Chapter 3
"Just Getting In"

Wide-eyed, Bobby stared at the number. Finally closing his eyes, he sighed. His only relief came from the fact that she had not even asked about it. She was not worried about it. She seemed to trust him, for now at least. Relieved, he hoped he could just put it away and have her forget about it. Putting it in his wallet, he moved to get into the shower.

Alex had Morgan dressed and at the table when he finally ambled back in. She barely looked up at him as she told Morgan to eat up so they would not be late.

Giving Morgan a smile, Bobby greeted, "Morning, Morgan." The shower helped to wake him, but he was certain it would not last without some coffee. He glanced at Alex as he poured his coffee. From the look on her face, he knew that Layla's phone number was bothering her. How was he going to explain this? After a few moments he finally said, "She's a...specialist...on schizophrenia. Dr. Shimo recommended her. It's about a potential new drug regiment."

She let out a breath. "What are you talking about, Bobby?" Without looking at him, she wiped Morgan's face and bent to tie her shoe. "You go grab your coat and then we go to Grandma's." She said as she leaned in to kiss Morgan's nose.

Morgan's eyes lit up. "I'm going to Grandma's," she squealed as she raced passed Bobby.

Damn it. I should have left it alone. He tried to explain, "The number, Alex."

"Okay," she mumbled, grabbing her purse off the counter. "We riding together today?"

With a nod, he was grateful to let it go. He quickly answered, "Of course." Hearing Morgan running back down the hall, he grabbed his portfolio and commented, "She's eager to go today."

"Grandpa's showing me his badge again today." She said lifting her arms up for Bobby to carry her.

Picking her up, he smiled. He happily replied, "He is? Well, we wouldn't want you to miss that."

LOCI

Alex was washing her hands in the sink in the ladies room when she spotted Carolyn walking through the door. She made her best effort at a smile and started to head out.

Carolyn was concerned. Alex appeared distracted all morning. Something was bothering her, and Carolyn was determined to find out what. "Alex, wait a second." When her friend stopped, Carolyn asked, "Is something going on? You've been distracted all morning."

She shook her head. "I've not been feeling to well. I guess I'm just scatterbrained."

With a sigh, Carolyn dried her hands. She noticed Alex was preoccupied with Bobby all day. She was not going to let Alex get away with brushing it off. "Come on. I know something is bothering you. You keep looking up at Bobby like you're afraid something is going to break. What's going on?"

Alex looked around the bathroom and under the stall doors before she finally replied, "I think he's cheating on me," Alex whispered.

Carolyn gasped in disbelief. She could not imagine Bobby cheating on Alex. Mike, yes, but not Bobby. Oh God, Carolyn stop thinking about Mike. Focus. "What in the world would make you think that he's cheating on you."

"He's been spending too much time online, closing out windows the minute I'm anywhere near." Alex stopped short of telling her friend about the phone number she found.

Carolyn smiled sympathetically. "But that doesn't mean that he's cheating. Now if we were talking about Mike, I'd say he's a dog let's put him down, but Bobby never struck me as the type. Since I've known you two, he's been head over heels."

Alex sighed. "You're probably right." She leaned her head against the tiled wall. "I just...I'm not with it lately."

Carolyn smiled softly. She replied, "Well, if you're worried about what he's doing, of course your not with it. Though, when you get home, you could always check what sites he's been to, using the history button. I'm sure he's not, and it might put your mind at ease."

"Wouldn't that mean that I don't trust him?" Alex asked, cocking her head to the side and observed Carolyn closely.

Carolyn arched her eyebrows. With a shrug, she offered, "You might as well, because you already suspect something."

Alex sighed. "Thanks. You are a big help." She pulled the bathroom door open and returned to the bullpen.

LOCI

Alex leaned against the door frame as she knocked on Meg's door once again. It was lunch time, and she had basically left work without telling Bobby and turned off her cell phone. She called that number she found on that piece of paper and had not been able to concentrate on anything since. Bobby had been oblivious. By the time her sister answered the door, tears were streaming down her face.

"Alex?" Meg had not expected to see her today and finding her in tears scared her. Immediately pulling Alex into a hug, Meg spoke softly, "Alex, Honey, what's wrong? What happened?"

Alex clung to her as she tried to form the words, "I think...I think Bobby's..." The words got stuck in her throat. "I think he's cheating on me."

Shocked, Meg pulled her away. She could not believe that. Meeting Alex's eyes, she whispered, "Bobby?" Shaking her head, she pulled her sister inside. Closing the door, she led Alex to the couch. "That doesn't sound like Bobby at all, Alex. What could possibly make you think that?"

She reached for Meg's phone and punched in the number she had committed to memory. Handing it to her, she said, "Just listen."

After a moment Meg was wide-eyed as she hung up. Looking at Alex, again, she asked, "Where did you get this number?"

"It fell out of his pocket." She put her face in her hands and cried harder. "Damn it, Meg!" She said after a few minutes. "I gave him everything...what is he doing?" She stood and began to pace the room.

Meg could not believe it, Bobby was not the type who would cheat. "Well, have you asked him about it? He might have a good excuse for having this name and number," she said, trying to calm Alex.

"Last time I accused him of cheating...I nearly lost him." She said looking at her. "He's been staying up all night on the computer as well. What do I do Meg?" She sat back down beside her. "He said that number was a doctor for his mother..."

With a sigh, Meg looked away from Alex. It did not sound good at all, but she was struck by something Alex said. "You've accused him before?"

"Back before we got married...It was a misunderstanding..." She looked at Meg then. "Oh god...What if it wasn't?"

Shaking her head, Meg was still desperately trying to be able to stick up for her brother-in-law. "They both might be. Don't go there. You said he's spending a lot of time online lately?"

Alex glared at her sister. "I'm your sister and you want to take up for him. I knew coming here wasn't a good idea. I'll deal with this on my own." She stood and headed for the door.

Grabbing Alex's arm, Meg stopped her. "Alex, don't. Please. I'm trying to help here. I just want to get to the bottom of this." Letting go of her arm, she suggested, "I happen to be very good with computers. How about we do some snooping?"

"What kind of snooping?" Alex asked leaning back against the door.

She suggested, "His e-mail account, your bank account, places like that. See if there's something going on. See if there's anything that might require my hacking skills." She tried to smile.

"Would working on our machine be quicker?" She asked, wiping the remaining tears off her cheeks.

With a nod, Meg agreed, "Much."

The trip to their house was long and silent. Bobby would no doubt be furious when he found out that she had turned off her cell. She gripped the steering wheel as they pulled in the driveway. "Please let me be wrong," she whispered before getting out and slamming the door behind her.

Meg silently followed Alex into the house. She did not dare say anything. She was so hoping they were wrong. Turning the computer on, Meg easily slid into the seat. They waited for it to boot, and Alex paced. With a sigh, she asked, "What e-mail server does he use?"

". Just open Outlook..." She said dragging up her own chair.

With a nod, Meg pulled up the server. As they opened Bobby's account, Meg arched her eyebrows. The subject lines were full of 'Hey, Baby' and "Hey, Sexy'. Meg was finding it harder and harder to defend Bobby, to think of reasons for the strange behavior. She finally asked, "Do you want me to open one of them?"

Alex gripped the edge of the chair as she silently nodded. Closing her eyes, she willed them to just be junk mail.

With a sigh, Meg opened the first one. She bit her bottom lip as she read it. Hi there. You've got my attention. I'd love to hear from you. Love, Cindy. Realizing it was a reply to a dating site, Meg had finally had it. There was no way Bobby had reasonable explanations for any of this. At the bottom she noticed a link to take you back to the profile. Looking at Alex, Meg was stunned. She asked, "Do you want to see it?"

Alex whispered, "Move over." She did not like the idea of her sister being in the middle of what was possibly going to end her marriage. Bobby knew from the beginning what marriage meant to her, and her would not put up with this. When Meg moved and she slid into the seat, anger is what caused her finally to push the link. Opening it up, she went from mad to heart broken.

It was all there. Everything about Bobby. Some things he had not told her from the beginning that had taken years for her to get out of him. She shoved away from the computer. "Meg...I'm going to kill him..." Her teeth were clenched.

Meg closed her eyes and sighed. She read over Alex's shoulder. With this proof, she realized Alex was right. Reaching out to her sister, she quietly replied, "God, Alex. I'm so sorry, Sweetheart. I don't understand why he would do this."

"Because what he's been so scared of becoming has finally caught up with him." She reached for her jacket and keys. "I'm not waiting anymore. I have to know." She got dizzy and had to grab the door frame leading to the kitchen. Through clenched teeth, she said, "I have to know what I did to make him fuck it all up. To lose not just me but his daughter as well."

Grabbing Alex's arm, Meg was concerned. Seeing her dizzy like that, worried her. She suggested, "Alex, you have to calm down first. He can wait a few minutes. Are you sure you're feeling OK?"

Alex waved it off. "I've had that bug that Morgan had...it's nothing."

Dubiously, Meg replied, "Alright, but if you're still not over it tomorrow, you need to see a doctor."

"I will," She relented. "Meg, I've never done this. I don't think I can do this on my own. Raise Morgan..." The tears began to flow again. Laying her head in Meg's lap, she sobbed.

Rubbing Alex's back, Meg shut her eyes and tried to assure her, "You won't be alone, Alex. You have Mom and Dad, our brothers, and you definitely have me. We'll do what we can and help you figure this out."

"I can't do this at work. As much as I want to know, I can't do that to him..." She hated that she still cared about his feelings when he obviously cared nothing for her's.

Continuing to rub Alex's back, Meg tried to sooth her, "It's OK. Just...call him. Tell him you're not coming back today, that you're feeling bad, and that I'm taking Morgan, so he doesn't have to worry about picking her up. Then you can talk to him when he gets here."

LOCI

She'd waited most of the night pacing the living room waiting for him. When it kept getting darker and darker and still no Bobby, she let her imagination run wild. Thinking about him in some other woman's arms had her head in the toilet retching until she had nothing left to give. Finally about midnight, she leaned over on the couch and fell asleep.

Bobby closed his eyes as he slipped into the house. It was after three. He could not believe he was out this late. He had a good mind to just give it up and forget all of it. He did not want this. Sneaking into the den, he stopped. He closed his eyes again. She was lying on the couch, asleep. Damn it! She had waited up for him. He should have called. He should have told her the truth. She will know something was going on now. Slipping into his room, he got ready for bed and laid down for a few hours.

Getting up early, he went ahead and changed for work. On his way to turn the coffee on and wake her up, he stopped. The computer had been left on. Moving the mouse, his heart sank and stomach dropped. She had found it. No wonder she had stayed up. He prepared himself to explain his behavior as he gently woke her. He should have known better than to keep things from her. Now she probably suspected the worst.

It took a moment but once she realized where she was and what was happening, Alex glared at him. "Just getting in?" she asked.

Bobby closed his eyes. He knew he deserved it. "No. I...didn't want to wake you." After a moment, he pointed to the computer and tried to start explaining, "Alex, this isn't what you think."

She pushed him away from her and stood. "Not what I think? Don't even try to pull that one on me, Bobby. I've called the number. I read the e-mail!" She felt tears starting to pool in her eyes and angrily brushed them away. She would not let him see her cry. Not this time. Not when he was the cause of it. "Just...don't fucking come near me." She said when he had reached for her. "Sweet words and pulling the wool over my eyes won't work this time, Bobby. I'm done." She grabbed her coat and keys and slammed the door behind her. She was backing down the driveway before he even made it outside.