A/N: This chapter comes a little late in the day but perhaps it will leave you with warm thoughts and sweet dreams as you lay down tonight... OR you could end up with an itch you just can't scratch!

Please don't forget to review! I love hearing from each and every one of you!

Corinne, I'm not sure what I would do without you! You're amazing! Thank you! x

o~O~o
Chapter 18
o~O~o

Just as he had promised her, Luke was on his way to her office immediately after hanging up. He had absolutely no idea what kind of shit storm he was walking into but one thing was sure, Beca was going to expect him to help clean up whatever this latest mess was. The more he thought about the situation, the angrier he got and the harder he thumped the steering wheel in frustration as he approached the third set of traffic lights in a row. He'd already slammed his hand on his car horn at a little old lady who had taken too long to cross the street although he did put his hand up to apologize when he realized he was taking his anger out on the wrong person.

He and Beca had always been close, their parents had even said they were "thick as thieves" and they were correct but right now, he was annoyed beyond measure at his best friend. As kids they were inseparable and that hadn't changed as they had grown into mature adults; relying on each other when necessary, being the voice of reason on the other end of the phone or having the guts to tell each other when to pull their head out of their ass. But the one thing that had managed to change their friendship was Jesse. Since Jesse had come on the scene eleven months earlier, Luke couldn't even get Beca to commit to a casual lunch on a random Wednesday much less anything else.

In the beginning, he had avoided meeting Jesse because he felt he was bad news and his gut was constantly screaming that he needed to get Beca to understand his feelings. He hadn't gotten around to tell Beca how pissed he was about her letting Jesse back into her life after he had finished his stay in rehab. He worried for their friendship and the direction it was headed. He'd called Aubrey and talked to her and she had asked him the one question he needed to be asked. "Why are you so mad at her for having a life?" He thought about the answer long and hard. In the end, it was simple. He missed his best friend and he was a little lost and lonely without her… he needed her just as much as she needed him, which prompted his next thought. "Will I ever be anything more than her than just her friend?" But that was something he would never talk to anyone else about.

Hearing the car horns behind him, he realized that the light had been green for a few seconds and pulled away sharply, leaving behind the smell of burning rubber and a little piece of his bad attitude. As Luke pulled into the parking garage at Warner, he passed Beca's car and made a mental note that, despite the wonky parking, it looked to be fine, so that clearly wasn't what she was calling about. He continued to circle a couple of times until he found an empty space to park. Exiting his car, he briefly wondered if Sawyer had followed through with his earlier threats and fired Beca but he realized that that couldn't have been the case as she'd have called from her cell and arranged to meet elsewhere. The last time he had spoken to her everything was going well, so for him to suddenly fire her would have be extremely unexpected given the fact that she had done a complete one eighty. She hadn't given him anything to go on and his mind was literally going ninety to nothing trying to figure it out. For a brief moment, he thought about texting Amy but Beca would surely kill him if he tipped her off to something personal that Beca clearly didn't want her to be privy to. Sighing loudly, he hit the button on the key fob to lock and arm his car before walking to the bridge that connected the parking garage to the Warner building.

Exiting the elevator, Luke tried his best to swallow his anger and replace it with concern. If he was being honest he was truly concerned for whatever Beca was dealing with and no doubt it had something to do with Jesse. There had been a tone to her voice that he didn't recognize; aside from sounding exhausted and sad. He felt a tug in his gut as he realized that whatever it was, it was obvious that Beca had reached out to him first for help and he was grateful for that.

Walking down the corridor towards her office, a route he'd taken more times than he cared to remember, he collected his thoughts and schooled his features to remain impassive as he pulled open the door and stepped into Beca's office. Luke noticed that Kimmy and Lilly actually appeared to be working… real, legitimate work. He was impressed but glancing into Beca's office he didn't see her right away, which was unusual as she was normally glued to her desk.

"Hey ladies." He spoke formally and nodded politely.

"Hey Luke." They said in unison, neither looking up from what they were doing. Luke looked slightly confused as he watched Lilly trying to catch a fly with a pair of chopsticks. So much for looking like she was hard at work.

"Beca called and asked me to stop by- Wait… why is she on the floor? Is she ok?" Luke asked, extremely concerned.

Kimmy finally looked up from what she was doing and turned her chair to face him. She gave him the once over with an air of self importance and he squirmed a little as she curled her lip at his outfit. "She knocked some of the files on her desk to the floor. She sat on the floor to pick them up but she never got up."

"She's napping under her desk." Lilly whispered, crosseyed and snapping the chopsticks about two inches away from her nose.

Luke rolled his eyes, a habit he'd picked from Beca. Lilly was weird as fuck but she was sweet as the day was long so he completely understood why Beca kept her around; she still unnerved him though. "Anything else I need to know before I go in and face the music?"

"Yes… I went in to check on her about twenty minutes ago... and when she heard the door open, she threw an ink pen at me and told me to 'get the fuck out'... so I did." Kimmy confessed. "It's a real inconvenience, Luke. I am not paid enough to deal with her episodes."

"Great!" Luke said as he rubbed the back of his neck. Beca was in a mood and he was going in blind… this was going to be a great afternoon.

As he walked in Beca did exactly what she had done to Kimmy, minus the pen throwing. Perhaps she had run out of ammo judging by the number of pens on the floor near the door. "I said 'get the fuck out'!"

Luke threw his arms up in front of his face in the event that she had an emergency stash of ammunition under the desk; there was something about a pink highlighter that really stung when it smacked someone in the face. "Hey Bec… it's me but if you've changed your mind about me being here I can just leave." He said cautiously throwing his thumb over his shoulder in the direction of the door.

"No… wait, stay please. You're the only one I want to see." Beca said loudly and a little too quickly.

Luke walked around the desk and was slightly shocked to see her curled up in the space under her desk. She looked so little and he couldn't have sat on the floor next to Beca any faster if he'd tried. As he leaned his back against the desk, she crawled out and propped herself up next to him, putting her head on his shoulder, pulled open her desk drawer and without looking, dug around for a couple of seconds before handing him the envelope.

Flipping through the contents of the envelope, Luke asked, "Who sent this to you?"

"That's just it… I don't know. There's no return address or any other indication where it might have come from."

"This wasn't your doing?"

"Nope."

"How did it get here?"

"I don't know." Beca admitted as she began to wring her hands. "It was mixed in with some work related files that Kimmy put on my desk while I was in a lunch meeting earlier today."

"What are you going to do about it?"

"I don't know."

"Well… what do you want me to do about it then?"

"Tell me what to do."

"I can't tell you what to do Beca."

"But I'm asking you to."

Luke needed to put some space between himself and Beca. He stood up and started to pace. "So, let me get this straight… I don't hear from you for weeks because that bloody wanker is back with his suave moves, empty promises and muppet looking hair and, now you're presented with problem number three hundred and seventy five and I'm just supposed to swoop in and fix everything?"

"Yes."

"Are you completely barmy? If Billy-No-Mates doesn't know his onions-"

"-Luke… please don't be like that." She said finally standing up. "Don't go all Britishy on me."

"How do you want me to be?" Luke asked angrily. "I've always been here for you, for every damn thing, but when I needed you, you were too wrapped up with Mr. Bad News to even return my fucking calls."

Beca had the decency to look as guilty as she felt. He was right. He had called several times and she hadn't even bothered sending him a simple text. She had plenty of time, especially during her workday to call him back but she hadn't. "I'm sorry-"

"-are you though?"

"Luke-"

Luke threw his hands in the air. "-Beca… I love you more than I love life itself but you've been a really shitty friend lately and then, you get something like that on your desk..." He said gesturing toward the envelope and its contents. "... and I'm just… I don't know… supposed to pull a miracle out of my arse? How do you get yourself mixed up with all of this... this… crap? I swear he must have been conceived through anal sex because there is absolutely no way in hell that being that much of an arsehole comes that naturally!"

Beca doubled over in a fit of laughter.

"Are you fucking kidding me right now?" He asked. "I'm beyond pissed off and you're laughing at me?"

Beca regained control of herself. "Sorry… it's just… what you just said about how he was conceived sounded like something Amy would say."

Luke smacked his forehead; would Beca ever take him seriously? Was she even listening to a word of what he was saying? He took her hand in his. "Listen, I love you more than my luggage, which as you know comes from Fortnum and Mason and cost more than an average family spends on their monthly groceries so you know I'm not buggering about here. But this has got to stop. He's bad news Rebeca. Bad news. We've all tried to tell you and you-"

"-But you haven't given him a chance. You just see the negative side of things."

"He has done nothing to show me any other side." Luke retorted. He picked up the packet of photographs and casually glanced at the top one. "You need to talk to him about this. It could hurt you badly in the future."

"That's a lot easier said than done."

"Stop being a twit and tell the plonker that he needs to explain himself. Why are you so afraid of talking to him?"

"I'm not. There's more going on right now than I can tell you about."

"Oh no Missy Mae, you don't pull that shit with me." Luke ran his fingers through his hair. "We may not have spoken for a while but that doesn't give you carte blanche to pick and choose what we talk about."

"I can't talk to you about all of this!"

"You called me! You asked me to drop everything and get over here!"

"I didn't ask you to drop everything!"

"Yeah, you did... the second you dialed my number. Well, I'm here… so start talking damnit!"

o~O~o

Walking into the reception area of Beca's office, Amy noticed Kimmy and Lilly standing quietly, sharing a bowl of popcorn and looking into Beca's office, perched on the edge of Kimmy's desk. "What's going on?" Amy asked loudly causing both girls to jump.

"They're arguing." Kimmy said as she put more popcorn in her mouth. "We can't hear a word of what they're saying…" She leaned over and quietly tapped her knuckles on the glass so as not to disturb the arguing couple. "... sound proof glass but they're definitely having a very loud difference of opinion by the looks of it."

"Oh bonzer!" Amy said, pushing her way between the girls and digging her fingers into the bowl of popcorn.

Kimmy shooed Amy away from the bowl. "Bitch… go get your own!"

"Rude!" Amy said pouting. "Well… have you asked them if they want snacks?" Amy asked pointing to Beca and Luke.

Kimmy shot Amy the stank eye. "And why would I do that?"

"Look at them! They're starving!" Amy said before she walked around to sit in Kimmy's desk chair. Lilly made a strange noise and started jogging on the spot.

"How can you tell?" Kimmy asked.

"Beca's chewing on her fingernails. Skinny Girl is hungry." Amy replied as she picked up Kimmy Jin's marker.

"Just what in the hell do you think you're doing?" Kimmy asked Amy, ignoring the weird cooing noise coming from Lilly's side of the room.

Lilly started making a strange noise and whispering, "Fly like a bird, far, far away." Both girls turned and looked at her. She was squatting on her desk and flapping her arms like a bird.

"Um, Lilly?"

"Coo... coo... coo."

"Is she on something?" Amy asked Kimmy.

"She had three cups of coffee this morning. Usually sends her slightly batty. Worse part is that she drank decaf. Watch out, she might try to jump out of the window declaring she needs to fly south for the winter."

"But there isn't a window in the office."

"Do you think that would stop Lilly?"

"I guess not." Amy shook her head. "Anyway… isn't it obvious what I'm doing?"

"If it was obvious I wouldn't have asked."

"I'm making a sign." Amy said flatly.

"A sign?"

"Just watch." Amy told her as she continued to write. When she was done, she stood up and walked over to the place she had been standing only moments before. Amy held her handmade sign up to the glass for Luke and Beca to see.

Kimmy shook her head. "Amy, you dumbass… you're holding the sign the wrong way!"

"Am not!"

"Are too!" Kimmy pointed to the sign and Amy looked down at her handmade masterpiece.

"Well… hells bells!" Amy said turning the sign around.

"Do you really think pizza is going to help them right now?"

"Yes! Pizza solves everything!" Amy said as she tried banging on the glass to get their attention but gave up and decided to call for pizza anyway.

After Amy placed the order, the three girls stood watching and wondering what the topic of conversation was on the other side of the glass. They had all, at one time or another, witnessed Beca and Luke having a go at each other but this was hands down, the most intense one they'd seen.

"Who needs The Young & The Restless when we've got these two?" Kimmy asked.

Amy nodded in agreement. "They need to just have sex already... geez!"

"Yeah, there's definitely some deeper, unexplored feelings and sexual tension there!"

o~O~o

"I'm entitled to keep a few things to myself!" Beca yelled, throwing her hands up in the air.

"Fine! I'm out of here!" Luke reached down to scoop up his keys and phone that he'd laid out on the desk. "You're right. Things have definitely changed between us. You obviously don't have to tell me a bloody thing."

"Oh really? Like you tell me everything." Beca said, snaking her hands onto her hips and cocking her head to one side.

"Of course I do." Luke said, defiantly, matching her pose.

"Pinkie promise?" Beca asked, holding out her little finger to Luke.

"Beca, I..."

"See! You're keeping things from me."

"I'm not!" Luke barked.

"Lucas Oliver Robert Donovan! You're lying to me."

"I'm not lying-"

"-But you're not telling the truth either!" Beca snapped. She took a couple of deep breaths before continuing. "I can tell when you are keeping things from me."

"How?!"

"For a start, you gulp like a fish, you get this overly Britishy sweaty thing going on and you click your fingers like you are on-"

"-Fine! I saw Jesse that day."

"What day?" Beca asked, suddenly confused.

"The day those pictures were taken."

"Oh." Beca said, her voice suddenly small as she tried to process everything. "Oh. I get it. Wow."

"You get what?" Luke asked.

"So you did send me these pictures?!"

"No! I didn't Beca. I swear to you I didn't." Luke said, looking at her directly in the eye as he said it.

"Right Luke?" Beca said shrilly. "You've just confessed to-"

"-I've done nothing of the sort. And I'll-"

"-Stop it, just-"

"-I pinkie promise you I didn't send those pictures to you. I might be many things but I'm not sneaky like that." Luke said, holding out his hand to Beca. She looked surprised at the familiar gesture and took his fingers graciously, relaxing immediately the second Luke wrapped his digits around hers and squeezed gently.

"Then who else would do it?"

"I don't know! But it wasn't me!"

"So you saw him… then what happened?"

"He didn't see me. I was going to take some pictures with my cellphone of the people he was with and send them to you but decided not to. I figured he'd fuck up all on his own."

"Which he clearly did!" Beca laughed without humor.

"Well, yes. But off the record, I never wanted to see you hurt."

"Yeah, well..."

"That's the truth."

"I know." Beca said sadly. She dropped Luke's hand and ran her fingers through her hair.

"Want to tell me what's really going on?" Luke asked.

"How do you mean?" Beca questioned.

"A couple of modest photographs wouldn't send you over the edge like this normally. Usually, you'd rant, snark, bark, possibly break something and then you'd meet me for coffee and we'd end up hatching a plan. This is unlike you, to throw your hands up in the air in such a manner. So 'fess up, what's really going on?"

"Luke, it's not the right time." Beca said leaning her ass on her desk. Luke, who had not stopped pacing at this point, moved towards her and was about to speak when he looked down into the desk drawer that she'd pulled the envelope from earlier. He visibly blanched at what he saw.

"What the fuck is that?"

"It's nothing." Beca said, slamming the drawer shut with her knee.

"Doesn't look like nothing to me!"

*tapping on the glass*

"What is it?" The dulcet tones of Amy muffled voice could be heard in Beca's office and they both spun around to see the side of Amy's head pressed to the glass as she tried desperately to hear what was going on between Beca and Luke.

"What the fuck Amy?" Beca yelled, more out of annoyance than anger.

"I just wanted to know if you wanted pizza?" Amy called, gesturing with her hands as if she was eating an overly large slice of pie.

"Will the three of you please get back to work?" Beca shouted agitatedly. She turned to Luke. "Dude, we've got an audience. Now isn't the time. Really." She gestured towards the office door. Luke looked back towards her desk and opened his mouth to say something but she cut him off. "Luke, go. Please, just go."

"Are you seriously ignoring-"

"-Luke. Get. The. Fuck. Out."

o~O~o
Three Days Later
o~O~o

Luke laid in bed alone, wide awake long after he should have been asleep. He hated the way he'd left things with Beca. They never went more than a day or two without speaking to each other after an argument but day three was quickly coming to a close and still no word from Beca. He loved seeing Beca happy because, if for no other reason, happy looked really good on her but right now that simply wasn't the case. She'd gotten something she wasn't expecting from some random person that thought she needed to see a series of pictures that she wasn't sure what to do with and he couldn't ignore all of the information and new findings that he'd discovered that day. Luke continued to look at his phone, debating whether or not he should send her a text.

It was late and halfway across town, Beca couldn't sleep either. As she laid next to Jesse, who was fast asleep, she replayed everything that had happened over the last few days. She hadn't spoken to Luke since they argued and she was feeling sudden twinges of guilt. She'd called him because she'd needed him but then kicked him out an hour later. No wonder he'd looked so hurt as he'd left. He was as confused about everything as she was. He was her best friend, always had been, always would be and no matter what he would always be there for her. He had proven that more times than he should have had to. He'd proved himself time and time again that he earned the title of her nearest and dearest friend and she shouldn't have tried to keep anything from him. If Jesse had a problem with him, he'd have said so, Beca knew all this was on her. Trying not to disturb Jesse, she reached over and grabbed her cellphone to send Luke a text.

"Are we ok?"
"Absolutely."
"Are you sure?"
"Swear on the Queen of England's fourth corgi."
"You and that damn corgi!"
"You're up late."
"So are you. I can't sleep… what's your excuse?"
"Can't sleep. Have you confronted Jesse yet?"
"No. It's not the right time."
"There's never going to be a good time."

Beca thought about what Luke said. He was right… there would never be a good time to confront Jesse about what she knew. There was really no way around it. Besides wrecking her house and going to jail, what else had he been up to while she was in Oahu? Were there more pictures out there? If so, when would those arrive and what would they be of?

Several minutes passed with no word from Beca. Luke wondered if she'd gone to sleep or if he'd pissed her off again. Just when he was about to give up, he decided to send one more message.

"Hello? Bec… What are you going to do?"
"Cry until you come over with cupcakes!"
"Cupcakes I can do. But I think Jesse might think a 3am cake delivery is suspicious."
"What do I do then?"
"You need to get Jesse to tidy up his affairs."
"He's trying Luke. He's working hard and setting aside money every week to pay rent and his share of the bills."
"Oh perfect, I can see the shiny new leaf from here."
"Don't be an asshole."
"Talk to him then."
"I don't know how. What if he is pissed?"
"You need to tell him Beca. You don't know where the pictures came from but if he finds them it's going to be much worse."
"I know."
"Why are you with someone you're scared of?"
"I'm not scared of him."
"Sounds like you are."
"Well I'm not!"
"Just talk to him."
"I will… when I'm ready."
"I can't believe I am about to type this but he may surprise you."
"How?"
"Maybe it's not what it seems."
"And if it's exactly what it seems?"
"Then you see what your relationship is really made of."
"I hope you're right."
"I know I am."
"Lunch tomorrow?"
"Sure! My treat."
"Night Luke. xo"
"Night Becs. xo"

Beca still couldn't sleep after texting with Luke. She continued to lay in bed and alternated between staring at Jesse, who was sleeping peacefully with the gentlest of snores escaping his lips and staring at the ceiling. Finally, around four thirty, she gave up and rolled out of bed. She put on a sports bra, a pair of tiny shorts, socks and running shoes then quietly went into the home gym off the master bedroom, closing the door behind her. The gym was almost foreign to her since she hadn't been in there in weeks. She had no reason to be in there, Jesse was giving her all the cardio she needed and with the additional running around at work kept her fit. She pressed her iPod into the charging dock and stretched as the sound of the music filled the room.

When Beca was finished stretching, she started a brisk walk on the treadmill. It wasn't long before she was running at full speed, her feet hitting the belt in time with the music. Beca continued to think about the photographs that had arrived a few days earlier. When asked, Kimmy told her that a courier with a bike uniform and helmet delivered it and as it hadn't needed signing for, there was no record in the company logs. They had hundreds of deliveries every day and there was going to be no way to decipher which was which. Kimmy said that she placed it on Beca's desk and didn't think about it again because it wasn't her business. For the life of her Beca couldn't figure out who would send them. Shaking her head, she continued to run, and with any luck, she soon get it out of her head as, after all, it was probably a mystery she would never solve.

For the next forty five minutes, Beca moved around the room doing reps on each of the machines. While she didn't push herself as hard as she usually would have done, she had gotten a second wind not long after she finished doing lunges and squats while lifting kettlebells. Loving the fact that she was really working out again, she had an idea. Slipping off her shoes and socks, she walked across the room and searched for the perfect song on her iPod and cranked up the volume.

"Give it to me, I'm worth it
Baby, I'm worth it
Uh huh I'm worth it
Gimme gimme I'm worth it
Give it to me, I'm worth it
Baby, I'm worth it
Uh huh I'm worth it
Gimme gimme I'm worth it"

Beca walked slowly and deliberately across the room to the pole she'd had installed a few months before and though she had missed a few classes, she knew the routine like the back of her hand. Wrapping her fingers around the cool metal, she twirled and spun and just about the time that she was going to drop into a viva slide, she looked up and saw Jesse staring at her.

"Um, hi?"

She winked. Saying nothing, she continued on with her routine.

Jesse folded his arms over his bare chest and leaned on the door frame as he watched Beca with wide eyes. He knew she was a dancer, he knew she worked out but he didn't have the slightest clue that she could pole dance. And from what he'd seen already, she was pretty good at it.

"It's all on you. It's all on you. It's all on you.
So what you wanna do
And if you don't have a clue
Not a clue
I'll tell you what to do
Come harder just because
I don't like it, like it too soft
I like it a little rough
Not too much, but maybe just enough"

Her back against the pole, her right arm was outstretched over her head grasping the rod, she dropped into a squat before slowly getting back up, sashaying her hips as she went. She was well aware he was watching her every move, but she tried to pretend he wasn't there. Doing a series of pirouettes around the pole, she then did a back wrap and proceeded to climb up the pole like a fireman and finally let herself go into the fallen angel position.

Jesse couldn't stand it any longer and began walking slowly across the room toward Beca. His unbuttoned jeans sat low on his hips in a way that really turned Beca on.

Carefully, she pulled herself up and slid down the pole like a pro. When her feet hit the floor, Jesse was right there and ready to pounce. His hands immediately went to her waist as he pulled her closer, his lips finding her neck.

She gasped at the contact between the two of them. When she attempted to remove her hand from where it was on the above her head, Jesse told her to 'leave it' then took her other hand and placed it on the pole over her head as well.

Jesse kissed her gently as he pulled the belt out from the belt loops on his jeans and wrapped it around her wrists. "You ok?"

"Mmm hmm." She hummed as she looked at him through hooded eyes and watching his every move. She had been tired and worn out from her lack of sleep and hearty workout, but within seconds, Jesse had her senses alive again.

Jesse knelt down in front of her, pulling her shorts and panties down her legs as he went. He kissed her warm sweaty skin leaving a fiery trail in his wake. Still kneeling, he lifted her legs and placed them on his shoulders as his mouth descended on her center.

Beca could feel the blood leaving her arms as it rushed elsewhere. Jesse's tongue was magic and he was more than proving that at the moment. They had had sex in many, many different positions before but this was very quickly becoming a new favorite of hers.

Jesse stood up, lifting her up and wrapping her legs around his waist as he did. Shoving his jeans and boxers down his legs in one swift movement he lined himself up and entered her, thrusting hard and fast. Gasping at the onslaught, she met his every thrust with one of her own. They rode the waves together, enjoy each and every minute until they both gave in and finally let go.

Beca milked Jesse for everything that he was worth and then some. She was out of breath and panting heavily as she looked at Jesse and asked, "Please untie my wrists."

Jesse reached up and unbuckled the belt taking her dead weight into his arms as he did. Carefully, he lowered them both to the floor. Beca wrapped her weakened body around Jesse's and tried to concentrate on her breathing, her mind wandering to places she didn't want it to go at that particular moment.

"Can you walk into the bedroom or do you want me to carry you?"

Beca took a deep breath. "Carry me… please?"

"Come on you." Jesse said picking her up.

She nuzzled into his neck when a really disgusting thought came to mind. "Am I dripping fuck muck all over the place?" She really couldn't be worried about it at that point. After working out and then working out she was completely worn out. All she wanted to do was sleep but she needed to tell Jesse what was going on.

"I'm gonna go get some coffee and a muffin from downstairs." Jesse told her, pulling her out of her thoughts. "Do you want anything?" He asked as he laid her on the bed.

"No but… " She started wondering if she was going to lose her nerve if she didn't tell him now.

"But what?"

"We need to talk."

"Ok, let me get coffee first and then-"

"-no, now." Beca said patting the bed next to her. "It can't wait. This is extremely important."