Cal Lightman had a way of pissing off Ria Torres. Of course he pissed off a lot of people but most people didn't have to work for him. He was rude, arrogant, abrasive, and childish but at the same time she admired him. Admired his genius and his talent. She loved to watch him work and couldn't help but inwardly smile when she saw him going in for the kill.

The idea of him being sent to Afghanistan to pull the truth from a possible traitor had the office thick with tension. It was his job. That went without saying. The fact he'd never admit was that it gave him a huge rush. Torres had no doubt about this. He'd been reckless that way since she'd met him. Probably a blast to the past for him from what Torres could ascertain, as dubious as it was. A lot of it was hearsay in the break room but it was hard to imagine that at least some of it wasn't true. Rumors flew fast and furious concerning the IRA but as colorful a person as Lightman was, they probably just skimmed the surface.

Sitting in that control room watching the live footage of him in Afghanistan dropped a stone into her stomach. She unconsciously ducked when the bombs started to fall. What they didn't notice was Emily having slipped into the lab, her eyes like saucers as she watched her father on the screen. He noticed her at the same time and his face dropped. They were able see his vulnerability before all hell broke loose. What made it even worse was seeing the expression on Foster's face. Torres inwardly cringed at the anguish, the obvious terror, before concern for Emily leveled it out. Then the screen went blank. They had no clue to Lightman's fate.

Torres watched as Foster threw herself into the work, silently cheering while she tore that prick, Kamisky, a new one. She did what she did. She was just being Foster but currently there was something more going on. Her vehemence was her way of dealing with Lightman being on the other side of the world and in that much danger.

Ria wondered if they saw it on one another and chose to ignore it or if they were just so close that they were simply blinded by the truth. It was hard to tell, but nonetheless, everyone else saw it. The depth of the feelings they held for one another was impossible to disguise in a building full of people trained to detect deception.

His arrival back brought a flood of relief to all of them. As much as he drove them crazy, his staff cared about him. Well, most of them anyway. Foster's expression was all warmth when she laid eyes on him at his return. Their hug was filled with relief as they clung to one another for a few seconds, ever mindful of their audience as they shared one of those little side of the mouth kisses. There was an office pool going on about whether those little kisses would expand into something more and when. Their bosses didn't know about that.

Ria was just as relieved at his return, well, maybe not in the same way as foster, but she felt thankful for his safety nonetheless.

His eyes fell on her with that normal cocky little smirk of his. "Hey."

"Hey." Lightman pulled her into a sweet hug of greeting. "You look nice."

"Thank you."

"Ish."

Grrrr. Typical. He gives a compliment and then pulls the punch. But she let it go and bit back a barbed response. It was Christmas and he was safely back with them.

(BREAK)

Ria turned when she felt a gentle hand on her waist and looked up into Eli's green eyes. "Merry Christmas."

"Merry Christmas."

"Have you seen Lightman and Foster?"

Frowning, Ria scanned the faces of all the party-goers. "Um, no. Why?"

"Might be payday today."

"Seriously?" A smile tugged at the corner of her mouth. "Why would you say that?"

He raised his eyebrows and jerked his head in a 'come on' gesture.

"Having you been spying?"

"Absolutely not! Well, maybe a little. I have fifty bucks going on it!"

Ria herself actually had twenty-five in. "Okay, but if Lightman sees us, its your fault."

Eli rolled his eyes and gave a sigh. "Fine. He already hates me anyway."

She discarded her heels and they surreptitiously crept down the hallway away from all the merry making and toward Foster's office.

Ria watched as Eli flattened himself against the wall before stealthily peeking through the partially open door.

"Well?" She kept her voice barely more than a breath.

Eli hissed at her to shut up and she rolled her eyes. He turned to her a moment later.

"Well?"

All he did was raise his brows and wave her forward to take her own look.

Holding her breath, Ria glanced in the room. Her heart pounded almost painfully at the prospect of getting caught. She needn't have worried.

Lightman and Foster were wrapped in one another's arms, foreheads tilted and connecting, low murmurs emanating. She couldn't hear what they were saying, but it didn't matter. As she watched, they shared a soft, sweet kiss, eyes only for the other.

Ria quickly pulled back, blushing guiltily, knowing the significance of what she and Eli had just witnessed. Without a word, she yanked Eli's arm, propelling them both away from the surprisingly tender scene.

When they were at a safe distance, he turned to her with that wonderful boyish grin of his. "Drinks on me tonight!"

Wow. This was really hard! I guess I'm just too used to writing from a Cal or Gillian perspective. Maybe it's an age thing. Oh well. Hopefully it was enjoyable nonetheless!