AN: I was going to wait until tomorrow to post this chapter but I'm rather proud of it and didn't want to wait to share it. Enjoy it, savor it.

Will walked into the same bar he had walked into countless times before. He clearly remembered the gloomy atmosphere with all its dark wood paneling and dim lights. The same woman with her long dark chocolate hair was behind the bar. And Kalinda sat in her usual spot at the table in the back of the room beside a window. Out of all the things he had missed about Chicago, a drink with Kalinda was one of the top three. He crossed his way through the room, through the small amount of people and sat down in the chair opposite his dear friend, who already had ordered him a scotch.

"Hey Will." She said rather cheerfully for her and smiled warmly.

"K. Good to see you." He said affectionately.

"It's good to see you." They really weren't the hugging type of friends, even if they hadn't seen each other in months.

"So tell me how everything is!" He said positively. She tilted her head to the side slightly and raised an eyebrow.

"You call me with definitely something on your mind and you want to talk about me?"

"Well I'd like to catch up first. Before we got to me." She picked up her glass of scotch and took a sip.

"Things with me are… Fine. Now you."

"That's all I get after three months?" He said almost jokingly, he always wanted more but wasn't about to force her into saying anything she never wanted to.

"That's all there is." She shrugged her shoulders and looked out the window briefly. "How's New York treating you?" He thought on it for a minute.

"Well. Things are good there." She nodded thoughtfully and took another sip, he doing the same.

"So what's going on, Will?" She said in a get-to-the-point-already way. He took in a deep breath.

"I saw Alicia this morning when I arrived."

"And?"

"And… I don't think she wanted me to." He sipped his drink and let it burn the back of his mouth for longer than normal.

"I think it's a rough time for her." So she knew. Will contemplated that. Of course she knew, Kalinda knew everything and it wasn't like this was some small issue. Every paper and magazine was printing the Grace story.

"I just thought that… I don't know what I thought. Anyway, we had a fight just before I called you. I went there for dinner and Peter showed up at the end." He leaned back in his chair and shook his head. He really did not like Peter at all, never did.

"What'd you fight about?" Kalinda seemed to be completely nonchalant about everything. Will didn't know how she could be so impartial. Or at least always sound that way, she was such a mystery.

"I don't think she trusts me when it comes to her kids." She fell silent. A lot of people at Lockhart/Gardner knew that she cared for her children more than anything, and Kalinda was one of the only people of them all who knew just how much she did. So evidently she would be silent to when she learnt that Alicia didn't trust Will, of all people, with her kids.

"She cares about them, Will. I know you could be trusted but she might not yet."

"I think she trusts me but it's like she doesn't trust my opinions, even if she asks."

"Are you agreeing with her or challenging her own thoughts?"

"What difference does it make?" He was honest on that. What difference did it really make? He thought the point was she could hear his own opinion and respect it. No matter what the answer, she should have respected the views of the man she claimed to love.

"To Alicia it makes all the difference." He went quiet. He had no idea how to tackle it all. If whether he should just escape back to New York and call her in a few days.

"Maybe I'll just go back to New York and work it out after." She rolled her eyes at his comment.

"You can't just run away." She was right. He had to fix whatever had gone wrong with the relationship. If it was actually called that. They were planning to wait six months.

Oh…

"We'd made a plan."

"You what?" She asked.

"Before I left. We made a plan to wait six months before we started to be together." He said softly, realizing his own mistake as he told his friend. She just looked expectantly at him, waiting for the rest of his story. "We decided to wait so she could figure everything out with Peter. The other day I asked her to come out to the city for the weekend and that's when… The Grace thing happened." She opened her eyes wider, knowing where he had gone wrong.

"I understand you wanted to see her, but you should have stuck to the plan."

"I know. I know. I was being stupid."

"She would do anything for you, Will. I know that much. If you ask her to do something then she'll do it. So when she asks you to agree with her, you should." It didn't sit right with him though. He knew he should agree with Alicia and do whatever she asked of him but he needed to have his own voice too.

"It's too complicated." He finally said, wishing the whole painful ordeal never happened.

"That's why I stay out of complications." She laughed softly and he joined in. He'd really missed the cryptic wisdom of Kalinda. She calmed down and looked directly into his eyes. "You should call her."

Alicia sat on the end on her daughter's bed, wondering how she could have grown up so much and be so grown up in light of everything the past few days. Yes, she'd been small and vulnerable when it first happened but Grace pushed through it in one single day to come out strong. Alicia wanted to hope Grace had learnt that from her, but was terrified because the only reasons Alicia had been that way was because of Peter. She thought it was better to be strong when everything seemed like a mess but she didn't like how she had to use that hidden talent and let her kids see it.

"Connor seems nice." Alicia brought up. They had been sitting there for five minutes not saying anything. Alicia just needed to be in the direct vicinity with her kids after arguments with Peter and Will. It was too much.

"He was trying hard to impress you and Will." Grace said shyly, hesitantly.

"Well he impressed." She smiled kindly for her daughter. "I'm sorry dad had to ask him that…" She sounded out the 'T' perfectly.

"It's okay, I guess. That's just what dad's do, right?" Alicia nodded slowly in response.

"I…" Grace looked questioningly at her mother, silently asking her to say what was on her mind. "So, what did you think of Will?" Alicia needed to know. She didn't want to even think about Will at the moment but she was desperate to know what Grace thought.

"He's nice. I guess I like him. Is it… Like, are you guys… Together?"

"I guess. Well, yes. I mean, we were going to wait until he moved back here, to Chicago but I think we're still mostly together in the meantime." It was as honest as she could get. She barely knew what was happening. She had truly only wanted to wait the whole six months and be prepared by that time. This halfway through business caught her off-guard and she couldn't comprehend right now how much he had really wanted to be with her.

"Well, I like him. I'm just glad I got to meet him."

"Me too. Okay, you should get some rest. Try not to think about anything too much, okay?" Grace only nodded, fully understanding what her mother meant. The messages from people were only getting worse. There was countless online forums discussing the whole thing and it made Grace feel sick just knowing it was all happening. Alicia let her climb under her covers and kissed her forehead while tucking her in. Grace hated to admit that even though she was almost an adult she still liked her mother tucking her in. Alicia turned off the lights and left the room, heading straight into Zach's. She eased open the door and saw her son sitting as his desk on his computer with earphones in. She opened the door completely, which he must have seen out of the corner of his eye because he took out the earphones and swung his chair around to face her.

"Homework?" Alicia asked quietly.

"Yeah." He leaned forward and rested his elbows on his knees.

"I wanted you to meet Will. I'm sorry he had to leave. It was… work." Yes, she'd lie because her kids did not need to know why he had really left. She couldn't even imagine what they'd say if she told them the honest truth. They might just be confused and back away slowly.

"Yeah, sorry I wasn't here for dinner." Alicia felt like he didn't really mean it. She thought it was strange because he had said that he wanted her to be happy and if that meant being with Will, then it was okay. She had to discuss with Zach why he was being so distant, but she didn't know how to approach it. It could be any number of things, most of which she had no intention of thinking about, but she needed to know. She moved across the room and sat down on his bed, crossing her legs and resting her hands in her lap.

"Is something wrong, Zach?" He looked confused. That was something, maybe.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean… You've been a little distant recently, and I just wanted to let you know that whatever it is, you can tell me." She needed to play the "It's okay whatever it is" card, just to make him tell her. It was upsetting her to say the least.

"It's nothing, really mom." She obviously didn't believe it. Something was up and she needed to know. She wasn't sure whether she needed to know for his own assurance or for her own distraction from the previous events of the night.

"You know you can tell me, right?" She had a hint of desperation in her voice, but tried to mask it with affectionate concern.

"I know. I just… It's nothing."

"Is it about Grace?" She shyly asked, truly not understanding what had happened to her son.

"No." He looked shocked that she would even say it, or think it, and it hurt Alicia on the inside to think her son was being so detached.

"Okay… You really won't tell me?" She now let it show on her face that she was hurt, not disappointed really, just sad that he wouldn't tell her. She would never let her kids believe she was ever disappointed in them because she never was.

"I just have to sort through it alone."

"Okay. I'll leave it be. I love you, you know that."

"Yeah, I know. I love you too, mom." She smiled softly at him, wishing he'd tell her what was wrong. She couldn't dwell on it. He'd tell her when he was ready, and she had to accept it. She had to.

Alicia stood up slowly and gave Zach a soft kiss on the top his head, and left the room shutting the door behind her. She didn't know what to do next. She thought about cleaning up the kitchen some more but she had no interest in doing housework, which was odd. Every time she didn't know what to do or how to feel she'd occupy herself with simple housework. Except the fight, and it was a fight, wasn't it?, had her completely upside down. It rattled and chilled her bones and she hated how much Will could affect her, but in the strangest of ways she loved it too. She loved him so much and didn't know why he couldn't just accept her views on her children and agree with her.

She meandered her way through the apartment to get to her bedroom, kicking the door closed and collapsed on the bed. She was tired and wanted to go back to the morning and just be happy to see Will. She tried hard to be happy, but it was such a shock for her. It was nice to see him and know that when she was in a bad place he would drop his work in New York and make an excuse to come back just to see her. It warmed her heart, but she couldn't help but think that they had made a plan in the first place and once they strayed from it, all hell broke loose. It wasn't just the two of them anymore, it was everyone.

She wanted to tell him she loved to see him though. She was a stubborn woman, and she knew it but knowing that fact wouldn't make her less so. She always stuck to her guns and the only one who could truly get under her skin was Will. He ran through her veins like a hurricane and the feeling was so intoxicating that she often didn't realize how much he really meant. It seemed like a contradiction but having such intense feelings caused that blind spot everyone has to grow larger. She always felt it when he was around. In fact, even when he wasn't around, but right now as she pulled a pillow close to her body she was painfully aware of the fact that the hurricane had calmed to a slight hum and she missed the excitement he brought her.

She felt it deep inside of her that she was fighting for what she believed but was it really worth it? Was it really worth not having him right beside her and hold her, telling her he loves her? No, she thought. No matter how stubborn she is she has to make sacrifices for the person she loves. She has to let him have his own say to the questions she asks him. And if that meant having opinions on her kids, then so be it. She'd accept it. If they were going to make it work in three more months, they had to make it work now.

She crawled her way up the bed and reached for her cell phone on the nightstand. She looked at the screen and found she already had one missed call, from Will. And she felt it again, the hurricane started coming back and her vessels start whirring. She immediately called him back and he answered on the second ring.

"I'm sorry. I should have agreed with you." What a starter line.

"No, I'm sorry. You get to have your own views, Will. I didn't mean to say you couldn't." She was sympathetic and all she wanted was to be with him.

"No. They're your kids and your opinion is the one that matters."

"If you are going to be in my life, then you are going to be in theirs and your opinion matters too. I just got scared." She found it then, scared. It was a scary thought to let this man in her kid's life. He was a good man and Grace liked him. She was sure Zach would too, but it didn't let the fact disappear to know it's a difficult change for them, no matter how old they were.

"You don't have to be scared. I'm going to be here throughout all of it. I don't care if we have a fight about it, you can trust me because I love you and we'll get through it together." It was like she had been waiting to hear those words. She can't pin down why, but she needed to hear that he was going to be there for everything and they would go through everything together. She needed to know it was a 'we' and not just 'you and me'.

"I love you. Honestly, Will, more than you can imagine. Probably more than you could handle." She giggled softly.

"You're everything to me, I love you too." He said quietly.

"I miss you. I miss you here with me." She admitted, nowhere near ashamed.

"I'm sorry for walking away. I miss you too."

"When are you leaving?" She heard him take in a deep breath.

"Tomorrow afternoon." She wasn't sure what she was asking, but she wanted- strike that, needed, Will by her side.

"I know it's late… But, do you want to come back over?" She asked with reserve and hope in her voice.

"Are you sure?" She deeply appreciated him asking.

"I'm sure."

"I'll be there soon." She wasn't thinking about what the kids would think. She didn't want to let them think that it was going to be any more than Will having a sleepover, and maybe it wouldn't be anything more than that but it was a touchy subject to approach and Alicia had serious doubts if whether she should tell them at all. Maybe she could let them fall asleep and sneak Will into her bedroom. No, she couldn't do that. She'd tell them.

"Okay, I'll see you soon." She hung up with Will and made her way back to the kid's rooms. She told them separately that Will would be coming back, they were fine with it. And to make sure they knew there was to be no "funny business" they responses she got back were:

"Ew, what, no, I wasn't even thinking that! Gross." From Grace, and

"Oh my god, stop talking mom. It's fine, just, whatever." From Zach.

She wasn't sure if that made her feel better or worse but when she opened the front door to Will, she felt better.

"Is it just me or do you look better than you did a couple hours ago?" He greeted her. She laughed, feeling her stomach flip from that hurricane feeling coming back to full force and pulled him in for a kiss, which he turned into something deep and passionate like he hadn't kissed her for years. She eventually pulled away from it, fresh out of breath.

"Oh god, I told the kids there wouldn't be any funny business." She said in a hush-hush tone as she closed the front door and pulled Will into her bedroom.

"I wasn't expecting any… Funny business." He laughed throatily, grinning at her and held her by the waist. She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him closer to her.

"Oh no, there will be funny business." She whispered into his mouth and kissed him soft and sweet, which Will continued to make it more forceful and they slowly stripped of their clothes and fell back onto the bed holding onto each other as tight as they could.

After their intense and passionate round of love making, Alicia rested on her side with Will's arms around her, lightly drawing circles on her back which constantly sent hot shivers up her spine that radiated through her body. The room was dark, save the moonlight. Alicia rested her head so close to his and looked into his eyes, getting lost in them and the love in them for her. The moonlight gently lit up their faces. Every now and then a cloud would cast over the moon and they'd be in complete darkness. They'd use this opportunity to gently leave kisses all over each other's bodies. Neither of them wanted to fall asleep, they just wanted to be awake with each other forever.

"Will?" She whispered into the shadows.

"Mmm?" Is arose from deep in his chest and she could feel the vibrations against her own body.

"I don't want to wait three months." He stopped brushing his fingertips across her back and brushed some of her hair back.

"I don't want to either." She closed her eyes and rested her hand on his chest, feeling the soft heartbeat underneath her fingers. The rhythm of it however was not slow, it raced, which made her own heart skip a beat then pick up the pace.

"I don't want you to leave… me." She said softly.

"So I won't." She couldn't tell if he was being completely honest. He probably did have to go back to New York and he'd only leave temporarily, sure, but he'd leave. She couldn't help but notice how insanely happy she was in that moment. And if he were to leave, her happiness level would drop below euphoric. She knew that the type of happiness she was experiencing right now, with Will holding her tighter against his body and letting his tongue drift into her mouth, this type of ridiculous and senseless happiness was momentary. Love wasn't easy, she had learnt that over the years, but Will made it seem so effortless. It was a crazy, unconditional and irrational love and it was the best thing she had ever known. The days with him were something different to these nights. In the night her heart lit up like the Eiffel Tower.

"I was wrong…" She started, unsure of where she was really going but if anything were to be said, right now when the two of them felt like the same person, the only one in the world.

"About what?"

"When I said we would only last a week… A few years ago."

"I remember."

"I think that if we really tried it would have felt like this." He paused and his breathing slowed.

"Alicia?" God, she could get used to the low husky way he'd say her name like that.

"Mmm?"

"Nothing will ever feel as great as this moment right now. You're the most beautiful person I've ever met. Inside and out. Your empathy, your kindness, your intelligence. It's the greatest combination and I don't want to ever not be with you." Alicia couldn't be sure but her heart may have grown three sizes because of the way he was projecting his own love into her soul like the light from the moon was projecting onto their faces. "When you came back into my life, I felt like the luckiest person because I got to be your friend again. It was like was numb before, and with you I felt everything again."

She leaned in the small amount she had to and kissed him desperately. She needed to taste the words coming out of his mouth. She needed to taste the way he loved her. The hand she still had over his chest pushed him over in the bed so he was on his back. She slowly moved her body over his and straddled him. She leaned down to kiss him again, and again, and again, letting the absurd, the illogical, the astonishing amounts love he had for her in.