Thanks to all of you who are reading. Reviews help keep me going. I didn't want this chapter to be really long and thus make you readers wait longer so I ended it where I did.

Chapter 25

After turning over the Squad to B shift, Johnny and Roy headed to the locker room to change. Roy said, "So what are you doing today?"

Johnny thought for a minute before repling, "Dee Dee is working until 4 today, so I'm good until about then."

"Want to come over for breakfast. We could look over the next couple of chapters of the EMT manual, maybe have a beer later." Roy suggested.

"Take care of a few things on your Honey-Do list too." Johnny added with a sideways grin.

Roy shrugged as he tried to lie, "That really hadn't entered my mine but if you're willing."

"Willing may not be the word for it but I'll come over." Johnny said.

Roy phoned home before leaving the station. Joanne had a big breakfast already cooked before they arrived. After breakfast the three took coffee out to the deck, then Joanne went shopping while the kids were in school. Johnny and Roy went over the next chapters of the EMT manual before starting on the lawn.

Chet had gotten home and decided that he'd try to call Johnny. He got no answer at Johnny's so he called Roy's figuring that he was over there.

At Roy's with Joanne gone and the lawn mower and hedge trimmers the phone continued to ring unheard by anyone.

Chet grumbled, "Gage what have you got me into?" He waited a couple hours and tried calling again. He still got no answer at either Johnny's or Roy's. Chet looked at the clock it was now nearly 2 o'clock when he tried calling again. He knew if he didn't get Johnny soon that he'd be out and about and he'd never get to talk to him before his date at 7.

Johnny looked at his watch as he and Roy put all the tools back up in the garage. "I really need to head out soon to get home and grab a shower."

Roy looked up, "I do have a couple of those here you know if it'll save you some time."

Johnny knew that he had his bag from the station in his Land Rover with a clean pair of jeans and a couple shirts in it. "Hey, that's not a bad idea. I can shower here and meet Dee Dee as she's getting off work." In no time at all a freshly showered and shaved. As he put his watch back on he looked at the time. He had better hurry if he wanted out of here before the kids bus ran. Not that he didn't love Roy's kids or anything but he knew that if he was there when the bus came he'd be there at least another hour. His plan was to get to LA County Dispatch as Dee Dee was getting off work. Johnny threw his clothes in the bag, tidied up the bathroom and made his way through the familiar house. "Roy thanks for the shower and all. I hate to run, ..."

"But, Dee Dee gets off in thirty minutes and your thirty-five away from Dispatch." Roy finished.

Johnny shot him a grin, "Yeah, something like that."

"Hey, be careful will ya?" Roy said.

Johnny already had the door open, "You got it. Tell the kids I'm sorry I missed them."

Roy looked at the closed door, then the clock. "Yeah, sure he is." He said as he noticed just how soon the kids would be home. Roy heard the phone just as he seen Johnny backing out of the driveway, "Hello."

"ROY!" Chet said with relief, "Roy, I need your help..."

"Chet are you alright?" Roy actually heard near panic in his friend's voice.

"I will be. I just NEED to talk to Gage. I've called you both all day!" Chet said.

"He just left here." Roy said, "What is it? Can I help?"

"Ahhh, MAN!" Chet sighed. Then hearing Roy's offer he figured to at least try though he knew Roy never so much as noticed any woman other than his wife, but it was his only chance, "Alright, alright. I got a call at the station last night for a girl named Sandy. She said we double dated with Gage. Do you know her?"

"How would I know her?" Roy asked Chet. "What's her last name?"

"I don't know." Chet replied to the latter question."

Roy frowned, "Alright, where does she work?"

Chet relied a bit louder as he was getting more frustrated, "I don't have a clue!"

Roy knew he was going to regret the next question that came to mind, but he had to ask, "Why didn't you ask?"

"WHAT?" Chet exclaimed, "I couldn't do that! Then she'd think that I forgot all about her!"

Roy stopped and looked at the phone as if he thought that he could see the person on the other line. For a second there he thought for sure he was talking to Johnny only with Chet's voice. "Well, if you haven't forgotten about her, tell me what you know about her."

Chet thought, "Her name is Sandy. We doubled dated with Gage and someone. She drives a blue Mustang. I'm meeting her at Rampart on the the Emergency room side to go bowling and for pizza and a beer. Oh yeah, she did say she ran into Gage at Rampart."

Roy thought back. Up until Johnny started dating Dee Dee his dates tended to blend together with only a couple standing out from the crowd. Unfortunately they usually stood out for the wrong reasons. "You really agreed to go out with her and can't remember anything about her?"

"Sure. Besides I figure that most of Rampart's nurses are closer to dolls than dogs." Chet said proud of his assumption.

Roy burst his bubble, "You said she ran into Gage at Rampart. You never said she worked there."

"Ah, MAN! Roy! Did you have to bring that up?" Chet asked.

Roy heard the bus coming, "I got to go. The kids bus is here."

Chet heard the phone line go dead. Thinking about his and Roy's conversation and his with Sandy. No she had never said she worked at Rampart. How could he have missed that detail. Now he knew even less about his date that he was meeting in just under three hours.

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Shortly after 4 pm Dee Dee came outside LA County with two of the other dispatchers that she had been working with. When Dee Dee turned from the others she was more that a little surprised to see Johnny's Rover parked beside her car with him leaning against it. "Hey! I wasn't expecting you." Dee Dee said to Johnny with a large smile. Then to her co-workers, "See you all next time."

Johnny said as he reached for her hands, "Well, it wouldn't be much of a surprise if you expected me now would it?"

"I guess not." Dee Dee said with an even bigger smile.

"So, do you want to go home, change and we can figure out what to do this evening? Johnny suggested.

Dee Dee needed to change from her uniform shirt and a shower would be good. She replied, "Sounds good. See you there." She said as Johnny pulled her hands closer and gave her a quick kiss before they got in their vehicles and headed off the parking lot.

One of the dispatchers turned to the other and said, "I guess what I've been hearing is true."

"What's that?" The other one asked.

The first replied, "I've got a friend that's a Candy Striper at Rampart. She said she had heard one of our dispatchers was nearly living with a Paramedic."

"Who?" The second dispatcher asked.

"From what I know, that was John Gage, a Paramedic from 51. He just picked up our newest dispatcher." The first spelled it out for her friend.

"Oh. Oh, Ok. I didn't know him." The second said. She had not worked at dispatch much longer than Dee Dee had.

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Dee Dee and Johnny made it back to her apartment. "Just make yourself comfortable. I'm going to grab a shower."

"Alright." Johnny said as he went to the kitchen for a cold drink. He was doing his best to behave himself, but after the night they had spent together at Big Bear he couldn't help that the thought of joining Dee Dee in the shower did cross his mind. By the time that Johnny got back in the living room he heard the shower cut off. Before he realized it Dee Dee was back from her shower. "Did you figure out where you want to go tonight?"

Dee Dee was brushing her hair as she said, "I thought maybe we could go out and grab a pizza then come back here."

Johnny liked her idea. He liked it a lot, "Well, lets go." He said as he picked his keys up off the end table.

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Chet had shower, shaved, dressed in blue jeans and his lucky bowling shirt. He hoped the shirt brought him luck in more ways than one tonight. He still couldn't figure out who Sandy was and why he had only taken her out once. He was ready to head out the door toward Rampart when he had an idea. Chet called Johnny's house and got no answer. He called Roy's again. "Hey Roy, ..."

"No, Chet. Johnny isn't here." Roy said before Chet could answer.

"Ok, I didn't figure he was. I know he's gave you Dee Dee's number." Chet began.

Roy frowned. Yes, he had the number, but he knew there was NO way Johnny would want Chet to have it.

"I won't even ask you for it. But, would you call there and see if he'll call me?" Chet asked.

Roy shook his head. He couldn't believe this. "Let me get this straight you want me to call Dee Dee's and ask Johnny to call you?"

Joann looked at Roy like he'd lost his mind.

Roy said, "Chet you don't even know if they went out tonight."

"Even better if they stayed home. Come on Roy be a Pal." Chet was nearly begging.

Roy sighed. He never understood how he got into the middle of this sort of stuff. "Alright. I'll call once."

Chet smiled. "Once is all I have time for. I got to leave for Rampart soon to meet Sandy. Sandy who ever she is."

"Alright. Give me a second." Roy fished out his wallet from his back pocket and found the piece of paper with Dee Dee's number on it.

Joann asked, "Roy what are you doing?"

"I'll explain it all to you in a minute." He said as he dialed the number. The phone rang several times but there was no answer. He dialed Chet back, "I tried. No answer."

"Ah, ... Man! Listen, thanks for trying Roy. I got to go." Chet said as he hung up the phone.

Roy turned to see Joann still waiting to hear what was going on. "First, write this number down where you know where it is. Johnny gave it to me and Cap the other day, just in case."

Joann replied, "Which means I'll needed it sooner or later."

"Let's hope for later but it's been awhile." Roy said.

Joann replied, "And there you go jinxing him. Just remember you work pretty close to our disaster magnet. Now, tell me about Chet."

Roy began, "Yeah, I know I work right beside him that's what gets me sometimes. They say lightening never stricks the same place twice but it always seems to hit Johnny before me. Anyway, Chet got a call from a girl he double dated with Johnny and someone awhile back. Johnny had ran into her at Rampart and was supposed to tell Chet 'Hello' for her. Well, we've been run ragged so he didn't get the message. She called Chet and all he knows is her first name. He's meeting her in a bit and can't place her at all."

Joann smiled, "How do those two manage the things they get into?"

Roy sighed, "I just wonder how they always get me in the middle of them too?"

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Shortly before 7 Chet pulled in the parking lot outside the Emergency entrance to Rampart hospital. He didn't see any blue Mustang or any Mustangs at all for that matter. As Chet leaned back against his ride all he could do was hope maybe she wouldn't show up. But, if she didn't show up he'd never know what he missed out on or who she was. He waited.

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Please review and again sorry for leaving off here but the chapter would have been too long otherwise.