As they were talking, Vanessa noticed Joe staring at Jenna, and she promptly gave him a sharp elbow in the ribs.

"What?!" Joe whispered to her, surprised.

"Do you think you can keep your eyes in their sockets for dinner, at least?"

"Huh?" Joe asked her. Then, noticing what she meant, he said softly, "She IS pretty, Van."

Vanessa’s mouth dropped. Joe HAD to be kidding her. Sometimes, honesty was NOT the best policy, in her book. Noting the distressed look on her face, Joe added at once, "But not nearly as pretty as you, baby," he said quietly, and leaned over to give her a kiss on the cheek.

"You’ll have to do better than that," she hissed back quietly at him.

"Okay," Joe said with a smile. "I LOVE YOU VANESSA!" he called out loudly. Frank, Callie, Jenna, and a few other people paused momentarily to look at him before resuming their conversations. Vanessa felt her face burn bright red.

"Okay, Joe, that was subtle," Callie teased him, her eyes twinkling. "But it’s nice to know you stand by your woman. I’m not sure I heard you, though. Want to repeat that again for Vanessa?!"

"No!" Vanessa and Frank said at the same time. Joe just laughed. That day, he had a really great time with Callie. They were both glowing from the warm summer sun, and it had turned out to be a lot of fun. He realized how funny Callie could be as she made dry comments while they people-watched, and even though he knew she had gotten tired pretty easily, she had insisted on staying out with him and seeing the outdoor sights. He realized that he really, genuinely liked Callie, and he was happy that she was Frank’s girlfriend.

With a small wink, he said to her, "I guess they just don’t appreciate when a man tries to show his true feelings for his woman!" he sighed.

Vanessa finally gave in and laughed. "Joe, you’re a dork, but an endearing one."

"Thanks- I think," Joe replied with a smile.

As they continued their dinner, Vanessa noticed that somehow, Jenna had gotten both Frank and Joe to talk a lot about their investigations. She seemed to hang onto every word. Vanessa also couldn’t help but to notice that Jenna seemed to have taken extra special care with her appearance that evening, wearing a slinky dress and high heels. She looked out of place with all of them, who were dressed casually, although she was about 18 or 19 years old. Vanessa continued to be amazed that Callie didn’t seem bothered by the fact that Jenna was flirting a lot with Frank and Frank, Vanessa noticed, didn’t seem to be exactly ignoring it.

Then, the conversation turned to the next day. "So, are you still up for our tour tomorrow?" she asked Frank.

"Oh? What tour is that?" Callie asked, for the first time aware that the question was leveled at Frank, and NOT the group.

"Oh, yeah!" Frank said excitedly. "Jenna offered to give us a museum insider’s tour- you know, behind the scenes stuff. It’d be a great opportunity. I mean, with so much stuff actually on display, I can’t even imagine what we DON’T see!"

Vanessa interjected. "But Jenna?" she asked sweetly. "I thought you might not be able to take ALL of us there."

Joe shot Vanessa a look. He could tell right away that she was being sarcastic, and he had no idea why. Jenna seemed perfectly nice to him.

"Well, Vanessa," Jenna said apologetically. "I think you’re right, unfortunately. I could maybe only get myself and one or two more people in. That’s it."

"I think I’ve seen enough already," Vanessa said evenly, hoping her message was getting through.

"Oh, that’s okay," Jenna said with a smile. "Frank and I will go!"

Callie’s eyes widened. She trusted Frank, but she wasn’t a fool. She opened her mouth to say something, then shut it at once. Okay, Frank, she said to herself, silently. Let’s see how you play this one.

"That’s nice of you, Jenna, but I’d only go with Callie. She hasn’t seen it, and I think she’d enjoy it." Frank spoke to Jenna, but he turned to Callie and smiled warmly.

Good boy, Callie thought. You passed that one. Then, she saw that despite Frank’s refusal to go, a part of him DID want to see what was inside the museum. Frank had always loved that type of thing. A part of her melted. She wanted Frank to be happy. This might be stupid, she thought to herself, but said out loud, "That’s okay, hon. If you want to go, I understand. I mean, I wanted to see the sights with you and spend some time together…" She gave a small smile as she met his eyes, "But I guess we can do that later in the day. Go ahead. Have a good time."

Joe and Vanessa couldn’t believe it. Finally, Joe saw what Vanessa had seen and told him about during the day. He saw it. Vanessa saw it. Even Callie saw it. Frank, he wasn’t so sure of. Don’t do it, Frank, Joe mentally pleaded with his brother.

But, Frank did do it. "Really, Cal?! You wouldn’t mind?! I mean, I’m sure it wouldn’t take that long."

Callie gave a tight smile. "No, no. It’s fine."

"Ugh," Joe groaned inwardly. Frank was going to go out with a girl who obviously liked him, and Callie was going to let him do it. I guess this is what a soap opera feels like, he thought. He felt sympathy come over him for Callie, who looked disappointed in Frank despite her words to the contrary. Suddenly, an idea hit him. "Hey, Jenna?" Joe asked, trying to get her attention.

"Yes, Joe?" she asked, apparently smiling at the thought of being alone with Frank tomorrow.

"You mentioned that you could take two people down with you, right?"

"Yes," she replied.

"Well, I’d like to go, too, if that’s okay with you. That is, if Vanessa doesn’t mind."

"Oh, no, Joe. I don’t mind at all! Actually, I think that’s a GREAT idea!" Vanessa responded, catching on right away. She squeezed Joe’s hand. Callie inadvertently shot Joe a relieved look, and he gave her a small wink.

"I…um… well… okay," Jenna said at last. "Sure."

"This is fantastic!" Frank said, elated. "Joe, I didn’t know you wanted to learn about planes and space technology!"

"My interest in it has just been renewed," Joe said, plainly. "Thanks, Jenna. I look forward to it.

After dinner, the two couples bid Jenna adieu and headed back to the hotel. Since it was pleasantly warm, they decided to walk back to the hotel. Vanessa caught up to Callie while Joe held his brother’s arm and told him to slow down. He waited until the girls were out of earshot when he started speaking to his brother as they walked.

"What’s the matter with you?" Joe asked his brother. "Another girl asks you out, right in front of Callie, and you say yes?!"

"What?" Frank asked. "Look, Joe, I’m getting tired of this argument. I fought about it enough with Vanessa today. I really do want to see this museum. I would have loved for Callie to come with me. She didn’t want to- she even told me I could go! What’s wrong with that?!"

"You’re just being stupid," Joe said, lacking another way to get the message across.

Frank’s eyes darkened. "Why don’t you let me worry about Callie, okay? BUTT OUT!" he said, more loudly. "Why is she the only one who trusts me?! Now, excuse me while I go and catch up to my girlfriend."

Joe watched as Frank caught up to Callie and slipped an arm around her waist as they walked. He gave her a quick kiss on the top of her head.

"What was that all about?" Joe heard Callie ask his brother, referring to his conversation with Joe.

"Nothing at all, baby," he heard Frank reply.

Muttering under his breath, Joe ran to catch up with Vanessa.

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