A/N: Ok, here is the last chapter for 2 weeks. I suggest you read it very very sloooowly, or wait a few days and then read this chapter.

Cru—I don't know how I'm getting through writing this close to the wedding. This weekend I wrote between 10 pm and when I go to bed and then when I get up til about 9 am if I'm lucky. Thanks for the suggestion—we'll try to find some alone time, even if it means taking the elevator up alone to the reception site. LOL

I wonder what gave me the idea for the last part of the chapter. Hmmm—no clue. LOL. You all enjoy this chapter, and I will "see" you again in a few weeks.

Until next time—PCGirl.

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John nodded to the guard who let him in the cell and closed it behind him. He looked at Caitlyn and smiled, "Hi."

"Hi."

"Listen, I need to talk to you about something," he said as he pulled a second chair over to elevate his foot with.

"If it's to tell me that we're through then forget it," she said as she looked down at her hands.

"No, it's not that at all. I'm sorry I yelled at you before, it's just that I'm so confused. I loved you for a very long time Caitlyn, even after I thought you were dead. You have to know if I had every thought you were alive I would have come for you in an instant. I still love you Caitlyn."

"Not like you did before."

John put his head down and rubbed the back of his neck before looking at her, "I'm not so sure about that. When I saw you earlier, and held you for that moment—well, I felt something."

Caitlyn's head shot up immediately, "I did too. Oh, John. I wondered if it would still be there, it was—wasn't it?"

"Yes," he said as he touched the side of her face, wondering if Natalie ever found out about this if he'd live to see the next day caused a grin to appear on his face. "I want to make Haver pay for us loosing these years together. Tell me whatever you know."

"I don't know much. He was gone for months last year, and then he came back and said I was free to go. He gave me this box with newspaper clippings of you through the years, but I wasn't sure if you were still here in Llanview. I was trying to decide what to do when I was sent a clipping of your engagement announcement. She's pretty—Natalie."

John looked down at the floor, Michael and Eve had joked with him in the past that whenever someone started talking about Natalie his eyes lit up so he figured it was best to not look at Caitlyn at the moment. "So what made you come here?" he asked as she filled him in on the rest of the information, that she hadn't been planning on getting swept up with Stephen Haver again—that her original plan was to actually confront John in Philly, and when she realized they were leaving for London she thought she needed to act fast. The night before Haver had showed up at her hotel room—they talked some, but she never had actually planned on leading Haver straight to John and Natalie. John wondered why she was lying—she had to know he knew the truth from Adrienne, that her former employer was probably Haver, unless she had paid someone else to vouch for her. He shook off thoughts and stood up, "Well, I'm going to go talk to them about releasing you."

"Will you come see me again tonight?"

"Of course," he said as he gave her a gentle kiss on the lips before leaving the room. When he had reached outside he saw Antonio standing there with a grin on his face, "What?"

"You said you were going to play with her head, not fall in love again. Do you realize what that looked like to anyone who didn't know better?"

"Yeah, that was the idea," laughed John as he kept on walking, ready to talk to Sonia and Bo about the next step.

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"Ok, little one—we need to get to sleep," said Natalie as she closed her eyes again and began slowly rubbing her stomach in small circles. "I know what will get us both to sleep—a bedtime story. Is that what you want?" she laughed looking down at her stomach and thinking this was ridiculous because she knew it'd be weeks until the baby could hear.

"So what do we want to talk about tonight? Your dad? Ok, I'll tell you about the day we got married. It wasn't too long ago—we had it Grandma Viki's house on New Years Eve. The night before I had stayed at Llanfair, but the next day I remember standing in front of this big oval mirror right before I went down--."

"I'll be right back, Nat," smiled Jessica as she closed the door behind her. Natalie took a final look in the mirror and she gave out a long sigh before hearing a soft knock on the door, "Hello?"

"Natalie," said John from the other side.

"John—what are you doing—you can't see me before the wedding," she said as she came over to the door and stood right on the other side.

John gave a half laugh, "I know—I just figured if I heard your voice these butterflies would go away."

"Butterflies—John McBain has butterflies?" she laughed.

"Yeah—imagine that. How are you holding up?"

"I'm fine—I was just thinking how much I changed since I moved here. So do you have your vows ready?"

"Yeah, their in the inside pocket of this penguin suit," he said as he tapped his jacket pocket and felt the small card on the other side—though he doubted he'd need to remember anything he wanted to tell her soon.

"I'm sure you look just as handsome as ever," she gave a half sigh.

"Is something wrong?"

"I think if I keep hearing your voice and not seeing your face soon them I'm going to have to open up this door."

"Well, here comes Jessica anyways—I better get out of here before she burns me at the stake. I love you."

"I love you too."

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John tossed on the couch—it had been comfortable the night before when Natalie was next to him—but now Antonio and Jessica's pullout bed was as hard as a rock. He remembered the last time he had slept on this couch without Natalie—it had been the night before the wedding. They had talked for hours that night though—until almost 2 am when Jamie woke up and John and Natalie finally decided they might want to go to sleep.

He closed his eyes and began thinking of their wedding day and shortly falling asleep and dreaming of it.

John stood up at the front of the room with Antonio and Michael standing next to him as they watched first Marcie and then Jessica walk down the aisle and take their places. He gave a loud sigh as the doors opened and Natalie stood there in the doorway with Clint on one side and Rex on the other. She walked slowly, her eyes locked with John's. They each gave her a kiss on the cheek and sat down next to Viki and Roxy. "Hi," he whispered out as he stared at her.

"Are we ready?" asked Joey and they nodded as the ceremony began. They stood there looking straight at Joey, occasionally glancing at each other, grinning when they caught the other one looking.

"And you have written vows?"

"Uhm, yes," said John as he took out his vows he had written down and took a glance at them before beginning to speak, "Natalie. When I first came to town I believe I could best be described as an unfeeling, unemotional statue. That first day when I walked into Crossroads looking for you—I began to change that day. I had put up a wall inside my heart—one that was harder to get into than Fort Knox, but somehow that day you just walked right into my heart," said John as tears began to form in Natalie's eyes as she realized she'd heard this speech before.

"Then slowly, as time went on your broke down that barrier, from the inside. You could have walked away and I wouldn't have blamed you, but you didn't and I'm glad for that. Today I'm promising you that I'll always be there with you—from this day on and until we're old and gray, sitting on a rocking chair with grandchildren and their children," he said as Natalie gave out a slight laugh as he had made a comment like that not so long ago.

"I love you Natalie—and I know that as long as we're together nothing will break us apart."

Natalie wiped the tears from her eyes before speaking, "John. When you first came to town I hated you—I hated what you did to my life. But then I slowly realized you weren't like everyone else—you were letting me grieve in my own way, allowing me to tell you how I really felt, and at times allowing me to tell you where I thought you should go," she said as John laughed at the memory.

"In the end though I thanked you for that—and as time went on I began to love you for that. I loved you for the way you made me feel safe, and your trust—that's the most important thing ever. So today I'm promising that I will forever be yours—and I know wherever we are that the safety you bring me will wrap around me like a big blanket."