Disclaimer: I don't own Law & Order: Criminal Intent. If I did, there's no way I would have ended the series without a kiss. The ending was still really sweet, though.

Post "To the Boy in the Blue Knit Cap"

Oeillade

He stepped out of the therapist's office to find Eames waiting for him. He stared at her, surprised to see her.

Do you love her?

He came to a decision, as he stood at the top of the steps: he was going to tell her. With a sense of resolve, he descended the stairs.

He was more than just a cop. He was a person. A man in love. With his partner.

"Alex," he greeted her.

"How'd it go?" she asked.

He stopped in front of her. "Good," he answered.

She nodded, smiling. "Good." She hadn't been sure what the result would be. When Captain Hannah asked them to come back to Major Case, he made it clear that in Goren's case the offer was probationary, depending on his therapy sessions. Eames had complete faith in Goren's fitness to be a cop, but she also knew that all the things he'd endured during his difficult life had left a mark.

Goren's eyes were fixed on her face as he tried to work up the courage and the words to tell her.

Before he could, she broke the silence. "A call came in. DOA at a bank on West 44th Street. The Feds are already on their way, but I thought we might want to..."

"Get there first," Goren said with her.

They stood there looking at each other for a few more seconds. Goren looked like he was about to say something, but when he didn't, Eames turned and got in the car.

Goren watched her, his courage slipping away as she moved away. As he walked around the SUV to the passenger side, his fist pounded the hood in frustration at the missed chance.

And by the time he climbed in the car, his resolve had dissolved.

He looked at Eames to find her staring at him. Relief and happiness that he wasn't going to lose her as a partner flooded through him, blotting out the regret that they weren't more. "Let's go," he said.

She still had the feeling he wanted to tell her something, something he was incredibly nervous to say. It was exactly like him. She smiled in amusement and started the car.

They were quiet for a couple of minutes.

"Bobby, if there's something you want to talk about, you can," she finally said.

"What makes you think there's something I want to talk about?"

"You keep looking at me," she explained.

He smiled a brief, apologetic smile. There's something Dr. Geisen said. It got me thinking."

"About what?"

He looked at the window, and then back at her. He'd said too much already. He was terrified of the next words that would come out of his mouth. "She asked me if I love you."

He wasn't sure if the expression on her face was shock, confusion, or some kind of restrained hope.

"And what did you tell her?"

"I told her how much I respect and value you, and that I'd never do anything to risk that."

Eames didn't say anything for a moment, quietly mulling over what he'd said, what he'd implied. "That's not an answer," she pointed out.

"I told her I didn't."

She nodded. "Oh."

Her reaction hadn't been what Goren expected. He looked back out the window. He had to tell her. What happened next, whether she wanted to act like nothing happened, request a new partner, or what, he had to know. "What would you say if I told you I lied?"

With that she pulled over. Goren looked at her with worry.

She stared at him for several long seconds. "All this time, I thought you knew." She shook her head. Her face managed to hold both sadness and amusement. "But you didn't know, did you? This whole time, you had no idea, did you."

"Any idea about what?"

She sighed and laughed in the same breath. "When I first met you," she explained, "you scared me. I thought you were reckless, you understood criminals a little too well, sympathized with them too much. That's why I requested a transfer. But then I started realizing the things about you that scared me were exactly what made you such a great profiler. You're the smartest, bravest, most ethical, most intriguing person I've ever known. You've heard me say that before. I said that at the Garrett trial, under oath. Besides, you're the best profiler in the NYPD. You can figure out a suspect in a minute." She shook her head incredulously. "You never even suspected how I felt about you?"

He stared at her, remembering the slight trace of regret in her voice once when she told a suspect all her partner ever thought about was catching bad guys, her tears on the stand during the Garrett trial, the way she'd embraced him after she told him he was fired, the way she'd placed her hand in his when they were examining David Kellen's watch. "You had feelings for me?"

"Bobby, I fell for you years ago."

"You never said anything?"

"I thought you knew," she reiterated. "I was sure you knew. You were a profiler. I was your partner. We were together every day. You knew Danielle was in love with Thomas Gaffney from the sound of her voice when she said his name. How could you have missed..." She shook her head again.

He kept staring at her. "I couldn't let myself see," he realized.

She nodded.

"You could have said something. Asked me how I felt."

"And then what? I love working with you. It's enough. I was sure you already knew, and that you'd say something if you felt the same way."

"So because I didn't, you thought it was a no."

She nodded, but she was smiling brightly as she looked at him. "I thought it was a no, and I wasn't going to push you. But being your partner, the rules, never would have stopped me if I thought you felt the same. I learned a long time ago that there's a big difference between rules and what's really right and wrong. So if you lied to your therapist when you told her you didn't love me, I would be incredibly happy."

"I lied," he said breathlessly.

She shifted in his direction, then slowly drew closer to him. Reading her intention, Goren didn't move until her lips pressed against his. Then, instinctively, he kissed her back. A long moment later, they drew apart, and both smiled.

He gazed at her beautiful face. He recalled what Dr. Geisen had said about putting the job before the man. "Maybe we should let the Feds take this one," he suggested.

Eames laughed, and nodded. "I think we could use a day off."

He kissed her again.