A/N I AM SO SO SORRY, YOU GUYS! No, seriously, I am. I had to make sure I got this chapter just right, and I'm not sure I've even managed it now! So we have fluff, more fluff, some detective-ness, more fluff, and then a twist that you're all gonna hate me for! Read on, dear readers, read on!

Disclaimer: When you've read this chapter, you'll totally get why I don't own anything to do with Cold Case. Damn characters are too unpredictable!

Lilly slid back into bed next to Scotty. He turned onto his side, rolling over to face her. She kissed him softly, stroking the side of his face.

"You're cold," he murmured. Lilly giggled, biting her bottom lip.

"Uh huh."

Scotty grinned, throwing an arm over her waist. He pulled his partner flush against him, so that every part of their bodies were touching. Lilly buried her head in his neck, her nose cold against his skin. Scotty kissed the top of his girlfriend's head.

"Mornin', Lil," he said softly. The blonde detective smiled, relaxing into the shape of his body.

"Morning, Scotty," she mumbled, placing a kiss to his chest.

If someone had told Scotty that five years after transferring from West, he'd have ended up in bed snuggling with the Ice Queen herself, he would have handed out directions to the nearest asylum...

...yet here he was, grinning as Lilly snuggled further into his side.

"We should talk, you know," she said casually. Scotty blinked in surprise.

"Talk? About..."

"Well, yeah. That's what you want, isn't it?"

He caught the waver in her voice. The male detective thought for a while, absently stroking patterns on her back.

"When I was growin' up," he began slowly, "I watched all o' my cousins, an' aunts, an' family friends, get married an' have children."

Lilly shifted in his arms. Scotty continued in a soft voice.

"Elissa had her life planned when she was thirteen years old. An' I always figured I'd be part o' that. But Jeffries pointed somethin' out to me yesterday, you know."

"Yeah?"

Scotty gave her a slight squeeze.

"Yeah. He reminded me that it wasn't that long ago I thought I'd lost everythin'. He reminded me that now I got a chance again."

"A chance to what?" Lilly asked uncertainly.

"A chance to make a person wit' the woman I love more than anythin'."

The blonde detective settled into him, feeling his hands holding her safely against him. She lay in silence, trying to put the feelings in her heart into intelligible sentences. She felt Scotty chuckle, and the movement of his chest stirred her from her thoughts.

"You don't have to say anythin', Lil."

"But I do!" Lilly replied in frustration, "I needto say something. I want to tell you...why I did what I did, but...Believe me, Scotty, I want to tell you, I really do, it's just..."

Whatever had given her the courage to start this conversation deserted her. She trailed off, before taking a deep breath.

"This wasn't supposed to happen to me," she said quietly. "This was Christina's life. The house, the good job...the kids. It's not supposed to be me."

Scotty arched an eyebrow.

"Seriously? That's what you think?"

Lilly rolled away from him, heading for the security of caffeine and sugar.

"No, Scotty, that's what my mother thought."

He'd barely had time to comprehend what Lilly had revealed when Scotty heard her calling his name.

"Scotty!"

"What?"

"Get in here!" Lilly shouted, a note of desperation entering her voice.

"Why?"

"Scotty!"

He walked into the kitchen, and blinked in surprise. Lilly was cowering against the counter, staring anxiously at the floor.

"What's up, Lil?" he asked, beginning to worry at the look on her face. She blushed, pointing to the floor.

"That."

Scotty moved to stand beside her, following her gaze. A grin spreading from his lips, the male detective glanced at his partner, trying not to laugh.

"It's a spider."

Lilly narrowed her eyes.

"Scotty! Just get it out!" she said, her voice high.

Chuckling, he grabbed a mug and a police file from the counter. Scotty scooped up the spider, carrying it towards the open window. As he passed her, Lilly failed to suppress a soft squeal. When Scotty returned, he was wearing a grin the size of Texas.

Lilly glared at him, placing her hand over his mouth.

"Not a word."

Pulling into a space in the PPD parking lot, Scotty smiled to himself. Lilly Rush, the woman who can crack the hardest doer in Philly, is scared of a spider?

He chuckled, glancing at his partner from the corner of his eye. I ain't ever gonna get bored of this woman.

Lilly's voice stirred him out of his thoughts.

"What are you thinking about?" she asked. He reached across to place a hand on her knee.

"I didn't know you were scared of spiders."

She shrugged, undoing her seatbelt.

"Childhood trauma. My mother got drunk, and locked me in a cupboard. Spiders everywhere." Scotty's face fell, and he gently squeezed her leg.

"I didn't know."

Lilly smiled, opening the car door.

"It's fine," she replied, quickly leaning over to kiss his cheek. They got out of the car, the cold wind almost knocking the breath out of them.

Scotty reached for her hand, giving it a squeeze.

"You feelin' alright?" he asked suddenly. His partner laughed.

"I'm fine. You don't have to keep asking me, you know." He grinned.

"I know. Jus' checkin'."

The blonde detective rolled her eyes playfully, tugging him in the direction of the police precinct. She'd only taken a few steps when Scotty pulled her to a stop.

"Hey, Lil," he said, his voice losing its frivolity.

Catching the serious note in his tone, Lilly felt her grin fade, and turned to face him.

"What's up?" she asked concernedly. Scotty watched her for a few minutes, a lopsided grin tugging at the corner of his mouth.

After a moment, he pulled her towards him, catching her just before Lilly crashed into him. His grin returned in full beam.

"Boy or girl?"

Lilly sank down against the sofa, sighing in relief.

"It's only just 11am and I already feel like I should go home," she said in disbelief. Miller laughed.

"Can we get that in writing?"

The blonde grinned.

"I guess I have to look on the bright side. Scotty's bending over backwards to do my paperwork so I don't get overtired."

Her partner threw a paper ball at her, causing Jeffries to chuckle, his eyes crinkling up at the corners.

"Shut up, Rush. Who says I'm doin' it to help you anyway? My life's a whole lot easier when you're in a good mood."

Sauntering into the break room, Vera slapped a magazine down on the break room table. The others stared at it in confusion.

"Oh, sweet Lord," Miller muttered. Jeffries squinted at the page.

"Uh...'What Sex Says About You'," he read slowly.

Lilly and Scotty exchanged wary glances. Vera cleared his throat, and began to read.

"Number 1," he said loudly, "what type of sex do you prefer?"

Luckily, before anyone could form anything resembling a reply, Stillman appeared from his office. Noting the stunned silence and Vera's crafty smile, he glanced down. The vivid colours of the magazine article screamed out of the page.

Jeffries opened his mouth to explain, but Stillman shook his head, an amused smirk hovering around his lips.

"I think I'm too old to hear why this is on the table."

"You're never too old for..." Scotty began cheerfully, before Lilly clamped a hand over his mouth.

"You got something for us, boss?" she asked, feeling her cheeks turn pink at what her partner was about to say.

"Something Adam said has been bugging me."

They were suddenly serious, their boss' statement reminding them that they still had a murderer to catch.

"What, boss?" Scotty asked.

"The priest. Rush, Miller, I want you to go and ask Greg about Father David," Stillman instructed, "Find out if there's any truth in what Adam said about David abusing Greg."

From the corner of her eye, Miller watched as Lilly shut the passenger door.

"So, a baby, huh?" she began with a smirk. The blonde detective sighed, turning the heater up.

"You're only just starting with this?" Miller laughed, pulling away from the precinct.

"Sorry to keep you waiting," she replied.

A song started up on the radio. Miller's grin grew.

"Oh my God! I have not heard this song for years!" Lilly arched an eyebrow in amusement, and reached forward to turn the volume up.

I get up in the morning light

My father says when you gonna live your life right

Oh Daddy please you know you're still number 1

But girls just wanna have fun.

Lilly watched as her colleague attempted a dance behind the wheel.

"Oh God," she groaned, trying not to laugh. Miller ignored her, and began to sing along.

"The phone rings, in the middle of the night. My mother says…"

The blonde detective gave in, releasing the bubble of laughter that had built up inside her.

"I swear there's something not right with you."

Miller raised her eyebrows, taking a break from belting the tune out.

"Something not right with me?" she said in a slightly insulted tone, "Girl, have you looked in the mirror recently?"

Lilly grinned.

"Yes, and I didn't see anything wrong," she replied happily. The curly haired detective rolled her eyes.

"I think I preferred you before you had this wave of self confidence."

Greg looked up as the church door opened. He dropped the polishing cloth, straightening and waving a hand.

"Detectives!" he exclaimed as the two women walked towards him, "What can I do for you?"

Lilly cleared her throat, smiling sadly.

"We just need to ask you some more questions."

"About what?" the young man asked curiously. Miller took a deep breath.

"About Father David, Greg."

The young man's face fell, and he sat down on the pew.

"Oh," he replied softly. Lilly copied his action, sitting down in the row of seats behind him.

"Greg, does David hurt you?"

"Sometimes. He says that God insists that we are taught a lesson, taught how to accept punishment."

Miller shrugged lightly.

"The Book of Matthew teaches that if God thinks you need to be punished, you'll be punished, but by God's hand only. Think the actual quote is something like 'on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak, for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned'."

Greg nodded, his eyes fixed on the floor.

"Matthew, 12:36-37."

"You know what else the Bible teaches?"

The young man chuckled.

"John, 8:32. The truth shall make you free." Miller nodded.

"Exactly. So tell us about Father David."

Greg sighed heavily.

"He doesn't abuse me...sexually. Nothing like that, but..."

As Greg continued to speak, Lilly stared at her colleague in a mixture of awe and astonishment. She had never heard Miller speak of religion in such a deep context. Vera had mentioned once that she occasionally went to church, but Lilly brushed it off as a simple Christmas tradition.

The blonde detective knew Scotty still went to his childhood place of refuge. Lilly understood that it was his chance to unwind, to escape the pressures of everyday life. Sometimes she went with him, and sat beside him, watching the relaxed smile play around his lips. She often envied his ability to lose himself in the architecture, in the peace and quiet of the building. There was one time, she remembered, when she'd been on a school trip to the local cathedral. It had been a good day...until she went home to find her mother passed out in the kitchen.

"...thanks, Greg. We'll be in touch," Miller said quietly. Lilly blinked, wondering when their witness had finished talking. She cleared her throat.

"Yes. We'll be in touch."

The two women watched as the trainee priest disappeared into the cloister. Hearing a bell ring somewhere in the depths of the church, Miller glanced at Lilly from the corner of her eye, smirking.

"You didn't hear a word he said, did you?"

Lilly grinned sheepishly.

"Not a word."

"…she should be on desk duty."

"Oh, OK. You can be the one to tell Lil she's stuck inside for the next nine months."

Vera took a bite of his hot dog, grimacing at the idea of a pissed off Ice Queen. After Miller and Rush had returned from their interview, and after Miller had told Rush exactly what Greg had said, the team had called their lunch break, heading out onto the street.

Lt. Stillman and Detectives Jeffries, Miller and Vera were gathered around the coffee wagon outside the Philadelphia Police precinct.

"Where are they? I thought they were right behind us?" Miller asked.

Jeffries straightened, his ears straining.

"Valens!"

"Come on, Lil! It would only be for a little while."

Vera sighed heavily.

"Order up," he muttered. Lilly and Scotty appeared, walking towards them.

"Are they ever…not arguing?"

Stillman forced a smile.

"Lil, Scotty." The blonde detective scowled at her partner.

"Valens," she spat, "thinks I should be taking it easy on desk duty." Jeffries hid a smile, looking away. Vera felt his cheeks turn pink. Good thing she didn't turn up two minutes ago.

Miller cleared her throat.

"So? Maybe he's right," she said tentatively. Lilly gave her an incredulous look.

"It looks like a goddamn peanut!" she exploded.

Heading to the coffee stall, Vera ordered six coffees. Still angry, Lilly leant over his shoulder.

"Five coffees and a chocolate milkshake," she corrected bitterly. The guy behind the counter chuckled.

"Pregnant, huh?" The blonde detective stuck out her bottom lip.

"I hate this," she grumbled, turning to Stillman, "It's like I've got it tattooed across my forehead."

"Detectives!"

The team turned, hands flying to hips as they saw Michael Marsden aim the gun at Lilly. She raised her hands, feeling her heart plummet into the pits of her stomach.

"Good morning, Detective Rush. I guess I should congratulate you. Heard about your good news."

"How did you find out?" Lilly said slowly.

Marsden smirked.

"Didn't you know? You're the talk of the police force." She swallowed the lump that had risen in her throat. Lilly didn't need to look at her colleagues to know that they were remembering the last time someone had pointed a gun at her, and how that particular incident had ended.

"Come on, Michael, put the gun down," she coaxed, "Let's go inside and talk about this."

Marsden shook his head.

"You took my children, now I'm taking yours," he said calmly, his finger curling around the trigger and squeezing hard.

How much do ya'll hate me right now? :D Who did Marsden shoot? Did he actually shoot anyone? Maybe if you leave me a review, I'll give you a hint. Eye roll. No, I can't leave myself a review, because I already know what happens. Jeez...