A/N Wow. You guys seriously are amazing - a lot of love for the last chapter...not so much love for the appearance of Larry though... ha ha! I received 24 reviews for my last chapter - that has just blown me away - THANK YOU!

Just wanted to give a few virtual "high fives for awesomeness" to the following (in no particular order!) Vausemaniac, LiggyCow, JenSurname, Reverse-Swing and WB79! Just little thank you if you will for your amazing reviews and PMs!

So... yeah...Larry... ;)

"Larry? What the-? What are you doing here?

For the past five minutes, Piper has been content, listening to Alex open up about her past like they had known one another for years, not less than a day.

For the past five minutes, Piper had been wrapped in the sound of Alex's voice, the soft rasp when she spoke, that carried so much emotion about her younger years, the depression she seemed to have suffered, and her love of the written word.

For the past five minutes, Piper had been focused on Alex and only Alex. The bar, her friends, everything had just faded into the background, nothing else had mattered. She had been there just for Alex.

But now, Piper was being pulled away from all that, away from Alex. Physically, she was still just inches away from her, but as Alex stopped talking, looking over her shoulder to stupid fucking Larry, Piper could see her withdrawing from her and Piper felt like screaming.

"Larry. What. Are. You. Doing. Here?" Her voice was steeped in anger, her temper rising at Larry for having the nerve to approach her when it looked pretty obvious she was with Alex. Whether or not that was currently entirely correct, was another matter, but that was no concern of Larry's, what did concern Piper was what Alex was thinking, as she looked to her now, Piper found it hard to read the expression that currently fell over her beautiful face.

Piper needed Larry to know she did not want to see him, not now, not ever. She also desperately needed Alex to know that she wasn't involved with him, Larry was her past, not her future.

Seeming to ignore the glare from Piper, Larry bumbled his way through his words, "Well, err, you see, umm, Polly…." He moved his arm out to the side to point towards Polly, looking in her direction for confirmation as for his reason to be stood here. "I, umm, saw Polly at your store earlier, she said you were all coming out to Red's this evening, so, you know…."

"No Larry. I don't know. Why are you here?"

"You know why I am here Piper," His voice dropped low as he took a step closer, "I want you back."

The words were tinged with hope and longing, but Piper couldn't help but cringe internally, for as soon as they were spoken, Alex shifted on her stool, moving away from her. Piper felt the coolness on her skin as the brunette pulled her hand away from Pipers, and removed her arm from around Pipers shoulder, feeling her tense up as she moved her body, leaning back to look at the person who had interrupted them.

"Larry! What on earth gave you that impression? Do you not recall? We spilt up. I left you. I haven't seen you for…shit – a year, Larry. A whole, goddamn year…"

Larry shifted where he stood, clearly uncomfortable about discussing his reasons in front of the large group, and this woman who he didn't recognise, who Piper had been talking closely with as he had approached them. "Look, Piper, can we – you know?" He threw a thumb over his shoulder indicating that he wanted to speak elsewhere, in private.

Although she could sense Pipers anger towards this 'Larry', Alex was tired of being stuck in the middle, deciding that it would be better for her to leave now than be caught up in some tangled web of an old relationship. She stood up from her seat, her words directed at no one in particular, but she tried her hardest to make sure they were emotionless, masking how she truly felt inside after being so open and honest with Piper just a few moments before.

"Here – take my seat. It's clear you two 'love birds' need to talk, so seems like a good time for me to get out of here…"

Alex looked quickly to Nicky, responding to the questioning look from across the table with a shrug of her shoulder and a nod of her head – attempting to convey her apology for leaving so soon.

Nicky's wide eyes and shocked expression clearly revealed that she witnessed the scenario playing out in front of her, scarcely believing how in one moment Piper and Alex looked inseparable, then with the appearance of Larry, everything was falling apart. Touching Lorna on the arm and nodding towards Piper to let her know what she was up to, Nicky tries to squeeze past the others to get out of the booth as quickly as possible.

Alex leaned towards Piper, reaching past her to retrieve her jacket, murmuring in her ear as she came level with her, "I get it. Unfinished business or whatever this is. You don't need me sticking around for that."

In one elegant movement, Alex stood up, shrugs on her jacket, flicks her hair out from under the collar and walked away, oblivious to the pleading look on Pipers face.

As Piper struggled to watch Alex walk away, she is jostled as Nicky climbs over her, almost pushing her from her seat.

"Shit, Chapman – move it! You sort Curly out here; I'll go after Stretch – make sure she sticks around long enough so you can clear this shit storm up with her…"

Nicky jumped down from the booth seat, striding off in the direction of Alex, to the relief of Piper she saw that after a moment, Nicky has caught up with the other woman before she managed to walk out.

Rising from her seat, seething with a rage that begs to be freed, Piper leaned towards Larry. "You have five minutes of my time Larry. That's it."

She turned to look at Polly, who in turns averted her eyes to avoid the glare from Piper, her face like thunder as she addressed her. "You - you are meant to be my friend. What the fuck have you done Pol?"

Piper walked away from the booth to the opposite corner of the room, turning quickly to face Larry who had trailed after her, a sheepish look across his face.

From where she now stood, Piper could still make out Alex near to the entrance of the bar, still talking to Nicky, so there was hope she wouldn't leave just yet. Piper just hoped her fast talking friend would be able to convince Alex to stay long enough for her to be able to explain everything to her. But first she needed to deal with Larry. Fucking Larry. Piper dragged her focus away from Alex to Larry as he stood in front of her. He raked his hand through his curly hair, looking down towards his feet as he kicked absentmindedly at something or nothing on the floor.

Piper's patience was wearing thin and he hadn't even spoken yet. All Piper wanted to do was run over to Alex, be held in her arms again, but instead, she was dealing with this.

"Quit fucking stalling Larry. You wanted to talk? So talk already." She practically spat the words, she was so furious at him for turning up, for disturbing her and Alex when they were just starting to get to know one another, just as they had started to get close.

As she waited for Larry to respond Piper cast her eyes across to the entrance of the bar, searching for Alex. For a moment she panicked, as she was no longer stood there, Piper fearing the worse that Nicky hadn't managed to convince her to stay, as her eyes roamed, she sighed, her shoulders relaxing as she saw the wild hair of her friend heading towards the bar, Alex following slowly behind her.

Knowing Alex hadn't left brought her focus swiftly back to Larry, shifting her weight to one foot and crossing her arms tightly across her chest – she pulled herself to her full height and waited on his response.

"Piper – I don't understand why you are so mad at me?" Larry lifted his head to look towards Piper who didn't respond – the clenching of her jaw indicating clearly that she was not happy about the current situation – but despite this, Larry continued. "…I just happened to be in town to see my folks for the weekend and I thought I would stop by the store to see how you guys were getting on – it's great Piper…" At this, Larry lifted his hand to stroke Pipers arm, but she batted it away furiously, crossing her arms quickly again. She noted the look of dejection that flicked over his face, the quaking of his voice revealing the hurt he obviously felt.

"…Well – I spoke to Polly. We chatted about, well, you. How you are not seeing anyone and then, well, Polly invited me out tonight. I thought maybe you'd had enough time on your own – you know – to reconsider?"

"Reconsider? Reconsider what exactly Larry?"

"Us, Piper." Larry's dark eyes were staring at Piper, searching her face to try and see if she felt the same way he still did about her. It was clear to Piper that even after a year apart – Larry still had feelings towards her, otherwise he wouldn't have been stood pleading with her.

Unfortunately for Larry, Piper had moved on, and she braced herself as she began to speak to him, her words to him for the first time this evening, calm and collected.

"Larry. There is no 'us', maybe once – but certainly not now." Despite the anger she had initially felt, her voice was soft – but she kept her guard up, arms still firmly crossed, not daring to reach out to him. Piper didn't want to give him any false hope – but more so she didn't want Alex looking over to her and seeing her in the arms of someone else.

"But I love you Piper…" Larry took a step closer, Piper instinctively stepping back to keep the distance between them.

"Larry – maybe once I– " she sighed, lowering her head, shaking it slightly as she continued, "..but not now. Larry, I have changed. I'm not the person you knew back then, for once I am finally happy…"

"You weren't happy when you were with me?" His voice sounded broken – caught with the emotion after hearing Pipers words.

"I thought I was Larry – but I came to realise I wasn't me when I was with you. I was being what you wanted me to be, what my parents wanted me to be, I was doing what everyone around me expected me to be. The perfect daughter, the doting girlfriend. I couldn't carry on that way Larry. It had to change – I had to change."

"I would love you no matter what Piper – just please – give me another chance?"

Piper regarded the man stood in front of her. It was true; she had loved him – once. But since leaving him, Piper had finally been able to be who she wanted to be, there was no way she could go back to her old life – she had started something new. New. Her mind thought back to the toast she had made with Alex at the start of the evening, 'to new beginnings'- her eyes flicking quickly across to the bar, searching again for the tall brunette who had made her feel – well, Piper wasn't too sure what she felt. Desire? Lust? No – it was more than that. In the short space of time that she had known her, Piper already knew there was something different about Alex, there was something different about her when she was with Alex.

Piper still wasn't certain about what there was between them – but she owed it to herself to find out.

Her eyes finally came to rest on her again. Alex was stood with her back to the bar, elbows leaning against it – staring in the direction of Piper and Larry, even with the low lighting, Piper could see the frown on her face, it certainly wasn't her usual relaxed expression, or that smirk she was already so used to seeing.

Piper felt a million miles away from Alex, however she still felt a warmth course through her as their eyes met – causing Piper to make up her mind.

Still looking over Larry's shoulder, her sights firmly fixed on Alex, she now spoke to him, a new determined edge to her voice.

"Polly was wrong Larry – I am seeing someone…"

Piper knew it wasn't completely true but there was no way she could deny the connection she had felt between her and Alex earlier, even across a crowded room, Piper could feel her stomach doing flips from just a look from this woman. She just hoped that she hadn't read Alex wrong, with all her heart; Piper hoped that Alex felt something for her too.

Confusion was clear on Larry's face and for a brief moment, Piper felt bad for lying to him, but it wasn't entirely untruthful. She was interested in someone else, she hoped it would become more, and to give Larry false hope now was just unfair.

"But Polly said you weren't seeing…"

"Jesus! Larry! Polly doesn't know every single little detail in my life – it's just – well – I don't know what it is at the moment, we are still…. figuring things out…"

Piper glanced to the bar, again happy to see that Alex hadn't moved – she was still facing her, watching intently. It seemed she was talking to Nicky, but didn't once turn her head to speak to the woman at the side of her, it was clear – Alex was focused on her and only her.

"Then it can't be all that good of a relationship if you aren't all that sure about it Piper!"

"Larry, look. Whatever is going on – I like it. I like it a lot. It's new and exciting; it's the unexpected and the certain at the same time. What I do know is that when I am with them, I am not pretending to be anyone. For once Larry, they are getting to know me – the real me – and all my imperfections and the crazy – and it feels good Larry… It feels so, fucking, good." Piper was aware that her tone was a little harsh, but she needed Larry to fully understand what she was saying.

"So no, Larry. I can't do it – I can't go back to being something I am not."

Piper saw Larry's whole body sag, as if the hope of a second chance had been the only thing supporting his body weight as he stood in front of her.

"Goodbye Larry." As Piper walked away from him she felt his hand on her arm – a fleeting touch, a last attempt to get her to stay – but she kept on walking, towards Alex. Alex, who had watched the whole exchange and was now straightening up from where she leant against the bar – clearly anticipating Piper as she approached both sets of eyes drawn to the other, the electricity between the two palpable.

"Fuck Stretch – stop walking so fucking fast! I don't have gargantuan legs like you ya freak – hey! I said, hold up!"

Nicky had been keeping a watchful eye on Piper and Alex since she had left them alone at the bar after Alex arrived. It was clear that Piper was already falling for Alex in a big way, plus Nicky was damn sure that Alex felt the same way for her best friend.

She had watched them as they sat round the table, practically melting into one another as Alex had talked quietly to Piper, both blissfully unaware of their surroundings, that was until the shit-storm called Larry had happened. In a split second, he'd managed to split them apart and now here she was racing after Alex in an attempt to prevent her walking out and leaving without knowing what was going on.

As Nicky called out, she'd flung her arm out, managing to catch Alex on the wrist, causing her to stop before spinning round on the spot to look at her, her face a mixture of anger and sadness.

"What Nicky? What do you want?"

"Just – don't go yeah?"

"Give me one good reason why I shouldn't, hmm? From where I am standing, seems like there is no good reason for me to stay – don't ya think?" Alex glared over the top of Nicky in the direction of the booth – and could now see Piper walking away from where they had sat, Larry ambling behind her.

Nicky turned to follow where Alex was looking, before turning back, the expression on her face serious, all traces of humour gone as she spoke.

"Believe me Stretch – that is not a concern for you right now – come on."

Nicky moved past Alex heading towards the bar, tapping her on the arm as she did so – indicating for her to follow. Alex stood still for a moment, glancing back to Piper who was now stood in the opposite corner to her, and sighed. This was not what she needed right now, more drama – but the lack of concern Nicky had towards this Larry intrigued her, so she decided it wouldn't hurt to grab one more drink and see if Nicky could shed any more light on the situation.

Nicky had pushed her way past the people stood chatting near the bar – and had quickly flagged down the barman, ordering two beers by the time Alex caught up and stood to the side of her. Nothing was said but the look on Nicky's face made it clear she was glad Alex had stuck around.

The two women leaned forward on the bar almost simultaneously, taking a long drink from their bottles of beer before Nicky broke the silence.

"Just give Chapman a chance, yeah? I know this looks fucked up at the moment – but I tell you Stretch – it's not what it seems."

"It seems like she is dating Larry, Nicky"

"Dated. Past tense. Over and done with a year ago this weekend."

"Fuck" Alex shook her head and lowered it towards the bar. All this time, she hadn't picked up on the fact that Piper was straight, she couldn't believe that she'd misread her.

"I know what you are thinking Stretch…- remember what I just said? When it comes to Chapman it's not as it seems, and it's sure as hell never straight-forward!"

Alex turned so her back was pressed against the bar; leaning so she rested her weight on her elbows, eyes seeking out Piper on the other side of the room in an instance.

As Alex watched the interaction it was obvious that Piper was not at all happy about having to speak to Larry. Her body language was completely different to how she had been moments before, Piper had been relaxed and open, the Piper she saw now was defensive and closed off – her arms crossed tightly across her body, keeping her distance from Larry as he spoke to her.

"Look Stretch. It ain't my place to go round telling every tall, hot brunette Piper's business – but that – is not why she came here tonight!" Nicky throws her thumb over her shoulder again, mimicking the action from earlier, whilst taking another sip of her beer.

"No?" Alex hears the questioning tone in her own voice, whilst a small smirk appears at the edge of her mouth, as she hopes Nicky's answer is what she wants to hear. Chancing a look away from Piper, Alex catches Nicky looking at her with a stupid grin on her face and a look of delight in her eye.

"Let's just say Piper didn't go through several wardrobes changes to impress sweater boy over there! No – that my friend is for one person and one person only…It would be a damn shame if they didn't stick around to make the most of it…"

Alex couldn't help but grin like an idiot, imagining Piper working her way through her wardrobe, stressing over what to wear when she met her, especially as Alex has just thrown on the clothes that were least creased and clean after her flight back this morning, making her feel a little guilty for not making more of an effort.

"Just let her explain Stretch, I'm damn certain her plans didn't involve Sweater Boy over there, plus I've got serious money on Polly Pocket having something to do with this too. I swear that girl can't keep her nose out of other peoples business…"

Taking a swig of her beer, Alex frowned, thinking about how Polly had seemed to take an instant dislike to her. "Yeah, I got the feeling something was up the moment I met her, thought I had done something wrong – but seems she didn't like me messing up her plans for Piper this evening…"

"Nah – ignore her! Clearly her little match making plan went out the window when she saw you two at the bar – geez – I could feel the heat off you two from when you came in – I'm surprised I didn't melt Stretch!"

"Nicky, look, I'm not out to hurt Piper, I honestly-"

"Relax dude. I like you – and I'm not just saying that 'cos you buy me whisky – or so I can try and get into your pants," Nicky took a swig of her beer as she winked at Alex, before she carried on, "I can just tell ya know."

"Tell what?"

"You're what she needs, just like Piper is what you need. Seems to me you both need something good in your lives. Don't mess it up by storming out and leaving it stood in a bar all on her own." Nicky wagged her eyebrows at Alex before downing the last of her beer and slamming the bottle onto the bar top, forcing out a burp as she stood up straighter.

Turning her head to look towards Piper, the two women saw Larry hang his head.

"See what I mean? That's not the look of a man who's got what he wanted from that particular conversation!"

Nicky was right, it was clear to Alex that Larry was broken hearted – but Piper wasn't. In fact, there was a different look about her now, not anger and frustration that she had seen earlier, no, this was different, her whole demeanour had changed. She caught Pipers eye and studied her, still trying to work out what it was that was different about Piper – Alex drew her eyebrows into a frown as she tried to put her finger on it.

There was one thing she was sure of – as she looked to Piper, even across the full length of the bar, Alex could feel it – the pull of Piper to her was so strong, so unlike anything she had ever felt before, it was as if there was something invisible joining them together, that even when apart they had a connection.

Piper was still speaking to Larry, but her gaze to Alex was unwavering, only broken as Piper looked briefly to Larry then finished talking.

As Piper started walking towards Alex, that's when she realised what was different, there was only one way she could describe what she saw in Piper, the look on her face, her whole body language screamed it.

Determined.

Piper's steps were confident as she walked away from Larry towards Alex. She had made up her mind, she needed to make sure that the brunette knew how she felt, and hoped hell that she felt the same way too. As she kept her eyes focused on Alex she noticed the puzzled look on the other woman's face, like she was trying to work something out, however before Piper could wonder what had puzzled her so much – her gaze was broken, replaced instead with a figure immediately in front of her

This person appeared so unexpectedly that she nearly bumped into them – instantly aware of the large, rough hands placed on her shoulder, which stopped her dead in her tracks, and an overwhelming smell of cheap cologne assaulting her senses.

"Woah there little missy – where's the fire?"

Piper looked to the man who had stopped her. He was tall but thin, dark hair slicked back and a thick moustache that Piper thought made him look like a Seventies porn star.

"Get your hands off me" Piper struggled against his grip attempting to break free and continue on her way, but her struggles only made him tighten his hold further.

"Woooo! Lookie here! Looks like I've caught me a real lively one…I like that in a woman…."

Piper tensed as the man brought his head lower, leaning in so his mouth was closer to her ear. She turned her head away from him, catching Larry in the corner of her eye. It angered her to see that he was still stood where she had left him, frozen to the spot with a hesitant, slightly scared look on his face – his hands shoved into his jeans pockets – clearly making no effort to come and help her with this excuse of a man in front of her.

Piper attempted again to wriggle free of the grasp, in doing so she managed to cast a glance, this time towards the bar hoping to see Alex or Nicky, her hopes fading when she could see neither one of them.

"Mmmmmm…The things I would do to you Blondie…" The voice by her ear was low and drawn out as she heard him inhale slowly as he spoke, his face now buried deep into her hair, pushing his body into hers. Piper felt sick to her stomach but felt completely helpless against him, he was so much stronger than her, his grip on her shoulders tightening as he pulled her closer.

"Just, let me-" Piper attempted to pull away from him again, this time she felt his grip on her shoulders relax, at the same time she heard a familiar voice approach from behind him.

"Get your fucking hands off her – now!"

As Nicky had stumbled off to use the bathroom, happy that Alex would hang around to speak to Piper, Alex had watched Piper walk across the bar to her, a mixture of nerves and happiness coursing through her as she considered the look on Pipers face, thoughts of what could happen, what she wanted to happen when Piper reached her, dancing through her mind.

As she pulled herself away from the bar, she saw a tall, lanky man stumble across her path, grabbing her by her shoulders and speaking closely to her. Alex frowned as she watched the interaction – quickly realising that, unlike with Larry, she didn't know this guy and was struggling to free herself from the hold he had on her.

Without a thought, Alex was away from the bar walking quickly to where the two stood. As she got nearer she saw the man lean closer, pushing his face into Pipers hair – the blonde clearly disturbed by the intrusion, which riled her, her temper quick to ignite.

With her long stride, Alex was on him in seconds, the venom in her voice clear as she spat the words towards him, "Get your fucking hands of her – now!".

Reaching out, she grabbed at his shoulder and pulled back sharply, causing him to step backwards, letting Piper go in the process.

Alex matched him height wise and stepped closer to him, forcing herself between the small gap between them, her left arm reaching out to Piper, moving her to stand behind her. As she drew closer, she forced the heel of her right hand into his shoulder again, catching him by surprise, causing him to lose his balance slightly and stumble backwards a few steps.

"Who the fuck are you? Me and Blondie here were just having a moment – isn't that right darlin'…"

He attempted to move around Alex to get to Piper again, but Alex was quicker, shifting her position so she stood in front of him again, still keeping Piper behind her. This time she pushed her hand deep in to his chest, grabbing his shirt as she balled her hand into a fist, twisting the fabric, causing it to tighten slightly around his neck.

"Listen, buddy. Stay the fuck away from me, and most definitely stay the fuck away from her – you got me?" Alex was so close to his face, their eyes a few inches apart, she could practically taste the cheap alcohol on his breath and the smell of cheap aftershave was over-powering. But despite how much he disgusted her, and if she was honest, frightened her a little as she was not entirely sure how he would react, there was no way she was backing down.

"Oh yeah? What's gonna happen if I don't?" he forced out through gritted teeth, with Alex's grip on his shirt still tight around his neck, it made it difficult to speak properly, but he still attempted to rise to her challenge.

Alex twisted her hand a little more, the material of the guy's shirt cutting into his neck as she spoke "Believe me – you really don't want to find out." Her words were low, almost a growl, but the threat in her voice was real. She had never felt more protective over anyone than how she did for Piper right now, and was quite prepared to be thrown out of Red's for brawling if it kept Piper safe from scum like this. Growing up, she had learnt to defend herself from the bullies in her school, but she really didn't want to revisit that particular part of her past tonight, and certainly not in front of Piper.

Alex released her grip, pushing him backwards as she let go - his hands flying up to round his neck, gasping as he pulled air into his lungs. Thankfully for Alex, before he could come at her, two burly men were either side of him, a strong hand on each shoulder preventing him from making any further moves as they pulled him away from Alex, their thick Russian accents clear as they hauled him towards the exit of the bar.

"Move it Mendez – you've had enough for tonight. You'd best go now or Red says you won't be coming back…this is strike two."

Alex watched as the two large men pushed Mendez towards the exit – eventually shoving him through the door. She kept her eye on the door to make sure he didn't barge back in, once she was satisfied he wouldn't be bothering them again, Alex began breathing slowly to help calm her racing heartbeat. She turned back to Piper, feeling a calm descend quickly over her, but the anger in her body was quickly replaced by concern as she took in the wide eyed look on the blonde.

"Shit Piper, I'm sorry, it just I didn't like what he was doing, I didn't mean for– are you OK? Piper? Piper? Pipes!"

Piper didn't initially respond, clearly so shaken by the experience that Alex considered for a moment that she might be in shock, but soon she was looking up at Alex, her big blue eyes full of awe, stumbling over her words as she tried to find the right thing to say,

"Alex, I don't- I mean- shit. I'm sorry Alex. Thank you. You didn't have to do that – he could have-" Her voice got quiet as she considered the possibility that Mendez could have easily hit back at Alex, and it would have been her fault.

Seeming to understand what Piper was thinking, Alex was quick to allay her fears,

"Ssssh, don't worry about him, I'm big enough to look after myself, come here," Alex moved closer to Piper, wrapping her arms around her shoulders, pulling her close into her, smiling to herself as she felt Piper relax into her, arms snaking around Alex's waist to hold on to her. As she placed her chin on top of the blondes' head, she rubbed her hands on Pipers back in slow, soothing circles, swaying ever so slightly as they stood enveloped in one another again.

As she spoke, she caught Larry looking sheepishly towards the two of them, and scowled at him, "You are a strong person Piper, but we all need someone to look out for us every now and again," she brought her head down close to Pipers ear, making sure that Piper alone heard her next words, "I'm just glad I could be there…for you."

Leaning her head slightly against Pipers, Alex saw Larry turn away, glad to see that he was wracked with guilt for not helping Piper, and held the woman in her arms tighter. Having Piper wrapped up in her arms, being able to protect her seemed to have had a dizzying effect on her, her mind was racing, her heart was pounding in her chest, but it all felt so right. After standing still in one another's arms for a few moments, and in an attempt to try and bring her senses back in line, she pulled ever so slowly away from Piper, smiling as she saw the blissful expression on Pipers face as she moved from where she had been resting her head against her own shoulder.

"Come on kid – something tells me you could do with another drink!"

Piper felt the strong arms of Alex unwrap from around her, pulling out of the embrace that had calmed her. Not wanting to lose all contact with her, she kept hold of Alex's hand tightly, following her closely as the taller woman guided them through the crowds to the bar once more. Ever so often, Piper would feel Alex squeeze her hand, as if checking she was still there, making sure she was all right, it was such a simple act, but Piper couldn't help but feel light-headed each time she squeezed back as response.

If Piper had been uncertain before as to whether Alex cared for her, had any sort of feeling towards her, she most certainly had her answer now. She still couldn't believe that it had been Alex who had stepped in to help her deal with that drunken creep. Alex – who has only known her for a few hours, yet Larry, who had known her for a lot longer, had been her boyfriend for crying out loud, hadn't been prepared to do anything, had just stood there and watched.

Piper felt another squeeze of her hand as they got closer to the bar, but rather than reciprocating, this time she stood still, pulling Alex back towards her.

Confusion spread across Alex's face as she twisted her body to see why Piper had stopped dead in her tracks all of a sudden, but it soon gave way to a beaming smile as she saw the look on Piper, a wide grin on her face also. In a matter of seconds, the blonde had closed the distance between them, leaning up slightly to place a gentle kiss on the side of her cheek.

As Piper lingered for a moment, Alex closed her eyes, focusing on the soft touch of Pipers lips on her skin, she heard Piper whisper into her ear, "I'm glad you were there for me too Alex, I hope I get to repay the favour, soon."

Alex turned her head slightly, green eyes meeting with blue as they shared a knowing look, before Piper slowly started walk backwards towards the bar, tugging on the hand she still was holding onto so tightly, the previous smile on her face now replaced with a mischievous grin, and a wink as she spoke,

"Plus, after you defend my honour like that, I'm pretty sure it's me who owes you a drink…"

It was Alex's turn to grin now, a deep laugh escaping her lips at the idea of 'defending' Piper, "I'm pretty sure you aren't a damsel in distress Piper!"

Piper turned, looking at Alex over her shoulder, "Of course I am! Who in their right mind wouldn't want someone tall, dark and gorgeous to come to their rescue?" She laughed as she reached the bar – waving a hand as the bar man approached to take her order.

As Piper waited for the drinks, Alex decided to be bold and see how Piper would react to what she had in mind. As she stood behind the blonde, Alex drew her hands down Pipers arms slowly, letting her hands come to rest lightly on Pipers hips, pulling her back ever so slightly to limit the distance between the two of them. To Alex's relief, Piper didn't pull away, in fact, to her surprise, Piper leaned her head back so it was now resting in the crook of Alex's neck, humming at the touch, which sent a ripple of desire through Alex, a low moan escaping her own lips.

Alex shook her head, Nicky was right; Piper was exactly what she needed.

Hello again!

Thanks for reading - hope you enjoyed! There is more to come in the bar - but this felt like a nice place to leave it for the moment and post something - rather than keeping you all waiting for another 3 weeks ;)

I appreciate *all* of your likes and reviews - and I attempt to respond to each review posted (there have been some really lovely guest posts - but I can't send you my thanks directly!) So - as ever - your thoughts always welcome :)