Lay Your Weapons Down

Eric was sitting at the bar with Wes, their eyes scanning the room. For all the combined efforts of the Silver Guardians and Silver Hills PD, the town's night life had not become any safer to young women. It frustrated everyone to no end. They'd been hunting their target for months, but without a clear description it was hard going.

They had spotted Taylor and her new boyfriend earlier this evening and Eric had made a point of leaving that corner of the bar for Wes to watch. He still couldn't handle seeing her with someone else. Wes had just given him a sympathetic look, but wisely kept his mouth shut. In the two months since the break-up, Wes had learned he might as well try and cheer up a rock and find it easier going.

Suddenly two young women walked up to them, one looking rather spooked and she was shaking. Her friend wrapped an arm around her shoulders. 'Just tell them.'

Eric instantly recognized the girl from sitting in on her interview at the police station.

'We were going to go out, have a few drinks here. So he doesn't hold power over me no more, you know. Like getting back on a bike after falling? He was here. We passed him as he was leaving,' the girl rambled.

'Did he have someone with him?' Wes asked, now on full alert.

'Yeah, a woman,' the girl nodded. 'Tall, blonde, but definitely much older than me.'

'That doesn't really narrow it down,' Wes sighed, pulling out his phone to call it in anyway.

'Um, she had her hair up in a ponytail and was wearing a yellow shirt and jeans,' the girl added.

Eric was up and out the door before Wes realised what was happening. He quickly called the station, knowing they'd coordinate back up and told the girls to stay where the barman could see them, before taking off after his friend.

Meanwhile Eric scanned the streets frantically, but his targets seemed to have vanished into thin air. He cursed and kicked a streetlamp when he heard shouting and the sounds of a struggle coming from an alley two buildings down. Eric quickly sprinted in the direction of the noise.

Relief flooded through him when he found the people he was looking for. The man was assaulting the woman. She was trying to put up a fight, but a bloody spot on the wall indicated she'd hit her head and was probably thrown off balance by it. Eric quickly pulled the man away, seeing the woman's shirt was ripped. She wrapped her arms around herself while Eric ducked a blow to his head.

Eric tried to subdue the man, but he was a bloody good fighter landing a blow to his jaw and several to his ribs. Luckily Wes showed up a minute later and together they managed to wrestle the man to the ground. The sound of police sirens started to fill the air and once Eric was sure Wes could keep the guy pinned on his own, he turned to the man's victim.

Taylor was shaking as she stared wide eyed at the man Wes had pinned to the floor. Eric carefully walked up to her and shrugged off his jacket. He wrapped it around Taylor and rubbed her back. 'You're okay,' he muttered.

Taylor turned away from staring at the man and caught his eye. Something inside of her snapped and she slumped against Eric. He stumbled at the sudden weight, but adjusted and wrapped his arms around her. 'You're okay,' he repeated.

The next few minutes were a blur of activity as the cops showed up and arrested the man. An officer asked Taylor if she'd come to the station to press assault charges and she nodded quietly. Wes quickly offered to drive her, noticing the crowd that was gathering.

As Eric and Wes escorted Taylor to their patrol truck, they noticed another officer had gone to collect the girl and her friend from the bar so she could make a positive ID at the station and leave a statement. Eric opened the back door for Taylor and got in with her while Wes got behind the wheel.

'Do you want us to call anyone?' Wes asked Taylor, looking in the rear view mirror. 'Alyssa or…'

Taylor quickly shook her head. 'No, please don't. She'll be worried sick,' Taylor muttered. 'They all will. I'm fine.'

Wes raised an eyebrow at her, but decided not to comment. Though he doubted this situation was doing Eric's broken heart any good.

Hours later Taylor walked into the reception area of the police station. She'd finished filing her charges and learned the man she'd been dating was a rapist targeting college girls. The police and the Guardians had been trying to catch him for months. He'd even admitted and bragged about it when he was put in an interview room. She'd been on the other side of the two way mirror with one of his victims as the girl identified him.

The worst part of her evening, however, was when she learned she was just another target. Though she didn't fit his type, he targeted her especially to hurt Eric as revenge for getting in the way of him and his target a few times. The only thing that had helped her keep it together so far was the warmth and smell of Eric's jacket. It felt like he was there, holding her close and keeping her safe.

Speaking of, she spotted Eric sitting in the waiting area and he looked absolutely horrible, a bruise already forming on his jaw. Taylor slowly walked over to him and he looked up when he spotted her shoes.

'Where's Wes?' she asked.

'HQ, he's finishing up the Guardians end of the operation.'

'Shouldn't you be helping him?'

'I figured you'd need a ride,' he answered, dangling the car keys from his fingers. 'Since you didn't want anyone to be called and all.'

'Thanks.'

She wanted to say so much more, but it was all that came out. Eric got up and led her out of the station. She didn't protest when he place a hand on her back, welcoming the physical contact. He opened the passenger door of the truck for her to get in and got behind the wheel once she'd settled.

'Where to?' Eric asked, starting the engine. 'Hospital?'

'Home,' Taylor replied, shaking her head.

'Your head?'

'Will be fine, probably looked worse than it is.'

'Where's home?' Eric sighed as he put the car in gear.

Taylor gave him the address and he put the car in motion, indicating right as he wanted to leave the parking lot to get on the road to Turtle Cove. He was about to take the turn when the address finally registered and he slammed the breaks. With wide eyes he looked at Taylor.

'Where?' he asked, just knowing his brain was playing tricks on him.

Taylor looked down, not being able to meet his eyes anymore. 'You didn't sell it today, did you? The sign was still up when I passed it yesterday,' she muttered.

'No, I didn't sell it. But…'

'Please?' Taylor looked up again.

Knowing it was probably a very, very bad idea Eric took a left turn off the parking lot instead. The drive to the house was silent, neither knowing what to say. At the house Eric unlocked the door and let Taylor in first. He watched her observe the state it was in and took note of the empty beer bottles scattered around himself. Taylor chose not to comment as she turned to him.

'Is it okay if I take a shower?'

'You know the way,' Eric shrugged.

While Taylor took her shower, Eric decided to clean up the place a bit. It wasn't until he sat down on the couch with a cup of tea for the both of them and heard her move around in the bedroom that he realised she didn't have anything to change into. He froze when she came back downstairs and stood in front of him in his clothes.

Taylor bit her lip and gingerly sat down on the couch next to Eric, accepting the cup of tea her offered.

'Thanks,' she muttered, taking a sip. She smiled when she tasted he'd put in just the right amount of sugar. Eric looked so unsure of himself right now when she glanced at him. 'They said you've been hunting him for months now.'

'It was a classified operation. If word got out we were actively hunting for him he might have shifted his hunting grounds,' Eric answered.

'So all those nights you came home smelling of bars, you'd really been working late?' Taylor muttered. Eric looked away. 'Did Jen know?'

'Wes might've told her he was visiting bars for work, but she didn't know the why.'

'But you didn't trust me,' Taylor sighed, looking down at her tea.

'No, you didn't trust me,' Eric sighed. 'You made the rule of not mentioning work at home so we'd have somewhere to unwind. Or did you forget? I figured I was already pushing it telling you I'd be working late for a while. And anyway, you were looking miserable enough. I thought you needed some space.'

Taylor let out a humourless laugh. 'It was a stupid rule, coming to bite me in the arse it seems,' she looked up and met his eye. 'I'm miserable at work. I live for my flights with the Eagle, but otherwise I just can't find the joy in it anymore.'

'Why didn't you say so?' Eric asked gently.

'Because there was a mortgage to pay and I have no clue what else I could do instead,' Taylor admitted. 'I didn't want to upset you or make you solely responsible for paying that mortgage. You were already more irritable than usual.'

'Because the Guardians are trying to set up an air support division and it's not going so well because no one knows the first thing about flying.'

Taylor laughed again and shook her head. 'So all this shit could've been avoided if we just talked to each other. Because it sounds to me like we had the solution to both our problems.'

A small smile played on Eric's lips. 'It would seem so.'

Taylor wanted to reply, but a yawn interrupted her. Eric caught her empty mug and got up.

'Go to sleep, you can have the bed,' Eric told her as he left the living room.

Taylor felt empty walking up the stairs again. Of course Eric wouldn't be sharing the bed with her. He hadn't helped out because it was her getting assaulted, he was just doing his job. The fact that he'd let her be here, well, he'd do anything she asked, but even suckers had their boundaries. And after the way she'd left, first letting their problems grow and then running from them instead of working through them, she couldn't blame him either.

The first thing she noticed when she crawled into bed was that it seemed very absent of Eric's smell, like he hadn't slept there for a while. With tears in her eyes Taylor fell into a restless sleep.

The alarm clock told her it was only half an hour later that she woke up trembling. Not even wanting to try and go back to sleep, Taylor threw off the covers and crept downstairs. Eric was camped out on the couch, still in the same clothes and without even a pillow or blanket. At the sound of his name he woke instantly and blinked at her as if surprised to see her.

It only took him a moment to take in the state of her and then he was up and gathered her in his arms.

'He's not here,' Eric muttered. 'The police have him locked away and there's no way he's getting in here.'

'Please just hold me,' Taylor found the words tumbling from her lips. Eric hesitated a moment, but led her back upstairs.

Taylor watched him quickly change from his clothes into a pair of sweatpants, smiling when she saw him touch a T-shirt but deciding against it. In bed she snuggled close to him and felt her whole body relax when Eric pulled her close. Head pillowed on his chest, Taylor listened to his heartbeat.

'Eric?'

'Yeah?'

'Why did you put so many extra hours into catching that guy? Because I doubt Wes clocked even half of them with you.'

Eric sighed and Taylor thought he wouldn't answer. 'I had a sister,' he started quietly. 'She was a better person than me. Much more open and everyone liked her. She fitted in where I didn't. Our dad was a drunk and he hit our mom, would've hit my sister too if I didn't get in the way. So when we got awarded scholarships to prep schools, it was like we'd found our golden ticket to a better life. Only I didn't fit in, couldn't fit in and dropped out. She finished school and even got a full scholarship to go to college.

'One evening she was walking back to her dorm from the library when she was attacked. I'd already joined up and was allowed leave to be with her. She wasn't the girl I knew anymore, completely broken by the attack. Police said there wasn't much they could do beside have her file a report. What wasn't broken before, broke then. She didn't feel safe anymore and eventually, I had to check her in to protect herself.

'I'd barely returned to base when I got the call. The attack had left her pregnant and she couldn't handle the thought, so she took her own life. The bastard that did it was never caught. I couldn't bare another girl facing such a hopeless situation that she'd see only one way out. I'd had to at least offer them that tiny bit of hope that their rapist would get caught.'

'You're a good man, Eric Myers,' Taylor muttered.

'Why were you dating him anyway?' Eric asked.

'Alyssa,' Taylor sighed. 'He's an Air Force pilot and started asking me out when he learned we'd split. I kept turning him down at first, but Alyssa convinced me to accept. I was down and she told me I needed cheering up. And I could do much worse for a rebound guy. I was trying to end it, though. Couldn't stop comparing him to you. Then he attacked me. He caught me off guard and…'

'And you could've easily handled him,' Eric assured her. 'Now go to sleep.'

Taylor smiled, having heard that tone of voice many times before. But this time, she decided to listen.

Eric felt a pang of something when he woke up to an empty bed the next morning. He'd known it was a bad idea to take Taylor home with him the night before. And getting into bed with her was an even dumber thing to do. But when she obviously needed him, there was very little self-control left to say no to her.

Reluctantly he got up and walked downstairs to get himself some coffee going to wake up. When he entered the kitchen the smell of coffee already greeted him, mixed in with the smell of breakfast.

Taylor slid some pancakes onto a plate and turned the stove off before turning around to face him.

'Just in time,' she smiled, pointing at his mug of coffee and carrying two plates of pancakes to the breakfast bar. 'This was about the only thing that still looked edible.'

Eric tentatively sat down next to her, trying very hard not to get distracted by the fact she was wearing his T-shirt and if there was anything under it or not.

'So… what now?' he asked, focusing on his pancakes.

'I called work already and explained what happened. They've given me a week of leave to process it,' Taylor started.

'I'll drop you off at home on my way to work.'

'What if I don't want to be dropped off?'

'It's okay if you'd rather call a taxi,' Eric shrugged.

'Not what I meant,' Taylor sighed and bit her lip. 'What if I'd rather stay here?'

'You walked out, not me,' Eric reminded her. 'How long before you change your mind again?'

'You didn't fight very hard to keep me,' Taylor bit back.

'Who didn't fight very hard? Because you know, it's kinda hard to fight for someone if they don't answer their phone or messages for a week,' Eric glared. 'And your message was pretty clear when you left your keys after you picked up your stuff. What did you want me to do? Stalk you for the rest of your life, begging to come back to me?'

Taylor heard the hurt more than the anger in his voice and she looked down at her plate in shame. She was saved from coming up with an answer by Eric's phone ringing. Wes's face light up the screen and Taylor was a little surprised when he put the call on speaker.

'What?!'

'Sorry, did I wake you?' Wes replied.

'No, sorry,' Eric sighed. 'I was about to head out to work.'

'Don't,' Wes told him. 'I'm calling to say you're taking the day off and I'm still debating if I'm making that a week. You put in so many hours lately. You need a break, not to mention how much you're deserving one too.'

'Fine,' Eric agreed.

'Well, that was easier than I thought it would be,' Wes quipped. 'Did Taylor accept that ride yesterday?'

'Yeah, she did,' Eric shot a look at Taylor.

'So, did you drop her off at Alyssa and Cole's?'

'No.'

'Eric,' Wes audibly sighed. 'I told you she shouldn't be alone. Even someone as tough as Taylor is bound to get some reaction to being assaulted.'

'Yeah, I know.'

'Wait…' Wes said after a moment of silence. 'She's not there is she?'

'And what if she is?' Eric challenged.

'Do I need to remind you how she up and left you two months ago? I know how much you love her and can't say no to her, like ever, but seriously. Just because you swooped in like her knight in shining armour doesn't wash away any problems you were having. And jumping into bed with her on that high is about the worst thing you could do.'

'We did not have sex,' Eric rolled his eyes.

'Glad to know at least one or two brain cells still got blood yesterday,' Wes snorted.

'Next time you're making a fool of yourself for Jen, I'm taping it and holding it ransom,' Eric grumbled. 'Now, if you don't mind, I'm going to finish my breakfast and figure out how I'm going to spend my day off.'

'If you have any sense at all, you'll be spending it trying to return that ring.'

'Bye Wes.'

'What ring?' Taylor asked, when the connection was cut.

'Nothing that concerns you.'

'Eric?'

Eric closed his eyes and looked away. 'I was going to ask, but I couldn't find the right moment. And then the third rape got reported and SHPD called us in to help out and shit snowballed from there.'

'I'm an idiot,' Taylor sighed, tears in her eyes. 'I'm such an idiot.'

'Yeah, I noticed.'

'Look, I know it's a lot to ask. And I probably don't deserve it after the way I behaved. But could you find it in your heart to give me a second chance?' Taylor begged.

'Wes obviously thinks I shouldn't. And he's probably right. Rebound guy or no, you moved on awfully fast.'

'And I was breaking it off because he wasn't you and I realised how stupid I was being. I was going to come and beg for you to take me back. These two months apart, I came to realise how lucky I was to have you. I got so jealous just seeing another woman talk to you. I missed you so much and I don't ever want to miss you again. Please? I'll do anything.'

Eric sighed and looked at his phone. 'You heard Wes,' he said and Taylor's face fell. 'I can't say no to you.'

Taylor took a moment to realise what he meant. Then she jumped off the barstool and threw her arms around him, pressing her lips to his. She'd intended for it to be a short kiss, but all the floodgates opened and all the pent up emotions of the past months poured in the touch, making her deepen it. Eric stood up and had Taylor pinned between him and the breakfast bar, his hands on her hips, thumbs stroking up and down.

Once oxygen became a pressing matter, they pulled apart and Taylor leaned against him.

'I can't even remember the last time you kissed me like that,' she sighed.

'I can't remember the last time you let me touch you so I could,' Eric countered, sliding his arms around her waist to hold her closer.

'We need to schedule more quality time from now on. Date night at least once a week, but not on a set day so we can work around your schedule,' Taylor smiled.

'Sound good to me.'

'And since you have the day off now… Can we move my stuff back in here?' Taylor asked tentatively.

'No,' Eric replied. Seeing Taylor's face fall, he moved in for another long taste of her lips.

'Or, we could disappoint Wes and have sex now,' Taylor suggested when he pulled back again.

'Maybe later,' Eric said, trailing kisses down her neck. 'First we're going to lay down some new ground rules. Like: From now on we talk about shit that's bothering us, even if it's work related. Second, we'd probably benefit from some counselling to learn how to do that, because we both tend to keep things bottled up.'

'Sounds good to me,' Taylor agreed.

'Third, we're getting dressed into something mildly decent and we're picking up your stuff from whatever place you've been living at.'

'But you just said…'

'I'm practising saying "no" to you,' Eric grinned innocently.

Taylor laughed and gave a quick kiss on his lips. 'Practise harder, because this "no" sounds like a "yes" to me.'

'I benefit greatly from this particular "yes". And fourth,' Eric continued, his hand slowly trailing lower to rest on the bare skin of her leg. 'Maybe when we get back and put everything back where it belongs, we can see about that sex bit.'

'Or we could have sex first and do everything else after,' Taylor suggested.

'Nah, we're doing it my way. Don't want people to think we rushed back into this.'

'Got a shirt I can borrow?'

'Now you start asking?' Eric raised an eyebrow, tugging at the shirt she was already wearing. Taylor blushed only a little.

Later that afternoon Eric and Taylor were lying in bed together. Eric had been pleasantly surprised Taylor's new apartment hadn't been in Turtle Cove, but in Silver Hills and they'd made quick work of getting her out and back in with him. She'd barely unpacked anything anyway.

Now the smell of fresh bedding mixed with the smell of sex that hang in the air. Taylor had one leg over Eric's hips and her head pillowed on his chest, her ear resting right over his heart. He was lazily trailing patterns on her bare back.

'Eric?'

'Hmmm?'

'May I see that ring?'

Eric hesitated for a moment, but then reached out and pulled open the drawer of his nightstand. Taylor took the square velvet box he offered her. She set it on his chest and flipped it open so she could see inside without moving from her comfortable position.

'What made you buy it?' she asked, admiring the platinum ring with three small stones. The middle was a simple white diamond, flanked by two yellow ones.

'Because saying I love you was losing its shine. I wanted to make sure you knew just exactly how I feel about it. Because I love you above all else in this world and I can't imagine my life without you. These past two months I did and they were hell. Nothing felt quite right without you and I was only going through the motions, but I wasn't living my life anymore. I don't care if we'd stay perpetually engaged and I'm not expecting you to take my name or whatever. I just want you to be able to look at that ring and know without a doubt that I'm yours and you're mine.'

'Yes.'

'Excuse me?'

'Yes,' Taylor repeated.

'I wasn't proposing.'

'You couldn't beat this if you tried,' Taylor smiled. 'And the right moment you were waiting for might never come. So, yes, I'll marry you.'

Eric looked at her with a blank stare for a moment, before a smile slowly crept on his lips and he sat up. Taylor made a noise of protest, but smiled when he pulled the ring from the box and slid it onto her finger. 'We're not setting a date until we've worked this shit out.'

'Agreed,' Taylor nodded, admiring the ring. She moved in to kiss Eric when her phone rang. With a groan she dropped down on the bed and reached out to get it. 'Taylor,' she answered.

'Taylor, thank god. Are you okay? Wes just called and told me this crazy story about what happened last night. Do you need me to come over?'

'I'm going to kill Wes,' Taylor grumbled. 'Hey, Alyssa. The story wasn't crazy, it really happened. I'm fine and I don't need you to come over.'

'But you shouldn't be alone!' Alyssa protested.

'Who says I am?'

'Taylor! If you tell me you're with Eric right now, I'm going to… Well, I don't know what I'll do, but you beware. Just because he shows up and helps arrest this guy doesn't mean you should forgive him for what he put you through!'

'It's actually the other way around,' Taylor corrected. 'All those late nights he was working trying to catch the guy. And I walked out on him for being a good person. I put him through hell because I wasn't opening up about my problems.'

'You broke up with him just two months ago,' Alyssa pointed out.

'Trial separation we've both agreed we don't ever want to repeat again. I was running back to him anyway. The assault had nothing to do with that other than it happening just a few hours earlier. We both promised to do better this time around.'

'He'd probably say just about anything to get into your pants again,' Alyssa scoffed.

'Then I'd like to hear you explain why he kept a ring in his nightstand that happened to be exactly my taste in jewellery and my ring size. He couldn't have known this was going to happen.'

'Don't tell me the idiot proposed.'

'No, he didn't. But I said yes anyway.'

'You two are crazy and you deserve each other.' Taylor could hear the eye roll. 'This conversation isn't over yet. But I guess if you're okay and you're not alone I'll leave it for now. However, you had better meet me for lunch tomorrow and you're telling me everything.'

'If I must,' Taylor grinned. 'Just don't go calling Wes the moment you hang up or start planning any weddings yet. Eric's gesturing he'll tell him tomorrow. And we'll let you know when we're ready to set a date. Because I might be back living with Eric and wearing a ring right now, we've still got some things to work through before we should think about actually getting married. Eric's even fine with being perpetually engaged.'

'Okay, maybe, just maybe, you're not sounding all that stupid right now. As long as you're happy.'

'I am and who knew… Turns out relationships actually take effort and communication to work.' Alyssa laughed at that and Taylor smiled. 'I'll see you tomorrow.'

'See you tomorrow. And be sure to tell Eric I'll cut off his balls if he ever hurts you again.'

'I will.' Taylor promised and cut the connection before shutting her phone off. 'Friends are annoying.'

'But they mean well,' Eric smiled, pulling her back to him. 'We'll deal with their thinking they know better again tomorrow. Now I believe you were about to kiss me?'

With a smile, Taylor leaned in and pressed his lips to his. They were far from perfect, but with a little effort, they could make it. And deep down in her heart, Taylor knew they would.