CI: Bullpen or Playpen?

TITLE: Bullpen or Playpen?
SUMMARY: Circumstances out of her control force Alex to bring her and Bobby’s daughter, Emma, to the precinct. “Let’s go play ‘terr’gation!”

Alex juggled coloring books, crayons, and the sweater Emma had ripped off her body in the elevator. Not waiting for her mother, like instructed, the little girl’s brown curls bounced as she dove off the elevator before the doors even opened all the way, almost tripping up two officers in her sprint into the room. Alex gave them an exasperated smile, trying to psychically convince them my daughter is too cute to shoot, although don’t think she hadn’t entertained the idea of handcuffs.

Emma’s eyes quickly scanned the room, a frown appearing on her cherub face when she didn’t find what she was looking for. Emma stood in the middle of the room, squared her shoulders as if she owned the place and hollered, “Mike!” successfully disrupting everyone in the room and getting all eyes on her. Thank God it was a slow day. If someone was in the interrogation room, especially Bobby, she could have proved a major distraction and broken up something important.

But her reaction shouldn’t have surprised Alex, Emma knew Daddy was probably not going to be at his desk with Aunt Carolyn when they stopped in, but it hardly would have mattered if he was . . . when Uncle Mike was around, Daddy was old hat. Before Alex could shush her and place her at a desk out of the way while she checked in and gathered some things, she was interrupted.

“Is that Emma Jane Goren I hear out there?” Logan’s deep timber reverberated out of the Captain’s doorway, grinning wide despite Ross’ grim look telling Alex the detective had just been reprimanded for something. The years may be beginning to show on all of them, but it hadn’t changed their working styles. He held is arms wide and Emma vaulted herself into them. “Ah, ma cheri,” he used his nickname for Emma, putting on a ridiculous French brogue, kissing her. How the hell he knew even simple French, or why Emma loved it so much, she didn’t know. But, considering German, Dutch, Cantonese, Russian, and American Sign Language were commonly found in Emma’s home, and she knew words in all of them, they didn’t impress her much.

Emma hopped out of Mike’s arms, “Let’s go play ‘terr’gation!” she took hold of his hand and dragged him willingly towards the empty grey concrete block room.

Alex shook her head quickly, as if to clear the cobwebs, “I’m sorry, play what?” she accused. This game was news to her. Her and Bobby never talked about work around Emma and didn’t take her around the squad room if they could help it.

“I don’t know what she’s talking about,” Logan feigned shocked innocence.

“That’s the last time you baby-sit Mike, I’ll tell you that!” Alex called out the threat that she would never follow through on – she could never take her daughter’s favorite playmate (next to Bobby) away from her. Emma wouldn’t hear of it. Wheeler, who had followed Logan out of the office, smiled a quick hello and headed to her desk. Poor Megan didn’t know what to do with a kid around -- completely skittish -- and Emma didn’t really know what to think of her in return. Carolyn, on the other hand, was an absolute sweetheart with her.

Emma had a knack of bringing them all together in some way, despite Ross’ annoyance in having to play musical partners with all his top detectives in an effort to keep the married ones apart, the nonvolatile ones together, and all their solve rates up. In the last couple years they’ve all been partnered with each other in some capacity or another with varying results: the Goren-Wheeler debacle two years ago, when Goren almost lost his badge, was legendary.

Goren and Wheeler, a pairing anyone could have told him wouldn’t work. Logan might have thought about piping up and saying something, but he was just so happy to be back with Barek, who was brought back during Eames’ maternity leave and had stayed on when Alex returned, that he wasn’t going to be the one to rock the boat. Poor Wheeler, she really was the red-headed step-child sometimes when it came to the five of them.

Alex had a feeling that’s why Megan stayed away from her, because of her disastrous relationship with her husband. But Alex was the expert on how hard he was to work with and Bobby didn’t hate Wheeler, he just hated working with her. Alex would have to have a talk with Megan soon. And honestly, the whole hoopla was for him. Alex could adapt to any work environment, but the constant partner switching was wearing on everyone’s nerves and had gotten more than a few people pissed at the couple for screwing everything up.

Equally renowned was the Goren-Logan pairing in which they worked a little too well with one another, were having a bit too much fun with suspects and interrogation, and they both almost lost their badges. Ross couldn’t trust either of them to keep his eyes on the other so he went too far the other way and that’s how the Goren-Wheeler pairing had occurred.

Goren-Barek were too similar, Barek-Wheeler was too awkward, and despite his grumblings about fraternizing, Ross was running out of options, and sooner or later they were all going to end up like they originally were, while bringing in a new detective for Barek or Wheeler, who had now been with them for over five years.

Alex honestly didn’t know which she preferred. She, of course, worked well and got along with all the other detectives, though everyone knew her and Bobby worked best with each other. Though, she didn’t know which was a harder pill to swallow: the idea of him going around picking up suspected bombs with her next to him or just imagining the things he was liable to get himself into without her.

Nonetheless, Alex couldn’t wait until they filed back through the current line-up and tied up the loose ends of the cases they all had – then she’d be partnered back up with her husband. But it was complicated because when they were working apart, one of them could be with Emma, but then they never saw each other. Working together, they’d see each other because her time off would be his, but they would have to figure out a schedule with Emma. Most likely, Alex’s family would take her while they worked.

After finishing some paperwork, on her way to grab some more, Alex ducked into the room next to interrogation to look through the two-way mirror to check on what her daughter was up to.

Mike and Emma sat across from each other, staring each other down like in a contest, Emma up on her knees in her chair, her elbows resting menacingly on the table. Logan chuckled when Emma cocked her head ridiculously to the side, almost turning him 180 degrees, because she wants to be just like her Daddy.

Alex didn’t know exactly how long they’d been at it, but it was apparently Mike’s turn to play bad cop, “Maybe . . . YOU stole the cookie, ever think of that?” he charged.

“Nope,” she shook her head, giggling.

“Let’s see,” Logan got out of his chair and started circling around the table, “How am I gonna get it out of you, huh? You’re a tough one Little Goren, I’m gonna have to play dirty,” he dove in and tickled her. She laughed hysterically, thrashing around, yelling “stop” when he tickled her and “more” when he complied.

Logan never wanted kids of his own, a tortured past will do that to a guy, but he wasn’t above adoring other people’s. Emma was the closest to a kid he planned on getting. Alex was glad her daughter had that support system, and it sure didn’t hurt to have up to five cops and two Captains (even more when you added her family) looking out for your kid at a given time.

She hadn’t noticed Barek had entered the room until she felt a hand on her shoulder. “Hey,” Alex greeted, “how long have you been standing there? Back so soon?” she looked over the other woman’s shoulder.

Barek shrugged, “What can I say? Things went our way to today for me and your husband.” She nodded at her godchild and her ex-partner through the glass, “Cute huh?”

“Yeah,” she agreed, dryly. “She’ll be the only one in preschool with a favorite interrogation method, playing psychological mind games on her classmates. She’s going to be a terror.” Yeah, she and Bobby were lucky. Speaking of . . .

“Hey,” he greeted walking through the door, obviously elated to run into her, “Where’s Emma?”

She gestured, “In interrogating Mike.”

Barek smiled at Goren, “You should see her technique, you’d be proud.”

Wheeler swung in the door, “Eames, the results on the Goldman autopsy you wanted are in, thought you might want to take a look at them.” Alex shot a look to her husband.

He waved her off with his folder, “Go ahead, I got Emma.”

“You sure?”

“Yeah, we’re done here, right?” he turned to Barek, who nodded.

“Yeah, take that adorable kid of yours and get out of here while you can,” she called while leaving the room.

Alex turned to her husband, “Okay, see you tonight,” she sighed hopefully. Bobby leaned down and kissed her, a bit more lingeringly than she would have normally allowed, but she may not be seeing him for twelve plus hours if the results of this autopsy were unfavorable, which she had a suspicion that they were. He pulled back but stayed close, his hand on her face and his thumb caressing her cheek.

“Love you,” he whispered.

“Love you too,” she replied. Normally she would be the one to draw the deep line in the sand between any displays of affection at work and at home so as not to give anyone any reason to think they couldn’t do the job without being distracted by one another’s presence. But it was hard to hide Emma, the product of their being together, and everyone was so used to it and they’ve proven for three years that they could perform at work just as well, if not better, as before they were romantically involved. And it was fine for the moment, because technically they were not working together. But once they were back as partners, they were all business during work; she had even kept her maiden name and he stilled called her Eames, not Alex, mostly out of habit, but now with varying degrees of affection. But right now? Right now, they were just husband and wife who had happened to run into each other as one was going on and the other coming off work.

Eames hung back in the room long enough to see Bobby enter the interrogation room. “Daddy!” Emma squealed, reaching for him.

“Hey!” he grinned back, picking her up.

Logan stood up, hand on her back, “She tried to use those family traits on me, but I didn’t break.” Emma proudly held up a chocolate chip cookie for her father to inspect. “Ok,” Logan amended, “maybe a little. You, Little Goren, you’re going home and I am going back to work,” he announced. He gave her a sound kiss on the cheek, a squeeze, and headed back to his desk. “See ya, kid.”

“Bye Uncle Mike.”

Alex listened to her daughter babble to her father a bit, discussing what they would do when they got home and if he would make ‘mac’roni and cheese’ for her and read her stories and play ball. Bobby answered all in the affirmative. He bounced her a little bit in his arms and whispered something in her ear before kissing her temple. She giggled and turned to the mirror and her own reflection and waved, “Bye Bye Mommy!” He met her eyes and waved too before sweeping Emma out of the room and to the elevator.

Eames waved back, despite knowing she couldn’t be seen. She took a deep breath before putting her game face on. A girl could cry if she wasn’t careful.

END