A/N: I don't own anything but the concept. I got this idea while writing Games. After bouncing it around with a few friends on here, I decided to go for it. I hope that everyone likes this first chapter.

XXXX

Ashes to ashes, dust to dust

Kimberly stood at Tommy's side as they lowered his father's casket into the ground. This past week had been rough on him, she knew. His father had died quite suddenly so no one had been prepared for his death least of all his only son. Zordon had been in great health as far as the family was concerned but according to the doctors he had been a ticking time bomb for the past several years, a fact that Zordon had hidden from his family since he knew that it would worry them.

She knew that Zordon had barely cared what his health was as long as it didn't interfere with his business. The mutli-billion dollar business had been family owned since Tommy's great-grandfather had built it from the ground up almost a hundred years ago. Zordon had pushed the corporation into the 21st century and turned an even bigger profit than anyone would have ever thought in a time of family owned companies going bankrupt.

Tommy would be the head of the company now. He had been groomed for the role since birth and Kimberly knew that he could do it. Zordon had made sure that his heir could do the job that he had been born to do. He may not like being on top this early but he could do it with ease. Having worked in the company since he was old enough gave him the knowledge that he would need to run it smoothly from the ground up. It also helped that the people trusted Tommy because he had worked those lowly jobs first and worked his way up with hard work not because his father owned the company.

She felt him stiffen beside her as he watched his mom throw a red flower into the grave on top of the casket. He then took a shove that one of the pall bearers handed him and got some dirt on the end to toss onto the casket. He handed it back as she slipped her hand in his offering any comfort that she could. She didn't speak but then again no words were needed today. He knew that it was her and she was here for him just like she always had been.

They had been friends since the day she was born. Their parents had been friends since college so it was only natural that the children were close. He had been three at the time of her birth but according to their parents they had been inseparable since the day she came home from the hospital. Tommy had taken to the baby Kimberly like she was his own. They were as close as brother and sister without the blood.

Seeing his father buried hurt her as much as it did him. Zordon had been like a second father to her. He had been the one to teach her how to drive when her own father had been out of the country on assignment. He had also been the one to encourage her to follow her heart and open up her charity even though no one else had known that had been her secret dream.

The coming weeks were going to be hard on the Olivers especially Tommy but she planned to be at his side to help him heal in any way that she could because that's what best friends were for. He had been there for her in hard times so she would be there for him.

XXXX

Two Weeks Later

Kim sat at their usual table while she waited for Tommy. Eating at Castaways had been their Tuesday tradition since she had graduated from college. He had thrown her a celebration lunch here to congratulate her on earning her Masters. After she had gotten her job at one of the city's leading law firms, he had taken her out again and after that they had just fallen into the routine of coming here. It was equal distance from each of their offices that it made perfect sense to eat there. The food was also good too.

She enjoyed it as well because they got a chance to actually talk without their family always around them. She missed the days when she could talk to him without anyone listening in. Looking around, she finally saw him walking through the door before making his way to her. He was a little late but she knew that he had met with his father's lawyers today to go over the will. She wondered how that went when she saw his expression. It wasn't the normal expression of joy that he wore but one of confusion and sadness. The meeting had not gone well then.

"Sorry, I'm late." He said as he sat down. The waiter bought him his normal drink of coke without any asking. "Can I get a beer?" He asked which shocked Kim a little. She knew that it had to have been a bad meeting with the lawyers if he wanted a beer. She couldn't remember the last time that he had had a beer. It had to be at least 2 years at her 25th birthday blowout. Neither of them were big drinkers; because they had experienced first-hand how alcohol could ruin your life with Kimberly's father. He had been killed when Kim had been eight after drinking after a fight with her mom. Thankfully Kimberly hadn't been in the car at the time because he had just dropped her off at gymnastics.

"No problem sire, what kind would you like?" The waiter asked, not fazed by Tommy's request even though he had to be because she had been waiting their table for months and Tommy had never ordered anything but coke to drink.

"Doesn't matter just anything you got on hand." Tommy replied as the waiter nodded and walked away.

"He's going to bring the most expensive or the one that no one else likes." Kim said as she grabbed a chip from the basket. It was one reason that she loved eating here; they always bought out chips and spinach dip before you even ordered. It helped when they were super busy.

"It doesn't matter as long as I get some kind of alcohol." He stated as he rubbed his forehead before setting his hand on the table top. She could tell that he was tired and maybe a little angry.

"What happened?" She asked placing her hand on top of his.

"My father hated me, that's what's wrong." He said looking over at her. She did not smile at his statement even though she wanted too. She knew that Zordon did not hate Tommy. Zordon loved both of his children more than life itself.

"Your father did not hate you, Tommy. You know that, as well as I do." She said squeezing his hand.

"I'm not so sure." He muttered as the waiter bought him his beer and set it down in front of him. "Thanks." He said as the waiter nodded.

"Are you ready to order?" The waiter asked as Kim looked over at Tommy. She knew what she wanted but she didn't know about him.

"Yes." Tommy answered. "I want the 12oz sirloin with the house salad." He said without even looking at his menu. It was another good thing about coming here; they knew the menu like the back of their hands.

"How would you like that cooked?" The waiter asked with his pin poised above his order pad.

"Medium and ranch for the salad dressing." Tommy replied as the waiter nodded.

"And for you miss?" He asked turning to Kimberly.

"I want the Caesar salad with ranch dressing instead and a side of chicken fingers." She said as the waiter nodded and took their menus.

"I will put your order in." He said before walking away.

"Chicken fingers? You know most girls would only get the salad with no dressing but not you." He said with a smile.

"I happen to like their chicken fingers, if you recall." She said grabbing another chip.

"Oh yes I know that very well." He said.

"So what happened to make you think that your father didn't love you?" She asked getting back to their topic.

"I have to get married." He said but nothing further which confused her.

"Okay but let's tackle your father's will before marrying you off." She said trying to get back to their topic.

"No, my father wants me to get married." He huffed out.

"Well you are 30 so I can see why he would want you to get married but what does this have to do with your father's will?" She asked still not understanding. Normally Tommy was very clear to her and she never had to ask for an explanation but today he was only giving her half of the story.

"He said that I inherit everything." He began before grabbing a chip himself.

"Of course you do since you are the oldest, his heir, and only son." She shrugged. This wasn't unexpected. Tommy was the apple of his father's eye so of course he got everything. Zordon also knew that Tommy would support his mother and younger sister without being told to.

"Well in order to inherit everything including the family company, I have to get married in a month." He explained as Kim looked at him. She had been about to take a drink but quickly set her glass back down. She didn't need to get choked in the middle of Tommy telling her this.

"He put that in his will? You have to get married in a month?" She asked as he nodded. "Why would he do that?" She asked more to herself than to him. Zordon had never asked anything like this before so why now? It was almost if he was setting Tommy up to fail but why?

"I say that it's his last test for me to see if I really want the family business." He stated as she sighed. Zordon had been testing Tommy lately to see if he could really run the business but most of it had to do with actually running the company.

"It could be true but why marriage?" She said as he shrugged.

"Who knows, only that if I don't then my cousin Skull gets everything including my place in the company." He said as she looked over at him in shock. Zordon had threatened Tommy with Skull getting the business. This was serious. He really wanted Tommy to get married.

"So I guess you are getting married." She said as he nodded slowly.

"I don't want Skull to get the business since he has never worked at the company and besides the fact that it's mine to begin with." He said as she nodded in understanding.

"So who are you going to marry?" She asked as the waiter made his way to their table with their food. They sat in silence as their food was placed on the table and the waiter took his leave.

"I don't know who I am going to marry, that's just it." He said as he began to cut his steak.

"Well you do have a girlfriend that is dying to marry you." Kim pointed out as she poured the dressing over her salad.

"I'm not marrying Katherine." He said point blankly which shocked her more than it probably should have. Tommy wasn't known for having long relationships but he had been with Katherine for a few months now so Kim thought that they might be getting a little serious.

"Why not? She is a lovely woman that happens to love you." She said taking a bite of one of her chicken fingers.

"Oh she doesn't love me and anyway I was just dating her for the fun of it." He said as Kim shook her head at him. Sometimes he did make her mad on behalf of all the girls who came in contact with him.

"It's a wonder why you have had as many girlfriends as you've had. If I was interested in you, I would steer clear after finding out your track record." Kim said between bites.

"Oh please, every girl wants to say that they have dated the great Tommy Oliver." He said with a big smile. It was the same smile that had gotten him out of trouble more times that she could remember.

Kim rolled her eyes before speaking. "Oh I'm sure that's what it is. Seriously, you could marry Katherine so that it would make your life easier. I mean you already know her and you know that you can at least stand to be in the same house with her longer than a few hours." She said as he shook his head again.

"No, I'm not marrying her." He said as she sighed. She knew that tone very well. He had made his mind up and wouldn't change it no matter what even if it solved his problem.

"Fine, but who are you going to marry?" She asked as he sighed and changed the subject.

"How was your date with Jason?" He asked as she looked over at him.

"Okay I guess." She hedged trying not to squirm and reveal anything that he didn't need to know.

"Okay? Jason is legendary with woman like I am and it was just okay." He said as she nodded. "When are you going out again?" He asked as Kim bit her lip.

"Uh I'm not sure that we will go out. I mean I had a good time; it's just that I'm not sure that Jason is right for me. I mean he is your best friend so it's a little awkward." She stated looking down at her plate before looking back up at him. This was getting hard because she hated lying to him.

"You've got to give him another chance. Don't worry I will talk to him so that you have a better date." He said as she looked back down at her food. She couldn't tell him anything so she just keeps her mouth shut on the Jason topic.

They finished eating and paid the bill so that Kim could get back to work. Tommy had another stop before he dropped by the office.

XXXX

"So how was your lunch? Did you finally break out of that good girl shell and sleep with the dream boat?" Trini asked as soon as Kim sat down at her desk. They were two of the youngest lawyers at the firm but they had both earned their way and had won some major cases.

"We just had lunch and he is my best friend. We have never had sex, nor will we ever. It would just be too weird." She said as Trini sighed. She just didn't understand how Kimberly could be just friends with Tommy. The man was hot and it had nothing to do with his money even though he did have a lot of it. Kim was from a rich family too but she never acted like it. She didn't want to rest only on her family's money but on herself.

"I don't know a woman alive would who won't want to share that man's bed except for you. Really Kimberly, I think I need to take you to the doctor or something." Trini said as Kim laughed.

"He's like my brother." She said with a shrug.

"I know and how you could see that man as your brother, I don't know. There is no blood between you." Trini pointed out as Kim shook her head.

"Don't worry about that but you do really need to tell Jason to tell him that you two are dating so that Tommy doesn't ask me about another date. I'm tired of hiding the fact that his best friend and my best friend are dating." She said changing the subject.

Trini sighed before looking over at Kimberly. "Fine, I will talk to Jason tonight about telling Tommy. It wasn't my idea to hide it so don't get mad at me." She said as Kim shot her a look.

"It may not have been your idea but you went along with it." Kim said as Trini nodded.

"Okay well I will leave you to your work." Trini said as she walked out of Kim's office. Trini's office was next door so it wasn't like she had too far to go.

Kim leaned back in her chair and sighed. Tommy had to get married but who would he marry? There were lots of women would line up to marry him but apparently Tommy was going to be picky. He had a month to find someone and walk down the aisle. She wasn't sure that even Tommy could do that but she would help him anyway she could.

XXXX

"I am sorry for your loss Mr. Oliver." Cassie the receptionist said as he got off the elevator. He hadn't been back in the company for two weeks dealing with all of his father's business but he was glad he was back now. The Senior Vice President had been running the company just well but now it was time for him to step into his father's shoes as the President.

"Thank you Cassie." He said as he passed by her desk to get to the executive elevator. Stepping inside he watched the doors close and pushed for the top floor and listened to the music that was typical elevator music. It was a quick ride and he stepped out the doors as soon as they opened. He never liked to linger in the elevator.

"Good morning, Mr. Oliver. I am sorry for your father's passing." Ashley said as soon as he came up to her desk. Ashley had been his father's secretary for about a year now after Zordon had seen how great she was at her job as Tommy's secretary.

"Good morning Ashley and thank you. It looks like we are working together once again." He said pausing at her desk.

"It would seem so but what about Kira?" She asked referring to his current secretary.

"She will assist whoever gets my old job. I will need the CVs on all the current employees who are in line for the job. If you could them to me by end of working day tomorrow that would be great. Also please hold all my calls while I get caught up on all the back log of work." He said as Ashley wrote everything down. She was really good at her job and he was happy to have her back.

"I will but what if it's an important call?" She asked looking up at him.

"If it's that important then send them through or at least let me know who it is and I will decide." He answered.

"Okay no problem. Most of the phone calls are just to offer their condolences." She stated as he nodded and walked into his new office.

Closing the door, he looked around. Everything was exactly where his father had left it. No one had moved anything which meant that he would be the one that boxed up his father's stuff. Most of it would go home to his mother since it was personal things that she had gotten him over the years.

Walking around the desk, he sat down and looked over his father's calendar. His father was a busy man but thankfully this month wasn't that bad. It would give him time to find a suitable wife. Why had his father demanded him to get married and such short notice?

Standing up he walked over to the windows that lined up behind the desk. It overlooked the city of Angel Grove and it was one heck of a view. It didn't bring him comfort though because all he could think about was his upcoming marriage. He didn't know anyone that he would want to marry for the rest of his life.

"The rest of my life." He muttered as he turned back to the room. What if his marriage didn't last the rest of his life? His father hadn't said that he had to stay married just that he had to get married. He could do marriage for say a year until he got the company under control. It would have to be a woman who would understand, someone that he could live with who wouldn't fall in love with him before the year was up.

Smiling Tommy sat down and got to work. He finally figured out how to make this work for him and to keep his company.

XXXX

"So I talked to Kimberly and she said that your date was only okay." Tommy said. He had called Jason as soon as he got into his car. He wanted to talk this over with Jason just to see if the plan was too crazy.

"Uh well I need to tell you something about that." Jason said as Tommy pulled out of the parking garage.

"What? Did the date not go well at all?" He asked stopping at the red light.

"The date went great but it wasn't Kimberly I was on a date with, it was Trini." He stated.

"How did that happen?" Tommy asked as the light turned green. He was also wondered why Kimberly didn't just tell him that she wasn't dating Jason.

"Well I went to pick Kim up and Trini answered the door. Apparently Kim set us up because she thought we made a cute couple, whatever that means." Jason said as Tommy laughed. Kim was such a liar. It was no wonder that she said the date was okay. She didn't even go on the date.

"Don't worry about it, my father wrote in his will that I have to get married within the month." He said getting to the topic he really wanted to talk about with Jason.

"In a month, well at least you have a girlfriend. I mean Katherine is not who I ever pictured you marrying but she will fit the bill." He said as Tommy rolled his eyes.

"I am not marrying Katherine. You know Kimberly suggested the same thing to me at lunch. Katherine and I were pretty much just dating for the fun of it." He stated.

"Whoa back up, it was just a suggestion. I am hurt that you would tell Kimberly about your father's will before me. I am the company's Junior Vice President." He said as Tommy laughed. Jason was always getting upset that Tommy told stuff to Kimberly first. He just always did.

"Well I saw her first but I have decided to consider it a marriage of convenience. I mean why should I think long term about this? My father wasn't thinking when he put that in his will." He said pulling into his garage at his townhouse.

"It would break your mother's heart to see your marriage end after hers lasted as long as it did." Jason pointed out as Tommy climbed out of his car.

"I know that but I only have a month." He said unlocking his door and going inside. He didn't even what to think about how this idea would hurt his mother.

"Very true so who have you decided will work for this arrangement?" He asked as Tommy threw his bag on the counter and shrugged out of his suit jacket.

"I'm still working on that but will you be my best man?" He asked grabbing a bottle of coke out of his fridge.

"I'm honored that you asked me of course I will be. You didn't ask Kimberly and have her to turn you down, right?" He asked as Tommy laughed.

"No, I didn't. She would probably have said yes anyway since we are best friends but I thought it would look a little odd for her to stand beside me." He explained walking into bedroom.

"So I will get murdered in my sleep because you didn't ask Kimberly." He said with his laugh as well.

"She will at least make it pain free for you. Anyway I'll let you know a day." He said before saying his goodbye and hitting the end button on his phone. Striping off the rest of his clothes, he jumped into the shower and thought about who he could ask to be his wife for at least a year.

XXXX

The next morning Kimberly pulled into the stables and smiled. This was her dream and she loved it. The kids were the best part of her job and she loved helping them. Shutting the car, she got out and took a deep breath. There was nothing like the smell of horses in the crisp morning air.

She made her way inside the office and saw that Mia and Emily were already hard at work. "Morning ladies." She said as she rounded the desk to look at the sponsor money. The rehab part of the stables was run solely on donations whereas the boarding half was paid for by the owners of the horses. Boarding also covered Mia, Emily, and all the stable hands' salary. It also covered some of the basics as well which she was happy about.

Falcon-Crane stables had just been a mere dream to her three years ago but now it was a thriving business. She really didn't have to work if she didn't want to but she took the money she would have made as the owner and put it back in the business.

Of course she really didn't have to work anyway because her dad would support her if she wanted him to. She liked to be independent though so she didn't ask him for money ever. She had even worked to put herself through college without asking for a dime.

"Hey Kimberly, you are here early." Mia said as she handed Kimberly the calendar for this weekend.

"Yea I wanted to ride this morning before work." She said as Mia nodded and answered the phone.

"The donations are down this month." Emily said as she handed Kimberly a cup of coffee. They knew how much Kim loved it so they always had some prepared for her.

"Well that's to be expected. How were the expenses last month?" She asked setting the calendar back on Mia's desk so that she could look at while she was on the phone. They hosted a lot of birthday parties as well as the rehab groups.

"Well everything was well below the budget." Emily replied handing Kim the printout.

Kim looked it over as she took a drink. "This is great." She said finally. "Move the profit over to the building fund. Have you finished the budget for next month?" She said handing the printout back.

"I emailed it to you last night." Emily responded.

"Thanks, I'll take a look at it when I get to work." Kim said finishing her coffee. "Has everyone paid boarding for next month?" She asked as Emily pulled out the ledger. They always wanted people to pay a month ahead so that people could get paid on time.

"They have and some have even paid a few months in advance." Emily said with a smile.

"Good. Now I'm going to take Crane out for a ride but I'll be back within the hour." Kim informed them as both girls nodded. Mia was still on the phone while Emily got back to work on balance sheet that Kim wanted done every month.

Kim smiled and walked out of the office. The two girls were the best thing to happen to the stables and Kim wouldn't trade them for anything. They loved it as much as she did and they were really good at their jobs. She never worried about something going wrong in the office that they couldn't fix.

Walking into the stables, she made her way to the third stall on the left. Crane was her personal horse that she kept here because she lived in an apartment complex in city limits. She would have loved to keep Crane with her but this was the next best thing.

"Hey Kimberly, going for a ride?" Carlos asked coming up behind her.

"I am." She answered with a smile. Carlos was the head groom. He treated all the horses as if they were his babies. Kim knew that Crane loved Carlos more than her because he fed her sugar cubes all the time but she wasn't jealous.

"The South meadow is a little soft this morning so you may want to stick to the trail." He informed her.

"Thank you, I will do that. I think Crane wants to run anyway." She said as he nodded and walked away. Opening the stall, she grabbed the blanket and threw it up over Crane's back before reaching for the saddle. She then took off the halter and placed a bridle on Crane. It was something she had been doing since she first learned how to ride. Her father had always told her that if she wanted to ride then she could saddle her own horse.

"You know I think you are getting faster with that." A voice said behind her.

"What?" She asked spinning around to see Tommy standing there in jeans and a plaid shirt that she had given him last Christmas. The only time that she had seen him wear it was to the stables. "Tommy, what are you doing here?" She asked leading Crane out of the stall.

"I figured that you were riding this morning and I wanted to join you." He said flashing her a smile.

"Really? I would think that running the company would be on your morning agenda." She said looking up at him. He looked relaxed this morning which was a good thing.

"Not this early and anyway it's been weeks since I've been riding." He said grabbing a blanket and saddle.

"And whose fault is that?" She asked as she watched him walked into Falcon's stall. "You know you can't just show up here and expect a ride." She stated rubbing Crane's nose.

"Whatever, since the stables are named after my horse, I think I can." He said finishing up and leading Falcon out of his stall.

"It's half named after your horse." She pointed out with a little sass.

"Well half then but I think that entitles me to some riding time." He said as she sighed and shook her head. It was no use arguing with him. He wanted to ride with her so he was going whether she wanted him too or not. It really didn't bother her that he wanted to ride this morning. It would probably clear his head from the marriage demand his father had given him.

"I guess so." She muttered before turning away from him to lead Crane out of the stables. He was right behind her with Falcon.

"So where are we headed?" He asked as she climbed onto of Crane's back.

"The trail since the meadow's a little soft." She said as he swung up onto Falcon's back. The horses were impressive when they stood side by side. Once they were settled, she turned Crane towards the trail and spurred her on. Tommy was right behind her as they raced the trail that circled the stables.

After about 20 minutes, Kim pulled Crane up to slow down. She could feel Crane's breathing getting a little labored so it was a good time to slow down and head back to the stables. She had to get to work anyway.

"Time to go back?" Tommy asked coming up beside her.

"Yea." Kim replied. "You can go around again, if you want." She said as he shook his head no.

"No, I'm fine. I need to ask you a question." He said as the horses settled into a walk.

"You know I think every big decision we have ever made was on this trail." She said smiling at him. "Remember when I decided to open this place?" She asked.

"Yea, I'm pretty sure that you had wanted to prove that you could do something other than law." He stated as she nodded. "You did it too." He remarked.

"Yea I did." She said. "Thanks to you and your father." She said looking over at him.

"I made a decision about my marriage." He said as she pulled Crane to a stop. He did the same with Falcon and looked over at her. "What's wrong?" He asked trying to read her mood.

"Nothing, I just thought that we should be stopped when I hear what your decision is." She said as he nodded. "Go ahead; tell me, I think I'm ready for this."

"Well since I don't have much time, I have decided to propose a marriage of convenience." He said as she stared at him. "You're not saying anything."

"Oh I'm just trying to figure out what would lead you to that decision. I mean this will kill your mother and sister." She said that echoed Jason's words from last night.

"They are not going to know. I would try it for a year and then we would separate citing whatever everyone else does after such a short time." He stated matter-of-factly.

"Are you serious?" She asked as he nodded. "Are you crazy?" She asked. "I can't believe that you would come up with this. Just find someone that you can love and marry her. It's not that hard."

"I only have a month." He pointed out. "If I haven't found the woman that I could see spending the rest of my life in the last several years, how can I do it in a month?" He asked getting angry. He thought that Kimberly would be on his side about this. She was his best friend after all.

"I don't know." She whispered trying to think of someway to help Tommy. This situation was different from anything they had ever faced before.

"Well I haven't gotten to the best part." He said as she looked back at him. He hadn't gotten to the best part. What more could he add to this conversation?

"What is it?" She asked not sure if she really wanted to know what he considered the best part.

"Kimberly, will you marry?" He asked as Kim struggled to stay on top of Crane. Had he just asked her to marry him? Had he asked her while she was on a horse in the middle of a trail?

XXXX

Okay so this is the first chapter of my new story. What did everyone think? Please let me know. The next chapter should be up sometime next week.