Long time no see…my apologies for the lack of updates on this story. I had burnout for a while, then writer's block, and when I finally did get it done, by beta took two months to read through it because she was on vacation and was very busy. Either way, I'm fairly pleased with this chapter. This story isn't going to be as long as I initially thought and I've gotten it all written. I should be able to update in about a week, as it were. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this long overdue update. Don't forget to review!

Beka Cooper let out a sigh as she walked down the street. There was one thought that was constantly plaguing her as Viviana let her from shop to shop. What in the world had she been thinking leaving Alex in Rosto's care? Really? Now that she thought about it more, it was probably not what she should have done. Rosto was not exactly the best person with children from what she could tell. He had a knack for helping her with Alex from time to time, but leaving them alone…

She was starting to think that it had not been a good idea. When Viviana drew her over to a particular merchant a few moments later, she amended that thought. That was a very, very bad idea.

"What's got you in such a bundle?" Viviana asked, tilting her head slightly. She watched her friend for a moment, studying Beka's expression. After knowing Beka for nearly a year, Vi had developed the ability of being able to read the other woman's body language with ease. Beka sighed, shaking her head.

"I shouldn't have left Alex with Rosto," she said. Vi rolled her eyes.

"Alex will be fine with Rosto," she assured Beka. "Rosto would never let anything happen to your son while he was watching Alex. He cares, Beka. You know that he cares about you," she added.

Beka nodded, biting her lower lip as Vi returned to browsing the merchant's wares. A moment later, she held up a necklace to Beka, who eyed it warily. It was a bird carved in an onyx stone.

"What do you think of this?" Vi asked her. There was a pause before Beka shrugged.

"It's pretty enough," she replied. Vi made a face at her, putting the piece of jewelry down. "What?"

"Don't worry about Rosto and Alex. Rosto will take good care of him," she repeated. "This is supposed to be fun, Beka…" The other woman shrugged again, her face coloring a little.

"I'm sorry, Vi," she said. "I just have to wonder about it – I don't usually let people watch him for me anymore. It makes me nervous."

"But you can trust Rosto," Vi reminded her. "He's come a long way since the day you came to the Dove."

"That is true," Beka admitted. "But that doesn't change the fact that I worry about my son," she pointed out. "That's what mothers do, Vi."

Vi let out a sigh, shaking her head at Beka. She was less than thrilled by the interaction between Beka and Rosto at this point. She had spent several months watching the two of them deny any and all attraction – and friendship – between themselves.

In her mind, one would have thought that they would have at least acknowledged their friendship of all things, even if the past made an irreconcilable difference between the two of them for some dimwitted reason. Perhaps Rosto had all but admitted it to himself, but Beka was another story entirely. She was as stubborn as a mule, and despite Rosto's request for her to stay, she wanted little to do with the King of the Rogue who had been her friend once upon a time.

Beka had lived at the Dove for almost a year now. It was just her, Rosto, and Alex in the inn, and most of the time, it did not seem so bad to Vi. However, that might have only been what she saw. Viviana knew that things were not what was seen on the surface. That was just how the two of them were.

"I'm aware of that, Beka," she responded. "But you can trust Rosto. You did before. He's a good man, Rogue or not." Beka didn't seem to be paying much attention to her as she spoke, but the last sentence caused a slight change in the former Dog's stance.

"I know. You don't have to tell me that," Beka said softly. She looked away from her friend, her eyes fixed distantly on something at another stall. A moment later, Viviana stepped in front of her. Her pretty face held an expression that Beka could not quite place.

"Obviously, I do," she responded. Her voice was colored by annoyance and…was that desperation? Beka shook her head at the other woman, a slightly annoyed look appearing on her face.

"No, you don't, Vi," she argued. "I know he's a good man, but I don't want to be involved with him or anyone else right now…I need to take care of my son before I even consider that."

Vi let out a frustrated sigh, flicking long strands of red hair over her shoulder. This was ridiculous. She had left Rosto because she had known that he loved Beka, and she was sure that Beka loved him, too. She had seen the two of them together enough to be able to tell that they were both fighting the attraction until then. Rosto had stopped fighting it, then. They had talked about it a great deal over the course of the next few months. It was Beka that was in denial.

"Alex needs a father figure, Beka," Vi told her. "If you don't let Rosto in, he's going to grow up without one, if I'm taking what you've said at surface value."

Beka was silent for a long moment after that. She refused to look Viviana in the eye. The other woman had a point, but Beka wasn't exactly sure that she could handle Rosto trying to romance her again.

A part of her still believed (very strongly believed, if she was completely honest with herself) that they should not be together. He was on the opposite side of the law, even if she wasn't a Dog anymore. Many things were still the same. He was still a rusher. Rosto might have been a good man, but that did not change what he was, or that he was in a dangerous position constantly. Being with him would put her in danger, too. And worse, it would put Alex in danger, the very thing she was trying her hardest not to do.

"Beka?" Vi's voice jerked her out of her thoughts then. The red-haired woman was watching her with concern.

"I'm fine. Just thinking. Would you mind if we went shopping another day?" she asked. Vi nodded, sighing faintly.

"Go ahead. We can do this some other time," she replied. Beka smiled faintly at her.

"Thank you," she said, moving over to give her friend a hug. "I'll see you tomorrow, right?"

Vi nodded. "Of course you will," she assured Beka with a smile. "I'll see you then."

Beka's smile widened. "Goodbye, Vi," she called as she turned and moved away.

"Goodbye," Vi replied without even thinking. She just hoped that Beka would see things the way that she needed to. The denial wasn't right. At least, she thought, it wasn't to her. They belonged together.

Beka walked back to the Dove as rapidly as she could. Her mind was working faster than her feet, but all she wanted was to go back home.

She caught herself there, stopping almost mid-step when she realized what she had just thought. Home. The Dove. That was what it had become between the time she had moved in and now. That was where her son had grown up. He was walking and talking now, active and enjoying his life there.

He had no idea what was going on. He was simply happy. He knew that his mother cared for him, and he looked up to Rosto. She had caught the blond Rogue showing him how to hold a dagger a few weeks ago – and she had thought nothing of it at the time. Rosto had just been showing the lad (however young he was) how to defend himself if something happened.

Vi was right, she realized. Alex needed a father-figure, and Rosto seemed to have stepped in to fill it without her even knowing. The other woman had wanted to make a point about Rosto, but Beka had not wanted (and still did not want to, if she was entirely honest) have anything to do with it.

She wanted to stay out of any Rogue business whatsoever. That included any involvement with the Rogue himself. Even if he was her friend, they could be nothing more than that. Ever.

She frowned slightly; her thoughts flew every which way, no matter how hard she tried to rein them in. One moment, she was glad Rosto was there, the next she wanted nothing to do with him.

Shaking her head, Beka walked on. Trying to make sense out of the jumble in her head was like when Vi had tried to get Rosto to sing for her. Very, very difficult, and undoubtedly not going to happen.

She started back to the Dove again, trying to at least remove the treacherous thoughts from her mind. She was not interested in dealing with them. However, when she pushed the door to the inn open, she realized that she could no longer avoid them.

A very distinctly, slightly accented voice echoed lightly from the kitchen. There was no mistaking that voice, no matter how hard she wanted to try. She walked toward the kitchen, a faint frown creasing her forehead.

An instant later, a giggling squeal cut through the air. The next thing she heard was the sound of Rosto protesting something and then rapid footsteps. Another shriek sounded as Alex came flying out of the kitchen. He dashed past her without even realizing that she was there. Rosto was only half a second behind the little boy.

"Come back here!" he called after Alex. His tone was nothing but playful. Her son giggled and dashed off around a table as Rosto chased after him. He caught Alex a moment later. The boy shrieked happily as Rosto hoisted him into the air.

Rosto was laughing, a genuine smile on his face. It took away a degree of harshness to see him smiling like that. The ragged white scar that ran across his face did not have quite the same look to it when he was happy.

Alex continued to giggle as Rosto removed something from his hand. The Rogue proceeded to put Alex down and reach up to pull his long blond hair out of the way once more. It seemed that her son had confiscated his caretaker's hair tie in an attempt at a game. Then Alex saw her.

"Mama!" he shrieked. He raced over to her, colliding with her before she could kneel to catch him. Beka grinned at him. He greeted her as though she had been gone for months rather than only an hour.

Rosto hung back, shifting his weight to one side as he crossed his arms over his chest. As Beka looked up at him, her smile slowly diminished.

"You don't trust me with him, do you?" he asked.

Anger flashed in his dark eyes as he looked at her, searching her face for an answer. Beka was silent for a long moment, trying to figure out exactly what she was going to say. She did not want to – could not – tell him that Vi was insisting on playing matchmaker for the two of them.

When she failed to respond, Rosto whirled and stalked over to the stairs, without a backward glance. He took them two at a time, disappearing from her sight before she could even get a word out of her mouth. Beka sighed, knowing that he was probably going to sulk. That was what he usually did when he was angry.

Alex looked up at her with concern on his young face. "Mama, what's wrong?" he asked. Beka looked back at him, biting her lip as she thought about her answer.

"Nothing, my lad," she replied. "Rosto is just sad that he doesn't get to play with you anymore," she told him. Alex frowned at her.

"Mama, are you sure?" he asked. Beka smiled slightly, nodding to him.

"I'm sure, Alex," she said. "Why don't we go upstairs, too? I'll find you something to do, and we can go see Rosto."

Her son nodded, moving away from her to head to the stairs. Beka's smile returned. He was such a good lad. He was only three and he was jumping to please his mother at any turn he got. Almost anyone who met him thought it was the cutest thing.

That smile still in place, she walked over to where Alex was starting up the stairs and picked him up. Her son let out a loud giggle, squirming in her arms.

It only took her a moment to find him something to do in her room. That in hand, she took the lad back down the stairs with her, hoping that Rosto had not disappeared, and that he would allow her to talk to him again.

She shifted Alex to one hip to knock on the door to Rosto's room. It was a moment before she heard her friend's light footsteps. The door opened enough for her to be able to see part of his face. Rosto looked more annoyed and distracted than anything else.

"What do you want, Beka? I don't have time for this," he said. "I have work to do."

"I know," Beka said simply. "Can I come in?" Rosto peered warily at her for a few seconds before he sighed and moved away from the door to let her in. He gave her a very irritated look as he closed the door behind her. She put Alex down in the corner with his toys and turned to look at him.

"So, what have you come for this time? To rub it all in? To tell me that you've found someone and you're moving in him? What news has the glorious Terrier brought for the lowly Rogue?" he demanded derisively. Beka bit the inside of her cheek. He was very angry.

"Rosto, stop it," she replied shortly. He glared at her until she shook her head at him. "This is ridiculous! We shouldn't be fighting!"

"Fair words coming from you," Rosto retorted. Beka gave him a look.

"I know. I'm one to talk. But I can't keep doing this, Rosto. I'm sick of us fighting like this. It does not help anything, and it only upsets everyone," she told him, shaking her head. "If you're going to act like this, I will find somewhere else to live. Somewhere where my son does not have to hear his mother shouting at someone at all hours of the day and night."

Rosto frowned at her for a long moment, his dark brown eyes narrowed. "So you can do what? Run off and throw yourself at someone else? I think not. I'd rather deal with it this way," he told her. Beka made a frustrated noise. It was taking all of her self-control not to hit him just then.

"I'm not throwing myself at anyone, Rosto. I never did-"

"Dale Rowan and Dyrian Nath. Yeah, you did," he interjected. The tone of his voice made her wince. There was nothing but a bitter coldness in it.

"I'm sorry, Rosto," she said softly. "I'm not trying to hurt you, and I'm not trying to run away. I don't like what happened to us in the past any more than you do. Most of it was senseless, and I know that you did not deserve it, even if what you've done was considered."

"You make it seem like I'm only cold, only cruel, and only the Rogue," he replied. "Yes, I have done many, many things in my life that I'm not proud of. Yes, I have killed without thought, in self-defense and for other reasons. But that's not all of who I am, Beka. It never has been. You just don't want to see it," he continued. "Now, if you wouldn't mind, I would like to get some work done before my court meets."

"Rosto, stop it!" Beka exclaimed finally. "I am so sick of you doing this!"

"Doing what, exactly? Trying to be free of this? Do you want to know why we stopped bring friends, Beka? I can tell you why, and I know that you wouldn't like it at all," he snapped. She frowned at him, creases forming on her forehead.

"What…?" She trailed off, her confusion very plain. Rosto fumed, his nostrils flaring slightly. If it had not been for the tension in the room and the seriousness of their conversation, Beka might have found it amusing. As it was, she did not think that it was funny. She was rather disturbed if she was being honest.

"You don't get it, do you?" Rosto asked softly. His voice was scathing, despite its softness.

"No, I don't, Rosto," Beka snapped. "I don't understand what you're trying to say because you're expecting me to read your mind! I am not a mind reader! You can't just expect me to know exactly what you're thinking at any time!" she added. "Get over yourself."

"This isn't about me, Beka," Rosto snarled in return. "This is about you. We stopped being friends because you kept kicking me in the gut when I was down. Every time I turned around, there you were, doing something else that made you absolutely unattainable. The Dogs, being courted by someone else, everything you did. You were the one who stopped coming to see me and the others. You were the one who rejected me so fully that I knew I had no chance whatsoever with you, no matter what I did.

"And what happened not long after I gave up? You came waltzing back in here as if nothing had changed. I'm sick of being treated as if I'm your friend one minute and your worst enemy the next. Stay here for all I care, just stop it," he said finally. He still looked very angry, Beka noticed.

"Are you done?" she asked him blandly. He glared at her in silence, crossing his arms over his chest.

"No, I am not done. I'm not going to be done until you leave," he informed her a few moments later. Beka let out a frustrated growl.

"You see, this is what you do! This is what you always do! You don't get your way, so you sulk!" she snapped at him. He made a face at her.

"You-"

"Don't even start that, Rosto," Beka said. He blinked at her for a moment. He was a little shocked that she had cut him off.

"Fine. Talk, then," he replied. Beka let out a sigh, shaking her head as she took a few steps in one direction.

"Okay, Rosto, I give up," she said finally. Her voice was soft, a little distant even.

"What?"

"I give up. You were right. You were always right. You once told me that you cared about me as more than a friend. I've spent the last decade denying it. I give up. You were right about the whole thing. Are you happy about that?" she asked. Rosto frowned at her. He did not quite understand what she was saying. Beka paused, taking a cue from his expression.

"I'm sorry I pushed you away. I'm so sick of fighting now. I'm sick of all of this. I just want a good life for Alex…" she trailed off, pausing for just a moment. "You're not all bad, I know. I just hope that you'll forgive me for everything I've done to you," she continued.

Rosto watched her for a long moment, all of the gears in his head turning. She was actually admitting that she had been wrong. She wanted forgiveness from him – him, Rosto the Piper, the King of Thieves.

That was not what he had expected at all.

Every little bit of the wall he had tried to put between them came crashing down. No matter how frustrated he had become, she was still Beka, and he still loved her. His anger evaporated as he watched her. She did not look hopeful. She knew that he did not forgive easily. She knew. And yet, she had asked for it anyway. She looked away, her eyes landing on her son for a moment.

Then Rosto reached out and touched her hand. Her head snapped up to look at him. They stood in silence for a long moment before he threaded his fingers through hers, drawing her hand up to his mouth. He kissed her knuckles softly, which made her eyes widen.

"All you had to do was ask, Beka. After this long, I'm ready to have this arguing over, to be honest…"

Beka frowned at the abrupt change in his behavior. Now he was doing something she had not expected. Perhaps it was the tension in the room…or the pent-up emotions that only seemed to come out as an argument between the two of them.

"Don't do that," she said finally. "I don't like it when coves do that, Rosto."

Rosto's eyebrows rose. "You mean this?" he asked, kissing the back of her hand softly. She shivered, then gave him an annoyed look.

"Yes, that," she replied. Rosto rolled his eyes at her, but let go of her hand all the same.

"As you wish," he said, looking a little miffed. He was only playing with her, though.

"You're acting strange," she informed him a moment later.

"You said you wanted to be forgiven, Beka. Forgive and forget," he said finally.

"You are a very strange cove, Rosto the Piper," she responded, shaking her head at him.

"I know."

"No more arguing?"

"No more arguing," he confirmed.

Beka smiled faintly at him, then took a step away, moving toward her son again. Alex was not paying the least bit of attention to her or Rosto, but that was to be expected, considering that he was well occupied.

"Beka, wait." Rosto's voice made her stop, glancing back at him.

"What, Rosto?" she asked softly.

"Don't go," he replied, his voice almost as soft as hers. "Stay for a little while," he continued. She paused, searching his face for a hidden motive. With a sigh, she nodded, stepping back to where she had stood a moment before.

"Fine. I'll stay for a few minutes," she told him. "But I have things to do today."

"So be it," Rosto said. He looked a little pleased with himself, she noted. That would have to be taken care of later. He always had been a vain cove, she reminded herself. Even when he had come to Corus, she could distinctly remember how he had acted before he had taken the throne.

It had been better back then, she reminded herself. They had not reached their breaking point multiple times over then. It had just been flirting and nothing more… But only because she had not let it be more. Rosto had been rather insistent when he had first come to Corus. But they had both been much younger, then.

If she thought about it, she was lucky to even have this chance to be with him – the Rogue was a very precarious position. Seconds were the only thing that mattered when he was dueling for his throne. Only Kayfer had managed to keep it longer than Rosto among the last few Rogues.

She had been given her chance…and her second chance. Now all she had to do was stop thinking and take it. It was right there in front of her, just like it had been before.

Rosto watched her quietly, just looking at her for the long moment she spent thinking.

"You know something, Beka?" Rosto asked finally. Beka frowned slightly, looking up at him.

"What?"

"You think too much," he replied. "You need to feel, act on impulse…" he added.

Beka tilted her head slightly. She was about to open her mouth to say something when he leaned in and kissed her.

Surprise coursed through her for a split-second before she relaxed into his arms.

It felt right. She felt like she actually belonged there. This was right.

Suddenly, she did not regret any of it anymore.

Posted 12/17/10