"I'll be right back," he said around a yawn as he walked down the long hallway towards her bedroom. He could have used the guest bathroom, but he preferred hers.

On the way to her bathroom he grabbed a pair of his grey boxer briefs out of her bureau. He stripped out of his clothes and jumped in the shower, wishing he could take a nice long leisurely shower to work the strain out of his muscles, but he was starving and wanted to take advantage of Joe's receptive mood while he could.

Five minutes later he walked into Joe's kitchen, feeling slightly better. He just wanted to eat and get this conversation out of the way so that they could focus on her future. Joe was just starting to fill their plates when he walked past her on his way to the refrigerator.

He grabbed an ice pack for his shoulder and thought about grabbing a couple of beers, but he didn't want her to drink in case she took a painkiller. So instead he grabbed a couple of Cokes. He placed one by her plate and sat down across from her at the small round table.

Other than a murmured "Thank you" she didn't say much to him as they ate for which he was immensely relieved. He was so damn hungry. They had back to back calls all night and the only thing he'd eaten was a stale packet of peanuts he managed to wrestle from a vending machine.

"You want to tell me why you want to get rid of me?" Joe asked when he finished his third helping.

"I'm not trying to get rid of you, Joe," he said, feeling exhaustion threaten to knock him on his ass.

"That's what it sounded like to me," she said, leaning back in chair as she crossed her arms over her chest. "From what I hear you tried to unload me on Nathan." Her tone was friendly, but the look she was giving him was anything but.

Shit.

"This isn't the way I planned on doing this, but I've been thinking that maybe it was time for you to move on and do something else with the rest of your life," he explained. When she only sat there glaring at him he decided that perhaps he needed to explain the situation a little better before she decided to go for his balls.

"Well," he said, clearing his throat and feeling a little uncomfortable under her glare, "you know you couldn't do this forever." She cocked a brow at that little announcement so he added, "Could you really see yourself doing this job when you were fifty?"

"Yes," she said with absolutely no hesitation and made his job of convincing her to do something else more difficult. He decided to get rid of the bullshit pleasantries and get to the point.

"There's no way you'll be able to lift a grown man when you're fifty, Joe, and if you think so then you're crazy. Hell, you'll probably have problems doing it when you're forty. Besides that, Joe, you shouldn't have to do a job like this where you have to put your neck on the line and never really able to have a life because you never know if you're going to get out on time or have to pick up a shift," he said, noting the way her eyes narrowed dangerously on him.

"I have a life," she shot back defensively.

"Oh, really?" he asked, cocking a brow. "When's the last time you had a date?"

"I don't know," she said, shrugging it off like it was nothing, "it doesn't mean anything."

"Uh huh, and when's the last time you got laid?" he asked, silently daring her to lie to him. He knew it had been at least a year and a half for her.

"It's none of your business!" she snapped as she visibly tensed in her seat.

"Yeah, that's what I thought, Joe," he said, pushing his plate away. "You don't date. You don't have much of a life outside of work. Hell, I can't remember the last time you turned down overtime. You're thirty, Joe, and if you keep this job you're going to be forty and lonely and wondering how the hell life passed you by. You need to find something else that's safe and will allow you to have a life. I was thinking that I could help with-"

"What about you?" she suddenly demanded, interrupting him and sounding pissed.

"What about me?"

"You don't have a life. You don't date and I doubt you've gotten laid in the last year," she announced and he had to grind his teeth as he forced away the memory of why he hadn't gotten laid in too damn long to be normal. "Are you going to be looking for another line of work?"

He frowned. "No, why the hell would I?"

"Exactly," she said, placing her hands flat on the table and standing up. She leaned forward. "So it's okay for you to still be doing a job you love at forty, but not for me?" she demanded.

He got to his feet and leaned forward, closing the space between them until their noses were only a few inches apart. "Damn straight."

"Why exactly is that?"

"Honestly?" he asked, not really sure if she wanted to hear the truth.

"Of course," she said tightly and if it had been any other woman he wouldn't have laid into her, but this was Joe and he wanted her safe and if that meant pissing her off then so be it.

"While you think that you're one of the guys, Joe, you're not," he said, ignoring the flash of hurt in her eyes. "You're a woman and while that comes in handy when we have a patient that needs a reassuring word or two and a little handholding it's also a huge problem. You're smaller and weaker and when the shit hits the fan it means that not only does your partner have to handle whatever's going down, but he also has to make sure that you're safe and out of the way. It's a huge f**king liability that no one needs and it's only going to get worse as you get older and you know it."

For a moment she didn't say anything as she looked at him and he thought that maybe he needed to push the point a little more, but thankfully she seemed to understand. "I see. So, it's distracting to work with me," she summed it up.

"Yes."

She shrugged as she stepped away. "Then I guess I don't have any choice but to call up Bill and have him reassign me to another shift since I'm such a distraction for you."

Everything in him went still as her words hit home. She was going to work with someone else? Not f**king happening. As long as she was working on the truck, and if he had his way it wouldn't be much longer, she was going to work with him. He didn't trust some other ass**le to keep an eye on her and keep her safe.

That was his job.

"No," he said evenly.

"No, what?" she demanded.

"You're not switching off of our shift."

"That's not your decision, Eric. In fact, I believe you just made it painfully clear that it's a problem to work with me. Well, I found a solution so you should be happy that I'm going to be out of your hair soon," she bit out angrily as she moved to walk passed him.

He stepped in front of her. "You're not f**king switching off our shift, Joe. As long as you're determined to be pigheaded about this you're going to work with me so that I can keep you safe."

She shoved him back. "Who the hell do you think you are?" she demanded, stepping forward to shove him back again. "You're not my boss or my keeper! If I want to switch my shift then I'll switch my damn shift! And if I want to keep working on the truck until I'm old and gray then that's my goddamn business!"

"Bullshit!" he snapped, grabbing her hands when she went to push him again and shoved them behind her back. The movement forced her to arch into him until her br**sts were plastered against his bare chest and she was forced to glare up at him. "Anything that concerns you is my business."

"No, it's not!" she said, struggling against his hold. "I can take care of myself!"

"You don't have to!"

"Yes, I do!" she yelled.

"Why?" he demanded, yanking her back against him when she managed to put some distance between them.

"Because I don't have anyone, you ass**le! Now let me go!"

He glared down at her. "That's bullshit, Joe."

"No, it's not" she snapped, renewing her struggles, but he didn't let her gain so much as an inch this time.

"You have me, Joe! You've always had me," he bit out evenly. How the hell could she say that or even think that?

She'd always had him. Always. They'd been inseparable since they were eight years old and that hadn't changed, wouldn't change. She was just too damn stubborn to realize that she wasn't alone in this world, but she was hung up on that bitch that abandoned her and refused to see that she'd done her a favor. She was the most important person in his life and he thought that he was the same for her. It killed him to know that she thought she was alone. She wasn't. Not as long as he was around.

"No, I-"

Whatever she was about to say was cut off when he did the one thing he'd longed to do since the dare he'd accepted when they were fourteen, he kissed her. For a moment she stood there, tense, but he didn't let that stop him from enjoying her lips. They were so warm and soft and he couldn't seem to get enough.

He knew he'd f**ked up, but he couldn't help himself. She felt so good in his arms and when she moved her lips slowly against his she felt perfect. It was so damn good, but he wanted more.

With a groan he released her hands and wrapped his arms around her, pulling her impossibly closer as he tilted his head and traced the seam of her lips with the tip of his tongue. When she opened up to him he didn't hesitate. He slid his tongue inside of her mouth and couldn't help but feel like he was coming home.

She suckled his tongue into her mouth as her arms wrapped around his neck. In seconds the kiss went from cautious to out of control and desperate. He couldn't get enough of her and if the way she was fisting his hair was any indication then she felt the same way. They stumbled back until his back met the wall.

Without breaking the kiss he turned them around until she was against the wall. He removed his arms from around her and slid his hands over her back to her sides and up. He ran his hands over her br**sts, earning a needy little growl from Joe as her hard ni**les teased his hands through her shirt. She felt so good, a thousand times better than he ever imagined she would.

After a moment he needed more. He released her br**sts and reached down, cupping her behind her knees and pulled her legs up. She didn't hesitate in wrapping her legs around his waist and he sure as hell didn't waste any time in shifting until his erection was pressed against her center.

Even through multiple layers that separated them he could feel her heat. He couldn't remember ever wanting a woman more than he wanted her at that moment. He ground himself against her as he swallowed her moan of pleasure.

She ran her hands over his back and ass, encouraging him on and he knew by the sounds of her breathing and the way she dug her nails into his back that she was close and god help him, but so was he. It wouldn't be enough. Not nearly enough, he thought as he pulled her away from the wall and placed her on the edge of the kitchen table. He needed to be inside of her.