He'd endured months of planning, phone calls, and Internet searches; all to find the exquisite silk scarf that she simply had to have.

As chance would have it, Daphne happened to be in the living room when Niles showed Frasier the picture. It certainly was a beautiful scarf, but the price is what caught

Daphne off-guard. It was easily the amount of one of her paychecks and now the thought burned her.

Dr. Crane may be wealthy but he certainly didn't seem to flaunt his money around. He'd gone to great lengths to find that scarf for his wife and now he wasn't even given

the chance to present it to her for the holiday.

No wonder he was hurting so badly.

If he'd given Daphne a gift like that, she would have been overwhelmed with gratitude. She certainly wouldn't have chosen to fly off to Europe without any consideration

for his feelings. Daphne suspected that she hadn't even bothered to buy her devoted husband a gift.

Had Daphne known about his heartache, she surely would have chosen her gift for him more wisely. A book about wine was hardly unique and the second she gave it to

him, she found herself wishing she had put more thought into her gift. But if the warm, sincere hug he gave her in gratitude was any indication, it meant more to him than

any expensive gift he could have received.

But the rest of the evening he put on a brave front, pretending to be happy. She knew that kind of fake happiness well... Because it was the same kind of fake happiness

that she'd exhibited on more than one occasion.

She wanted so much to offer a kind word of advice; that things would get better and that he was with his family, who loved him unconditionally.

But it seemed almost cruel.

He had a wife whom he treated like gold, and what did he receive in return? Nothing but selfishness and ridicule on top of a broken heart. That kind of pain must hurt like

no other.

Feeling a rush of compassion for him, she drew him into her arms. The fact that he melted against her was a sign that he needed to be held more than he would ever

admit. As he clung to her, resting his head against her neck, she no longer cared about the fireworks that continued to light up the sky.