One of my favorite parts of the Blue and Gold era was that Jean and Ororo were on a separate team from attention-hogs Scott and Logan and, to a lesser extent, Gambit. It could only have been strengthened by putting them in different books, so that there could be even more focus on their relationship.

I've always regarded Ororo and Jean as best friends, which doesn't take away Jean's relationship with Scott, or Ororo's relationship with Yukio (who, IMO, as much as she loves her, even Ororo regards as something of a bad influence, much like her friendship with Gambit).