"So what did Paul want to talk to you about?" Andrew asked curiously. 

Katia bit her lip. "It was more than just talking...he kissed me."

Andrew raised an eyebrow.  "He did?  After he ignored you all night?"

"I know.  I didn't really expect it...I didn't even expect to talk to him at all tonight.  But he said he wanted to talk about tonight...and then he said he hated seeing me dance with John."

"So he's still jealous of John."

"Yeah..."

"And he kissed you."  

Katia nodded.   Andrew didn't say anything after that.  He went and sat on his bed. 

"What are you thinking, Andrew?"

He looked at her.  "What kind of game is Paul playing?"

"Game?" 

"Well he ignores you all night...talks to another girl without even considering you...and then when he sees you with John is when he reacts?  I don't know...it seems a bit odd. It's as if it takes him seeing that he could lose you to someone else to make his move."

"But John? He's married and Cynthia is here for goodness sakes!"

"I think John might really like you and Paul knows it."

"John and I tease each other...but...you really think?

"He might...you're a great girl." 

***

The next day Andrew and Katia went out to explore the town. It was so picturesque; there was snow everywhere. It looked so clean and smelled so fresh. It was as if they were in a storybook. There were a lot of little shops and bars around the hotel. They stopped in most of them just to look around and decided to have brunch at a little café that faced the slopes 

"I can't wait for today's lessons. Have you ever been skiing, Andrew?"

"No, but I'm a bit surprised you never went when you lived in Canada." 

"My dad used to love skiing. He always urged me to go with him, but I never took an interest. Now I wish I had."

"I am sure we will learn quickly. It was very nice of Brian to set up ski lessons for us."

"I know. I'm really excited."

"What time are we supposed to meet everyone?"

"In about 20 minutes or so at the hotel lobby. I am surprised the filming is done so early, but it's nice to be able to spend some time with them."

When they got to the lobby, almost everyone was there, except for Maureen and Cynthia. 

"Are Cynthia and Maureen not skiing with us today?" Katia asked. 

 It was clear to her that the boys were already high as they burst into a fit of giggles without even answering her question.  They were much more interested in knowing who had the stash of pot.   

"They're already high." Katia told Andrew. 

He shrugged. "What are you gonna do? C'mon...let's just concentrate on the lesson." he said taking her hand. 

"Hey Andrew!" John called out. "Now that you're sharing a room with our Kat again, I bet your odds are getting higher!" 

Andrew looked back and smiled. "Better than any of yours!" he responded. 

John howled with laughter as did the others. Katia smiled and rolled her eyes as Andrew looked back at her. 

"What?" he laughed. "I couldn't resist."

They spent most of the afternoon skiing.  Andrew was a natural; Katia, on the there hand didn't fare too well.  She could barely stand on the skis and when she finally managed to move in them, she fell constantly. She had a few bad falls and  by the end of the day, she felt as if her entire body was bruised.  The boys, having had a few more lessons, managed to stay on their feet for most of the lesson, coming to see if Katia was alright after she took a fall. 

After the ski lesson, they went to the hotel's restaurant to warm up. 

"How you feeling, Kat?  Those were some nasty falls out there.  Are you okay?" John asked genuinely concerned. 

"I don't think anything is broken.  Although I'm not looking forward to the soreness I will surely feel tomorrow morning." she smiled. 

"Don't worry.  We had the same experience when we had our first lesson.  You'll get better," Paul reassured her. 

"I still have plenty of falls." John continued. "Unlike Paul the Pro." 

"Oh?" Katia asked raising an eyebrow. 

"What can I say?  It comes easier for me." he smiled. 

"Well you and Andrew can go off and leave John and me to fend for ourselves.  Andrew seems to be a natural too." 

"I rather like that idea, don't you Paulie?" John said batting his eyes. 

"Sod off, John." Paul said annoyed. 

Shortly after, Andrew, Ringo and George were at the table with drinks for everyone.

"By the way, where's Maureen and Cynthia?  Why didn't they come with us?" Katia asked Ringo. 

"They wanted to do some last minute shopping before they left."

Katia's face showed disappointment.  "I can't believe they're already leaving.  I didn't realize they'd be here for such a short time." 

"Well they've been here for a few weeks already, Kat...it just seems a short time because you just got here." John clarified. 

"I know."

"Cheer up, Kat...it's not like you won't have another opportunity to see them." Ringo smiled. 

"I know..." she said half smiling as she took a sip of her hot chocolate.  

After Katia finished her drink, she told the boys she wanted to see if the girls were back.

"If they're back, they're most like packing up." John replied. 

"Great..." she said standing up. 

Katia found the girls in Maureen's room. They showed her a few of the clothes they had bought that day and Katia thought back to the days that both Cynthia and her would take their already used clothes and try to make something new and creative with them. It was incredible just how much things had changed since then. Katia picked up a couple of the new garments that they only dreamed about a few years ago. The girls asked if there were any new developments between her and Paul, but Katia refrained from saying anything about her and Paul kissing the previous night. She didn't think she could go into detail without having to bring up the fact that Paul was somehow jealous of John. It wasn't exactly a topic she wanted to discuss with Cynthia. As Katia helped Maureen and Cynthia pack, Ringo called up to the room and said they were going to be taking them out to a night of dinner and dancing.

"Ritchie said it's a very nice restaurant so to dress accordingly." she smiled.

"I don't have anything that is appropriate for such a place." Katia said concerned.

"Don't worry, Kat...let's go to my room...I think I have the perfect thing for you to wear." Cynthia smiled.

Katia went back to her room with a red fitted dress that fell just below the knee. Since it was a V-neck dress, Cynthia also lent her a beautiful silver necklace with matching earrings and a matching purse for the evening.

When Andrew came back to the room, he told Katia that Mal had made reservations for tonight at 8pm.

"It's suppose to be very classy." he said. "I'm just glad I brought a suit with me."

"I'm sure you'll look great."

"So what are you wearing?"

"Cynthia lent me one of her dresses...I didn't have anything remotely appropriate for the occasion."

Andrew showered first, knowing it'd take Katia longer to get ready, as it did for most women. He was watching the news when Katia came out of the bathroom.

"What do you think?" she asked.

"You look stunning, Kat!" he said as he stood up.

"May I escort you down?" he smiled.

"You may." she laughed as she grabbed her purse and then held on to Andrew's arm.

"You really look great." Andrew smiled as they were in the elevator. "That dress looks wonderful."

"Thanks...I'm just glad Cynthia and I are still the same size." she smiled as they reached the lobby.

 They were the first ones to get to the lobby and a few minutes later, Maureen and Ringo came down, followed by Paul and George.

"Wow...you look amazing, Kat." Paul said as he spun her around.

"Thank you. You don't look too shabby yourself." she smiled as she complimented his black suit and tie.

John and Cynthia were late in coming down and when they did arrive, it was clear that they had been fighting. No one said anything about it as they all piled into two cars. Andrew, Katia, Paul and George went in one car and Ringo and Maureen were stuck with John and Cynthia.

"Anybody else notice the tension between John and Cynthia?" George asked asked as they drove to the restaurant.

"It's hard not to notice it." Paul replied.

It was a short drive and Katia was happy to see the boys had cut back on the pot for tonight. To everyone's relief, things between Cynthia and John seemed a little better when they got to the restaurant. The restaurant was incredible. Katia and Andrew had never been to anything similar in their lives.

"I even feel underdressed." Andrew confessed. "Like I should have worn a tux or something."

"You look fine." Katia patted his arm as the waiter finished serving them some wine.

The dinner was just as fancy as the restaurant. There were different courses served and throughout the dinner, numerous bottles or wine and drinks were also served. Katia noticed John was drinking heavily and wondered if it had anything to do with Cynthia. During the dinner, soft music played, but shortly after everyone had finished eating, a live band began to play. Andrew asked Katia to dance and then Ringo took Maureen out to the dance floor. When both couples came back to the table, John stood up and before she could sit down, took Katia's hand.

"Ringo, how about you take my wife out to the dance floor. "I'll jus take Kat since she doesn't mind my two left feet, huh?" John said a little harshly.

"C'mon Cyn." he smiled at her. "Let's show them how real dancing is done. Mo, take your pick of the three remaining lads."

Maureen chose to dance with George while Andrew and Paul chatted at the table.

"So, what was that all about?" Katia asked as John took her hand in his and put the other one on her waist.

"What do you mean?"

"What's got you so upset with Cynthia that you feel the need to unleash that wicked tongue of yours?"

"Let's just drop it, okay Kat. I'm here to have a good time. I've had enough of her tonight to have to deal with you too. I asked for a dance...not a lecture." John replied dryly.

Katia understood the message quite well. She knew things between John and Cynthia weren't going well, but John had been there for her at the Bahamas and she was going to do the same for him now.

"Well then, why not buy this girl a drink and she promises you'll have a good time?" she smiled.

"How about we keep dancing instead...it'll make Paul even more jealous than he already is." he winked.

Katia glanced over in the direction of the table and saw that both Paul and Andrew were now dancing.

"That blond bird he's dancing with can't even keep his attention long enough to keep him from looking over at us." he laughed. "By the way, you look absolutely gorgeous in that dress, Kat. If I remember correctly, I bought that dress..."

"Yes...it's Cynthia's."

"Well it fits you like a glove...if I wasn't married, I'd-"

"Stop while you're ahead, Lennon."

"You're right...you couldn't handle what I'd do to you if given the chance." he laughed.

The song ended and to Katia's surprise, John took her hand and walked over to Paul. He placed her hand in his and smiled. "She's all yours, mate."

"Thanks for the dance." Paul said to the girl standing in front of him.

Once the girl was out of earshot, Paul took a hold of Katia's waist. "Now ...you're the girl who I really wanted to dance with tonight." he said smiling at her sweetly.

As Katia danced with Paul, she felt nervous and shy. She forced herself to calm her nerves and hoped that Paul wouldn't be able to tell just how nervous she actually felt. After a couple of songs, they went back to the table with the others. Katia as well as everyone else at the table, noticed that John and Cynthia were in a heated conversation, Cynthia whispering to John to calm down. Even as Katia had danced with John, he had been cross with her, but Cynthia was now taking him to the edge. John ignored Cynthia and ordered another drink; Cynthia sighed and turned away from him. Katia looked at Andrew and as if he could read her mind, got up and asked Cynthia to dance. Cynthia smiled sweetly and took his hand. A few seconds later, a little red head came up to Paul and asked if he would like to dance. She was very young; couldn't have been more than 16 and Katia could tell it had taken all of her courage to come up to him.

"It'd be my pleasure." Paul smiled as he stood up.

Katia then turned her attention to John who was chatting with the waitress who had brought him his drink.

"Excuse me...could you bring me another?" Katia asked her lifting up her empty glass.

The girl nodded and feigned a smile. Katia knew she had not been happy about the interruption. John moved a couple of chairs over so he was sitting next to Katia.

"Why do you have to spoil my fun?" he asked her smiling.

"Because even if you're not getting along with her at the moment, your wife is less than 10 feet away and she doesn't deserve seeing you try to pick up that waitress." Katia retorted.

"But it's okay if I focus my attention on you instead?"

"You should focus your attention on her." Katia replied.

"Oh come on, Kat...Cyn is being a right bore tonight.  Let me have a little fun..."

"You can have fun without flirting with another woman..."

"I've been flirting with you all night." he smiled.

"Be nice to Cynthia, okay?" Katia said as she saw Andrew and Cynthia coming back to the table.

The rest of the night went without difficulty. Even things between Cynthia and John had seemed to calm down. The boys had a long day of filming the next day and the girls would be leaving early in the morning, so they went directly to the hotel after they left the restaurant. Katia hugged Maureen and Cynthia goodbye before heading up to their floor. She half-heartedly wanted Paul to pull her into his room again for a goodnight kiss, but it didn't happen. When they got to their room, Andrew crashed onto the bed. When Katia went into the bathroom to change, she saw Cynthia's earrings and necklace. Cynthia had told her to keep the dress in case she needed it, but Katia had told her she'd give her the jewelry back before she left. It hadn't been too long since they had come up, so she quickly put on a pair of jeans and a shirt and told Andrew she'd be back in a bit.

"Take your key...I might be asleep by the time you get back." he said exhausted.

"Sure." she responded taking her key and the items she was going to return to Cynthia.

Katia got on the elevator and walked down the hall towards Cynthia and John's room.  As she got closer, she noticed the door was ajar and she could hear Cynthia crying, telling John how tired she was of constantly fighting with him. She heard her tell John she was going to stay with Maureen tonight through tears.

"Fuck off and leave me alone!" John yelled.

Katia suddenly saw Cynthia come out of the room but turned to her right, not even noticing Katia was standing a few feet from their hotel room on the other side. She saw Cynthia walk quickly down the hall and thought about running after her to console her, but she was so angry at John, that she decided to go into the room instead. The door was slightly open and Katia pushed it open only to find John sitting in the armchair with a glass of scotch in one hand and the bottle on the table next to him.

"Oh Bloody 'ell! Don't tell me Cyn went..." he began as he saw Katia walk in.

"No!" Katia cut him off. "I actually came down to give some of Cynthia's things back  before she left." she said putting down the items on the bed. "But instead I witnessed this pathetic scene. How dare you yell and treat her like that!" Katia said accusing John with anger.

"How dare I yell at her? How dare you come into my fuckin' room and start accusing me of somethin' you have no fuckin' business getting involved in!" John yelled, now getting up from the chair.

Katia knew she was getting way over her head with John. She had seen him drink many times before in Hamburg and she knew he could get rather aggressive when he had too much to drink, but his aggressiveness was never directed at her so she had never felt threatened by him before. It was different now. She raised her head. She had never backed down to John before and she sure as hell was not going to start now.

"You want to know why I am getting involved? Because Cynthia is good to you! She puts up with all of your shit! She puts up with this Beatle chaos that constantly surrounds you and your family! With you traveling all the time! With her having to take care of your son without any help from you! The rudeness she receives from the public...she puts up with your fuckin unfaithfulness for crying out loud! That's why I am involved! Because after all of that, you still have the audacity to treat her the way you do? She loves you and you don't seem to care! She's a good woman and deserves better than-" she stopped herself for a split second as she felt the word 'you' coming up and quickly changed it. "THIS!" she yelled back.

John didn't say anything. He just glared at her and grabbed the bottle of scotch to pour himself another drink. He gulped it down before looking at the bottle again and then threw the bottle against the wall near the door. Katia gasped as the bottle shattered onto the floor.

"Dammit Kat! What the fuck do you want from me? Huh? What is it? You think I don't know the kind of bastard I am to Cyn? You think I don't know she deserves someone better than me? Something better than THIS!" John said as he motioned to himself. "I know it! I bloody know it!"

"Then why do you do it? Why don't you do something about! She loves you John!"

"Fuck this! Leave me alone Kat...get outta here!"

"No! You need to hear this! You need to understa-" but before Katia could finish, John's hand was around her arm trying to get her out the door."

"Let go of me!" she said trying to get out of his grasp, but not succeeding. John was very strong and liquored up, even more.

"Let go of me, John! You're hurting me!" Katia repeated as she pulled away.

Just as she did though, John let go of her and Katia was knocked off balance just enough to topple over onto the floor. As she hit the floor, she felt a sudden pain on her left hand and looked down to see her hand being shoved into the bed of glass that had been left from the broken scotch bottle. Katia took in a quick breath as she felt the glass cut through her skin. She picked up her hand only to see a fairly large piece of glass sticking out of it surrounded by little bits of glass that had also been pushed into her skin. She looked over at John who was coming towards her, with a genuinely concerned look on his face.

"No! Stay away from me!" Katia said angrily as she started to get up.

John reached over and helped Katia to her feet. "Are you okay? Let me take a look at that."

"No! Don't touch me!" Katia said moving away from him.

"Kat, please." Katia turned away from him and looked down at her hand.

 She braced herself as she slowly pulled the large piece of glass out. She could feel the pain run up her entire hand and felt tears in her eyes. She finally managed to pull the glass out, but as she did, a large amount of blood started gathering around the cut.

"Shit!" she mumbled.

Katia looked around and saw a hand towel thrown on the bed. She grabbed it and put pressure where she had cut herself.

"Christ...Kat..." John remarked as he saw the towel slowly get stained with her blood.

"I'm fine." Katia said through clenched teeth.

"You're not fine...we need to-"

Katia turned to look at him. "Look, you wanted me gone...I'm gone! Don't worry about me! Hell! Why should you care? You don't even care enough about your own wife...what should I expect from you?"

"You know I didn't mean to..."

"Forget it, Lennon! I'm leaving...I don't need to put up with this shit!" Katia exclaimed as she walked towards the door.

"Kat! Wait!" John called out after her.

"No John. Do not come after me. If you want to go after someone, go after your wife. Not me!"