Resentments
It was a typical night at the Axe house (well - it's wasn't technically the Axe house, but Veronica called it that, and Sam wasn't willing to disagree with that habit). Sam sipped a beer, lying out in a robe on the bed, and Veronica was laughing on the phone, petting her Yorkie as she chats on her cell phone.
"...And then he said...yes!!...Oh, Sam's here...he says hello..." Sam waved lazily as he watched the Lions fumble yet another ball on Veronica's big screen. "Oh, yes...yes...uh huh...I'll see you...night!"
Sam stretched out. "Old friend?"
"A girl I knew from college," Veronica said. "We're having a reunion on the fifth."
Sam offered her a hand as she climbed into the bed, placing the Yorkie on the floor. "I'll be honored to go with you."
"I didn't ask you," Veronica chortled, wrapping both of her arms around his neck.
"You don't want to show off your favorite guy?" Sam teased, resting his head on Veronica's shoulder.
"Oh Sammy, I didn't say that." She cupped his cheek and gave him a kiss. "How did today go?"
"Fine. Fi and Mike and I...fixed something for someone."
She ran her fingers over his chest. "What did you fix?"
He gently took her hand and placed it against the back of his neck. "I can't tell you that, Ronnie, for your own safety."
"Oh Sammy," she pouted. "You're no fun at all."
He ran a hand up her thigh. "That's not what you said last night..."
Veronica giggled. "You're terrible!" But she didn't slap away his hand.
"Want more?" he asked.
"Mmm, always," she said, pulling him closer.
But mentally, she packed away the word 'fixed', saving it for future use.
***
The next morning, while Sam was still unconscious, Veronica was on the balcony, talking to her contact.
"No, he won't say anything else - what else? He's chivalrous, so unfortunately chivalrous!" She took a drag from his cigarette. "No, she said. "I don't think so. I'll just have to convince him I'm not made of glass! Either that or have yet more sex with him." She shuddered. "It's like pressing yourself against a slab of ham..." She heard the sheets rustling and quickly said. "The ham's out of the can," before hanging up and stubbing out her cigarette.
By the time Sam got out of bed she had already nibbled down a breath mint, and the wind had swept away the scent of cigarette smoke. "You're up early," Sam observed, pecking her on the lips.
"I couldn't sleep," she smiled. "Sammy, you didn't tell me you snore."
He made a face. "Thought you wouldn't notice. Whenever we finish up, you usually go out like a light."
Veronica frowned. "I must have been worried."
"About me?" She nodded. "Aww, Ronnie, I should be at the bottom of the list." He smirked. "Unless all that worry'll get me a little extra pampering."
Veronica got up and walked up behind Sam, wrapping both arms around his neck.
It took every last bit of willpower she had not to strangle him right there.
***
Her contact is a man twice her age in a navy suit with a pinstriped white shirt, whom she meets in the middle of the afternoon while Sam is on a surveillance detail with Fiona. He's less than happy with Veronica's ability to gather intelligence on Sam.
"We don't want to pull you off of this assignment, Caroline."
She sucks a lungful of nicotine-laced oxygen into her lungs. "you won't have to. I promise."
"Then you should be following your quarry," he said coldly. "Try to tail him tomorrow."
"It would be easier if Westen weren't always in the way."
Her contact scoffed. "Any fool worth their mettle could neutralize Westen."
She could only stare at him in disbelief at that statement.
***
The following day's surveillance turned up nothing but the most basic details of Sam's life: he likes hoagies, hot dogs, lemonade, beer, vodka; he lies out on the beach for hours and it takes him two hours to get a deep tan. He knows the score of the last twenty Lions games and stopped following the Tigers in '06.
He would be charming, if she were another woman. But Veronica was anything but charmed by Sam's antics.
At the Plaza de Firori, she accidentally bumped into him, but he wasn't surprised to see her there. In fact, he was downright thrilled. They had (another) lunch and went shopping for a movie, and ended up snuggled together on the couch, watching 'From Here to Eternity' as the sun went down.
On nights like those, she could allow herself to love him. Almost.
***
Michael's the one who caught her trailing the Charger one afternoon. She made up a lie about missing Sam so much and just wanting to spend some time with him. She knew he didn't believe her, but allowed her to climb into the front seat of the Caddy with Sam. She managed to get a few details out of him about Michael's whereabouts the next day, and with further application of her body managed to find out a little more about the client they were so closely involved with.
That afternoon she nearly strangled him with a rope, but decided against it. She couldn't possibly lift his body. And Michael was watching her now.
***
"We're pulling you off the case, Caroline."
The announcement took her by surprise. "I gave you the intel you wanted."
"It's not enough. Axe is too close to Westen to turn on him, he just survived a hell of a beating in his name."
Veronica felt a jolt of surprise when she realized the idea of Sam getting hurt upset her. "What do you want me to do?"
"Get away from him and get out. Break his heart gently."
"And how should I do that?"
A laugh. "Ask him to marry you. The man's petrified of commitment."
Veronica hung on to the dead line for a minute as she selected the next step.
***
Predictably, Sam created the opportunity for her. It turned out that he had a wife - another wife, he'd already told her about Amanda - and couldn't marry her. She feigned outrage, arranged for their separation and got to land a few vases rather close to his head. Revenge for all of that snoring, she decided.
She didn't miss him until she was in Canada, Yorkieless, trying to charm a congressional page into giving her details about the life of his boss. The little brat was all hands, and at least when Sam Axe groped you he groped you with style...