"Better put your game face back on, attorney. Here comes the bride."

It was almost comical how Desmond Cataliades's anger faded into panic in a matter of seconds as he stared slack-jawed at the woman standing by the door.

Sookie didn't realize how insulated the library was until the doors slammed open and Desmond's unmistakable moans pierced the air. Alcide must have put the tape in an infinite loop to make sure no guest would miss the featured presentation. By now any lingering hope the lawyer had of saving himself had vanished along with the smug look on his face.

"Salome," the lawyer whispered. A single word of plea.

The woman, a few inches taller than Sookie with raven-black hair set in a half-bun, marched in. Her dark brown eyes never left her groom as she closed the distance with careful, deliberate steps. A tall African-American man in a black-and-white suit trailed the stone-faced woman, wearing the same inscrutable expression.

"Salome," Desmond tried again, his Adam's apple bobbing nervously against the pale skin of his neck. "Whatever you saw out there… it wasn't me, dove. I swear it wasn't me. This girl," he stabbed a finger in Sookie's direction. "It was all her doing. She was blackmailing me. Extorting me! And when I refused -"

Salome's steps halted and turned her head toward Sookie, pinning her with her dark brown eyes. "So you're responsible for this three-ring circus?" she asked. If Salome's voice was any colder, Sookie would have shivered.

Sookie could only bob her head in assent. There was something disarming about the old woman's inquisition. The Spanish woman's economy of motion and words were deeply unnerving. Maybe that's why people caved during the Spanish Inquisition.

Salome lifted her lace-adorned hand to summon the dark, hulking man behind her. The man inched closer and dipped his head slightly, waiting for a command. "Get security," Salome instructed in her clinical tone. The man never said a word as he spun to the door to follow his order. "Kibwe," Salome called before the man could make his exit, "say nothing to no one."

As soon as the doors clicked together, Desmond's chest puffed up as he leapt like a bunny on Energizer toward his wife.

"Yes! Yes, dove, get the security. Better yet let's call the police. That'll teach her a lesson. She thinks just because she's a Northman she can operate with impunity," the lawyer prattled away as he gingerly reached for his wife's arm as though she was spun from glass.

Sookie could barely hold it together. There must be a better form of torture in Afghanistan than watching the attorney and his B-movie performance.

Salome shrugged her shoulder and pried her arm away before she skewered her husband with an arctic glare. "Enough," she gritted, raising her finger in front of him. She strode to the mantle and skated her gloved hands under the framed portrait of her grandparents, where she procured a tiny square box – a spy cam -with a simple flick of her index finger. Sookie had seen one of those before in Alcide's big bag of paraphernalia.

Salome clicked her tongue as she put the device on the table. "When will you ever learn, Desmond," she chided. "See, darling? You're caught on tape again."

Desmond gaped at his wife in shock. Sookie could almost see the jagged pieces of the puzzle clicking together in his head. The lawyer didn't have to be a genius to realize that he had been caught in the act – again. It also explained Salome's timely entrance in the library.

His shoulders twitched. He knew that if their previous conversation – the one where he admitted coercing Preston into bed with him - had been recorded then it was as good as committing a career hara-kiri.

"They were blackmailing me! I was under duress!" Desmond exploded. A last ditch effort to save face.

"Please Desmond. I've been married to you for a long time; I know when you're faking it."

The Hispanic woman brushed past the bewildered lawyer to move in front of Sookie.

"Salome!" he burst, flicks of spit leaving his mouth with every syllable. "Please, dove, don't do this. Help me! We can move past this. My humiliation is your humiliation, remember that. You're my wife!"

Salome spun to face the hysterical lawyer. "I'm not your wife, Desmond. I'm your beard. And twenty years is far too long to be someone's alibi. As for this scandal, don't worry, dear, I'll be able to live it down. It's a small price to pay for what I'm about to gain when I serve you the divorce papers."

It was as though a light bulb had sparked above the lawyer's head as his lips broke into a malicious grin. "Divorce?" he cackled. It sounded like nails on a chalkboard for Sookie, who was enjoying a front row seat of the soap opera. "You are setting yourself up for disappointment, Salome. You won't get a penny from me. We have a pre-nup."

Salome merely smiled. "I have two words for you, dear: Infidelity Clause."

That wiped the arrogant leer off Desmond's blown-up face.

"And right now I have more than two hundred guests who can testify to how grandly you cheated on me," she sing-songed. "So if I were you, dear, I'd go out there and start looking for a good lawyer… if you can still find someone morally-depraved enough to work for you."

Then as if on cue, the double doors swung wide open as two men in dark suits entered the library followed closely by Kibwe, Salome's personal sentry, and Preston, who couldn't quite keep the grin off his face.

Desmond darted his eyes to Preston when the latterngave his wife a not-so-subtle nod.

"You're in on this," Cataliades murmured. There was no question in his tone.

Salome sneered. "Who do you think let them in, love?" she turned to Kibwe, who was on her side in an instant. "Get this filth out of my house. Use the main door. I want everyone to see him. Especially the press." She looked to her husband. "Congratulations, Des, you did it. You managed to move us from page six to page one."

"And if they ask for you, ma'am?" Kibwe asked almost inaudibly.

"Tell them I'll be releasing my statement tomorrow."

The sentry nodded at Salome before he gave the order to the other guards by simply tipping his forehead to the door.

Salome waited until Desmond and the guards were gone before she walked over to Sookie. "Here's the code for the garage, Alcide is there waiting for you," Salome said, pressing a small card in Sookie's palm. "I've also arranged a car for you, Preston," she added, looking over Sookie's shoulder, where Preston was standing. "The driver will take you straight to the center. Colman's probably tucked in for the night but you can check on him when you do the rounds later."

With that Sookie cracked a smile at Salome before she swerved to see Preston's expression.

"Thank you, Mrs. Cataliades," Preston murmured, his voice noticeably shaking.

Salome Agrippa-Cataliades was everything Eric thought she was. When Preston came to her with Alcide a week ago armed with his heart-wrenching confession, along with the incriminating tapes as visual aide, she never hesitated to offer her help. It seemed that Salome wasn't oblivious to her husband's affairs after all. The thing was, before Salome became a Cataliades she was an Agrippa first, and she knew that when you have a name synonymous to gold, you'd learn to pick your battles. So she turned a blind eye to her husband's transgressions. Marriage was about compromises, she would remind herself over and over, and homosexuality wasn't a crime. So as long as Desmond remained responsibly discreet, she was willing to find a middle ground for them.

However, when she discovered that her husband had used her foundation to manipulate Preston, that's when Salome decided that she, like everyone else, had her limit.

"Use the door by the shelves, it will lead you straight to the servants' quarters and the garage," Salome instructed.

"Thank you, Mrs. Ca- " Sookie caught herself quickly, "Miss Agrippa."

"I like the sound of that," Salome agreed with an encouraging smile and a soft pinch on Sookie's hand. "Eric told me about your plan for Lilith. For what it's worth, I've known that bitch for a long time and it would bring me great pleasure to see her off her high horse."

Sookie gave a stiff nod. "None of it would be possible if it weren't for your help."

Salome waved her hand dismissively. "Don't thank me but my soon-to-be ex-husband and his paranoia."

E/S

"Have you heard from Eric yet?" Alcide asked as they stepped inside her hotel room.

She shook her head as she bent down to open the mini fridge to fetch a couple of miniscule bottles of liquor. She hurled the tiny Jack Daniels bottle to Alcide before twisting the cap off her Smirnoff.

She took a swig of her vodka, wincing when the transparent liquid hit her throat. "He told me he'd be going off grid after he picked up Sam and Karin at the airport. And that was 24…" she looked at the radio clock on the bedside table, "no, 26 hours ago."

"Have you tried the Tavern?"

She replied with another head shake as she marched to the window. "Can't call the bar in case Pam picks up," she said as she gazed outside, her hand itching to massage the side of her temple if only to stop her head from its manic throbbing. Eric, during his last phone call, revealed that he had told Pam about the deal she brokered with Bill. "I know she's pissed at me. And that's not something I'm ready to deal with right now."

Alcide downed his whiskey in one heavy gulp and discarded the small bottle in the bin by the bar. Sookie's fingers dug against her palm, it was all she could do to stop herself from cursing out loud when her head began pounding with renewed force. If only she hadn't forgotten her prescription-strength meds at home.

"Refill?" he asked as he knelt to rummage the fridge for another bottle. Sookie raised her half-full Smirnoff and tapped her nail against the bottle. She wished Alcide wouldn't raid her mini bar clean, she'd need the alcohol later to induce sleep.

"You sure? It's on Eric."

She smiled to hide her discomfort. If Eric could just show the fuck up then she wouldn't have to put on a façade for Alcide anymore.

"I really don't get it Sook," Alcide said, striding next to her, oblivious to her discomfort. "Why do you have to hide it from Pam in the first place? I may not know her as well as you do, but from what I remember, she's pretty much like you. And if that's the case then why can't you give her a little more credit? Why can't you trust her to do the right thing? You never know, she might surprise you."

Sookie raised her chin to meet Alcide's probing gaze, her eyes taking on a glassy sheen. "Because I don't want her to do the right thing," she choked. "Because the right thing means she'll have to come clean. What if the agency takes Hunter back? How can I live with myself knowing I've denied my sister of a chance to have the life I can't have?"

"What do you mean 'can't have'?"

She lowered her eyes to the floor, shaking her head dismissively. "Pam and Miriam need Hunter. And I need to make sure Hunter stays with them. That's the only way I can stop worrying about them when I'm –" she stopped talking, biting her lower lip so as not to give anymore away. Alcide was a pro at spotting lies, she couldn't afford to slip. Not now, not when they were so close to sealing the deal against Lilith.

Alcide eyed her curiously, his dark brown eyes digging for something. "And what about you, Sook? What about your shot at a normal life? Don't you want a family of your own? That white picket fence; the dog that Eric will probably name after me just to annoy me."

That made her chuckle.

"How about a child of your own? A life with Eric?"

She swallowed hard, her throat tightening. She raised the teeny bottle to her lips and tossed back the rest of her drink as she decided to take the Fifth.

Alcide sighed. "You know when my father told me we were moving to DC, I lashed out at him. I couldn't accept it. I fought him long and hard to stay in Seattle because I knew," he paused, the muscles around his jaws leaping as he ground his teeth, "I knew that the minute I leave Seattle I'd be losing you for good."

His shoulders sagged, as though he was recalling a bitter loss. "Don't get me wrong, Sook, I'm willing to give that whole long-distance thing a shot but then I realized I wouldn't be fair to you. Because while you were my first love, Sook, I know – and I guess I've always known – that I wasn't yours. I saw the way you blush when he's around. I noticed how you'd stop talking whenever he walked by. I even found it strangely amusing how murderous you seem whenever he was with one of his girls."

Her chin quivered, mortified. "It's all ancient history now. We don't have to rehash it."

Alcide's finger snuck beneath her chin, forcing her to look at him. "Hey, hey, I'm not mad at you, Sook. Really I'm not. I'm telling you these because I want you to know why I gave up on us. I need you to understand that it wasn't easy for me. But as much as I want to be the guy holding a boom box over his head in front of your house, we both know that spot's already been taken. So I'd rather stand in the sidelines and root for you and Eric because no matter how hard I try to deny it you two are kind of, you know… epic.'"

"Epic? Seriously?"

Sookie and Alcide's heads whipped to the door at the same time to follow the sound of the cocky voice they both knew so well.

"Eric!" she exclaimed as her heart shot up to her throat. "You're here." Yep, it was pretty dumb of her to state the obvious. But she couldn't help it. He was there – standing behind the door with his unmistakable smirk.

"I told I'd be here, didn't I?" Eric drawled in his throaty self-assured tone that made her lower belly ache with want. He swaggered toward her wearing an unfamiliar dark gray hoodie and a pair of stonewashed blue jeans. His hoodie might be a far cry from his usual leather jacket but she couldn't bring herself to care enough to ask why he looked like the Unabomber.

In a few strides Eric managed to close their distance. She instantly wished he wasn't so near. So damn near that she could smell his aftershave. She inhaled gently to get her fix. And while she'd like to think she was being subtle about it the slight arching of Eric's eyebrow told her otherwise.

There was no denying it, she was goddamned hooked on him.

But just because she was at his mercy didn't mean she wouldn't give it a fair fight, right? Steeling her spine, she pinned him with a look. "I didn't even hear you come in. How long have you been standing there?" she asked in her most unaffected tone.

"Long enough to catch Alcide channel his inner emo," Eric jibed, rolling his eyes to Alcide. "Y'know when I asked you to be my wingman I was hoping you'd come up with something a little more original and a little less… epic-y."

Alcide simply snorted. "You're right. I might have been overselling you. What can I do? You're not exactly a hot commodity, you fucking ingrate."

Eric couldn't help but chuckle. She swore her knees buckled at the sound of his laugh.

Sookie forced herself out of her Eric-induced stupor as she shifted her eyes from Eric to Alcide then back to her lover. "Wait, how did you get in?"

"Romeo here left me a copy of your keycard in the front desk," Eric replied, tipping his head to Alcide. "Good call, by the way. I'll be sure to send you a gift basket in DC."

"You owe me more than a gift basket, asshole," Alcide deadpanned, the amusement in his eyes was giving him away.

Listening to the two men banter, it was like Sookie had been transported ten years into the past. Ah, good times.

"Send me the bill then. But for now, I need you to fuck off so I can give my little Machiavelli an epic hello," Eric countered throwing her a wink before dragging Alcide by the arm en route to the exit.

There it was again the heat building up in her loins growing stronger with each word spilling out of his mouth. Somehow, Eric's presence seemed to have dulled the throbbing of her head. Who needs Oxycodone when she had Eric Northman?

"Wait! Aren't we gonna discuss the agenda for tomorrow?" Sookie heard Alcide squeal.

"That can wait, I can't," Eric retorted as he slammed the door in Alcide's face. Sookie had to bite her cheeks to keep herself from smiling as Eric whisked around and sped in front of her. "Now where were we?" he purred, his hands trapping the sides of her waist.

"You were about to tell me what you've been doing for the past," she checked the radio clock again, "twenty-six and a half hours and why you couldn't be bothered to pick up the phone and call me," she replied with a steady glare, refusing to yield to the call of her baser instinct.

Eric pulled her closer, dipping his head to nip at her earlobe. It was a losing battle to keep her eyes open. If she could just let herself go, that'd be so great, but the sensible part of her – however miniscule – was refusing to give in.

"Eric," she warned half-heartedly, shoving him. She had questions and damn it she would get her answers before every cell in her body go on a full-on coup.

"Okay," Eric sighed. He pulled away, pinching her narrow waist, still refusing to release her. Sookie gritted her teeth so as not to groan from the absence of Eric's lips on her skin.

"After I picked up Karin from the airport, we went straight to First Hill, where I had the longest and most exhausting conversation with my dad. And the reason I didn't get to call you was because I left my phone in First Hill in a hurry to catch the earliest flight to get here so I can do this…" He bent to press his lips on her forehead.

"And this…" He dipped lower to peck at her cheek. The roughness of his day-old whiskers was weakening her resolve.

"And this." He caught her lower lip with his teeth and softly tugged at it. His kiss was so painfully gentle she almost cried.

She let out a breath, ready to wave the white flag. Then he stroked her hair and traced the underside of her jaw. "I also came here to tender my resignation."

It was like a douse of cold water. "Resignation?"

"From the position of being your other man." Eric touched her cheek. "This whole sneaking around business – as sexy and exciting as it is - isn't working for me anymore."

A chill ran up her spine. "Eric," she whispered. She couldn't summon another word.

"This weekend had been the craziest – and I mean the cold kind of crazy. But it wasn't my dad or Cataliades or the prospect of getting even with Lilith that was driving me insane. It was the notion that after everything is done and we go back to Seattle you'll still be someone else's wife. You'll still go back to Bill and I'll be back on being the guy you play house with across the street. And I don't want that, Sookie. I refuse to be that guy anymore."

"What are you saying?" Her voice was already cracking.

"I'm not letting you go back to your husband, Sookie. You can call me selfish, highhanded, inconsiderate; I don't give a fuck. When we get back to Seattle, you'll divorce that sonofabitch and you'll live with me. I don't care if that might hurt your sister or anyone else. I'm. Not. Sharing. You. Not anymore."

Her lips parted. A part of her was relieved that he wasn't leaving her as she initially thought he would. But there was also a part of her that went numb – paralyzed with the fear of what's to come.

She was tempted to argue; to tell him that it wasn't that easy. Tell him that there were things – demons - that even a pro like her couldn't run away from. Her palm flat against his chest shuddered, taking note of how fast his heart was pounding. It frightened her how she could tell how troubled he was from the thump of his heart alone.

She bravely met his mutinous gaze and she found herself unable to speak. Because in his eyes – his big blue eyes – she caught something that terrified her: a vision of a future.

In his eyes she saw the white picket fence and the gray wolfish dog named Alcide. Through him she watched the boy with the golden hair and the brightest blue eyes squeal in delight as Eric chased him around the yard with a water gun.

Sookie should have said something. Instead she curled her fingers into a fist, grabbing the front of his jacket and pulled him down for a kiss so he wouldn't see the tears rolling down her cheeks.

Eric was wrong. He wasn't selfish, she was.

A/N: I don't own Eric.

Happy Valentine's Day, loves! Thank y'all for reading and leaving amazing feedback! I can't ask for better friends.

Amandagm, you rock as always!