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Chapter 18: Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream

Leo woke up in the morning hardly believing the previous day's events. He had lost two friends, had one hanging on the verge of death, and made love to the woman he loved. It was true. He loved Piper. He had slept with other women before, but nothing had been like this before.

Piper stretched out luxuriously beside him. She gave him a sleepy smile and stretched at little more.

"Sleep well?" he asked.

"Of course. You?"

"Never better."

They positioned themselves so Piper was lying on his bare chest, looking into his eyes. They laid like that for a while, just being comfortable with each other. It wasn't until Leo's stomach rumbled that Piper remembered she hadn't eaten in almost twenty-four hours.

She laughed. "Let me find us something to eat."

"There isn't much. I didn't have time to go shopping."

"I'm a chef. I'll find something."

"Nice shirt," he said, commenting on the long sleeve, flannel shirt of his she wore. It came only to mid-thigh, showing off her great legs.

"Thanks. It's a Leo Wyatt original." She walked to the kitchen, grabbing her cell phone off the coffee table in case Phoebe called.

She searched the refrigerator and cabinets, but she couldn't find any suitable food.

But when she opened the freezer, she hit jackpot. There was a tub of mint chocolate chip ice cream.

"Perfect," she said and grabbed a spoon.

She headed back into the room where Leo was still lying in bed. When he saw her choice of food, he gave her a questioning look. "Mint chocolate chip ice cream, recommended by chefs everywhere."

"If you say so."

"I do."

He sat up and Piper sat on his lap, facing him, barely leaving any space in between them. She put some ice cream on the spoon and lifted it to his lips. He ate the ice cream and took the spoon from her.

They took turns feeding each other, and eventually Leo kept moving the spoon away from her, making her follow it. Piper chased the spoon with her mouth, but as she almost reached it, Leo ate it.

"Hey! That was my ice cream," she told him. He just smiled and Piper kissed him as if trying to get her ice cream back.

After breaking the chocolate-flavored kiss, Leo looked into Piper's brown eyes. "I love you, Piper Halliwell."

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Several men walked stealthily around the manor, checking for occupants. It appeared to be empty. But that was fine. They were under orders from their boss to kidnap the woman by any means necessary, including the order to kill anyone who got in their way.

The men walked back to the non-descript vehicles sporadically placed around the manor.

To wait.

To kill.

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Piper was shocked by what Leo said. She sat up in surprise and looked at him. He watched her, too, waiting for a response. Piper knew what her response was, she just wasn't sure if she could say it to him.

"I, um, I… oh jeeze."

Leo placed his hands on her waist. "Just calm down." He pulled on the hair tie that held up her hair in a messy bun. Now her hair spilled down her shoulders. "You have beautiful hair. You should wear it down more often."

He was trying to relax her, and it was working for the most part. "I think I love you too," she replied to him.

"You think?" he asked, but he was smiling.

"No, I mean I do, I do love you, I'm just a little… overwhelmed."

"I think I can fix that," he said, kissing her.

But then her cell phone rang. Piper let out a sigh and placed her head on Leo's chest. She reached for the phone and answered it with an unenthusiastic "Hello?"

"He's awake! Eric's awake!" Phoebe's voice told her. "He's asking for Leo. He wants to see him."

"Alright. We'll be there in a minute." She hung up and repeated the conversation to Leo.

Leo gave a smile of relief. "So he's alive?"

"Yes. And he wants to see you. Let's head over there now. We can go to my place afterwards and get some real breakfast."

"Isn't this a real breakfast?" he asked, holding up the empty ice cream carton.

She just kissed him and began to search for her clothes.

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The leader of the men on stakeout received a call saying they had a tail on the woman's car. She was currently inside the hospital and a tall man walked in with her.

The leader thanked the man on the other end of the phone and hung up.

He loved the smell of blood in the morning.

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Piper could tell Leo was terrified of hospitals. He grasped her hand so tightly it hurt, but she didn't ask him to release pressure in case he might turn and run.

When they first entered the hospital, they saw a woman being wheeled out in a wheel chair, a newborn in her arms. The father happily stood behind them, lugging balloons and bags.

Leo just looked down at the floor when he saw them, not saying a word. Piper tugged on his hand, urging him forward. He meekly followed.

They took the long way to the ICU where Eric was. Piper wanted to avoid the maternity ward in case Leo couldn't take it and bolted.

When they reached the ICU, they were told they could see Eric for fifteen minutes. Phoebe was already in the room, holding his hand. Piper had never seen her little sister so dedicated to anything before.

Piper thought Eric looked horrible. She wondered if he was even alive. His skin was pasty and ashen and all the tubes and monitors made it hard to tell where machines ended and Eric began.

But he opened his eyes and gave a weak smile. Leo finally let go of Piper's hand and sat down in the chair Phoebe just vacated.

Piper and Phoebe left the room, giving Leo and Eric some privacy. Phoebe hugged Piper. "I'm so happy he's okay."

"Me too. Did you want to come home with us?"

"No, I want to stay here. At home I'll just worry. If I'm here at least I can keep him company if he's awake."

"Okay."

"If you come back later, will you bring me a change of clothes?"

"Sure."

Their fifteen minutes were soon up. Leo and Piper said good-bye to Phoebe and Eric and headed out to Piper's car.

Leo didn't speak until they were almost at the manor. "He looks bad, but I think he'll make it."

"I do too."

They pulled into the driveway.

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The team leader waited until the prey was in the house. Then he made the signal. All the men grabbed their guns.

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Author's Note: What do you think? Who's the creepy men's boss? Read on to find out!