Daniel walked back into the office with a smile. Strangely, knowing Wilhelmina Slater was on his side, in this battle, made him feel protected, as if no matter what happened, his back was covered. Risky, without a doubt, but reassuring nonetheless. To be honest, it was better to have such an evil genius working with him, rather than against him.

Thinking back to the times where they'd been constantly fighting, and comparing them to those where they had cooperated, there was no question to which had been the more useful. They'd saved the magazine, they'd saved the company, and now they were about to do it again. All because they were siding against a common enemy.

Be it Bradford, or Claire, or Cal Hartley, or the bail-out committee, they were always able to rise above and make the best of it. That was why, despite everything, he felt powerful. He just could not wipe that smile off his face.

"What's with the smile?"

Daniel nearly jumped out of his skin when he heard Betty's voice beside him. He'd been so deep in his thoughts he hadn't even noticed the girl walking behind him.

"Oh, Betty, hey," he greeted her.

"Where have you been?" the girl insisted, close on his heels.

"Uhm, lunch?" he suggested, feigning innocence.

The two of them stepped inside his office. Betty went straight to his desk, picking up his agenda.

"Funny," she said. "You told me you wanted to have lunch at the Riverview, and I had booked a table at the Riverview, but guess what? The Riverview called because, despite all the trouble I went through to make such a last minute reservation, you never showed up at the Riverview!"

"Stop saying Riverview," he said, folding his arms and grinning. "I'm sorry, I had an appointment, it came up suddenly and I couldn't cancel the reservation on time."

"What kind of appointment did you have?" she asked, putting the agenda back down. "I should have known about that, what do you think?"

"Well…they…they called me on my cell phone. It was…" he paused, struggling to continue. "..personal.

"Who are they?" Betty asked. "Does it have anything to do with the W.S. written in your planner?"

Daniel sighed. "How did you find the password?"

"Playboy, Daniel?" she said ironically. "Honestly. Anyway, who's W.S.?"

He looked around, in need for a name. Why did all the names starting with a "W" sound so similar to Wilhelmina?

"Wi…Wil…Wilbur Smith," he exclaimed, his eyes landing on a book in his library.

"Wilbur Smith," she repeated. "And you've been meeting with Wilbur Smith for the past two weeks?"

"Yes," he affirmed. "We're actually in talks…for a book. He wants to write a book about me."

"Wilbur Smith wants to write a book about you," she repeated, looking completely unimpressed. "Daniel, Wilbur Smith lives in London. He writes about historical characters, thrillers, adventures. Not about Editors whose hardest decision, during the day, is choosing what to eat for breakfast."

Daniel slumped down on the armchair, and he pinched the bridge of his noise. "Consider yourself lucky. For a second, I even considered saying William Shakespeare, but then I remembered he's dead."

Betty smiled. "Daniel, I know you've been seeing Wilhelmina," she said, simply.

"Sorry if I didn't tell you," he whispered. "I guess I was afraid you would judge us. I know the way you think, and I know it's something you could never accept easily."

"Are you kidding me?" Betty exclaimed, clapping her hands together. "I might be always trying to do the right thing, but I'm not stupid! I'm all for this! And if you'd bothered to tell me, I would've helped you earlier."

Daniel smiled a little, feeling as if a huge weight had been lifted off his stomach.

"Anyway, who told you about that?" he asked.

"I kind of had it figured out by the end of the day, but your mother confirmed it to me."

Daniel nodded, chuckling. "I'm glad you're on board, Betty."

Betty jumped up and down, chanting. "We're gonna bring Elle down, we're gonna bring Elle down!"

Daniel rolled his eyes and laughed.

***

"No, Joshua. I told you we can't use the blue blazer for the center spread. Why? Because it messes up the whole concept!"

Wilhelmina and Marc were in a cab, headed towards his apartment, where they were supposed to meet Daniel and Amanda for the last time until after the MAMAs. Marc was on the phone with another junior fashion Editor.

"No!" he was hissing into the phone. "Joshua, tell me, you really think they used electric blue blazers in the post-war France of 1920s?"

Wilhelmina snatched the phone from his hands and brought it to her ear.

"Hi James," she said.

"Joshua," Marc whispered, leaning in.

"Joshua," she corrected herself. "This is Wilhelmina Slater, the woman who signs your paycheck. I don't want the goddamn blue blazer in my photo shoot."

She handed the phone back to Marc, who whispered something to Joshua, thrusting it back into his pocket; he then turned to Wilhelmina, with a big smile on his face.

"You need to be more authoritative, Marc," she said. "Try blackmailing, it always worked for me."

The car stopped and they stepped out of it. Their attention was immediately caught by the blonde standing against the wall, looking pissed.

"About time!" Amanda exclaimed, opening his arms in a theatrical gesture. "I've been waiting for ages."

Wilhelmina and Marc dragged the girl inside, quickly. "Have you lost your mind?" hissed Wilhelmina.

"Mandy, how many times did I tell you to use the fire escape?" intervened Marc. "Paparazzi might have seen you!"

"But Marc, I've always used the main entrance! I was here all the time, even before this thing, why should they be surprised to see me standing here?" the girl asked as they stepped inside the lift.

"Because they're following me, you silly girl," Wilhelmina chimed in. "What would they think if they saw me and you enter a building and none of us comes out until late at night?"

"I don't know, maybe something à la Girls gone wild?" she said, with a huge grin.

Wilhelmina turned to Marc, who had just covered hastily his friend's mouth. "Marc, what did she say?" she asked. "Tell me she didn't just say Girls gone wild referring to me?"

"Don't mind her. You knew Fey; she had a 75% alcohol level in her blood when she gave birth. Half the time, she doesn't know what she's saying. Or doing. Or thinking, either."

Amanda's eyes were wide open while her friend kept his hand pressed against her mouth. She tried to say something, but he shot her a warning look, pressing his hand harder against her mouth.

The elevator reached the floor and the doors opened. The three of them stood motionless as a bright spot of color appeared before their eyes.

"Betty," the three of them said at once.

"Are we ready to destroy a magazine?" she exclaimed in a sing-song voice. Daniel appeared behind her, with a small smile painted on his face.

"You brought the cheerleading squad, I see," Wilhelmina said, lifting an eyebrow. She stepped out, smirking as she walked past Daniel. Marc and Amanda followed; he opened the door and the five of them walked in. Wilhelmina threw her coat on the couch, heading straight for the kitchen.

Amanda turned to Betty, with her hand son her hips, looking her up and down. "You know, Betty, this mission just got a lot less sexy, now that you joined the fun."

Marc linked his arm with Amanda's, looking down on Betty with an amused expression.

"Guys, be good," Daniel chimed in. "We need all the help we can get."

Marc and Amanda nodded sweetly, but as soon as Daniel turned his back on them they turned to Betty again.

"Only Marc and I can call them mum and dad," Amanda hissed.

"Amanda," came Daniel's warning.

"Yes, Dad!" she exclaimed, with a huge smile.

The man rolled his eyes just as Wilhelmina walked back into the room, holding two full glasses in her hands. He furrowed his brows.

"Can't go twenty-four hours without alcohol, Willie?" he asked. "Geez, and I thought my mother had a drinking problem."

She handed one to him. "Shut up and drink," she said. "And, for the second time, don't call me Willie. Do it one more time, and you'll lose your tongue."

Betty, Marc and Amanda shared a quick look; Amanda looked confused for a second, then she scrunched up her nose. "What, don't we get drinks too?" she asked.

Wilhelmina tilted her head slightly to the side. "Have you mistaken me for a waitress?"

"But you did make one for Dan-," she tried, but Marc cut her off again clapping a hand on her mouth. He smiled at Wilhelmina before dragging the girl to the kitchen. Betty, after shooting Daniel a quick glance, followed them, chuckling. Daniel turned to Wilhelmina with a curious smirk on his face.

"Stop it," she hissed. "I only prepared two because I know you drink the same stuff as me. It's not a big deal."

"Yeah," he said, unable to wipe the smirk off his face. He raised the glass, and she did the same. "I propose a toast," he said.

"A toast?" she repeated.

"Yes, a toast," he insisted. "To new beginnings."

She narrowed her eyes slightly. "This is not a toast. This is you, trying to be your usual sappy self. And probably hoping to get something in return."

"I swear I'm not," he clarified, with a smile. Their glasses touched and they both took a sip. Wilhelmina then put the glass down on the coffee table and took off her jacket. Daniel's eyes widened.

"That is what I call a very low cut," he said, unable to tear his eyes away.

Wilhelmina followed his eyes and understood what he was talking about. "Well, stop staring, eyes up."

"I…I think I can't," Daniel said, having serious problems taking his eyes off her neckline.

"Well, you have to," she said, grabbing his chin and lifting his face. He shook his head and blushed.

"Sorry," he whispered.

He looked into her eyes, and only in that moment they realized they were less than half a meter apart. She kept his stare, trying to decipher something in his eyes. He shifted on his feet, turning the glass in his hands. She moistened her lips with her tongue, and swallowed hard. Her mouth was suddenly completely dry.

She noticed him taking a step closer and she immediately reacted, taking a step back. "What are you doing?"

"I was…I was putting the glass down," he said, pointing at the now empty glass.

She let out a breath she didn't know she was holding and she nodded. He put the glass down, and she looked away. When he straightened up, he put a hand on her shoulder. She jumped at the touch. "Ok, NOW what are you doing?"

He put his other hand on her other shoulder, forcing her to face him. "I just want to tell you that…" he said, struggling to find the words. "I'm glad we're doing it together."

"We… doing what together?" she asked, her voice hardly above a whisper.

"Everything," he said.

Why was he getting closer with each word? Why on Earth was he looking down at her lips?

"Yeah," she said, taking a deep breath when his body touched hers, barely. "Yeah, I'm glad too."

"I think we…"

Beep.

Wilhelmina looked her eyes and sighed deeply. That was the wake-up call she needed to get out of that insane trance. She shrugged Daniel's hands off her and took her Blackberry from her pocket. The phone started ringing as soon as she touched it.

"Wilhelmina Slater," she said, casting a glance at Daniel. The man was standing there, almost petrified by his own actions and what would have happened had the phone not brought them back to reality.

"Hello gorgeous," said the annoying Brazilian voice she'd learnt to recognize. "You're still on for tonight?"

I never said yes, you idiot, she thought. "Oh, that. I'm afraid I'm going to have to cancel. I have…" she paused and looked at Daniel. "…something to take care of."

***

"What happened?"

"Did they kiss?"

"Amanda, move, I can't see!"

"Shut up, you two!"

Marc, Amanda and Betty were in the corridor of Marc's apartment, the three of them all trying to steal a glance of what was going on in the dining room. Just a couple of minutes before, they were about to enter the room when they'd heard the two editors whispering. Marc had stopped the two girls, pressing himself into the wall. They'd overheard them talking, and when he'd peeked inside the room, he'd seen the two standing close, too close.

He'd noticed the electricity between the two of them, but even more he was noticing the awkwardness now that Wilhelmina was on the phone and Daniel couldn't even look her in the eyes.

"What happened, Marc?" Betty asked, trying to peek inside. Marc shoved her back, rudely.

"I don't know what happened," he said. "You were distracting me!"

"I was not!"

"Yes you were!"

"Marc!" came Wilhelmina's voice. Immediately he stood up, causing Amanda who was leaning against him, to fall down with a thud. Wilhelmina and Daniel, upon seeing the girl on the floor, looking awkwardly up at them like a kid caught with her hands in the jam jar, shot each other a quick look, wondering exactly how much the three friends had seen.

"What were you doing?" Wilhelmina asked, suspicious.

"I was showing them the wallpaper," he said hurriedly, putting on a large smile.

"Yeah," chimed in Betty. "It's so…white. Shiny. Wow, it's…so white."

Wilhelmina waved her hand, shutting her up. "Enough." Daniel came up behind her, but she pretended he wasn't there and kept looking at the other three. "On to the serious things. The MAMAs are only a couple of weeks away, which means we will all be under the spotlight and meeting would be risky. This is the last time we see each other until after the ceremony. I can't stress enough how important it is for you to keep your mouth shut, and to act normal during the MAMAs. I don't care why, or what, if you happen to raise even the slightest suspicion I will personally take care of it and have you banned from Manhattan."

Amanda and Betty looked scared. Marc, who was used to her exploits, was simply nodding approvingly. Daniel, behind her, sneaked a hand on the small of her back, unknown to the others who were standing before them. He felt her stiffen, but she didn't move.

"I'm with Wilhelmina on this," he said. "It's a dangerous game we're playing, and even the smallest mistake can neutralize completely all the efforts we've made so far. It's important you understand this; it's not only Wilhelmina and Marc's positions that are on the line. If we make any mistake, it will only hurt Mode more, and we'll have to sell the magazine."

Amanda whistled. "You mean we'll have no jobs?" she said.

"And no heads," Wilhelmina chimed in. The warmth on the small of her back, where Daniel's hand was still resting, was unnerving her, but she was too afraid of being seen by the three people in the room to move. She shot him a glance, and he immediately moved his hand away, thrusting it in his pocket.

The movement didn't go unnoticed by Betty. She narrowed her eyes and looked at Daniel, who looked persistently at his feet.

The next three hours flew by. They were all sitting around the table, studying speeches, strategies and marketing schemes. Betty and Daniel had ordered Chinese, while Amanda and Marc were biting on their celery sticks. As Marc had said, "Celery is for the pretty girls."

Wilhelmina hadn't touched the food, but she had given a disgusted look to Daniel and Betty when they'd let some kind of sauce grease some documents. He'd grimaced, and she'd passed him a napkin, snorting loudly. "You two are kids," she'd exclaimed, shaking her head. Actually, she'd found it somewhat amusing.

At some point, Marc and Amanda had completely changed subject, discussing about something completely unrelated, such as Daniel's conquests.

"Do you remember Sofia?" Marc said, chuckling. "That was the most humiliating thing I'd ever seen."

"Yes, plus he dumped me for her," Amanda said, with a grimace at Daniel, who looked down as his spring roll. "Though, I gotta admit, nothing compares to Wilhelmina's sister."

"Don't remind me of that," Betty chimed in, rolling her eyes. "I've never been closer to death than I was that day."

"Don't remind me, please," Wilhelmina said, without looking up from the files she was going through. "He was constantly in my apartment."

"Oh, I remember that," Daniel whispered, grinning. "Did you know I saw her naked?" he exclaimed, turning to Betty.

Wilhelmina looked up, ready to kill him. Marc, Amanda and Betty gasped in unison. "Oh my God," exclaimed Amanda. "Do I need to prepare for something dirty?"

"No!" Wilhelmina exclaimed. "You are an ass," she added, turning to Daniel. He limited himself to a small shrug and a smug smirk.

"Explain!" Betty insisted. "When, how…WHY?"

"He just happened to walk in while I was taking a shower. By the way, you forgot to mention, I saw you naked too," she added, lifting an eyebrow.

Again Marc, Betty and Amanda gasped in unison, shifting their gazes from Wilhelmina to Daniel, who blushed. "In my defense, I can say I didn't know it was her," he said, lifting his hands. Then he turned to her, "Are we really playing the Awkward Moments in the Lives of Wilhelmina Slater and Daniel Meade? Because you did say you enjoyed what you saw, that day."

Wilhelmina shut her eyes as Marc, Betty and Amanda gasped once more. She looked reproachfully at Daniel, then she stood up and left the room. He looked at the three young friends, with a questioning look. The three of them looked away, and Amanda whistled again.

He snorted and got up, following her.

"That reaction was exaggerated," he said, folding his arms when he found her in the kitchen.

She spun around, with a hand on her hips and a death stare in her eyes. "What are you doing?"

"What am I doing?" he repeated. "What are you talking about?"

She quickly drew closer and, when she was close enough she hissed, "You need to stop it now."

"I have no idea what you're talking about, Willie!"

She slapped him. He looked at her in shock, his eyes wide and his mouth open. She pointed a finger against his chest. "I told you to stop calling me that."

He grabbed her finger. "You slapped me!" She struggled to free her hand and walked back behind the counter.

"You deserved it," she exclaimed, opening up the cupboard and grabbing a glass. He took a few steps and grabbed the glass from her hands. "Give that back."

"Let's talk without alcohol, shall we?" he said, putting the glass back in the cupboard. He used his hand as leverage and jumped on the counter.

"We have nothing to talk about," she said, and tried to walk away. He lifted his leg and stopped her. She puffed loudly, and leaned against the oven, folding her arms. "Fine, but be quick."

"You've been intolerable for the whole night," he said.

"Well, thank you, that was a great way to start," she said, trying to walk away again, but he stopped her lifting his leg again. She turned to him, and lifted an eyebrow.

"I…I wanted to apologize," he said. She looked confused; of all the things she'd expected him to say, that wasn't the first she'd imagined. "What happened earlier…"

"Nothing happened," she said, firmly.

"What was about to happen, then…" he clarified, slowly. "That was…out of line."

"Yes, it was," she agreed, pursing her lips together. When she tried to walk away for the third time, and once again Daniel stopped her, she bent and sneaked away. He was taken by surprise, so he jumped down and grabbed her by the arm in time, spinning her around.

"I mean it," he said, never letting go of her wrist. "I don't want this…whatever, to be a problem for us, for Mode, for Meade Publishing."

She nodded. He let her go, but this time she didn't move. "It won't," she said, incredibly self-conscious of the close proximity of their bodies for the second time that night. "Daniel, you really need to step back now."

He did as she asked and let out a breath. "So, nothing happened."

"Exactly," she said.

"We…were just talking."

"We were," she agreed.

"Fine," he whispered.

"Fine," she repeated.

He grabbed her by her forearms and he drew her to him, crashing his lips on hers. He took a few steps forward, backing her up against the fridge. She struggled to break free, at first, but he kept her in place, pinning her arms against the cold metal. Only when he felt her giving in, he let go of her and rested his hands on the cold surface, at both sides of her.

She cupped his face and started returning the kiss, eliciting a moan from him. His hands slid up her sides and behind her back, pulling her closer. She rubbed her pelvis against his, deepening the kiss and pulling him closer by the nape. He ran his hand through her hair, pressing her completely against the fridge.

"Daniel, Willie, look who's- OHMYSAINTSGOMARCHINGIN!"

Wilhelmina pushed him off her when she heard Marc's voice. She wiped her mouth and turned to the door where Marc was standing, motionless, agape. She shifted her eyes to the person standing next to him and decided that was a good day to die.

"Mom," said Daniel. "What…Why are you here?"

Claire seemed unable to move a muscle, except for the pulsing vein in her temple. Wilhelmina leaned back against the fridge and looked up at the ceiling, asking God why.

"Mom, I can explain, it's not-"

"Daniel, shut up," whispered Wilhelmina.

"Mom, I swear, it was not what you think you-"

"Daniel, you still have her lipstick all over your face," Claire hissed, and Wilhelmina noticed her hands were shaking. While, on other occasions, Claire's reaction would have made her feel proud and accomplished, this time she felt dirty.

Daniel wiped the lipstick off his lips, and made a move to reach his mother, but the woman took a step back, shaking her head, and turned around leaving the room. Daniel closed his eyes and rubbed his eyes vigorously. Marc cast the two of them a last glance, then he followed Claire.

He looked at her and she turned to leave the room.

"What, you're leaving too now?" he said, pissed off. "You're the last person who can walk away right now."

She turned around and shook her head. "Daniel, this…" she started, pointing at herself and then at him, "…this is wrong on so many levels. I'm going home, now. And I'll wake up tomorrow, pretending this never happened. I suggest you do the same. I'll see you at the MAMAs."

With that she walked out of the room, leaving him alone, in the middle of the room, trying to figure out exactly what had happened in the last four minutes and a half. In that small arc, he had kissed Wilhelmina, his mother had seen them and Wilhelmina had literally run away. Exactly, in which order was he supposed to solve things?

Should he start with analyzing exactly why he had kissed her, and even more importantly, how come she'd kissed him back and not beat him senseless? No, maybe the first thing he had to do was run after her and offer some kind of explanation. On second thoughts, should he deal with his mother first? After all, she could have had a heart attack as soon as she'd left the room, and he wouldn't be aware of that.

"Fuck," he said, walking back towards the dining room. Marc, Betty and Amanda were whispering with their heads close together. When they heard him coming in they pulled apart and moved their eyes on the surroundings, awkwardly.

Amanda bit her bottom lip; Daniel noticed her eyes were watering. Was she going to cry? Her face turned into a grimace and she looked up at the ceiling; then, at some point, she put her head down on the table, and Daniel noticed her shoulders shaking.

"Amanda, are you crying?" asked Daniel.

Amanda looked up and he saw she had indeed tears in her eyes, but it was also clear those weren't sad tears. The truth was she was laughing. And no, she wasn't chuckling, or simply smiling in amusement. She burst out laughing, bending down, holding her sides.

Marc joined her, putting his head between his hands, unable to keep a straight face.

Daniel looked at Betty, who was so obviously fighting an inner battle: her face was split in two. Her eyes were trying to keep an appropriate serious, grave expression, but her mouth was curled into the smallest smile.

"Oh my God," yelled Amanda, still laughing. "I can't breathe," she exclaimed, unsuccessfully trying to regain composure. "Oh my God," she kept saying in between laughs.

"You should… have seen… your mother's… face, Daniel," Marc said, unable to form a coherent sentence. He was positively howling.

"Where did they go?" he said, speaking to Betty who seemed the only one in control of her emotions.

"Home," she said. "Not together," she added, smiling sheepishly.

Meanwhile, Marc and Amanda were still laughing so loudly he was ready to bet they could be heard from the street. "Will you two shut up?"

Marc sobered up for a few seconds. "By the way Daniel, if you were going to do it against my fridge, you could at least ask."

There was silence, then they all - except for Daniel - burst out laughing, even Betty. Amanda fell from her chair and curled on the floor, completely abandoned. Marc was trying to recover his breath, but every time he managed to suck in some air, the laughing started again. Betty was laughing, covering her face with her hands.

Daniel was not amused. "I'll leave the three of you to your jolly night," he said. Betty tried to say something, to stop him, but her laughs were too pressing to let her finish a sentence. Daniel grabbed his coat and left the house.

Amanda stood up, leaning against the table. "Oh my God," she said when the laughs around the table had finally subsided. "That was funny."

"Yeah," Marc agreed. "I mean, Daniel and Wilhelmina! You should have seen them!"

"I so wanted to be there," exclaimed Amanda, sitting down.

"There were hands everywhere," Marc said, enthusiastically, too enthusiastically, moving his hands around.

"I need a cold shower," Amanda exclaimed, getting up and leaving the room.

Marc and Betty stood there, still chuckling at the thought. But at a certain point, it was almost as if the realization of what had happened, and what it implied, and just how tragic it was had hit them like a ton of bricks.

Betty looked up, with a concerned expression. "Daniel and Wilhelmina."

Marc did the same, with his eyes wide. "Someone's gonna get killed."