He wasn't sure how he had ended up in this position. She was his partner, his friend. He wasn't sure when she had became more and he wasn't sure he was comfortable with the change. Things were so easy before. They would come to work, he would taunt her about something, she would tease him back and then they would go home and the cycle would start all over again.

Gradually there was a shift. Looking back on it he should have been able to pin point the moment when the shift occurred, but he couldn't. They would start letting little personal things slip. He learned what kind of coffee she liked, and she knew where he liked to get lunch. The teasing gradually evolved into something more personal, more intimate. Then there was Jeanne.

He hadn't meant to hurt her. If he was honest with himself hurting her was one of the greatest regrets he had from that time period. She had become his best friend by then and not telling her had been one of the hardest things he had had to do. Such was the nature of the job. He knew she would understand why he hadn't told her at first, but once he had fallen in love with Jeanne he really should have been more open with her. Instead he pushed her away, willing her to go find someone of her own so that some of his guilt would be absolved.

She had been there when things had blown up with Jeanne. Hurting he lashed out at her; wanting her to know his pain. She had been there. If he needed to talk she was there, if he had needed to fight with someone she was still there and gradually the shift occurred again. He had needed her. And he had thought that maybe for a minute she had needed him too.

After she had almost been killed on her undercover mission he had followed her. He had just wanted to reassure himself that she was ok. The unease that he had felt when he saw her go home with that other guy was just because he was worried for her. He wanted her safe. He didn't like worrying about her, and he knew that she didn't process things well.

In L.A. things had seemed almost back to normal for a bit. They had flirted and fought, it was just like when they had first started working together. Then they found Jenny and once again everything changed. She knew he blamed himself, and she made sure that he had been in some semblance of order until the funeral. He had been grateful for her presence and was struck once again by how much he needed her.

His days aboard the Regan had been less then stimulating. It had been hard to be the only cop in a city of 5000, even harder not having her to talk to every day. He found he missed the banter; he would have given anything to have her threaten his life. However the days went by until they were back together working side by side once again.

Things were strained a little at first. She kept going back to Israel for "Vacations" while he was left wondering just what was in Israel for her to visit. Suddenly the "vacations" stopped, and things gradually regressed back to the teasing and arguing. However there was still something there, some subtle shift that he couldn't decide when it had made its appearance. Whenever he took the moment to contemplate it, it made him feel awkward and unsure.

Now he was standing here, outside her apartment, wondering if he should knock or turn around and go home. Before he could make up his mind, the door opened and she raised one eyebrow in question before inviting him in. He made his way to her couch and sat down, still not entirely sure what he was doing there. She sat down facing him on the couch, and before he knew what he was doing he kissed her. She broke off for a minute and smiled at him before saying "It's about time Tony." And taking him by the hand led him to her bedroom.