A/N: Once again my sincere appreciation to those of you who are sticking with this story and leaving such nice and supportive comments. They so make my day. Hope you enjoy this next chapter!

Chapter 4

It was Saturday afternoon and if one more thing went wrong, Piper swore she would shut herself up in her room and not come out for a week. Dan had called and invited her out for a special dinner and indicated it would be at a very nice restaurant. The first dress she picked out had a large wine stain in the front. Having forgotten about it, she never had it cleaned. The second dress had a small rip in the hem. Finally she found another dress, which only need a quick once over with an iron. However that turned into disaster as she had set the setting too high and when she placed the iron on the garment, the material melted, leaving a large whole. Throwing the dress into the corner she went hunting through her sister's closets. She managed to fine something decent in Prue's, which required no washing, mending or pressing thank god.

Next was arranging her hair. Dan was making such a big deal about this date; she wanted to look her best. Unfortunately her bad luck continued. After a half-hour of trying to get her hair to do what she wanted it to do she gave up. Deciding to just let her long tresses hang down in smooth lines and using two jeweled combs, she kept her bangs out of her eyes.

Looking in the mirror, she noted the dark circles. Grabbing her make up, she proceeded to cover them up. They had been caused by the sleepless nights she was having. Images of Leo refused to leave her mind when she went to bed. As much as she tried to push them away, they invaded all the same. Even now, if she closed her eyes, she could feel his lips on hers. "Stop it!" She chastised herself. "You have got to get a grip." Giving herself one more look, she determined this was as good as it was going to get.

Leo was in the stages of setting up for the night. He had crates of clean glasses stacked on the floor waiting to be put away. The sound of someone entering brought him up from his task. Dan came walking down the stairs.

"Leo." "Dan." The two men greeted in unison, their tone neither rude nor friendly.

"Piper here?"

"No, said she wouldn't be in till later." Leo informed.

"Good. I tried calling the house but there was no answer. I was afraid she was here and would get caught up in stuff." At Leo's puzzled frown, he went on, "I've got a special night planned for us so I want to make sure it goes off without a hitch."

"Ahh." Was all Leo could muster. The thought of Piper and Dan together for a special night tore at his already savaged heart.

Dan did not like to think of himself as a petty person, but when it came to Leo he couldn't seem to help himself. It probably came from Dan's own insecurity. Deep down he knew Leo was a real threat to his relationship with Piper. Now that the man was working at her club only served to intensify his self-doubt and it rankled him. So being in that frame of mind he could not resist an opportunity to let Leo know Piper was his. It was something he hoped to make permanent tonight.

"Yep, got the whole night planned out. A nice restaurant with plenty of atmosphere. The perfect setting to propose." Dan felt a slight spur of pleasure as he watched the color drain from the other man's face. "I think it's time." He went on relentlessly. "We love each other, why not make it official."

The rest of Dan's words could not penetrate the low buzzing sounding in Leo's ears. 'Propose? Dan was asking Piper to marry him.' The thought reverberated inside his head like a thundering train. Leo forgot how to breathe and his heart was hammering painfully against his chest. Slowly he came out of his daze and dared to take a breath.

Dan, noting the other man's discomfort was torn between guilt and pleasure. The former making him ask, "Hey, you okay?"

Bringing himself back from the brink, Leo looked up. "Yeah, fine."

"Well, I gotta go and get ready. See ya around." Dan tossed over his shoulder as he went back up the stairs.

Leo remained standing there motionless. Still not able to truly comprehend what Dan had told him. Other questions came to him. 'Would Piper say yes? No, she couldn't could she? Not after the kiss they had shared. It proved she still had feelings for him right?' Then the negative side kicked in. 'How many times did she tell him it was over and she was with Dan. That she loved Dan and not him.' He walked unseeing to the bathroom and splashed cold water on his face. Breathing deeply, he tried to get his rioting emotions in check.

Looking in the mirror, he asked, "What if she says yes?"

Piper met Dan at the restaurant at 7:00 sharp. He wanted to pick her up, but since she planned to go to the club later, she needed her car. Dan was already seated at their table, his eyes lighting up as she approached.

"You look great!"

"Thanks."

Throughout the delicious dinner Piper could sense something was up. Although he tried to hide it, Dan was nervous which in turn made her as well. Their conversation thus far had been sparse and forced.

When the dishes had been cleared away, Dan took a deep breath and looked straight into her eyes. "Piper."

"Hmmm?"

"You know how much I love you. How much I love being with you."

The earnest look in his eyes and the tone of his voice caused a tinge of apprehension to climb up her spine. She was about to answer him, but he hurried on.

"I know you feel the same way, so I think it's time to take our relationship to the next level."

Her earlier apprehension suddenly turned to blind panic the more he spoke. Reaching into his coat pocket, he produced a small velvet box. Leaning across the table he opened it to reveal a gorgeous diamond ring. "Piper? Will you marry me?"

Staring at the single cut gem nestled in the box she was too stunned to speak. A million thoughts raced through her mind. Finally she was able to swallow the lump in her throat. "Dan…"

He had sensed she was not as excited as he had hoped she would be, in fact she looked scared to death. Realizing she may not give him the answer he was hoping for he quickly interrupted her. "Piper, you don't have to give me an answer right now. Just think about it. But put it on and see how it feels. Please."

The pleading look in his eyes tore at her heart. This was Dan. The man who had been so wonderful to her, however this was not something she was even close to being ready for. A scene flashed before her eyes. She and Leo embraced in a passionate kiss. Giving her head a slight shake she tried to banish the sight.

"Dan, I don't…."

Again he didn't let her finish. "Please Piper, just try it on for me. It doesn't have to mean anything yet." Taking her hand, he slid the ring on her third finger. It felt cold and heavy on her finger. "All I ask is you think about it." He begged.

"All right, I'll think about it." She relented.

His face broke into a satisfied grin. "Great! Now I know it's getting late and you need to get to the club."

They both stood and Dan came to stand in front of her. "Think about it, okay? I love you."

"Me too." She replied automatically and without emotion.

Bending down he placed a hard kiss on her lips.

Prue sat by herself at P3. Phoebe had met someone the moment they entered the club and was even now dancing the night away. Part of her envied her baby sister. Phoebe took on life with a full head of steam, determined to enjoy it to its fullest. Prue on the other hand was not so out going about life or as Piper would say, too picky. She was simply waiting for Mr. Right. At one time she had thought it had been Andy, but well she didn't want to dwell on that awful time in her life. Then there was Jack, which again was pretty much doomed from the start. She was not interested in one-night flings and her confident demeanor tended to make the opposite sex cautious around her.

Leaning back in her chair she contented herself with observing the crowd. People watching could be pretty entertaining. Her line of vision was interrupted as Piper walked by. The first thing she noticed was Piper's harried look.

"Hey sweetie, what's wrong?"

Sitting down next to her big sister, Piper let out a long sigh. Not knowing where to start, she held out her hand and blurted, "Dan asked me to marry him."

"Oh my God!" Was her sister's first response as she grabbed the ringed finger.

"Yeah, that pretty much sums it up." Agreed Piper without much enthusiasm.

Phoebe chose that moment to take a break and come over. "Hey, what's going on?"

Prue lifted Piper's hand. "Oh, only this. Dan asked her to marry him."

"Oh my God!" Phoebe mimicked Prue's earlier words.

"Hmmm, seems to be the response of choice." Noted Piper.

"Wow, this is like huge Piper." Her younger sister went on. "Did you have any idea he was going to ask?"

"No, I was totally blind sided."

Detecting something in her sister's voice, Prue frowned. "You don't sound too happy about this."

"I know. I should be happy right?"

Seeing an opening, Phoebe jumped in. "But you're not."

Piper sat back in her seat. "I don't know what I feel. I mean Dan's this great, nice normal guy. This is what I've been looking for."

Prue nodded her head knowingly. "But are you happy honey?"

Piper turned conflicted eyes to her older sister. "No, I'm not Prue. Not like I should be anyway. God what's wrong with me?"

Phoebe came over and put a comforting arm around her. "Nothing honey. You can't control how you feel. Feelings are there or they're not, that's all there is too it."

"Piper, you can't marry Dan just because you feel you should or because he represents something you think you want. That's just not a good enough reason."

"I know Prue, you're right. I don't know, I'm just so confused."

Phoebe was reluctant to bring the subject up, but felt considering their conversation she had to. "Is part of this because of Leo?"

Piper closed her eyes, because she knew her sister had hit very close to home the root of her indecision. No matter how hard she had tried to deny it, she still had strong feelings for Leo. She didn't need to admit it, for it was written all over her face.

"Come here honey." Prue said as she enveloped her younger sister into her arms. "It's going to be okay." She soothed. "You need to take some time and sort out your feelings, but you have to be honest with them."

Reluctantly she removed herself from Prue and gave a watery smile. "You're right."

"Why don't you go home and do some serious soul searching."

"I can't Pheebs. I need to close up and…"

"Nonsense." Prue admonished. "Rachel is here. That's why you hired an assistant manager remember?"

"I suppose so."

"So off with you. We'll be right behind you after we talk with Rachel."

Reaching over, Piper gave each of her sisters a hug. "Thanks. I love you guys."

From his vantage point behind the bar, Leo took in everything. He witnessed Piper's entrance and then with a sinking heart watched helplessly as Piper showed off the engagement ring. Obviously she had said yes. He almost couldn't accept it, but the proof was there right in front of his eyes. He had truly lost her. She had agreed to marry someone else and there was no fighting back now. Deep down, he never fully believed it would go this far. Naively thinking their love would overpower all else. How wrong he had been. The place where his heart lay, felt shredded as if it had been viciously torn out and all that remained was an empty void.

As if to punish himself further he continued to watch as the sisters hugged in celebration. Funny now that he thought about it. Earlier he was asking himself what he was going to do about his relationship with Piper. It seemed that choice was now made for him. There really was no alternative. Turning away from the woman he loved, he went back to work, however his mind was focused on the future. A future without Piper.

A/N: Next chapter will contain a major turning point!