Thankfully, her week was just about over and she had no intention of staying any later than six. Josh would be over at seven to pick up Jane. After that, Kiki could take the hot bubble bath she had been fantasizing about all week and finally relax. She had plans with Gwen and Joe for dinner on Saturday and Jane would be back Sunday evening. Kiki was looking forward to a nice restful weekend with nothing to worry about, nothing to think about and the only decision she would have to make would be if she wanted Chinese or Mexican food on Saturday. It would be perfect. Just what Kiki needed after her week.

Six o'clock finally rolled around and Kiki pushed her way through the heavy glass double doors at ten after the hour. The Gods were smiling on her that day, or at least that's how she felt. The traffic was lite, her favorite radio station played all the songs she loved and she found a dollar when she stopped at a gas station for a soda. On any other day, Kiki would have wondered what was going on; she wasn't accustomed to having so many good things happen. But on this day, she decided to go with the flow, not look the gift horse in the mouth and not question why fate had decided to stop playing Russian Roulette with her life. She would just enjoy it for as long as it lasted. Which Kiki hoped would be through Jane's teen years.

Of course, she wasn't that lucky.

At seven exactly, Josh pulled up outside the modest two-story home Rose had called home for more than forty years. Even after her husband had become wealthy, they remained in that house. Rose was out having dinner with an old family friend when Josh arrived. Kiki had just finished packing Jane's diaper bag when she heard the door bell ring.

Scooping Jane out of her playpen in the living room, Kiki made her way to the door. As usual, Josh's handsome face lit up when he saw his daughter. He pulled open the screen and reached for the small giggling, wiggling bundle. Jane all but jumped into his arms as Kiki handed her over.

"Rose went out?" Josh asked looking past Kiki.

"Yep, you're spared for this week," Kiki answered with a polite smile. Her grandmother had a habit of sarcastically insulting Josh whenever she saw him.

Josh smiled that beautiful awkward smile Kiki had first seen the first time he had asked her out. Deep in the pit of her stomach, she still felt a small tingle of her school-girl crush whenever she saw that smile.

"Can I talk to you for a minute?" Josh asked, taking the diaper bag from Kiki.

"Sure," she answered and stepped onto the porch.

She folded her arms across her chest as the evening chill embraced her. She was still in the long, beige, linen dress and navy blue sweater she had worn to work, though she had taken off her shoes. She regretted being barefoot as she stepped onto the cold ground, following Josh to his car.

"I've been doing a lot of thinking," Josh began. "Mostly about Jane. And you. And me. I never thought I would be a weekend father."

"You should have thought about that before you had sex with Joni," Kiki responded flatly. She hated that this subject still brought her to the verge of tears.

"Kiki, I know that I screwed up by doing that. And I won't insult you with some lame excuse like I'm just a kid and don't know any better. All I can do is say I'm sorry I screwed up. I made a mistake and I can't apologize enough for that."

The two stopped at the curb and Josh leaned down to open the rear passenger door.

"I believe you - that you really are sorry about that," Kiki said watching Josh gently place their baby in her car seat and buckle her in. When Josh stood straight again, Kiki looked deep into his rich brown eyes and continued. "But you can't honestly expect me to just forgive and forget. I loved and trusted you, and betrayed me. I don't know that I could ever look at you and not see that."

Kiki's words were not mean or cruel. They were soft and sincere, causing a pang of guilt deep inside Josh.

"I know. And I don't blame you for that. But you have to realize that I never stopped loving you. I really want us to be a family again." Josh looked down at Kiki who was six inches shorter than his six foot frame.

"I'm not asking you to marry me again, or forget the past," Josh continued sliding Jane's diaper bag on to the floor in front of the infant. He closed the door and returned his gaze to Kiki. "I'm just asking you let me take you out to dinner."

"Josh, I...." Kiki began in a helpless tone before she was cut off.

"Don't say no yet. Take time to think about it about it and let me know on Sunday."

Kiki stared up into his face. He still had such boyish charm in his defined features. All she could was smile, close her eyes and force out the word "okay." Josh's face lit up with renewed hope.

Without hesitation, Josh leaned down and pressed lips to Kiki's. It was a gentle, unassuming kiss, but it caught her off guard. When he pulled away from her, Josh moved quickly around the car to the drivers side, said a quick goodbye and slid behind the steering wheel. In a moment, he was gone, vanishing around the corner.

Meanwhile, Kiki felt frozen. Her legs felt connected to the concrete and she was unable to move. She could only stare blindly down the street. After a moment a car with a booming bass passed, snapping Kiki back to reality. She turned and slowly went back toward the house.

A short time later, Kiki was soaking her tired limbs in a raspberry scented bubble bath. For a while, thoughts of her conversation with Josh replayed in her mind. Kiki found a way to force the scene from her mind as the glowed around her. The warm, orange light flickered and danced through the small room, reflecting off the large mirror. A dozen votive candles burned steadily around the tub and on the counters.

Kiki's thoughts shifter to an exotic beach she had seen a movie once. The white sand was flanked by blue-green waters to her right and lush, vibrantly alive greens to her left. As she slid deeper into the dream, she could the warmth of the sand on her toes and the cool water as it swirled around her ankles and then retreated. The setting sun danced on the water and caressed her skin as the gently tropic breeze moved around her. How she wished the scene was real and not just her fantasy.

When a chill had settled through the bath, Kiki reluctantly pulled herself from the water. Not wanting to cook, she ordered a pizza. After watching "Men In Black" on cable Kiki caught he last hour of an old Cary Grant movie. By the end of the second film, it was nearing midnight, and she could barely keep her eyes open. Leaving a light on in the living room for Rose, Kiki went to bed.

Instead of returning to her fantasy beach in her dream's, Kiki's mind replayed an unforgettable past. Over and over, her mind showed her Josh and Joni, together. She saw her own face as if she were watching her own past on a movie screen. Waking with a short gasp, Kiki knew the night would not be as restful as she hoped.