A/N Sorry for the long wait. Here's an update! :D

After leaving Blackpoole's office, Nate went to his office. Once he was safely inside he leaned against the door and ran his hands through his hair and face. What has he done? He knew Blackpoole deserved it, but still…

He decided to pack his stuff up before Blackpoole recovered from the blow and send security after him. He picked an empty box from his closet and picked his photo frames and Sam's old drawings and placed them inside the box.

Suddenly he heard the door open behind him, he quickly looked up imagining big security guards ready to take him away, but instead there was somebody else at the entrance.

"Well Nate" Sterling stood there with a smug on his face. He closed the door behind him and slowly made his way inside. "I never thought you would have gone so low…"

Nate shook his head wondering how the news of him punching Ian had already reached his rivals hears. "If you have something important to say, say it. If not get out" he snapped.

"I was at the hospital before and guess who I crossed paths with?" he kept smirking.

Nate looked at him confused wondering what he was talking about.

"Your girlfriend"

"Okay…?"

"You know she looked familiar, at first I had trouble recognize her, because… well she looked slightly different here" Sterling threw some pictures on the desk and they scattered in front of Nate.

Nate slowly picked up one of them. The woman in the security camera had a high pony tail and thick glassed, but he could easily recognize Sophie's features. He quickly tried to hide his shock from Sterling.

"I don't know what you mean" he threw the picture down again and continue packing.

"Oh please, Nate." He snickered. "I'm not an idiot. Do you want to know when this was taken?"

Nate just ignored him, he didn't want to deal with him not now.

"Last week." Sterling continued. "She stole the First David statue…"

Nate tried not to give anything away, but Sterling could read him so well.

"Oh, you poor Nathan… you didn't know, did you? What did she tell you she had left the job? Became an honest citizen?" he smirked. "Don't you know? Once a criminal, always a criminal. How you've managed to keep a relationship with her a secret, I don't know. It's her, isn't it? The grifter we've been chasing around. I said you sounded in love with her"

"Have you finished?" Nate turned towards him angrily. That man certainly loved the sound of his voice.

In that moment Sterling realized what Nate was doing. "Look, I still haven't report it to Ian, if you give her up, I'm sure we could find a compromise." Noticing that his colleague was packing boxes. Or course having Nate out of way would certainly help his carrier, but he would lose a strong adversary.

"I know it's hard to believe it, but this has nothing to do with you" Nate snapped at him. "You know a man might not want to work for a company who has refused to pay for the treatment which could save his son… especially after he has punched his boss"

Sterling was taken aback from the information. "They turned down the claim" He could only imagine what Nate was going through, he had a daughter of his own, not that anyone knew about her.

"Yes," he sighed frustrated. "So I've punched Ian and now I'm leaving all this behind me" he waved his arms around indicating the room.

"I'm sorry Nate, I really am, but this doesn't justify what you've done"

"What exactly did I do?" they kept bantering. "I fell in love with her"

"You didn't report her! She's a thief!" Sterling shouted back.

"She's the woman I love!"

Silence fell between them. Sterling could see that it was true. She didn't con him, it wasn't all a game. The insurance agent and the thief actually fell in love with each other. He slightly chuckled at the irony and Nate looked at him strangely.

"I can give you twenty-four hours" James Sterling finally told him. "Just twenty-four hours then I'm going to go to Ian with the story. Then it will be all up to you"

Nate didn't know why he was doing that. He gave him a small nod and then he picked up the box walking away from that part of his life.

Sophie was impatiently waiting for Nate to return to his apartment. She was pacing nervously up and down the living room occasionally trying to speed dial him on her mobile phone only for it to go directly on voice mail. It had been hours since she last had news from him and she was getting more worried as the time pasted.

Finally the front door opened. "Nate!" she shouted with a hint of relieve.

He nodded closing the door behind him but he didn't move towards her.

"Where have you been? I was really getting worried"

"Oh," he waved a hand around "here and there"

She noticed something different about him. His movements were slow and uncoordinated and his eyes were out of focus. "Are you drunk?" she frowned.

"I might have had a few, yes"

"A few?" she raised her voice making him wince. "You're totally wasted!" now her worry had been taken over by anger.

"You can blame my father for that, but that's another story" he was now leaning against the door which was helping him to stay up.

"What happened?"

"Oh, nothing… I've lost my job… actually I quit after punching Ian… that felt good… I so wanted to do that for a long time…" his words were slippery.

"Why would you…" and then realization hit her. "They refused the claim" she whispered.

"Yep, he said the chances of my son surviving this were not worth the risk of payments… and some other bunch of cr…"

"Yeah, I get it…" she sighed. She guessed she would have gone to the nearest bar too after hearing that. "There's always plan B. Nate, please let me…"

"Oh, but that was not all…" he smiled, but his smile had nothing of its usual charm. "While I was packing my things guess who came into my office?" the question was rhetoric and Sophie sensed not to say anything. "Sterling with some lovely pictures. Does Rome mean anything to you?"

Sophie gasped shocked "Nate…"

"You lied to me!" he shouted.

"I just…" she felt her whole world crumpling at her feet. The betray she so in Nate's eyes was unbearable.

"You need to get away"

And his words hurt more than anything. Was he going to leave her just because of one stupid mistake? Was a statue really worth losing everything?

"Nate" she tried to apologized to him, making him understand. "let me explain. You know I'm a thief."

"I'm not angry about the theft, Sophie. It never bothered me when we were together the first months." He so relief in her eyes. "But I don't like people lying to me. It makes me think what else you've lied about."

"Nothing, Nate…"

"There's so much you haven't told me about your past. Do I really know you?"

She got closer to him, she wanted to touch him, making him understand that she had never so true to herself than when she was with him. She put a hand on his cheek and he immediately leaned against it. "Of course you do. I love you Nate" She made him look into her eyes, letting him see the truth in her words.

"I know" He didn't want the alcohol that was running in him, ruining their relationship, saying something that he knew he was going to regret later when he was going to be more sober. "Sterling is going to come looking for you"

"Let him come"

He gave her a small sad chuckle. "He's not going to rest until he sees you behind bars. He has given us 24 hours, but then he's going to report the whole thing"

She slowly nodded. She knew that leaving L.A. was the best thing for her to do, but she didn't want to leave Nate, especially now when he was more vulnerable. "What about you?"

"I'll cover any connection about me knowing who you were. You know what that will mean?"

She did and it hurt her deeply, but Nate couldn't afford to go to prison, not with Sam in the hospital. He will have to deny their love, tell them that she had played him and used him for his IYS connections. "It's necessary"

"Okay" he sighed deeply. He was exhausted and emotionally drained.

"But let me pay for Sam's treatment." She begged him "He is like a son to me, don't let your pride…" she left the words unsaid. Don't let your pride kill your son. And it what he was doing. He made him sick to think that his stubbornness was maybe going to cost his son's life

He finally nodded, agreeing to something he should have done days ago.

"Okay, I'll make the arrangements before leaving." She turned around. "I need to pack my things…"

"No, leave them." He stopped her. "If you do, it will look like I've helped you escape."

Her eyes began tearing as she swallowed a lump in her throat. "I'll be staying at my sister's"

"I'll call you as soon as I can" he told her.

She closed her eyes grateful for his promise. She quickly reopened them "Nate…" she didn't want to leave things unsaid.

"It's okay Sophie"

She heard his words, but she had also noticed that he still hadn't touched her or made contact with her.

She opened the front door and looked behind her, giving one last to look to the man she loved. "Bye Nate" she whispered before leaving his apartment.