Percy POV

I slowly opened the door that connected Annabeth's bedroom to the upstairs hallway and stair case, and peered out of it.

I was scanning the area for any sign of her huge family that would sneak up on me and try and force conversation with me as I ventured down to find the cat.

If the damn thing was special to Annabeth, I'm sure I could find some good in the feline.

I strained my ears to listen for any rustling in the kitchen, and was relived to not hear anything. I took a step outside the comfort of my private sanctuary of my fake (but not so fake in my mind) girlfriend's room, and into the harsh world outside of the house so big it could be considered a mansion.

I felt like a secret spy as I took light steps down the stairs, scanning for the black and white ball of fur, while trying to avoid the other members of the household.

I spotted Oscar, peering out the window, basking in the sunlight, and I tentatively took a couple strides toward the animal. I reached my hand out over his small, fragile head. I was carefully not to be as rough as I would be with Blackjack, and instead was as gentile as could be.

As the feline started to purr, I kept repeating the motion of rubbing my hand down his body.

The front door handle jiggled and I froze in my tracks, fearing that I would have to face Whitney again. When I whipped my body around to check the intruder in the house, I exhaled when I realized it was just Annabeth.

Her hair was tied in a messy bun at the top of her head, and her form fitting clothes accented the curves on her body that I was aching to become accustomed to. To run my hands over. She had a thin layer of sweat on her forehead, and her cheeks were flushed pink from the exercise.

Damn, that my angel…

"Percy, I am honestly surprised that you are willingly socializing with the cat."

I looked at Oscar, and he looked back at me, cocking his head to the side.

"I was lonely."

She laughed. "Well maybe he can keep you company while I go and take a quick shower. Unless," she paused and walked towards me. "You don't mind smelling my sweat all day."

She threw her arms over my shoulders and rubbed her sweaty forehead on my grey t-shirt. I laughed at her childish antics and attempted to gently shove her off of me, while secretly enjoying the feeling of her body pushed against my own. The way that she just seemed to fit.

"Go take a shower you sicko," I said, while grabbing her wrists, and, unfortunately, tearing them away from my body.

Annabeth took half a step away from me, looked up at me with her grey doe eyes from under her lashes, and gave me a coy, teasing smile that made my heart dance.

It was like this girl a bomb in my heart, and each smile was closer to detonating it, unleashing all of the pent-up emotions that have been building from the second she walked into that airport bar in Denver.

As she turned away from me, and strutted up the stairs towards our bedroom for the week, my eyes lingered on her fleeting body, and decided that her grey leggings would be the death of me.

…

"So, Percy," Fredrick Chase met my eyes trough the rearview of the minivan that he was driving. Annabeth took the front seat, and I cramped my long legs into the back. "Have you ever been to San Francisco?"

My eyes met his in the mirror, and then I looked out back to look over they bay, that was still covered in a layer of fog.

"I drove through here when I had a ski comp in Tahoe, which is only like three hours away. But I haven't ever had the time to explore here. Is that the Golden Gate Bridge?" I asked as the red structure that stretched across the harsh ocean water came into view.

Annabeth laughed and turned around to face me. "Yeah it is Percy. Not as impressive as the internet makes it out to be huh?"

"I still think it's pretty damn gorgeous." I said while maintain eye contact with Annabeth, before looking back at the structure.

Fifteen minutes later we were parking into a cramped spot, and exiting the car. The wharf was decorated with small Christmas trinkets, reminding me that in two days it would be Christmas time, and I was spending it in a houseful of strangers.

I guess it wouldn't be the worst Christmas setting. Three years ago, after a bad fight with my mom and Paul, I refused to fly back to New York, and spent the entirety of Christmas eve until noon on Christmas day drinking, and blacked out. I woke up on Christmas with three girls I didn't recognize, on the couch in my apartment. That was when I was at my lowest point in my life, before my desire for gold fueled me to shift my focus from drugs and girls, to training and my progress.

I felt a dainty hand grab my own, and give it a gentle squeeze. I looked down to the blonde angel at my side, and admired the way her natural curls fell down her back. She laced our finger together, and I noticed her dad a couple steps ahead of us, leading us to a great lunch restaurant.

"Are you all good?" Annabeth asked me in a soft voice. "You left me for a second."

I gave her a soft smile. "I'm perfect. Looking forward to some clam chowder."

She laughed and gave my hand a slight tug and we increased our pace to catch up to Fredrick, and conversation about the Wharf, the food, and other trivial matters flowed. He talked about his work as a history professor at San Francisco State, and some funny stories with his students, and when I told him I never went to college, instead of receiving an awkward stare or a condescending lecture, like I so often got when mentioning this fact to adults, he continued the conversation with a question about skiing.

Annabeth's eyes were bright and her face was beaming throughout the entire lunch date, as Fredrick and I created a bond, and she rekindled hers with him. The father daughter duo recalled their trip to Peru when Annabeth was 8, and funny stories.

For the entirety of lunch, Annabeth's hand was float from resting on my knee, as if for extra comfort, to up in the air as she used grand hand gestures to describe her stories.

…

Following lunch the three of us walked around Fisherman's Wharf, admired and sea lions and funky people of San Francisco, and allowed Fredrick to do some last-minute Christmas shopping.

By the time we arrived back at the Chase mansion, it was nearing six in the evening, and after greeting the rest of the family, the conclusion was made that everyone would be on their own for dinner, and we would reconvene for a game of cards later.

The large mash of a family all tinkered off to different crevices of the huge house that I was yet to explore, due to the fact that I was scared to leave the safe zone of Annabeth's room. The house was huge, so I imagined there had to be a nice office and probably a movie theater and knowing Mr. Chase I wouldn't be surprised if there was a room dedicated to his passion for history.

Once Annabeth and I were left alone, she turned to me with a devious smirk on her face. "Want to go in the hot tub? I'll get some wine."

My own face lit up. Annabeth in a swimsuit. Yes. A hot tub. Yes. Wine. Although I was more of a beer person, yes.

I said a quick thanks to whatever god was listening that I packed a swimsuit for the intended journey to New York. Thinking of New York, I made the split decision to call my mom again tonight, along with Grover, to check up on Blackjack, and any other gossip in Aspen.

I looked back to give Annabeth confirmation, but she was already up the stairs, saying "I get to change first" and flipping me off while slamming the door shut. What an angel.

After ten minutes of me making small talk about Colorado with Fiona, the model who somehow knew more about me than Annabeth did, and the very pregnant Sarah, I felt a hand at the small of my back, and immediately felt the comforting presence of Annabeth.

I spun around to face her, and my eyes did a quick once over of her body, even thought my mind was screaming at them to remain focused on her eyes.

Fuck I need to get laid….

"Go change you doofus," she said and leaned closer to me to whisper in my ear her next statement, "And stop checking out the taken ladies." Her eyes glanced back over to Sarah and Fiona.

Before I had a chance to defend myself, she was shoving me towards the stairs.

Oh man if only she knew who my attention was really on.

…

"Fuck this feels good," I said as I slipped my stiff body that was used to being enclosed in a brace into the hot tub.

I had a hot tub on the deck in my apartment in Aspen, and until today, I thought that nothing would be better than sitting in my hot tub as it snowed after a long day of skiing. As I watched Annabeth's body carved by Jesus himself, covered in a teal bikini, slide into the water, I realized that sharing any hot tub with Annabeth was better than me sitting in mine alone.

Annabeth let out a moan as she followed me into the warm, bubbling water. Once she realized the noise that came from her mouth, she blushed beet red.

I laughed at her, and poured us two full glasses of wine from the expensive bottle that Whitney gave to us. She settled next to me, and her leg was lightly touching mine, sending waves of electricity up my entire body. How did she mange to do this to me?

"Cheers to us," she said and lifted her glass.

"Last time we did this, we were participating in a 'whose life sucks more contest' if I remember correctly," I said with a laugh as I clinked my glass with hers and took a sip.

After swallowing the expensive aged wine, appreciating the way it flowed down my throat., I spoke up again. "I think I am still in the lead for that one. Your family hasn't been bad at all."

"Oh you just wait. The fangs will be shown at some point. It just feels like the calm before the storm. Bobby and Matthew haven't really started talking about work yet. But you're right, having you here as my decoy has made it so different. Last Christmas I spent almost every night alone in my room, crying myself to sleep. Pathetic, I know."

She stared off into a corner of the yard, while slowly sipping her wine.

I let her think, waiting for her to say something else on the topic. I wanted her to be vulnerable with me. To continue to open up.

Instead she said, "It seems like so long ago that we were just strangers in the airport bar. In reality, that was just three days ago. That doesn't even seem right..." Her voice trailed off at the end.

"Some bonds don't take years to form. When a connection like ours is made, time isn't a factor," I replied.

We stayed in silent for a minute or two, sipping our wine. Suddenly, Annabeth stood and moved her body to where she was sitting right next to me, almost on my lap. She gently placed her head on my bicep, sliding her body lower into the water, but keeping her glass of wine in her hand.

"Percy, I'm scared."

I moved the arm that she was laying on, and snaked it around her shoulders, so her head was now laying on my chest.

I wanted to ask what she was scared of, but instead I decided that I would allow her to speak her mind when she was ready.

"I'm here for you angel."

Slowly, she straightened her body so my arm fell off from her side, and I was immediately hit with a sense of confusion and slight hurt. Was that not the right response?

Annabeth set her glass on wine down on the side of the hot tub, and did the thing I was least expecting her to do.

It all happened so fast, but seeming in slow motion all at the same time.

Annabeth threw a leg over my body, so she was straddling me. My own limbs seemed to move on their own, and my arms wound themselves around her small waist, holding her in place. She raised her hands, wet from the water, and set one on my shoulder, running it from my collar bone to my bicep in a slow, taunting motion, and the other came to cup my chin.

We made eye contact for a brief second, before her lips came crashing down on mine.

The moment our lips came into contact, my heart exploded and my head turned to mush. I couldn't think logically, but all I knew was that this felt right.

The kiss quickly escalated, and our mouths were soon moving slowly against one another, our tongues meeting in the middle, preforming a sexy dance with one another. The kiss was so perfect it almost felt rehearsed, but in reality, it was the furthest thing from that.

I kept one of my hands firmly holding her tiny waist under the water, and raised the other one to cup her cheek, admiring how soft her skin felt compared to my calloused hand.

Annabeth's two small hands ended up at the nape of my neck, playing with my slightly wet hair.

Unfortunately, after eternity seemed to pass by, Annabeth gently pulled her lips away from mine, and rested her forehead against my own, with her eyes shut.

I wanted to say something to break the silence, but my mind was still mush from the kiss, and I didn't trust my heart to control the speaking. If that were the case, I would definitely start blubbering nonsense about my feelings that would terrify both Annabeth and myself.

Finally, with her forehead still resting on mine, and her two legs still on each side of my waist, straddling me, she whispered, "When I'm with you, everything is better. I want to make the most of this time we have together; no barriers."

I lifted my own lips into a soft smile. "That sounds amazing to me."

A/N: There it is! They finally kissed! Hopefully it was what you all wanted to read. From here, their relationship will only pick up, and the scenes will develop into a PG-13 rating, just a heads up.

Updating this one from an airport in Vegas, so I had some inspiration. ;)

Please please leave a review for me. I don't want to ask for a certain number of reviews on a chapter before the next update, but it would be encouraging to see more.