A/N:chews thumbnail: I'm actually really nervous about this chapter.. Seriously. If it turns out to be a train wreck, let me know, will ya? Thankyou to all who reviewed my last chappy.
Song for the chapter "Somewhere Only We Know" - Keane

Letty grabbed the side of her head with one hand and the bed with the other, taking slow, deep breaths. The room was spinning and rocking like she were on a ship. Oddly enough, it wasn't half as bad with her eyes open. She started to sit up and the world tilted, sending her sprawling back onto the mass of fluffy blankets and pillows. Leon's scent surrounded her, bringing back vague memories of the night before. She had the strangest recollection of dancing on the coffee table with Tala to the music only they could hear. She grinned at the memory, struggling not to laugh. It seemed that their innocent, sweet little Tala was a trained belly dancer. As soon as she had let slip with that little detail, Letty had insisted on her teaching her something. They had been mid way though a turn when one of them, she couldn't quite remember which, overstepped and crashed into the other, sending them tumbling to the floor. They had still been in a tangled heap on the floor when Leon and Vince came back into the room and found them there. That had been the final straw and to her amazement, Vince had slung Tala over his shoulder with ease and claimed they were off to bed.

Letty rolled over slowly to look at the alarm clock, it's bright red numbers glowing '8:46'. She grimaced at the almost liquid feeling her legs had as she stood up, or tried to stand up that is. She raked her fingers through her hair and pulled a face at the thick, furry feeling her tongue had. A quiet chuckle came from the doorway. Letty froze. I know that laugh.. Why isn't he at work?

She voiced her question. "..work?" her voice was croaky and her mouth tasted like crap.

Leon smirked. "Well, if you had have been sober when I got home last night.." he trailed off when she blushed. "I start at eleven and I called in sick for you. You hungry?" He asked, his tone more concerned now, though it still held a hint of amusement. He moved closer to help her up.

Letty clutched his forearms as she stood, nauseated. "Not really." She sagged into his arms and let him carry her into their adjoining bathroom, where he sat her on the sink. He moved to turn on the shower, then came back and carefully stripped her off.

"You'll feel better afterwards." He promised, catching her confused look. "I'll come and let you know when the foods almost done."

She beamed at him to the best of her ability. "You're cooking for me?" she asked in a small voice. Leon nodded as he set her down in the shower.

"Yes ma'am, I am."

She grinned, still a little drunk. "You're so good to me." She reached for his arm, still holding her, and lifted his wrist to her mouth. "My prince in a yellow Skyline."

He laughed, kissing her brow. "Honey, the Skyline's been green for a few months now." He reminded her, pushing her back under the spray of water. "But I appreciate the thought."

She waved him off, turning the heat up. "That's what I said. Green. Now go, peon. Cook for me!"

Leon's eyes widened as he cackled at her. "Peon?" He waited for her to slip to the floor, no way of escaping the water before he turned off the hot water completely. She screamed as the freezing water beat down on her. "Peon that, sweetness." Then, he left the room, laughing as she scrambled to her feet.

Letty glared after him. "At least I'm sober now," she muttered, shivering. Her stomach churned against the sudden movement and she took a few deep breaths. Unfortunately with all the steam from the hot water, it didn't really help much. She slid back down onto the floor and closed her eyes.

She had meant what she had said to him. Leon was her prince charming. Sure he had his moments where you were left wondering what the hell was going on in that complicated head of his, but who didn't. Though recently, he was having them a lot more. He was becoming a lot more broody and reclusive, spending hours on his painting or out in the garage alone, avoiding the house. He always had a smile for her though, no matter how small it may be.

She reached for the tube of shower gel and the loofah he had considerately placed on the floor, knowing she would loathe getting up to get it. She smiled softly, flipping the cap open. He did take care of her, so, so well. She wondered why he was never able to hold onto a girlfriend in all the time she had known him. Even though the mere thought of another woman putting their hands on her Leon made her jaw clench, she couldn't help but wonder. Every girl he had dated had left him, claiming him to be insensitive, rude, arrogant and distant. She couldn't see it. He was the most hands on, loving boyfriend she had ever had.

The door creaked open next to her sending a cool gush of wind into the shower cubicle. Leon looked down at her, huddled against the wall with a plaintive look on her face. He crouched down, eyes narrowed.

"You alright, sweets?" He touched her knee lightly.

She blinked, actually seeing him there for the first time. "What? Oh.. Yeah. Yeah I'm alright." She smiled at him.

Pacified, he stood up. "Food's up in about five. Finish up here, ok?" he told her gently.

As he left through the door, she could smell the first traces of food. Her belly growled in appreciation of the scents. She hopped up and quickly cleaned herself, then turned the shower off, wrapped herself in a towel and shuffled into the bedroom. She had just picked up a bra when she heard Leon thundering down the stairs.

"Letty! Food's on the- Oh." He stopped in the bedroom doorway, mouth open. Obviously he thought she was still in the shower. "Uh, food's on."

She pulled one of his jerseys over her head and nodded. "Be right there." She told him, stepping into a pair of his sweats. His eyes raked over her appreciatively, sparkling.

"You look hot in my clothes."

Letty walked toward him, looping her arms around his waist. "And I smell good too." She laughed as he sniffed her loudly.

"You smell like me." He dead panned.

"Exactly," she looked down at their intertwined fingers as he lead her up the stairs. "That's why I smell sexy." Her nostrils flared as they entered the kitchen and her mouth watered. On the table sat one of the biggest, greasiest breakfasts she had seen since Vince's twenty first birthdays 'morning after the party' party. Bacon, eggs, sausages, hash browns and French toast sat in the centre of the table, only two empty plates in sight. It looked and smelled like heaven.

"Vince and Tala went home about an hour ago." He explained, sitting down. Letty grabbed some of the French toast straight away.

"Was I in the shower long enough for you to make all this?"

He paused, fork half way to his mouth. "Well.. V helped a little earlier getting stuff ready."

She sat down, stunned. ".. V can cook?"

"Only the easy stuff." He stood up and walked to the fridge. "Coffee or Coke?"

"..izzy ..uff." She managed around her mouth full of food. She beamed at him when he placed a two litre bottle of the soft drink in front of her. Only him and Vince could understand her when she talked with her mouth full.

He sat back down and suddenly looked uneasy. "Let.. We have to talk about this." He waved his hand around, gesturing to the room.

She sipped her Coke. "The kitchen?"

"No," he answered shortly. "Living here." He noticed the understanding dawn on her. "I was talking to Vince last night, and it turns out he owns the building he was living in before he moved in here."

Her brow creased in confusion. "Vince owns the firehouse?" she asked dumbly. Leon nodded.

He sighed heavily. "I.. I can't live here any more, Let. I mean, I'll stay if that's what you want.. If that will make you happy, but I'd rather move out."

"Into the firehouse.." she stated slowly, chewing on some bacon. Her heart went out to him. The poor guy looked so afraid of how she would react. It made sense though. Despite this, she had her reservations about moving. "I dunno, Le.."

Outwardly he showed no sign of irritation or disappointment, but she tell it was there lurking beneath the surface. Sensing this, she gave him a thoughtful look.

"You really hate this place so much?"

He nodded slowly. "I feel sick when I'm here." He admitted almost inaudibly. He picked at his breakfast, not meeting her eyes. "I don't want to lose you."

Letty dropped her piece of bacon in shock. "Lose me! Babe what are you talking about?"

"If Dom comes back.." he mumbled feebly.

She got up and moved to his side of the table, sitting in his lap. "You don't trust me? Leon, I would never leave you just because he came back! That would just be blatant stupidity on my part!"

His callused hand smoothed over her damp hair. "It's not you I'm worried about. He'll try to take you away from me again. Everything has to be about him, Let."

"Again? Leon.. What are you talking-" she paused. "Just how long have you had feelings for me?"

He laughed humourlessly against her shoulder. "A fucking long time." He squeezed her tightly. "I'm not letting him take you away from me again, Let. I wont let him."

She cradled his head to her chest, her cheek resting on his hair. "Alright, baby. If it means this much to you, we'll move."

He looked up at her, trying to gauge her response. "You're not just humouring me?"

She smiled, kissing him lightly. "Of course not." She grinned as he buried his face in her shirt, one hand coming to rest on her butt, the other curled around her back. He said something against her but it was too muffled to hear, so she prodded him and asked him to repeat it. Slowly, he leaned back and fixed her with the most possessive look she had ever seen him give anyone.

"Mine."

Vince sneezed sending bubbles flying all over the place. From the other end of her bathtub, Tala erupted into a fit of laughter, her feet propped up on Vince's wide chest. His hands circled her ankles and pulled, dunking her in the water. When she surfaced, her hair was plastered all over her face and Vince was looking at her with big innocent eyes. She glared at him.

His hand skimmed over the surface of the water, pushing the lightly scented bubbles around. "Shouldn't have laughed at me." He stated simply, flicking water at her.

Tala gaped at him indignantly. "Who was the one who was laughing at me this morning? I didn't try to drown you!"

Vince threw his head back and laughed. "Ah, but you were hung over. I had a right to laugh at you." He pointed out, smiling at her smugly.

Tala scowled at him, then gave him a taste of his own medicine. He was almost back up to two hundred pounds again and normally she wouldn't have been able to budge him, but being in the water made him a lot lighter and he slipped beneath the surface with one swift tug. He came up spluttering.

"Bitch!" he spat in between his laughter, wiping water out of his eyes and slicking his hair back. Tala giggled, waiting until he was settled again to crawl up between his legs and lean back against his chest. Her fingers slid along his slick thighs, his knees steepled either side of her.

"V, last night," she started, looking back and up at him, "I was drunk."

He nodded solemnly. "Very drunk."

Fighting her blush, Tala went on. "As I said, I was drunk, but I remember seeing Leon's face. I'm worried about him." She cupped some water in her hands and tipped it over Vince's thigh. She could feel the tension enter his body at her words.

"So am I," he admitted, sighing. "He wants to move back into our old place. It's not exactly a good idea to live in the house of a person you're avoiding contact with. If they come back, we're fucked."

The room was quiet, save for the quiet swoosh of the water whenever either of them moved and the occasional drip of the tap.

"How do you know the place is still available?" she asked, leaning forward to add more hot water. She smiled at the feel of Vince's hand tracing down her spine, almost desperate to move back into his embrace.

"…I own it." He answered after a moment. Tala stilled, not sure what to think.

"Does this mean you're moving with them?"

Vince's arm coiled around her and dragged her backward into his lap, her back pressed securely to his slick chest. She could feel him mouthing the back of her neck. It took all her self control to remain still instead of turning around to maul him. Her head lolled back against his shoulder as his hand slipped between her thighs.

"Do you want me to move in with them?" came his raspy question beside her ear, his breath hot on her damp skin. She made a quiet sound, something likening to a strangled whimper. Her hands came up to grip the sides of the tub tightly, her back arched and her mouth fell open in a silent cry.

"Firefly," he growled in her ear, teeth scraping over her flesh, "I asked you a question." His hand withdrew and came to rest on her thigh.

She whined at the loss, rolling her hips against him. She heard him hiss quietly. "No.." she breathed, almost crying as his hand slipped back between her legs, teasing her once more.

"You want me to stay here and live with you?" He asked after a moment, his breathing a little heavier in her ear. She nodded emphatically, writhing against him. He chuckled and started to move his hand away again. Immediately Tala knew what he was doing. He was convinced she was too quiet in bed, claiming he wasn't sure whether she liked what he was doing to her unless he could hear her. She grabbed at his wrist, preventing him from moving his hand.

She rushed to reply. "Yes, I want you to live with me." His movements were getting a little rougher now and she could feel him actually holding himself back, his entire body tense. She had a feeling that he could do her some serious damage if he actually let go and to be honest, the thought made her want it to happen even more. Need swept through her like wild fire.

He nipped at her neck, hard, then soothed the angry welt with his tongue. He smiled wolfishly against her neck as she cried out. "That's it," he growled in her ear. "One more question, firefly.."

Tala squeezed her eyes shut, nodding against his shoulder. "Anything, baby." Her lip caught between her teeth.

For a moment, she wasn't sure he had heard her, he was so quiet. She started to grab at his hand as he pulled it away, but stopped when he bit her shoulder. His thick arm wrapped around her waist and lifted her over him, holding her just that slightest amount too far away, his breathing laboured. His breath was almost scalding against her hot skin.

"…Marry me."