A/N: I thought this would be one shot but decided that I couldn't do that this time around. So you all get a multi-chapter fic instead.

Disclaimer: See Chapter 1

Lizzie peeked her eyes open, suddenly feeling very off in her own home. Ever since that day 6 months ago, she had considered herself a target to get to Red and that left her constantly on alert. As she saw a shadow creep around the living room she reached for her Sig Sauer and released the safety from its location under her couch pillow. Once whoever was in her place got close enough she was going to shot first and ask questions later. The shadow walked towards her and went to reach behind her and as they did, she sat up and drew her service weapon with her right hand and flicking the light on with her left.

"Hold it right there!" She paused as soon as she saw who was in her apartment, it couldn't be and yet she had to be sure. "Red?"

"Dear god Lizzie, are you trying to kill me, put that away before you shoot someone."

"I should shoot you, for breaking and entering! What the hell are you doing here Red? You understand that every federal agency is looking for you?" Lizzie still had her gun pointed directly at him still not lowering it.

"Well if you must know, I heard you needed me, so here I am." He said as he reached out and took the weapon from her grasp. Lizzie knew Red would not hurt so she gave it up freely; the urge to shoot him for leaving all those months ago didn't go away though.

"You heard I needed you, well I don't know what you heard exactly but I am just fine, I don't need you, unless you plan on going back to the Box." Sitting up further she brushed her hair back with her hand, hoping for any sort of distraction from the fact that on the day she needed Red the most in the last 6 months he just so happened to show up in her home. Reaching out she took the bottle of wine and began to refill her glass, it looked like she was going to need that second glass after all. "So you just show up after what 6 months and act like nothing has happened."

"No, a good many things have happened while I was away. For starters I see you moved, was that because of the divorce?"

"How did you know? Never mind you seem to know everything about my life. I forgot." Lizzie said as she brought the glass to her lips, before you could even tip it far enough back for a drink, Red pulled it out of her hands.

"That will be enough of that. I can see by the empty bottle you have already had too much to drink tonight." He said placing the glass back on the table.

"Well from what I understand you are not my father, so you can't tell me how to drink." She said as she reached for the glass next to him.

"Enough Lizzie" The force in his voice combined with his firm grip on her shoulders was enough for her to stop and take notice. It was the first good look she was able to get of him since waking up to find him in her home. She couldn't help but notice the sad look in his eyes as he watched her. It was then in that moment the Lizzie realized that Red knew her secret, she had missed him. In that moment her self control dissolved and the tears finally broke through their dams as she relished in the feel of having Red just look at her and see her and not Agent Keen.

She dropped her head and brought her hands up to cover her face as she started to cry harder. Her new position exposed the skin on her neck and she could feel Red's breaths as she cried. A moment later she felt the release of his hands on her shoulder as he moved to join her on the couch, he wrapped his right arm around her waist and pulled her in close to comfort her. The feel of his vest buttons under her hand brought a comforting feeling over her as he held her close, his smell that was of old wine and leather wrapped around her and it was in the moment that she finally felt relief.

Lizzie was unsure if it had been hours or minutes that she cried; she cried for getting Red captured by Anslo, she cried for her friends she had lost, for her failed marriage for everything until there was nothing left to cry over and when she was done she simply laid her head on Red's chest and allowed her hand to play with the buttons on his vest. When she was calm, she started to ask questions.

"How long have you been back?"

"Almost 2 weeks, I had Dembe run surveillance to see how you were doing."

"Is that how you knew about the divorce?"

"Yes and also that you needed me. What happened Lizzie after I left?" He asked as he rubbed small circles on her side.

"We kept the Post Office open and you became the priority. Every day it was how can we locate you, where could you be. I was asked numerous times if I had heard from you, got kinda old. I ended up working so much just trying to figure out where you might be and how I could contact you. The day you called I was in my home, packing my things. Tom and I decided to get a divorce after I decided that I didn't want to move. I liked my life here and I didn't want to leave it."

"Even with all the dangers that come from knowing me."

"Especially because of those; I needed to see you again and figured if I left I would never be able to."

"Is that why you have been working yourself to exhaustion day and night; so that you would be able to see me again."

"Yes."

"Lizzie, no matter where in the world you are, when I was ready to see you again I would find you. I found you here."

"I know, I just didn't want to leave."

"I can understand that. I cannot however understand why you would put your own health in jeopardy."

"What do you mean my health?"

"Lizzie, you are exhausted I could see that when I walked in, even in the dark. Your eyes are sunken in and you are pale. I can even feel your ribs under your shirt, all of them; you really are nothing but skin and bones at this point. Why hasn't anyone said anything to you?"

"Perhaps they didn't notice."

"Well I noticed."

"Well not everyone seems to care about me like you do Red."

Lizzie sat up, for as much as she loved being embraced by Red she had to put some space between them. Less than 2 weeks in town and he knew that she was working herself sick and barely eating. No one had caught it, for she was very good at hiding the fact that she was losing weight and as for working late and extra days, they assumed she was just determined to locate Reddington, no one questioned it.

"I'm beginning to see that, but how could a room full of FBI and CIA agents not notice that you are losing weight?"

"Because their task is about finding you, and if I mean so much to you like they think I do, then they would care less if I got run over by a car if it meant that you would return. If they noticed they didn't say anything or care because if it's the choice of a Profiler or a Career Criminal who do you think they are going to pick? My life is expendable if they are able to capture you."

She stood up and began pacing the floor as he watched her just vent everything that had been building up for the past 6 months. It was hard to imagine that she had held it together this long, knowing that she had no friends left at work that cared about her they only cared about her connection to Reddington.. Her marriage was over; heck she didn't even get the dog. All she had left was the chance that she might see Red again, and that it was had kept her going and in that moment Red just allowed for her to vent. As he was about to speak she continued on with her little rant.

"I have thought back to that day for the past 6 months, looking for clues or anything that would give me any idea to where you were. I went over old intel reports anything related to you that I could get my hands on just so that I could find you. I needed you back here. I kept hearing your words over and over again in my head that you would be here if I ever needed you and all the while that my life was crumbling around me I needed you and you weren't here. When realization hit that you weren't coming back anytime soon, I just pushed myself deeper into my job. I needed you, but you didn't need me, the famous Ray Reddington never needs anyone. I used to think you cared about me, I thought it was perhaps because I thought I was your daughter and when you said I wasn't I couldn't help but wonder why it was that you cared about me so much, and you know what I found, nothing. I could find no explanation or reason that you would care about me as much as you did; so when realization set in. I began to work and work and work and now here you are, coincidentally on the day that I needed you the most."

During her rant, she failed to notice him stand up and move to right in front of her. Reaching out he grabbed her arms and held her still in order to stop her pacing. As she looked up into his eyes, it was then that she finally got her reason for his concern, looking back at her was the look of a man in love with someone. Before she could react or say anything his mouth covered hers and he placed a strong kiss on her lips. After a moment he pulled away just a fraction of an inch and allowed himself to speak.

"Does that answer your question Lizzie?"

Her only response was to nod as he began to kiss her again.

A/N: Kind of the long way around, but I finally got there.