"I'll see you around, I guess." Those were the last words Robert Goren muttered to her after a decade of partnership. Ten years, and that's all he could say. They both knew what he meant when he said it, too. Maybe, if they got around to it, they would catch up sometime. If he felt like letting her in. If Bobby made it happen. He was avoiding her, and they both knew it. It was too painful, too different. He had counted on staying away for a while, and then finding her when he got his life straightened out, if he ever did. What he didn't count on was seeing her around so often, in so many ways.

In every cup of coffee that was not quite as sweet without her early morning round of sarcastic comments and laughter to counter the bitterness.

In every reflection where he could have sworn her shadow still lingered beside him.

In every flirty smile from a woman not quite as beautiful as her on the street.

In every meal that lost it's taste without her company.

In every whisper from someone who had heard the rumors, without her accepting gaze to fend off the hurt.

In every dream where her memory haunted him more than any other.

He would always see her around.