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Post by Roland Ferrera on Jan 9, 2009 19:47:54 GMT -5
"Goodbye, Nathalia," he replied, his voice equally soft.
Roland had his back to Riley, so he didn't even see her. He simply stood and watched Nathalia leave, an almost wistful smile on his face that no one would ever see. She was a beautiful girl, and he silently wished her well. As she disappeared into the lift, he let out a breath, then turned slowly to go back into his empty apartment. His night of indulgence was finally beginning to catch up with him, and he silently wondered whether he had any bread with which to make toast. He hadn't eaten anything at all tonight, and he felt a little ill.
That was when he caught sight of Riley standing by her apartment door, watching him. He blinked twice in disbelief. "Riley?"
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Post by Riley Neves on Jan 10, 2009 7:59:58 GMT -5
"Oh, you remember my name. I'm surprised that you remembered anything at all work related when you've obviously got more important, blonde matters to deal with," Riley said, an eyebrow up and sarcasm seeping into her voice. She was tired and she was off the clock. In fact, she was home, and she tried never to bring work home.
She shook her head. "Whatever, never mind. It's your off time. I just thought you'd be a little more concerned with the assignment." She put her hands up defensively and turned to unlock her door.
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Post by Roland Ferrera on Jan 10, 2009 12:01:13 GMT -5
Roland stared at her for a minute, a smirk slowly creeping up on his face. "Are you lecturing me?" he said almost incredulously. He leaned against the wall next to his door, folding his arms across his bare chest.
"Look, you said it yourself... it's my time off. I fail to see how my personal affairs have any bearing on my dedication towards the assignment. What I do after hours is my business. Since when do you live next door to me, anyway?"
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Post by Riley Neves on Jan 10, 2009 15:23:24 GMT -5
"You're personal affairs have everything to do with your commitment to the assignment! Do you know what I was doing with my time off? I spent a few extra hours at the office doing some research on Ms Weaver, and found out something I thought you might find interesting. Obviously not, since you appear to be quite busy entertaining tramps."
She rand a hand through her hair. "If *I* solves this case, Angelique will be the first to know how very little you did."
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Post by Roland Ferrera on Jan 10, 2009 15:29:41 GMT -5
"Hey, now," Roland said angrily, moving away from the wall and closer to her. It was one thing to yell at him; hell, he deserved it. But Nathalia was a sweet girl and didn't deserve to be put down for what they had done. "I won't have you disparaging that girl and calling her names. You know nothing about her, and there is nothing wrong with what we just did. We're both consenting adults."
He stood in front of her now, his arms still folded across his chest. "I lost control with Ms. Weaver, I admit that. So I needed a little time away from the case to blow off a little steam. I'm so sorry I'm not a complete workaholic like you. Occasionally I do like to have a life."
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Post by Riley Neves on Jan 10, 2009 15:38:25 GMT -5
She wanted to point out that he had kicked the poor girl out awfully early, but just baely curbed her tonight. She really didn't want to argue about it, but it was Riley and she had to say something.
"There's nothing wrong with it? Do you even know her last name? No, there's nothing wrong, you're right. It's just tasteless. But do what you want."
His accusation is what flared the anger in her system, and her eyes turned back to his, realizing that she had to look up to see him now that he was closer, and she saw it as a distinct disadvantage.
"I have a life. Katie Lawrence doesn't anymore, and I've made it a priority to make sure other children still do. If that makes me a workaholic, fine."
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Post by Roland Ferrera on Jan 10, 2009 15:47:27 GMT -5
Roland let out a breath. His personal life was none of her business, and he was not about to let her continue to take him to task for something she really had no say about.
"I don't really care if you approve of my personal affairs," he said coldly. "The fact is, it's my business. You can think what you want about me personally, but I promise you, when I come in to work tomorrow, the case will be my only focus. But as important as the case may be, I can't be expected to spend 24 hours a day working on it. You know what they say about all work and no play."
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Post by Riley Neves on Jan 10, 2009 16:13:07 GMT -5
"I'll be the first to admit that I shouldn't be involved in your personal affairs, except when I think that you're sacrificing your work related affairs."
Her eyebrows went up as she said this, though her voice had gone down. "And you probably don't care. I realise that, but whatever respect I had for you is gone."
She narrowed her eyes. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.... she knew the phrase. "No, Roland. What do they say about all work and no play?" Why didn't he see that just letting go of the assignment when you were off duty was poor practice?
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Post by Roland Ferrera on Jan 10, 2009 16:24:47 GMT -5
Somehow, that hurt.
He could handle her disapproval, but her disrespect cut a little deeper. Maybe it was because even he wasn't entirely proud of his occasional trysts, or maybe it was because he was so proud of his professional reputation, but thinking that she no longer respected him... it was hard to take.
He closed his eyes for a minute, as if steeling himself for something. "Look... Whatever you might think of me personally... what you just witnessed... I don't do it very often. And in fact, I normally believe just as you do--that you should always keep your head in the game. But every so often, I need a little stress release. I make no apologies for that. I'm not sacrificing anything."
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Post by Riley Neves on Jan 10, 2009 16:35:58 GMT -5
"Of course you don't do it very often," Riley said, though her tone implied that she believed exactly the opposite.
Of all the apartments she had to get, why this one? Why right next to him?
"There's a dueling club. Or on the more muggle side of things, kickboxing helps as a stress releaser." Treating woman as tricks was... it was terrible, in her eyes, and for a while, it was going to be all she could see about him.
"Anyway, I've got a lead I'd like to follow tomorrow, if you think you can keep it in your pants." She sighed. "That was a stupid thing to do, Roland. What if, on the outside chance, she was involved? You have to be careful or you're going to comprimise the situation."
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Post by Roland Ferrera on Jan 10, 2009 16:49:53 GMT -5
He heard the tone in her voice and he knew she didn't believe him. And he really shouldn't have cared. But somehow, he did. He'd had a very good time with Nathalia, and it had definitely been more than just an empty encounter. In fact, if he hadn't been so set against a committed relationship, he could have imagined himself spending a lot of pleasant evenings with her.
"Would you be so judgmental if she was actually my girlfriend?" he asked. "Or am I not allowed to have any kind of social life? What about my family? They're a distraction, too. Maybe I should cut them out, too, and spend all my time on work. Would that make you happy?"
He released a breath and ran his hand through his hair. "Fine. Whatever... I'll be sure to keep it zipped while we're working on the case. But I don't personally see why I should be expected to live like a monk just because we're working on a case."
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Post by Riley Neves on Jan 10, 2009 16:55:02 GMT -5
"No, I wouldn't be nearly as..." What word should she use? Disgusted, offended? "... upset if she were you're girlfriend. At least it would have been someone you knew you could trust! You told me I know nothing about her... I knew she's easy and has very little self respect, and I know her name. How much more do *you* know about her?"
He was getting frustrating, getting on her nerves, and she was past caring. "I'm not asking you to give up your social life. I'm asking you to be more focused and a little more careful."
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Post by Roland Ferrera on Jan 10, 2009 17:02:29 GMT -5
"I know quite a bit about her," Roland said tersely.
OK... so her last name didn't happen to be among the things that he knew about Nathalia. But he still knew considerably more than Riley did.
"Such as the fact that she lives right downstairs. And quite a few other facts that I'm relatively certain you couldn't care less about. But don't say that she has no self respect. As a matter of fact, she has quite a lot of it, and it was her choice to leave just now. I didn't kick her out, which is what I'm sure you were thinking. And why the hell am I explaining any of this to you? It's none of your business."
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Post by Riley Neves on Jan 11, 2009 15:19:00 GMT -5
Her eyebrows went up, again, and she shook her head.
"You're explaining it to me because you're trying to justify to yourself," Riley said angrily. Then, her eyes narrowed. "Were you drunk?" One night stands usually involved drinking, and she would rail on him for that. "You don't know that you can trust her, that's my problem with this whole mess. She could be *anyone* and you could have compromised yourself, the assignment, the whole department."
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Post by Roland Ferrera on Jan 11, 2009 15:44:34 GMT -5
His eyes flared. He was really getting annoyed with her and her self-righteous attitude. "Don't you even try to tell me what I'm thinking," he said angrily.
Letting out a frustrated groan, he turned around and took a few steps away from her, then walked back. "Yes, it's true. I was drinking, and I don't know that much about her, and I suppose she could have been anyone. She could have killed me when my back was turned, I suppose. But I still don't see how a little tryst could possibly compromise the entire department. What kind of secrets do you think I told her? I was very careful. I know you think I'm scum, but I'm not stupid."
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Post by Riley Neves on Jan 11, 2009 15:52:00 GMT -5
"I'm not entirely convinced that you aren't stupid," Riley bit back. Did he really not see that what he had done was, if nothing else, careless? She didn't care what he did in his personal life... as long as it didn't interfere with his work life. This, possibly, could have. Even if it had been fine and innocent, there was still the chance that it wasn't.
"Besides, I would have thought after your little scene today with Ms Weaver, that you would have gotten all your stress out then."
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Post by Roland Ferrera on Jan 11, 2009 16:07:17 GMT -5
He was really beginning to hate her.
There was a tiny little voice in the back of his head that kept telling him that she was right, and that infuriated him all the more. He hated to be wrong. And he really hated having her be right.
"Nothing happened," he said flatly. "She didn't kill me, I didn't betray any secrets... everything is fine. And she's a perfectly lovely woman, with no agenda. I don't know what else you want from me. An apology?"
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Post by Riley Neves on Jan 11, 2009 21:01:17 GMT -5
"I want you to be more careful!" Riley told him, and had she not stopped herself and considered what a child it would make her look like, she would have stomped her foot. "Nothing happened, but it *could* have. It only takes one mistake, Roland. When you finally get yourself in a bind, I hope you don't expect me to help you out of it."
What wasn't getting through to him? He really didn't see his mistake, and if he could be so cavalier, how could she trust him?
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Post by Roland Ferrera on Jan 11, 2009 21:21:20 GMT -5
Roland pressed his lips together and let out a long, harsh breath through his nose. "Oh, don't worry, you've made it perfectly clear that the only thing I can count on from you is a self-righteous speech from on top of your moral high horse," he said harshly.
First thing tomorrow morning, he was going to march into Angelique's office and beg to be reassigned. He didn't need to hear this from her. She'd only known him for a day and a half, and she thought she had the right to lecture him about his personal life? No matter what she said, he still knew that he had been careful in what he said and did with Nathalia, and there had never been any danger. Oh, he had his regrets about the whole thing, but not for any of the reasons she had given him. His only real regret was that it was over so soon.
And that Riley Neves just happened to live right next door to him.
He crossed his arms over his bare chest again and glared at her with his eyes narrowed. "What if I actually wanted to date that girl? Have a relationship with her? You wouldn't have a problem if she was already my girlfriend, but what if I just wanted her to be? Is that not allowed, either? Since obviously you're making the rules around here, I would like to know what my boundaries are."
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Post by Riley Neves on Jan 11, 2009 21:37:48 GMT -5
"Do you want to date her, Roland? Would you like that blonde bartender to be your girlfriend? And yes... I've been to Stu's." She finally pieced together where she knew the girl from, and it only made her angrier. Roland had picked up a stranger in a bar... how wonderfully safe and classy.
She hated to do it, but tomorrow, she would go into Angelique's office and ask to be reassigned. She had tried... they had to give her credit for that. But Angelique had promised her she wouldn't have to baby sit Roland... obviously, she did. He had proven it twice today.
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