Marlene arrived home ahead of Rebecca and quickly changed for the night ahead. She pulled out another dress that she wanted Rebecca to wear and tried to think if she had forgotten anything.

"Hey, Ollie said you left early today. I thought we were going dancing tonight," Rebecca said when she arrived.

"That's because I wanted to get changed for our night of dancing," Marlene explained. "I even picked out a dress for you."

"Should we eat here before we leave or did you have a restaurant in mind?" Rebecca changed clothes quickly not wanting to waste time.

"You ask too many questions," Marlene complained. "Just follow me will you?" She started walking out the door.

Rebecca thought it strange that she wouldn't answer her but decided to play along. She was heading towards the stairs when she felt Marlene pull her back. "Where are we going?"

"You'll see," Marlene said and led her to one of the rooms in the castle. She opened the door and revealed a wonderfully set table with soft music playing in the background.

Rebecca liked what Marlene had done to the room and quickly surmised that they were staying in instead of going out.

"I doubt anyone would let me close an entire restaurant for a private dinner with you so I went with the next best thing," Marlene explained shyly. "I hope you don't mind."

"Why would I mind?" Rebecca assured her. "This is actually better than I imagined the night would be. Did you cook as well?" She noticed two food domes on the table.

"I had help but I made it just the way you want it," Marlene said and wrapped her arms around Rebecca. "Because I'm the only one who knows how you like it."

"Good, because I'm starving," Rebecca declared before pulling Marlene towards the table.

.

After dinner, Marlene got up to dim the lights. She wanted to set the ambience and saw Rebecca move towards the music player.

"What are you in the mood for?" Rebecca asked as she checked the music selection.

"How about something slow?" Marlene whispered in her ear.

"You read my mind," Rebecca agreed and chose a playlist that was perfect for it. She turned towards Marlene and took her into her arms and began to dance.

Marlene wrapped her arms around Rebecca and moved in sync with her. She found it quite a heady experience and relished it.

"You know what, you're amazing," Rebecca whispered.

"Is that your way of thanking me?" Marlene teasingly whispered back. "I expected more from you."

"Wasn't this supposed to be your apology to me?" Rebecca asked pulling away slightly and twirling her around that made them both giggle.

"I was hoping you've forgotten about that," Marlene said hopefully.

"Almost," Rebecca said. "But the night is still young." She wasn't yet ready to end their romantic night.

"It certainly is," Marlene agreed and fell back into Rebecca's arms.

.

"You girls were up late last night," Tristan noted when they arrived for breakfast.

"And your point is?" Rebecca asked pointedly as she sat across from him. "Besides, how did you know about that?"

"Were you spying on us?" Marlene finished for her.

"Of course not, I couldn't sleep so I took a short walk," he said indignantly. "I just happened to pass by and heard you two giggling inside."

"That was quite a walk," Rebecca said knowing that he was on the other side of the castle from them. "Maybe you should try sleeping aids the next time."

"I prefer walking," he insisted. "Besides, that way I get to learn what my little sister is up to."

"So you were spying," Rebecca accused him. She stood up abruptly and started to head out.

"I was kidding," he said. "Come on, don't skip breakfast because of that."

Rebecca was past listening and ignored him.

"Why do you keep antagonizing her?" Marlene said sorely as she got up to follow Rebecca.

Tristan gave his best innocent look and shrugged.

.

"You two are here early," Hagen greeted Rebecca and Marlene when he crossed paths with them on his way to his office.

"Does everyone in the castle know?" Rebecca asked to no one in particular before storming off to her office.

"What was that about?" he asked Marlene clearly bewildered by Rebecca's reaction.

Marlene was more level-headed and asked Hagen what he meant by his greeting.

"Tristan mentioned that you two might be late coming in today," he revealed. "So I was surprised to see you here."

"Tristan makes it sound like we're slacking," Marlene said. "That's not fair to Rebecca."

"I know you two aren't slacking," he assured her. He moved to go speak with Rebecca when he felt Marlene's hand on his arm.

"Maybe it's best if I go in," she offered. "She's in a terrible mood now that you two might argue about something else."

Hagen saw her point and decided to let her handle his sister.

.

"Hey, is it safe to come in?" Marlene asked tentatively from the doorway. "I come bearing food."

"Damn, I've almost forgotten I haven't eaten breakfast," Rebecca cursed softly. "Why do I let my brothers get to me?" She pushed her chair slightly away from the desk.

"Well, Hagen was misinformed so I think you should let him off the hook." Marlene placed the coffee cup and pastry in front of Rebecca.

Rebecca studied Marlene who was standing next to her as she took a bite of her breakfast pastry. "And what about Tristan?"

"Well, Tristan is intentionally trying to get on your nerves," Marlene said. "But I think you should just ignore him."

"Easier said than done."

"I know but please try," Marlene entreated. "It doesn't do you any good being upset."

"You always know how to calm me down," Rebecca said. "How do you do that?" She got up and pulled Marlene into her arms.

"I can't say for sure," Marlene admitted putting her arms around Rebecca. "Can you tell me how you always know how to cheer me up?"

"Hmm, I can't say either," Rebecca said after thinking about it for a moment.

"I guess that's what makes us a great team. We keep each other sane in this monkey house."

"Well, it'll get crazier here if you don't get back to work," Marlene teased.

"Yes boss," Rebecca said and sat back down. "Oh, can you do me a favor and get this to the legal team and this to the auditors?" She handed Marlene two hefty folders.

Marlene accepted the folders and started to head out when she heard Rebecca ask if she knew which folder was which. She turned and plucked a Post-It from the desk and stuck it on one folder and wrote its intended recipient before doing the same to the other. She gave a questioning look at Rebecca who just nodded to indicate she got it right.

.

Rebecca was quickly gathering her things when Marlene returned. "I have to go to an off-site meeting."

"Do you need me to come with you?" Marlene asked hoping she would take her.

"No, I think I can manage on my own," Rebecca said looking around her bag for her car key.

Marlene picked up the key on the desk and handed it to her. She was a bit disappointed that she was being left behind.

"I'll be back by lunch," Rebecca said. "We can go out; your choice." She noticed that Marlene wasn't happy about not getting to tag along.

"Don't be late, I'm already getting a bit hungry."

"I won't," Rebecca said and gave her a quick kiss on the cheek.

.

"Hey, Marlene, do you know where Rebecca is?" Hagen asked when he found her in the break room. "She needs this for her meeting today."

Marlene recognized the folder he was holding because it still had the sticky note she put on it. "You just missed her, she's on her way to her meeting now."

"Damn, she's not prepared for that meeting without this," he said.

"I can take it to her," she volunteered taking the folder from him. "Where's the meeting at?"

Hagen told her where it was taking place and offered her the company car. "Be sure to get it to her."

"I certainly won't let her down," she joked and headed off.

.

"Hello, I'm looking for Rebecca von Lahnstein," Marlene told the receptionist.

"Does she work here?" the receptionist asked clearly unfamiliar with the name.

"Can I help you?" another woman asked approaching her.

"I hope so, I'm looking for my boss Rebecca von Lahnstein," Marlene repeated.

"Oh, you just missed her," the other woman said. "She's with my dad touring the building over there."

Marlene turned to where she was pointing and stifled a gasp. She saw a skeletal building being built across from them. She could make out some workers moving precariously and tried to figure out where Rebecca was.

"Here, you can use this," the woman said handing her a pair of binoculars.

Marlene easily recognized Rebecca and took a deep breath to keep herself from panicking. She just hoped that the tour would be over soon.

.

"I look forward to seeing the building once it's complete," Rebecca said when she was back at the reception area. "Thank you for showing me around; I'll be sure to report your progress to my brother."

"Please thank Hagen for sending you to the meeting, it was an absolute pleasure," the elderly man said with a smile and held her hands.

"Papa, you should stop flirting with Rebecca. She's here on business."

"I know that but what do I always remind you?"

"All business and no play makes us dull," Rebecca and his daughter said in unison. They chuckled and watched him go back to his office.

"So, what did you think? Did we pass inspection?"

"I'm no building inspector but I think everything is in order," Rebecca confirmed. "Well, I should be going or I'll be late for dinner with Marlene."

"Oh, Marlene is here," the other woman told her. "She's in the conference room waiting for you."

Rebecca was surprised and headed to find Marlene.

.

Marlene was pacing back and forth trying to calm herself down. She had gotten more agitated as she thought of accident scenarios while waiting.

"Hey, they told me you were here?" Rebecca asked when she joined her in the conference room. "What are you doing here?"

"I came to give you this," Marlene said showing her the folder she brought. "Hagen said it was important." She was trying hard to keep her temper in check.

"I already saw a digital copy of the auditors' report," Rebecca told her. "They sent it to me before I left the office. You should've called me to save you the trip."

"Well, I'm glad I did come," Marlene said. "Were you going to tell me what you just did? What possessed you to go up that building under construction?"

"Marlene, I came to do an inspection to confirm what was on the report and that involves going up that building. It's pretty safe."

"Safe?" Marlene asked in disbelief. "There's a reason there's a danger sign outside the construction site."

"But I was with people who knew what they were doing," Rebecca reasoned trying to calm Marlene.

"Why are you being so reckless?" Marlene asked before storming out.

Rebecca tried to catch up to her but she only saw a car drive away from the parking lot.

.

"Marlene, wait," Rebecca called out to her. She followed the company car all the way back to the castle.

Marlene stopped and turned to face Rebecca. She clung to her anger to keep her fear from overwhelming her.

"What is going on with you? It was a perfectly safe site tour; please stop overreacting."

"Overreacting?" Marlene asked angrily. "Excuse me for caring about your safety. What if something happened while you were up there? Did you even consider that?"

"Nothing happened," Rebecca said trying to hug her in an effort to calm her. She could tell that Marlene won't be easy to appease on this one.

"What if something did?" Marlene insisted. "God, I don't know what I would do if …" She finally came to tears.

"Marlene, please calm down," Rebecca pleaded seeing how distressed she was. She moved to comfort her but was rebuffed. "Where are you going?"

"I just need to be alone," Marlene said moving to head back to the car.

"Wait," Rebecca blocked her path. "Stay here. I'll leave and give you space." She worried Marlene would do something rash and preferred she stay home.

"Where are you going?" Marlene couldn't help but be concerned.

"Don't worry, I won't be near any construction site," Rebecca assured her before walking back to her car.

.

Marlene entered the castle quite upset because although she wanted to be alone, she didn't like not knowing where Rebecca was. She marched right down to find Elisabeth to ask for advice. She was surprised to find her father in the castle. "Papa, what are you doing here?"

"Marlene, what are you doing here?" Thomas asked her clearly surprised to see her.

"I live here, remember?" she reminded him. She heard footsteps behind her and saw Biggi arrive.

"Marlene, you're home early," Biggi said in surprise. She turned to Thomas with a loaded look. "Were you expecting her?"

"No," Thomas replied. "I just came to speak with Biggi about babysitting Tommy for a while tomorrow."

"No problem," Biggi said quickly before excusing herself to leave the two alone.

Marlene eyed her father carefully trying to see if he would tell her what was really going on.

"What's the matter?" he asked sensing her mood earlier. "Why are you here instead of at work?"

Marlene took a deep breath and remembered why she was so upset. She told him what she had been through and waited for his opinion.

"Although I agree that Rebecca was a bit reckless to do that, I think she's also right about you overreacting."

"But papa, I wouldn't have if she didn't do what she did."

"It's not easy to see people we love do dangerous things but we can't hold them back," he advised. "All we can hope for is that they know how much we love them and come home safely to us."

.

Rebecca was moving her food around her plate having lost her appetite. She wished Marlene hadn't gone after her and things wouldn't have gotten bad between them.

"Is something wrong with the food?" Charlie asked when she passed her table.

"Oh no, it's not that," Rebecca said. "I just don't have the appetite because Marlene isn't here."

"Where is she?" Charlie asked noting that Rebecca was alone.

"She's at home," Rebecca revealed. "We were supposed to eat together but I did something that made her angry." She told Charlie what had happened leading to her dining alone.

"I can understand why she was frightened; I'd be, too," Charlie said sympathetically. "Perhaps you should show her that it is safe so she won't worry about you."

Rebecca looked at Charlie like she had just given her the best advice ever and hugged her. "Thank you!" She quickly up and was about to leave when she remembered she hadn't paid her bill.

"It's ok; it's on the house," Charlie said. She was rewarded with a kiss from Rebecca.

.

"Your lunch is getting cold," Thomas noted when he saw Marlene just toying with her food.

"I was supposed to be having lunch with Rebecca but instead I don't even know where she is."

"So you prefer her company to mine?" he tried to joke.

"I'm sorry, papa, I didn't mean it that way," she apologized. She made an effort to eat to appease him.

"I know you're worried about her but you can't stifle her adventurous nature," he said. "I quite like that about her; she strikes out on her own."

"So I'm just supposed to support her in anything she thinks of doing?" She knew his answer even before he gave it. "By the way, you should know we all know about you and Biggi." She wanted to change the topic and thought that was as good as any.

"What?" he blurted out almost spilling his drink.

Marlene chuckled at his reaction. "You didn't think we wouldn't notice did you? Anyway, if you must know, we approve of her."

Before they could discuss it further they heard footsteps coming down the stairs.

"Here you are," Rebecca said trying to catch her breath. "Hello Mr. Wolf. Come with me." She quickly greeted him before taking Marlene's hand to take her with her.

"Where are you taking me?" Marlene asked.

"Will you please just come?" Rebecca said without explaining further.

.

"What are we doing back here?" Marlene asked not liking it one bit.

"I arranged for us to go up together," Rebecca revealed and opened the passenger-side door. "I want to show you that it is absolutely safe."

"Becky, papa is tied up in a meeting right now so he sent me to give you and Marlene the tour." The other woman handed them both hard hats to wear.

"Please call me Rebecca." She could tell Marlene wasn't pleased with the other woman's familiar address.

"You mean you don't call her Becky either?" the other woman asked Marlene.

"No," Marlene said trying to hide her dislike of her.

"Shall we?" Rebecca prompted to dispel the tense situation.

The tour went smoothly and Marlene's concerns about safety were all lessened.

"When will the walls come up?" Marlene asked.

"In a few weeks. That's when we can go past this line and not fall off." The other woman was joking but she didn't know what had occurred between her two guests that prompted the second tour.

Rebecca turned to look over the ledge when she felt Marlene's restraining hands.

"Didn't you hear what she just said?" Marlene warned sternly.

"I wasn't going to go over," Rebecca said. She squeezed Marlene's hand when she saw the look of disbelief on her face. "Come on, tour is over." She felt Marlene's firm grip on her until they were back down on the ground.

"Well, I hope that was helpful," the other woman said.

"Thanks again for accommodating us," Rebecca said handing her hard hat back. "We should be getting back to the office." She started to head to the car when she felt the hard hat being pushed back into her hands.

"Papa wanted you to have this; it has your name on it."

"Uhm, thanks," Rebecca said accepting the gift.

.

"I didn't know they were going to do that," Rebecca said when she noticed Marlene had been very quiet as they reached the car.

"Well, I suppose you should have one if you'll be going into construction areas," Marlene said taking a closer look of the hard hat. "It looks good on you."

Rebecca was surprised by Marlene's change in attitude. "Are you sure?"

"Just promise me you'll be careful," Marlene requested handing back the hard hat to her.

"Marlene, I'm not crazy; I won't do anything dangerous," Rebecca assured her. "I have two reasons to want to hang around. The first being that my family needs me. I think my brothers will go their separate ways if left on their own; Elisabeth needs me to prevent that from happening." She saw that Marlene agreed with her assessment.

"And the second reason?" Marlene prompted when Rebecca didn't go on.

"Ah, the most important one actually," Rebecca began placing the hard hat on the hood and pulling Marlene closer. "There's this sexy blonde lady that I'm head over heels in love with and I'd like to be part of her life for a very long time."

"Really? Why?" Marlene leaned back to evade Rebecca's attempt to kiss her.

"Because she drives me crazy in and out of bed," Rebecca reasoned trying once again to kiss her.

"Wouldn't you prefer someone who keeps you sane then?" Marlene challenged pushing her slightly away.

"Marlene, why are you making this difficult?"

"You have to earn it," Marlene said seeing how intent she was to get a kiss.

Rebecca looked into Marlene eyes before making her next move. "Although you do drive me crazy, you're the best thing that's ever happened in my life." She was about to say something more but Marlene made it difficult for her to speak or think with the passionate kiss she was receiving.

"What was that?" Marlene asked when she heard something. She quickly determined it was Rebecca's stomach rumbling softly. "Have you had lunch?"

"I wasn't hungry earlier," Rebecca admitted indirectly.

"Rebecca, you should've told me," Marlene said. "Get in the car." She moved towards the driver's side taking charge of the matter.

"Can we get sushi?" Rebecca suggested trying to lighten Marlene's mood.

"Whatever you like," Marlene said starting the car and driving them to their favorite sushi restaurant.

.

"You two are home early," Tristan noted when Rebecca and Marlene stepped into the foyer.

"I could say the same about you," Rebecca countered. "Shouldn't you be in the office making sure your latest project is a success?"

"I thought I'd get some fencing practice in while I contemplated my next creative executive decision," he revealed.

"Let me guess, you've blown your budget already haven't you?"

"What makes you say that?" he asked trying to look unaffected.

"Alright, I'm sorry if I jumped to conclusions," Rebecca apologized. "Just remember you have to work within your approved budget."

"Let's just say hypothetically that I'll need an adjustment," he hinted. "Would you consider lending me a hand?"

"No because that would mean I'll have to pull it from somewhere else and we're spread pretty thin at the moment," Rebecca rejected the notion even if it was a conjecture.

"I don't believe you'd allow that to happen," he said in disbelief. "Tell you what, why don't we settle the matter with a match; if I win, you give me a little wiggle room."

"And if I win?" Rebecca asked noting Marlene's disapproving look.

"I'll come under budget and you can take that as your bonus," he offered.

"By how much?" Rebecca asked trying to be clear what she was getting into.

"Rebecca, you're not seriously going to do this?" Marlene interjected.

"As much as you want," he replied ignoring Marlene's concern for his sister.

"Deal; let me get my gear." Rebecca started up the stairs to prepare to take up Tristan's challenge.

"Why do you keep picking on Rebecca?" Marlene complained, obviously she hadn't forgotten about that morning's incident. "I want you to leave her alone."

"This is business Marlene," he said.

"This isn't about business and you know it," she said angrily. "I'm not going to let you hurt her anymore."

"Relax Marlene, this isn't about you," he assured her. "It's just a sibling thing."

"I have sisters and I don't treat them this way," she reminded him.

"You wouldn't understand but I'm sure Rebecca does. Now if you don't mind, I have to get ready."

.

"Rebecca, why are you doing this?" Marlene asked while she watched Rebecca change. "You know he's just trying to provoke you."

"I know," Rebecca agreed. "And it's time I stood up to him."

"But must you make a business decision based on the outcome of a fencing match?"

"Don't you have faith in me?" Rebecca asked with a teasing smile. "You don't think I can beat him?"

"I know you're capable of winning but it's a huge gamble. What will you do if he wins and asks you for more money?"

"He's right that I have some reserves, so don't worry," Rebecca assured her. "But I'm pretty sure I won't lose because he thinks he's got me worked up and will let his guard down."

"Are you sure?" Marlene asked still worried Rebecca would get hurt or get in trouble.

"It's sweet that you're worried but trust me on this one," Rebecca said and gave her a quick kiss. "See you in a bit." She started to head for the door ready to face Tristan.

"Rebecca," Marlene called her. "I think you'll need this won't you?" She picked up the foil and handed it to her.

.

"We could skip this part and you can just approve my new budget proposal," Tristan said when Rebecca arrived.

"You wish," Rebecca said testing her foil before taking her stance against him.

"So Marlene isn't coming to see you lose?"

"I think she knows what I'm capable of," she replied. She easily evaded Tristan's attack and earned a point for her counterattack.

Tristan was surprised and realized it wasn't going to be as easy as he originally thought.

.

Marlene watched as the cake in the oven started to rise. She had to do something to keep from thinking about Rebecca who was dueling with Tristan. She hoped it was the outcome that Rebecca had wanted and she could use the cake to celebrate with her.

"Ah, Marlene," Elisabeth greeted her when she arrived. "What's the cake for?" She tried to think of any occasion that she might have forgotten.

"It's for Rebecca," Marlene replied pulling the cake out. "I thought she might want a sweet snack after she's done fencing with Tristan."

"That's very thoughtful of you," Elisabeth said. "I just hope it doesn't spoil her appetite for dinner because Mrs. Linse might not let you use her oven again." She couldn't help but tease Marlene with Mrs. Linse overhearing them.

The three women started to laugh when they all remembered who they were talking about.

.

"Ooh, cake," Rebecca said when she entered the kitchen. "Can I have some?" She set her gear on the table next to it.

"Hang on, I just finished frosting that," Marlene said swatting her hand away. "Besides, what makes you think this is for you?"

"Because it's my favorite cake," Rebecca pointed out confidently.

"Alright, I made it for you," Marlene confirmed cutting a slice out. "So how did it go?"

"Let's just say that Tristan will leave us alone for a while," Rebecca said with a wide smile. It turned to a frown when instead of receiving the slice of cake, Marlene decided to take a bite of it herself. "Hey, where's my slice?"

"You can get your own," Marlene teased trying hard not to laugh when she saw the petulant look on Rebecca's face. "Or we can share this one." She blocked Rebecca's path when she was about to go get her own plate and fork.

Rebecca was about to take the fork from Marlene but instead opened her mouth when Marlene offered to feed her a piece of cake. "This makes it so much better."

"This will make it even better," Marlene said and leaned in to kiss her.

"That certainly does," Rebecca agreed. "Maybe you can teach me how to bake sometime."

They both turned when they heard footsteps coming towards them. It was Tristan who was obviously still stunned by his defeat to Rebecca.

"Oh come Tristan, it's not that bad," Rebecca said trying to soothe his ego. "I told you that you can just come 1 Euro under budget and everything is settled."

"I want a rematch," he suggested.

"Don't be a sore loser Tristan," Marlene declared.

Tristan decided wisely to let it go but before leaving them, he swiped a bit of icing from Rebecca's cake. "Not bad, you might give Mrs. Linse a run for her money baking cakes."

Rebecca was about to protest but Marlene silently signaled for her to let it go.

"I'm now regretting letting him off so easily."

"That didn't bother me," Marlene said. "And I'm really proud of you for being kind and not slashing his budget."

"I don't want him to fail," Rebecca revealed. "I just want him to know I am serious about winning."

"You've won me over," Marlene admitted and kissed her again before pulling her to head up to their room.