Dino quietly led Bianca to the other horse which was cropping grass near some smaller trees. Carefully he tied the two of them to a strong tree root to stop them running away, if Gaby spotted him, she would run again. Hopefully this would slow her down.

Cautiously he moved closer to the river bank watching where he was placing his feet, not to give Gaby warning that he was close by. At the same time, his eyes scanned in front of him, looking for her. Just as he was about to swear at the darkness, the moon sailed out from behind a cloud and bathed the whole area with moonlight.

Dino gasped, the moon picked out Gaby beautifully, the white linen dress gleaming in the soft light. His heart lurched, the sight enforcing how much he loved her… Missed her… First however, he had some damage to undo, had to talk to her, make her understand that it was not her similarities to Cass that made him love her, but the differences.

He moved closer, changing the angle slightly – in the light he could see the fallen log and worked his way around it. Suddenly Gaby stood up as if alerted by something, Dino froze and stared. The moonlight was shining through Gaby's dress, highlighting the shape of her body. Her stance reminded Dino of a deer, proud but wary, he swallowed deeply feeling the attraction spreading through his body, did she know how beautiful she was…?

Carefully he began to move forward, the closer he got the more difficult it was going to be. Gaby's head snapped around in his direction and he froze again, praying that she hadn't seen him. He was just about to move when Gaby started to walk towards him, then stopped to sit on a large rock. She was much closer – so close that he could hear the quiet sobs coming from her.

The sound cut through Dino like a knife, would he be able to make Gaby understand that he was sorry? Would she accept that he hadn't realized that he was comparing her and Cass so much? In his despair, he inadvertently stepped on a broken twig.

Gaby was on her feet immediately searching for the source of the sound. Seeing her glance up toward the horses, he knew she had spotted Bianca. Quickly he tried to close the gap between them, but it was too late, she was already gone.

He was about to chase after her when he changed his mind and returned to the horses, she was sure to make her way in this direction. Crouching down, he brought all of his senses to bear on the situation, eyes scanning for movement, ears straining to catch the slightest sound. Slowly feeling around with his hands, he found a few pebbles and gently tossed the first to where Gaby had been sitting on the rock.

Looking around, he saw nothing, but tried to work out where Gaby might be if she was working her way back toward him. Tossing another stone into the undergrowth, he spotted a slight movement and smiled, but decided to wait. Gaby had not been the Artemis team leader for nothing and would be very careful.

Gaby sank to her knees trying to catch her breath, she needed to think. Was Dino behind her, or in front of her? She couldn't tell and it threw her slightly that he had followed her. The kiss on the shoulder that he had given her supplied an answer to her questions, but she couldn't believe it. For the answer to be true, something must have changed him since they had last been together – arguing and fighting - but she couldn't think of anything…

A sound to her right stopped her thoughts. She froze where she was, trying to see something… Anything, but Dino was dressed in jeans and a dark polo shirt and had an advantage. Another sound… closer, Gaby took a deep breath, she had to move… She wasn't ready to face him yet, needed more time to think… If he was so angry with her… pushed her away, why had he come here? Hope flared inside, maybe… just maybe he would give her a little time?

She moved carefully and slowly, before stopping near the tree and realized that the horses had been tied. Swearing inside, she knew Dino had done it to slow her down, for a brief moment she almost smiled, it was so like him… before the situation came back to her and she sighed, she just needed a little space... if only for one more day…

Looking around cautiously, she could see nothing and slowly crept out of her cover…

&&&&

Dino heaved a sigh of relief, Gaby was still moving, seeing her making her way towards the horses, he froze in place. Praying that she would not take Bianca, the only horse he had the confidence to sit on, he waited… Just a little longer…

Gaby crouched over the tree root, feeling for the knot with her hands and slowly working it undone… Smiling thankfully to herself she lifted the rein and was just about to swing on to the horse when she sensed movement behind her and was enveloped in two strong arms.

Pressure on her wrist caused her to drop the rein, but it didn't stop her from struggling to get away from Dino who was holding onto her as if his life depended on it. He was careful not to give Gaby room to manoeuvre as he knew then she would use her Martial Arts ability to get away.

Tightening his grip, he pulled her away from the horses, even though he knew he was probably hurting her a little. A little pain now was nothing to how she had been hurting over the last few months and it was his fault. The further he moved away, the more Gaby struggled, but now Dino finally had her in his arms, he was not going to let go. He could feel her fingernails scraping at the back of his hand as she tried to pry his fingers off her body.

Dino locked his grip around her and pulled her more tightly to his chest so he could whisper in her ear, if he spoke slowly and quietly, he might just get her to calm down a little. "Gaby… Please…"

The struggles increased for a moment before she answered him, not shouting or crying out, but quietly and full of bitterness and pain, "Let me go Dino… Leave me alone…"

"No…"

Dino heard the half sob of frustration, as she struggled a bit more, "Dino… Please let me go…"

"No… Nearly three years ago, I promised that I would always be here for you… That I would never let you go… I'm not going back on that promise…"

Still struggling, Gaby's voice dripped with bitterness and pain, "So why did you push me away…? Why were you so angry with me…?"

Dino sighed, "I didn't mean to… Gaby, please can we talk about this without you fighting me?"

Gaby paused in her struggle, dropping her head, "I tried to talk to you… You shut me out…"

"I know… I'm sorry… I didn't realize…" Dino could feel the tension through Gaby's body as she struggled with herself to make a decision. "Please Gaby… I love you… I don't want to lose you…"

Tears came to Gaby's eyes; Dino had never actually expressed his love for her verbally before… A glance or a touch, or the expression on his face yes, but he had never actually said anything… until now.

She sighed and stopped her fight for a moment, feeling Dino relax his arms, but he did not let her go. However, the feeling was different, instead of being constrained, she now felt secure… protected… It was a moment or two before she realized that Dino was gently caressing her hip with a thumb, it was something he always did when they were curled up together on the sofa… The memory gave her a brief surge of optimism… Could they get through this?

"Gaby?"

His voice was soft, gentle and Gaby's heart ached at the sound of it. "Ok… I'm listening…"

Dino sighed with relief and released her. Offering a hand, which she took slowly, he led her to the edge of the river where they could sit down more comfortably and took a few moments to light a small fire so they could see each other better. Taking a deep breath, he wondered where to begin. Talking about his feelings was not easy for him, he had always been a man of action until he went into K&R – but negotiating was nothing compared with this. He needed to win Gaby back, all he had for the moment was a tentative truce…

Gaby looked at him carefully, saw the emotions flowing across his face, never had she seen him like this. As she watched, she saw him take a deep breath, obviously unsure where to start.

"Gaby… may I ask you something?"

The question took Gaby by surprise, but she nodded her head in response, curious to see what he wanted to know.

"Before me… How many men did you actually have a long term relationship with…?"

Gaby was stunned, it was not what she expected, or wanted, to hear. She was about to move away, her anger beginning to rise as she thought that Dino sought to blame her for their split. Looking at his face however made her stay in her place, Dino's eyes were sad, holding her, watching her for a reaction, almost pleading for an answer.

"From the age of 16 I had three boyfriends… Two were just the usual teenage thing – a couple of kisses and cuddles… The third was at university for about a year, until…" Gaby stopped abruptly, not wanting to continue.

"Until…?"

Gaby shook her head and turned from him, Dino caught her hand, pulled her back slowly. Seeing the fear and pain in her eyes he had an idea about what she didn't want to say. "Gaby please talk to me, I don't want to make the mistake of not listening to you again."

Gaby released a soft sob, glancing up she saw the concern in his eyes. Saw that he realized that this was not associated with him, but that he was still there for her. Dino remained silent waiting for an answer, feeling her tremble a little he turned slightly to sit opposite her, clasping each of her hands in his.

Lifting one hand toward his lips he was startled by Gaby's terrified tone of voice, "Dino don't… Please."

The look of dread on her face gave him an idea… "Gaby, why is it a problem?"

Gaby shook her head, "Just don't… ok…"

Releasing a hand, he placed a finger under her chin and lifted it gently, "Gaby… What happened…?"

Gaby began to sob a little more. "I can't…" Dino sighed and dropped his head, making her stomach turn over, he looked so sad. Gaby bit her lip, if they were going to fix this, she needed to talk to him. "It was how it started…"

Dino looked up, he had barely heard what Gaby had said, so quiet was the whisper. "How what started…?"

Gaby took a deep breath, and told him about the relationship she had had at university. How she'd started dating a fellow student, "He seemed really nice, and everything was slow with him – he never pushed me to meet up with him, though we saw each other every day. It was as if we were just really good friends more than anything else."

Dino remained silent, afraid to speak in case Gaby stopped talking. Antonio had told him what he knew about the incident, but hearing it from Gaby gave him another perspective. He gently squeezed her hand to encourage her to continue.

"After about six months, he got more serious, which I was ok with, but it wasn't long before he was pushing me for more… I backed off… I didn't think we were close enough for that… I wasn't ready, I had never…"

The tears started to slide down Gaby's cheeks as she began to remember what had happened more clearly – she had locked it away for so long. "He stopped pushing so hard, so I began to relax around him again… Then he organized a surprise party for me… It was my 21st… He said we should celebrate it properly…"

She went on to tell Dino how the party was held in one of the other student's lodgings and how many people turned up. How much fun they had, and how much people were drinking… and how at about 3am most people had left. "There was him and a few friends… Only about four or five girls…"

Gaby began to shake and Dino quickly pulled her close and held her tightly, understanding that he might not hear much more. His stomach was already sick at the thought of what he knew had happened next, but Gaby wasn't finished.

"I hadn't drunk very much – I never was a drinker, but around that time someone spiked my drink… I remember him leading me upstairs saying that it was time I had my birthday present… and he and three of his friends had something special lined up for me… He kissed the back of my hands…"

Gaby broke down, unable to say anymore and Dino was glad she didn't, already full of rage at what had been done to her at the hands of four uncaring young men furious that her first time had been so rough and full of terror. They had ruined Gaby's life completely, though he had to admit that the Artemis organization would probably not have come into existence until Eduardo had returned… and he never would have met her under the same circumstances.

Changing position, he wrapped his arms around her and let Gaby cry herself out… By telling him her story, she had renewed her trust in him. Now he would have to do the same.

&&&&

It was a while before Gaby stopped crying. Dino had pulled her close, her head tucked into his neck for comfort. As she became quieter, he gently leaned his head on hers and gave her a soft kiss on the forehead. She stiffened a little, but began to relax almost immediately, as she let out a sigh Dino took a deep breath, he still needed some answers to confirm some thoughts he had, but first…

"You poor baby… If that's what happened to you your first…" Dino paused, "No wonder you became so distrustful of everyone. It's a wonder you ended up with me…"

Gaby pulled away a little, a curious expression on her face, blinking away the tears in her eyes, she voiced her question, "But I've always trusted you… Almost from the first day we met… Why would you say that?"

Dino gave a half smile, "because you never really knew me Gaby… What you saw was a man broken by tragedy, a man who barely did enough to live. I have to admit there were times I considered ending it all, but I couldn't, I don't know why. Then I met you… and you helped me to see that I needed to live again."

"Gaby, my first wife and I were very close, but when I joined the Delta Force, she became afraid… Afraid that I would get hurt… Killed even, but it was my job, what I had signed up to do… Looking back – I have to admit, I enjoyed it, I felt I was making a difference, even if it was a small one."

"Some of the things I saw shocked me and over time, I began to change. I had to hide away my feelings, become cold otherwise I wouldn't have been able to cope. Unfortunately it made me cold to everyone, slowly I began to lose my friends, my family stopped visiting because they didn't like the change in my character – I can't say I blame them."

"Carol and I started having bad fights – she wanted me to leave the Army, I wanted to stay. In the end she threatened to walk out on me if I didn't change my job. At the time I still loved her – I didn't want her to leave, so I did as she asked…"

Gaby listened, entranced. Dino had never spoken about his first marriage and all Jackie had known was that the break up had not been pleasant so she had decided never to ask him about it. "What did you do?"

Dino gave a half chuckle, half sigh… "I joined Luthan Risk…" Gaby's eyes opened wide as Dino continued, "at first Carol was happy – we had a nice house in London and she liked the fact that I was helping people. What she didn't know was that I was also doing the extractions…"

Gaby gave a quiet chuckle, "I bet that landed you in trouble when she found out…"

Dino gave her a soft smile, "Yeah well… To cut a long story short, we had a terrible fight about it. She didn't even give me the chance to explain… When I came home after the next job, she had left… I was furious, the divorce came through shortly after – she got herself a really hot attorney and the two of them really did me over. I was left with barely the clothes I was wearing."

He smiled to himself, "That was when Terry helped me out, as a result we've been friends ever since. He was also newly divorced and the two of us hung out together, with one difference… Terry left the girls alone, didn't want to get burned again… Me – I went the opposite way, I was bitter, I wanted revenge against all women… I did to them what Carol had done to me…"

Gaby wanted to interrupt, but Dino stopped her with a finger on her lips. "Gaby, at times I was no better than the four young men that hurt you… I would use a woman for my own needs and then drop her completely. If I saw her in a bar the next day, I would ignore her, happy to see the pain I caused."

Gaby found her voice, "What changed?"

Dino sighed, "Terry sorted me out a bit… and I had a rough job… I nearly lost my life. It made me take a new look at things, I left Luthan Risk and went freelance… Then Terry left and we started up on our own. Unfortunately I had built up a bit of a habit where the girls were concerned though… It was a while before I broke that…"

Gaby dropped her head, "Cass…"

Dino nodded, "First she was just an acquaintance at Luthan Risk, then I managed to poach her from the New York office when Terry and I opened up… She was always around… Helped me out… One day I realized that there was something going on and I challenged her… She totally flipped me out… After that, all I wanted was her…"

Dino fell silent, Gaby knew the rest of the story and he didn't feel like talking about it again. Partly, because the memories of that day still hurt, but mainly because he didn't want to hurt Gaby anymore than he already had. But there was more that he needed to tell her, or did he? Telling her about the girl from Patrick's bar would definitely hurt her and he didn't want to risk losing her again, but at the same time he wanted to be honest with Gaby or his conscious would never let him forget.

&

Dino was brought out of his thoughts when Gaby sighed. "We make a right pair, don't we."

Dino released her slightly, sensing that she was a little uneasy with their close contact now that their emotions were returning to a more even keel, though he kept his arms loosely wrapped around her shoulders. "We both had a hard past Gaby. It created what we are now, though yours was worse. I could have changed who I was at any time… but I didn't want to. You were trapped because of what happened to you."

Gaby shook her head to deny Dino's words, but he refused to stop. "Gaby… You never had the chance to rebuild your life. You never had another relationship after that first time did you?"

Gaby dropped her head, "I was too afraid… Just a hand on the shoulder would make me want to scream. I lost myself in my studies and my archery training. When I came home for a break, I told Dad what happened, he was furious, but couldn't do anything more about it."

"Did you report what happened to the police at least?"

Gaby nodded, "and I had to testify in court… I barely managed… But one of my friends and a female detective really helped me to get through it. As soon as it was over I came home."

Dino was intrigued, Gaby had never spoken about that period in her life so now he was hearing about it first hand. "What did you do?"

"Dad encouraged me in my archery training – and taught me basic self defense, which started to lead into hand to hand combat. Slowly he introduced me to the Black Angel teams, helped me to start re-building my trust in other men… By the time I returned to university to do my Masters after the summer break, I was feeling a lot better."

Dino was confused, when he had met Gaby, she had been terrified to be out among people not part of the organization. Seeing the look on his face Gaby sighed and explained further.

"I started my Masters and decided to extend my studies, only going home at Christmas, Easter and during the summer." She smiled slightly, "it was a couple of years later that I met up with a very aggressive young bull while we were out hunting."

Dino returned the smile, "and Artemis was reborn…"

Gaby smiled shyly before her expression turned sad, "After that, I returned to do my final year – I had combined a couple of courses, meaning my Masters took me three years… It was while I was doing my exams at the end of the year that Mum and Dad were killed."

Gaby fell silent, Dino noticing that she still grieved for her parents, but also it no longer hurt her as much as it had. "So you took over Artemis…"

She shook her head. "No, I had promised to go and work with a friend for a year, first on a dig in Crete, then doing research back at the university. I didn't want to go back on my promise, though for a while, I wished I had."

"Why?" Gaby swallowed and Dino could feel the tension building in her shoulders, "What happened?"

Gaby sighed, she had told Dino the worst part, but this was almost as bad. "At the end of the year, I was getting ready to return to Argentina when someone who was working with us told me that a group of students from my original degree course were having a get together – a kind of reunion. She persuaded me to go with her."

"The party was good fun and I was enjoying myself, when I felt a hand on my shoulder." Gaby paused and Dino could see the remembered fear on her face. "When I turned around, it was my ex… I couldn't believe it… He had just got out of prison, served four years…"

"He teased me, said that we should get together 'for old times sake'… I freaked out, left the party there and then. The next day I was on the plane home, but there was no Dad to speak to. When I arrived, the Black Angels had fallen apart, there were only a few left. Antonio was keeping part of the covert side running with Caesar's help, so I jumped in."

"I started training and working with the members that were left to build up the communications side, by the time we were ready to begin operational work, I had become too afraid to leave the hacienda. Slowly I fixed that – getting my apartment in Buenos Aires and working with Caesar at the bar, it took me a long time, but with their help I managed, by locking away my past and developing my alter ego…"

Gaby sighed and gave Dino a soft smile, "Being Artemis made me feel stronger, and in control of my life, but in time, she too began to take over and I was trapped again… Until you came along…"

Dino blushed, Gaby was now completely open to him, had shared everything, but there was still one thing he didn't quite understand. "Why did you run Gaby? When I came home and found out that you had left, it drove me insane."

Gaby sighed, "You had become so angry, I couldn't work it out. Artemis would have fought back, but I am no longer Artemis… Over the last few years, you have helped me to rediscover myself and I don't want to lose that. Artemis is tough to live up to, though she is still around."

"You scared me Dino, and though I knew that you wouldn't hurt me, I became too afraid. You helped me to defeat my past fears. I wasn't going back there… So I ran…"

"I thought so… I'm such a damn fool…" Gaby looked at him, startled, what the hell did Dino mean? She was about to ask when Dino continued, "I should have been more careful with the things I said."

"What do you mean?"

Dino bit his lip, "Remember when you re-organised the office last year, how pleased Terry and I were." Gaby nodded, and he went on "Do you remember what I said?"

"You said that Cass would have done it the same way…" Gaby was baffled, Dino was obviously going somewhere with this, but where?

Dino sighed, "I meant it as a compliment… I didn't mean to compare you with her…" Gaby was mystified for a moment, couldn't work out what he meant, "Gaby… I realize now that on many occasions I compared you with Cass… It wasn't my intention."

Her silence encouraged him to continue, "In certain aspects – at the office for example, you and Cass are very similar and I liked what you did, I still do… but it didn't mean that I wanted you to copy her, or do things the way she did all the time…"

Gaby felt as if a veil had been lifted from her eyes… "But the way you reacted at first… I thought…"

Confusion flowed across her face and she stood quickly, walking to the edge of the river, trying to think things through. Dino sighed and followed her, wanting to touch her, hold her in his arms, but he didn't want to push her too hard so he stood a little behind her, arms folded to stop himself from making a move too soon.

"I know that now… You thought that I wanted you to become more like Cass… because of the things I said… but it just isn't like that. The more you copied her way of doing things, the more irritated I became… It's what makes you different from Cass that causes me to love you… "

Dino saw Gaby's head turn slightly, almost looking at him over her shoulder, waiting… Dino took a deep breath knowing that he wasn't out of the woods yet. However with her silence, came hope, she was giving him a chance to explain his behaviour. He took a step closer, barely an inch away, but it could have been a mile.

"When you came to me in New York… I told you that I wasn't looking for another Cass… but you started to become her… I didn't want that, I wanted you. I wanted the spirit inside of you, your sense of adventure, I didn't want you to change. It made me angry when you changed too much; it was as if you were doing it on purpose, trying to take her place."

Gaby dropped her head, "and the angrier you became, the more I tried to do things Cass' way, because I thought it's what you liked… What you wanted…"

Dino sighed and touched Gaby's cheek gently, "Exactly, but not once did I ask you not to do it… I just expected you to realize that it was not what I wanted…"

"I forgot that you would be naive in that way, that you wouldn't understand, how could you? You've never been in this close a relationship before. If only I had spoken to you, cleared things up before they got worse…"

"You mean this is all just a misunderstanding between us?" Gaby was furious with herself… Why hadn't she seen…? "I am such an idiot…"

"No Gaby… You did what you did to make me happy… Your heart was in the right place…"

"Maybe… but my brain was obviously not functioning…"

Dino suppressed a chuckle, "But you thought you were doing the right thing… I could have asked you to stop, but I didn't…"

Gaby let out an exasperated sigh… "So you want to take the blame for all this…? I could have done something, said something…"

Dino dropped his head, "You did… but I closed you out. I wouldn't speak to you. I'm sorry."

Gaby groaned… "Are you going on a guilt trip…? Don't… I should have realized."

Dino chuckled, "Ok... Seeing as you insist on taking part of the blame, can I at least ask if I'm forgiven?" Gaby looked at him shyly and nodded, heaving a sigh of relief he pulled her close to him, feeling her snuggle closer, "Thank you… I'm sorry I hurt you so much… Can we start again?"

Gaby hesitated, she wanted to be with Dino, but now she knew what had happened, she also wanted things to be right, "I would like to, but I cannot live with a ghost Dino… She will win every time… I always got the feeling that I wasn't measuring up to Cass' way, her standards… That's why I tried so much harder."

Dino sighed, "Was it that bad?" Gaby nodded, and saw the pain cross his face, "I don't mean to do it Gaby, honestly. I'll try, but sometimes…"

Gaby put her finger on his lips, "That's all I need to know… You try not to compare and I'll try not to remind you of Cass… At least now, I know that you don't mean anything by it."

Dino smiled softly, "Can we make a promise… Here and now…?"

Gaby gave him a curious look, "Go on…"

"I'll promise that if something bugs me, I'll try to talk to you about it and not assume that you'll get the hint… In return… You promise that you'll do things that make both of us happy… Please don't do things just because you know I like it that way… You have to be happy with it too… We're strongest as equals Gaby…we always have been."

Gaby smiled and closed her eyes for a moment before answering, "I think I can manage that…"

Dino grinned and pulled her to his chest, wrapping his arms around her once more. Gaby melted into him, glad that they had sorted things out, but there was a question in her mind… "Dino… Why did it take you so long to realise? You normally work things out quickly – you always sensed when I wasn't feeling right. Consuella was about to put me on a plane and drag me to New York to sort things out, she must have realized what had happened…"

Dino blushed, "At first, I was just so angry that you had left without saying anything, I didn't want to see you… ever… Then a day after coming home, I had to go back out. The guy who had been taken spoke to me when we got him out, made me start thinking. Then I began to put things together…"

Gaby stopped him, "You brought a guy out?

Dino swallowed, knowing he was in trouble and nodded his head, accepting Gaby's telling off… "You promised me Dino… That you would never go on another operation. That you would only do the negotiations… What the hell were you thinking?"

Dino began to chuckle, infuriating Gaby even more, "What's so funny?"

"You…" Catching her wrist as she tried to move away, Dino sat down and pulled her down alongside him, "You're angry with me for something I promised you I wouldn't do anymore, when I thought you were no longer part of my life."

Gaby gave him a sheepish look, "I guess you didn't really care what you'd promised me at the time."

Dino nodded, "I thought I'd lost you, didn't want to think about you not being there when I got home. The team were a man short, so I went with them to take my mind off you. I'm glad I did. By the time I got home, I'd sorted everything out in my mind… Knew I had to come and find you, fix what went wrong."

Gaby sighed, "I'm glad you came… I'm sorry I ran – I just wasn't ready for you to turn up out of the blue like that." Giving him a sideways glance she chuckled softly, "I'm glad you remembered how to Tango…"

Dino grinned, "That's not all I remember…" Gaby gave him an arch look, which made him chuckle "I also remember that I need to apologise…"

Gaby was confused, "You already did…"

Dino gave a wicked chuckle… "Not properly…" Pushing her gently to her back, Dino gave Gaby a soft kiss, "Now… Can I make it up to you for being such an ass…?"

Gaby gave him a soft smile, "Not here…"

Dino paused; his lips had just been making their way along Gaby's shoulder, causing her skin to shiver when she had spoken. "You want to go back?"

Gaby chuckled, "No… but I've got something digging in my back…" Dino almost jumped up in concern, apologizing for not being more attentive. Gaby became a little annoyed, "For goodness sake – stop apologizing… It's not like you…"

She stood up and began to walk away, "Gaby…" Dino's voice betrayed more than a little concern, he didn't want to upset her – yet it looked like he already had. Gaby kept walking while Dino tried to decide whether to follow, "Gaby… Stop… please…"

"No…"

Dino was confused… Now what had he done… As he was thinking, Gaby paused and he saw the glint in her eyes as she watched him over her shoulder before slowly moving away. As he took a couple of steps toward her, he noticed that she moved a little quicker.

"You little minx…"

Gaby roared with laughter as Dino picked up the pace and ran after her, but she was light on her feet and at first managed to keep the distance between them. "Gaby Santiago… You are in BIG trouble…"

He heard her laughter come back to him, "You have to catch me first…" Dino swore to himself, Gaby was almost too quick for him and it would take him a while, unless…

Gaby glanced back, Dino was nowhere to be seen, chuckling to herself, she knew he had taken up her challenge. Dropping to the floor, she tried to spot him, but knew she was on the higher ground and was at a disadvantage.

Dino grinned to himself, when Gaby had first come to New York, they had often played games with each other, Dino realizing that it helped Gaby have a sense of control – as she usually set the challenge – whether it was a race to the hot-dog stand for a quick snack, or a game of cards in the evening in front of the TV.

As she had become more comfortable, the challenges stopped and so had the games she liked to play – to tease him, it was her way of instigating a night of loving. Dino had taken the lead more and more, glad that her fears were disappearing, but he suddenly realized that he missed the games too.

Slowly he began to inch forward on his stomach, seeing Gaby drop down, he became a little more careful, but she was still partly silhouetted, meaning that as long as he stayed low, she wouldn't notice him so easily. As he got closer, she changed tactics, moving to the highest ground and stood, silhouetted by the full moon.

Dino swore quietly, if he tried to rush her, she would be ready for him, and there was no cover for him to hide behind where she was. Watching her for a moment, he felt himself stirring inside as his eyes followed the line of her body under the white dress, he almost laughed, Gaby knew exactly what she was doing and the effect she would have on him…

Gaby smiled, scanning the ground in front of her, she also used her other senses, listening carefully for the slightest noise. She had noticed that Dino was wearing his favourite aftershave – one that she had bought for him, when he got closer, she might just pick it out. But Dino was patient; he would move and then wait, before moving again, she had to get him moving more quickly to have a chance of spotting him. An idea came to her mind…

Dino watched, entranced as Gaby began to dance.

At first Gaby kept her dance soft, basic, hoping to catch Dino's eye, but soon she began the classic Tango, her movements becoming more sensual.

Dino caught his breath, damn… She was going to win… again… Not that he minded, he began to move closer, as quietly as possible, staying low. He still wasn't sure if she had spotted him or not, but he wanted to get as close as he could.

Gaby smiled, she still couldn't see Dino, but could hear a faint movement, so faint, she wasn't exactly sure where he was. Deliberately, she turned a little to one side and began the Argentinean moves, moves that she knew Dino could not resist, after all, what was the use of setting yourself up as bait if you were not caught?

Dino swallowed, when Gaby had turned, she had actually placed her back to him, though she hadn't realized it, smiling to himself, Dino moved to his feet though crouching low. Instead of trying to bring her down to the ground, he wanted to hold her in the dance.

Raising her hands above her head, Gaby jumped when Dino's hands snaked around her waist. She had expected him to come from in front of her, not behind and Dino had more surprises in store. Instead of pulling her around to face him, he left her where she was. Content to let one arm remain around her waist, the other began to trace lazily around her body. Across an arm and down her ribs, from her thigh, up over her hips to her stomach and continuing to the shoulder.

The caress was so light, so soft that Gaby trembled, she hesitated for a moment when Dino's voice whispered in her ear, "Don't stop…"

Slowly they began to move together, Gaby leaning back into Dino's chest feeling him tighten his grip around her waist, pulling her hips closer to his, she placed her right hand on his, felt his fingers lift slightly to interlock with hers.

As they continued to dance her left hand searched for his, but it was still moving lazily around her body and Gaby was enjoying Dino's touch, she realized she would have to find something else – he was obviously not interested in turning her around to face him just yet. Moving slightly to one side, she dropped her head back to his shoulder, while her free hand dropped to his thigh and began to caress it slowly.

Dino smiled, dropping his lips to her offered neck, he kissed softly, at the same time tracing his fingertips lightly along the full length of her collar bone from right to left. Then a thought came into his mind and he hesitated, he couldn't do this… Not yet.

Gaby shivered and realized that Dino was holding back. What was wrong? This certainly wasn't like him at all.

"Dino, what is it?"

Dino swallowed… He had to tell her, couldn't not tell her. Turning her around, he saw the confused expression on her face, "Gaby, I need to tell you something…"

Gaby took a deep breath, all thoughts emptying from her mind, her heart felt as though it was gripped in an icy hand. The look on Dino's face, visible in the moonlight, said that she wasn't going to like what she was about to hear.

"The last two cases I went on… between them I was only home for just over 24 hours…" Dino paused, how could he tell her this without making it look like an excuse? He decided to go with just the bare facts… Gaby was smart enough to make up her own mind.

"I had left a message for you on our answer machine at home to pick me up, but you didn't show. I was so annoyed… Terry came for me, said that you had left – initially I thought he meant that you had come here for a break – but then later he explained that you weren't coming back."

Gaby dropped her head before speaking softly, "I bet that made you even more upset."

Dino nodded, "I couldn't see what the problem was. Thought you were being… well anyway… I left the office and went home. I was hungry, but there was only basic food in the house… Nothing in the fridge…"

"You didn't think I was going to leave anything to go bad did you?" Gaby's tone was becoming slightly frustrated.

Dino placed a hand on her cheek to calm her down a little, "I went to get a drink and found only a small bottle of water… It really flipped me out, I was so mad with you I threw the glass against the wall. Then I went to a bar to get something to eat and a drink."

Gaby narrowed her eyes, "Which bar?"

Dino swallowed, "Patrick's…"

Now Gaby was puzzled, "But you said you didn't like the place, that you never wanted to go there when we went out for something."

"Gaby, I never wanted to take you to Patrick's, because it's one of the places I used to go to forget about Cass…"

Gaby dropped her head, feeling a little guilty and spoke softly, "Did you go there to forget about me too?"

Dino nodded, his throat dry, not knowing what to say for a moment, but Gaby continued for him. "How much did you drink Dino?"

He sighed, "A lot… I vaguely remember a bottle… Though it was probably more… I'm sorry… I…"

Gaby interrupted him and lifted her hand consolingly to his cheek, her finger tracing along the scar there. "It's ok… I can't really blame you for that… If I'd been home…" She gave him a soft kiss to re-enforce her forgiveness, but when Dino turned slightly she glanced up, astonished to see a look of shame on Dino's face, "Dino…?"

"There were other reasons why I used to go to Patrick's Gaby… Before Cass and I got together…"

She shook her head in disbelief, "No… Oh god no Dino, please don't tell me you…" Seeing the look that crossed his face, she turned and walked a few steps away, fighting to control her emotions. The fact that he had got drunk she accepted, understood, and forgave, knowing what he had been through after losing Cass, but to turn to someone else…

A hand on her shoulder made her flinch away "Gaby… please… It wasn't my intention…"

Gaby spun to face him, furious at his words, "Not your intention! Jesus Dino…"

"Gaby I swear I didn't know what I was doing," his voice trembled with remorse and Gaby could see that he meant what he said, but that couldn't take away the truth…

"When Cass died… You went on a drinking binge that lasted two years Dino… You told me that yourself, but not once did you jump into bed with someone else during that time… No matter how drunk you were… Or did you lie to me about that?" Dino shook his head…

"I leave you for reasons I admit you didn't realize at the time and I accept that you may have thought I wasn't coming back, but it takes you less than 24 hours to find a replacement for your bed… and you expect me to believe that you didn't know what you were doing…!"

Gaby's voice was hard, scathing and Dino winced at the sharpness of her attack. She was right, there were times after Cass' death where he hadn't even known who he was, let alone where he lived. During that time, he had never slept with anyone, until Gaby had come along, helped him to live again.

However, that wasn't going to make it any easier to complete the story. He dropped his head not knowing how to continue. Part of him wished he had not mentioned anything, that he had kept that day a secret, but he couldn't lie to Gaby, not if he really wanted her back. Gaby's voice, pained and bitter caught his attention.

"I bet you bought her dinner too… and a few drinks."

Dino swallowed and shook his head, his voice quiet and hoarse, "No… I ate alone, she brought the bottle of whisky…"

Gaby's eyes narrowed, something strange must have happened here for a woman to have brought the drinks… After a moment, a thought popped into her head, and she spoke quietly, "You knew her… from before…"

Dino nodded, guilt flowing across his face, "Yes… I've known her for a while…" Dino wished he could read Gaby's mind at the moment, conflicting images crossing her face. One emotion was dominant… Pain…

"This wasn't the first time you hooked up with her…" Dino shook his head and he could see the anger crossing Gaby's face once more, "How often…?"

"Not often… Just a few times… A while ago…"

"What's her name?"

Dino was startled by the question it was so unexpected, then swallowed deeply, knowing that Gaby would work out the rest for herself and steeled himself for her reaction, knowing that it was going to be hard. "I don't really know…"

Gaby stared at him, silenced by his reply, confused by the answer. Dino could see her mind searching for a solution, felt the pain as she drew to a conclusion. Gaby's voice was barely a whisper, "You don't know..? How can you not know the name of a woman you slept with… unless she's a….."

Dino closed his eyes against the look on Gaby's face, waiting for her hand to strike. He had seen it lift out of the corner of his eye and waited, accepting it… Knew he deserved it. However, nothing happened. He had expected Gaby to be angry, to take her anger out on him, fight him even, but there was nothing. Opening his eyes, he was stunned to see that Gaby had moved away slightly and was sinking to the ground, curling up into a ball sobbing like a baby.

It was something he had completely not expected and he had to admit, didn't know what to do about it. Taking a few steps closer, he too sank to the ground.

For the second time in as many hours, Gaby was crying, but these were not tears caused by a distant memory of fear and bitterness. These were fresh tears caused by pain and deception, her body curled up, forehead on her knees, arms wrapped around her legs, hugging them tightly to her body, trying to sort out her feelings.

She had trusted Dino with everything, laid herself bare and open and he had been there for her, as she knew he would be. Then, just as the rift between them was sealed and the scar beginning to heal, he had ripped her open once more with the tale of his infidelity.

Her Artemis self screamed with anger, telling her to hit back, to strike at Dino in retaliation at what he had done. To return the pain he had caused a hundred fold, but Gaby fought and rejected that route, after all – she had left him at that time. She had no right to demand he remain true to her, but for him to do this so quickly after finding out she had left… Did he really have any feelings for her at all? She might have fought him in the past, but she was no longer Artemis… and only a few minutes before, she had been ready to show just how much she loved him.

Her mind told her off… Of course Dino had feelings for her, otherwise he would not have come, tried to fix things. So why had he done this to her?

Dino sat on his knees, head bowed, wrestling with his conscious… Had he done the right thing? Should he have stayed silent? Seeing Gaby as she was now destroyed him inside, he had opened a Pandora's Box and didn't know how to close it.

Glancing up, he realized that Gaby's tears had changed, no longer heart rending sobs, her tears had softened, but had not reduced in volume. Dino felt desperate, he had to do something… but would she accept him now?

Gaby's mind was spinning, she had rejected anger as a solution, it would solve nothing – perhaps making the situation worse – if that were possible. As she cried, one thought rose to the surface and with it a question… The thought reminded her that no matter what had happened, she loved Dino, could not throw him out of her life, because to do so would be throwing away part of herself…

The question was why…? Not why had he done what he did… He had already answered that – saying he didn't know, and for some peculiar reason, she believed him. He knew she would be hurt by his story; he probably even realized that she would not want him in her life any more, so why had he taken the risk? Why had he told her, instead of keeping quiet?

As her mind tried to sort out the answers, she felt a pair of arms slide around her shoulders and stiffened slightly at Dino's touch. The thought of those arms holding someone else… She eliminated the thought immediately seeing the darkness and despair that followed it, but could not relax.

Dino wrapped himself tightly around Gaby, pulling her sideways into his chest, her head under his chin, her ear next to his heart. He could feel her tense up, but was relieved that she didn't pull away. Satisfied that he couldn't hold her any tighter without causing pain, he began to rock her gently, crooning softly as a parent would to a child.

Gaby's tears intensified, but became silent. Unconsciously, Dino had caught her up in the very embrace used by her father when she was small and was hurt or upset by something. The memory caused some grief to return, but it also helped her to calm down further. An image came to her mind of her father and Dino together… Her father, laughing and joking, Dino, blushing…

Her tears eased, yes, her father certainly would have approved of Dino and their relationship had he still been alive…

Dino felt Gaby shudder in his arms and realized that she had stopped crying. He stopped rocking and let his head drop, forehead touching hers gently. "Gaby, I am so, so sorry, but I had to tell you… I couldn't live with myself if I hadn't been totally honest with you. I couldn't lie to you…"

Gaby stirred, looked up into a pair of blue eyes, brimming with tears. His voice had been quiet, shaky but sincere and she knew he was telling the truth. Without her asking, he had answered her question completely and honestly… Pandora's box had been opened and all their pain had multiplied as a result, but one thing remained… Hope…

Gaby lifted a hand, softly wiping away the tears… "What happened to my big tough hero…?"

Dino gave a weak half smile, "He got lost without his huntress… Forgot how to dance… Forgot how much he needs his partner…"

A tear slid down Gaby's cheek, "The huntress is far away, but the dancer is nearby… Maybe we can bring both them and the hero back together…"

Dino nodded and held Gaby tightly, feeling her arms encircle him as she shifted position to get closer. Sighing, he slowly began to relax, knowing he had done the right thing, knowing that while the incident would remain on Gaby's mind for a while – and probably resurface from time to time - especially when she was angry, she was still his, and would remain so.

Gaby opened her eyes slowly, had she dozed off for a moment? She wasn't sure, one thing she was sure of was that she and Dino would be stronger as a couple after today, more understanding of each other than they had been in the past. She still felt hurt by his actions at Patrick's and it would probably be a while before she could completely let it go, but he had told her the truth and was not hiding anything.

That they would need to talk about other matters, Gaby was certain, but that could wait, they needed time... Time to recover, time for each other, away from the office, away from everyone. With a shock, she realized that they had never been on holiday as a couple. Any long breaks had been taken here, with her family, and that she would have to rectify… immediately.

"What are you thinking about?"

Gaby hid a small smile, "Who says I'm thinking…?"

Dino raised an eyebrow, "I know that look on your face…"

Gaby chuckled softly, "and you know me too damn well. I was thinking that maybe we should get away for a while… Just the two of us. Do you think Terry would agree to it?"

"Even if he doesn't… I don't care, I think it's a great idea… Anywhere in particular?" Gaby shook her head, giving a soft smile, Dino grinned, "Good, because I've got a couple of ideas…"

Gaby was intrigued, "Tell me…"

Dino shook his head and spoke softly, "No. Just let me make it a surprise. Please sweetheart…"

"Ok…" Gaby raised her hand to Dino's cheek, noticing the softness in his eyes as she did so. Something in him had changed, she couldn't quite put her finger on it, but she also realized that she had probably changed too. She was not surprised when Dino dropped his head and gently kissed her forehead. It had always been his way of saying 'I love you' for as long as she could remember, and it always made her feel good.

Lifting her chin a little, she returned his kiss, softly letting her lips touch his. Not expecting the thrill that ran through her body, she gasped slightly. Dino too was caught unprepared and tightened his grip around her body, feeling the shiver through her skin as she reacted.

Gaby pulled away and stood up quickly, scared by the involuntary reaction that had passed through her skin. Dino stood behind her, close but not touching, giving her time to adjust to a new level of emotions. He knew that part of Gaby had always been locked away from him – protecting herself. However, that was no longer true, Gaby was completely open, easy to hurt, easy to love and would need to be cared for, but, would she turn to him… or would she do it for herself.

Gaby closed her eyes, willing herself to calm down. Instinct had told her to run and the adrenaline for a moment had flowed through her body, yet she had rejected it, she was no longer Artemis the huntress, working alone, protecting herself. She was Gabrielle and had a partner who would provide protection should she need it – and anything else she asked for – within reason.

She could sense Dino standing behind her, waiting to see what she was going to do. Gaby sighed, her mind said that she should take things slowly, carefully rebuild the relationship with Dino so there would be no mistakes… No misunderstandings… Her heart and body said different, she needed him… like the land needed the rain to live. Without him she was only half a person, he was day to her night.

Her arms dropped from their folded position, her hands opening to her sides, palms up. "Dino…"

He was there immediately, hands placed gently in hers, bringing them back to her body as he wrapped his arms around her. She shivered at his touch, wanting more. Ignoring her thoughts, Gaby went with her instinct, her feelings, pulling Dino's arms more tightly around her, inhaling deeply at the sensations she could feel.

Dino was stunned, not only was Gaby accepting him back, but she was doing so completely, unconditionally. He had expected her to be wary of him… To set limits, at least for the moment, until she became comfortable again. Almost overcome with emotion, he dropped his head to her shoulder and kissed softly. "Thank you… for believing me…"

Gaby smiled, "How could I not… You have done so much for me – what kind of person would I be if I threw that all away just because through a grave misunderstanding you had one moment of weakness… I just want to forget that it happened and get back to what's more important… us…"

Dino shuddered with relief and hugged her tightly, burying his head in her shoulder. Terry was right, Gaby was one hell of a woman…