Bree curled up on her side of the bed with tears in her eyes as she stared blankly at the western wall of the bedroom she once shared with John some two weeks ago. She sniffled and swiped her hand across her face then held herself tight in an attempt to control her emotions.

The dull pang of loss erupted in her chest and began to throb with every breath she took. This empty bed did nothing for her but make her anxious. She knew he was close, one room away to be exact, yet he was still so far. She placed a hand over her mouth as a sob escaped her lips and a new wave of tears sprang forth. Then, just as she began to feel herself being consumed by the darkness of loneliness, he was there.

Bree stilled as she felt him lay next to her. Her eyes widened in the dim light as the familiar warmth of his body engulfed her as he eased up behind her and held her in his arms. He placed one hand around her waist and splayed his fingers flush against her stomach then pulled her closer.

She felt his fingertips brush against her skin as he lightly brushed her hair off her neck then kissed it as he caressed her shoulder. "Why are you crying?" John asked. His voice was soft and filled with ample sentiment as he kissed her flushed cheek. When she did not respond, he turned her over to face him. Earlier he had seen her take a bottle of Jack into the room with her when he didn't speak when they got home.

After which he had retired to the guest room, only to be kept awake by her incessant moaning as she took matters into her own hands in her state of drunkenness which had put him on edge. Clearly she was missing him in a range of different ways but he had no idea it was that bad. For a split second he wondered who she thought of while she pleasured herself until he heard her sweet mentions of his name.

He'd pressed a hand to the wall that separated the rooms in a great attempt to curb his desire to relieve his own building tension which was ridiculous since he was fresh on the road to recovery from her infidelity. Yet that didn't make him any less of a man and her any less of a woman. A woman he wanted to love. So, after hearing her go from painfully tempting moans to outright sobs, he thought he had taken enough when it came to hearing her cry.

He gazed at her face then took up her hand and kissed her palm. "Why are you crying, Bree?" he asked again then laced his fingers through hers then admired how well hers fit in his. "You.." she slurred as her head lolled against his chest and tears continued to roll down her cheeks. "Cu'z you're still mad at me. Why won't you ...spee-aK. To. Me?" she said then turned her face away from him.

John smiled and pressed his lips to her temple. "I'm speaking to you now, Bree." He murmured. He brushed his thumb over her face to dry her tears. "So, stop crying over me." He said as he hugged her tighter. The last thing he wanted was to be a reason for her to cry like this. Once again he thought about what Yuri mentioned to him and wondered whether or not he should ask he while she's hammered but decided against it just like he decided to not mention this night to her in the morning when she was good and sober but it came right then and there.

"I'm a bad person, John." she sobbed again. "You should stay away from me."

"No." He whispered and kissed her jaw. 'Obviously I can't do that'. He really couldn't help himself.

"I killed my own child" she wailed again then pressed her face into his neck.

John sat up immediately and cradled her in his arms. "Bree, you're drunk. Stop saying things like that, Yana is fine."

Bree looked up at him and shook her head slowly. "Sean. His name was Sean." She said, bordering on distraught.

"What?" John said sharply, trying his best to make sense out of nonsense.

"When I was sixteen, I found out that I was pregnant. Whether it was my father or one of his friends, I didn't know, but I was distraught. I felt like my entire life had ended. I tried in vain to talk to my mother about it and the only thing she could have said to me was that I was a slut and that I had to stop lying on my father. She told him and he came in and beat the crap out of me and told me if I didn't enjoy what him and his friends were doing as much as I did then I would not have gotten pregnant. So one day when I was about two months I went to a back alley clinic with some cash I saved up from my allowance and I tried to have an abortion."

"Bree...you didn't-" he said quietly.

"No, listen." She said cutting him off as she pushed herself out of his arms.

He released her and watched in silence and shock as she scooted away from him on the bed.

"He didn't die. But one month after he was born I went to the tracks and set him down...waited for the train to pass..." she said as she waved her hands around to make her point known. "He was crying, and I just stood there!" she shouted for no reason then glared at her hands in anguish. Her eyes were wide as she replayed the memory in her mind.

As for John, he had no idea she carried all this around for so long. Why hadn't she come to him? He balled his fists in the sheets. "Dammit Bree..." he said in a hushed tone; unable to hide his hurt. They sat there in silence staring at each other, emotions running high, all until John got up and left. He shut the door behind him and leaned against it. His heart clenched as he heard Bree shuffle to the door and slapped her hand against it. He sat on the floor on the other side of the door and held his head in his hands as he listened to her.

"John..." she cried weakly as she clawed at the frame in vain. Breathing heavily, she pressed her cheek to the door. Just when she thought she could not go any lower, she had finally hit rock bottom.

Now they stood in the hotel's conference room, one floor below the helicopter crash site that left Yuri impaled on the floor. John and Bree stood back to back at the centre of the room. Bree clutched her RSASS shakily. Giant beads of sweat formed along her brow and rolled down her back as her adrenaline spiked. The banging at the doors on either end of the room continued as Makarov's reinforcements attempted to break in.

"How many out there?" she asked John in a small voice as she found herself lost in her translation into depths of fear.

John glanced back at her and sucked in a breath of air and adjusted his stance. He made the choice to hang back and lay down cover fire long enough for them to get to the rooftop all until he got cornered.

"Forty.. maybe fifty." He said quietly.

Bree placed her hand to her mouth and gasped, they were truly outnumbered. "W-we could die…"

On their way to the rooftop, Makarov had already called in reinforcements. John volunteered to hold the Russians off so they could get to the restaurant while Bree laid down cover fire for Price and Yuri. The enemy Russians came at them in throves of bullets and explosives.

Bree dealt out rounds behind and ahead of them as they ran through the lounge area and over to the hotel's restaurant. "He's headed for the roof!" Yuri shouted. Just as they began to sprint towards Makarov, two rockets smashed onto their position, breaking their formation and sending each soldier soaring through the open space.

"Shite!" Bree yelled as she saw Price getting thrown over the side of the building. Her body slammed into a pile of rubble, knocking her senseless. Everything began to grow quiet as she struggled to lift herself to rush to the aid of her friends.

Panic set in when she spotted a wounded Yuri lying motionless on the now slanted floor; the only thing keeping him from falling was the piece of steel that was impaling his abdomen.

"Yuri!" she tried to say but it came out in a hushed whisper mixed with a sob. Pain lanced her side as she took her first step; but she'd deal with that later. She knelt at his side and touched his blood soaked chest then shook him slightly. He coughed and opened his eyes with a start, making her jump.

"Yuri…" Price said behind her then came over to him.

"No, leave me..." he mumbled as he struggled back to consciousness then reached for the foreign object that was the source of his discomfort. "Don't let him get away." Price nodded and started for the roof once more. "I need to patch you up…" Bree said breathlessly as she helped him ease the metal out of his flesh.

He touched her arm and quieted her instantly. "I'll be fine. They're sending in reinforcements. You need to go." Bree sat back on her heels and looked at Yuri in confusion. "He needs you. Get going!" He said then pushed her away from him. "Leave me alone, Bree!" Her heart lurched in her chest when she remembered where he was.

John's eyes widened in alarm when he heard her statement. Pure fear flowed out of her as he felt he body shiver against his back. "I know..." he whispered back. He cocked his head to the side as he heard the distinct sound of Bree's stifled sob. Her hand left her weapon and slid down to hold his in a tight grasp. "I'm not ready for that just yet." She said as Makarov's men rammed the doors over and over.

John let his gun hang off of his shoulder and turned to face her. He held her around her waist and hugged her fiercely then bent to press his cheek to hers. She stood there in surprise as he held her.

"Don't say that, Bree. We're getting out of this." he said softly. "You hear me!?" he said gruffly as he tried his best to shake some sense into her so they could make it out alive. "I won't let them take you." Bree froze for a moment in his embrace, the one that she had been without for such a long time it felt new yet so familiar, warm and welcoming.

When she met his gaze, her eyes glowed hot with newfound determination. John still had faith in her and that was all she needed to survive. Their lips met for one last kiss of assurance that paved the way of recovery just as the Russians broke down the door.

John and Bree released each other and dove in separate directions as a slew of bullets rained behind them. They scampered across the floor to separate ends of the great room. "Orders, Sir!" Bree shouted to him through her headset. John smiled to himself and glanced in her direction. The exhilaration was breathtaking; it had been a while since they got to work like this, back to back and without a plan. "Sort them out." He replied through his grin.

They both rose from behind their hiding place and opened fire on the invading Russians. Bree lugged a frag and a 9banger in their direction which took out at least six of them in one shot while John picked them off one by one with his pistol. When she threw the second flash she felt John tug her hand and pulled her towards the other end of the room behind cover. She aimed her rifle and fired a couple blind shots, successfully capping two and maiming one in the process. The group of remaining soldiers rushed forward just as the second door broke down and two white armoured soldiers entered, each wielding a PKP Pecheneg.

"No, no, no, SHITE!" John cursed. They both stopped and dropped to the floor in prone. Bree reached over to him and squeezed his shoulder then produced some C4, "Flash em' then hit em' with Plan B." she said.

John looked at her as he swelled with pride. Damn she learnt well. He nodded and took the C4 from her. "Aye, plan B it is. On you."

"Right." She replied. John planted the C4 in every available corner at hand then they crawled over to the sides of the room for a good flanking position. The soldiers ripped off the table cloths as the searched for John and Bree on the floor, yelling and cursing at each other in rapid Russian.

With just a few feet between them and the door, Bree knelt and threw the last of her flash bangs towards the giant chandelier. The burst of light instantly blinded the unsuspecting Russians as they got up and high tailed it to the stairwell. John flipped the switch and the room went up. The force from the blast pushed them down the first flight and they came to a painful stop at the end of the second.

Bree was the first on her feet, coughing and swiping at her eyes that now stung from the dust and sweat. She heard John groan in a corner of the stairwell and in an instant she was at his side. He sat up as she knelt beside him and looked up at her.

"Well done, eh?" he said with a smirk. Bree wiped the bit of blood that trailed down the side of his mouth and touched his face then smiled. He closed his eyes and nuzzled her palm. Just then, they heard the impact of the chopper on the rooftop.

She gasped and looked at him with wide eyes, "Price!" They got to the rooftop just in time to see Makarov dealing Price a kick to the face and receiving a bullet to the shoulder from Yuri.

"Yuri, you fuck!" he shouted then fired three shots in his direction. Everything seemed to slow down as the bullets landed in both his shoulders and his head.

"Yuri!" Bree screamed as he fell to the ground. John drew his weapon and shot Makarov in the neck buying Price enough time to sweep him off his feet and smash him through the brittle glass of the rooftop to his certain death.

"Nikolai!" John said into his headset as Bree went frantic over his limp body. "Yuri!.. Yuri! Talk to me. Please say something." She yelled as she touched him tentatively. She looked over his wounds, the bullet to his head had only grazed the surface but he had a lost a lot of blood and was fading quickly. "You can't, please, don't do this."

She looked up at John with a grimace of fear etched on her face. "We need a medic now." He said to Nikolai before joining Bree at Yuri's side.

By the time they got back to their makeshift base, Yuri had gone into cardiac arrest. The medic provided by a newfound friend of theirs worked frantically to bring him to while the others looked on in silence. "He's going to need a transfusion."

Colour drained from Bree's face when she heard the medic's solution to keeping Yuri alive and her body suddenly felt weak. "Oh god...I'm not a match." She said, as her voice hitched.

The group looked at each other in worry; no one was remotely close to being a saviour for their faithful Russian. "Take mine." John said, stepping forward and offering his arm to the medic.

Price looked at him with a perplexed expression, "Since when? You're AB, mate." he said. He was sure he had this young man memorized to a T. "Don't believe everything you see on paper old man." John said, teasingly. Price smiled and slapped him on the shoulder. "But Yuri's O-negative." Bree said from her corner. John stepped up to her and smoothed a hand over her hair. "As am I... Trust me, okay?" he said quietly. Bree looked up at him with new found hope. Her hero had put aside all differences and came to her rescue.

Arabian Peninsula, Hotel Mirage: One day later...

Bree knocked on the door to John's room, when she heard his muffled reply on the other side she opened it a fraction and poked her head in. He was laid out on the bed, fussing with the few bandages about his body, smiling as he looked up and spotted her. She felt her insides soar with relief when she saw that he was awake. After the unique moment that connected them on the battlefield she felt like she needed a little more of him. Now she just had to figure out how to let him know. Or maybe he might just figure it out himself.

A twinge of nervousness fluttered in her stomach when he waved her over to join him, but she ignored it and stepped in bravely, ensuring to lock the door behind her.

"How are you holding up?" she asked, tentatively as she took a seat beside him. Lowering herself carefully and wincing as the pain of her injury struck her in small waves.

"Never been better" John said, pushing himself into a seated position. "You?"

"I'll survive." She replied then dug her toes into the plush carpet. She marvelled at the way the soft strands protruded between her toes and she wiggled them around a bit to absorb the essence of luxury. They had to admit, having a President on their team had its perks.

John noticed her flush and leaned forward to take her hand. The only medicine he needed was sitting right in front of him. He felt her trembling fingers tighten around his a fraction and he placed his other hand over them to still them.

"What's the matter?" he asked with genuine concern.

Bree sighed a little and tightened the grip of her toes on the carpet. "What you did… for Yuri… that was truly amazing." She gushed.

"Why thank you." He said with pride. "Just helping a friend."

She smiled and nodded then returned her gaze to the floor. The warmth that John's hands on hers produced began to travel up her arm and settled in her chest. All she wanted to do to strengthen their reconnection was jump on him and cover him in kisses.

"I missed you." he said quietly. He moved his hand to her shoulder and gently began to stroke it. "And about the night before...Why didn't you come to me before? Do I scare you? "

"Somewhat." Bree said teasingly then poked him in the arm.

"Ouch..."He replied then sat up and nodded. "But I hear you sweetheart."

"Of course" She said then stood to leave. John grabbed her hand before she made a move. "Where are you going?" he asked then bit on his lower lip. If there was one thing that she knew for sure about him was that look. "You need your rest."

"So do you." He pointedly replied. "I know, that's why I'm going to do that right now." She said, shyly. The expression on his face spoke a thousand words in that moment. He pulled her toward him so she fell into his lap. He turned her body to face him and propped her back with his thighs. "You can rest here."He said firmly then locked her hands in his. Bree squirmed against his abdomen but his grip was tight.

He tilted her chin up and kissed her gently causing her to still instantly. "Stop fighting me." He murmured then kissed her again, this time much deeper. He bit her lower lip and tugged on it softly. She glanced away from him nervously, looking for a way out of this but there was none; not like she actually wanted one... John peered into her eyes, waiting for her to resist him again.

When she didn't He released her hands and leaned against the pillows with an arm behind his head and looked at her with a smirk on his lips. Bree flushed again. "Am I making you nervous?" he murmured then gently traced a finger along the side of her face. John continued to stare at her, waiting for a response, when none came he leaned forward suddenly and had her beneath him in an instant.

Bree closed her eyes as he kissed her forehead and her nose. She felt his legs parting hers inch by inch as he spread his knees between hers then draped them around his hips. When she opened her eyes he took her lips for a moment then nibbled on her neck, leaving her wanting to taste him even more. The next thing she knew her hands were being held against the sheets as he continued to cover her with light mind-numbing kisses. Suddenly the atmosphere became hot and heavy with strong desire. His strong hands encircled her waist and his firm fingers dug gently into the flesh as he bent her backward to nibble on her breasts making her cry out for more. "Easy..." he said softly then grazed his teeth over a nipple before beginning to remove her underwear; He was the only one that was capable of doing that in what felt like a nanosecond.

"MacTavish..." she whispered, struggling to find her voice as the gentle tingle of his lips on her skin sent shivers up her spine as he began to head south. John lifted his head from her stomach and stared at her over her heaving chest with dark, stormy blue eyes. "You're looking for trouble" he murmured against her navel; nothing thrilled him more than hearing her say that the way she did. "Protection?" she dared to ask in her quaking state as she wrapped her arms around his neck. John leaned onto her and grabbed her wrists again, this time he laced his fingers through hers. The heat of his erection against her groin almost made her quiver with anticipation. He kissed her nose and chin, "Let's do this thing for real. What do you say?" Before she had a chance to respond he entered her with one hard thrust that made her toes curl.

"Oh John!" she yelled, as her fingers gripped his hair. His sudden aggressiveness came as a shock but was oh so thrilling at the same time.

"Yes Baby" he replied.

"Don't stop." She whimpered and moved her hands over the well toned muscles that adorned his back and his shoulders.

"Never…"

"Please don't" she begged

"No honey." John growled through clenched teeth when he felt the familiar sting of her fingernails being scraped across his shoulder blades.

"...feels so good."

"I know..." ….

The following morning Bree woke with a start. The haunting dream of John leaving her for good had invaded her mind again. But the memory of their incredible evening of hellified sex and bonding calmed her for a moment. She smiled and stretched lazily as she sat up. The warm feeling he left her with still lingered inside, something she had never felt from him until now. She knew he stated his intention clearly before anything happened but was she ready for another child? Or better yet, was she ready to start a family with John? Cautiously she touched her stomach as she pondered in delight until she realised that the bed was empty.

"John?" she said as she looked about frantically. 'Oh, god, it's happened…'

"I'm here." He said quietly from his perch on a bar stool by the window from which he observed her while she slept and contemplated his position. She whipped her head around to see him sitting there with his hands clasped between his knees and looking like he had the world upon shoulders. Bree gathered the sheets around her naked body and sprang off the bed towards him. "Please, tell me what's wrong…" she said as her inner panic began to rise again. She paused in front of him as he looked up. His eyes were watery and red rimmed, had he been crying or was it his allergies? She'd never know because she'd never ask. Clearly he had a change of heart, whether it was for better or for worse she did not know. Yet she stepped forward and touched his face, "John…" she prodded. He closed his eyes and enjoyed her touch for a while then shook his foot impatiently. When he opened them again she could have seen the heavy dark cloud that weighed over his heart.

John nodded to himself as if coming to some sort of inner decision then delivered it to her. "I can't do this anymore."

Ahhh! Here it is the end. Or so I think... Thank you all for reading and for the advice. Please feel free to leave your comments they are exciting to read. :)