Title: Decisions
Author: Debb
Rating: PG
Show/Pairing: Law & Order: CI
Synopsis: Alex makes a decision. (sequel to "Boundaries")
Disclaimer: I own nothing whatever concerning LOCI.
Thanks go to Kara for taking the time to beta this and most of my other LOCI fics.



Alex sat down at her desk, ignoring the way Bobby's eyes tracked her from across the room. She hadn't asked, but she knew he was bringing her some coffee. Two sugars, the way she liked it. He paid attention to these little things.

She couldn't help thinking of her partner as this irresistable set of contradictions. At first glance, he was intense, driven, very dominant. On the other hand, there was this... vulnerability about him, and a self-deprecating sense of humor combined with a near-total lack of inhibition that made him wildly attractive. She was not an uninhibited person, but there was something about the way he did the things he did that made her able to stand back and watch and feel nothing but amusement... and affection.

She didn't look at him when he set the cup in front of her. She didn't want to look at him.

Well, okay, she did want to, but it was a Bad Idea. Capital letters and all. Business and pleasure, and all that crap. She took a deep breath, let it out slowly. Quietly.

He noticed anyway. He wanted to ask about it, she could see it in the set of his shoulders, the way he was not-quite-looking at her. She was not going to look at him. She stared down at the same form she'd been staring at since she sat down. He'd have noticed that, too. Attention to detail.

Oh, hell. She hated people who spent their time deluding themselves. She didn't really want to be one.

She chewed nervously on the end of her pen, looking up to meet Bobby's eyes. He had a book open in front of him, but he was sitting quietly, watching her. Waiting, because, of course, he'd realized that she'd made her decision. She rolled her eyes at him, unaccountably irritated. "Later," she said quietly, looking down at the form again. The only box filled in was "lead detective".

Well, at least she still knew her own name.

tbc.