Monday morning arrived faster than either of them would have liked.
The sun was barely up when Emily pulled into the precinct parking lot, gripping her coffee cup like it was a lifeline. She hadn't slept much the past two nights. Every time she closed her eyes, she replayed the moment she pulled away from Liam—the look on his face, the way her heart had twisted painfully even though she knew it was the right thing to do.
She cared about him. She truly did.
But not in the way he clearly wanted.
And now...now everything between them felt like a balancing act on thin ice.
When she entered the bullpen, Liam was already at his desk, pretending to scroll through reports. He looked up when he heard the door swing open, their eyes locking for a split second before Emily quickly looked away.
"Morning," she said, forcing cheer into her voice.
"Morning," Liam replied, too fast, too bright.
The awkwardness between them was palpable, almost physical, like a heavy fog nobody else could see.
Emily dropped into her chair and buried herself in paperwork, but she could feel Liam's eyes on her from time to time. She told herself she was imagining it—he was probably just working, like he always did. Still, the normal rhythm they had—the jokes, the teasing, the silent communication across the room—was gone.
It wasn't lost.
It was just... frozen.
Sargent Peterson called them into his office for a briefing about a robbery case they were assigned.
Emily and Liam filed in silently, taking their usual seats.
Peterson didn't seem to notice anything off as he laid out the case: a high-end jewelry store hit by two masked suspects, security footage blurred, witnesses sketchy at best.
"Think you two can handle it?" Peterson asked, looking between them.
Emily nodded quickly. "Of course."
Liam echoed her a beat later. "Yeah. We're good."
If Peterson noticed the slightly-too-fast answers, he didn't comment. "Good. Get moving."
The minute they were out of the captain's office, Liam turned to Emily, hesitating.
"I'll drive?"
"Sure," she said, keeping her voice light. "Less chance of me getting us killed."
It was an old joke between them—Emily was notoriously aggressive behind the wheel—but today it fell flat. Liam offered a weak smile, but it didn't reach his eyes.
The ride to the crime scene was filled with awkward silence, punctuated only by the occasional comment about the case.
It was all business, all surface.
Nothing real.
When they arrived at the jewelry store, Emily was practically relieved to throw herself into work.
They interviewed witnesses, examined the broken displays, argued about angles and timelines like they always did.
For a few blessed hours, it almost felt normal.
Almost.
But then, while reviewing the footage together, their hands brushed accidentally over the laptop.
Emily jerked her hand back like she'd touched fire.
Liam noticed. Of course he noticed. He said nothing, but something dark flickered across his face before he turned his attention back to the screen.
"You okay?" he asked after a while, voice low.
She forced a smile. "Yeah. Just... tired."
He nodded slowly. "Me too."
The tension stretched between them, taut and dangerous.
Emily could feel the words on the tip of Liam's tongue—the words he wanted to say but wouldn't.
Instead, he swallowed them down and pointed at the blurry figure on the screen. "Look at the way this guy moves. Looks like he knows the layout."
Grateful for the out, Emily leaned in to study the footage.
Professional. Focused. Detached.
They worked late into the evening, chasing down leads. By the time they finally returned to the precinct, it was after dark. Emily gathered her things quickly, desperate to escape before anything else could happen.
But as she headed for the door, Liam's voice stopped her.
"Emily... wait."
She froze, closing her eyes briefly before turning to face him.
Liam shoved his hands in his pockets, looking every bit like a man who had a thousand things to say and no clue how to say any of them.
"I just... I don't want things to be weird between us," he said finally.
She smiled, a small, sad smile. "Me neither."
"But they are," he added quietly.
Emily didn't deny it.
Because what was the point of lying to him?
"They'll get better," she said instead. "We just need time."
"Whatever we thought happened that day didn't happen and am sorry" Liam said slowly, but she could see it in his eyes—he wasn't convinced.
Neither was she, if she was being honest.
Still, she had to believe it.
For both their sakes.
"Goodnight, Liam," she said gently, giving him a small wave before slipping out the door.
He watched her go, feeling the emptiness settle heavier in his chest than ever before.
He knew he had to accept it.
He knew he couldn't force something she didn't feel.
But knowing didn't make it hurt any less.
As the night deepened and the precinct emptied out, Liam sat alone at his desk, staring at the door she had just walked through. He wished he could walk out pull her back and hug her freely without any restrictions. Make her his but he couldn't.
And for the first time in a long time, he wondered if maybe...
Maybe letting her go was the only way to keep her in his life at all.