A/N: Hey guys, I'm back with a new chapter! There are three main scenes in this chapter; I hope it isn't too overwhelming. Also, I have started a new story that is altogether more Phoebe/Cole oriented than this one. The title is Twice Burned—I'll be putting that up in a day or two.

So, enjoy and have fun!

Love's Intervention
Chapter Thirteen: Addle My Brain

Cole and Phoebe stood outside the Silvertop on the still-present red carpet. The press had decided to go home, and there was no one on the street except for them. Phoebe looked up at Cole. "So, do you want to take the car now?"

"Well, actually..." Cole stuck one of his hands in his pockets. "I was thinking about us taking a stroll for a little bit. I mean, it's such a nice evening—probably won't be many of these soon."

"But what about—"

"The car? I guess we'll just walk back to get it; Max won't care what we do, we're buddies. So...you up for it?"

Phoebe glanced at her watch while barely registering the time. She wanted to—oh, she wanted to spend more time with him—but she didn't know if she could take it. Before she could make a logical decision, however, her heart spoke for her. "OK."

They started walking, their bodies close to each others, when Phoebe's slim heel sunk into a particularly lush part of the carpet. She stumbled forward a bit, only to be saved by Cole grabbing her from around the waist and the arm. Phoebe started laughing as soon as she found her balance, and Cole did too.

"My God, a red carpet," Phoebe laughed, thankful that no cameras were around. "It's a big restaurant, but—seriously!"

Cole chuckled, not taking his arm away as he slightly shifted it to a more comfortable position. "Max always liked to blow things out of proportion. It is his biggest project, though—he has a right to be excited."

They began walking again, making small talk, Phoebe's aggressively logic side slowly beginning to yield to her instinct, something that hadn't happened in—God only knows how long. It felt so good; Cole's strong arm around her, her head leaning slightly on his upper arm, his deep voice, his warm body heat—though there was only so much body heat he could give, as Phoebe shuddered slightly from the cutting wind.

Cole noticed it immediately and turned to her. "Are you cold?" he asked, worry in his eyes. "Phoebe—you're only wearing your dress! It's almost November." He quickly shrugged off his jacket and draped it around her shoulders.

"Won't you be cold, then?" asked Phoebe, as she nevertheless accepted it. According to her time, it was almost May, and she did not want to have to spend the past half year trapped in bulky clothing only to have it put on again.

"No, I'll be fine, don't worry about me. I can stand the weather." He slipped his arm around Phoebe again, only to feel her terse up again—but only slightly, as if she was trying to refrain herself from doing so.

Phoebe, meanwhile, was struggling with both sides of herself. One mention of her real home had her mind wrestling for superiority again over her heart. DAMN IT! Phoebe shouted in her head. Can't I just spend time with the one I used to love?!

That seemed to calm both sides of her down a bit, and Phoebe felt better than she had in two days. She allowed herself to slowly relax again as they walked on, and let his arm tighten more snugly around her.

They walked for a long time, just strolling slowly along the streets, as the streets crowded with the night rush and lessened again. The two didn't even notice—too wrapped up in each other, Cole occasionally making Phoebe laugh, Phoebe occasionally making Cole chuckle.

The couple also didn't pay attention to where they were going, and before they knew it, they had turned full circle and ended up back at the restaurant. Phoebe and Cole looked at each other a bit uncertainly—the feeling of the night had somewhat subsided. Phoebe checked her watch, this time for real. "I think I should go back anyways," she said. "I have my job to go to tomorrow."

"Of course," Cole replied, and retrieved the car. The ride back to Phoebe's apartment was also tense; but in a different way, a way that both excited and dismayed Phoebe. If she had her magical empathic ability now—it would go off the Richter scale, she knew.

Before they knew it, they were outside of Phoebe's apartment door. Phoebe fidgeted a little before breaking the silence that had fallen between them. "I had a really good time tonight, Cole," she said softly.

"Me too," he said, taking a step closer. She moved a little closer as well. "What do you think about tomorrow, at the same time?"

"I think that would be great," Phoebe replied without a thought as he took one more step to her.

Their faces were now just inches away from each other as they stared at each other, Phoebe's breath a little irregular as her body trembled slightly.

Cole took in a deep breath, taking in the scent of the woman in front of him, a scent that was so intoxicating, so achingly comforting, and so strangely familiar. Her round eyes were on his, and she was so, so close... "Phoebe," he moaned, and brought his lips down to hers.

Phoebe responded, her arms wrapping tightly around him as he lifted her slightly and leaned her against the wall. It was a deep kiss, it was a searching kiss, and it was a desperate kiss, as they clung on to each other in their ardor, unwilling to let go.

Suddenly, the apartment door opened and Ames stepped out, holding a black garbage bag. She looked over to her right and gave a little jump as she saw Cole and Phoebe frozen in motion, looking at her. Cole hastily put Phoebe down and Phoebe adjusted her dress, blood rising slightly to her cheeks.

"So tomorrow, same time, right?" Cole asked Phoebe, also looking a bit embarrassed. Phoebe nodded, and Cole gave her a swift kiss on the cheek before her headed toward the stairs.

Ames gave a highly amused glance toward her best friend, who was now trying to smooth out her messed up hair while glaring at Ames with a mix of sheepishness and aggravation at the same time. "What?" Ames asked innocently.

Cole sat at his office the next day, staring blankly at the coat peg at the far end of his room, on which a different coat from last night was hung. He had quite forgotten to retrieve his jacket from Phoebe the night before, as he had made the quickest exit possible when her friend walked in on them. Now, he wanted it back—if not only to just hold the coat to his face and inhale any scent of her that she might've left.

A knock on his door woke him, if only partially, from his stupor. Phillip Saylor, Cole's friend and partner in many cases, poked his head in. "You don't look busy," he announced, and let himself in, closing the door behind him. Phillip stood in front of Cole for a second as Cole made no acknowledgement that he knew his friend was in front of him. "You look really stoned," Phillip commented.

"Not stoned," Cole responded distractedly, his fingers absentmindedly fiddling with his pen.

"Ah," Phillip said wisely. "I think I know what this may be about." He took a rolled up newspaper from behind his back and presented it to Cole. "Of course, you must've seen this one already."

Cole spared himself a look at the newspaper that Phillip laid on the desk before nodding. "My secretary showed me all of them."

"Oh, it's 'my secretary' again now? No use of first names?" Phillip raised his eyebrows. "If I remember correctly, you were supposed to bring her to the Silvertop last night."

"No," Cole objected. "I considered taking her. Never finalized it."

As a response, Phillip picked up the newspaper and glanced at the pictures on the page dedicated to the opening of the Silvertop. As there were bigger celebrities at the restaurant than Cole, the picture of him and Phoebe wasn't prominent, but was still large and distinct. This photographer had caught them at a particular instant, when Phoebe had turned to look up at him and he had responded by gently touching her cheek. "Renowned lawyer Cole Turner and his alleged newlywed wife seen sharing a sweet moment. Sources say the two were married in secret two weeks ago in Barbados, to protect his hot commodity from prying eyes," Phillip read out loud the description under the picture. "Well, I don't know about the wedding part, but she sure is a hot commodity. You did well, Cole."

"Hey, watch it," Cole warned, taking the paper out of Phillip's hands, not wanting his friend talking about Phoebe like that in any way.

"Wow, you've been hit hard," Phillip joked. When Cole didn't respond, Phillip's jaw dropped. "Oh my God," Phillip said in a hushed voice. "You really are hit hard."

Cole ignored his friend's astounded stare and turned his attention to last night's events yet again. It took all of his self-control to not call Phoebe, just to talk to her, hear her voice, to happily drown in a feeling that he had never felt in all his life.

Phillip kept talking in the background. "I have got to call up your old girlfriends and tell them the news," he was saying.

"No need," Cole responded, still in that distant voice of his. "Some of them have already called me up."

Phillip shook his head at the lack of attention Cole was paying to reality. "This is just too surreal," he said. "This was the first date with her?"

"Yes..." he hesitated. "But somehow, I feel like I've been on more than one with her, you know? Like I've known her for much longer than three days."

Phillip laughed. "So it's true."

Cole looked at his friend. "What?"

"Love really addles the brain."

Cupid giggled to himself as he watched Cole respond to his friend's comment. He was now seated at the Elders' official conference table, but currently another Whitelighter had a small emergency that had to be taken care of immediately. Still, he watched the handheld under the desk—he didn't want the other Elders to see what he was doing, just in case he was doing something wrong.

The head Elder, Yasien, cleared his voice, looking with some amusement at Cupid. "So, any new developments in the Cole-Phoebe department?"

Cupid grinned and nodded. He had always liked Yasien—least stuffed up of the Elders. "They're getting along just fine. Phoebe's doing remarkably well with him."

"Well, if Cupid's done playing house," the severe woman to the right of Yasien griped, "maybe we can actually do something to get the Charmed One and our Elder out."

"It's not as simple as that," another voice spoke up suddenly. It was Eaton, back from his information scouting.

"What are you saying?" asked another Elder.

He took a deep breath before responding. "There may be a chance that demons have been transported to the same parallel world that Phoebe and Leo are in."