Chapter 29

After an intense and stressful four days off, Rob was ready to get back to work, only to remember when he got there that he'd left a stressful situation at work.

Unlike other times, no one was watching him as he crossed the floor. He greeted Brenda, but she only nodded then returned to her task. Everyone was hard at work, but there was a mechanical feel to it, as if they were only going through the motions without the satisfaction of a job well done.

When he looked to see if Bob was in, the door was closed, something that almost never happened. Bob had joked in the past that he was going to take the pins out the hinges to prove he really did have an 'open door' policy.

Rob slogged through his day, unhappy at the progress he was making with what should have been an open-and-shut case. He couldn't seem to get his mind to focus on the details, and more than once he found he had to reread the document currently in his hands.

Lunch time came, and he gladly threw down the source of his frustration and fled the office. Again, no one watched him leave ... or so he thought. After the doors to the elevator had closed on his face, Brenda and Jessica shared glances. The rest looked toward Brenda, and she shook her head to their unasked question. It wasn't time yet.

Rob ate lunch alone. Despite the overcast skies, he hadn't really expected Elaina to show up: they had spent a lot of time together this last week and he knew she had things that needed doing. He already knew she patrolled her 'turf' for trespassers, but he also thought she had some kind of business or investments. She never seemed to lack for ready cash anyway.

What surprised him most was that Dawn never showed up, either to sit down to eat or to get take-out. His sullen mood had followed him from the office, and Tony and Deidra let him be.

His mood hadn't improved by the time he got back. He went at his job doggedly, finally able to focus by sheer force of will, but he was still unhappy with his progress. The day ended with nothing getting done, and there was only a passing glimpse to prove Bob was in fact present.

He stomped out of the office with his hood up, not seeing Brenda's worried look as she watched him leave.

The next day was no better. If anything the office had gone into a funk, with many of the admins not even pretending to be busy. Bob's door was open, but Bob himself was nowhere in sight.

Dawn missed lunch again. Instead, Sharon appeared following an unfamiliar man to pick up a lunch order. When Rob asked after Dawn, Sharon shrugged unhappily and, speaking softly, said Dawn was busy with work. Rob felt she was lying but couldn't imagine why she would lie.

Back at work, things were even worse than before. Several admins had actually gone home early, preferring not to stew in the atmosphere. Rob closed his door.

At day's end, when Rob once again stomped out of the office, Brenda got up and walked to Jessica's desk.

"They're not going to do this on their own, are they?" Jessica asked. Brenda shook her head.

"Tomorrow," Brenda answered. "We'll do it like we planned."

Elaina also hadn't shown, either at lunch or at home, putting him further into a funk.

The alarm jarred him from his restless sleep, and Rob nearly broke it by pounding it with his fist. He sat up, throwing his legs over the side of the bed, and scrubbed his face with his hands. He really didn't feel like going to work, but he knew that he was an important cog in the company machine and he had to go in.

He took a hurried shower and decided to forego shaving. He put on his suit, not taking care to knot the tie as well as he usually did. All in all, he looked how he felt: scruffy.

When he got to the office, he was surprised to note a mood of anticipation, almost as if the air itself was waiting for something to happen. Unnoticed eyes were again following him as he trudged to his office, many ducking their heads when he glanced around the room. Only Brenda met his eyes, and it wasn't a friendly look she gave him. Rob began to grow concerned, wondering what he'd missed. He closed his door, hanging his cloak and draping his jacket over his chair.

Out on the floor, Brenda had nodded to Jessica then stood up to go to Rob's office. Jessica rose and proceeded to Bob's. Neither knocked. The air of anticipation heightened as all in the room stopped what they were doing to watch.

Rob looked up in surprise when his door popped open and crashed against the stop. Brenda stood in the doorway with fire in her eyes.

"Brenda, what... ?"

"This has gone on too long, Rob," she growled. "The two of you are going to hash this out, and you're going to do it today."

Rob heard another door bang and the sound of an argument out on the floor. The argument got louder until he finally heard a deep female voice grind out "get in there now!" Brenda stepped in as Jessica appeared at the door with Bob's arm in a firm grip, unshakable despite Bob's attempts to pry her loose. She all but flung him into the office and stood there blocking the door with her arms crossed.

When the men started protesting, Brenda shouted them down. "You two need to fix this. We're all suffering and it has to end, one way or the other." A hush settled over the outer office.

Jessica huffed her agreement and stalked off. Brenda backed out of the room, giving the men a parting shot.

"Both of you, man up and fix this, now. We need you."

She tried slamming the door behind her but the soundproofing muffled it. Rob looked over to see Bob already looking at him, both of them with sheepish looks on their faces.

"Bob..." "Rob..." They stopped, both unwilling to go first again. Rob finally sighed and got things rolling.

"Bob. I am truly sorry for the way I acted." He recalled Brenda's advice and apologized for his behavior rather than what he'd actually said.

Bob nodded his head and sighed. "I should have taken the time to inform you of how I felt in private. For that, I apologize." He'd obviously been given the same advice.

The silence grew awkward. Rob decided to speak before he completely lost his nerve.

"Elaina and I talked about this. Brenda, too."

"You talked to the women?" Bob asked, his eyebrows jumping in surprise. "Oh shit, how did Elaina take it?"

"With several grains of salt," Rob answered. "She suggested I tell you certain things. Brenda agreed, although she didn't know that." Rob cleared his throat and ran his finger around his collar, trying to ease the sudden constriction he felt. He heaved a sigh and began.

He first explained of how he and Elaina had met, editing madly as he went along. When he got to the part were he told Bob that Elaina was a dominant, Bob stopped him and asked him to explain that. Both men blushed as Rob explained the sexual aspects of dominance and submission. Bob's eyes stayed wide open the entire time. Rob choose to stare at the ceiling.

"So," Rob finished, "That's why the women feel – and I agree – that you might have seen Elaina as a danger to me. She is, but in a loving way." Rob hung his head and waited for Bob's response. He heard Bob mutter "kindred spirits" and snapped his head up.

"You can never say that out loud again. I tried not to betray a confidence..."

Bob waved him off, saying, "None of my business."

"So," Bob continued with remorse, "I embarrassed us both for nothing then."

"Not for nothing," Rob said, "But it could have been done better – by both of us. Maybe we can think of this as a lesson learned."

Throwing propriety to the winds, Rob grabbed Bob in a bear hug and patted his back. Bob hugged him back. They stood back at the same time, with Bob beaming a huge smile.

"I always wondered what it would be like to have a son," Bob murmured. Rob laughed.

Putting his arm around Rob's shoulder, the two men walked to the door and Bob opened it.

Seeing the two of them standing there, the outer office broke into cheers and whistles. Bob released Rob and stepped forward with his arms raised.

"All right, you slugs, get back to work!" he bellowed. "I've let you all slack off the last two days, now it's time to get back to work. Let's start the new year right!"

Laughter filled the office as the cheering employees settled down to the business of doing business. Jessica was standing in the middle of the floor with her fists on her hips, challenging Bob with her glare. He quirked his lips and nodded to her. She nodded back and relaxed, then she returned to her desk. Brenda ran up and hugged each of them before returning to her desk. Cheerful banter filled the room as Bob turned to Rob.

"I expect great things from you, Rob. Make me proud."

Rob got back to his desk, a renewed spring in his stride, while Bob began circulating through the admins, doing what he did best: inspire.

Rob arrived at Tony's in a much better mood, dragging Brenda and Jessica along with him. He had invited Bob too, but he begged off saying he had too much catching up to do. Rob promised to bring him something back. The women had protested at first until Rob pointed out that he owed them much more than lunch, but it was all he could offer for now. Brenda blushed and Jessica crowed, both getting the subtext.