A week cooped up in Wyndamere had left Nadine feeling stir-crazy. There was always something new to see. After seven days of wandering around the castle Nikolas called home as well as the grounds, there were still parts of the estate that she hadn't seen. Even so, she felt like there was always someone watching her. Whether it was a maid popping up to attend to her smallest needs or a gardener pruning branches on one of the paths or Alfred checking up on her, she didn't really have much time to herself. For someone that was used to living on her own, it was just a little overwhelming to always have someone there. She tried to be gracious about, knowing that Nikolas wanted to do this for her. Since their talk, he had been very good about giving her space, and in return, she was trying to let him be there for her as much as she could allow.

Letting Nikolas be the kind and gracious prince that he was actually a little easier than she had anticipated. It was nice to have someone that wanted to lavish her with attention. She liked being apart of his daily life. They would have breakfast together with Spencer. Afterward, he would go into his office to work for the morning while she would take a walk around the estate or maybe read in the sitting room. Nikolas made it a point to spend the afternoons with Spencer. She would join them sometimes or rest upstairs if she was feeling tired after physical therapy. After they had dinner and Spencer was in bed, they would sit together in front of the fireplace and talk. He would tell her stories about growing up around Europe while she recounted her tales of living in Texas. Every night, he would help her up the stairs and kiss her goodnight at her door. Sometimes he would sneak back and sleep beside her. She looked forward to those nights. Their relationship still wasn't exactly where she wanted it to be, but she just needed to be patient until they could finally take it there.

"Hey, good morning," Nikolas greeted her warmly as he came into the living room, two cups of coffee in his hand. He sat the mugs down on the table in front of her and leaned down to kiss her lightly. He tasted of coffee and mint. "I thought that we would have breakfast down here for a change. Alfred is setting a table up on the terrace."

"What about Spencer?" Nadine asked as she accepted one of the mugs. She loved the coffee at Wyndamere. Alfred had confided that Nikolas had the beans flown in every week from a private plantation in Brazil after she had fallen in love with it all those months ago when she was helping him deal with the tumor. Long before they had been together, he was finding ways to take care of her. "Actually, shouldn't he be up by now? I haven't seen him yet, and he usually comes to wake me up in the mornings."

Nikolas smiled briefly at her, his eyes glittering with delight. He liked having Nadine in his house, and he liked how quickly Spencer had taken to having her there. The two of them interacted so easily already, and the past week had only made their bond that much more comfortable. Spencer insisted on having them both present for his bedtime stories, and he always kissed Nadine goodnight last because she gave the best hugs, according to him. "My grandmother came to pick him up this morning. She is going to take Spencer and Cameron to the library for some puppet show. He'll be gone all day."

"That sounds like fun. I'm sure that he'll like spending time with Lesley and Cam," Nadine commented as she allowed Nikolas to help her to her feet. He took her hand and led her outside to the balcony. The small bistro table was set with whole wheat waffles and plenty of fresh fruit. "Although, I am not sure what I am going to do with myself all day. I get bored when he's not around to entertain me. What am I going to do with myself?"

"Actually, I have plans for us already," he commented as he poured her a glass of sparkling apple juice. Nadine cocked an eyebrow at him questioningly. "I was hoping that you would go over to Shadybrook with me. I wanted to take you before the fire happened, but obviously you needed some time to heal. I talked to Patrick yesterday and he thought a short trip to town would probably be fine as long as you rested afterward."

She tried not to roll her eyes at his concern for her health. In all honesty, Nadine felt fine. In fact, with the extended time off, she actually felt better than she had in months. Besides being away from the hospital and recuperating from what had happened the last few weeks, she was finally happily in love. If she could just tell him that, she would probably feel even better. However, that wasn't really the point of the conversation right now. "Sure, I'd love to go with you to visit Lulu. I know that you really haven't been by to see her too much since I've been out of the hospital. I'm sure that she would love to see you."

"Probably," Nikolas concurred, "but she's not actually the reason we are going over there. I mean, we'll stop by and visit her, but I was hoping that you would want to meet my mom while we were there. You've already heard so much about her, but I don't think you'll fully understand that part of my life until you see her there."

Setting down her fork on the white china plate, Nadine reached across the table and squeezed his hand. "I would be honored to go with you to meet your mother, Nik," she proclaimed softly. He offered her a small smile and closed his eyes for a moment. When they opened again, she could see the tiniest hint of a tear forming. She could tell immediately that he was embarrassed by his unexpected display of emotion. Pushing the chair back, she went around the table and knelt in front of him so that she was at eye level. "Hey, this means a lot to me. Thank you."

He nodded wordlessly as she reached up to cup his cheek. It had been a long time since he had taken anyone to meet his mother and the first time a woman would meet her like this. After all those years with Emily, he had never thought he would have to go through this. Now that he was, it was harder than he had thought it could be. Still, he wanted her to be there wit him. She had gone with him to see Emily. She needed to see Laura. "I just wish that she could really meet you," he confided. Nadine pressed her forehead against his as the lone tear fell freely from his eyes. He reached up and tangled his fingers in her hair, just wanting to be closer to her. "It's not fair that you two don't get to meet each other. You're so much alike."

"Oh, yeah?" Nadine asked as she rose to her feet. Nikolas hooked his arms around her waist and pulled her into his lap. She turned to look up into his eyes, wanting to know everything that he needed to tell her. After all the things he had done to care for her these past few weeks, she liked that he needed her now. "Tell me about her."

"You know, it took me a really long time to understand how my mom could ever love Luke Spencer after all the things he put her through. The thing I could never fully comprehend was how unconditionally much she cared about him," he explained. "It didn't matter how selfish he was or what he did to push her away. She saw right through the man he wanted to pretend to be. She saw the man that he was. You've done that with me, Nadine. I pushed you away so many times, but you could see through that. You didn't care what I said, you just cared about me. You wanted to be apart of my life at whatever cost. You wouldn't listen to my warnings or those from anyone else. My mom would have admired that."

Nikolas told her stories of his mother, about how she had come to be apart of the Cassadine web and all those years on the run with Luke. Nadine was mostly quiet as he talked about what those first few years had been like when he had found out that Laura was his mother. He talked about Lucky and Lulu and Luke, what it was like to be an outside. She listened to every word as they ate their breakfast and afterward when they took a short walk down to the stable to check on the horses. Finally, when he felt like he had said enough, he asked her an important question again. "So, are you sure that you still want to go with me?" She had only nodded and kissed him on the cheek before pulling him toward the limo that would take them into town.

And now, they were standing outside her door at Shadybrook, exactly halfway between where Nikolas' mother and sister now lived. Few people in the world could ever understand what a lonely life Nadine led without her parents alive and her sister in a coma, but in that moment, she knew that Nikolas understood. She was probably the only person besides Lucky who could get how it felt to be him. It was both sad and comforting to know that it was something they had in common. It wasn't the first time she had realized this, but it was the first time that it felt real.

"Hi, Mom," Nikolas announced as they went into the room hand-in-hand. Nadine followed him around the white wooden rocking chair where Laura sat, her blonde hair pulled loosely back of her shoulders. He knelt down to kiss his mother on the cheek and reached for her hand. "You look as beautiful as always. Sorry that I haven't come by this week before now. I've been kind of busy actually living my life for once." He glanced back over his shoulder at Nadine and smiled. "Mom, there is someone that I want you to meet." Reaching behind him, Nikolas pulled Nadine to his side. "I am just going to go across the hall and check on Lu. I'll leave you two alone for a few minutes."

Nadine sat down on the ground beside him and looked up at the woman in front of her. Her pale blue eyes were vacant and lifeless. She was completely unresponsive and unaware that there was anyone in the room with her. Nadine was filled with the same sadness every time she went to visit her own blue-eyed blonde patient. Sitting at Jolene's bedside for her weekly visit was always one of the hardest parts of her weeks. "It's very nice to meet you, Laura. Nikolas has told me all about you," she revealed softly. As she spoke, Nadine never let her eyes falter from Laura's. She wanted to speak directly to this woman and have her hear the way she felt about her son. It was the only way she would ever possibly know these things. Even if she couldn't acknowledge it, Nadine had to pray that Laura would understand what she was saying. "You know, you have an amazing son here. I know that I don't have to tell you that, but I want to. He has meant so much to me."

Nadine leaned back on her heels and looked back up at the woman. "I know it was important for him that I come here and meet you. It was important to me, too," she confessed. "I know a lot about him. I've met his siblings and his friends. I know about his history with Emily and enough about the Cassadine family to understand that they're crazy. I've spent time at Wyndamere. I'm still not used to the staff. I adore his son and love every minute that I get to spend with both of them. This was a big step for both of us, me coming here. I feel like meeting you was the final piece to getting to know Nikolas. Maybe now I finally have all of him."

"She's had me all along." Nadine tore her eyes from Laura to find Nikolas leaning casually in the doorway. "Well, maybe not all along," he conceded as he came into the room. "She has had all of me for awhile now, though. Since that night that I held her and Spencer through the night, she's held my heart in the palm of her hand. Maybe I didn't let her see that before now, but it doesn't make it any less true."

Ten minutes later, Nikolas came out of his mother's room to find Nadine waiting for him on a bench outside her room. Lulu had gone downstairs to a group meeting, so they planned to come back later to spend time with her. "Thank you for bringing me here," Nadine murmured as she tucked her arm in Nikolas'. He was quiet as they waited for the elevator. He was so aware of everything around him – her head on his shoulder, her fingers tapping against his forearm, her scent surrounding him.

"Thank you for coming," he retorted finally as they stepped into the lift. The elevator went down two floors when Nikolas lunged forward impulsively and pressed the stop button. Nadine looked at him incredulously and demanded to know what he was doing. However, before she could get any more out her mouth, his lips had taken hers prisoner as he pressed her back against the elevator wall. Nadine hesitated for a moment, completely thrown at his behavior. She had nearly pounced on him like this once in elevator but this was not at all like Nikolas. It was far from his usual polite protocol. However, any thought of manners soon flew out of her head as he pressed the straps of her dress down her bare shoulder.

"Nikolas," she groaned from low in her throat as he rained tiny kisses down on her dewy skin. He traced a path from the curve of her neck to the swell of her collarbone, relenting only when she dragged his face back up to hers. His hands wandered down her spine and over her backside until he negotiated her up into his arms. Her legs wrapped around his torso as he rested her on the bar. Their lips never left each other as his hands found their way beneath the hem of her skirt. Just as he was about to travel further north to her thigh, she nudged him away reluctantly. "We can't keep doing this. You know that we're going to have to stop, and even if we didn't, I'm not sure that I want it to happen here like this."

Nikolas sighed loudly as he allowed her back to her feet. He raked his fingers through his hair in frustration before punching the button to start the elevator again. He was embarrassed by how he had acted without thinking and felt sheepish at her eventual rejection of him. He had been ready to take her then and there without any thought of the actual situation. He was just wrapped up in being there with Nadine and seeing his mother. It had only reminded him once again how fleeting life could be and how important it was to seize every single day.

The elevator progressed down a few more floors without a single word from either of them. Nadine couldn't take the silence and decided that it was her turn to be reckless. Sidestepping the prince, she pushed the stop button again. "Alright, Cassadine, we're not getting off this elevator until you look at me."

He pursed his lips tightly and looked up at her begrudgingly. "There, happy?"

Grabbing his chin in her hands, she forced his gaze to hold steady on her eyes. "No, not at all, actually," she answered. "Don't you think I want you, Nikolas? I mean, have you seen you? You are delicious. I spend half the time I am with you trying to find a way around Patrick's orders. I have wanted you for so long. We're not just talking weeks here; it has been months. I feel so many things for you, and desire is definitely one of them. It just can't happen like this."

"I'm sorry," he apologized, suddenly feeling two inches tall. He knew that she wanted him. He felt it every single time when he held her in the way that her body reacted from a single kiss. Of course she was right. She deserved to have their first time together to be more special than a quickie in an elevator at a mental hospital. It sounded even more horrible when he thought of it like that. "I just…you're just so…man, I am frustrated."

"I know, you're not the only one," she promised as she threaded her arms around his torso. "Do you have any clue how hard it is to lie next to you all those nights and not throw myself at you? And your kisses... Now, I'm no expert here, but I am pretty sure that your lips have got to be a sin."

He loved how open and flirtatious she was being, doing anything just to bring a little bit of light to an otherwise tense situation. "It's not like your lips are exactly singing the gospel there, my darling," he pointed out before pushing the start button again. The lift sprung to life and finally delivered them to the lobby. The nurse at the visitors' desk didn't look at them too kindly as she took back their guest badges. When they were back outside in the fresh air, Nikolas turned his face toward the sun and smiled. "So, how long do you think we got?"

"Six days," she answered. "I called Patrick myself yesterday. You're not the only one who wanted to do a little research on my status."

"Less than a week," he drawled as he pulled her into his arms. "Do you think we can wait that long?"

"I am pretty sure that I can manage to get through the next six days. It's not like everything is off limits after all…"

"Oh? Like what?"

"Well, there is this," Nadine whispered before kissing him soundly on the lips. She ran her tongue along his bottom lip. "And this." She snaked her hands up the back of his shirt for the comforting warmth of his lower back. "And this." She pressed her body fully to his and started to kiss along his jaw line. "And this." She nibbled playfully on his ear lobe before kissing behind his ear. "There are a lot of things we can do if we are creative enough."

"Six days?" he asked again as they started to drift toward the car.

"Six days," she confirmed. "It's both just a heartbeat and a lifetime away. Think you can wait?"

"I've been waiting my entire life to find you," Nikolas declared as he opened the door for her. "Six days is nothing compared to a lifetime."