Author's Note: Sorry for the delay in updating. I just didn't feel like editing this thing--I'm gonna blame it on work. FYI, there are a couple of references to Alter Ego; nothing too important but just make a small mental note if you haven't read that story. Thanks for reading and reviewing. And as always, a big hug for the usual suspects who keep this thing going. -Yvonne-

CHAPTER TWO

For the second time in their encounter, Lucas pulled Sami's hand from his pants fearing his loss of control at her touch. It wouldn't do to tell her how much hold she had over him, but for all intents and purposes, he was her personal putty at times like these.

Even though Sami remained pinned beneath Lucas on the bed as he loosely straddled her legs, she knew she was in complete control—for the time being, at least. Taking special care not to spoil her magnificent view of the man in front of her, Sami leaned away from Lucas and pointed the camera directly at him. "So, are you just going to sit there or are you going to show me what you got?" she challenged. "Don't tell me you're getting shy now that the tables have turned." Sami quickly dismissed this as the reason for his inaction since she knew for a fact he was the biggest ham around. At the moment, Lucas was staring at her like she was the most delicious meal on the menu. It's not that she didn't approve of him ogling her body, but there was a time and a place for everything. Right now, he really needed to wipe the drool from his chin and lose some of those troublesome clothes.

Lucas attempted to pull his mind from the lusty haze her naked body was invoking in him but it was mighty difficult. He cleared his dry throat and reluctantly focused his attention on the sound of her voice. "Sorry about that. You had me distracted there for a minute." He looked in the direction of her eyes which were currently hidden behind the camera and got back into character for their steamy show. "When have you known me to be shy, Sami? I guess one good striptease deserves another." He smirked beautifully for the camera and Sami knew she was in for a treat.

"I'm glad you liked my little performance," said Sami with a suspiciously mischievous tone. She peeked out from behind the camera and winked at him playfully making Lucas wonder what else she had up her sleeve. Still holding on to the camera, she eased herself down on the bed so that she was laying flat on her back. At the same time, she drew her knee up and purposefully rubbed him between his legs very slowly. Lucas missed her satisfied expression as he groaned and threw back his head in sweet arousal. "I can't wait for you to return the favor. From the feel of things, it looks like you can't wait either," she chuckled. She steadied the camera and made sure to capture the delicious way he was instinctively grinding into her leg.

Lucas cursed at how quickly Sami could wipe every thought from his mind when she was having her wicked way with him. He could tell Sami had already realized that she had, yet again, aroused him to distraction in a matter of seconds. Usually, he was all for it, but tonight, he couldn't have her outdoing him. She would never let him live it down and she'd have the evidence to back it up. He wanted to wipe that smug grin off of her face and he knew just how to do it. He grabbed her knee forcefully stopping its torturous contact with his crotch and pushed her leg away from him. He lowered himself down until he was sitting on her upper thighs, now completely straddling her. Leaning his body slightly forward, he continued his grinding and smiled triumphantly as Sami arched into him. Her immediate reaction told him that she wasn't as calm and collected as she would like him to think. "It looks like you're having a little trouble there yourself, cupcake."

Lucas was further encouraged by her impatient response. "Do you want to chat or are you going to get naked for me? Talk is real cheap right about now." Well, if that was the case, Lucas had the perfect answer.

Sami's expression mimicked a deer caught in headlights when Lucas crawled on top of her as if stalking his prey. She was further surprised when Lucas suddenly attacked her mouth in a passionate kiss. After all of her teasing, it was good to feel him against her practically naked body. She yearned to feel part of him inside her, making love to her even if it was only that troublesome tongue of his. Well, she had plenty of plans for that sharp tongue and all of them were sure to please them both. Lucas reached out to grasp her hand that was holding the camera, carefully extending her arm out to the side. He strategically positioned the camera to catch every tantalizing pleasure they were giving each other. Simply to tease her, he had withdrawn his tongue from her mouth and was gently nipping at her bottom lip. Hearing her gasp from the sensation, he would then kiss and suck it to soothe the slight sting he had caused. When Sami grabbed a fistful of his hair to move his mouth full onto hers again, Lucas got the hint that he should stop his taunting.

To complicate matters, Lucas was also making the most of having her exposed body writhing underneath him. His not so innocent movements made the material of his shirt tickle her already erect nipples. Sami was overcome with small shivers at his gentle caress of her arms and sides. When he playfully toyed with the thin material of her red panties, she moaned her approval and wrapped one of her legs around him. Lucas smiled against her mouth when he felt one of those sexy heels digging into his upper thigh. He reluctantly broke from their kiss and immediately noticed how beautifully ravished Sami looked. A deep flush had overtaken her and she was struggling to take in large gulps of air to calm her excited body.

He reached around and ran his hand up and down the leg she had wrapped around his body. "It looks like somebody can't seem to get her body parts to herself." Just as he expected, a flash of fire blazed in her eyes as she sat up, camera in hand. He had just enough time to save himself from falling on his butt when she swiftly pushed him from off of her lap. He stumbled to a standing position and leered down at her, annoyance and lust vying for control of her gorgeous features. He couldn't tell which emotion was winning but it was clear that she was frustrated in more ways than one.

Sami seemed to gain some control of herself even though she was irritated that Lucas had turned the tables on her so quickly. She pointed the camera back at him and decided to get back down to business. She raised her foot up and trailed it along the length of his leg. When she reached his crotch and the hardness straining against his jeans there, she circled him with the toe of her shoe. The amusement in his eyes again turned to arousal but that was short-lived when she gave him a gentle push with her foot that landed him a few feet away from the bed. "You're still overdressed Lucas. Do something about that." She unconsciously poked out her lip in a sexy pout making Lucas want to lean down and grab hold of it with his mouth.

Instead, Lucas settled for blowing a kiss in her direction and chuckling at her. He moved towards her dresser and turned on some music to set the mood. They had picked out some sexy music in case either felt inspired to add a little spice to their production. Sami hadn't needed it but Lucas thought he could use it to have a little fun at her expense.

He turned back around to face Sami noticing that she had obviously been focusing the camera on his butt. Sami knew she was busted but who could blame her—she couldn't help herself. Lucas gave her a cocky grin and vowed to give her even more to gawk at. Shaking his hips softly to the music, he lifted his T-shirt up slightly revealing his tight stomach muscles. He absently traced circles against his skin knowing that Sami would be longing to do just that. As usual, his jeans hung low on his hips giving her a peek of his underwear underneath.

Raising his shirt a bit higher, Lucas continued to sway to the music. His entire torso was now visible as his second hand joined the first in slowly lifting his shirt. Looking directly at the camera, he moved the tips of his fingers to circle one and then both nipples before slowly stroking his chest. Sami bit her lip and tried her best to keep the camera steady for his titillating display. Just when she thought he would divest himself of that irksome shirt, he stopped and tucked the end of it into his mouth revealing the entire top half of his body. Grinning at the look of disappointment on Sami's face, he danced to the music and ran his hands over every bit of bare flesh he could reach. When he turned around, besides giving her another stellar view of his ass shaking to the music, she marveled at his strong back muscles moving sinuously to the rhythm of the song.

Sami unconsciously licked her lips at the full sight of Lucas touching his toned body. He continued to caress those 'rock hard abs' that she loved to tease him about. She groaned when he pinched one of his nipples, something she had longed for him to do to hers only moments before. She could barely think for being so turned on but he needed to know that it would take a lot more skin than that to get things going. "That's a good start, Lucas but don't keep me waiting too long. I want to see that hot, bare ass dancing around for me." Her heavy breaths were a sure sign that she was greatly anticipating his next move.

Lucas dropped the shirt from his mouth and peeled it off of his body. "You aint seen nothing yet," he replied. When the first song ended and a new song began, he gave a little twirl and threw his discarded shirt right at her. Sami giggled and held an end of the shirt in her mouth as he had just done growling like a lust-hungry animal. Lucas laughed at her and then frowned as the long T-shirt swiftly draped down from her lips hiding parts of her body from his view. He sauntered over to where she was sitting on the bed and gently pulled the shirt from her mouth, throwing it across the room. "If you wanted a piece of me, why didn't you say so? I know just how you can help." He took her hand not holding the camera and brought it to the button on his jeans. "Care to do the honors, Sami?"

Did she ever! Sami looked like she had been given the keys to the kingdom but two could play the tease tonight. She delicately stroked the button and the little silver zipper peeking out as well. "So now you want me to touch you, Lucas? I mean, I admit that I really want to get you naked but are you sure you can handle that?" she taunted with seduction written all over her face.

Lucas loved that Sami could give as good as she got. But at the moment, he agreed that he needed to get rid of his clothes fast. "Only one way to find out, baby." He smiled as he felt Sami tug at the button on his jeans, releasing it in record time. She finally grasped his zipper but before she could go any further, he brought his hands up to stroke her fingers. When she carefully began lowering the zipper to allow him freedom from the confines of his pants, Lucas followed her hand with his own. He was still swaying and grinding to the music much to her delight. Occasionally he would press her fingers harder against him and she could clearly feel the heat emanating from his throbbing sex. When she had finally reached the bottom of the zipper, Lucas' hands kept going as he cupped the hardness that lay beneath. He kept his gaze fixed on Sami's face and the camera while he rubbed himself to the beat of the song. "How's that for handling it?"

Sami's only response was an approving purr that seemed to come from deep within her. She dropped her hand from his pants and leaned back onto the bed once again to get the full view. He was a vision of sex appeal as he stroked himself to the music for her and the camera. Seeing the perfect opportunity arise, she managed to hook one of his belt loops with her heel and yanked his jeans down to the floor. Lucas dropped his hand from his body in surprise looking down at his now bare legs. But he was quick to shoot her a cocky smirk in response to her aggressiveness. "You did say that you wanted a little help, didn't you?" Sami said casually. "Why don't you turn around for me so I can really get a good look at you?" Lucas complied using the opportunity to step out of his jeans. Now that most of his clothes were off, Sami swung the camera across his body in appreciation. He looked painfully hard for her and it took all of her willpower not to throw the camera down and work on making it all better. "You know I'm going to have to do terrible things to you now, right?"

"No doubt," Lucas responded, his face now sporting a wide grin. They were obviously burning for each other as evidenced by their deep breathing and inability to tear their eyes from each other. When he again faced her, he looked ready to pounce. How else was he supposed to react with her laying there looking extremely aroused and ready for him? "I was hoping you felt that way," he said making his move. Crawling towards her on the bed, he settled above her stomach. He hooked the sides of her panties around his fingers and idly twirled them around before swiftly sliding them down her legs. One side almost got caught on one of her heels but he deftly pulled them free and spun them around on his finger in victory.

Sami had had enough. Forgetting about the camera, she sat up and captured her panties from him, throwing them in the same direction as his T-shirt. She wrenched his boxers from his body and when he hastily stepped out of them, she tossed them aside as well. She grabbed his shoulder and pulled him to the bed bringing him crashing down on top of her. He barely registered that she was still holding the camera since she had wasted no time in exploring his mouth with hers. Her message was clear: enough with the foreplay; it's time to get down to the main event. He could already feel how ready she was for him. Not that his excitement wasn't quite evident and rubbing against her sensuously.

Lucas pulled himself away from Sami and before she could protest, he grabbed the camera from her. "I think we need to break out that tripod, don't you? It would certainly help free up our hands." He grabbed the necessary equipment from the corner where it had strategically been placed earlier. "I know my hands have a lot in store for you and I don't want them to become distracted by technical camera duties." She could hear the desperation in his voice as he settled the camera onto the stand and quickly returned to his waiting fiancée. "That's better. Now where were we?" She reminded him by attacking him with a searing kiss and touching every part of his hot skin that she could reach. Lucas brought her leg up to wrap around his body and began to quench his desires by drowning himself in her love.


"Wow!" Philip said as he pushed the pause button and leaned back onto his couch. He could not believe what he had just witnessed. One thing was for sure though—after having a taste, he couldn't stop now. He pressed the play button and continued to watch the sexy show unfolding before him.

He knew it was wrong. Watching this tape was sick and twisted and went way beyond abusing his brother's body or soiling Sami's sheets. This was a classic case of invading their privacy and he should stop the tape right now and return it to its rightful owner.

But he couldn't stop watching. Lucas and Sami were way beyond hot together. He had to admit that it was really weird seeing his brother like that but that concern flew straight out of his mind when he got one look at Sami playing it up for the camera. He could honestly say that he was done harboring lusty thoughts of hooking up with Sami. He was with Belle now and Sami was without a doubt the craziest woman on the planet. God bless Lucas for wanting to put up with her for the rest of his life. But that didn't mean that he didn't still find her attractive. And who wouldn't with her going all porn star right in front of his eyes?

Speaking of which, he had no idea how those two were going to keep their bedroom activities discreet enough for Will with all that screaming she was doing, not to mention the deep moans coming out of Lucas' mouth. They were certainly a vocal couple and it didn't surprise him in the least that Sami had a dirty little mouth on her. To be fair though, it looked like Lucas was playing her like a fiddle. He had once assumed that they were a pretty compatible pair but this performance was phenomenal. He didn't know whether to stay glued to the television or go get a pen and paper for notes.

He made a frustrated sound when he heard a noise at the door, his virtual menage a trois being rudely interrupted. From the sound of the key in the lock, it was more than likely Belle returning from class. He quickly stopped the tape and turned the television off. Unfortunately, the result of watching Sami and Lucas going at it had had quite a stimulating effect on Philip. He scurried around looking for something to cover himself up with and settled on a nearby copy of the daily newspaper. Sure enough, Belle walked through the door a second later carrying a few shopping bags and her books from class. Philip normally would have gotten up to help her with the load but under the circumstances, he didn't think it was such a good idea.

Belle dumped the bags on the counter, accidentally dropping her books in the process. She gave Philip an irritated look at his uselessness. She guessed that now that they were living together and dating, he felt like he didn't have to be chivalrous anymore. Throwing her keys on the counter, she marched over to the couch and stood in front of him with her arms crossed.

Philip knew that his actions would get him in trouble but what was he going to do? The alternative was to explain how he had gotten a huge boner from watching their siblings bump like porn stars. He decided to go with option one even if was going to piss her off for a little while.

"No, Philip, don't bother getting up. I can carry all of our weekly groceries and my school books all by myself. Oh, and I'm so glad you didn't feel like answering your cell phone when I was waiting at the grocery story for you to show up like you promised." Ouch! He was so wrapped up in Sami and Lucas' carnal memoirs that he had completely forgotten to meet Belle at the store. He reached into his pocket for his phone and found that it was turned off. "I thought maybe something important had come up but I get home and not only are you sitting there like a lump while I carry all this stuff in but you're lounging around reading the paper. You have some nerve!" Philip was beginning to think that Sami had left a little bit of attitude behind when they switched bodies (see Alter Ego) because since that bizarre weekend, she had displayed a little more bite than usual. He kind of liked it but at times like these, it was a bit much.

"Belle, I'm so sorry. My cell phone was turned off, see," he said showing her the blank face of his phone. When he turned it on, he was immediately prompted to view his missed calls. Sure enough Belle's number appeared on the list. Strangely, so did Lucas' number—four times to be exact. Uh oh. Lucas was onto him. He wasn't worried though. He could always lie and pretend that he hadn't watched the tape. Besides, he and Sami were the dumb ones for leaving the tape in the VCR in the first place. He would love to tease them about the tape seeing as how they had mercilessly made fun of him and Belle for getting caught having sex in their bodies. (Alter Ego again) However, he didn't think feeling the wrath of Sami was worth the laugh. But enough of that, he had another angry blonde to deal with at the moment. When in doubt, concede. "You're right, Belle, I should have gotten up to help you with the bags. That was rude of me. It's just that I'm a little tired from all the stuff I've done this morning and my mind is running a little slow." That wasn't exactly a lie—watching Sami and Lucas was exhausting.

Belle didn't really want to stay mad at Philip so she decided to forgive him. She plopped down next to him and looked over his shoulder. "Philip, why are you reading the home and garden section of the newspaper?" Unbeknownst to him, he had opened up that section of the paper right to an article about how to turn your next dinner party into a beautiful floral-themed event.

"Uh, well, you see—" Philip wracked his brain trying to think of something that didn't sound blatantly absurd. "I was just looking around for uh, some way to help with the loft. I haven't contributed too much since I moved in and I wanted to surprise you with a cute idea."

Belle beamed at him and snuggled into his arm. "That's so sweet Philip. You don't have to do that though unless you want to add your own touch. This place is fine the way it is."

'Good save, PK,' Philip thought to himself. Now that he had all of his body parts under control, he needed to get away from the television and the evidence that he had been a bad boy all morning. "Why don't I help you put the groceries up?" He got up and waited for her to join him over in the kitchen.

"Okay," Belle replied and hopped off the couch. She glanced at the television and noticed that the VCR was on. "Oh Philip, you got Lucas' VCR hooked up? I'm so glad it works. Now I can watch that video for class." She peeked into the VCR spotting a tape inside. "Did you already put my tape in to test it?"

Philip panicked and ran back over to where she was standing. He didn't want her attention fixated on anything even remotely related to that tape in the VCR. "Yeah, I got it to work. You can break it in later after we put this stuff away." He motioned to the bags on the counter and said, "Is that ice cream I see? We better get this stuff put away before it goes bad."

"Don't be silly Philip. It's fine." She went to turn on the television so that she could try out the VCR. Philip grabbed the remote from her and hid it behind his back.

"No television for you, young lady until you put those groceries up," he joked. This was getting way too dangerous.

Belle eyed him suspiciously. "What's your problem, Philip? You're acting all weird. Since you didn't even bother to accompany me to the store to pick up the groceries, I don't think you're in any position to give me orders. As a matter of fact, since you're so worried about the groceries, why don't you go put them up yourself? I'll just sit here and mess around with the VCR." There's another remnant of Sami floating to the surface. She turned the television on manually and was about to fiddle with the VCR when Philip slipped in between her and entertainment center.

"You don't want to do that. Let's spend some quality time together putting the groceries up." He tried to guide her over to the kitchen but Belle wasn't having it.

"You already had your chance to bond with me and you were too tired to show up, remember." She pushed past him and continued to fiddle with the VCR. "What did you do, screw up the tape or something? It's no big deal if you did. I can just get—"

All of a sudden the sound of intense moans and body movement filled their living room as Lucas and Sami made themselves known in video form. Philip cradled his forehead in the palm of his hand as he waited for the inevitable outburst from Belle.

"Oh my God!" Belle exclaimed. She couldn't do anything but stare blankly at the screen as Sami and Lucas reached a fever pitch in their lovemaking. When she was able to tear her eyes away from their siblings' sweaty, satiated bodies, she turned to Philip with bewilderment and rising anger. "Is this what you've been doing all morning? Watching your brother and my sister having . . . making . . . screwing!" She threw up her hands and then crossed them tightly in front of her.

Philip knew that he was in major trouble. He should have just turned the tape off and silently returned it to his brother but no, he had to go and press his luck. "This is not what it looks like, Belle. I wasn't watching any of this; I just saw what it was and turned it off. I was going to return it to Lucas later on. I just didn't want you to see it and get embarrassed." Yeah, that sounded reasonable; it could work. Or not, judging by the expression on Belle's face.

"Is that so? Well, it looks like you've gotten pretty far into plot judging from the sound of it. I know that all you guys are sex-crazed and everything but this is ridiculous." She shook her head at him and he felt like he was about 2 feet tall. She was right, of course. "Philip this is sick. That is your brother and my sister. How twisted can you get?" With an indignant and chastising shake of her finger, she looked him in the eye and said, "You know, I am so disappointed in you. I expected better than this kind of . . . vulgarity from you."

Philip felt horrible. He hadn't expected to get caught but it was really terrible to be called out on his bad behavior. He figured he had some major damage control to do. "Belle, I don't ever want to do anything to disappoint you. Please tell me what I can do to make this up to you. I'll do anything. You just name it and it's done." He reached for her hand and felt hopeful when she didn't pull away.

As evidenced from before, she could never stay mad at Philip, especially when he was groveling. "I guess, I'll forgive you this time but you've got some major kissing up to do." Noticing that the tape was still playing, Philip used the remote to pause the movie. He inwardly chuckled at the erotic pose Sami and Lucas made mid-stroke. He would have normally shared his funny thought with Belle but under the circumstances, she probably wouldn't find it as amusing as he did. Meanwhile, Belle had pulled him into her arms and Philip assumed he was on the road to forgiveness.

"Don't worry, I'll return the tape this afternoon and they'll never know we saw it. It would be way too embarrassing if they knew we had seen them like that," he said turning red at the mere thought of it. He held her tight in his arms as he stroked her hair lightly feeling relieved that she was being so understanding about his unfortunate lapse in judgment. He supposed it was worth it to see the unbelievable show Lucas and Sami had put on and he was sure Belle would agree if he was successful in executing the pointers he had picked up.

"I know! Even the little bit I saw is making me blush beet red. I guess that kind of stuff isn't for me. At least now I know that as wonderful as you are, you're still just a guy."

"Hey!" he chuckled in mock offense.

"It's true, although I think I'll keep you anyway. But, if you start asking me to prance around for you in red heels, I'm gonna have to revoke the offer."

"Noted," Philip replied laughing. What a waste. He was sure that Belle would look spectacular dancing for him in a pair of red heels. Hold on . . . red shoes . . . prancing. Something was rotten in the town of Salem and he was certain Belle knew all about it.

As soon as the words had left her mouth, she knew that she had slipped up. She hoped that Philip wouldn't notice but if the stiffening in his demeanor was any indication, she was in even bigger trouble than he had been a few moments ago. 'Now would be the perfect time for a distraction,' she thought. She let go of him and walked over to the kitchen. "You sure had a point Philip. We better get these groceries put up before they get gross." She started taking items out of the bags in an attempt to avoid eye contact.

Philip approached her slowly and eyed her warily. "Wait just one second, sweetheart. Do you care to explain how you know about the red shoes and the prancing?" She opened her mouth to reply but he stopped her. "Hold on, let me sit down. This ought to be a good one."

"Philip, I . . . I mean, I was um, I just . . ." She looked down, guilt written all over her face. She focused on the television and said, "I saw all of that when the tape started playing just now. Are you telling me that Sami was prancing around for Lucas? Gosh, that's kinky and I can't believe you watched that." She grabbed the milk and cheese and went to put them in the fridge. She didn't want to have to look at him after telling that massive lie.

Philip, of course, wasn't buying it. "You are such a horrible liar Belle. You watched that video too didn't you? I cannot believe you just chewed me out for my bad morals when you were an even bigger voyeur."

"Well, I didn't watch that much of it, just the beginning to make sure it was what I thought it was. Besides, at least I didn't get caught."

"'Philip, you're so twisted, I'm so disappointed in you," he replied mocking Belle's self-righteous little tirade from before. "You are such a hypocrite! I cannot believe you."

"Me?" Belle screamed defensively. "I'm not the one spending the entire morning, forgetting plans and hiding my excited little man-parts because I'm too busy getting off to my siblings. It's all becoming clear to me now."

"It wasn't like that! It just sounds a lot dirtier when you say it out loud," Philip shot back. "And who are you calling little? That's not what you were singing last night. In fact, sneaking a peek at Sami and Lucas in action is what probably got you all hot and bothered in the first place."

"Why you—" But her response was lost as Philip started yelling too and a whopper of an argument ensued. They were so wrapped up in their bickering that they didn't notice that the tape had started playing again, having been paused for too long. Neither even blinked an eye as they shot insults back and forth to a backdrop of Sami and Lucas' sounds of pleasure.


Lucas absently pushed play on the CD player thinking that a little music would distract him from his worries. He was currently wallowing in the despair of his predicament trying to figure out what he needed to do to keep his prized body parts. Another wave of dread filled him as he realized what CD he had put on—it was the same CD from that infamous night. The one he had danced to for her. Of course, he wasn't completely horrified by the sound of the music since it was technically associated with some very pleasant memories.

"Okay Roberts, you need to stop dragging your feet and start taking some action." Sami had already called him three times on his cell phone but he didn't have the courage to pick up. He jerked his head in the direction of his cell phone vibrating against the table. Make that four times. He had searched all over his apartment and hers and had tried calling both Belle and Philip but nothing was working out for him. And to make things worse, now he was talking to himself. He stood up and paced around the room again trying to think of a plan.

Now that the panic had worn off, he was hit with a much needed epiphany. "Wait a minute, why am I standing around? I have a key to Philip's apartment. If he's not home, I'm just going to go over there and take the VCR and the tape back." He picked up his keys and phone and headed out the door, feeling hopeful for the first time all day.

When the phone rang again, he was on his way over to Philip and Belle's loft. He decided to answer it since he had a plan now and could report some good news. He picked up his phone and answered, "Baby, I'm on it, don't worry. I'm on my way over to Philip's place and I'm going to get the tape back. I forgot I had the key to his apartment but now I can just sneak in and get the tape back without them having to know a thing," he explained, feeling confident and quite pleased with himself. However, her lack of a response was starting to worry him since silence was never a good thing coming from her. "Sami? Sami, you there?"

"Is there a reason you haven't been answering my calls? I mean, since you just came up with this brilliant plan to fix everything, you couldn't have been doing anything terribly productive for the last hour and a half." Although Sami's words were full of her usual conversational sarcasm, Lucas could practically feel the anger permeating through the phone. Oh yeah, she was pissed.

He didn't really have a good answer for her and he didn't want to admit that he had basically been sitting at home panicking. He figured lying was his best option at the moment. "I didn't hear that you called, Sami, I was too busy trying to get a hold of Belle or Philip. I couldn't find them so I'm guessing Belle is in class and Philip is probably on base, or maybe—"

Sami cut him off, proving yet again, that he could never win with her. "I don't care Lucas! All I know is that if you had answered me the first time, I would have told you that both you and I had a key to the loft and that you should just go get the damn tape while they're out. If you hadn't been dodging me, you'd have gotten the tape back AN HOUR AND A HALF AGO!" Okay, maybe lying hadn't been his best option.

"Honey, I'm sorry," he said pulling into the parking lot at the loft. "Look, I just got here, why don't I let you get back to work and I'll call you back when I get the tape. Better yet, why don't I drop by and take you out to lunch?"

"Don't you dare try to sweet talk me Lucas Roberts. You just focus on getting that tape back and then we'll talk." He thought she had hung up on him but her angry breathing gave her away. Now this was a tricky situation, he thought as he made his way to the loft. She had said that she didn't want to talk to him but her presence on the phone clearly indicated that he was expected to say something else. What to do, what to do?

He stood in front of the door to the loft and decided to throw in the towel. "Sami, I don't know what you want me to say but I'm gonna go inside now and get the tape, then we can—" He stopped abruptly when he heard very familiar sounds coming from inside the loft. He listened for a few moments and felt his heart sink to the floor. "Um, on second thought Sami, you might want to get over here."