A.N.: I am on fire with all these updates!... I have to get me a better life... Anyway, Aaron's not the only welcher when it comes to Reid and bets!

It was difficult for Lilah to believe she'd only been in Massachusetts for a full week, Saturday to Saturday. Lessons had flown by, they always did, and overnight swim-practice had become the most anticipated time of the day, beating lunchtime—mostly because she got to see Reid in his teeny tiny little swim-shorts. With Nathaniel Parry's help—Pogue's gorgeous movie-star-handsome dad—Lilah now owned her very own left-hand-drive manual vintage Mini: Red, glittery, with a great engine built by the same guy who repaired Pogue's bike, new upholstery and a CD player. Her father had already paid a years' worth of insurance, and considering her grades were excellent, her insurance was cheaper than, say, Reid's.

She was standing at the DMV with Nathaniel, passport, greencard, driver's licences in-hand, waiting to take her test. He had told her she'd only have three weeks to get her licence or she'd have to wait—and she'd never liked relying on her own two legs when four wheels at 80mph would do. Nathaniel had been the one, on Tuesday and Wednesday afternoon when she had finished lessons and he had returned from Boston, to take her out to the dells in the Mini and get her used to driving left-hand-drive. She'd learned on a manual, so it was easy, except she had to remember that the stick-shift was on her right rather than her left.

"Relax, you'll do great," Nathaniel smiled encouragingly. He was pink-faced and sweaty in the overcrowded, overheated office, but grinned excitedly. "You're wearing a low-cut top, you'll be fine. If you screw up, just stick out your chest." Lilah rolled her eyes and adjusted the neckline of her low-cut backless t-shirt, smacking his chest playfully as she would his son. It wasn't that she wanted to cheat her way into getting a licence; she didn't want anything rubbing against her new tattoo.

"So, Pogue tells me you're getting really friendly with Reid," Nathaniel said casually, but not casually enough. Another eye-roll.

"Yes, I have. He's very sweet," Lilah said, carefully choosing to avoid looking at her guardian, or listen to his thoughts. She'd seen his smirk; that was enough.

"Did you get the tattoo with him?" Nathaniel asked, again very casual. Lilah reached back and flicked the fabric of her top. "You don't have to hide it. Look at mine." Nathaniel raised the back of his t-shirt to show a beautiful spread of feathery angel's wings.

"I like hanging out with Reid, he's really fun to be with," Lilah smiled wistfully. Sitting here, she'd prefer to be with Reid. This afternoon he was at Nicky's—with a promise to her that she wouldn't find him battered up in the back of the bar—with the boys, and Sarah was meeting her at the little lingerie boutique Lilah had come across walking with Reid after their tattoos.

"Do you like him?" Nathaniel teased, smirking, and when Lilah blushed and looked away pointedly, he chuckled. She did like Reid, a lot. She had a lot of fun with him, laughed more than she could ever remember doing, could flirt and tease and he would just toss it back with a lopsided smirk and a pucker of those sculpted lips. She wanted to get him out of his jeans. But she could never let him know that. "You know, I've known the boys all their lives, and Reid was always the most affectionate, the least likely to cause a squabble or bully the others."

"What changed?" Lilah asked. Reid was still affectionate, cheeky and charming, but there was that aggression that got him into fights.

"He got his Powers," Nathaniel sighed. "And it's difficult not to Use once you've just got them, I'm sure you understand that." Lilah nodded. She knew she was different from when she got her Power. "It's difficult on all of them to have to hide a major part of who they really are. Does he know?" Nathaniel and Elizabeth, Pogue's mother, knew all about Lilah, and her awesome Power, but Pogue and the boys didn't know anything yet. She didn't even think their parents knew enough about her to realise she had the Power.

"Yes," she said quietly, glancing at Nathaniel. "He saw me Using when I broke up a fight between him and three boys at our school. So I told him everything." Nathaniel nodded thoughtfully, his smooth forehead drawn in a frown.

"Good, that's good that you've told someone," Nathaniel smiled. "It always helps to be able to talk to someone."…wish I could talk to Pearly, he sighed, eyes roving over Lilah's face. She's so like her mother it's like Pearl's smiling out at me from those eyes. Lilah smiled as she looked away, hearing her name, and Nathaniel smirked as a short middle-aged man with no wedding-band waved Lilah over.

Damn, she heard him moan, and strutted over, smirking. She handed over her paperwork, he took her outside and she got into the Mini. Half an hour later, she pulled off a perfect bay-park in the DMV parking-lot and the pervy little man grinned as he handed her the pass form.

"Let's go get that licence," he leered, and Lilah quickly exited the car, striding over to the office.

"How'd you do?" Nathaniel asked, beaming as she grinned and smacked his outstretched palm. "Good job."

Reid was shooting pool, doing his best not to aggravate Ryan enough to cause a fight to please Lilah, and he was winning without Using, so Caleb could back off. He had distinguished himself last year in making combo shots whenever he wanted to: it was easy money. The game was for cash, of course.

"Hey, look who's here," Tyler grinned, clapping a hand on his shoulder, and Reid glanced over to the bar: tight dark-wash denim mini, patterned stockings, knee-high slouchy black boots with three-inch wedge heels, and a backless top showing off a rose tattoo halfway down her spine. He grinned, took his money from Ryan and strutted over to the bar, clapping a hand on Lilah's ass. She jumped, straightened up and grinned as she saw who it was. She wrapped her arms around him in a hug, which for Reid was over too quickly, and slipped an arm around his waist, still letting him keep his hand on her ass.

"Hey, how'd your test go?" he asked. She held up a shiny brand-new Massachusetts driver's licence.

"And I didn't even have to flash for it," she smirked, shrugging her shoulders slightly to show off the fact that she wasn't wearing a bra underneath the flimsy tattoo-patterned cotton. Reid grinned.

"What've you been up to today?" Lilah asked, glancing over his shoulder at the pool-tables, where Tyler was playing another game with Ryan.

"Let's see," he said, tapping his chin thoughtfully with his fingers, "I got to sleep at about two a.m. thinking there was someone looking at me through the window, I woke up, showered, got dressed, and came here. Now I'm talking to you." Lilah laughed softly, shaking her head.

Yesterday afternoon, while they were supposed to be recovering from 'food-poisoning', they had gone to the video-arcade, watched Halloween (Lilah had been holding his hand from the first half-hour 'til the end, and he had just now recovered feeling in his fingers) at the IMAX theatre, and had dinner at California Pizza Kitchen.

Tyler had been developing his Look of Death all afternoon, and when they got back to the dorms—completely sober but giggly from too much sugar at Cold Stone Ice-Creamery—he had dumped the notes of the afternoon's lectures, the homework assignments and the fact they had missed a pop-quiz on the first settlers in History on them. Reid rather admiringly thought Lilah had probably already done the homework before she came out for the afternoon. He'd wait till midnight tomorrow night before cracking a book open. He always did, and he always got mediocre grades because of it. He was an underachiever and he excelled at it.

"So what're you doin' later?" Reid asked nonchalantly. There was no way he could sucker her into watching another freaky-scary movie again—she'd wanted to see a Garrett Hedlund movie called Death Sentence, but maybe she'd be up for going to see that, or going to Chevy's.

"Well, Aaron keeps trying to corner me into going out with him," Lilah sighed exasperatedly, wrinkling her cute little button nose. Anger and jealousy boiled in his stomach as he glanced over his shoulder; Aaron wasn't with his boys at the pool-tables. He'd probably found a less-pretty girl to fall back on when Lilah had rejected him. Probably one of Kira's hot-looking cheerleader friends with low self-esteem problems. "But I told him I was meeting up with you and the boys." Nicky handed her the food she'd asked for; grilled-cheese sandwich cut in half, fries, a little pot of mayo, a Diet Coke, and Reid handed over a note before Lilah could get the money out of her coin-purse.

"You didn't have to do that," she smiled.

"It's Ryan's money," Reid smirked, glancing over his shoulder. "I beat him at pool. And I didn't even have to flash for it." Lilah rolled her eyes amusedly, sucking on her straw, and they walked over to a little table where Pogue normally sat.

"So why aren't you out with Sarah or something? I thought she was going to Mix," Reid said. Mix was the cocktail bar that was substandard in checking IDs and was frequented by the elite of Spenser, mostly girls dressed up for a night out.

"Nah, I'm too tired," Lilah sighed, and she really sounded it. She rested her elbow on the table and tucked her hair behind her ear before leaning her face on her palm, smiling softly at him. Reid was tired, too. The only reason he'd come out tonight was in the hope of seeing her. Otherwise, he would love to have curled up into a ball under his duvet and slept off his exhaustion. They hadn't got back to the dorms until one a.m., having seen the late-showing of Halloween, and the night before he'd been totally plastered. It all added up.

"I think we wear each other out," he said sagely, stealing some fries. He liked how Lilah sat cross-legged on her chair like a child but ate her greasy grilled-cheese so daintily even at Nicky's Lounge. It wasn't exactly the most white-collar place in town. Lilah laughed softly as she ate, offering him the tray of fries. When she finished eating, and had danced one song with him, they migrated to the pool-tables with Tyler and Pogue.

"You any good at this game?" Lilah asked, racking up the balls.

"I'm okay," Reid shrugged, chalking a cue.

"Care to make a friendly wager?" Lilah asked, grinning mischievously. That grin made him nervous, but exhilarated.

"Sure."

"Alright," she smiled luxuriously, "if I win this game, then you have to spend the night with me." He almost choked on his soda. Did I just hear that right? he thought. 'Cause that sounded like she wanted to…

"That's friendly," he laughed nervously. Lilah smirked.

"Well, if the stakes are too high, just say so," she said, and he could distinguish every syllable of her refined English accent even over the tumult of the bar that was getting rowdier every half-hour.

"Well, it's a very one-sided bet," Reid said.

"Not really. If you lose, then we both win," Lilah smirked. He gave her a look. "Alright," she laughed softly, "what if you win?"

"Then you spend the night with me," Reid smirked. Her eyes flashed brightly, the dimples appeared at the corners of her mouth.

"Sounds good," she said quietly, keeping her eyes intently on his.

"Cleaning my car." That's safe enough, he thought. She made him nervous. How could he spend so much time with her flirting casually, and now that it came down to it, he couldn't handle outright flirting with intent to do more?

"If that's what gets you in the mood," Lilah smiled, pressing close against him so he could feel the very-there curves as Tyler broke the triangle. "So is that a wager?"

"It's a bet," Reid nodded, shaking her hand. He tingled all over with just that little bit of contact. So they started playing: Reid and Tyler against Lilah and Pogue. No Using. Lilah was playing better than she'd ever played in her life—without Using—and that was telling her something. Reid was getting more and more nervous with every ball she sank and had to work very hard to keep up. As much as he wanted to spend the night with her—doing whatever she had planned—it just didn't seem right, sleeping with her because of a bet. He didn't see her as some great prize, although she would be worth the competition.

"Have you checked the score lately?" she asked tauntingly across the table, after she sank another ball. "What am I up, three balls?"

"It's very early in the game, little girl. Shut up and shoot," Reid said, bending to take his shot. I have got to win this game, he thought desperately. He sank his ball and Tyler grinned, although the smile faded into a disgruntled wrinkle of his nose as he had to break a cluster of balls.

"Hey, what's goin' on with you and Lilah?" Pogue asked quietly, glancing over to where Lilah was sipping her soda, adjusting her top, watching Tyler intently.

"Nothing," Reid said innocently. Pogue didn't buy it.

"That's why she's been mad-dogging you the entire night," he smirked, eyebrows raised.

"We made a bet," Reid said.

"What kind of bet?" Pogue asked, though by his tone it was suggested he already knew what was at stake.

"A friendly bet." He took a gulp of soda, hiding his face.

"How friendly?" Pogue asked, setting his jaw reprovingly. Reid watched Tyler break the cluster and sink one; he had another shot.

"Extremely friendly," he said quietly, glancing at his friend from the corner of his eye.

"Where was I when your parents were dropping you on your head?" Pogue asked, rumpling Reid's hair patronisingly. He jerked his head away, smiling, and Lilah set up her shot.

"Hey, uh, Lilah, did you get that infection cleared up?" Pogue asked, and she overestimated her shot and missed it, sending the ball ricocheting off the sides. She rested her forehead against the felt and when she raised her head, she was sucking her cheeks in, giving him the Look. But even with Pogue's interference, Lilah only had one more ball to sink, and she did it easily.

"Well, that's it," she smiled, stalking up to him, smirking that taunting little dimpled smile. "And, uh, did I win?"

"Yeah, yeah, shut up," Reid sighed. "You didn't expect me to actually pay up, did you?"

"Yes," Lilah said brightly, her face illuminated by the whiteness of her smile.

"Would you really want me there against my will?" he asked smilingly. He had warmed to the idea.

"Absolutely," Lilah smirked, which got Reid thinking just what kind of a girl she really was. He sighed and handed his cue over.

"Alright, a bet's a bet," he said, walking with her over to their table.

"Would it be so bad?" Lilah asked softly, as she retrieved her bag and purse. Reid glanced at her; Would what be so bad?

"Spending the night with me," she said softly, gazing up at him. She was completely serious now, searching his face. "Spending the night with me, would it be so terrible?" Reid licked his lips nervously.

"It might be nice," he said, his voice constricted. He was losing all ability to think as all the blood rushed downwards; she was standing so close, noses almost touching, eyes soft and twinkling at him.

"Just nice?" Her eyebrows shot up and her eyes widened.

"It would be…incredible," he mumbled nervously, feeling heat flushing his face. The dimples appeared again, her lips were so beautifully sculpted and moist. She nodded her head slightly.

"Yes, it would be," she agreed softly, in barely more than a whisper. She licked her lips and sighed softly. "Not tonight."

"What?" he blurted.

"Not on a bet. Not tonight, and not on a bet," Lilah said, stepping back, slipping her jacket on, sure to shrug her shoulders so her breasts bounced slightly, showing him what she had offered and just like that, taken away without ever letting him… He was more than indignant as she smirked and strutted away, flicking the hair out of her collar, her hips wiggling under the skirt.

"YOU WELCHER!" he shouted after her, utterly appalled. Damn.

"Hey, I thought you guys had a…" Pogue said, glancing at the doorway Lilah had just disappeared through. Reid just couldn't stop staring. Not tonight… Some other night, then. He grinned. All was not lost. 'Yes, it would be'. She'd thought it would be incredible to spend the night together, too. There was still hope for him!

"She played me!" Reid said indignantly. Tyler had no clue what was going on and gave them both a weird look. "That's somethin' I would do. That bitch! She has sunk to my level like a rock! I don't believe it, she—she won't pay up."

A.N.: Inspired greatly by Roseanne series one, episode five with George Clooney! Yum. Tell me what you think!