Author's Note: This is one shot story that I wrote after a spoiler inspired me. It's been years since I've written anything so please be honest, but gentle :) The love scene I think would be considered graphic so be warned if you are not into those kinds of scenes. Other than that, I hope you enjoy..

Their gazes locked across the distance separating them. Dante barely noticed the paramedic placing the oxygen mask over his face or the tightening of the blood pressure cuffs as they worked to get his vitals. What in reality was a chaos of voices and people and noises as policemen worked to get statements, news crews clamored to be as close to the scene as possible, and firemen worked to put out the last of the blaze, was merely a whisper in the back of Dante's mind as the only thing he could focus on was Lulu. His heart was still thudding loudly in his chest, he could still feel the panic twisting and squeezing his insides when he thought about how close he came to losing her. But there she was, about fifty feet away, Lucky flanking her side as the paramedics were giving her the same workup he was receiving himself. Yet even with onslaught of activity that surrounded them, their eyes couldn't be torn off of each other. Profound relief at the sight of her alive was mixing in with a number of other emotions he didn't want to analyze at the moment.

Lulu tried to concentrate on breathing in and out through the oxygen mask as her brother placed a hand on her shoulder.

"I called Dad," Lucky began. "He'll be here as soon as he can. God, Lulu, you had everyone scared to death."

She briefly glanced over in his direction and then back at that man who saved her life...again. The look he was giving her even across this distance was so intense, her first inclination was to turn away but she couldn't...because that look mirrored all the thoughts and feelings going through her own mind and her own heart. She could have died tonight. He could have died trying to save her. She came so close to never seeing her friends or her family again. Never seeing him again. The feelings that she had for him were overwhelming and so much more powerful than she had ever felt before.

Lucky followed Lulu's gaze and then turned back to his sister.

"He never gave up on finding you. He worked nonstop to track you down and bring you back to us."

Lulu could only manage a nod as she processed that.

The paramedic lifted the mask off Lulu's face. "Your vitals are strong considering. There doesn't appear to be any damage to your lungs from the smoke inhalation that I can see here. It looks like you got out before the worst of it. You should go in for a chest xray and have a doctor examine you though."

She barely heard his words and instead found her breath catching in her throat as she saw Dante walking over to them.

Lucky turned and caught up to him before he reached Lulu. He held out his hand and Dante looked down before shaking it.

"Thanks, man. I owe you. My sister wouldn't be alive if it weren't for you."

Dante smiled and tried to shrug off the discomfort that he typically felt at being the object of anyone's gratitude for doing what anyone should have done.

"If you do owe me, I think I'm going to collect now," he said, letting his eyes wander to Lulu.

"What do you need?"

Turning back to Lucky, he said, "I need some time with Lulu. Can you make sure the questioning gets held off until tomorrow?" Being a cop, he knew the routine. They'd be hounded with question after question until they had their statements down to the last detail. He heard Lucky's sigh.

"You don't ask for small favors. This is a huge investigation. With no sign of Franco -" Lucky stopped himself and just shook his head. "No, you know what? I'll see what I can do. But they think Lulu should get checked out by a doctor and you should probably do that yourself."

"I promise that we will both surrender ourselves to all the endless questions and medical probing first thing tomorrow."

Lucky held back a smile and nodded. "Take care of her."

"Always," Dante responded.

Lulu heard every word and felt her heart rate accelerate in response. He moved past Lucky until he was standing right in front of her. The paramedic packed away the remaining equipment and started to load up the back of the ambulance. Without saying a word, Dante held out his hand to her. She unconsciously bit down on her lower lip but without hesitation slowly placed her hand in his.

He hadn't said a word to her or told her where they were going. They had only been in the car for a few minutes but he barely even glanced at her since he led her away from the place that she was sure would be the scene of her nightmares for weeks to come. But she knew she'd never forget the words he said to her as he led her out of the burning building to safety. "I wasn't about to lose the best thing that ever happened to me." She sneaked another glance at him from the corner of her eye and saw his hands tighten around the steering wheel.

Dante mentally ordered himself to keep control but the emotions swirling inside of him were reaching a breaking point. He knew if he looked over at Lulu right now he would lose it. If he had gotten there even two minutes later --- He shook his head angrily in an attempt to throw the thoughts out of his mind. Lulu was safe now, that was all that mattered. That was all that would ever matter.

When the car stopped and Dante removed the keys from the ignition, Lulu turned to face him and saw that he had leaned his head back against the headrest. He took a deep breath as if composing himself. She looked out the window and saw that they were at Kelly's. She opened her mouth to say something but before she could get any words out he was out of the car and walking around to her side. When he opened the passenger door and held out his hand to her again, she took it and let him guide her out of the car. Anticipation took root in the pit of her stomach as he led her into Kelly's and up the stairs to his room, his fingers tightening around hers with every step they took. Lulu knew if there was ever a point of no return she had passed it long ago.

After motioning for Lulu to step inside, Dante followed and shut the door behind him. He saw Lulu take a few steps forward, her back still to him. Slowly, she turned around to face him and he felt like he just received a kick in the gut. They were both a mess. Their clothes were stained and caked with ash. Lulu still had a small streak of soot on her cheek. But despite that, she was the most beautiful thing that he ever laid eyes on and the vulnerability reflecting in her eyes nearly brought him to his knees.

As the events of the last few hours played over in both of their minds again, Dante closed the distance between them, slipped an arm around her waist and pulled her tightly against his body. Lulu let out a sob as she buried her head in his neck. Feeling like a weight was lifted from his shoulders, Dante held her and let his hands stroke her back before sliding up to tangle in her hair. Gripping softly, he pulled her head up and forced her to look at him, tears shining in both of their eyes as they stared at each other intently.

"I won't lose you," he said almost roughly and before Lulu could even respond she suddenly found his mouth crushed against hers. She moaned against his lips and tried to press herself even tighter against him. She felt his hands tighten in her hair but she didn't care. She needed this, needed him. She slipped her hands underneath his shirt and ran them up and down his back slowly, wanting to feel the touch of his hot skin underneath her palms. His tongue pushed through the seam of her lips and sought out her own. Lulu moaned again and he felt the vibrations of every sound she made against his lips and it made him harder, more out of control as he gripped her hips and pushed her middle suggestively against his own.

Lulu felt her knees begin to buckle and as if sensing this, his hands wandered down to cup her behind and he lifted her up against him. She automatically wrapped her legs around his waist as he turned around and backed her up against the wall. Finally, he tore his mouth away from hers and moved to her neck, pressing his tongue against the pulse that was now beating wildly. Lulu threw her head back as she let the raw emotion and passion take her over. Her hands moved to his shirt as she undid each and every single button. She leaned forward and kissed the bare skin of his chest, loving the groan that came from him and knowing that she had an effect on him too. Her legs slid from his waist back down to the floor as his hands abandoned her waist to work on lifting her shirt over her head. She raised her arms to help him and then shoved his shirt off his shoulders and down his arms.

Their lips found each other again and Lulu's hands immediately went to undo the button on his pants and unzip them but stopped with a gasp as she felt Dante's hands stroking her bare breasts. She didn't even remember him removing her bra. She shuddered as one of his thumbs brushed against a nipple and she let her head fall forward against his chest. Time seemed to be coming in flashes as she felt her pants pool down at her feet and he helped her shed the rest of his clothing. Even with all their clothes now thrown about around them, it was the expressions in their eyes that kept them the most exposed to each other. He lifted her arms and kept her wrists pinned against the wall above her head with one of his hands. His other hand reached down in between their bodies, she gasped as she felt a finger slide inside her, they both knew she was more than ready and every part of themselves needed the other.

He moved his mouth to hers again, but instead of capturing her lips, he whispered against her mouth, "Say my name."

Lulu's heavy lids opened in confusion through the passion that was clouding her every thought. "Say it," she heard him say again, his voice lower and deeper and more demanding that it seemed to crawl inside of her.

"Dante," she whispered, her voice hoarse from both the smoke and her own emotions. She thought she saw him smile before she felt his lips on hers again at the same time she felt him thrust hard and deep inside of her. Her hands now free, she cried out and raked her nails down his back as her legs found their way around his waist again. She felt his fingers dig into her hips as he set a pace that she met just as eagerly. She moved her hands up farther until they were running through his hair.

Dante heard her gasps for breath and he groaned loudly as he felt her tighten around him. Moments later he felt her orgasm, triggering his own. They held each other until the last of the shudders subsided. Their breathing still hard and heavy, they let their foreheads fall against each others softly. "Wow," they both managed after awhile.

Lulu didn't know how much time had passed but she found herself being lifted gently and carried over to the bed. Dante laid her down and then moved into the bed beside her. They both turned so they were facing each other.

"Did you mean it?" Lulu finally asked quietly.

Dante reached out with his thumb and rubbed away the black mark still on her cheek. Her eyes were still wet from her tears and he leaned in closer so he could place a gentle kiss right where one tear had started to slide down her cheek. He tasted the saltiness on his tongue. "Mean what?"

She hesitated. "That I...that I was the best thing that happened to you."

Dante smiled slowly. "Oh...that."

The silence dragged out between them. Lulu looked at him expectantly albeit with increasing impatience. She playfully slapped at his chest. "Well....are you going to answer the question?"

"Didn't I just show you?" Dante's smile grew wider when he saw a faint blush creep onto her cheeks. "I always mean what I say," he finally said in a quiet voice.

Lulu smiled as pleasure filled her. It took nearly dying to realize it, but she knew she wanted to keep this man in her life and she felt faith in the fact that he seemed to want the same thing. "Me too."

"Well I would hope so. Lying is so unattractive," he said lazily.

She slapped at his chest again but couldn't help the laugh that escaped. "That's funny coming from an undercover cop...Officer." When he just smiled back at her, she sighed. "I meant that...maybe...you're the best thing that's ever happened to me, too."

"Maybe?" he let a look of mock outrage pass over his face but he reached out to pull her closer against him. As she rested her head in the crook of his neck, he laid his chin gently on top of her head. "I'm sorry about before. I didn't mean to be so....fast."

Lulu suppressed a laugh and instead nodded solemnly against him. "Maybe you could try again."

"Mmm..." he said as he moved over her and looked down into her eyes. The tension of before now replaced with a lightness, peacefulness, and happiness that was reflected in his own.

"Lulu?"

"Hmm?"

"I'm glad you're breathing."

Dante's lips captured the end of her laugh.

***** THE END ******