Disclaimer: JE owns the characters.

A/N: You already know what I'm going to say, so I don't even need to say it.


I woke up wrapped around Dougie, he had managed to get us laying down on the couch. The blanket that was now covering us had been thrown over the back of the couch when I got here. I tilted my head up slightly and saw Mooner sitting on the other couch. He looked over at me and winked as he shot me a brilliant smile. His hazel eyes were a little blood shot and his dirty blonde hair was a mess, so I knew he was higher then a kite. There really was no other way for Mooner.

I felt Dougie's muscles ripple under me as he stretched out. I looked a little further up and smiled up at him lazily. I was really comfortable and I didn't want to move any more than I had to. It was a little strange to wake up half on top of one of my childhood friends. But, at the same time, it was comforting to know that I had the two of them. Even if I had picked them both up numerous times for going FTA. They could never seem to remember their court dates.

"I like it," Dougie said when his hand came up and rubbed my bald head.

"I think that you and I might be the only ones," I said quietly as I snuggled deeper into him.

"I like it, too," Mooner said from his couch. "It's different. But, still you at the same time."

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"You've never been one to conform to the Burg, Steph," Mooner explained. "You've proved that over and over again."

"Dude," Dougie agreed as he reached out and did a fist bump with Mooner. "You left Dickie after he cheated on you with Joyce when most Burg wives would have just looked the other way. You became a kick ass bounty hunter and proved to everyone that you could do it. Then, instead of settling down and turning into the Burg with Joe, you chose to stick to being true to yourself and kept going the way that you want to go."

"Some bounty hunter I am," I said, sounding a bit disgruntled. "A skip shaved my head this morning."

"I still can't believe that Simon did that to you," Mooner said. He actually sounded pissed off. I had never heard him sound angry once in my life.

"F.Y.I… It wasn't Simon," I said as I looked over at Mooner. "It was his brother and his dad."

"How'd they do it?" Dougie asked as he continued to lightly run his fingers across my head.

I let out a long sigh and told them the events of the morning. They silently listened to me tell my story of going to get Diggery and making my two very stupid mistakes. But, I didn't stop there. I told them about shooting up Joyce's Jeep and what happened when I went back to Simon's.

"No wonder you needed a nap," Dougie finally said after I had fell silent. "You had quite a day."

"You were the one that blew up Joyce's Jeep?" Mooner asked as he leaned forward. His face held a mixture of awe and excitement.

"Yeah," I said as I smiled at Mooner. "And as a reward, I think that you should go get pizza and beer."

"Great idea, Steph," Mooner said as he jumped up off the couch. "I'll be back."

I was stunned at how quickly Mooner had managed to get his shoes on and head out the door. He usually took at least twenty minutes to get out the door. I heard him open the front door and stop. Dougie grabbed the remote off of the coffee table and muted the TV.

"Dude?" Dougie called out.

"There's a big white guy leaning against a black Bronco across the street," Mooner called back.

"I need more then that," I called out. "Hair color? Distinguishing features?"

"Skull tattoo on his forehead," Mooner called back. "He looks kind of scary, Dudette."

"That's just Cal," I called out. "He's harmless. Most of the time."

"Should I get pizza for him, too?" Mooner asked.

"Probably," I called back.

I snuggled back into Dougie when I heard the door close. I let out a small giggle when I heard the lock tumble in the door. I guess Mooner didn't know that a lock wouldn't stop Cal from getting in here if he really wanted to come in. Dougie turned the volume back up on the TV and we settled in to watch a hockey game that was already on. The Redwings were spanking the Penguins hard.

I was about to drift off to sleep when Dougie shifted under me. I looked up at him and frowned. My pillow was moving and I found it pretty inconvenient if I was going back to sleep. "Why do you keep moving?"

"I need to hit the head," he said with a sheepish grin.

I shifted slightly and he wiggled out from under me. I flopped face down after he got off of the couch and headed up the stairs. Moments later I heard the unmistakable sound of a man peeing. Leave it to Dougie not to shut the door. It was disturbing, but at the same time, it gave me the sense that he was completely comfortable with me being here. Moments later, I felt myself being rolled to the edge of the couch as Dougie slipped back under the blanket in between me and the back of the couch. I snuggled back into him and rested my head on his firm bicep as his arms came around me. He wiggled around for a moment and trapped my left leg between his legs before he finally settled down.

"Better?" I asked.

"Much better," he said with a light chuckle.

As we were lying on the couch, I had a momentary flash of lazy Sunday mornings. Curled up on this couch watching TV under the same blanket. I unconsciously started running my fingers along his side as I let my mind wander. I buried my face in his chest and caught a hint of Old Spice. That was my favorite cologne. My mind continued to wander about how things could be with him.

You can't seriously be thinking about Dougie this way, Smart Stephanie hissed. The man is a stoner with no ambition.

But, he's cute. He makes us laugh. He doesn't judge us. He has an incredible body that includes an eight pack of abs and what feels like at least nine inches pressed to our thigh, Stupid Stephanie commented. He could be just what we are missing.

Ohmygod! I think that the nine inches might be growing! I tilted my head back and looked up at Dougie. His eyes were closed and there was a half smile curled across his full lips. It was only then that I actually realized that my mindless hand had worked its way under his shirt and had started scraping my nails across his narrow right hip. He let out a strangled moan as he shifted his weight and grinded against my thigh.

Oh boy. Smart Stephanie sighed.

Oh Boy! Stupid Stephanie shouted.

Before I had the chance to get myself into any more trouble, I heard the lock tumble and Mooner burst through the door. I was so startled by his actual entrance to the room that I had fallen off the couch. Mooner stopped in his tracks and looked down at me. He tilted his head to the side and frowned at me before he turned and looked over at Dougie. Some silent communication transpired and I silently cursed both of them as I pulled myself up off the floor. What is it with men and ESP? Is there a special class that they take at school while us girls had to take home economics?

I grabbed the twelve pack of Bud out of Mooner's hands and took it to the kitchen. I grabbed three bottles from the case before I stored it in the fridge. I was slightly stunned by the contents in the fridge. There was a bottle of ketchup, a loaf of wheat bread, a package of cheese, a half full gallon of milk, a twelve pack of Pepsi, and a Grafix Bong. I smiled at the court jester that was smiling at me from the front of the bong.

He keeps a bong in his fridge, Smart Stephanie said quietly in the back of my mind.

Smoother hits, Stupid Stephanie chimed in. There is a reason for their madness. You just have to think outside of the box sometimes.

I was starting to go along with stupid Stephanie on this one. The weed thing really didn't bother me all that much. It was such a small thing to have to put up with. After all, it's not like he shooting up heroine. It's just weed.

Weed is a gateway drug, Smart Stephanie said.

The gate must not open all of the way, Stupid Stephanie said. They've been smoking weed for longer then we can remember and they aren't crack addicts yet. I think that they might be the exception to the rule.

Man, Stupid Stephanie is on a roll today. She has more good points then Smart Stephanie does. Maybe they should switch names? Maybe I've been labeling them wrong this whole time?

Over my dead body, Smart Stephanie hissed.

I rolled my eyes at the voice in my head and shut the fridge door after I grabbed a Pepsi. The guys were probably starting to wonder if I got lost. I saw a stack of paper plates and napkins and grabbed several.

What! Smart Stephanie shouted. They don't even have actual plates?

Be more aware of your surroundings, Stupid Stephanie said. There's a pile of dirty dishes in the sink.

Guess I missed those while I was looking at the paraphernalia in the fridge, Smart Stephanie quipped.

I chose to ignore that last comment and walked out of the kitchen, passed the pool table that sat in the dining room, and into the living room. I dropped the paper plates, napkins, and beers on the table. After stuffing the Pepsi in one of the pockets in my cargos, I snagged two pieces of veggie loaded pizza and headed for the door.

"Where are you going?" Dougie asked.

"Cal's still outside," I said as I smiled at him over my shoulder. "I'm sure that he's probably hungry, too."

I chuckled when I got to the door and heard Mooner say, "Dude, she's like, the greatest, huh?"

I didn't hear Dougie's response because I was already out the door. I walked down the deteriorating brick path towards the street. I smiled and waved at Cal as I made my way across the street. He just gave me a raised eyebrow.

"Thought that you might be hungry," I said as I handed him the plate of pizza and the soda from my pocket. "So, what's up?"

"Nothing," Cal said around a mouthful of pizza.

"Why are you here?" I asked, trying again. "I don't have any stalkers after me."

"Ranger was worried."

"Well, you can go home now," I said with a huff. I didn't really care for a bodyguard if I wasn't technically in danger. At least not from any psychos. I'd have to rely on Mooner and Dougie to protect me from myself for the night. "I promise not to do anything stupid, like work, for the rest of the night."

"Steph-"

"Don't," I interrupted as I held my hand up and looked down at my shoes. I really didn't need to see the disappointment that I knew was written all over his face. "I don't need a lecture about this morning. I'm the one paying the price for it now. I know that you guys are disappointed in me. I'll add your names to the list. I'll put you right under Ranger."

"Ranger isn't disappointed," Cal said quietly.

I looked Cal straight in the eye. The down side to this move was that I didn't really know Cal all that well. I had no way of knowing if he was telling me the truth. I finally dropped my hand and stared at him for a moment. How on earth could I have not disappointed Ranger? I set myself up to get stunned without even thinking about it. I had pulled a Hal. Thank God the Diggery's don't have any surveillance cameras at their house. That would be an even bigger nightmare.

"I'm not disappointed in you either, Bomber," Cal said finally breaking the silence that had fallen between us. He had sat down his plate and soda during my short tirade, so taking his free hands, he cupped my face and forced me to look into his eyes closely. I could feel his breath on my face as he spoke. "I love you for crying out loud. You could never do anything to disappoint me. I will not stand here and let you continue to think that you could ever have the ability to let me down. I think of you like a little sister. I smile every time that I see you. I can't remember the last time that I've been happy in my life. But, I have been ever since you walked into it."

"You guys all laugh at me," I whispered, trying to disprove his words.

"I've never laughed at you," Cal chided. "I'd never do that to you."

"I saw you in the woods," I whispered, trying to disprove him again. "You were standing there shaking your head when Simon's brother told you guys what happened."

"I was shaking my head because I was disappointed that I wasn't going to beat anyone up," Cal explained. "Bobby had gotten me whipped up in a frenzy with a bunch of 'What if' scenarios. I was dying to get my hands on them."

That was all that I had. I looked up at the large, slightly scary, man that held my face. I could tell that he was being serious, but I still had a few lingering doubts. He had never so much as said more than a half a dozen words to me at one time. Now, he seemed to be spilling out thoughts that he had kept built up inside for a while.

I was about to open my mouth to thank Cal when I heard a throat being cleared from just behind me. Cal released my face and stood up straight as he looked over my head. I could swear that he glared before he pulled on his blank face. I looked over my shoulder and smiled when I saw Dougie standing in the middle of the street. I gave him the universal 'one minute' sign before I turned back to Cal.

"Thank you," I whispered as I wrapped my arms around Cal's waist.

He hesitated for a moment before he brought his arms around me. "I'm always here."

"I know," I said as I pulled back and smiled up at him.

Cal dropped a light kiss on my forehead before he released me. I turned around and caught the death glare that Dougie was shooting Cal. I slipped my arm around Dougie's waist as I walked by and guided him back into the house. He was still brooding when I pushed him back down on the couch.

"Dude?" Mooner inquired.

"He was going to kiss her," Dougie said to Mooner as he pointed at me.

"Who?" I asked. "Cause I know that you aren't talking about Cal."

"He was, like, two inches from kissing you," Dougie growled as he turned and looked at me.

"Have you not gotten stoned in a while?" I asked as I tilted my head and looked down at him. I looked over at Mooner and said, "He needs to get high."

"I'm down with that," Mooner said as he jumped up and headed to the kitchen.

I sat down on the couch next to Dougie and grabbed a slice of pizza. I heard him start to mumble when I took my first bite, so I looked over at him. He was giving the coffee table a death glare that would have been the pride of any Jersey girl. I couldn't catch most of what he was saying. It was broken up with huffs and silent lip movements. I only caught a few 'fuck's and an 'asshole' or two. I turned on the couch so that I was facing him in hopes that I might be able to understand what he was saying.

"What?" I asked when he finally looked over at me.

"I can't believe that that fucking asshole was going to fucking kiss you with me fucking standing right there," Dougie growled as he frowned at me.

"Did I miss something?" I asked. I searched my mind trying to see if I had missed something over the last hour or so. I couldn't think of anything off the top of my head.

Without any warning, I found myself pinned to the couch by Dougie's perfectly sculpted, lean body. His right arm was around my waist, his left hand was wrapped around the back of my neck. It would have been uncomfortable if it wouldn't have been for his tongue gently gliding over mine. My hormones kicked in before my brain did and my hands ended up tangled in his silky, jet black hair. Two months of no sex can do that. A soft moan escaped my throat when I felt his erection press against my thigh.

Whoopee! Stupid Stephanie shouted.