A/N: Sorry for taking so long to update. You may want to go back and read the previous chapter. I'm going to get this story wrapped up soon, so no more long waits. Thank you for staying with me. And, reviews would be lovely.

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Ellie was being wheeled into the emergency room and was very surprised to see an anxious looking Devon Woodcomb waiting in full scrubs.

"Devon, what, why are you here?"

"Hey there Mrs. Casey, I wouldn't be a very good Chief-of-Staff if I didn't keep an eye on my emergency room would I?"

"No, it's just, why here?"

The emergency team began working on her as Devon filled her in.

"I took the Thoracic spot here about a year ago and I guess they like me as I'm now the Chief of Staff for the hospital. I was actually just about to leave when I checked the emergency room admissions and saw your name. Man, are you lucky Ell."

"Yes, very lucky," she drowsily replied. Devon was an excellent doctor and she was relieved that he would be working on her but she felt anxious that John wasn't yet with her.

Devon was following protocol to the letter. He'd ordered x-rays and she was on her way to the x-ray department in just a few minutes. He'd given her a stronger pain medication that was starting to work as she was quite drowsy.

"Devon what about.."

"I'll make sure he's in your room by the time you get back. Both he and Chuck. You just relax Ellie, I'll take care of everything."

She gave him a wane smile as she was wheeled away.

--

John and Chuck were just as surprised to see Devon as was Ellie.

"Where is she?" Casey growled at Devon.

"She's in x-ray right now. Come with me to my office and we'll talk while we wait for her to get back into the ER."

Chuck glanced nervously between the two men and eyed Casey with a questionable look, then followed his lead towards Devon's office.

They went in and he shut the door. "Okay guys here's the deal. I can't do much until I get the x-rays back but once they come in, I can give her stronger meds and I'll suture her leg so it won't scar. Just to warn you, her eyes are starting to blacken so don't look to shocked when you see her or you know, you'll freak her out. They'll be black for a few days then the bruising will fade."

John listened attentively as Devon continued. Chuck was just thankful that Casey wasn't harming Devon. But, to his credit, he wanted whatever was best for his wife and everyone in the room knew Devon was the best Doctor she could have.

"I'm pretty sure the leg is broken so I can't cast it yet until I know how badly and until the swelling goes down. She doesn't have a concussion, which is a surprise, so once I get her on some pain meds, she's going to sleep like a log and be mighty sore tomorrow. I have to keep her over night and possibly tomorrow as well. I'm going to run some routine blood tests and I think we'll all breath a bit easier in another hour or so." He smiled at both men. "Damn this stuff is scary when it hits home you know?" he mused.

All three of them shook their heads quietly in agreement. Devon hesitated for a moment then continued. "Look, I knew that once you realized I was attending to Ellie you would think "How Not Awesome" but I really want to help.

Chuck glanced at Casey to see his reaction to hearing the dude-speak again after so long. Thankfully, John was in a no-kill mode and thinking only of Ellie. He listened as Devon spoke from his heart.

"I know how badly I screwed it up with her, and I can see that you made your move John, so I'm happy for you both. I'm glad she has what she wants and I'm glad you stepped in to give it to her. I guess I just want you both to know that this doesn't have to be an awkward mess. I want what's best for her too and I hope you both realize that."

"We do Devon, we do. It's water under the bridge," Casey gracefully replied.

Chuck thought back to the night they'd all caught Devon in a compromising position and how Ellie had handled it so well. And soon after that, she was with Casey and Chuck was glad. He felt the need to convey that to Devon.

"You're right, you weren't awesome to her Devon, but that is inconsequential now as she has Casey, and he can give her what you never could. However, I'm glad you're taking care of her and I-we- know you'll do right by her."

"Thanks Chuck. I'm glad you understand and I'm glad I can be here for all of you," he said as he pointedly looked them both in the eye and smiled. Devon's light hearted, calm and friendly demeanor worked wonders to diffuse any potential testosterone induced violence that may have erupted and soon he was leading them down the hall into the maternity ward.

"Uh...where are we going?" Chuck bleated.

"Well, I kind of figured the big guy here would be staying over night with her and the birthing suites have two beds and I can attend to her just as easily there as in the ER, so, I want to get him set up before I bring her in. It should be a quiet night and the rooms are pretty far apart so they'll both get some rest."

Chuck glanced at Casey and noted the dark circles under his eyes. He'd come off the adrenalin rush earlier and now that he knew her life wasn't threatened, he looked spent.

"That's a...that's a good idea Devon. He won't leave her and they both are going to need rest."

They walked into the huge room and it almost seemed more like a hotel room.

"Okay guys, just kick back and she'll be in in a few. If you want food, pick up the phone and you'll get it delivered. It's a good set up. I'll be back after I check her xrays.

John quietly settled into the large chair and Chuck took the couch. Soon Ellie was wheeled in and transferred to the bed.

John jumped up and was instantly at her side. "Hey Baby, how are you doing?" he tenderly kissed her bruised lips.

"I'm sore, but glad to be here."

Chuck got up and stood next to John.

"Hi Sweetie," she weakly got out as she smiled up at her brother.

Chuck took her hand in his and smiled down at her. "Hey Ellie Bell, I'm so glad you're okay. You sure scared us good." Not wanting to upset her, he tried his best to keep the conversation light and fight the urge to cry in relief.

"John?"

"Yeah Baby?'

"Why am I in the maternity ward?"

Chuck sighed and laughed as John answered her.

"Devon gave us the room so I can stay with you overnight. He said it's pretty quiet tonight and we're on the end of the wing, so you should be able to get a good nights rest baby."

"Oh, that was nice of him. John?"

"What sweetie?"

"You didn't hurt him did you?"

"No baby, I didn't hurt him. Why do you want me to?"

Ellie and Chuck both laughed at the earnest and almost eager look Casey gave her as he waited for her reply.

"No, no, I was just hoping you wouldn't be upset that he's treating me."

He relaxed as he answered her. "Honey, I couldn't be happier. He's the best and that's what you deserve. For a jack-ass, he's okay. He knows he screwed up with you and he knows you're mine. End of story. Plus, he knows if he tries anything, he's got to deal with Bartowski here," he grinned out as he watched her nose wrinkle as she laughed.

"Ow, ow, it hurts to laugh," she winced and then her tone became more serious. "John, is my face, is it...."

"Beautiful? yeah it's beautiful baby. Prettiest face on earth!" he took her hand in his and kissed it. "Don't worry, you've got two shiners and a bit of swelling but you'll be just fine babe."

--

Devon came back in and sat down on the end of the bed. "So, here's the deal, your leg is broken, as I'm sure you already knew, but it's a clean break. I'm going to suture your leg now and I'll cast it tomorrow, so for now, missy, its the good drugs for you, and don't worry, I promise I won't leave a scar."

A nurse came in and hooked up an IV and started the slow drip of the strong pain medication and relaxant. Ellie drifted off into a drug induced slumber with a silly grin on her face as she watched her husband watch her. Once she was slumbering, a nurse gently laid an ice-pack across her bruised face and Devon got to work.

John watched from the chair as he gave Ellie a local and carefully stitched the gash closed. There was a time when he would have loved to have had any excuse to kick the guys ass to the moon, but now, he could only be thankful that the situation was being handled so well by Devon. He glanced over at Chuck who was watching intently as Devon finished up. He stood and walked over to Chuck.

"Hey, I'm going to go grab some stuff for her and take a quick shower. Can you stay until I get back?"

"Yeah, no problem. Here," he fished out the keys to the suburban and handed them to Casey. "Sarah's on her way over and said she was going to bring something for us to eat."

Casey took the keys and walked over to the bed and gently kissed his sleeping wife. As he walked out of the room, Devon followed. "Hey Man, She's going to be fine. It's all good. No worries okay?"

"Yeah, thanks Devon. I appreciate everything you've done. I'll be back in a bit. Chuck's going to stay with her until I'm back."

"Go on Man, I've got it all covered."

--

John grabbed Ellie's blue nightgown, robe and matching slippers and tossed them into a tote bag. He reached under the sink and grabbed her overnight bag with all of her lady things. He mulled over the selection of panties in her dresser drawer; silk, satin, thongs, bikinis and then selected two pairs of snowy-white cotton briefs. They always were his favorite. After grabbing two pairs of socks, he headed to the shower. As he quickly bathed, he fondly noted the bottles of shampoo and body wash that stood in the window sill. Being a bachelor, he'd had many flings with women but had never lived with one for more than a few weeks at a time. When he'd moved in with Ellie, he was amazed at he sheer number of products she had. Shampoo's for bounce and shine, shampoos for moisturizing, shampoos for brunettes, shampoos that smelled like apples, shampoos that smelled like vanilla and the list went on. Then there were the body washes. He'd actually made an investment in Bath and Body Works stock, that was doing fairly well considering the weak economy. She had every scent they made. He made a mental note to make sure the new house had a big enough shower, with two heads and enough built-in space for all of her products.

It was then that it hit him like a ton of bricks. He leaned against the cool tiles and faced the fact that he could have lost her. His beautiful, sweet, innocent, precious wife could have been taken from him. He felt humbled. If she had died, he knew on some instinctual level that he wouldn't have been able to handle it, but she was alive, she was still with him, happy and whole. He realized he'd been given a gift that evening. A precious gift. The God he'd stopped praying to had gifted him and he quietly and reverently thanked him as he stood briefly letting the water wash over him.