Psych 101

Jocelyn handed James a glass of Old Foglesong. “I'm going to call this Old Fogie from now on.”

“That's fine with me, Joss.”

Jocelyn smiled and leaned on him.

Jimmy played with her hair.

Jocelyn looked up at him and squinched her nose slightly. He'd know it was a good thing. “You know…I saw a couple of women with this leather choker type thing aorund their neck. Almost like a dog collar but it clearly held meaning. And you were looking at my neck pretty intensely the other night…”

Jimmy grinned that goofy, childish grin he liked to grin. “Oh, that's what was missing. Yeah, I've seen a few people with those sorts of things. And there's Booth's friend who I always see with a chain. You know the one with the firefighter boyfriend? The one who he keeps calling his little sister?”

“Maybe we should get one for me.” She said softly. “Yes. I know Katie. She saw me for counseling after the Remnant incident. Nice girl. I was originally dispatched since I was the only female negotiator on call, but that was moot when I got there. Seeley insisted she come…see….me. And…Dani too.” She suddenly had a pondering look on her face.

Jimmy tilted his head slightly, one eyebrow rising slightly. “I'll need to take you shopping then. Remnant? That was a mess from what I've heard. Booth was not happy for a while after that. Kept saying something about the first being a bitch. Took me a while to figure out what he meant.” He looked down to see the pondering look on her face. “What's going through that pretty little mind of yours?”

“Dani took time to get over it. The sticking point for her was that she was wearing body armor and he was armed with only a knife.” She whispered, saying no more on it. “No, I just…Seeley said last night in his reply to my text that he made sure his wife was always assigned to me. Every major event they've had….I've been there. He insisted Katie see me for her therapy after Remnant.”

“A knife can still slip through the cracks in the armor.” That summed up what he'd seen in Seeley from that day. The stress ball he always seemed to be carrying, the way he would snap every so often where he was normally so chill. “I told you last night he wasn't as bad as you thought.”

Jocelyn turned her head towards him. “I just…hope he has a good therapist to talk to. I'm afraid that's a wound I can't even put a salve to. But I think Dani being pregnant helps. ” She bashfully placed her head on his shoulder and slid her arm around him. “And we have them to thank for opening our eyes to what was in front of us.”

Jimmy reached up to run his fingers through her hair once more. “He's always been a bit of a lone wolf. Comes from being a Ranger and a sniper. He's strong enough to deal with it, and yes, Daniela will help him. He helps her. Or he tries to, at least.”

Jocelyn kissed his cheek as his fingers combed through her hair. “I'm glad you're there. And here.” She said quietly, threading her fingers throughhis with their free hands.

Jimmy flushed slightly, barely noticeable, but held her hand when she slipped her fingers between his. “He doesn't really work with my much anymore, he's transferred to her department under Andrews, although he might be taking a promotion to Deputy Assistant Director of Homicide, once Daniela's done incubating a mini-Booth.”

Jocelyn squinched her nose at that slight blush and kissed his cheek again. “I saw that in the staffing lists. Potential DAD of Homicide is a hefty promotion. There's rumor of retirement in her department, maybe she'll go for SAC after the baby comes.” She wondered. “Hey. I'm hungry. Are you hungry? We can go back to your place and eat some Italian.”

Jimmy wrinkled his nose to one side with her kiss. “She'd make a good SAC, she needs to go through the ranks before she can do that job. She was only a Senior Special Agent for a month or so before they took her off field work. Besides, there are agents who would begrudge her age, you should know that.” Food. He's always hungry. Always eating. “Sure, I can eat.”

Jocelyn “I don't know if she's that ambitious. Well no, she is. But she loves what she does when she's on fieldwork, I doubt she'll want to take on pursuing that with a new baby.” She smiled up at him. “Alright. Lead on, Sir.” She said, standing.

Jimmy stood up and took Joss' hand, leading her towards the exit. “Antipasto, risotto, pasta, pizza. That'll do me. What do you want?”

Jocelyn made her way outside with him, towards his car, her fingers squeezing his.

James led her towards his car. Tahoe, bullet-proof, standard issue. “Any particular Italian you had in mind?”

Jocelyn “Hey, nice car.” She quipped, then smiled at him. “Mmn, no, I think you should pick since you're ordering the buffet.” She teased gently, bringing his hand to her lips for a moment.

James brought her to the passenger side door and popped it open, still holding her hand. “How about Carmine's? It's not far from HQ, and they know me well enough not to argue when I order three tons of food.” He closed the door behind her once she was in, then moved around to the driver's side, slipping into his seat.

Jocelyn met his eyes and smiled. “Carmine's is lovely. Shall we do take out or eat there?” She asked as she got in the car, buckling her seatbelt and then turned her head to watch him slid into the driver's seat. Never before had she been treated so…romantically. Well, he did tell her to expect romance. She gave him a shy smile.

James grinned right back at her. “I'm good with either. Eating out, being seen together, especially at a restaurant like Carmine's is romantic.” He pushed the key in and gunned the engine to life, putting it into Drive before leaving his hand on the console, palm up. “Or taking it home means we can get to know each other more intimately. More romantically.”

Jocelyn placed her hand in his and slipped her fingers between his own, her other hand tugging the ends of her hair. She wanted to be seen publicly but she wanted to get to know him better too and she tended to be a little more reserved if there were lots of people around. “What if we take it home, then our next date can be out at a restaurant. Or a walk in the park. Or something. Anything. I like being with you, wherever we are….” She rambled slightly.

James turned to look at her for a few seconds before turning back to drive and pulling away. “If you'd prefer to take it home, they deliver. If we order now, it can be at my place shortly after we get there. Then we don't have to worry about waiting around for it at the restaurant, or having anyone bother us at home.”

Jocelyn Funny how her hotel and his apartment were both 'home' to her. “I'll place the order since you're driving.” She murmured, pulling out her phone. She pulled up Carmine's site and put in an order for veal piccata, a Caesar salad, and tiramisu. “What would you like, mon coeur?”

James considered the menu in his head. “Chicken saltimbocca, meatballs, garlic bread, and a Carmine's salad… I think that'll do me for a while.” While Caroline called him scrawny, he was always eating. It didn't affect his physique all that much. “I can give you my card if I can have my hand back, mon amour.”

Next: Lovers in DC