Her car keys dangled from her left index finger as she shuffled from one foot to the other. She thought about just barging in, but he probably wouldn't be too receptive to that and she needed him to hear her out. She wanted to have at least one conversation with him that didn't end in a screaming match or one of them walking out. Knowing all of this did nothing in the way of lifting her courage level. She was going to have to take that step forward and bang her clenched right fist against the door until he let her in.

Her voice caught in her throat when the door was unexpectedly thrown open revealing her convenient archenemy on the other side. The forest green dress shirt buttoned almost all the way to his throat was accompanied by a pair of cotton denim jeans and black tennis shoes. His hair was still wet from his shower and his dark almond eyes were wide as he stared back at her. He had his left hand braced on the doorframe and the other shoved in his front pocket. She couldn't tell if he was still angry or just unsure if he should be the one to initiate conversation.

Clearing her throat to speak, Robin found herself immediately taking a step back only to have Patrick reach out and take hold of her right wrist, stilling any movement. "I assume you came by for a reason." He practically growled at her, his mouth set in a pinched line. Robin glanced down at his hand, wishing he would relinquish his hold as much as she prayed he wouldn't. She met his malevolent gaze with a softer, more vulnerable one. "Well?"

"I can see now that it was a mistake coming here…" Her voice trailed off as she tried to step out of his tight grip. He didn't release her, nor did he show any signs of wanting to.

"What do you want, Robin?" Patrick demanded coarsely, pushing her arm toward her and letting it go as if he couldn't bear to touch her for another second. Her eyes grew even softer and she tried to look away, but he made sure to keep her doing so, his stare so intense now that it caused her bottom lip to tremble.

"You." Robin whispered, waiting for some kind of reaction but not receiving anything. She cleared her throat and said it again, "I want you." He must have heard her that time, because his eyes flew to his shoes. When he glanced up, Robin's shoulders were stiff enough for her to have played goalie without any equipment whatsoever.

"All of the sudden?" Patrick challenged, moving his free hand to his left hip. He wasn't going to make this easy, but she hadn't expected him to. Slowly, she saw his features relax a little and felt a wave of relief wash over her.

"No, not all of the sudden. It took a while for me to realize it." Robin admitted, forcing her eyes to stay on his, willing neither of them to look away. This was serious shit and she didn't want to miss a single reaction.

"Realize what?" Patrick prodded, tilting his head in mock confusion. If she wasn't shaking, she might have leaned over and slapped him hard across the face. As it were, she was bare, vulnerable, and well-deserving of his resistance to what she was telling him.

Narrowing her eyes at him, Robin let out a silent growl of frustration. She hoped he made a mistake very soon, because she wanted the opportunity to be on the other side of the argument. She wanted to see him squirm. Okay Scorpio, get it together. "I shouldn't have treated you the way I did the other morning. It wasn't deserved. I just hadn't known Morgan was home and he could have, at any time, walked in on us. It's one of the reasons I've been separating the two of you." She blinked furiously at something that felt oddly like a mass of tears.

"Why didn't you just say that?" He wondered, resisting the urge to brush the moisture off of her cheeks.

"I was afraid." Robin murmured, lifting her chin with some difficulty.

"Why were you afraid?" He couldn't stand to see her cry, but if he didn't get her admission now, he never would. If he so much as touched her, he wouldn't be able to stop.

"You're so guarded. I didn't want you to think that I was pushing you into something you didn't want." She told him, fighting back sobs. Why was she all weepy? Why couldn't she keep it locked away like usual?

"You know what I want?" Patrick asked as he watched her through half-closed eyelids. "I want you to smile." He answered seriously taking a cautious step toward her. She wasn't running away. That was a good sign.

"Sorry to disappoint." Robin replied lamely. "Anything else?"

"Come on. Smile for me." Patrick insisted pressing his right index finger to her temple and drawing it over her lips. "You're sexy as hell when you smile."

"You're not going to want me anymore." Robin mumbled as he closed the distance between them and planted a careful kiss to her lips.

"How do you figure that?" Patrick inquired incredulously as her little arms wrapped around his neck.

"I'm a means to an end. I can't be a means to an end for you. I can't get hurt again." Robin trembled when Patrick's left hand skimmed inside her thin white jacket and pushed it off of her shoulders, leaving the flimsy straps of her pink sundress to keep her warm.

"It's physically impossible for me to stop wanting you. I need you…" Patrick countered, tugging her into him. "Right here." He clarified, sliding his right leg in-between hers and smiling when she started to lose her balance. Collecting her petite body in his arms, he held her protectively against him, feeling her heart gallop under his hand.

Robin was left with no other alternative but to breathe through her nose once Patrick captured her mouth with his. Her breath came in choppy pants as he softly massaged her breast in his palm, making certain that only the two of them could see what he was doing. His fingers tickled her skin but not in the sort of way that she would feel compelled to laugh. He used the heel of his hand to push the fabric away from her skin. Slowly scraping his teeth over her tongue as he pulled back, he felt a spasm run through her. Repeating the motion once he was certain she liked it, he cradled her face in his left hand and stared down at her fluttering eyelids.

A few droplets from his hair slid down the side of his face and fell into her mouth. This close to him, she could smell the cinnamon of his cologne. Kissing every inch of his face she could reach, she stood on tiptoe and pushed him into the door, letting him slide his hand under her bottom and lift her off of her feet. Braced against him, she held him tightly, not because she thought he might drop her but because she wanted to be as close to him as possible.

"See what you do to me?" Patrick accused gruffly shifting her in his arms. If she had thought he was frustrated in the bakery or on her couch, at this point her ego must be growing as rapidly as his shaft was.

"It does that on its own." Robin argued, bending her right leg enough to lift her dress a few inches. He took the opportunity given and pressed his shaft to her throbbing center. "Can we go upstairs now?" She didn't have to ask him twice. Dropping on arm to his side, he proceeded to shut them inside the apartment. "My purse…" She scrambled to get to her feet.

"I'll get it." Patrick assured her, setting her on her feet and going into the hall to retrieve the purse and jacket for her just in case she suddenly needed both of them. Throwing her keys into the front pocket of her purse, he joined her in his living room and threw the deadbolt.

He found Robin sitting on the arm of his recliner, her legs crossed, and her eyes darker than he could ever remember seeing them. She crooked her finger at him even though he didn't need a bit of coaxing. Drawing each of her straps down her arms, he dropped his mouth to her neck and sucked her skin there. She fussed with the button on his jeans, chewing on her bottom lip as she silently thanked the person who had invented tight jeans.

"I thought you were taking me upstairs." Robin recalled, yanking his shirt up his back by pulling at the collar.

"You really think I'd make it that far?" Patrick challenged, bunching up the skirt of her dress.

"I know I won't." Robin whispered, leaning up to place a teasing kiss on his lips before pulling away.

Robin's cell phone screamed from her purse a mere foot from them. Ignoring it, she clutched Patrick's shaft in her hand and tried to tackle the zipper. Patrick didn't seem all that worried about who might be calling her either as he was lifting her off of the arm of the chair and lowering her onto the cream-colored couch. Still, the phone chirped away. The damn thing was distracting and she couldn't ignore it any longer.

"Don't." Patrick heard himself beg as she crawled out from under him.

"I'm so sorry." Robin apologized, taking the phone from her bag and mentally reading off the number. "It's my uncle."

"Of course it is." Patrick had always known the commissioner hated him, but he must have underestimated just how much.

"I have dinner with him and Alexis. I have to go." Robin told him, slowly meeting his eyes.

"Why can't you cancel?" Patrick whined.

"You think I don't want to!" Robin shot back, squeezing her eyes shut to try and calm herself down. "It's my uncle's birthday. I told them I'd be there. Coming over here was a last-minute decision."

The phone, having done its job, was silent now. Patrick wondered how she would react if he chucked it into the wall with all the force he could muster. Her gaze was defensive and he knew he needed to take a step back and say he was sorry. Swallowing his pride, he said, "How long are you planning on staying over there?"

"I don't have a timetable, Patrick." Robin explained, folding her arms over her chest.

"What time does the party start?" Patrick wondered.

"Five minutes ago." Robin informed him, crouching down to get her purse. She had readjusted the dress and decided to leave her hair looking tousled as she had no other choice.

"I'm going with you." Patrick announced, the words leaving his mouth the second he thought them.

"Wha-what? Wait…what? Why?" Robin stumbled over her words, her eyes wide with shock.

"I don't want you to go alone." Patrick replied.

"I've gone alone plenty." Robin insisted.

"And that's just why I'm not going to make you do so tonight." Patrick countered.

"You're not making any sense." Robin shook her head.

"What's there to understand? Obviously, you'll have to leave before me because there's no way I'm stepping into your uncle's house in this condition." Patrick reasoned.

"Constant family. Pestering questions." Robin tried to get him to reconsider. She wasn't sure how else to explain his being there.

"Ever been to a Spencer family gathering?" Patrick challenged.

"Patrick, I'm serious." Robin stressed each word.

"I know." Patrick responded with a smug grin. "Now give me a kiss and I'll see you in a few minutes."

"I hope you don't expect to get lucky there." Robin said after she granted him his request.

"I think my balls just withered up in fear." They both glanced down to make sure.

"Are you sure you're going to be able to make it? You're in pretty bad shape." Robin noticed.

"I wouldn't miss it." Patrick promised.