AN: Hello to our new readers, thanks for taking the time to read my story. I promise I am going to try and update more regularly and sooner than every 2 weeks or so. As always thank you for reading, I look forward to you all reading this chapter and letting me know what you think in your reviews!

October 2000

After the events of the party Hartley didn't see Billy for a while, he didn't even show up to collect Frankie's monthly protection payment - one of Marshall's other guys had appeared a couple of days ago. So it was somewhat of a surprise when as she was closing up alone one night the chime above the door rang and a certain Mr Darley was blown in with the bitter November wind.

"We're closed," Hartley clutched her broom and tried to portray a lot more bravery than she felt.

"Should have locked your fucking door," he rasped.

"What do you want?"

He turned from locking the door behind him and drawing the blind over the glass in the door, "I need a little help and I figured you owed me one."

It was then she took a proper look at him - she had noticed his wild blue eyes but now she could see the blood. There was so much of it - in his short hair, smeared across his cheek, on his white shirt, his leather jacket. It was everywhere.

"I can't help if you're hurt," she spoke softly.

He smirked, "It ain't me that's hurting."

"Jesus Christ Billy, I don't see you for weeks and then you show up here - where I work and want me to help clean someone else's blood off of you?" Hartley cried, throwing her broomless hand in the air.

The older boy shrugged, "Pretty much."

"Can't one of your gang help you out?"

"Nah, this place was closer. Can't really be wanderin' round the streets looking like this," he slid his arms out of his jacket and slung it on the back of one of the chairs.

It was then she noticed just how cut up his knuckles were and the tiny wince on his face as he moved his hands. He walked over to one of the hair washing sinks and reached over to turn on the water.

"Don't, you'll get blood everywhere," Hartley muttered as she took his elbow and steered him towards the little bathroom in the back. She turned on the tap and nudged him in front of the sink, going to the cabinet in the corner to retrieve the first aid kit. Without a word she ripped the top off an alcohol wipe, took his bloody hand in her own clean one and dabbed at his split skin.

"Shit," he pulled his hand away, "What the fuck are you doing?"

She looked at him incredulously, "Cleaning your busted knuckles."

"That hurts more than it did when I busted 'em."

"Well I'm sorry a little fucking disinfectant is more painful that some guy's face," she put a hand on her hip.

Billy blew on his knuckles in an attempt to dull the sting and looked at Hartley, even after a long day in the salon and with that scolding frown on her pretty face he still thought she was hot as hell.

"What are you grinning at?" she grumbled.

He shook his head, "Nothing," he said quietly and shoved his hand at her, "You going to fix me up or what?"

She worked quietly, and a little gentler, until his knuckles were clean and band-aided, "What about your face?"

"What about it?" Billy asked with a smirk.

Hartley rolled her eyes and tossed the band aid wrappers and bloodied alcohol wipes in the trash, "Is it your blood or his?"

He brought his good hand up to his cheek, "His."

"Jeez Billy," she sighed and pushed her hair off of her face with the back of her hand, "Why did you come here?"

He shrugged, "I knew you'd help me."

"But, why? 'Cause of the Jake thing?"

He shrugged again, "No, I just… this was the closest place and I knew you wouldn't call the cops or whatever."

She busied herself with opening another alcohol wipe and reached up to clean the blood off his face, it was indeed all the other man's. Suddenly she realised just how close they were - the bathroom was pretty small and they had been squashed together at the sink for the last fifteen minutes or so, she was also acutely aware of how the temperature seemed to have rapidly risen.

"Um," she looked down, tearing her eyes from his in an attempt to remove some of the unexpected intimacy, "You should try and keep those bandages dr-"

"You busy tonight?" Billy questioned softly.

Hartley thought for a second, her mother was working late and her baby brother was at his grandmother's so she would be home alone with Murray, her mom's husband. She bristled at the thought and shook her head apprehensively, "No."

"Wanna… do something?" he asked.

She frowned and scrunched up the last of the trash, she had heard about his reputation and did not want to be another notch on his bedpost, "What kind of something?"

He smiled, "Just a party."

"That wasn't so successful last time," she rubbed her eyebrow, suddenly very tired.

"It won't be like last time, that asshole won't be there. Only my boys will be there and you don't have to worry about them," he moved his hand to touch her elbow but seemed to realise what he was doing before he made contact and let his arm drop down by his side.

Hartley looked down at herself, "I look like shit," she didn't dress up for work - a loose navy striped shirt, jeans that reached her slim ankles with a little turned up cuff and yellow Converse were the first thing she has found in her closet that morning.

Billy smirked, "You couldn't look like shit if you tried."

She scoffed and raised an eyebrow then pointed at his bloodied shirt, "Yeah? Well, you can't exactly party wearing someone else's bodily fluids."

He looked down at the spatter staining the cotton and shrugged, "I've got a spare in the car."

"So who's party is this again?" Hartley asked as they pulled up outside a small house with people spilling out of it onto the front lawn.

Billy cut the engine and threw open his door, taking a last drag of his cigarette, "I got no clue."

"Great," she muttered to herself as she pushed her own door open only to be met by his outstretched hand. He helped her out of his Mustang, the passenger door creaking shut behind her, and kept a gentle hold of her much smaller hand as they crossed the damp grass and climbed the handful of steps to the open front door. Billy paused for a second, his form filling the frame. Hartley wasn't sure if he was looking for someone or subtly announcing his presence. Peeking around his arm she spotted Bodie and a couple of other guys from the last party she attended and so far no Jake, thankfully.

"Darley get your ass over here!" Bodie yelled from the couch, beer in one hand and cigarette in the other.

Billy squeezed her hand faintly and sloped towards his best friend with a grin, "What's up brother?" he asked as he slapped Bodie's outstretched palm with his own.

"Just chillin'," the other man smiled, quite happy with his spot between two hot girls with a cold beer in his hand, "Didn't know you were bringing a little friend."

Billy shrugged and held up his bandaged hand, "Nurse Hartley here patched me up, figured I owed her a beer."

"Hey Bodie," she piped up with a little wave, she had decided she liked him and thought it couldn't hurt to have another gang member on side if Jake ever showed again.

He looked between her and his best friend with a knowing smile, "Hey little girl, good to see you again."

"We're going to grab some beers," Billy gently tugged Hartley in the direction of the kitchen, he didn't like the glint that had suddenly appeared in his best friend's eye.

"So you glad you didn't go home?" he asked as he pulled two bottles from the fridge. Luckily the kitchen was empty, he wanted to stay away from Bodie and the inevitable teasing he was going to receive for bringing her.

Hartley accepted hers and twisted off the top, "I'm not sure yet," she leaned against the counter and took a mouthful of beer.

"Oh really?" Billy asked with a laugh as he came to stand against the kitchen island opposite her, slipping a cigarette and lighter out of his pocket.

She shrugged, "My mom's working and my baby brother is at his grandma's so there's nowhere I need to be."

"It just the three of you?" he asked around his cigarette.

She shook her head, "My mom's married," she took another, larger, mouthful of beer, "We don't get on."

He nodded thoughtfully, "I get that."

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah, my dad and I don't exactly see eye to eye."

"Oh, any brothers or sisters?" Hartley realised that she didn't actually know anything personal about Billy. Sure Cindy had filled her in on the gang side of things but she didn't know anything else about him.

He smiled, "Yeah I got a little brother, Joe."

She couldn't help but mirror his expression, it was sweet to see some sort of affection cross his usually guarded face, "You guys close?"

"Yeah. What about your brother?"

"Dylan is two-years-old, he's a little cutie," she beamed, "God, I sound like some proud mother," she laughed and took another pull of her beer, not taking any notice as the wide neck of her shirt slipped off of her shoulder.

"Are those bruises?" Billy asked as he stood up straight and brushed away the thin fabric with his fingertips.

Hartley stopped laughing and fixed her shirt, "It's nothing, I'm just so clumsy around the salon."

"I know what marks a hand makes," he raised both his eyebrows and gently flexed his right hand.

She reached out to fix one of the bandages, "Be careful, you'll mess up all my good work," she smiled shyly up at him, hoping he would drop the subject.

Billy placed his good hand on the cabinet above her shoulder and unconsciously leaned closer to her pretty face, "No one should be hurting you, alright? And if they are I can make 'em stop."

"Of that I have no doubt," Hartley breathed.

"Good."

They stayed like that for a good few minutes just looking at each other, studying the other's face. Billy couldn't get over how pretty and delicate her little face was, yet it was expressive as hell. He smirked as he remembered just earlier that night when she was yelling at him for coming to the salon and all he could think about was how fucking hot she was and if she got that worked up over other things.

Hartley couldn't take it anymore, him towering over her with his icy blue eyes, she tilted her head and pushed herself a little away from the counter. Without thinking she placed her lips over his and she was kissing him. It felt as if they were in slow motion as Billy's hand swept into her long hair, cupping the back of her head and Hartley's hands went to his chest, resting on the soft cotton of the plaid shirt he hand thrown on over his bloody t-shirt. He surprised her by caressing her lips softly and slowly with his own, making her knees a little weak. She had always thought he would be one of those brutal kissers - someone that left lips bruised and swollen.

Not that she had thought about kissing Billy Darley.