Well, this is it, readers -- the final chapter. The story isn't over, by no means, just this part really needs to come to a close. Bobby and Amy will return very soon in a brand new story. Please remember that this story, while spanning 25 years, only covered 2 weeks in July in the present time.....Thank you all who have faithfully gone on this journey with me; I've loved every minute of it and you all have made it so much more enjoyable. Your comments and feedback, praise and criticism, but especially your intense emotional connection to my story and my characters have helped me to become a better writer along the way. Thank you all very much! I love every single one of you!

As usual, I want to thank my beta team: jcsavestheday, who helped me get it off the ground, and ciaddict and TCIF who helped me keep it going. Also thanks to VDObsessed and JudyG who came along side me at the end and helped me out as well. tuda........

Chapter 28 Is This the End?

Amy heard the noisy band enter the anteroom of Trey's home around 6:30. She knew Trey appreciated an extra hand helping with Hudson on Sunday evenings, so she made her way down the back hall and found the three laughing and giggling in Trey's sunny kitchen.

Laura had re-done the kitchen shortly after she had accepted Trey's marriage proposal. It was a light and airy space with shades of soft blues, greens and yellows decorating, highlighting and accenting the area beautifully. It saddened her every time she entered the room to think that Laura would never again be able to watch her family live and grow in the wonderful space she had so lovingly created.

Hudson saw her standing in the doorway and ran over to her, his arms outstretched and loud cries of "Gammy! Gammy!" on his lips. She bent down and eagerly scooped him up into her arms, giving him a hug and receiving a face full of "Hudson kisses" in return. She breathed in his warm little boy smell and fondly remembered Trey at the same age. Her eyes met Bobby's and she smiled warmly at him. Placing her grandson on the floor, she moved across the room to stand in front of Bobby.

Smiling up at him shyly she quietly thanked him for the flowers. He took her hand in his and gave it a squeeze, looking down at her as he did. "You're welcome," he replied back, equally softly.

Trey looked at them with an amused expression on his face. Amy caught his look and dropped Bobby's hand, moving away to approach her son. "Did you have a nice time in the park?" She forced a smile onto her face and into her voice.

"Yes," Trey answered her. He was concerned by the redness of her face and the puffiness of her eyes, but said nothing. "We had a great time. Hudson found lots of birds to chase and even got Bobby to chase birds with him."

Amy turned to look at Bobby. He shrugged and gave her a boyish grin. She shook her head and gave him a small smile in return. "Mom said you all went to the cemetery?" She let the question hang in the air.

Trey and Bobby looked at each other. Bobby spoke up first. "Yes. I took them with me to visit my mother's grave. I usually go every Sunday. Most visits are hard; my memories of her are not all pleasant, but having them with me made it easier for me. I wanted them to meet her…" his voice trailed off as he spread his arms slightly and shrugged again.

Amy smiled in understanding at Bobby. "I'm glad. I never got to meet her either; maybe I could go with you sometime?" Bobby looked at her as he leaned against the kitchen counter. He said nothing in response but the serious expression on his face and the whorl of emotions in his dark brown eyes spoke volumes. She was trying and he knew it, but wasn't sure how he felt about it just yet.

"Could the three of us talk later, please," Amy asked the two men. "I really need to speak to both of you and I'd like to have you both together. If that's okay with you?"

Bobby looked at Amy, then at Trey. He checked his watch. "Sure. I can stay for a bit longer."

"Okay, Mom," Trey replied. "I need to give Hudson his bath first. Is that okay?" Amy nodded. Trey turned to Bobby. "You wanna help me bathe Hudson?"

"Sure," Bobby agreed. He smiled at Amy as Trey led Hudson out of the kitchen. "I've learned more about little kids this afternoon than in my whole life."

"You seem to be having a great time," Amy commented.

"I'm loving every minute of it," Bobby answered her as he left to go upstairs.

Amy went back to her home to retrieve the photo album. She poured herself a large glass of white wine. As she placed the bottle back down on the counter, she thought better of it, and took the bottle with her back over to Trey's. This was a particularly delightful white wine and she decided that she'd like to share it.

When Bobby and Trey came back into the kitchen an hour later, they found Amy sitting at the kitchen table, a photo album open in front of her and tears streaming down her face.

"Are you all right, Mom," Trey asked her gently. He placed his hands on her shoulders and peered over to see what she was looking at. "Oh, I see," he said understandingly.

Bobby brought over a box of tissues he had found on the counter. "What's wrong?"

"Mom got my baby book out. She always gets weepy when she looks through old photos."

"I just can't believe you're all grown up," Amy said. "You're still supposed to be my little boy, like Hudson." She took the tissue Bobby held out to her and wiped her eyes. "Thanks," she said sheepishly. "I should know better, but…"

"Can I see," Bobby asked her softly.

Amy looked intently at him, taking in the warmth and friendship she saw in his deep brown eyes. "Not yet. I'd like to talk to you both first. Why don't you grab a glass of wine?" She indicated the bottle and glasses sitting on the counter.

Trey picked up the bottle and studied the label. "I haven't done more than taste this batch. Is it any good," he asked his mother as he poured two glasses of wine.

"It's fabulous," Amy gushed. "We're really going to need to push this one. I also think we should take some with us next week, but we can talk about that later. Sit!"

Bobby and Trey took seats at the table. Amy shifted so that she could face both of them. She grabbed some more tissues and took a deep breath. She exhaled loudly, composed herself and began to speak.

"Please let me say my piece without interruption, okay?"

Bobby and Trey nodded. Bobby indicated she should continue with a graceful wave of his hand.

Amy inhaled deeply and began.

"Earlier today, I got the most beautiful arrangement of roses I have ever seen. They were from Bobby," she paused to smile at him, "and they challenged me."

She looked at Trey. "Bobby basically has put the ball back in my court," she told him. "It's up to me now as to how to continue." She passed the three cards from the flowers over to Trey. He flipped through them quickly as Amy continued.

"So I went upstairs and pulled out my box of photo albums. I was looking for one in particular, from the summer of '83," she looked at Bobby as she said this and smiled bitter sweetly at him. "I relived it all, Bobby, every bit of it. I was still looking at it when Mom found me. She basically vocalized the question I had been considering. Why I had never told you I was pregnant." She stopped to wipe her face as the tears began to flow. She took several deep, shuddering breaths and Bobby reached over and took her hand in one of his. She found comfort in the strength of his large hand wrapped around hers and was able to continue.

"I wasn't completely honest with you or with myself that morning. I wasn't lying when I said I didn't want the life of a military wife. I was craving stability. All that moving around, making and losing friends and boyfriends was hard; I was tired of it. It hurt, deeply. So because of that, I was scared, Bobby. I was so sure you were going to get mad and reject me that I figured if I pushed you away, then you couldn't hurt me and I would be all right." She looked sadly at his kind, sweet face. There was no hatred there, nor pity. No, what she saw in Bobby's face was compassion laced with regret. "It was foolish, I know that now. I'm sorry I never gave you a chance."

"And Trey," she smiled lovingly at her son and reached her other hand out to him. "I should have told you years ago about Bobby. You should have had him around a lot sooner. I'm so very sorry.

"I also have to apologize to you both for being so angry lately. I've been angry at you, Bobby, for nearly arresting Trey, for making me have to tell you about him. Angry at how you seemed to handle it all so well. You didn't yell at me, or get angry or upset around me. You didn't do anything mean or ugly or vindictive, you just walked away and processed it all. You haven't judged me harshly or unfairly. I've been angry because you're making yourself a part of Trey's family and I couldn't handle it. I got angry because I couldn't admit to myself that I wasn't in control anymore. Nothing was neat and orderly. I was doing just fine on my own, my own way. Then you came along, and it got all messed up; I got scared again." She looked directly at Bobby as she spoke softly, "I've been scared you'd take Trey away from me."

At his loud gasp of air, Amy turned and looked at Trey. "Oh, sweetie, I know that's not true, but I've been so messed up inside for so many years over all of this, that I haven't been thinking straight lately. I haven't been sure at all of what I've been feeling lately. All this coming out and having to deal with Laura's death, it's just all been too much, you know?"

Trey nodded and squeezed her hand even harder. He moved his chair around next to hers and wrapped he arms around her, hugging her tightly to him. "I could never leave you," he breathed into her ear. "I couldn't leave even after I got married. I moved in next door," he said with a soft laugh.

"Thank you," Amy told him. "It's nice to see you happy. I'm glad you're enjoying getting to know your fff — Bobby."

Trey looked his mom in the eye as he spoke. "I wish you'd told me sooner, too. Heck, I wish you'd never lied to him in the first place. But I can't change that, so I'm just going to go on from here." He stood up and stretched. "I think you two need to talk even further." He bent down and kissed her softly on the cheek. "Good night, Mom." He reached across the table to shake Bobby's hand. "Good night, Bobby," he said. "Thanks for spending the day with me; I really enjoyed it."

Bobby stood and shook his son's hand. "It was my pleasure. Thanks for coming to the cemetery with me."

"Any time. I mean it, okay?" Trey smiled at Bobby. "Good night," he said one last time with a wave as he left the kitchen.

"He's a wonderful young man," Bobby commented as he sat back down and faced Amy.

Amy fidgeted with the tissue in her hands. She looked down at them as she spoke. "Yes, he is."

The silence stretched on. Neither one spoke.

"You're not angry with me," she said. It wasn't a question, but wasn't a statement, either.

"Not really, I mean, not anymore," Bobby stumbled over the words. "I was, but, well, the time is long past for me to be angry. I've moved onto sadness."

"Sadness?"

"Yes. Sadness at everything I've missed out on. Sadness at not knowing, at not being able to be there for you, to take care of you, to work things out with you. Sadness at finding out that you didn't trust me enough to take the chance and tell me, and that hurts. It hurts deeply, Amy. Probably the worst thing you could have done to me was not trust me enough to tell me. You didn't think I was worth taking the risk of telling me what had happened. I don't know if I can get past that, Amy. I'm not even sure if I want to.

"I've discovered that I still love you. I never stopped thinking about you, wondering what happened to you, what I had done wrong and what life could have been for us had we stayed together. I know that if you had told me you were pregnant, we could have made it work."

"But I would have insisted on finishing school," Amy cut in emphatically.

"And I would have wanted you to finish," Bobby snapped back. "Do I get the courtesy of you listening while I talk?"

"Sorry," Amy mumbled. She looked back down at her hands and tore at the tissue.

"Amy, I'm confident we could have worked out any obstacles. Even your grandfather's desire to have you help him start the winery." Bobby fell silent. He rubbed his hand across the back of his neck, then looked over at Amy.

"What now," Amy asked softly.

"I don't know, Amy," Bobby answered. "What do you want? Do you even know where you want me to fit in, IF you want me to fit in to all this?" He waved a large elegant hand through the air as he spoke. "I've told you I'm not going anywhere. I'm going to be here, if not as a part of your life, then for sure as a part of Trey and Hudson's life. I've missed out on too much and I'm not going to miss out on any more." He became agitated and rose to pace the kitchen.

"I would love the opportunity to be your friend. To at least see what, if anything, is left between us. There's so much for me to learn about and I want to learn about it from you. What happened to you, Trey's growing up, the winery, your travels, your life, all of it." His tone of voice became more and more emphatic, his volume louder and his gestures more grand as he spoke. "But you have to want this, too. If you don't, fine. I won't push myself on you, Amy. The decision is yours to make, I meant that.

"You think about it while you're in Indonesia." He turned then, and caught the look of shock on Amy's face, and realized he'd nearly been yelling at her. He stopped pacing and ran his hand across the back of his neck and stared at the floor. He began to stammer. "I-I-I'm sorry, Amy. I didn't mean to yell like that. I…it's just….you bring out these emotions in me, all this frustration and-and…" his voice trailed off and he sat down in his chair hard with a loud sigh.

"We're never going to get anywhere if we can't get past this," Amy told him sadly. "There's so much hurt and pain and regret Bobby. Do you think we can ever get past it," she asked him earnestly.

Bobby looked deeply into her eyes. He saw pain, regret, hurt, all the things she had mentioned and more. He saw a glimmer of the eyes he had once drowned in and that gave him hope. "I hope so. I want to try. Do you?"

Amy continued to look deeply into Bobby's eyes. She saw the same pain, regret and hurt that she knew was in her own eyes. She, too, also saw something more. A flicker, a small spark that brought back that feeling she'd had so many years ago when she first met his eyes and thought to herself that she could be in trouble with this man. Did she want to try? Was it worth the risk? Was Bobby still worth the risk? "I think so."

Bobby raised a single eyebrow at her and tilted his head to the side.

"No," Amy said determinedly. "I know so. Yes. I want to try."

Bobby took both her hands in his and they smiled at each other. Amy let out a small giggle and blushed under Bobby's gaze.

"I'm still scared, Bobby. I don't want to lose you again."

"What's the worst that could happen? We end up as friends. Would that be so bad?" He caressed her cheek gently.

"No, that wouldn't be so bad at all," Amy smiled softly at him and leaned into his caress.

Bobby looked down at the table and noticed the time on his watch. "Amy, it's getting late. I have to go in early to work tomorrow. The Captain wants a full report on all our open cases, and well, I haven't exactly been working on that report this weekend."

"Yeah; you have been…um…slightly distracted." Amy laughed.

Bobby grinned at her in agreement and stood up from the table. He continued to hold her hands and gently pulled her up to stand in front of him. He pulled her close and looked down at her.

"I foresee a problem already," he told her seriously.

"And what would that be," she asked coyly.

"Work. It's pulling us apart already." He pushed her hair behind her ear and continued to look at her. "Can I see you later this week?"

"I'd like that. I'm going to be very busy, getting ready for our trip." She ran her hands down the front of his shirt, straightening some imaginary wrinkles. Bobby suddenly found himself having a hard time concentrating on the conversation as she continued to unknowingly caress him. "If you call me Tuesday morning, I should have an idea how my week will go. Even if it's just a quick lunch, I'd really like to see you before we leave," Amy said shyly.

"Okay," Bobby said softly, before lowering his head and kissing her gently on the lips.

"Oh, Bobby," Amy breathed out as she ended the kiss and rubbed her cheek against his. "I'm so sorry. I've missed you so much." She pulled back and looked him in the eyes again. "I promise I'll try not to be so stupid this time around."

Bobby hugged her to him. "I'm going to hold you to that." He pulled away and smiled at her. "I do have to go." He took her hand and walked quietly with her to the front door of Trey's home. "I'll call you Tuesday," he told her as he moved out the door.

"Tuesday," Amy repeated as she closed the door gently behind him. She leaned her back against the door and sighed, a happy smile on her face.

Fin….there will be more to come in my next as-yet-untitled story, coming very soon.