The knock came hard and heavy to Alex Eames�s door, right on time at 11. Never fails, she thought as she worked her way off her couch and to her feet. She didn�t have to question who it was or what he was there for. She didn�t have to wonder what had happened or what he would say. She opened her door to find her wayward partner, soaked to the skins and dripping in her doorway.
�Hey. Thought you had a date tonight.�
�I did,� he said with a swift wave of one hand. �It was�well��
�Come on in.� She let him pass, his feet shuffling against the rough carpet of her entryway. Same old conversation, she thought with a hidden smile. Date nights didn�t usually end well when it came to Bobby, and this was obviously no exception. She shut and locked the door, not certain yet whether it would be opened again until morning.
Bobby still had his back to her as she walked back into the living room. She reached up to his hunched shoulders and took hold of his coat. It all but fell off his body, dripping and practically ruined.
�Better get this hung up before you ruin the carpet,� she said as she made her way into the bathroom. She hung his coat in her tub and returned to find him still standing there, just as he was, slouched gently, almost shyly to one side. His shoes were gone, set in the entryway to dry. How very considerate he always managed to be.
�So, how was your date?�
�She�she was n-nice.� He didn�t meet her eyes as his hands began moving, and she took a small step back to give him the space he would soon need.
�Nice, huh? What did you do?�
�I took her to dinner, and then we went to this old movie in Brooklyn.� He began pacing, running his fingers through his dampened hair. She figured he didn�t notice that he was getting water everywhere, but she didn�t really mind. She enjoyed this in a rather morbid way, and it happened after every one of his dates. He would go out, strike out, come to her, they would talk about his date, what she looked like, everything about her right down to her perfume and dissect exactly why it never would have worked. It wasn�t that he was picky; he just hadn�t found the right woman yet. And Alex was determined to be on every woman�s side when it came to Bobby Goren.
Every woman�s side but her own. She wanted to see this man happy so much, and she would be so glad to do it herself, but they were partners. She couldn�t do that to him. If they ever broke up, their partnership would be ruined as well, and she couldn�t break his heart like that.
�You took a date to Brooklyn?�
�Yeah, but the movie was great and she really liked it, and she was great to talk to, but she�just��
�Just what?� His hands dropped as he stopped moving, and suddenly the usual banter wasn�t funny anymore.
�She�� He took a deep breath, one she could almost feel as well as hear. Was he shaking?
�We were at dinner, and talking, and she s-said something that didn�t really hit me un-until later.� He slumped down into her thick armchair, and she slowly took position in front of his hunched form. Even sitting, he came up to her chest.
�What did she say?�
�We were talking about what we do for a living, and she�s a lawyer of all things. I didn�t know when I asked her out. But we started talking about cases and different kinds of people we�ve encountered, and then I started talking about you.� His head rose as he fell back, bright, shimmering eyes meeting hers and taking the breath from her body.
�I�ve never talked to a date about you before. I kept going on and on right up until our food showed up, and then I just kept rolling. I couldn�t stop. How great you were at helping me, how you flowed, how you found things, how you spoke, even how you walk. You always walk just half a step away, just enough for both of us to move and still hear each other in traffic.� Alex got down on her knees and set her arms on his outstretched knees. Her body supported, she leaned in closer to listen.
�I kept going on until dinner was done, and she didn�t say anything. When we got out to the car, she was just getting in, and she said it. Out of the blue, she said the thing that never really registered.�
�What did she say?� His eyes fell and he shifted, his body suddenly looming over her as she moved back onto her haunches. His legs shifted and he took her gathered hands, restless fingers kneading her skin as his eyes searched all around her for the words his mind couldn�t get through just yet.
�What, Bobby?�
�She said�� His voice was doing it again. That subtle, slightly shaking thing he did only when he was very drunk or truly nervous. Even his hands were shaking. Tiny shivers flowed from his body to hers, his breath a sudden, warm whisper across her flesh. When had he gotten so close?
�She said I had a really g-great partner.� He brought her hands to his down-turned face, and hard, warm lips brushed her skin. Warmth seeped from his touch and flowed throughout her body, banishing the cool thoughts of rain as it pelted the windows. Her feet fell flat beneath her, soft tingling welling from a place she�d thought long dead.
�What happened after that?�
�We went to the movie, enjoyed it, and I took her home. She pretty much bolted from the car when it pulled up to her building, and I followed her to the door. Big mistake.� He swallowed hard, hard enough to make Alex�s stomach sink. �She said she�d had a great time tonight, but that she couldn�t compete for my attention.� He sighed, the deep shudder in his breath seeming to come form his toes.
�I got back in the cab, and I couldn�t think. I didn�t understand. What the heck was she talking about? I kept trying to figure it out, but I kept coming up with nothing. And when I got out of the cab, I was in front of your building, not mine. I�d given the cab driver your address, like I do after every date, and I didn�t even realize it. The next thing I knew you were opening your door, and as soon as I saw you, I knew.�
�Knew what?�
�I knew why I always come here. You can always help me figure it all out.� The sharp fall and rise of his Adam�s apple would never have concerned her if not for the lump it seemed to graze over. �Good thing too, because right now, I can�t understand any of it.�
�Bobby��
�I do have a great partner, Alex.� His voice was barely a whisper, his touch suddenly demanding and almost painful. Her knuckles pressed against his mouth and cheek, her fingers suddenly wet. Before she could truly react she felt it far before she heard it. It began as a low rumble in his system, somewhere far away and deep inside. It built within him, gaining momentum, and as the sound emerged, a soft, despondent whimper, her heart sank.
�Why, Alex?� The words were forced, and her hands worked slowly free to wipe his rapidly wetting cheeks. His big bear paws wrapped around her wrists, holding her hands to his face as trembling, whispered words fell from his heart. �Why do I always end up alone? Why�?� His chest never heaved, his throat never sobbed, but the tears running down his face seemed confused, as if even they weren�t quite sure what he felt. His voice continued to shake as broken words fell from a place she never knew. �Why can�t I make you see?�
Her hands stilled, and he moved to one side to press further into her palm.
�What?�
�Why can�t I make them see, Alex?�
�That�s not what you said.� His eyes opened slowly, and as they met hers, all thought vanished for one brief instant. And in that endless flash of time, there was only him. Her Bobby in all his despair and anguish, eyes shining with tears she knew now she�d help create. She, in her negligence, her �harmless� joking about his lack of a love life. She, in her gentle hugs and soft touches that she was now certain caused him more pain than she�d ever meant for him, ever.
And he�d tried to tell her, she realized as the instant slipped away. In so many little ways, he�d reached out to her, and she�d never even noticed. How could she not see it? Why hadn�t she made the connection? And now he sat before her, a heart-broken mess all because of her lack of sight. How could she ever heal what she�d done to him?
Stark fear boiled in his eyes. She had expected it, but the sight still stabbed at her. His hands grew slack as he pulled from her, instincts to escape climbing over the sadness. Her fingers locked around his neck, pulling him gently back to her until his forehead rested against hers.
�No, Bobby. You�re not pulling away again tonight.� His mind seemed to be resetting behind his eyes as he watched her. She rose onto her knees, his eyes following her up as he moved his legs to give her space. Her fingers released him to move across his neck and shoulders, tiny shivers running just beneath his skin and flowing mercilessly into hers. Alex took a deep breath, steadying herself in his heady fragrance. He smelled of smooth wine, sharp spice, cologne and man. Her man, at least for tonight. Ghost eyes stared at her, searching. He was always searching. Not tonight, she thought as she stroked gently through his still damp hair. No more looking for something she didn�t understand that he wanted from her. No more substitutes. No more rejections. Just them�
�What did you want me to see, Bobby?� Her lips to his cheeks, she slowly erased the paths of his tears. One by one, the treks dried across his face, heavy eyelids fluttering as his breath caught in shallow gasps, his voice a distant whisper.
�Alex��
�What is it, Bobby?� Her touch grew bolder as her lips trailed down his face and onto his neck, reveling in the tiny whimpers she felt rather than heard. Her tongue slipped from her lips of its own accord, licking gently at the flesh just below his left ear. His big body shuddered as a feral groan rumbled through him and shook her terribly.
�Alex, please��
�Tell me, Bobby,� she whispered so close to his ear. �Tell me what you want me to see.� Her lips gently skipped along his throat, thick muscle and hot skin wound tight beneath her, all the while yielding his perfect taste. She had wondered for so long about how he would taste when like this, but she never imagined it would be so� intense. Salty and sharp and mild and perfectly Bobby. And it was all because of her. She took one tender piece of him between her teeth, sucking the soft flesh into her mouth and reveling in the quickening rise and fall of his chest. She gasped against his neck as his big bear paws moved beneath the hem of her t-shirt. Slender, slightly callused fingers trailed over her skin, goosebumps streaking across her body. His hands covered and surrounded her, the perfect, heady scent that was all his filling her lungs and forcing her to release him on a gasp.
�Bobby�� she breathed, unable to articulate further.
�See�me��
She met his eyes then, animal lust and rampant need fighting just behind. Her knees burned as he pulled her to him suddenly, hot, hard muscle pulsing beneath the thin barrier of their clothes. A growl escaped him as she gasped, her nipples already hard and aching against his hard chest. His lips came crashing down onto hers, and she was helplessly taken under the tide of his desire. She held on for dear life as his tongue pressed past her lips and moaned as he explored her with unchecked hunger.
He tore his mouth across her jaw and down her neck, and Alex struggled to catch her breath beneath his dizzying assault. Teeth and tongue and warmed breath danced across her skin until he found it. That one place just at the hollow of her throat that sent all rational thought screaming into the night. She shivered in sweet anticipation, but nothing could have prepared her for Bobby Goren.
He indeed found her spot, but he did more than simply pay homage. He worshiped it, first slowly and languidly letting his lips trace her collarbones, and then like a dart of flaming pleasure his tongue struck home. He hesitated a second at her outcry, then proceeded to bring forth several others as he worked that one tiny spot until she dug her fingers into his hair to pull him away. Her shaking hands and arms did little more than deter him, and she could only watch as strong arms and broad, warm body surrounded and lifted her. She�d always known that deep inside he was a beast, and now that beast was loose. She smiled as he lifted her from the floor. What had she let herself in for?
Her bedroom was dark as he entered it almost reverently. He set her down against the pillows, and with a flick her bedside lamp was on.
�I want to see you,� he whispered as he crawled over her. She went immediately to work on his shirt, tearing open buttons and hearing one or two fall to the floor. She sat up slightly and pushed it off his shoulders with uncaring speed, pulling his undershirt free in a single tug and lifting it over his head. The breath she let go of was utter admiration. One hand traced the deep, hard lines of his chest, shaking muscle and swift heartbeat matched only by the growl that seemed to erupt beneath her touch.
He pushed her back gently but quickly, deft finger slipping across the bare skin of her stomach. Her enormous t-shirt lifted over her head, and in the few seconds she couldn�t see his face, something in it changed. No longer was it simply darkened eyes filled with desire that stared down at her. They had softened, almost tearing as trembling hands couldn�t seem to sit still across her stomach.
�My God, Alex, you�re beautiful.�
�So are you.� Delicate fingers touched him, shock striking him hard. He stared down at her hands as they lay atop his across her body. Hers tiny and pale and delicate, his worn and thick and strong. And yet she protected him. She shielded him from the doubt that was suddenly clawing its way through his chest. Her words were so breathless, so soft they left him aching and hungry and stripped of uncertainty. And he knew what would slake a hunger such as this.
He lifted off her slowly and let his mouth move over her body, molding every curve and caressing every inch of skin. She tasted like warrior and woman, the cop and the temptress in perfect harmony. Every wondrous thing about her was in her taste. He lingered for a moment in that delicate place between her breasts, inhaling her scent and watching her chest rise and fall with her quickened breath. He moved over her breasts and took one hardened peak into his mouth. Handfuls of sheet curled into his fists as she squirmed beneath him. He ran his tongue over her sweet bud, letting his teeth graze over her once�twice. Her hand slowly slid down the side of his face. He let himself roam to her other side and repeat his actions. Her body rubbed insistently against him. He smiled inwardly, so much of him wanting, still more of him needing, yet all of him loving the woman before him.
Alex found herself getting closer and closer to the edge. She willed herself back as Bobby drifted down her belly. It was as if he was inside her, listening to her every thought and desire. All the right places, all the right ways, and all she wanted was more.
�I�ve wanted you for so long.� He drifted across the plains of her belly, touching and tasting her every curve and surface. Her hands tangled in his hair and massaged his scalp. Even in such an aroused state, she was till tender and gentle with him.
Every piece of her so soft and perfect, it was as if she�d been sewn together by the Goddess herself. He began unbuttoning her jeans as she moaned softly. It was like music to him now, a sweet serenade beckoning him onward. He divested her of her jeans and he had to consciously fill his lungs. She wore simple satin panties, their lace draped just below her naval. They smelled of her and were damp with her juices. He ripped them from her body and sighed aloud in simple awe. The soft curls at the joining of her muscled legs were glistening with her essence. The thought that he had brought her this far made him long to be one with her. To bury himself inside her and die within her depths. It was a fantasy to be realized this night.
�I�m so sorry I tried to replace you.� He spread her legs as his lips caressed her hot inner thigh. He held her down at the hips to let her legs move over his body. Her power was amazing, but he had to feel her reactions to his touch. He spread her delicate, swollen folds and heard her moan. It was like an angel sighing, and he would give this angel her every desire. He let his lips touch her being, and her legs clasped around him. His tongue slipped from his mouth and ran the length of her most sacred place. She bolted upward with a heavy gasp. Her moans were airy and strained. He could feel how close she was. His thumb rubbed slowly across her clitoris as his tongue explored her, touching, teasing, tasting. He pressed against her more firmly as his tongue entered her. She tasted of pure joy. He moved within her slowly to give her a taste of what was yet to come. He gripped her hip and moved deep within her to find the places she kept secret.
He was trying to kill her. That was the only explanation for what he was doing to her now. She had to fight the urge to come with all she had, but with every stroke she knew she was lost, riding the combined wave of need that flowed between them. That wave burned her from the inside out, a wildfire that burned hotter and hotter, engulfing her every sense. His tongue was so deep inside her she wondered if it was still just his tongue. She could feel herself tempting fate, moving all ahead full toward the edge.
He rose above her suddenly, and the sudden lack of contact left her shivering. He sat up and in one fell swoop his pants and boxers were gone. His knees caught her legs and held them fast, her body open to him in ways that only her heart had been before.
�No one could ever replace you.� The tip of him moved slowly against her, and her back arched into a perfect bow, a wordless plea. He groaned low in his throat, his words shaking. �You or what you do to me.�
�Bobby�please��
He pressed forward, filling her in ways she never dreamed possible. Her insides flexed and bent, accepting him to the point of shattering. He was much bigger than she�d ever imagined and she was so not, but still he fit inside her just right, pulsing, trembling. His muscles flexed, just grazing her sweetest spot.
�God, Bobby!�
�Look at me, Alex.� Hooded eyes met his, and as he began to move she became lost in the perfect desire he showered on her. His forehead leaned to hers as he slowly withdrew, leaving behind a horrid void, only to take it all away with one swift thrust. Agony and ecstasy mingled, pleasure beyond sanity engulfing her. Wave after crashing wave washed over her, and she held on tight to meet his every thrust. The soft noises he made sounded like pain and pleasure and anguish and suffering and joy all swirled together into the nexus of pleasure he�d plunged her into.
She felt the tell-tale crackling of her body that heralded her release, and just as the final tsunami crashed across her shores he took her lips, bringing her cries of passion into him. Sparks flew before her straining eyes, darkness creeping around the edges of her mind as her body tightened further. She felt his rhythm falter, and as she slipped into the darkness she heard her name as if from far away, torn so beautifully from the throat of her partner.
Alex wasn�t sure how much time had passed. All she could remember was darkness taking over, and Bobby�s eyes staring down into hers. Without a word they spoke to her, and she couldn�t really understand what they�d said. Something he couldn�t say in words. She hadn�t missed it, nor would she ignore it. She just had to wait for her brain to function again.
Warm, deft fingers danced slowly across her hip. Her surroundings came to her at last, and she found herself clasped tight against her partner, warmth filling her to the tips of her toes. His sparse chest hair tickled her cheek as she smiled into him.
Alex was awake at last. He�d spent the better part of an hour holding her, waiting, thinking. Dangerous as it was to think after something like that, he couldn�t help it. It was more than satisfying, more than profound. It was earth-shattering, mind-blowing, and it was all wrapped up in a package a little over five feet tall. So small, so deceptively fragile, yet more powerful than anything he�d ever known. For four years she�d been his center, the rock he�d anchored himself to when he had to dive into the insanity of another�s mind. When he lost his grip on up and down, she would pull him back to solid ground with something as simple as a smile and as complicated as a touch of her hand.
Tonight had been no different. With a look he�d known the truth. It had taken him a wonderfully horrid date and the vaguest cab ride he�d ever experienced, but once at her door, he knew she would have his answer. And when she looked up at him with that impish smile, he knew he�d never be able to survive without seeing it. He knew he could spend the rest of his life alone, but as long as he had his partner, his Alex, he would be happy.
Or so he thought. As the problem worked itself out in his mind she�d come to him, taking him by complete surprise and scaring the living daylights out of his defenses. Her soft touch, her caring eyes, showed him that he was wrong. He couldn�t be happy with her just as his partner. He needed her near him always. He needed to see those same eyes filled with as much love as he knew was showing in his own. He needed to love her. He did love her, and he could not stop that any more than he could stop his nightmares from consuming him night after night. But she could. She did, more often than she would ever know. The times when they worked so late into the night that he had to stay on her couch or she in his bed while he slept on his couch, his nightmares had vanished, frightened by the woman he held so dear, so close to and within his heart.
And now she was awake. And all he could think about was how right a strange woman could be about someone she�d never met.
�She was right.� His breath danced in her hair as her brain caught up to his words.
�Who?� Alex looked up with lazy, slightly confused eyes, to which Bobby only smiled wide.
�Judy, my date tonight. She was right. I do have an amazing partner.� His smile faded almost as quickly as it had appeared, his expression suddenly so somber and serious that it brought Alex right out of her haze. She moved up onto one arm, her hair falling over both of them.
�Hey. What�s wrong?�
�Judy was right about my partner, and I need to tell that partner something very important, but I�m afraid.� His voice was again the soft, trembling whisper she thought she�d banished for good this time.
�Afraid of what?�
�I�m afraid she doesn�t feel the same for me.� A slow smile crept across her face, his eyes going wide even as they shimmered in the lamplight. Same old Bobby.
�I don�t think you have anything to worry about, Bobby.� She drew him close for a long, lingering kiss, one that left him dazed as his forehead pressed hers. �I have it on very good authority that she loves you just as much.�
Disclaimer: The characters, names, and references made herein belong to NBC, inc, Wolf Productions, etc. No copyright infringement intended. For fun, not profit.
