They found the perfect spot on Virginia Beach to set up. Shane set up their chairs and the umbrella to protect Elle from the sun. Mel adjusted the little hat on her daughters head and walked out toward the waves. Shane sat back in his chair and watched the two of them at the waters edge. Melony's loose waves of hair blew in the wind as she pointed out the sea gulls to Elle, who squealed with delight and buried her head in her mother's shoulders. There was nothing more he wanted now. His life was finally complete. As he watched the woman he loved more than life hold the little girl he loved as if she were his own he couldn't help but fight away the thoughts of one man ruining it all.

Christian.

There was no way Shane could stand by and just let Christian come back into the picture, not when Christian had walked out so easily. Sure the Canadian hadn't known about Elle, but it didn't matter to Shane. No man worthy of being called a man walked away from the woman he loved, not in Shane's eyes anyway.

He had only two options to save his family. He could convince Mel to keep Elle a secret and they could live happily ever after. The other choice relied on hope and hope alone. Shane could sit back and hope that Christian wouldn't want to have anything to do with them and walk away just like he did the first time.

He was busy debating the options when Mel placed his little girl in his arms. "What's on your mind?"

Shane cuddled Elle and kissed her head. "Nothing."

"I'll leave it alone for the moment. Because we are suppose to be enjoying this day." She smiled and reached into the cooler for a bottle of water.

"I'm enjoying the day Mel. But you know I want to talk about this. It's killing me. The thought of losing her, of losing you, it's too much."

"Shane, you aren't losing us. You never have to worry about that. We don't know that he's coming back. And even if he does, who's to say he will want to have anything to do with Brielle?"

Shane stared out across the Atlantic ocean, his eyes showing every ounce of pain he was carrying. "That's what I'm counting on Mel."

Her heart broke at the amount of pain he carried. There was nothing she could do to remedy this, it was her mistake, her burden and it wasn't fair to Shane. They sat there in silence for a few minutes. No one said a word, even Brielle settled in with her bottle. There were no easy answers, no quick fixes. All they could do is wait and see, hope and pray. The one thing she did know for certain was that Christian was not going to ruin her happiness.

Mel stood and shrugged off the cover up she was wearing over her bikini. "Last one in is…well, buying dinner." She ran towards the waves and plunged in.

"Cheater! I have the baby!" Shane yelled after her as he walked with Brielle in his arms, and joined Mel in the water. The picture perfect family enjoying a perfect day. They laughed, they played, they enjoyed every minute as if it were there last minutes together. In some ways it was.

"The money is on the table by the door." Shane called out as he stepped out of the shower.

Shane had given Elle a bath while Mel showered and the girls were downstairs waiting on dinner to be delivered. Shane heard the doorbell ring and assumed it was the delivery guy. He got dressed and went downstairs to find Mel and Stephanie sitting on the couch.

"Hi Shane." Stephanie greeted as he came down the stairs.

"What's up Stephanie?"

Melony shifted on the couch as Stephanie looked at her for guidance on what to say to Shane. But Mel didn't want this news to ruin the evening, thinking quickly, she interrupted the greeting before Steph could answer. "Babe, would you fix Elle a snack? I'm going to walk Stephanie out to her car."

Shane raised an eyebrow. "But she just got here."

"And now I'm leaving." Stephanie smiled as she stood up and walked toward the door. "I just wanted to stop by and go over some details for a very important video shoot next week."

Melony followed her to the door. "Thanks for coming by. I knew I would have to face this sooner or later, I was just hoping for later."

"He's at headquarters now signing the contract. So it's only a matter of time before you run into him."

Mel ran a hand through her hair and exhaled the breath she had been holding. "I know. I'm more worried about Shane's reaction to all this than my own."

Stephanie placed a caring hand on Mel's shoulder. "I understand. You can't blame him though. Shane has been there for you since you found out you were pregnant. I can't imagine what this is going to do to him."

"Me either." Tears welled in Melony's eyes and she quickly dismissed them with a swipe of her hand.

"I'm here for you both. If there is anything I can do." Steph gave her friend a hug and turned to leave. "I'll see you tomorrow." She said as more of a question than a statement.

Mel nodded. "Thanks Steph. I'll see you tomorrow." She closed the door behind Stephanie and rested her head against the door. Their perfect day was about to come to a crashing halt. There was no more hoping, no more denying, no more pretending.

Christian was back.