A/N: Glad to know so many of you are still enjoying this story - thank you for all those lovely reviews. I think it's going to run for a while since I have quite a lot I want to do with it yet. Doesn't seem like that's going to be a problem for anyone ;)

(For disclaimer, etc. - see chapter 1)

Chapter 12

Zoe woke up from what felt like the best sleep she had had in a really long time, surprised to find she wasn't actually in her bed and it wasn't exactly morning. She was also distinctly not alone, though her memory quickly caught up to her in time to let her know that nothing had really happened here. Nothing except Wade being the most amazing guy she had ever met in her life.

A smile curved Zoe's lips as she curled a little further into his side and let her eyes fall shut again. He was still sleeping yet, so maybe she could get away with doing the same for a little while longer.

It was crazy to think about how they met and all that Zoe had thought of Wade Kinsella, only for them to end up like this, having spent a whole night in the same apartment, and much of the day sleeping together, without anything but literal sleeping having happened at all.

In between, there had been breakfast, comfort and sympathy, and then a long talk in which Wade mostly regaled Zoe with stories of life growing up in Bluebell, Alabama, and she had chipped in the occasional happy memory from her own younger days. Of course, she had also shared why she had gone out and got so drunk last night and why she had such terrible daddy issues. That had brought on tears she had been so determined not to shed and yet was unable to keep at bay. Even then, Wade hadn't abandoned her, hadn't made light of her problems, just held her when she got upset, rubbed her back and told her anybody who didn't care about her had to be a prize idiot.

Curled up in his arms, right here on the couch, Zoe couldn't remember anything after that and was sure it was when she had fallen asleep. Comfortable and probably exhausted from the night before, clearly Wade had dropped off too, and here they were still, holding on to each other, trusting each other. Zoe couldn't think of anywhere she would rather be than this.

"You really are something special, Wade Kinsella," she said softly, tilting her head to look up at his face, almost strangely angelic in sleep.

Reaching up, Zoe planted a kiss on his cheek, feeling just a little bad when she realised he was stirring.

"Oops," she said guiltily as his eyes flickered open and he glanced down at her. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to wake you up."

"No problem, doc," he promised her, smiling slowly as he stretched out his free arm. "'Sides I should be the one apologising for falling asleep on you."

"Pretty sure I started it," Zoe admitted, smiling up at him. "It was actually kind of nice, wasn't it?"

"No complaints here," Wade agreed, leaning down to steal a kiss for himself. "You feelin' better now?"

"Oh yeah," said Zoe, nodding definitely. "So much better. Thanks, Wade, for... everything."

"Like I said, no problem," he assured her. "What kind of a person would I be if I hadn't taken care of you when you needed it?"

"A normal person?" Zoe suggested. "I mean, around here, and in my life in general, there haven't exactly been a lot of people that cared that much. I certainly don't know many guys that wouldn't have... you know, when it was being offered," she said, just a little awkward in saying it.

"Yeah, well, like I told you before, that was the toughest part in all this," Wade admitted easily, "but there was no way in hell I was screwing this up, Zoe Hart, not now."

"I'm really glad you didn't," she said, smiling widely and leaning in until her lips met his in another exhilarating kiss.

If Zoe had felt better than she currently did, she might've made Wade a whole new offer that he would've felt better about taking her up on. After all, late in the day as it was, she was the better part of sober and completely in control of what she was doing this time. Okay, maybe not in entire control of what she was feeling, because Wade was very good at this stuff, but she knew she wanted this, wanted him. Maybe it wouldn't be such a bad idea, she thought, just as Wade pulled away.

"Uh, I think maybe I should be headin' out," he said, shaking his head as if coming out of a daze.

"Already?" asked Zoe sadly.

"Already?" he echoed, smiling some. "You seen that clock right there? I've been here more'n twelve hours already."

Zoe whipped her head around so fast she actually felt a little motion sick, but she found that Wade was absolutely right. It was past two in the afternoon and she guessed he probably brought her home sometime after midnight. Twelve hours together and nothing more than a few kisses. That still blew her mind, and right now, it disappointed her just a little too, even though she knew she ought to know better.

"You gonna be okay by yourself?" Wade asked as she looked back at him.

"Sure," she said, nodding her head. "Uh, I'm working a late shift tonight, so I have until eleven to be fully recovered. I should be fine."

"Should be?"

"Will be," she promised, finding it hard not to smile at his look of concern. "I promise if I'm not feeling well enough to go, I will call in sick. Come on, I'm a doctor. I know when I'm fit for work and when I'm not," she reminded him.

"Good enough for me." Wade nodded once, stealing one last kiss before he got up from the couch and pulled on his jacket ready to leave.

Zoe followed him to the door, glad to note the room didn't spin when she got up and she wasn't feeling sick as she crossed the room. She probably would be fine for work later and, honestly, most of the reason was Wade. He truly had taken care of her and treated her with respect and, dare she think, love. Zoe so had not been expecting that, not because she didn't trust Wade exactly, more because she had never known anyone like him before.

"You take care of yourself now, you hear me?" he said as he opened the door to go.

"I promise." Zoe smiled. "And thank you, again, for everything."

"It was my absolute pleasure, doc," he told her, grinning right back at her. "I'll call you."

"You better," she insisted, as they waved goodbye to each other and then he was gone.

Zoe closed the door behind Wade and then turned to lean her back against it, a big giddy smile still filling her face.

"I'm dating an up-and-coming rockstar who is hotter than the sun and treats me like a lady even when I'm acting like an idiot," she said to herself, before bursting into loud laughter and happy dancing all the way back to the couch.

Sure, things with her dad were well and truly wrecked, her mother could be a pain in the butt, as could her friends, and work exhausted her as much as it fulfilled her, but Zoe had to admit, her life was pretty damn good right now, and she didn't mind admitting that Wade Kinsella was a significant part of that.

"I'm not sayin' she ain't worth some effort, man," said Clayne, hooking his arm around Wade's neck as if contemplating whether to hug him or strangle him, "but she ain't the only girl in the world, and some of them are way easier to handle, if you know what I mean?" he said with an over-the-top wink.

"Pretty sure everybody always knows what you mean, Clayne," his friend assured him, though he didn't comment on the rest of what his buddy had said.

Wade wasn't entirely comfortable in explaining him and Zoe to anybody else, least of all the guys in the band. They were all good friends and everything. There wasn't a bad bone in any of the guys in Sippin' Whiskey, it was just that they didn't behave in a way that Wade wanted to pursue anymore. He couldn't judge their skirt-chasing, beer-drinking, crazy ways, because he used to be exactly like them, but then he met Zoe and something just changed.

"Hey, I absolutely get it," said Mark then, most of his focus on the hand mirror he was looking into as he fixed his hair from the headphones he'd been wearing too long. "I ever find that one woman I wanna commit to, I will give up everything for her. I just never met her yet," he said shrugging easily.

"Nah, but he sure is tryin' hard to find her by hittin' on every woman in the whole state of New York." Jordan laughed, getting a sock in the arm for his trouble. "Hey, I ain't judgin', man. We're all in the same place right now, 'cept for Wade, o' course."

"Wade Kinsella, a one-woman man." Clayne shook his head. "Never thought I'd live to see the day."

"Yeah, well, truth be told, you and me both," Wade agreed, "but it is what it is, and for so long as Zoe Hart wants me around, it's her I'm gonna be with. No chasin' around after other women, being that young scallywag I used to be. You find quality like that, quantity stops mattering."

"She is awful short from what I seen of her," Jordan considered.

"That ain't what he meant, fool!" Mark insisted, rolling his eyes. "He meant one woman is enough, if she's the right woman. Seems this Dr Zoe is the right woman for Wade."

"And I personally don't think he could've chosen any better," said Bradley, returning to the studio space from the hallway, clearly having caught only the last part of the conversation. "Now, gentlemen, I think we have made good work of those two tracks we needed to work on today, so it's probably about time you were all headed home, get some rest, we will start bright and early again tomorrow."

As Mark, Clayne, and Jordan packed up to go, Wade lingered a moment, catching Bradley by himself and lowering his voice when he talked to the guy.

"What you said about me choosing Zoe and all. You known her a good long while?"

"Few years." Bradley nodded, smiling a little too much in Wade's opinion. "Actually, we went out a couple of times, but don't freak out on me, Kinsella, it was a long while back and we decided pretty fast we were better off staying friends."

Wade wasn't sure how he was supposed to take that. After all, he knew Zoe was beautiful, smart, fun, and everything a guy with a brain and a liking for the female of the species should want. He also knew that as far as guys went, Bradley would be kind of a catch too, so why exactly would it not work out between him and Zoe?

"Truth is," said Bradley then, looking only at his cell that he was messing around with yet and never at Wade, "I had just broken up with my girlfriend and, well, Zoe wasn't Lauren."

"Lauren?" Wade echoed. "Isn't that...?"

"My fiancée?" Bradley nodded. "Yep, she is. See, I already met my ideal woman before Zoe ever came into the picture, and that's a good thing, because that left her available to find her ideal man," he said, clapping Wade on the shoulder.

"Ideal might be pushin' it a little, but we're gettin' along pretty good."

"I don't doubt it," said Bradley with a smile. "You just make sure you treat her right, because Zoe is a special one, I know that much."

"Yes, she is," said Wade, turning away to pack up his guitar ready to leave.

He was half way done when a thought occurred to him. Bradley didn't just know Zoe, he knew Candice too, and he had known the both of them for some years. Much as he knew he probably shouldn't, Wade couldn't help but want to ask Bradley a couple of questions that were playing on his mind.

"You know much about Zoe's daddy?"

"Ah, the other Dr Hart," said Bradley, finally stuffing his cell in his pocket and giving Wade his full attention. "I met him once at a party, but I couldn't say that I really know him or anything. I know Zoe loves him to death but she doesn't see too much of him. Far as I can tell, great doctor, lousy father."

"Yeah, I got that impression too," Wade agreed with a sigh. "I'll give her a thumbs up for her mom though. Candice is pretty intense, but she helped me out a lot when she got us signed up with you, man."

Bradley grinned and gabbed Wade's hand to shake. "Hey, she did me the favour. You guys are going to be the next big thing, I just know it. I'll see you tomorrow, Wade."

"Yes, sir, you will," he agreed, smiling widely as he left the studio.

Wade had to admit, his life was pretty damn good right now, and he didn't mind admitting that Zoe Hart was a significant part of that.

To Be Continued...