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Date Posted: 16:33:00 05/03/02 Fri
Author: Repost Fairy
Author Host/IP: 64.193.19.25
Subject: Chapter 63
In reply to: Genevieve 's message, "Burden of Proof - Chapter 55 onwards..." on 16:10:02 05/03/02 Fri

~*~*~*~*~

Walter frowned when he saw Birkoff still hard at work. “Come on, Birkoff.” He walked into his office and clapped the kid soundly on the shoulder. “It’s Friday night. Turn off that idiot box and we’ll hit the town.”

Birkoff peered up at him, stifling a yawn. “I’m not sure I’m in the mood for hitting the town tonight, Walter.”

Typical. No stamina. Walter rolled his eyes. “Whatever happened to that ‘Generation Next’ we all heard so much about?”

Birkoff shot Walter a defensive glare. “Give me a break, would ya? I’ve been here since nine this morning.“ Walter was amused to see, despite his protests, Birkoff was logging off and shutting down his terminal as he spoke.

“Nine?” Walter snorted. “My heart bleeds, Birky Boy.” He put his hand on the back of Birkoff’s chair and rolled him away from the desk. “Let’s go eat.”

Apparently resigning himself to the inevitable, Birkoff nodded and reached for his jacket. “I could eat.” Walter waited while he turned off the lights in the back offices, then led the way down the corridor. Behind him, he heard Birkoff stifle another yawn. “Why are you still here, anyway? Not seeing Belinda tonight?”

Walter shook his head, shuddering theatrically. “Nah. She’s having the girls over for a few drinks.” He looked back at Birkoff with a grin. “Which means I get to go out and play up, which is never a bad thing.”

They were outside Nikita’s office. Her door was closed, but the strip of light underneath betrayed her presence. He looked at Birkoff. “I thought she went home?”

“So did I.”

“I don’t like the thought of her being alone, working on a Friday night.” He raised an eyebrow at Birkoff. “You know she broke up with Gray.”

Birkoff’s mouth fell open. “No way.”

“Yup.” Walter knocked on his niece’s door, then opened it without waiting for a reply. “What are you up to, Sugar?”

Nikita didn’t look up from her keyboard. “Working.” Unlike some people, was her unspoken addendum.

The two men exchanged a quick glance. Birkoff shook his head and nodded toward the front door. “Let’s go,” he mouthed.

Walter frowned at him. “Coward,” he mouthed back. Clearing his throat, Walter strolled over to Nikita’s desk. “Sugar, it’s nearly nine o’clock on a Friday night, and I’d lay odds that whatever you’re doing can wait until tomorrow, if not Monday. Come on…live a little. Wouldn’t you rather spend the evening with your two favourite men?”

He saw her lips twitch in a reluctant smile before she finally looked up at him. “Where are you going?”

“Dinner. Movie.” Walter leaned over her desk and gave her a winsome grin. “Whatever you like, Sugar.”

She narrowed her eyes at him. “What sort of movie? I’m not really in the mood for two hours of watching things get blown up.”

Birkoff interjected from the doorway. “Please, not a chick flick.”

Walter looked from one to the other with exasperation. Sometimes he felt like the father of two teenagers, rather than a senior partner of a law firm. “There’s a Marx Brothers movie at the Rialto. How about that?”

Nikita looked down at the stack of files on her desk, then at her computer screen. With a sigh, she saved a document and logged off. “Okay.” She looked up at him with a hopeful smile. “Can we go to Punjabi Palace for dinner first?”

Walter winced inwardly at the thought of the after-effects visiting Nikita’s favourite Indian curry house would have on his poor old stomach, but he nodded. Anything that would get her out of this office was fine with him. “Sure thing, Sugar.” He gave her a conspiratorial wink and jerked his head towards Birkoff. “Unless, of course, someone fancies a nice Japanese delicacy.”

Birkoff went red. “Oh, bite me.”

“You might want to consider learning how to say that in Japanese, Birky Boy.” With Nikita bringing up the rear, laughing loudly, Walter followed an indignant Birkoff out through the darkened reception area. “Your little girlfriend might just take you up on it.”


~*~*~*~*~


“Are you sure you don’t want us to stay for a nightcap?”

Nikita gave Walter a quick kiss on the cheek, before literally pushing him toward her front door. “Considering the strongest thing I have in the house at the moment is tonic water, I’m afraid I’m going to have to say no.” She looked over to where Birkoff was busily flicking through her CD collection. “Come on, you too, Birkoff.”

“Just one more second…wow, I didn’t realise you had so many techno CDs…”

“Honestly, don’t you two have homes to go to? Come on, have a heart. It’s way past my bedtime.”

Birkoff straightened up, clutching a handful of CDs. “Can I borrow these?”

Nikita waved him toward the door impatiently. “If I say yes, will you leave?”

He grinned. “Yep.”

“Then, yes. Take whatever you want.” She leaned against the doorframe and closed her eyes wearily. She was exhausted, both by the week behind her, and the Walter/Birkoff double act. She wanted nothing more than to get out of her suit and heels, and get into a hot bath. “Thank you both for taking me out. It was just what I needed. I love you both. I don’t know what I’d do without you. But it’s been a very long day, and if you’re still here when I open my eyes, there’s going to be big trouble.”

She felt Walter’s hand gently pat the top of her head, and then heard Birkoff shuffle past her quickly.

“Good night, Sugar. Behave yourself.”

“Thanks for the CDs, I’ll take real good care of them, I promise.”

Nikita opened her eyes and closed the door behind them, smiling as the sound of Walter bursting into song in the hallway was quickly followed by the sound of Birkoff frantically shushing him. Some boys never grow up, she thought indulgently, no matter how old they get.

~*~*~*~*~

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Replies:

  • Chapter 64 (a bit of swearing) -- Repost Fairy, 16:34:42 05/03/02 Fri
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