A/N: Thank you to Belhavenontap, dragonzfire718, A Hotter Kiss A Better Touch, ivyshortcake, archerlove, Sith Happens, Veritas rose, Angel Black1, WWESupernatural102292, and alandava. I love all of your reviews and am so glad you are enjoying the story so far. I apologize for the delay in getting this chapter out- my grandmother came down from Connecticut to see the Cherry Blossom Festival in D.C., so I was occupied most of last week.

Love,

MBA

Chapter Four

Murphy was dozing lightly in the oversized recliner as Connor watched Platoon rapturously on the big TV. Even with all the background noise of the movie, the click of the lock and the shuffle of feet in the hallway had him sitting up at attention.

When the door swung inward, his first reaction was to dive for the holster by the coffee table. Murphy's second reaction was to lunge to his feet and shout, "Da! Yer early!" with glee.

A minute smile tugged at Da's mouth as he watched his grown sons scramble over and around furniture to get to him as if they were toddlers again. When Connor crushed him in a delighted hug and Murphy wrapped his arms around them both with a whoop, Jack MacManus allowed himself a brief laugh. It was rusty even to his own ears, but damn- it was good to see his boys again. God-given missions were noble, but he would always regret the gaping holes in his knowledge of his family's lives and his sons' upbringing. Someday, Annabelle would box his ears with an empty bottle or an ashtray for everything he'd missed and he'd let her, because he deserved it.

After a rapid-fire burst of questions and a quick meal of plain pasta, Da settled back in the recliner Murphy insisted he take and folded his hands on his belly. "Detective Dolly may be Greek, but he must have a bit o' Italy in his blood- he drives like the very Devil is on his heels. Said he had ta get back for his son's basketball game or his wife would kill him." He let out an enormous yawn. "Lord, but I'm tired. The good detective told me many things on the drive here, mostly about these murders an' how we've been given a rent-free home for as long as we need. What he didn't tell me was why you boys needed me."

Connor rolled his eyes. "Stop fishin' for compliments, Da, ye know good an' damn well yer better at this sort o' thing than we are. We're needin' yer brain this time around, not yer gun hand." His eyes flickered to the remote on the table between them- if he turned the television on now, he could just catch the end of the movie. Maybe he could convince Da and Murphy to let him buy a few DVDs for the player tucked discreetly in the cabinet below the TV. Die Hard, Apocalypse Now, the whole Death Wish series, maybe even that Band of Brothers set he'd heard so much about-

"Are ye fuckin' deaf?" Murphy threw his lighter at his brother's head. "Wake up, ye idiot. Da asked ye a question." Christ, Connor's mind wandered away more often than a herd of sheep left to their own devices. "He wants ta know why we're wastin' a perfectly good day tomorrow when we could be trackin' down leads. I told him it was yer idea."

That soulless coward- so he was going to pin this on Connor, was he? We'll just see how ye like this, Murphy, ye worm, Connor thought. "Da, would ye want us ta be leavin' a single woman mindin' six kids from bad homes ta do for herself? The lass is knee-deep in work an' sinkin' fast, an' we added ta her worries. Murph an' I are goin' ta pay her back by givin' her a hand. Jes' a spot o' honest work."

Da leaned over and lightly cuffed Murphy on the back of the head. "Ye could have said that easy enough. There's no shame in helpin' those who need it, Murphy." One bushy eyebrow quirked. "Or dinna ye want ta help the lady in question?"

"Aye." Murphy heaved a deep sigh. How had he become the bad guy? And here he'd thought he'd have a bit of fun at Connor's expense. "O' course I want ta help her. I jes' wish she'd be a little more grateful." Sure, Katie was grateful to Connor- she had smiles and laughs for him, but Murphy got those disapproving little frowns and sharp words. She could at least try to be nice to him, dammit. She was pretty- hell, if she gave him one good smile he'd probably melt at her feet, but no, no smiles for Murphy.

Connor dissolved into laughter. It took him several tries to gasp out, "Oh, I'm sure ye want her ta be real appreciative, Murph. Ye want her ta bat those big blue eyes o' hers an' maybe take ye aside for a proper thankin'." Still laughing, he took the kick Murphy aimed at him. Seeing the dull red creep up his brother's neck as their father looked on with amusement was well worth one little bruise.

Saturday dawned grey and cold with fat snowflakes falling thicker all the time, a not-uncommon occurrence for a Massachusetts' December. When Katie shuffled out onto the porch in her favorite red robe and matching slippers to fetch the Boston Herald, she noted with surprise that there was already several inches of snow on the ground. By the look of the sky, much more was on the way, so she and the kids would spend a cozy morning inside making pancakes and arguing about who had what chores to do. When the front doorbell rang, it took them all by surprise.

Matthew and Russell, her eight year old twins, chorused, "We'll get it!" as they raced out of the kitchen. Several minutes passed before one of them bellowed, "Katie? Two guys are here to see you!"

Looking at the clock, Katie bit back a curse. It was nine in the morning, her head ached and she hadn't even had a chance to shower yet. When the MacManuses said they'd stop by after Mass, she didn't think they'd meant this early. Wasn't Mass at like ten a.m. or something? She was still wearing her nightgown and robe, for God's sake. There was no hope for it. She didn't have time to dash upstairs and throw on clothes. "Coming!"

The first thing Connor and Murphy saw when the door was thrown open was two identical freckled faces with suspicious green eyes taking their measure. "Yeah?" said one with a good deal of bravado. "What d'ya want?"

"Mornin'." Murphy smiled and dropped to his haunches in front of the boys, snow drifting down from his hair at the movement. "We're here ta see Katie, and ye must be the twins she was talkin' about. Strappin' lads, aren't they, Conn?"

The urge to grin at the boys was nearly overpowering. They were standing shoulder to shoulder in the doorway in the very same pose he and his brother had adopted since they could walk. Connor nodded solemnly and stuck out his hand. "Oh, aye, right little men o' the house. Me name's Connor an' this is me brother Murphy. Ye got ta be making the acquaintance o' people before allowin' them near yer womenfolk."

Matt took the blond guy's hand. He liked how they assumed he and Russ were the men of the house. "You sound like the guys from the Guinness commercials."

Russ elbowed his brother, jostling him over to grip hands with Connor next. "They're not English, dummy, they're Scottish. Geez."

A long beat passed as Murphy and Connor locked gazes and struggled not to laugh. "Aye, the timorous beastie has a point."

Murphy groaned. "Lord, spare me from such a sad sense o' humor. Rabbie Burns? What, is he the only Scotsman ye can think o', ye dunce?" Shaking his head, he turned and shook each boy's hand. "Can we be speakin' wi' Katie, please?"

Russ and Matt shared a smile before one shouted, "Katie? Two guys are here to see you!"

Connor grinned as Katie came down the hall, wrapped to the chin in an eye-searing bright red housecoat and ridiculous red bunny slippers with her hair streaming around her in a brown curtain that had clearly not seen a brush yet this morning. Lord, if he knew the woman better, he'd fall down laughing, but he figured she'd just slam the door in their faces if he did. "Aren't we a cheery sight this fine snowy mornin'?" Laughter bubbled just beneath the surface.

"Go finish your orange juice and wash your glasses," Katie admonished with a hand on each boy's shoulder. At the matching groans, she ruffled two heads of sandy blond hair. "Go on. Give me any trouble and you'll be helping Jeremy do laundry today." Those were apparently the magic words, for the boys scampered off without a backwards glance. She secured a hand around the robe at her neck and gave them an embarrassed smile. "I didn't think you'd be by quite so early."

Murphy was just itching to take a swipe at the monstrosities she had on her feet and had to chew on his thumb to not say anything. When she looked at him expectantly, he muttered around his thumbnail, "We went ta the early service."

Katie had the strongest urge to slap his hand away from his mouth like he was one of her kids. "I can't understand you with your hand halfway down your throat." She was tired, and perhaps her words were a bit sharper than she'd intended, but it was a horrible habit for a grown man to have. Still, she probably owed him an apology. "Sorry. I didn't mean to snap your head off."

"It didn't stop ye from doin' so." Murphy couldn't help the surly words that slipped out unbidden. If she'd only keep her tongue behind her teeth, he might take Connor's advice and see if she was up for a little fun, but no- she wanted to lecture him like he was naughty child. What a waste of a good-looking woman.

Biting his lips, Connor shifted his gaze from Katie to Murphy, who looked like he wanted to pick up the woman and chuck her headfirst out into the snow. Finally, he managed to wave at her outfit. "Would ye like us ta come back later?" It was hard, but he swallowed the laugh trying to bubble up into his throat. She was nice and quite pretty in a cute, youthful sort of way, which made Murphy's very juvenile reaction to her all the more hilarious. He could practically see the sparks they struck off one another, but if the idiot wanted to take his sweet time getting around to the courting, then Connor would buy a bowl and some popcorn to enjoy with the show. And maybe now and then he'd give one or the other a small push. Starting this morning, he thought with relish. Definitely a tiny bit of meddling was required this morning.

She swept the door wide and gathered her wits, willing her headache to subside. They were here and offering to work, something she was incredibly appreciative of- Murphy's ability to annoy her notwithstanding. Best to just get over her embarrassment at being caught looking like this. "Brush that snow off and come on in out of the cold. I don't think I can afford to heat the neighborhood much longer." As they slapped a good amount of snow off their black pea coats and shook yet more out of their hair, Katie peered past them to the street. No car. "You walked?" she asked in disbelief. "In this weather?"

"Our magic carpet is out o' order," Murphy replied as he stomped his boots to knock off the slush. "Besides, it was a nice peaceful walk from St. Mark's."

Her eyes widened in disbelief. "St. Mark's is two or three miles from here." Unbelievable. "And no hats or gloves on either of you. You'll be lucky if you don't catch your death."

"Yes, Ma," they sang, identical looks of exasperation on their faces.

Men, Katie thought. They were all idiots, and they all had delusions of invincibility. Pointing a finger down the hall as she closed the door behind them, she put on her best motherly tone. "In the kitchen and I'll pour you some hot coffee. You can warm up while I go throw some clothes on and get everything together."

Connor lost his battle with laughter at that point. "An' deprive us o' that bit o' high fashion frippery?" His blue eyes were dancing.

She turned and drilled a finger in his chest. "Listen up, MacManus, you may be helping me out today, and you may be slightly amusing, but you sure as hell don't get to mock my clothes when you show up at nine o'clock in the morning -unannounced- on the weekend." Katie deflated a bit when he apologized immediately.

"I didn't mean ta insult ye, Katie." The lopsided smile he offered her was tentative. "It's jes' that I feel like we've known ye forever an' I forget we're practically strangers ta ye. Me mouth starts firin' like we've been friendly for years."

How do you stay mad after an apology like that? The truth was that she felt the same. After she'd decided they posed no threat to her or the kids the other night, she'd felt comfortable with these men. And Ned's friend Artie thought the MacManus boys hung the moon. Katie followed her instincts now and wrapped her arms around Connor in a brief hug. "It's all right; I'm just not really awake yet. After the kids finish eating I usually sit down with a pot of coffee and the paper and take an hour to myself." She gave Murphy a pat on the arm. "Come on. You both feel like blocks of ice."

As Murphy swung through the kitchen door, three girls at the table looked up. Dhurata's black eyes sailed right past him to land on Connor, who was smirking hard enough to get a cramp. The girl turned pink and let out a strangled shriek before scrambling to her feet and zipping past the three adults.

A blonde, the older of the two girls still sitting, eyed the newcomers with interest. "I haven't seen Dhurata move that fast since Katie found her frenching Marcus Johnson on the front porch after curfew. Who are these two cuties?"

God save her from teenage girls. Not for the first time, Katie wondered if she was way in over her head with this brood. She hooked a thumb over her shoulder. "Molly, Lucy, these are the MacManus brothers. Murphy's the dark one and Connor's the blond. They're doing us a favor today by helping out with the chores I can't get you all to lift a finger on."

Lucy raised her hands. "Hold on there, O Disapproving One. I'm pregnant. I can't be lifting stupid furniture or changing tires."

Shaking a head of riotous strawberry blonde curls, the younger girl threw a crust of toast at Lucy. "I'm Molly. Nice to meet you guys. Don't pay attention to Luce; she's milking this baby thing dry."

"I am not!"

"You are so!"

Katie scrubbed her hands over her face. "Enough, you two! Go find something to do. Read a book. Watch television. Better yet, clean your room before it starts spontaneously generating small rodents." When they cleared out, she dropped into a chair with a sigh. A moment later, a steaming mug was pushed into her hands.

"Ye looked like ye needed it," Murphy said with a self-conscious frown.

She wrapped her fingers around the coffee and gave him a grateful smile. "Thanks. I love them all, but man, they wear you out." A deep pull from the mug had her feeling a little better and when she tried to stand, Murphy pressed her back down gently.

His fingers slipped on the hair trailing over her shoulder and lingered for a split second longer than necessary. He'd forgotten how silky a woman's hair could be when it wasn't gunked up with sprays and such. Jesus, her hair was long. He wanted to run his hand the length of that shining mass just once. Murphy blinked slowly. What the hell was wrong with him? "We can get our own. Ye jes' stay there an' catch yer thoughts."

Quietly filling two mugs at the counter, Connor watched the interaction with a small smile. There was the Murphy he knew and women loved. He slid his brother a cup and went to stare out the back door. If he was going to meddle here, he had to give them some time alone. "I'm jes' goin' ta nip out back for a smoke." He waved Murphy away. "Keep the lady company."

She looked tired, Murphy thought as he studied her covertly. The freckles stood out on her pale skin like beacons and she had deep purplish circles beneath her eyes. "Did ye not sleep well, then?"

The question made her jolt, sloshing coffee out onto her hand. "Do I look that hideous?" Katie glanced down at her attire before moping up the spill with a handful of napkins. "Nevermind. Don't answer that."

A surge of sympathy made Murphy reach out and clasp her hand without thought. "Ye look fine, Katie. Connor was jes' playin' earlier." When she raised startled blue eyes to his, he quickly withdrew his hand. "Ye jes' look like ye could use a few more hours abed."

Katie laughed. "I haven't had more than three or four hours a night in weeks. I haven't survived on that little sleep in years. It was a hell of a lot easier when I was twenty."

He sat silently as she pulled her hair back into a ponytail and gave her robe an absent smoothing. "Why aren't ye sleepin'?" he asked finally.

"Insomnia. Dhurata missing curfew and her family problems. The twins had the flu. Worrying about accommodating a pregnant sixteen year old and convincing her that adoption is a better solution than abortion." She heaved a sigh. "A billion things to worry about means that there's usually a good reason to be staring at my ceiling at two in the morning. I've started cleaning lately so I'm at least being productive."

Christ. Murphy was suddenly glad he was only responsible for himself and his brother- Da had always been able to take care of himself. The worst thing he had to worry about until they got a lead on Smecker's case was whose turn it was to go out to buy cigarettes and beer for the night. "Ma always used ta say that a hot bath an' a few swigs o' whisky were the best cures for sleeplessness. Ye ought ta try it."

She snorted and took a long sip of coffee. "Drink myself into a stupor, maybe. I've tried hot baths, warm milk, boring books, everything." Katie shrugged and rubbed at her eyes with the heels of her hands, muffling her words. "Eventually I'll get so worn-out that I'll pass out from sheer exhaustion. Until then, it's gallons of tea and coffee and cold showers in the morning for me."

"That's not healthy." Murphy cocked his head. "Ye look like a smart woman, Katie, but that's the dumbest fu-freakin' plan I've ever heard."

"I know. Trust me, I know, but there's really no alternative at this point." Reaching out, she laid her hand on his arm. "Thanks for listening."

Connor watched through the little window in the door as his brother covered her hand on his arm with his fingers. "Atta boy, Murph."

The snow continued to fall steadily as Katie, Murphy and Connor unloaded the new furniture from the truck Mr. Ott across the street had loaned her.

Brushing snow out of her eyes, Katie heaved a sigh and ran her hands over the peeling green paint of one nightstand. "I wanted to clean and strip these, but there's no way we can do it in this weather." She checked her watch. "It's almost lunch time anyway. If you two can help me get all of this down into the basement, I'll make you some sandwiches before you go."

Murphy hefted one of the small nightstands, shifting the weight until he got it balanced. "Ye don't need ta feed us. We'll stop for somethin' on the way home."

Pushing pieces of disassembled bed frames down towards the tailgate of the truck, Connor nodded in agreement. "Murphy's right. We're here ta help ye. Don't ye have anything else that needs doin'?"

She started to protest, but thought better of it. Even though she barely knew them, Katie intuitively understood that they'd argue and fuss unless they thought they'd done their share. "Except for the floodlight on the front porch, there's really nothing else that I can't do myself or have the kids help with, but if you insist, there's a few things inside I was going to do today."

"Like what?" Murphy followed her to the exterior cellar doors and cautiously made his way down the steps.

The change from the grey day to the dim cellar was marked, and Katie was forced to prop the footboard she carried against the wall to go hunt around for the string to the overhead light bulb. After bumping into Murphy for the second time, she jumped when his warm fingers closed over the nape of her neck.

Murphy juggled the small bureau and reached out when she walked into him for the second time. "Are we playin' blind tag or are we lookin' for somethin'?" The jolt of surprise he got out of her when his hand settled on her neck was gratifying, and his voice dropped as warmth spread through his gut. Maybe it was the darkness around him that emboldened him, but Murphy thought it was probably their conversation at the table earlier. She'd softened towards him, even if only a little. He drew his fingers across the soft skin below her ponytail. "Because I'm not entirely averse ta playin' a game wi' ye, Katie."

Skittering away from him, Katie tried to collect herself. "Light bulb," she muttered and, by a stroke of luck, the string she was looking for brushed against her face. The feather light touch felt too much like the caress of Murphy's fingers on her neck and she shuddered as she switched the light on. He was standing where she'd left him, a considering look in his eyes. "What?" she demanded, struggling not to blush. He wasn't a big man, but his shoulders were surprisingly broad. He took up entirely too much space in the cluttered cellar. Even with a few feet between them, it felt like he was too close.

"Nothin'." His voice was mild. "Jes' wonderin' what I did ta set ye so on edge." Looking around, he set the night stand in a clear space and took a step closer to her.

Katie sucked in a breath as he advanced on her slowly, but she stood her ground. When his hands came up and hesitated over her shoulders, she tipped her head back to look at him. "What are you doing?"

She hadn't run from him or started in on him verbally, which was an excellent sign as far as Murphy was concerned. When he cupped her shoulders gently, she tilted her face back, waiting. Making his decision, Murphy bent his head and-

"Are ye two goin' ta help me wi' these headboards or am I goin' ta have ta stand out here until I'm covered in enough snow for the kids ta stick a carrot on me nose and call me Frosty?"

Katie jumped back as Connor's question floated down the stairs, the spell broken. Good Lord, had she almost let him just kiss her? What was she, sixteen again? She shook her head and scrambled for the footboard she'd propped against the wall. "Coming!" she shouted.

Murphy trudged up the stairs behind her, silently promising himself that he'd piss in Connor's coffee the next morning. The bastard's timing was atrocious.

Leaving Connor in the kitchen with Katie to finish their tea and fix the wobbly chairs, Murphy lugged the tool kit Katie had given him to the access panel by the front door. It only took him a few minutes of poking around in the wall to know that the wiring was so bad that it would have to be entirely ripped out and replaced. Well, that was a piece of good news and bad. Good because he'd need several days to do the job properly, meaning more chances to get Katie into a situation like the basement, and bad because the next time someone turned on that light might be the last for this house. "Katie!" he bellowed.

She poked her head out of the kitchen door. "Do you need a hand or something?"

Waving her over, he stepped down off the chair he'd been using to peer into the hole in the wall. "Come here. Ye'll be wantin' ta see this before I blister yer ears."

Curious now, Katie stepped up onto the chair he'd vacated and immediately had to go to tiptoe just to see into the access panel. "Alright, hand me the flashlight and tell me what I'm supposed to be looking at."

Murphy passed her the light and resisted the urge to growl. Oh, she could be all sorts of nonchalant about getting around to this and here she was, a stroke of bad luck away from burning the place to the ground. "How about the very large scorch mark on the wall, for starters?" If he and Connor hadn't come back to help her out- no. Murphy didn't even want to consider that train of thought.

She couldn't see shit because even with the chair, she was too short. Somehow, she didn't think she wanted to undergo the ribbing if she hopped down to grab a phone book. A few more inches and she would be fine, but no, she just had to be the runt of the Fennessy family. Being five foot two just plain sucked sometimes.

"Did ye hear me, Katie? That mark is burnt wood. Every time ye turn this thing on, the wirin' sparks and burns the framin' an' joists a little more. One o' these times, it's goin' ta catch."

Katie looked back down at him. "Can it be fixed? I mean, I could just tell the kids not to use it until it's fixed, right?"

Rubbing a finger over his lower lip in exasperation, Murphy climbed up onto the chair behind her and stuck his arm over her shoulder, pointing at a spot inside the hole. "Sweet Jesus, Katie, look at that mess! What do ye think?"

Oh God. He was pressed to her back, or at least his chest was pressed to her back, and man, was it playing havoc with her senses. Not dating meant she didn't have to deal with all the crap that came of relationships, and a good vibrator took care of the rest, or at least that's what Katie thought. It'd been a long time since she'd felt that liquid pull low in her belly with a real live man right there to tempt her. And oh, was it ever tempting, but she steeled herself against the shot of lust and rose higher on her toes, struggling to see whatever it was he was pointing at. "Um, it's bad?" Can't go wrong with vague, right?

Murphy was about to snap at her when he noticed that her nose was level with the bottom edge of the access hole and realization dawned. She couldn't see a damn thing. He didn't think, just pushed his thigh between her legs and hefted her up with hands around her waist.

Actually squeaking in surprise, Katie froze when Murphy picked her up, and then her breath lodged in her throat. He had her butt braced against his lower belly- she could feel the top of his belt digging into her flesh.

"Should o' said somethin' if ye couldn't see, ye idiot woman," he chided.

She didn't know how she would have reacted –slapped him, turned in his arms and wrapped her legs around his waist, demanded he let her down, run away blushing- but the sight of a large burn mark in the wall caught her attention. "Holy shit!"

Nodding, Murphy readjusted his grip and finally just wrapped his arms around her waist, using his hips and thigh to support most of her weight. "Now ye get it, do ye? Now follow the green and blue wires up ta the top o' the wall."

Katie found the wires and adjusted the flashlight to see where they disappeared at the top of the wall, presumably to go outside. "Okay, got them. What am I looking for?"

"They're stripped, completely stripped. Ye've got bare copper wire inside a wood frame house and bad wirin' at the switch. In short, Katie, yer brewin' the perfect storm o' electrical fires."

She looked over her shoulder at his face. He didn't seem to be having any trouble holding her up. In fact, he looked like he could stand there all day. She tried not to think about where their bodies pressed together. She could think about it later in bed, when she was alone. "But the electrician that came out said it wasn't a big deal."

When he was done rewiring this thing, Murphy was going to have to give careful consideration to getting all the kids out of the house for an hour or two. At the moment, all he wanted was to turn her in his arms and have her wrap those legs around his waist. He'd be the first MacManus to fuck standing up on a chair. Well, at least he thought he would. You never knew in his family. Uncle Seamus was rumored to have been a bit eccentric in his day. Murphy shook his head to clear his thoughts and refocused. "Then he was a first rate moron. This place is a firetrap."

A door overhead slammed and Katie wriggled in his arms. "Put me down," she said quickly, looking up the staircase before turning her eyes back to Murphy, who made no move to put her down.

He grinned at her. "Say 'please'."

Lucy and Dhurata's voices grew louder. Katie pushed at his shoulders. "Please."

Murphy smiled smugly and tightened his grip. "No."

In another second, the girls would turn the corner upstairs and be able to see them like this, and that was the last thing she needed. Oh, he picked a fine time to be obstinate. She resorted to bribery. "Do you like dessert? I make a wonderful pie. Cookies, too. Tarts, cheesecake, you name it. Just put me down!" She hissed the last part and, just as the girls hit the top of the stairs, Murphy swung her neatly over and deposited her on the floor.

He'd eat his boots if she wasn't attracted to him, too, but for some reason, she didn't want her kids to know. All the better. Murphy smiled innocently as the girls passed and looped a friendly arm over Katie's shoulders as they all went into the kitchen. "I love cookies. Ye found the key ta me heart, Katie. I'd sell me brother for a batch o' fresh cooked oatmeal raisin or double chocolate chip cookies."

Connor looked up from where he was putting a freshly sanded leg back on a chair. "Oh, aye, Murph's got a sweet tooth ye wouldn't believe. In fact, he did try ta sell me ta the baker back home when we were lads for a package o' apple tarts. Old Mrs. Brandt said I wasn't worth six tarts, though. Shattered me fragile boyhood ego. Ta this day I can't look at a tart without feelin' a bit down."

Even Dhurata smiled at that.

As always, let me know what you think, please!

-MBA

Edited to add: Okay, I am a shameless Norman Reedus fan and I just watched Deuces Wild for the first time the other night. So- very- hot. Yeah, he does make bad look so delicious. Of course, because I can't seem to watch anything with him in it without writing, I did a one-shot here at FFN called 'Maelstrom' about his character, Marco. I believe it's under Miscellaneous Movies, if anyone's interested in checking it out.

(end shameless self promotion)