"Michael, I won't deliberately be dishonest with you," Francine began, choosing her words carefully.

"Why do I sense a 'but' coming?" He eyed her warily as she worried a loose thread at her hemline. Her intense blue eyes locked with his, and she took a deep breath before replying to him.

"There's no 'but'." She reached out and touched his hand briefly. "I don't want to lie to you, but-" The couple shared a wry smile. "I'm no more prepared to share all of my deepest feelings with you than you are with me. I've kept all that to myself for far too long to change overnight. I want, no I need, someone who will accept me as I am…I hope you'll be that person."

"I'd like to be, you're an amazing woman, Francine." She saw acceptance in his eyes but she saw something else as well.

"Now I'm the one who feels there is a 'but' coming; what's wrong?"

"There's nothing wrong," he answered too quickly.

"You've shattered our vow of honesty in record time. Please tell me what's holding you back.

"It's selfish," he replied, not looking her in the eyes.

"Selfish can be okay sometimes. If you can't deal with occasional selfishness, then we better end things right now. I can be-"

"Prone to being as human as I am," he interjected, the soft lines at the sides of his deep blue eyes crinkled as he smiled at her. "I respect that your career is very important to you but, you didn't answer my question. Were you going to tell me about your assignment if I hadn't overheard Lee's message?" Their eyes locked for a long moment and then she looked away. "I have my answer," he concluded sadly and began to stand up.

"No, you don't," she countered, also standing up. "I…I don't know if I would have told you, BUT I wouldn't have gone through with the assignment. I wouldn't have betrayed your trust in me. I led Billy to believe that I would do as he asked so that he would let me go to New York with you. I wanted; still want to go, if you still want me with you."

"I want you by my side, I don't know how the next few days will play out, and having you with me will help me cope with whatever happens." As their hands slowly intertwined, he continued, "I left my office earlier to see an old friend; he used to specialize in family law. If Liza thinks that I'm still the idealistic young man whose heart she broke when she walked out on me she's mistaken. I will do whatever I can to help our daughter, but it's going to be on my terms, not Liza's.

"That's great."

"It's not great…my daughter may not survive this week and if she does, she may not want to have anything to do with me."

"I'm sorry, you're right, it is going to be a tough week but you don't have to face it alone. I'll be by your side whenever you want me to be."

"I thought that your boss was only giving you two days."

"He did…I'm TAKING as much time as you need. The Agency is my career; I hope you will be a huge part of my life. Our future is my priority."

"Francine, I want to have you by my side in New York, but I don't want you to jeopardize your career over this trip. If your case is being wrapped up here in DC, your boss no longer has any reason to let you go with me for two days, let alone longer then that." He sat back down on the sofa with a defeated expression on his face.

"Don't borrow trouble; if Lee and Amanda have the situation under control then Billy has no reason not to allow me to take some time off. I'm going to find out right now." She walked towards the phone, but Michael's voice stopped her before she picked up the receiver.

"Are you going to simply ask him for the additional time off?"

No, I won't call Billy until I know exactly what the status of the case is. I try to never walk into a situation blindly. I'm going to call-"

"Lee," Michael volunteered as he looked at her uncomfortably.

"Yes, Lee, I'm going to arrange for him to meet us for drinks. Once we've spoken to him, I'll have a better idea of how to proceed with Billy," she stated matter-of-factly.

"I'm not…uh…I'm already so stressed out; I don't think I'm ready to meet your-"

"You have to stop thinking of him that way," she urged as she returned to his side. "I'll ask Lee to bring Amanda along. I hope that you want to get to know my two closest friends. Once you've seen them together, you'll see that Lee has absolutely no romantic interest in me. This is the best way to determine what I should say to Billy. I'm going to New York with you, it isn't up for debate, but I'd like to still have my job when we get back." Michael relaxed and sank deeper into the sofa cushions. He'd allowed himself to fall in love with another strong willed woman, however this one was devoted to him and he intended to return her devotion.

The End?

Author's note: I'd like to offer my thanks to all the readers who stuck with this story over the past several months. Francine has found love, when she hadn't admitted to herself that she was looking for it. I've chosen to end this story here, but if there is reader interest I could write a much shorter sequel that tells the tale of Francine and Michael's trip to New York.