Well someone wrote themselves into a corner! Sorry for the anticlimax, but I have a direction to take haha.

Adrenaline coursed through Brooke's body, her heart was racing and her mind flying through all her possible escape strategies; and then she remembered the perfume in her bag. In one smooth motion she grabbed it and sprayed it into the face of the figure looming over her.

"Ow! you little bitch!" Brad yelled, slamming his fist into the door. Seeing her opportunity to escape, Brooke ducked under the large boy's arm and made a bee line for the lift. She pressed the button, no, it was taking too long, she ran down the stairs. She descended as quickly as she felt safe, she could hear Brad following, cussing and cursing as he missed the odd step.

Brooke reached the bottom and waited for as long as she felt safe to catch her breath before leaving the building. She was met by a large black car, Aiden's, waiting for her at the curb. Letting out a sigh of relief, she got into the back.

"Good evening miss." The driver said, pulling away. Brooke looked back at her building to see Bradford practically fall out of the door, his eyes burning red and his face almost purple, a mix of anger and breathlessness.

By the time they arrived at Aiden's Brooke was totally calm; she was totally focused on the job in hand. Aiden's apartment wasn't huge, but what it lacked in space it totally made up for in style. It was the penthouse of one of the most desirable buildings in town. She could tell his business was booming.

"Welcome Brooke." Aiden said, extending his hand to the girl. "I'm so glad you could make it tonight."

"Happy to be here Aiden." She replied shyly, easily falling back into the character of the waitress, for now anyway.

"So tell me about this Law degree of yours?" He asked when they had sat to eat.

"Well, I'm studying criminal law. I've just started my second year now and to be honest, I can't be bothered with it all anymore." She said, wondering where he would be taking the conversation.

"That can't be cheap, how are you paying for it?"

Brooke cleared her throat, taken aback by the question. "I, um, have a student loan."

"Interesting, I'm sorry to be so forward, but I'd like to help you out with it and hopefully make things a bit more interesting." He said, watching her reaction, he could almost hear the cogs turning in her mind.

"Why?" Was her only reply.

"I'd like you to come and work for me, sometimes I require some legal advice. It's nothing too serious or illegal, just some friendly advice." He waited as she thought some more. She took a sip of wine, mulling the prospect over. Finally, putting down her glass and arching her fingers under her chin, she replied.

"I'd love to!" She said with a wry smile. "It'll be great practice."

Aiden returned her joyful grin and shook her hand. "Consider your student debts paid, I'll bring some paperwork over to the diner tomorrow, if you could give them the once over and bring them back to me by the end of the week please. That's enough business I think, let's just enjoy the rest of our dinner."

The rest of the evening passed by uneventfully and Brooke returned home. She opened the door, trying to keep the thoughts of what had happened last time she stood in this position from her mind. Entering her flat, she couldn't shake the feeling that she wasn't alone. She placed her keys on the hook by her door, slung her coat on a nearby chair and walked into the living room that doubled as a kitchen. Set on making a coffee, she failed to noticed the figure sat on her sofa. It wasn't until the presence made a sound that she was truly aware off him.

"Hi Brooke." Jim said in his Irish brogue, yet again he was clad head to toe in designer labels.

"How did you get in here?" She said, trying to hide how much he had made her jump.

"Come on love, you're supposed to know me. How do you think I got in?" He said with a wicked glint in his eye.

"I forgot to lock the door didn't I?" She finally said with a laugh.

"Bingo! You should be more careful; any idiot could walk in." He replied, getting up from the sofa and walking towards her in the kitchen area. "How'd the meeting go?"

"You're looking at the new legal adviser for Aiden Sharp." She said excitedly, waiting for a reaction from the Irish boy, but he seemed to be more interested in searching through her cupboards. "What are you looking for?" She finally asked when his search seemed fruitless.

"Don't you have any alcohol?" He replied, slightly more sharply than he had meant, "You know what, it doesn't matter, I brought my own." He stopped his search and took a hip flask out of his pocket. Moving closer to the girl, he put his arm around her, resting it somewhat possessively on her hip. "Fancy some scotch?" He offered.

"Sure." She replied, confused by the boy's seemingly random behaviour.

"Brooke, you'll remember I said before that if we were going to go into business together, it would be a permanent deal." He paused briefly, looking into her deep blue eyes, making sure she was keeping up. "I'd like a sign of that permanence."

Panic was starting to rise in her chest, Brooke took another swig of the whiskey, hoping the alcohol would blur her mind slightly. She'd heard all sorts of things about this boy, especially how sadistic he could be. Jim watched her once dilated eyes constrict rapidly and chuckled to himself, he could never do anything to hurt her. "I think we should get married."

Brooke coughed, practically choking on the alcohol in her throat. "Excuse me." She finally managed to say.

"I need to get my name known, without my face being seen. So I want you to take my name. We can be partners in life, as well as partners in crime." He said, now turning her to face him, ah, there were those big dark orbs, rapidly overtaking the blue. "You make me feel things, things I never thought possible."

The law student looked into his eyes, reading him, trying to work out his game. There was none, everything he had said with sincerity. Before she knew what she was doing she closed the gap between them and locked her lips onto his. Smiling at this turn of events he returned the kiss, deepening it, pulling her ever closer, one hand now the small of her back, the other working its way into her hair. Pulling away briefly to say "I'll take that as a yes then."