Thank you EVERYONE for those wonderful reviews… it really motivated me to keep going and I appreciate it so much!

I hope this finishes the way you wanted to!

Enjoy!

X.x.X.x

"Auggie!" She called him again, shaking him slightly. Annie had heard him trying to talk and thought he had been talking to her, but as he thrashed his head back and forth and she felt the thin sheet of sweat the covered his exposed skin she knew it was more.

Kneeling beside him, her knees tucked into his side, she continued to try and rouse him from the nightmare that haunted his dreams; one hand on his chest, the other at the base of his neck where it meets with the shoulder. Finally he started awake, sitting up against her hands, and breathing labored, "A-annie…" He choked and she nodded, her eyes still wide.

"I'm here… you're safe." She soothed and pushed his hair back with the hand she removed from his shoulder. "You're okay…"

As Auggie regained control of his heart and lungs he relaxed though he was still tense with fear from his nightmare so Annie moved in beside him again, propped up against the pillows and brought his head down to her chest carefully – grateful when he followed her guidance and wrapped his arm around her middle. "Annie…" he whispered and she hummed and tightened her embrace around his rigid body, her other hand still stroking his hair soothingly.

"It was only a dream…" She assured and he nodded his head against her shirt, which was actually his and fit more like a dress.

"It seemed so real…" he said, his voice still rough. Whatever he had dreamt about had really scared him.

She nodded and bowed her head to place a gentle kiss on top his damp hair. "Well, I'm here… try to get some sleep…" She whispered gently, feeling the darkness of sleep trying to claim her again despite her efforts to stay with him until he entered the bliss himself. Again he nodded against her chest, burying himself deeper into her embrace.

When she was certain he had fallen back asleep she leaned her head back against the headboard and closed her eyes, allowing sleep to claim her as his own, her fingers still running through Auggie's dark hair.

X.x.X.x

Auggie smiled as he drove his beautiful car, enjoying the sight of it more than the feel of the wind in his hair, though the sight of the woman beside him trumped that any day. "Where are we going?" She asked, her voice sounded even more beautiful when accompanied by the voice of his vehicle.

"Dunno…" He admitted and looked back at the road, away from her face, as he did. "I'm just driving… see where the road takes us."

Her laughter filled his ears and he couldn't help but close his eyes and relish the sound before looking back over to her, "Do we have enough gas?"

Auggie looked back to his right to her figure and smiled, "Don't you trust me?" Her smile softened from being bright and playful to thoughtful and kind.

"Always…" She whispered and took his hand from the gear shift and put it in her lap, wrapped in both of her small ones. He smiled and watched her for a few moments before pulling his gaze away and watching the road.

Suddenly the sun wasn't so bright anymore and the skies became grey with clouds and he didn't feel as happy. He looked to his right and watched as the land became baren right before his eyes. He turned to look at Annie and felt his heart clench.

Annie sat slumped over in the seat, her long locks covering most of her face but the small stream of blood from her lips was enough to know there was definitely something wrong. He looked down her chest and blanched at the two holes that sat in her chest, right next to her heart. "Annie!" He cried and all but crashed the car to a stop. He twisted in his seat and unbuckled her and tilted her head up, feeling sick at how pale and still she was.

Her head lolled to the side, allowing her hair to fall into her face again, so with a shaky hand he pushed the strands behind her ear. "Annie…?" He called, his voice shaking as much as the rest of his body. "A-annie?"

Auggie sat up and listened closely for any sounds, hearing them in his kitchen. Concerned about what he remembered being reality and dream he felt around the bed for another body. When he felt none he felt his heart clench… did Annie not sleep with him… did he not tell her how he felt…

"Good morning," a familiar voice greeted him and he jumped. "Oh, I'm sorry… I didn't mean to startle you…" There was a pause and Auggie felt the need to fill the air with a joke but his tongue felt heavy in his mouth and he couldn't lift it to speak. "Did you forget I was here?"

Auggie's eyes went wide, "No… no! Of course not Annie!" He sat up straighter in his bed and finally allowed to let his senses to him there was coffee in the house. Still feeling awkward and confused he held out his hand to her, "Come here…" He ordered gently and felt relief wash over him when she took his hand in less than a second, something she always did… even if she was angry, for that he was thankful.

The bed creaked as her added weight pushed on the bed and he took a deep breath as memories of last night finally seemed to seep into his foggy mind and he smiled, she did stay with him last night… after kissing him and changing into his shirt for sleep wear.

"How did you sleep?" He asked quietly, his usual tone taking hold on him again.

Smiling Annie nodded, "wonderfully." She admitted while massaging his hand, bring a smile to his face as well. "Coffee?" She smiled again and he hummed.

"Yeess," He smiled when Annie pressed the mug into his hands.

"Breakfast is ready too," She added with a sideways grin.

"Sounds great," He smiled and shifted to the edge of the bed and followed her out, smiling at the feel of his shirt still on her back when he brushed against her. She sat him down at the counter, informing him that she had finished cleaning up the mess on the floor, "Thanks… you didn't ha-"

"I know but I wanted to," She shrugged a bit, a bowl in her hand before placing it in front of him. Auggie listened closely, his eyes following the sounds of her moving around, "So how did you sleep?" She asked and Auggie paused when he felt her body come up close beside him, soon after the sound of cereal pouring into a bowl sounded in his ears and he beamed.

"Cereal?" he said.

Annie chuckled and made a sass face, "Yeah well, you have to remember… Danielle was my cook for most of my life. So I either ate what she made or ice cream."

"Oooh, ice cream for breakfast…?" He paused and looked down at the bowl as she poured the bowl before looking up and over his shoulder a bit, where she stood at his 4 o clock. "Why can't I have ice cream for breakfast?"

She laughed and sat beside him on the stool to his right, "because somebody ate it before you woke up." She said slyly, he could hear the smirk on her lips and laughed, bringing a laugh of her own to her lips as she put her forehead on her shoulder.

After a moment of silence Auggie let out a deep breath, "I'm glad you came home, Annie…" He paused and waited for her to lift her head from his shoulder before continuing, "I know it must have been difficult to walk away…"

When he finished speaking only the sounds of their breathing filled the air and Auggie wondered if he said that wrong thing. "I made the right choice… I'm glad that I listened." She put a hand on his forearm and leaned in closer, "Thank you." He closed his eyes and smiled his head bent down low, closer to hers. When he opened his eyes he was looking right at her, a soft look took over his features.

Auggie opened his mouth to comment when the sound of his alarm rang through his home, filling the empty air between them.

"What time is it?" He asked, his brows furrowed as he looked over his shoulder to his bedroom.

"It's actually a little after 5… now" She muttered.

"Why are we up so early?" He asked and looked back at her with a confused but amused look in his eyes.

He heard a pause and the ruffling of clothing and figured she just shrugged her shoulders before answering, "You woke earlier than that but then fell asleep but I didn't think that would last long… so I put on a pot of coffee and made your delicious breakfast and waited for you to come out… though I ended up getting you first." She smiled.

"I woke up?"

There was a pause and he heard her shift in her chair, "Well, I woke you up…" She paused again before continuing, "You were having a nightmare…"

Flashes from the nightmare he specifically remembered having pushed their way to the front of his mind and he cringed at the sight of Annie bleeding right beside him and not being able to do anything about it. "Do you remember…?" She interrupted his thoughts quietly, her voice soft as her touch.

"No…" He admitted, apparently his night wasn't as restful as he had thought.

Annie put a hand behind his neck, her fingers entangled in the hair at the nape of his neck, "It's alright… it's probably better that way." She said in his ear before pressing her lips to his cheek. "You should eat your breakfast…" Auggie started to nod when she spoke again, "You probably should get a new bowl though… it's all soggy." Her voice was light and chipper as she spoke and it pushed the flashes of her dying to the back of his mind once more.

"Yeah, thanks." He laughed and leaned into her touch when she kissed him again.

"I'm going to go get dressed okay?" As she left she ran her hand from his neck and down across his shoulders, sending a shiver of pleasure and desire through his body. "Everything is where it normally is." She added carelessly over her shoulder once she turned into the bathroom.

As he heard the shower turn on he quickly poured the cereal down the disposal, put the bowl in the dishwasher and moved onto the couch, turning the T.V. on and listening to the news.

X.x.X.x

It was another 45 minutes before she finally came out, dressed with hair and makeup done. Annie came up behind him on the couch and put her arms around his neck, hands resting on his bare chest, and face beside his. "Your turn, handsome." She whispered, mint and grapefruit filling his senses.

"Do you always take that long?" He laughed and leaned his head back against her shoulder so his face was closer to her neck than her face.

Her laughter bubbled from her lips and jostled him a bit, "No, it's normally about 40 minutes… I couldn't find my lipstick." She said with a smirk and bumped her head against him a little.

"Sorry, I used it last night and forgot where I got it from…"

"Ha-ha… that explains why your lips look so delicious…" She whispered and released him from her hold before moving around the couch to sit by him, her legs tucked under her.

"Mhmm," He smiled and looked in her direction, "So I guess we're going to work today?" He asked after placing a hand on her thigh, and feeling the dress beneath his fingers.

"Yeah, I really need to talk to Joan about the next course of action and Lena…" She sighed and bit her lip before continuing, "I was so close Auggie… I had her." She balled her hands into fists, "But she took my asset and I lost her!"

Auggie screwed his lips together, "I know… but when you get pushed like that it's better to pull out anyway… you did the right thing." He encouraged and she nodded and pushed her straightened hair behind her ear.

"I know…" She looked up at him and took his hand in both of hers. "and I'm so glad I came home. Really… I just wish I could have gotten that picture."

"I know… but we'll get her." He promised and squeezed her hand in his gently.

Annie tilted her head to the side and smirked before worrying her brows and leaning closer, bringing one hand to his face. She felt her heart light at the sight of the corner of his lips turning upward before he leaned in and met her lips halfway, both of his hands on the side of her face like he did all that time ago in Barcelona… right before he got mad her for coming to help him instead of going for the case.

Now he knew that it wasn't because she felt he couldn't handle himself, but because she cared for him enough to guarantee that he was safe. Auggie felt the emotions from that day push up into his throat, forcing him to pull away from Annie's kiss. "Auggie?" She called and stroked the side of his face before allowing her hand to rest at the base of his neck, her other hand holding his.

"No, it's okay…" he assured and brought her hand to his lips and kissed her knuckles. "Everything is great… " he added before placing his free hand to the side of her face carefully and leaned in to press his lips to hers again. "I'm going to go get ready." He whispered and she nodded into his hand before he dropped his hands and stood, leaving for the bathroom.

X.x.X.x

Annie called a cab and gave the man her address, "So what do we do about Joan and Arthur." She asked once Auggie was inside and closed the door.

"Joan's leaving, Annie…" He said gently.

Annie twisted in her seat so she could look at him directly, "What?!"

"She quit…" He said just as vaguely.

"I get that, why?"

"Because of the Lena situation… and Arthur refusing to back up anything you or Joan says."

Annie was incredulous, "She can't just leave… not now! I need her!"

"We'll figure it out, Annie, I promise." He said and searched for her hand, Annie assisting with taking his hand in hers, "I promise."

Annie nodded, "Okay, what bout Arthur though?"

Auggie let out a deep breath, "I don't know… but to start… we don't mention 'us'."

She laughed, "That's an excellent idea," She whispered as though it was a secret before turning into him. The rest of the ride to her house was with Annie leaning into Auggie wish his arm wrapped around her shoulders, his free hand in her lap, held by both of hers.

To be continued…?

X.x.X.x

Okay, just in case you were confused about the end, they were going back to her house to pick up her car and then go to work… since I doubt a cab driver can drive them to work.

I hope this was as good as it was in my head, sometimes what I think is great in my mind turns out like shit once I write it down.

Anyway, thanks again so much for all those encouraging reviews and I hope I didn't disappoint you…

Please leave another review with a thumbs up or thumbs down… and if it's down… what should I fix?

Thank you for reading!