Denitra woke much later, just in time to catch the sun setting. It was weird. She didn't remember falling asleep again. She sat up slowly, painfully aware of the soreness that lingered in her body, particularly in her bones. She still felt drowsy. Her feet were cold, too. She didn't feel like herself, and something nagged at her that she should be careful. She just couldn't remember why.

She scooted as close to Jamien as she could, stealing his body heat until she realized that she was hungry. After a quick raid of the refrigerator, she put together a ham and cheese sandwich and found a bag of chips, then plopped down on the couch in front of the large flat screen TV. After flicking through the channels for nearly fifteen minutes, she settled on a channel dedicated to movies showcasing sappy romances and homicidal wives. It was her guilty pleasure.

When Jamien felt well enough to move around, he came downstairs and joined her on the couch. For the first time, she didn't object to his casual touch. He dived onto the couch and rested his head on her lap, busy with his cell phone. Under the weight of his head, her legs tingled. At first, she said nothing, choosing instead to remove the band around his ponytail and finger comb his hair out. Despite its dull appearance, it was very soft - void of any hair care product. Funny how she'd never given it any thought before, considering how much pride she had in her own mane. Upon closer inspection, she noticed that it wasn't black. It was actually a very dark brown.

Huh, you learn something new every day.

"See something you like?" A knowing smile graced his lips, and she returned it.

"I think so, yeah." With one hand on top of his smooth forehead and the other on his chest, finger racing over the coarse pattern of a Saints logo on his shirt, she leaned down, eyes focused on his lips. She felt him go still, barely breathing, as he waited patiently. Her hand slowly moved from his chest up to the side of his face, pausing briefly to run her thumb over the stubble that covered his cheek. Just when he was sure he couldn't wait any longer, she continued closing the gap between their lips, until hers hovered over his. She could feel his every breath, tickling her lips as it mingled with her own, creating a sweet aroma of cinnamon and mint. She could almost feel his lips on her when his phone went off, ringing loudly and vibrating like a brand new sex toy, scaring the utter shit out of both of them.

Denitra sat back suddenly, eyes wide, very aware of what had almost happened.

"Fuck!" Jamien searched around him and found the offending piece of shit on the seat next to Denitra's hip. He snatched it up. "What?"

"Damn, glad to see you're conscious." Pierce's voice filled the room as Jamien put the phone on speaker.

Jamien inhaled deeply and took his time letting it out before he spoke. "I was sorta busy, Pierce. I don't suppose I could convince you to spit out whatever you need to say?"

"Yeah, me and Z are throwing another party."

Denitra frowned. Damn, those two goobers threw parties every other night!

Jamien waited a second for Pierce to elaborate. "Are we celebrating hoes and strippers again?"

"Huh? No, man. It's August 29th, the last Friday of the month. We're celebrating August birthdays." There was a pause. "You know Gat's birthday was on the fourth. Shaundi will be here and, uh, I was hoping you'd come along to keep her grounded. I don't know what she expects out of us, but I ain't gonna be all morbid and shit. It's a celebration, not another funeral."

Denitra noticed the change in Jamien. Though he did well to keep the sadness that came with mentioning Johnny from showing on his face, those eyes of his said it all. Jamien caught her worried expression and quickly looked away, then got up and walked away. "Yeah. I'll be there."

When he moved to shove his phone into his back pocket, she was in motion. Before he could make it to the stairs, her arms wrapped around his waist, anchoring him to her. Seconds stretched into minutes, the minutes nearly became an hour. He finally turned around and looked down at her. "Feel better?"

He put a hand on her head as he leaned in to press his warm lips against her cool forehead. "I only stood there that long because I like how you feel wrapped around me." His smirk appeared conceited and had a far from innocent tone behind it. Still, those eyes didn't lie.

She rolled her eyes and moved around him, "Yeah, sure you did."

He caught her by the hand before she reached the stairs, his very warm compared to hers. "Thanks."

She smiled shyly and hid her face, sure she was blushing. "You're welcome."

"Do you feel like going to a party?"

Truth be told, she was still tired. However, the hopeful look on his face stopped her from saying so. "Yeah."

The minute Denitra stepped off of the elevator with Jamien, she was instantly glad she came to the party. Those whose birthdays were being celebrated had a gold crown on their heads decorated with purple gems. There were balloons and streamers everywhere, and a bubble machine going crazy upstairs by the bar shooting bubbles down into the living area downstairs. The music was on point and, for a change, the strippers were dressed classy. Denitra was very impressed.

"Boss!" Someone yelled out, and the crowd turned their attention to them. Denitra hung back, toying with the soft fabric of her shirtsleeve. These people were glad to see their fearless leader alive and well, so he deserved the spotlight they were giving him. A huge happy birthday banner stretched across the windows of the second-story windows in the living area caught her attention. Though she was too far away to tell for sure, it was a purple fabric banner with "Happy Birthday" stretched across it in white with black shadowing, and the names of the birthday people signed all over it. Cute.

Below it, Zimos was dancing, swinging around his cane and doing a generic jig as two strippers danced with him. Apparently, he had a birthday in August as well. Watching him dance was like watching an ancient episode of Soul Train - it was painful to look at and she wondered if he'd been present at any of the tapings.

A firm, warm hand closed around her wrist and pulled her suddenly. She slammed against a solid human wall and looked up, ready to ruin someone's day. Jamien looked down at her, flashing a brilliant smile. "Distracted?"

She rolled her eyes and tried to push him away. "No. Just admiring the decorations."

He nodded, then made a show of leaning down to plant a kiss on her nose. "It looks nice." His arm went around her waist and pulled her tight against his side. "Come on, let's go find Pierce."

After some searching, and stopping to have conversations with various members along the way, they found the Second-in-command outside by the pool, trying to convince some strippers to skinny dip. She heard Jamien make a comment that made Pierce laugh, but found that she couldn't quite focus on their actual words. She sipped her drink and noted her surroundings. The air was cool and smelled strongly of wet leaves. She shivered as a gust of wind blew over her. Her hands and feet felt like ice, especially with the cup in her hand. A yawn caught her by surprise, getting Jamien's immediate attention.

"You okay, babe?" He looked her over, and it embarrassed her, seeing the smug look on Pierce's face behind Jamien's back.

"I-I'm fine." She wanted to say more, but another yawn escaped. Suddenly, she felt light-headed, as if yawning back to back had cut back on her air supply. She felt her body tilt to the side, and she reached out to catch herself only to find out she didn't have to bother. Jamien was right there, arms around her and concern on his face.

"Fine, my ass." He mumbled as he put her back on her feet. "We'll be upstairs."

"Cool." Pierce raised his glass and returned his attention to the strippers.

It seemed like everyone suddenly had their eyes on her, assessing her, criticizing her. She felt weak. She felt foolish. She'd been so busy worrying about school and getting to it she'd forgotten that she hadn't taken her medicine since Sunday. However, with their compromise reaching its end, she hoped she could go just a little longer without it.

Jamien guided her into the room, and she immediately thought of the last time she'd been in the room alone with him. The lamps on either side of the bed gave off a soft lavender glow giving the room a calming atmosphere. The bed looked so soft, so inviting that her feet were moving her body towards it before she'd decided to do so. She heard the door shut, and all the noise outside of the bedroom ceased. She was so tired. She had to be to just plop down on the silk sheets and curl up into a ball, not giving a second thought as to who had recently been in the bed doing what. Who cared?

"You okay?"

She rolled onto her side and looked down her nose at him before closing her eyes. "Just tired." The tingling in her legs came back.

"You sure that's all it is?" She felt the bed shift under his weight and his warm hand against her skin. "You're freezing. We weren't outside that long."

She debated on whether or not to tell him, to be completely honest with him. She wanted to be with him, to be in a relationship with him, and if that would happen and be successful, she knew she'd have to be honest - especially if she would expect it in return. Honesty meant the world to her because it meant you were willing to be committed.

She didn't want him to look at her differently, treat her differently. She didn't want him to see her like a fragile doll as her parents did. It was the sole reason she was an only child. "Dee?"

His hand was warm against her cheek. She sighed and leaned into it, closed her eyes and spoke softly. "I have sickle cell anemia. The medicine and vitamins I take to manage it was in the car. I've kinda forgotten about it because I got caught up in the excitement of being kidnapped and held for ransom." She smiled to downplay her words, but for once, Jamien found nothing funny.

"You what?" His serious expression hurt her feelings a bit.

"I have sickle - "

"No, I heard that part. How in the hell do you forget to take your medicine?"

She blinked, confused. "What?"

He narrowed his eyes at her. "If you needed medicine, you should have told someone. We have millions of dollars floating around and all this time you needed something that important?" He flicked her on the nose. "What the hell is wrong with you?"

She blinked at the sudden disruption in her field of vision then frowned. "I'm sorry, did you miss the part about being kidnapped throwing me off?"

"You've had plenty of time since the minute you woke up on that couch to let someone know you needed medicine. For fuck's sake, we have a hospital on payroll!"

"Well, excuse you, Mr. I-Own-the-Fucking-World. Not everyone can keep their cool when there's bullets whizzing by their heads or when being forced to share a bed with an absolute stranger!" She attempted to sit up, but he tackled her, straddling her hips and leaning down so that his face was directly above hers with only two inches separating them. His hands found her wrists and pinned them near her head.

"What kind of medicine do you need?" It almost didn't sound like a question. Almost.

"Droxia."

"What does that do?" He sounded curious, so she stowed the attitude.

"It helps manage episodes of pain called sickle cell crisis."

"Can it get bad enough for you to need to go to the hospital?"

"Yes."

"Have you ever been hospitalized because you didn't take your medicine?"

"...Yes."

"That's all I need to know." He jumped up off of her, and air came to her a little easier. She hadn't noticed that she had a little trouble breathing when he was on top of her. Jamien strode over to the door and yanked it open, whistled and pointed to someone, then came back in.

"Yeah, Boss?" A guy who could have been a college freshman came in. Despite the young face, his voice carried years of wisdom and experience.

"I need you to run down to the hospital and get a drug called Droxia. Bring back as much as you can - "

"I don't need that much, Jay," Denitra interjected, sitting up.

He turned and pointed at her. "Hush, woman." He turned back to the guy. "If we don't have it, find it, then call Pierce to find out where to drop it off. There's no telling how long it may take you to find it."

"That's not all I'll need if you're gonna make him go through the trouble of going out for drugs in the middle of a party."

"Then what else do you need?" He looked at her.

"Iron and folic acid." She thought about it. "I guess, to be safe in case I've waited too long, something for pain like Percocet or oxycodone."

Jamien looked back at his follower. "You get all that?"

"Yeah. And call Pierce when I get it."

Jamien nodded. "Thanks, now get moving. This shit's important, got that? Don't fail."

The guy's eyes widened. "Yes, sir."

"Take a crew if you feel you need one. You never know when one of the other gangs may shoot at you, and I need you to come back with that."

The guy nodded and backed out of the room. Jamien closed the door behind him and turned towards her. "Unbelievable." He shook his head then dove onto the bed. "You know, I don't know if I can forgive you for this."

"For what?"

"Putting yourself in danger."

She frowned. "I did not - "

"I don't know too much about sickle cell anemia, Denitra, but I know that shit's nothing to play with. You're supposed to take it seriously."

"I do!" She looked at him, getting angrier by the second. "Don't talk to me like I'm a child when this is as much of your fault as it is mine. I asked you to let me go."

He looked at her and his expression softened. "I'm glad I didn't."

She exhaled sharply and threw her hands up. "I can't keep up with you."

He laughed and wrapped an arm around her, pulling her down onto her back beside him. "You don't see what I'm seeing, babe. You damn near passed out, standing next to a pool. You could have drowned if I'd been a little more inebriated, if my reaction time had been a little more compromised. Not to mention, you're pale. Something serious could have happened. What if I'd been out doing something and left you alone with some followers? They wouldn't have known if you needed to go to the hospital or if you were just faking."

"Jay - "

"No, hear me out, damn it." His fingers found her chin and forced her to face him, to look into those hypnotizing eyes. "I trashed a hospital because I thought they had broken you beyond repair. I killed the fuckers who attacked us on that bridge because I thought they really might try to take you away from me. I can't do anything to you. I can protect you from everything and everybody but yourself. I need you to take care of yourself, no matter what, because that's the one thing I can't do for you." He paused. "Well, I could, but that would require tying you down to a hospital bed and would involve feeding tubes, needles, and catheters - "

"I get it!" She put a hand over his mouth, eyes shut tightly against the image. "I get it."

He kissed her hand then moved it away, staring into her eyes, melting her free will. "Do you? I could show you if you needed a demonstration."

Suddenly, she tingled all over in anticipation. Her voice dropped to a husky whisper. "I think I'd like a demonstration."

He smirked and his hand found her cheek, moving ever so slowly to the back of her neck. He pulled her towards him as he leaned forward. She couldn't look away from those eyes, darkened with lust and as deep as a well. She realized that she had wanted that first real kiss as much as he did and was finally ready for it to happen. In fact, she couldn't wait. When she felt his nose brush hers, she closed her eyes, wanting to heighten her sense of touch through her lips to make the memory that much stronger.

She waited.

She waited.

His phone went off.

"OH, COME ON!" They said in unison, then fell out laughing.

"This is just fucking ridiculous." Jamien couldn't keep the smile off of his face, despite his frustration. He put the phone to his ear. "What is it, Kinzie?"

"I need you to come meet me at the warehouse. I've found the chair I've been looking for."

He groaned. "Aw, can't you just order it online? You can just look up my credit card info and use it."

It seemed to throw her off. "What? Order it on - No! You can't order this chair anywhere. It's one of a kind. Can you just get down here?"

Jamien slapped a hand over his face. "Yes. I. Can." Though his words were muffled, Kinzie heard him.

"See you when you get here." The phone beeped when she hung up and Jamien immediately threw the phone across the room.

"Fucking technology! It makes me miss the days when the only way you could contact a person who wasn't standing in front of you was by fucking mail!" He kicked his feet angrily then sat up and sighed. "I have to go."

"It's okay." Denitra bit her lip and sat up, rubbing his back.

He looked at her, reached over to touch her hair then her lips with his thumb. "No, it isn't. Her timing sucks royally."

"So does Pierce's."

"Agreed." He huffed and stood up. "I'll send Pierce up to get you. When you get your medicine, take it. Do you hear me, woman?"

She laughed at his tone. "Yes, Daddy."

He stopped and his eyes darkened again. "Call me that again and I won't go anywhere, special chair be damned."

She laughed even harder. "Go, Jay. Isn't this the phone call you've been waiting for since I got here? Get going. Go!" She shooed him with her hands. He leaned down and kissed her forehead then darted out the door. She promised herself that the next time she saw him, she would get her kiss.