Author's note: Hey guys, sorry for the long time between uploads. Work/life craziness, you know how it goes, but I should be back to a fairly decent schedule now and hopefully you all stick with me as we move towards the last quarter of this tale.

Thanks for your patience.

Enjoy Chapter Fourteen,

TotheSky

Thorin pushed open the door to the twin's room, his nephews sat on either side of Billie focused intently on creaming each other at Mario Kart.

"Eat my pixels Yoshi!" Fili laughed. Billie, who was apparently playing Yoshi let out of curse and dropped her controller into her lap.

"Come on Auntie you can still come in second!" Kili encouraged her, Billie shot him a glare.

"Dude, why do you keep calling her that?" Fili asked, Thorin stepped into the room and all three of them looked up.

"What did the suits want?" Kili asked.

"Nothing," Thorin lied, "just some business stuff. Billie, can I talk to you for a second?" Billie scrambled upright, behind her Kili smirked.

"You just lost yourself ten dollars young man," Thorin told him as he ushered Billie into the hall.

"What?!" Kili shouted indignantly, "Aw, come on, that's not fair! I didn't say anything! Uncle Thorin!" But Thorin just threw him a look and shut the door.

"He's been calling me Auntie all day," Billie said, once they were safely enclosed in her room.

"Then he has forfeited his right to the afore agreed on monetary gain, due to his breaking the terms of the agreement," Billie laughed at the absurdness of his wording. Thorin sat on the bed and pulled her onto his lap, kissing her deeply.

"So what did they want?" Billie asked when they came up for air.

"Amazingly," Thorin said, "my father never changed the written documents stating that he wanted either me or Dis to take over the company."

"What?" Billie pulled back a little. "Why?"

"I don't know, but that was what they wanted to tell me. Apparently I'm next in line to run the Durin Group, well me or cousin Gloin."

"You have a cousin named Gloin?" Billie raised an eyebrow.

"Yes."

"Seriously? Gloin?"

"Not the point." Thorin reminded her. Billie forced the smile to slide off her face.

"Right, sorry. So what did you tell them?"

"I told them no thank you," Thorin said, Billie's smile started creeping back. "But Mom was insistent that I think about it."

The smile disappeared again. "Oh." Billie slid off his lap onto the mattress, Thorin stood up and began pacing.

"I mean it's not like I want the job, I have a job, I have a life. When I left 19 years ago that was supposed to be the end of any discussion about me and the company." Billie watched him walk, back and forth, back and forth like a tennis match. "And now Mom's all, think about it." He continued, "What's there to think about? Just because it would make Mom happy, that's no reason to-to-to-."

"Sell out?" Billie offered. Thorin snapped his fingers.

"Yes, thank you, to sell out. Mom is going to be fine even if I don't take this job, not wanting to disappoint someone is no reason to make myself miserable. Just because we haven't really been in contact for almost two decades doesn't mean I suddenly have to do everything that she wants." Billie couldn't take his pacing for another second, she jumped up and stopped him, both hands against his chest. Thorin hung his head, apparently exhausted from his bout of over-thinking.

"Sorry," he mumbled. Affection clogged Billie's throat, God, she loved this man. He was so good. Too good for someone like her and yet her chaos seemed to draw him in not push him away, he wrapped her up in a hug, burying his face in her curls. Billie pressed her cheek against his chest.

They stood like that, swaying on the spot, like they were slow dancing. Thorin finally broke away but it was only to cup her face and kiss her again, slowly, deeply. Billie couldn't remember anyone else kissing her like this, couldn't remember wanting to kiss them back so badly.

It was like how they depicted people getting addicted to drugs on TV. Billie felt free, free and loose and brighter than a shooting star, she would have gladly given up all of her money and stopped eating if it meant that Thorin was going to keep kissing her forever.

Somehow, Billie wasn't sure, they were on the bed again, she was underneath him, his whole hard, muscled frame pressing down on her.

"The door," she whispered, because she was not going through that again.

"Locked," he whispered back.

Was that ever the magic word.

Their hands scrambled at each other's clothes. Billie wanted to leave something of hers on, put a sheet with a hole in it over herself, Thorin was so beautiful and she was so…not. It was harder to be this way in the light of day, brazen, the kind of girl who didn't let her insecurities stop her.

But how she wanted him, she wanted Thorin. Thorin with her, Thorin inside her, just Thorin, to have and to hold. She fumbled with the zipper of his pants and felt the part of him she most wanted to hold most at that moment fall into her hand.

Thorin moaned as she stroked him, burying his face in the hollow between her breasts. His lips grazed over one nipple and Billie's head fell back against the comforter, his hand sought out the other one pinching and rolling it between his fingers.

"You're so soft," he murmured against her skin, fingers trailing reverently down her stomach continuing down to skim over her thigh. His kisses rained down upon her flesh, lower and lower until his breath burned fiery against the patch of curls between her legs.

"Mine," he growled, flicking his tongue against her clit. Billie let out a cry.

"Yours," she agreed breathlessly, and then he was inside her, filling her completely, her hips bucked up to meet his. Pins and needles shot against every one of her nerve endings. Every thrust causing wave after wave of pleasure to crest upon her. She dug her nails into his perfect ass, pulling him closer, wanting him deeper. Thorin's mouth found hers again, seeking, tasting and with one final cry Billie broke.

She detached from her body, floating up towards the ceiling, then through the roof, out of the atmosphere to mingle with the stars, a thin thread was all that was stopping her from disappearing into the black. The thread was the rapid hammering of her heart and as it slackened she slowly drifted back down.

Thorin was sprawled out on top of her again, his own climax must have happened while she was somewhere out in space. She wiggled out from under him, both of them adjusting until they lay comfortably spooned together. Thorin pushed the curls off her neck so he could press a kiss there, he kept his hand tangled in her hair.

Silence in the room but for their mingled breaths, contentment settled over them like a blanket, Billie's eyelids started drifting shut.

"I'm going to stay here a little longer to help Mom go through the rest of Dad's stuff, but I got you and the boys tickets for tonight." Thorin said softly. Billie's heart sank, she kept her eyes closed, like by doing so she could preserve the moment of peace she had been experiencing before. Like all of her doubts and fears hadn't just come rushing back in.

(…And then)

Bombor's truck rattled up to the house and Billie sighed gratefully, she felt like she had been gone for years, not just for a week. The twins scrambled out of the car and raced for the front door. Billie turned to smile at the chef.

"Thanks for the ride Bombor," she said. Bombor patted her hand.

"Don't worry about Thorin sweetie, I've known him a long time, he's not going to take that job." Billie sighed again.

"I hope your right." She said, when Thorin had told her that he was now going to stay behind and help his mom sort through the rest of his dad's affairs her heart had plummeted off a cliff. It was still plummeting. What if his staying was just an elaborate ruse to get rid of her? What if he had decided to take that job because he was already bored with her, he'd gotten what he wanted and now he was done, but was too much of a nice guy to say it to her face?

"I'm right," Bombor insisted, "Now go call him and tell him you got home okay. I'm sure he's anxious to hear from you."

"Okay," Billie popped open the door and slid out into the Texas night. "Thanks again." Bombor gave a little wave before driving off. Billie walked over to join the boys on the porch.

"Why didn't you go in?" she asked.

"You've got the only key," Kili reminded her, suppressing a yawn. Fili was off in the corner of the deck facetiming with Elann.

"No, I missed you more," he said. Kili and Billie rolled their eyes in unison.

"If you and Uncle Thorin get like that I'm going to hang myself out in the barn." Kili warned.

"If we get like that we'll hang ourselves in the barn," Billie said, she went to put the key in the lock but then noticed, the door was ajar.

"It's open," she said, feeling goosebumps start to pop up on her arms despite the warmness of the evening.

"Did we forget to lock up before we left?" Kili asked.

"I don't think so," Billie walked over to a pile of lumber that was sitting by the stairs and selected a hefty piece, "Okay. Get behind me," she said. Kili scoffed.

"No way, I'm a man, you get behind me."

"This isn't the 1800's Kee and Thorin said I'm in charge!"

"Why don't we all go in together?" Fili said, he had noticed what was happening and hung up. He pried the wooden plank out of Billie's hands, "Give me that, I've got the harder swing."

"Fine," Billie grumbled, pushing open the door. As one they stepped over the threshold. Kili raised his fists, Fili the wooden plank, Billie pushed the keys between her knuckles and held them up and…nothing. No bad guys or boogeymen jumped out.

They moved in a clump towards the stairs, a paint can was tipped over spilling a puddle of red onto the new wood. As they looked around Billie saw several things that were out of place or messed up. A chair in the kitchen was on the counter for some reason, a row of nails was hammered into the baseboard in the living room. Upstairs there were a series of random brush strokes staining the wallpaper.

"Did some disgruntled modern art student turn our house into a project?" Kili asked in a whisper. Billie shrugged and pulled open the door to the main bedroom.

"Donna is that you?" A voice asked. Billie shrieked, the boys screamed and like the Scooby-Doo gang they turned and ran from the probable ghost as fast as they could. All that was missing was for one of them to shout, "Zoinks!"

"What the hell?!" Fili shouted, once they were outside. Kili paced around them, throwing anxious glances back at the house.

"I do not do ghosts!" Fili went on, "I told Uncle Thorin not to buy this house, but he wouldn't listen and would you look at that, the damn thing is haunted- Kili let out a whimper, interrupting his tirade. Billie turned back to the haunted mansion, something or someone was shuffling out the front door. Kili hid behind his brother, Fili got a tighter grip on his plank of wood.

"Donna? Why'd you run off." the ghost said, he had wispy white hair and was as pale as mist. Actually now that Billie looked closer he seemed very solid. He was defiantly walking too, not hovering like she assumed a spirit would, he had a cane and everything.

"Who are you?" Billie said, stepping forwards. The ghost frowned at her.

"Donna, you nincompoop it's me, your husband." He was close enough now for him to reach out and touch her. His hand settled on her shoulder, cold and shaking, but defiantly real.

"The boys should be in bed Donna," the old man continued, "it's late and I want to show you what I've done to the house."

"Listen ghost dude," Kili began, but Billie held up a hand to stop him.

"That sounds lovely dear," she said to the old man, "let's go inside and get some tea and then you can show me all the work you've done." She motioned frantically to the twins to go ahead of them.

"Call the police," she whispered to Fili.

"We are not having tea with a dead guy," Kili protested.

"Keep up dummy. He's not dead," Fili grabbed his brother by the back of the shirt and towed him inside, leaving Billie to take the old man's arm and help him along.

"I've got the molding you liked all installed," he told her, shuffling up the porch steps, "and in our bedroom I've installed an extra thick door," he winked at her. "You can be as loud as you want now my little screamer." Billie's discomfort grew tenfold.

"That's great," she managed. They made it into the kitchen, where Kili had the phone pressed to his ear and was speaking rapidly to the emergency operator. Fili was putting the kettle on the stove.

"Did you see the new sink Donna?" the old man asked as she settled him into a chair. "I thought you'd like this one best, it has a switch for hot and cold water."

"I just love it dear, thank you." Billie told him. Kili hung up.

"They're on their way," he whispered. The old man sat smiling happily at all of them. Billie took the seat next to him and every now and then he patted her hand.

"I'm so lucky to have such a lovely wife," he told her.

(…And Then)

The police officers knew who the old man was.

His name was Arthur Higgins. Apparently he lived in a nearby nursing home and was quite the escape artist. He got loose about once a month and found his way into someone's house, thinking it was his own and whoever was living there was his long dead family. He'd try to fix things up, paint the walls, hammer in nails, glue things in weird places. They talked to him in soothing tones as they lead him to the squad car.

Billie was surprised to find she was pushing back tears. Poor Arthur, no one left to love him, always searching for the time when he was happiest and never being able to find it.

"That was really depressing," Kili said, as the squad car drove off. After having assured himself that the old man was in fact not dead, he'd warmed greatly to the old timer and been engaged in a conversation with him when the police arrived.

Arthur, convinced he was his deceased son, kept telling him all about the things they would do together once he got a little older. Kili sank down onto the stairs and stared gloomily out the door.

"When I'm old Fee," he said finally, "Promise you won't put me in a home and forget about me." Fili sat down next to him.

"Nah, I'll just lock you in the basement." Fili said, slinging an arm around his brother's shoulders, "then your screams will remind me your alive." Kili ducked out from under his arm smiling and shaking his head.

"Thanks asshole."

(…And Then)

They finally went to bed around two in the morning. Billie drifted in and out of dreams featuring Thorin and old men searching for their long, lost loves. She woke to the sound of tires on the gravel drive and sat upright in her camp bed, heart pounding like a snare drum.

Her half asleep state convinced her that it had to be him! He was back! She threw back the covers and rushed to the front door, throwing it open and running down the porch steps.

"Thorin?!" she started, but it was so dark, she couldn't see a thing. Not him, not the car he had come in. She turned around to see if he had somehow gotten behind her and there was a whistling sound, a sharp pain to the back of her head and she knew no more…