Waking up with Mackenzie in his arms was something he had really missed, and that he suspected he would get used to pretty quickly once again. He raised his arm to look at his wristwatch and sighed: too early for a Saturday morning. So he closed his eyes and tried to sleep some more.

An hour later, a noise woke him up. Confused, he looked around the room but he didn't see anything unusual. He closed his eyes again but, a few seconds later, he heard the noise again. Pissed off, he got up from the bed, careful not to disturb Mac, and walked out of the room. Once in the living room he identified the noise as someone knocking on the door. He looked through the peephole before unlocking the door.

"Mr. McAvoy, I wasn't expecting to find you here." Mike told him as soon as Will opened the door. "This is Detective Johnson, he's the one assigned to Ms. McHale case." He introduced the other man.

"Has something happened?" Will asked them.

"No, sir." The detective quickly replied. "We're here to talk to Ms. McHale. We have some news."

"Come on in." Will told them, stepping aside to let them enter the apartment. After closing the door, he accompanied them to the living room. "I'll wake her up. Make yourselves comfortable." He said before disappearing down the hall.

He entered the bedroom and smiled at the sight of Mackenzie curled up on his side of the bed, hugging his pillow. She was sleeping so comfortably that he felt bad having to wake her up. Will sat down next to her and caressed her cheek. Mac murmured something unintelligible but continued sleeping.

Then, Will touched her shoulder and gently shook her. "Mackenzie."

"Leave me alone." She murmured without opening her eyes.

"Hey, sleeping beauty, we've got company. You have to get up." He told her before leaning down to kiss the side of her head.

Mac lazily opened her eyes and looked at him. "Make them leave." She said. Will extended his arm and helped her sit up. "Who the hell is here at-" She turned to look at the clock. "Ten past nine on a Saturday?"

"Mike and Detective Johnson." He simply replied. "I'll make coffee." He told her after softly kissing her lips.

Ten minutes later, Mac emerged from her room and found the three men quietly drinking coffee in the kitchen. When they saw her, the three of them got up. While she greeted Mike and the Detective, Will got her a cup of coffee and her meds.

"Sorry to bother you this early but we have some news we wanted to share." Mark Johnson explained.

"What's wrong?" Mac asked, smiling in thanks to Will when he handed her the coffee and the pills.

They sat down at the kitchen table and Mac swallowed her pills with a gulp of coffee. There was an uncomfortable silence in the room for a few seconds before Mark decided to speak. "How are you feeling?" He asked Mac.

"I've been better." Mac replied.

"We located the car that hit you two days ago. It had been stolen that same day in Queens and we found it, abandoned, near the scene. There were security cameras across the street picked up the guy but he had conveniently covered his face so we couldn't get a clear picture of his face. The fingerprints we found on the car match the ones we already had but we still haven't found a match in our databases."

"So, we still are at the same point." Will said.

"Everything he does gives us new information about him, Mr. McAvoy, and helps us understand him better." Detective Johnson told him.

"He's getting bolder." Mike informed them. "He's impatient and he's tired of waiting for Mackenzie to notice him. He decided to take action and, sooner or later, he'll make a mistake and we'll catch him."

"So, what? We wait until he tries to kill Mac again and hope that he doesn't succeed?" Will angrily asked.

"Will." Mac warned him, gently squeezing his hand to calm him down.

"We don't think he wanted to kill you." Mark said, looking at her. "He hit you car from behind. If he really wanted harm you, he would have crashed his car into the passenger side."

"Is that supposed to make me feel better?" Mac sarcastically said.

"We'll increase our security measures." Mike told them. "We'll set up security cameras outside your door. I'll change cars and we'll leave your building and AWM through the garage. And, most important, I'll pick you up at your door, here and at the office. No unscheduled trips: if you want to go get some coffee, ask someone or call me to go with you. I know you went by yourself more than once."

"Do you need more people?" Will asked Mike before Mac could say anything.

"Another person would be useful, someone that could stay outside during the night or in the car if I have to go with Mackenzie somewhere."

"Choose someone you trust. I'll pay for it." Will told him.

"Will!" Mac exclaimed, turning to look at him. "What the hell are you doing?" She angrily asked him.

"If you would excuse us for a moment." Will said to Mike and Mark, standing up from his seat and signaling Mac to follow him.

"We'll leave." Mike told them.

"I'll call you if there's anything new to report." Detective Johnson said.

"Thank you." Mackenzie told them.

Once the two men left the apartment, Will went to the bedroom while Mac remained on the kitchen. A minute later, Will walked in and handed her the collar. Mac looked at him, unimpressed, but Will ignored her look.

"I saw you wincing in pain, Mac. Humor me and put this on." He told her.

Mac glared at him but complied, moving her hair to one side so Will could place the collar around her neck and fasten it. "Thanks." Mac softly said.

"Want something to eat?" Will asked.

"A cheese omelet would be great." She replied. Will opened the fridge and got the eggs and the cheese. They spent a few minutes in silence, Will preparing breakfast while Mac observed him from her seat at the kitchen table. "What the hell was that?" Mac finally asked him.

"What was what?" Will said, feigning ignorance.

"You offering to pay for more protection without consulting me." She replied.

"What's wrong with that?" He asked.

"Really?" Mac asked him.

"He said it'd be a good idea!" Will exclaimed.

"Because you asked him!" Mac told him, raising her voice. "Why don't you hire someone to follow me to the fucking bathroom? Or even better, let's get a 24/7 detail!" She spat at him. "I can take care of myself Billy."

"The collar around your neck is great proof of that." Will angrily replied.

"Fuck you." Mac told him.

Will put the omelet on a plate and grabbed a fork before setting everything in front of her. Without saying a word, he left the room. Mac ate her breakfast and poured herself another coffee. She took her mug and sat down on the couch. She made herself comfortable and turned on the TV, changing the channel to CNN. She could see Will standing outside, on the balcony, his arms resting on the handrail and smoking a cigarette. She wasn't pissed at him about his offer, she was pissed because he had done it without asking her first. Even if she once had been, Will being nice to her was something she wasn't used to lately. Without thinking, she got up from the couch and went outside. Will heard the door being opened but didn't turn around.

She startled him when she grabbed the cigarette from his hand to take a drag. "Hey!" He said. "Get your own." He told her, stealing it back.

Mac adopted his same position, looking down at the busy New York streets. "I feel like I'm losing all the control of my life." Mac softly said. "I'm sorry but I can't have you taking the little I still have."

"That was never my intention." Will replied.

"I know, but it's how it looked like." She explained to him.

"I'm sorry." Will said before stubbing out the cigarette and turning to look at her. He gently grabbed her hands and squeezed them. "I don't want anything bad happening to you, Mackenzie. You know me, I'm an overprotective moron. I worry about you, I want to take care of you. I understand your reticence so I'll take a step back."

Mac put her ams around his waist and pulled him close, her forehead resting on his chest. "I like that you want to take care of me. Just ..." She hesitated for a few seconds. "Ask me first before doing anything rash, ok?"

Will kissed the top of her head and brought her even closer. "Ok."

Monday morning, Will arrived at the newsroom just in time for the pitch meeting. Mac was at the physical therapist's so, before they could start with the meeting, he had to answer everyone's questions and reassure them that Mackenzie was fine. Jim did a great job subbing for Mac but he missed her. Once the meeting was over, an intern told him that Charlie had called asking him to go upstairs. He took the elevator and went upstairs, wondering what the hell had happened that Charlie needed to speak with him. When Mille saw Will, she told him he could go right inside. He stepped into his boss office and, before he could say anything, Charlie looked up from the papers he was reading and warily smiled at him. "The press office got a call from Nina Howard."

"Fuck." Will said, plopping down in one of the chairs in front of Charlie's desk. "What now?"

"She knows you weren't sick on 9/11." Charlie simply told him.

"Fuck!" He exclaimed. "I told you this would backfire, Charlie." Will said, closing his eyes and pinching his nose. "How did she find out?"

"I don't know. She asked looking for a comment." Charlie replied.

"What do you wanna do?" Will asked him, resigned.

"Nothing."

"Nothing?" Will asked, incredulous. "She'll publish it!"

"She wouldn't have called if her source was credible. She has a hunch but she can't be sure unless we confirm it." Charlie told him.

"She doesn't need a credible source: she's a gossip columnist." Will told him. "We just got our ratings back to normal, something like this could kill us."

"I'll talk to her." Charlie said.

"No, I will." Will quickly replied.

"No, you won't." Charlie firmly told him.

"Arrange a meeting with her. At Hang Chew's, after the show." Will asked him.

"What are you gonna tell her?" Charlie asked, concerned.

"I don't know yet." He replied.

"Great." Charlie sarcastically said. "What could possibly go wrong?"

"Your faith in me is overwhelming, Charlie." Will told him.

"How's our girl?" He asked Will, changing the subject.

"Better. She's at the PT. She'll be in later." Will explained.

"Should she be back so soon?" Charlie asked, concerned.

"That's the same thing I told her. She told me she'd get bored at home and would end pestering everyone so she thought she should just come here and do it from her office. She promised to take it easy, though." Will told him, smiling.

"Are you taking good care of her?"

"As much as she lets me."

"Great." Charlie replied. "Now, get back to work."

"Yes, sir."

A few hours later, he was sitting in his office, writing his script, when he heard the commotion outside. Without looking, he knew that Mac had arrived. He waited a few minutes before getting up and going to find her. He opened the door and, before he could say anything or look around, Tess pointed to Mac's office. He thanked her with a smile and walked to the office. He opened the door without knocking and quickly closed it once he was inside.

"How did it go?" He asked her.

"We'll do the PT three times a week, at the gym here, after the two o'clock meeting." She explained, smiling at him. "He's a nice guy, thanks for recommending him."

"You're welcome." Will replied. "How are you feeling?"

"A bit tired but it'll pass once I eat something." Mac told him. "I'll grab a sandwich from the vending machine after I talk to Jim."

"How about I order some lunch and we go through the pitches while we eat?" Will offered.

"Perfect."

As soon as he heard Herb saying we're clear in his ear, Will got up from his chair and walked out of the studio and towards his office. He quickly changed his clothes and grabbed his things. He was about to leave his office to meet Nina when Mac gently knocked on his door before stepping in.

"Hey." She softly said.

"Hey." He replied. "Are you alright?" Will asked her after noticing the tired look on her face.

"My neck hurts a little bit." Mac confessed. "Nothing that my cocktail of muscle relaxants and painkillers won't solve." She told him, slightly smiling.

"What you need is a hot meal and a good night's sleep." He said, approaching her and putting his hands on her waist. "Call Mike so he can take you home."

"Want to come with me?" Mac asked him, resting her hands on his chest.

"I'd love to but not tonight." He said, and regretted it a second later when he saw the look on her face. He grabbed her hands, preventing her from taking them away from his chest "You need to rest, Mackenzie, and I have to go home."

"Right. We're taking things slowly this time." Mac muttered.

Will snorted before pulling her close. "We are." He smiled down at her.

Standing on her tiptoes, Mac softly pressed her lips against his. "Call me later?" She asked him.

"I will."

After another kiss, Mac walked out of his office. After glancing at the clock he realized he was late. Will quickly gathered his things and left. He was relieved to see that most of the staff was still working and he secretly hoped that they would stay there, at least until his meeting with Nina was over.

Hang Chew's was surprisingly busy for a Monday night. He quickly located Chelsea, their usual waitress, and went to quietly speak with her. They exchanged a few words while she poured him an scotch. Drink in hand, he walked to the back of the bar. There, nursing her drink, sat Ms. Howard.

"Nina." He greeted her while sitting down in front of her.

"Will." She nodded at him. "I'd like to say that it's a pleasure to see you again but we both know it wouldn't be true." Nina said, smiling. "I suppose you're here to talk about the 9/11 broadcast."

"Yes." Will simply replied.

"You want to convince me of not running the story that you weren't sick."

"I'd like that."

"Why?" She asked him.

"Because I'd like 9/11 to be a scandal-free day. Are we off the record?" Will asked her. Nina nodded. "It was a joint decision." He lied, really hoping that she wouldn't catch him. "After the American Taliban broadcast, a lot of people were furious with me so we decided I should step down on 9/11 and let Elliot and Sloan do it."

"Who's we?"

"Charlie and I." Will replied.

"Ok." Nina told him.

"That's it?" He asked, confused.

"Yeah." She laughed at him. "I'm a nice person, you know."

"That was surprisingly easy." Will muttered.

"I needed a reason to have a private meeting with you." She confessed. "The 9/11 story was just a cover-up. I had already decided not running it."

"Then?"

"I knew you weren't sick because someone saw you entering Mackenzie's building that night, and leaving the morning after." Nina explained.

"Fuck." Will said.

"That same person, my source, also told me that you and Mackenzie are now together and that she has a bodyguard because she has an stalker. Is it true that she was in a car accident last Thursday?" She asked him.

"How the hell did you find out?" He asked.

"An anonymous source."

"Nina, no one knew ..." Will began but immediately stopped talking.

"What?"

Will took out his phone and dialed a number. "I need you to come inside." He said before hanging up. A minute later, Lonny appeared. "What's wrong?" He asked Will.

"Ms. Howard got an anonymous call about Mac's situation." Will explained.

"That's impossible. Nobody knows about it except us, we've been very careful." Lonny told him.

"What the hell is going on?" Nina asked them.

"Nina, did he tell you his name?" Will told her.

"What makes you think it was a man?" Nina replied.

"Ms. Howard, I can assure you that the people who know about Ms. McHale's situation wouldn't leak anything. If you got a call about it..."

"It had to be the stalker." Nina said, finishing Lonny's sentence.

"He wants publicity. He's feeling ignored and wants all the attention he can get. That's why he called you." Lonny told her.

"Don't worry." Nina quickly said after seeing the cautious look on both the men faces. "I won't give that man what he wants."

"Thank you." Will sincerely told her.

"About the other thing..." She began.

"What other thing?" Will asked her.

"You and Mackenzie?" Nina replied, smiling.

"Why don't we make a deal?" Will said.

"I'm listening." She told him, folding her arms and leaning back on her chair.

"We're not ready to go public about our relationship." Will explained. "When the time comes, you'll be the first to know."

"Will you let me interview you?" Nina asked him with a wicked smile.

"We'll see." He replied.

"I can live with that." Nina said.

Satisfied with the results, Will finished his drink and got up. He looked down at the woman still sitting at the table and kindly smiled at her. "Thanks Nina." He told her.

He was about to leave, Lonny following close behind, when she stopped him. "Does Mackenzie know about the voicemail message?"

"She doesn't." Will replied.

"You should tell her." Nina told him. "It was fucking sweet."

Home, sweet home, Will though as he was stepping out of the elevator and into his apartment. After everything that had happened that day, he only wanted to quietly smoke a cigarette on his balcony and go to bed. He changed into his pajamas and grabbed a cigarette and his phone before going outside. He sat down on his lounge chair and lit it up.

He only had time to take two drags before his phone rang. He looked down at the screen and smiled. "Ms. McHale, you should be asleep." He teased her in greeting.

"Why the hell were you talking with Nina Howard, Billy?"