Two hours later, he came back into the apartment. She looked up at him from the couch. "Feel better?" she asked.

He nodded, hanging his coat up. Then he looked at her. He'd been thinking and he was troubled. That was never good. He spoke tentatively. "I…I needed to know…how you feel, didn't I?"

She nodded. "Yes."

"And I…asked you…to tell me?"

"Does that bother you?"

He nodded. "Y-yes, yes, it does."

"Why?"

He started pacing again. "I…I was out of line…to ask you that."

"No, you weren't. You needed reassurance. So did I."

"You?"

"I didn't know it, but I did. I didn't realize it, until you gave it to me. You always know what I need, and you never let me down."

He sat down beside her. Of course he tried to meet her needs. She had filled his biggest need; she stayed. It was the least he could do for her in return. But he had a nagging question hammering at the back of his mind. "What did I ask you?"

She looked at him. She could smell the alcohol on his breath, and she wasn't surprised. He wasn't drunk, but he was worried. "You just needed to know that I care, and that I'm not going to leave you. And I'm not." Then she repeated what she'd told him in the dim light of the condemned motel. "I do love you, Bobby, and that's not going to change. Nicole is not inside my head. She doesn't know me. But you do, and you should know better than to trust a word she says."

"That's what I told you, to reassure you, isn't it…? That I love you."

"Yes."

He looked at his hands. "It's true. That's why…why I damn near lost my…mind when you went missing, and I found out she was…b-behind it."

"I didn't do much better, you know. I know you, and I knew exactly what you were going to do when you found out, and that's exactly what you did."

He reached toward her, gently brushing her hair back from her face. "I…I can't imagine how you felt…after she stabbed me. It's not…something I ever dwell on…being in that situation. I…I am so sorry you had to…had to face that."

She placed her hand over his. "So am I." She hesitated, then she said, "Logan told me you didn't care about what happened to you."

"I told him if it came down to a choice between you or me to protect you."

"And you can watch out for yourself, right?"

He half-grinned, unconsciously placing a hand over his injury. "Right," he said quietly, leaning closer and softly kissing her.

She slid her arms around him and melted into his embrace. Then she pulled back and rested her forehead against his. "I'll make a deal with you. I'll let you continue to watch out for me, if you'll let me watch out for you."

"Do I have a choice?"

"No."

"Then I guess I have to agree, don't I?"

"Yes."

He brushed his lips over hers. "Ok," he murmured, sliding a hand behind her head. "I agree." The conversation was over.