Snuggled deep in the softness of the mattress, the air conditioner blowing cool air into the room through the vent above the bed, Steve enjoyed a deeper and more restful sleep than he had known in years. Gone was the constant despair that dominated every waking hour, and in its place was hope and optimism for a long future with his family.

After years of sleeping on a hard cot, it was almost disorienting to awaken on the amazing softness of a pillow-top mattress with an equally soft pillow cushioning his head. His good eye was buried in the fluffy pillow, ensuring the illusion of darkness, but the birds chirping outside the window indicated that it was daylight.

With a contented yawn, feeling wonderfully rested and refreshed, he shifted his head so that his eye was free of the pillow, and he saw that the sun was up, shining brightly between the drapes they had not closed before retiring the night before. It promised to be a beautiful day, and his heart filled with the knowledge that it would be the first full day he would spend with his family, the first day of a lifetime to be spent with Kayla and Stephanie.

Turning his attention to Kayla, he observed her sleeping beside him, the most intoxicating sight he could ever have imagined.

Automatically, his hand reached toward her, drawn to stoke her smooth cheek, but he held himself in check. Touching her would almost certainly awaken her, and she was sleeping so peacefully that he did not want to disturb her. Shifting carefully and slowly to avoid jostling the bed, he tucked his right arm under his pillow for more support and was content to simply lie there watching her. And as he watched her, he thought about the previous day and night, pondering the things she had told him once they were alone.

It had been an in-depth narrative of the events she and the rest of his family had endured during his absence. She had been especially gentle when she had explained his mother's mental breakdown that had led to the shooting death of Nick Corelli and her treatment and recovery at Bayview Sanitarium. She had been as compassionate as she could possibly be, but she was unable to shelter him from the pain the revelation brought that his mother had taken another life in an attempt to avenge his death, a death that had never occurred.

He had never thought his mother capable of killing anyone. Few people do believe their mothers capable of such crimes, but Jo Johnson had tolerated decades of abuse at the hands of her husband without a hint of ever defending herself against him. When Steve had brought that up, Kayla had explained that a mother's love for her child was far greater than her love for herself, and in that respect, it made sense that she might find a way to seek retribution, but Steve still had difficulty accepting that it could drive her to murder.

"It was a classic textbook example of temporary insanity," Kayla had told him. "I know that phrase is used as a common excuse to condone certain crimes, but in her case the abuse she suffered from Duke probably factored into it, and that, combined with her grief over losing you, was just more than she could endure."

Anger and resentment burned deep inside Steve. So much tragedy had been left in the wake of the scheme brought about by Vaughn and those he was working with. So much heartache brought to the lives of the people he cared about.

And then there was the unexpected death of his old friend, Marcus Hunter, of an aortic dissection, a condition of which he was unfamiliar, and a shocking end to the life of the apparently healthy and active man he had known.

Kayla stirred slightly, and a lock of her hair drifted across her face. Almost of its own accord, his hand moved to brush it back, and even though the gesture was feather soft, her eyelids fluttered and opened.

For a long moment, she gazed at him as if in wonder, and then reached out to touch his face to verify that he was not a figment of her imagination. He caught her hand in his and kissed it.

"Morning, sleepyhead," he said.

"You're really here," she said. "I was so afraid that I'd wake up and you'd be gone, that yesterday was just another dream."

"I'm really here, baby."

"Yes, you are," she said, her hand moving from his face to his upper arm, warm and firm beneath her fingers. "You're here, and you're alive. How long have you been awake?" she asked.

"Not very long. I've just been lying here watching you sleep, marveling at how beautiful you are."

"I don't remember a time in the last fifteen years that I've been this happy. I just don't seem to have enough room inside to hold it all!"

He chuckled. "That's corny as hell, baby."

"I know, but it's how I feel."

"I know," he admitted. "I feel the same way. All those years, locked in that basement room, longing to get out of there and make my way home. I can't believe I'm finally here, and that you're here beside me." He took her hand and pressed it to his lips again. "It finally happened."

Kayla sighed, regretfully. "So many wasted years when we should have been together planning our future and expanding our family. You know, I always wanted us to have more than just one child together."

He gently cupped her cheek in his hand. "That would have been nice, Sweetness. But I'm content. I have you and Stephanie, and we can start planning that future together. I think Stephanie is already growing fond of me. When Shane told me how old she is, I was afraid she might resist my intrusion into her life, but I think she's going to be fine with it."

"I know she is," Kayla agreed. "She was certainly having fun on that tire swing, although I think you were having even more fun than she was. The ironic thing about you coming back is that she was talking just the other day about how much she's missed having her father around."

"She did?"

"Yes, she really did, and she was very adamant about how much she missed you, even though she had never really known you. We used to watch our family videos together, and she would ask questions about you –"

"You didn't tell her the truth, did you?" he joked, lifting one eyebrow in amusement.

She laughed. "Of course, I told her the truth. I told her how wonderful you were, how compassionate you were for others –"

"Fairy tales!"

"Tell that to the kids down on the docks that wouldn't have had a Christmas if not for you and your funny Santa suit," she countered. "I remember how you used to buy toys and games and pass them out to the homeless children. You gave them a few minutes of joy, when they didn't have to think about where they were going to sleep that night or where their next meal was coming from. You gave them hope."

"Okay, I take it back. I am wonderful," he said lightly, then sobered. "I think hope is a little strong of a word to apply there, though. I gave them a diversion from reality, I guess. I don't guess you kept that old Santa suit, did you?"

"I'm not sure what happened to it," she admitted. "We can get you a new one, though." She rose up in remembrance, propping her head in her hand. "Actually, I think I might have given that suit to Marcus Hunter. I think he played Santa the year after you . . . after you were taken away from us."

"Marcus," Steve said, sadly. "My old Homey. He was my best friend at the orphanage. We were always together, sliding down the banisters, skinning our knees on the playground, and getting in trouble for sneaking out."

Kayla had heard the stories before, some of them from Steve, others were remembrances from Marcus after Steve's funeral, when both of them were struggling to deal with the loss of the man they both cared so much about. She gently pressed a comforting hand to his cheek. "He was a good friend, to both of us."

"Yeah, he was. I just can't believe he's gone. Fifteen years," he mused with a sigh of regret. "I've missed so much."

"I know, but think of how happy everyone will be when they find out you're alive, and that you've come back to us."

"I don't know, baby," he said. "They may wish I'd just stayed where I was."

"That could never happen," Kayla declared. Rising, she leaned over him so that she could kiss him.

"Mmm," he murmured, wrapping his arms around her and pulling her against him. "How much longer do we have before the others start showing up?"

"They can wait," she told him with a smile.