Elizabeth Keen would never admit she was nervous about coming here alone. She needed to do this. There were still too many questions she had and there was only one man who could answer them. She breathed deeply and closed her eyes, steeling her resolve and trying to appear unaffected, eyes cold and unfeeling as she approached his hotel room door. She raised her hand to knock. Once. Twice. She stopped short of a third. "It's Agent Keen." her voice came out weaker than she intended and she wondered if he heard. The sound of the door being unlocked let her know that he had.

"Lizzie," he smiled at her, half lidded eyes betraying nothing as they locked with hers. She hated that smug look on his face. The look that said he wasn't surprised to see her. That he had been expecting her.

It was a look that said he knew everything.

"I can't tell you how happy I am we're already at a place in our relationship where you feel comfortable enough to come and visit me like-" "I'm not here to socialize." she cut him off, stepping past him. He chuckled, closing the door behind her. Liz felt her stomach clench as she felt his gaze follow her across the room. She ignored the uncomfortable sensation.

"I need to know if you were lying when you said you didn't know about the box."

He raised an eyebrow, stepping towards her. It was infuriating how uneasy the increased proximity was making her. His eyes slowly searched her face, giving a slight smile as their eyes met.

"Even if I said I wasn't, would you believe me?"

"Probably not." she admitted.

"You're a smart girl. Why bother coming here when you've already made up your mind?"

She grimaced. He was right. She should be at home with her husband but instead she lied so she could come and question this dangerous criminal who was obsessed with her for reasons she still wasn't entirely sure of. How could she trust anything he said- "The truth is, I care about you, Lizzie."

The sudden admission shocked her, and Red must have noticed because he chuckled softly at her reaction. He cared about her? "You don't even know-" "Oh, but I do know you. I know you very well." He was suddenly much closer than before. She stood her ground, refusing to be intimidated, but the way he was staring her up and down was sending chills down her spine. She let out a shaky breath and cursed internally as he reached a hand out towards her, pushing a loose strand of hair behind her ear.

"I had nothing to do with what you found, though I must say it does worry me. Just how well do you actually know your husband? I mean, to think you would end up married to a criminal..." Elizabeth shuddered as he leaned in, closing the distance between them. "This entire time," he breathed, "you've been sharing your bed with a stranger. Doesn't that frighten you?"

She felt heat rise to her cheeks and raised a hand to strike him but before her hand could land their eyes met and she hesitated.

"Yes, it does. It does frighten me." she lowered her gaze.

He was right, of course. How well did she really know Tom? In the end, wasn't he just as unknown to her as the man standing in front of her right now? He may be a criminal, but at least Reddington was honest enough to admit what he was. She looked back up at him, expecting to see him relishing her discomfort. Instead she found his expression dark and unreadable as he reached out and gently held her face between his hands. She froze in place, her pulse quickening.

"I'd never let anything happen to you, Lizzie."

Suddenly his lips were on hers and her mind went blank. She leaned into his touch, yielding momentarily before regaining her senses and pulling away, breathless. She stared at him, eyes wide and questioning.

"If you're going to insist on placing all of your trust in a stranger..." he grinned at her,

"I'm going to strongly suggest that it be me."