This is it, he told himself. I, Colin Baxter or Justin Beaumont will tell Nancy Drew how I really feel. He could not believe he was doing this. He was not the type to do something so unexpected. Just yesterday he was sitting in a London coffee house contemplating about whether or not he should go back to Venice and try to find work or stay in England and start anew. That's when it happened; a small square tesserae fell out of the pocket of his coat. At that moment he thought it had just been a tile from his current piece that had fallen in to his coat accidently. When he picked up the mosaic tile and got a closer look he figured out it was hers. It was the one Nancy had given him so many months ago while she was staying at the Ca'. It was the time while she was staying there that Colin first found that he was definitely attracted to her and that he wanted nothing more than to make her happy. In the first months after he had left theCa' Nascosta so abruptly he had done nothing but think about her. Her beautiful appearance, the way her eyebrows creased together when she was thinking extremely hard, and how she was so forgiving. He missed her more than words could describe, he knew it was crazy because he had barley known her and he wasn't one to believe in "love at first sight" but that is exactly what it was, and there was no other way to explain it. It was in that very moment that he made his decision to go to River Heights and tell Nancy that Locket Guy might like her but he liked her more, he could quite possibly even love her.

Now sitting on a plane bound for Chicago, Illinois he was beginning to think that his plan was absolutely insane. What was he going to say anyways, "Oh Nancy I have flown thousands of miles just to see you and tell you I love you. Will you come back to England with me?" If he did say that she would think he was completely mad. What if he couldn't even find this "River Heights." Maybe it would be best that he not even try. She had probably forgot all about him anyways and if she was still with Locket Guy, Ned, then she would most likely not even want to speak to Colin about these feelings he had for her. It's when his plane landed in the O'Hare airport that he realized there was no turning back. He had to find Nancy and explain to her his feelings and why he left the Ca' without telling her or truly clarifying why he had to leave. These things could no longer go unsaid. He could not stand the thought of that breathtaking woman not knowing his feelings, and what he couldn't stand even more was not knowing what could have been.

A few hours later his taxi pulled up to the River Heights Café. Okay, he thought, now what? That's when a short girl with beautiful blonde hair and blue eyes walks out of the café. "Well I've never seen you around before," she says in a flirty tone.

"I'm not from around here," Colin replied

"Oh wow," she said surprised, "I can tell by that accent of yours. I'm Bess by the way, Bess Marvin."

"Colin Baxter."

She looked happy, "So what brings you to River Heights?"

"Well this girl I meet—"

"Oh… there's a girl?" she asked sadly.

"Yes there is. Her name is Nancy Drew. I meet her when she was visiting Italy." He noticed that Bess's eyes got rather large when he mentioned Nancy. She must know Nancy, he thought, fate had to have lead me straight to her.

"So do you know who she is?" he asked eagerly.

"Well yes I do. She is only my best friend," Bess responded in a fake excited manner.

"So then you can tell me where I might find her?" Colin requested, he was rather delighted to have met this girl, he just hoped she was telling the truth.

"Yeah, she's probably at home," she told him, "Maybe I can even show you where her house is at." He was stunned at how helpful she was, he figured that she would have been a little bit more caution about showing him where Nancy's home was. Maybe Nancy told Bess about me, he thought to himself, maybe, just maybe she didn't forget about me. "Alright, can we go now?" he asked enthusiastically.

"Sure, if you really want to. I mean I could give you a tour around the town and—." Colin cut her off "No, I believe we should go now."

Bess dropped Colin off in front of a large brick house that stood well back from the street with a curved driveway. It looked like it had fallen right out of a story book. It was precisely what he thought Nancy deserved to live in. As Bess drove away Colin stood on the curve trying to acquire enough courage to walk up to the front door. That is when a plump older woman walked out of the front door. "Can I help you darling?" she asked sweetly. Now or never, "I was wondering if this is where Nancy Drew lives?" he answered.

"Well yes dear, she does. Are you a friend of hers?" the woman asked.

"Yes, but she does not know I'm here. My visit is... umm.. rather sudden," he responded.

"Well sweetheart I'm sure she will still be pleased to see you. Don't just stand there on the curb, come on in and I will whip up some cookies or something. I'm Hannah. I am the Drew's house keeper."

Hannah led Colin into an elegant living room with rich wooden furnishings that looked as if it belonged in a mansion. A grand piano stood stunning and white in the corner of the well-designed room. Colin could just picture Nancy sitting there, beautifully playing a piece by Beethoven or Bach. There was also a large brick fireplace that was placed against the back wall with a mantle that held everything from pictures of Nancy when she was younger to an old clock that did not even tell time. He had only seen a very small portion of the house and he already loved it. He wanted to spend more time exploring this spectacular house.

Just then Colin heard a door open behind him and he turned to see Hannah standing there with a man whose dark hair was dotted with a few gray spots. "Hello there son, I'm Carson Drew." Carson put his hand out.

"I'm Colin Baxter, sir," Colin replied and shook the man's hand.

"It's a pleasure to meet you. So, I hear you know my daughter." Carson said kindly.

"Yes, I met her while she was staying in Venice," Colin could tell that this man held a position of authority just by the way Carson talked and presented himself. It rather frightened Colin, he didn't want to offend Carson anyway mostly because he was Nancy's father and partly because Carson looked like he could sue the pants off of Colin.

"Ah, where you a suspect in her case?" Carson asked mildly as he took a seat in a large arm chair. "A WHAT in her WHAT?" Colin was stunned, a suspect for what? What had Nancy really been doing in Venice? And why on earth would Mr. Drew ask Colin if he were a suspect?

"Yes, while Nancy was visiting Italy she was on a case for the GDIF." The look on Carson's face was more than Colin could bear. He looked worried, Colin had worried Mr. Drew. It was the last thing Colin ever wanted to do to the father of the girl he loved. He must think I'm some creepy guy looking to hurt or get revenge on his daughter.

"I did not even now Nancy worked for the Italian government. I… I should just go now," Colin quickly jumped up from where he was sitting, he was embarrassed. He should have known she was a cop or a detective. She was always asking bizarre questions and snooping into his person life, he was just hoping that maybe she liked him, but he was wrong, he was very wrong.

"Well son there's no—" but before Carson could even finish his sentence Colin was out the door.