The smell of hospital anesthetic was pervasive, sneaking into every pore of her body. Olivia could think of few things that made her as nervous as that smell and the terrible deadness of it. As if even the air itself was dead and stale. Someone was crying, but she couldn't remember why they were crying. She could hear footsteps somewhere, but they were walking away.

She didn't want them to go.

Her eyes opened slowly, the room was dark enough that it was only the sensation of air across her eyes insisted they were open at all. Sean was there, He was the one who was crying.

Who did the footsteps belong too? Where were they going?

"Why didn't you tell me?" That was Gregory's accusatory tone. The voice she hated because it made her feel worthless, and it was coming out of Sean's mouth. "Why didn't you tell me mom? Why did I have to find out when the hospital called?"

"I wanted to tell you honey." Her voice sounded hollow. "I wanted to tell you in person., I couldn't- I couldn't tell you over the phone."

"Maybe you shouldn't have waited so long." When he stood up she could barely see him, but something in his voice insisted something was terribly wrong. "It would have been nice to know about the baby before you lost it."

The sick feeling in her stomach exploded into her chest. "Lost the baby?"

"Caitlin said she warned you. Why didn't you listen?" The light was getting brighter, now she could see her son in silhouette. "Dad's inconsolable, won't talk to me, won't talk to Cate..."

Gregory's footsteps were the ones fading down the corridor her mind insisted dully, all thoughts paling to the consuming agony of knowing her baby was dead. Her baby was gone.

"No." Her feeble denial was a snowflake in an inferno. "No! It didn't happen. I don't remember it happening."

The light in the room was painfully bright now. All Sean had to do was point at the bed. The sheets between her legs were covered in blood. Her baby's blood. As the first scream of horror tore its way from her throat, Sean held her shoulders.

"No, not the baby. Not my baby. No-say it's not happening."

Sean was shaking her, sounding like Gregory again. "It's all right."

"My baby's dead..." The blood was running off the end of the bed like water and dripping on to the floor. "My baby can't be dead!"

"Liv-" No one but Gregory called her Liv.

As he sat down on the bed to take off his shoes, he made the mistake of glancing over at the clock on his nightstand. It was already half past midnight and the alarm was only going to allow him six hours of sleep before it insisted he get up and get ready for the day. Morning was a bleak thought as he ducked into the bathroom to brush his teeth. He could turn the alarm off, let them both sleep in and go into work whenever they got around to it. That was the luxury of being the CEO after all.

The art of sneaking into bed without waking his wife was something Gregory had perfected after years of practice. Moving slowly minimized the creaking of the bed and Olivia usually slept soundly enough not to notice him when he slipped his arm around her waist. He spared a moment to wonder if she knew he held her even when they were fighting. Even when they hated each other, she was still his.

His arm went all the way around her, letting him tuck his fingers into the space between her and the bed. He smiled to himself in the darkness, in a few months he'd have to change the way he held her and just a few months after that he'd have to share the bed. Deciding he'd have to enjoy the simplicity while he could, Gregory curled a little closer around her, fitting his knees in just behind hers.

He was nearly asleep when her nightmare started. Olivia often talked in her sleep, so he let his mind start drifting out of consciousness, at least until she started screaming. Tearing herself out of his arms with a jolt that nearly took her out of the bed, she tried desperately to get away from whatever subconscious horror was torturing her.

Instantly awake, Gregory caught her shoulders, keeping her from falling over the edge.

"Not my baby...No!"

Shaking her gently, he tried to shock her out of it. "It's all right."

Still trying to get away from him, she backed into the headboard, shaking her head. "My baby can't be dead."

"Liv-"

Still shaking, she inhaled sharply and woke up with a start. "Oh God."

"Hey, it's all right Liv. Just a bad dream." Even in the darkness, he could see the tears she was struggling against. "It's over now." Gregory coaxed her back under the sheets of the bed, holding her against his chest. "You should stop watching scary movies with Sean."

Olivia sniffed, trying to remember what he was referring too. When she didn't, he reminded her- "He wanted to watch Silence of the Lambs. I thought it would give him nightmares, but you agreed to watch it with him-" His left hand kept up a slow pattern on her back. "You had nightmares for a month."

She sighed as she remembered what he was getting at. "Sean was fine."

"Sean was fine." Gregory agreed with smirk. "You were a wreck."

She shuddered, drying her tears on the edge of the sheet. "I can't imagine anything more horrible then being stalked by a madman in the dark, when he can see you and you can't see him..."

"All right-" He hushed her quickly. "Don't talk about that. You'll have more nightmares."

Olivia toyed with the top button on his pajamas, fidgeting with it. "We have to tell him."

He studied the lights from the boats on the ocean, refracting through the window weakly. "We will."

She pulled away, he obviously didn't understand. "We can't let him hear it from someone else. What if Caitlin tells him?"

Gregory propped himself up on both elbows, sighing in residual annoyance. "Caitlin's too self-centered lately to even think about telling him."

"For godsake Gregory, he's our son and he deserves to know." Olivia reached over him for the phone. "We should call him right now."

"Liv-" He caught her hand, keeping her away from the phone. "It's already 10 am there, Sean's in class. Sleep now, we can talk to him tomorrow."

Olivia sighed heavily, realizing how tired she was. "What are we going to say?"

"The truth." Gregory offered simply, lying back down on the pillows. "That you're pregnant and we're excited to have the baby."

"That's the partial truth." Returning to his arms, eased the last of the horror of her nightmare away.

"I don't think he wants to know the details Liv." He explained dryly before addressing her concerns. "The fertility drugs can stay between us. I don't know if he'll understand why you would want to make yourself that sick to try and have a baby."

"But we'll call him tomorrow." She finished sleepily. "I want him to find out from us."

"He'll find out from us Liv. I'll make sure of it." That let her shut her eyes. "Just go to sleep."

Work kept her mind busy and Gregory took advantage of that distraction. Less then an hour after arriving at work, he had a flight to London for that afternoon. Conveniently, Lillian told him Sean's biology class was touring the Royal Virology Institute in London, so they wouldn't have to take the extra flight to Manchester. Rose was packing what he requested of their clothes and their bags would meet them at the airport.

The timeframe was too short to get the private plane, and they would have to fly commercially, which he disliked, but would be worth it for Olivia's peace of mind. He had just finished booking the room at the Savoy and the limousine from the airport from the hotel when it occurred to him that he should check with Roger and make sure flying wasn't on Olivia's list of things to avoid before he surprised her.

South Bay patched him through to Roger who picked up with his usual carefree attitude. "Dr. Baxter, how can I help you?"

"Ever thought about feigning a professional attitude?" Gregory remarked sarcastically as Roger started to chuckle.

"At times, but it just makes me feel stuffy, like an old raincoat. What do you need from me?"

Gregory cut to the chase. "I want to fly Olivia to London."

"Then you need to contact the airport." Roger suggested dryly.

He ignored the jibe. "Is she healthy enough to fly?"

"Ahhh..." Roger paused and Gregory could hear the shuffling of papers. "Her tests from Monday say most likely so."

"Most likely?" Gregory repeated firmly. "What's the 'most' about?"

"Has she fainted or been dizzy since your car accident?" Roger ran down his mental checklist, reasonably pleased with Olivia's chart.

"No-" Gregory stopped and corrected himself. "Except for last Wednesday. She got dizzy at work."

"What did you do?"

"Put her to bed."

Roger checked off the first item. "Any nausea or vomiting?"

"She's been a little nauseated, but no vomiting."

"Good." Roger grinned as he got to ask his last question. "When's the last time you made love?"

The perturbed sound in the back of Gregory's throat was everything he hoped it would be. "What kind of medical question is that?"

Roger chuckled, enjoying Gregory's discomfort immensely. "Just answer the dn question Richards."

"Two nights ago-" Gregory sighed in frustration. "In the pool if you must know."

Still laughing, Roger gave his consent. "She can fly to London, just watch for her being overtired."

"That's it?" Gregory retorted in surprise. "We made love so she can fly?"

"If she was too sick to fly, she'd be too sick to make love, no matter how charming you are." Roger explained with his best patronizing tone. "Have a lovely time and say hi to that prodigal boy of yours. At least he seems to have avoided your genetics."

Gregory actually managed a smile as he hung up the phone. Olivia was going to be so happy to see Sean. They hadn't been planning on visiting him until next month.

Olivia cut off Casey mid-sentence as Gregory came into her office. "Darling, did you call Sean?"

Gregory kept his face stern, not wanting to give away her surprise. "I did."

"Why did you call him without me?" Olivia left her desk and crossed to him to grab his arm. "Did you tell him? Gregory, why didn't you wait for me?"

"I didn't tell him." He assured her calmly, catching the amused look on Casey's face. Casey had overhead him making reservations just a few minutes ago. "We'll tell him together."

"Then let's call him now." Olivia grabbed the phone from her desk, frustrated with his seeming lack of caring.

"We'll tell him first thing tomorrow morning-"

"Tomorrow morning!" She nearly dropped the phone in surprise.

"When we see him." Gregory concluded, letting his smile burst onto his face. "In London."

Olivia squealed in girlish delight and threw her arms around his neck. "Oh darling...we're going to London?"

"We leave today at noon. It's a twelve hour flight and we have to transfer in Phoenix-"

"I don't care how it takes." Olivia kiss his cheek and turned to smile at Casey. "We get to see Sean."

"We'll be able to meet Sean for breakfast in London on Saturday." Gregory promised her, feeling the warmth of her enthusiasm like sunlight.

His parents had their backs to the door and neither of them saw him meet with the hostess. Sean assured her he was meeting them and she handed him a menu and let him seat himself. He snuck up behind his mother's chair. His father saw him, but hid his smile behind his coffee.

Sean threw his arms around his mother's shoulders and she jumped, nearly knocking over her chair in her hurry to hug him. "Hey mom. Fancy meeting you here."

"Sean!" She released him to look him over quickly before hugging him again. "Oh honey, you look wonderful." His eyes had the spark of intelligence that had been so attractive in his father as a young man. A few weeks on his own was letting him find himself in a way he couldn't in the shadow of his parents.

Gregory pointed to the chair next to Olivia's. "Let him sit down dear. We got you some coffee, since you're a college student now you're probably addicted to it."

Sean extracted himself from his mother's embrace and reached for the silver coffee cup as he sat down. "Part of the curriculum, introduction to the habits of doctors 111."

"Which fits excellently with Sarcasm and Wit 112 doesn't it?" His father retorted dryly and Sean laughed easily. The playful side of his father was one he saw rarely and he enjoyed it.

"All part of the long, winding road to medical school." Sean answered as he stirred the sugar into his coffee with a silver sthingy. The hotel restaurant was elegant. If he had not been wearing his best shirt and tie in preparation for his field trip, he would have been underdressed.

"We're just so proud of you." Olivia gushed as she patted his shoulder. "Everything you wrote us in your letters sounds so amazing. Where are you going today again?"

"The Royal Virology lab." Sean reminded her with an excited smile. "They're going to show us the latest in viral research, we're even going to look some bacteria and protista with their electron microscope. It's really going to be amazing."

"I remember when your plastic shovel and bucket were amazing." Gregory leaned back to make room as the waitress set breakfast down in front of him. "Now it's electron microscopes."

"Oh yeah." Sean dropped his napkin into his lap and reached for the jam for his toast. "You can look at things you'd never be able to see otherwise." He held up his knife and pointed to the thin edge. "Under an electron microscope even the edge of my knife would look like Mount Everest." He used his knife to cut into his french toast and grinned up at his parents.

"But you'll get to see everything, my professor said it would be all right if you joined us on our trip, and I'd love for you to come."

"The viral research lab?" His mother echoed, sounded slightly nervous.

Gregory and Olivia shared a look. Covering her hand with his, Gregory turned back at his son and returned his smile. "I'd love to Sean, but I don't think your mother can."

Sean dropped his fork to his plate. "What's wrong with mom?"

"Nothing sweetheart. Nothing's 'wrong'." Olivia assured him quickly, guilt rising as the concern filled his face. "Don't worry."

Gregory's hand was warm and comforting over her own. "She just shouldn't be going in any viral research laboratories for awhile."

The tension over the table was palpable. Licking her lips was useless because her mouth was suddenly dry. Olivia swallowed, but Gregory took the plunge. "Your mother and I are having a baby."

"Oh." Sean's quiet new confidence faded, leaving him feeling about three years old. Trying to think objectively, the newly medical part of his mind insisted that Olivia's pregnancy was a logical answer to her mysterious illness. "I didn't know you were trying. Were you trying?"

His mother studied her fingers interlaced with Gregory's. The emotion in her face was unreadable, she just seemed to be upset. Something flickered across his father's face that aroused Sean's curiosity, but it disappeared behind Gregory's control. "No Sean, it was a surprise to both of us."

The hand on her knee beneath the table insisted that she go along with her husband. The fertility drugs Alex had helped her with and Roger's mysterious insight could remain unsaid in the back of her mind. Olivia managed a weak smile for her son's benefit. "We would have told you as soon as we found out, but with everything going on-"

"You mean Cole St. John." Sean corrected as he interrupted his mother. "You think Cole might hurt the baby."

The sudden twitch of Gregory's jaw gave away that it was a real concern even as his mother smiled in relief.

"Cole hasn't done anything for awhile now." His mother began hopefully, slipping her hand out from under Gregory's in order to return to her breakfast. "Maybe he's realized no one's as stubborn as your father."

His father touched her cheek, gently returning her smile.

Sean's memory brought back the image of his father stirring some white powder into his mother's cup on that night in the kitchen. That was the end of June, right before his grandfather died.

"How far?" He asked softly, wondering how he should phrase it. "I mean, god, I never thought I'd have to ask you guys about this- I guess I thought " Sean laughed a little, and he watched the tension disappear from his mother's face. She must have been worried about how he was going to handle it. "When's the baby due? An I getting a brother or a sister?"

Olivia caught his hand, her relief naked in her eyes. "You aren't angry with us?"

Sean squeezed her fingers before taking his hand back to his silverware and breakfast. "No, no, not at all. I'm kinda relieved actually. It's much better to know you're not sick."

"I wouldn't go that far son." Gregory's sarcasm spoke of untold suffering, but the lightness in his eyes promised it was all right. "She still falls asleep when we write you back."

"It's not really fair to gang up you two." Olivia pointed out as grateful laughter bubbled up in the back of her throat. Seeing her men find common ground warmed her heart, even if that new ground was at her expense. "But, to answer your questions darling, we don't know the sex of the baby and we don't intend to ask."

"Your mother thinks it's a boy." Gregory offered from behind the rim of his coffee cup.

Olivia ignored his interruption. "Roger says I'm nearly twelve weeks, so you'll have a sibling in March."

"March huh?" Sean finished the last of his french toast and hid his whirling mind with a smile. Twelve weeks ago was the last week of June. The baby might have been a surprise to his mother, but he was certain his father hadn't been surprised. "Do you think you could aim for spring break? It would be convenient if I didn't have to miss too much of spring semester."

Swirling his coffee cup, Gregory shared a wicked smirk with his son. "If he's anything like you and your sister, he'll be born whenever it would cause the most disruption."

"Really?" He raised his eyebrows in surprise. The stories of the past were told rarely and he was deeply interested in hearing about the old days before the bad years.

"I was making my final arguments in the biggest case I'd had since we got married when your mother went into labor with Caitlin. They passed word to me in a note, and I couldn't get out of there fast enough." His parents shared a glance and his mother's eyes softened with adoration. "I nearly forgot everything I was going to say. If I hadn't written out my closing statement the night before I probably would have thrown the trial."

"And your father rushed over to the hospital-"

"Without even staying to hear the verdict-"

"He was so worried he'd miss everything-"

"I had no way of know it was going to take-"

"Twenty-seven hours!" They finished in unison, laughing and holding hands sweetly.

"She was worth it." Olivia added gently, hoping Gregory's resentment was fading towards his daughter. "Caitlin was worth every minute of it."

Sean decided to wait until he had his father alone to ask what Caitlin had done that made him so visibly angry. "What about me?"

The laughter faded from his mother's eyes, and the connection of their hands grew more dependent. "You gave us a bit of a scare." Gregory admitted as he remembered the first time he'd seen the face of his son. How tiny he'd been, how translucent his skin was and how fragile his little fingers had been. "Your birthday's next week-"

"October ninth." Olivia inserted gently as she reached brushed her eyes in annoyance. "You'll be eighteen," she finished, smiling weakly.

"Your birthday was supposed to be in November." His father explained as he watched Olivia's eyes tear up. "We were completely unprepared for you. I was trying to get everything done so I could be home with your mother."

"Your sister was nearly three and she was into everything." Olivia explained with a shake of her head. "It was hard enough to keep her out of the kitchen cabinets, let alone get your nursery ready." Her smile faded and her eyes told him something had gone wrong. "But we ended up with more then enough time. They wouldn't let us take you home until you were nearly six weeks old. Bringing you back from the hospital ended up being our anniversary present."

Even his father sounded saddened by the memory. "Your mother went into labor and everything just happened so quickly. We thought it was false labor and any moment they'd be telling us we could go home, but one minute I was waiting to see her and the next they were taking you away to intensive care."

"They wouldn't even let me hold you." Sean wondered if the tears escaping his mother's face were part of the way women were supposed to get more emotional when they were pregnant. "I only saw you for a second, you were so tiny and so still-"

Gregory produced one of his handkerchiefs for her tears, letting her put her napkin back on the table as he laid his arm over her shoulders. "She made me run back and forth from her room to the ICU all night telling her that you were still all right. And the moment the doctors let her get up, we went to see you."

"I'm sorry." Sean replied dumbly. "I didn't know-"

Olivia cut him off firmly with a wave of her hand. "It was not your fault. There were complications. problems our doctors didn't even know about."

His father's memory was clearer. "Your placenta failed, I remember the doctor explaining why it happened, trying to tell me what it meant, but frankly I wasn't listening," Gregory kissed her temple, remembering how much pain she'd been in and how terrible the thought that he had caused that agony. "All I heard was that if your mother had not gone into labor when she did, you would have been stillborn."

"When I look at you now I can't imagine not having you for my son."

"I've always been told the view from here is exquisite. London is one of the most beautiful cities in the world after all, and when you stand up here, you can see the entire panorama of the city laid out before you. From the Golden Gallery of St. Paul's Cathedral, you can see everything."

When the voice started behind her, Olivia thought it was addressing someone else. The wind was still warm, but carried the dry smell of autumn leaves and enough of a hint of a chill to remind her that winter was coming to London. Her arms rested on the sun-warmed stone of the railing surrounding the gallery roof as she watched the boats move lazily up the Thames below.

The voice finished in a whisper behind her ear that sent chills down her spine. "If I had known you'd be up here, I wouldn't have wasted my life on the ground. I would have flown up here to find you Olivia."

A hand on her shoulder flipped her around, running passionately up the back of her neck to pull her head around to meet his eyes. "I've been dead for twenty years and only now come back to life."

Staring hungrily into his eyes, he leaned in to kiss her, but she put up her hand, blocking his lips.

"It's nice to see you."

"Nice?" He laughed as he slid his foot around the outside of her shoe. "The love of my life falls out of the sky into my arms once more and you call it nice? Why didn't you tell me you'd left him?" His lips stopped a breath away from her own when she caught his chin.

"Left him?" One of his hands caught the back of her hip, insinuating himself around her like a python.

"He never really appreciated you, not like I could." His eyes bored into her, hungry for half-remembered passion of years past.

"You didn't want me." Olivia reminded him coyly as she broke his grip, putting a space between them. "We had our chance, but you didn't want me. You moved on and I found someone who did."

"Does he still want you?" He pressed, taking a step towards her as she backed away. "I see the tiny lines around your eyes Olivia Blake, I see the strain of twenty years. I know your life with Gregory-" The name caught in his throat. "Wasn't what you expected." Lifting her hand, he kissed it like a man seeking absolution.

"It may have taken twenty years Olivia, but I know what I've lost." His knee brushed her thigh as he closed the distance between them. "And I thank the angels that brought you here for giving it back-"

He caught her arms, turning her back into the stone railing and breathing against her cheek as he moved achingly slowly towards her lips.

Cole stroked Caitlin's golden head and smiled reassuringly. "You don't have to do this."

Kissing his cheek, she nodded as she pulled on her wetsuit. "I want to do this."

"Okay." Cole moved her hair aside to do up the zipper of her wetsuit. "Casey and Heather will be getting our gear ready. When we put on the tanks, take the one with the red stripe around the bottom. That one's contaminated."

She nodded again, reiterating his plan. "As soon as we go under, I'll have about five minutes before I pass out. You'll get me to the surface, and back to the hospital. My parents will come running home from England and wait at my bedside-"

"Helpless and utterly distracted." Cole finished with his own suit and grabbed his mask and fins from the floor of the cabin of the Oceanographic institute boat. "I'll do the rest, by the time you wake up from your 'nap'. Your father will be begging me to take the jewels away."

"And we'll run away together." Caitlin stopped in the doorway, pushing him back into the cabin as she kissed him forcefully. "Just you and me and the whole world waiting for us."

Cole sank his fingers into the soft flesh of her hips, thinking it was shame that he didn't have enough time to strip her out of the neoprene and make love to her. Soon he wouldn't need her anymore and she'd be gone. She didn't need to know the plan had changed. She didn't need to know that jewels were a side benefit. This was personal. Gregory had foiled his plans and he was going to discover how foolish that was. He had been forced to involve his father sooner then they expected. Not that he really minded, Gregory's stubbornness had given him the precious chance to enjoy what brought him the most pleasure.

Pain.

"AJ..." She stiffened under his grasp, her body becoming as stone as the cathedral. "Gregory's with me. He's brought me to London, we're visiting our son, Sean."

AJ's hands dropped to his sides. He seemed stunned as he released her, but he covered it with a smile that oozed charm. "Forgive me. I just got carried away." Embracing her with friendly familiarity, he laughed happily. "I hope you'll forgive me for being so forward with you. I was just so blown away by seeing you again. You're more beautiful then my most magical memories. You're positively glowing."

Her smile was secretive. "Thank you. It's nice to see you too. Though, I have to admit, I thought I'd be seeing you sooner or later."

"Oh?" AJ leaned back on the railing, smiling that old roguish smile. "To what would I owe that honor?"

Olivia tucked a stray piece of hair behind her ear. "Your son is dating my daughter."

"If your daughter is half as stunning as you are, Julian's a lucky man."

He was as handsome as she remembered and just as treacherous. The thought that she might have married him if he hadn't moved onto Elaine, flashed through her mind for a moment. Olivia put her hands in the pockets of her long black blazer and reminded herself that Gregory's child slept beneath her skin.

"Caitlin seems very happy with him." A glance around told her they were alone on the ledge around the steeple. "We've been wishing that she was as happy with us lately."

"Maybe she's just rebelling, getting ready to leave the nest." AJ hypothesized as let his gaze roam her body. Though the thought of her carrying Gregory's spawn made his gorge rise, he had to admit to himself that it gave her a lovely glow. Having children had done wonders for her cleavage and gone was the sweet little Olivia Blake he had taken to his bed. The woman before him now was elegant, curvy instead of dainty, and he had never wanted her more.

"The nest may not be as safe as secure as it was." She didn't elaborate, AJ didn't need to know her problems. Talking about Cole only seemed to bring him more power. "And you may be right, she's certainly coming into her own. She has her father's independence."

AJ was watching her, she could feel his eyes on her body and it made her oddly uncomfortable. Olivia looked at her watch, feigning surprise at the time. "I need to head back, Gregory's going to be waiting for me at the hotel."

"As quickly as she came, the angel leaves me." He quipped with exaggerated sorrow. "L'adieu mon amour, la séparation est tant de douleur douce."

Surprised at his forward behavior, Olivia reminded him who she belonged to. "Je suis seulement votre amour dans vos rêves."

"I suppose I deserved that." AJ leaned in precariously close to touching her and whispered, "With you in my dreams, I'd never want to wake again."

Laughing softly, she slipped away without another goodbye. The music of it echoed in the winding stairs back to the ground floor. AJ waited just long enough for her to be out of earshot before he opened his cellular phone. The cross Atlantic connection took a few moments, but Cole picked up after the first ring.

"Is everything on schedule?"

"Of course. Caitlin and I are going diving with the empty-headed lout Gregory uses as a bodyguard and his girlfriend. Caitlin's 'accident' is prepared, she trusts me completely."

"And the solution to the little problem with my dear Olivia?"

"I was able to procure the dose you suggested from the hospital pharmacy."

AJ felt the warmth of anticipation run up his back. "I'll leave it to you. Remember- do it somewhere in public, near the hospital. I don't want her damaged anymore then is absolutely necessary."

"I think that can be arranged."

AJ snapped his cell phone shut and drummed the fingers of his free hand on the railing. All of London was looking up at him, but his thoughts were only of his prize, somewhere on the streets below. "I promise my dear, I'll free you from him and make you mine. Soon, very soon."

"He's going to make an excellent physician if he continues the way he's headed. Answered all of the questions the moment his professor asked them-" Gregory called from the bed as he waited for her to finish with her nightly ritual. "You would have been so proud of him."

"I am proud of him." Olivia called back as she dropped her hairbrush back into her travel bag. "I hope we get to meet his girlfriend over Christmas holidays. What was her name again?"

"Kate." Gregory answered as he double checked their flight home for tomorrow. "We have some time in the morning before we need to go to the airport, what would you like to do with it? Shopping?"

Hanging up the washcloth as she finished with it, Olivia shut off the bathroom light as she returned to bed. "What do I need darling?"

Gregory caught her waist and pulled her down beside him on the bed. "Maternity clothes come to mind. I doubt you still have what you wore while you were carrying Sean."

She sank into the pillows of the bed and wrapped his hand in her fingers as it rested on her stomach. "Nope, all of that is gone. I'll be completely starting over."

Nibbling his way down her neck, Gregory paused. "Starting over was the best idea we ever had Liv."

Sighing in agreement, she slid the strap of her nightgown down off her shoulder, leaving him a clear path to continue his journey. Olivia toyed with the back of his neck, lazily running her fingers through his hair as he roamed her chest with his mouth. "I had an odd encounter today."

"Whom did you encounter?" Gregory rose from her collarbones to explore the line of her jaw.

All thoughts of a serious conversation were being chased from her mind by the intoxicating touch of his lips. Pulling his head over within reach, she devoured his teasing mouth. "I'm lucky I was alone, you would have gotten into a fight with him."

"On the spot?" His fingers danced along her collarbone. "That narrows it down a bit."

Smiling up at him with her eyes half-closed, Olivia bobbed her head slightly. "You should be able to guess."

"Del's been dead for months, so that eliminates him." He returned to her neck, smelling the hint of lilac perfume. Toying with the naked skin of her ear, Gregory ran through the short list of people he would have been at arms with on sight. "Oh It wasn't?" Chuckling with amusement, he rolled back to his pillow.

She moved to her side, lowering her head to his chest as his arm slipped around her waist. His fingers spread out protectively over her stomach. "It was."

"The infamous Armando Deschanel Jr."

Olivia could feel his laughter in the rise and fall of his chest. "He thought I was here alone."

"Ah." Gregory moved his fingers against her side in a slow pattern. "You'd finally escaped my clutches and he could sweep you away."

Olivia slyly undid the top button of his shirt. "I told you that you would have gotten into a fight with him."

Sitting up, he found the hem of her nightgown and started his way up her leg. "It would have been worth it."

"If you tickle me darling, you're a dead man." Closing her eyes and sighing in pleasure, Olivia trusted him.

Still chuckling softly, he kissed her ankle. "What else did he say?"

"He flirted with me." She admitted, gasping in surprise as he skipped her calf to kiss the soft skin of her inner thigh just above her knee.

"Like this?" Gregory asked wickedly, as he rolled her legs up and slid her nightgown down further.

She balanced her foot on his shoulder, rubbing his chin gently with the back of it. "Not like this."

He roamed the inside of her legs, crawling up between them and stopping just over her chest. "What else did he say?" The chocolate silk of her nightgown crept up her hip.

Olivia moaned, talking seemed like a waste of time at this point, but he was waiting patiently for her to answer the question. "We talked about Caitlin and Julian." His touch left a line of fire on her skin as Gregory pulled the silk up over her hip.

Her foot rubbed across his leg. "And that was all?"

Arching her back into him, Olivia reached for his shoulders and pulled him up to her level. "I told him I was meeting you." She licked the tip of his nose coyly. "He wished I was his." The second and third buttons of his shirt popped open beneath her fingers. "I told him only in his dreams."

Lifting her hips from the bed, Olivia let him pull the nightgown up over her hips. Gregory whispered into her mouth. "I don't know if I want to share you with AJ, even if it's just in his dreams."

Her tongue was warm and soft against his lips as she finished the last of the buttons and freed his chest. Olivia's nightgown moved higher, exposing her stomach to the wonder of his touch. Her voice was husky as she responded in his ear. "I chose you darling. My children are yours, my life is with you."

AJ was gone from her mind. Encouraged by the urgency of her moan, Gregory pinned her beneath him. His hands found their way under the silk to her breasts and she started giggling. "On top of the blankets?"

Rolling off her, he removed his pajama bottoms and dropped them on the floor. Without a word he slid between the sheets and propped his head up on one elbow. Under his appreciative gaze, Olivia tried to take her time in pulling her nightgown off. His smile was too maddening, she knew what he wanted to do to her and she couldn't make herself wait any longer then she had too.

The nightgown arced gracefully through the air to land somewhere on the floor of the hotel room, where it was forgotten. Gregory lifted the blankets and the cool linen was a sharp contrast to the heat radiating from his body. Olivia moved into the heat, letting her skin discover the feeling of his naked body. Fingertips blazed a line up her arm, skipping her shoulder and going straight to the back of her head. Caught in her hair, Gregory's hand drew her in. "I don't deserve you."

Olivia hushed him and reminded him with her tongue what his mouth was better used for. His other hand found the valley of her spine on her lower back and pulled her closer. Maneuvering to take the upper hand, she caught her breath long enough to retort. "It doesn't matter if you deserve me. I wanted you-"

"Liv-" Interrupting him again, she consumed him. Breathing in the scent of his skin, tasting his sweat on her lips and feeling nothing but the linen against her back and the hard flesh of his body. He was hers because she wanted him, and as she looked into his deep brown eyes, Olivia realized he knew. His hands on her back, his chest beneath her and the upward thrust of his hips as he buried himself inside of her; all the parts of him knew who they belonged too.

He didn't have to be a lawyer. He didn't have to be brilliant or know the closing price of the stock exchange. He didn't need to control the situation, manipulate the players or rig the game. There was no Gregory Richards, future district attorney of Sunset Beach. He didn't exist.

Instead of himself, he had the space between the gasp inward and the desperate release from tortured lungs. The pause between his heartbeats when he could feel her heart through her chest was his world. Her hair tumbled down to caress his neck, curling and damp with perspiration. The skin of his chest stung as her fingers dug into it. He lived in the spill of her breast over his fingers and died when she pulled away from his reach.

Olivia's head flew back, her body trembling on the edge of satisfaction. Her voice caught in her throat, escaping in a primal scream.

"Oh god, Gregory..."

And his identity was reborn. He was husband because she loved him, lover because she wanted him, but father because he had lied to her. She kissed his neck, gasping as her breath returned. "I only want you."

She would forgive him. Gregory settled her in his arms. "You've got me Liv."

She had to forgive him.