Cody had run out to the Chinese restaurant around the corner for a quick dinner and was bringing something back for Frank and Shay.  She had pushed the idea because she needed to talk to her husband alone.

Pushing the intercom button, she said, "Donovan...get your ass down here."  She grinned when she heard the slam of his chair into the wall behind his desk and his footsteps as he descended the stairs. 

"Dammit, Shay...must you embar..." he trailed off when he saw they were alone.

"Yes, Bossman, sir.  It's my job to embarrass you.  However, tonight is not the night."  She moved closer and touched his arm lightly as she looked into his intensely dark eyes.  "Tiger, please, you've got to tell me what's going on inside that head of yours."

He shook his head and turned away from her.  "Don't push me, Shay.  It's none of your business."  He knew the moment the words left his mouth that it was the stupidest thing he could have said to her.  She was his wife; everything about him was her business.

"Fine, Frank.  Have it your way.  Keep it bottled up inside you until it spills out of your ears and explodes what's left of your brain.  You're letting it eat away at you like a cancer.  I can't watch it any longer; nor will I let the children see you like this."  He turned slowly to face her, almost as if he knew what she was about to tell him.  "I worry that you'll take it out on them, the way you did me, without realizing you're doing it.  I'm taking the kids to Dad's; we'll stay with him for awhile."

He felt his body tremble, at first he wondered if they were having an earthquake until he realized it was he who was doing all the shaking.  He took a step closer to her, but stopped, afraid his unsteady legs wouldn't support him.  The thought of losing her and the kids, even temporarily, was more than he could bear.  "Please, Shay...don't leave me.  You and the kids...you're all I've got left."

Shay's heart broke into a thousand pieces when she heard the desperation in his voice.  He was her soul mate; if only he would open up and let her in, he might find peace. 

A soft noise from Cody's console interrupted the silence as his media player changed selections and the soft, acoustic rhythm filled the nest.  Shay closed the distance between them and placed her hands lightly on his arms.  "Baby, the last thing I want to do is leave, but if you can't trust me enough to let me in, there's something wrong with our marriage."

He blinked back the tears that were starting to form behind his eyes and tried to speak, but his emotions had a choke hold on his vocal chords.  He touched his forehead to hers, his gaze never once leaving hers as he pulled her into his embrace and they began to move slowly to the soft tempo of the music.

You've got a way with me
Somehow you got me to believe
In everything that I could be
I've gotta say--you really got a way

Shay wound her arms around his neck as they moved.  She could feel his heart beat, felt his breath against her cheek.   He was her life and it killed her inside knowing he did not trust her enough to let her help him.

Frank's mental and emotional exhaustion overwhelmed him.  This was it, his breaking point.  The monster had won and he was losing everything good about his life.  He rested his head on her shoulder and breathed in her scent.  She smelled of lavender soap and sunshine.  She always reminded him of sunshine.  She was the light in his darkness. 

You've got a way it seems
You gave me faith to find my dreams
You'll never know just what that means
Can't you see... you got a way with me

This morning had been the first time she had ever seen Frank Donovan cry.  She ached for him, for his pain when she felt the sobs that now wracked his body as he held her close, as if trying to hold on to that elusive lifeline.  "Please, my love.  Let me help you."

Still, he did not answer.  No words would come, he could merely cling tighter to her, praying for strength.

It's in the way you want me
It's in the way you hold me
The way you show me just what Iove's made of
It's in the way we make love

You've got a way with words
You get me smiling even when it hurts
There's no way to measure what your love is worth
I can't believe the way you get through to me

She placed a gentle hand at the back of his head and kissed his tear soaked cheek gently before placing her cheek against his and whispered the lyrics to the song in his ear.

It's in the way you want me
It's in the way you hold me
The way you show me just what Iove's made of
It's in the way we make love

Oh, how I adore you
Like no one before you
I love you just the way you are

He lifted his head slowly, hearing the tears in her own voice, knowing she was crying for him, for his pain, for his torment.  Without knowing why, she was feeling everything he was feeling, and shared it with him willingly. 

Standing still now, facing each other, Shay continued to sing to her husband.

It's in the way you want me
It's in the way you hold me
The way you show me just what Iove's made of
It's in the way we make love

It's just the way you are

He touched her cheek and wiped a tear away.  "I love you, mon cadeau."

"Come back to me, Tiger," she pleaded one last time.

He nodded slowly as he folded her into his embrace and kissed her softly.  "I'll show you, tell you, everything.  Just don't let go."

"Never," she whispered before their lips met passionately.

***Lyrics from the song "You've Got A Way" from the CD "Come On Over" by Shania Twain.  Written by Shania Twain and Robert "Mutt" Lange © 1997 Songs of PolyGram Int'l, Inc/Loon Echo Inc (BMI); Out of Pocket Productions, LTD.