It's a bird… it's a plane… no! It's an update! Okay, so it's just me being corny. So sue me!

Thanks to: IA and DS for their reviews last chapter.

Enjoy the chapter; the heat finally turns up in the kitchen.

I own nothing.

Intertwined Fates- Chapter Four: Perseverance

Jamie had never felt happier in her life. She woke up tangled in her boyfriend's arms. The smell of his aftershave was probably permanently stuck on her skin, but she could care less. She and Vince had spent all night together. This time, though, they weren't just talking. In fact, there was barely any talking at all. The couple had tried to avoid it, seeing how they wanted to just take their relationship slow for now. Inevitably, neither of them could refuse the pleasure that was getting impossible to ignore with every kiss that they lost themselves in.

The brunette smiled to herself as she heard the lightest of snores escaping the sandy blonde's lips. When they were teenagers, it used to annoy her all to hell, but now she was just happy to have him next to her. Jamie craned her neck to press a kiss to his cheek, which caused him to stir.

Vince smiled sleepily as he came to. "Good morning, baby."

"Hi you," the brunette murmured, snuggling closer to her boyfriend.

The sandy blonde placed a kiss on her lips and went on to trail a line of kisses down her jaw. "How are you doing?"

"Cold," Jamie whined. "Warm me up?" she asked, sticking her bottom lip out in an adorable pout.

Vince flipped his girlfriend underneath him and began to kiss her as deeply as possible. Almost instantaneously, the room heated up. "Is that better?" he murmured into her neck, trailing kisses as the words escaped his lips.

"Mmm. Maybe just a little bit," the brunette replied sleepily.

Just as they went to indulge in another kiss, a knock drove them out of their comfort zone.

"Whoever wants to bother us needs to have a thorough will written," the sandy blonde groaned.

"No one needs to know that we're up, you know," Jamie nuzzled into her boyfriend's neck.

Almost as if whoever it was knocking at the door wanted to make a point, they started knocking again.

"We're not awake!" Vince called out to the person behind the door. "Come back in… I dunno… ten years?" he added, grinning down at his girlfriend.

The voice that came through the other side of the door belonged to Isabella. "Stop screwing each other and come down for breakfast!"

Both boyfriend and girlfriend exchanged glances before reaching for their clothes that were in a messy pile on the floor. Neither of them heard another word from the lanky blonde, so they just assumed that she went down to the deck below for breakfast.

The sandy blonde wrapped an arm around the brunette and used the other arm to open the cabin door for them. One thing that Jamie loved so much about Vince was that he was such a gentleman. Even as a teenager he had opened doors for her, helped her across the street, and slid out chairs for her wherever they went.

Much to their original speculation, the couple quickly found out that Isabella was waiting for them outside of the cabin. She stood with her arms crossed, tapping her foot impatiently. Though she was just kidding around, it took more than just a first glance to make sure that she was just playing around.

"C'mon, lovebirds, I don't have all day," the lanky blonde smirked at the couple as she led them to the deck below.

Vince kissed his girlfriend's right temple and held her close as they followed their friend. Jamie had only considered getting lost once, but the sandy blonde was seriously tempted to pull her away and make up some lame excuse for later. It wasn't every day that they got to live in luxury like this; why couldn't they live it up the way they wanted to?

Unfortunately for the couple, getting lost just wasn't on the agenda for the day. Later on that night, sure. By the time they got into the dining area, their other friends were already waiting for them.

Vince slid out his girlfriend's chair for her and waited for her to sit down before scooting it back against the table for her. "So," the sandy blonde began as sat down next to the brunette, directing this to any of his friends, "is it just me, or did we just do this yesterday morning."

Dominic, who was sitting at the one end of the table, reached a hand out and smacked his cousin upside his head. "Stop gripin', ye big baby," he told the younger man with an enthusiastic grin in place.

The sandy blonde rubbed at the back of his head, where he was sure a lump was going to rise like on those old cartoons he used to watch as a kid. "It was just a question, you know," Vince whined.

Jamie patted her boyfriend's cheek and placed a gentle kiss on the back of his head. "You'll live, sweetie," she teased him lightly.

Kia, Dana, and Susan were in their own little corner of the table, gossiping about God knew what. Jacob and Marty were left looking clueless at their own little corner, and Dominic was still having fun tormenting his cousin. Isabella, on the other hand, she had her own agenda planned. She wasn't going to forget the first day on the cruise that she tried to talk to Jamie. The sandy blonde surely had left his mark on her, but who said that she couldn't have a little fun? After all, it was her vacation as well.

The group of friends ordered their breakfasts of choice when a waiter came around with his notepad and pen ready. Vince and his girlfriend hadn't planned on getting out of bed that morning, but hey, they were surrounded by friends.

Well, to be more exact, they were surrounded by friends and a traitor waiting to be discovered. For whatever reason, Isabella had it wrapped around her head that she could've hooked up with Jamie if the sandy blonde hadn't been in the picture. And now that he was, she was hard pressed to get the brunette's attention.

The lanky blonde turned to the brunette in question, who was looking down at her phone in her lap. Vince had claimed one of her hands and the other was rapidly moving across her keypad. Isabella grinned to herself and gently nudged Jamie's shoulder with her own.

Jamie jerked her head up, a little startled. Once it dawned on her who had nudged her, she looked over at Isabella. "Sorry. In my own little world over here," she smiled gently, "did you need something?"

"Who are you talking to?" Isabella asked, silently nodding towards the phone in the younger girl's lap.

"My mom," the brunette laughed quietly to herself. "I know it sounds weird, but I still like keeping her in the loop."

"Well, there's nothing wrong with that," the lanky blonde responded, sparing her a charming smile.

Jamie bobbed her head absent-mindedly and went back to her phone, gently leaning onto her boyfriend as she did so.

Isabella propped her chin up on her elbow and let out a tired sigh. Much to her approval, this got the brunette's attention again.

"What's wrong? You felt lively enough to get me and Vince out of bed, didn't you?" the younger girl quirked an eyebrow. She was looking back at the blonde, but her head was still nestled against Vince's shoulder.

The lanky girl had two options here; she could jump to the smooth talk, or she could just leave the whole thing alone and be happy for her best friend. Hm. Well, leaving it alone didn't seem like the best option. After all, she was the first to talk to Jamie on the cruise ship, despite her and Vince's previous relationship.

"You remember that first day on the cruise, right? You were sitting down in the café with your coffee and laptop?" Isabella reminisced with a cat-like purr.

Jamie passed the blonde a pointed look. "Oh, you mean the day you tried hitting on me when I obviously wasn't interested?" She already was sleep deprived and waiting for her first cup of coffee. This was not the time to be flirting with her.

The older woman grinned sheepishly which she, no doubt, must have learned from Vince. "Well, how was I supposed to know that you weren't interested?"

"I dunno, maybe it was the fact that I was sitting alone…?" the brunette responded stiffly. Okay, so there was never a time that Isabella could flirt with Jamie. But could you blame her for acting this way? She had a boyfriend, thanks very much.

By that time, her boyfriend had noticed the change in her voice. Vince looked down at his girlfriend and kissed her temple again. "You okay, baby?"

Jamie sent a look back at her boyfriend, one of pure annoyance. He knew that something was wrong at that point.

"I'd be better if you could tell Isabella that I don't appreciate her flirting with me," the brunette replied, sending a scowl back at Isabella. She already didn't like her heartthrob attitude, but the blonde really had the nerve to keep on flirting. Doesn't anyone take a hint anymore?

"Vince, I wasn't flirting with her!" Isabella lied coolly. "I simply asked her about when we first met on the cruise."

"When you tried to hook up with her," the sandy blonde threw back, his eyebrows knitting together in a thin line. "I remember that day because I was still trying to figure out whether she was my Jamie or not."

"I still had a shot too, until you used that big boy brain of yours. I could have taken her out on a few dates, but no! You had to be knight in shining freakin' armor and sweep her off of her feet," the lanky blonde began in a huff. She had never gotten into a fight with her best friend over a girl, but she supposed that there was a first time for everything.

"I cannot believe that you're making a big deal out of this. If Jamie wanted to be with you, she wouldn't have started reconnecting with me. I've known her for twelve years; she doesn't fool around like that," Vince said, defensive of his girlfriend's honor.

The others at the table were now quiet after hearing the whole conversation. Not a one wanted to say anything; well, except for Dominic.

He decided that he had heard enough at this point. Jamie was a good li'l bird as far as he was concerned. There were not many people he would stand up for in life, but he would always stand up for his family. And Jamie had been a part of his family for as long as she had been in Vince's heart. The smuggler took matters into his own hands and smacked the back of Isabella's and his cousin's head.

"That's enough ye idiots!" Dominic began as the table was silenced all the way around.

Isabella got up from the table in a huff, rubbing the back of her head. She sent one last glare at her friends and stalked off.

"What the hell was that all about?" Jacob spoke up, breaking the silence.

Kia sent him a look that made him feel like an idiot. "If you have to ask that question, just smile and agree with me."

He swallowed a nervous lump in his throat. The security guard knew better than to question his girlfriend's authority. Especially when she had her best friends to back her up… Not a pretty sight.

Marty wasn't even going to try to say anything at this point. He was waving his white flag around when it came to this. Dana, Susan, and Kia had their own little superiority when it came to their relationships. Don't ask. Don't tell. If the girls were on Jamie's side, there was no other opinion.

Everything seemed to go back to normal as the group ate their breakfast soon after that. Jamie remained quiet and indulged into as many mugs of coffee as her body could withstand. Her boyfriend had a gentle hand on her leg to help her stay grounded. Just as he had felt the day before Vince knew that things were about to take a turn for the worst.

Dramatic music, anyone? Well, what did we think of the chapter? Drop me a review and let me know!