A/N: I was so frustrated with the end of Goren and Eams that I could not finish their story. However, since their return, I have been inspired. I hope to wrap this up quickly. Enjoy!

Chapter 15

And shut her out of his life, he did. So much so that when she told him he was no longer welcome at Major Case, he could only kiss her on the cheek and walk away. He was so used to walking away that he barely felt the pull to stay this time. Alex, on the other hand, felt it deeply, as she always did where Bobby was concerned.

It had been four months since she had called the Chief and kindly declined his offer to take the Captain's position. Homicide wasn't so bad. It was no different, really, than Major Case. It seemed that when the not so rich and famous wound up dead, it was generally for the same reasons that the elite ended up that way – jealousy, lust, greed…

Her partner was a good guy. He was young, capable, and respectful. Detective Brandon Marshall had a pretty wife and a new baby girl. He had goals, too. He wanted to work Major Case. He considered Alex a bit of a legend in her own time. And he had questions, lots and lots of questions. Two weeks into their partnership, he asked her about the infamous Detective Goren. She was reluctant to go there at first, but Marshall seemed to have no preconceived notions about Bobby. He knew only of his record and of the rumors. He was genuinely interested in Alex and Bobby's history together at Major Case. Alex had forced herself not to think about Bobby since the day he walked out of 1PP and seemingly out of her life forever. Once she opened up to Marshall, she found the memories, while tinged with pain, were happy and cherished memories after all. "No regrets," she had told Marshall with finality. He had not asked about Detective Goren since. He was intuitive enough to know that he would get no more from his partner on the subject.

It had been a particularly blah Friday. The rain kept coming and coming. She and Marshall had spent the day tracking down the girlfriend of a potential suspect only to find, at the fifth door they knocked on, that she had been sent to rehab in Maryland two weeks ago. One quick phone call confirmed her alibi. Alex considered it a wasted day. She called her father on the way home and promised to stop by tomorrow. She blamed a hard day at work for her absence this evening. He said he understood and suggested she bring Bobby and a bottle of Scotch with her on Saturday. She said she would see what she could come up with. Perhaps it was the weather or maybe, if she was being honest with herself, it was the mention of his name that made her feel so lonely. She wondered if he was lonely too. She picked up her phone and scrolled through the names on her speed dial list. "Partner". She stared at the word on her phone. She remembered Bobby, next to her in her bed, looking over her shoulder and watching her enter the names and numbers in her new phone. "Partner?" he had said as she entered his cell number next to the word. She had looked at him, one eyebrow raised in challenge. "Yes… partner… always". He had kissed her then. He had kissed her in answer to her challenge. "Always and in all ways," he had said. They had made love that night. She was warm and tense remembering the way he moved, remembering the way he held her like she was the most delicate and most precious object on the earth. She shuddered and pulled her phone to her heart as a bright flash of lightening illuminated her front porch. That's when she saw the hulking figure stationed on her top step. She squinted into the rain and the darkness uncertain now if she had really seen him. A loud clap of thunder made her jump. It seemed to echo the sound of her heartbeat in her ears. Then, another flash of lightening confirmed what she had seen. There was Bobby, dripping wet on her front porch, his attention focused in her direction. She stuffed her phone in her front pocket and made a mad dash from the car. She slipped a little on the top step and Bobby instinctively grabbed for her. She sucked in her breath and steadied herself against him. He stepped back holding her at arms length, reluctant to let her go. "I'm o.k." she said a little more sharply than she had meant to. He let go of her arms and shoved his hands in his pockets. He was soaking wet. Standing there on her front porch, soaked to the bone, he was the most beautiful thing she had ever seen. It tore at her heart to be so close yet so very, very far from him. "You should come inside, you're all wet."

"I…" was his only reply.

"Just come inside, o.k.?"

He nodded his consent and followed her through the front door. "Are you cold?" He must have seen how her hands shook as she tried to unlock the door.

Inside the house, she turned the lock and fiddled with the knob allowing herself a moment to gain her composure. She spun to face him. "No, I'm not cold," she said flatly, "Stay here. I'll get some towels." She sped past him and down the hall. He stood very still, dripping in her foyer. She returned shortly and handed him a small stack of towels and a change of clothes. He recognized the t-shirt on top. It was his. She hadn't gotten rid of his things. "I'm gonna' go change… You do the same." He nodded in answer.

When she returned, she found him in the kitchen making coffee. She leaned against the doorway and watched him. She still loved the way he moved. He was so graceful to be so big. She sighed and he turned. He paused and took her in, top to bottom, with heavily lidded eyes. She watched as they visibly darkened. Not one to be still for long, he pointed to the machine, "Coffee…"

She chuckled, a nervous, throaty noise that she couldn't help. The corner of his lip curved up ever so slightly and then it was gone. "You left Major Case."

"Yes," she said as she pushed off the doorway and plopped into a kitchen chair.

He leaned back onto the counter. "Why?"

She shrugged. "I guess I just didn't want to do it without you." There was no emotion in her voice. She had played this scene over and over in her mind, hundreds, maybe thousands of times. But here, now, on this melancholy day, she had no emotion to conjure. The truth is what it is. She simply did not want to do it without him.

"Alex…"

"Don't Bobby. It's not your fault. And I won't help you beat yourself up. The truth is, I was ready for a change. You and I had not been "us" for a very long time. Besides, I like homicide. All the fun of Major Case minus the politics."

The coffeemaker beeped and Bobby pushed off the counter. He made two cups of coffee, one black and one with too much sugar and cream. He handed Alex hers and sat down across from her at the table.

"Why are you here," she asked, not unkindly.

"I've been working… with the FBI… on the Captain's case."

Alex took a deliberate sip of coffee. "And?"

"And… I'm going away for a bit, to tie up a few loose ends."

Alex hugged her knees up to her chest. "Is it very dangerous?"

"The usual, I guess."

"Can you tell me where you're going?"

"No, but I will if you want to know."

"Just tell me you won't take any unnecessary chances."

"I won't"

Another sip of coffee. "When do you leave?"

"Tomorrow"

She pursed her lips together. "Are you here to say goodbye?"

"I'm here to… Alex, I …" He took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "I don't know why I'm here except that I wanted… I needed to see you."

Alex unfolded herself from her chair and squatted downnext to his. She tentatively reached for his face. He instinctively leaned into her touch. She rubbed his jaw with her thumb. "I'm glad you're here." She cupped his face with both hands. "When this is done, you come back... to me".

He rested his forehead on hers. "I love you." His voice was barely a whisper.

She placed a small kiss on his forehead. "I know." She stood up, taking his hands in hers. "Come on, let's get some sleep".

She led him to her room and turned the covers back. Without a word, she crossed the room and disappeared. Bobby removed his pants and sat lightly on the bed. He could hear Alex in the bathroom going through her nightly routine. When she reappeared, he looked at her with a mix of fear and hope that tore at her sole. She flipped out the light and he felt, rather than saw, her crawl into bed. Finding his arm in the dark she pulled him down on his side. Without a word, she fitted herself to him and held him close. She kissed the back of his neck and whispered, "I love you, too." She could feel him shake as his silent tears escaped to run down his cheeks and onto the pillow. In silence, they each drifted into peaceful sleep.

TBC (All reviews appreciated)