** Scrap that last chapter as a favourite…I got a new favourite one…**

Wiping the mirror with her hand Scully cleared enough of the steam to be able to see her face.  She brushed her teeth and spat into the sink, rinsing her mouth out with water before stepping into the bedroom again.  The robe felt warm against her skin and she idly rubbed her hair with a small towel.  As she crossed he room to her suitcase she spotted the connecting door to Mulders room was partially open.  Unsure whether it was open before she bathed she walked over to see if he was there.

"Mulder?" she said knocking gently as she pushed it open further and stepped through.

            His TV was switched on and showing a documentary on submarines as it cast an eerie glow on the otherwise dark room.  She could hear the shower running and turned to leave when Mulder's voice suddenly broke through the room loudly as he sang beneath the running water.  Scully didn't recognise the song and laughed a little at the thought of him being a shower singer.  Leaving quickly before he discovered her surveillance she returned to her own room and pulled out a change of clothes.

            Just as she pulled her jumper over her head the motel room phone rang and she rushed over to answer it.

"Hello?" she said cautiously into it.

"Agent Scully?"

"Yes."

"It's AD Skinner, I have been trying to contact you all day."

"I was at the hospital all day and the phone use is restricted."

"I sent a team over to check out the flight you called about earlier."

"Did they find something?"

"I'll say, the plane was ready for take off after all the checks when the Agents arrived but the insisted they take a look at it."

"What did they find?" she said impatiently

"A hairline crack in the fuselage."

"So Billy was right?"

"The engineers are doing tests to see what kind of pressure the crack will sustain.  But from talking to Agent White it seems that the plane wouldn't have made it out of LAX airspace."

"Do they know what caused the damage?"

"It all seems to be naturally occurring damage, no sign of foul play.  We wont know for sure until all the tests are through."

"Can you fax me through a copy of that report?" she asked, needing to read it for herself.

"It should be coming through right now."

"Thank you sir."

            She looked over to the small office she'd set up with her laptop and fax/printer and watched as a single sheet came through and fell on to the floor.

"Hey, Mulder," she called when she stepped through the connecting door looking down at the report as she walked over to the bathroom door.  She didn't notice that the water had stopped running or that he wasn't singing anymore.

"I got a report from the engineers that examined the private jet this evening," she said and a sudden whoosh of air swirled around her when the bathroom door swung open revealing Mulder.  His hair was spiked all over his head from where he'd rubbed it with a towel and his chest was glistening from the droplets that escaped his reach.  A large white towel was slung around his waist hung low on his hips and reaching down to his ankles.

"What?" he said rubbing his hair again and draping the small towel over his shoulder as he put his hands on her shoulders and manoeuvred her out of his way so he could get into the bedroom. 

            She watched him unashamedly as he walked over to the bed and pulled his bag onto it.  He rummaged through it for a while well aware of her gaze following him and suppressed the smile that threatened his lips.  But as he tried to straighten up the pain that had been niggling his back all day flared up and shot across his waist.

"Aww…" he said as he grabbed his side and rubbed hit roughly.

"Mulder?" she said rushing over to him and helping him to sit down onto the bed.  "It's your back isn't it?" she asked shaking her head at his stubbornness.

"It's fine Scully, I probably just pulled a muscle," he replied but the wincing on his face told him how sore it really was even if he wouldn't.

"Well a pulled muscle can escalate into a slipped disk if you're not careful."

"It's fine."

"Let me see."

            She twisted around him to take a look, probing his back gently with her fingers.  He squirmed under her touch and she tut-tutted when she felt the hard lump at the base of his back over his hip.

"What?" he said twisting his body trying to see what she was looking at.  He reached his hand around to feel it but she brushed his fingers away.

"Lie down Mulder, I've got something for this in my case," she called over her shoulder as she went into her own room and searched for the first aid kit she always carried.

            When she returned he was lying face down on the bed with the towel tossed to the floor and a pair of shorts just about covering his hips.  But looking at him now she forced herself into medical mode and pushed away all the urges she had to run her hands through his wet locks trace a finger down his spine, or maybe more.

"What have you got?" he asked trying to twist around to see what she held in her hands but the pain in his back shot up and forced him back into the bed.

"It's a muscle cream," she said, pulling up her sleeves before squeezing some cream onto her hands and rubbing them together.

            Reaching down she pressed the cream into his back and she could feel the muscles in his back tightening.

"Relax Mulder, it's just a cream," she said pressing harder against the lump.

"It's a cold cream."

            Ignoring his complaint she rubbed his back in small circles around the base and up to his shoulders.  Eventually he relaxed under her touch feeling some of his tension ebb away and was suddenly glad for the burst of pain he felt earlier.

"What did you say about the private jet?" he asked needing to take his mind off the wonderful feeling of her fingers seeping into his skin making it feel alive. 

"Skinner spoke to the agents that went out to examine the plane and they found a crack in the fuselage.  It seems that the plane wouldn't have made it out of LAX airspace.  I got the report here."

            She reached down to the ground where she had dropped the report earlier and read from it her hand still making small circles into his back gentler now, absently.

"Do they know what caused the damage?"

"Wear and tear."

"No foul play?" he asked, finding it harder to concentrate as her fingers brushed against the rim of his shorts.

"They are looking closer but no, they don't think so."

"So what do you make of that?"

"Billy you mean?"

"Yeah," he managed to get out, biting onto the pillowcase to stop himself from letting out a little moan of pleasure as she idly raked her fingers and nails along the base of his spine.

"I'm not sure, speaking to him today he seems to be still in shock over the loss of his parents.  He really was deeply affected," she said unaware of the exquisite torture she was pressing on him with her gentle touches as she read through the fax sheet.

"Mmm hmmm," was all he could say, afraid to open his mouth any further for fear of what he might say.

"And I can see the strong bond he has developed with Sally.  I can't imagine her putting him in any danger.  How did it go at the TV Station?"

"Well," he began, stalling for time to try and collect his thoughts, "she is the lead writer for a few shows there, documentary, cutting edge ones."

            He stopped to take a deep breath as her finger traced an invisible line from the base of his neck along his spine to the rim of his shorts.

"Controversial?"

"Some could be conceived that way but never anything thing involving terrorism.  I got some tapes of her shows to see if we can pick anything up in them."

"Could someone be planting these thoughts into Billy's head by some sort of subconscious means?"

            Any surprise he felt from her suggestion was wiped out by the torment he was feeling as she started the circles again, this time between his shoulder blades.

"I don't know Scully, we'll eh need to get a list of…eh people that have any eh contact with him," he mumbled loosing his resolve and needing to get away from her touch but not wanting to.

"Okay, well I'll go and call the school and see if I can talk to his teachers."

She stood up and turned around to him, glancing at his back and the small line of scrapes she had left along his spine.

"Does your back feel any better?" she said blushing slightly wondering if he felt the scrapes on his back.

            His breathing was short and shallow and he lay face down in the pillow not answering her.

"Hey," she said, probing his back again with her medically trained hands.  He almost jumped at her touch thinking she had left the room and turned to face her.  "How's your back?"

"Much better, thanks Scully," he said avoiding her eyes afraid she'd see the churning of desire behind them.

"I'll rub some more on it later if it tightens up," she said rubbing it gently one last time before going into her room leaving the connecting door wide open.

"Okay…" he called after her thinking that he could feel it tightening up already.  And if it didn't he'd make it.

            As she fumbled around her room for her notebook and sat by the phone Mulder dragged himself from the bed and walked over to the wardrobe where he found a pair of jeans and a t-shirt.  Rubbing his back he could feel the velvety patches where the cream hadn't quite dried in and he smiled to himself as he walked over to the bed to put on some socks and his sneakers.  He combed his fingers through his hair letting it fall any way it landed and walked into her room.  As she spoke on the phone she leaned across the bed and wrote on a legal pad, gesturing for him to look at what she had written. 

            He crossed the room and sat next to her taking the page she offered he saw a  list of names she had scribbled down.

"Okay, thank you very much.  Goodbye."

"What's this?" he asked when she hung up.

"I spoke to his counsellor and he said that one day in a session Billy wrote down this list of names.  She's asked his family and teachers about it but no one recognised any of them."

"I'll send it through to Matt."

            Mulder walked over to the fax machine and dialled the number while rummaging in his pocket for his mobile.

"Matt, it's Mulder here, I got a list of names this time, no address though."

            Scully watched as he placed the page into the machine and listened to whatever Matt was saying.

"Yeah I know it's half past six, but this is important…yeah…those names," He said into the phone. "How long?…okay, thanks.  Just send it through whenever you get it."

            She watched as he laughed down the phone at whatever Matt said and then smiling he glanced at her letting his eyes linger over her body.

"No way…I practically had to sell my body for those tickets…I only got two…I need two…me and Scully…what?"

            Scully stood up and walked over to him trying to hear what Matt was arguing with him about.

"Okay if you get a good list to me tonight the tickets are yours," he said smiling at her curiosity and Matt's persistence.

"What was all that about?" she asked when he hung up and bent to pick the fax sheet up off the ground.

"The Knicks are playing next month in New York and I got us a couple of tickets and Matt wants them," straightening up and holding his back trying not to show how much it hurt.

"You got us two tickets? For a game in New York?"

"Yeah, it'll be great, basketball, hotdogs, beer, good company.  You'll love it."

"Matt's a Knicks fan too?"

"Yeah born and bred New Yorker," he said.

"Your back still at you?"

"A bit.  It'll be fine."

"You should take a bath, all that standing and singing in the shower isn't going to help it."

"Singing?"

            She smiled wickedly at him and returned to her spot on the bed where she had spread out her notes.  But before he could push her about what she had heard the bedside phone rang.

"Hello?"

"Dana, it's Niamh."

"Niamh, hi, I've been meaning to call you but…"

"I know. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to blow up at you like that, it's just…this boy is so very special."

"I know Niamh, I know how much you care."

"Sorry about what I said.  I had a chat with your partner  Mulder," Niamh continued.

 "Did you?" Scully said her eyes darting over to Mulder where he sat next to her his legs stretched out in front of him and crossed at the ankles and he rested back on the heel of his hands.

"He's quite protective isn't he?"

"Is he?" she said looking away.

"Just a vibe I guess. Anyway I wanted to call to apologise and invite you two out to dinner."

"Dinner? Sounds great, where?"

"I know this lovely Italian near your hotel."

"What's it called?"

"Tony's.  It's on Richmond Ave.  I'll book a table for eight o'clock if that's okay."

"We'll see you then."

"Are we going out on a date?" Mulder asked her impishly when she hung up.

"Niamh invited us out to dinner tonight.  You don't have to come if you don't want to…"

"And miss the chance to hear about the street-fighting-emotion-stirring Dana Scully? Never."

            She looked at him oddly wondering what exactly what had transpired between Mulder and Niamh earlier on but she let the thought disappear when he reached over to her notes to compare them with his own.  They spent the hour talking through the case bantering through ideas and theories before Scully noticed it was half past seven.

"Come on, we'd better be leaving."

"It's stopped raining, shall we walk? Niamh said it wasn't far," she suggested.

"Fine by me.  I could do with a stretching my legs."

            He rushed into his room and grabbed his coat and followed her out to the street where she led them towards the restaurant.

"Table for Campbell," she said to the maitre-de and he led them over to a table that was set for four.

"She must be bringing someone," Scully said to Mulder as they sat down.

"Is she married?" he asked.

"No."

"Boyfriend?"

"She never said."

            Mulder watched her under trained eyes as she fidgeted with the napkin, her eyes darting around the room for any sign of Niamh.  He wasn't sure if she was uncomfortable with his presence or the possibility of Niamh's companion, neither of his options making too much sense.  But before he could analyse her further he caught sight of Niamh entering the room with a tall black haired man in tow. 

            They were both dressed casually which he knew Scully would be thankful for and Niamh smiled widely as she approached.

"Hi Dana," she said as they hugged and whispered softly into her ear, "I'm sorry."

"Forget it Niamh," Scully replied with a smile.

            The four of them sat into the table and Niamh turned to the man she brought in and smiled warmly.

"Dana this is Josh Westin, Josh I'd like you to meet Dana and Fox Mulder," Niamh said introducing them like the couple she saw them as.

"Hi, pleased to meet you at last," he said shaking hands with both of them, smiling nervously an Mulder could almost see his shoulders broadening and his chest expanding, ready for the obligatory appraisal.  He smiled to himself knowing he fell into that trap too.

"You work for the FBI?" Josh said eager to get the central attention away from him and back to the table.

"Yes," Mulder said when Scully said nothing.  "We're partners."

"How does that work out?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean being married and working together all day?"

"Married? We're not married, we're just friends," Mulder replied confused but still laughing.

"Oh…sorry," he said clearly embarrassed.  "It's just that Niamh was saying Dana and Fox this, Dana and Fox that, I guess I presumed…sorry."

"Forget it. Actually we get it all the time," Mulder admitted.

"Really?"

"Yeah it must be the dreamy way that Scully keeps looking at me," he said laughing at the expression change on her face as the words tumbled past his lips.

"So what do you do Josh?" Scully asked over her initial shock.

"I'm a teacher at Jefferson high school."

"What do you teach?" she asked.

"Science. To a bunch of unappreciative Neanderthals."

"Sounds like a day at the office for me," she said with a sideways glance at Mulder over the rim of her menu but he was smiling back and edge to it that she hadn't seen before and didn't recognise. 

            The waiter came and took their orders and finally, much to Mulder's malicious delight, Niamh began with the Scully stories.  She reeled tale after tale out about how Dana had started up a protection ring in the neighbourhood for kids that were being beaten up, and started to charge for first aid to injuries during a ball game.  Mulder watched Scully squirming behind her glass of wine, her eyes following the pattern of the swirling dark liquid.  She glanced up to him and he saw her discomfort, and all he could do was smile and throw her a reassuring wink.  Josh watched the simple interaction and reached over to grasp Niamh's hand.  Niamh met his eyes and looked over to the couple sitting across from them.

"So Mulder, what do you do to keep her in line?" Niamh asked promising herself a full interrogation of Dana later on.

"I couldn't even if I tried," he replied simply and honestly.

"Tell me about it.  Ahab had a hell of a time."

            Niamh caught Scully's eyes with a sorrowful glance and they both smiled at the memory of Scully's father chasing them back from the ballpark, making them promise to pay all the kids back.  Mulder noted the sad tone that the conversation had turned to and quietly removed his napkin from his lap, placing it on the table beside his now empty coffee cup.

"Anyway, I've got to get back and make some calls," he said to them all, offering Scully the chance to leave if she wanted but also telling her he would leave her here to chat some more.

"I'll go with you," she said obviously glad of the opportunity to go too.

"It was great talking with you, Dana," Niamh said rising with her and hugging her again.  Josh stood also shaking her hand nervously with a sideways glance towards Mulder, clearly not believing the spiel about being friends.

"I'll call you tomorrow," Scully said standing and accepting the hand from Mulder as they stood away from the table.  "Goodbye Josh, it was great to meet you."

"And Mulder," Niamh said with an mischievous smile, "it's great to finally put a face to all the stories."

"Glad to help," he said back, waiting to get Scully on her own before asking her about these oh so famous stories.

            Mulder held on to Scully's hand as they weaved through the small room between the scattered tabled filled with other diners and finally made it out into the cool night.  A light rain fell around them as they walked across the car park onto the sidewalk.

"Maybe we should have taken the car."

"Oh Mulder a little bit of rain never did anyone any harm," she said combing her fingers through her already damp hair and smiling up to him.

"Do you want my jacket?" he offered chivalrously.

"No I'm okay." 

The light jumper she was wearing was already starting to cling, but he didn't argue with her enjoying the sight of her plainly visible curves.  They walked slowly through the rain, comfortable with each other's silence and thoughts that swam around them.  As the rain fell harder they unconsciously leaned into each other and Mulder gently draped an arm around her shoulders, covering her as much he could with his large beaten leather jacket.

"Definitely should have taken the car," he said to her, whispering it softly against her ear tickling her skin, and making her writhe against him.

            He saw a crowd of trees at the edge of a park nearby and grabbed her hand before dashing through the downpour to the relative cover of the tall trees.  Panting from the sprint they both huddled close with Mulder's back resting against the tree and he opened his jacket letting her slip into it as he closed it around her.

"Better?" he asked looking down at her.

"A bit."

"Still cold?" He rubbed her back with his hands and pressed her closer to him.

"A bit," she said snaking her arms around his waist under his jacket.

"Well short of stripping off and getting some body heat going there's little else I can do," he said smiling at her.

            Her face pressed into his chest as she tried to keep dry but looking up at him she got caught in the power of his stare and watched the rivulets of rain, drop run his cheeks.  He said nothing looking down at her blue eyes as they darkened and her pupils widened.  Without thinking or giving the rational side of his brain a chance to voice an opinion he closed the small distance between them and touched his lips gently to hers. 

            Surprised by his swift movement Scully could do nothing but take his gentle kiss, tasting the rain off his lips making it all the sweeter and sending sparkles of passion further into her body.  But before the kiss could be deepened a crack of thunder exploded into the night quickly followed by a flash of lighting heightening both their senses.

"I may be a Neanderthal when it comes to science, but I do know that sheltering under trees isn't very smart during a thunder storm," he mumbled against her lips, still not fully breaking contact.

            He could feel her lips curving into a smile beneath his and he took it as encouragement.  He pressed his lips harder against her partially open mouth and resisting the urge to plunge further; he stood up straight before the storm caught them both.

God dammed natural forces he thought, as he looked up into the dark night sky that flash with another spark of lightening.  Her body heat was simmering around him and he could swear he could feel her heat beating against his chest.  Chancing a quick glance down to her he found her smiling oddly back at him.

            She rarely saw him so…so…she wasn't sure what he was feeling.  Although ideas where popping into the mind and making her smile.  But looking at him standing there watching the lightening she could almost feel the tension building up inside him

"We should probably get back to the motel and get into some dry clothes.  How is your back feeling?"

"A little sore but nothing to worry about."

"I'll rub some more cream on it if you want," she said her tone deep and carnal but then it changed as she said "but staying out here in the rain in wet clothes isn't going to help it any."

"Oh Scully, how can you make something so sensual sound so medical?"

"Practice," she said with a half smile and an arched eyebrow.

            He laughed at her teasing tone and slid an arm tightly around her shoulders as they stepped out from under the trees, holding her as close as he could.  They both rushed through the rain, huddled close and laughing.

** Another chapter another late night…and at last they kiss…Shine on Harvey Moon! **