Disclaimer: See part 1

A/N: I hadn't intended to continue this story, but now that I know Niles was married more than once, I decided to write a chapter from the viewpoint of each of his wives. This one is from Mel's POV. Enjoy!

…

I regret I ever married Niles Crane. That pretty much sums it up: pure regret.

When I met him, I couldn't help but feel a certain charge in the air when I first shook his hand and introduced myself. That feeling lasted only a split second, but it felt wonderful and strange at the same time, because ever since my divorce I never really gave much thought to taking interest in someone again. I remember how young and hasty I was when I first got married, and I had my son so soon. The first time around, my married life wasn't exactly peaches and cream, but I learned to live with it, even though I didn't enjoy it, for the sake of my dignity and for my son. But when everything came to blows between my first husband and me, ultimately resulting in our divorce, I couldn't help but feel ashamed. I felt as if I had failed my son, because after that he was back and forth between us in shared custody, and I could no longer provide for him a unified family. I was also ashamed of my image: a divorcee with a child. What would my elite friends think?

After the divorce, I did what I could to get my life back on track. I buried myself in work, earned my reputation as a successful plastic surgeon, and soon after was able to provide a very comfortable living for myself and my son. I learned to hide my feelings, put on a smile at all times, and diverted my attention from men….that is, until I met Niles. It didn't take long for me to realize that we had so much in common. One thing I always make sure of in a man is that he can handle my personality; I know I can be difficult. When I noticed a smudge on my white coat and threw it out in exchange for a fresh one, I was surprised he passed my little test with flying colors: he found nothing wrong with my complaint over a little smudge. I remember after telling him how fussy he must've thought I was, the way he said "yes." It wasn't in a cold or stern tone of voice; in fact, it he said it almost as if he admired my little flaw, and right then I was intrigued by him; and even more so when we struck up intelligent conversation over art museum exhibits.

Aside from everything we had in common, I married Niles because I was crazy about him, even though I didn't admit it to myself right away. I can still picture the first time he tried to ask me on a date; oh, he was so cute, stammering and not knowing what to say. He didn't need words; I could read his eyes, and knew without a doubt he wanted to ask me out, but since I hadn't done anything of the sort in so long, the idea made me uncomfortable. So instead of answering his question before he got a chance to ask it, I took advantage of his stammering, and pretended to assume he wanted Botox for his forehead.

When we did finally start dating, I also got a chance to see that Niles was the epitome of a gentleman, which I came to love. He was so handsome, well-mannered, and polite; everything a woman could ask for in a man; in a husband, for that matter. He was also attentive and willing to take advice from me. When he told me about his brother running for the position as the wine club's cork master, I thought it might be nice if he stepped up and tried to run for the title himself. If I'm not mistaken, he was in the club longer than Frasier, so why shouldn't he run? I had faith in him. When I learned that he did, and won, I was so proud of him. It took a while, but eventually I knew I wanted to be with him, and nothing, not even threats from Maris could stop me. In the way I saw it, Niles was Maris' loss.

After six months of dating, Niles and I eloped. It was quite a thrill, actually, and something I never thought I would do again. I acted on impulse and ran away with it, with him. Initially, we intended to vacation at my friend's country cabin to relax and to discuss moving in together. On the way, I told him how much I loved him. He returned my feelings, and held my hand during the drive. During those few hours in the car, there was no need for me to fake a smile. I felt so sure about us, I eventually abandoned all idea of taking things slow, and before we knew it, we called a justice of the peace to marry us immediately. I thought what we felt for one another was genuine, and even believed that our marriage would work out. The agony of divorce was a pain we both shared, so my rational thinking was clouded by the idea that we would never inflict the same pain on one another. Well guess what? I was dead wrong.

I guess I should have suspected something when we were reciting our wedding vows. I always thought that part of the wedding was more special when those being wed recited their own…ones that came from the heart, but ours were already prepared. Ones you repeat after the pastor, or whoever the heck is uniting you and your spouse-to-be in the bonds of matrimony. I also should have paid more attention to the look in Niles' eyes during the wedding. Yes, he was facing me directly and smiling at me when he promised to be with me forever, but his eyes weren't exactly smiling back. It was almost as if he struggled to say his vows. His voice and his facial expressions showed no such sign, but like the time he wanted to first ask me out, his eyes told another story. And I should have especially known something was wrong when we returned home and I greeted Martin and Frasier as Niles' new wife. First off, Martin and Frasier didn't seem too excited that they had a new in-law, and second, Niles wanted to keep our marriage secret from Daphne. When I blurted it out though, she didn't seem too excited for us. Oh, I wouldn't be surprised if no one thought I didn't notice their reactions, or if they thought I was passing them off as shock, but I'm more attentive than people think. Usually, though, you can't tell because I'm just too much of a pro with my party face to show it.

I now know that Niles wasn't really looking at me when he married me. The physical image of me standing before him on our wedding night was overcome by the picture in his mind's eye of Daphne Moon. It pains me to understand now that when he said the closing words "for better, for worse, 'til death do we part", he meant "for better, for worse, 'til DAPHNE do we part."

Well, damn him. Even before I married him, there was already somebody else. When he approached me and completely called off our marriage, I was too out of it to do anything but scream. I tried to play it like everything was alright; if we got divorced, I wanted to be the one to initiate it. Yes, I tried to play it that way, but eventually my little plan to be divorced yet again, and keep my dignity intact turned into a quest for vengeance. I intended to drag it out as long as I could, until Niles called it off in front of everybody at Frasier's apartment. Thankfully, things played out like I was the victim, and I got to keep my dignity. But I couldn't keep Niles.

I married Niles because I loved him, and when I recited my vows, I meant them wholeheartedly. We were married only four days, but that's all it took for Niles to wound me. And even though we've been divorced for a while now, it still pains me that things didn't work out. That is precisely why I regret marrying him. He'll never know just how much he hurt me. I myself can't completely describe it in words, but I can tell you, being divorced from Niles hurt me a heck of a lot more than it did Maris.