A/N: See, I told you I could upload faster. Here is a brand new chapter! This one was giving me problems for a bit, but I like the way it turned out. Let me know what oyu think! As always, read, review, and enjoy!


Chapter Seven

Octavia had drawn him in with her smile. Lincoln could still remember the first time he'd seen her. She'd been flying out of the building, tugged along as Finn rushed to get her away from the party. Her long golden brown hair flew out behind her and her face split into a breathtaking smile as she let out that magical laugh of hers. He knew at that moment that he needed her in his life. It had been a light switch, an instant connection that he knew he couldn't live without. He didn't even know then that he would fall in love with her; he just knew he needed her energy, her smile, everything about her to light up his life.

He wanted to channel that feeling into his vows, but he had what he could only assume was writer's block. He couldn't seem to find the words to describe how he felt about her, let alone the words that would forever cement their relationship. Sighing out a breath of temporary defeat, Lincoln decided to head down to the kitchen for a midnight snack. The caterer knew he was spending the week in a separate room from Octavia, and she had been nice enough to offer him late night access to the kitchen when he was lonely or frustrated. She had winked at him after that, and he knew he liked the girl. And not just because she was letting him sneak extra food. She was impish and cute… and she kind of reminded him of Jasper.

Heading down to the kitchen, Lincoln rubbed a hand over his face. He had just a few days left to finish writing and memorize his vows, and here he was just struggling to figure out how to start.

He was so wrapped up in his own thoughts that he almost bowled over the person walking in the opposite direction. He looked up to apologize, opened his mouth, and then noticed who he was looking at. And he shut his mouth.

"Lincoln," Atom smirked at him. "A little lonely, are we?"

"I was heading out to get some food. Octavia usually doesn't let me eat in the middle of the night, so I'm taking advantage of it while I can." He tried to make his tone light and easy and as not confrontational as possible. But Atom rubbed him the wrong way, and—for a man who prided himself on his emotional control—made him want to actually hurt the man.

"Of course. A week of celibacy is bound to make a guy hungry. Sure you're not out looking for another girl who will let you into her room for the night?" That smirk grew.

Lincoln's blood boiled. "First of all, Octavia and I sleep in the same bed every night except this week. And I can guarantee you we have enough sex to keep us both thoroughly satisfied. Second of all, I have no interest in anyone but Octavia, and that is why I'm marrying her. And I think it's also part of the reason she's marrying me. She doesn't like men who stray." Of course, it wasn't hard to tell that was a pointed comment. Atom had made a point to check out other girls during the week, especially when he knew Octavia was watching. Lincoln didn't know what the other man was up to, but he was keeping an eye on the situation.

"Why wouldn't I want her to see me with other women? She needs to know that I'm still as attractive and wanted as I used to be." Lincoln might not have known what Atom was up to, but he had the sickening feeling that he was about to find out.

"And why would she need to know that?"

"So she can realize what a mistake she's made agreeing to marry you and come back to me." Lincoln had to hand it to him, the guy had balls. They just happened to be balls he wanted to kick at the moment.

"The fact that you think she would do that just proves you don't know her at all." It was a weak comeback, but it was all he had with the rage flowing through him. And he refused to analyze the little part of him that felt fear.

"I will have her back by the end of this week. I don't care if she leaves you at the altar, she will be with me."

Lincoln was a man of few words. But he typically made those words count. "Octavia is going to be my wife because she loves me. She does not do anything she doesn't want to do. If she wanted to be with you, she would be." He almost smiled at the look of shock on Atom's face. Had he just expected Lincoln to roll over and hand him his fiancée?

"I stand by what I said," Atom said, recovering from his momentary surprise. "She will be with me by the end of the week." He walked away, leaving Lincoln confused and hungry.

The hunger drew him out of his thoughts when his stomach growled. He couldn't stand in the hallway all night. He needed to get a snack and then finish writing his vows. Because if he was honest with himself, he would do anything to keep Octavia from being with Atom. He knew he had spoken the truth when he said Octavia didn't do anything she didn't want to, but he was human. There was a part of him that was terrified at the idea of losing her, and though it was small, it was powerful. He needed to write some romantic vows to prove to her that she was the one he wanted and he loved her more than anything else in the world.

Lincoln made his way down to the kitchen, still deep in thought. He was trying to shake his conversation with Atom out of his mind, but he couldn't help picturing the confident look on Atom's face when he talked about Octavia being with him. The man was positive that she would return to him, and that made Lincoln nervous. Maybe Atom knew a side of Octavia that he'd never seen. Maybe they shared a deeper connection because they had known each other longer.

He wasn't usually an insecure man. But he knew that he wasn't most women's ideal man. Despite the fact that he was much more financially stable than he was when they first met, he sometimes wondered why she was with him. He couldn't be suave and charming at dinner parties, he had no interest in most academic conversations or politics. He was a smart man, but his talents lay in the military and private security. He had street smarts to spare, and he'd done well enough in school, but talking for hours and hours on end just wasn't his style. He could never tell what it was that had kept her with him, but he knew he couldn't just be average if he wanted to remain her fiancé.

He felt a surge of energy rush through him and turned around. He didn't need a snack to write his vows. He knew exactly what he was going to say.


The man's sweat was even sexy. Why did he have to be so damn sexy? Clarke knew he wasn't stripping off his shirt for her, that would be insanity. But it sure felt like it was personal. And she hated that she was noticing.

He'd always been attractive in an annoyingly perfect way, but it had never mattered to her before this trip. She'd never found herself wanting to lick the drop of sweat trailing down his abs or squeeze his shoulders to find out if they were as solid as they looked. It had always just been another part of Bellamy that had infuriated her.

"Ready to head back?" Bellamy's voice broke into her thoughts, and she glanced in his direction. But not directly at him, because then she'd be back in fantasyland where she'd started. She noticed he was packing up the remnants of their lunch into his backpack. Deciding to break herself out of this funk, she pushed herself up to her feet.

"Yep. Race ya." And she took off, running as fast as she could as she went downhill and avoided the trees and rocks in the woods. She heard him swear behind her and laughed as she made her way down the hill. She couldn't help the smile that surfaced as she ran. She loved a challenge, and even more, she loved challenging Bellamy. They were the two most competitive people she knew.

All of a sudden, he was next to her, grinning at her as he passed her. Frowning, she upped her pace and tried to catch up with him. She watched as the backpack bounced on his back as he ran. His silver basketball shorts were slipping lower and lower on his hips as he ran. He torso, gloriously bare, flexed and twisted as he navigated the descent. She could be satisfied with this view even if she didn't win the race.

And she didn't. She finally broke out of the trees and found him leaning against a rock. He didn't even look like he was breathing hard, damn it. He grinned at her, and she was sure he was amused by how much of a drowned rat she looked like.

"Welcome back, Princess. Would you like a bottle of water?" She glared at him. This was the Bellamy she knew. And was annoyed by. She could handle annoyance. It was way better than constantly noticing his body and wondering if he was noticing hers.

Clarke snagged the water bottle he held out for her and rolled her eyes at his smirk. Heaven, she thought as she took a sip of the cold liquid. She wasn't sure how he'd managed to keep it so cold, but it was refreshing.

"You know, the next time you want me to take my shirt off, all you have to do is ask." Bellamy's smirk deepened and Clarke choked on her water.

"You think that's what this was about?" She sputtered.

"I know you like looking at my body. It's okay to admit it." She knew he was teasing, but she was not about to give him the satisfaction of knowing he was right.

"You wish."

She could have sworn he murmured something under his breath, but she couldn't tell what it was. Probably something about how infuriating she was. "We should head back. We need to check on the car before the shop closes for the night. They said we might be able to get back on the road by tomorrow."

For some reason, that didn't sit well with her. Maybe it was the idea of being in a car with him for another few days. Maybe it was because, despite the weirdness, she wanted to see where she and Bellamy could go. She knew that would probably never happen, but as much as she tried to not to, she wanted to know what could happen between them. "Yeah, let's head back."


Bellamy could feel some weird energy passing between them. She wasn't uninterested like she usually was. It wasn't that she was suddenly fawning all over him, but she seemed almost unsure of insulting him. Maybe him saving her from a snake bite had had an effect on her. Maybe she was finally realizing he wasn't a terrible guy.

She might be realizing all of that, but that didn't mean she was starting to see him in a new light. She'd been adamant about the fact that she hadn't kissed him back because it was him, and it was time he accepted that. Didn't mean he'd stop having dirty dreams about her, but it did mean he'd stop trying to fluster her. For all their bickering, he realized what a great girl she was. Frustrating as hell most of the time, but she was great. She was a children's doctor who worked at a low income clinic. That was approaching sainthood in his book. Especially because Octavia had told him once after a particularly rough fight between he and Clarke that she had passed up a high paying surgeon position at a massive hospital in LA.

And she kept him on his toes. He wouldn't give that up by making things uncomfortable between them. They'd start avoiding each other and that just wouldn't work for him.

They arrived at the mechanic's shop to check on the car. "How's she doing?" Clarke asked.

"Well, we get the part in tomorrow, so we can install it and hopefully have you on the road the next morning."

Bellamy felt relief rush through him. Just because he'd decided not to try and pursue Clarke in a real sense, that didn't mean he didn't want to spend more time with her. He kind of felt like they were in their own little bubble and he didn't want it to pop just yet.

"Wow, okay. That's a day longer than we expected, right?" When she received a nod in response, she turned to look at him. "One of us should call Octavia and let her know."

"I can do it." Bellamy turned and walked away from her, pulling his cell phone out of his pocket. Octavia wouldn't be happy, but she might be pleased to know that the two of them were actually kind of getting along. He dialed her cell phone number and waited.

"Please tell me you're calling me from a car in the middle of nowhere," She said when she answered the call.

"You're half right. I'm in the middle of nowhere." His sister groaned. "I know, but we just found out they'll get the part tomorrow, so we can be on the road the morning after that. We'll be there in time for the rehearsal dinner."

"So I don't have to actually murder you."

"No, you don't. And you might be interested to know that we're actually getting along. Kind of."

"What does that mean?"

"Well, neither of us are dead in a ditch. And I saved her from a snake bite earlier today. I think she finally appreciates that I'm not trying to ruin her life."

"Do you finally appreciate that she doesn't think you're the bane of her existence?"

"She hasn't mentioned that, so no, I didn't. But she hasn't been as mean to me as she usually is, so I figured something was up."

"I'm telling you, the two of you would be great friends. Give her a legitimate shot."

"I am. She's the one that doesn't want anything to do with me. Tell her to lighten up."

"I'm done talking to you right now. Be nice to her. Get here soon. I'll see you."

The call was over immediately after that, so Bellamy pocketed his cell phone. He'd never thought Octavia would be a bridezilla, but he was pretty sure that's what a bridezilla sounded like. She had a point though. He should at least extend the olive branch. Then he could say he'd done everything he could to be friends with her.