** BILL POV **

Katie-Lynn looked a little confused, but Joe didn't notice. He was incredulous, looking back and forth between me and Don.

"I'm sorry, what?" he asked before noticing my arm around her waist. His eyes snapped up to meet mine and I smirked.

"That's right. Kaylee's with me. Is that a problem?"

"Hell yeah, it is a fucking problem! Why the fuck is she here with you?" he demanded. Then, to Katie-Lynn, "Why the hell are you here with Bill?"

She may have had no idea what was going on, but Joe wasn't doing himself any favors here. At his tone, her jaw set in that stubborn way that said she was prepared to fight back.

"I don't really see why that matters to you, Liebgott."

Ooh. The last name. That can't be good. He was sputtering now, arms thrown in the air as he tried to find the words to explain himself.

"Why it… why should it… Of course it matters to me!"

"Okay then," she said, speaking in a measured voice. "I'm here with Bill because I want to be, and because he asked me."

"Well, that's bullshit!"

"And why is that?"

"Because! Because Bill can't just waltz in and ask you out, that's why! You can't just waltz in and ask her out! Why the hell would you do that?"

"I didn't 'waltz in,' Joe. I've known her as long as you have. And she's a single, beautiful, intelligent, amazing woman. There isn't a man in this room who wouldn't like to ask her out. It just so happens that I saw an opportunity and I took it. And, for the record, you remember when you jumped Malarkey's ass on the boat for acting like he could dictate who she was with when he wasn't taking care of his own business? You're being awfully hypocritical right now. You had your shot. You blew it."

He was stunned into silence, his face a mixture of hurt and anger. From the corner of my eye, I could see Katie-Lynn biting her lip. She knew I was right, but her instinct was to comfort the man she loved. I shook my head at her slightly. She needed to let him think this through for a minute. He needed to stop making demands and actually have a conversation with her.

Instead, he dove for me, swinging like a prize fighter as he toppled chairs trying to connect with my jaw. Toye caught him and wrapped his arms up behind his back, trying to prevent an all-out brawl in the middle of the bar, and he roared at the top of his lungs. It sounded like an animal in pain.

"You son of a bitch! How could you do that to me? You fucking know! You know how I feel about her!" he screamed, and I was a little shocked to see that his eyes were wet. He pulled out of Toye's grasp and backed away, moving toward the door as he choked out, more quietly this time, "I could have understood if it was Don. He was in her life before I was. But you? You, of all fucking people. All the times I've confided in you. You know how much I love her, and you betrayed me."

Before I could respond, he rushed me again, looking hell-bent on killing me. I moved to defend myself, but Katie-Lynn stepped between us.

"That's enough!" she snapped, but Joe's momentum was too great. He couldn't stop, barreling into her and carrying both of them to the ground. The whole room heard the crack of her head against the floor, and then she was silent.

"Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God. What did I do?"

Joe scrambled off of her, kneeling over her and stroking her cheek. She appeared to be knocked out, and Doc knelt down beside her, running a hand across the back of her head where it had hit the floor. At his touch, she groaned, and a room full of nervous men breathed a huge sigh of relief.

"That hurts, Gene."

"You've got a hell of a bump back here, Katie-Lynn. I'd like to take a better look at it. Make sure you're not bleeding and see how bad you got rattled. Here, let me help you up, okay? Have a seat right here."

Doc sat her in a chair underneath the light and began to work his fingers through her hair as Joe paced nervously nearby, chewing on his lip. I watched him from the other side of the table, and her every grimace and noise of pain ran straight through him. He was in agony.

"Well, you got quite a bump, but you're not bleeding and your eyes seem to be reacting okay. You're not seeing double or anything?"

"No. No, just got a bad headache, Gene."

"Yeah, that may stick around for a while. I may be able to find you something to take, if you want."

"Thanks. I think I'll be okay. I'll just go back and go to sleep. Maybe it'll be gone by morning."

She stood carefully, giving Gene and several of the other worried guys a quick hug. She pecked Don's cheek as he squeezed her and then repeated the same routine with me, nodding as we told her to come get us if she needed anything. As she walked toward the door, Joe reached out to touch her arm and she paused.

"Kaylee, I'm so sorry. I would never hurt you on purpose. I just couldn't stop."

"I know, Joe. It's not your fault that I stepped in the way. But you shouldn't have been going after Bill either."

He looked scolded, but still a bit defiant.

"He knows why I went after him. He betrayed me!"

"Oh, grow the fuck up, Joe! Really! Nobody betrayed you! I came over here with Don and Bill tonight, but Bill and I aren't dating. He's just pushing your buttons trying to get some kind of reaction out of you. Knowing Bill, he probably thought he was doing you a favor by forcing you to finally do something about whatever this bullshit is between us. And obviously it worked because this is the first time in two months that you've spoken to me or listened to anything I had to say. But now, my head is killing me, and all I want to do is go lay down."

Katie-Lynn continued toward the door and Joe looked back at me, mouth agape as he processed her reasoning. I offered a small, solemn nod, and flicked my eyes toward her retreating form.

"Shit. Kaylee, wait a minute."

"No, Joe. I've been waiting for two months. I'm done waiting for you," she answered, not looking back. He looked as though he'd been slapped, but she continued, "If you have something to say to me, you're going to have to walk with me back to barracks."