A/N: Loving having so much support for this fic, but honestly? You reader folks make me so nervous! What if this fic doesn't live up to its prequel and/or to your standards of greatness?! Here's hoping it goes okay...

(For disclaimer, etc. - see chapter 1)

Chapter 2

Dani felt strange not having Nico in the house. It was the first day in weeks when she had woken up knowing he wasn't just down the hall, and she didn't like it. Of course the smile was right back on her lips now as she thought how he would be back before long and moving in for good this time, not just into her house but into her bedroom too.

Once again the smile slipped as Dani's mind shifted to the next important fact for the day. Today was the first day back to work, and that meant facing all the guys at the facility. Comments would be made, she knew, the players and staff would talk because gossip was just a part of life. Dani wasn't ashamed of anything she had done. She was officially divorced the day after her first kiss with Nico, and she talked to Matt about their undefined relationship just as soon as she realised she didn't want that anymore. T.K. had seemed completely onboard with Dani and Nico making a couple, in fact it made Dani laugh to recall his enthusiasm. It would be good to catch up with him, at least. She hadn't heard from him whilst he took a vacation, and she hoped he was doing okay without her guidance.

Dani bit her lip to keep from cursing when she realised she had been daydreaming and ruined the eggs she had in the pan. She had just got done dumping the non-breakfast into the trash when the kids appeared. Lindsay sat down at the counter, but Ray Jay seemed intent to remaining standing. He grabbed up the nearest glass of juice and downed at least half in one go.

"Hey, I kinda had an egg disaster," Dani told the two teens, forcing a smile as she looked between them. "You want me to go for Take Two, or..."

"Cereal is fine, thanks, Mom," Lindsay told her, reaching for the box, but Ray Jay failed to respond, until Dani prompted him to do so.

"I'm not really hungry," he shrugged. "I guess I'm still full from dinner or something. Probably all the snacking us teens do, huh?" he smiled amiably enough.

Ray Jay threw his school bag over his shoulder then, muttering some excuse about needing to get to school early. Lindsay heard him mention the S.A.T.s and yet she wasn't really buying. Yes, her brother wanted to pass his tests and do well so he could get into college, but rushing off without breakfast like this was weird, even for him.

"He's my ride, so..." she said, shoving one more spoonful of cereal into her mouth.

Lindsay spared a moment to kiss Dani's cheek, before rushing after her brother. She caught up to him right by the front door and pulled him back by his bag.

"Hey!" he complained. "What are you doing?"

"Trying to figure out what your problem is," she explained, but Ray Jay did not seem happy to hear it.

Maybe it was just because he didn't want to explain himself anywhere that their Mom might hear. Lindsay knew for sure that was his issue when he opened the front door and pretty much pulled her outside before he would speak. They headed for his car and Lindsay waited for him to explain himself, but her brother was silent.

"C'mon, Ray Jay, tell me what's going on," she urged him. "Is this about Nico moving in?"

"No," he said definitely. "I mean, not really. Don't get me wrong, Nico is a cool guy. He's helped us out before, he obviously cares about Mom, and I really don't care if he wants to be around, y'know?"

"Exactly, that's pretty much how I feel too," his sister agreed, though perhaps neither of them were being one hundred percent honest. "So, what's up with you?"

Ray Jay opened his mouth to answer, looking over the top of the car they were now on either side of. It would be easier to tell Lindsay what he was feeling if he really understood it himself. As it was, he wasn't entirely sure. He meant what he said about their Mom and Nico, he really did, and yet...

"I'm just stressing over this whole S.A.T. thing," he shrugged then, finding a lop-sided smile for his little sister. "Seriously, Linds, I just gotta get my head around these tests and then everything will be cool."

Lindsay stared back at him for a couple of beats and then slowly nodded her head.

"Okay, I believe you," she said eventually, and yet somehow even she wondered if she'd been entirely convincing.

"I don't know what it is, they just seemed... I don't know," Dani shrugged her shoulders, before wrapping her arms around herself, feeling uncomfortable with not knowing how to deal with the situation she found herself in. "Why is it I can second-guess what everybody else is thinking, but my own kids? I got nada," she complained.

"Dani, you gotta cut yourself some slack," Nico advised, putting an arm around her shoulders and pulling her closer as they headed down the hallway. "Ray Jay and Lindsay have a lot of adjusting to do, but they're good kids. I trust that if they had a real problem, whether it was with our relationship or anything else, they would talk to you about it and let their voices be heard."

That got a real laugh out of his girlfriend.

"Oh, they like to voice their opinions, especially on what I'm doing wrong," she rolled her eyes. "I just, I don't want them to think this is wrong," she said turning in to face Nico, gesturing between them as she spoke of their new relationship.

"We'll figure this out," he promised her. "Weren't you the one who told me there was no situation I couldn't fix?" he smirked, a look that as equally annoying and sexy in that moment.

"Yeah," Dani agreed. "And weren't you the one who told me that wasn't actually true?"

"My memory is a little sketchy on that part," he joked, as he leant in to kiss her lips.

They thought they were okay around a quiet little corner with no-one around. Neither had realised T.K. was just waiting to burst in on their private moment. He appeared as if from nowhere, arms spread wide and a grin to match as he spotted his friends.

"Hey, Dr D!" he greeted Dani with a chuckle. "I'd ask if this guy was bothering you, but hey, kinda looks like you're enjoying yourself," he said, pulling down his sunglasses to peer at her and waggling his eyebrows suggestively.

"So nice to see you, Terrence," said Nico with just a hint of sarcasm as Dani slipped out of his arms.

"How are you, T.K.?" she asked the wide receiver she had developed such a fondness for.

"Peachy keen, Dr D," he assured her. "All ready for my brand new season of awesome moves on the field and even smoother moves off it," he winked.

"It's comforting to know that some things never change, isn't it?" said Nico, turning to go then.

The twisting motion of turning around pulled at his injuries a little, but he thought he covered the look of discomfort that wanted to come onto his face. Apparently, T.K. was more observant than Nico gave him credit for.

"Hey, you okay there, man?" he asked immediately, now alerting Dani's attention to the look she could not have seen with Nico's back to her.

"I'm fine," the fixer promised. "It's just gonna take a while for things to be entirely normal after what happened," he explained, carefully manoeuvring his bad shoulder. "Honestly, Terrence, don't look so worried," he said with a smile, before telling Dani he would see her later and walking away.

Dani turned her attention to T.K., asking him how he was and if he'd enjoyed a good vacation. It was only when she called his name twice more and got no response that she realised he was still staring after Nico and not listening to her at all. She started to wonder if he was even aware she had spoken.

"Hey," she pulled on his arm until he turned to look at her. "Are you really okay, T.K.?" she checked, suddenly in full psychology mode.

"Me? Sure, yeah, I'm good," he promised. "But is my man Nico really okay? I mean, the dude got shot..."

"Yeah, he did," Dani nodded her agreement. "But 'the dude' really is fine," she assured him, using his own words that she was sure Nico wouldn't entirely appreciate if he heard them. "He's still got some healing to do, but he will be just fine, Terrence. He's a tough cookie, remember?"

T.K. laughed at the imagery that brought on. The mysterious fixer dressed up like a chocolate chip delight was highly amusing, and yet the laughter didn't ring true, even in T.K.'s head. He was worried about the guy who risked his life to save him, despite all assurances that Nico was okay. When he realised Dani was now talking to somebody else, he looked left and saw Matt coming down the hallway towards them. T.K. had been so distracted by his thoughts again, he almost missed the guy's arrival on the scene.

"How're things going with you two?" he heard Matty D ask Dani, clearly talking about her new relationship with Nico.

"Pretty good actually," she almost blushed, not least because this was the guy she originally thought she might end up dating once upon a time. "In fact, Nico is moving in with us, permanently."

"Wow," Matt reacted with surprise, and just a hint of jealousy perhaps, though he covered it well. "Okay, well, if you need any help with moving boxes or something?" he offered. "I doubt Nico is up to all that just yet."

"Hey, I'll be there!" T.K. was cutting in before Dani could even open her mouth to thank Matt for his kind and thoughtful offer. "Seriously, Dr D. You and my buddy Nico need help, you call Terrence King. I will be right there for you," he said definitely.

Dani wasn't sure she'd ever seen him this serious about something outside of their therapy sessions. He really desperately wanted to help here. As much as she knew he was a good guy that was probably just looking to help out the work-mates who had fast become his friends, she had to wonder if there was more to it than that.

"Sure, T.K., your help would be very much appreciated, thank you. Both of you," she said smiling first at the wide receiver and then the trainer. "Matt, could you tell Coach I'll be right there for our meeting," she said then, looking back down the corridor towards Nico's office. "I just have to..." she gestured that way down the hall and started backing up a step or two.

Matt assured her he would make exuses until she arrived and watched her dart off down the hallway. Dani had to talk to Nico about T.K. and sooner rather than later. It seemed to her he was having trouble with the fact the fixer got injured in a bid to save him. That kind of guilt, however misplaced, could cause great damage, especially to a fragile psych like T.K. If she could get Nico to reassure Terrence that his guilt was misplaced and everything was going to be okay...

Dani's thoughts stopped abruptly as she arrived outside Nico's office door and heard him yell crossly into the phone. He didn't get this mad over much, usually finding his calm centre even in times of stress or panic. Something really bad had to have just happened, and Dani dreaded to think what was about to drop on their heads next.

"Hey," she said carefully as she came into the room, a moment after Nico slammed the phone onto the desk.

"Dani," he let out a breath when he saw her, determined not to take any of this out on the woman he loved most in the world.

"I was gonna ask if everything was okay, but I can already see the answer is no," she said as she came over and tentatively put her arms around him. "What happened?"

"That was Devin, Marshall's lawyer," Nico told her. "It seems that maybe the Pittmans' marriage isn't quite as rock solid as we thought."

Dani wasn't sure what to say to that. Marshall and Gabrielle's marital status could have a ripple effect on not just the Hawks but on Dani and Nico's lives. Dani knew the secret of the affair Nico and Gabrielle had shared in years gone by. Whilst she trusted that it was definitely over now, that Nico would never go back to Gabrielle no matter what, it didn't change the past.

"Do you think Marshall knows about Gabrielle's affair?" she asked, deliberately vague since she knew how Nico felt about people overhearing things, physically or electronically.

"I don't know," Nico shook his head. "I doubt it, but either way, this means trouble," he told her, as he hugged her close. "Dani, if the Pittmans go to war over the Hawks, that puts all our jobs in danger, from the players to the front office to the two of us."

"I know," she nodded in understanding, even though inside she was shaking with fear and panic. "Honestly? I'm more worried about you. This is stress you don't need, especially given how close you are with the Pittmans," she said with a distinctive look that he couldn't miss.

Nico's oldest friend versus his ex-lover, with the man himself stuck in between, and his job on the line too. It was a heck of a mess, and today was only his first day back to work.

"Whatever happens, I can deal with it," he assured Dani, dropping a kiss onto her lips. "I always do," he smiled.

"Well, so long as you remember you don't have to deal with these things alone anymore," she reminded him. "I'm here, Nico. I got your back."

The last part deliberately sounded a little over-done, as if she were following him into a gang war with a gun in her hands. It brought a genuine smile to his lips which is all she could really hope for, and when he kissed her again then, she knew he understood and believed her. If they were headed into as messy a situation as it seemed, it would be good to know they had each other to turn too. It really was the only certainty right now.

To Be Continued...