Chapter One: The Doctor is in

Vin Tanner did not like medical exams.

In fact, he hated them. Unfortunately, once a year he was required to take the departmental physical, so he found himself inside this intimidating and sterile room, with its plethora of odd medical instruments and white tiles wishing to be anywhere else but here. Vin supposed if every other member of Team 7 could endure this, there should be no reason why he couldn't tolerate an hour or so of probes and tests so the powers that be could decide he was healthy enough to keep doing the job he loved. Although he did have to admit he had been putting it off for quite some time now.

Vin sat in his hospital gown, trying to look dignified, even though he felt utterly ridiculous and the doctor had yet to arrive. Glancing at the clock on the wall, Vin noted that Doctor Willis was late and wished the man would just get here so this nightmare could be over and done with. It was bad enough Chris Larabee had summoned him to his office this morning and demanded to know why Vin was the last member of Team 7 who had yet to undergo the physical.

"Will you just go get it done?" Chris had declared with unmasked annoyance. His mood probably had a good deal to do with the call he had received earlier that morning from the Section Chief regarding the matter. After he hung up the phone, Chris had called Vin into his office to demand an answer as to why he hadn’t taken the physical, since the doctor's office was only on the other side of the building.

"I just haven't had the time," Vin said evasively, lying through his teeth and seeing the complete disbelief on Chris's face. The leader of Team 7 knew Vin well enough to tell the difference.

"I don't care Vin." Chris snapped. "You're holding up paperwork upstairs, and when you do that, I get bureaucratic assholes ringing me up wanting to know why one of my best men can't make it to a goddamn physical. Get out of here now and go do it!"

"But I got this report to do…."

Chris silenced him with a look.

"Alright. I'm going already. You know you weren't always this ornery, pard."

"I know," Chris said sweetly, "must have got that way after I met you, now out!"

The leader of Team 7 dismissed him with a wave of his hand and Vin let himself out fuming.

Vin looked at the clock again.

The doctor had yet to arrive, and Vin gave him another ten minutes before he was going to get dressed and go back to work. This whole thing was enough of an inconvenience as it was, without having to wait for a tardy physician on top of everything else. Finally, sheer boredom made Vin rise from the examination bed and walk to the scale for something to do. He stepped on it and watched the needle swing forward as the numbers ran past him. His weight was still the same, no surprise there. Having discovered this kernel of information, he moved towards the instrument tray and flinched in distaste at some of the strange shapes, wondering with slight fascination their purpose. He picked up one of those little hammers used to test reflexes and experimented on his elbow.

God, he must be bored. Vin groaned and glanced at the clock again, his chagrin rising when he realized only two minutes had passed when it felt so much longer. Once his passing interest with the hammer was exhausted, he picked up a stethoscope hanging on a nearby hook. Putting the contraption to his ears, Vin listened to the steady heartbeat within his chest and decided everything sounded all right in there too.

If the doctor was not here soon, Vin thought he could do this whole examination himself.

Suddenly the door swung open, and a voice that sounded nothing like Doctor Willis's sang out to him. "I'm so sorry I'm late, Mr Tanner. There was an accident on the freeway, and it was just gridlocked. I hope you weren't waiting too long."

She stopped short at the sight of him wearing the stethoscope, still holding it to his chest. Her lips crooked into the slightest smile of amusement before she remarked. "I see you’ve been entertaining yourself."

Vin cleared his throat and immediately pulled the device from his ears and tried to put it back, succeeding in spectacularly knocking over several other instruments on the tabletop and destroying any chance he had of appearing cool. The woman, who was clad in a white doctor's coat over a pair of figure-hugging jeans, a plain white t-shirt and tennis shoes, continued to stare at him as he performed comedy highlights in his attempts to return everything back to the instrument tray.

"Where's Doc Willis?" Vin asked once he stood up and faced her again, trying to hide the tinge of crimson embarrassment on his face as he stared into the depth of her warm brown eyes. Not only did he feel incredibly moronic, but he also had to make a complete fool of himself in front of what was in his considered opinion, one of the most beautiful women he had seen in his life. She didn't have the kind of beauty that graced magazine covers, but she was exotic looking with her bronzed skin and wavy jet-coloured hair, hanging loosely over her shoulders.

"He decided to take early retirement. Moved to Miami to fish from what I hear." She replied, still staring at him with a sparkle of amusement in her eyes at his earlier behaviour. "I'm his replacement, Doctor Alex Styles."

"But I'm used to seeing Doc Willis" Vin protested, disregarding her attempts to introduce herself and taking an uneasy step away from her.

A woman! Nobody said that the doctor was going to be a woman!

How was he supposed to endure having this incredibly sexy woman, sexy even though she was only wearing jeans and sneakers, conduct a medical examination of his person without his body offering her an involuntary insult when she touched him? Vin swore a thousand curses at Doctor Willis for abandoning him like this and hoped the man caught a huge shark that would eat him.

"You're a tough ATF agent," she joked closing the distance between them, somewhat perplexed at why he was so very uncomfortable with this. "I'm sure you can adjust to the change."

"I think I'll come back" he muttered and started moving towards his clothes.

"Is there a problem, Mr Tanner?" She looked at him, arms folded and started to get a little annoyed that he would rather leave than allow her to examine him.

"No problem," Vin tried to offer an excuse with no idea that the insult was already given. "I just want someone else."

She took a quick glance at the chart before her and remarked automatically, showing no signs of being perturbed by his request. "That's too bad because there is no one available and if I don't certify you by the end of today, I have the authority to have you taken off active duty."

Vin froze and spun around at that.

"What do you mean? There ain't nothing wrong with me!"

"I beg to differ," she said sarcastically and added further. "However, I can't make that determination until I am allowed to give you your physical."

"You'd take me off active duty just because I won't let you examine me? "You only doing it cause you're mad I don't want to be examined by a lady doctor."

"So that's what it is."

Truth be told, she had her suspicions before his admission. It never ceased to amaze her that no matter how rough and tough some men professed to be, the idea of a physical being administered by a female was enough to send them running for cover. Still, understanding his position did not mean she was going to let him off the hook. Not at all. Besides, there was something about him that begged a little teasing, and he deserved it, even though the way he was recoiling reminded Alex of one of those animals that got caught in the headlights.

"What, are you virginal or something?"

"I am not virginal!" Vin snapped in righteous indignation, mortified that she could even think that. He was a grown man, and there had been women, lots of women. Yeah right, his inner voice said with more derision than Doctor Styles could ever manage. "Do I even look like a virgin?"

"Well, yes, actually." Alex could not help herself because this man was infuriating, and the only way she could cope with him at this point was either by making glib remarks or throwing him out of her examination room. She opted for the latter. After a second, she came up with a new tactic and reached for a thermometer as she took a step closer towards him.

The agent was still sputtering his outrage, making some comment about the women he knew and how he had not been a virgin since he was 16, unaware that her interest in that question had died long ago. In his outrage, he did not step away or notice her approach.

"Last time I saw a display like this was from a 17-year-old who needed a lower-body examination. Are we perhaps having that kind of problem?" Alex met his eyes with a suggestive wink.

"Listen, Alex," Vin started to get genuinely angry, oblivious to the fact she had taken his wrist in her hand. "I ain't got any problem like that at all. I just don't like medical examinations of any kind."

"I'm sure," she nodded casually, still wearing the expression of cool that was a stark contrast to his heated emotions. "Open your mouth."

Vin did so without even thinking and before he could do anything else, felt the glass thermometer against his tongue.

"Close" she ordered, and Vin fumed, wondering how she had managed to sneak up on him with the instrument. He obeyed for the moment because an argument at this time would just land him with a mouthful of glass and he was not about to stay here any longer than he had to. He glared at her in smouldering annoyance at how craftily she had tricked him into cooperating by merely asking.

Forced to remain still for a few seconds, Vin who found himself standing painfully close to her, could smell the faint whiff of her perfume and noted that she liked the expensive stuff because he was sure it was Chanel he was breathing in. He had to admit she smelled nice, from the light tinge of perfume on her skin to the scent of whatever she used to wash her hair. He took deep breaths in secret, savouring every aroma with hidden delight.

However, when she retrieved the thermometer from his mouth, Vin scowled at her.

"You snuck up on me," he accused as she studied the reading on the instrument and scribbled her findings on the chart bearing his name.

"So sue me," she remarked without looking at him. "Tell me, are you always such an unmitigated pain in the ass?" Alex asked, still keeping her eyes on the chart, but the mischief in her voice was unmistakable.

"Only around pushy women," Vin bit back.

"Get on the scale."

To his surprise as much as hers, Vin obeyed by padding towards the device and stepping unto it. Once again, he saw the needle swing forward as she came closer to note his weight on her chart. During the next few minutes, in more or less the same manner that she had taken his temperature, Alex skillfully extracted a blood pressure reading. She also managed to keep him still long enough to use the stethoscope on him, although much of that success had to with Vin himself.

Try as he might, Vin could not ignore the brush of her hand on his chest as she held the device in place. Vin could almost feel her warm breath against his skin and could not deny it felt uncommonly pleasant. Even through the dressing gown, her touch was electrifying, and he held her gaze for a moment and knew that whatever it was he had felt, it was affecting her too. Vin swallowed away the churning in his gut that was coalescing into arousal. He held his breath, forcing control over his raging hormones, swearing at his traitorous body for responding to her innocent touches. He almost sighed with relief when she stepped away and returned to her desk.

"You've gained a few pounds.”

"No I didn’t!" Vin protested, knowing without a doubt that he was still the same weight as he had been as the last time he had endured his physical. Damn, what kind of doctor was she? Couldn't she even read a scale right? "I'm the same weight I was the last time I took this stupid test!"

Vin was completely sceptical of her claim. Pretty or not, she was not telling him he had gained weight, not when all his pants still fit, and he had not been forced to let out his belt.

"Stupid or not," Alex met his challenge with just as much insistence. "According to last year's chart, you have gained two pounds. You're just going to have to lay off those doughnuts," she teased and turned away, although she was quite prepared to hear another protest.

"Cops eat doughnuts. Not ATF agents."

"Whatever," she waved his comment away as she continued writing on the chart. "You can get dressed now."

"That's it?" he stared at her bewildered. That was a lot shorter than he thought it was going to be. "Ain't you supposed to do other stuff?"

"Like what?" She looked up at him quizzically. "I thought you wanted out of here?"

"Well yeah," Vin admitted, unable to come up with a suitable response because he did want to get out of this room and away from her. Why was he still arguing with her when he could be away from this place with its embarrassing hospital gowns, cold floors and worse yet, its antiseptic smell? Although Vin had to admit all he could smell was that intoxicating scent of perfume against her skin.

"You're the Doc," he tried not to feel disappointment at his dismissal for some inexplicable reason. Vin withdrew behind the partition where his clothes were draped over a chair and started to get dressed, all the while wondering how come his examination was nowhere near as long as he remembered when Doctor Willis had given him a physical. Then again, Willis never made him want to pull out his hair either.

"You married?" Vin found himself asking aloud before he even thought about the implications of such a question.

"No," she glanced up at the partition and saw his silhouette through the fabric while he got dressed. Very nice, even if he is a pain in the ass. "What, you want to get personal now?"

"Nah," he countered with a grin she could not see. "I was just feeling sorry for the poor bastard if you were married."

"Well, I know you're not married." Alex felt a little disappointed at his answer and could not keep the annoyance from her voice. "No woman in her right mind is that desperate or generous."

"I've known a few," he bragged, just so she would not get the better of him as he emerged fully dressed once more.

"I'm sure you're a legend in your own mind," she muttered sarcastically, but took the opportunity to let her eyes run up and down the length of his body before being forced to make a begrudging admission. He's cute too.

"Since I can go, I ain't gonna take up too much of your time any more. Hopefully, we can do this again, sometime soon, like next year?" Vin started towards the door.

"Hold it there partner," she exclaimed before he could reach it. "Not so fast. I'm done with your physical evaluation, but I think you might like to know I'm suspending your fitness report pending a second examination one week from today."

Vin turned to her and gave her a dark look that held no less than menace than his voice. "What does that mean exactly?"

"Simple," Alex stated, as she rose to her feet and crossed the floor towards him. Vin met her halfway and pretty soon they were standing almost toe to toe. "I am recommending you go on a diet for a week."

It took all her control to hide the smile threatening to steal across her face.

"A diet!" Vin almost roared. "What for?"

"To lose those extra pounds." She met his cobalt coloured eyes with complete innocence and then dropped her gaze to his stomach. "I recommend you stick to salads for the next seven days until our next appointment."

"You're doing this on purpose!" he hissed with absolute certainty that she was punishing him for all the trouble he had given her earlier. Not that had he would have given her any if she had just been a man or less attractive. Stop that! Vin scolded himself as the thought crossed his mind. She was not beautiful, she was infuriating and worst of all, she was making him go on a diet!

No one made him eat salad, Vin didn't care how beautiful they were or how nice they smelled.

"I am not," she insisted, trying not to get distracted by the scent of him, and more importantly, by those incredible eyes of his. "Now, if you will excuse me, Mr Tanner, I think I've had just about enough of you for today."

"I know why you're doing this.”

"Stun me with your insight" she returned, almost daring him to come up with a suitable response.
"You're just mad cause I wanted another doctor."

Alex rolled her eyes in exasperation. "As much as you'd like to think that you might be a wonderful specimen and that all us doctors are clamouring to get you as a patient, I can assure I am not one of those. I have plenty of patients who appreciate my services!"

"Well, don't expect a tip." Vin returned sarcastically.

"That's it. Get out! Get out and don't come back!" Her professional detachment discarded with that one statement.

"See you next week, Alex." he grinned and strode towards the doorway, relishing the fact that he had dealt the winning serve.

"I'll be waiting!" she snapped and followed him to the door.

As Vin Tanner left the room, hearing her slam the door loudly behind him as he left, Vin had no idea why he was wearing this smile on his face or why he was so eager to see her again next week. In any case, he was going to lose those pounds just to show her. Making his way towards the elevator that would take him back to the offices occupied by Team 7, Vin could not help thinking that things were about to get very interesting…

Chapter Two: Misfire

"Tomorrow's the big day, huh?" Buck Wilmington asked Vin Tanner as he noticed the younger man staring longingly at the burger JD Dunne was wolfing down a few desks away from his own.

Vin snapped out of his daydreams of rib-eye steak with all the trimmings long enough to realized Buck had spoken to him, unable to keep from feeling a renewed wave of annoyance at having been forced to diet this past week.

"Yep," Vin said easing back into his chair, shaking the image of JD's tasty burger out of his mind and consoling himself with the meal he was going to enjoy after his physical in less than a day from now.

"I must admit," Ezra Standish replied from his own desk, flipping through a copy of Fortune 500.

"I am curious to know what exactly you must have said to the dear lady to invoke such a harsh response from her."

By her, Ezra, of course, referred to Alexandra Styles.

She, the hated enemy who had forced him to endure nothing but salads, made him climb out of his warm bed at the crack of dawn to jog, and worst of all, caused him to be the butt of everyone's jokes this past week. Whenever he faltered in his determination to lose the two pounds that were the cause of all this humiliation, Vin only had to remind himself he would have the satisfaction of rubbing those same pounds in her face when he saw her at their next meeting. That thought alone renewed his purpose and sent him to bed with a smile on his face, among other things.

"I didn't do nothing.”

"That's not how she tells it," the suave ATF agent said with the slight curve of a smile on his face.

"You met her Ezra?" Buck asked before Vin could bring that up. "What's she like?"

"Extraordinarily beautiful. Strange how you neglected to add that in your initial description, Mr Tanner."

"Vin, you said she was a hound!" Buck hated to think any good-looking woman was left to roam the halls of this building without his attention or his knowledge for that matter. Vin's description of the woman bordered between harpy and battleaxe and Buck was surprised how the ordinarily unflappable agent lost all calm when talking about her in any capacity.

"She is," Vin said uncomfortably, and felt guilty at how he described Alex to them, mainly since his initial report on her features was a far cry from what she actually resembled, a fact to which Ezra could now personally attest.

"Trust me, Mr Wilmington," Ezra glanced at Vin with a smug expression on his face, enjoying this opportunity to make the younger man squirm a little. "If they made canines like her, I should be happy to remain in a kennel most of my life. In any case, I met the charming doctor at the cafeteria yesterday afternoon at lunch, and she was most pleasant."

"Well, wait until she has to give you a physical."

Vin felt annoyance seep into his bones each time he thought of Alex anywhere in the company of Ezra Standish. Alex, with her shiny dark hair and maddening scent. Her perfume clung to him all day long after his appointment with her.

Calm down, he told himself, Ezra only had lunch with her.

"Fortunately, she agreed to accompany me to the theatre tomorrow night," Ezra announced nonchalantly, his gaze returning to the magazine he was reading once more, with no idea of what effect his statement had upon Vin.

"A date?" Vin immediately sat up in his chair and stared at the man. "You made a date with my doctor? With Alex?"

"Yes," Ezra looked up, staring at Vin with some measure of confusion as to why he was having trouble with this. "And pray tell what is wrong with that?"

"Nothing!"

Vin tried to hide the fact the idea of Alex and Ezra going anywhere together was not only infuriating but just plain wrong, She was his doctor, not Ezra's! Where did the man get off dating his Alex…no, his doctor?

"I mean it just ain't right for you to be dating her that's all. I mean, I don't want you seeing the same person who sticks a thermometer in my mouth!"

"Trust me," Ezra could not understand why Vin was so upset with this since the sharpshooter had given him every indication he abhorred the woman. "At no point will you come up in conversation."

"See that I don't," Vin muttered unhappily and seethed secretly because there was no reason why Ezra should not date Alex, Vin himself had no intentions towards the woman. Why should he? She was nothing to him, and he had no right to say anything anyway. Vin returned to his paperwork, stealing glances at Ezra over the next ten minutes wondering if there was any way to get the man out in the field and involve him in an unfortunate shooting accident before tomorrow. Vin was confident if they were in a close-quarters firefight, he could get away with wounding Ezra just enough for the gambler to cancel his date with Alex.

Buck Wilmington had not spoken as he watched the exchange between his two friends and knew by Vin's suddenly hostile manner his feeling regarding the new doctor was not one of complete dislike. His reaction to Ezra's statement was more than ample proof she had gotten very deeply under Vin Tanner's skin.

"If I were you, Ezra," Buck grinned as he drew away from both men and their undeclared war. "I'd watch my back."

"You did that on purpose!" Ezra raged as he was rushed through the corridors of the hospital, lying flat on his stomach on a steel gurney, surrounded by paramedics and members of Team 7 as he was taken at breakneck speed to the ER.

It was bad enough that he had been shot, but the bullet's entry point had been his posterior which Ezra was now attempting to cover unsuccessfully with the surgical gauze he was holding against it to stem the bleeding. The whole situation would have been funny if not for the fact that the pain throbbed and his self-esteem was taking a severe battering.

"It was an accident!" Vin protested innocently for the hundredth time since the incident had taken place. He had been keeping pace with the paramedics, determined to have Ezra believe that this was not a premeditated gesture, even though the thought had crossed his mind earlier this morning.

Still, it was a pity those theatre tickets were going to waste.

Vin and Ezra continued to trade accusations and pleas of forgiveness as they moved down through the corridors of the building, stretching whatever humour Chris Larabee had possessed throughout this whole situation to the breaking point. Their verbal barrage was not only a source of consternation to him but of amusement to the doctors, nurses and patients that happened to observe them as they passed. Even the paramedics were trying not to chuckle at the curious exchange between the two.

"Spilling coffee is an accident, stubbing one's toe against a door is an accident, shooting me in the rear end is NOT AN ACCIDENT!" Ezra roared back at Vin's declaration this was the result of a misfire. Chris could not blame him for his anger. If he was shot in the butt and forced to be wheeled around in this humiliating position, Chris supposed he would be angry too.

"I didn't know my safety was off!" Vin insisted.

Vin tried to sound as sincere as possible even though he could not help feeling some measure of satisfaction at putting an end to the possibility of Ezra making his date with Alex tomorrow night. Although he felt guilty that his act of violence could produce such emotions, Vin knew that Ezra was not seriously hurt. The injury was nothing more than a flesh wound, and all Ezra would have is a new dimple on his rear end that Vin was determined some woman other than Alex would appreciate.

"There's a first time for everything" Chris grumbled, trying not to appear as annoyed as he looked.

It was hard to swallow any of this was an accident, even if there was no doubt in his mind it was exactly that. Still, Vin was one of the best marksmen he knew. It was almost beyond belief he could have made such a ridiculous mistake as to shoot one of his own team, on the firing range no less. This was the sort of thing Chris expected from JD who was relatively new to the game and was more accustomed to being in front of a computer terminal than anything else, not from a man whom he had come to rely upon as his trusted second.

"I swear it was a mistake!" Vin continued to plead innocence as they reached the doors to the emergency room when suddenly out of nowhere, Alexandra Styles appeared. For a moment both Vin and Ezra stared at her blankly, wondering what she was doing here and then realizing that it made sense she would be at this hospital since it was the closest one to the ATF building.

"Alexandra!" Ezra exclaimed and then buried his face on the pillow in front of him, wondering if this humiliation could get any worse.

It took her a moment to assess the situation to understand what happened, even if she did not have the specifics of the incident. Her eyes touched Vin's for a moment and revealed the same fire he had seen during their examination before that hardened, professional mask fell over her face once more.

"Hello Ezra," she greeted as she proceeded towards the paramedic who was holding out a chart for her. "I'm guessing you're here to cancel our date?"

"Please," the gambler groaned. "I am in enough pain."

"What happened?" Alex asked politely as she pulled Ezra's bloodied fingers away from their vulnerable position and examined the wound for herself.

"That moron shot me!" Ezra glared at Vin angrily.

"Ezra, it was an accident," Chris spoke up for Vin automatically.

Alex met Vin's gaze and did not make any comment about the accusation. Instead, she looked at the nurse and orderly, who accompanied her.

"Get him into X-ray and then prep OR3," she said coolly.

Once Ezra was wheeled away, still yelling a litany of erudite curses at Vin as he disappeared down the hall, Chris was able to get a moment with Alex to ascertain how badly he was injured.

"You can both relax. Judging by the injury, I would say it's a flesh wound. I still need to do X-rays for standard procedure, but I don't think there's any real damage, besides his pride."

"Well, that will take forever to heal." Chris sighed, wishing an end to this overly long day.

"Vin," he said turning to the younger man who was leaning against the wall, giving every indication that he was not leaving the hospital until he knew Ezra was entirely out of danger, despite the doctor's comforting words. "Thanks to you and Ezra, I've got a ton of paperwork to deal with at the office, you think you can stay here for a while?"

It was a redundant question because Chris knew Vin was not going to leave.

"I ain't going anywhere else," Vin muttered. "Least I can do is stick around since I did this to him."

"Okay then. Call me at the office and let me know what's going on when you hear something." The leader of Team 7 gave Vin a slight nod before making his departure, leaving him alone in the corridor with the lady doctor.

Neither said a word until Chris had well and truly rounded the corner and then it was Alex who broke the silence. "You didn't have to take me literally when I said you were a pain in the ass."

"It was an accident," Vin growled, in no mood for her sarcasm as it was. He felt bad enough for wounding Ezra, particularly when he entertained the thought only this morning because he hated the idea of Ezra going on a date with this woman. Even now, through the sterile smell of disinfectant that reeked from every corner of this hospital, he could smell her perfume and savoured the scent once again hoping it would follow him around as it had before when he left this place.

"Tell me, Mr Tanner, do you have a habit of having things go off prematurely?" she asked with a brow raised while her lips curled into the faintest hint of a smile.

"I haven't had any complaints in the past," he replied, taking a step closer to the intoxicating aroma of her skin, even though he had intended the gesture to appear menacing not, because of some hidden agenda of his own.

"Some women are polite," she answered, making no effort to move away and feeling her cheeks flush at his closeness before she reminded herself that this was hardly the place for it.

"Not with me" Vin replied just as suggestively, meeting her gaze with his cobalt coloured eyes and detecting a slight shift in her manner that would have gone unnoticed by anyone who did not feel for her as strongly as he did.

If humans gave off their own pheromones like animals, then Vin would swear she was exuding a scent of desire wafting in his direction. His breath caught at the shift and deny as he might how he felt about her later, at this moment, he wanted nothing but to taste those silken lips and devour her mouth in a kiss of passion.

"Well, that's hardly surprising." She stepped away finally, feeling the air around her thinning until she was breathless. What is it about him that made her go weak at the knees and want to slap him at the same time? Her feelings for Vin were such a contradiction. Alex had no idea what she was going to do about it, or him, for that matter.

"I guess you're not going to be able to make the theatre with Ezra tomorrow night," he could not help but point out and saw her face change from unspoken desire into pure outrage.

"You didn't!" she exclaimed, horrified at the notion that was screaming possibilities in her head.

"Of course not!" Vin realized what she was alluding to. "What do you take me for! He's one of my best friends, and don't flatter yourself, no woman is worth putting a bullet in another man's butt. Not even you!"

"Ah-ha!" she retaliated, pointing the finger at him "But you admit I'm special!"

Vin rolled his eyes in sarcasm. "Of course, you're special! Believe me, if I am going to be reduced to a homicidal maniac because of a woman, you would be the one to do it!"

"Well, thank you!" Alex snapped with just as much anger. "I bought a dress for that date, and because of you, I'm probably going to be sitting in front of the TV with a Lean Cuisine!"

"It figures!" Vin shouted back, both were unaware passers-by in the corridor in front of the ER were watching them with expressions of amusement and disapproval at the same time. "No wonder you're trying to make me eat rabbit food if that's what you're living on!"

"You were two pounds overweight, you needed the diet, and I'll have you know that I eat real food!" Alex was unable to believe how galling this man could be and how easily he got under her skin. One minute she was strongly attracted to him, the next she was ready to strangle him to death.

"I suppose you don't like Mexican!" he said just as sharply, unable to imagine what he might have seen in this woman, even if she did look stunning in her rage. Was he actually jealous Ezra wanted to date her? He ought to be handing her over to the gambler on a silver platter.

That is, once Ezra's butt was on the mend.

"I love Mexican!" She declared triumphantly, so engrossed in her anger that she did not realize what he was maneuvering her into position for.

"I know a restaurant."

Alex paused and glared at him with narrowed eyes. She took one step towards him and said very firmly. "Mr Tanner, I would not have dinner with you, or anything else for that matter, if you were the very last man on this planet!" With that, she turned on her heels and started towards the ER once again.

"But that's not a no." Vin pointed out triumphantly with a perfectly straight face.

"Oooh!" Alex squealed as she swung around in indignation and could offer nothing more than an outraged huff of fury before she burst through the doors, almost breaking the nose of the nurse who was coming through from the other side of the room.

Vin watched her go, grinning and thought to himself as he saw her disappear. I'll try her again tomorrow.

Chapter Three: Enema

"Hello, Heather?" Alexandra Styles spoke into her cell phone as she drove down the freeway to keep her appointment with Vin Tanner.

"Doctor Styles?" The nurse at the medical wing of the ATF building responded over a crackle of static that was made even more incoherent by the rushing wind speeding past the 1955 red T-Bird convertible Alex was presently navigating through the traffic.

"Yes," Alex answered coolly, perfectly aware what she was about to do was terribly wrong and completely unethical. Unfortunately, Alex could not resist doing so because Mr Tanner had it coming, and poor Ezra needed some form of vindication for the gunshot wound he received to his oh so cute behind. "Heather I need a little favour."

"Anything Doctor. What's the favour?"

Alex outlined her request as she turned off the freeway and took the exit that would take her to the ATF building where she would be seeing Vin Tanner shortly. It was exactly one week ago today that she first encountered the ATF agent who had been nothing but a source of consternation and irritation since their initial meeting. It was to her most profound annoyance Alex found Vin so damn attractive. It had been a while since any man could inspire the thoughts she had been entertaining about Vin and yet, while she was forced to admit she did want him, Alex also hated it that she did. Still, their relationship, such as it was, had developed into a game and while she had no understanding of where it might ultimately lead, Alex had to confess one thing - she was having fun playing it.

"Are you sure about this doctor?" Heather asked after Alex told her what she needed.

"Definitely," Alex smiled. "He's due in the examination room in about ten minutes. Give him the works before I get there."

"Okay." Uncertainty oozing out of Heather's voice as she considered the doctor's odd request. "But he'll be plenty mad by the time you see him."

Alex was grinning now. "I know, but I'm still going to enjoy it."

A steak with all the trimmings.

That was the only thought Vin Tanner had on his mind at present. In little less than an hour, when his routine examination with Alex was over, he would be sitting down to a juicy steak, never more to look at another lousy salad. His entire day was planned around food. After work, he was going to get Mexican and then stop for pizza on the way home.

There was an all-night John Wayne movie marathon on TV tonight, and Vin intended to watch at least a third of it while accompanied by a really huge bag of potato chips. Still, no bag of potato chips could be truly complete without a gallon of beer to guzzle it down with, and he would pause long enough to make a toast to Alexandra Styles for the excesses enjoyed in her honour.

He sat at his desk, contemplating such happy thoughts with a dreamy look on his face while enduring the regular rumble in his stomach he had been forced to tolerate all this week. Besides the fact he would be eating like a human soon enough, Vin also had to look forward to his next meeting with Alex Styles. He wondered who would emerge the winner of their latest sparring contest. The last two matches had gone to him, and he prepared himself to win a third, wondering if his victory would result in his getting her to go out with him.

Even though their previous meetings had hardly been the stuff that would make for ideal dating potential, Vin knew that she was attracted to him because she had been plaguing his nights for almost a week now. Every time they ran into each other, it only served to confirm when she finally dropped her defences, they could really have a great time together.

"Going to meet Alex?" Buck Wilmington's voice snapped Vin out of his thoughts.

"Yeah," the younger man nodded as Buck sat on the edge of his desk. "I'll finally be able to get off this damn diet."

"And get to spend some quality time with that pretty doctor," Buck grinned.

Vin immediately tensed, wishing no one to know how he really felt about Alex, at least when he had no idea what it was himself.

"Don't know what you mean," he shrugged evasively.

"Aw come on Vin," Buck leaned closer, revealing to Vin he was fooling no one with this act of indifference. "I saw how you took care of the competition. Misfire my ass" he chuckled softly and then added. "Sorry, I meant Ezra's."

"It was an accident!" Vin blurted out, trying not to show that Buck's words had touched a nerve.

True, he had been wondering how nice it would be to have Ezra out of the way so he would not be anywhere near Alex, however, at no time did Vin wish to make those musings a reality. Ezra was his friend, and Vin had not lied when he denied playing such an underhanded trick on Ezra. No matter how spectacularly successful the misfire Ezra suffered on the range had gone to achieving that end.

"Of course," Buck appeased him but nevertheless throwing Vin a conspiratory look as he drew away from his desk. "Don't worry, I won't say a word."

Vin groaned in exasperation and decided that on this note, it was his cue to leave. Besides, he had to get to his physical and get certified that he was healthy and suitable for active duty.

Not to mention, seeing Alex.

Vin arrived at the medical wing of the building on time and was promptly shown to the examination room by a pretty strawberry blond nurse name Heather. Why were all Heathers ultimately blond? Vin shook the thought out of his head as he heard her shut the door behind him after promising to return once he undressed and got into a gown. Personally, Vin did not see the need to wear such a garment but was in no mood to argue with her. There would be enough of that when Alex finally showed up.

Naturally, she kept him waiting, even though the clock on the wall clearly indicated that she should have arrived by now. Vin knew this was mostly a tactic on her part to make him suffer following their encounter yesterday when yet again, he sent her retreating in defeat from their verbal jousting. Vin could not deny how much he enjoyed seeing her eyes flare with indignant rage whenever he made a remark that properly infuriated her. There was so much passion barely concealed under that calm, professional demeanour and during the last week, Vin entertained himself at night with thoughts of unlocking all that emotion in an unbridled wave of ecstasy.

Suffice to say it had been a week of cold showers and salads.

Once he had climbed out of his clothes and put on the demeaning hospital gown, Vin tried not to feel completely exposed. As he sat on the examination table, he wondered why this was necessary when he was only here to have the routine check-up needed to put to rest the issue of his weight and get certified for active duty. This was probably one of Alex's instructions. Her way of making him suffer just a little bit more before she was finally forced to relent and sign the paper that would prove nothing she threw at Vin Tanner could faze him.

Suddenly the door swung open and Vin looked up, expecting to see Alex but instead of his doctor, Heather made her appearance again.

"Oh good," she said with a perfectly innocent smile. "Doctor Styles is running just a little late, but she has given me instructions to conduct some routine procedures. Is that alright with you?"

Vin did not see why not if it meant bringing an end to the last of these examinations for the next twelve months. Although he liked seeing Alex and looked forward to coming here, he did not at all like being poked and prodded. The half-hour physicals were an ordeal due to his fiery relationship with Alex. By baiting her, Alex returned his efforts in kind, provoking Vin with the same chagrin he inspired in her. This, unfortunately, was the battleground in which she chose to make him squirm.

Well if that was her game, he was up to playing.

"No problem," Vin said with a smile, showing no fear as he prepared to endure this latest trick in Alex's worn bag of magic. "What do I got to do?"

"Nothing at all," Heather said pleasantly, still wearing that smile on her face which was starting to become a little unnerving. Only used car salesmen wore expressions like that and usually just before they tried to sell you an Edsel.

"Just lie flat on your stomach.”

The request seemed simple enough, and Vin complied watching her go to the sink at the far end of the room, wondering why she was slipping on a pair of latex gloves. What was that odd device with a tube attached to it…..?

Alexandra Styles arrived at the reception area of the ATF's medical wing and greeted Penny, the young woman who took point and welcomed all visitors and staff when they reached that section of the building.

"Is Vin Tanner here yet?" she asked after the idle chatter was exchanged, wondering how her little revenge was transpiring.

"About ten minutes ago, Doctor Styles," Penny informed dutifully as Alex breezed past her and continued down the corridor. As she made her way to the examination room, she noticed the door was closed but imagined it would not be for much longer. She glanced at her watch and made a few rapid calculations in her head to know Vin would make an appearance in approximately five seconds.

Alex leaned against the wall next to the door, trying to keep the smirk off her face as she reached into her leather case and retrieved Vin Tanner's paperwork. Using the gold pen she received from her father following her graduation from medical school, Alex signed her name neatly at all the appropriate places on the form. The ink had yet to dry on the crisp white paper when suddenly, she heard nothing less than a squeal of indignation commingled with downright horror. The cry was followed by the sound of shuffling feet and furniture being bumped into.

"But Agent Tanner…!" Heather's voice exclaimed loudly a few seconds later.

The door burst open, and Vin Tanner stumbled out of the room, wearing only his jeans while clutching his clothes in his hands, barefoot. The buttons on the Levis he was wearing were open, and the fly was halfway done. His face was crimson with embarrassment, and there were no words to describe the exact expression Alex saw on it, except it was extremely amusing and she could not help but start to laugh as she heard him shouting at Heather.

"Lady, I atleast want dinner before I let someone do that to me!" Vin sputtered, unable to believe the procedure she almost inflicted on him.

"Mr Tanner," Heather implored, playing her role so well Alex swore she would have to give the woman another twenty when it was all said and done. "An enema is a perfectly natural procedure! There is nothing to be ashamed about ...!"

"Lady, you were about to shove a tube up my ass!" Vin roared back, not caring about half the wing was now looking on in amusement and astonishment. It was hard to say which was the more prevalent emotion, really. "Since when was that natural?"

"Oh lay off Mr Tanner," Alex announced herself, unable to resist speaking after such an entertaining show. "Heather was just doing her job."

Vin turned to her and immediately understood what had happened.

His eyes narrowed, and he took a slow step towards her, seething in rage as he stared her down like she were the lowest thing on this earth. His anger was such a joy to watch, she could do nothing but chuckle in his face even though she knew that it would only infuriate him even more.

"You are despicable. I ain't got the words to describe how despicable you are!"

"Try me." Alex grinned from ear to ear.

"You…you…you….." he could not even think of the words to say. His mind was too paralyzed with anger to make coherent sentences. "That woman had ...rubber gloves… and a tube wider than a New York subway ...!" he faltered then as he ran out of words to say as his face turned a deeper shade of crimson.

"It's… called… an… enema," Alex said slowly, wearing that same triumphant smile on her face and knew it would be there for the rest of the day. Earthquakes could come and go, civilization itself could crumble tonight, but she was still going to have the memory of Vin’s priceless look on his face to comfort her through it all.

"Nobody," Vin growled, "nobody makes me take it up the rear."

"At least without dinner. Should I have told Heather to serve Mexican first?"

Vin glared and her and started walking away, a storm cloud forming over his head just as the one that held back her hysterics broke. Alex laughed despite herself, knowing she should not humiliate him any further since she had enjoyed quite a bit at his expense already. His jeans were drooping down his extremely nice butt as he drew away and Alex confessed it would have almost been worth trying to give him an enema to see all of it. She would have to ask Heather to describe it in greater detail later.

In the meantime, however….

"Oh, Mr Tanner?" Alex sang out once she had managed to contain her laughter long enough.

Vin glared over his shoulder, his cobalt blue eyes still seething with anger as he continued walking down the corridor, still barefoot and clutching the rest of his clothes.

"What?" he retorted fiercely.

Alex could only smile when she answered. "Cute butt."

Chapter Four: For A Good Time....

Privacy.

That was not just a word for Vin Tanner but a way of life. Even though he pledged himself to the men in Team 7, Vin knew he guarded his past selfishly because there were aspects of his life that were his and his alone. Tiny little secrets that meant more to him than those he would hide them from, were the cornerstones of his existence, and Vin had lived his life this way for so long that he no longer knew how to be anything else. That underlying philosophy had created in him a need to respect other people's privacy, to understand they may have reasons for secrecy almost as compelling as his own.

Until now.

He sat behind JD Dunne who was presently seated at his terminal, staring at the screen while inside the confines of the empty ATF offices normally occupied by Team 7, waiting for JD to find the information that he needed for his dastardly plan of vengeance. Usually, he was above such pranks. Still, Alexandra Styles had suitably inspired his outrage, and he was determined to get his own back for the embarrassing incident that made him the laughing stock of the office for the past three days. Not to mention, every woman in the building seemed to be undressing him with their eyes each time he happened upon them in the halls. While it was initially flattering, Vin was now very grateful he was armed when he was alone.

"You know tapping into her records like this is not exactly legal." JD pointed out as he let his fingers fly across the keyboard seeking the information Vin wanted.

"Don't worry," Vin drawled, watching the details of Alex's life appear in the digitized format before him. "If it comes to a conviction, I'll take the rap."

"I'm not exactly sure what you want this for," JD replied, unable to fathom how Vin would be exacting his revenge with the information before him. He had tapped into Alex's records on file at the hospital where she did her residency and what was listed was reasonably generic, hardly the stuff to inspire some colourful prank.

Vin scribbled down the data he was particularly interested in on the pad he had ready. Alex's home address, her number (for the day when he actually dared to call her), and most importantly, the registration of her beloved red convertible T-Bird. He had overheard some of the women in the medical wing of the ATF building declare the vintage 1956 automobile to be Alex's pride and joy.

"Leave that to me," Vin said with a faint smile, the evil machinations of his mind had already concocted a most audacious plan that would avenge himself upon Alex for her embarrassing trick on him. "I know what I'm doing."

"You know," JD sighed, suddenly feeling older than Vin who was displaying all the characteristics of a ten-year-old by these actions. "It would be simpler if you just told Alex you liked her."

"I don't like her!" Vin growled and knew as well as JD it was a lie.

He liked her a hell of a lot. In fact, it had gone just a little further than that, and Vin knew it. He was very near falling in love with her if he wasn’t there already. With a sixth sense, Vin could not explain but knew with complete certainty to be accurate, Vin was sure she felt the same way. He had no idea where their relationship would eventually end up, but at the moment, he owed her one, and he owed her big.

"Sure Vin," JD said with complete disbelief. "Is that all you need?"

JD had plans to meet Casey sometime this evening and had to get a move on if he did not want to be late.

"Yeah," Vin replied, jotting down the last of the information on his notepad. "I'm done."

"Okay," JD shook his head, deciding Vin was not about to let him in on what his plan for Alex was going to be, and in honest truth, JD would like to be surprised like everyone else when the news finally went public. It was going to have to be a killer prank though. There was not going to be much that could top what Alex had done to Vin. JD switched off the machine and gathered his things to leave. "You staying?" JD stuffed his keys in his pocket and looked over his desk to ensure he had not forgotten anything.

"Yeah," Vin nodded with a slight smile. "I’ve got a few phone calls to make."

JD wondered what was behind that enigmatic smile and decided he would just have to wait until Vin had done his diabolical worst. He did not have time to coax the truth out of the man when he had an appointment to keep.

"See you tomorrow," JD said as he departed the room, leaving Vin alone in the office.

Once JD left, Vin picked up the phone and dialled himself an outside line. Glancing at the card he retrieved from his pocket, the ATF agent punched the phone's keypad following the sequence of numbers displayed and was soon rewarded with the ringing tone emanating from the receiver. It rang a couple of times before someone picked it up.

"Wally's Auto Shop" a deep-throated voice announced.

Hey Cruz," Vin greeted. One could never mistake Cruz's deeply resonating voice for anyone else.

"Tanner, is that you?" Cruz sounded genuinely pleased to hear his voice. That was hardly a surprise since Cruz was one of his acquaintances from the old days, before he reached the lofty heights of the ATF Bureau.

"Sure is. How're things?"

"Same old, same old."

They continued that way, catching up from the last time they saw each other, which was only a month or two ago. Cruz and Vin had been in each other’s lives for years, and the ATF agent often took time to visit his old friend, calling in for dinner with the family when time permitted. They talked for about ten minutes before Vin got around to the reason for his call.

"So what can I do for you?"

"I need a little favour," Vin explained what he needed to be done.

"Oh man," Cruz started to laugh at the other end of the line. "You must really like this girl."

"It's nothing like that at all." Vin protested weakly but knew it was starting to be a losing argument as far as everyone was concerned. Even Ezra backed off, knowing now there was more going on between himself and Alex Styles than Vin was willing to admit to anyone, no matter how obvious it seemed.

"Sure it isn't," Cruz said with the same scepticism that JD had displayed earlier. "This ain't going to make her any happier," he pointed out hoping Vin knew what he was doing with this little piece of intrigue of his.

"I'm not doing this to make her happy," Vin said impatiently, feeling a little guilty now that Cruz was holding him to account for what he was planning to do. "It's revenge."

"Revenge, huh?" Cruz chuckled, deciding he was not about to argue with a drowning man. "Whatever you say man. Where does she live again?"

Vin told him and then added just for clarification. "Now remember, it's a 1956 red T-Bird convertible."

"The lady has good taste in cars," Cruz whistled slightly as he pictured the automobile in question. "That must be one hell of a ride."

Vin agreed, having seen the car himself when it was parked in the lot. Not only had Alex taken great pains to ensure everything about the vehicle remained exactly as it was the day it rolled off the showroom floor, but every part on the car was also original T-bird. "It is. That's why you're only going to use water-based stuff. When it's all said and done, I want it to wash off. I want to punk her, not have her kill me. If it's permanent, she's likely to do that."

"Got you," his old friend answered. "Don't worry, it will be ready for you when you ask. Just let me know where to send flowers for the funeral…"

Alex climbed out of bed this morning, half asleep from the late night at the hospital, knowing with weary frustration she had an early morning call despite the hours spent there the night before. While she had something of a private practice brewing with the ATF bureau, she looked forward to the day when she could set up a clinic somewhere and never be dragged into the hospital at strange hours.

While thinking about all this, Alex staggered to the bathroom, undergoing the rituals of morning, perfectly aware her mind would be changed by the time the first cup of coffee was drunk. No matter how she might feel when she first woke up, it would soon fade away because the fast pace of the hospital was exactly what Alex dreamed of when she was languishing in medical school.

It did not take her long to get dressed because she was most comfortable in jeans and a T-shirt, much to the annoyance of her father who still believed doctoring had to be conducted with a shirt and tie. Doctor William Styles felt doctors ought to look somewhat professional, not as if they were going down to the video store to rent MallRats. Pulling on her sneakers, Alex drank a full cup of coffee before grabbing her purse and everything else she would need to start the day at the hospital.

"Okay Giz," Alex told her dog who was happily turning her rug into pieces of shredded hessian. "No long distance phone calls and no having any strange girls over."

After she locked the door behind her and started down the stairway, Alex decided she seriously needed a life because Gizmo had more dates than she did.

Emerging through the front of the apartment block, she noticed her neighbours standing around tittering at what was the regular space for her car. For a minute, Alex had this horrifying idea her car had been stolen, but that would not explain what her neighbours found so amusing unless humour changed significantly since last night.

"What's going on?" she hurried forward, praying it was nothing serious.

They stepped aside for her, unable to say much else although their expressions did add to her confusion because they were not upset, merely amused, with some laughing out loud. When she neared the vehicle, Alex froze in mid-step and stared. It was the only thing she could do really because there were no words to describe what was before her.

Her car.

Her beautiful, 1956 red T-Bird convertible was pink.

Alex could only gape in horror as she spied her beloved vehicle painted hot pink with bright orange polka dots across its once polished fire engine red surface. Not only did it look like the car of choice for the Banana Splits, but also scrawled across the side in stylized white lettering which stood out most prolifically, were the words,

For a good time, call Alex.

This charming piece of advice also provided her home phone number. Only one thought came to mind during all this.

I am going to kill him.

Vin did not have long to wait to enjoy the fruits of his labour.

He had been expecting her for most of the morning. Vin was almost tempted to stake out her place to see her first reaction to the little piece of poetic justice he had taken with her car but decided it was hardly necessary. If he knew Alex, and by now he knew her pretty well, Vin had some idea of her reaction upon making the discovery. Vin also knew just how quickly she would come to the conclusion of who was responsible and was expected her to come calling soon enough.

In fact, he should have laid bets with Ezra on how long it would take her to reach the ATF building following her discovery because it was a gamble he would have won without question. Unfortunately, the gambler had taken advantage of his injured rear end (thanks to Vin), and was spending a few days at home convalescing, so he told everyone. However, the rest of Team 7 was present in the office when Vin arrived and waited patiently for the hurricane named Alex to come calling.

It was approximately 9.25 am when she reached the offices of Team 7, with nothing less than a storm cloud brewing over her face.

"Hi there, Alex," Buck Wilmington greeted as she stormed through the front door.

The colourful expletitives she uttered in turn made Buck decide he was done talking to her, because he could practically see the smoke exuding from her ears when she stomped into the room.

"Hello, Alex." Vin turned around in his chair from his computer screen and faced her with perfect innocence.

"You low life, scum-sucking, pig!" Alex fairly roared and captured the undivided attention of everyone in the room. Even Chris Larabee who was in his office, stood up to see what was happening. She paused only inches from Vin’s face, her eyes blazing in nothing less than fury. "What did you do to my car?"

"It's…called…spray paint," Vin said slowly, wearing that same triumphant smirk she presented to him when she played her trick of giving him an enema during his last physical.

"You creep!" Alex shouted in indignant rage. "Do you have any idea what I've been through this morning? I've been getting calls from sick perverts called Lube Fist on account of you!"

"So I'm guessing that your dry spell is over?" He replied with absolutely no remorse whatsoever.

Alex straightened up and glared at him through narrowed eyes. "I suppose you think that's very funny! You wait until you get the bill for repainting my car!"

"Relax," he grinned, enjoying her reaction immensely and unable to believe so much satisfaction could be achieved by such a devious prank. "It's water-based," he said, deciding to give her that much because he did not want her to go get the car repainted when it was a completely unnecessary procedure. "It will wash off under the hose."

"Wash…off?" Alex stared at him with wide eyes. "Are you telling me that I drove that monstrosity halfway across town with my phone number displayed for everyone to see when I could have washed the damn thing off?"

"Yep," his grin actually widened.

"Ooooh!" she cried out in frustration before throwing her fist squarely at his jaw.

Vin toppled off the chair as Alex spun on her heels, not bothering to see if he was all right before she stormed out of the office. Not trusting herself to say anything more, because at this point she was ready to kill him, Alex decided to make a wise departure.

"So I guess that still means no for dinner?" he called out as she disappeared out of the room, her footsteps stamping so loud against the floor he could still hear her when she slammed the doors of the staircase shut on her way off the level.

Vin picked himself off the floor, grinning when he noticed his friends around him, wearing amused expressions on their faces.

"Gee Vin," Chris poked his head through his office door. "What's next? Dipping her pigtails in inkwells?"

Vin did not respond as he rubbed his chin from the effects of her punch, forced to admit she had a great right hook. Still, the reaction was everything he hoped for and decided at last, they were even.

Now, if he could just work out how to get her to go to dinner with him...

Chapter Five: Fundraiser

Why was he being forced to endure this?

When he had decided to become an ATF agent, things had been so simple. He was supposed to catch the bad guys and save America from all kinds of terrorist harm. It was a good feeling knowing he was doing something that meant a great deal to the world. There was no need for fame and glory because the excitement and the danger with living life on the edge was a reward in itself. Sure, it was not all fun and adventure, a life led where bullets and death were a constant reality could not possibly be that way, but Vin Tanner had chosen this course, so he accepted its highs and lows readily.

Where Vin now found himself was neither a high nor low. It was hell. Pure unadulterated hell. When the leader of Team 7 had brought up the subject, he had thought Chris Larabee to be joking. It had to be a joke because the truth was too horrifying to imagine. Just the very notion of it being remotely true was enough to prompt Vin into using up all that vacation time he never took and disappear until the dust had cleared.

No such luck.

Chris was not letting anyone escape, although he did announce with almost smug relish how being a team commander, he was exempt from the duty even though his underlings were not. Vin could not further fathom how his comrades did not all find this terribly humiliating since he could not imagine how anyone could see it as anything but that. Buck looked forward to it, Ezra and Nathan were unimpressed and shared his distaste, while JD was more terrified than anything else, and Josiah did not mind since it was in aid of charity.

And against his will, he was made a volunteer and Vin looked forward to the day with as much enthusiasm as he would look forward to having a circumcision done without anaesthetic. In fact, he was willing to submit to such a procedure if he could get out of this detail. With dread, he was unwillingly dragged towards the day, walking through the corridors of the building, watching and studying everyone he happened along, trying to decide who would step forward and be the one who would make this hell on earth a reality.

He actually resorted to requesting vacation time and had Chris tell him in no uncertain terms that the directive from the top indicated there would be no one fleeing the grasp of this terrible fate and to just take it like a man. Vin had practically stormed out of the office, hell-bent on throwing himself in front of a truck when he decided that probably would not have the end result he desired.

Besides, with his luck, they would still find some way to make him go anyway.

Two days beforehand and even Ezra and Nathan were starting to become caught up in the possibilities of the evening until he was the only one left with any lasting objections. He stared at the card engraved in gold lettering before him on his desk, thinking it more a writ of execution than an invitation to a charity fundraiser. Vin knew staring at it continuously was not going to make it go away, but Vin was willing to put a few solid hours into the exercise if it would make the difference. Unfortunately after the first ten minutes, it was rather apparent that no miracle was going to occur and he was going to have to endure the night.

"You got your tuxedo yet Vin?" JD asked as Vin was at his desk, trying to think of more ways to get out of his predicament, even though he exhausted every avenue of escape so far. He actually considered conjuring up a dead Aunt Adele whose funeral he had to attend, if not for the fact Chris knew he had no family to speak of.

Asshole.

"No, I ain't."

"Jeez Vin," JD looked at him with a hint of disapproval. "The fundraiser is tomorrow night. You're cutting it pretty close."

"Did I ask your opinion?" Vin snapped and immediately made JD recoil in embarrassment.

"Hey don't take it out on the kid," Buck came quickly to JD's defence as he did in all things.

"It's okay Buck," JD spoke just as hastily, understanding how Vin hated to be the centre of attention and preferred fading into the background for any high profile event. Tomorrow night's festivities had to be absolutely terrifying to the ATF agent, JD realized. "Sorry Vin, didn't mean to pry."

"No, I'm sorry JD," Vin apologized, knowing it was not JD's fault he was in this mess and he had no reason to take it out on the boy since he only made a harmless inquiry. Well, harmless to anyone else but him.

"You know Vin," Buck added, appreciating how nervous and a little terrified Vin was about tomorrow night. "If you just relax, you would actually have a good time. A little female company is just what you need since you ain't doing nothing about that pretty lady doctor of yours."

Vin flinched uncomfortably, wishing Buck had not brought up Alexandra Styles. It was a source of great frustration to the ATF agent he had not seen the doctor in almost two weeks. Vin was going crazy, trying to think of an excuse to see her without making it evident he was trying to see her. After all, he did have his dignity.

"I'm just fine for female company, and I don't have to do anything with Alex, I don't even like her."

Buck rolled his eyes and said with a completely straight face. "Sure you don't."

Vin scowled at Buck as the big man walked away grinning, blatantly showing he did not believe Vin for one minute. And to add insult to injury, Buck also took the opportunity to remind Vin that since the fundraiser was black tie, it was time he really started thinking seriously about that tuxedo. "Besides," Buck chuckled as he went back to his desk. "You don't want those ladies thinking you're not really looking forward to this."

Vin could only swear under his breath again. Asshole.

"Daddy, why am I here with you?" Alex complained as she and William Styles emerged from the limousine bringing them to the fundraiser being held at the local hospital where she had once done her residency, for a new children's wing. The event, fortunately, was newsworthy only to the society pages of the city's newspapers and she was glad there were not a thousand photographers clicking cameras in her face. She hated going to these things and only agreed to it because her father's regular escort was sick at home with the flu.

"Because," Styles sighed with resignation, hearing this same question throughout the limousine ride here. "You are my only daughter, and it's a father's prerogative to make you suffer for all my sacrifices in bringing you up and sending you to medical school."

Alex looked at her father and smiled. "I knew there was a good reason."

Despite her ambivlance to such events, she was still pleased to be his escort for the evening. Besides, she made enough money to know she could afford to donate something to the wing the hospital was attempting to build. At least she could still enjoy a night out at the very prestigious Kings Langley Hotel. She was wearing the dynamite dress she bought weeks ago for a date she never ended up having, thanks to a stray bullet fired by a moron.

She had to admit, it looked much better than it did in the store with its shimmery colour of sapphire blue, with a slit in just the right place to keep it in the realms of elegant instead of scandalous. She had chosen to wear her hair up tonight and decided that at the very least, she could say she had worn the gown at least once if anyone ever asked. They made their way through the front doors of the hotel, following the red carpet and other guests who headed to the venue of the event. Among the guests were important town dignitaries, government officials, and a couple of local personalities, but the majority seemed to be made up of doctors and members of the hospital board.

"Apparently, the festivities include an auction," her father explained as they walked past the billboard that preceded the entry into the ballroom.

"I'm assuming not baseball cards," she threw her father a mischievous wink, her attention mostly focused on the people around her.

"You are not my child. They must have switched you at birth in the hospital."

"No such luck daddy, I am the fruit of thy loins." She was observing the faces around her rather than the billboard as they passed by and left behind them upon entering the sprawling ballroom floor. "What are they auctioning?"

"Eligible bachelors by the looks of it.”

"Oh no," Alex groaned in distaste. "Let me guess, the very cream of high society, dilettante fops with about as much personality as Styrofoam." She could think of nothing more odious than spending time with a blueblood who talked about his portfolio and how grandmama would have to approve the girl he married.

"Not this time," Styles found their appointed table located at the very head of the stage where the entertainment and the auction would take place. "Apparently, the sacrificial lambs are meant to be ATF agents."

"ATF agents?" her voice rose an octave as she immediately straightened up and looked at her father before clearing her throat. "Really?" she said in a calmer voice, pretending that nothing had sparked her interest, even though her eyes were already scouring the room.

Alex searched for a particular face, feeling a faint smile steal across her lips as she sighted him, appearing as if he wished the floor would swallow him up where he sat.

Vin Tanner was currently at the table with the rest of the ATF agents assembled, the sacrificial lambs on the altar of the new wing. She had not seen him since he played that awful prank on her. At this moment, he had yet to see her and he did not know she was present tonight. Despite her annoyance over the incident with her car, Alex could not help but admire him for giving as good as he got. Besides, Alex did sort of deserve some payback after she conspired to have him endure an enema.

However, like all men, especially ones who hacked the system to find her phone number and had seen fit to make a public display of it, Vin had not called her since despite a begrudging desire on her part of him to do so. At this moment though, he looked so lost and desperate to escape this place, Alex could not help feeling terribly sorry for him and was mortified when she wished there was some way she could save him from the ordeal. She felt pangs of affectionate pity when she noticed he kept tugging at the collar of his tuxedo, which incidentally he happened to look great in, appearing inordinately uncomfortable.

"Yes, apparently they have lent their services for the evening. You know how these society debutantes feel about rough and tumble men who actually work for a living." Styles remarked as he pulled out her chair for her. "I suppose I ought to be grateful that you're level-headed enough not to fall for this nonsense."

"Yeah, right," Alex heard nothing else her father said because she was still keeping her eye on Vin. "Daddy, do you have your cheque book?"

The evening progressed painfully slow with Vin wishing he could just stay under the table, the closer it came time for the auction. Chris sat in the space next to him, wearing a satisfied expression at being saved from the carnage the others would soon be enduring. Vin spent most of the evening offering monosyllabic words of unbidden distaste at the humiliation he would soon be experiencing, cringing every time he saw the time drawing closer to his debut performance.

When the event finally rolled along, Vin and the others were ushered to the backstage before a roomful of panting women armed with cheque books. He contemplated escaping through the backstage door but had no choice but to remain when he learnt Chris requested the door be locked, just in case of any trespassers. Vin made an oath to kill the leader of Team 7 one way or another if he survived this night.

Buck, who was eager to get out on the stage floor, was the first to be raffled off like the side of beef he wanted to be, Vin thought tartly. As expected, the bids for Buck were quite extensive, and he raised almost five thousand dollars. In the end, the ladies' man found himself in the company of a rather insipid looking blond in a tight dress which left nothing to the imagination as to what she desired of him, sort of like her dress really.

It continued that way for the rest of the evening, with Ezra being purchased by a rather dazzling redhead who disappeared after she wrote the checque, and left the gambler wondering who she was. Incidentally, her disappearance coincided with a brief interruption of the ceremonies when it was discovered the hotel safe had been robbed. It was anyone's guess if the two events were related.

After the others had been successfully raffled off, Vin found himself the last head on the block and reluctantly stepped before the guests of the function for the bidding to begin on him. With bright lights in his face and everyone's attention on him, Vin did not believe it was possible for him so humiliated, embarrassed or completely intimidated in his entire life. All he wanted to do at that moment was to hide somewhere and never be seen, ever again. He barely heard the words of the auctioneer and searched for Chris Larabee in the crowd, hoping to convey a scathing glare just how much he hated to be here. Unfortunately, the glare of the lights made it difficult to see anyone beyond the stage.

Once the auction was well and truly on the way, Vin was actually quite astonished by the number of bids being put up for him. Ladies all over the place were eyeing him like he was something tasty to be savoured with chocolate sauce and cream. Vin started to feel extremely protective of his virtue and thanked God he had his gun. He was sure none of these women intended to respect him in the morning.

The bids were starting to become quite intense and eventually the house lights were dimmed. To his surprise, he saw Alexandra Styles in the audience. He almost groaned in horror at seeing her present, wondering if his shame could be any worse. The only woman in the place he was remotely interested in, and she was not even bidding for him, though he would have been surprised if she had. It was not Alex's way, and Vin found some measure of comfort, realizing she was not staring at him across the floor in scorn but sympathy for his untenable situation. He would have thought this would be ample reward for her, to see him in this position after he had played that trick on her two weeks ago and hoped she would spare him the sarcastic barbs when they next met.

Besides, he was suffering enough.

Alex swallowed, staring at poor Vin on the stage, suffering this humiliation and unable to feel a skerrick of satisfaction at his unfortunate situation. God, she hated how he could do that to her. This was the man who had forced her to change her phone number because someone named Lubefist had put her on a swinger's mailing list! How could she even feel slightly sympathetic towards him?

Alex groaned inwardly, knowing precisely why but would deal with that another day.

"Going once to the lady in red." The auctioneer announced.

The spotlight fell on a rather expensive looking brunette who was siren-like in her appearance with perfect hair, perfect teeth and perky everything else. Alex used the word expensive because it had to cost a lot of money to look like that, especially in plastic surgeon fees. One could only appear that way with a substantial investment in petroleum products, in particular, the variety worn under the skin. There was no mistaking what she had planned for Vin this evening, not with the salacious glimmer in her blue, man-eating eyes, and the very idea Vin would be in her company tonight made Alex recoil in disgust.

Vin was about to go where every man had been before.

"Three thousand dollars!" Alex blurted out before she even had time to consider what the hell she was doing.

"A new contender." The auctioneer turned his attention to her. The spotlight fell on Alex about the same time her father's jaw dropped open in astonishment. Alex avoided meeting Vin's gaze because she knew she was blushing. What was running through his mind? Alex briefly wondered, but realized she opened a can of worms, the consequences of which she would deal with later.

"Three thousand dollars to the lovely Doctor Styles."

Oh yeah, she told herself. Way to play hard to get Alex.

The brunette threw Alex a venomous look for standing between her and that beautiful man on stage before she exclaimed loudly. "Thirty-five hundred."

The gauntlet was clearly thrown, and Alex was more than prepared to pick it up as the room fell silent, except for the section of the room occupied by the ATF agents who were trying hard not to be heard as they broke into guffaws.

"Four thousand dollars," she said, showing no signs of anxiety or annoyance like her rival was doing. In fact, Alex was rather pleased with how cool and deliberate she appeared to everyone, even though she was a mess of nerves beneath the skin.

"Alexandra...," Styles managed to find his voice. "What are you doing?"

This was not the behaviour he normally expected from his sensible daughter, although it did rather amuse him to see this side of her. While she had a terrific sense of humour, Alex was not one to take such chances with her dignity.

"Quiet daddy," she hissed as she waited to see if the brunette would continue the bidding war. "The hospital really needs that wing."

"Forty-five hundred." the brunette's voice sang out again.

"Five thousand dollars," Alex countered just as quickly.

A low hush fell across the room since that was the highest bid of the day, and it appeared that the bidding was nowhere concluded. Alex stared at the woman, waiting to see if she would up the ante, all this time managing to avoid looking at Vin. She did see the reaction of his friends who were with their respective "owners" making no effort to hide they were laughing their asses off.

"Fifty-five hundred dollars" this time the brunette seemed a little uncertain and Alex could smell blood in the water.

"Daddy," she said quickly to her father. "Can I borrow your cheque book?"

William Styles rolled his eyes and shook his head before handing it to her, never being able to deny her anything and hoping that she knew what she was doing. "Just don't go over ten thousand dollars.”

"Seven thousand dollars!" she replied with the cool of a doctor about to go into surgery, with complete confidence in herself and her abilities. Alex had read the enemy and knew that silicon excuse for a woman was about to capitulate and scream defeat.

The brunette deliberated her situation, throwing Alex another dark glare before easing back into her seat, the unspoken sign of surrender declared as Alex found a smile crossing her face at the sweet, sweet taste of victory.

"Going once." the auctioneer announced as if expecting no one else to resume the bidding after such heated competition.

"Going twice," he repeated himself and was unsurprised when silence followed.

"Sold to Doctor Alexandra Styles!"

The hum of satisfaction ran throughout the room when it hit Alex like a splash of cold water what she had just done. She froze at the realization she just made a very public declaration regarding the nature of her relationship with Vin Tanner.

"Oh my god!" she gushed and stared at her father, panicked. "Daddy! What did you just let me do?"

"What did I?" Styles looked at her sternly. "Daughter, is there something you're not telling me about that young man up there?"

Alex stared at Vin Tanner for the first time since she launched herself into this entire debacle and saw the same look of absolute astonishment on his face mirrored on her own. It would be difficult to say who was the most amazed by this entire incident, him or her. They stared across the floor at each other with only one thought in either of their minds.

What now?

Chapter Six: Seven Thousand Dollar Ride

A/N: This chapter contains an adult scene.

With the possible exception of having to drive a pink car with the words, 'For a good time call Alex' scrawled across the side, this was the most embarrassing position Alexandra Styles had ever found herself in.

She wished she could hide under the table as she saw Vin Tanner descending the steps from the stage, his amazement at her very public expression of interest in where he spent his evening having faded away to smug satisfaction. In fact, the smirk he was wearing as he approached her table only made Alex want to knock his teeth out.

It did not help his expression mirrored that of her father, who seemed to find the entire situation very amusing and Alex told herself his humour would last until he was forced to relinquish the $7000 she spent on this escapade. Alex was still mystified at what possessed her to enter the bidding when it was the last thing on her mind when she first realized he was up for auction. Even now, the brunette Alex defeated in acquiring Vin was pointing venomous looks in her direction, no doubt furious at her plans for Vin being thwarted.

Okay, so Alex did not feel quite so guilty about that.

Worst of all, the spotlight was following Vin across the floor towards her and very soon, the entire room was going to be focussing their singular attention on them. She could see the other members of Team 7 continuing to laugh and snigger at the drama taking place, and Alex wondered if it was nice in Siberia at this time of the year.

"Get that smirk off your face!" Alex hissed when he reached her grinning with that triumphant smile. "This isn't what it looks like!"

Alex then hid her face beneath her hands as the auctioneer made some stupid remark about how the evening was a rousing success thanks to all the contributors and participants.

"I ain't the one who paid $7,000 for me."

"I did it," she rose to her feet, with her chin raised exuding dignity, now that the spotlight was off them and not everyone in the room was watching with interest. Although she knew her father was one of those exceptions, just as Vin knew Chris and the others were rolling in the aisles at this sudden turn of events. "I did it for the hospital wing."

"Daughter, even I don't believe that," William Styles said with a smile, not too different from that of Vin's.

"Daddy!" Alex exclaimed horrified, feeling her cheeks flush with embarrassment. "You're supposed to be on my side!"

"I'm on the side of my $7,000," Styles offered a conspiratory wink in Vin's direction.

"I guess I'd better introduce myself Sir," Vin said politely, not wishing to offend her father, although he appeared to be a good sport and a rather likeable man. "I'm Vin Tanner" he started to extend his hand in Styles's direction when Alex slapped his palm back.

"Don't introduce yourself to my father," she blurted out. "You are not the 'introducing to my father' kind of man!"

"Gosh, you must have been fun on prom night." Vin quipped and continued with the handshake which Styles accepted chuckling. It appeared as if the man was taking a great deal of enjoyment at his daughter's chagrin and Vin decided immediately that he liked the senior Doctor Styles who seemed much more laid back than his daughter.

"Look, I felt sorry for you! You were standing up there with those sad puppy dog eyes that said 'save me please' and being the compassionate person that I am, I thought I'd help you out."

"That's an even worse excuse than the hospital wing." Styles made a face at her.

Alex turned on him. "You are no longer my father."

Styles and Vin glanced at each other and started laughing. "I will see you both at dinner next week at the house?"

"I'd be glad to Sir," Vin replied, telling himself once again he definitely liked William Styles.

"No!" Alex gasped. "What is it with you?" she looked at her father. "We are not doing anything together and you," she pointed a finger squarely at Vin. "You are not anything to me that I am going to take you to have dinner with my father, in fact, you will never be anything to me! I don't even want you as a patient! If I ever see Doctor Willis again, I am going to kick his sorry ass for dropping you in my lap!"

Suddenly, the brunette bidding against Alex appeared out of the shadows from her table with her sickeningly perfect smile, with no idea what she was walking into.

"Hello, I just wanted to…." she started to say.

Alex did not give her a chance to finish, wishing to continue her own conversation with Vin and spoke sharply. "Hey, you lost. Get over it okay? The man's with me."

The woman dropped her jaw in outrage and stormed off without saying anything further.

Vin looked at Alex with amazement before that same smirk returned and he was forced to remark. "You were saying?"

"That's it," Alex threw her hands up in defeat. "I am going home. Daddy, you caused enough mischief tonight." She glared at Styles who was not at all disturbed by her reaction, being used to far more fiery displays from his daughter in her lifetime. She was so much like her mother that Styles could only feel empathy for Vin Tanner because he had been through the exact same thing himself. "And you," she looked at Vin and decided words could not even begin to describe what was running through her mind. "Never mind," she groaned and started walking.

"Dinner is at seven," Styles called out as Vin started to follow Alex out of the room. "We're having a roast. Don't worry about bringing anything."

"Thanks," Vin flashed the man a smile and hurried after Alex.

"I am only in this car with you because I live on the other side of town and I don't want to catch a cab," Alex insisted as she sat in the seat next to Vin in the front cabin of the ATF agent's Jeep Cherokee. She was fuming visibly as they continued down the highway towards her home. Alex did not even want to ask how he knew where she lived.

"Well, I can at least drive you home after you saved my neck like that," Vin admitted for the first time since the whole evening began he was relieved he had not been auctioned to some stranger. He doubted he could stand the awkwardness of having to keep company with someone he hardly knew, especially that vampish looking creature Alex rescued him from.

"It's okay," Alex frowned, feeling her annoyance fade a little. "I could tell you hated being up there."

"I did," he answered, happily loosening the collar of his shirt before realizing it was hard to drive and free the bow tie around his neck at the same time. Who made these things? The Marquis de Sade?

"Oh let me do that before you kill us both!" Alex reached over to him, undoing the garment that was probably going to kill them in a five-car pileup on the freeway at the rate he was going.

"Thanks," Vin smiled, knowing she sounded angry because it was all she knew how to be around him, but her quip lacked the bite of her previous rage. If he didn't know any better, he would say she was thawing. "Your dad's great."

That did draw a bittersweet smile from Alex, the first one as a matter of fact, since she climbed into the jeep. Vin was starting to see some light at the end of the tunnel.

"Yes, he is. When he's not an interfering old coot."

"He loves you," Vin said seriously. "Anyone who sees how he looks at you knows that."

"Feeling's mutual," Alex conceded and lapsed into silence for a while, and the long pause followed them for the rest of the journey to her apartment.

Something had changed between them, they both knew it and inexplicably, as two consenting adults what came next should be easy, since neither were novices at relationships. In fact, despite all the insecurities, reservations and secret fears, both Alex and Vin knew they were edging close to something that wasn't merely another relationship.

It had the power to be something extraordinary.

After a while, they managed to engage in conversation that did not involve them biting each other's heads off. Vin thanked her again for her timely rescue and Alex informed him she had no intention of leaving him to the ministrations of Charlotte Richmond, the brunette who had almost been his date tonight.

Finally, they arrived at her apartment, and against her better judgement, Alex invited Vin upstairs. After all, he did give her a lift home, saving her from having to catch a cab at this hour. Besides, there was a twisted part of her that did not want the night to end. Even so, it was likely they were reaching the limits of civility and would soon end up having another heated argument again.

"Nice place," Vin complimented when he entered the spacious little apartment and noted that its personality was a lot like its owner, cluttered but cosy.

"Thanks," she replied, kicking off her shoes and starting to remove her earrings. "Want some coffee?"

"Yeah," he answered, taking close stock of everything around him. He liked a spacious room that let in lots of light. In the corner, he saw a dog bowl and wondered where the animal might be. "Where's the dog?"

"At the vets." Alex sang out from the kitchen. "He ate something that disagreed with him, and the vet wanted him overnight for observation. I think it's just an excuse to charge me a hundred dollars boarding fee."

"You're a glass is half empty kind of gal, ain't ya?"

Alex returned with two cups of steaming coffee and flashed him a sweet smile cut with sarcasm. "Well why not, I had to spend $7,000 to get a ride home tonight. That kind of thing doesn't make me an optimist."

"Not to mention a dinner date at your dad's," he reminded.

"Now let's just talk about that a moment," she put both cups on the coffee table. "My father is a dear sweet soul who was probably trying to play matchmaker because of that whole auction thing. That doesn't mean there is anything between us. There never has been, and there never will be. I am giving you coffee because you drove me back here tonight. So don't get any ideas about us."
"You said 'us'. As far as I was concerned, there is you, and there is me. I ain't even thought about an 'us'. Have you?"

Alex fumed and glared at him. "Don't flatter yourself. I wouldn't have you if you were the last man on Earth."

"Unless he cost $7,000."

"Okay, that's it, get out!" She pointed to the door.

Vin rolled his eyes and decided that if he was ever going to get anywhere with her, she was just going to have to shut up. He stared at her for an instant, paralyzed by time and space as his mind moved beyond her words and suddenly, something raw and primeval gripped him. Before Vin Tanner knew what he was doing, he grabbed Alexandra Styles to him and kissed her.

"What are you…." she tried to protest when his tongue slipped into her mouth.

Alex felt the hard muscle of Vin's body pressing against hers in a heated meeting of flesh. His hand snaked through her long hair and held her firmly in place, so there was nowhere to go, nowhere to retreat as his tongue tortured her exquisitely. She moaned without realizing she was responding to his other hand, kneading the breast hidden under her clothes, and felt his leg slip between her own.

She tried hard to resist him, hating him for doing this, for making her body respond to him even though she was still angry at him and wished to maintain some measure of dignity instead of the complete surrender she yearned to feel. Yet he was in his way a force of nature, a creature no one could resist, least of all her. As his tongue danced inside her mouth, tasting her, drinking her like something he needed to replenish himself, Alex felt her head swim with delight, wondering how something so fiery could live inside someone so unassuming.

Vin wanted her. He had wanted her from the first moment he saw her, and the game they played had been slowly escalating during the past weeks, becoming more heated with each exchange until finally, they were about to reach apogee. Vin knew he loved her, deep inside that place where he could hide nothing from himself. At the moment however, there were forces at work, driving away the purity of that love with the utter blackness of naked lust.

He did not want to make love to Alex, he wanted to take her. To satisfy this burning desire to tame something uncontrollable. She was fire, wild and intense, capable of infuriating him to such a degree his cock stiffened at the very notion of hearing her scream his name in ecstasy when he impaled her with it.

His mouth slid past her neck, devouring the flesh he found there with unbidden pleasure and noted she was no longer pushing him away. Instead, she was reaching behind her neck to undo the clasp holding her dress in place. A second's manipulation resulted in the dress gliding off her shoulders, pooling at her feet like a small puddle of sapphire silk. Other than a pair of g-string panties, she wore nothing else. Vin's breath caught as he saw her standing before him, almost naked. She released her hair, and he watched with just as much fascination as waves of jet tumbled around her shoulders as she shook her hair free of its confinement.

He could only stare for a few seconds, almost afraid to touch her. Vin had been so confident before, but now she was here, leaving behind her reservations, Vin hesitated, fearful of disappointing Alex now she was ready for him. She saw his uncertainty and the same flashed in hers as she wondered if perhaps he had second thoughts. Just the possibility of hurting Alex drove the caution from Vin, and he moved to feel that luxurious skin waiting for his touch.

"You're so beautiful," he whispered in her ear as he started planting small kisses on her neck, working his way down as he ran fingers over his body, feeling himself stiffen with arousal at the feel of her flesh in his palm. He looked up long enough to see her blush, and that made him smile as he continued his downward descent, trailing the wet line of his tongue over the curve of her breast. Finally, he reached the nub of erect flesh he had been longing to take in his mouth since the moment she had disrobed. Without allowing her any time to prepare, Vin brought his mouth down on the nipple and sucked it hard between his teeth.

Alex reacted fiercely, arching into his mouth as soon as he began suckling on the taut flesh, tightening with every flick of his tongue. Her back arched into him while her fingers raked through his hair with similar wanton desire. She could feel the rough stubble on his face caressing her skin, goading her body into further response until finally, that insistent tugging on her nipple tore the cry from her she had been fighting so hard to restrain.

"Oh God," she whimpered and noted his blue eyes meeting hers with nothing less than absolute triumph.

Seeing his pleasure at her capitulation only served to infuriate her and she tugged at his shirt, pulling it apart with as much regard as he used to gain access to her flesh. He was still biting in her nipple, making her groan each time she felt his teeth draw that hardening nub of skin deeper into his mouth. He was not just suckling her, he was devouring her, tasting her as if the moment was fleeting and he had only a short time to explore his deep fantasies about her.

"You bastard," she groaned languidly, feeling the tightening in her stomach as the rest of her became wet with desire. "I hope you know what you're doing."

Vin could hear in her voice that she did not want him to stop, and he was determined to please her.

"No," he said, breaking away from her tasty flesh and pressing his mouth against hers again. "But neither do you."

He did not merely kiss her, he plundered her mouth with a hunger that was beyond reason. Alex groaned as she felt his hand on her shoulders, caressing the smooth flesh, taking hold of a breast and kneading it hard, teasing the nipple under his palm until she was groaning into his mouth. He was still wearing his shirt, but in her passion, she had freed the buttons, and his taut chest pressed against her body as his tongue probed deeper into her mouth.

Alex slipped her hands under his loose shirttails, her palms slid over his muscles, making her moist just feeling the tension and perfection of every curve as she pulled him closer to her. His mouth was digging into her neck, clamping down with gentle nips that only served to consume her with sensation. When his shirt finally drifted off his back, she felt the dizzying pleasure of bare skin against her, and they ground their bodies into each other because close was not enough.

God, he was beautiful.

His body was not overly muscular but well defined and, in Alex's opinion, infinitely more pleasurable to the touch. Her palms slipped over his skin, relishing the feel of him. Alex's fingers traced their way to his neck before burying her nails in his hair. He sighed softly as she pulled him closer as if her touch had produced just the right sensations to arouse him further. She could feel him pressing up against her thigh, thickening with each heavy breath of her he took. Instinctively, she rubbed herself against the rigid muscle, feeling a jolt of electricity course through her when he shuddered at the contact.

It was time for payback for her car.

She pushed herself away from him and saw the confusion in his face when he did not understand why she had broken contact with him. Alex smiled, teasing him for a split second when he was trapped in the limbo of not knowing what she intended for him. He took a step closer, wishing to take charge of the situation again when he saw her lower herself onto her knees and lost any sense of self-assurance. Alex met his gaze, running her tongue over her lips as she proceeded to undo the button before finally shifting to his zipper.

Vin was breathing hard, trying not to seem too eager, bracing himself for what she intended to do to him because he had an idea she was literally going to kill him. He watched silently, eyes fixed on the slight curve of her lips as she pulled down his pants and exposed the erection longing for attention. Vin could not shift his gaze from the look of mischief in her eyes or the lusty moisture of her wet lips. Everything happening right now felt as if it had come straight out of his fantasies where she was kneeling before him, completely naked (well almost), and preparing to deliver heaven with those full lips.

He felt any sound die in his throat when her cheeks brushed against the sensitive skin of his manhood. Her breath moved along his shaft, sensitizing the skin before her mouth even touched him. Vin watched Alex idle away at the most vulnerable part of his body, torturing him with the gentle warmth of her breath and the luxurious softness of her cheek. She caressed his cock without actually using her lips until he was gasping out loud. His fingers drifted across her hair and basking in the silky strands of jet under his fingertips.

Christ, she was going to drive him insane before she progressed any further. His stomach clenched tighter the more she continued this torturous exercise, adding more exquisite agony when her hands started massaging his balls. She caressed each sac in her palm, fingering the velvet skin before her cheek left his cock and sucked on one with her mouth.

"Oh my God. You're going to kill me."

She did not answer, incredibly aroused by his reactions. The g-string panties felt confining and uncomfortable as her sex swelled with need. Every muscle in her body was tightening for release, but Alex wanted the moment to last, wishing to indulge some fantasies of her own when the raging desire for him kept her tossing and turning in her sheets. She sucked and lavished attention on every part of his groin, except the part of him needing it most. When she raised her eyes and saw him panting with anticipation, she knew if she did not satisfy him soon, she was going to hurt him.

Vin watched her kiss the tip of his cock, and he let out a strangled gasp of relief when she parted her lips and swallowed him into her mouth. He threw his head back, clamping his eyes closed at the incredible pleasure of her mouth as she suckled his stiffening length with such power he could do nothing but drop his hands to her shoulders and hang on. Vin felt as if he was flying as she stroked him, her mouth pulling at his cock with such insistence, he could hardly breathe. Her nails clawed at the inside of his thighs, bringing pain, but it made his pleasure all the more excruciating.

"Alex," he somehow managed to articulate through the barrage of pleasure. "I am going to make you pay for this."

She responded by taking all of him into her mouth until he was sure he was buried entirely down her throat. The intensity of the complete sheath of wet, moist heat was enough to make him groan in capitulation, defiance dissolving with another sensuous laving of the swollen head of his cock when she came up for air. He was gasping, reaching the point when coherence would no longer be possible and he would fill her mouth with his warm seed.

The thought of that alone snapped him to his senses.

God, he wanted her to finish, he wanted to drive himself into her throat and see just how much of him she could take, but this was not just about him. Slowly, he waited until she was licking him before pulling away, his raging erection almost as annoyed by the cessation of pleasuring as she was.

"What are you doing?"

Alex was a little afraid her secret predilections had scared him off. It was his fault, he awakened this creature of pure desire within her. She never wanted to pleasure any man as much as she wished to please Vin Tanner and was thoroughly enjoying his exclamations of pleasure. It was almost arousing.

"Giving you a little something back," he said with a smile of equal sin before dropping to his knees so that he could look her in the eye. Allowing her no time to react, Vin pressed his lips against hers, renewing his assault on her mouth interrupted by her heart-stopping torture on his rock hard manhood. Vin devoured her lips with ruthless intensity, spreading her teeth apart as his tongue tasted her as her like something he would never tire of drinking. He was manipulating her pliant body, driving her to the carpeted floor with the weight of his body.

Alex wanted to protest but had no will to do so. Not when that beautiful body of sinewy muscle was pressed against her when he lowered her to the carpet. His mouth had not left hers during their descent, and when she finally felt the incredible presence of him poised over her, Vin moved away and began an equally torturous descent down her body. The journey was exquisite, and she charted its progress with soft sighs of pleasure as he laved at the skin of her neck, nipped at the flesh of her breast and suckled on her tight, erect nipples until she was arching into him with taut pleasure.

His mouth reached her stomach and licked the skin of her tight muscles, knowing the tension was due to the pressing heat of her own needs. His cock was screaming for him to plunge into her soft depths, demanding the ecstasy of feeling her around him when her mouth alone had been so capable of driving him to complete surrender. Vin ignored his needs, knowing perfectly well what he wanted to do before the time came for them to become one. He wanted to taste her, to drink her into his soul as entirely as she had nearly broken him into a thousand pieces.

Tugging at her lace, Vin slipped the damp garment from around her hips and thrilled at how it soaked of her scent. Discarding it, he lowered his head and gently kissed the curve of her hip and watched her shudder. She raised her hips instinctively, a clear signal she could stand it no more. She wanted him to satisfy the ache that could no longer bear denial. Weeks of intense arousal had brought them to this moment in time, where before words had been foreplay.

Vin lowered his mouth to her sex and burrowed deep through the moist folds, finding the pearl of flesh that would effectively destroy whatever self-restraint she had left. He felt her thighs tightened around his shoulders at the first contact of his tongue and felt a slight charge of something incredibly arousing to him when they met tip to tip.

"Oh Jesus!"

Vin heard her gasp when he began to tease her clit, swirling his tongue around it and exulting in the moan each time he taunted the flesh into the oblivion of ecstasy. He licked and sucked, he took it past his teeth and forced his tongue up the passage his cock would soon take, tasting honey in every surge of moisture flooding her insides. The soles of her feet were caressing his back, while her hands guided him where she wanted him to be. When Vin drove his tongue through her inner passage, he was rewarded with the sound he had wanted to hear the first moment he had met her.

"Oh God Vin, please, please don't stop!"

If he could have smiled, he would have. Instead, he continued, stroking Alex into delirium with each flick of his tongue, licking the hard nub of erect flesh until Vin could feel it quiver with impending climax. His cock swelled at the thought of her coming inside his mouth and did not relent until finally, she let out a final gasp of surrender.

Her body bowed as Alex gushed with heated juices, making Vin so hard with her taste he lapped her up, drinking her happily as the full torrent of her orgasm was released. He held her hips steady in his hands, ensuring none of it escaped him and revelled in the sound of her breathless cries when she descended from where he sent her.

Without giving her any time to recover or prepare, Vin plunged into those warm, soaking depths with brutal force. Alex bucked against him, surprised by the sudden penetration but not at all resisting. However, Vin was having great difficulty not becoming lost in the incredible tightness of contracting muscles. It felt as if he were snared by a wall of flesh that was crushing his cock and promising him death in absolute ecstasy. Muscles closed in on him, gripping him with the strength of a thousand fluttering fingers, all intent on making him come harder than he had ever done in his life.

He felt the muscles of his rear clench to control the delightful feel of her against his throbbing member and Vin closed his eyes, attempting to regain the upper hand. However, when Alex slid her hands over the smooth skin of his behind, putting her own strength behind the weight of his already formidable thrusts, control was no longer an option. He bit down and found himself being carried away on the same wave of pleasure that she was similarly ensnared. His eyes met hers, and she smiled at him, a real smile, not one of mischief and humour that they traded during their sparring matches these past weeks but one that told him that she was his, unconditionally and forever.

"Us," she whispered and then smiled.

"Us.” He returned with a grin before the pleasure overtook him and he stopped thinking at all.

As he drove deeper and deeper into her, trying to seal their union in one powerful expression of pleasure, he became lost in the sensation of pushing and pulling, of clenching muscles and pulsing flesh. No sonnet ever written nor melody composed could describe the incredible sensation of pounding into her flesh, pumping into her as the sense was driven from his world.

He was biting down hard, trying to control it as he felt the tension reach breaking point and her insides melted around him like honey, bathing his cock in fire and tearing from him any further semblance of restraint. He felt his soul shatter like a mirror being smashed and the roar that filled his ears was his own groans as he spurted his seed deep into her crevices. Vin felt himself filling her up with his slick warmth as he emptied the full vent of his orgasm into her body. He was still gasping as he continued pumping, his mind refusing to believe that this was over when his body was exhausted, strained and aching for breath.

"Oh Vin," she said softly, her eyes full of wonder as she kissed him tenderly. He looked so beautiful at that final moment. Alex wanted to frame the instant when his blue eyes clouded over as he came inside her. Alex had never believed that seeing him reach his climax could be almost as satisfying as everything else they experienced tonight.

Vin let out a final breath of exhausted pleasure before he lowered himself off his elbows and put his weight against her body. She seemed to purr at the feel of him and kept him still so he would remain inside of her. Her legs snaked around his, intertwining as they lay on the floor of her apartment, listening to each other's heartbeat.

"Alex," Vin said after a long pause.

"Yeah Vin?" she felt strangely subdued after what they had both experienced.

Vin leaned in closely and asked softly in her ear. "Does this mean you'll go to dinner with me now?"

Epilogue: MIA

"Anyone see Vin this morning?" Buck Wilmington asked when he walked into the offices of the ATF building the following Monday morning.

He and Vin had some surveillance reports due by the middle of the week and Buck preferred to get these things over and done with before the 11th hour. He glanced at Vin's desk and found it was still empty, which was odd because the sharpshooter was extremely punctual. If there was one thing every member of Team 7 could rely on, it was seeing Vin Tanner as his desk every morning, promptly at nine. The man was religious about such things.

"I don't know," JD shrugged without giving Buck a second glance as he worked on whatever was on his computer screen while at the same time, finishing two doughnuts and a steaming cup of coffee that only succeeded in reinforcing Buck's need for one himself. Standing up, he strode past Ezra Standish's desk on the way to the coffee machine and found the gambler having a rather heated conversation on the telephone.

"What do you mean, you do not know who she is?" Ezra demanded, turning red as he spoke to the person at the end of the receiver. "Is it beyond your intelligence to look in your guest list and give me a name as to who occupied that table?"

"What's with him?" Buck whispered to Nathan, who occupied the desk opposite the slightly harassed ATF agent.

"He's trying to get a bead on the woman who bid on him. He's going crazy trying to figure out who she is."

"The one that ran out on him?" Buck whispered. He did remember the lady in question enough to know that she had been a stunning beauty and quite empathized with Ezra's desire to find her. There was nothing more tantalizing than a gorgeous redhead with an air of mystery about her.

"Her name is Allison Lockley?" Ezra declared and straightened up in his chair, his face filtering with annoyance and scepticism as he informed the person on the other end why it was impossible for the lady to be the said Mrs Lockley. "I suppose you are certain of this piece of intelligence?" He frowned and then spoke with typical Ezra superiority. "My good Sir, if I am correct, Allison Lockley of the Philadelphia Lockleys is a 65-year-old woman who does not like to leave her native city. Besides the fact the woman at the fundraiser was extremely beautiful and young, the only way you would have Mrs Lockley attend a fundraiser in New Mexico is by miraculously circumventing the laws of physics and transporting the entire hotel into that principality for the evening!"

"My goodness," Buck said with a grin. "He is determined."

"I ain't seen him this bothered about anything other than a card game since I met the man," Nathan answered in fascination as he continued to observe Ezra with the same amusement that Buck was presently experiencing. "She must have been something." Nathan smiled, having not paid much attention to anything else that night since he had been fighting off the care of the matron who had bid for him. The woman had some extraordinary ideas about African American men and their stamina.

"No," Ezra continued his debate with his unseen opponent. "I am not rude, merely pointing out the defects in your so-called logic."

"Oh, that's going to work," Buck said sarcastically and knew what was coming even though Ezra did not.

"The cretin hung up on me!" Ezra exploded, which was no surprise to anyone who happened to overhear his conversation with the cretin in question. "He dared to refer to me as being less than gentlemanly."

"Can't imagine that," Buck muttered under his breath, exchanging a look with Nathan as the two men tried to hold in their chuckles. "So no luck with the mystery lady?" Buck asked, clearing his throat and forcing away the smile that was threatening to steal across his face at Ezra's obvious annoyance.

"I am dealing with a woman who leaves a trail of smoke," Ezra grumbled, easing back into his chair even though his manner indicated that he was anything but at ease. "No one has any idea who she is because the tickets for the fundraiser were purchased over the phone but picked up and paid for in cash. There is no paper trail to follow. If I did not know better, I would say she was covering her tracks for some illegal venture."

"Like the robbery at the hotel." Buck pointed out.

"Not at all," Ezra steadfastly denied the possibility. "This was a woman with breeding and class, I assure you, she would not be associated with anything so tawdry as the robbery of a hotel safe."

"Ezra, have you read the report on the safe that was broken into?" Nathan had no wish to burst his bubble, mainly when he had fabricated such a beautiful fantasy about the woman, but he had to be made aware of the fact that she was most likely a criminal. "It's not just some hotel safe. The contents included a very expensive painting that was in transit with its owner. The safe was absolutely the most expensive piece of security equipment of its type on the market and whoever broke into it didn't even leave a mark on the finish. I'm telling you, if your mystery lady did break into this thing, she is no regular burglar. We're talking about a professional who is very good at what she does."

"I refuse to believe it." Ezra sighed as he rested his chin on his hand and contented himself with happy thoughts about red hair that sparkled like copper and the most angelic face he had ever seen in his life. He had to find her, somehow.

Seeing they were not going to get any sense from Ezra until he found his lady, Buck moved on to a more pressing issue or at least one that could be satisfied without too many romantic delusions. "By the way, did Vin come in yet?" Buck asked Nathan, hoping that the former medic would be more assistance than JD on this subject.

"Not yet. I ain't seen him all morning which is kind of strange now that I think about it."

"The boy did leave the fundraiser with Doctor Styles," Josiah remarked after looking up from the paperwork he had been busy completing this morning.

"That's right." Buck grinned at that particular portion of the evening.

While Vin had displayed his obvious shock at the turn of events, Buck was not surprised even if he had to admit Doctor Styles could have chosen a less public arena to make her true feelings for the sharpshooter known. Still, the entire episode had provided much amusement for the rest of Team 7 throughout the night. Now that Josiah had made the insinuation, the more sense it made where Vin was at this moment and Buck would not think of interrupting him for anything.

"Well I'm sure he'll come up for air some time, that is if they don't kill each other first."

"Has anyone seen or heard from him this weekend at all?" JD poked his head from his screen long enough to ask the others.

Everyone had to say no.

"Well, it’s about time," Buck shook his head, hoping that it was as Josiah insinuated. "She's about the first woman Vin's shown any real interest in."

"You think he's gone off with her for a long weekend?" Nathan smiled, agreeing with Buck on that much anyway if it were true.

Vin was always shy around women, even though he had no reason to be. Every member of Team 7 had seen the ladies throwing themselves at Vin often enough to know that he had no reason to be so uncomfortable around the opposite sex. However, Vin Tanner was not a person who thought highly of himself and had never so much as reacted to a female until Alexandra Styles had walked into his life.

"Why not?" Buck grinned and was about to add something further when suddenly, Chris Larabee emerged from his office wearing a storm cloud on his face. The leader of Team 7 looked decidedly unhappy, and for a moment, the men under his command were somewhat reluctant to inquire as to the nature of the problem since it was likely to get their heads bitten off. Finally, Buck decided that he would be the sacrificial lamb and boldly made the inquiry.

"Something wrong, Chris?" Buck ventured to ask when Chris went to get himself a cup of coffee. Just seeing the way that Chris was taking it was enough to set off alarm bells for Buck to stay away. When Chris Larabee had strong black coffee with nothing in it, it was never a good sign of his mood.

"Nothing that's going to go away in a hurry." Chris fairly growled, and Buck wondered if he ought to continue to poke the bear.

Against, his better judgment, Buck felt it his responsibility as Chris' oldest friend to try anyway. "Want to talk about it?"

Chris fumedas he raised his steel coloured eyes to Buck and appeared as if he might just bite the agent's head off when surprisingly enough, he answered quite calmly if somewhat bitterly at the same time. "Apparently, some journalist is going to be spending a week with us."

"A journalist?" Buck stared more puzzled than anything else.

"Yeah," Chris swallowed a large sip of coffee and nodded. "Its some public relations crap cooked up by the higher-ups. Must be near appropriation time or something, Christ only knows." Chris continued to grumble.

"Are we to assume that we will be placed under glass for a week?" Ezra asked, his distaste apparent in the sound of his voice. "How are we supposed to function? Did you not try to explain to the authoritarians who came up with this brilliant scheme that our business works best when the tricks of our trade are not open for public scrutiny?"

"No, I didn't tell them that," Chris glared at the gambler about to boil over. "It would never occur to me to bring that up."

"Okay, take it easy, Chris," Buck said, pacifying him before things got out of hand. Chris, in this sort of foul mood, was never to be underestimated, and his patience was starting to wear very thin with everyone in general. "When this journalist getting here anyway?'

"She," Chris fumed with even more annoyance, "is arriving tomorrow."

"She?" Buck responded immediately, reverting to baser instincts the minute he heard a woman was involved.

"Yes she," Chris replied, sharing everyone's resignation when he noticed Buck's sudden curiosity and decided to return to his office before his mood became any worse. He was almost to the door when he turned back and added the only piece of information he knew about their visitor the next day.

"I think her name is Travis. Mary Travis."

THE END

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