Authors note: Last chapter, someone asked me why no one saw Alexander kidnapping Rose and Lissa. Well, in chapter 15, the last scene where Rose was drugged occurred really early in the morning (when almost everyone was sleeping), so that is the reason why. Just wanted to make that clear.

Another thing, this is a HUMAN story…so there's no spirit healing or compulsion here. Sorry. Adrian may be amazing with his clairvoyant gifts, but he's not superman. :-)

-Breanna

Disclaimer: I do not, in any way, profit from this story and all creative rights to the characters belong to Richelle Mead.

The original content, ideas and intellectual property of this story are owned by Ms. Belikov. Please do not copy, reproduce, or translate without express written permission.

****Rated M. First half of the chapter is very disturbing. Don't read if you don't have a tough stomach.****

Previously on A Blessing in Disguise…

Eventually, the moans stopped completely and everything went silent.

Me eyes peeked open, taking in the sight before me.

I hurled forward and threw up repeatedly.

Lissa, the one person I swore to God to protect, was dead.

And I was next.

RPOV:

Or at least I thought she was dead…

The sight before me was…unexplainable. It was just blood, blood, and more blood. It was like a scene from a horror movie. Except this wasn't acting, this was real.

Lissa's held was tilted to the side. And she was staring straight at me. The tears gushing out of her jade-green eyes told me she was feeling everything they were doing to her. She could feel the needles, the scalpel, the saw…all of the pain.

She couldn't move…thanks to whatever shit Victor had injected into her. Her body was temporarily paralyzed. I couldn't even begin to fathom how she felt, not being able to scream, not being able to run away. Lissa was trapped in her own body.

I wanted to scream to God, 'Why aren't you helping her? Save her! Take me instead!'

Not only were those jade-green eyes sad, tear-filled, and agonized…but they were speaking to me as well.

'I've given up. Just please, let me die already…Please put me out of this misery.'

I growled through my fountain of tears. 'Don't you dare give up.' I mouthed, hoping she understood.

I was going to get us out of here. Even if I didn't make it out alive, she would.

I just needed to find a way out.

I glanced up to where Lissa was on the hospital bed. Victor and Alexander were huddled over her, while Tasha was crouched over a freezer, filling it with fresh ice.

Okay, good. They were preoccupied…for now. I was the least of their concerns.

I pulled on my ropes again. Unsuccessful.

I frantically glanced all around me. There was nothing. Nothing that could help me escape.

Except…something silver flashed in the corner of my eye.

Oh, thank you sweet Jesus.

On the table beside me, was the scalpel Tasha had used to cut me with. Luckily, she'd only got me a few times before Victor called her over to assist him, because that shit was painful. I will never understand how you can sit there and watch a person suffer, especially inflict the pain.

How stupid of her to leave it there, I thought, but then again how wonderful it is for me.

While keeping my eyes on the three murderers and making sure they were preoccupied, my fingers strained to reach for the scalpel.

Damn it.

Gritting my teeth, I shoved my right hand towards it as hard as I could. The pokey ropes bit into my already deeply cut skin, stinging my wounds as if someone had poured salt into them. I stretched my fingers out to full capacity, feeling the bones strain.

One fingertip touched the bottom of it. I breathed a sigh of relief. My eyes remained on Victor, Tasha, and Alexander as my aching fingers pulled the scalpel into my palm.

I wanted to scream for joy. I had it! I had it!

I bit my lip, there was no need to draw attention to myself, not now. I was so close.

My mind was racing a million miles an hour, my heart was going so fast I could see my chest thump with each beat. My hands shook and I was practically swimming in my own sweat. I guess this is what they call an adrenaline rush. It made sense for my body and mind to be in this state, I was in a life or death situation. My only thought was escaping, and letting Lissa survive.

The first thing I needed to do was get these ropes off me. It would help if I could use my hands and feet, but then that would abolish the need to untie myself, now wouldn't it?

Flipping the scalpel's blade towards my right wrist, I pressed it to the ropes, and started sawing away - slowly but surely. I flinched every time the sharp metal got close to the veins in my wrist, but I knew I had to calm down.

I was careful to keep my body still after that and my eyes set ahead at Lissa, that way they didn't suspect I was doing something that would ruin their plans.

I tried to keep my mind off what Victor and Alexander were doing to Lissa, or how many organs they'd removed from her body as I stuck the scalpel over the rope repeatedly. I could only hope it wasn't already too late for my best friend.

Tasha stepped back from the freezer and looked back at me. I tensed and stopped immediately, thinking she caught me. But the only thing she did was smile that sinister smile that made my blood run cold, and turn her attention back to scooping ice into the freezer. God only knows what organs were being stored in it.

I breathed a sigh of relief when my right hand was free. After quickly placing the scalpel into my left hand, I kept my right hand in its place as I started working on the other ropes.

When both hands came free, I wanted to scream with joy. I was the happiest person in the world at that moment…

But then I realized my ankles were still bound and all that relief vanished. How in hell was I going to cut those free without them noticing me? The only way to get to my ankles was to lean over…so that's what I did.

My gaze was still focused on Victor, Tasha, and Alexander as I vigorously sawed at the ropes, slicing deep into my skin multiple times, but I didn't care. Every time the three of them so much as moved or twitched, I'd slam my body back into its earlier position, pretending to still be restrained.

Luckily, they were so preoccupied with what they were doing; they didn't seem to notice me. How stupid and uncareful they were…

At last, I was free of the ropes completely. Naked, but free. And that was all that mattered.

I glanced at Lissa, who blinked her eyes. She was still alive. For now…

I wasn't sure how much blood she could loose, but she'd already lost so much and I knew I was running out of time.

While Tasha and Victor were the brains of this plan, Alexander was obviously the body and all the muscle. I needed to take him down first. The others would be easy…at least I hoped.

It was time for a distraction. I used my mouth. It was my best weapon I had besides the scalpel. I needed to lure Dimitri's father closer to me.

"Hey, listen here, you son's of bitches!" I screamed.

None of them looked my way.

"Just ignore her." Victor murmured, concentrating on his work.

"Alexander!"

"Shut up."

"You know your son told me stories about you. He said you're not a very good man."

"Dimitri's right. You should listen to him."

It was hard talking to someone who has his back turned to you, so I resorted to drastic measures, hoping to draw a reaction from him. "You're a disgusting old lonely man. You know that? You're a pathetic excuse for a human being. You're a waste of space."

"Shut the fuck up." he growled. I could hear the anger in his voice and I knew my plan was working.

"Why don't you make me? Beat me like you did your wife and your daughters." I yelled. "You're a coward, Alexander. Nothing. You are so beneath me that I don't even like being in the same room as you."

He spun around, holding a pair of surgical scissors. "If I didn't have to keep you alive in order to perform the surgery, I would shove these through those beautiful eyes over and over again." Dimitri's father licked his lips and I had the urge to vomit again. He pointed the scissors at me. "I'm going to have fun with you."

I didn't know what he meant by 'fun'. By the way he was looking at me with predatory onyx eyes, I'd say it could be anything from raping to torturing me. Probably both. This guy had no conscious or remorse for what he did; he was a monster, an animal. The thought of what he might do to my body terrified the hell out of me.

"You're not a man at all." Don't get him too pissed off. I thought. If you die Lissa will too.

He licked his lips and cupped his crotch area. "Want me to prove you wrong? I can do that right now. In front of all of them. I like an audience."

I shuddered and bile rose in my throat but I swallowed it down. "I hope you go to hell, right where you belong."

This seemed to make Dimitri's father snap because he came at me full force.

Bingo.

Alexander' eyes widened as he discovered I'd cut through my ropes. He opened his mouth to aware Victor and Tasha of the situation…but I didn't give him enough time to speak.

I clutched the scalpel in my hand tightly, launched out of my seat, and drove the blade into the side of his neck.

Blood squirted out of his neck like a volcano erupting. Cherry-red liquid covered my hair, face, chest, legs…my everywhere. In a sick and twisted way, I was proud of myself for taking him down. That meant I was one step closer to saving Lissa.

Alexander fell to the ground clutching his neck. Blood poured out of his mouth and onto the ground as he made sickening gurgling noises. He was chocking on his own blood.

I scolded myself for feeling a twinge of guilt. I felt crazy for feeling sorry for him. He had helped kill three teenage girls.

I guess it was just natural for me to feel bad for another human being suffering, it was in my nature. Dimitri's father would die alone, bleeding from his neck on a cold and hard ground. None of these people in the room loved him…and his next stop was hell.

"Sucks for you." I shrugged, staring into those black eyes as they went blank and lifeless. "I can't say that you didn't deserve it."

I realized then that I didn't feel sorry for Alexander…I felt sorry for Dimitri. I had just killed his father. I'd taken him away from him. And no matter how much Dimitri denied it, I knew that somewhere deep down that he loved Alexander, killer or not, he was his father.

"You bitch!" Tasha wailed, dropping to her knees and holding onto Alexander's cold and bloody body.

I had a death grip on the scalpel. I could do it. I could shove it through her throat and kill her, too. It would be over just like that.

But could I really kill Christian's aunt? He'd already lost his parents. Could I really take another family member from him? The only person he had left in this world besides Lissa?

I should have just killed her and got it over with.

But I hesitated.

And that was the biggest mistake I could have made.

I was so caught up with Tasha and Alexander that I forgot about Victor…

I felt something pierce my back. The pain stole my breath away and kept it.

I glanced down just as fresh blood started gushing out of my stomach. My blood.

There was something silver sticking out of my skin.

Victor had stabbed me.

I heard four large bangs and the door suddenly flung open.

It took my eyes a moment to adjust. For a moment, I thought I might have been hallucinating, but the moment they filled the room, I knew it was real.

Police.

The police had come to save us.

I froze on the spot.

And then faces I was familiar with came through the door. Mason, Christian, Adrian, and…Dimitri. I met his brown eyes.

I forgot about the knife in my stomach. I didn't feel pain. I just watched everything that was going on around me…I think I was in shock.

The police looked at Lissa on the operating table. They all shared the same look of horror, two of them even hurled forward and got sick.

Christian stepped forward, pale as a ghost, as if he didn't want to believe what was in front of him. But then his ice-blue eyes flickered to his girlfriends face. He dropped to his knees and broke down.

My attention was pulled away from him as my body abruptly jerked. Victor had pulled the knife out of me. Fortunately, I didn't feel the pain.

Tasha stepped away from Alexander's body and started backing away, towards the wall.

Victor pulled me hard against his body, using me as a human shield, and pressed the knife to my throat. "Don't come any closer! I swear to God, I will kill her if you do!"

The cops pointed their guns towards me and Victor.

"Drop your weapon!" The police officer in the front shouted. "Put your hands up and drop your weapon!"

"I'll do it. I'm not going to prison." Victor growled. Wanting to prove how serious he was, he pressed the knife harder against my skin. It stung like a thousand jellyfish were attacking my neck. I felt warm liquid drip down my neck and chest.

He kept pressing and pressing…and I kept bleeding and bleeding.

How much deeper could he go into my skin before he hit my jugular vein? Surely not far, because he was already so deep…

Was this it for me? Was I going to die right here, in front of all these people, at the hands of a murderer?

I already knew the answer.

Tears fell from my eyes as I glanced down at Lissa. She blinked at me and that's when I realized everything was going to be okay…even if I was no longer walking this earth. It was okay for me to leave. The police would take her to the hospital, Christian would take good care of her for me. I trusted him and knew he'd love her dearly. What more could I ask for?

Victor continued to press the blade into my throat as the police shouted at him. But I didn't hear anything they were saying. It was like the whole world was in slow motion.

I met the gaze of the man I loved with everything in me. I stared into his beautiful sorrowful brown eyes for the very last time. I tried to convey everything I was unable to say with my gaze. I truly did love Dimitri with all of my heart. I was sorry that I had to leave so abruptly.

I'd miss those smiles. I'd miss the way he always looked at me like I was the most beautiful woman in the world. I'd miss our playful banter and the way he always made my heart pound in my chest. I'd miss Dimitri…

How I wish I had a second chance at life. How I wish I could have more time to spend with him…

But that wasn't going to happen. Our time was cut short. I was coming up on my exit soon and I had to say goodbye now.

At least he knew I loved him, though. And that was all that mattered…I waited for death. I welcomed it.

But it never came.

It all happened so fast before I even had a chance to register it.

Mason came out of nowhere and shoved me.

Victor stumbled and released me. In one swiping motion, he brought the blade to his chest, and struck his arm out. The blade slid across Mason's neck.

Blood splattered all over Victor and I.

I screamed. "NO!"

The cop in the front emptied his clip into Victor's chest. Bullets popped all around the air but not one hit me. Victor swayed and dropped to the ground with a loud thud. His body convulsed a few times, the life drained from his green eyes, and he went completely still. Victor was dead.

All of the officers stormed Tasha.

But my attention wasn't on them.

It was on Mason—my fellow cadet, classmate, and great friend.

Wide blue eyes stared at me, he put both hands to his neck and fell to the floor.

The feeling that came over me was the most horrible thing I have ever felt. I'd watched Victor get shot, I'd watched Alexander bleed to death, I'd watched my best friend get cut up like a piece of meat, but this was different…watching someone get murdered in cold blood was unlike anything I'd ever experienced before.

There was no rescuing him…he was gone. Even if the best doctors were in the room with their tools ready, there was no saving him…that cut was too deep.

But I wasn't going to let Mason die alone, like Alexander had. Mason needed to know that someone cared about him.

I lay down on the ground beside him and cradled his twitching and convulsing body into my arms. I was in a puddle of crimson liquid, but I didn't care. All I cared about was making Mason's last moments of life less painful. Because I knew that if I was in that position, he'd do the same for me. I'd want to die with someone I loved beside me, holding my hand.

"It's okay, baby. It's okay." My cries filled the room. "You're not alone, baby. I'm here. I'm here."

I cried my heart out as I clutched his body. Mason twitched a few more times and then went completely still.

Mason had taken his last breaths of life in my arms. He'd died in my arms. He'd sacrificed his own life so I could have mine.

I cannot tell you how painful knowing that was.

I don't know how long I lay there, holding Mason's body protectively, when I heard the most beautiful sound in the world. The voice of an angel.

"Roza?"

I turned my head to the side to look up and it ached every part of my body. "Dimitri?"

"Yeah, baby. I'm here. " I heard the raw emotion in his voice, it made the sound as rough as gravel. "You need to let Mason go, so the police officers can take care of him. Is that okay?"

My chin started trembling uncontrollably. "But I don't wanna let him go. I'll never see him again. I have to protect him." I smoothed my hand along Mason's bloodied cheek. The blank look in his baby-blue eyes would haunt me forever.

"You have. You have." I felt something touch my shoulder and I flinched.

"He didn't deserve this." I was talking more to myself than anyone else. "He was so young. A-a-an…and that bastard took his life away."

"We need to take the body now." said a male voice that I didn't recognize.

I growled, like a mama bear protecting her cubs.

"Just give me a moment." Dimitri said. "Roza, you have to let Mason go. The paramedics need to make sure your neck is okay." The love of my life's voice was so soft and gentle, as if he was speaking to a child.

"I know. I know. I'll let him go." Saying those words burned my throat and shattered my heart into a thousand pieces. "Just let me say goodbye to him."

"Okay."

I gazed down at Mason. "I love you, you know that right?" I kissed him all over his face, my voice was past hysteria. "I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry. God, Mase. Why did you do this?" I pressed my forehead to his. "I'm so sorry."

I kissed his cheek one last time, gave him one last hug, and whispered my farewell. "I'll meet you again one day, my friend."

And then I let them take Mason away.

I somehow managed to stand on my feet. And when I met the brown eyes of the man I loved more than anything else on this earth, I broke down all over again.

"Dimitri." The tears wouldn't stop coming. My body shook uncontrollably.

"Oh, Roza." he pulled my battered, bloodied, and naked body into his arms…where I was content to stay forever. I was finally safe again. I was finally home again.

I started hyperventilating.

"Just breathe, baby. Breathe." Dimitri pulled me in tighter. I felt something cool and wet hit the top of my head and realized he was crying along with me.

I fisted my hands into his shirt. "I was so scared, Dimitri. I didn't want to die."

"I know, Roza. I know." his voice cracked. "I'm so sorry that I wasn't here to protect you. Oh, God. You don't know how much I wish I could of been."

"Is Lissa okay?" I asked without taking my face away from his chest. I didn't want to look.

"The paramedic's air lifted her out of here and took her to the hospital. I am not sure about her condition."

A loud sob escaped my lips. "So she was alive when they took her out of here?"

I felt him nod. "Yeah, Lissa was. She actually squeezed Christian's hand. He went with her on the emergency helicopter."

"Oh, God." I cried even harder.

And that's when the pain hit me. I felt everything—the cuts in my cheek made by Tasha, my ankle and wrists wounds from the rope, and the gash in my throat. It was as if my body was telling me: Lissa is okay, everyone is okay, now you can finally worry about yourself.

"Don't leave me, Dimitri."

I locked eyes with his heartbreakingly familiar and warm brown eyes. "I'll never leave you, Roza. I'll always be here for you. Nobody is going to take you away from me. Do you hear me? No one."

I lay my head on his chest and closed my eyes. "Thank you."

He took off his duster, wrapped it around my naked and bloodied body, and pulled me tightly into his side. "Come on, Roza. Let's get you to the paramedics."

1 month later: (Christmas time)

Lissa was finally going to be released from the hospital today. And I was a little nervous and scared to see her again. Would she be angry at me? Would she think I could have stopped Victor sooner? Would she think it was my fault I hadn't saved her quicker? Would she never want to see me again?

A million questions were running through my mind. I shook my head to clear the negative thoughts. No. I needed to stay positive for Lissa. By me being sad, it was only going to make things worse for her. And that's the last thing she needed right now.

Lissa had been in and out of intensive care unit and dozens of surgeries for weeks. The doctors never let me see her, saying she needed time to heal from her traumatic experience. I had the urge to punch that doctor in the face.

Since I was unable to visit her, I sent her loads of flowers, candies, balloons, and a billion cards. I wanted to make sure she knew I was thinking about her.

Thinking so deeply about Lissa and the memories of that day where we'd been kidnapped, beaten, tortured, and nearly brought to our deaths…made me think about someone who'd lost their life that day. And it wasn't Alexander or Victor.

It was my time to make peace with Mason's death. I walked up to the front, took a deep breath, and worked my hardest not to start crying. I had to get this speech over with first, and then I would allow myself to break down.

Mason rested with his eyes closed in the white coffin beside me. White roses lay next to a picture of him smiling with that fire red hair in his baby-blue eyes. It was such a happy and innocent photo of him, reminding everybody here what a beautiful person he was in life.

I didn't have a speech prepared, so I spoke from my heart.

"I hadn't known Mason for very long, only a few months, but for the short time that I did get the blessing of being his friend, I knew he was the most caring and honest person I'd ever met."

My voice cracked and the aching lump in my throat formed. I took a few moments to collect my self, and a deep breath before speaking again.

"Mason was one of my best friends. He was like the brother that I'd never had. He always tried to make you laugh and he could light up a whole room with that smile. That is what I will truly miss about Mason. The way he could always make me happy when I was really sad. The way he always cheered me up when he knew I'd had a bad day. And the way he was always there when someone was in need."

I dabbed my eyes with a tissue.

"I will forever be grateful to have known Mason. I will forever be grateful to have been his friend. All the memories I have shared with him will forever be cherished and remembered. Mason will forever live in my heart…In all of our hearts."

My eyes met Dimitri's warm and encouraging brown eyes, and he gave me the strength to keep going.

"Don't ever forget Mason. He never wanted to see people cry. He wanted to make everyone happy. So at this moment, when we are about to lay his body to rest, let's all think back and remember how Mason touched our lives. How he made us laugh and how good of a person he was."

"I want you all to remember him as the strong, fierce, loyal, empathetic, loving, and beautiful person Mason was; as this is the way I will remember my friend forever." I finished and looked out towards the small crowd of Mason's family and friends; there wasn't one person in the audience with dry eyes.

I quickly strode over to Dimitri, he wrapped his strong arms around me and I knew everything was going to be okay.

"I've let go, Dimitri." I whispered. "I've finally let go."

"I'm so proud of you, Roza."

The music started playing as they lowered Mason's body into the ground. My grip on him tightened, bringing his warm body closer to mine. I needed this type of contact right now. I needed Dimitri to be my band-aid and hold me together so I wouldn't fall apart.

I need some distraction oh beautiful release,
Memories seep from my veins,
They may be empty and weightless and maybe,
I'll find some peace tonight…

Dimitri held me while I cried and sobbed on his shoulder. These tears were different from the hundreds of others I had shed over the past week...they were tears of acceptance.

In the arms of an Angel fly away from here,
From this dark, cold hotel room, and the endlessness that you fear,
You are pulled from the wreckage of your silent reverie,
You're in the arms of an Angel; may you find some comfort here…

I was finally able to release all of the guilt boiling inside my soul. I didn't feel like I needed to hold myself responsible for what happened to Mason. I was a free person now, I could leave that horrible prison I was trapped in behind. Dimitri and I could move on and be happy now.

Mason had made his choice to sacrifice his life for me. And he did it for a reason. He did it so I could live on and be happy.

Dimitri held onto me as we watched the tractor scoop dirt into the hole in the ground. That's where Mason was going to lie for the rest of eternity. It was strangely peaceful and sad. Peaceful because I knew he could finally rest...and sad because this really was goodbye.

In the arms of an Angel far away from here,
From this dark, cold hotel room, and the endlessness that you fear,
You are pulled from the wreckage of your silent reverie,
In the arms of an Angel; may you find some comfort here…

Once they were done, I laid a red rose over his grave. I brushed my finger tips over his tombstone and smiled through my tears. "Hey, Mase."

Maybe it wasn't goodbye...I knew he'd be watching over me from heaven. And that was, as strange as it may sound…really, really comforting.

You're in the arms of an Angel; may you find some comfort here…

I always ask myself, how will I get over this? The answer is, and will always be: I just won't. It's something that will forever stick with me until the end of my days, and it's something I have to learn to live with—the nightmares, the emotional and physical scarring, the constant paranoid looks over my shoulder, and the way I don't like to be alone or left in the dark.

That day really showed me what a scary place the world can be, and how many fucked up people are out there. But there's also tons of good people out there. The people who have been helping me heal, like my friends and my…boyfriend.

Dimitri glanced at me from the driver seat and squeezed my hand. "Are you ready?"

I stared into the warmness of his deep brown eyes, gathered the strength from the mere presence of him, and nodded. "Let's do this."

"Okay," he unleashed a smile that made my heart thump loudly in my chest. Leaning over in the seat, Dimitri pressed a kiss to my lips, and then lowered his mouth down to place a kiss against my rough and jagged scar—the one I'd gotten from Victor's knife.

"You're beautiful."

"And you're making it hard for me to breathe."

He pulled back instantly and his forehead creased in concern. "What's wrong? Did I hurt you? Did I hurt your neck?"

I rolled my eyes. "You worry too much about me. And no, it was none of that. I just meant that it was hard for me to breathe because…you know…being close to all your sexiness is sort of…"

"Breathtaking?" he smirked, arching an eyebrow.

I laughed. "I'm soo not feeding your male ego anymore tonight. Let's go."

We walked into the hospital, hand in hand, and asked the nurse where Vasilisa Dragomir's room was. After telling her that I was a relative and I was here to pick her up, she directed me to room 153 on the third floor.

"I'll wait here." Dimitri cupped my face and kissed me slowly and thoroughly.

"Mmmkay." I hummed, dazedly. "I'll just be a minute."

I found room 153 with ease after asking a few passing doctors and nurses. I slowed down and peeked my head into the room, freezing on the spot.

Lissa and Christian were there. They hadn't noticed me yet.

Lissa was sitting on the bed, smiling and laughing with Christian as he helped put her shirt over her head; I caught sight of scars and staples and cringed. But then I gazed at Lissa's face…and she looked so happy.

If you hadn't known that she'd been kidnapped and had two of her major organs removed by her deranged and psychotic uncle, you'd think she was just any other normal teenage girl.

Christian made one of his usual snarky jokes when he crouched down and started tying her shoelaces. Lissa giggled and ran her fingers through his jet-black hair. I saw that sparkle in her eyes as she gazed down at her boyfriend. I'm pretty sure I had it every time I looked at Dimitri. It was a look of pure love and adoration. Christian made Lissa feel like the only girl in the world, and I loved him for that.

"I love you so much, baby." he pressed his hand to her cheek. She leaned into his touch.

"I love you, too."

At the sound of her angelic voice, I let out a strangled cry of relief. It was like that one sound of her confirmed she was okay, confirmed she really was alive…

Both of their heads snapped up.

The instant I met Lissa's jade-green eyes, we both started bawling like babies.

She opened up her arms and I ran into her embrace.

"I'm so sorry!" I sobbed into her shoulder.

"You're so sorry? I'm so sorry!" Lissa held me tighter.

"Why in the hell should you be sorry? I'm the one who got us into this." My voice was hysterical and everything that came out of my mouth was mumble-jumble. I'm surprised she understood.

"Don't you ever say that, Rosemarie Hathaway! Do you understand me?" Lissa growled, forcing my shoulders back so she could look into my eyes.

Tears were streaming down both our faces, sobs racked through our bodies.

"If it wasn't for you," My best friend's lip trembled. "I wouldn't be alive right now. I'd be dead. You saved me. You're my guardian angel."

This only made me cry harder.

I dropped my face in the crook of her neck as we both held onto each other for dear life.

"S-s-so you're not mad at me?"

"Not in a million years."

"Thank you." I whispered. "Thank you so much for not being angry at me."

"I missed you,"

"I missed you, too. So much. And I love you so much…"

"I love you so much, too."

"Are we still friends?"

"Best friends."

"Forever?"

"Forever."

"Agreed. Friends forever."

"You know what, I don't have a clue what the two of you just said," Christian murmured. "But I love happy reunions. And I'll be damned if that wasn't the happiest reunion I've ever witnessed."

Lissa and I shared a glance before pulling Christian into a fierce hug and sandwiching him between our bodies.

"I can get used to this," Christian said, placing his arms around our shoulders. "Merry Christmas everyone."

"Ouch!" I sucked on the tiny dot of fresh blood on my thumb. "Motherf-" Dimitri shot me a glare, stopping me from finishing that word.

"Tell me again, why do I have to do this?" I put three more pieces of popcorn through the needle and down the string, and then added a cranberry.

"Because it's going to look great on the tree." Dimitri murmured, placing a John Wayne ornament on a branch.

I laughed. "Seriously, Comrade?"

"Yep."

I shook my head, continuing to string popcorn and cranberries onto the yarn. When I'd gone through three bags of popcorn and one whole package of cranberries, my fingers were covered in needle pricks and felt as if they were about to fall off.

"Can I stop now?" I whined.

Dimitri was busy throwing silver and gold tinsel onto the Christmas tree, he glanced over his shoulder...and groaned.

"What?" I said defensively.

"How long did you put the popcorn in the microwave, Rose?"

I shrugged. "A couple of minutes..."

"How long?" he demanded.

"Well, umm," I cleared my throat. "I originally thought I had put it on for two minutes, but I accidentally and unknowingly pressed too many zeroes and it ended up being in there for...twenty minutes."

I was expecting Dimitri to be mad and yell at me, give me a Zen lesson on how not to set the kitchen on fire...or something like that. But instead he just shook his head and laughed. "Well that would explain why my apartment smells of burnt popcorn."

I cringed. "Sorry."

"And the reason all of the popcorn you've put on that garland is black."

"It's not black. It's just really, really dark brown."

He arched an eyebrow.

"Okay, fine...it's black."

Dimitri went back to throwing tinsel on the tree. "Did it ever occur to you that maybe you could...I don't know...make a fresh bag that's not burnt?"

I narrowed my eyes. "I'm not so crazy about your tone, Comrade."

He shrugged.

I huffed. "You're a real pain in the ass sometimes, you know that?"

"And you're a real pain in my ass too, you know that?"

Unable to help myself, I glanced at his backside. Not bad…not bad at all. It was even better without the jeans.

I felt the weight of his eyes on me. My head snapped up and I blushed. Busted.

Dimitri had one eyebrow arched and the corners of his lips were twitching, as if he was having a hard time keeping in his laughs. "See something you like?" he used the same line I'd used on him.

I licked my lips. "Oh, yeah. I'd like it even better if you were naked. In the bed. With me."

He crooked a finger. "Come here."

I did.

Dimitri wrapped his arms around me and nuzzled my neck with his face. He placed a single kiss there, right over my scar, before meeting my eyes. "It's time to put the star on the tree."

He slipped a golden star into my hands and lifted me off the ground, towards the tree. I gasped with surprised and started giggling. Dimitri didn't stop lifting me until the top branches brushed my knees.

"How the hell are you holding me up this far up?" I asked, twisting my head around. He didn't look like he was having a hard time holding my weight, his face wasn't strained at all; he looked perfectly calm and relaxed.

Dimitri smiled at me. "Just put the star on the tree."

I set it on top. "Done."

"It's crooked."

"No, it's not."

"Yes, it is."

"A little less talky talky, Comrade—and more put me downy downy on the ground."

"Not until it's perfectly straight."

"Well then you should do it. You're freakishly tall. You can reach it by yourself."

I started wiggling my hips to try and get out of his iron hold.

"I want you to do it. And you're not getting down until that star is straight."

I sighed. "Fine."

I had to rearrange the star seven more times before Dimitri deemed it "perfect". He let me down.

I wrapped my arms around his neck, he placed his hands on my hips.

"You're a butthead." I stuck my tongue out at him.

"And you're beautiful." He kissed the tip of my tongue before his mouth devoured and consumed mine.

When we pulled back, I felt dizzy from his mind numbing kisses. I smacked his arm. "I know what you're trying to do, but it's not going to work."

I didn't hear his chuckle, but I felt it. His body rumbled as he pressed me against the wall. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Sureeeee you don't," I rolled my eyes.

When his large hands started traveling all over my body, and his mouth attacked the skin of my shoulder, I had to push him away. "Go…go put my Christmas present on."

He clenched his jaw and I could tell he was about to argue.

"Ah, ah. No. You're not getting out of this one. You promised me you would."

"Fine." Dimitri growled. "But I'm only wearing it for twenty minutes. That's all."

I laughed at his childish tone. "Fine by me. I just want to see you in it."

"And you know your part in the deal…about the cowgirl thing…"

"Yep. Don't worry about me."

With one last glare, he strode out of the living room and into his bathroom.

Five minutes later, Dimitri stepped out of the bathroom.

The hot cocoa nearly slipped out of my hand. "Oh, my God." I gaped.

"What?" he demanded. "You don't like it?"

"I-I-I-I…" my throat dried up. "You look-I-I-I…"

Dimitri walked up to me with a cocky grin. He placed his fingers under my chin and closed my gaping mouth. "I'm assuming you like it...?"

I bobbed my head up and down like a Parakeet, swallowing hard. "Yeah."

I was so glad that I decided to order that costume online. Sure, it came from a sex shop, but it was damn worth it.

Dimitri's long and lean legs were stuffed into a pair of skin-tight red leather pants. A Santa hat lay on the top of his head. And that was it. His chest was bare, revealing tan skin, perfect bulging arms, a wide chest, and an eight pack.

I'd bought that costume as a joke, to see if he'd actually wear it for me, to use it as something I could constantly tease him about in the future. I never expected it to be a turn on, but my God...was it ever.

I threw my body at Dimitri and tackled him to the ground. He started kissing me back as the clothes flew off. It was savage. Animalistic. Rough. And so satisfying…

This was the best Christmas ever.

Song: In the arms of an angel – Sarah McLaughlin

A/N: Unfortunately, there's only a few chapters left of this story :-( Just thought I should warn you guys.