Cassie awoke in her bed to the sound of the phone ringing. She slipped her hand out from the covers and picked up the cordless that she had laid down on the smooth, hardwood floor. "Yeah," she mumbled sleepily.

"Sorry, Cassie," her secretary, Margaret, apologized. "Someone called, asking for you. I told 'im you were in a meeting."

"So?"

Margaret hesitated. "Well, they called back. They aren't taking no for an answer."

Cassie frowned with annoyance. "So? Just ignore them."

"They said to tell you something. Just to spell this out. I-S-K-O-O-R-T."

Cassie's eyes snapped open. "Where are they?"

"They'll be in Dulles in a minute, they said," Margaret answered.

"Okay. Thanks, Margaret. And we never had this conversation. You never spoke to those people."

"I understand."

Cassie hung up, and quietly slid out of bed and to her closet. She pulled off the unflattering gown and got in a T-Shirt and a pair of jeans. She didn't have time for anything else.

She looked over at the lump under the covers that was next to where she slept. It shifted slightly. "Did Mrs. President call?"

Cassie shook her head. "No. Someone else."

"Does this someone have a name, or are you not at liberty to say?"

"Can't tell you, Ronnie," - because I still don't know what they were - "I'm Sorry." Cassie stopped for a moment. "About last night. Was... was it...?"

Ronnie Chambers sat up and rested on his elbows. "Cass, of course it was. And don't even think about that. That's not why I'm here, and you know it. Now go on and do whatever it is you have to do. I'll be here when you get back, I promise."

Cassie nodded slowly and finished changing. Grabbing a jacket, she ran out in the light drizzle and got in her car.

Last night was the final goodbye. She had given up hope. He wasn't coming back, and even if he did, it'd never happen. The Jake she knew would never be back. But Ronnie was never a replacement for Jake. He was a man who loved her, and last night, she realized that she loved him back. Jake is going to be the one who would always remain in my mind as what could have been.

Cassie Chambers. I could get used to it.

But you know that Cassie Berenson would sound much better to you, her inner voice cut in.

It took a great deal of strength to keep from crying as her BMW raced to Dulles International Airport.