Emily looked across the table at Eames as they ate breakfast. "Did Bobby come home last night?"
"Yes. He's still sleeping."
"Is he all right?"
"Yes."
"How was he feeling?"
"Well, when he got home he was feeling no pain, but I imagine he'll feel plenty when he gets up."
"I guess I should have told him sooner."
Alex bit her tongue to keep from saying 'I told you so.' She just nodded. "Yes, that would have been better."
"Can you understand why I waited?"
"Not really."
She sighed. "Whenever I tell people, they get all...weird. They act like I'm made of china and I'll break if they look at me too hard. He wasn't like that in Colorado, and I didn't want that to change."
"I haven't treated you like china. He wouldn't have either. And he would have had time to adjust. I mean, he would have understood why you didn't tell him in Colorado, and why you didn't tell him over the phone. But he can't understand why you waited now. Bobby is not like everyone else you know. He...marches to the beat of his own drummer, and he has his own ideas about things. He will never be okay with this, but he'll adjust. You have to give him time, and that was something you haven't done."
"I owe him a big apology, then. I am...sorry I didn't listen to you. You know him better than I ever will. There's just no easy way to deal with this, and I really didn't want to tell him at all."
"Do you think it would have been better for him if your calls suddenly stopped and he heard it from me?"
"Do you?"
Eames laughed. "No, Emily. First, he would have blamed himself for doing something wrong to make you stop calling. And then, after he found out, he would have taken it all out on me. This way we can share the anger, at least for a little while."
"Is he going to continue to take it out on you?"
"Maybe for a little while. Don't worry about that. I can handle Bobby."
A voice from the hallway startled them. "Handle me how, Eames?"
He came into the living room and looked at them. His hair was disheveled and he looked tired. He'd pulled on a pair of sweatpants and an NYPD t-shirt. Eames smiled at him. "Handle you in any way you need me to."
He gave her a small smile. "Then I'm in good hands."
"Are you ok?"
"I guess."
He went into the kitchen and poured a cup of coffee. The two women watched him walk to the table and join them. "Are you hungry?" Eames asked.
He shook his head and winced. "No, thanks. Uh, I promised Mike that we'd join him and Carolyn for lunch, so they could say good-bye."
"Did you tell Mike?"
"Yes. I guess he'll tell Carolyn."
"She already knows," Emily said and Eames winced.
Goren frowned darkly, looking from Emily to Eames. "Who told her?"
Eames answered, "I did, the night we had dinner with them, while you were dancing with Emily."
"So you told Barek, but you didn't think I needed to know?"
"Bobby..."
"Forget it, Eames. Just forget it."
He got up and headed back to the bedroom. Eames started to get up, but Emily held up her hand. "Do you mind if I talk to him?"
"Be my guest."
She hesitated. "Why don't you chase him out here? I would not be comfortable at all talking to him back there."
Eames smiled at her. "I'll see what I can do."
She headed down the hall and knocked on the bedroom door as she opened it. She slipped into the room. He was standing by the window, one hand on the wall beside it, looking out into the neighborhood below. There were kids running up and down the street, laughing and playing as their summer vacation wound down. She closed the door softly and watched him for a moment. "I know I screwed up big, Bobby, and that I hurt you. I should have at least prepared you. I...I let you down, and I feel terrible about it. I...screwed up in so many ways, and none of them were fair to you. I just hope you can..."
She stopped before her voice broke, but he heard it. That was one thing he simply couldn't take...when she was upset. He turned and didn't hesitate to cross the room toward her, stopping to tip his head and catch her eye. She tried to turn away, so he wouldn't see the tears that had welled up in her eyes, not yet. But he touched her chin and guided her face back toward his. She swallowed hard and finished, "I hope you can forgive me."
He pulled her into his arms and held her. "I am such an ass," he said softly. She shook her head against his chest, but he placed a hand on her head to hold it still. "Just take my word for it right now."
She held him for a few more minutes, then said, "Emily wants to talk to you."
He sighed again. Resting two fingers under her chin, he tipped her face up toward his and kissed her. "We'll talk later," he promised.
Emily looked up as he came down the hall. He stopped at the end of the hallway and leaned against the wall. She studied him. "Alex told me to tell you the day I got here. But I wasn't sure I even wanted you to know. She's been trying to get me to say something all week. Don't blame her, please."
"I do blame her, but she and I will hash that out later. What I want to know is why? Why would you not want me to know?"
"Because I really like you, Bobby. I don't want you feeling sorry for me, and after what you've been through, I was hesitant to cause you more pain."
"Well, that didn't work, and now I'm pissed at Alex, too."
"Would it help if I said I was sorry?"
"No."
At least he was honest. "I can accept that. I wish you wouldn't be mad at her though. It was my fault."
"She has her own mind and she knows me. You didn't gag her. She chose to keep quiet. But this isn't about her. This is about you."
"Looks like there was no easy way to tell you, huh?"
"The only thing you're getting out of this is that you only have to deal with me for half a day now, instead of the full week. The difference is, a week ago, I would only have been upset. I would not have expected you to tell me when we were in the mountains and certainly not over the phone. But I would have expected you to say something the day you got here. Yet you waited until the night before you leave. Why? So you don't have to face me? So you don't have to see that it hurts me? That's the coward's way out, Emily, and I never got the impression you were a coward." He sighed. "I made a huge mistake and I have to make that up to Alex. If I caused you any distress, I'm sorry. And it does hurt me to know you are so sick. I will get over it, but that's not gonna happen today."
"I understand that."
"Good." He turned and headed back to the bedroom. Eames looked up when he came in and he sat down on the bed beside her. He leaned forward and rested his head in his hands. "Headache?" Eames asked.
"Don't start. I know I deserve it."
"I wasn't going to say that."
"You don't have to. I already did."
She rested her hand on the back of his head and gently ran her fingers through his hair. She kissed his temple. "When are we supposed to meet Mike and Carolyn?"
"Call him."
"Why don't you lay down and go back to sleep for a while? I'll get you up in time to shower and dress. Did you let Deakins know you weren't coming in?"
He nodded. "I called him when I woke up."
She reached over and turned his face toward her. "Go back to sleep, Bobby."
She rested her lips against his, letting him do what he would with the kiss. She could tell he wasn't feeling well. Lightly, she stroked his cheek before she gently pushed him down on the bed. She sat close to him, running her fingers lightly along the side of his face, pausing to rub small circles into his temples. He didn't object, and she watched his eyes slowly close. Kissing his forehead, she left the room to let him sleep.
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Logan stood up when he saw them approach. Eames frowned at him."What the hell happened to you?"
Logan fingered his sore jaw and glanced at Goren. "You know how I'm always sticking my foot in my mouth? I just shoved a little too hard this time. It's not a big deal."
"Pretty."
He looked at Emily. "You feeling okay?"
"Yes, thanks."
They took their seats and waited for the waitress to take their orders. Logan looked around the table. Goren was too interested in his hands, and Eames and Emily were oddly quiet. He looked at Barek, who shrugged. "Something wrong?" she asked.
Goren looked at her. "Same old shit," he muttered.
Logan had been drinking with Goren often enough to recognize his hangover. "Let me guess...you didn't go home after you left me, did you?" He shook his head, and Logan chuckled. "No wonder you're looking a little green."
"Shut up, Logan."
"Cranky, too."
Barek elbowed her partner. "You'd better shut up unless you want matching bruises."
Goren shook his head. "I won't hit him again. I shouldn't have hit him in the first place."
Emily looked confused. "You hit Mike?"
Logan waved a hand. "Don't worry about it, sweetheart. I deserved it."
Eames reach her hand over to rest on Goren's thigh and he looked at her. She was having trouble telling exactly what was going on with him. She knew he was mad at her, but he seemed angry at himself as well, and that she didn't understand at all. She let her fingers trail along the seam of his jeans until his hand came to close over her fingers. He slid his hand into her palm and interlaced his fingers with hers. She squeezed and was pleased when he squeezed back.
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Logan and Barek took a long lunch, but eventually they had to return to the squad room. And it was time to go to the airport.
Emily leaned forward from the back seat. "Bobby?" He looked at her over his shoulder. She sighed. "I really am sorry."
"I know."
"Does it matter?"
"It matters."
She rested her hand on his shoulder and he covered it with his. "Still mad?" she asked.
"Yes. But I'll get over it."
"Good. So you'll still talk to me when I call?"
"If Alex will let me get a word in edgewise, I will."
Eames just smiled. "Maybe I'll let you say hello."
"It's something," he said with a small smile.
Eames parked the SUV in the short term parking garage and Goren got Emily's bag from the back of the vehicle. They headed into the airport where she checked in. With their badges, they got her quickly through the security checkpoint and were able to walk with her to the boarding area, so they could wait with her.
Eames sat beside her while her partner wandered the area. Emily watched him. "What is he doing?"
"Just being a cop," she answered, also watching him. "He's always like that. He just... observes."
"Alex?" She looked at her. "Is he going to be okay?"
"Yeah, he will."
"Are you mad, too?"
"No, Emily. I'm not mad. I get that you were concerned about hurting him and you didn't have any idea how to handle him. Not many people do. I can only think of three."
"Besides you, who?"
"Mike and Bobby's friend Lewis."
Emily nodded. "He's complicated."
"You have no idea."
Eames watched him wander, seeing the familiar restless energy he could never seem to fully burn off. A half hour before it was time for the plane to board, he returned to join them, sitting beside Eames and leaning forward, arms resting on his legs, so that he could see them both. "So, counsellor, what happens when you go home?"
"I have one more case to prosecute, then I am done. I've sold my house and I close on that next week. I'm putting the money into a trust fund for my niece."
"Where are you going to live?"
"Since I have no one to care for me at home, I have a room at a hospice. That's where I'll be going."
Goren got up and wandered over to the floor to ceiling window banks to watch the planes. "Let him be," Eames said quietly. After a moment, she asked, "What's the hospice like?"
"It's nice...like a home away from home. I'll get the care I need according to my wishes. I'll be all right, Alex. I've made my peace with this." She glanced at Goren. "Will you...?"
Eames nodded. "I always do. Don't worry about him. He'll deal with it, and he'll be okay."
"You'll call me?"
"Of course I will."
Emily sat quietly watching the big man trolling back and forth in front of the windows. "I'm glad I met him."
Eames smiled. "Few people say that," she said with a soft laugh.
"I'm also glad he has you, and I hope you come to realize how much he does love you."
She looked toward him. "I have an idea."
The flight's pre-boarding announcement came over the loudspeakers, followed fifteen minutes later by the boarding announcement. Goren came back over from the windows as Emily stood up and swung her bag over her shoulder. She hugged Eames. "Thank you for a wonderful visit, Alex. I'm glad I came."
"So am I," Eames answered. "And I'm glad you had a good time. I know I did."
Emily turned to Goren, and he gave her a warm hug. Stepping back, she said, "I know I don't have much time left, but I will think about you every day."
"I know I don't have to tell you to hang in there. You will, and when you're ready, you'll let go. Good-bye, counsellor."
He leaned down and softly kissed her. She touched his cheek and smiled at him. "Good-bye, detective. Take care of Alex."
"I always do."
They watched her head for the gate and disappear through the doorway. He looked down at his partner. "I'll make you dinner."
"Are you sure you feel up to that?"
He shrugged as they left the boarding area. "What do you want?"
"Chicken?"
"Fine by me."
"We need to talk."
"We will. I...I've been a real ass, Alex, and I'm sorry."
"I really don't understand that, Bobby. I don't see it."
"You will. I'll explain."
"That should be interesting."
He frowned. "That's not what I'd call it."
"We'll work it out."
"I hope so." He wasn't so sure. He needed for Alex to forgive him, but when she saw how much like his father he seemed to be, he was not at all certain she'd be able to.
