EPOV:

Why I agreed to it, I'll never know. She didn't have any business sense, though I'd met her father through various work functions in the city in the years since I'd opened the bar. She and I had only met once, and while she decided she wanted me as her new play thing, I wasn't interested then and I was even less interested now. She was spoiled and nasty—no amount of designer perfume could cover up her stinking personality. Yet, I agreed to meet with her, at the restaurant of all places, and on the night I knew Sookie would be working. I tried to kid myself by saying I wasn't there in the hopes of seeing her. No, I was there for a business meeting, and if I happened to bump into Sookie? Then so be it.

It was during our weekly date to the park that I realized I really needed to shave. I was scaring the kids and Jessica kept trying to pull at my beard because apparently her 'dada was hide-y.' So, I pulled myself, ever so reluctantly, out of my funk and took a long hot shower followed by a sharp shave. It was then that Sophie called, saying her business was in a 'touch of trouble,' which I knew was bullshit since Sookie had told me she was going under- and fast. She asked if I'd be willing to meet with her on business, one owner to another. I wanted to say no, but the prospect of maybe seeing Sookie again made it worth it. So I went. She flirted and in the thirty minutes I sat with her she'd barely mentioned the business, instead focusing on her giggle and stories of Europe. When Sookie finally stood up to Sophie, I was beyond proud of her. It had to be a long time coming for her. Sookie had, from what I'd heard from Amelia and Tara, worked her little ass off for that place and I knew it was killing her to have to give that up. But in all honesty, Sophie deserved it. If you didn't treat your staff right they fucked around on the job. She was lucky to have had Sookie at all. Our talk before she left that night was the most progress we'd made in three weeks of grumpy exchanges and sarcasm. Was I still angry with her? A little, but that was mostly my bruised ego talking and I knew it.

When she asked if I'd still come over for Thanksgiving, I was willing to jump at the chance to be with Jessica, and her, if I was being honest… but then I remembered Sam.

I couldn't sit at a table with friends, and possibly neighbors, pretending everything was A-okay between us when it just really wasn't—not while they were still together. She told me she'd been seeing a shrink a few times a week, and while I was a little surprised, I felt it was ultimately a good move for her. She had her issues just like the rest of us, but it seemed to me her pride was something that kept those issues in place. I'd seen it with Pam a time or two—never willing to admit that shit was wrong and keeping it inside till she was about to burst. I'd hoped it would help her face her demons, in time.

On Thanksgiving Day our bar was open. I wasn't born American, so Thanksgiving wasn't really mandatory for me, but I had enjoyed it as a kid. Mostly it was like Christmas dinner before Christmas. Since it was my first Thanksgiving as a dad I really did want to be there with Jess, so I spent the previous two days kicking myself for saying no to Sookie's invite.

"Get your ass in gear," I heard Pam call from her bedroom.

"Why?"

"Eric, we both know you want to come, so just come. She invited you; she wants you there."

"Yeah, but he's going to be there."

"So? What are you fucking twelve?"

"No…"

"Well, then, stop acting like it! Sam is a fucking pussy and the Eric Northman I know, would never let some little Dr. Pussy stand in his way."

"You really should be a motivational speaker, Pam. For kids, too," I quipped before she threw a black shirt at me.

"Wear this, open-necked, with that black blazer you have, and those dark jeans. Last time you wore those she couldn't keep her eyes off you."

"How the hell do you know?"

"Hello? I have an inside track with her best friend… well, I haven't seen or spoken to her properly in a week. Which is why we need to go to this stupid dinner."

Amelia had been out of town for a little over a week taking care of her sick grandmother in Texas. She'd be attending the dinner for Thanksgiving here and even though she didn't want to admit it, Pam was excited to see her.

"You lurve her."

"Shut up! I do not."

"Oh really? So, you're breaking out the Chanel perfume for no reason then? I know how much that shit costs—since I bought it for you—and I know you only wear it when you're looking for some action… which you know Ames will give you… So this is something more. You lurve her," I teased. She just glared.

"Yeah and the woman you love is currently going to be carving up turkey with a twat who doesn't deserve her. Which one of us is the lesbian here? ACT Northman."

By the time we'd gotten to the house, Pam had used every Dear Abby line she could on me regarding women and men and relationships, and why I needed one, and why it needed to be Sookie, and why she thought Sookie felt the same way and blah, blah, blah. I stopped listening at the last stop sign.

The house was busy; busier than it had been since Halloween, that's for sure. I noticed the larger dining table was in the living room—it had lived in the garage for months being of no use to us three. Now it was beautifully set with a table cloth I knew belonged to Sookie's Gran, six large white candles down the middle and an array of food that would make anyone's mouth water. Pam spotted Amelia almost immediately and they were off yapping away, leaving me on my own. I had been three steps from the kitchen, having greeted the majority of our neighbors on the way there… before I heard it.

"Daddy!"

Was it weird that it was still an amazing shock every time she called me that? She was standing by Sookie's side in a pink dress and little black patent ballet shoes. Her hair, now a tiny bit longer and curling slightly on the ends, was decorated with various clips. She took wonky steps toward me before I cut her off by scooping her up.

"Hey, pumpkin, you look beautiful. Kiss?" I asked and we did our usual quick smack on the lips with a loud 'muah' sound. She had always thought it was hilarious, and I had no idea why.

"Hey, Sook."

"You came," she smiled, stopping what she was doing at the sink.

"Yeah, well, I figured it was our first… with Jess I mean. So I wanted to be here." She looked beautiful too, though it wasn't until she took off her giant white apron that I saw exactly what she was wearing. While it wasn't her 'sex' dress, it was damn near close to it. Red, fitted, but family friendly… if you weren't mesmerized by how her ass looked in it, that is. Her hair was up and off her neck making it that much more difficult to not plant my lips there, until she moaned. Snapping out of my lust wasn't easy when she was looking at me like she was. Maybe Pam was right, maybe she did have a thing for fitted black shirts and worn-in jeans. She was gazing at my neck just like I was gazing at hers moments before. If I didn't know better, I'd have assumed we'd been taken over by a couple of vampires, the way we seemed to preoccupied with necks.

"You look good," she said, finally turning to stir whatever it was that was in her giant pot.

"You too. You smell good, too." I mumbled.

"What?"

"The food… Smells, smells good."

"Oh! Right, yeah, um it's for the kids, mostly. I mean, I know Jess will eat her dinner but some of the kids are fussy, so we're making mac and cheese as a backup. The turkey's almost done so we can sit anywhere, whenever. It's not formal."

"You've been busy." I noted the trays of food scattered around all available countertops. She wasn't kidding when she said there would be a ton of food. I'd never really had a traditional Thanksgiving. My mother wasn't big on cooking, and since we weren't American, she didn't think it counted. Pam and I usually worked Thanksgiving since her family lived out in New York and she didn't like many of them, at least, not enough to travel and eat with them. So this... this was a nice surprise.

What wasn't such a nice surprise was the arrival of Sam. He was talking with Maxine and her husband before he came into the kitchen—his smile faltering slightly when he saw me.

"Hey, Jessica!" he said after he'd said the same to both me and Sookie.

Jessica looked completely unimpressed. She was such a good child. Genius, really.

"Sam."

He handed Sookie a couple of bottles of wine and asked if he could help. Of course he would ask that.

Sookie told him that most everything was done and to just mingle and relax. He seemed to take the hint that she was busy and retreated to the living room. It seemed that every time I attempted to actually talk to her, someone or something happened to get in the damn way. Everyone was vying for the host's attentions with comments or questions. I'd have to wait until after dinner to maybe get her alone in the hopes of having the conversation that we needed to have.

The dinner was interesting. Sam was seated next to Tara, who was seated next to Sookie, who was seated next to me. Jessica was in her highchair wedged in between us both. Her pretty dress was covered in one of the biggest baby bibs I'd ever seen. The meal was delicious. Everything was cooked to perfection and everyone at the table seemed to agree. Small talk was tiring but everyone indulged. What else was there to do when you were stuck at a table with friends and basic strangers? Lafayette was waxing on about the meaning of colored candles by the time dessert rolled around, and as Sookie finished feeding Jessica, I offered to be the waiter. She smiled and sweetly accepted my offer. Something it seemed Sam didn't like very much, since I wasn't in the kitchen two minutes before he came in.

"Hey man."

"Hey."

"Need help?" he offered. His stony face told me he didn't want to, but Jesus, maybe he just WAS one of those nice guys.

"Uh, yeah grab those plates for the pie and I'll get the ice cream."

"Eric, can I ask you something?"

"Why do people always ask that question before they ask another question? It's annoying," I mused trying to find the knife I needed in the drawer. "Ask away," I said looking back to him.

"What's going on between you and Sookie?"

"What?"

"You heard me."

Nice.

"What's she told you?"

"So there is something?" He pushed his lips together in frustration.

"What did she tell you?"

"Nothing. That's the problem. She's shut down. And she's shut me right out. Things aren't right."

"Nothing's going on, Sam."

"But there was?"

"Not really any of your business," I snapped. I didn't like his tone.

With that, Sookie came in looking extremely apprehensive.

"Um, you two okay?"

"We're fine," Sam answered and I merely shrugged.

"You sure? I don't want trouble between you two today. Got that Eric?" she raised her brow to me, and of course, it would be my fault.

"We're just talking." I reasoned.

"Yeah, that's what worries me," she said, grabbing one of the uncut pies from the island before going back into the living room.

Sam continued, "Just give it up, man. Really, this hostility of yours is so unbecoming. Having you around upsets her. Can't you see that?"

"Is that right?"

"If you can't see that, then you're blind."

"I'm blind? Oh, that's rich."

He laughed, but there was a bitterness behind it.

"Get it through your head man: she doesn't want you. She chose me. I'm the one that's here with her; I'm the one she loves; the only reason you're here is because of Jessica, and we both know that. Give it up!" I wasn't going to have this argument with him—not in the house at least. I would keep my word and not cause a scene. So I walked him out to the backyard.

"Loves you? You're amazing, you know that? Kidding yourself to such a degree that you've convinced yourself she loves you. She doesn't love you, Sam. She's with you because she thinks she should be, but it's not what she wants. You're not what she wants, not deep down, and when she realizes that, you'll be gone. So don't get too comfortable."

"It's jealousy with you, isn't it? You can't stand that I'm the one that's with her. I'm the one that's with Jessica when you're not! I mean, I can't say I blame you. She's an amazing woman and Jessica is a wonderful kid. Like I said, she chose me and she'll continue to choose me, every night." He rubbed it in. Little bastard.

"Yeah, but not really every night, right Sam? In fact, I'm pretty sure there are a lot of nights that you're cock-blocked by your own girlfriend. You see, she might have chosen you now, but once was all it took for me." I raised a brow quickly and thankfully, he got the point I was making. "You see Sam, I have it on good authority that you… well, you're nice—a nice guy and a nice lay. Ouch, right? I mean, we all know what a woman really means when she says nice. She means boring... You fail to… hit the spot, quite literally. Or so I've heard."

His face changed. He'd gone pale, the cocky stance failing.

"I, on the other hand…" I grinned, "You can tell though, can't you man? When she's faking it? Sookie's a great little actress but you have to know she's faking it. Or are you so self-involved you just don't give a damn? Is that how it is? As long as you're satisfied, to hell with her needs? Maybe that's why she came to me."

"She…"

"Yeah, and believe me, she didn't have to pretend a thing."

He stood there with clenched fists, and I swear, he was going to attempt a punch. If he hit me first, it was open season, but he didn't.

"Then why come back, huh? Why invite me here? If you where so … why?"

I shrugged. "She's a good person and deep down, she's not the type of woman that cheats. She felt bad, and like I said, you're the nice guy she thinks she should be with. But we both know differently."

"Know what? She should be with a douche bag like you?

"See it how you want, Sammy, I don't care about you." I took off down the lawn. "Oh, and happy Thanksgiving."

I went back to the bar. I had to. Had I not, I more than likely would have punched Sam's smug little face in, thus ruining Sookie's Thanksgiving. I didn't want that. We were open—on limited staff for the holiday—but some people couldn't stand their families and the extra cash was a good incentive to stay here and work. So they did.

I, on the other hand, walked straight through to my office and opened the bottle of Jack that was calling to me.

Three swift shots and the rage I was feeling began to gently subside. I hated him; I hated her; I hated the whole damn situation.

Well no, I didn't hate her. I fucking loved her and that was my problem. That's why I didn't get involved with women. They were game playing, mind-fucking, fucked up messes I just didn't need in my life.

Except that her, God help me, I wanted her in my life. But Sam was right, she'd chosen him even if neither of us could understand why. Until she woke up, I couldn't, nor would I, convince her to be with me. I'd never had to convince a woman to love me. I shouldn't have to, and I wasn't about to start with her.

Twenty minutes later I heard hard heels on the tile outside my office, swiftly followed by my door being swung open.

"You fucking bastard."

Sookie, and she was beyond pissed.

"Hello to you, too."

"How could you do it, Eric? Huh? Why?"

"I don't know."

"Don't give me that shit! You did it because you could, and because it gave you something to hold over him. You did it to hurt me."

"I didn't do it to hurt you!"

"Then why!"

"I don't fucking know why. Impulse?"

"Impulse!" Her eyes widened as she wiped away a tear before turning away from me and the door and walking closer to my desk. "Fine, you want the truth? Here it is. I didn't love Sam. There? Happy? I didn't love him but I tried to love him, and I couldn't. I wanted to, but every time I got close, there was just something in the way. That something was you. And you, you I can love, you I do love, but I'm so terrified of what that means! If I love you, and I allow myself to fall…what then? What happens when you get bored with me and want someone else? What happens when we break up? What happens to Jessica then? Does she become yet another statistic? Fuck that! Alcide and Hadley wanted the best for her… and a broken home is NOT what's best. So yes, I love you. Not sure when it happened, but it did, and I miss you SO much that sometimes, it actually hurts to see you and know you aren't coming home. And to see that Jess misses you just as much…" her voice broke. "When we slept together..." she rolled her eyes before wiping away another tear, "It was stupid and dumb, and the only time in my life I remember feeling so fucking alive it almost broke me."

"But you ran! You ran back to him."

"I WAS SCARED, OKAY? I saw how much you … I saw in your eyes how damn happy you were and that terrified me. It would have been so easy to just let go and let it happen but once I did, we'd be screwed. So I stopped us and I tried to run back to what I thought was safe and simple and right. Except it wasn't right at all. I couldn't look him straight in the face before I broke up with him, because I knew I'd cheated on him! Eric, before you I'd never even thought of cheating in a relationship before in my LIFE. And yet I did, with you, so easily…"

"Ever wonder why?"

"I was horny?" she deadpanned.

"Liar."

She didn't answer so I pushed her. Damn right I wanted to know why she had slept with me. It's not like forced her into it.

"I don't know why. I was tired of denying it, denying that I wanted you so much. Denying that I wanted to see if we... Well I was just sick of denying it."

God, I wanted to kiss her tears away so badly, but I wouldn't. Now wasn't the time for that at all.

"And after?"

"I told you, I freaked out." She wiped her tears away quietly.

"And now?"

"I don't know…"

Truth was, I didn't know either.

"Did Sam break up with you?"

She glared at me.

"I just want to know because if you're here just because he broke up with you, you can leave. I'm nobody's second choice, Sookie. I never have been and I sure as hell am not starting now."

"I…" She sighed a tired breath before she looked back to me. "I broke up with Sam, three weeks ago, Eric."

Oh. That I didn't know.

"He was only there today because … I don't know. I felt bad about the whole situation, okay? He's not a bad guy. No one deserves to be alone on Thanksgiving. So, I invited him for dinner with the rest of my friends, and you. Was it a smart move? Probably not, but I'm human. I'm full of fuck ups and I'm learning to accept that."

"Are you willing to talk this through with me, then?" I asked, finally sitting on the edge of my desk.

She smiled. "After all this, you still want to have that conversation?"

"Yeah, I do." I smiled back and she nodded, standing up and almost brushing up against me. I felt so on edge it was palpable.

"I do want to sort this out once and for all, Eric, I do, but I have to call Maxine to make sure Jessica is okay. I was so mad I marched right over to my car—in the pouring rain, might I add—to come… bitch you out. She had her; she still has her."

I looked around for mine and forgot that in my anger, my phone was across the room—smashed.

She simply raised her brow at me before smiling. "Temper?"

"Little bit."

"Charming," she sassed before she moved between my legs and reached up real quick and kissed me on the cheek.

"My phone is in the car. I won't be long."

"And then we'll… talk?" I asked reluctantly, not wanting her to step away.

"Yes, we will, we need to... and I guess anything else we feel like doing after that is fair game." She grinned wickedly before walking slowly out my office door.

Needless to say, that's not how I envisioned the conversation ending.

SPOV:

The roads were a mess. They had been for days. It made driving an absolute nightmare. The rain had just barely stopped and it was grating. I ran from the bar and unlocking the doors with a familiar beep from my car. I reached in to grab my cell and noticed the battery was dead, which forced me to get inside the car. I rooted around the glove compartment to find the charger to hook it up, taking note of the sound of the water bouncing off the cars as they swished by on the main road next to the bar. I finally got it charged up enough that I could turn it on and make the call. Maxine answered on the third ring, still at my place.

"Oh hi, honey. No need to worry. She and Hoyt have just tucked into dessert. I promise to have her nice and hyper for you when you get here. Why'd you go hollering out of here like that anyhow?"

"Long story, but I'm at Eric's bar. He and I have some… things to work out."

"Finally..." She sighed.

"Excuse me?"

"Oh, sweetie… It's more than a little obvious you two have something a lot more than … what was the line? Co-parenting? Going on. Personally, I'm shocked it took you both so damn long."

"Oh…"

"So you go on and fix whatever needs fixin' to bring that man of yours back here where he belongs, you hear?"

"Uh, sure?"

"Excellent," I could hear her smiling. "I'mma just help myself to some of the ice-cream cake, if you don't mind?"

"No, not at all."

"Good, good... You take your time, dear."

"Oh, I don't think I'll be much longer—"

"No, really. You and Eric … take... your... time," she emphasized with a smile evident in her voice.

"Maxine! It's not like that." I looked up through the thundering rain beating down on the car and saw a blurry Eric standing with his coat over his head. As I waved to him from the car, I saw him moving. He was moving toward me but I heard a car breaking—the screech of the tires hitting the road was deafening—before I saw it. The car slid, the car … slid into Eric.

"Sure it's not honey, sure it's not."

My heart stopped as I hung up on Maxine, and lunged out of the car. The rain was pouring down even harder now; so hard that it was almost difficult to see. But I managed to see enough.

The red Audi had slid and smashed sideways into the wall of the bar. The wall Eric was in front of.

"ERIC?" I screamed.

With my phone still in my hand, I ran to him. There was a large gash on the side of his face, his arm was bleeding, his eyes were closed… and he wasn't breathing.

A/N: Hey peeps! I reached 1,000 reviews on this baby the other day and it took me totally by surprise! So a biig giant Viking sized thank you for responding to this story in such a way, it's amazing to me! Since this only my second story, it's mindblowing! Lol! :D Yeeah, I left it on a little bit of a cliffy, and I'm not even a tiny bit sorry for that, we all need a little drama to spice things up don't we? Do you really think I'd kill this Eric? *raises brow at you*. Till next time, loves. Xoxox.