A/N: So this is it, only a small epilogue before this story is finished. Thank you all for your support and reviews. I always had a great time reading them. Since I'll be on vacation from tomorrow on, my replies for member reviewers will take some time. To all the anonymous ones, THANK YOU for taking your time to review. Hope you all enjoy the last part.

Jess

Epilogue

When Natalia walked to the elevator at the end of her shift, her gaze immediately fell to the abandoned office above her. It had been four weeks since they'd all seen Horatio for the last time.

Four very long weeks.

After their small get together in the interrogation room, Horatio had been brought to some unknown place. From what Frank had told them, Horatio had undergone a few more interrogations with the Chief and everyone involved in his mission. Afterwards, he'd had another surgery, to get rid off the plastics in his face and then he'd gone under a slight detox. During his undercover work he'd inhaled and ingested various drugs that needed to get out of his body. Not to forget his smoking. This would probably the biggest fight he had yet to go through.

"Well, I can't blame him for starting to smoke. It was a stressful job and it's better than drinking yourself into stupor. Not that smoking is healthy at all," she thought to herself when she entered the lift and pressed the button for the car deck.

She was missing him. A lot actually. They had spent several weeks together and even though she hadn't known about his real identity for the most part, they had been roommates in a way. Coming back to an empty apartment now, felt utterly wrong.

"No need to get all gloomy about it now, Natalia. He'll be back soon, even if not as your roommate." But seeing Horatio again, as his real self, was good enough for her.

"So what to cook for tonight?" she mumbled and pressed the remote to open her car.

"What about dinner?"

Natalia spun around and wore a deer in the headlight impression. "I-"

Horatio chuckled softly and walked to her. "I'm sorry for scaring you. Can I make it up to by taking you out for dinner tonight?"

"I didn't know you were back again," she whispered.

"I'm not, well, not officially anyway," he smiled at her. "So dinner?"

"I, yes, dinner...sounds nice," she nodded and felt rather foolish.

"Great," he grinned and stopped right in front of her. "I have to admit that I missed you, you know?"

"I…I missed you too," she responded and let her eyes trail over his face. He almost looked the same again. His eyes were blue again, his hair red. His face still seemed a bit swollen and she could see a few more scars, tiny as they were. "You look like-"

"Myself again? Yeah, more or less," he nodded. "Some scars won't vanish and not everything is healed yet, but I'm getting there."

"This is good," smiled and felt a bit nervous suddenly. The last time they'd been this close, they had both played a role. Had anything of it been the truth?

"Do you remember the question you asked me?" he asked and took her hands in his.

"Which one?" she asked mesmerized.

"If I'm looking forward to be myself again, to the end of this undercover work."

Yes, she did remember it, just like she remembered his answer. "Yes."

"I told you that I didn't know an answer to that," he said. "But in the last couple of weeks," one of his hands let go of hers and gently brushed her cheek, "I realized that yes, yes I'm looking forward to it. I'm looking forward to leave Evans behind me. I'm looking forward to be Horatio again and most of all I'm looking forward to see you again. To..," he took a deep breath and decided to stake everything on one card. "To see what might happen here.."

Natalia's mouth was formed in an O when she realized what exactly he was talking about. So this wasn't a dinner between two colleagues or two friends. No this was a date. A real date. If she wanted it to be. Finding her voice again, she gave him a mega watt smile. "I think I'd like that very much."

The End

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