Title: A Clean Break part 3/3
Author/pseudonym: ceindreadh
Rated for gratuitious male nudity ;-)

Last episode seen: Rampage

Spoilers: Season 8....sort of...but not for all of season 8...

Disclaimer: "ER" and all its characters belong to Warner
Bros.  No infringement of their copyright is intended.  This story
was written for the enjoyment of "ER" fans everywhere, and
may be downloaded for your own pleasure.

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A clean break - part 3

Previously on *my* ER
Cleo dumped Peter but he wouldn't take the hint.  She and Jing-Mei had a
girl's night in.  Slightly tipsy, they decided to hire a 'nearly nude'
cleaner to entertain them.  To their surprise, the 'cleaner' turned out to
be Dave Malucci, doing a little moonlighting to supplement his income.
Jing-Mei was initially reluctant to stay once she found out the identity of
the cleaner, but Cleo persuaded her.


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

Peter stopped outside Cleo's door, and carefully readjusted the bouquet of
flowers he was holding.  All women liked flowers, right?  A nice big bunch,
plus a box of chocolates...lo-fat...and Cleo would be eating out of his
hand.  That's all that women wanted, right?  A little bit of attention.
Cleo hadn't really wanted to break up with him...she was just stressed out
over the HIV thing...a few kind words from him and she'd be back by his side
in no time.

Oozing confidence, he rang the doorbell.

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

"Shit," swore Cleo, as she heard it.  She started to push herself up from
the couch, but Jing-Mei put her hand on her arm to stop her.

"I think we should let our 'cleaner' get the door," she said with an evil
grin.  "Why should you have to get up?"

Cleo shrugged, then said to Dave.  "You mind?"

Dave shrugged as well, "Not me...just don't blame me if it's your folks
standing outside."

"Yeah right...like they're going to fly in without warning," said Cleo,
hoping that they hadn't.

Dave moved over to the door and pulled it open.  "Yo, Doctor Pe..."   was all
he managed to say before Peter's fist impacted squarely with his face.

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

The impact sent Dave staggering.  The second punch knocked him to the
ground.

"You bastard Malucci," yelled Peter standing over him.

"What did I do?" asked Dave, gingerly feeling his face for damage.  He
yelped as he touched a sore spot.

Peter hit him over the head with the bunch of flowers.

"Peter!" said Cleo, grabbing the flowers from his hand and throwing them on
the ground.  "What the hell do you think you're doing?"

"Don't you 'Peter' me," snarled Peter.  "You and Malucci...God, I thought
you had better taste than that."

"Obviously not...I mean, I *did* date you for long enough," snapped Cleo.
Crouching down on the floor she helped Dave sit up, tutting disapprovingly
at the blood coming from his lip.

Looking up at Peter, she glared at him, "Look what you've done to him."

"Well maybe he should have thought of that before he started sniffing round
you," snapped Peter.  "C'mon Cleo, I know we've had a little 'falling
out'...but did you have to let *him* take advantage of you."

"Dave, take advantage of me?" Cleo tried to keep a straight face.  "Oh
that's right...poor little Cleo...so upset by her break up with the dashing
Dr. Benton...runs straight into the arms of the fiendish Dr. Malucci, who
will 'take advantage of her', use her for his own pleasures and then abandon
her to her fate."  Cleo snapped her fingers as she stood up.  "Except it was
*you* who abandoned me...*you* who deserted me when I needed you."  Poking
him in the chest, she forced him backwards into the center of the room.
"You were the one who left me high and dry emotionally.  Dave has taken my
mind off my problems which is more than I could say for anything *you* ever
did for me."

Quailing under Cleo's stern gaze, Peter was forced backwards.  Unable to
tear his eyes away from her face, he didn't realize that he was being
steadily backed towards the couch until he felt it behind him.  A final prod
in the chest and he sat down heavily on it.

"Hey Dr. Benton," said Jing-Mei idly as she popped another popcorn in her
mouth.

"Dr. Chen?" said Peter in surprise.  "But what...I thought...what are *you*
doing here?"

"Well I'm not here to watch Cleo and Malucci perform some sort of live sex
show in front of me, if that's what you're thinking."

"I wasn't..." Peter started to protest but Cleo interrupted him.

"Oh save it Peter," she snapped at him, before turning her attentions to
Dave, who was still sprawled on the floor, watching the proceedings with
interest.

Cleo helped Dave to his feet and guided him to an empty chair, patting him
tenderly on the hand before returning her attentions to Peter.

"And what if I *had* been screwing Malucci?" she asked him.  "You and I are
finished...F I N I S H E D...can't you get that through your head?"

"But Cleo," protested Peter.  "I know things have sort of cooled down
between us...but things have changed...they can be different."

"You mean now that I've tested negative...it's safe for you to have sex with
me?  You don't have to worry that I'll infect you and mess up your surgical
career?  And for your information, things weren't just a little cool...they
were downright Antarctic."

Peter sat there stunned.  Jing-Mei leaned over and whispered in his ear, "I
think she's really pissed at you...you'd better come up with a hell of a
good apology."

Cleo snorted in disgust.  "Him?  Come up with a good apology?  That'll be
the day."

Peter looked wounded.  "They've certainly worked on *you* before...or was
that some other woman who did it on the stairs with me?"

All eyes looked involuntarily towards the staircase.

"Dave, remind me to get you to clean those stairs before you finish up,"
said Cleo quickly.

Dave smirked.  "You guys did it on the stairs?  Man, I hope there weren't
any splinters..."

"Shut up Malucci," snapped Peter, as he remembered that there had indeed
been splinters that time.  Fortunately Cleo had been very adept with her
tweezers.   He could imagine the gossip that would have arisen if he'd had
to go to the ER to get them removed.

"Hey, I was invited to be here," said Dave, a little smugly.  "You're the
gatecrasher, *you* shut up."

"Why you little..."  Peter lunged at Dave, who leapt from his chair, his
hands raised defensively.

"Do your worst," said Dave; "You won't catch me off guard a second time."

"There's going to be no fighting here," snapped Cleo, as she stepped in
between the two belligerent men.  "Both of you sit down...NOW," she added,
as neither of them made a move.

Peter sat down, glaring angrily at Dave, who stuck out his tongue at him.
Jing-Mei's warning hand on his arm was the only thing that stopped him from
launching another attack on Dave.

"Look Cleo," said Peter, coaxingly, as he watched her sit down on the arm of
Dave's chair.  "I'm really sorry about the way I've treated you...I...I know
I've been a bit of a jerk."

"That's an understatement," muttered Cleo under her breath.  Dave barely
suppressed a laugh as she slapped him lightly on the arm.

Peter ignored the comment and continued.  "And if you really don't want me
around...then I'll go...and I won't bother you again...I promise.  I'm sorry
I hassled you like this."  He stood up as if to leave.

"Hmm, I suppose it's slightly better than your usual half-assed apologies,"
observed Cleo dryly.  "But aren't you forgetting something."

Peter looked puzzled.

Cleo continued, "I'm not the only person here that's owed an apology."  She
indicated Dave and Jing-Mei with a wave of her hand.  "You've assaulted
Dave, and you've disrupted the evening's entertainment for Jing-Mei and I.
And I think you ought to do something about it."

"Do what?"

"Well...Dave's not exactly in any condition to complete the job he was hired
to do...I think it's only fair that since you're responsible for that, then
you should take his place."

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

It took the threat of Dave pressing charges before Peter agreed to it - and
he refused to take off more than his shirt - but as Jing-Mei watched him
scrub the stairs, she had to agree that it had been worth the little bit of
blackmail.  Not that Dave *would* have pressed charges.  She knew him well
enough to know that he didn't hold grudges...and besides, given the chance
he would have probably taken the option of finishing off the fight rather
than letting the police take over.

Cleo sat on the arm of Dave's chair and watched Peter with a twinge of
regret.  Granted the guy was a self-centered egotistical jerk...but he had
one hell of a body...maybe she should give him another chance.  Then she
looked sideways at Dave and mentally compared the two.  Lets see,
bodies...well, both were pretty good...but Dave did seem to be that bit more
muscular.  Brains...no real contest there...both were qualified doctors, so
they had to have *some* intelligence.  Personality...Dave would win that one
hands down, that was for sure.  Peter only ever seemed to think about his
work and his son.  Cleo sighed heavily.

Dave looked up from gloating at the sight of 'Dr. Pete' and glanced at Cleo.
"You okay there?" he asked with genuine concern.

"Yeah...I'll be fine," said Cleo.  Chalk up one more point for Malucci, she
thought to herself.  Definitely there was no contest, she thought as she
turned her smile on Dave and leaned in a bit closer.  And who knew...with a
bit of luck, she might be able to find out how he 'measured up' to Peter in,
ahem, 'other areas'...but that would be another story.


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The End

Ceindreadh

--

"I only <look> sweet and innocent"
"some people have too much time on their hands"