The sky was gray and cloudy, a storm threatening its way across the ocean and toward the town of Harmony. Fox Crane stared out at the water, watching intently as the rolling waves came crashing onto the rocky shore below. He sighed, leaning against the rough wooden railing that ran along the edge of the wharf.

It had been over six months since he'd last seen her in the Book Café and accepted the fact that she'd moved on. The truth had hurt him deeply, but he understood that things could never be the same. Part of him screamed that he didn't want to be with her if it was going to be different anyway. Another part told him to suck it up and get on with his life. But it was the curiosity that always got the best of him. What if they'd just given it a shot? Why had he given up so easily? Would things really be so changed?

His mind wandered, following the same path it had become stuck on long ago.

Tiny droplets of water fell lightly from the sky, and thunder boomed overhead. Not far away Kay Bennett jumped, caught off guard by the deep rumble. She rushed along the wharf, hoping to make it back home before she managed to get herself caught in a downpour. Her family hadn't been pleased when she said she needed to run out and get herself some ice cream. Again. It was the same excuse she used every time. Instead, she wandered the streets of Harmony, thinking about things that she knew she should just forget. Things that were in the past. Things she knew she couldn't change.

She'd been startled to see him in the Book Café all those months ago. He'd looked haggard and disheveled, completely unlike the graceful and always well groomed Fox Crane that she'd come to know. It firghtened her. But she knew what he was going through. Her heart broke into a thousand pieces every time she thought of the way she left him at St. Anne's all alone. She'd sought him out with the intention of telling him that she was being discharged. But then they'd made love, and she knew in her heart that she couldn't ruin the happiness they were both feeling at that moment.

It was cowardly, she'd accepted that, but there was nothing to be done about it now. And so she scurried along quickly, trying her best not to slip on the dampening wood beneath her feet.

The sound of running footsteps caught his attention, and Fox turned his head, curious to see who else was crazy enough to be out in weather like this. He stood straight up at the sight of her rushing toward him, his heart suddenly lodged in his throat. He knew the moment she realized he was there. She came to a dead stop, her eyes widening with shock and surprise. A small gasp escaped from between her lips before she clamped them shut and tried to regain her composure.

The rain began to fall harder.

"Fox…"

"Kay."

"What… what are you doing out here?"

"I could ask you the same thing."

She smiled uncertainly. "I just needed some fresh air. I was on my way home, hoping to beat the rain, but…"

"Not so lucky," he mused.

"No," she shook her head. "Not lucky at all."

There was a moment of awkward silence as Kay moved next to the railing and stood beside Fox. Her heart raced as she gazed out across the turbulent ocean. He followed suit, and together they stood to watch the churning of the waves, unmoved by the light water droplets that beat upon them without mercy.

"I saw you at the Book Café awhile back," she said hesitantly, forcing herself not to look at him.

"I saw you as well. You seemed… happy."

Kay let out a frustrated sigh. Had she really seemed happy to him? Because the truth was that she'd been miserable. The show she put on was for her family. It was for Miguel and Maria, and anyone else who'd been worried about her. "Oh," was all she could muster in response.

Fox continued. "It's all right really. I was… pleased to see that you'd recovered from whatever it was that lead to your time at St. Anne's. I know how much you hated it there. We both did."

Kay shuddered involuntarily at the thought if that horrid hospital. They hadn't fixed her problem or helped her control it. That place had done nothing but cause her pain and anguish; worry over not being able to be there for her daughter.

"I had my father fire that nurse who assaulted you, you know."

"What?" Kay stood straighter, caught off guard by Fox's abrupt confession. He turned to look at her and found her wide brown eyes already staring up at him.

"Don't you remember? That nurse who shoved you?"

She gave him a blank stare, too shocked to reply.

"It wasn't hard. Unprofessional conduct and all that. The way she just grabbed you, and dragged you away… I mean, what kind of person does that, huh? Anyway, I just thought you'd like to know."

Kay shook her head and tried to clear away some of the fog that was floating around her brain. "You had her fired?"

Fox narrowed his eyes. "Yes, that's what I said, isn't it? I can't believe you don't remember."

"Of course I remember," she said defensively. "I'm not stupid you know."

"I wasn't implying that you were. But you're welcome."

"You're welcome? For what?"

"Aren't you listening Bennett? For canning that old biddy who treated you like garbage, that's what. Now aren't you going to thank me?"

"Thank you?" she scoffed. "I never asked you to fire her!"

Fox looked at her incredulously. She couldn't seriously be angry with him. After all the trouble he went through on her behalf? "You've got to be kidding me here. I did you a favor! You don't always have to ask for favors you know, sometimes when people care about you, they'll do things to help you out without waiting for you to ask them."

"Well I didn't need any helping out…" she trailed off. He hadn't just said… had he? Kay hesitated. She watched the way he squirmed under her watchful gaze, suddenly aware of the blunder he'd just made.

"Fine. Have it your way. I've got to go. Don't say I never did anything for you," he spat, obviously upset with himself. He prayed to whatever God was listening that she hadn't realized what he'd just revealed. But as he turned on his heel to leave, her voice called out to him and he knew he was caught.

"Fox! Wait."

He turned around slowly to face her and waited for it to come. He waited for her to walk over to him and laugh in his face, tell him what an idiot he was for thinking about her, day and night, every second he was conscious and every second he wasn't. Terror froze his heart, and he wondered later how long it had stopped beating completely.

But she didn't move. She stood rooted a few feet away, her features quickly becoming a hazy blur from the rain that fell between them. He found it terribly hard to tell what she was thinking, and every second that passed by felt like an eternity. A sudden sinking feeling washed over him then. This was it. This was his moment of truth. A scene he would look back on in later years and remember every detail of. But whether it would be with fondness or disdain he couldn't say. The only thing left to do was wait.

"Fox, did you just tell me… What I mean is, did you just say… that you care about me?"

He felt defeated. "What do you think Bennett."

"I think maybe you did." When he didn't respond, she pressed on, taking a step toward him. "You only do favors for people you care about. And you did one for me."

"Is that really so hard to believe? Yes I care about you. Dammit Kay, I care about you more than I've ever cared for any other woman. I felt as though I understood you, as though I've known you my entire life. I can say that I despise St. Anne's with a passion, and it would be the truth. But I can't say that it never gave me anything; that it never made me happy, because it did. God, this sounds so cheesy but I just can't help it. Do you have any idea what I would give to go back there?"

He rushed toward her, caught up in the moment and grabbed her arms tightly with his hands. "Can you honestly say that you're blind to what we experienced? That you don't feel anything for me? The night we spent together… it was a night that I will never forget. It's a night that has haunted me in my dreams for fuck's sake! And no matter what I do I can't escape it. No matter where I go, or who I'm with all I can think of is you. All I can ever think of is you."

He shook his head and angrily pushed her away. She stumbled slightly, but quickly regained her footing. "Fox-"

"No, you don't get to talk right now. You're going to listen to what I have to say. That night… it was magic. It was heaven. It was more than a good man ever deserves, and hell I'm not even that good, so Lord only knows what I ever did to receive such an amazing gift. You have to understand what that means to me… I've never had anything like this to call my own. I've never had one of those moments that just changes your life in an instant."

"I do understand! Please, you have to trust-"

"And then you went and ruined everything."

Kay froze. Grief and guilt choked her to the core. She knew this moment had been coming. She'd prepared herself to face it if and when she ever saw him again. But no preparation in the world could have readied her for the fierceness of his words. Feelings of desperation surged her into action. She had to make him understand! "It wasn't like that! Please, just let me explain."

"Explain?" he sneered. "You ended it. You took away from me the most amazing feeling I've ever felt and you just fucking stomped all over it like it was a piece of garbage. I mean, what kind of person does that? How could you just leave me in there alone? You told me that without me you would have gone crazy. How do you think I felt when you abandoned me, huh? Did you ever stop to consider that maybe I felt the same way too?"

"Of course I did," she pleaded. "I wanted to tell you! Why do you think I even went to your room that night? I was going to explain everything, how I had passed all of Dr Adam's psychiatric tests and how I was going to be discharged the next day."

"Then why the hell didn't you? Why did you just leave without one word? Without even saying goodbye?"

This was all too much. Kay felt the burning in her eyes and covered her face with her hands as the tears spilled down her cheeks. She shook her head in panicked frustration, desperate to get him to understand the truth. "I couldn't do it. I didn't want it to end. You asked me if I'm blind to what we experienced in there. Well I'm not, and it hurts that you would even say such a thing. Of course I felt the same way you did! The night I spent in your bed was the most beautiful thing I've ever experienced. There was no way in hell I was going to ruin it by telling you that I was leaving. It was a mistake, and I know that now."

Fox turned away from her, so she walked over and furiously grabbed hold of his arm. He spun around and yanked himself free of her grasp.

"It's my turn to talk now," she said. Raw emotion was evident on his face, and she wondered how many times in his life Fox Crane had ever been this vulnerable. His silver gray eyes burned like liquid fire, but she struggled on, determined to make him know her side of the story.

"I made a mistake," she continued. "I should have told you the truth. I shouldn't have kept it hidden from you. But you have to understand why I did it."

"Well I don't."

"Then shut up and listen. Ever since I first saw you that day in the game room, I knew something was going to happen. I didn't know what, but I just had a feeling. And I was right, wasn't I? Something did happen. Something amazing and wonderful." She paused. "I fell in love with you Fox. In the short time we've known each other, I fell completely head over heels in love with you. It sounds pathetic I know. Just a passing fancy some might say. But I know the truth. And that night as I was walking to your room…. God, this is going to sound crazy."

"Tell me," he pushed her, "I need to know."

"All right. I had another feeling; an overwhelming feeling that what I was about to tell you would ruin things between us forever. I didn't want it to end up that way, and as loony as this may sound, I just… I knew it would. So I kept it to myself. I thought if I could just see you again, then I could explain. And I knew I would; see you again that is. That's why I couldn't say goodbye to you Fox. I could never say goodbye, because I know I'll always see you again."

"How could you possibly know that."

"Because it's the truth. Because I would rather die than live my life without your friendship."

Fox ran a hand through his tousled hair, now slick with water. He saw the feelings written across her face as well as if he'd taken a pen and put them there himself. She was being truthful. She hadn't told him because she didn't want to take away from their night together. Because she had a feeling. Because she really, truly loved him.

"I understand if you're still angry with me," her ragged whisper cut into his thoughts.

He waited a moment before answering. "I forgive you," he said simply. "And I don't want to talk about this anymore. Can we just agree to move forward and forget about these past few months? Maybe now we finally can."

Kay smiled, relieved beyond words to hear him say those things to her. "Agreed. I miss being happy. I miss having fun."

"You miss having fun? I've been locked in a mansion with Ethan and Gwen every day since I last saw you! I think I'm the one who deserves the fun," he chuckled.

"You've got a point there," she replied, happy that this whole situation was finally behind her. "But what now? Where do we go from here?"

Fox gave her a serious look. "I know a place where we can go."

"That's not what I meant-"

"I know. But for now… just follow me, okay?"

"All right," she agreed. She followed him off the wharf and through the streets of Harmony until they finally reached Raven Hill Road. But instead of heading toward the front gate and only entrance to the Crane grounds, he lead her along the side of the iron-barred fence. She followed in silence for the better part of ten minutes before curiosity finally got the better of her.

"Where are we going?"

"It's a surprise. Don't worry, we're almost there." He reached back and grabbed her hand, quickening his pace until they were both jogging alongside the fence. Kay glanced around to find that Fox had lead her to the eastern most tip of the Crane property, hidden behind the protective barrier of Harmony's wilderness. Giant trees and bushes surrounded them on both sides of the fence. Fox came to a stop.

"This is it," he declared.

"What's it?"

"This." He pulled aside some of the ivy that covered the fence to reveal a secret door leading onto the grounds. "After you," he grinned as he pushed it open, the hinges creaking wildly in protest.

Kay was in awe. She stepped inside and found herself looking at a large garden filled with weeds and trees that were just beginning to blossom. A large gazebo sat in the center, an empty moat dug around it. This place was clearly something that was once very special to someone. "Woah."

"Incredible isn't it? Apparently even Tobias Crane sometimes needed inspiration from others. He obviously discovered this place and used it as the basis for his secret getaway back at the hospital."

Kay walked through the garden slowly, taking care to see as many details as possible. The stone walkways were now cracked and broken, but they were still beautiful nonetheless. Weeds sprang upward almost every place she looked, but still they could not take away the beauty of this secret place.

"Imagine what it could look like if it was all fixed up!" she exclaimed, making her way across the tiny bridge that lead into the gazebo. She rested her palm against the rough wood. "A little paint here, a few flowers out there… it would be a shame to let it go to waste."

"My thoughts exactly." Fox smiled at her.

"And no one knows about it?"

"No one but me. I found it by accident awhile back when I was wandering around the grounds. Not even Alistair himself is aware that this garden exists. It's blocked off by trees and rough terrain on both sides."

Kay felt the thrill of adventure tingling through her body. She had a sudden flashback to St. Anne's, and her heart began to race. "This could be our garden," she said suddenly. "Yours and mine. And no one else's."

Fox nodded vigorously. "Can't you just imagine? It will be the way it used to be. Before, I mean. When we were friends."

Kay couldn't help but feel a shard of disappointment at his words. He only wanted to be friends with her. But she would take what she could get, and quite frankly she wasn't really sure she was ready to jump into a serious relationship just yet. They both needed a little time to adjust.

"I think we've got ourselves a little project here Mr. Crane."

"Indeed we do Ms. Bennett. This is our place now. A secret we'll take to the grave."

"To the grave," she agreed ominously, and then broke into giggles.

Fox laughed as well. "Come on," he said. "We'd better get inside before we both catch our deaths." He walked back to the entrance and held the gate open for her. Kay stopped to take one last look around before joining him.

"Our place," she whispered with a smile. "And no one else's."

Across the grounds, at the very top of Raven Hill, Alistair Crane sat, dumbstruck by the proposition he'd just received. It wasn't often that he was caught off guard, but this was definitely one of those rare moments. And he was glad that no one but his present company was around to see it. "You must be joking."

"I can assure you Mr. Crane, that I do not jest."

"The plan is already underway then?"

"As we speak, Mr. Crane."

"And the woman?"

"Already taken care of sir."

"I see."

"There's only one thing left to do."

Alistair grimaced. He knew the conversation was going in this direction, and his brain was now working a mile a minute to detect any sort of last minute loophole that he might have missed. His counterpart slid a pen across the desk.

"The rest is up to you."

"Of course," he replied, picking up the pen and placing it against the paper in front of him. He felt himself beginning to sweat as he wrote, his nervousness suddenly getting the better of him. Quickly he ripped off the cheque and handed it to the man sitting across from him. It would not do for his associates to see him this way. Fear was the key to respect, after all.

The man smiled coldly. "You've made a wise decision here today Mr. Crane. My partners and I look forward to doing business with you."

Alistair watched as the man retrieved the pen and slipped it back into his suit, along with the ridiculously large amount of money that would soon be missing from the Crane Industries bank account.

Once he was alone, he poured himself a large glass of brandy and swallowed half in one gulp. For the first time in his life, Alistair Crane was scared.

Dun dun dun, a cliff hanger ending! If you couldn't already tell, I'm planning a sequel to this story. I say planning because it still needs to be mapped out and stuff, but I'm hoping to start on it soon. :) I wanted to keep the St. Anne's storyline seperate from the upcoming stuff. It started out as a one shot and turned into this story from both P.O.V.'s, including this short epilogue which I really hope you guys liked. I wanted to write this since before Fox & Kay ever even met. It's taken awhile, but it's finally done, and now I am inspired to continue.

Please please be a responsible reader and leave a review; I'll take anything, lol. I'd love to hear from all of you, your thoughts on the chapter and the story as a whole, or anything else. And thank you to those of you who already reviewed. I really appreciate it. :)