-1Alex drove along quietly stealing glances at the large man who had sat in the passenger seat for the last 6 years. He had not spoken since they left the ME's office and that scared the hell out of her. She had gotten used to his mumbling, rambling, ranting and raving….she had gotten used to his voice. It had grown to be a source of comfort for her. The fact that he had gotten quieter and more withdrawn in the last few months worried her more then she dared to think about.

She wasn't quite sure how they had gotten to this point. She was quite sure when they had crossed the line of partners and colleagues to whatever it was that they had become. She couldn't pinpoint exactly when her feelings had changed but she did know when she had recognized it….it was that damn stupid letter. The one thing she would regret her whole life was writing that letter.

When she saw the look on his face, when she knew that he would know that she had betrayed him it had cut here deeper then anything else ever had.

She had prepared herself for the rage, for the anger, for the hurt feelings, she had even prepared herself for him telling her that he couldn't trust her enough to continue their partnership. What she had prepared herself for was his forgiveness. She knew Bobby well enough to know that his greatest weapon was his words. When he had forgiven her without so much as a 'how could you?', she felt her heart shift. It was small, almost imperceptible but she had felt it. She knew now that was the day that the 6'4, 250 pound man with a sharp mind and a sharper tongue that sat beside her had stolen her heart.

She had managed to keep her feelings in check though until the day he had let those elevator doors close on her.

She had been so pissed off! She couldn't believe he was shutting her out like that. She had thought they had gotten to the point where they could be honest with each other, and he gone and done that to her.

What hurt the most was that he been so good to her after the Jo Gage incident and he wouldn't let her reciprocate.

She knew he was in pain and he was refusing to let anyone help him. After he had taken a few days off and came back to work she could tell he was keeping her at arms length. So when they had spoken in the bar and he had asked her if they were okay and she told him that she hoped they were, she believed that maybe that would shift things back into place.

Unfortunately, it turned out to be like putting a band aid on a wound that needed stitches.

The funny thing is that her anger had disappeared almost immediately and she was left feeling even more hurt then she had been before. She had hidden it better yet it still hurt the fact that he would not open up to her.

She understood that it was his way of trying to protect her. It was his instinct, of course. He had grown up trying to protect everyone around him from the truth about his family.

She had tried to help by taking the lead in some of there cases because she knew his head wasn't in the game. However that just seemed to antagonize him more.

When they had come upon his brother Mike last week she had been thoroughly shocked. She knew her instinctual reaction had not helped matters at all. It had been clear that he was embarrassed being off guard like that. She wondered if most of life he had been dealing with being caught off guard? That would explain his personality much better. He had to be quicker and smarter to deal with a situation then many others did.

He wouldn't tell her what he and his brother had talked about when he had returned coatless to the car and she hadn't pushed because she felt if and when he was ready to talk to her he would.

After what had happened not more then an hour ago, Bobby having to identify whether or not the body in the ME's office was his brother, Alex felt the only option left was to push him. She had seen in that office just how close he was to a break down She couldn't even imagine if the roles had been reversed and it had been her identifying one of her brother's or sister's bodies. She only knew that Bobby was well past the breaking point and if he didn't deal with his emotions and let them out soon…well, she was terrified of what the outcome might just be.

She had to choke back tears and will herself not to go wrap her arms around him back there. It had broke her heart to the pain etched across his face.

She couldn't keep denying what her was feeling. What it had been feeling for quite awhile. She had chose to ignore her feelings rather then dwell on something she couldn't have. She realized that she was at the breaking point as well. When she looked at him, he wasn't just 'Bobby' anymore. He wasn't just the guy that she worked with, the guy who could think rings around anybody in the room, the guy who taught her something new all the time.

She had noticed him noticing her for years, yet he would always draw back just as quickly. He took great pains not to touch her in any meaningful way. That had sent his signal across clearly. The two of them as more then partners was not an option.

At first she had agreed. They seemed to have an unspoken line in the sand that neither was willing or wanted to cross. That wasn't to say she hadn't always known he was attractive. She actually always found it humorous the way he could charm women into revealing things or just plain making fools of themselves over him. Women were drawn to him. They seemed to sense the little boy lost inside the big man. She saw the man that still had a little boy inside, she thought with a smile.

He shifted again and she could see in her peripheral vision he was staring at her. Alex could feel her pulse start to race. She would never understand exactly how he managed to have that effect on her. After a few moments she finally turned to look at him. She saw him grow uncomfortable and turn back towards the window again.

This was her opening. If she didn't take it now neither of them ever would, she thought. They absolutely could not go on like this anymore. Hell, they couldn't work together like this anymore! Things were falling apart faster and faster and a stop had to be put to it one way or another.

Alex wondered what her mother would think. How would she feel about Alex seemingly putting everything on the line for this man? Her mother had always taught her to be a strong self sufficient woman. Yet here she was at the mercy of this man that sat beside her. Her head told her she would be fine know matter what the outcome. Her heart said something very different.

She had to do this though! After 6 years she could finally admit to herself that she loved the man sitting quietly beside her. Now if she could just convince Bobby of that.