Her world tilted on its axis, sending her thoughts and everything she thought to be true sliding in one direction and then another. Her mind was suddenly so bewildered that she couldn't even begin to think straight. Niles? It just didn't seem possible. But she could see by the looks on the faces of Frasier and Martin that it was true.

"H-how long has he felt this way?"

Martin looked at Frasier and grinned. "A long time, actually. As far as Fras and I can tell, it started as soon as he met you."

Her mouth fell open in disbelief. "When we met? But that's been… I mean, we've known each other for…" Lightheadedness came over her and she somehow managed to find her way to the sofa and sat down "Oh my God…"

"We did a damn good job of keeping it secret for so long, didn't we, Fras?"

"Dad-."

"You mean it's been that long? And you knew about it all this time?" She asked, almost as an afterthought.

"Yeah, but-."

"Daphne, are you all right?"

She turned to her boss. "I-I think so. I just-."

"Daphne I'm sorry to spring this on you." Martin said. "I never thought this would blow so far out of proportion."

"H-he's my best friend… How can I-."

"Go to him, Daphne. Talk to him." Frasier urged.

Both Daphne and Martin looked at him, incredulous.

"Are you sure that's a good idea, Fras?"

"Actually at this point, I think it is. Now that she knows, it's only right that he knows too."

"But what if he…"

"If he's angry, you can blame Frasier and I." Martin said. "But I'm not gonna apologize! You deserved to know! And now that his divorce is final-."

"Dad's right."

"I just-I –I don't…"

"Just go to him."

Tears spilled onto her cheeks and she rose from the sofa to kiss Frasier and Martin. "I love you both so much. Thank you. And I promise I'm not cross with either of you. I just… I need a little while to let this sink in."

"Of course. We love you too, Daphne." Frasier said. "Now I happen to know that Niles has an early morning meeting at the office tomorrow, so-."

"I-I'll be there." She said quickly. But then made amends. "But I wouldn't want to disturb him at work." The idea of showing up at his office unannounced seemed unfathomable, if not a bit intrusive.

"Trust us, Daphne, he won't be angry." Martin said.

"Dad's right. I'm sure that Niles would welcome your presence." Frasier finished.

Her head continued to swim in confusion. Slowly, even more pieces began to fall into place; the way he was always complimenting her and was always showing up at their door unannounced, making some excuse as to why he was there. And the whole time… he was there to see her. It seemed so strange to think that she might have a different type of future with the younger Dr. Crane.

She'd never thought of him in the romantic sense. She'd never even considered it. He was always… well, her boss' brother first and foremost; a man who was part of the family that she'd found when she was hired as Martin's physical therapist. Over the years, however, she and Niles had shared pleasant conversations. Somewhere along the way those conversations had become more personable. Her mind drifted back to the first time he'd really and truly shown her how much he cared.

One day, when she was feeling blue, Dr. Crane seemed to be the only one who noticed.

He quietly took her aside and asked her if she was all right. She considered lying, for she certainly didn't want to bother him with her silly problems. But when she looked into his sincere, caring blue eyes, she began to cry. He immediately gave her a soothing hug and it didn't take long before she was telling him every detail about how she'd gotten into a terrible fight with her girlfriend and that she felt responsible and was afraid that their friendship was over.

Niles listened intently, never judging or even interrupting her, nor did he make her feel small the way her mother or brothers might have. Instead, he waited until she was finished and then helped her through it, offering suggestions and advice; as a friend of course. That is, after he let her cry against him until all of her frustration had melted away. She absorbed every word and thanked him profusely, but it didn't feel like enough.

Just days later, she ran into her girlfriend while at the market. The meeting was awkward at first, filled with silence and a few angry words. But Daphne took Niles' advice and suggested that they go to the adjoining coffee shop for a drink. It was there that they began to talk it out, using the techniques that Niles had given her. Hours later, they were both crying and hugging one another, vowing never to become cross with each other again.

"I don't want to lose you." Daphne said tearfully. "I love you."

Her girlfriend had hugged her tightly. "I love you too. And I'm sorry."

When they said goodbye, promising to get together the very next day, Daphne wasted no time in contacting Niles. It was a risk of course; showing up unannounced at his large mansion, for his wife wasn't the most pleasant person she'd ever encountered.

Feeling a bit nervous, she stood at his doorstep and when he answered the door, the expression on his face was one of surprise. "Daphne…"

"Hello, Dr. Crane. I-I'm sorry if I seem surprised. I-I expected one of your maids to answer the door."

"Oh, well, Marta has the day off and the others are… Um… What brings you here? Is something wrong?"

She smiled knowingly. Of course he'd be worried about his father and brother. She should have known. "I'm sorry I didn't mean to worry you. Your brother and father are fine.

I'm sorry to show up unannounced like this. I just wanted to let you know… I ran into my girlfriend, the one I had the fight with."

His expression changed to one of concern. "Oh… Well, I'm sure that was a bit awkward."

"I-it was at first but then we started talking and-." Unexpectedly she began to cry. "I-I'm sorry, I-."

He guided her inside and closed the door behind her, standing in the foyer to hold her close. "Daphne, I'm sorry. I had no idea…"

She loved the feeling of his arms around her, the way his sweater felt so soft against her cheek. And she loved leaning her head against his chest. But she couldn't let him hold her forever, as much as she wanted to.

"I-."

"Daphne, it's all right. I'm sorry that things didn't work out. Sometimes friendships, like relationships between men and women, aren't meant to be."

She looked up, smiling gratefully when he handed her his handkerchief. "Thank you, Dr. Crane, but actually I can't thank you enough for what you did for me."

"What I-."

"My girlfriend and I, we ran into each other at the market. And I did exactly what you suggested. We had the most wonderful talk, the best talk we've ever had. And, this sounds completely silly, but I think our friendship is stronger now."

"Well, I'm very glad to hear that, Daphne, I-."

She threw her arms around him and kissed his cheek. "Thank you so much."

He held her close and she closed her eyes, once again wishing that she could stay in his arms for just a little while longer. At that moment he became her best friend.

But she never dreamed that their friendship could be anything more.