Excited, I did my hair and makeup in rush. I told myself it was just a job opportunity, that I considered Nick nothing more than a friend. That's what I'd told Wally, right? But I knew it wasn't true. From the second I laid eyes on him, I knew he was it for me. That soft grin, muscular body, and sun-streaked blonde hair had done me in, no matter how much I tried to hide it.

A tentative knock on the door, and Wally peeked his head in. He smiled sadly at me, and said, "Nick's here. Do you want me to send him on up?"

I nodded, too excited about Nick to feel bad. I had a wonderful surprise for him, and I could barely contain myself when he came in the door.

"Hey," he said, running a hand through his caramel-colored hair. "Wally's, uh, heading out I think, and Hugh's at Kate's house from what I hear. You look beautiful, by the way."

I flushed, and stuttered, "Thank you, you do too. I mean, not beautiful, but, um, handsome. I really like your… Clothes."

Ready to melt into a puddle of embarrassment, I could barely look at him. But Nick just smiled, and said, "So I figured that since we're talking about farming, we should start with the land. It's gotta be the most important key to a successful farm, but I'll bet that the majority of your viewers won't know a thing about it."

Not that I did either. But I smiled and wrote down, "Land= most important," on my notepad. After nearly an hour of absently jotting down words, and watching his face becoming animated, it suddenly changed and he grinned at me.

"You're about to fall asleep, aren't you?"

Embarrassed, I denied it, but Nick had already leaned over and gently closed my notebook.

"I really like you, Chris. If you'd just wanted to be with me, you could've said so," he said softly.

For whatever reason, I actually managed to answer this confidently.

"I couldn't have. I have my husband, and he knows I love you-"

I had said it. Nick took a quick breath, and then came over and gently stroked my head, so I continued.

"And I love Wally, so of course I don't want to see him hurt, but I see him as a friend, not a lover. But he's the father of my baby Hugh, and what would all of this do to Hugh if he knew?"

After I finished, I burst into tears, and Nick continued stroking my hair, bending down to kiss it every once in awhile.

"Chris?" he said after some time.

My eyes were dry, but still red, and my throat was sore, so I just nodded.

"I've always liked you, a lot, and thought about you. I want to be with you. Plenty of people get divorces, and many of them have kids. Those kids always turn out fine, and sometimes even like their step-parents."

He looked at me to gauge my reaction, but the second he implied we would get married, I could have died of happiness. My next words were, depending on how you look at it, my best or my worst, but they were definitely my most daring.

"I do."