A/N: Thanks for the wonderful reviews. I thought readers wouldn't like the turn I made, but apparently I was wrong. Thanks for the ideas, I incorporated one. For people who might be wondering, I'm not going to include a Mike/Carolyn storyline. I put some female bonding in this chapter and thought it would be nice to bring Lewis back. Lewis should be on the show more often. I like him. And two chapters today because I've already written the next chapter. Enjoy!

Part five

The rest of the week Alex had hardly talked to him. She'd refused his efforts to try to talk to her. He wanted, no, needed to apologize. Their partnership was strained. Sure they still worked well together, but there were no pleasantries anymore. No more lingering glances, no touches, no smiles. He missed her warmth, the way she could look at him with her beautiful brown eyes and that soft smile on her lips. He missed what they had and he was the only one to blame.

He saw Mike with her, touching her arm or lower back. Places where his hands used to be, where they belonged. He ached for her, but he couldn't do anything about it. She refused to talk to him and he could not make her talk. Sitting at their desk they would both focus on their paperwork. His eyes drifted to her every so often, but she didn't react. Sometimes she would even stand up and walk over to Mike and Carolyn.

All his life he had searched for someone like her. At first he'd tried to chase her away, unsure about their partnership. Quickly though, things changed and felt right. He loved being in her presence. She was energetic, caring and a really good partner. He wanted to hold onto her, not wanting to imagine life without her. And now, he'd done what he'd feared most. He had chased her away. Emotionally they had never been this far apart. It would only be a matter of time before she would walk away from their partnership. He had to try and fix things. He just did not know how.

IT WAS Friday evening and it was girls night out. Carolyn had noticed Alex's mood…it was hard to miss. At that lunch on Monday something had been said, but neither she nor Mike knew what had really happened. All they knew was that Alex was hurt and it was Bobby's fault. The entire week she'd spend a lot of time with them. Seeking Mike's comfort and company some times. Carolyn had tried to get Alex to talk, but she'd refused. Tonight though, they were going to talk. She knew Alex needed it and venting, letting it all out, could make a person feel better. She and Bobby hadn't talked about going out on a date. Bobby had avoided all of them. She'd seen his attempts to talk to Alex, one time cornering her in the break room, other times reaching for her hand, but Alex simply pulled away. Neither wanted to cause a scene in the squad room, so Bobby would back off quickly. Carolyn had everything ready for their evening. A movie, popcorn, beer and more importantly tissues.

An hour after Alex's arrival at Carolyn's apartment, she finally seemed to loosen up. The three beers she'd had helped in that matter. There was no holding her back.

"When are you going out with Bobby?" Alex asked, not even trying to hide the anger in her voice.

Carolyn smiled. "I don't know."

"Didn't you two set a date? He has to have time to plan all those things and make a special oil for you." There was not only anger in her voice, but also accusation.

"What's up with the massage?" Carolyn asked. Apparently it was a sensitive subject.

"Nothing." Alex took another big gulp of her beer.

"Sure." Carolyn didn't believe Alex at all. "What's going on, Alex. This entire week you've kept Bobby at arms length. Something happened during our lunch, I just don't know what. I've seen Bobby trying to talk to you, but you push him away. What happened?"

"Bobby's being Bobby."

That answer really didn't clarify things. "How long have you liked him?" She asked, expecting Alex to deny it.

"For a while now." The blond detective sounded defeated. "I don't remember when it happened. I guess it was gradual. He has a way of getting under your skin. One day I realized I didn't want to imagine my life without him."

"What about Bobby?"

She shrugged, she really didn't know anymore. "I don't know. Sometimes I thought he might feel the same. I would catch him watching me with that sweet little smile on his face. There were touches and moments. However I was never sure." She looked at her glass. It was empty again. "When he didn't answer your question in the gym I started doubting everything. He's not an easy man and life has really done a number on him. I tried you know, I took the first step. After all he might not want to answer the question in front of you and Mike. He came by that evening, worried about me. He told me he didn't want me to go out with Mike. I wasn't on my best, but I was sure I detected some jealousy in his voice. I asked him to give me a good reason why I shouldn't go. I asked him if he wanted to be the one to take me out. He didn't answer. He immediately ran for the door. I told him I wasn't going to wait forever."

Her eyes were focused on a spot on the carpet. "I… I made my feelings evident to him. If he needed a push, if he needed for me to tell him first, then he had his chance. Apparently I misread the situation. He didn't react, just ran out on me. At lunch I got my confirmation. He isn't interested. I mean nothing to him. I'm just average, nothing special." She hadn't actually said the words out loud before. Now that she had, it was reality, it was time to close the book Bobby Goren.

THAT same weekend Bobby had a talk with his friend Lewis. It was Saturday afternoon and Bobby was hanging out in Lewis' garage. Lewis and he went way back and Bobby felt no need to hide himself from his friend. His friend had been there when they'd taken his mother to Carmel. Lewis had seen him at his worst.

"Wanna tell me what's wrong?" Lewis asked while he was looking under the hood of one of the many cars he had in his shop.

"What do you mean?" Bobby walked around looking at the different cars. Some times he stopped to take a closer look.

"You've hardly said a word and you look like you've hardly slept."

"Things are messed up at work."

Lewis walked around the car to grab some of his tools. Back under the hood he went to work. "Did you and Alex have a fight?"

Bobby leaned against the side of the car and ran a hand through his hair. "Something like that. I screwed up, Lewis. I really screwed up." Explaining the situation he began pacing up and down the floor. "She gave me the chance to tell her… to tell her how I feel. I ran away, I couldn't face the confrontation. Things got worse after she'd gone out with Mike."

"Mike?" Lewis looked up from under the hood.

"Yeah, a new Detective. He took her out and he and Carolyn kept talking about the date."

"Carolyn?"

"His partner. Anyway, at lunch they decided it would be fun to push my buttons, Alex included. I pushed back, Lewis. I pushed back way too hard. I told her she was nothing, told her she was just average." In his anger he kicked against the side of the tire.

"Careful! This is not your car." Lewis exclaimed. Bobby had his full attention now. He put his tools down and looked at his friend.

"I hurt her, Lewis. I really hurt her and now she won't talk to me anymore. We still work our cases, but she's so far out of my reach. I've tried to get her to talk to me, but she won't. She seeks comfort from Mike. I see him touch her like I used to comfort her when he'd have a bad case. I'm losing the best person in my life and she won't give me a chance to explain myself. I… I need her to give me a chance to apologize. I want us to be like we were. I want to be back in her life again."

TBC...