A/N: Hey all! Thanks heaps for the reviews! No, it was definitely not the last chapter!

Spoilers: In The Wee Small Hours (haven't seen it yet though… stupid arse channel ten… EVILS!) But I have seen the courtroom scene… I'll try my best… Have to manipulate it for this story…

Dedications: Han – ooooooooh theres lots!; Linzi – partners in crime forever baby girl!; Alex – I'm so evil it's not funny… I dare you…; Michael, Lucy and Dylan (or anyone that was on that Sose excursion) – Do you have your exit buddy!; Lorraine – Hey sexy! LMAO! That was so funny! Sorry Chelc!; Amy – slap me you whore I'll slap you back! Lol love ya my owner! LOL!; Kirby and Hannah – Morzan for life!

Chapter 21: Shattered Marriage

Pregnancy: 5 Months

Alex smiled as she watched her son attempting to catch the ball that his father threw to him, falling over, then standing up, laughing. Bobby smiled, and looked over at his pregnant wife, who waved at him, smiling softly.

'Those two are so cute together…' Carolyn observed, smiling gently as Kelly gurgled quietly in her arms. Alex smiled again, and rubbed her growing belly gently.

'Yeah… my two amazing boys…' She said, holding her arms out to her son who was racing towards her.

'Mommy!' He squealed, and she hugged him tightly, kissing the top of his head.

'Hey buddy… Have fun with Daddy?' She said, and he nodded wildly, grinning.

'Mommy… when the baby gettin' here?' He asked, pressing his face to her belly. She laughed, and ran her fingers through his hair.

'Not for a while, angel…'

'How do you do it, Alex?' Carolyn asked, gently rocking Kelly back to sleep. Alex looked over at her and smiled.

'I wish I had an answer for that, Carey… But I don't… I guess everyone's different…' She replied, smiling as she felt the baby kicking gently.

'I… some days I just want to curl up and die, you know?'

'I know… but it's all worth it, I promise you that…' Alex sighed, and picked up the case notes. 'This judge is playing dirty…' She muttered, and Carolyn sighed, biting her lip.

'Yeah… he brought up the whole punching incident with Mikey… Lucky he couldn't find much on me…' She whispered, tears stinging her eyes. Alex sighed, and picked up the file.

'There has to be something… anything… that we can use against him…' Alex mumbled, scanning each sheet of evidence carefully.

4 Days Later

'Detective Eames, you testified that you were present during the interrogation of Ethan.'

'Yes, that's true.' Alex said, sitting in the witness stand, feeling like absolute crap, but still doing her best to put the manipulative bastard behind bars.

'Is it true that your partner, Detective Goren, told Ethan that 'your father never loved you. He is incapable of loving you.'?'

'Yes, that happened…' Alex spat, looking over at Bobby who was sitting next to Carolyn. Carolyn shot Alex a small reassuring smile, and Alex couldn't help but let a small smile creep out.

'Isn't it also true that Detective Goren's own father abandoned his family when he was just a child?' Alex's breath caught in her throat. She felt so much anger, so much hatred, but she kept it bottled up.

'Objection. Relevance?' Carver shouted, standing up, eyes burning in anger.

'Overruled… Please answer the question, Detective.'

'Yes… But that has nothing to do with Detective Goren's judgement.'

'So you're saying that you trust Detective Goren?'

'Yes, I trust him…' Alex said, looking over at Bobby again, and then wincing as the baby kicked her spine.

'Then would you care to explain this?' The defense walked over to her, holding a piece of paper. She felt like screaming.

'I…'

'Do you recognize this?' She nodded softly. 'Care explaining to the rest of us?'

'It's a… letter… I wrote 5 years ago to my superiors… Asking for a transfer…' She whispered, tears stinging at her eyes. She looked over at Bobby, who had leant forward, not believing what was happening.

'Could you please read the highlighted passage?' Alex was trying so hard not to cry, her vision blurred by the tears.

'D… Detective Goren's interrogation techniques are irrational… And I question his mental stability… I wanna explain!' She said, tears rolling freely down her cheeks.

'Nothing more…'

'Uh, Redirect, your honour?' Carver asked, standing up. The judge nodded, and he walked over to Alex.

'Please, explain, Detective Eames. Why did you withdraw your request?'

'I… I came to realize that Detective Goren's techniques came from a deep understanding of human nature… And I came to accept him as an effective police officer.'

'Has there ever been a moment when you regretted your choice to withdraw your request?'

'N… not at all…' She stammered.

'Thank you, Detective… Oh, one more thing… Internal Affairs cleared you both, is that true?'

'Y… yes…'

'Why did they have to investigate at all?' Alex smiled, and made a mental note to thank Carver. He just saved her marriage.

'I… Detective Goren and I started seeing each other… And… I fell pregnant…' She smiled softly, and looked up to where Bobby should have been. Empty. Carolyn was whispering something to Mike, who then got up and raced out of the courtroom. 'We… we got married, and had a beautiful son…'

'Is Detective Goren a good father?'

'The best… He would never hurt either of us… And he does not have a personal hatred to bad fathers.' She said, staring at the defense.

'Nothing more…. Thank you, Detective…'

'Bobby!' Alex called out, searching frantically for her husband. She saw Mike running towards her, and she stopped in the middle of the hall.

'He's gone, Alex…' He said, and tears rolled down her cheeks. She knew where he was… Ten minutes later, she had sped her way to the secluded lake, tears streaming down her face. She leapt out of the car, and raced towards their 'spot'.

'Bobby!' She screamed, scanning the area carefully. She raced over to the edge of the lake, where she saw him sitting, throwing rocks into the water. She walked quietly over to him, and sat down, picking up a rock and throwing it into the lake.

'Hey…' She whispered, but he ignored her completely. 'Bobby… please… I… I completely forgot about that letter…'

'But now neither of us will ever forget…' He mumbled, and she saw the pain in his eyes. She felt the tears roll down her cheeks, and she covered his hand with hers.

'Honey… I love you so much…'

'Loving someone doesn't change it, Alex… And you damn well know that… Just because you love me doesn't mean that I'm going to forgive you.' She pulled her hand away from his roughly, tears flowing more freely.

'Fuck you, Bobby… You… you didn't even hear all the amazing stuff I told the court about you… about how you are an absolutely amazing father… A great detective… A loving and caring husband who would never hurt me… But you wanna act like an ass?' She stood up, and took off her wedding ring, holding it in the palm of her hand. 'Fine! But you can act like an ass by yourself!' She threw the ring angrily at him, and stormed off, crying hysterically.

'Alex, wait!' He called out, but it was too late… She'd gotten in the car and sped off, leaving a broken-hearted Bobby Goren behind.

'Mom… I'm taking Aaron home… If Bobby comes here, tell him I never want to see him again…' Alex choked out, picking up her son, and storming out of her parents house.

'Whoa… back up, sweetie… Come inside…' Julie Eames said, gently guiding her hysteric daughter inside, and sitting her on the couch. Aaron raced off to play with his grandfather, while Julie tried to calm Alex down. 'Now… you willing to talk?' She whispered into her daughters blonde hair, holding her close.

'I… we… we've had this really tough case… And… the perp keeps digging up shit on all of us… And he found the letter I wrote… asking for a new partner…' Alex mumbled, tears rolling down her cheeks. 'He left the courtroom before I could explain properly… He… he never heard why I stayed… He never heard me tell everyone how much I loved him, what an amazing father he is…' She started to sob again, rubbing her belly gently.

'Oh, angel… It'll be okay… You guys are always okay…' Julie whispered, rocking Alex gently, trying to calm her down again.

'Alex!' There was a banging at the front door, and both Alex and Julie recognized the voice.

'FUCK OFF!' Alex screamed, bursting into tears again. Julie glared at her, and stood up, walking to the door. 'Don't you fucking dare, Mom… I don't want to ever see him again…'

'Number one… Language, Alexandra! Number two, I don't care… you two are going to sort this out… Even if I have to lock you in the basement.' Julie opened the door to reveal a frantic looking Bobby Goren.

'Mrs. Eames… I… I know you may hate me right now… I… I have to see her… Please…' He begged, and Julie smiled softly, and went outside, closing the door behind her, then pulling her son-in-law into a tight hug.

'I don't hate you, Bobby… I hate what you did…' Julie said, and Bobby sighed softly. 'Please be careful, okay? She… she's not very rational at the moment.'

'I… I can't live without her…' Bobby mumbled, tears welling up in his eyes. Julie let him go, and opened the door, letting him in. He looked at Alex, who was sitting on the couch, sobbing quietly. She looked up at him, and her eyes burned in hatred.

'I thought that throwing my wedding ring at you pretty much got my point across…' She spat, standing up and walking into the kitchen, watching Aaron through the window. Bobby followed her, running a hand through his hair.

'Alex… please baby… I…' He stammered, not knowing what to say. Alex was sobbing quietly, not knowing how to handle the situation.

'Bobby… you have to believe me… I… I completely forgot about that letter… I… That letter doesn't matter, because I stayed… I love you, okay? You are a fucking amazing father, and the most gentle and caring husband a woman could ask for…' Alex whispered, and turned to look at him. She burst into tears and fell into his arms, gripping onto him tightly. He wrapped his arms around her, kissing the top of her head.

'Love you too, angel… I'm sorry…' He mumbled, tears rolling down his cheeks. He pulled her ring out of his pocket, and smiled, holding her hand and slipping it back on her finger. She smiled, and kissed him deeply, wrapping her arms tightly around his neck, his arms snaking around her waist, holding her closer. They both heard the back door swing open, and looked down to see their son racing towards them.

'Mommy! Daddy!' He squealed, leaping into Bobby's arms, hugging both his parents tightly. Alex wrapped her arms around her son and husband, and Bobby put his free arm around her, kissing the top of her head.

'Let's go home, okay?' She mumbled, smiling as Aaron brushed her hair out of her eyes. Bobby nodded, and helped her walk to the front door.

'We're going now… Bye Mom, Dad…' Alex said, and her parents came out the front to see their daughter, son-in-law and grandson off.

'You okay?' Bobby asked his tiny wife, who was sitting in one of the deckchairs, watching the sunset with their now sleeping son. She looked up and smiled softly, playing with Aaron's curls.

'Yeah… I'll live… what about you?'

'I… You know I love you, but why didn't you tell me about it?' He sat down next to her, and she sighed, holding his hand tightly.

'I… Honestly I don't know… I thought you might hate me… Deakins promised he'd try his hardest to get rid of it… But… you know that I love you, and I am so glad I withdrew my request…' She whispered, and he smiled weakly, kissing her forehead.

'I'm glad you withdrew you request, too, angel…' She smiled weakly, and stood up, bringing Aaron with her. He stood up, and pulled her into his arms, kissing her forehead gently.

'I'm so sorry, Bobby… I am so fucking sorry…' She mumbled, tears rolling down her cheeks.

'Baby, please stop apologizing…' He whispered, and she sighed.

'I… I'll try…' She mumbled, and they walked inside, putting Aaron into his bed, then walking into their bedroom. The second Bobby shut the door, Alex gripped onto him, kissing him roughly.

'Whoa… Alex, calm down…' He held her back gently, and she smiled weakly.

'Sorry… I… I need this tonight… Screw the whole pregnancy thing…' She whispered, and he smiled gently.

'You… you sure you want this? I… I don't wanna hurt either of you…' He said, but she had already made up her mind.

'Michael Logan!' Carolyn screamed in anger, storming into the lounge room. Mike looked up at his wife, who looked like she was about to shoot him. Luckily he locks their guns up at night.

'What…?' He asked cautiously. Her eyes burned in anger.

'You… you told my parents that we were married! HOW FUCKING STUPID ARE YOU!' She screamed, then gasped when she realized that their daughter was asleep. She listened for a few seconds, and when she heard nothing, she turned back to Mike, and started yelling again. 'I told you… I want nothing to do with them!'

'Carey… calm down… I have no idea what you're talking about…' He said, utterly confused.

'You mean… hang on… have you ever spoken to my parents?' She asked, and he shook his head. 'Oh shit… I am so sorry…' She whispered, tears filling her eyes. He stood up and pulled her into a hug, rubbing her back gently.

'It's okay, sweetheart… It's okay…' He whispered, kissing the top of her head. She looked up at him, eyes red.

'R…really?' She asked, and he nodded, kissing her gently. She wrapped her arms around his neck, and he picked her up, causing her to wrap her legs around his waist.

'Love you, bella...' He whispered, and she smiled.

'Love you too, Mikey…' She whispered back, snuggling into his arms. Their tight embrace was torn apart when Kelly started to scream, causing both of them to sigh at the same time.

A/N: Thanks guys for being so patient with me, and I hope you liked chapter 21! For the R version of this chapter, I should be signed up with Amorous Intent soon… I'll let you know next chapter! Reviews thanks!

Translation: Bella - beautiful in italian... did it for 8 years... and thats all I freaking remember...