Sorry for the lateness of this update... I was working today as I will be tomorrow... :-(
I'm really hoping that I'll get the last chapter in before the cutoff... Just know that I am working on it as we speak! :-)

Thanks be to my wonderful beta Angela Masson and my prereader SassyNoles!
You both keep my laughing even when I don't want to! Luv you both heaps!

This one's a little longer.

Chapter 18

Eighteen hours later, Rose was leaning, half sitting against the hood of the Cobra. On her left, Lissa took up the same position against the Hemi Cuda; they were waiting for Emil and his son, Stan so that they could hand over possession of the vehicles. Normally, they handed over the cars over as soon as possible, but Emil wanted all five at once… He thought it would be more of an incentive for them to get the cars quickly and if they happened to get caught, then he wouldn't be implicated or caught with stolen cars.

Dimitri stood to Rose's right leaning against 'Eleanor' but he was more interested in the woman beside him. He couldn't keep his eyes away from her as seeing her sitting there, took his mind back to the night before when he made his fantasy of taking her on the hood of the Cobra, come true. He swallowed hard at the memory and unashamedly readjusted himself into a more comfortable position.

He watched the knowing smirk pull at the sides of Rose's mouth at his action… She may have been looking away from him, but she could see him out of the corner of her eye. His adjustment made her squirm…

"Rose, would you mind moving off that car please," Adrian said dryly from the other side of his friend. "I'd hate to have to cut D's junk off because he can't control himself. I don't think Emil would appreciate all the blood." Christian and Lissa laughed from the ends of the line.

"Oh I don't know Adrian; you might actually learn how to please a woman…"

"OH BURN!" Laughed Christian… Lissa just shook her head but she could really think about were the thrilling after effects of boosting cars. The night before, she'd revved the car up, inching forward until the nose of the Hemi was against Christian's legs but he was not going to move out of her way. Adrian knew Lissa wasn't about to give up her prize, but Chris thought he had an advantage and could get her to hand the car over… He soon found out he was wrong when Lissa informed him that no amount of orgasms were going to get her out of her seat. In the end, he told Adrian to meet him back home and he jumped into the car with Lissa.

"Where do you think he learned all of his mad skills from?" Adrian shot back.

"Not from you obviously, after all, he's the only one here who has someone coming back for seconds and thirds and fourths and fifths…" Rose said crossing her arms across her chest with a very satisfied look on her face. Dimitri's shoulders shook as he watched the woman he loved in all her glory.

"Shut up, you two." Eddie said as he walked in. He'd been outside to meet Emil and his men and could hear the bickering before he'd even walked into the large room.

"Good evening everyone." Emil said as he walked inside, taking note of where everyone was standing. "My, my… this most certainly is a sight to behold. So, I'm gathering that you got three of the five Dimitri?"

"No…" Rose interrupted. "It's even."

Emil turned his amused eyes to the brown haired beauty, appreciating the sight of her resting against the beast of a car. "And how exactly is that possible, Rosemarie?"

"Well, you see Emilio," Rose said as Dimitri shook his head. She knew he hated his full name as much as she did. "…when you put two people such as us against each other, it only stands to reason that we'll tie…"

Emil glanced over to the still smiling Dimitri and quickly realised that they were back together… just as he'd wished would happen. He'd seen the man he considered a son, come close to falling apart when Rose left him and he didn't like the direction he saw Dimitri heading in.

"Yes well… I honestly don't care. As long as I get what I want, it doesn't matter to me who gets it." He then turned back to his real son, finally letting his smile stretch across his face. "Stan, ensure they each get their correct pay."

Stan walked over to Dimitri and was about to put the briefcase he was carrying onto the hood of the Mustang. The warning growl from Rose behind him stopped him before he could. "Do not… put that… on the car." She said emphatically.

"Well then, where would you like me to put it?" She knew exactly where he could put it… Rose and Stan had butted heads more than once over the years.

"Rose…" Dimitri said, cutting her answer off before she said something they all regretted. "Just hold it open and I'll take my share." Once the money was divided, Emil waved over the other men that came with them over so that they could finally get the cars loaded into his trucks.

"Well, a pleasure as always Dimitri… Rose, it's lovely to see you again and I hope to see you more often." He said with a lift of his brow. Rose thought it was an odd expression but she'd always liked Emil, so she nodded before shaking his hand. She watched wistfully as 'Eleanor' left the warehouse; she wondered briefly that now she had a decent amount of money, she might buy one for herself… legally!

"Till next time." Emil said as he walked out with his son beside him. Once back in his car, Emil pulled out his cell and dialled home.

"So, did your plan work?" was how Alberta answered the phone.

"Of course… You should know I always get what I want, Love."

"They're going to have your guts for garters when they find out how you meddled… you realised that right?"

"Nah, they both love me… just like you do."

"I'm in the car remember." Stan mumbled loud enough for his father to hear.

"Shut your mouth boy… I'm trying to get lucky tonight." Emil couldn't help but laugh at the 'disconnect' dial tone from the phone. But it was the groan of disgust from his son that made him laugh even more…

"Well… I think a drink is in order… Who's in?" Adrian said lighting up a cigarette.

"I could do with a drink." Rose said with a nod… and she could but there was another reason she wanted to go to the club tonight…

Bad!

Dimitri had tried to talk Rose out of going to their normal nightclub, knowing exactly why she wanted to go into 'Alchemy' and it wasn't for the music. As much as he didn't want to, Dimitri knew that Rose was on a mission and he'd have to follow. He didn't have to go home to change, so he took the girls back to their apartment and the others would meet them there.

Dimitri sat on Rose's bed, leaning against the headboard and enjoying the simple pleasure of watching her getting ready for a night out the way he used to. "Penny for your thoughts." Rose questioned. Dimitri blinked at her voice, coming back to the present. "You seem a million miles away." He knew then that he had to get the last bit of information out before he watched Rose publicly fight for their relationship, after she knew all his sins, she may not want to.

"I need to tell you something." He said keeping his eyes locked with hers. He felt like he was about to lose her all over again and his stomach was in knots, but he knew he had to do this, they couldn't move forward with this between them.

"That sounds ominous."

"It could be…" He said seriously. Rose felt the weight of the coming conversation so she moved to sit on the end of the bed at his feet. "Before we go out tonight, you need to know something… something that happened after we split."

She had an inkling of what he was going to say, she'd expected it.

"After you left, I was pretty upset. I thought you'd come back… but you didn't. I drank a lot; I drank a real lot… It numbed things for a while… Then, I was angry… at you. I couldn't believe that you'd walked away from all that we had together, I blamed you for… everything. A month ago, I was at my worst. I'd been on a three day binge when the guys took me to 'Alchemy', I got hammered and I woke up in some woman's bed."

Rose's heart clenched hearing those words, but she realised that she wasn't angry… hurt yes, but not angry; they'd been apart for two months by then.

"When I realised what I'd done, I didn't know how to feel… On one hand, I felt like I'd betrayed you and felt sick to my stomach but then I got angry at you because you'd been gone for two months and still had such a hold on me. So I drank even more because I couldn't work out what emotion I was feeling more; anger, hurt or guilt… probably all three if truth be told. Two nights later, she turned up at the garage after everyone had gone home and while not trying to make excuses, in my drunken state, I thought she was you and that you'd come back…"

Rose didn't try to stop the tears as they fell onto her face. She was hurting… but she could also see the pain in the eyes of the man she'd loved since she was thirteen. She could see how much she'd hurt him by leaving. Dimitri had always been so strong, like he was invincible; he wasn't afraid of anything. She knew that she was the only one he'd let see his softer side, but even then he wasn't… soft. It actually threw her to see him so vulnerable and pain stabbed at her heart to know she was the cause of it.

"I'm so sorry Roza. I wish with everything in me that I could take it back."

"No…" she said in a strained voice as she moved closer to his side. "I'm the one that's sorry. I should have talked to you, let you know what I was thinking and feeling before flying off the handle and running away. Had I done that… so much could have been avoided."

"Roza…" he said reaching out and taking her face in his hands. "Your actions aren't what matters here, I shouldn't have done…

"I kissed someone…." She blurted out. "I was angry too and Liss took me out one night to pull me out of the funk I'd got myself into. I drank too much and was dancing with Liss when someone came up behind me. I knew on some level it wasn't you but I chose to ignore it, I wanted it to be you, so I kissed him... a lot." She was waiting for him to yell… but he didn't. He smiled.

"I love you Roza, with all my heart and if you let me, I'll do anything for your forgiveness." She knew the instant he spoke, that she had already forgiven him… They'd both been at fault. She leant forward, placing her lips against his. He stiffened at first but his eyes closed as he breathed in her unique scent.

"I love you too Dimitri," she said as rested her forehead against his. "…nothing will change that. I feel like… there's nothing to forgive but I also realise that I need your forgiveness; for leaving, for putting you in that situation, for my actions since, so I forgive you."

"Thank you baby, I'll never let you regret it. And you're right, there's nothing to forgive, but I do." There was nothing he wanted more than to just hold her here all night long but she stood up and held a hand out, smiling…

"Let's go… party."

Yeah right...

Only one more chapter... (Hopefully) I'm hoping I'll get it up before the cutoff! :-)