A/N: This gets a little dark but there is a light at the end of the tunnel. L/S all the way! Please read and review :- )

Disclaimer: I don't own Cold Case

She came to his apartment one night.

He's watching the Phillies' game and knocking back a beer when he hears the knock at the door. "Scotty?" she says, so quietly that it's almost a whisper. But he hears it. He's momentarily stunned but he makes his way to the door, almost without thinking. When he opens it, he sees her standing there. She's crying. "Scotty." She really does whisper now.

"Lil? What's wrong?" Before he could say anything else, she takes a few steps closer to him and he reaches out to hold her. They stay like that for a while. The two of them. In the doorway, just holding each other. She then let's go and looks at him and he swears he can feel his heart breaking. He kicks the door shut and guides her to the couch and they sit down. He turns off the TV. "What happened?" He asks again.

"He broke up with me." She says between sobs. "He didn't give me a proper reason, just said it was over!" She leans into him and puts her head on his chest and he holds her again, only this time he finds himself stroking her head too.

"Shh, it's okay Lil. That guy was a jerk. He didn't deserve you; you were too good for him."

She lifts her head up and looks into his dark eyes, "I loved him Scotty. I thought we could actually have a life together."

He pulls her towards him again and squeezes a little tighter. "I know Lil. I know." He whispers soothingly as his partner's tears seep into his shirt and rest against the skin on his chest. They stay like that in silence for a couple of minutes. He remembers how happy she had been for the last eight months, madly in love. How she would greet him with the brightest smile he had ever seen, every morning when he came to work. After everything that had happened to her, so many failed relationships, the death of her mother, being shot at, held hostage by George Marks, she had finally found the happiness she deserved. Now that was gone too.

He looks down at her as she begins to sit up, her eyes now red and puffy. He feels sadness wash over him too. He hates seeing her like this. After all they had been through together, he feels protective of her. He wants to find the man who has hurt her like this and hurt him too. He clenches his fist at the thought. He has an idea then. "Let's go for a drive." He says. "Might be good to clear your head for a bit, get some fresh air too." She nods. He grabs his keys and they head out the door.

...

They drive around for half an hour till they come across a clearing in the woods. He stops the car and they both get out. There's no one else around. He takes a blanket from his back seat and they walk towards a suitable patch of ground. He spreads the blanket down and they both sit. She stares up at the stars, as if trying to find answers to questions too heavy to bear. He feels for her. Not knowing what to say, he stands up and gathers a few pieces of wood nearby and lays them a couple of feet in front of her. Then he takes out his lighter and starts a fire. She smiles gratefully and he sits beside her. "He didn't even have the guts to tell me to my face." She says, trying to sound strong but her voice wavers towards the end. She pulls out a piece of paper from her pocket. "This is how he told me! A Dear Jane letter; can you believe it?" She laughs bitterly as she hands it to him.

He takes it and reads, feeling anger boil within him. He wonders who the hell this guy thinks he is that he can just walk out on her like that. No explanation. He crumples up the paper then hands it back to her. "Throw it in the fire Lil. Destroy it. You don't need this guy, the way he hurt you; you're better off without him."

Lilly gets up and walks towards the flames. She smoothes the note out and slowly moves it into the fire. She watches as the flames rapidly envelope the writing of the man she had fallen in love with, the man who had now torn her world apart and broken her heart to pieces. She lets it go and watches it drop, now completely consumed by fire. She cries silently for a moment and goes to sit back down next to him, watching the smoke rise up and into the night. He moves closer to her and puts his arm around her shoulders, pulling her into him as he too stares into the flames. "Just let it burn Lil. Just let it burn."

...

They stay sitting together until the final embers have died out. Then he drives her home. She opens the door and invites him in. It's late but she doesn't want to go to sleep, afraid of what may lie in wait for her the second her eyes close and she falls into the abyss. She pours him coffee and she has one too. They sit in silence as they drink. The silence is comforting. He knows he doesn't have to say anything; she just wants him there with her. When they finish, he takes their mugs to the kitchen and washes them and she watches in the doorway. He sees her looking so lost and broken and his heart falls to pieces for the second time that night. This is not a side of her the world gets to see, it is a side she shows to him. Only to him, her partner, her best friend. It is a side of herself that she should never have to experience again. She has had so much pain in her life.

He walks over to her and puts his arms around her, wishing he could take her pain away. He pulls her into him and she wraps her arms around his back, holding on tightly. "It'll be alright Lil. I promise that the pain you're feelin' now will go away someday." He reaches out for her chin and tilts her head up to his. He looks into her tear-filled eyes and says "I swear if I ever see this guy around I'll shoot him!"

She laughs a little at that. "Oh Scotty," then rests her head on his shoulder.

"I hate him Lil. I hate the way he just used you and walked away and not even tell you why. I hate the way he's hurt you. And I hate the way I feel seeing you like this. I just wanna make it right!" He kisses her head lightly and whispers into her hair, "I just wanna make it right."

She reaches out and touches his face with both hands, pulling his face close to hers, and then she kisses him. Slowly, tenderly, the kiss conveying all the gratitude and affection she feels for him at that moment. He pulls her closer and deepens the kiss. His kiss speaks of all the love and friendship he has developed for her all these years. She guides him to her bedroom and they each shed the other's clothes, slowly, lovingly. She feels safe with him, she knows he won't hurt her. He wants to show her that she can be loved, really loved and cared for. Not just for tonight, not just when they wake up in the morning, but always. He would be there for her. She feels so wanted and loved by him; she never thought he would be like this. So tender, yet passionate. They make love over and over again until the first rays of the morning stream through her curtains. Then they lie together in each other's arms and she watches him as he sleeps. She feels new stirrings of desire and love for him, so warm and powerful. She smiles and decides to just let it burn.