Hi everyone, here's chapter 23! I hope you'll enjoy it. Don't forget to review, it's always a pleasure to read your comments. Also, don't hesitate to add me to your story alert so you won't miss the updates! :)


Live normally in a normal life

It had been almost two months since Lucas had arrived in Terra Nova. Taylor had tried as much as he could to accept Lucas back into his life. However, it was still awkward for both of them. They would talk casually about their work but it was not really a discussion. Taylor was too afraid to ask him how he was, how he felt. His son was not close enough to him to answer that kind of questions. He had decided he could get a step closer to him by inviting him for dinner. Not just the two of us of course. He would ask Alexandra to come and to help him with getting his son to accept to come. Taylor would also invite Skye. After all, she had been like a daughter to him and he wanted her to be as close as she was before too. This would be a family dinner. Ready to do it, he left his house, looking for Alexandra. He found her chatting with Damon.

"Why are you asking me to behave myself? I'm not your boyfriend, I don't have to." Alexandra was begging Damon to be nicer to Lucas, for her. She didn't like to use their friendship as leverage but she knew it would work.

"Because I know both of you. And Lucas needs time to adjust here. It would be easier if you were nice to him. Please?" She begged, mimicking a sad puppy dog.

"I'll see what I can do," he sighed. "But I still think he should be the one who listen to you. Not me." She gave him a quick chaste kiss on the cheek to thank him.

"You are marvellous!" She smiled.

"Sorry to interrupt," said a voice from behind them. They both turned to see Taylor, who had probably heard their conversation.

"Commander," Damon nodded.

"Alex, do you have a minute?"

"Sure," she answered, giving Damon an odd look. He shrugged in response, not knowing what it was about.

"Alex, I'd like you and Lucas to come for dinner tonight, at my house. A kind of… family dinner."

"Huh… Yeah! Why not. That would be great," she tried to sound joyous, forcing a smile. She knew Lucas would kill her for her answer. He didn't like to go out and above all if it came to his father. Having him living in Terra Nova was already a big challenge for him. A dinner with his father? Not a chance! "I'll talk to Lucas tonight. Just to be sure he doesn't have something already planned." 'Like killing me for having accepted this invitation too quickly,' she thought to herself.

"Alex, you're off this afternoon. Do whatever you have to do to convince my son to come. I know you can be very persuasive," he winked at her. She smiled at him. Alexandra thought it was a good idea to reunite everybody during dinner, and she liked the challenge of making Lucas come. It did not take long to know what she wanted to do with her free time. She ran to the lab and found Lucas rubbing his beard, working at his desk, focused, as always. He had let his beard grow back, to the delight of Alexandra. She slipped quietly behind him and put her hands on his eyes.

"Guess who has free time?" She whispered sweetly in his ear. He shivered under her touch.

"I hope it's this sexy girl I met the other day at Boylan's," he teased.

"Naughty!" she smacked his shoulder. She turned his chair so he was facing her. She climbed on his legs, her legs on either side. She put her hands in his hair, holding his head. "That is not funny mister Taylor," she shook her head. He moved his face close to hers, stopping nearby. He looked her straight in the eye. She was mesmerized by the deep green of his eyes.

"I thought you were not the jealous type," he smirked.

"I'm not," she quickly replied.

"Such a shame," he teased. "I like it when you're jealous!" His lips reached hers in a searing kiss, his hands pulling her waist closer to him. They kissed hungrily. Alexandra started to move her hips, eliciting a moan from him.

"I have to work," he exhaled unwillingly.

"You work all the time," she gasped between kisses. "I'm sure you can have a break." She whispered. She ran her hands up to his shirt, slowly unbuttoning it. His skin tingled at her warm touch, making him want her more.

"Alex…" he gasped. "I really have to finish this." He gently pushed her away.

"Don't you want me?" She asked, mimicking the same sad puppy face she had done with Damon earlier.

"I do," he sighed, shaking his head.

"Then prove it," she whispered in a suggestive tone in his ear, well aware of the effect she had on him, kissing him again. He broke their kiss, looking deeply at her. Her eyes were full of desire. He couldn't resist it. His hands ran under her shirt, ready to unclip her bra.

"Get a room!" They suddenly heard. They both turned their heads to see Skye.

"Jealous are we?" Lucas teased, a crook smile spreading on his face.

"Get a grip!" She snapped.

"Ok… huh… Why don't you try to be nice to each other?" Alexandra smiled, trying to lighten the mood.

"I'm sorry, I'll come back later," Skye apologized to Alexandra and glared at Lucas, ready to leave.

"Hey Bucket, what did you want?" Lucas called back. He had suddenly remembered that he was supposed to be working.

"It can wait for you to… huh… finish whatever you… were ready to do," she answered, disturbed. She shut the door and left them.

"I don't know what's wrong with that girl," Lucas said naively. "One day she seems fine, the next she acts weirdly."

"Come on, I'm sure you know how attractive you are and how much it dazzles girls!" Alexandra teased. He seemed confused.

"Dazzle?"

"Oh come on, you know how hard it is for girls to resist you? Why do you think most of them accepted you back in Terra Nova so quickly?"

"For my intelligence?" He guessed.

"For your butt!" She chuckled.

"So what you are saying is that I could have whoever I want, is that right?"

"Not really," she said, eyes narrowing, already regretting what she had just said.

"Why am I with you then?" He mocked. She slapped his arm.

"I'm not the kind of girl who envies the others. But I can be jealous if they try to take what's mine. You should be careful!"

"Maybe you could show me how much you want me to be yours then," he flirted, his eyes really suggestive. "So I won't go and see what's going on in the neighbourhood."

"Why do you think nobody has tried to seduce you yet? You're off limits!" She smiled, leaning back to him. "You are my exclusive territory!" She added, her lips reaching his, showing him how much she wanted him. Lucas tightened his arms around her, bringing her closer to him, his hands running down her back, unclipping her bra, already starting to get rid of her clothes. It didn't take long for them to be totally naked. Lucas pushed everything that was on his desk to the floor and lay Alexandra on it. They had quick and rough sex, yet really intense and pleasurable.

Lucas was shirtless, casually eyeing Alexandra buttoning her blouse.

"What?" She asked, smiling. He slowly approached her, gently pushing a lock of her hair behind her ear and took her in his arms.

"You're beautiful," he whispered, his eyes looking deeply at her. Her heart jumped in her chest. She could not stop her heart from racing every time Lucas said that sort of thing. Her hands on his chest enabled her to feel how his heart was beating fast too. She bit her lips, her cheeks blushing, looking at his chest, unable to look at his intense green eyes anymore.

"And I still think you're sexy when you blush," he chuckled, lifting her chin so she would look at him. She took a deep breath, her eyes shut. She opened her eyes to meet his again.

"I feel so alive with you," she confessed, putting her arms around his neck. "I'm so happy with you." He tightened his embrace.

"I feel exactly the same," he murmured, reaching her lips and kissing her. She kissed him back hungrily, pulling him as close as she could. She broke their kiss, smiling.

"Put your shirt on," she chuckled. "I can't behave myself when you're shirtless."

"What's wrong with that?" He smirked.

"Nothing…" She sighed. "Just do it please." She went to the corner of the room where her boots were, grabbing them.

"By the way, why did you have your afternoon off?" Lucas suddenly asked, slipping into his shirt. His question reminded her why she was supposed to be there at first.

"Huh… Your father gave it to me."

"Why would he do that?" He asked, suspicious as Alexandra did not really answer his question.

"Because I'm a good soldier."

"Why?" He insisted, unconvinced by her answer.

"What? You don't think I'm a good soldier enough to have free time?"

"Don't change the subject. Why?"

"So I could spend some time with you."

"Really?" He asked in disbelief.

"Really." She stated. She walked to him and kissed him. "I go back home. When do you think you'll be home?"

"Not late."

"Promise?"

"Promise."

Alexandra was ready to leave the room when she stopped at the door.

"Oh, I completely forgot to tell you something," she lied innocently. "We have been invited tonight. For dinner. At 7. I said yes." She said as casually as possible. Lucas stared at her. He had known she was up to something.

"Who?"

"Your father."

"You're kidding me, right?"

"Nope." She smiled. "I'll wait for you at home," she said, waving goodbye at him.

"No way!" He shouted, as she was already gone.

"See you later at home. Don't be late!" She said loudly from the corridor. She knew Lucas would come. He had promised he would come home early and he had no agenda as an excuse for not coming. Later, Lucas tried to argue with her when he came home but she didn't give him the choice. They arrived at Taylor's house, Lucas pouting next to Alexandra.

"I promised you if it goes bad we could come home earlier. Stop acting like a sulky child!" Alexandra said to Lucas, knocking at the door. Surprise crossed her face when she saw who opened the door.

"Hi Skye," she managed to say. "I didn't know you… That Taylor had…"

"I didn't know either," Skye answered, scowling at Lucas.

"I guess my father trapped all of us here," Lucas smirked, happy to see he was not the only one who had been abused. Alexandra and Skye gave him a dark look. "Not my fault," he scoffed, entering in the house, a cocky smile appearing on his face.

"There you are!" Taylor welcomed them. "I'm glad you came," he added to Lucas, winking discreetly at Alexandra. They all spent the evening trying to be nice and polite to each other. Taylor was well aware of the tension between his guests but tried to make the most of the dinner. Lucas spent the dinner caressing Alexandra under the table, smirking at her attempts to act like nothing was happening. He actually enjoyed this family dinner more than he would have thought. Even if it was not for good reasons. She had forced him to come, now she had to pay for it. Alexandra spent the dinner slapping Lucas' hand, trying to ignore the explicit gaze he was giving her. She talked a lot to avoid thinking about what was happening under the table. Most of the time, she had ended stammering, glaring at Lucas who was pretending not knowing why she seemed upset. Skye thought Alexandra must have been stressed by the dinner. She knew she was talkative, but not that much. She had failed in her mission not to stare at Lucas the whole dinner. She cursed herself for being so weak. She thought his smile was the sexiest she had ever seen. She was upset with herself for having these kind of thoughts. She had to stop it. She had tried to focuse on Taylor instead but it had been useless. At the end of the dinner, Alexandra stood up quickly to go outside and chat with Taylor. Lucas stayed inside and joined Skye in the kitchen. She was washing the dishes. Lucas came next to her and started to help her, drying it.

"I never thought you would be the kind of guy who settles down," she harshly said.

"See, you thought you knew me and yet I still surprise you," he mocked, trying to lighten the mood.

"You are just a felon on release," she snapped.

"A felon who saved your mother's life!" Lucas had succeeded finding a cure for the syncillic fever the week before. Skye had tried to be nice to him since. Yet, she had difficulties to behave herself when he was around. She still had this constant need to be close to him and now she had to be grateful, it was worse. She threw a spoon at his head.

"Wow," he glared at her in pain, rubbing his head.

"Sorry, did it hurt?" She smiled bitter sweetly. He grimaced at her in response.

"You are definitely strange," he said, bemused.

"No I'm not," she stated, annoyed he could think she was weird.

"Yes you are. You are mad at me when I'm nice to you. You are mad at me when I'm not nice to you. What's your problem?"

"I… I don' have any problem. Do I have to remind you what you've done to me in the past? You used me." 'Mate'.

"Do I have to remind you what you've done to me in the past? You shot me twice!" 'Check mate'.

"You were going to kill your father," she tried to argue.

"I know. But I have changed, haven't you noticed?"

Skye looked at him. He seemed to believe what he had said. Yet, she wasn't sure it was the truth.

"Bucket…" He sighed, stepping closer, stopping inches from her. "I am really sorry if I hurt you in the past. It won't happen again," he swore to her, gently brushing her cheeks with his thumb. Skye's face blushed.

"Huh…" She gulped. "Ok…" She said sheepishly.

"Good!" He smiled, stepping away quickly. "Good night!" He said as he walked outside to join his father and Alexandra. Skye let her breath escape. She had been holding her breath from the minute he had called her Bucket. He body was shaking. Having him so close to her was a strange sensation. She had wanted to step closer to him, to touch him. She knew he was sexy and all, but she had a boyfriend. It was stupid, yet she couldn't figure out why she couldn't stop thinking about him, why she wanted to be in his life.

"Are you happy? Did you like playing this little game?" Alexandra asked him on their way back home.

"What game?" He asked innocently, his arm around her shoulders.

"You think you're smart, don't you?" She smacked her hand against his chest.

"Yeah!" He smiled proudly, tightening his arm around her.

"You are definitely not mature!" She chuckled.

"I am! Actually, I made peace with Skye. See, I'm mature now."

"You made peace? What do you mean?"

"I said I was sorry for what I've done to her in the past."

"What did you do to her?" She asked, serious now. Lucas had never talked about Skye before. She didn't even know he had something to be forgiven for. She had never really understood why Skye didn't like him. Well, she knew she had shot him to save Taylor. Yet, Lucas should have been the most angry of the two.

"Nothing. I've been a bit of a jerk. That's all," he answered simply. They were in the front of their house now. "So, you didn't like my game?" He teased, changing of subject, leaning to her, his lips brushing hers, his hands slowly running to her tights.

"Not at all," she challenged him. He pressed his body against hers, kissing her neck. She shivered at the feel of his warm breath on her skin. His hands passed along her waist, slowing down when they reached her belly, caressing up and down with his fingers, making her body shaking. She couldn't deny anymore how much she wanted to play his game. Her hands gripped his shirt, pulling him closer. His lips came back to hers, kissing her greedily. He moved his hands up to her breasts, kneading them, causing Alexandra to moan in pleasure.

"Bedroom?" He panted, eyes half shut, his gaze questioning her. She nodded, freeing one hand to open the door. After they had made love, Lucas fell asleep quickly, unlike Alexandra. She kept in mind Lucas had avoided her questions about Skye. She knew she had to be patient with him. Even this tiny information about Skye had probably cost him a lot to tell. However, she also knew he used to tell her everything. Well, it was what she thought at the time. 'At least, he'd rather say nothing than lie to me' Alexandra comforted herself. Yet, she still had this knot in her stomach that was telling her something was wrong. She tried to wipe this bad feeling away and turned to see Lucas' peacefull face. She put her head on his chest, closing her eyes, trying to sleep. Lucas took her in his arms in his sleep. It reassured her quickly, helping her to fall asleep eventually.