's a free country."

"Coming from a back woods bumpkin like you that's not saying much."

"You know I can still whip your ass Eliot Spencer." Jodi laughed. "Are you going to find some time in your busy schedule for your family anytime soon?"

"You know it's not safe for me to just up and come there."

"You're the best when it comes to the long way home so stop making excuses. I want you home for Thanksgiving at least. Bring your crew. They need a good meal now and then."

"I hook them up once in awhile."

"Thanksgiving Eliot. Then you can meet your niece." Eliot was silent. "Hello…Eliot?"

"Niece?"

"Yeah. She'll be here by then."

"You and Charlie…"

"Yes dear brother. We've been together for nearly eight years. It's about time."

"I guess. I'm sorry Jodi…congratulations. I'm happy for the both of you." He was happy for them, a little jealous too.

"I know you don't want to hear this Eliot but Kenna is the one person in the world that knows you and still wants to be in the same area code with you so please don't do anything that might make her run from you."

"Kenna Shane is a big girl Jodi. I'm not her keeper and I really don't want to have this conversation with you right now. I'll see what I can do about Thanksgiving but I'm not making any promises."

"Okay. Just don't push her away again. That's all I ask. I love you." She said softly.

"Me too. Take care." Eliot hit the end button and threw the phone on the ground and shattered it. Taking his boot he crushed the thing so there was no chance of it ever being used again. He scooped up the pieces and threw them into the fireplace and sat down on the couch. The pillow still smelled of her sweet perfume. He leaned back and closed his eyes. Today when he saw her in the diner he felt like someone had punched him in the stomach.

"Is everything okay in Kentucky?" Parker ask. She was sitting somewhere in front of him but he didn't open his eyes.

"Yeah, peachy."

"You broke the phone."

"I like to do that now and then. Parker, do you need something? Because if your just here to ask dumb ass questions I would rather you left." He felt her sink into the couch and put her feet up on the coffee table.

"I should of told you about Kenna last night…but the job and then the storm."

"Yeah well next time you want to tell me something just spit it out."

"I like Kenna." Eliot turned his head and looked at the blond next to him. She was honest if not overly so sometimes.

"I like her to Parker."

"Then why does she make you so…mean." He closed his eyes again and rubbed his face with his hands.

"Parker…I guess it's because we are so damn much alike it just gets in the way."

"Isn't having things in common a good thing?"

"It's not like liking the same pizza toppings. It's like being stubborn and not knowing when to say when and not backing down until the jobs done. We fight just as hard as we…"

"Have sex?" Eliot opened his eyes and looked into Parkers.

"Make love, crazy girl. I was going to say make love." She smiled.

"That's more complicated then…now I see your dilemma." He chuckled.

"Why do I tell you the things I do?"

"Because that's what friends do. They share."

"I think I've done some over sharing lately."

"Do you want to know about me and Alec?" Eliot shut his eyes and shook his head.

"NO! God no…I mean if you…no." He stood up."Ah Parker now you got things going on in my head I didn't need going on in there." Going to the fridge Eliot got a beer. "You want one?"

"Yeah, thanks." He handed her a bottle.

"I guess if you need someone to talk to and Sophie or Nate aren't around…I could…only if it's an emergency." Parker smiled around her beer bottle.

"I promise…only if it's an emergency. You need to talk to her Eliot. She's really messed up since Jimmy."

"What do mean?"

"Just talk to her. You know her better than anyone else…even Jodi." He knew Parker was right but things had gone really wrong after the show down in New York and he wasn't sure he could save what they had left.

(Flashback)

"You can't or you won't Kenna?" Eliot said through clenched teeth.

"What does it matter Eliot. Until we can tell each other everything that happened over the last few years we don't stand a chance." Kenna looked out the truck window and crossed her arms over her chest.

"No one needs to share the hell that I've been through. Especially you. I don't need you looking at me and feeling sorry for what I've seen and done."

"Eliot, you made your bed and if it dragged you though hell and back it's what made you the man you are today. A man I want to get to know better. A man I might want to have some sort of life with."

"You don't want to begin to imagine what kind of hell I've been though baby. Even if I told you, you wouldn't believe me." Kenna took her bag off the seat.

"Thanks for nothing Eliot. Call me if you decide that I'm good for more than out of this world sex."

"Kenna…" He reached for her but she pulled away. She slammed the door behind her and headed into the hotel. He screwed up and there was no amount of apologizing that would make it all right again.

(Present)

Eliot stared at a phone for the second time in as many hours. This one was his own and it had her number stored deep within its memory. He should call her. He needed to call her and at least make things right between them. He was about to dial when it rang. Seeing it was Nate he answered it.

"Yeah."

"I need you down in the bar. We have a case." Eliot pursed his lips.

"I'll be right down." Kenna would have to wait. Today wasn't the day. Maybe tomorrow…or someday soon.