Chapter 17

Alex woke up tired. Deep, restful sleep had eluded her for two weeks. The captain said he would be home soon; whatever the hell "soon" meant in FBI time was anyone's guess.

It was Friday and she and Auxland had cleared a surprisingly straight forward case earlier that morning. She was so sick of Auxland. The weekend off was a welcome relief. She stopped by her father's place to empty the ash trays and to take out the trash. Her father was in a particularly good mood having won a nice take at his Thursday night poker game.

"Hey, baby girl. Have I thanked you lately for taking such good care of your old man?"

"Sure thing, Pop," she answered as she checked the frig for the staples – milk, eggs, and cheese. All present and accounted for.

"How are they treating you down at 1PP these days?"

"Everything is good. No complaints."

"You and Bobby worked things out yet?"

"I told you, Pop. Bobby's been gone for almost a year now. I haven't talk to him."

"But you still think about him, right?"

"Don't start." Alex was busy tidying up the small apartment.

"Don't start what? I'm just saying, you care about the guy and I know he cares about you. I may be old and washed up, but I still got eyes. I see the way he looks at you. That doesn't just go away."

"Well, I'll let you know just as soon as I know. The captain said he should be home from his assignment soon."

"When he gets home, you send him by with a bottle of that Scotch he likes so much. He and I need to discuss his intentions."

"Sure thing, Pop. I've got to go… you need anything else?"

"No, no, I'm fine."

Alex patted him on the shoulder and headed back out to her car. She pulled in a long breath of fresh air and headed home. She was just getting out of the shower when her phone rang. She didn't recognize the number and hesitated, at first, to answer.

"Eams," she answered on a sigh.

"Alex, you o.k.?"

She nearly dropped the phone. "Bobby! Bobby, where are you?"

"I'm out front paying for my cab." She could hear him smiling.

"You're here… out front… at… at my house?" She dropped the phone and took off running before he could answer. She threw open the front door and squinted into the dark. He seemed to materialize as he made his way up the walk. She waited, frozen, as he climbed the front porch steps. He stopped just in front of her and dropped his duffle bag. She shivered even though the evening air was rather warm. The corner of his lips turned upward, ever so slightly, forming a shy smile. It was more than Alex could bear. She threw her arms around his neck and molded herself to him. Bobby closed his eyes and held her as tightly as he dared. She felt him exhale and sink down into her embrace. She pulled back, just far enough to see into his heavily lidded eyes. She moved her hands to play with the curls at the back of his neck. "You need a haircut," she teased.

His eyes darkened. "I need you," he whispered.

She crushed his lips with hers. Her kiss was hungry and eager. He met her need with his own. They half stumbled to the bedroom, leaving a trail of Bobby's clothing down the hall. When they reached the bed, Bobby smoothed Alex's hair away from her face. Her smile reached her eyes. "I love you," he whispered and began tracing her jaw with small, tender brushes from his lips. He pulled her robe off one shoulder and traced the curve of her neck, down to her collar bone. He untied her robe and caressed her arms as it slid to the floor. He lifted her just under her bottom so that her legs wrapped around his waist. His kisses were slow and deliberate, heartbreakingly tender. He sat on the bed with her straddling his lap. She teased his curls with her fingers as his hands and his mouth began an agonizingly slow exploration. Then he lifted her and gently placed her on her back as he hovered just above her. "Alex… I …"

"I love you, Bobby."

Monday morning 1PP

When the elevator doors opened in the parking garage at 1PP, Bobby hesitated as Alex boarded. "You coming?" she asked with her eyebrows raised. He took a deep breath and stepped forward in silence. On the ride up, they were alone for five floors. Alex held his hand and whispered, "Just remember, he asked you to come back, not the other way around."

When the elevator opened on the fifth floor, Peter what's his name, the sign language interpreter stepped on to the elevator. "Alexandra, so nice to see you… Detective Goren," he said with a curt nod in Bobby's direction. Bobby flinched at the way he said his name.

"Hello, Peter. How have you been?" Alex asked.

"Doing well, thank you. And you?"

"Great, thanks."

They rode in awkward silence to the ninth floor. When he exited, Alex turned to Bobby, "His attitude has nothing to do with your return. You know why he doesn't like you."

Bobby chuckled. "Yeah, because you liked me better."

"Exactly. Everything is gonna' be fine." She smoothed his tie and bounced up on her toes to give him one quick peck on the cheek. "For luck," she said with a wink.

When the doors to 1PP opened, Bobby followed Alex to his old desk which was, at present, being occupied by a young, skinny guy in an Abercrombie sweater and a pair of kaki pants. Alex pointed in his general direction. "Meet Detective Auxland." Bobby extended his hand and received a rather delicate handshake in return. "Robert Goren," he stated.

"Goren? You were Alex's partner."

"Is her partner," came a voice from behind Detective Auxland. Captain Hannah strode past Auxland with an outstretched hand to Bobby. "Good to see you Bobby."

"You too, Captain." As the two big men shook hands, Alex could see the tension fall from Bobby's shoulders.

"Detective Auxland, while the department appreciates your work here at Major Case, I'm afraid your temporary assignment has come to an end. You are being transferred back to homicide, effective immediately. Should a position in Major Case become available, you will be the first one I call. Now… Detective Eams, Detective Goren if you will join me in my office, we have a few housekeeping issues to attend to."

"You'll be the first one I call?" whispered Eams as they crossed the room.

"Well, maybe the second or third," the captain answered as he held the door to his office open for his two detectives.

"I'm glad you're here, Goren. You too, Eams. Your clear rate over the ten years or so you worked together is beyond impressive." They both offered humble smiles in answer. "That said… I did my homework. I talked to Jimmy Deakens, looked over your jackets, so on and so forth and concluded that this department is very much in need of your services. As I explained to you on the phone, Bobby, you'll be required to attend eight sessions with a Dr. Grayson, psychiatrist, as a part of your reinstatement. Brass overruled me on that one, although it may not be such a bad idea. You've had a lot to deal with here in the recent past."

Bobby nodded.

"Don't worry, though. From what I hear, this Dr. Grayson is pretty easy on the eyes." Bobby smiled politely while Alex furrowed that deep brow of hers. "As of right now, you two are officially back in business. I expect nothing less than your best. I want to be kept in the loop at all times, and I want you to know that you can come to me with any problems or concerns. You afford me that, and you can rest assured that I will always have your back."

"Thank you, Captain. I know you're the reason I'm back and I appreciate it."

"Your reputation and Detective Eams' reputation, that's why you're back."

They thanked the captain again and headed back to their desks. Bobby's desk was now unoccupied as Auxland had very few belongings to gather. "Easy on the eyes, my ass," Alex grumbled as soon as they were out of earshot of the captain. Bobby sniffed and tried to hide a smile as they parted ways at their desks. He sat down across from Alex and felt a peace that he had not felt in a very long time.

A/N: Peter the interpreter was one of my favorite characters to dislike. If you watch that episode, Bobby is very threatened by him. Bobby and I both (ha-ha) hated the way he called Alex, Alexandra. It was one of the few "shippy" episodes they gave us. The episode is called Silencer and I wrote a short little FF based on that episode because the writers set it up so well for a shipper to draw conclusions.

One more chapter ought to wrap this up. It will take place in the series finale (again with the tears!)

Thank you for reading!