Note: Strong language here.

I must say, that the way you've all adopted Megan like one of our true characters makes me VERY HAPPY! I didn't think she'd catch on so well... Hehehehe I love it. Thanks for all your reviews!
I've definitely taken your opinions into consideration... But I'm still not sure how this is gonna play out.
It would be awfully cruel of me to split them up right before Christmas though, wouldn't it?
And in case I don't speak with you all tomorrow, HAPPY NEW YEAR! Go out, party, have fun, and kiss that cute neighbour of yours ;) Reckless abandon my friends, reckless abandon. ;)

Heartbeats

Megan sat on her rock for a good half hour, just watching the wind scalp the whitecaps off the waves. It wasn't until the bitter cold forced her to shift her position did she realize that her muscles were seizing up.

"Damn it." She stood up and began to try to stretch. It was getting dark out, she should probably be heading home anyway, she decided. She crossed her arm over her body and began to stretch out her side, biting her lip against the winds that had picked up. She was almost warmed up enough to begin her run home, but her phone began to ring again. For once, she didn't want it to be Dov.

"Hello?" She didn't check her caller ID, but the voice on the other end made tears flood her eyes.

"Hey, love. Where are you?" Dov's voice asked lovingly.

"Um," She held the phone away from her and sucked back her tears, hoping the waves would cause enough background noise to not give her away. "I'm at some beach. I went for a run and ended up here." She giggled, doing her best to hide her current situation.

"Babe! It's so cold, you're gonna get sick. What cross streets are you at, do you remember? I'll come get you." She could hear him grabbing his jacket and shoes. It's funny, how when you spend enough time with someone you become accustomed to their mannerisms.

For example, whether Dov realized it or not, he always flipped his hair out of his eyes to the left. And on the rare occasion that they argued, he always shifted from one foot to the other and he never raised his voice. Whether that was natural, or he just didn't want to scare her, she couldn't tell. And whenever they happened to be watching the news, and a murder or assault came up that he was familiar with, he'd always hold her a little closer.

Ninety percent of the time, he slept on his stomach but there was always at least one part of his body touching her. Or her personal favourite, whenever they would cuddle on the couch, he'd always lay his head on her chest to listen to her heartbeat. She never knew why, but it seemed to comfort him; which in turn, comforted her.

She noticed the small things, and she could usually tell what he was thinking. This meant, he could probably tell what she was thinking. And that meant, she couldn't stay at home while she was thinking everything over. 'Great.' She sighed. 'Now I'm gonna be the one insisting on a hotel.'

"I'll meet you at that Starbucks we went to the other day, alright? The one, that one near that place." She wasn't exactly capable of focusing on one subject at the moment.

"Alright." He laughed, to her relief. Yep, he could definitely read her mind. "I'll be there in like twenty minutes. She heard him close the door and walk down the front steps.

"Okay, see you soon." She sighed, her voice cracking a bit. "Love you." She whispered, tears returning. She could hear him smiling into the phone as he spoke.

"I love you too, Megan. See you in a minute." He snapped his phone shut.

"Oh fuck, oh fuck." She whispered to herself, biting at one of her nails as the wind whipped at her hair. "This just had to happen now, didn't it?" She asked the sky, angrily.

The seagulls screamed in the distance and she bit her tongue, shaking the aching feeling inside her stomach before jogging off to meet Dov. No sooner than five minutes after she reached the Starbucks did he show up.

"Boo." Dov whispered, sliding his hands around her waist. She jumped, but then collapsed into him in a fit of laughter.

"You're going to Hell." She turned around to face him, resting her hands on his chest. "I told you not to scare me!"

"I couldn't resist." He shrugged. "You looked so innocent and unsuspecting." He kissed her gently. When he pulled back, he noticed a table of three teenage girls, staring longingly at him. "Don't look now, but I see a few jealous teenagers behind you." He whispered to her, touching his nose to hers.

"Oh really now?" She threaded her arms around his neck. "Well, you know what I always say. If you've got an audience, give them a show." She grinned, before pressing a searing kiss to his lips, which he eagerly responded to.

"I feel like someone terrible is going to happen." He sighed into her lips. "Because you get better and better everyday. It's unbelievable. Something bad has to happen." She could tell than he was kidding, and it hurt her to know the realness of his words.

"Well, we'd might as well just enjoy right now then, right?" She lightly dragged her thumb across his cheek. He furrowed his brow, but didn't press the subject.

"Let's just go home." Much to the onlookers' dismay, he swept her off her feet and carried her to the car, a little worried at how her demeanour seemed so… resigned. "You okay?" He asked gently, once they were both seated.

"Oh, yeah. I'm just really tired." She laughed.

"Alright." He sang, satisfied, for now.

"I can't wait to shower." She began, sighing. "I love running, but I do not love feeling gross after."

"Funny, you look pretty appetizing to me right now." Dov grinned.

"Oh God, Dov. Maybe after I shower." She laughed.

"Fine." He said, mock pouting.

She was more than relieved when they got home. She felt like she was suffocating in that car, trying to keep herself together. She practically ran to the front door, unlocked it, and then didn't stop until she reached the bathroom.

"Hey, I'm gonna make some dinner. Anything you had in mind?" Dov asked through the door.

"Honestly, babe, I'm not that hungry. Make something, maybe I'll have a little later, okay?" She refused to open the door and look at him.

"Alright." Dov almost asked. He could definitely tell something was wrong. He always could. Since they'd met, he always felt that he knew her. He didn't know why, but he knew her mind like the back of his hand. And right now, her mind was not at peace. It was spinning at a million miles a minute, and she was hiding something. "Love you." He whispered.

Her back straightened, not sure if he'd actually said anything, or if she was just dreaming. She stripped off her gym clothes and climbed in the shower, setting the water as hot as she could stand it. She let the water trickle down her shoulders and over her chest, tilting her head back to soak her hair. She'd had a long history of crying in the shower, but she didn't want to alarm Dov. So, she held it back.

The water left red welts along her back, and the steam filled her lungs but she didn't care. She needed something, anything, to take her mind off of Lisa's offer. It was her career, something she'd worked so hard for; or her love, something that was never guaranteed.

"Damnit, Megan. You just couldn't have a good year, could you?" She whispered to herself, rubbing the tears out of her eyes.

She quickly washed, conditioned and rinsed her long dark hair and then continued to stand there, letting the boiling water beat the energy out of her. It had been a half hour before she snapped out of her daze and shut off the shower. She climbed out and towel dried her hair; taking her time to ensure that Dov didn't see the red streaks all over her body.

When she finally emerged from the bathroom, she decided she'd give Dov's method a try: throwing all of your cards on the table. She was just hoping he wouldn't call her bluff.

"Babe, Lisa called me today. I have to go out of town for a meeting for a few days." She said, picking up a piece of carrot on the cutting board on the counter. He looked up her, still stirring the pot in front of him.

"Oh." He was visibly disappointed. "When? For how long?"

"Tonight, actually. Just for a few days, I'll be back Saturday morning. So we can still go to the Christmas party." She smiled as big as she could.

"Alright, I guess that's okay." He scoffed. "What am I even talking about? Of course it's okay. Its work, I get it. When do you have to leave?" He turned to face her, but not before shutting off the element on the stove.

"An hour or so." She sighed.

"Well, not as long as I'd like, but I can work with that." He kissed her passionately. She closed her eyes tightly, trying to not let him see that something was wrong. He didn't notice, as far as she could tell. He only picked her up and carried her into the bedroom.

It was almost seven o'clock, and Megan had just made reservations at a hotel that she told Dov was in Vaughan. In reality, it was a Four Seasons about fifteen minutes away from their house.

"I love you, you know." She told him, watching him through the mirror as he moved around their room. She tied up her hair and had changed into her work attire, packed a bag and everything.

"I know, love." He looked up at her and smiled, with such kindness and care that her heart almost melted right there. "I love you too."

"I'll be back before you know it, okay?" She turned to face him. "I swear."

"I know! I know. Doesn't mean I'm gonna miss you any less." He smiled sadly, walking over to her and taking her hands in his. "Can I drive you there?"

"Oh, Dov it's fine. I've already called for a cab." She placed her hand on the side of his face.

"Okay." He said, quietly, looking at his feet.

"Come on." She dragged him over to the bed and lay down on her side. He crawled up next to her, and folded one arm over her body, resting his head on her chest.

"It's only two nights." She whispered. The sound of her voice was calming to him, much like the steady beat of her heart, but he still couldn't hide his displeasure with the whole situation.

"Last time you left…" He didn't have to finish his sentence, but already waves of guilt began to batter her.

"Dov I'm going to be fine. I'll call you everyday, five times a day. Okay?" She reassured him. He nodded and closed his eyes, trying to imprint her touch into his mind. He wasn't entirely sure he wouldn't go crazy without her. His grip tightened as he heard the cab pull up outside and honk. "Dov." She whispered, and he released her.

He followed her like a lost puppy to the door, only letting go of her hand at the last second. "I love you." He cleared his throat, and called after her.

"You're too good to me, Dov. I love you too." She turned, and smiled graciously at him. "Bye." She whispered, before turning back and continuing to the cab. She closed the door behind her, and watched him watch her as the car pulled away. "Four Seasons on Avenue." She said briskly, before leaning back into her seat and trying to keep herself together.

"Yes ma'am." The taxi driver responded, taking the appropriate turn. She rested her head against the window and sighed as the first sign of rain started to fall and night finally began to settle over Toronto. They hadn't made it more than five minutes away from the house when her phone beeped in her pocket. She shifted a little and pulled it out of her pocket, reading that she had a text, from Dov.

Text Message

Awwww, Megan, can we get one?

From: Dov Epstein

She hit the down button to view the photo accompanying the text. She smiled at a small puppy staring up at her, the photo obviously taken off the television screen, one of those SPCA ads. It was his thing, those ads. Every time they came on, he'd make her sit through it and then try to talk her into getting a pet.

She smiled fondly at the memories, and unconsciously clenched her fist so hard she drew blood from the palm of her hand. 'Oh God, what am I going to do?' She asked herself as she pulled a Kleenex out of her purse and wiped away the blood.

She paid the driver and got her suitcase out of the trunk before making her way into the lobby, dragging her bags behind her.

"Checking in?" The man behind the counter asked. She nodded, and gave him the information he needed. "Josh!" He flagged down a bellhop, who promptly jogged over.

"I did tell you that I'm not you servant, right Brad?" He grinned at the man behind the counter. "Here, I'll show you to your room." He flashed a million dollar smile at Megan as he bent down to pick up her bags.

"Oh, it's fine. I can, really, it's – " She was silenced by a raised eyebrow from Josh.

"Trust me, it's no trouble." He smiled and led her to the elevator. "So, what brings you to the Four Seasons?" He tried to make a little small talk, but needless to say, she wasn't in the mood. But, she was still going to try.

"I, uh, I just, some, work. It's for work." She exhaled sharply, nodding.

"Affair?" He raised his eyebrow again, and his question definitely caught her off guard.

"What? No!" She shook her head, shooting him a confused smile.

"You uh, looking for one?" He said smoothly, as the elevator dinged. Megan smiled and turned to face him.

"You're cute." She tapped the side of his face. "Like, four year old cute." His face began to go red. "Nice try though." She slid a five dollar bill in his chest pocket and bent down to get her bags, exiting the elevator. She smiled to herself. 'That was a show.'

She could practically feel him watch her down the hall and around the corner to her room. What that man saw was a confident, sexy young woman that could have anything she wanted. What he didn't see, was that as soon as she made it through the door and shook off her coat, she promptly crawled into the bed and cried herself to sleep.