Later that evening, after the boys had gone to check out the neighborhood and Da had gone on a grocery run, I decided it was the perfect time to take a bath. I turned the faucet on and added some bath foam that I used when I needed to de-stress. I pinned my hair up out of the way because it was just a relaxing bath, not a practical one. As soon as the tub was full, I shut the water off and slipped in.

"Mmmm...," I closed my eyes and let the hot water soothe my tight aching muscles. I sat there relaxing for a long while until I heard the front door slam.

'Shit, I thought, I better get out of here and put some clothes on before Murphy's timing really embarrasses me.'

I stepped out of the tub and was reaching for a towel when the door began to swing open.

I froze in mid-move and began to yell, "Murphy- I was taking a bath! Can't you just give me a moment's pea-"

I stopped. Connor's jaw was hanging slightly open and he stared at me as if he'd never seen me before.

"Oh. My. God." I grabbed the towel and wrapped it around myself as fast as I could.

I looked back up at him and my face went beet red as I realized he was still staring. "CONNOR!!!, I shrieked, GET OUT!!!"

That seemed to snap him out of his apparent trance he'd been in and he made a hasty retreat, repeating over and over, "I'm sorry. Jesus fuckin' Christ!" I could tell by his tone, he wasn't sorry at all. Stupid, idiotic, no sense of privacy, frustrating... male! I silently snarled to myself. I grabbed my clothes from the bathroom floor and, holding the towel tightly around my body, stalked down the hall to my room.

I gave the door a satisfying slam and I threw my clothes on the floor. I grabbed my pajamas, a pair of Dan's old boxers and cami, and quickly dressed. I sat down on the bed to towel dry my hair, all the while silently fuming about what had just taken place. A cursory knock had me flying to my feet and settling down into a battle stance. I glared at the door as if daring whomever was behind to just try and mess with me and see what would happen.

Murphy poked his head into the room. "Not gonna throw anythin' at me aye?"

I didn't say a word, just glared at him as if the force of my stare could make him leave.

He paused, studied my face a moment and then opened the door and came in. "Considerin' the look on Connor's face and yers I'd say all that yelling was at him."

"No shit Sherlock." I snapped back, not wanting to banter with him.

"Well as it looks like he's not gonna give me a straight answer anytime soon, it's ye I get to pry it out of." He grinned. "So, he said sitting down on my bed as if I wasn't about to punch him, what'd he do?"

"Murph, get out of my room. Now." I walked to the door and gestured towards it peremptorily. "I'm only going to ask nicely this once. Then it's going to get ugly"
I put my hand on my hip and began tapping my foot impatiently.

"Naw, I think, I'll stay a bit. Till ye decide yer gonna tell me what happened." He leaned back on my bed and placed his hands under his head as if he had nothing better to do then pester me. Come to think of it, he probably didn't. Well I wasn't about to just let him lie there all night long.

I marched over to the bed. "Don't make me count."

He laughed. "Are ye serious?"

"Deadly. One."

"Oh come on now Avi. What are ye gonna do that's so bad?" He chuckled.

"Stay till 5 and find out. Two."

He stood up. "I'm bigger than ye, ye can't really make me leave."

"Wanna bet? Three."

Murph started looking wary. "Ye haven't any guns in the vicinity do ye?"

"Always, but I'm not looking to kill you. Just get you out of my room. Four."

Connor appeared in the doorway. "What's goin' on?"

"I'm waiting to see if your stubborn ass of a brother is going to get his head out of his arse and leave before I drag him out."

"Ah, I see. Well this might be fun to watch."

"He only has one more number till I kick him out." I looked at Murph. "You gonna stop being stubborn and just leave already?"

He grinned and shook his head. "Nope. I wanna see what ye got."

"Last chance, Murph. Five."

He didn't move, just stood waiting for my next move.

I walked up to him and he flinched reflexively. Then he relaxed as he realized I wasn't doing anything but standing right in front of him looking up.

"Ha! See Connor? She's all bark and no bi-" He broke off as I swiftly reached up and grabbed his right ear and yanked it down to my level. I began walking to my door, dragging Murphy behind me by his ear. A string of curses were flowing freely from Murphy's dirty mouth but he wasn't trying to stop the pulling. I hauled him out into the hallway and there I let go of his ear.

"Whathe fuck was that?!?" He yelled, rubbing his ear protectively.

"That was me getting you out of my room. I think you appreciated that more than you might've a knee to the balls?" I asked, sweetly smiling at both brothers, one of whom was rather pissed and the other who was just laughing his ass off.

I walked back into my room. "Now will the both of you leave me fuck alone!" And I slammed the door into their stunned faces. I sighed, content with myself at having gotten what I wanted, them out of my room.

I heard the door handle start to turn again and I grabbed my gun from where it was laying on top of my dresser. "Okay, I yelled, the next person who comes in without knocking and being told to come in is going to get a gun in the face!! Is that clear?!?!"

Da's head poked around the door. "Aye m'am." His head disappeared and the door shut again. Through it I could hear him talking with the boys.

"Weel Murph, looks like ye learned yer lesson about enterin' ladies rooms uninvited. We should just leave 'er be and let 'er cool down." I heard his heavy footsteps retreat again down the stairs and the boys' as they followed him.

I sighed. "God I've got to get a lock for that door."

I awoke the next morning to find the rest of the house still sound asleep. I grabbed a pair of jeans and a black, fitted t-shirt and put them on. Reaching for my shoulder holster and gun, I looked around for my leather jacket. Spying it in the corner of the closet, I threw it on over everything and double-checked myself to make sure you couldn't tell I was carrying a weapon. I swept my hair up into a quick ponytail but a few hairs around my face failed to be caught and in my hurry, I didn't care.

I crept down the stairs, mindful of which steps creaked. The 3rd, 8th, and12th, I said silently to myself. Reaching the front door, I stopped and listened for any sounds that the boyos were starting to stir. Hearing nothing, I grabbed one of the keys sitting on the table by the door and tried it in the lock. It worked so I slipped it in my pocket and I was out.

It was so refreshing to be outside after been cooped up for almost 72 hours. It was fairly early yet, only about 7:30 or so but there were still quite a few people out on the street. I glanced around. 'No one looking at me strangely or out of sorts. Good.' I walked down the steps, turned to look up at the house to make note of the number, and then I set off. I walked down the block to the street corner and there I stopped to look around. We weren't in the worst part of New York per se, it just wasn't the place you wanted to settle down and raise a family. 143rd and Amsterdam. I knew where I was now. I walked down 143rd for a few blocks until I saw a sign for a hardware store. I altered my course so I could stop in. I hadn't been kidding when I said I needed a lock for my door. 'And one for the bathroom as well.'

I walked in and began walking up and down the aisles looking. Finally I found what I needed in the back corner. I grabbed two sets of door dead bolts with keys and made my way up to the front counter to check out. The man behind the counter gave me a friendly smile which faded quickly as he looked behind me. I started to turn but a hand on my shoulder had me freezing.

"Where the hell did ye think ye were doin' leavin' the house like that?" Connor's voice made me relax marginally but it still pissed me off that he'd found me so quickly, he'd had to have left a few minutes after I did. "Ye didn't tell anyone ye were gone. If somethin' had happened to ye-"

"Connor, let me finish paying for what I came here for and then we'll talk." I said over my shoulder, as I placed the locks on the counter.

"Is that all today miss?" The man still looking warily over my shoulder at Connor but didn't say anything.

"Yes thank you." I handed him my money and he handed me back my change and a sack with the locks. I turned without a look to Connor and strode out of the store and headed towards home. I could hear Connor lengthen his stride to keep up with me but I didn't slow down in the least.

"Avi! Will ye slow down?! I want ta talk ta ye."

"No. We'll talk when we get home." I said not changing pace at all.

"Christ, woman, are ye always so stubborn?" I could hear the exasperation and frustration in his voice but at that point I didn't care.

"No, you just seem to bring out the worst in me." I glanced over my shoulder at him where he was following about a pace behind.

I turned the corner and we were back to our block. I started to cross the street but Connor grabbed my left arm and hauled me back onto the sidewalk.

"What the hell is your problem?" I snapped as I was whipped around to face him.

"I dunna know about ye but I'd rather us have a conversation where Murph isn't around ta interrupt." He kept his hold on my arm and began to pull me down the street.

"Where are we going?" I asked, part of me torn between anger and curiosity.

"Just somewhere quiet so's I can finally have a decent conversation with ye."

He steered me towards a parked car. Pulling keys out, he unlocked the passenger side door and opened it. "Get in." Letting go of my arm, he walked around to the other side and climbed in the driver's side. I stood for a moment looking at the car and considering what would happen if I said no. Finally deciding it wasn't worth it, I took my seat in the car and shut the door.

I looked at him. "Well? Aren't we going somewhere?"

"We're here." He gave a small smile and put the keys in and turned the car on accessory. Light background music began to play.

I sighed and crossed my arms. "Okay so what did you want to talk about that we couldn't talk about at the house?"

He turned slightly to face me and I looked into his eyes. Those gorgeous blue eyes that said everything and nothing all at once. Those eyes that captivated me and held me until I felt like I was drowning. I shook my head. It was going to be very hard to stay angry at him if my train of thoughts kept getting sidetracked by him.

My mind stopped completely at his next words and my mouth fell open in shock.

" I love ye."

A/N: This one is up a bit early but I think it's worth it. I am trying to get back in the flow of writing on a regular basis again. It's taking some getting used to but I'm getting better. As always, any constructive criticism is welcome and encouraged.

BelhavenOnTap: They'll be catching a break soon. Promise. ) And thanks for reviewing, it really helps my writing.

IFancyHughDancy: Bad timing seems to run in the family. lol Thanks so much for reviewing. )

SithHappens: I hope you enjoy this story as much as I enjoy writing it.