by Alex Tryst

Disclaimers: See Part 1

Feedback: Feel free to drop me a line at alextryst@e-scribblers.com.

Copyright © January, 2005 by Alex Tryst. All Rights Reserved.

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Getting to the space marked as fifty-five, Dylan saw a little black convertible sports Audi. Carefully she maneuvered her bike in behind it, making sure not to touch the car. When it was in place, she cut the engine and took off her helmet. "Cool car you have there."

"Thanks. I hardly ever drive it, because there's no place to park in New York. Cabs or the subway are a much easier way to get around. Come on up," she said, taking the redhead's hand.

Taking the elevator, neither spoke as they went up to Anna's tenth-floor apartment. When the brunette opened the door, she gestured Dylan in ahead of her. The firefighter's eyes widened. "Great place," she complimented.

"Thanks. My father bought it for me when I graduated school. His second wife didn't like the idea of me living with them, and my mother's fourth husband was just a jerk."

"Fourth husband?"

"Yeah. She's on number six now. Marriage is her pastime. For her she spends about a year dating the guy, nine months planning an outlandish wedding, and then about six months actually married before she gets bored with him. Of course she keeps upgrading every time she marries. She's married to some hotshot Hollywood director now, not that I care. She likes to flaunt him like he's a catch. I know that it's just his money she's after."

"I sense some hostility there."

"Not really. I know what she is. A lot of women around here marry for things other than love. The disadvantage of being straight I guess," she teased.

"Doesn't sound like just a straight problem by the way you tell it. You mentioned your dad was into monitoring your girlfriends. I wonder what he'd think of me. He'd probably kick my poor butt to the curb, huh?"

"Well, he wouldn't be rude like my mother would, but I would certainly hear about it."

"I guess it's a good thing we aren't dating then, huh?" hesitantly she asked, wondering what the response to the statement would be. She had wondered where they stood, and this was a chance to find out what was going through the smaller woman's head.

"Yeah, definitely a good thing," Anna answered quickly, ignoring the disappointment nagging at her heart. "He probably wouldn't be thrilled that we were sex buddies either, though."

"Is that what you rich girls call it?" Dylan inquired, disregarding the sinking feeling in her stomach at being called that. "I thought you said you weren't into that."

"Well, that was before I met you," she said with a smile. "When you meet the best, why not accept it?" she tried to compliment.

Dylan nodded and smiled, acting as if she was flattered by the comment. However, she suddenly felt weird about being there. "You want to go somewhere? You said something about a movie."

"Yeah. I thought we might have lunch first and then go. You want the rest of the tour?"

"The bedroom is all I'm interested in," she said with a raise of her brow, trying to sound tempting, even though she wasn't feeling much like intimacy at the moment. It just seemed to be the best response.

"Right. Of course," Anna stated. Inside she felt her heart slip even farther into her stomach. "Well, we don't have time for that before the movie. Why don't we save the tour until afterwards then?" she suggested, not feeling secure in having Dylan there at the moment. She sensed something amiss with the younger woman that gave her a sense of doubt about being there just then. "Come on. The restaurant I want to go to is just a few blocks from here."

Quietly they walked to the restaurant and were seated for lunch. Immediately Dylan ordered a beer while Anna decided on a bottle of water. "So, what's good here?"

"Everything. What are you in the mood for?"

Dylan scanned the menu. The prices were more than she expected, but she didn't let on as she thought about her choices. "I guess I'll have a salad."

"Well, unless you plan on ordering about three of them, you should pick something else. That will never fill your stomach."

"Well, what's the biggest thing on the menu?"

"The chicken Parmesan is big. You get tons of pasta with that and a salad."

"Fine. What are you getting?"

"A salad." When their beverages came to the table, Anna asked, "May I ask you something?"

"What?"

"Do you always drink beer? Every time I'm with you, that's all you drink."

"I happen to like beer, Anna. It's like water to me. Why do you ask?" she questioned.

Hearing the edge to Dylan's voice, she sensed that she hit a sensitive subject. "I was just curious." Dylan rolled her eyes. Seeing that the brunette asked, "What's your problem today? Is something wrong?"

"I had a tough few days is all," she lied. "Enough about me. Let's talk about you. Tell me more about your family. Your mother sounded pretty interesting. You said your father has also been married a few times."

"Yeah. He's been married three times."

"Any brothers or sisters?"

"I have some step-siblings, but I'm both my parents' only child, and I'm my father's little girl, always have been. No matter what happens with his wives and the other stepchildren, he's always treated me like his golden child. I guess that's what came between him and wife number two."

"Does that get lonely?"

Anna shrugged. "I'm used to it. My parents sent me away to boarding school when I was in high school, so I'm used to not having family around. I have Blair. She's my best friend. We met in kindergarten and have been friends since. We went to boarding school together and school in Massachusetts. She's like my sister."

Dylan nodded. "Blair is great. She made quite an impression on Davin. He was talking about her at work the very next day."

Anna laughed. "She's a big flirt. Davin left an impression on her as well. I told her he was married, though."

"Good because I would hate to see Blair's early demise if Stacie got hold of her. Talk about a woman with an Irish temper. Whoa. She's fiery. Davin assures me that has its advantages though," she joked.

"I'm sure it does."

"So, tell me. What does your father do?"

"He's in real estate mostly, owns several properties in New York city and across the state."

"Like a Donald Trump?"

"Sort of, better looking than Donald, though."

"Well, let me the judge of that. What's he look like?"

Anna fished into her purse and pulled out her wallet. Turning to a photograph, she presented it for Dylan. The firefighter studied it for a moment. There was Anna, obviously a few years younger, standing there with an astute, fashionably dressed gray-haired man with steely blue eyes. He stood with his arm around his daughter's shoulders on what looked like her graduation day. Dylan could see the adoration clearly in his eyes. "You have his eyes and his face," she mentioned.

"I actually have his hair too. He used to be brunette. The only thing of my mother's I have is her body type."

"Do you have a picture of her?" Anna nodded and flipped the page to reveal the next photo. It was of the same day. Dylan looked at it before turning the next few pages on her own accord. The rest of the miniature album was of Anna and Blair. "You and Blair are quite a duo," she said.

"She means everything to me."

"What does she think about me? Did I make a good impression on your pseudo sister?"

Smiling Anna answered, "Blair thinks you're a hot commodity. It's a good thing she's into the fellows, or she would have given me a run at you."

"That would have gone over well at the firehouse. They were crawling over Davin for details about her. I have plenty of single macho firefighter brothers that would love a shot at her."

"Well, if they look anything like Davin, she might take you up on that."

Through the rest of the meal the two talked mostly about the movie they were going to see later. Dylan found her ire from earlier start to fade once she had some food and a couple of beers. As for Anna, her uneasiness also began to disappear, but she found it interesting that Dylan consumed so much alcohol during their short meal. When the check arrived at their table, the redhead reached for it, but Anna did as well.

"Anna, allow me to pay for lunch," she said.

The brunette shook her head. "No. This was my idea. I should pay."

"But I don't feel right about that," she explained.

"Exactly why is that?" she questioned pulling a credit card from her wallet.

"Because..." When an answer wasn't forthcoming, Anna just shook her head and handed the bill to the server. "Hey," Dylan protested.

"What, Dylan?" the brunette pressed.

"I just, I'm not used to having women pay for things for me."

"Well, I would like to buy you lunch, so that's final. If you feel that strongly, you can buy the movie tickets."

"Fine."

Once lunch was finished, the two of them headed to the theater. Dylan paid for the tickets and their snacks before they went into the darkened theater to find seats. "Where do you want to sit?" the shorter woman asked.

"I like the back. Can you see from there, or do you want to sit closer?"

"The back's fine. You want the back row?"

"Yeah. Back row on the aisle," she requested.

Anna slid into the aisle and took a seat, wondering what might happen between them sitting all the way in the back alone. However, as Dylan took a seat, she merely put an arm around Anna's chair and kept her eyes toward the screen. For the next two hours, the firefighter sat perfectly still with eyes riveted to the movie.

Anna sat watching as well, but she felt tension in the redhead's body. It was obvious that Dylan was upset but wasn't saying so. The brunette figured it had to be over the lunch bill but didn't know how to make it better, so she just hoped they would be able to moved beyond it once they were back at her apartment.

By the time they went back to her place, the afternoon was turning to evening. As Dylan stood at the window looking out at the scenery, the brunette offered, "Could I get you a drink?"

"What do you have?"

"Wine, water, juice."

"No thanks."

"What about a Guinness?" she asked.

"Yeah, that would be great if you have it."

"I have it," she said, turning to go into her kitchen. Heading to her refrigerator, she pulled out the beer she had gotten for Dylan a few days ago. Popping open the can, she poured it into a glass with a long sigh. Returning to her den, she extended it to the redhead.

"Thanks. That's sweet of you to remember what I like to drink."

"It's hard to forget," she mumbled under her breath.

Not hearing her, Dylan inquired, "What was that?"

"Nothing. I just said of course I remembered."

"Oh. Well, so what are your plans for the evening? You and Blair hitting the streets to find trouble?"

"Not tonight. She's in California for work."

"I've been meaning to ask you. What exactly do you do all day since you don't work? Like go through a day for me."

Anna shrugged. "I don't know. I usually get up around nine. Eat breakfast and then go to the gym. After that, I shower and usually have lunch out with friends, sometimes my dad. In the afternoons I like to go to the park and read or go to a museum. Sometimes I go shopping. Coffee around four most days. Dinner either at home or out with friends. Then at night I usually go out."

"Do you get lonely? Is that fulfilling?"

"Well, most of my friends don't work, so I don't usually get lonely. However, there are some times when I wish I did something else. I just don't know what to do with myself really."

"What's your degree in? You said you had a Masters."

"It's in communications. When I was in college, I actually had an internship with MTV for a couple of summers. I really enjoyed that."

"Did you get to meet a lot of celebrities?"

Anna nodded. "That was fun, but what I liked best was the other people. By the time I graduated, I was helping produce shows for them."

"That sounds neat."

"It was. Actually they called me recently asking if I would be interested in working on one of their reality shows, but I turned them down."

"Why?"

"I didn't like the concept. There are so many New York based shows, and that one didn't seem very original to me. Of course since meeting you, I've come up with a concept myself for a reality show."

"What's that?"

"The fire department. If any other firefighters are half as interesting as you, there would be plenty to work with. Of course I don't know how much red tape I'd have to go through to make that happen. It might not be worth it, but I've been thinking about pitching it to them."

"That would be cool."

"Life in front of a camera though is tough. Just ask Blair. Assuming that it could work, I wouldn't ever put you on camera just for that reason. You deal with too much as it is, and having a camera in your face all the time would be the last thing you need."

"Oh come on, Anna. I want to be in it," she pressed teasingly.

"We'll see. They might shoot it down all together. It's just an idea right now."

Just then the doorbell interrupted them. Wondering who it might be, Anna went to answer it while Dylan stayed in her position overlooking the city. Opening the door, the brunette was surprised to see her ex-girlfriend standing there. "Julie, what are you doing here?" she questioned in shock.

"I came to talk to you," the blonde replied, pushing the door open far enough to enter even though she hadn't been invited in. "You haven't been returning my calls."

"That's because I have nothing to say to you, Julie," Anna stated after her retreating form as her ex moved toward the den.

As soon as Dylan heard the movement, she turned from the window to see someone she didn't know staring at her. Both women just stood speechless for a moment as Anna entered. Finally Julie turned toward the short woman. "Oh, I see how it is. This is the reason you're not calling me back. Your hookup at the bar is still hanging around. You never could just fuck someone, Anna. You always had to get involved."

"You say that as if I should be ashamed of it. I'm not like you, Julie. I don't just fuck women for the hell of it, especially when I have a girlfriend at home!"

The blonde shook her head. "Look. I didn't come to fight. I came because we have to work this out. You know it's expected of us. Perhaps if your guest would leave, we could do that," she suggested, staring at the redhead again.

Dylan just stood there taking in the scene, quickly realizing this was the notorious ex. Anna looked at Dylan and then back at Julie. "Dylan isn't going anywhere."

"Fine. Then come here," she demanded, grabbing the brunette by the hand and dragging her into the dining room. For a moment Anna went along willingly like she always used to when they were together. When they were alone, the blonde looked down into blue eyes. "Anna, you know as well as I do that we can't go on like this. Our parents think we're still together, and your father has invited my family to dinner next week. I know we needed a little time apart, but you know as well as I do that when we go to dinner next week, we need to be our happy selves again. Anna, don't ruin this for us."

"I'm not the one who ruined it, Julie! I'm not the one who fucked my law partner on the desk at work!" she fumed.

Julie sighed. "Look. I'm sorry you had to walk in on that."

"Yeah but you aren't sorry you did it, are you?"

"I'm sorry you got hurt. I tried to keep you all separated."

"You shouldn't have kept us separated! You shouldn't have slept with her in the first place! What I want to know is how long! How long did I actually play the fool? Six months? A year?"

Staring at Anna, Julie answered, "Five years, Anna."

"You bitch!" the brunette screamed. "That was our entire relationship!" she yelled, shaking with anger. Unable to control herself, she struck her ex across the face as tears streamed down her cheeks. She never expected that answer, for it made it seem their whole relationship had been a sham. All the time she had put into making a life with the blonde and it was all a lie whenever her ex made love to her.

Instantly Julie grabbed her by the shoulders. "How dare you hit me?" she shouted, raising her own hand. However before it could descend, an iron clasp held it suspended in mid-air. Both Anna and Julie turned, almost stunned at Dylan's sudden presence.

Squeezing Julie's wrist tightly, the redhead growled, "I wouldn't do that if I were you."

"Fuck off! This is none of your business!"

"I disagree. As soon as you raised your hand to Anna, it became my business. Now I suggest you just step back," she demanded, wedging her way between the fighting women as she released her grip. When the blonde didn't heed the instruction, Dylan pushed her back several steps.

"Don't touch me! That's assault!" the blonde attorney bellowed, stepping into Dylan's space.

"Do you actually think I'm scared of you? If you can't play nice with Anna, you have to go through me now. I will not tolerate you hitting a lady."

The blonde stepped back on her own and just stared at Anna. "Anna, you know I'm right about this. We have to patch this up."

"Julie, I can't. What you did was unforgivable."

"I know you can. If you were that set in not taking me back, you would have already told your father we were broken up, that the wedding was off, but you haven't, because you know I'm right. He thinks we're still engaged, and I'm going to make sure it stays that way. It's what he wants, and you know it. I'm willing to walk that aisle with you, Anna, for the sake of our families, but you have to make concessions too."

"I have no concessions to make, Julie. I didn't cheat. I gave you everything, but it wasn't enough for you. As far as I'm concerned, we're finished. I said that weeks ago, and I'm saying it again now. I don't want you in my life."

"Well, too bad because I'm here to stay if you father has anything to say about it. Get over yourself. You know this is about their agenda, and the two of us are going down that aisle next summer whether you want to or not. You know how it works. Marry for money and notoriety and find your sexual solace elsewhere. You can even keep your working class girl here. I don't care. All that matters is that the plan has been set in motion, and there is nothing you can do to stop it. Neither of us can stop it. Our fathers have made up their minds."

The brunette shook her head. "Julie, I want you to leave now. As far as I'm concerned this is over. There is no more us. There is no wedding. There will be no marriage between us. I don't care what our fathers want."

"Yeah, okay. I'd like to see the day you stand up to your old man. If you think he's going to like this poor wretch over me, you're a bigger fool than I ever thought. Wedding's on even if I have to drag you kicking and screaming to the service myself. As soon as you get that through your head, we can work on us again." Looking at Dylan, Julie snarled, "Don't ever let me catch you here again. You want to screw my fiancée, that's fine. You might even be able to teach her a thing or two but not in this house."

Shocked that someone would ever say such a thing, Dylan gave no reply. There was nothing she felt she could even say. She just stood there as the blonde excused herself and made her way out of the apartment. Hearing the door close, the redhead turned to Anna. "What just happened here?" she inquired.

"Julie just happened," the shorter woman whispered with tears falling freely down her face.

"Are you all right?"

Anna didn't answer at first. Instead she wrapped her arms around the firefighter's neck and buried her head into her chest. Dylan responded by putting her arms around the little woman. "I'll be fine," quietly she said.

A few minutes passed in silence as they just stood in their embrace. Dylan could feel Anna's tears wet her shirt. Trying to console her, she ran her hands through the dark hair and kissed the top of her head. "It's going to be okay," she assured.

The dark head nodded. Taking a deep breath, she looked up at Dylan. Blue eyes looked at those green ones that were so full of concern. "Thank you for being here, and thank you for protecting me. She's never tried to hit me before."

"You're welcome. It's never right to hit a lady."

Feeling that emotion that had been creeping into her heart since the night she and Blair had visited Dylan at work, Anna decided to take a chance on expressing it. Gazing into caring green eyes, she whispered, "Especially if she's your lady."

Taken back slightly the redhead just thought about that statement for a moment as she searched those blue eyes for meaning. She found exactly what she suspected there in those depths. Anna had just offered herself in a way she never had. With a gentle smile, Dylan nodded. "Especially if she's my lady," she affirmed, taking the gift that had just been given.

Anna gave a beautiful smile as she leaned up to kiss the firefighter's mouth tenderly. "Well, why don't we take that tour we didn't get to earlier? I believe you haven't seen the whole place."

"Sure. Lead the way," the redhead answered, taking her girlfriend's hand.

Anna led the way from the dining room down the hallway. "This is my second bedroom," she explained. "Blair stays over a lot, so most of that stuff is hers. Then this is the hallway bath. At the end of the hall is my room." Walking through the door, she flipped on the lights.

Dylan's eyes scanned the large room. She had never seen anything like it. The queen-sized bed was made to perfection with pale linens and mounds of pillows. Nightstands flanked either side with matching lamps. On the right side there was a long dresser with pictures of Anna with various loved ones in her life, mostly her father and Blair, as well as jewelry scattered haphazardly near a jewelry box. On the wall with the door was a large entertainment center and bookshelf containing tons of books and movies. Finally on the left wall there was artwork and two doors. Curiously she inquired, "What's this?"

"That's my closet," Anna replied as Dylan opened the door and flipped on the light.

The redhead's eyes expanded at the sight of racks upon racks of clothes in a room as large as her own bedroom at home. The far wall alone had only shoes floor to ceiling. "Wow. This is impressive."

"That back wall actually opens further. Watch this." The brunette demonstrated how the two panels popped open to reveal even more footwear.

"Wow. You could go a whole year without wearing the same thing," she joked.

"Seems like I always wear the same old things, though. Sometimes you just can't beat your favorite outfit."

"I know what you mean. I have this pair of jeans that I've had since high school. They are so worn, but I can't give them up. They are just so comfortable. Too bad they wore a hole in the seat, or I'd wear them out in public."

"There's one last stop. My bathroom," announced the smaller woman, taking her hand.

Dylan agreeably followed, intrigued what could be so wonderful about a bathroom. However as she cleared the doorway, she realized why it was the highlight of the tour. The room had double sinks on the left side with white granite counter tops. There was a double-headed stone and glass shower to the right, and then at the very back there was a large tub. Interested in that, Dylan moved over to it. It was clearly meant for more than one person by its size. "Is this a hot tub?"

"Jacuzzi," the brunette corrected. "You want to try it out?" The taller woman nodded vigorously. "Great. I'll tell you what. Why don't you go back into the den and finish your beer while I get it ready?"

"Okay."

"Give me ten minutes. Then come back."

Dylan nodded. Doing what she was told, Dylan went back to where she had left her beer earlier and consumed it. Figuring she had time, she went to the kitchen to retrieve another. When she opened the refrigerator, she found an entire case of Guinness there on the bottom shelf. Fishing out another can, she opened it and then proceeded to drink directly from it as she put her empty glass in the dishwasher. After a long ten minutes, she deposited her now empty can into the recycling bin and then headed back to the bathroom.

When she got there, she paused in the doorway momentarily taking in the sight before her. The lights were off, and in their place candles aglow around the tub. Sitting on the edge of the tub was the most beautiful sight she had ever seen. The petite woman was wearing a long red silk robe that brushed the floor. The folds were parted just enough to reveal one of Anna's naked legs up to her thigh. Her dark hair was pinned up off her back, exposing her neck, and she sat there adding something to the water, unaware of Dylan's admiring presence. In fact, it was Dylan's voice that finally alerted her.

"You are absolutely a mesmerizing sight."

Anna smiled even before she looked up at the firefighter. When she did, she saw in green eyes what was coursing through her body: Desire, desire to know the feeling of heated flesh and hear fevered cries of pleasure. Standing up she softly beckoned, "Come here."

Dylan obeyed, crossing the room with several long steps until she was in the brunette's space. The firefighter didn't dare touch her for fear the illusion would fade as soon as she reached for her, so she merely stood there, watching and waiting. Without words between them, the brunette raised her hands and started to unbutton the redhead's shirt. She didn't look into green eyes, because she knew if she did she would be swallowed by the intensity of their gaze. Instead she focused on the buttons of the shirt, slowly working each open. When they were, she pushed it from broad shoulders. The t-shirt under it was next. Anna felt Dylan's breath becoming labored as she slipped her hands under the shirt and over her skin, but the firefighter stood still. Continuing her work, Dylan's bra followed, dropping to the floor. Finally the brunette moved her hands to the redhead's belt buckle. Hands trembled as she opened it, and her own body began to feel incredibly sensitive to the firefighter's breath along her neck. Working open the jeans, she pushed them off their owner's hips along with everything under them, leaving Dylan with her pants around her ankles.

Anna stepped back enough to kneel. She slipped one tennis shoe and sock off and then the other set before tugging the firefighter's pants all the way from her body. The shorter woman let her eyes roam up Dylan's powerful legs as her hands trailed up the back of her thighs. Risking a glance up to the taller woman's face, she found more than she expected. The fire was undeniable, but something else consumed those eyes. A hand under her chin guided her back to her feet.

Unable to remain stationary, Dylan gave in to her urges to kiss her girlfriend. "Sweet, sweet woman," she sighed, mouth moving over her ear as her hands delicately removed Anna's robe. "I need to make love to you more than I need to breathe. Please, Anna. Let me love you."

The dark head nodded as she softly replied, "Please, Dylan."

With consent granted, the strong woman scooped Anna into her arms and stepped into the tub. She carefully placed the brunette into the water and then lowered herself next to the body she desperately needed to touch. Focused solely on her lady, Dylan began to lead them through the intimate dance they had shared before, but this time seemed different to both of them. They were completely equals in their sentiments to each other, each giving freely of themselves.

Neither had concept of time as they stayed in the tub long after they should have. However, when exhaustion claimed the redhead, she gave a long groan and rested her head against the tile. Idly she played with the tendrils of hair that had fallen loose from Anna's clip as the older woman's head rested against her shoulder. Her other hand traced lazy patterns along the small of the brunette's back as she just took in the feeling of Anna's frame laying on top of her own.

"I've never been so relaxed in my life," the firefighter mumbled. "I could fall asleep just like this."

A moan greeted her statement. "We should get you out of the tub and into bed."

"Not yet. Let me hold you like this a little longer," she requested.

The brunette didn't respond but knew she wouldn't deny her lover such a simple pleasure, so she merely pressed herself closer to the body under hers and clung tighter to Dylan's neck. "There really is nothing quick about your love making skills, is there?" she teased lightly.

"Not a thing. That's not a problem, is it?"

Anna shook her head. "I guess that just rules out unexpected romps."

"Yeah. I don't like to do that. I wouldn't be satisfied. It's like having just a sip of Guinness and expecting to be appeased. I won't be fulfilled until I have it all. A taste of you simply won't do. I have to have the entire meal. Although I'll admit, I'm not sure I'll ever be sated when it comes to you. I always want just a little more. Even when my body says it's had enough, there's something in you that begs for continuation, and I feel helpless to do anything but oblige," she confessed as her right hand slid between their bodies and cupped Anna's heat. Immediately hips undulated into her to increase the pressure. "See. Just like that. One little movement, and I'm on fire for you again." Going with the feeling, Dylan slipped inside of Anna once more where she was welcomed with a rising moan of need. Sitting them up so the brunette was straddled across her hips in the water, the firefighter kissed along her girlfriend's neck and jaw, softly murmuring confessions of Anna's loveliness and worth as she took the woman to another pinnacle.

Shuddering in delight, Anna clutched the red head to her tightly uttering, "Oh God, Dylan. I love you. I love you so much."

Without hesitation the firefighter avowed, "I love you too, Anna."

Blue eyes immediately met green ones. Anna hadn't meant to say those words even though she had known they were genuine, so she was surprised but pleased to have them reciprocated. Those green eyes told her all she needed to know. Dylan's words were truth. Smiling down at her girlfriend, she requested, "Take me to bed, Dylan."

"Of course." Picking her girlfriend up out of the water, Dylan carried her over to the towel rack and deposited her. Quickly they both dried off and, then Anna was off her feet and in the firefighter's arms once again, being carried to the bed. Dylan lay her down on it before clearing the pillows and pulling down the covers. "You want to wear anything to bed?"

"Just you," she answered, pulling her lover down into a kiss.

Much later as they settled for sleep, the redhead said, "I need to get up at six tomorrow. Would you set the alarm?"

"Sure. Why so early, though?"

"I have a doctor's appointment in the morning before I go to work."

"Oh? You're not sick, are you?"

"Not that kind of doctor. My captain asked me to see my psychologist twice a week instead of once like I had been. He thinks I'm still having adjustment problems."

"Over?"

"Over Danny," she answered.

Anna nodded her head. "I think he's probably right. I mean I don't know you the way he does, I sense you have issues about Danny. Does it help to go?"

Dylan shrugged. "I've been in therapy since it happened, started with five times a week while I was in the hospital recovering. Over time I kept dropping a day until I was down to one, but I feel like I've just hit a wall. Davin doesn't have to go any more."

"Well, you shouldn't compare yourself to your brother. Everyone's pain is different, Dylan. That doesn't make him stronger or weaker, just different."

"That's what they keep telling me. It's just that no one was there that day. It was just Danny and me. No one could understand what that was like."

"That doesn't mean we don't want to try though, Dylan. I'm here for you if you ever want to talk about it."

"Thanks but I'd rather not. I don't want to subject you to that. Let's just go to sleep."

Continued in Part 5

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