For all the great replies, here's an extra chapter.

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"Lex, I'm going to get some lunch," Lanie decided to give Alexis some space. It was clear that she needed some alone time as she'd been quiet since they'd returned from their crime scene. "Did you want anything?"

"No, I'm good. Thanks, Lanie," Alexis gave an attempt at a smile. "Tell Javi I said 'hi'."

"I will," Lanie gathered her belongings and left, nearly bumping into Kevin on her way out. "Hey, Kev, you might want to come back later. Alexis isn't having the best of days."

"Beckett's on my back about an autopsy report," Kevin told her.

"Well, don't say I didn't warn you," Lanie replied, "Javi and I are getting some lunch. Did you want me to bring you back anything?"

"No, thanks. I'm good," Kevin backed into Autopsy to see Alexis staring down at the body before her.

Alexis didn't seem to notice Kevin when he came into the room and stood beside her.

"Alexis?" Kevin said quietly.

"Kevin," Alexis jumped a mile in fright, "How long have you been here?"

"Just got here," Kevin smiled. "You okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," she reached for the file that she was assuming he'd come for, "Here's the file Kate wanted."

"Thanks," Kevin took the file and took a second look at the guy on the table. "Did he do himself in?"

"That's quite insensitive, Detective," Alexis snapped at him.

"Excuse me? It's a valid question. He was hanging from a ceiling fan."

"I know. I saw him," Alexis said.

"Lex, is something wrong?" he say something resembling pain in her eyes, "It's not like either of us have never seen a DB before."

"I'm fine," she said.

"Lex, if you want to talk," he began.

"I don't," Alexis cut him off. "Don't you have something to do?"

"Yeah, I need to know if this guy offed himself, or if I have work to do," Kevin replied.

"Show some respect," she hissed, "A man died today. Whether it was by his own hand or not, he deserves respect."

"He was a drug addicted gang banger," Kevin said. "He probably shot at cops."

"You don't know that. You don't know anything about him."

"It's my job to know how someone died, and if it was at the hands of someone else to hold the person responsible. How about you do your job and tell me how he died?"

"Were you always this much of a jackass or is a recent development?"

"You're obviously going through something, so we'll talk later," Kevin motioned to leave.

"That's it," Alexis snorted, "Just walk away. It's what you always do."

"I'm not the one who left, Alexis," Kevin turned around to face her. "That was you."

"All the times you told me you loved me," Alexis shook her head. "It didn't stop you from nailing Jenny."

"You don't know one damn thing about my relationship with Jenny," Kevin growled.

"Only what you told me," Alexis said. "Things couldn't have been too bad if you not only stayed, you slept with her. Lanie told me about your recent pregnancy scare."

"Yeah, I got low-"

"You don't know what low is."

"I don't know what low is?" he challenged her, "The love of my life just up and left on a whim. The only companion I had was someone that I had to get fall down drunk in order to even have a thought to relieve some tension. I know what low is."

"No, you really don't. I'll let you know when I have a verdict on what happened," she turned her back on him.

Kevin stormed out of Autopsy.

Alexis's eyes spilled over as she sank to her knees.

"Where's Lanie?" Esposito walked into Autopsy.

"And hello to you, too," Alexis rolled her eyes.

"Sorry," he responded quickly, "I'm in kind of a mood. Is Lanie around?"

"OCCB got a couple of dead drug mules. She's handling that."

"Figures," Javi rolled his eyes, "Need to talk, and she's not here to listen."

"Why don't you talk to Kevin?" Alexis offered, "He's your partner. Isn't that part of the gig?"

"Not when he's the problem," Javier rolled his eyes, "Of all days for your dad to be on a camp out with Ian."

"Maybe I can help," Alexis replied.

"Can you tell me how to kill someone and not leave any evidence?"

Alexis looked at him, "It can't be that bad."

"He's in such a foul mood," Javi groaned, "I don't know what happened. He was fine when I went to lunch. I come back, and he bit my head off because I was two minutes late. It's like he's been possessed by an evil spirit or something."

"Maybe he's retaining sperm," Alexis said.

"What?" Javi cringed, "Ew, that's just…ew."

"What? Like when Lanie or Kate or even Gates are in a pissy mood, you don't think PMS automatically," Alexis said as lightly as she could while her mind started to race.

"It's gotta be something with him and Jenny," Javi responded, "She's been calling him every day at the office. She has a curious knack for calling at all the wrong times…Wait, should I even be talking to you about this?"

"It's fine Javi," Alexis turned around. "It gives me something to think about besides the fact that the man who killed my husband is still walking around free."

"You know him pretty well. What should I do? Let him stew? Punch his lights out?"

"I don't know him that well anymore," Alexis commented. "Did you ask him what his problem was?"

"What am I, a chick?"

Alexis rolled her eyes, "How have Lanie and Kate not kicked you in the family jewels after all these years?"

"Don't think they haven't tried," Espo snorted.

"Just let him stew," Alexis stated finally, "He'll work himself out of his funk or whatever got him into the funk will work itself out."

"I'm trying. I came down here because I was about to knock his lights out," Javier explained. "Maybe you should talk to him."

"I don't think that's a hot idea."

Suddenly the pieces fell into place for the clueless detective. It wasn't Jenny that had put his partner in a foul mood. It had been Alexis.

"I guess I should get back upstairs," Espo stated.

"Anything you want me to tell Lanie?"

"Yeah, tell her I need a drink later."

"I will," Alexis nodded as Javier left.

Alone in Autopsy, Alexis realized just how hard she'd been on Kevin early. She'd taken out her anger on him without him knowing the entire story. She had to apologize.

Kevin sighed when he left the precinct after a long day. Javier was at his side.

"You wanna get a drink or something before we head home?" he asked his friend. Kevin needed to blow off some steam.

"I would, but I think you've got plans," Javier pointed behind Kevin.

"What?" Kevin turned around and saw Alexis standing near the edge of the stairs. She waved uncertainly.

"Come for round two?"

"No. Hi, Espo," Alexis acknowledged the other man.

"Doc," he smiled. "I'll see you guys tomorrow."

Alexis waited until they were alone again, "I wanted to talk if you were willing to listen."

"Depends if you're going to rip my head off again," Kevin responded, "If that's the case, I'll pass."

"Just a calm talk where I explain what was going on today."

"Wanna get some coffee or something stronger?"

"Coffee. I still have to go home and deal with three kids," Alexis smiled as she pointed across the street. "It's on me."

Kevin nodded and followed her to the coffee shop that all the cops in the precinct frequented.

They sat at an outside table, taking advantage of the warm weather.

"I can handle most suicides," Alexis began after they'd received their coffee, "Head in the oven, overdose, slit wrists, even a gun to the head. Hangings get to me."

"Why?"

Alexis took out her wallet and removed a picture. She slid it over to him.

"Is this Christopher?" he glanced at the photo of the two men, "He didn't..."

"Chris is on the left. His brother, Cade, is on the right," Alexis frowned, "He was the best man at our wedding. He was bipolar."

"I don't know what low is," Kevin repeated her earlier words to him.

"I had no right to say that to you."

"Wait. Did you say 'was'?"

"Chris and I had been married about a year. It was a part of my studies to work with a local M.E.'s office. We got called out to a hotel. When we arrived, I saw Cade hanging from the shower rod," Alexis said quietly.

"I'm sorry, Lex. That must have been tough."

"The toughest part was telling Christopher," Alexis tried to shake the image of her husband's anguished response to her news out of her mind, "Even knowing that he never saw pictures from the scene, he still saw it when he closed his eyes at night."

"I'm sorry, Lex," he reached for her hand and gave it a squeeze.

"This morning I got called out to a no-tell motel for a suicide. It just frayed my nerves. Then I was talking to Lanie. We were just talking about random things, and she mentioned that she'd thought Jenny had been pregnant a few years ago. For some reason I hated the idea of you and her having another child even though I had no right to feel that way. Then you came in a bit later."

"I never did have the greatest of timing."

Alexis smiled, "I just wanted to tell you that I am sorry for what I said. I have zero right to judge you."

"I meant what I said earlier. I was only with Jenny when I was extremely wasted."

"It's none of my business," Alexis shook her head.

"But it is," Kevin swallowed hard.

"Kevin, I have no claim on you. I walked away."

"You still have a claim on my heart," he decided to take a risk.

"I can't, Kevin," Alexis pulled her hand away, "My husband just died. I can't even think about getting involved yet, and our past issues aren't resolved. You're still married."

"Technically that may be true, but not for much longer," Kevin nodded. "I don't want to push, but I missed you, Lex."

"I missed you too," she replied, "But I found a way to move on. I had hoped that you would too, whether it was back with Jenny or with someone else."

"I wanted to," Kevin admitted. "I tried, but it always felt like a mistake."

"I'm sorry. That's not what I wanted for you."

"You don't owe me any apologies, Lex," Kevin smiled. "Have dinner with me."

"Kevin," Alexis shook her head.

"Just as friends," he said. "We were friends first."

"Maybe in a few weeks," she replied, "The kids are still getting comfortable in their routine. I don't want to mess with that just yet."

"Can I drive you home?"

"Maybe another night," she replied.

"What's wrong, Lex?" he frowned, "It's just a ride home."

"I just want to walk," Alexis said. "I could use the fresh air, and it's a nice night."

"Then I'll walk with you," he offered, "This is New York, after all."

"I'm good, Kev," she assured him, "I have my pepper spray handy, and Kate always made sure that I was up on the self defensive classes."

"I don't want to say goodnight just yet," Kevin admitted.

"Alright," Alexis agreed. "Let's go."

Kevin fished out his wallet to leave a tip for the waitress.

"Hey, put that away," she commanded him, "I said I was buying."

"You did," Kevin put a couple singles down. "But I can leave the tip."

"It was coffee, Kevin, not a five course meal. I can swing the tip," she snapped up the bills and forced them back into his hand.

"Let me be the gentleman," he smiled.

"You always are," Alexis smiled. "Fine."

Kevin set down the bills a second time before following her down the sidewalk.

They walked in silence for a few blocks before Alexis spoke, "I actually missed this place."

"Crescent City didn't cut it?"

"Mardi Gras was fun," Alexis admitted.

"I bet it was."

"You ever been?"

"No," Kevin shook his head.

"I told Chris I was pregnant with Maggie at Mardi Gras," Alexis admitted.

"I bet that made him the happiest man at Mardi Gras." Kevin recalled his own experience with learning he would be a father.

"He picked me up, twirled me around and around. He said he hoped it would be a girl," she said softly.

"I remember the feeling of finding out I was going to be a father for the first time. It was one of the happiest times of my life."

"I remember the night Dad came home and told me that Sarah Grace had been born. I'd just finished watching the news footage of the fire you and Espo were stuck in that night. I was glad you two were alive."

"I was thankful for a bit more," he replied.

"Yeah. Lanie told me the whole story," Alexis smiled. "You really wanted to name the baby Javier if it'd been a boy?"

"You sound just like him," Kevin laughed. "Busting on me for being sentimental?"

"Not at all. Hunter's middle name is King," Alexis said. "But if I'd had him in a hospital, it was going to be Javier."

"That's twice that Javi has lost out," Kevin snorted, "Poor guy can't catch a break."

"You haven't asked me yet," Alexis smiled.

"Asked you what?"

"Well, Cade is named for Chris's brother and my dad. Maggie is named for the first song Chris and I ever danced to. You haven't asked why I used the name Hunter."

"Why Hunter?" he dutifully asked.

"Can you keep a secret?"

"You know I can."

"You remember when I was kidnapped?"

"Yeah," Kevin nodded, remembering the horrible ordeal.

"Well, I was taken because of my grandfather, my dad's father."

"I thought you guys didn't know who he was," Kevin said.

"We didn't at the time, but people knew who we were. I was taken because my grandfather killed someone's wife."

"How does this relate to Hunter's name?"

"The name he gave my dad was Jackson Hunt. I have no idea if it's his real name or not, but it's the name we had. I wasn't particularly fond of the name Jackson, so I used Hunt."

"You named our son after a man that killed someone's wife?"

"No, I named him after my grandfather," Alexis shot him a look.

"Oh," Kevin replied.

"Well, here we are," Alexis stopped in front of a building.

"Enjoy what's left of your night," Kevin rocked back on his heels.

"You too," Alexis smiled. "Thanks for listening. You could have just as easily blown me off."

"I could never blow you off," he replied.

"Are you hungry?" she asked suddenly.

"Offering me dinner?" he asked.

"Yes," Alexis nodded. "I made a meatloaf this morning and left instructions for Jim to put it in the oven about an hour ago. It should be ready. Feel like eating with us?"

"Tempting, but I should be getting home. Sarah Grace will likely be needing help with her homework."

"Another time," Alexis smiled. "Goodnight."

"Good night."

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