So there I was sitting in my Berkeley sweatshirt and track pants eating a bowl of ice cream, the very picture of comfort on a lazy Saturday evening.

"So what do you think?"

I looked up to see DJ spinning around. She was in a black spaghetti strapped dress with matching heels. I was too lazy to take notice of what it really looks like but none the less told her she looked fine. Which she always does.

"Good. Wait a minute. Why aren't you dressed?"

"I am dressed; I'm not naked am I?" I mumbled.

"Come on, you've got to go or you'll just prove Drew right. We are both gonna have fun tonight. It's been too long since I've had a man and God knows it's been waaaaaaaaaaay too long since you've had one."

Snorting as she fluffed her hair, I stirred my ice cream.

"I'm not going."

"Look. It's your own fault that you did what you did. Now you've got to face the consequences. Just act like nothing happened ok."

"Easy for you to say," I mumbled into my bowl.

"Have fun," she called as she left a minute later.

I glanced at the clock, it was already 7:30 and Drew said he'd be here at 8. Maybe I should make him wait. After all I am a woman and we take notoriously long spans of time to get dressed. But then again he might just leave me, which wouldn't be too bad, or worse, he might want to come in and wait. Deciding that neither option would end well, I hurriedly ran around my room to try and achieve the impossible of getting ready in half an hour.

By some sort of miracle, by the time the doorbell rang, exactly 32 minutes later, I was ready. Glancing at my reflection one last time in the full length mirror in my room, I checked my appearance. My hair hung in loose curls down my back, skimming the top of the lavender tube top I was wearing. Paired with a black leather skirt and my favorite pair of black stiletto boots, I had to admit I looked pretty good. Not too slutty, but just risqué enough that I'd blend in to the type of crowd I was sure would be at that party. Grabbing my jacket I flicked the light off and made my way to the door.

Here goes nothing.

Standing in front of me was a casual yet unbelievably sexy Drew. He had on a pair of brown cargoes and a red button up shirt. I zeroed in on his face and enjoyed a moment of utter joy as I saw the shock written clearly across it. It was however short lived as his face was once again schooled into his usual mask of cool confidence.

"Ready to go?" he asked, his voice completely indifferent.

"Yep, let's go," I responded, happy that even for a moment I'd knocked him off kilter.

I silently wondered what it would have taken to get a compliment from him as we waited for the elevator. I mean that was shock I saw on his face right? Even if it was just for a moment. The only other time I'd seen that look on his face was when….and then it hit me. The reason I had been dreading seeing him. How the hell could I have actually forgotten? I could feel a blush creeping up my cheeks as the elevator opened.

Standing in the elevator the ride down seemed to stretch on forever as I wondered if he remembered. I glanced at him quickly, my heart threatening to burst through my chest when he turned to me.

"Samantha about your…"

OH MY GOD!! He's not about to do what I think he is. Is he?

"Listen Drew, you have to understand, I was only joking. I never meant a word I said. Especially when I basically propositioned you. I mean, I wouldn't be caught dead doing something like that…..not that there's anything wrong with doing it cause you may be put in a difficult situation and it's the only way out and you have to just take whatever sleaze balls come your way, not that you're a sleaze ball or anything it's just that…" I trailed off when I noticed the amusement in his eyes. The bastard was smirking at me.

"That's not what I'm talking about."

"Oh," I responded letting out a sigh of relief, the amusement in his eyes reminding me of the mischievous boy he once was. He let go of my shoulders and stepped out of the elevator just as my already red cheeks, I'm sure by now were probably crimson. I followed after him, growing more embarrassed (if possible) as he spoke.

"I was trying to tell you that I contacted my mechanic and he should be able to have your car ready for you in a few days. It's picked up and everything."

"Oh, thanks."

And that's the last thing I managed to say to him, till we actually got to the "party". To say that the car ride was awkward is like saying Kevin Federline is slightly retarded. I just kind of sat there, not knowing what to do or what to say. I mean, I've been in a car with him before, as I have been cursed to endure, but never *gulp* after dark. And especially not the day after propositioning him. Okay, I know I'm being strange but it's been a strange few minutes. Twiddling you thumbs is only so entertaining, and you know what's worse? He knows I'm uncomfortable and he just sat there, smirking. And I just sat there, praying to get out of the bloody car.

Twenty minutes after, we pulled up to a high rise building that was practically ear marked for the rich and famous. High security, underground parking, the works. Which makes me wonder which one Scott is. He is one of the executives of the company, but even then he is still pretty young, and to get into these types of apartments you either need to be obscenely wealthy, famous or have a prestigious heritage, well prestigious by American standards, which pretty much brings us back to obscenely wealthy.

I sat quietly, despite rising nervousness as Drew punched in the code that would let us into the underground parking area.

Breathe in. Breathe out. It's just a party. Full of people I don't know. I can get through this. I'm a Berkeley graduate dammit!

I continued my slow breathing exercise as Drew calmly walked across to the elevator.

You know that's one thing that bugs me about New York. You spend at least 5% of your waking hours riding dumb elevators. But I guess it beats stairs.

The elevator [grrr there it is again] dinged and I questioningly glanced at Drew as we stepped onto the first floor/lobby area. He of course ignored me and stalked across the room, and I of course, followed and then stopped in my tracks.

There in front of yet another time sucking lifting box was……was………well, King frickin' Kong.

"Name please," he said his deep voice adding to his already frightening aura. So sue me. I was frightened by a 200 and odd pound man. And believe me it was all muscle. The scar running from his eye to his chin did nothing to help either.

"Drew McIntosh," said person answered interrupting my inner fear monologue.

And then he did this grunt, which I swear KK did in the movie and opened the elevator.

"You can let go now, he's gone."

I glanced down to find my hand tightly gripping Drew's.

"Sorry," I mumbled as I released his hand and yet again gave the blood vessels on my face a work out. I swear, one day the damn things are just gonna pop right out of my face and stage a protest.

It was with great relief and trepidation that I stepped into the darkened penthouse apartment. Tastefully decorated and needless to say huge, it wasn't as bad as I thought. For one there was a complete absence of tell tale tobacco smoke, for which I was eternally thankful.

"Samantha is that you?"

Glancing about the room, I spotted the familiar red head making her way towards me.

"Hey Susan."

"Oh my God! You look great."

"I know," I jokingly replied flipping my hair. "As do you."

"Don't I though," she responded, spinning on the spot, the hem of the dark green halter back dress she sported twirling just a bit. "So did you really come with Drew?"

"Uh yeah, isn't he………"

My voice trailed off as I looked around. The raven haired object of my annoyance nowhere in sight.

"Classic guy, come with a girl and disappear without a word. Don't worry about it. Anyway, while I was on my way here…"

Sharon continued talking and I effectively zoned out, and against my better judgment scanned the room for Drew. Sometimes I really wish I would stop following my mind and listen to myself. Wait…that came out wrong. I wish I'd stop listening to myself and follow my mind. That's not right either. Oh forget it. The point is as soon as I turned around I saw Drew. He was with some girl, stroking her chin and she was all over him, lapping it up. Gag me.

I brought my attention back to Sharon, and nodded hoping she didn't notice I wasn't listening.

"Did you find him?"

Damn, she did notice. Why is this scenario so familiar?

"Let's get a drink."

Without waiting for a response I grabbed her hand and pulled her towards what I assumed was the bar area. By the time we actually made it over there I had been the subject of many a none too friendly looks.

"Uhm, can you tell me why I seem to attract every glare within a ten foot radius?"

"It's pretty obvious…….or maybe not," she continued after seeing the look on my face. "You came in on the arm of Drew McIntosh."

"So, I wasn't even with him for more that 15 seconds."

"Believe me that is enough."

Great. Just another reminder of how far our gender has fallen. To hate another person simply because they walked in with some guy? How shallow can we get? Taking a deep breath I released the fickleness that surrounded me and ordered my drink.

"So what now?" I asked turning to Sharon.

"Well, since this is a party, I suggest you go and have some fun."

"Easy for you to say," I muttered before continuing, "I don't even know anybody here."

"Hmm, hold that thought."

And just like that she disappeared.

I glanced around trying to find where she had gone, but gave almost immediately. There was no way I was gonna find her in this crush. Shrugging I turned my attention back to my drink, slowly sipping it so I'd at least have something to do while I bobbed my head to the music. I was about ready to flee the scene my pathetic display of well, patheticism, when Susan came barging through the crowd. I almost smiled in relief till I saw exactly what she had abandoned me for. I was about ready to glare at her when I noticed a pair of the most startling emerald green eyes.

The owner of the eyes seemed to be doing something, his hand was moving forward and his smile revealed a set of pearly white teeth, almost perfect except for one slightly crooked canine. His hand was now hovering in the air for reasons unknown to me.

"Samantha, are you okay?"

I snapped out of my daze and blinked my unfocused eyes, before staring at his strong hands. Then realization dawned. I gave an embarrassed chuckle and shook his hand.

"Hi, I'm Mark," he introduced himself, smile lines forming around those eyes that only moments before had me mesmerized.

"Samantha," I responded unable to keep from smiling.

I let go of his hand after shaking it for a bit too long and turned to Susan.

"Oh, right, I have to go do a thing……….over there," she said, winked at me then disappeared, for once when I wanted her to.

"So mark, not to be cliché, but tell me about yourself……"

Mark turned out to be a pretty cool guy. He was a free lance journalist and had just come back from covering a story in Zaire. With his killer eyes, brown hair and personality, he was any girls dream guy. Too bad, as I found out later, he had his own dream guy. Yep, I'd just spent around ten minutes flirting with a gay guy. He was cool about it though, and tactfully informed me that he had a boyfriend. Surprisingly I didn't want to end the conversation even then, and we continued talking, as best we could anyway, given the hip hop blaring through the speakers.

I still didn't know whether to laugh or be upset with Susan. Sometime after he'd told me he was gay, I asked him how he knew Susan. I mean, she did kind of set me up with a gay man. So imagine my surprise when his response was a puzzled 'who?'. Apparently, the red head in the green dress, which is how I described her to him, simply grabbed him and came over and introduced us.

Half an hour later, number in hand we parted ways. Him because his boyfriend arrived, and me because I was in desperate need of a bathroom, having downed four glasses of coke while talking to him. Getting drunk at a party like this definitely wasn't on my list of things to do.

I made my way from the bar, and across the living room, all the while keeping an eye out for Susan. She was nowhere to be found, and at this time, the least of my problems as the pressure on my bladder grew and I realized I didn't exactly know where the bathroom was.

I was about to ask when I noticed a hall to my left and light coming from beneath a door. Ignoring the risk I was taking of walking in on something I shouldn't I gently knocked on the door and listened. After hearing no answer or moans from within I cautiously opened the door, instinctively closing my eyes as they were assaulted by the light.

As my eyes adjusted to the brightness I realized that I wasn't in a bathroom but in an office of some sort. Snorting at my luck, I turned to leave, that is, till I saw a figure lying on a couch. Careful, so as not to make any noise, I walked towards the sleeping figure. Imagine my surprise when the slumbering body turned out to be none other than your favourite player and mine, Drew McIntosh. I took a tentative step forward, watching as his chest rose and fell in a steady rhythm, belying the fact that he was genuinely asleep.

I stood there, transfixed about two feet away from him. He had one hand above his head, the other on his stomach, his body covering the full length of the couch. I stood there for I don't know how long just staring at his peaceful expression. He really was so much better asleep, calm and serene. And most importantly quiet. My eyes roamed from his tousled raven hair, straight nose, and full lips, past his broad shoulders and down to his stomach taking in the expanse of skin exposed by his shirt that had ridden up slightly. I ignored the wild beating of my heart and forced my brain to record every moment of this, something I'm sure I'd never be able to experience again.

It wasn't until he stirred in his sleep that I realized that I was quite literally ogling the man while he slept. Slowly stepping back I made my way out of the room, hopefully leaving whatever bout of insanity had taken hold of me in there with him.

Taking deep gulps of air, pulled open the door directly opposite the room I'd just left, and thanked high heaven when it turned out to be a small, but completely functional bathroom. As I washed my hands, I stared at my reflection in the mirror mounted above the sink.

What in the world was I thinking? And why was he asleep? At a party? That he dragged me to.

No matter how long I stared my reflection refused to answer my questions. Shaking my head, I decided it was just the shock of finding him there that caused me to react the way I did. As for why he was there. Some things you just never know.

As I left the bathroom I glanced at my watch, barely able to see the numbers. It wasn't this dark before? It was then that I noticed the light in the den was off. A note of panic rose within me. He didn't see me. Did he? Knowing him he would have said something. Yeah. Definitely.

Taking a deep breath to calm my nerves I walked slowly out of the short passageway, careful not to bump into anyone as my eyes readjusted to the dimly lit room. In a perfect universe I would have made my way across the room entirely unscathed. But me being me, and the world being the wholly unfair place that it is, I bumped into someone, a rather large someone, and would have been sent to the floor face down had it not been for the pair of arms that shot out to grab me.

I got to my feet standing on my own, but the arms never left me, and were a bit too low for my liking. I turned around and looked into the hazel eyes of my "savior". He smiled at me, what would actually be more suitable as a leer. I smiled back uncomfortably, stepping out of his grasp, said my thanks and tried to escape. Operative word being tried.

I had barely taken three steps before I heard his deep voice resonate in my head his hand on my waist and I involuntarily shuddered.

"Hey there, where you going?"

I whipped around to face him, thankfully breaking contact.

"To find my boyfriend," I replied, hoping he'd back off.

"You know, if I had a pretty girlfriend like you, I'd never let you out of my sight," he said stepping towards me.

I took a step back, eager to increase the space between us.

"Yeah, well, that's probably why you don't have one," I replied, hoping he'd pick up on the piss off vibe I was sending him.

"Tsk tsk, sassy now aren't we."

He continued advancing towards me and I continued my retreat.

"Yeah and way out of your league."

Okay, now that wasn't the entire truth. He was pretty good looking, but too much of a sleaze to come on to someone that strongly after only a few seconds.

He smirked at the comment. It was then that I grasped just what had happened. He had successfully backed me into the hall way I had just come out of. We were now completely alone.

"Listen I'm not interested so just take the hint and go away before…"

I never even had to time to come up with a suitable threat because the next thing I knew I was enveloped by a pair of arms and a scent that was undeniably Drew. His arms were around my waist in an alarmingly protective manner. I barely registered what he said the guy but it seemed to be enough to make him back off.

What I did notice though, was the way his arms felt around my waist, the smell of his cologne, and the way his breath tickled the back of my neck as he spoke. Only when he let go of me did I regain control of my breathing.

"Are you alright?" he asked, concern evident in his voice.

I nodded, unable to speak, turning to face him.

He was running a hand through his hair, which had that just out of bed look. Which made sense since he probably just woke up.

"How did you know anyway?"

"I heard you out here and decided to see what was going on. If he touched you in any way I swear to God I'll…"

"No, he didn't thanks to you. I don't know what would have happened if you weren't here. But I'm glad I don't have to find out. Thank you," I finished sincerely, slightly confused by the vehemence in his earlier declaration. "I'll see you later."

And then I fled, almost bumping into Susan.

"Hey there you are. I was beginning to think you'd left."

I shivered and wrapped my arms around myself, still in shock from what almost happened and what actually did. I nodded my head when she asked me if I was cold, fully aware that it wasn't the temperature, but simply the memory of Drew's arms around me that sent my body into a whirlwind of different sensations.

A/N: Uhm, hi. Well, there's the long over due chapter. Hopefully I'll be able to get back into the swing of things soon. So R&R please.