In pretty much every way, life was good, he thought as he picked at the edges of the napkin underneath his glass. The move to New York had opened up all kinds of opportunities. He'd been able to snag a job in the photography division of a major newspaper and he'd made great contacts all over the East Coast. He was close enough to visit his family on holidays and on long weekends and you couldn't beat the hustle and bustle of the New York City streets.

There was only one thing missing, he sighed as he took a sip from the frosty beer mug. Fall nights always made him think of her—of how it used to be…of nights spent on the rooftop, looking at the stars, that is if they weren't looking at each other.

All of that was over now. Kelly had long since moved on. He'd seen the announcement in the lifestyle section of his very own paper—he'd even been lucky enough to get an advanced copy…one of the many perks of working for the paper. The headline had been sensational of course, but it didn't make it any less hurtful. "Media Mogul weds New Owner of Westchester Publishing". After that, he'd carefully avoided anything that mentioned either of them. He didn't need to know. But on nights like this, not knowing didn't cut it. She still crept into his thoughts. And tonight, he realized as his blinked to make sure he hadn't had one to many, she was creeping into the very restaurant he occupied.

As Kelly took a seat, Joey slowly moved towards the bar. Careful to ensure his back was turned towards her, he slowly glanced over his shoulder. She was already ordering, so clearly she wasn't waiting on anyone. Hubby leave her to eat alone, he wondered? Trouble in paradise? What did it matter..he sighed…Even if Kelly's marriage was on the rocks, nothing would change. They were over and had been for years.

The sound of the bartender's voice startled him.

"Don't even bother," he said, letting a small burst of air escape his lips as he swept his cloth across the bar, brushing away some invisible dirt.

"Huh?" Joey replied, confused by the comment.

"I see you looking at the lady over there," he smirked, gesturing towards Kelly. "Lots of guys do…and lots of guys try, but none ever get anywhere."

Joey nodded. "Yeah, well, she's married. I know."

The bartender was silent for a moment. "Yeah, she was….but she's not now. Ever since then, she's been off limits. That woman's like ice."

Before Joey could question him any further, he'd made his way down the bar to no doubt flirt with the leggy blonde who'd just sauntered up a few stools down. Slowly, he glanced over his shoulder again. Kelly did seem different…more serious, less relaxed, almost resigned to a life without joy. At first he'd thought it was the new job, the more serious relationship, the new way of life, but now, after the bartender's comments, he had to wonder. Was something more going on with Kelly?

Twenty five minutes—He glanced down at his watch. He'd been sitting there twenty five minutes going over all the reasons he shouldn't go over and speak to her. This was a woman he'd loved for years, a woman he'd married, a woman he'd called his best friend though some of the hardest times of his life and now a simple hello required a twenty five minute debate. It shouldn't be this complicated.

With a deep sigh, he stood up. "What's the worst that could happen?" he muttered out loud and turned around to head towards her table.

His eyes scanned the room as his breath left his body in a slow sigh. She was gone.

Kelly Hawkins sat at her desk pouring over a stack of folders. It had become more and more frequent in recent months to leave the office for the night only to eat and come right back. She told everyone it was because she was so busy—they had after all recently acquired the rights to two major newspapers which was a totally new venture for the company, but everyone knew the real reason she spent all her time in the office. She didn't want to spend it in an empty house.

"Ms. Hawkins," the young woman peered in, before turning out the lights. She smiled at Kelly as she saw her sitting at her desk. "I thought I heard someone in here. I thought you'd left for the evening."

"Oh, I had Claire. I just came back…decided to work on some plans for the new companies." Kelly gestured to the stack of files on her desk. They looked impressive and daunting enough…it was a plausible explanation and it sounded far less pathetic than admitting that walking into her house sometimes started a crying jag that could last for hours.

The young woman nodded. "Do you need anything?" she asked hesitantly. "I was going to go, but if you need me to stay…"

"No…No..Claire. You go ahead. I'll be just fine."

Claire nodded. "Ok. And if it's still ok, I'm taking tomorrow off. My family is going out of town for the weekend and they really want me to come."

Kelly forced a smile. "Of course. Family is important." She felt the familiar lump rise in her throat as she said the words. Everyone said that time would heal—that the hurt would lessen, but each day she thought she felt even emptier inside.

Claire didn't miss the pain that streaked across her face. "I'm sorry," she said softly, lowering her head. "I…."

"Don't you worry about it, Claire," Kelly said, moving to stand and walk towards her door. "You just go and have a wonderful weekend with your family. You deserve it. You do a great job here."

"Thanks Ms. Hawkins," she said as she turned and quickly walked away.

Nodding, Kelly closed the door behind her and held her breath as she heard the footsteps fade as Claire boarded the elevator. Only when she was sure she was out of earshot, did she allow the tears to fall.

Glancing down at her watch, she drew in a shaky breath.

"Time's up," she whispered to herself. One of her survival tactics as of late had been to limit the amount of time she allowed herself to fall apart…at least for the most part. Ten minutes seemed reasonable—long enough to release the feelings, but not too long to cause her eyes to swell to the point of no return. Longer crying spells led to questions—questions she didn't want to answer.

She slumped back down in the soft leather of the executive chair. Looking around the office, she tried to be proud of everything she'd accomplished. The long hours she'd clocked had paid off handsomely. The company was in better shape than it had been in years and the acquisition of two new major newspapers had garnered plenty of positive media coverage. It was good news all around.

Leaning back, she sighed. Good news didn't mean much if you didn't have anyone to share it with.

Joey strolled through the hustle and bustle of the news room. Some called it chaos, but he felt right at home in the thick of it. As he took the last sip of his first cup of coffee, he saw Beth walking in, the tray of coffees perched precariously on her forearm.

"Got it?" he said, rushing over to help steady the steaming cups.

"Yep," she said smiling and reaching over to grab his cup. "Black, right?"

Joey nodded. "Guess you know you've finally grown up when you start drinking your coffee black, huh?"

Beth just smiled. "So," she paused as she readjusted the weight of the cups on her arm, "Have you heard the news?"

"What news?" Sure he'd just come in, but no one had called him. Surely if it had been important…..He didn't have to wonder for long.

"We've been bought out," Beth replied, her tone still remarkably upbeat.

Joey sat down as he felt the air leave his body all at once. There were a few words in his business that evoked true fear in him. 'You're fired' were two of them and 'bought out' were two more. New owners meant new rules, new employees, new visions and if you weren't included in those new visions…well then….

"Don't stress about it," Beth said, taking a seat on the other side of the desk. "Actually everyone is pretty excited"

"Really? Why? Who bought us?"

"Westchester Publishing….it's a local publishing house that's new to the newspaper business, but the new CEO is actually well versed in publishing. She was actually the publisher of a newspaper herself years ago and she's been pretty successful in online journalism. The company has really flourished with her at the helm."

"Wow," Joey nodded. "Sounds promising. Has a press release been issued yet?"

"Yep. Actually, we're running a cover story today. Here's the copy."

Joey took the folder from her hand and allowed his eyes to roam the page. For a moment he thought he was dreaming, but the feel of the hot liquid on his hand brought him back to reality.

"Joey!" Beth replied startled, quickly grabbing for napkins and helping to mop up the steaming liquid that now covered his desk. "What's wrong?"

Joey looked up. "This woman," he glanced back down at the copy. "Kelly Hawkins," he voice threatened to give out on him. "I used to know her."

"Really?" Beth continued to mop up the liquid on the desk. "Did you work with her back in Llanview?"

Joey nodded. "You could say that." He sighed. "I was married to her."