Austin handed the vendor a ridiculous thirty five pounds for three bottles of water and passed them down the row.

"Thanks," Carter said, as he took a sip of the ice cold water and cringed as one of the Spanish basketball players ran into an American defensive screen. It looked like the poor guy ran into a brick wall, a six foot, eight inch, quarter ton wall named LeBron James. "Ouch."

Austin snorted, "Yeah," he agreed, taking a sip of his water as well.

"I still don't understand this bloody game," Sasha muttered from Austin's other side.

"It's like soccer, football, whatever, except played by giants. Plus, you can use your hands, like God intended," Carter said, grinning madly as the US went up by a solid fifteen points against a very good Spanish team.

Sasha rolled his eyes, "That's the point, using your hands is too easy. What's the fun in scoring fifty or sixty times in an hour?"

Austin sat back as Carter glared at their coach. "Deal with it," the University of Oklahoma bound gymnast said. "You owe me."

After word got out about Sasha and Payson's relationship, everyone was pretty understanding, but as Sasha worked with them on day on the parallel bars, Austin watched as Carter half-kiddingly scolded their coach about not obeying his own rules. Austin didn't really blame him. From what he heard, Carter had been suspended just before the 2009 National Championships and nearly kicked out of the Rock permanently for breaking Sasha's rule against dating. It was a double standard, to say the least.

So Sasha took the ribbing in stride and seemed genuinely apologetic when he offered to give Carter tickets to the event of his choice. Carter chose the USA basketball gold medal game and then insisted Sasha go with them, knowing how much their coach would likely loathe the experience, a small recompense for the terror he'd instilled nearly three years ago.

"Is Odette flying in before the competition?" Sasha asked, swiftly changing the subject.

"Nah," Austin said with a shrug, "she's got a gig in Milan."

Carter snorted from his other side, "She's so hot. I don't get you man. It's Odette Viennaeu."

Austin sighed. He knew this was coming. He'd felt it building for a couple of days now, ever since Carter came back from attending one of the swimming events and caught him with Kelly. It wasn't too embarrassing since she'd been about to leave, but it was pretty obvious what they'd been up to in his absence. "That's the difference between you and me, Carter. I can't be tied down. Makes me fell smothered. Ask Sasha, he gets it."

Both younger men turned to their coach who'd just took a deep drink from his water. His eyes grew wide and he swallowed harshly. "Don't look at me. I've been in a monogamous relationship for two years and I just got engaged if you remember. I'm all about being smothered."

"Before that, before Payson put your balls in a vice," Austin said, wincing at the harshness of his tone.

Sasha frowned and glared at him. Austin shrugged his shoulders apologetically. "Your reputation was legendary, Sasha. You bounced from girl to girl. There isn't anything wrong with it."

His coach sighed and nodded, "Not as long as the girl knows that's all it is, no there isn't anything wrong with it."

Carter shook his head, "But Odette, then Kaylie, then well, I guess you weren't actually with Payson even though we all thought you were, then MJ and then back with Kaylie again and then Odette and now Kelly Parker? Is it a game or something?"

Austin smirked, "No it's not a game, but it is fun."

"Fun until you find someone you actually want to be with and it all blows up in your face," Sasha said pointedly, letting Austin know that Payson had obviously shared everything with him about Kaylie. Not that he hadn't expected her to; he knew that's how they operated.

"We don't have secrets from each other," she once told him when he asked about her not to mention something to Sasha. "It's the secrets that screw everything up."

"Who says I've found a person I want to be with?" he asked, avoiding the eyes of both men.

"Payson," Sasha said simply and shrugged. Carter laughed and then turned into a very horrible imitation of a cough. Austin glared at him sharply.

"I knew having a chick for a best friend would haunt me one day. She cares about this crap way too much. Payson can think what she likes. I'm happy with my current arrangement."

"Wait, who are we talking about?" Carter asked, looking back and forth between the two. Austin stared at him, not really wanting to say her name and hating that she was still the girl that popped into his head whenever he even thought about the possibility of a serious relationship.

The silence reigned over them for a moment before comprehension dawned on Carter's face. "Oh, Kaylie?" he asked and nodded. "She is pretty good at twisting you up in knots and then completely destroying you."

Suddenly Sasha perked up from Austin's other side, "Wait, you were dating Kaylie?" It was so strange to see a look of confusion on the face of a man that usually knew what you were thinking before you figured it out yourself, that Austin couldn't help but laugh.

"You mean there was something we slipped under your nose and the most obvious one too," Austin said, and then turned to Carter, "no offense."

"None taken," Carter said, a smirk appearing on his face as well.

"I thought you were with Lauren," Sasha asked.

Carter grew silent, so Austin decided to help him out, "No, he was with Kaylie and he slept with Lauren, which is why Kaylie dumped him." Carter elbowed him, but Austin shrugged, "What? He's not going to suspend you at the Olympics three years after it happened."

Sasha's eyes narrowed, "I take it back. I'm not sorry I suspended you then. No wonder they were always at each other's throats."

Austin suddenly had enough and while he was glad the focus was finally off his love life, the conversation was starting to grate on his nerves, "Guys, we're at a sporting event, let's enjoy the game."

"This really is a shitty sport," Sasha commented under his breath, earning near identical eye rolls from the roommates as they ceased their gossiping and watched at the United States clinched their gold medal on the same floor they would begin training on the next day and competing on two days later.

If there was one thing Austin hated it was podium training. The 02 Arena, formerly called the North Greenwich Arena, was home to the gymnastics competition for the last week of the Olympics. Every apparatus was set up according to the specifications of the IOC and they were allowed one team practice for a few hours before the competition began. Why those team practices always seemed to take place at ungodly hours in the morning was beyond him. Their bus left the Olympic Village at seven thirty that morning and they had use of the arena until ten. He bumped shoulders with Payson as she chalked her hands for the uneven bars while he got ready to practice his p-bars routine.

In an unprecedented move, the IOC allowed the officials of the London games to set up a huge gymnastics venue, containing both men's and women's events. They would compete one after another, while spectators could purchase ticket "sets" to watch both a men's and women's event.

"Apparently you made a deal with the devil," she whispered, smiling at him knowingly. "She won't shut up about you."

Austin's brow furrowed in concern. He thought he'd made it clear to Kelly that he wanted to keep things casual, "She gets that this is…"

Payson rolled her eyes, "Relax, Casanova, she gets it. I now know way more than I ever wanted to about your skills in the sack. You do know that her boyfriend is like three times the size of you right?"

"The hick from Idaho?" Austin shrugged dismissively. "Unlikely to ever be in the same room as the guy and she's just as unlikely to ever mention it to him, I'd imagine."

Payson shrugged and shook her head. He knew she understood why he wanted to avoid commitment, but he also knew she hated it. "Anyway, I'm supposed to relay a message. You're meeting her tonight at seven in my room."

He smirked, not being able to help himself, "You want in on the action, Pay? We'd love the company."

She laughed and snorted. "If you remember, I'm going out tonight with my family and Sasha, a sort of belated birthday slash engagement celebration."

"Sounds…I was going to go with nice, but it just sounds awkward."

"It should be okay, I think. No one will want to rattle me before the competition, so everyone should be on their best behavior." She smiled and winked.

"Putting your dad and Sasha in the same room when neither one will want to upset the fragile mental state of someone about to compete at the Olympic Games. Genius. You're so devious, Pay, seriously. You could give Lauren a run for her money if you put your mind to it."

"Nah, I have better things to focus on," she said, spraying her grips as Kaylie finished up her routine.

"Oh yeah, like what?" he called as she moved away from him.

She threw her arms out and motioned around them, "Like winning."

Sasha watched from his position by the vault as Payson and Austin chatted and then laughed together. They both seemed loose and ready to go. Despite the intensity of their first few days in London, things seemed to be settling down. As pissed off as he was about the leak, he was astounded Ellen Beals was stupid enough to release the photos at the beginning of the games and not closer to the competition when they didn't have time for damage control.

Despite knowing that she'd leaked the photos, they had no real proof, so the bane of his existence was still working for the NGO in an official capacity. She'd been smart enough over the last few days to completely avoid both Payson and him. Just a few more days and they'd be free of her forever.

He crossed his arms over his chest as Izzy signaled she was ready from the end of the run and sped down towards the vault, launching herself off the horse and over-rotating her second twist. He watched as her left ankle bent awkwardly upon landing and she cried out.

"Shit," he cursed rushing to her side. She tried to stand, but he grabbed her firmly about the shoulders. "Don't you dare," he warned. "Sit down and keep your weight off it."

She obeyed, tears springing up in her eyes, quickly running down her cheeks. "I'm fine," she insisted as he helped her extend her leg and he examined her ankle carefully. It was already swelling.

"You're not," he said shortly and then caught himself. She was just a kid really. He placed a hand on her shoulder. "Maybe it's just a light sprain. We'll have the trainers look at it, wrap it up and maybe you'll be good to go by Tuesday."

She looked up at him in disbelief. His words sounded hollow even to his own ears. A small sob escaped her throat as he lifted her into his arms and carried her off the podium where the trainers were waiting for them, having seen her go down from across the arena. She'd buried her face in his shoulder as he carried her to the floor and there was a wet spot in the cotton.

The other girls were standing together, watching with concerned looks on their faces. Izzy was the youngest team member, but her all around degree of difficulty was even with Kelly's for the second highest on the team. Their team DOD dropped significantly without her. His eyes flickered to Payson for a moment and she met his eyes immediately. He nodded, having no other way of reassuring her, then he looked to Emily who was biting her lip, staring at Izzy who had finally managed to control her tears, but was still obviously in pain.

Hold off, Beloff. You don't know anything yet. She might be fine in just a few minutes. He shook his head. He saw the injury himself. It wasn't just a roll of the ankle; it was at least a sprain. Gymnasts didn't go down like that on a simple roll. He met his father's eye as he approached the older man's face unreadable to most, but his intentions clear to Sasha.

"Emily," Sasha called out as he made his way towards the girls. "Emily, I need you to do an additional all-around rotation today." His words were simple enough and something he'd said to her many times before, but this time it held serious meaning. If Izzy couldn't compete, Emily was next. "Lauren," he said, nodding towards the beam and vault specialist, "I need you do run through your floor a few more times as well."

"Is she going to be okay?" Kelly asked.

"I hope so," he said, meaning it. As much as he would love Emily to get the opportunity to compete as an All-Around gymnast, Izzy, at this point, was simply a better gymnast. "I really hope so, but we have to be prepared if she's not."

An hour later they wrapped up their training session. The overall mood was somber to say the least. As they rode the bus back to the Olympic Village, Payson slipped into the seat next to him, eyeing Izzy who was sitting just a few seats ahead of them, her ankle wrapped heavily with ice.

"Gut feeling?" she whispered, leaning into him just a little.

He slipped his hand over hers and frowned. He shook his head. "Uneven bars, maybe," he admitted. "No real impact until the dismount and it would just be the two routines over two days, maybe the event finals if she qualifies."

"At least she's young enough for another Olympic cycle," Payson mused. "If it were any of the rest of us…" she trailed off meaningfully.

The bus pulled to a stop and she sighed. "A car is picking us up?"

"Yeah, at a quarter to seven," he answered, squeezing her hand lightly.

"What time is the car picking us up again?" Mark asked as Kim held her wrist out to him, a bracelet dangling unclasped. He quickly hooked it for her.

"Quarter to seven," she said, moving on to her earrings. "The restaurant is just a few blocks away."

He nodded, going back to studying the computer screen in front of him. He'd watched the interview when it aired on television, but in the last few days he'd watched it several times, each time coming away with something new about his daughter and her fiancé.

"Are you watching that again?" Kim said, clucking her tongue at him in disapproval. He looked up and met her eyes in the mirror she was using to apply her makeup. She raised her hands in defeat at his small glare.

"I'm still not sure if what I'm seeing is real or not. It just seems too perfect," he said, watching as Payson placed her hand over Sasha's and the reporter asked about the ring. He wasn't sure what he was looking for in the footage exactly, but he kept watching it nonetheless.

"It's an interview, Mark, not a documentary. I'm sure they have their issues, like every other couple in the world, but they're not about to talk about them in the media nor should they. They work them out together."

"I still think he should have asked for my permission," he groused. It had bothered Mark more than he thought it would that Sasha hadn't sought his blessing before asking Payson to marry him. It was a rite of passage, a nerve wracking, gut wrenching ritual, one he'd gone through and one he thought all men should go through. If the thought of facing your girlfriend's father didn't scare you off, well then, you really did want to get married. It was the ultimate test.

Kim snorted, "He knew better. You would have told him no."

Mark grinned, "Not necessarily. Sasha knows where he stands with me. He knows if he hurts Payson I will end him and the last time we spoke he seemed fine with that arrangement."

"What about this one?" Becca said, walking through the door that attached their adjoining rooms. So far Mark had watched Kim nix two different outfits. He wasn't sure where his younger daughter had found either dress, but both were definitely inappropriate for a fifteen year old girl.

"Much better," Kim said, nodding in approval.

"That's because you bought this one," Becca said, throwing herself rather petulantly into the arm chair in the corner of their room.

Kim smiled in that way mothers have with their daughters, "I did indeed and I didn't buy either of the others. Where did you get them?"

Becca mumbled something unintelligible.

"What was that?" Kim asked.

"I borrowed them from Lily. Her mom lets her buy whatever she wants."

Kim snorted, "Obviously."

Becca huffed and marched back into her room to sulk.

"She is…" Kim began.

"So normal," Mark finished for her with a smile. He fiddled with the cuffs of his dress shirt and gave up, offering them to Kim who fastened his cuff links with the same practiced efficiency he'd done her bracelet.

"I know right?" Kim said. "I want to be angry with her when she gets like that, but I'm also so relieved by it most of the time I can't bring myself to really yell."

"So all this," he said, motioning around them, knowing she'd understand he meant the general spectacle of the Olympics and their older daughter's dreams of Olympic gold, "you don't think this is for her?"

Kim shook her head, "No, probably not, so soak it up. I think this'll be our first and only Olympic experience."

They met the car on time, but arrived at the restaurant late, thanks to the extra security lining the streets of London. He'd been so focused on the games themselves and on the debacle that had been their first few days in London, he'd forgotten that they were in fact a major target for every imbecile with a cause he or she was willing to die for. He frowned and stared out the window at the check points as they rolled down the street at a cool ten miles an hour.

They entered the restaurant and gave their name and the maitre de straightened immediately and smiled as he lead them towards what was obviously one of their better tables, in full view of the rest of the restaurant. It was a lovely Italian restaurant, finely decorated, all the dinner guests dressed well, the waiters and waitresses in dark uniforms and crisp aprons. Mark saw Payson and Sasha already seated, laughing quietly over something. He saw the light from the large chandelier in the center of the room reflecting off the ring on Payson's left hand.

His plan that evening was to sit back and observe as much as possible. He wanted to see the way Payson and Sasha interacted. There was something about that interview that set him on edge and he was sure he'd be able to figure it out during dinner tonight.

They stood as he, Kim and Becca approached the table, Sasha in a suit not all that different from his and Payson looking beautiful in a dress he hadn't seen her in before. He kissed her on the cheek and took Sasha's offered hand before they all settled into their seats.

"So how did podium training go today?" Kim asked and they were both unprepared for the near identical frowns.

"Izzy twisted her ankle on her vault landing today. It looks pretty bad," Payson said.

"The doctor's going to reevaluate her tonight, but we might have to pull her out of the competition all together," Sasha added.

Kim shook her head, "What a shame. She's so talented and to get this far and to lose out over something as silly as a sprained ankle."

"She still has another chance though right, because she's only fifteen. She might be able to compete again in four years."

Sasha nodded, taking a sip of his wine, "It's possible, but a lot can happen in four years as you all know. Don't worry too much about it, for all we know they could look at her ankle and it'll be just fine."

"Would you call in one of the alternates?" Mark asked.

Sasha shook his head, "No, not unless another girl goes down. We'll have Emily compete all-around in the preliminaries and have Lauren fill in on floor as well."

They ordered some mouth watering appetizers from the waiter when he arrived and then both Payson and Kim excused themselves to the ladies room. Payson moved past Sasha's chair, her hand touching his shoulder gently as she slipped away from him. Mark watched closely as Sasha's eyes followed her across the room.

Suddenly his attention was grabbed by Becca practically leaping out of her chair to join them as she obviously realized that she wanted no part of playing buffer between him and Sasha. Not that he blamed her.

"Ever wonder why they go in packs?" Sasha asked, his eyes still focused on the direction Payson had disappeared.

"They talk about us," Mark said, shrugging. He watched Sasha's face as his stoic expression morphed into a small smile. "I saw the interview you two gave. It went pretty well."

Sasha nodded, turning back to the table. "Too well," he said. "That reporter loves us. It would have been much worse with almost anyone else. She didn't hold back too much, but enough to make it relatively easy."

Mark's eyes lit up, "So that was it. There was something off about it. I've watched it a dozen times and I couldn't figure it out."

"She took our cues pretty well, though I'm not sure if she did it purposefully or not. Either way, it's over and people seem to be accepting it. That diver testing positive for PEDs probably helped too."

Mark nodded and then shook his head. They were beating around the bush, something he didn't want to do. "Sasha, forgive my bluntness, but I think if we're going to be family sooner rather than later…"

"Ask whatever you like, Mr. Keeler, I think you've earned that right."

He raised his eyebrows. Sasha Beloff was nothing if not refreshingly upfront, especially one on one. He acknowledged the concession with a nod of his head and continued, "I can't help but wonder at the timing. Why did you ask Payson to marry you now?"

Sasha smiled and looked down shaking his head lightly, "Because she asked me to," he said and Mark frowned. "She told me not so long ago that I should ask her when we were ready to start a new chapter in our lives and we're about to do that. She told me quite firmly that I should ask her properly and so I did."

Sasha paused for a moment and Mark could tell he was holding something back. "Whatever it is, Sasha, say it."

"I'm not sure if you're ready to hear this," Sasha said. Mark could read the honesty in the younger man's eyes.

"Try me."

Sasha nodded and grimaced. "I'm not proud of my past. When I was Payson's age, I was…there were women…a lot of women. I never took it seriously. It was just sex. I was just having a good time. I wasn't pulling the wool over anyone's eyes, but I'm not going to say I never hurt anyone. I know I did and like I said, I'm not proud of it."

Mark cringed. Maybe Sasha was right. Maybe he wasn't ready to hear this. He knew that their relationship had progressed to that level. Kim had told him one night that for all intents and purposes, Payson and Sasha were living together and he hadn't been ready to hear it then, punching a small hole in the wall of their walk-in closet. Despite himself, however, he nodded for Sasha to continue.

" It taught me something though. It taught me that what I have with Payson, it's not just a good time. I know that's probably what you're worried about deep down, that I'm just using her." Sasha shook his head, "That's not the case, Mr. Keeler. I know what I'm feeling. As much as you probably hate that I'm so much older than her, there is one advantage to it."

"And what's that?" Mark asked, almost morbidly curious.

"I've had enough experience that I know the difference between what I've had before and what I have with Payson. And knowing how I feel about her, understanding it, I had to propose. I am hopelessly in love with her and I hope that I've begun to prove that to you."

Mark searched the younger man's face carefully and he nodded. The sincerity was obvious. So despite his displeasure in general, he decided to throw him a bone. "You have," he said.

Sasha nodded and sighed. "Thank you."

They lapsed into silence and remained so until the ladies returned. Mark watched as Payson took her seat next to Sasha. His daughter's eyes met those of her fiancé's and he was struck by what he saw. It was the same thing he'd seen in their interview, but the camera hadn't quite captured the emotion properly.

Kim settled next to him and he surreptitiously reached for her hand under the table. He squeezed gently and his eyes flashed to the couple across the table, then back to her. Kim's fingers pressed firmly into his and nodded, not having to look.

"So what did you two talk about?" Becca asked innocently enough from the other side of the table.

Mark's eyes moved to his younger daughter, whose smile suggested that maybe the question wasn't quite as innocent as he assumed. His eyes flicked to Payson who raised an eyebrow waiting for his answer.

"We were wondering why women always go to the bathroom in groups. Are you incapable of doing your business if you're alone?"

"Dad!" Becca admonished, obviously embarrassed.

The table laughed as the waiter arrived with their appetizers.

As he passed the baked clams across the table to Sasha, he caught Payson's gaze. "Thank you," she mouthed silently, her eyes shining at him. He recognized the emotion immediately. She was happy.