Chapter Two: Taming of the Shrew

"Woman, d'you realise you just signed my damn death warrant?!" James also had a flare for the dramatic.

"You are such a baby, big brother!" Dani laughed at him, but Sawyer's face remained serious.

"The bitch stomped on my damned shoulder after I got shot!" James growled at his sister.

"Who're you callin' a bitch, Cowboy?" Sawyer paled hearing this from a voice right behind him. Dani laughed at him.

"I told you she wanted to see you, brother. Guess your head's harder than it used to be." Dani said, rousing a laugh from Ana as she sat down beside Dani. "Now, can I trust you to behave yerself, James, or do I have to babysit you through a nice dinner with your girlfriend?"

"She AIN'T my girlfriend!"

"Then I'm not gonna have to fish your ass out of LA County Jail, am I?" She turned her eyes on Ana Lucia. "He gives you any bullshit, you know how to handle him." If looks could kill, Sawyer was in for one hell of a night.

"Why don't we cut the bullshit niceties and you tell me what you want, Hot Lips?" Sawyer said, his tone drenched in sarcasm. Ana cocked an eyebrow and figured, 'what the hell.'

"Alright, Cowboy. Have it your way." She said. She took a sip from the water glass Daniela left on the table and spoke again. "I'm pregnant, Cowboy." The proverbial "crickets" chirped amidst the awkward silence as Sawyer sat there, simply staring at the Latina.

"And this has what, exactly, to do with me?"

"You're not that stupid, Cowboy. The last time i 'got any' was before that nut job Michael shot me and fucking KILLED Libby!" Upon hearing this, Sawyer's jaw went limp and the beer in his mouth dribbled down his chin.

"You mean…"

"Yes, you dumbass redneck! I'm pregnant with YOUR baby!" Ana was shouting by now, drawing the attention of nearby customers. "Well now that that's taken care of, i can get the HELL away from you. See ya, cowboy."

"What do you mean, 'see ya cowboy'?! this is my kid too, dammit, Ana!" Sawyer took off at a dead run, chasing after Ana.

"I mean, I DON'T WANNA BE WITH YOU, GODDAMNIT!" Sawyer was dumbfounded.

"Do not think for one DAMN minute that I'm just gonna let you walk off with my kid and not say a goddamn thing about it!"

"Tough mangos, Cowboy."

"Tough mangos, my ass, Hot Lips." It was like she just didn't give a shit and it drove Sawyer stark-raving mad. This woman was having his baby and was basically telling him to fuck off! And then, true to Sawyer-form, he charged her, taking hold of her face gently, he kissed her, not expecting her to kiss him back. But she did, and he could almost swear she moaned when their tongues touched. But then she caught him off guard yet again. She pulled away and clocked him with a right uppercut to the jaw.

After getting his ass kicked by Ana Lucia Cortez once again, Sawyer returned to his sister's house somewhere between the city life of Los Angeles and the Suburbs of the city itself.

Ana went home to the apartment she'd gotten after being released from the hospital. Her lips tingled and she felt like she was high without the affecting drugs. After what seemed like hours of simply lying in her bed, she finally fell asleep, only to be met with dreams of one James 'Sawyer' Ford.

The next morning Ana had a meeting with the District Attorney's office about a deposition regarding Jason McCormack's murder. It went surprisingly well, considering the number of times Ana completely zoned out from her surroundings to thoughts of a certain blond Tennessean, leaving her completely agitated and increasingly hostile.

Sawyer, on the other hand, slept quite soundly and woke with a stupefied yet bona fide grin on his face, one that made Daniela slightly curious as to the on goings of the previous night.

He'd come into the kitchen from the guest bedroom whistling a tune Dani couldn't quite place but definitely recognized.

He actually spoke and participated in conversation, as opposed to the customarily condescending sarcasm she'd grown accustomed to in the years they'd spent as brother and sister.

But in the back of his mind, despite the nearly-180° change in personality, Sawyer still felt the nagging of Ana Lucia's mixed reaction to his kissing her the night before. At first she'd kissed him back, and then turned right back around and slugged him—practically blindsiding him.

But James Ford refuses to let that one incident put a damper on his proverbial parade. He was determined to make the best of less-than-desirable circumstances, and if it meant putting up with the Wrath of Ana Lucia, God help him, he was going to do his damnedest to be there for her when she needed him, despite her loudest and most obnoxious—or painful—objections to the gesture.

When Daniela met with Ana Lucia the following morning, she could feel the difference in Ana's demeanour. Something had made Ana happy, even if the Latina was trying desperately to keep it hidden.

She was happy for her friend, and for her brother, even if she didn't know of the turmoil occurring inside of each, she was happy for them nonetheless that they were happy. It was only a matter of making the two see sense to set things back into balance.