Chapter 21

They'd made it as far as a hotel room. Bobby had suffered a few stop and starts along the way. He had to keep turning off his brain in order to carry through with the plan. The physical part of it was pleasant; Nicole was very experienced. In spite of the time spent necking, he was still wearing his pants.

He got on the bed with her, exploring her face and neck with his lips. At once, he rolled off of her and groaned. "This is never going to work. We can never have a… chance together, Nicole. Not like this."

"Leave that to me, Bobby," she said, and took the position on top, now exploring him.

"But Nicole, the kidnapping, Anna Drake… you have to turn yourself in, take care of that first."

She sat back. "And then they'll hold me for one of the others. I can't turn myself in, Bobby. They'll never let me go. You wouldn't have."

"I've been through the evidence in all the others. There's nothing there to charge you with. For the kidnapping, you have to turn yourself in. For Anna Drake." He sat up and ran his hand through her hair. "It's the only way, Nicole. For us to have a chance, we have to be free and clear. If I just run away with you… Alex will be relentless. If I can talk to her about it, give her closure, she'll have to let me go."

Nicole's mind was spinning. For a moment, she wondered if this was a trap. She looked down at him,ran her hand over his hairy chest. He was so vulnerable to her now. Bobby would never allow himself to be so vulnerable. Not when he was trying to trick her. He had always maintained a physical distance from her.

"Aren't you worried, Bobby?" she asked. "That I will just watch you fall asleep… forever?"

"Nicole," he said softly, taking her and kissing her again. He let his hand slide up her torso under her shirt. "We've waited so long. You've waited so long. You deserve so much more than one night." Another wave of disgust crashed over him, but before his body could turn off, Bobby concentrated on the weight of her breast in his hand. Lost in the sense of touch, he could maintain his façade.

"It's not your fault, Nicole," he whispered as he nipped and sucked at her neck. "You didn't ask for the life you were given. You did the best you could with what you had."

He pulled her shirt over her head and explored her bosom with his face and his hands. Nicole arched back, overwhelmed by the sensations and the knowledge of who was giving her these sensations.

"There isn't any evidence as far as Drake is concerned. You could say you were friends and you borrowed her car. So it's only the kidnapping you have to worry about." He kissed her on the mouth again.

Nicole didn't answer him. She continued to assault his senses with her sexual advances. Bobby tried one more time, but she still wouldn't commit to turning herself in.

Finally, as she ran her hand up along the zipper of his pants, he put his hand over hers and stopped her. Bobby rolled off the bed and stepped back, breaking the contact with her. He grabbed his black shirt off the chair. "I can't do this," he said. He picked up his shoes off the floor and inched backwards towards the door, never taking his eyes off her. "I can't, Nicole. You turn yourself in, and… then I can… talk to you about it."

Bobby pulled the door open and stepped out. He didn't turn his back until the door was secure behind him. He heard the crash of the lamp hitting the door behind him and her screaming obscenities at him. Quickly, he stepped into the elevator and got himself dressed as he rode it down.

He debriefed with Lichter before he headed home. Bobby took the long way home, taking two detours on the subway before finally heading in the right direction. Once he arrived, he spent twenty minutes scrubbing himself in the shower, and he still didn't feel clean.

Then, he made himself a bed on the couch and tried to get some sleep.

Alex was the first to wake in the morning. She saw Bobby sprawled uncomfortably on the couch, and she was relieved that he made it home. She hoped he was all right.

Quietly, she set up the coffee and started some cinnamon rolls in the oven. Both Katie and Bobby loved cinnamon rolls, and they were the remedy for almost any family crisis.

Katie was upset to see her father had slept on the couch, and a look from Alex stopped her from waking him with a hug. Alex waved her into the kitchen and whispered, "Let him sleep. He's had a very hard night."

"Did he tell you?"

"Not yet."

"It didn't work. He would have called in the night if it worked."

"Sometimes you have to wait for results."

"Cinnamon rolls?" Bobby asked, rubbing the sleep from his eyes.

"I thought we could use some," Alex announced. She didn't try to approach him. She made eye contact until he looked away.

"Andy's prom is tonight," Bobby said quietly to Katie.

"Yeah. Lisa will be here at noon, and we're going to get ready together."

"Andy!" Mike called from the kitchen. "Get down here and clean up this mess!"

He listened to his son's footsteps down the stairs, followed by those of Darren. "Sorry, Dad," Andy said and he and his friend picked up their dirty dishes, loaded the dishwasher, and wiped off the table.

"Morning, Mom," Andy said when Carolyn walked in, half asleep and headed for the coffee pot.

"Let me," Mike said, grabbing a cup out of the cabinet. "You'll probably miss and burn yourself," he added. He poured her a cup of coffee and handed it to her with a kiss on the cheek. "What time did you come in?"

"Four," she said. "We did it, though. Got everything back to the proper precincts. Everybody's happy today, the Chief of D's, the DA, everybody."

Mike smiled at her. "That's my girl," he said, and gave her a kiss on the lips.

"Darren, do you live here now?" She teased.

"Tonight's prom!" Darren said. "I was driving my mom crazy, pacing all over the house, so she told me to go find Andy."

"So now they can drive us crazy," Mike said, and earned a smile from his wife.

"Oh, I don't mean to bother you," Darren said.

"No, Darren, we're just teasing. You're always welcome here, son," Carolyn explained, putting a reassuring hand on his shoulder.

"We're gonna go shoot some hoops, Dad, you wanna come?"

Mike and Carolyn exchanged a knowing glance. Mike poured the rest of his coffee in the sink. "Sure, let me get my shoes on."