"Niles, is everything okay? I heard something shatter!"
At the unexpected sound of her voice, he jumped and for the first time in his existence he wished that she wasn't there. But to his dismay, she entered his study and moved toward him. The scent of her hair was almost intoxicating and he fought the urge to take her into his arms. Instead he bored his eyes into his book, unable to look at her. But the words on the page were foreign to him.
"I-I'm fine." He said, surprised to find his voice so broken.
She was standing behind him now, her hands sliding down his shoulders and to his chest, her soft lips kissing his neck and cheek. The sensation made him close his eyes and sigh deeply.
"I'm sorry I fell asleep, Sweetheart…" She whispered seductively, "But I'm awake now. I just checked on our wonderful son and he's sleeping peacefully."
"Th-that's good." He said, feeling his heart rate increase. "Thank you, Daphne. You're a wonderful mother."
"Thank you, Sweetheart. You're a wonderful father. But since David should sleep soundly for the rest of the night, I was thinking that you and I should spend some quality time together. I've been meaning to thank you…"
He turned his head, almost wishing that he hadn't. For she looked so beautiful, standing there in her burgundy satin robe that the vision took his breath away. And then he found himself wondering how she could even begin to think of being with that… that Eric, when …
The thought brought tears to his eyes once again and he turned his head, wiling them away. But not before one escaped and rolled down his cheek. By the time he realized that his emotions had gotten the better of him, he felt her thumb gently brushing it away. She moved to face him, her lips gentle and warm on his. His heart beat rapidly and he found himself torn between wanting her and his undeniable pain.
"Sweetheart, what's wrong?"
Her concern was overwhelming and it was what he loved most about her, the way she cared so deeply for others. The compassion in her eyes made it increasingly hard to resist her. But he had no other choice. Until he knew the truth, he couldn't give into his desires, no matter how great.
As a psychiatrist, the only logical solution would be to confront her outright; to talk in depth about his feelings and how their relationship was slowly beginning to unravel.
But now was not the time to discuss her relationship with Eric. Niles was much too tired. And so, in a gesture that pained him deeply, he lied to his wife.