5. New isn't always better (Architect of destruction)

Of course she's going to compare them - the guys she's slept with.

The most charitable way to describe Max, as a lover, is that he's pedestrian. He's safe. And maybe that's what Robin needs right now. So, okay, maybe she's tried to spice things up a little in the bedroom, but he was even less into it that Ted was. Say what you like about Barney, but at least he was willing to experiment.

So it's not just that Max isn't well endowed. If she's completely honest, she doesn't get that tingle when he touches her. And at any other time in her life she'd probably have dumped him but right now she's still hurting, still burned from Don, and she needs this. It's not exactly flattering but it's true.

A relationship is what she needs - something new, something easy. Being with Max makes things easy. It takes the pressure off her somehow, lets her laugh more freely, take things a little less seriously. She knows it's not going to last, but he's the perfect guy to be with while she's still healing.

For a while, it works. Until Marshall makes him paranoid and the jerk breaks up with her.

6. Feeling Needed (Baby Talk)

The question's on the tip of her tongue but she just can't say it. Barney makes her feel empowered, feel strong in a way she hasn't in months and yet she still can't ask him.

They sit side by side on his couch and he's still wearing that ridiculous blue silk robe that she remembers so well. He's got a thing for silk.

And she can't ask him the question she wants to ask him.

In a way, it's a relief to know that they definitely won't have sex. He's just been nailing that creepy Mommy's Boy chick after all. Just the thought of it… ew, gross.

So instead, they talk. And he's sweet and funny and a little bit more serious than usually because he doesn't have to play to the crowd for her like he does with the others. In the end, Robin doesn't really care if she made Barney feel needed, because right now, he's here for her. If she didn't know any better, she'd think that he learned something when she rounded on him after the whole Subway Wars incident.

But no, he seems genuine enough and grateful that she got rid of his latest crazy bimbo for him. And the question bubbles up inside her again. She wants to ask him, she really does. She wants to ask him if he still thinks about her, if he even regrets their break up. She wants to ask him, not to re-open any old wounds or anything, but simply because Ted's got her feeling vulnerable and she's been thinkig about it for a while.

Barney's always so great when she feels vulnerable. Almost always.

But Robin can't quite bring herself to vocalise the question. Maybe it's better if she doesn't. Either he'll say he misses her and she'll feel pressured because they had sex recently, or he'll say that he hasn't and she'll feel disposable.

When she goes quiet, he leans in as though to kiss her, but stops just short, his lips hovering barely an inch from hers. Then he pulls away, offers to make her a drink, and Robin gets up to leave.

She has to leave - before she sleeps with him out of sheer confusion.

7. Halloween Parade (Canning Randy)

Two days later, upon leaving work, Robin finds Barney waiting for her and leaning nonchalantly against a yellow cab.

"Hey, Barney," she says, a little confused, but more than glad to see him. "What're you doing here?"

"Caught today's show," he replies. "You looked like you needed a Bro."

Well yes, she does. "Hey, you actually watched my show?" She asks, knowing he does, but usually he TiVos it.

"I pulled an all-nighter," he grins, holding open the door of the cab for her. "You wanna go get a steak?"

"For breakfast?" She laughs. "Hell yeah!"

They slide into the back of the cab and her hip bumps against his. She's suddenly very aware of him. She was expecting him to smell of booze and cheap perfume, expecting to see a smudge of lipstick on his collar, but instead there's just a hint of spicy musk and cigarette smoke. It's kind of yummy actually.

"So, what's up?" He asks her, oblivious. "You and Becky were sparky today. Not that I'm complaining because your boobs jiggle when you get irritated. But I'm guessing she's done something to piss you off?"

Robin shrugs. Maybe she doesn't need a Bro right now. Maybe she needs something else from him. But they're done with the relapse thing, haven't they? Three times was enough. Still, she leans into him and lets his warmth envelop her. "She's done a commercial," she admits, feeling a little defeated.

"Oh-ho-ho! That thing with the boats?" He lets out a hooting, mocking laugh. "Seriously, that's what you're worried about? She's a bimbo. Since when have you been threatened by bimbos?"

"I don't know," she huffs, irritably. "I just feel like I'm Liz Lemon, you know?"

"What – hot, looks awesome in glasses?"

She pokes him in the arm. "Nope. Brilliant and under-appreciated."

He snatches up her finger in his hand, and holds her gaze for a beat. "You're appreciated. I appreciate you." Then he slides his other hand under the hem of her skirt, the tips of his fingers brushing over her inner thigh.

She's missed his clever, dextrous fingers so she doesn't stop him. Raising one eyebrow, she spreads her legs a little, giving him easier access, and he takes the hint, pushing aside the lace scrap of her panties with his thumb.

"So do a commercial too," he says, his voice a little rough. "Who cares about integrity? Take the money and run, that's my motto."

Biting her lower lip, Robin stifles a moan, thankful for the growl of the engine and the low grind of tyres on asphalt.

Five minutes later, she's so ready for that steak. And she feels a whole lot better.

8. Don't tell (Natural History)

They leave the museum early and go back to her place.

Robin just holds him. They don't speak, but they lay on her bed, fully clothed, his head resting on the crook of her arm, their bodies pressed together.

She doesn't know what she expected from tonight but it wasn't this.

It's weird, because when he groped her at the museum, it freaked her out a little, like he was getting too comfortable with her, and someone they knew might see them. That worried her way more than getting caught touching the exhibits.

Still, she'd drawn the line and he'd accepted it. They'd had fun.

And then Barney had found out about his Dad. His real Dad. Not some fantasy about Bob Barker or James's father but his real, honest-to-goodness Dad. God, what must Barney be going through? Robin aches inside for him. But she respects his pride too much to pester him. She actually even feels a little pleased that he's asked her to keep this a secret. She likes having something special between them again.

And maybe that should worry her more than him squeezing her ass in public.

After an hour or so, she thinks he must be asleep, but when she tries to pull away his fingers clutch at her dress. Looking up at her, she can see that his eyes are a little red.

What must he be thinking? Maybe that it might be his fault that his Dad left him? But, damn-it, he was just a little kid. She's seen a couple of photos of Barney as a child and he was a cutie, with a mop of curly blond hair and those wide, blue eyes. What bastard could abandon a kid like that?

Maybe the same kind of bastard that could tell his daughter that he always wanted a son, and make her feel like she could never be good enough.

Barney blinks once, leans forward, and kisses her.

It startles her. They haven't kissed since they broke up and Barney never does anything by halves. His tongue slides confidently between her lips, flicking over her teeth, and she gets that tingle. The tingle she never got with Max.

It's still just a relapse, she tells herself. Or comfort sex. Yeah, let's go with comfort sex.