A/N: Much as it pains me to say it, this is the last chapter. I may yet add a brief epilogue, but if that idea hasn't come to me in the next week or two, I'll just mark this one complete and call it good.

Thank you, thank you, thank you to all who have followed, favorited, reviewed, or just enjoyed this story. You make writing these characters, and writing in general, that much more fun. I am kicking some ideas around for another story, and when one of those gels into something coherent, you can bet I'll be back.

Thanks again! I'm so glad you've enjoyed "Stay."

Chapter Twenty-One

This Is Home

And now, after all my searching
After all my questions
I'm gonna call it home

"That's the last of the clothes, Lil." Scotty lidded the latest box, gave its smooth white surface an affectionate pat, then turned around and stretched up to add it to the pile along the wall.

Behind him, Lilly chuckled quietly. "What? No smart-ass comment about how many boxes it took?"

"Hey, I haven't slept good in a week." Scotty tossed a grin over his shoulder as he reached for the marker to label the contents of the box. "I'm a little off my game. Plus…" he hesitated, self-deprecating amusement tugging his grin ever wider. "I think I got even more clothes than you."

That dazzling smile spread over her face. "I'd believe it."

Despite the truth of his statement, he couldn't let her challenge go unmet, so, after a moment's hesitation, he scribbled "Still More Clothes" on the end of the box, then capped the marker with a soft click and admired his handiwork. It wasn't the best comeback ever, but it was the best he could do right now, dizzy with love and fatigue and the effects of the emotional roller-coaster his week had been.

He couldn't get over how different it was, helping Lilly pack this time. Four months ago, when he helped her pack up her desk, his heart had ripped apart slowly, inch by inch, with each passing moment. Now, with each item that got tossed into a box, each label scrawled on the end, and each strip of tape stretched over the top, his joy increased all the more. She was coming home. Home. With him.

The difference in her appearance was stark, too. Her hair had been in a neat ponytail that day, her clothes crisp and professional, her face a flinty effort at fighting her emotions. But now, there was nothing to hide. As she stood next to the dresser, unloading its contents into a large plastic storage tub, joy danced over her face, her skin glowing as though lit from within. Her cheeks flushed pink with heat and effort, her hair was corralled in a messy half-bun at the back of her head, tendrils spilling out and sticking damply to her forehead. She'd swapped her usual blouse and pants for a pair of cutoffs and an ancient-looking Philly PD T-shirt she'd discovered at the back of her closet.

Lilly glanced up from the box and eyed him with a quizzically arched brow. "Everything okay, Scotty?"

"More than okay, cariña." His eyes never leaving hers, he slowly came around to where she stood, then tilted her chin upward and pressed a tender, reverent kiss to her lips. He had to stop himself there, because if he didn't, he wasn't sure they'd ever be able to leave this apartment.

Clearing the desire from his throat, he addressed the wordless question in her delicate frown. "That's what I wanted to do last time I helped you pack your crap."

Her lips curved in a Mona Lisa smile. "I wondered."

It was his turn to frown, and her smile widened.

"C'mon, Scotty. I'm a detective. And the way you were lookin' at me that day…well…" she shrugged. "Like I said, I wondered if you were about to kiss me. And then I thought I was crazy."

He slipped a hand behind her neck and caressed the soft, damp skin there. "No, Lil. Not crazy." He leaned forward to claim her lips in yet another kiss, but she stepped back.

"Scotty…the movers'll be here in ten minutes."

Dammit. She was right. With a reluctant sigh, he released her. "Work, work, work. Is that all you ever think about, Detective Rush?"

Her eyes took a slow, scenic tour of his entire body, traveling down, then back up to his eyes, where she flashed a lascivious grin. "No."

"You're killin' me, querida." Feathering a kiss to her forehead, he grabbed the twin to the plastic tub she was packing and started to strip the bed. It wasn't what he wanted to be stripping, nor what he wanted to be doing with the bed, but he didn't exactly relish the idea of putting on a show for a bunch of movers, so he checked his lusty thoughts and filed them away for later, when he'd brought her home. Home. He was taking her home.

It still didn't quite seem real.

Removing the comforter, he spied the photo leaning against the burnished-gold base of her bedside lamp. As much time as he'd spent in this bed in the last twenty-four hours, Scotty was surprised he hadn't noticed it before…but, then again, Lilly had proven to be an incredibly powerful distraction. His heart warming with affection, he stuffed the comforter into the container, then came around to take a closer look. He'd long heard rumors that Lilly Rush slept with the victims' pictures by her bed. But this was no murder victim.

It was the two of them.

"Thought you only slept with pictures of the vics, Lil," he joked, reaching for the album.

"Hmmm?" Something tumbled into the box—it sounded like maybe a handful of socks—and then she swished around to his side of the bed, her delicate fragrance perfuming the air as she slipped an arm around his waist.

"The victims' photos help me remember." She took the album from him and looked at it for a moment before glancing up at him and feathering a small, impulsive kiss to his cheek. "This did, too."

Her expression as she pulled away spoke volumes, and Scotty suddenly understood a little more what must have happened to make her realize what she felt, and how strongly she felt it.

With a grin, he thumbed through the little album. "Where'd you get this, anyway?"

"It was a going-away present." Her eyes sparkled. "I think Miller put it together."

"Wouldn't surprise me," Scotty chuckled. His partner and her cell-phone camera were never far apart from one another.

"There are some good ones of you in there."

"I'll bet." Scotty laughed quietly, then bent over to replace the album, but stopped and slowly straightened when the photo to which it had been open caught his eye anew. The shirt she was wearing, the circle of sunlight around her golden hair, the way he was looking at her…

"That's my favorite one, too." Lilly leaned in close, peering at the photo he held. "Funny, 'cause I don't even remember that day."

Love squeezed his heart in its sweetly painful embrace. "It's okay, Lil. I do."

"Yeah?" Delicate brows flew up.

He nodded. "It's the day I fell in love with you."

Her eyes grew round. "Scotty…"

He pulled her close, breathing deep the sweet scent of her hair. "I remember sittin' there, thinkin' how gorgeous you were, and the next thing I know I'm feelin'…everything. All at once."

"All this time, and I never knew you were in love with me." Her eyes caressed the photo, then him. They started to twinkle with mischief. "And I'm a former federal agent."

He quirked a grin at her. "Well…I am a pretty good actor."

Lilly swatted him on the arm with the photo album, then slipped it into her purse, surveyed the room, and sighed contentedly. "I think that's everything. Landlord's already got my keys, so as soon as we load up the cats, we can head out. The movers can take it from here."

Scotty wasn't certain how Lilly planned to 'load up the cats,' nor was he sure he wanted to find out. The very idea filled him with trepidation.

"Anything you wanna do before we head out, mi vida?" He grabbed the last box and stacked it in the corner on top of the rest. "Any favorite restaurants? Wanna go say goodbye to that pigeon that's always sittin' on Lincoln's head?"

Laughing, Lilly shouldered her purse and picked up the cat carrier from the foot of the bed. "No, Scotty…I'm just ready to go home."

"You got it, Lil." His heart light, he slipped an arm around her slender waist and dropped a kiss on top of her head. "Let's go home."

Lilly had forgotten just how much paperwork there was.

She'd been here in HR for what seemed like hours, scrawling her name on dotted lines so many times the letters had become meaningless hieroglyphics, and there were still more. Finally, finally, she scribbled her signature one last time and, as a reward, received the shiny silver badge she'd been so quick to give up in May. She stood there for a moment in the hallway outside the HR office, cradling the cool silver shield in her hand. Her index finger traced the edges, her eyes caressed the number that now, once again, represented her identity within the Philadelphia Police Department. Detective Lilly Rush, Badge Number 9123. Smiling down at her shield one final time, she slid it into her wallet. With each moment that passed, each little piece of her old life she got back, she felt a little more complete.

No. That wasn't right. She wasn't regaining her old life. Not entirely. Some things were the same. Her rank. Her old salary. The office. But it was a new squad, a squad that had grown closer to one another in the four months of her absence. A squad that was, after today, going to be without its senior member. And it was a new life, too. A life knowing she was exactly where she was supposed to be, doing exactly what she was meant to be doing…and living that life with the person she'd perhaps always been meant to be with.

Excitement coursing through her veins, she hopped onto the elevator for the short ride to the third floor. That excitement reached a fever pitch when the elevator dinged and the doors parted with their familiar clunk-clunk-slide rhythm, and she stepped into the office. She paused at the entrance, taking in the scattered desks and the hum of Monday-morning activity, the ringing of phones and the murmur of conversation. That stale-coffee, copy-machine-toner, and old-document smell it always had about it. What a beautiful, comforting smell. She took a deep breath of it and resisted the urge to throw her hands up in the air and let out a shriek of victory.

It had been a long road…but she was home.

Coming down from the clouds, she strode toward the little cluster of desks inhabited by her colleagues. Her old desk gleamed in the fluorescent lights, almost as though it had shined itself up, eagerly awaiting her return. Her co-workers all had their backs to her and their attention focused on Stillman, who stood at Jeffries' desk, his hand on Will's shoulder and a proud, if a bit melancholy, smile on his face.

"'Bout time you hung it up," Vera was muttering, with that mock gruffness he always used to cover up what he was truly feeling.

"Congratulations, Will." Kat rose to her feet and gave her older colleague a quick embrace. "You deserve it."

Scotty leaned across the aisle to shake Will's hand. "Good for you, man. Got any plans?"

"Yeah." Jeffries' face split into a broad smile. "I'm goin' around the world."

Well, that stunned everyone into momentary silence. Lilly included. She had no idea Will had a hankering for world travel. Unless…

"For real?" Vera's bushy brows lifted in surprise.

Jeffries' smile took on an almost shy quality; his gaze left the group and sank toward the desk, where his hands lay folded in the center. He wasn't wearing his wedding ring anymore, and that fact only strengthened Lilly's suspicion.

"Lena's been offered a gig singin' on a cruise ship for the next six months," he said. "Finally talked me into going with her."

Scotty raised half out of his seat and gave Jeffries' fist a gentle bump. "When you shippin' out?"

"That's what I came here to tell you all." Jeffries glanced around at each of the detectives in turn. "My retirement doesn't become official until the first of the year, but I've got so much accrued vacation time that...well, I'm steppin' down now."

"Now?" Kat demanded. "Like…now now?"

Jeffries looked slightly uncomfortable at being the center of attention. "I make more if I leave than if I stay, so…I'm just here to clean out my desk. We fly to Orlando Wednesday morning."

"So what, now we're down to three?" Kat looked bewildered.

"Yeah," Vera echoed. "Meggie's already complainin' about my hours as it is."

Stillman glanced up then and met Lilly's eyes. Smiling, she almost stepped forward, but the little glimmer of mischief in his expression caused her to hold back. He seemed to have something up his sleeve, so she waited, content and eager.

"Rest assured, your workload won't increase." Stillman slipped off his glasses. "Took some doing, but I managed to convince the brass to let me hire one detective to keep our numbers at four."

"Well, that's a relief." Kat shifted in her chair, draping one elbow over the back of it. "What kinda strings you have to pull for that?"

"You don't wanna know."

"Great." Vera rolled his eyes. "Now we gotta start over with a new guy. Train some rookie who's probably itchin' to be out on the line." He directed a significant glance at Scotty.

Clearing his throat, the boss slipped his glasses back on and then peered sternly over them at each member of the squad. "I can assure you our new detective is no rookie. She comes to us quite experienced and very highly recommended."

"She?" Kat's hair swished across her blouse as she jerked her attention to the lieutenant. "I'm not gonna be the only girl anymore?"

"'Fraid not, Miller."

Even with his back to her, Lilly could sense the smirk on Scotty's face, feel the amusement and the excitement buzzing through his body. She knew he'd be having a hell of a time trying to keep up the charade, and sure enough, Kat's gaze slowly slid from her boss to her partner.

"And just what are you smilin' about?"

"You kiddin'?" Vera shot back. "Fresh meat."

Lilly shook her head. Oh, that lovable Neanderthal. She couldn't believe how much she'd missed him. And she'd missed the constant bickering, too; she turned her attention to Kat, eagerly awaiting the verbal barrage.

But Kat was too busy scrutinizing Scotty's expression to fire back. "No, no, there's somethin' else." Leaning toward her partner, she pointed at him with her index finger. "You…you know somethin'."

Stillman chose that moment to grin broadly and motion for Lilly to step forward. "Looks like our new detective is here."

The group turned around, and Lilly savored her colleagues' startled looks, which quickly melted into other expressions. Vera shook his head, Jeffries smiled broadly, Stillman beamed like a proud father, Kat laughed and clapped her hands….

….and Scotty. Scotty looked happier than she'd ever seen him. His whole being radiated joy. His eyes sparkled. Deep dimples framed that brilliant smile. It was all she could do not to just run into his arms and stay there forever.

"Well, well," Jeffries said. "Looks like she saw the light."

Vera shook his head. "Couldn't stay away from us, huh?"

"For real?" Kat searched her eyes. "You're back?"

Lilly nodded. "I'm back."

Kat vaulted from her chair and enveloped her in a warm embrace, much as she had last week when Lilly returned for the visit that had changed everything. Like a pinball, she found herself bouncing from colleague to colleague, with hugs and handshakes and enthusiastic welcome-backs.

At last she came to Scotty, who enveloped her in his arms with a quiet, contented sigh. It was the most he could do here, in front of their nosy co-workers and their seemingly omniscient boss, and she could tell from the tension in Scotty's arms that it wasn't the kind of embrace he wanted to give her. Nor was it the kind she wanted to give him. She fought the urge to turn to the side and press a kiss to his cheek, to pull back and devour his lips…

Reluctantly, they parted, but not before he flashed a devilish grin and leaned down to whisper in her ear. "Welcome home, mi amor."

Desire heated her blood and painted her cheeks crimson. He must've seen it, because as he stepped away to return to his desk, he flashed a smirk so cocky she suddenly itched to smack him.

Later. Later, she would make him pay. Oh, how she'd make him pay.

"So how's this gonna work?" Vera asked, as Lilly slid happily into her desk—her desk—and avoided Scotty's eyes. "Those two gettin' back together, or what?"

Lilly started, then realized Nick was talking about their partnership. She studied Stillman's face for a moment, trying to figure out just how much he knew. She'd been hoping to discuss the matter in private, but hadn't yet gotten a chance.

Stillman caught her looking at him and smiled kindly, his gaze shifting from her to Scotty and back again. With that, Lilly relaxed. There wasn't a need for any awkward conversations with her boss. He already knew everything he needed to know to make the decisions that were best for his squad.

"I've decided to keep Valens and Miller together." The lieutenant's eyes started to twinkle. "For…a variety of reasons."

Lilly glanced over at Scotty, who was grinning broadly, caressing her with his eyes. They hadn't decided how or when to tell their co-workers, but if he was going to act like this, in a room full of detectives, that conversation was starting to seem pretty pointless.

Sure enough, Kat spoke up within seconds.

"Wait a minute," she said, her index finger ping-ponging from Lilly to Scotty and back again, eyebrow arched and face set in that no-nonsense expression Lilly was certain Scotty had gotten his fill of in his four months as Kat's partner. "You…and you?"

"Yeah." Scotty's voice was husky as he slid a hand across the desk. Lilly slipped hers into his, and he clasped her fingers, his eyes brimming with joy.

A slow smile crept across Kat's face. "I had a feelin'."

Mindful of where they were, Lilly flashed Scotty an apologetic glance and withdrew her hand, then looked around at the rest of her colleagues. Stillman and Jeffries were beaming like proud parents, and Vera's shell-shocked expression was gradually melting into a mischievous grin.

"Guess that means I'm stuck with the new girl." Vera reached across the aisle and gave Scotty an affectionate punch in the shoulder.

"Gonna have to go easy on me for a little bit, Nick," Lilly teased. "I've got a lot to learn."

Across from her, Scotty cut a glance at Vera, almost as though he were sizing him up. "Hey," he said softly. "You take care of her, all right, Nicky?"

Vera looked up, read Scotty's expression, and replied with a brusque nod. "Don't worry, man. I'll be the best partner she ever had."

"Watch it, pal." Scotty flashed a brief glare, much to delight of the toothily-grinning Vera.

"Excuse me," a heavily-accented voice piped up. They all turned to see a middle-aged Hispanic woman standing at the entrance, looking uncertain.

"Good thing New Girl's here." Vera remarked. "Looks like we might have ourselves a case."

The woman's sharp black eyes scanned the group. "Are you the detectives who look into…ay, como se dice…the old murders?"

"Guess that's my cue." Rising from his seat, Scotty answered the woman with a cordial stream of rapid-fire Spanish, then leaned in as he passed Lilly's chair. "Want in on this one, mi vida? I talk, you listen?"

Smiling at the memory of their first case together, where she'd talked and he'd listened—or been supposed to, anyway—Lilly willed away the heat that wanted to creep into her neck. "I'd take Miller if I were you." In response to his arched eyebrows, she flashed him a brief, though wicked, grin. "Might get too hot for you to handle."

An inkling of what he planned to do to her later glittering in his eyes, he trailed his index finger down her forearm before falling into step with Kat and ushering their uncomfortable-looking guest down the hall into the conference room.

Her heart full of mingling, mixing emotions, Lilly watched them go, then turned and looked around the squad room, where Boss and Vera were starting to help Will pack up his desk. She'd join them, she decided, but the half-eaten donut in Vera's right hand called to attention her more pressing need: food. Certain of her morning activities had been…well, rather physically demanding, while others were demanding from an emotional perspective, and now here it was, almost ten AM, and, dammit, she was hungry.

A smile playing on her lips, she headed for the kitchen and eagerly flipped open the lid of the donut box…only to find the box completely empty.

Joy bubbling up in her heart, Lilly laughed and laughed.

Oh, it was so good to be home.