Sorry I took so long with this update; it hasn't been easy. This is the first time I've actually delved into any type of case so I'm struggling a bit to get it right. I'm also struggling because I do not say the F word aloud and therefore would not write it either. But I'm pretty sure the types Sam is hanging out with would be dropping the F-bombs left, right and center. Trying to figure my way around that.

Thanks again to Sairs J for letting me run this by her. It definitely helped.

Neither one knew how long the kiss lasted; they only knew they didn't want it to end…but it had to. When they finally broke apart, they were both panting slightly from the intensity of the kiss but they couldn't let go of each other…at least not yet. Sam's mind was screaming 'we can't, we can't', but his body kept begging him please.

"My new apartment's not far." Andy noted, barely above a whisper, the hope clear in her voice.

"Andy…" God, he wanted to…

"Please Sam…you can just tell them you're dating the girl from the club."

He didn't want to tell her that they already thought he was coming to see her; he didn't want to get her hopes up. "Guys like them…me…we don't date; we just take what we want and come and go as we please. Women are kept around for one thing and one thing only and even then, they don't last long."

"Then just use me…or at least pretend to."

"Andy, I could never..."

"I know it wouldn't be real." She really just wanted him to hold her tonight.

"It is real Andy…too real; that's why I can't pretend something like that." She was making this so hard; it was just supposed to be one kiss. He was just supposed to see that she was still in one piece.

"Sam…" She started, but was interrupted by the ring tone on his cell phone.

She grabbed his hand. "Please, don't answer it."

But they both knew that really wasn't an option. "I have to."

He took a step back from her and she shivered; she wasn't sure if it was because she was missing the warmth of his body next to hers or from watching his undercover persona re-emerge.

"Sammy, here."

She watched Sam frown the second he heard the voice. "You better get your fill soon Sammy cause Boss wants everyone at the warehouse by eleven. And no bitch is worth being late for this meeting."

Although she couldn't make out the words, Andy's heart pounded in her chest and her stomach churned as she watched Sam cringe. Whatever it was; it obviously wasn't good.

"I'll be there." He confirmed quickly before snapping the phone shut with a little too much force.

"What is it?"

"Meeting tonight."

Andy hung her head, the chance of him staying with her all but gone. "Oh…"

Sam hated seeing her like this but his hands were tied. He needed one more thing before he left though. Well, actually he needed/wanted a lot of things, but most of them weren't an option right now. "Can I see?" He asked, reaching for the bottom of her shirt.

She nodded, and then waited for him to go ahead. She could have helped; she could have lifted the shirt by herself, but she craved the contact no matter how inconsequential.

He sucked in the air through his teeth as he muttered. "Son of a bitch."

She felt his hands lightly graze over the bruised area and she knew the tears were forming in her eyes again; he was being so gentle. "It's fine Sam."

"No, it's not fine."

"No." She admitted. "But it will be."

"Yeah, once I get these mother f… " He stopped, holding his tongue."…off the street."

"What do you mean?" She thought they were talking about the bruise and the pain.

"There's a pretty good chance that the gun that shot you was sold by one of my guys. I don't want anyone else getting hurt because of them…us."

Andy's eyes went wide. She expected his anger but was surprised to see guilt on Sam's face; he had to know that he wasn't truly a part of this.

She reached out and took his hand in hers. "Sam this isn't your fault. You didn't aim the gun at Kate or at me and you didn't pull the trigger. If he didn't get the gun from your guys, he would have gotten it from somewhere else. He just wanted to end it and he wasn't about to give up."

"I know it isn't…not really. But it's still hard; I know how many guns have been sold since I started with these guys and I can't help but wonder how many have been used already. I need to get these guns and these idiots off the streets. If they had…if it had even been…"

She pulled him close. "It wasn't…now promise me you'll be careful."

He met her eyes; he knew she wasn't mad at him, but that didn't mean he wasn't still angry at the whole situation. When he didn't answer right away, she raised her eyebrows.

"I'll be careful." He promised.

She gave him a soft smile; she needed to know he would come back to her. "What time do you have to be back?"

"Eleven."

Hope immediately straightened her posture. "But that means you still have…"

"Andy, please. This is hard enough already."

"I'm sorry."

"Me too."

"Can you stay just a little longer? Just hold me for a while?"

"Of course," he tightened his hold on her and held her like his life depended on it. And though his life might not have, his peace of mind certainly did.

They stayed that way for an immeasurable amount of time before Sam finally loosened his grip.

Andy wasn't ready yet; she didn't know if she would ever be ready to let him go. She tried to inch closer again but she felt his sigh and she knew her time was up…at least for now. "When will…"

He didn't let her finish; he knew she wanted to know when they would see each other again, but he really had no idea. So he did the only thing he could; he kissed her one more time hoping it would last for as long as they needed it to.

As he backed away, he watched a single tear slide down her cheek. But there was nothing more to say; he couldn't promise her anything until this was all over. And then if he had his way, she would never have to ask again.

When he couldn't avoid it any longer, he turned to walk away. He heard a muffled sob and knew she was trying hard to be strong. It took everything he had to try and be just as strong, to stop himself from turning around, taking her in his arms and leading her home.

Sammy got to the warehouse at quarter to eleven and most of the guys were already there. No one wanted to be late tonight, apparently not even the boss. He was already there and Sammy checked his watch to make sure he was on time. He breathed a sigh of relief; this meeting was going to be hard enough as it was.

"What took you so long?" The boss growled.

"Um…well, I was…" The boss was not in a good mood and Sammy wasn't sure how to answer; he really didn't want to bring Andy any further into this than she already was, even if it was just to talk about her. Plus, he knew the mood was about to get a whole lot worse.

"Sammy found himself a nice piece of ass at the club the other night." Jimmy stated knowingly.

"Sweet!" RJ approved. "So you finally got it out of your pants eh Sammy?"

"I bet you had her…"

"Shut up and let's get this moving." The boss was not a patient man to begin with, but it was obvious that whatever little bit he might have had was already gone. He was never one to tempt fate, and he wanted this over with. He always tried to keep their gatherings as short as possible.

Sammy wasn't going to argue; there was no way he was going to get into details anyway.

"You can talk about that shit later. Now let me see the plans; are they set? The shipment's coming and we sure as hell better be ready."

The guys all exchanged looks with most of them ending on a glare at Ray. He was the one that screwed everything up so they were all waiting for him to come forward.

When no one answered, the boss started to get pissed. "What the hell did you guys do all day? I thought I made it clear that everything had to be settled for tonight. Someone needs to start talking and they need to do it now."

When no one manned up, Sammy decided he better. "Plans are done."

"Then what the hell's the problem?"

"We're not sure they're going to work."

"You may be new to this, but I'm not." The boss stated. "I know what we're doing."

Sammy glared at Ray; he shouldn't have to be the one to say. "Did you see the shooting on TV?"

"Yeah, but if you think that's going to stop me; you're dumber than I thought."

"I'm not an idiot." Sammy assured. "I know the cops won't be looking into the gun yet, but it's not the cops I'm worried about."

"Then what the hell is your problem?"

"Not my problem." Sammy stated looking pointedly at Ray.

The boss finally turned to Ray; the continual looks had not been lost on him. "Ray?"

"Um…well…"

"The shooting?"

"I-may-have-sold-the-gun-that-shot-the-cop." He spit out as quickly as he could before cringing.

The boss just laughed. "What the hell's wrong with that? Pig probably deserved it."

Now it was Sammy's turn to cringe, though the rest of the guys seemed to breathe a sigh of relief thinking maybe Sammy had overreacted. Apparently the boss wasn't worried.

Sammy looked at the boss who was still laughing. "He unloaded it in the area near Supernova…sold it as a single to a guy from the campus."

The boss' head snapped up as soon as Sammy said single. Sammy watched the recognition come over his face, including the worry that accompanied it but it only lasted for a split second. He obviously wasn't about to show his fear.

"You know what that means don't you?" Sammy asked.

The boss looked at Sammy with a steely glare. "Looks like we may be killing two birds with one stone…literally."

"You can't still want to go through with this; you know Vicero's going to want revenge. After he stole the shipment from right under our nose…" Sammy realized reminding the boss of that little tidbit might not have been the best idea so he continued quickly. "He knows you're pissed. He knows you think he's trying to squeeze you out. You don't think this is going to look like you trying to squeeze him out."

"Of course it is."

"And?"

"And he's been pissing me off for years…might as well get this over with once and for all. You afraid, Sammy?"

"Hell ya! I didn't sign up for an all out war."

"Are you sure that's all it is?" The boss asked suspiciously.

"What do you mean?"

"I think you're just afraid that you may have to kill one of your own."

Sammy glared back at him. "I thought we got past this; I am not part of Vicero's crew. I've never even met the guy."

"Maybe not, but I don't think I want to take that chance."

"What the hell does that mean?"

"It means you may have to sit this one out."

Shit! "Sit it out how? "

"We'll leave you here. Then whoever wins can come back and claim you. And you better hope it's them if I ever find out you had anything to do with…"

"I didn't sell the single that started this…."

"That just upped the ante; how do I know you haven't been sitting here waiting to tell him where and when? You just show up out of nowhere and the next thing we know, Vicero steals our shipment and then wages an all out war."

Sammy wasn't sure what he could say to convince him.

"Take me and I'll prove it to you. There'll be no doubt whose side I'm on after the buy." He hoped it was enough and watched as the boss appeared to be weighing his options.

Sammy kept pushing. "You're going to need all the bodies you can get if I know Vice…if it goes down like you think it will." He thought it better that he not take any credit for knowing how Vicero might react.

"You're right, Sammy. RJ, Ray you need to get out on the streets now and round up as many guys as you can."

"Are you sure you want to do that?"

"Getting worried for your buddy, Sammy?"

"Nope, just thinking you might want to keep it a little more…low key. If Vicero wasn't planning anything but gets wind of what you're doing, it's still going to be a bloodbath."

As much as the boss hated to admit it, Sammy was right. "Keep it quiet, and bring anyone you find back here and I'll have one of the other guys baby sit them. And from now on, no one goes anywhere alone; everyone has eyes on them at all times."

"Someone needs to watch Vicero." Sammy suggested.

"And I suppose you're volunteering for that one. I'm sure you could get real close eh Sammy?"

Sammy just shook his head. "I don't give a shit who you send. I just want to know what I'm getting myself into."

"As if you don't already know." The boss muttered, still not convinced where Sammy's loyalties lay.

"Jimmy, Vic, you need to get some eyes on Vicero."

Sammy rolled his; the boss obviously wasn't an idiot and knew it was a good idea. But Sammy also knew that everything he said and did from now on would be questioned.

"As soon as you both get what you need, get some sleep and then get back here first thing tomorrow to start working on the new plans. I should have a new time and place set by then." As much as he wanted to get rid of Vicero, he wasn't going to make it easy. He would much rather take care of Vicero at another time. Still he would be planning for both.

"What about me?" Sammy asked; he needed to be in on those plans.

"Give me your gun."

"What the…"

"You won't need it."

"I won't?" Sammy had no idea where this was going.

"Nope…you'll be with me for the next couple of days, and my guys here will make sure we're well protected." He motioned to the two goons who followed him everywhere.

"But you still carry a gun." Sammy tried, though he was pretty sure his reasoning wouldn't wash.

"Yes, I do." The boss confirmed, leaving no room for argument.

Sammy handed over his gun. This was not looking good. He was going to have to find some way to get a look at the plans and then some way to be alone long enough to let Boyd in on them.

"Will I be…" Sammy wanted to make sure he was still in on the plans.

"Phone." The boss demanded, holding his palm out to Sammy.

"What the hell?"

"You're going to be busy Sammy; you won't be getting off for a few days." He chuckled darkly at his own pun. "You can call your bitch when it's all over."

"Like I said, Sammy…I hope you got your fill." Vic reminded.

Sammy pulled out his phone slowly and the boss noticed his reluctance. Sammy was hesitant because he was likely losing his only way to contact backup; the boss read it as the girl meaning more to Sammy than he thought. She must have been pretty good…maybe he could use this to his advantage.

"You wanna call her Sammy?" The boss offered.

Sammy didn't expect that; his mind was reeling. Was there any way he could pretend to call Andy and let Boyd know what was up?

"I can call her?" Sammy confirmed.

"Sure, invite her along; she can keep you occupied while the plans get finalized."

"Well if you don't need me for the plans, why don't I just go to her place and you can call me when it's over." Sammy offered though he was pretty sure he knew what the boss had in mind.

"Nice try. I said you're with me for the next couple of days; you won't be leaving my sight till the deal is done. I was just thinking it might be nice to have something to keep you…focused." The threat was perfectly clear and there was no way Sammy was going to bite.

He swallowed the lump in his throat as he handed the phone over. "Eh…they're a dime dozen." More like one in a million. "And if nothing better comes along when we're done, I could always throw her another bone. She'll probably be begging for some more Sammy by then."

The boss was pretty good at reading people; just like a cop, he had to be. He wasn't entirely convinced about Sammy's indifference but he wasn't going to press the issue. He'd talk to the other guys later though; see if they knew who the woman was or where they could find her.

The boss turned back to the group. "You guys know what to do, and no one goes out alone. Sammy, let's go; I've got some phone calls to make."

Sammy followed along wordlessly. He had to find a way to get a hold of Boyd. He was glad that he had immediately memorized the number from the napkin. Some guys were fine with programming it into their phone, but it left too much to chance. You never knew when your phone could fall into the wrong hands; it just wasn't worth it...and today proved that.

His mind continued to race as he kept his face neutral. Why the hell hadn't he told Andy more details when he saw her earlier? He knew why…he had been too worried about her. His head should have been in the game though; if it was, he would have made sure to pass on more information when he had the chance. But then again he hadn't really known much at that point. At least he had told Boyd about the potential turf war; if they were watching Vicero , which they should be, hopefully that would help.

He got into the back of the car with the boss, trying his best to look unaffected. He had no doubt that he could find out when and where by weaseling his way into the planning, but getting word to Boyd was going to be a whole other story.

Sam had been gone for a couple of minutes before Andy finally composed herself and headed for home. When she got there, she headed straight for the bathroom pulling her shirt off along the way before holding it to her face. She sighed; it still smelled like him.

Reluctantly, she dropped the shirt to the floor and removed the rest of her clothes before stepping into the shower. She turned her face into the water and winced at the pain as the spray hit her bruised ribs. She rotated that side away from the stream as she washed the day's events from her body.

When she finally stepped out almost a half hour later, she wrapped the towel around her torso before scooping her clothes up off the floor and heading to her bedroom. She dropped everything except for the shirt into the hamper and changed into her night clothes.

She walked slowly out to the kitchen to grab something to eat. She really didn't feel hungry, but was pretty sure it was in her best interests. She made a quick sandwich, grabbed a bottle of water and moved to her bed.

As soon as she finished eating, she slid down under the covers and tucked her hands in close to her face, pulling her t-shirt along with them. She tried closing her eyes, but sleep wouldn't come. She sat up and took a couple of painkillers hoping to not only dull the ache but bring on the much needed rest.

She lay back down and glanced at the clock; it was almost eleven. Even if she wanted to now, her eyes refused to close; she knew where he would be.

She watched every minute pass on the clock as she wondered how it was going, telling herself over and over that he would be fine. At some point near midnight she drifted off to sleep unable to fight the effects of the medication any longer; her hands still maintaining the death grip they had on her t-shirt.