Chapter NINE - Amanda, I really am sorry and it's gonna be a great future….

Amanda pulled up in front of Nedlingers and got out of the car. She went inside and it was pretty much empty. Ned, the bartender and owner, was standing behind the bar when he saw Amanda. He smiled at her as she walked over to him.

" Well, Mrs. Stetson! How are you? It's nice to see you again…you and Lee, huh?"

Amanda blushed and nodded. "Hello Ned. It's good to see you as well. Yeah, Lee and I are married. Guess you never saw that coming?"

Ned chuckled "Are you kidding? That man had it bad for you from the first time I saw him bring you in here. I am just glad he finally did something about it! Many happy years to you both! I have something for you."

Ned smiled at Amanda as he reached underneath the bar and retrieved the bouquet of flowers, a box and a letter. Amanda thanked him and went back to her car. She got in and put the flowers in the front seat next to her. She giggled as she realized her car was starting to smell like a garden with all of the flowers. She opened the little box and looked at the charm inside. It was a little orange flame. She scrunched up her face trying to understand why Lee gave her a flame charm and then suddenly it hit her. Burnout. Lee was referring to the case where he was a burnout agent and he unintentionally slapped her. She forgave him the minute he did it. He knew that, but Amanda suspected it still haunted Lee. She took a deep breath as she opened the letter he had left for her.

Amanda,

This was the case where I realized that what I was feeling towards you was love. I may not have realized that I was in love with you yet, but I did love you. I cared so much about keeping you safe, keeping you out of trouble. You were becoming my best friend and again I didn't even know it. This case made me face my feelings. It scared me. It confused me. Hitting you was a true low point for me. Sometimes in my nightmares, I replay that moment over and over. I am really sorry Sweetheart. I may never forgive myself for it but I know that you have. And pretending to shoot you was one of the scariest moments of my life. My brave sweet 'Manda. How did I get so lucky to have you in my life? I love you.

See you soon honey.

Lee

Amanda hugged the letter and wiped another tear from her face. She turned the Wagoneer on and headed towards Georgetown. This time she was heading towards her future.

****Lee walked back into the venue to Dotty and Francine bombarding him with questions about where he went. Francine looked at her friend and put her hands on her hips. She raised her eyebrow at him as well " You went to see where Amanda was didn't you?"

Lee ran his fingers through his hair and shuffled his feet. He felt like a little boy that got his hands caught in the cookie jar. He nodded and said " I am sorry, Francine. But I just had to see for myself if she was having a good time." Francine looked at him and rolled her eyes " And…what did you see? Is she having fun?"

Lee beamed at her with his dimples showing. "She's having the best time. I knew this was a great idea!" He pulled his friend into a hug and laughed. "Thanks again for all of the help pulling this off. I can't tell you what it means to me."

Francine laughed. "You know I can't say no to those damn dimples. Even after all of these years. Honestly, I have never seen you happier. Once you and Amanda admitted how you felt about one another…you are disgustingly perfect for one another."

They laughed and just then they heard Phillip and Jamie running into the building. Not too far behind them was their dad, Joe and his wife Carrie. The boys ran up to Lee and each of them gave him a big hug. He beamed at them and said "Well, fellas, what do you think of this place?"

Phillip looked around and said " It's huge! Why exactly are we here?" Lee had walked to meet up with Joe and Carrie and shook Joe's hand and gave Carrie a kiss on her cheek. He turned around to face the boys again and said "This is where your mother and I are going to be married! Today. If that's okay with you?"

The boys' mouths dropped open and they cheered and ran to hug Lee again. Both of them started talking a mile a minute and Lee tried to shush them. Joe cleared his throat and the boys stopped talking. Lee smiled at them and said "I have given this a lot of thought boys. I want to marry your mom. I know we just were engaged but I don't want to live without her. I want to be home every night with you…I want us to be a family. Forever." The boys were grinning at Lee and he could tell they were so excited. He looked at them and continued. " Now, your mom has no idea what we are doing today. I have sent her on a scavenger hunt for the day and she will end up here. We will all be ready for a wedding….how does that sound?"

The boys were very excited about what was happening and Joe grinned at Lee. He whispered to him " So, you both have finally realized that the mystery marriage was a bad idea, huh?" Lee laughed and said "Joe, I don't know why I ever suggested it to Amanda. But today I am changing all of that." Joe slapped Lee on his shoulder and reached to shake his hand. "Well, I am very happy for the both of you. Amanda is certainly going to be surprised." The adults were laughing as Dotty and Francine walked in. Dotty ushered the boys up the stairs so they could get ready for the evening. Joe and Carrie went with them to help them out. Francine smirked at Lee and said " Don't think about taking off again to see what Amanda's up to! I just heard from Duffy and she just pulled up to Dooley's so she will be here before you know it." Lee beamed at her and nodded. Amanda was on her way to him…finally.

********* Amanda pulled up in front of Dooley's just as she had done with Nedlingers. She wondered how many more stops she had to make and what was waiting for her at the end of this adventure. Lee was certainly full of surprises. She couldn't wait to see him and tell him how much the day had meant to her. She got out of the car and walked into Dooley's. It was still early in the afternoon so there weren't that many students there. She walked over to the bar and saw Dooley, the owner. He looked up and saw Amanda smiling at him.

"Well, Amanda West! How are you? It's been a long time, young lady!"

Amanda giggled and said " Yes, it has Dooley. And it's Amanda Stetson now. I got married."

Dooley laughed as he said " Oh I know! I met your husband. Really nice man. He came by and asked me to give you something when you stopped by. I hope you have a wonderful life, Amanda. Come see us sometime" Dooley walked around the bar with a bouquet, a box and another letter. He gave her a small hug and kissed her cheek. " You take care. Good Luck!"

Amanda thanked him and took off towards her car. She got in and immediately opened the box. Inside were two more charms for her bracelet, a music note and a star. She put them on the bracelet and reached over to read her husband's letter.

Amanda,

Well, you are at Dooley's if you are reading this. This was another case where I thought I may have lost you …forever. When Joe came back it made me step back and realize that I may have lost my chance with you. We were closer than ever and when he came back into your lives it seemed like you pushed back. I didn't understand then, but I do now. You were there for the boys. You wanted to make sure that the boys adjusted to having Joe in their lives and it had nothing to do with me. You and Joe have a friendship that I may never understand but the love that you both have for the boys is something I do understand. I also realized that if we were ever going to have a future then I needed to step up and let you know how I felt. But you know me so well and it took me a little bit longer. The music note symbolizes that night in Dooley's where you saw me. I knew at that moment we had a future. The star just means that the future is going to be bright. I know …it's a bit corny.

Now your next stop holds a special place for both of us. It's our sanctuary from the gossip and drama of the bullpen. It's ours. I will see you soon, my dear sweet Amanda. Only a few more stops to make. I love you!

Lee

Amanda knew exactly where she was heading.