Author’s Note: I’d actually started this chapter before, but my hard drive messed up and erased it. Which really pissed me off since I had half the chapter finished already. So that’s another reason to why it’s taken me so long to add this chapter. But here it is now and I hope you guys enjoy it!

Reflections of Hope
Chapter 5

It had been two weeks since she and Greg had shouted at each other, ripping at one another’s hearts and leaving the other heartbroken, aching, and bitterly angry toward each other. In that time she had expected him to come back, to find her and apologize for the way he had reacted.

But of course he hadn’t.

She should have known he would be stubborn on the matter and remain silently fuming over their argument. He was a man with a temper as quick as a snake, and as deadly. She had grown accustomed to it during their relationship, but even then had not been prepared for the full force of it after the meeting between she, him, and Donovan.

Of course she had seen Donovan the next day and had agreed to a simple dinner with him that same night. He had taken her to an elegant restaurant, and while the champagne was poured and classical music flowed dreamily, she had found herself thinking of Greg and wishing for the dinner’s he had cooked for them at his own home.

She told herself her feelings of missing him were normal, natural human reaction. They had dated for months, and that relationship had grown into mutual affection on both parts. For that relationship to have ended so abruptly had torn something inside of her and left a piece of her miserably hollow. She couldn’t expect Donovan to fill that emptiness so quickly. Her heart and body simply wouldn’t follow the lead of her mind.

She blew out a sigh that had her short fringe of bangs fluttering. She was pulling a pair of tennis shoes on, lacing them as she sat on her bed in the late afternoon.

Donovan had called earlier to ask her if she would care for a walk on the beach with him. Her first instinct had been to say no, but she had forced herself to agree. She couldn’t continue thinking of Greg and allowing her heart to leap every time the phone rang, hoping it was him.

She recalled when she had informed Serena and Lita about the break up, the three women standing together in D.C.’s nursery, Serena changing his diaper while Lita looked on. She had told them, stiffly and braced for the attack, that the relationship was over and she was now seeing Donovan. Serena had merely hummed quietly and tickled D.C. playfully, Lita shrugging and saying it was her decision.

Their easy acceptance had caused more guilt then shouts and protests ever could have.

In the twilight hours of the night, when the stars shone like beacons and the waves crashed against the rough rocks on the beach, she remembered him and the beautiful moments they had spent together. It was in these moments her heart felt like a leaden weight in her chest, nearly melting with despair at the loneliness that had become her life since he had walked out of it.

She drilled into herself that she wouldn’t think of him, wouldn’t miss him, and would accept Donovan as she had once accepted him into her life. But she wondered, and she worried, if she would ever feel the way she had for Donovan again. She had missed him for so long, had hoped for his return that she had never realized that perhaps the girl that had once lived inside of her had been the only piece that could ever love him.

It was the man she saw now, she thought when she heard the brisk knock at her door. It was the man who kissed her and stroked her, who held her and begged her for more when the desire in him rose into a roaring tidal wave. The boy was long gone, as was the girl who had held him close to her heart for so many years.

Pushing her troubled thoughts away, she went to and answered the door, welcoming him inside. He was still as handsome as he had once been, with the eyes of a violent storm and the face of a dangerous fighter, a man who knew how to get what he wanted when he wanted it.

Dimly she thought of Greg’s face, the dark eyes that had haunted her nights, and the face of a warrior that had caused her heart to trip with desire whenever she saw it.

Annoyed with herself, she allowed Donovan to pull her into his arms and kiss her, ignoring the small nagging in her mind when she felt his hands roam down her back and up again in a gentle caress. Determined to forget, she opened to him, the kiss shifting from innocent to hot and tempting when he pulled her roughly to him.

The groan that rumbled deep in his throat warned her, and had her pulling back to stroke a soothing hand over his cheek. ”Ready for that walk?”

He yanked her against him hard. ”I’m ready for that next step.”

A small bubble of resentment rose in her throat, but she swallowed it ruthlessly. She wouldn’t think of Greg and compare Donovan to him every moment they were together.” Donovan, I don’t think its time for us to take it just yet. We’ve both grown into different people, into adults. We need some time to get to know each other again, then figure out where we’ll go from there.”

His hand stroked through her dark, short cap of hair, fingering the silky ends.” I know that I love you, that I never stopped. I know that for the past couple of years I’ve only thought of you and that every decision I’ve ever made has revolved somehow around you.”

She lowered her eyes so he wouldn’t see the distress that had come into them. How could she fight this love, this deep, abiding love that had remained with him over the passing of the years?

So she kissed him gently on the cheek, ran her hands down his arms when she felt his hands bunch into fists at her back.” Donovan, I’m flattered you feel that way and never forgot me, but you need to understand that I need this time for me. Please give it to me, to us.” She skimmed her lips across his jaw and felt him relax, inch by slow inch.” Please Donovan.”

He turned and met her lips with his, sliding into her and allowing her taste to course through him.” All right. You know I could never refuse you.”

She smiled.” I was hoping that hadn’t changed.”

The night was cool, with the icy wind hitting him like a cold slap to the face. Outside, sitting on the porch of Greg’s home with a beer in hand and his wife and son inside, he felt peace settle like a warm blanket over his heart.

But guilt snuck through the peaceful moment and had him sliding a look at the man sitting next to him, quietly nursing his beer. He, Serena, and Lita had arrived an hour earlier, knocking on Greg’s door and waiting patiently for him to open to them.

Of course when he had none of them had been prepared for the sight of him. His hair had been disheveled, a thick stubble of beard shadowing his jaw, his shirt open and wrinkled, his feet bare, his dark eyes haggard and miserable. There had been rock pumping from his stereo system, echoing out into the silent night, but he had immediately shut it off for the sake of the baby.

Serena and Lita had swept inside and taken over, putting on a more soothing tone for the child and beginning to piece something together for dinner. The kitchen had been cold and untouched, completely swept clean and obvious that he hadn’t touched it for days.

When he had merely stood there, quiet and thoughtful, Serena had sent her husband a meaningful look to have a talk with him. Darien had obeyed easily enough, secretly curious to know what had occurred between his friend and his sister. Serena had been tight lipped on the entire situation, refusing to tell him anything. He would have to hope that a man to man talk with Greg would get him some information.

Otherwise he would have to return to begging his wife for details.

So he sipped from his Bud again, estimating the time and wondering if it was right yet. They had been sitting in silence for fifteen minutes now, Darien commenting over sports while Greg grunted in response. He imagined he had given him enough space to start gently prodding at the man.

“So,” he sipped again, making sure his voice was casual,” did you get those papers faxed to the officials of the city?”

“Yeah. They’d been hounding me for days.” Greg’s voice was filled with disdain, a good sign to Darien.” I was getting ready to go down there and kick their ass’s if they didn’t leave me alone.”

The quick temper Darien recognized, and he saw an opportunity to slide his next comment in.” You need to learn some patience, some understanding and also to tolerate people a little more.” When Greg grunted in answer once again, he turned and glanced at him.” That temper is probably why you tossed my sister out on her ass.”

He watched Greg tense, watched his muscles tighten in a move he had seen dozens of other times when he was preparing to attack. He would have to remember Greg outweighed him by a good twenty pounds in solid muscle.” You better know what the hell you’re saying before you say it.” His voice was quiet, but the underlying threat slashed at him like a knife.

Praying he wouldn’t regret what he was about to do, he stretched lazily, scratching his stomach and guzzling more beer.” I know exactly what I’m saying. You’re not an easy man to live with, much less be around. Amy must have had a huge dose of patience to be able to stand you for so long. Then again, she is a psychiatrist and they make a living off people like you.” He could swear he heard Greg’s knuckles pop.” Besides that I told her you were a waste of time. Maybe she finally listened to me and that’s why-“

The rest of what he’d been about to say was shaken from him when Greg shot out of his chair and hauled him up by his shirt front, his face livid with barely suppressed fury.” Shut the fuck up right now. Right now! If you say one more word I swear to God I’ll rip your balls off and choke you with them!”

He hadn’t had a good fight in a while, and the thirst was strong, but his original purpose for this held him back. He made sure his tone was careless when he spoke.” Why? Because you know I’m right?”

The blow had his head snapping back as he went crashing into his own chair, but to his credit he didn’t fall. He had known it was coming but still wasn’t prepared for the impact of it. Managing to remain standing despite the explosion of pain in his head, he faced the other man.

“Tell me here and now, did you convince her to leave me?” through his own blinding rage, Greg didn’t see Darien’s dark brows lift in surprise.” Tell me the fucking truth! Was it you?” when Darien didn’t answer, his fists tightened at his sides.” Was it you?!!”

He flexed his jaw a moment to make sure it wasn’t broken.” No, it wasn’t me. The truth is, I didn’t even know up until now what exactly had happened between you guys.”

He watched Greg’s fists relax slowly, his expression switch from rage to cautious.” What the hell are you talking about?”

Darien sighed.” Serena refused to tell me what had happened and I was curious to know. I didn’t think you’d actually tell me, so…..” he rubbed at his jaw. “Jesus Christ Greg, you still pack a good one.”

He felt a smile twitching at his lips despite the circumstances. “You’d better remember that.”

“How the hell could I forget?” after indulging himself in a few moments of self pity, he met Greg’s dark eyes, which were guarded carefully in the night shadows. “Listen, I never said a word to Amy about dumping you. I had my concerns, but Amy wouldn’t listen to me anyway. She’s very stubborn and her mind is completely her own.”

He didn’t know whether the simple statement made him feel better or worse. A small part of him had hoped it had been Darien’s doing, but if it hadn’t then the choice had been completely hers. Everything she had said she had meant and had been coming straight from her heart.

Everything….

The thought of Donovan sent a blinding rage racing through him, causing his fists to clench once again. The red he saw before his eyes nearly consumed the man as he strode inside the house and into the kitchen where Serena and Lita prepared dinner for them. In seeing them he saw her, and in remembering her the fury built steadily like a storm rising from the ocean depths.

“Is she with him?” the question was torn from him, causing both women to pause and stare at him. “Goddamnit, is she with that bastard?!”

They merely continued to stare in silence, until Lita finally spoke up, her tone careless. “Yeah, she is. What are you going to do about it?”

There was nothing he could do, nothing he could say to express the rage coursing through him. In uselessness he stood, breathing hard, until the fury boiled darkly to the surface and caused him to slam his fist into the nearest wall, creating a large hole and both women to jump and gape while Darien raced forward to pull him back.

“Greg, stop it!” it was a struggle for him, but Darien managed to haul him back before he could pound into the wall again. “Calm down!”

“Let me go!” he shook the other man off, than because he could see the shock on Serena and Lita’s faces, he pressed the heels of his hands into his eyes. “Goddamnit! Goddamn son of a bitch!”

He stood in silence, struggling to bring his temper back under some control, when he felt a small hand touch his arm. Looking up, his dark eyes met Serena’s, who’s held understanding and calm.

“Greg, Amy’s confused she doesn’t know what she wants. She thinks its Donovan because of a love she felt years ago, but I think she realizes that not even he means to her what he once did.”

“She made her choice. She’s with him.” Greg’s voice was bitter, and inside his heart ached as it never had. “I’m nothing to her.”

“Don’t be so sure.” Lita cut in. “She may surprise you yet.”

“No, she won’t. It’s him she wants, it’s him she’s always wanted. I was just a game, someone to pass the time with.” He shook his head. “It should have been a game to me too, but it wasn’t. It became everything.”

“Are you so certain it wasn’t everything to her either?” Serena asked gently.

“I saw her eyes when she walked. Trust me, if it had been she wouldn’t have been able to kick me out so easily.” He shrugged, but the careless gesture cost him. “It’s too late now. I’ll have to put it behind me and move on. It’s the only way.”

She would be calm, and she would be rationale. She would walk in and act as if nothing was the matter, as if she was perfectly fine. She was, after all. If one really thought about it there was nothing wrong and she was just feeling the pressure of one of her patients. Yes, that was it.

But she could feel her hands biting into the steering wheel of her car, could feel her patience straining as she pulled into Serena and Darien’s home and drove up the drive. She could feel it simmering lightly inside of her when she walked inside and up the stairs to the baby’s room, when she was greeted by the sight of Serena changing D.C.’s diaper, Lita looking on.

But she composed herself before they turned to her, and kept her own temper at bay. “How’s my beautiful little nephew?”

“Fine and dandy.” Lita and Serena exchanged meaningful looks while Amy was preoccupied tickling the baby. Even if there friend thought she was being clever hiding her impatience, they had heard it as clearly as the light of day.

“Oh he’s grown so much.” Amy sighed, waiting while Serena finished changing his diaper. “Three in a half months already, can you believe it?”

“He looks more like Darien everyday.” Serena picked him up, cuddling him close.

“He’s going to be a heartbreaker.” Lita smiled when he gurgled in response. “See, he agrees with me.”

“How are things going between you and Donovan Amy?” Serena asked, swaying gently back and forth with the baby.

“There fine.” Feeling that impatience to know where and what Greg was doing coming, she began to pace the room without realizing it. “He’s fine. I’m fine.”

“So what you’re saying is your both fine.” Lita grinned when Amy shot her a glare. “Hey, just making sure we understood you right.”

“That’s good, isn’t it?” Serena rolled her eyes at Lita. “That it’s progressing well, I mean.”

“It should be. It should be very, very good.” Amy could feel herself losing the battle with her temper slowly.

“Great. That’s just great Amy. Hey Serena, what are you making us for lunch?” Lita asked her. “I’m pretty damn hungry.”

“Since when do I cook for you? I don’t recall having the words ‘Lita’s slave’ printed across my forehead.”

“They were never printed, they were already there. Come on, some steak sounds good. Steak and beer.”

“Listen, you can make your own damn steak and beer, I’m not doing anything for you.”

“Aw come on, be a pal.”

Amy felt the snap as they argued, felt the break inside, and blurted out the words before she could hold them back. “Where is he?”

Lita and Serena stopped arguing to turn and stare. “Who?” Lita asked.

“Greg. Don’t act as if you two don’t know perfectly well who I’m talking about. I want to know where he is and what he’s been doing.” She paused for a moment, but told herself she had the right to ask. “And I want to know if he’s seeing anyone.”

Serena chose not to respond, but Lita grinned and cocked a brow at her. “And why should we tell you anything?”

“Why? Because I want to know.” She snapped back.

“I don’t think its any of your business. Right Serena? She did dump him, after all.”

Serena nodded. “I’m forced to agree.”

“It is my business! I want to know if he’s seeing someone!” she struggled not to shout, but even she knew it was a losing battle when it came to arguing with Lita.

“I can’t really say. He did look pretty damn good the other night at dinner.” Lita spoke casually, studying her nails.

“Dinner? Since when do you have dinner with him?”

“It was a little dinner Serena put together for us.” Lita smiled again and had anger turning quickly to rage. “He seemed happy enough.”

“You made dinner for him?!” Amy’s eyes had turned lethal, pinning Serena, who continued to rock the now wide eyed baby. “And you didn’t tell me!”

“You were out with Donovan that night. I didn’t see a reason to tell you.” Serena produced a heart felt sigh just for show. “He looked incredibly handsome Am.”

“Handsome?” she knew she was being irrational, she knew she was acting like an idiot, but she couldn’t help feeling anger that Greg was not only fine, but still spoke to them and not to her.

“That’s what she said.” Lita crossed her arms over her chest, considering her friend, who’s face was rapidly turning red with fury. “Something wrong?”

“No, nothing is wrong! Absolutely nothing!” she threw her hands up, paced away from them, turned and jabbed a finger at them both. “No never mind, something IS wrong! I want to know if he’s seeing someone!” an idea occurred to her and had the temper rising. “Is he seeing that bitch Barbie again?!”

“Ladies.” Darien spoke from the door, studying Amy’s stormy expression but choosing not to comment on it. “I’ve come to save my son.”

“He should stay. He needs to get used to us anyway.” Lita snorted out a laugh and had Amy fuming.

He went to his wife and took D.C., giving Serena a quick kiss. “I’ll leave you three to your argument now.”

“There is no argument, just a nice reasonable discussion.” Lita ran her tongue along her teeth when Amy hissed at her. “At least in my mind it is.”

“Good luck.” Darien walked out, murmuring quietly to his son.

“Answer my question! And stop acting as if nothing’s going on!” Amy shouted it at them, unable to see the surprise that entered their eyes.

“If you’re so interested in knowing about him, why don’t you ask him yourself?” Serena shot back. “Instead of drilling us for information, just go to the damn source.”

“Oh wait though. You’re with Donovan now. Never mind on that idea.” Lita sneered this. “Just run back to picture perfect Don and stay away from Greg. You’ll only hurt him more.”

They were right. Completely, totally right. She had pushed Greg away, she had been the one to choose another over him because of background and a love she had hoped she could still feel.

And the entire time the real and only love she’d ever felt had been right before her.

Drained emotionally, she rubbed at her temples with her hands, unable to fight the misery and sorrow that had been following her for the past three in a half months. In one moment she felt it break free and her heart was shattered with the memory of love she’d once had.

“Oh God.” One hand came down to press into her chest, where her heart ached with despair. “What have I done?”

“Is it finally coming to you? Christ Am, three in a half months later it hits you.” Lita blew out a frustrated breath. “Well?”

“What did I do? How could I do this to him?” she choked and had to cover her mouth to hold back the flood of tears. “He told me he loved me…..and I pushed him away.”

“You did what you thought was right.” Filled with understanding, Serena went to her friend and placed her arm about her shoulders. “You were afraid.”

“I was terrified, but that doesn’t excuse what I did to him. I love him.” It was the first time she had admitted it out loud, and in admitting it realized she was going to get him back. No matter what it took, she would get him back. “I love him more then anything on this earth.”

“It’s about time.” Grinning hugely, Lita hugged Amy so hard she could feel the breath squeezed out of her. “It’s about damn time.”

“I need to tell him. I need him back.” Determination drowned out the guilt and despair and had her eyes clearing of the tears. “I have to go see him.”

“Um….” Serena glanced at Lita, who’s grin had faded at Amy’s words. “There’s something you should know Am.”

Her eyes locked with Serena’s, glancing frantically back and forth between her friends. “What? What is it?”

“He’s gone. But don’t worry,” Lita spoke quickly when Amy paled, “he went home. To Maine. He left a week ago.”

“But why? Why would he leave?”

“He said he needed to get away.” Serena rubbed Amy’s arm. “I think you should go get him.”

“Damn right. The man needs for you to bring him back. It’ll be a nice little shock for him when he sees you there anyway.” Lita added.

They were right. As always. With hope blossoming once again in her heart, she embraced the two women she had always thought of as her sisters. “Thanks. Really. Without you two I don’t know what I would do.”

“We’ll always be here for you Am. No matter what.” Serena whispered, holding onto them both tightly.

Cape Elizabeth, Maine

The water lapped quietly at the docks by the bay, gulls circling overhead, hoping to snatch up left over food or fish someone might leave. The sun shone steadily in the sky, the temperature rising into the nineties and the humidity joining the broiling heat.

He stood overlooking the water on the docks, wearing a wife beater and shorts, his feet bare. His dark hair was windblown, his eyes squinted against the sun that reflected off the water and seemed intent on blinding him. With his hands tucked comfortably into his pockets, he absorbed the memories of childhood from long ago.

Little had changed, he mused as he watched a group of teenage girls walking along the docks, admiring some of the teenage boys who worked with their fathers on the waters. Once he had been among those boys, and the one who had always caught the eyes of the girls and women alike. Once he had sweated and bled here, and learned everything he needed for the future he had planned for himself.

Now he could see nothing of that future. Not without her. She had become everything, had become what he would love, would cherish, and hold dear for the rest of his life. Without her he was lost.

He noted when the group of girls noticed him, halting in their tracks to gape and stare at him. Their attention had shifted from boys to a man swiftly, and now all of them were admiring his muscled form under the burning sun.

One thing hadn’t changed, he thought with some amusement, and indulged them by flashing them a charming smile. He had the added pleasure of seeing them all flush, and the boys on the water glare at him.

He turned away from them, walked along the docks as a small breeze picked up and eased some of the heat from the day. He had been here for a little over a week already, had come back to visit his mother and father, and to see how they were doing. It had been thirteen years since he had come back, thirteen years since he had walked away from this small town, barely eighteen, and headed for the promise of Europe.

In the first two years he had mainly worked on boats, under big shots who ran the circuit and made their living off the money they won on races. He had been a damn good repairman, one thing he had learned from his father, and had saved his money for those first years.

In time he had saved enough to buy his own boat, and won the first race he had entered. From there on he had won every race, until he was rich enough to have several boats, several mechanics, and several homes littered across Europe.

When Darien had given him the proposition of the company he was building, Greg had been sure he would refuse, choosing to remain in Europe and continue with his lifestyle of fast money and easy women. But the sound of Monterey, and the sight of it when he’d visited had lured him and caused him to invest with his old friend. It had been the first long term type of investment he’d ever made.

And what now? He’d taken the offer, met Amy and fallen in love, and had his heart broken over the past that he’d grown up with here. Now what would he do? Would he return only to know she was within reach, yet not? Would he go back only to hear she was still with Donovan, or even married to him?

His own turmoil was weighing heavily on him and breaking his heart even more then it had already been broken. Turning away from the water and schooners that had made him into the man he was, he halted in his tracks when he spotted her standing at the edge of the docks.

She wore a tank top and shorts, and a beautiful smile on her face. Her short cap of hair was ruffled by the wind, her eyes squinting against the sun as they stared at each other over the short distance separating them.

He didn’t know what to say or how to feel. So many emotions he had refused to acknowledge came back to him in an instant, flooding his heart and mind and leaving him fumbling for reason. But just as quickly as the love and joy had come, the anger and bitter fury returned as well.

So he kept his hands in his pockets, and waited for her to come to him.

She had gone to his home first, having attained the address from Darien, and had been shocked by the run down home. But even with the rotted boards and patched roof, she had found the women inside, his mother, to be the most beautiful and kind woman she had ever met.

She had explained why she was looking for him, had told her everything, and his mother had understood. She had told Amy where he was, and had wished her luck in conquering her son’s willful heart.

But seeing him now, so handsome and darkly tanned, with the sun shining at his back, had what she had planned to tell him choking helplessly in her throat. It had been so long, it had been months, but she could feel the love she had only recently discovered blooming inside her heart.

Determined to follow through, she strode forward and closed the distance between them.

Up close he was even more devastatingly handsome then she remembered, but she could also see the fury darkening his eyes. Prepared for the battle about to come, she spoke lightly, “Hello Greg.”

“Amy.” His voice was chilled enough to freeze a person at twenty paces, “Where’s Donovan?”

She kept her eyes on his despite the challenge there and answered him in an equally cool tone. “It’s over between him and me.” She cocked a brow. “I came to speak with you rationally Greg. I hope you’re up to it.”

He had forgotten how easily she could manage to make him feel like an idiot. “Go ahead and talk then.” He walked past her and up the docks, silently fuming because his heart had leapt at her confession.

Why had she thought he would act like an adult about this? Following him, she snapped, “Gregory, stop right now! I have something to tell you!”

“If it’s anything like what you told me last time we saw each other, save it. I don’t want to hear it.” Seeing her and knowing she had come had his insides jumping, but he wouldn’t trust himself. Not again.

“Don’t you dare walk away from me!”

“No, you’re the one that does that.” He tossed back over his shoulder.

Furious because he was right, she shouted, “Damn it Greg! Stop!” when he ignored her, she reached out and took hold of his arm, gripping tightly and halting him. “I said ‘stop!’”

He whirled to face her, his face livid. “What do you want from me?! What the fuck is it now?! You already told me I wasn’t good enough for you, wasn’t that enough?!”

“I’ll accept that. I deserve that.” She nodded slowly. “But I want you to hear me tell you how wrong I was.”

“So have you come to tell me you’ve come to your senses?” he sneered this, surprising her. “Have you come to ask for forgiveness?”

“Yes, I have.” No matter how much anger was filling her, she would remain calm. He was hurt, she reminded herself, and he was lashing out at her. “Now are you going to listen to me?”

“Why should I? You once admitted I wasn’t good enough for you, you once told me if I didn’t have a pedigree I wouldn’t measure for what your parents wanted.” He leaned close to her, darkly pleased by the fear that entered her eyes. “And I never will.”

“I don’t care.” She shot back, surprising him this time. “It doesn’t matter what my parents want, because what I want is you.”

He was silent, absorbing what she had said, so she took the opportunity and continued. “Greg, these past weeks without you have been, simply, torture. I haven’t been able to stop thinking of you, dreaming of you, and wanting you. No matter how much Donovan made me laugh and made me remember, I realized that it was you.” She reached up and cupped his cheek, melting his heart with the simple gesture. “It’s always been you Greg, from the first moment. I was just too stubborn to see it.”

He couldn’t think past her eyes, the deep blue pulling him in and drowning him in a love that consumed his entire life. “I thought I wasn’t good enough.”

She shut her eyes a moment against the guilt of what she had said to him. “I can’t begin to tell you how sorry I am for that, and how much of an idiot I’ve been.” This time she reached up both her hands to cup his cheeks. “You’ve always been good enough, too good for me. I don’t deserve you Greg.”

The whispered confession had the breath simply leaving his body, the anger and bitterness he had been determined to hold onto dissolving in one instant. Because he didn’t trust himself to speak, he allowed her to continue.

“I always promised myself I would find someone who measured to my expectations, to my parent’s expectations.” She smiled softly. “But I found something even better. I found a man who makes me feel alive, a man who brings me joy and laughter, and a man I can respect as well as cherish.”

When he opened his mouth to speak, she cut him off. “No, please. Let me finish.” She took a deep, calming breath, than slowly dropped down on one knee before him, keeping one of his hands in hers. Looking up at him, she nearly smiled when she saw the expression of utter shock on his face. “I want you to know that I’ve hoped, all my life, to find a love that would last a lifetime, that would mean more to me then anything else. I want you to know that I’ve found that with you, and so much more.”

“Amy-“

“No, let me get this out or I’ll never be able too.” She shut her eyes and prayed for the strength to continue. “I’ll understand if you don’t want me, I’ll understand if you don’t love me anymore. But even a tiny little bit would do. I’ll take whatever you can give me Greg.” She looked up at him once again, tried to read his face, but the sun was shining in her eyes and preventing her too. “I want a life with you, like the one my parents have, like the one Serena and Darien have found with one another. I want to build a future with you, and have your children.” Inhaling a shaky breath, she spoke, “Greg, will you marry me?”

A calm silence followed, the only sound the gulls overhead and the water pressing against the docks. She could hear the blast of a ships horn, could hear the breeze whisper through the high reeds of the grass, but could hear nothing from him.

When he finally spoke it was with a quiet, definitive answer. “No.”

She squeezed her eyes shut and struggled to hold back the tears, releasing his hand from hers and bowing her head. She had known she would risk his rejection, she had known she could risk that the love he’d had for had died because of her own ignorance and stupidity. But what she hadn’t been prepared for was the immense pain that would follow.

A single tear slid down her cheek, and she was so absorbed in the slicing pain she didn’t realize he had bent on one knee before her, until his hand cupped her cheek and his thumb wiped the tear away. Startled, she opened her eyes to meet his, staring numbly as he took one of her hands in his and held it gently.

“You have to say it.” He spoke softly, his dark eyes locked steadily on hers.

She studied his eyes, and saw finally the need for what only she could give him. Slowly, her heart began to heal as she whispered the words that would begin her life again. “I love you Greg.” She blew out a small breath, felt all the pieces that had been scattered in the past months come neatly together. “I love you Greg.”

Overwhelmed with emotion, he raced his lips over her cheeks, her eyes, her nose. “Again. Say it again.”

Laughing now, she threw her arms around his neck and clung. “I love you!”

He laughed as well as he stood and gathered her close, closing his mouth over hers and sinking into her, inch by slow inch. In his arms he could feel his future again, and in his arms he could feel the most cherished, precious thing in his life.

“God I love you.” The admission was torn from him between kisses, his voice raw with the tangle of emotions racing through him. “You’re everything there is Amy. Everything.”

She ran her hands through his windblown hair, inching back to grin up at him. “So I guess this means you’ll marry me right?”

He nuzzled her neck. “What do you think?”

“I think I can manage to get us hitched in two months if you’re up to it.”

He lifted his head to meet her eyes, amused and gloriously happy by the challenge there. “One month.”

She raised a brow, kissing him soundly on the lips once again. “Deal.”

The End
By: SailorPerfect

Last Notes: I want to thank everyone who e-mailed and reviewed this fic, you guys were my inspiration to continue! I hope this ending satisfies because it certainly satisfied my own heart. ::sighs::

Now stay tuned for the next and last story in the Reflections Trilogy, Reflections of a Wish. Lita Bass has got to be the most proud, independent, stubborn, outspoken character I’ve ever written, with Kennedy Steele being the most suave, debonair, devastatingly handsome type. Stay tuned to see how these two handle the dangerous passion they create. The first chapter will be coming out soon, I promise! ~SailorP