Just so you know, i am going to finish this fic before i go back to work on 3 Violins. This one isn't nearly as involved as 3 Violins and i've got it all up in my head and i need to get it out before i can go back to work on the other... it's just easier this way...

Chapter 5

Two weeks later…

Bobby walked up to his desk earlier than usual. Alex wasn't feeling well, so he had given her all the comforts she needed, and then headed into work early to get ahead of the paperwork, which was starting to pile up. That, and his new temporary partner was coming in today.

He was sitting at his desk, filling out forms, when a tall blonde woman approached him. She could have easily been six feet tall (which still made her on the short side in comparison to him), was incredibly thin and bony, and her wispy blonde hair was pulled back into a haphazard ponytail.

"Hi, I'm Natasha. Are you Robert Goren?" she said with an incredibly firm voice. Everything about her body said that she might break if you breathed on her too hard, but her voice indicated otherwise.

"Yes, but everybody calls me Bobby. Please, sit down." He got up to pull an extra chair from the desk behind him. "Nice to meet you," he said finally, shaking her hand.

Natasha smiled excitedly. She was, after all, extremely new to being a detective and here she was already at Major Case sitting next to who was rumored to be the best detective in the entire city. "Where's your partner, Detective Eames? I was told she'd still be here."

"She's not feeling well. I think she has a cold."

"Wow, on top of being pregnant. That can't be fun," she said, looking thoroughly concerned.

Natasha was interesting to Bobby. He couldn't tell if she was truly as compassionate as she seemed, or if she was just so new to everything that she was over reacting. Well, he had been the one to freak out this morning when Alex had said that she didn't feel well…

"She's been through it before," he said confidently. "She'll be in later today. So, tell me about yourself."

"Oh," she blushed. "Uhm, I've been in the force now for about 10 years," (she certainly didn't look it), "Uh… I still live with my mother- how embarrassing is that… haha."

Bobby smiled while his chin rested in the palm of his hand. "Where do you see yourself in 10 years?"

She laughed again. "Hopefully here, but you can never be too sure. There are a lot of nutsos out there."

"Where, in the system or on the street?" he said.

She laughed. "Oh, that's a good one… Uh, both I guess…" she laughed again.

"You're a very 'happy' person."

"I try to keep it positive. It's amazing how through 10 years of being on the force you can still get excited about a big promotion."

"I know the feeling," he smiled. Just then, he saw Alex turning the corner from the elevators. "Ah, here she is," he said, getting up to greet Alex.

"Eames, this is Detective Larking-"

"Oh, please, call me Natasha."

"Nice to meet you Natasha," Eames said shaking her hand and sitting down at her desk with a little bit of effort. "Bobby, I've got a doctors appointment this afternoon. He wants to take a look and make sure it's nothing serious. And he's just gonna do my 3 month checkup while I'm there."

"Ok, I'll go with you."

"Not going to be able to do that, Goren," said Deakins from behind as he approached the three detectives. "Got a new case for you."

An "oooh" escaped Natasha. Eames smirked and looked at Bobby, whose return look back her than Natasha might behave like that as a general rule.

"Ah," Alex said, turning her attention back to Deakins.

"Captain, this is Detective Larking," said Goren.

"Nice to meet you. Here's your first case," he said nonchalantly, dropping a folder in her lap. He gave Alex and Bobby a look and then headed back to his office.

"Captain- crime scene?" Alex shouted after him.

"Yep- you know the drill…"

"More now than ever," Alex spat as she got out of her chair and picked up her coat. Natasha quickly got up to offer Alex assistance (which she refused), and eventually Bobby got up, gathering his overstuffed notebook and following the two ladies towards the elevator.

"Where to?" Alex asked as they approached the vehicle.

"Oh, no you don't. No driving," said Bobby, snatching the keys out of her hand.

"Since when do you care- you let me drive last time I was pregnant. And besides, the doctor's office is right over there," she said, snatching the keys back. Goren gave her a look. "Where to, Larking?"

"Uh… Central Park," she said in surprise, reading the sheet in the folder. "How do they get all this typed up and stuff before you even get to the crime scene?" she asked, curiously looking over the folder.

"No idea," said Alex wearily, climbing into the drivers seat and starting the engine (after she buckled up, of course)…