A/N: Special thanks to Librarybook for ongoing good feedback on the latest chapters as well as the ever reliable Izzielg and WB79. On with the story!

It was late on Wednesday night when Piper received another text from Alex.

'Really sorry, but can't take you in the morning. Something has come up at work and I'm going to be away for a few days. Nicky will be there for 8am to pick you up instead. X'

Piper read the message and was immediately reminded of all the times she had received last minute messages like this from Alex when she was with the cartel. It didn't seem to matter what was important to Piper, Alex's work always came first – no matter how late in the day it was to dump her. Maybe it was just Alex's nature to put work first and it didn't matter what the work was. It wouldn't matter anyway if she got the all clear tomorrow as she would be able to drive again and go wherever she wanted on her own time. She typed a quick reply to Alex to acknowledge that she knew about the change of plans.

'Fine. Thanks for letting me know.'

She threw her phone onto the table before taking her last set of pain meds and heading off to bed.

XXXXX

Alex was already in London when she received Piper's reply and she sighed at the familiar tone. It clearly was anything but fine to her that Alex wasn't able to take her today but Alex didn't want to get into a text argument with the blonde. It would be the middle of the night in New York now, so Piper was probably in bed already and Alex hadn't slept well on the flight over. It was early in the morning in London and she wanted to make the trip as quick as possible and have a full day to check on this shipment before anything was moved. She checked into her hotel and had a long shower to feel clean after the long flight before deciding to forget any prospect of sleep and got an extra strong coffee from the machine in her room instead. She opened her laptop and found the policy information she needed and noted the location of the offices if the shipping company and the place the furniture was currently being kept before changing and heading out to be waiting outside the offices for them to open up. They wouldn't be expecting her this early and that gave her the upper hand.

She met with Mark, the senior manager involved in managing their contract and they discussed the key concerns over handing the damaged shipment and what needed to be agreed with regards to liability. They travelled together to meet the site foreman looking after the containers and itemised the damage. It looked to both of them like the containers hadn't been stacked correctly on the ship across the Atlantic, which had caused three of the containers to move and the contents inside had been banged against the side. Not everything was a write-off though and they noted which pieces were still good to go that could be re-packed and sent on their way and which needed to be trashed and covered by the insurance of the ship that carried them. It was 12:00 when they took a break for lunch and Mark headed out to get them both something to eat and a strong coffee for a now flagging Alex. Waiting in the warmth of the site foreman's office, Alex typed a quick message to Piper to wish her luck with her appointment at the hospital and to say she hoped her VSU meeting went OK as well. It would ab around 7am back home, so Piper should pick the message up before Nicky arrived. She sent a quick text to Nicky to remind her to go to Pipers and not work that morning just to be sure.

XXXXX

Piper was in the shower when her phone buzzed with a message. Paranoid that this was Nicky cancelling on her, she jumped out of the shower and grabbed a towel to put around her to get her phone. It was a message from Alex wishing her luck. She didn't reply but plugged her phone in to charge and got back into the shower. She couldn't understand how anything at a logistics company could be so important that she had to drop Piper the day before her appointment. Surely that was supposed to be the whole point of being the boss with employees, that someone else was employed to do the work. She rinsed off and got out of the shower, drying off and putting on jeans and grey tee and a hoodie before drying her hair quickly. She had enough time for a quick coffee with Polly in the kitchen and a granola bar before Nicky was due to arrive.

"So where is SuperCunt anyway? Did she say where she was going to be for a few days?"

"No idea. Alex doesn't add details when she bails on you, just hollow apologies and usually something about how it will never happen again."

"Did you ask?"

"No. "

"Right. Guilty until she proves herself innocent then."

"Yep."

"Is that fair? Seeing as she has run around after you for the past week without a word of complaint?"

Piper raised her eyebrows at Polly, daring her to defend Alex again.

"I'm just saying you have no idea what the emergency is and you're putting her in the naughty corner….But, whatever. It's your soap opera, I'm just supporting cast."

Nicky knocked on the door and Polly went to let her in.

"Well Good Morning sunshine! Can I assume you'd like a coffee before you venture into a public space by the looks of you?" Polly took in Nicky's scowling face as she stood on the step, before standing back to let her in.

"Yes. Coffee. Strong. Two sugars. Please. Thank you." Nicky shuffled over to the breakfast bar and sat with a thud.

"Hi Nicky. Thanks for taking me this morning. It looks like Alex dumped this on you last minute as well by the looks of you. Sorry she's so shit at following through on her commitments, but you get used to it." Piper didn't even attempt to contain her annoyance but Nicky looked up, confused by her tone.

"Um, I'm hungover from poker night at Poussey's last night so sorry I'm not all sweetness and light yet. Alex asked me to do this yesterday as soon as she knew she'd have to fly to London. She's trying to save us from losing a big chunk of money on a damaged shipment, so I think you're being a bit harsh on her there Piper."

"She's in London? I didn't realise."

"Yeah, the company we deal with over there was threatening to make us take the hit for the full lot so Alex flew out there as soon as she put the phone down to stop them from doing anything with it until she could sort out the paperwork. I've had a few emails off her this morning so she's been working the full day. I don't think she's slept yet."

"Aaand, that would be the part where she is proven innocent again, right?" Polly brought a mug of coffee over for Nicky and raised her eyebrow at Piper before turning away to pick up her coat and bag for work. "See you later and let me know what happens at the hospital will you? What time is that woman coming around from the VSU?"

"I'll text you when I'm done. I think she is here about lunchtime. Thanks." Piper stood to clean up the kitchen while Nicky watched her from above her coffee mug.

"You know, I like you Chapman. You're good people. You're hot, got your own business going there, you've got good banter and you're game for a laugh. But when it comes to Alex, you've got your head up your ass. That girl could have her pick of any woman in New York. She's freaking catnip for lesbians, straight girls and everything in between. I've never seen her pander after anyone in all the time I've known her and she runs after you like you hung the moon. I know you guys have got some weird history going on, but you're gonna have to get past that and see what the fuck is standing in front of you both. If you only look for the worst in her, that's all you'll ever see and she's a fucking catch Piper. We both know it." Nicky downed her coffee and picked her phone up off the top, signalling the lecture was over and they needed to head out.

XXXXXX

The containers were all sorted out and scheduled to be re-packed for transfer in the morning where they were not damaged. Mark and Alex had agreed on the itemised list for the claims and both companies would make an insurance claim against the owner of the ship for not stacking everything correctly. Since everyone was on the same page now, neither party should lose out on the costs. It had been useful to meet with Mark and they talked about other opportunities for the two companies to work together, though Alex really needed to get some rest now. She went back to her room and quickly checked on flight options for early in the morning so she could head home quickly and booked a flight for 4am from Heathrow airport. She crawled into bed and set her alarm for a few hours' time, knowing she would be in a foul mood when she got up. Before she closed her eyes, she checked her phone one last time to see if there was any news from Piper but it was only Lorna letting her know she had sent some paperwork off.

XXXXX

Piper was surprised to find a cab waiting outside for them when they locked the door to leave and she looked at Nicky, wondering where her car was.

"Er, I don't have a licence which means I can't have a car either. Vause gave me the cash to keep the meter running on a cab for us though." She grinned before opening the door for Piper and curtseying as she got inside. Piper remembered Alex telling her the story of how Nicky had applied for a job as a delivery driver first and suddenly it made sense.

Piper stared out of the window for a couple of minutes before turning to Nicky.

"She's no Saint you know."

"I know." Nicky remained impassive as she let Piper think about what Alex had done for her.

"Well I'm just saying. She can do some shitty things as well as the grand gestures."

Silence.

"Sometimes she even makes the grand gesture before she does something shitty."

Silence.

"Are you treating this like a customer services call?"

"Are you treating this like you're making a complaint about bad service?"

Silence.

"Fine. I'll pull my head out of my ass when she gets back." Piper glared at a grinning Nicky as she sat back in her seat.

Nicky came into the hospital with her and they let the driver go as they had no idea how long it might take. They waited in a side room for the Doctor to come out for about fifteen minutes and Nicky waited outside as Piper went to see him in his office.

XXXXX

"Please take a seat on here Piper." Dr Shetty smiled and gestured towards the examination table on the opposite side of his desk.

"How have you been then?" He asked as he washed his hands in the sink next to the bed. Piper hopped up to sit on the bed, her legs dangling over the edge.

"Fine. I'm feeling a lot better now. My ribs are still sore when I take deep breaths but my headaches were much better when you changed the medication last time."

"OK. I'm going to check your head wound is healing up nicely now…." He leaned in and brushed her hair to one side and checked on the area where the stitches were made. "That's doing well and those stitches will dissolve in time so no need to get them removed unless they cause you any discomfort."

"Can you lie back from me please and lift your top up a little so I can check on your ribs?" He waited for Piper to get comfortable and pull her hoodie and tee shirt up high enough so he could press lightly against the ribs that were hurt. Piper winced as he did it, but tried not to let it show in case he didn't give her the all clear.

"OK, now sit up again while I check your blood pressure." Piper sat up on the edge of the bed again while he reached for the sphygmomanometer and secured the cuff around her arm. After inflating the cuff a couple of times to check his readings, he washed his hands and made some notes in the patient file in front of him before asking Piper to take a seat in the chair opposite his desk.

"So, when I asked you earlier how you'd been…you answered 'fine'. Was that from a physical or a mental perspective?"

Piper was perplexed by the question, but answered "Both".

"And how are your meetings with the Victim Support Unit going?"

"They are fine as well….Well, I've only had one session because I was out of town when I first came out of hospital. I have another this afternoon, but they are separate to all of this right? You're just checking off my physical health and they are more about the therapy."

"Yes and no. Your blood pressure is very high at the moment which needs to improve. This could be related to the trauma of what you've been through or it could be stress. Which is why I'm asking how your sessions have been going. If you've only had one, I think we need to see how the next one goes and maybe think about increasing them to a couple per week or seeking some additional counselling support."

"What? No! I don't need to be sitting on a couch twice a week talking about my feelings. I just need to get my freedom back and get out of my apartment a bit. Please? I'm going stir crazy in there and I need some physical exercise to burn off some energy."

"There's nothing to say you can't go for walks or ride a bike as long as you have someone with you. Your ribs will stop you from pushing yourself too hard anyway. I'm going to take you off the meds completely as you should be able to manage the pain with aspirin if you get any aches now, but I'm going to keep you under supervision pending the outcome from your next two VSU sessions. It doesn't need to be 24 hours though as I think the danger is more present when you're active during the day. From what you've said about exercise, I think having someone with you when you do that is a fair precaution."

"Is it negotiable?" Piper hedged her bets just in case there was an option for a better deal.

"I'm afraid I don't negotiate when it comes to the health of my patients. I wouldn't be a very good Doctor if I did." He chuckled and finished up his notes. "I'll see you again when you've had two further VSU meetings and we can see how your blood pressure is then." He stood to walk her to the door and she smiled weakly as she thanked him and met Nicky in the waiting room.

"Wow Chapman, you look like you just got a B- for your report. I take it I'm not heading back to work straight away now?"

"No. Sorry about that. It will depend on this next VSU session and one other after that. Can we get a cab and pick up some lunch on the way?"

They called into an Italian deli on the way back and picked up some lunch to go, letting the cab drop them off at Piper's apartment. They had just finished lunch when there was a knock on the door and Piper opened it to greet Sarah from the VSU.

"Hi Piper, nice to see you again." She smiled warmly and adjusted her handbag on her shoulder as she stood on the doorstep.

"Hey Sarah, come on inside into the warm. Here, let me take your coat." Piper held her arms out to hold her files while Sarah took her coat off to reveal a fitted dark green blouse that hugged her curves.

"Thanks, I guess I should be more electronic these days to save on paper, but I like making notes the old fashioned way." She chuckled as she took the stack of files back off Piper.

"Sarah, this is my friend Nicky. Nicky, this is Sarah Phillips from the Victim Support Unit." Nicky walked over and took Sarah's hand.

"Pleasure to meet you Nicky."

"The pleasure is all mine." Nicky grinned before releasing Sarah's hand, leaving her blushing.

"Can I get you a drink Sarah?" Piper asked as she pointed to the sofa where they could sit and talk.

"A coffee would be great actually – white with one sugar".

"I'll do that for ya. Are you having another Piper?" Nicky asked already on her way to the kitchen.

"Um, no. I guess it's not good for my blood pressure to have too much caffeine."

"Have you got a high blood pressure Piper?" Sarah asked, opening her file.

"According to my Doctor this morning, yes. He thinks it could be trauma from the attack or stress though. So he wants to know how this session goes and the next one before I can resume normal life."

"OK. Well, I'm sure events from the attack will be sinking in more now and you've had more time to process your feelings about them. Have you thought about that night recently?"

"Um, yes. Last night actually. My friend Steve dropped me home – the one who was with me that night. He was talking about Darryl dropping the assault charges against him."

"And what did you think about that news?"

"Well, it's good. For Steve I mean. I guess it didn't make any difference to me."

"Were you pleased for Steve?"

"Of course. Why wouldn't I be?"

"Well, you don't seem very pleased when you're talking about it to me."

"I just think he's being too optimistic about the whole thing, like it was another reason we would definitely get a conviction."

"You don't think there is reason to be optimistic?"

"No. A lot can happen between now and the court date. There's no point in getting excited about it or even thinking about it yet."

"Why wouldn't you think about it?"

"Because…..It makes me angry!" Piper realised her hands were balled into fists and she put them underneath her legs to hide them.

"What makes you angry Piper?" Sarah asked gently.

"This! All of this! Having to stand in a courtroom and do something that terrified me the last time I had to be in one and all because of something I didn't choose…I…..hate it. The way it makes me feel."

"Hate what Piper? Hate the way what makes you feel?"

"Being a victim." She spoke so quietly that Sarah strained to hear her.

Sarah waited a few moments and made some notes before saying anything further.

"OK….Are you angry right now Piper?"

"Yes."

"And what do you do with that anger? How do you let it go?"

Piper looked up at her, eyebrows knitted together in confusion. "What do I do with it? What do you mean?"

"How do you get rid of it?"

"Well….it passes eventually. I just sort of ride it out. Maybe say some things I don't mean I guess." She looked over at Nicky, who was trying to not listen, but it was hard to not overhear.

"Do you think it might be better to let the anger out in some way? Maybe you can have a think about how you can let it out instead of bottling it up between now and our next session."

"Um…OK. But like what? Writing a 'feeling's diary'?" Piper did air quotes to show what she thought of that idea.

"If that is what you think is the best way for you to deal with it. Is that your first urge when you get angry? To write?"

Piper laughed. "No. It's to punch someone in the face repeatedly. I'm guessing you don't want me to do that though."

"Well, you'd be right about that." Sarah smiled because Piper was being honest. "But maybe something more physical to use that anger might suit you. Exercise maybe. You think on it next time you're angry and see what comes to mind. I think we've done enough for today Piper. Can we make another appointment for early next week?"

"Yeah, my diary is fairly empty right now…"

They made an appointment for Monday because Piper wanted to get the two sessions done quickly to go back to Dr Shetty.

"Yo Doc, is there anything I can do to help?" Nicky piped up from the kitchen as she saw them wrapping up. "You know, like carrying a pen for the feelings diary or something?" Nicky smiled at Sarah, but Piper could tell it was threatening to become a grin.

"Oh, I' not a Doctor Nicky. I wish I had their brains – or their salary for that matter! I thought about it when I was in College, but I can't stand the sight of blood and the ruled out the majority of Doctor careers pretty early on. I didn't realise you could be a different kind of brain Doctor and focus on psychology until much later in life."

"I bet you could do it if you wanted to. The studying I mean. You can't be far past, what, 25?"

Piper watched Nicky's lopsided grin and then Sarah's blush as she told her she just turned 30 not long ago, finding herself to be a third wheel all of a sudden. She made an excuse to leave them for a minute and went to the bathroom. When she returned, Nicky was sitting on the sofa and Sarah was laughing at some story she was telling. Seeing Piper return, Sarah stood up to leave.

"Well, my next appointment is across the City so I'd better head over that way. I'll see you on Monday Piper. It was nice to meet you Nicky." She put her coat on and picked up her files as Piper held the door open and said goodbye. Once the door was closed, Piper turned and raised her eyebrows at Nicky.

"Seriously?"

"What?"

"You are flirting with my sort of therapist!"

"Not really. Just testing the water." Nicky shrugged, like she couldn't help it.

"And was the water Sapphic enough for you?"

"I think so, but I'd have to taste it to be sure."

"Nicky!" Piper pretended to be outraged. "I should really let you get back to work. Maybe I can go and see Polly in the store this afternoon and then you're not missing for the whole day."

"What? No way! The boss gave me the day off to look after you as far as I'm concerned and there's no way I'm wasting that opportunity by going to work this afternoon. If you're allowed out, we can go and catch a movie or something. What do people who don't have to work do on Thursday afternoons?"

"I don't know, but the movies sounds like a great idea. I'm in!"

They found a little family run cinema that Nicky knew of and watched a movie called 'The Overnight' with popcorn, nachos and sodas. They were the only people in the place at that time so talking through the movie and laughing loudly at the funny bits wasn't a problem.

"That woman looked exactly like you Piper. Like, it could have been you!"

"Why? Because she had blonde hair and blue eyes? Newsflash Nicholls, half the female population matches that description – 90% of it if you live in Scandinavia in fact."

"She was nerdy just like you too."

"I am not nerdy!" Piper managed to hail a cab and they headed towards PoPi so Piper could meet up with Polly and ride home together, leaving Nicky to head back home. They pulled up outside the store and Piper climbed out, leaning down to hug Nicky as she left.

"Thanks for today. Your customer service has been excellent." She winked before closing the door.

Piper could see that Polly had her back to the door when she came in, so she sneaked up and covered her eyes with her hands, causing Polly to shriek out in alarm.

"Relax, it's just me." Piper released her before she got to find out how much of the 6th grade self-defence class Polly remembered.

"Jesus Christ Piper! I could have put you on your ass there….." The fact that Polly was clutching her chest suggested otherwise and Piper grinned.

"I doubt that very much."

"What are you doing here anyway? Wait. You got the all clear?!"

"Not exactly. I'm supposed to have someone with me during waking hours but I'm OK to stay on my own at night – when there's less excitement around or something. I have high blood pressure." Piper was looking at the pile of boxes next to the counter as she spoke.

"What are all these?"

"New stock I haven't had chance to put out yet. Can you make yourself useful while you're here?"

"Yes! I can be useful!" She picked up a box and checked the contents before heading into the store to re-stock the shelves. By closing time, they were nearly all out and the Christmas themed gifts and pricing were all down and stored away. They locked up the store and headed back to Piper's place for the night. Polly's overnight things were already there in case the news wasn't good from the hospital and they could head to the store together in the morning anyway. They called at the grocery store on the way back to pick up some fresh food and Piper said she'd make dinner for them both.

Piper was looking forward to going to work for a full day tomorrow and she was actually having trouble sleeping from the excitement of it when she got a message on her phone. She leaned over and picked it up off her bedside table and saw that it was from Alex.

'Hi. How did it go? Do you need me to come around tomorrow? X'

Piper was surprised Alex would be back so quickly from London as that used to be a week-long trip at least when she was in the cartel.

'Hi. Not as good as I hoped, but don't need you to babysit tomorrow as I will be at the store with Polly. Thanks anyway. X'

XXXXX

Alex was waiting for her luggage at JFK when she got the reply back straight away from Piper. She was curious why Piper hadn't been given the all clear as she seemed to be doing well, but was also relieved that she didn't have to go round there tomorrow. A 24 hour trip to Europe on very little sleep was killing her and she was desperate to face plant her bed and remain still and unconscious until she couldn't sleep anymore. The thought alone made her sleepy.

She picked up her case and headed back to her car to drive home. It was already late, so she grabbed a drive thru McDonalds and ate it in the car on the way. By the time she made it inside, she left her coat and case in the lounge and headed straight to bed.

XXXXX

Piper was up early the next day and made Polly a power smoothie with some of the veg and fruit they got last night. Polly screwed her face up at the sight of it and Piper said she didn't need to know what was in the drink because she would overthink it. All she needed to know was it was organic and full of vitamin goodness and she had to finish it.

They set off for the store and opened up together, with Piper insisting on taking over the counter for the day. She wanted to talk to people and Polly wanted to rest her feet from standing practically all day everyday over the Christmas period so it was a no contest situation. Going through the Christmas themed stock, they decided to put some items on sale to use them up and make some space for the spring line of fresh smelling scents so Polly started working on pricing the old sets up and pushing them to the front of the store. It was much quieter in January as people were waiting it out for payday at the end of the month after an expensive Christmas, so Piper was getting restless at the counter after they had eaten lunch.

"Shall we go through some ideas for the spring fragrances? Maybe we should check through the sales figures for last spring to see what we should keep and what we drop…."

"Piper, we can't compare with anything realistic for last spring because I was operating from my kitchen and trying to get other stores to stock small amounts of our soap to try it. We are doing a wider range from our own store now. We need to forget what happened last year."

"Well, maybe I could look over the spreadsheets to see what the other stores sold well-"

Polly didn't even look up from her laptop when she spoke this time. "No point. They didn't record what type they sold."

"What about if we-"

"What the fuck did you put in that energy drink this morning? You're like a cat on a hot tin roof in here today. Just chill will you? We don't need to sort all of this today. Quite frankly, I'm trying to enjoy some peace after the Christmas madness."

"I was only asking."

"I know you were, but the more answers I give you, the more questions you ask. How about you pretend I'm not here for a while and entertain yourself out the front, hmm?"

Piper went back to the counter and drummed her fingers on the top, looking for something to do. She picked up her phone and texted Nicky.

'Hey.'

'Er, can I help you?'

'Just saying hey.'

'Right.'

'Is Alex back?'

'Have you asked Alex?'

'No.'

'I would put money on her knowing the answer to that question.'

'She might be asleep and I don't want to wake her up.'

'You can't see if she's asleep if your head is stuck up your ass. Unless you need a hand removing it, you're texting the wrong number. Use your words Chapman.'

Piper stuffed her phone into her back pocket and walked to the front window to look out on the sidewalk. She didn't want to wake her up for something as feeble as 'Hey, how was your trip' but she couldn't think of another excuse to contact her at the moment. She hadn't left anything at her apartment or borrowed any clothes that she needed to return. She didn't have any innocent reason for getting in touch with the globetrotting Alex Vause at this moment in time. Frustrated, she started straightening the shelves as she wracked her brains for an excuse to get in touch and see if she had plans for the weekend. Maybe that was her excuse? Did it make her seem too keen? She should play it cool. Cooler than the short text messages she'd sent her while she was away in London? They were a bit too cool she thought, feeling guilty. The store opened and Piper finally had a customer to take her mind off Alex. She finished up re-stacking the lemon and thyme soaps on the end table and went to see if she could help when warm arms wrapped around her waist from behind and even warmer lips nuzzled her neck.

"Did you miss me?"