Chapter Rating: PG13
Chapter Title: You Can't Lose Me – Inspired by an Otown song...meant to encompass Paul and Marah's relationship.
Author's Note: You didn't think I'd be back, did ya? Well, here I am! You miss me? Mucho love to Angelic Little Devil and Franny...thanks for the reviews. Oh, by the way...which character should I have get kidnapped, Greg, Paul, Bonnie, Marah or Neleh?

~~

"You and Paul actually have a lot in common..." Marah nodded, explaining things about her brother to Greg. "He's really smart, and he's so much fun to be around..."

"I dated him twice in high school..." Harmony added. "And, he's one of those kind of guys that'll still be your friend after a really harsh break up...he values his friends deeply..." she grinned, looking toward Warrick.

Warrick's lip curled at the thought of Harmony with another man. "So...he's Marah's brother?"

"That means you can't kill him, Warrick..." Marah laughed, as she glanced from Warrick to the door Paul would be emerging from. "I feel like I'm five again...and I'm waiting for Santa to come or something...and, well, that may be accurate, because if Paul isn't mad at me, he always brings me stuff..." she smiled, remembering the time Paul went to London, and brought her back a store's worth of designer clothes. He insisted that Rose bought them, and that he just thought of Marah, but Marah didn't believe that. "Do I sound like I'm three?" she asked.

"No more than usual..." Neleh joked with Marah. "Plus, you miss your broski..."

"As you once said," Harmony laughed at Marah. "If she treats her men half as well as she treats her brother...she'll have men lining up for her..."

Greg snarled. "Yeah, yeah..." his lip, like Warrick's, curled at the thought of Marah with another man.

Nick laughed. "So then...Neleh, what are your feelings on Marah's sister?"

"He's awesome! He's half the reason I went to Marah's house..." Neleh explained, then looked at the offense on Marah's face. "The other half of...of course...being Marah!" she grinned innocently.

Marah laughed. "Paul is quite the charmer...if he wasn't my brother, I'd date him!"

"Ew!" everyone else said in unison.

"WHAT? I SAID if he WASN'T my brother!" Marah shouted.

"What about your brother?" Paul put his hands on Marah's shoulders, making her jump about a mile.

"Oh my God! PAUL JACOB RYAN! You are in so much trouble!" she stood up, and pushed him.

"Hey to you, too, sis!" Paul pouted.

Marah shook her head, and hugged Paul. "When we got off the phone yesterday, I thought you were mad at me or something..." she kissed him on the cheek.

"Nah..." Paul shook his head. "I could never be mad at you!" he rustled her hair. "You're my little Marionette!" Paul, ever since they were twelve, had called Marah 'Marionette.'

"Oh, Paul...these are my colleagues and friends...Nick Stokes, Warrick Brown and Greg Sanders...and you know Dumb-nut and Dingo..." Marah introduced Paul to everyone, then waved her hand at Harmony and Neleh.

"Hey, everyone...I'm Paul Ryan, and this is my friend, Bonnie McKechnie..." Paul reached behind him, and pulled a blushing girl out from behind him.

"OH MY GOD! BONNIE!" Marah, Neleh and Harmony all screamed in unison, and then shared a group hug with Bonnie.

"Hey!" Bonnie hugged Marah, Neleh and Harmony back. "Oh man! How have you guys been?"

"I see you jumped at the opportunity to scoop my brother up..." Marah winked, knowing Bonnie had a thing for Paul.

Bonnie cleared her throat. "No...uh...Paul and I are just...uh...friends..."

"If that's sure, I wanna be unsure..." Marah shook her head. "Bon...I won't be mad!" she shoved Bonnie a little. "Hell, Harmony and Neleh have both dated him!"

"Yeah, I like him...but I won't 'scoop him up' as you say, because he's still getting over Rose..." Bonnie insisted.

"Why? Paul is a survivor!" Neleh watched the boys, all talking, and Paul blending in easily. "He's probably already over her! Look at him! I've never seen someone so happy after a serious breakup..."

Marah shook her head slightly. "Paul may be a Weeble (Author's Note: Weebles can wobble, but they won't fall down!), but he's not that strong..." she mumbled. "But...he's probably already in the healing process, and who better to help him through it, than Duchess Bonnie McKechnie..."

"Yeah..." Bonnie smiled. "Maybe you're right..." she grinned widely as she watched Paul walk and blend in like he belonged in Vegas. "Amazing how an Oakdale boy can change a Duchess' life forever..."

"We Ryan's have that effect on people..." Marah grinned in a moment of egotism. "I don't think it's the Oakdale thing...most Oakdalies are annoying and..." she tried to think of a word.

"Heartless?" Neleh suggested.

"Apathetic?" Harmony bested Neleh.

"Scum?" Bonnie summed it all up in the shortest word possible.

"Scum...perfect word, Bonbon!" Marah nodded. "Most Oakdalies are scum..."

"The only Oakdalies that aren't...well, they're all in this room..." Neleh grinned, pointing at herself, Harmony, Bonnie, Marah and Paul.

~~

"So...Marah said we have a lot in common..." Greg looked at Paul. "You know...your sister's a great girl..." he glanced back at Marah, who was laughing hysterically, and shoving Bonnie.

"Yeah, I basically raised her, you know?" Paul asked. "My mom was as unavailable as she could possibly be, without being COMPLETELY uninvolved in our lives, and my dad...well...you all see how he is..."

"So, you played both parental roles in Marah's life?" Nick asked, shaking his head. "How much older than her are you?"

"Four years...I was feeding a one year old at the age of five...but then again, without me there, the only human contact she would've had was with the nanny, who couldn't even pronounce her name..." Paul explained.

Warrick shook his head. "So...who went to her parent teacher meetings, and stuff?"

"Yeah, Barbara was around for those...either that, or she sent in Neleh's mom, Lily..." Paul shrugged. "I was usually there, though, so I could help her with things she couldn't do..." he told them. "I played the role of dad, and sometimes mom...which was weird...and then when she turned twelve, we kinda split the duties. She cooked and stuff, while I cleaned..."

"No offense, because it is respectable and all, but did you have a life aside from taking care of your little sister?" Greg asked, not meaning to offend Paul. "Because I mean, she must have taken up a lot of time..."

"Yeah, I did..." Paul took no offense. "She stayed home alone with the nanny when she was ten and on..."

"Jeez..." Warrick shook his head. "Well, I give you props, man...you've earned my permanent respect..."

Greg and Nick both nodded. "Same here..." they told him.

~~

"So..." Paul looked around Marah's apartment, and set his things in her living room. "I don't get it...I thought James was gonna be under lock and key for the rest of his life..." he tried to keep his cool for Marah's sake, even though inside, he was terrified.

"Sound calmer, why don't you?" Marah joked. "Jeez! Our psychotic father escaped prison, and is probably out to kill us, and all you can say is 'so, he escaped?'"

Bonnie sat down on the couch, and sensing the immense tension in the room, changed the topic. "So, what's the deal with you and that Greg guy? He a love interest?"

"He's a friend..." Marah shook her head. "That...maybe...I have a slight interest in otherwise..." she explained, noting the dubious looks on Bonnie and Paul's faces. "But he's a colleague...and those relationships don't ever work..."

"Do I have to give you the 'go after him' speech again?" Paul asked. "I remember when you were sixteen, and you needed my help with Adam Munson's crush on you..." he saw the annoyed looks on both Bonnie and Marah's faces. "And, yeah...I helped you..."

Marah laughed. "You know we love you, Paulie...just...your stories are so...boring! I remember them...I was there..."

Paul grinned, then looked at Bonnie. "So, we're in Vegas, baby...wanna go shop?"

"Oh...here, Paul..." Marah handed Paul a spare key. "Mi casa es su casa..." she smiled sweetly.

"Great! So, you may not be here when we get back?" Paul asked.

"Make use of the guest bedroom...I have to go to work in an hour, anyway..." Marah hugged her brother. "I'll call you later, ok? And if you don't answer, I'll presume you're either still out, or...yeah..."

"MARAH!" Bonnie screeched at Marah.

"What?" she asked, grinning slightly. "It's Vegas, baby!"

~~

"So, your brother and you have a really deep bond, don't you?" Greg asked Marah, who was going over a couple things on James Stenbeck's criminal report.

"Yeah, he's always been there for me, no matter what, and vice versa..." she explained, writing something down. "I'm so thankful for him, because if I didn't have him, I may have ended up like James..."

"Well, I'm beyond glad you took the path of righteousness..." Greg grinned. "All this world needs is a sexy villain, that no cop would wanna take down..."

"Like Catwoman?" she asked. "Woohoo! I could wear a tight leather suit..."

"No fair! No sexy images while we're at work!" Greg grinned at Marah again. "Now that image will be in my head all day...thanks, Marah!"

Marah laughed, then her smile faded into a scowl. "Oh...my God...ok...you're telling me that there's actually a lawyer that would want to represent him? Damn!"

"I don't think lawyers have a choice, really..." Greg put his hand on Marah's shoulder. "No lawyer in their right mind would willingly represent this creep..."

"James probably had one of this guys stupid weakness...and he plotted to use it against him..." Marah explained, with pure animosity in her voice.

"Marah...you need to relax...you can't let this consume you, you know?" he stood up, feeling the tenseness in Marah's shoulders, and gently started to massage them.

"I can't, Greg..." she smiled, enjoying the massage. "If I relax, James will take that time to strike...believe me...that's the way he plays..."

"You need to take some Marah time, though..." he told her. "If James consumes you, he'll have won, too..."

Marah looked up at Greg. "Wow...what are you, a trained masseur or something?"

"Nah...you're just really tense, and any contact will feel like heaven...take a deep breath..." he laughed a little.

Marah breathed deeply. "Thanks, Greg...and, after shift is up, I'll get some well needed rest...oh...I'll be right back..." she stood up. "I need to call Paul and Bonnie...see if my apartment is still standing..."

"Why wouldn't it be?" Greg asked.

"Paul may be close to perfect, but he can't cook for anything! Man, the last time he tried cooking, the whole house was nearly burned to ashes on the ground..." she picked up the phone and called her number. She laughed at hearing her own voice coming through the answering machine, saying, "What's up yo? The ceiling, word! I'm not at the house right now, I'm either at work, which consumes most of my time...thank you, Grissom, or...I'm out chilling with one of my peeps, yo! Ha-ha-ha! I seriously need help, guys...I'm trying to talk like Justin Timberlake. Leave me a message after the tone, k? Ciaoness!"

Wondering whether or not to leave a message, she shook her head after the beep. "Paul if you're there, pick up the phone...if not, call me at work when you get home...the number is 968-1946..." she waited a couple seconds to see if Paul would answer, but when he didn't, she hung up. "Why did I just leave a message on my own machine? Dang, I need help..."

Greg laughed. "Let's take a break...I hear the Playstation calling us from the break room..."

Marah nodded. "Sounds like a plan...let's go..."

~~

You can lose your control and
Lose your senses
Lost your strength, lose your defenses
You'll see, you'll see, you'll see
You can't lose me