"Go away." He mumbles sleepily.

"Doug. Wake up." Carol says. As soon as he hears her voice he takes his arm off his eyes and

he looks at her.

"Oh hey Carol." He says. He sits up on the couch and she giggles at him.

"Hey." She says, mid-giggle.

"What?" He asks.

"Nothing." She says, getting a serious look on her face. He smiles at her.

"When did you get here?" he asks.

"Just now." Carol says. He smiles.

"What did you do last night, after I left?" He asks.

"Went to bed." Carol says. He smiles. "What about you?" She asks.

"Called Mark then went to bed." Doug says.

"Why'd you call Mark?" Carol asks curiously.

"Because he wanted me to call and tell him all about everything." Doug says smiling. Carol gets a hurt look on her face and she looks away from Doug. He notices this and gets a puzzled look on his face. He touches her arm. "Carol, what's wrong?" He asks. She turns back to him with tears in her eyes. She bites her lip to keep from crying.

"I didn't want you to tell everyone about me." She says and then she jumps up, running from the lounge. Doug looks after her with a confused look on his face.

"I didn't tell him." Doug says to himself. He jumps up and runs out to the desk. He looks desperately at Mark.

"She went in the ladies room." Mark says. Doug nods.

"Thanks Mark!" He says and goes quickly to the restroom. He cautiously opens the door and he can hear her crying softly. He checks quickly under all the other stalls and sees she is the only one in there. He goes to the last stall, the one she is in.

"Carol?" He says. She gasps. "Carol, open the door." He says.

"Go away." Carol says.

"Carol...let me in." Doug says. She doesn't answer him and doesn't open the door. He sighs. "Carol....I didn't tell Mark. He asked me to but I told him that I didn't know if you would want me to do that and I didn't want to disrespect you. I didn't tell him anything that you said. I swear." Doug says. Just then the door swings open and he sees her, sitting on the toilet, with tear-stained cheeks.

"You didn't tell him?" She whispers. He smiles at her sadly.

"No. I didn't." He says. She hangs her head, ashamed.

"I feel dumb." She says simply. He smiles and crouches down. He lifts her chin with his fingers.

"Your not dumb." He says. She smiles weakly at him and he grins at her. Her heart flutters nervously. She feels like a teenager with a crush on the most popular guy at school.

"Now come on. Let's go." He says. He places his hands on her waist, pulling her up.

"Go ahead. I'll come out after I wash my face." Carol says.

"Alright." Doug says. He kisses her forehead gently, then lets go. He walks out and a woman who was heading into the restroom, looks at him curiously. Mark who is standing nearby and

witnesses this, laughs hysterically. Doug's face burns in embarrassment and he walks over to Mark. He punches him playfully on the shoulder. Mark continues laughing and Doug stands beside him, still embarrassed. Carol walks out a few seconds later and she looks at Mark laughing, then back to Doug.

"Some lady saw me come out of the restroom. He thought this was hilarious, the look on the woman's face." Doug says, trying to explain to her. She smiles and nods. Finally Mark calms down.

"So is everything alright?" Mark asks them. Carol smiles sheepishly.

"Yes." Carol says.

"I'll fill some of it in for you later." Doug says to Mark then smiles at Carol. She smiles back.

"I'm going to get to work." She says.

"Good idea." Doug says, following her to the admit desk. Mark just smiles and shakes his head, walking in the opposite direction.

------------------------------------

Carol and Doug had been dating for a couple of weeks now. They haven't done anything too serious because Doug was waiting on Carol to be ready. He didn't want to pressure her.

"Carol." Doug says, catching up to her at the admit desk. She sees him and smiles.

"Hey Doug." She says. He smiles at her and tenderly reaches up and tucks a curl of hair, behind her ear.

"What time do you get off?" He asks quietly.

"8. Why?" Carol asks, a smile creeping onto her lips.

"Well I get off at 7. So I thought I could stay for an extra hour, to catch up on my paperwork, then we could leave and go get some ice cream at the pier." Doug says. She smiles.

"I'd like that." Carol says. He smiles.

"Good. I'll see you later then." He says. She nods and turns back to her work, not noticing Chuny and Lydia, watching her with a smile.

"You two are cute together." Chuny says to Carol. Carol looks up, surprised, but then smiles.

"Thanks." Carol says. Chuny nods and turns to go take care of a patient. Lydia smiles at Carol and turns and walks away. Carol smiles happily and goes quickly into the lounge where she saw Doug go. She looks around and sees that he is the only one in there. He is sitting in a chair, drinking a cup of coffee. He smiles when she comes into the lounge.

"Hey." He says.

"I think they're starting to accept me!" Carol says happily. He chuckles.

"Why, what happened?" Doug asks.

"After you left, Chuny said that me and you are cute together. Then Lydia smiled at me!" Carol says. He chuckles.

"Surprising that they would say anything about me considering what happened last year. All the women hated me." He says chuckling. Carol smiles happily and sits down on the couch. She sighs happily and closes her eyes.

"I'm tired." She says. He smiles.

"You do look like it." He says.

"Thanks!" She says sarcastically.

"I never said that was bad." He says. He stands up and sets his coffee down. He sits beside her on the couch and her eyes fly open when she feels him sit. He smiles and takes her shoulders into his hands, turning her back to him. He starts to massage her shoulders and she moans out appreciatively.

"Mmmm.." She purrs. He smiles and keeps massaging for a few minutes. Then he leans down and kisses the back of her neck.

"I better get back to work, okay?" He says. She nods.

"Okay." She whispers. He smiles and takes his hands off of her neck and stands. He smiles at her and walks out of the lounge.

Carol walks into an exam room. She has her and Doug's coats.

"You ready?" She asks. He looks up.

"What time is it?" He asks.

"A little after 8." She says.

"Already?" He asks. She nods. He stands up and stretches, then gathers up his paperwork.

"That flew by fast." He says. She smiles and they walk out. He puts his paperwork into the correct piles and then takes his coat from her, slipping it on over his shoulders. He smiles and helps her into her jacket. She smiles and he takes her hand into his. They walk out of the ER and to his jeep.

"What kind do you want?" Doug asks, standing beside Carol at the ice cream stand.

"Chocolate." She says smiling. He nods.

"One chocolate cone." Doug says.

"Coming up." The guy says. They watch him as he scoops the ice cream into the cone. Doug pulls money out of his pocket and puts it on the counter.

"Here ya go." The guy says, handing Doug the cone.

"Thanks." Doug says. He turns around, having given the guy the correct amount of change. He offers her the cone. "You get first lick." He says. She smiles but doesn't take the cone. She just leans into the cone and licks it.

"It's good." She says.

"Is it?" He asks, taking his own lick.

"Cold though." She says. He chuckles and offers her another lick. She accepts it readily. They share the cone for a few more minutes. He leans over to give her another lick and he leans to far, dipping her nose into the ice cream. She gasps, then giggles and he chuckles. He leans forward and licks the cream off her nose, gently. She smiles and he smiles back, before she pulls his head down and meets his lips with hers.

"Chocolatey." Carol murmurs against his lips. He chuckles.

"Delicious." He says and they turn back to their melting ice cream.

------------------------------------

"Doug, do I have to play?" Carol whined. Doug bounced the basketball and shot it through the hoop. He retrieved it and turned to her.

"Yes. Come on." He says, reaching his hand out and pulling her up from the bench. She stands up, her shoulders slumped. "Here shoot it." Doug says. She takes the ball from him and dribbles clumsily.

"You know, I don't have any clue how to do this." Carol says. He smiles.

"Let me show you." He says. He steps behind her and pushes her forward, closer to the basket. Then he wraps his arms around the back of her, taking her arms and putting them in the correct position. Then he bends down and moves her feet into the correct stance.

"Now," He says, stepping away from her, "bend a little at your waist, jump a little, flick your wrist and shoot." Doug says. She does what she's told. The ball sails up and hits the rim, but bounces out. She makes a sour face.

"See. I can't do it." She says.

"Hey wait. No one ever does good there first shot. Michael Jordan probably did worse....Here do it again." He says throwing the ball gently her way. She catches it and tries again, this time making it. Her face lights up and he grins. "See!" He says.

"I can do it." She says, confidence coming to her. He grins.

"Yup. Try it one more time." Doug says. She tries again, making it again. He grins and high fives her. She giggles enthusiastically.

------------------------------------

Doug and Carol had been dating for 2 months now and Doug wanted to do something nice.

"Come to my apartment at 7. Wear something nice." Doug says. She smiles.

"Yes sir." She says. He smiles and gently kisses her.

"I expect you to be there." He says.

"I will." She says. He smiles and walks out of the room.

"Come in." Doug says, opening the door to let Carol into his apartment.

"Aren't we going out?" Carol asks, giving him a puzzled look. He looks her up and down. She has on a black skirt going down to her calves and a gray tank-top sweater. With her coat on over top of it.

"You look great." Doug says. She smiles shyly.

"Thank you. Now are we going?" Carol asks. He smiles at her.

"Close your eyes." He says softly.

"Doug, what are you up to?" Carol asks.

"Close your eyes." He repeats. She sighs and closes her eyes, but her heart starts to beat

faster, anticipating his surprise. He walks behind her, and slips her jacket off of her, then putting his hands over her eyes. He leans his chin onto her shoulder and whispers into her ear.

"Walk forward until I tell you to stop." He says.

"Doug..." She protests.

"Shh...I've got you. You won't fall or run into anything." He reassures her. She sighs and takes a tentative step forward, followed by a few others.

"Okay. Stop." He says. Then he turns her body a different direction. "Okay, keep going." He says. She walks, trusting him. "Stop." He says. He takes his hands away from her eyes and wraps his arms around her waist. "Okay, open your eyes." He says. Her eyes flutter open and he looks at her face to gage her reaction. She looks at the table set for two, with plates of spagetti and a bottle of wine. There is a candle, unlit in the center of the table with a package of matches beside it. There is a rose sitting beside her plate of spagetti. She smiles.

"What's all this?" Carol asks, turning her head to look at him.

"You don't remember?" He asks, smiling. She tries to think but then shakes her head. "This night....two months ago....we had our first date." Doug says. She smiles brightly.

"Yes...Yes, your right." She says. He chuckles and she turns in his arms. She kisses him softly.

"I think that this might be the sweetest thing anyone has ever done for me." Carol says. He smiles.

"Well your welcome." He says. She smiles.

"Thank you," She says, kissing him again. She pulls away from him and sits down. He lights the match, then the candle. Then he fills their glasses with wine. Finally, he walks over and turns off the lights. She smiles, delighted.

"This is wonderful, Doug." Carol says. He smiles.

"I'm glad you think so." Doug says. She smiles and they start to eat.

"That was delicious. Thank you." Carol says. He smiles and stands up. He walks to the stereo and presses play. A soft song fills the room. He walks to her, offering her his hand.

"May I have this dance?" He asks. She smiles.

"Yes you may." She says, taking his hand. He pulls her close to him and looks down at her. Her heart fills with joy and happiness and she can feel it bubbling over into a huge grin. He chuckles and she smiles. She brings her arms up and wraps them around his neck. She lays her head down onto his chest and shoulder. He leans his head against hers.

"Doug?" She says.

"Hmm?" He murmurs.

"I want you to know that I feel safe with you. I trust you." She says. She brings her head up to look him in the eyes. She can see the pure affection for her in his eyes and she smiles. He smiles back at her.

"Good." He says simply. She leans forward, pressing her lips into his. He feels that same electricity pass through them that he felt the first night. He brings his hands up to her face and the kiss deepens. Her knees are so weak, she feels like they are going to give out from underneath her. She makes up her mind right then. She holds onto the sides of him and blindly pulls him towards his room. He pulls his face away from her.

"Carol, what are you doing?" He asks.

"I want you." She whispers, still leading him into his room.

"Carol..." He says, starting to argue, but he sees the sheer passion in her eyes. "Are you sure?" He asks. She nods.

"Positive." She says, pulling him into his room. She closes the door behind them.

Carol was laying on her side, with her chin on Doug's chest. She was stroking Doug's arm lightly and he was watching her face. She looks up and him and he smiles warmly at her.

"Doug, that was.......the most incredible thing I have ever experienced." Carol says. His smile widens. "I know that I'm probably not good compared to other women but I couldn't hardly breath let alone do anything else. I melted under your touch." Carol says.

"No Carol.....that was amazing...I've never felt anything like that before." Doug says. She smiles.

"You don't have to say that. I understand." Carol says, not believing him. He brings his hand up to her cheek and pulls her face closer.

"No. With all those other woman it....was just sex. With you.....that..that was making love." Doug says. A brilliant smile lights up across her face and he chuckles. She scoots up farther.

"You aren't just saying that?" She asks. He shakes his head.

"No." He says quietly. She kisses him happily a few times but he pulls her closer and deepens the kiss. She moans softly and he tries not to grin.

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