A shout out to my BETA Dragonmaster65! Thank you for putting up with my insanity and pushing me to constantly improve.

A/N: Thank you so much to all my readers and reviewers, especially those who have favourited this story. I am feeling cooler than a coke in the Artic. Now for reviews:

Courtneywilliams561, ErinJordan, sm2003495, Newtothis351 & Max2013: Thank you. I present to you the 2nd chapter

Ritu, Radiant eyes & Cherylann Rivers: Callie, who?

Caranath: Only one way to find out- read on!

Drumboy: Just a case of a Hamlet lying around when I was looking for inspiration. (pssttt I had to look up Exculpatory as well)

Evergreendreamweaver & Candylou: You don't want to be in her shoes right now

Hbndgirl: I commend your attention to details. Don't you go solving the mystery before the boys do.

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Attn: There is a curse word in this chapter (Sorry)

Chapter 2

Joe Hardy groaned, "Oh no, that feeling again." That head-spinning, nothing-seems-quite-as-it-should-be sensation. He couldn't focus properly. This feeling was a prominent feature of Saturday mornings after clubbing on Friday nights. Except today was Thursday morning.

He dragged himself out of bed and stood up. Big mistake; his head pounded and he wavered unsteadily trying to find his balance. But he knew that he had to soldier on and get through. There was a pain in his face and his eyes hurt. He limped to the bathroom and looked at his reflection in the mirror.

"Oh my God!"

He had to look again, to make sure. He was positive that someone who felt as bad as he did should be looking like a corpse. He was right. Disheveled blond hair now covered his head. All his teeth twinged and his stomach burned. He remembered his brother saying that club scenes weren't his cup of tea and that Joe was more than capable of gathering information on their client's cheating husband all by his lonesome. The younger Hardy had obliged. It had been so boring watching the man go through girls like they were some commodity that Joe had treated himself to a few glasses of whiskey, neat.

Only now, the lovely effects of the whiskey were quite gone, and only the nasty ones were left; the taste in the mouth, the splitting ache in the brow, and the impotence of not being able to clarify one's thoughts.

The splash of cold water against his face felt refreshing. He stank of alcohol. A nice cold shower should do him good, he decided. He felt far from good.

He finished a quick shower and then groaned. He was still dizzy. After unsuccessfully trying to pull on his pants for a few seconds, he realized it was his shirt he had been trying to pull on. Muttering under his breath, he reached for his pants.

Once the daunting task of getting dressed was over, he walked into his brother's bedroom- empty. Right - his brother had spent the night at his girlfriend's.

Crap! It meant he would have to make coffee and breakfast which was usually ready and waiting when his older brother was home. He gingerly walked to the kitchen and got the coffee started.

Toast, eggs, cereal? Fuck that! Granola bars will have to do.

The drive to Hardy & Sons was a painful one. His head still hurt a lot and the dark sunglasses did absolutely nothing against the blinding sun. As he parked his van, Joe frowned. While following cheating spouses was good money, he was itching for a real case.

After graduating, the brothers had obtained their PI license and together along with their father opened up Hardy & Sons, a detective agency. Joe was a very good detective. Although he solved most of the cases that came their way with his older brother, he had solved a few on his own.

He didn't have to itch any longer. As he made his way to the front door of his office, he noticed a beautiful young woman standing at the entrance of Hardy & Sons. She had ash blonde hair and blue gray eyes that hinted of fear in them. "Hi, my name is Vanessa Bender," she said. The smile she gave Joe was strained.

Nooooooooo! Not another follow my husband! Kill me already.

To her he flashed a smile.

"I'm Joe Hardy! What can we do for you?" he asked, his bright blue eyes boring into hers.

"Please help me! I am being framed for murder!"

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A warm breeze ruffled his dark hair. The morning rays illuminated the bedroom where Frank Hardy lay. The bed sheets were white and the lacy bed-skirt hung down all the way to the floor, where it swished about softly in the breeze that came in through the open bay window. They weren't exactly on the beach but were close enough to Barmet Bay that you could almost taste the salt in the air.

Frank woke up to see his longtime girlfriend, Callie Shaw, stretching her thin arms, yawning and making soft sighs to herself. She hugged her little shoulders, her eyelids fluttering, and she smiled with her mouth closed, content.

For a little while he pretended to be asleep, watching her enjoy the breeze and the sunlight, the coolness of the bed, or whatever it was that seemed to bring her so much happiness. He held his breath and drank in her beauty as she silently slid out of the bed. Her toes touched the floor and she moved across the room, her hips swaying as if she weighed nothing at all.

After all this time, Frank was still astounded by just how deeply he cared for her. Kissing her lips was like drinking great draughts of cool milk and spiced honey. She was his sense of peace in the chaos of the world.

Caught in her own routine, Callie was unaware of how even now she'd captivated him. She arched her back and tossed her golden blonde hair before kneeling at the window. Birds were just starting to sing outside, and she ran her pearl-colored comb through her hair.

Watching her, Frank fell back into the lazy sort of late-morning dreams that were so full of meaning at the time, but later he knew would seem foolish. As the morning wandered on, he could see her in little snips and vignettes, half mixed in with his wandering dreams. Finally he threw the sheets off and sat up. He walked into the kitchen where Callie was eating half a grapefruit and licking the spoon. She smiled at him as he pulled her into a tight embrace.

"Good morning, Frank!"

"Mornin' love," he replied, pouring himself some coffee. "Fancy staying in today?"

"That would be a hard no. Some of us actually have to show up and get some work done. Not everyone can go into the family business," Callie replied

"You could freelance, work on your own terms." Something Frank always told her.

Frank hated working for someone, even his father. After graduating he had gone ahead and worked independently on his PI license until his father had sat him down about working together at Hardy & Sons. They would have a better pool of cases with a firm, which would benefit each of them. Frank had been assured that his cases were his own, and he could work however he wanted to. In the end it worked out well. He had his independence while still keeping an eye on Joe. That was one benefit that working solo couldn't afford him; Frank always wanted to have Joe's back.

Callie smiled wryly over her grapefruit. "I am happy where I am. Besides, I haven't yet made a name for myself that I could just freelance," she replied.

It was a familiar conversation. Callie was a journalist. Her passion had taken her to pursue dual degrees in her field before she relocated back home. There she had taken up a position at Bayport Times, which was a leading newspaper company with massive presence online.

"You have good work ethic, and your articles almost always make the front page," Frank countered. "You don't give yourself enough credit."

"Soon," she said. Callie tiptoed and planted a kiss on Frank's cheek.

Frank put an arm around her and rubbed his nose against her. "I am a glutton for you, you know?" he murmured.

"Now you're just flirting," Callie whispered back. She giggled as Frank started leaving butterfly kisses on her neck.

They had cereal with little slices of fruit for breakfast. Conversations and laughter filled the room. As Callie left for work she kissed him goodbye.

He watched her leave, lost in his thoughts when the constant buzzing of his phone jolted him back to the present. He glanced at his phone and raised an eyebrow. They had a case.