Thanks so much to my wonderful reviewers: xsparklesthemagicalunicornx (You go to see them! Lucky! :) I listen to their CDs a lot while writing and I love "You Won't Feel a Thing!" I saw Leno interview Vin Diesel and I'm just so excited!) Miss. Lori MacManus, Mrz Letty Ortiz-Toretto, and sweetist of sin! Your reviews are all so sweet and encouraging! Thank you! :D

Disclaimer: I own nothing but Mickey and Alex

Diamond in the Rough

Chapter 36: All You Need to Know

By: LoveInk

Two days later…

Vince woke up happy for the first time in days. Alex was cuddled against him as best she could, her head resting on his bandaged chest, one leg thrown over his. He turned his head to press a kiss to her forehead, his good hand gently playing with her hair. His other arm was in a tight brace against his chest, not the most comfortable of things, but it made it hurt a little less. She stirred slightly, her head moving so it fell heavier on his gunshot wound. He hissed in pain and she was up, just like that. "What? What happened? Did I hurt you?" she asked, her green eyes wide.

He chuckled slightly. "I'm fine, Tiny. Relax." Alex gave him a look that told him she wasn't buying it. He sighed and shrugged a shoulder. "I'm hurt. Everything hurts."

Her face softened and she lay back down, her head on the pillows this time instead of his chest leaving a space between them. "I'm sorry, big guy," she murmured, her hand gently stroking his cheek. She scooted closer and kissed his cheek. "You hungry?"

"What kind of a question is that?" he shot back, an eyebrow raised.

She giggled, sitting up with a groan. She stretched her arms over her head. Vince admired the smooth expanse of her back. He reached out his good hand to gently brush a knuckle over the curve of her lower back. She looked at him over her shoulder and raised an eyebrow. "What?"

He sat up and wrapped his arm around her, pulling her to him. He placed a hot kiss on her shoulder, smiling against the soft skin when she let out a soft moan. "Vince…stop…" she murmured.

His hand rubbed up and down her stomach, it was softer than usual; the tight muscles that were usually there seemed to have gone soft over the brief amount of time they were apart. He didn't mind though, it was a nice change. "You don't want me to stop," he stated, his teeth scraping across her skin.

She turned around and pushed him back to the bed. Sliding a leg over his torso she settled down on his lap. Leaning over him, she pressed a sexy kiss to his lips. "I don't," she mumbled against his lips, "but last I heard, your doctor said no physical stuff for the first week." With that she slid off of him and sauntered toward the door. "Sorry."

"Woman, you are going to kill me!" he shouted after her.

She headed into the kitchen and wasn't surprised to see Leon sitting there, an empty bowl of cereal in front of him. After Vince got out of the hospital, they'd all taken to staying at Alex's place. It was closer to the hospital and had more than enough room to fit all of them. Leon and Michaela had taken over the guest room while Mia, with Fisher's permission, was staying in his room.

"Did I say you could eat my cereal?" she teased, skipping around the kitchen to fix her own.

"Who owns Frosted Flakes over the age of ten?" he sassed back.

"You didn't seem to be complaining when you ate a whole bowl," she shot at him as she poured the sugary cereal into a bowl just as Vince came up behind her.

Wrapping his good arm around her, he pulled her in against his chest. "That was cruel," he murmured in her ear as she dumped milk into the cereal.

She just gave him a naughty grin and handed him the cereal bowl. "You weren't being very nice either."

Leon flipped his phone open and then shut as he tried to tune out what Alex and Vince were saying. He had another issue to deal with. He knew he had to call her, that if he didn't, she'd be mad…but if he did, Michaela would kill him. He looked up as Vince sat down at the table across from him. "What's up, Lee? You've got this weird look on his face."

"I have to call Lauren," he answered miserably.

Vince chuckled, shaking his head at Leon. He'd met Jesse's big sister, Lauren, once a few years ago when she'd come to stay with them for a weekend. From what he remembered, the girl was crazy and aggressive. She'd been trying to get on him and Leon that whole weekend. He knew Leon had given in, but he had stood strong; he didn't mess with other peoples' siblings, a rule Leon didn't seem to have. "What's the problem?"

"Michaela hates her."

"I bet she does," he commented around a mouthful of cereal.

Alex sat down next at the table between them. "Who's Lauren?"

"Jesse's sister," Vince answered easily.

"Oh," she said, her eyebrows shooting up. "I didn't know Jess has a sister."

"He doesn't like to talk about her because she's insane."

"That's not why," Leon defended, rubbing a hand over his face.

She smirked and raised an eyebrow. "You fucked her, didn't you?"

Vince laughed loudly at his fiancee's dirty mouth while Leon looked at her in shock. Sex was a taboo subject between them and he rarely heard her swear when she wasn't angry. "Want some soap for that mouth?"

She giggled and shook her head. "I'm right though, huh?" she said with a small grin. "You two had a thing and Mickey is not cool with that."

Leon sighed as he nodded. "She was my sister's best friend. I met Jesse through her. We were close for a really long time, but we never…dated. We just messed around. She came to Las Vegas looking for a relationship, but I already had Michaela. She used every trick in the book to try and break us up, but Mickey knew better; she didn't buy into it."

"Or she just wanted to win," Vince said with a shrug.

Alex scowled at him. "I'm sure she doesn't think that way. She trusts Lee."

"There's just one small thing that I haven't exactly told her," Leon admitted, hanging his head.

Vince smirked, he had a feeling he knew what it was. "You didn't tell her about last time Lauren was here."

"We weren't together!" Leon shouted in response. "I was single and Mickey knows I wasn't exactly picky about the girls I took home with me…"

"Manwhore," Alex murmured under her breath.

He glared at her. "When we were talking about what happened in between Vegas and here I just…glossed over it."

"You're so fucked," Vince commented with a snort. "That's why you don't shit where you eat, man. Sisters are always off limits."

"What about her?" Leon said, glaring pointedly at Alex.

Vince scoffed. "She wasn't your sister when we started dating, stupid."

"He's got a point," Alex put in on a nod.

"Shut up," he murmured, leaning his hand on his fist and looking absolutely miserable. "What do I do?"

"I'll call her," Vince offered, holding out his hand for the phone. "She can't get mad at you if I'm the one who does it."

Leon shook his head. "Then Lo will be mad at me."

"So?"

Alex smirked. "He doesn't want her to be mad at him either. She must've messed you up real bad before you left Arizona."

He shifted uncomfortably in his seat. Alex knew him too well. His history with Lauren was a roller coaster. She'd teased him for years while they were growing up; leading him on for weeks and then turning him down with some dumb excuse. If he showed any interest in another girl, Lauren would sabotage whatever relationship he tried. Regardless of the way she treated him, he'd always have a soft spot for her. "It's complicated."

"Well, someone has to call her. Her brother is in the hospital."

Leon let out a long lengthy sight before hitting the call button. "Hey Lolo," he greeted.

Alex watched him as he talked, noticing the change in his voice, the change in his posture. His tense position relaxed as the conversation went on, his voice going rougher, softer. Michaela strode into the kitchen, raising an eyebrow as Leon immediately got up and walked out to the backyard. "Who's that?" she asked, letting her dance bag slide off her shoulder and onto the ground.

"Lauren," Vince answered easily.

Michaela closed her eyes and shook her head. She couldn't have heard him right. "I'm sorry, who?"

"Lauren, Jesse's sister," he clarified.

Her blue eyes grew dark with hatred as she clenched her teeth tightly together. "Oh hell no," she ground out moving towards the backdoor.

Vince reached out a hand, grabbing her casted wrist to stop her. "Rilassarsi," he ordered, his voice filled with authority. "Jesse e ferita, ha bisogno sapere." (Relax. Jesse's hurt, she needs to know.)

"Stronzata," she replied on a snort. "Lei non si preoccupa di Jesse. Lei si preocupa solo di Leon." (Bullshit, she doesn't care about Jesse. She only cares about Leon.)

"Che casa succeed se la situazione si e invertita? Non vuoi sapere?" (What if the situation was reversed? Wouldn't you want to know?)

"Lauren McCarthy non m'avreste chiamata," she said shaking her head. "Not in a million years. You don't know what you're talking about so fuck off." (Jennah would never call me.)

Alex's eyes widened as Vince stood up from his chair and stalked over to his sister. "Non parlare a me come quella, Michaela Marie!" he yelled at her. "Sto cercando di aiutarti. So stop being a bitch and listen to me!" (Don't talk to me like that! I'm trying to help you!)

"Woah, woah, woah!" Alex shouted, stepping between them. "Cut it out! Both of you! Vince, go away. Michaela, we're going to talk."

Michaela scoffed at her and shook her head. "No, we're not. Tell Leon to go fuck himself. I'll be at the hospital with Jess because I actually care about him," she stated indignantly. Turning on her heel, she stormed out of the house.

Leon heard the door slam as he walked in through the back. He winced slightly. "Please tell me that was Mia."

"Nope," Alex answered, shaking her head at him. "She had some…choice words for you."

Vince was still trying to calm down from the anger Michaela's back talk had caused him to feel. He felt Alex rub a hand down his back and breathed a little easier. "She told us to tell you to go fuck yourself," Vince repeated with a shrug.

Leon let out a long breath. "I am so fucked."

Alex fought the urge to hit her fiancée for nodding so exaggeratedly and making an already nervous Leon even more nervous. "What did Lauren say?" she asked, trying to lighten the mood.

"She's on her way," he said running his hand through his hair. "She lives in Santa Barbara now so it shouldn't take too long."

"Better get to the hospital quick and just grovel, brother," Vince suggested, wrapping his good arm around Alex's shoulders.

Leon looked at him reluctantly before looking to Alex. He wished Michaela was as easy going as Alex sometimes. Something like this wouldn't even faze her. "You're fuckin' lucky, V," he murmured under his breath as he was leaving.

Alex looked up at Vince, one eyebrow raised. "What the hell does that mean?"

Vince smiled at her, leaning over to catch her lips in a quick kiss. He knew exactly what Leon meant, and he agreed too. Not all girls were as understanding as Alex was. Nor would they have taken him back as easily as she had. He was damn lucky, something he never would forget. "No idea," he muttered, pulling her closer. "He's crazy."

"Hmm," she said, looking up at him suspiciously. The thin fingers of her left hand slowly traced designs on his pec, the engagement ring sparkling with every movement. "I love when you speak Italian."

He quirked an eyebrow at her. "Oh yeah?"

She looked up at him through her long lashes. "Mm-hmm. It's very hot."

"Sei bellissima e ti amo," he murmured, leaning to press a kiss to each of her cheeks. "Io sono l'uomo piu fortunate in vita, perche tu sei mio." (You are beautiful and I love you. I am the luckiest man alive because you're mine)

A slow smile spread across her face. "I'm beautiful and you love me and something about being yours…that's all I understood."

His kisses trailed down her neck. "That's all you need to know."

So? What do you think? Let me know in a lovely review! :)

~Love Ink