Thanks all for waiting, I've been so busy, but here is chap 2, have fun reading and don't forget to leave a review :-D

Chapter Two

Beyond The Storm

"Jodi, I…"

"Alberto…"

Jodi and Alberto started to talk at the same time.

"You first" Alberto said after a beat of silence.

"OK" Jodi sighed, "Why are ya here?"

"I…" A flash of lightning followed by the heavy sound of thunder stopped him from going on. "Maybe we should go to the house?" Alberto suggested.

"No, it won't be that bad" Jodi replied, "Alberto, answer the question!"

"Don't you understand? I'm here for you" Alberto kept looking outside. "I needed to know…" He stopped another lightning flashed, "Shouldn't we go to the house?"

"You needed to know…What?" Jodi asked, she didn't care about the wheather and all, she needed to know why he was here.

"I needed to know if you were happy, without me!" Alberto looked right in to her bright eyes. "I needed to see you!"

"Well, ya have seen me and I'm happy!"

"Not as happy as you were!" Alberto replied, again he looked deep into her eyes but Jodi looked away. "We really should be going now" He stood up and left Jodi's room. Jodi didn't follow him. She saw him ran to the house. Her face lighted up in a flash of lightning, tears were in her eyes. She closed her door and lay down on her bed. Soon she was asleep. Unaware of what happened outside of her room. She didn't know her world was about to break down.

"The storm is getting worse" Nick looked worried outside. Stevie just went to her own place. Kate was getting a bed ready for herself, with a storm like this she didn't want to sleep in her own room. Tess was doing the dishes.

"If you don't mind I'm going to my room." Without Tess or Nick's noticing Alberto walked in.

"Good night" And he was gone. Nick and Tess looked puzzled at each other.

"Poor Alberto" Tess said, "I really wished…" The sound of thunder interrupted her. "That was close!" Nick nodded, he looked outside. The heaviest storm in years. Ironic he thought that Alberto had to return to day. He smiled a bit.

"I love your smile" Nick was so deep in thoughts that he hardly heard the sweet words his wife said. He smiled again. He walked over to her and throw his arms around her.

"Are ya finished?"

"Now I am" Tess replied with flirtatious smile. "What ya had in mind?"

"Like ya don't know" He whispered in her ear and kissed her cheek. He grabbed her hand. And with many kisses and sweet words they went upstairs.

"Goodnight Kate" Tess called before Nick closed the door of their room.

The storm endured the whole night, early in the morning it stopped raining. Alberto lay awake the whole night. And when the first rays of sunlight started to shine through his window he fell asleep.

Stevie was early awake, she hardly slept that night. She didn't know if it was the storm or that she kept on thinking about that note. She hadn't told anyone except for Tess, but Tess hadn't asked anything. Probably forgotten with all that commotion about Alberto and Jodi. She wondered how Jodi was doing, so she walked outside. A fallen tree reminded of the storm last night. Drovers Run came good out of the storm. Stevie walked to the stables and saddled her horse. She heard something behind her and turned around. There stood Jodi, wearing the same clothes as the day before; Stevie could see that she even slept in it. Something Jodi would never do. "Ya wanna come with me?" She asked.

"Sure" Jodi stepped closer, "If you don't mind"

"Saddle the horse, I wait outside"

Soon they saw Drovers Run from the top of a hill. Though it had been a heavy storm, there was no harm done, except from some fallen trees. Jodi sighed at the look of Drovers Run in the first rays of sunlight.

"Ya okay?"

"Yeah, just enjoying the view" Jodi smiled at her, for a moment she felt happy again. "Can I ask you something?"

"Yeah, but I warn ya, I won't give you my credit card number"

"Righto, like you are rich" Jodi smiled "I wanted to ask you want you think of Alberto?"

"Alberto?" Stevie was surprised, Jodi was being so free and open with her. "Just Alberto or his return or he and you?"

"No just Alberto, ya haven't met him before, what'd ya think?"

"He's a nice guy, handsome, cute, funny accent and really nothing for me" Stevie said with a smile "But you two must have been a great couple"

"I know" Jodi looked down "I was happy with him, I though it was gonna last forever, till that horrible day!"

"Can't ya be happy again with him?" Stevie really felt sorry for her "He wants ya to be happy!"

"How do you know!" Jodi was surprised, Stevie said exactly what Alberto had said the night before.

"Oh come on, his face is like an open book when he looks at ya" Stevie said it like it was nothing "He really loves ya! Just look in his eyes and ya know!" Jodi nodded and sighed.

"It's all so hard"

"What'd ya expect, life isn't easy!"

"I know sometimes I wished we all knew what is gonna happen before it is gonna happen" Jodi sighed and looked at Stevie "What about you?"

"What about me?" Stevie wondered "I life by the moment and right now I'm hungry and wanna have breakfast" Jodi laughed and in full gallop they went home.

"Jodi one more thing" Stevie said before they went to the house "Make your choice and make it quick, cause the moments don't last forever!"

Jodi nodded and at the same moment she knew she already had her mind made up. The storm was really over.

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