Sweet Misery

[JosieTash]

That was ACE !!!!, especially ......

 "Are you going to pay for it?" Brax snapped, knowing fair well what the answer would be.

"My bro practically owns this joint now....I should hope my paying days are over."

Brax rolled his eyes and opted to get Heath a drink. Slamming the bottle down on the counter, he glared over at his brother. "That'll be the only one that's on the house."

"Geez, uptight much?

 After making a quick apology to Ruby, blaming her outburst on hormones, Charlie had made herself scarce. She dreaded to think what Casey must have thought of her now, and Ruby had looked far from impressed.

 Sitting down beside her boyfriend, she leant over and placed a kiss on his cheek.

"What was that for?"

"Being you."

 dressed only in board shorts which left the water dripping across their half naked bodies. Something which was attracting a view stares from girls passing by. Charlie qiuckly noticed him in the crowd, and watched him for a second as she temporarily got lost in her own thoughts.

 "She seems hot!" Heath commented, not realising from that distance that she was the police officer that he hated. The police officer that always seemed to go out of her way to make things difficult for him.

 "Are you sure you can't stay for dinner? We could finish watching that film..." Ruby begged, discretely winking at Casey. Brax tried to hide his smile. To be young and in love... He glanced at Charlie who was also doing the same.

"No, we should get going..." Casey tried not to sound too disappointed.

Charlie glanced down at the array of food she had just bought and smiled. "You two are more than welcome to stay for dinner. There's enough for four." She shrugged, trying not to make it seem like such a big deal.

Ruby and Casey immediately perked up and looked to Brax to agree. Brax stared at his brother who was nodding at him, urging for him to do the same.

Brax gave in. "Ok, only if you're sure..."

Ruby and Casey didn't need to be told twice. They rushed back into the living room

 But those boys....as bad as they are in the eyes of the law..." His comment caused her to smirk slightly. "They are my family. Well for a while, they were the only real family I had.

 And mum...well her love for her family stops at the liquor store.

 "What? He used to be a copper?" He couldn't hide his surprise. Angelo hadn't mentioned his past, not that Brax had thought to enquire. He couldn't believe that not only was he crushing on a cop, he was now partners with an ex-cop. The boys would have a ball with this information. He knew he would have to keep that information on the downlow for now.

 He cleared his throat and they immediately jumped apart, a sheepish look on both of their faces.

 "Romeo and Juliet in there. I'm surprised one of them hasn't suffocated the way they were behaving."

 "Angelo...hi!" It came out a little more drunk than she had hoped.

[Chax47]

Hey!!

The next chapter is all ready for you It's not as long as yesterday, but I hope you all enjoy just the same! Hopefully the next update for this and Temptation should be coming your way tomorrow or Thursday!!

Thanks to lucii, luscious01, Samantha1, ~JarlieFanEver~, Jen1205, and JosieTash for the reviews You lot are awesome!!

Anyways...here we go...

(Just a little warning that there are a couple of swear words...)

Chapter 4

Angelo's phone vibrated in his pocket as he made his way through the Surf Club and up the stairs to the restaurant. Rejecting the call, he opted to turn his phone off. Charlie had been calling him all morning and so far he had managed to successfully dodge each of her attempts. He still wasn't ready to talk to her after storming out on her the night before. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't shake the worry that had settled in the pit of his stomach. It had all seemed perfectly innocent; a mum having dinner with her daughter and her daughter's boyfriend and brother. That wasn't the issue. It was the identity of the brother which made Angelo feel so uneasy.

Entering the restaurant, he felt his temper blur as he laid eyes on Brax stood behind the bar. He was sorting through invoices while holding a conversation with one of the waitresses. Something she said made Brax laugh loudly, but on catching glimpse of Angelo his laughter quickly died down. He muttered something to the waitress and she glanced at Angelo before walking away and continuing with her work, a sheepish look on her face.

Angelo strode over to the bar, walking past Brax as he made himself a coffee. Standing with their backs to each other, both men remained in silence, waiting for the other to speak. Realising that Angelo wasn't going to back down anytime soon, Brax spoke up.

"Morning." It was simple yet didn't seem to have much of an effect. Even though he had his back to him, Brax could tell that Angelo wasn't planning on responding.

Grabbing the books from under the bar and his coffee, Angelo walked right past Brax and took a seat at a table, quite a distance away from the bar. Rolling his eyes, Brax put down the invoice he had been studying as he followed his business partner.

Leaning on the chair opposite where Angelo was sat, he stood in silence for a minute as he studied the man in front of him. Angelo hadn't even bothered to look up. Brax took a deep breath before continuing.

"If there is something bothering you, you should just come out with it." Brax kept his voice low so that the rest of the staff didn't hear them. Angelo finally looked up at him, his face remaining straight.

"What could possibly be bothering me?" He replied sarcastically, his eyes scrutinizing every inch of Brax's face.

Brax stared back at him. "So is there the part where you tell me to stay away from your girlfriend, right?"

Angelo couldn't help but scoff at the question. His face suddenly changed, taking on a smug expression much to Brax's disgust. "I don't have to. Charlie isn't stupid, she'll soon figure you out for what you really are."

"Oh, and what's that?"

"Just another River Boy." Angelo spoke each word slowly, knowing that with every word he would be hurting Brax in someway. Brax could feel the anger boiling up inside of him as the two men stared coldly at each other.

Brax knew he had the upper hand. "Well you were quite happy to take this River Boy's money." Angelo momentarily looked away from him, knowing that for once Brax was actually right. "So you might want to consider that next time you think you have something to say."

Brax snarled him as he walked away but there was the sound of a chair screeching behind him as Angelo followed him. "I haven't finished." Brax stopped in his tracks and spun around. "Just because you might temporarily own half of this restaurant, doesnt mean that the rest of my life is up for grabs too. Charlie is off limits; you might want to consider that next time you start to think otherwise."

Angelo stared at him for a moment before brushing past him and heading into the kitchen. Brax rubbed the back of his neck, his gaze falling down to the floor. This is going to be one long day!

-----

Heath pushed his foot down on the pedal, as he steered the car down the empty road. His fingers drummed on the wheel in time with the radio, which he currently had blasting. He sung along to the occassional song, loosing himself in the freedom he felt being on the open road. He'd received a call from Brax a little while earlier to ask him to join him for a drink that afternoon. Apparently he had been getting grief from work and needed to vent. Heath was only too happy to agree.

The sight of flashing lights caught his attention in his rearview mirror. As the sound of a siren began to make it's way through the loud music, Heath threw his head back against the headrest and sighed. "****!"

He pulled the car over to the side of the road. The drumming on the steering wheel had now turned into a pounding. His run ins with the police were becoming far too frequent and Heath was beginning to grow tired of it; even though most times he probably deserved the attention they were giving him.

The police car pulled up behind him and a slender, dark haired woman exited the car. Pulling a cap over her hair, she slowly made her way over to the car. She stopped outside the window, a smirk on her face as she realised who was in the car.

"Ah, Mr Braxton. This is becoming a bit of a habit don't you think?"

Heath rolled his eyes at her. This woman was beginning to grate on his nerves; she seemed to be going out of her way to catch him doing anything. The look on her face told him that she too felt the same way, although she did get a bit of a kick out of busting him each time.

"I know. If you just asked me out, we could stop all this pretending..." He winked at her. If he looked past the fact that she worked for the enemy, he had to admit that she was pretty hot. Not that he would ever date a cop; they all knew that was a territory you just didn't step into.

The smirk fell off her face as she stared back at him, holding out her hand. "License and registration please."

He sighed as he reached into the glove compartment and removed the documents, slapping them into her hand.

"Do you realise how fast you were driving back there?"

"Couldn't have been very fast, considering a chick managed to catch up with me..."

She ignored his comment as she walked away from the car for a moment to radio in his details. Heath watched her every move in the wing mirror. She returned a few moments later and handed him back his paperwork.

She issued him his fine before giving him a final warning. He nodded along like he was listening, but she knew that in most cases it went in one ear and out of the other. He watched as she drove away, fuming at his latest run in with this woman. He knew deep down that it wouldn't be long before they met again.

-------

Brax continued his shift, making sure that he avoided Angelo whenever he could. Angelo was clearly doing the same, as the pair of them barely spoke all day. Charlie had continued to try and call Angelo while she had been at work and he eventually caved in and answered. They had a brief conversation on the phone and agreed to meet up for dinner that night. The more he thought about it, the more he realised that she hadn't really done anything for him to be angry with her for. The issue he had rested solely with Brax and the problems that being in partnership with a River Boy was starting to present.

Brax finished his shift and waited around in the restaurant for Heath to arrive. He didn't have to wait long for Heath to arrive, looking just as fed up and annoyed as Brax felt. Angelo watched silently as Heath greeted his brother, whispering something to him before looking over in Angelo's direction. Angelo had to admit that he felt slightly uneasy being the object of Heath Braxton's attention; after the stories he'd heard about him he knew he was somebody that you were best to avoid. He managed to hold his gaze though, not wanting to look as though was afraid of a gang of thugs.

"Leave it man." Brax patted Heath on the shoulder, pulling Heath from his stare. "It's not worth it. I'll see you tomorrow Angelo." Brax called over his shoulder as he lead his brother out of the restaurant and down the stairs into the Surf Club.

"So what's with you today? You don't look paticularly happy?" Brax enquired as they entered the Surf Club. They made their way through the crowded club, heading towards the exit.

Heath's eyes were focussed on the doorway as he watched a familiar face walk in and stop at the juice bar. "Her. She is my problem." Brax looked at Heath before following where he was looking. "That's the bitch that got me for speeding this arvo!"

Brax recognised the face and smiled. After paying for her drink, Charlie turned around and spotted him. She smiled as she walked over to him.

"Hi Charlie."

"Brax." She replied, taking a sip of her drink.

"How are you?" He couldn't contain the smile on his face, although he knew that after his conversation with Angelo that morning he was heading into dangerous territory.

Heath's mouth dropped as he watched the interactions between the two. He knows this woman?

"I'm ok. Just been for a run!" She explained, suddenly feeling very conscious of the fact that she was dressed in a tracksuit and vest top. Although judging by the smile on Brax's face he didn't seem to mind her wardrobe choices. She turned her attention to Heath, who had been studying her intently. "Hi Heath." It was the first time that they had spoken when it hadn't had anything to do with the law.

He ignored her, and turned to Brax. "We best get going..."

Charlie and Brax looked at each other and then back at Heath who was growing impatient. "Can you give us a second?" Brax asked his brother, much to Heath's dismay.

Heath rolled his eyes. "I'll wait for you outside. Hurry up." He gave Charlie a final glare before leaving them alone.

Brax looked down nervously at the floor before gazing back up to her. "I'm sorry about him."

Charlie shrugged. "It's fine."

They remained silent for a moment, before Brax broke the silence again. "I hope I didn't get you into much trouble last night? We shouldn't have stayed for dinner...I'm sorry." He knew that if Angelo had been giving him a hard time, God only knows what he had been like with Charlie.

"You didn't get me into trouble, don't worry. And you were invited, you have nothing to apologise for." Her words brought a small smile to her face. "He hasnt given you a hard time today, has he?"

Brax looked away from her and she immediately knew the answer. She sighed. "No, not at all." He hated lying to her, but the last thing he needed was to get her into anymore trouble.

She knew he was covering for Angelo, although she didn't want to push the issue any further. "Well, I best get going. I'll see you round." She gave him a friendly smile as she walked out of the Surf Club, passing Heath on his way back in.

Brax stood there, grinning at the spot where she had seconds ago stood. Heath interrupted his happy mood.

"Oh hi Charlie." He mimicked Brax. "You're friends with the cop?" He sounded more annoyed than he was when he arrived.

Brax shrugged. "Yeah I guess I am. She's Casey's girlfriend's mother." Brax tried to explain the situation hoping that Heath wouldn't see through him to the truth. But unfortunately for him, Heath knew his brother better than Brax had anticipated.

"You fancy her." He stated.

Brax blushed. "No I don't. And besides, she's Angelo's girlfriend." Brax sighed; he still couldn't believe his bad luck.

"That's easily rectified." Heath nudged Brax as they made their way out of the Club.

Brax shook his head. "No. I don't want her to get hurt."

They walked along in silence for a moment, heading towards Heath's car so that they could drive to a different bar. Suddenly Brax remembered what they had been talking about before Charlie turned up and he slapped Heath around the back of his head.

Heath ducked his head with the impact and glared across at his brother. "What was that for?"

"Speeding Heath, really?"

Heath's mouth fell open for the second time that day. "Are you kidding me? You've been friends with this woman for two minutes and you're already taking her side."

Brax ignored his comment as they finally reached the car. "Just cut it out." Brax warned and Heath knew by the tone of his voice that Brax meant it. This woman was messing with Brax's head and Heath didn't like it one bit.

----

Hope you enjoyed! As always, let me know what you think

Lianne x

[luscious01]

Another great update.....brax is really falling for charlie cant wait for your next update

thanks Lianne

x

[Jen1205]

Another great chapter Lianne, Thanks for updating so quick.

I think Angelo is going to find it very hard to keep Chax apart. Can't wait for your next update

[soph1303]

Great update,

Hehe Ruby and Casey quite amused me in that update !!

Oooh, Charlie and Brax are starting to heat up !!

Eww, go away Angelo !!

More soon please

[Inactive User]

Awesome chapter Update soon please xx

[Spotd1]

Loving this story so much! I cannot wait for the next few chapters..so much chemistry!! Xx

[cb2180]

Really can't wait to see what happens in this story! Looking forward to the next update!

[kiwi151]

One of my favourite fan fics, probably because your writing style is great!

[Dingo x]

Wow! I LOVE this fic!

Grr Angelo! He's so annoying, he needs to go away so Chax can be together. <3

Can't wait for more. xx