Disclaimer: See Chapter 1
A/N: Thanks to Aisha for being the first to review my story. I'm glad you liked it. I believe you are right, I am the first to write a multi-chapter Eli/Alicia fic. I love the idea of them, and am also surprised that there aren't more fics out here for these two. Sadly, not everyone likes unconventional pairings, like we do, but I guess that's what makes them unconventional. Lol! As for your question, Will or Peter, I would have to say Will. I like his character better. Now if you were talking about the actor, then I would say I've been a Chris Noth fan since Law & Order. But for Alicia, I like Will better, but I still have hope, the kind of hope one uses when wishing on a star, that she'll throw over both, and tell Eli 'Take me, I'm yours!" Lol! Enjoy, and I promise more chapters soon.
We'll See
Chapter 3
She would readily admit that her parting comment to Peter had been petty. She would even go so far as to say it was cruel. And she did feel a little twinge of guilt for saying it, even though he deserved far worse. Which was why she found herself lying in her bed, staring at the ceiling, at half past two, and wondering if she had hurt him in some small way.
She knew that he was aware of how he'd hurt her, and despite their few brief physical interactions, that she didn't trust him. When they were alone together, her dislike and distrust showed more than she'd like. She also wondered for a moment if her apparent friendliness with Eli Gold, had stabbed just as deep as her parting words. For a second she hoped so. But that brought her thoughts back to the small twinge of guilt she felt over her words.
She shook herself mentally and finally settled on the fact that Peter had no right to judge her on anything, after all of his indiscretions, and that she could be friends with whomever she chose. With that thought firmly settled in her mind, she fell into a restful sleep.
Peter on the other hand, was pacing the kitchen still. He knew he should get some sleep, but the giant sense of foreboding that hung over his head like a black cloud, refused to dissipate. He couldn't put his finger on what it was exactly, but he knew that something had changed, and that it wasn't necessarily for the better. Finally he gave up his pacing in favor of staring at his own bedroom ceiling. He sighed into the darkness and silently admitted to himself just how much he missed Alicia, and that as much as he wanted things to go back to the way they were, his life was never going to be the same again.
As the weeks started to pass, she withdrew from Peter, silently but surely letting him go. She knew in her heart that she was finally relinquishing the past. Peter noticed that she stood just a little farther away, and while she was polite as always, she was distant in her tone and mannerisms as well. The kids knew things were different between their parents, but they couldn't quite figure out what it was exactly. And because their mother was never close to their father when they were around anyway, it wasn't as obvious to them.
Eli Gold noticed. Alicia was subtle about everything she did, but he was very good at reading people. He wondered briefly if she would hold true to their agreement and give him a heads up before she divorced Peter. He sighed and waited for the bomb to drop, or the final straw that would shatter their already fragile façade, so that he could enact damage control.
The beginning of the end came a few weeks later, like a precursor to the final straw that would break the back of the proverbial camel. Eli was looking over the mentions of Peter, looking for anything potentially hazardous. In his perusal he included anything pertaining to Alicia as well, just in case. What he came across was an opinion poll, on why Alicia stayed with Peter. The choices were simple ones: money, love, and the kids. Things were dead even between the kids and money. He shook his head. He would have to warn both Peter and Alicia about it, as it seemed to be a popular poll. That wasn't the only thing to catch his eye. An article closely knitted with the poll, featured the topic of Alicia and Will Gardner. The article speculated that she was sleeping with him behind Peter's back, and that it was revenge for the hell he had put her through.
"Peter, you need to see this." Eli turned his screen toward the other man. Peter gave a sad smile.
"Don't worry about it Eli. They can speculate about it all they want. Nobody will pay attention to that poll. What else is on there?" Eli looked after the man and shook his head. People would pay attention and it would cost him when everything hit the fan. It was cost Alicia too.
"An article speculating on Alicia's relationship with Will Gardner." There was a tightness around Peter's mouth at the mention of Gardner's name, but he didn't say anything. Eli turned the screen back and continued to peruse the site. What he came across next was interesting to say the least. It was a photo array entitled Women of Scandalous Marriages. Alicia was ranked number one. He turned the screen back around to Peter again, and this brought a laugh from the man.
"That's just a bit of fun Eli. Let it go. We're fine." Eli suddenly felt hatred for his client, and out of nowhere he wished that everything was done and over with, so that he would no longer have to deal with such and unrepentant man. He even felt slightly sorry for Alicia, for having been married to him. He was struck by the fact that any loyalty he felt to the Florrick name, was for Alicia alone, and that if given a choice, he would happily sell Peter to the wolves, if it meant protecting her. It felt odd, and yet righteous, and totally at estranged from everything client he'd worked for and with before. He tried to shake it off, and scoffed at himself that he was losing his touch, that he was off his game. But it was more and he knew it.
Alicia sat in her office, contemplating the subtle shifts she'd been making. She was good at subtle shifts; she was a lawyer after all. Will hadn't noticed yet. He was still wrapped up in his world. A few times when they'd spoken about things, had friendly conversations, she'd felt like he was expecting her to say something, or that she was going to react in someway, but that had tapered off. He appeared to be seeing someone new, and she was happy that his focus was away from her. She needed the distance from him as well. Like a pond after the rock had sunk to the bottom, everything was evening out for her. She knew it wouldn't last long, it never did, but for now, it felt nice to be on even keel, even if it was only temporary.