A/N: The girls prepare to leave camp; Katie finally gets to see her other father again as well as the 'enemy.' Thanks to my beta again, Gloria, for looking this over!:)

Windsor, Canada – Same Time

From the doorway of their hotel's bedroom suite, Alex silently watched Justin still deep in slumber. Even after the somewhat disappointing events of last night, he still couldn't help gazing a little wistfully as he studied the slim, pale form lying on top of the covers, his chest slowly rising and falling; Justin always was warmer than he was at night, and typically by the time morning rolled around, he would kick the covers off and just lie on top of them in the cool air until he finally woke up around mid-morning. Alex, on the other hand, always seemed to be cold at night and was the early riser, finding the pre-dawn hours a productive time to sit down and sketch out some architectural ideas on white, old-fashioned, ruled legal paper before transferring them to his laptop's graphics program. It was a rather archaic way of conducting his work, but he preferred having paper in his hands when he was first hashing out his proposed ideas.

Today had been no exception, even though technically he was on vacation. He had come up with what he thought were some unique ideas for the new organic grocery being built on the east side of Chicago and had been studiously working for the past two hours, eventually saving the ideas onto his laptop for safekeeping. When he got back home, he would polish them up and ultimately use them in his pitch to woo the influential, well-known company into his firm's fold. He had no doubt in his mind that his campaign to win them over would be successful, because he knew architecture like the back of his hand and what each client was looking for, so much so in fact that he had made a very lucrative career out of it and had developed a solid reputation for consistent, innovative excellence in his work.

As he peered over at Justin, though, he only wished he could be so confident about him. While Justin hadn't discounted his marriage proposal outright, he hadn't exactly been singing its praises, either. His boyfriend had been adamant that he wouldn't give him a yes or no answer until he had spoken to Kaylee to get her input, also. He sighed softly; he still felt Kaylee should abide by whatever decision her father made, but it seemed Justin wasn't about to make that determination alone, no matter how much he might want that. If he didn't love the damn man so much, he would have just told Justin that he didn't think he was taking their relationship seriously enough and to just forget about his proposal, but he couldn't do that. He was in way too deep already. Justin had gotten under his skin a lot time ago, probably from the first moment they had met, and his feelings had only deepened over time. He would just have to hope that he could convince Justin when they returned to Chicago that becoming his husband was the best thing for both of them as well as Kaylee.

Kaylee. Now THAT was another matter. He supposed the girl was all right, if you didn't mind the moody, perplexing type. She could be at times both clingy and independent, almost according to when the mood struck her, and he had to admit, her need to have Justin's undivided attention at times did bother him. After all, her father had needs, too – needs that a young girl couldn't understand or begin to meet. Justin was still a relatively young man and a passionate one, too, at least with his art. Alex sometimes wished he would be more passionate when they were making love, too; it was sweet, it was tender, it was satisfying enough – at least for him – but there was a certain fire missing in it. He could feel Justin holding back, almost as if he were saving his most intense emotions for someone else.

His face darkened as he thought about whom it might be; he was confident that Justin hadn't been seeing anyone else for the past couple of years during their relationship, so to him there could only be one answer to that. Kinney. Was that it? Was Justin still pining away for his ex after all this time? He knew his boyfriend never really spoke about him; whenever the subject was brought up even nonchalantly, Justin quickly steered the subject of conversation to something else, saying his relationship with his ex was in the past and he only wanted to move forward. But were they? Could they? Could they move forward with this large shadow looming over them? Just what sort of hold did this Kinney have on him, anyway? He knew the other man couldn't have loved him any more than HE did, than he does. And besides, the two hadn't even seen each other in a decade now; how could this man still affect him, then, even now?

Alex sighed softly; there was only one man who could answer that question and he wasn't telling. He knew that look that Justin got occasionally – the same one he had received when Justin had told him 'not to push' his marriage proposal on him. The one that told him he was getting perilously close to some truth that Justin didn't want to discuss. The one that clearly broadcast that Brian Kinney was the one subject that was off limits. And that was what continued to bother him, because it also meant in his mind that despite the time that had passed, Justin's ex-partner still possessed some piece of his heart.

Well, that's too bad, Kinney, he thought with disdain as he continued to stare at the man who made his pulse race and his own heart flutter with a myriad of emotions. I don't give up that easily. Justin was the one for him; he was sure of it. He had meant what he had said to him – Justin was his soulmate, the man destined for him, and he wanted to spend the rest of his life making sure he knew how special he was to him. Now all he had to do was convince Justin of that – and Kaylee, the man's independent, skeptical, and headstrong daughter.

Biting back his disappointment over not having his offer of marriage agreed to, he nevertheless resolved to spend the rest of their private time together persuading the man he loved to say yes. Then when they did get home, all he would have to do was convince Kaylee of the same thing. Yeah…Right. Somehow he didn't think it would be that easy; he and Justin's daughter were civil at best. It would certainly help, though, to get Justin on his side first before he tried to persuade her as well.

He was about to turn around and order room service breakfast for the two of them when the sound of his boyfriend's cell phone pierced the quiet and Justin's eyes sprung open sleepily in surprise. Alex couldn't help grinning a little as he watched Justin's arm reach out blindly to the side of the bed to locate it on the nightstand, flipping it open as his fingers located it and bringing it up to his mouth as he lay prone on the bed.

"H'lo?" was the somewhat sluggish reply.

"Is this Justin Taylor?"

"Yeah," Justin responded as he rubbed his free hand over his face in an attempt to fully wake up.

"Mr. Taylor, my name is Perry Winters. I'm the operations manager for Camp Pineland."

At that statement, Justin became instantly alert as all sorts of dreadful thoughts rushed through his mind. Had something happened to Kaylee? He knew the odds were remote – the camp had a reputation for being extremely efficient and well-organized – but he couldn't help it; when it came to his daughter, who was rarely out of his sight, he was simply a perpetual worrywart. He immediately scooted up in the bed and sat up against the headboard, noticing for the first time Alex standing in the doorway watching him as he replied, "Kaylee? Is something wrong with my daughter?"

"No, no," Winters reassured him. "She's fine, Mr. Taylor. But we do have a problem, I'm afraid."

"A problem? What kind of problem?" Justin watched as Alex walked over and sat down gingerly on the bed next to him with a curious look on his face. Justin shook his head at him as if to say he didn't know what was going on. "Is she sick?"

"No, that's not it." From his vantage point behind his desk, Winters looked over at Kaylee and Katie, who had hurriedly finished packing and were raptly listening to every word he was saying. He winked at them before he responded, "I'm afraid it involves some disciplinary action we had to take."

Justin furrowed his brow. Kaylee? Disciplinary action? The two didn't even make sense together. "Disciplinary action? Mr. Winters, you're going to have to spell it out for me. Are you trying to tell me Kaylee has gotten herself into some kind of trouble there? I find that extremely hard to believe." Alex's brows shot up at that statement; Kaylee, the "She can never do any wrong" daughter was in some kind of trouble?

There was a slight hesitation on the other end as Winters replied, "Well, it wasn't entirely her doing, but she did respond in a way that is simply not acceptable, I'm afraid." Winters looked across his desk and had to grin – for two girls who were about to be kicked out of camp, they looked deliriously happy.

Justin frowned in concern. "Mr. Winters, will you please tell me what in the hell you're talking about? What exactly happened?" The more obtuse the man was being, the higher his blood pressure – and his worry – was rising.

"It seems that Sandra, Kaylee's roommate, was harassing your daughter, I guess you could even say bullying her; for whatever reason their personalities didn't mesh together from the start. And she suspected your daughter was behind some malicious activity involving vandalizing her canoe the other day and she retaliated by shoving Kaylee out of the cabin they shared last night. It seems that one of my employees – a very reliable one, I might add – observed your daughter coming out of the camp's kitchen area late last night with a can that was later identified as containing honey. Your daughter managed to rig the can so it was resting half-on, half-off the cabin's door ledge so that this morning when Sandra went to open it, it fell on top of her and completely coated her with the substance."

Justin's mouth dropped open; this didn't sound like his daughter. She was highly sensitive, yes, and at times would easily get her feelings hurt, but to retaliate against someone she felt had wronged her? That wasn't Kaylee at all. Kaylee hated confrontations. "Mr. Winters, this is really hard to believe. That doesn't sound like my daughter at all. Is your employee POSITIVE that it was MY daughter? I'm sure you have several girls up there who would match her general description. And you said it happened last night. How could this person be so sure, then?"

"I can assure you, Mr. Taylor, my employee has been with me for several years and is highly ethical," Winters said, trying to put a little bit of effrontery in his voice to make it sound authentic. "There was more than sufficient moonlight last night to see your daughter's outline clearly; besides, there are security lights around as well. And, more importantly, your daughter admitted her culpability to me this morning when she was brought to my office to discuss the incident. No, there is no question that it was she who caused it."

Justin was shocked as well as dismayed. He definitely didn't approve of using malicious tactics to prove a point – he had learned his lesson back in the days of the horrid Pink Posse that violent responses to wrongs perpetrated against you may make you feel good and even euphoric for a brief time, but it never solved anything in the long run. On the other hand, though, he couldn't help sympathizing with his tender-hearted daughter. To be roomed with someone who was mean-spirited and a bully would have been torment indeed for Kaylee and should never have been tolerated.

"Mr. Taylor?"

Justin turned his attention back to their conversation as he asked, "What sort of 'disciplinary action' are you taking, Mr. Winters? I honestly can't say that I blame Kaylee for what she did, although I realize it may not have been the best way to handle it."

Winters looked over at the pair of excited little schemers and replied, "I'm afraid under our bylaws I have no choice, Sir. She will have to be expelled and you will need to come and pick her up as soon as possible."

Justin glanced over at Alex, who was trying to figure out what was going on. He had a feeling someone wasn't going to be happy with this turn of events, but he had no choice. "I see," he said quietly. "That's unfortunate. I was looking forward to my daughter being able to experience what your camp had to offer. I think it would have been beneficial for her to be exposed to other viewpoints and personalities there. I never anticipated this happening, though. That other girl sounds like she has no business being there, and I'm disappointed that your staff didn't do a better job of screening potential attendees."

Alex frowned; that didn't sound good at all. It sounded somehow like Justin was saying his daughter's camp vacation was ending. What the hell?

"I understand your concern," Winters replied soothingly. "We are proud of our reputation here at Camp Pineland, and we strive to provide a positive experience for every child. I can assure you – we do not condone nor tolerate this type of bullying behavior, and this other girl will be sternly dealt with. If we are able to substantiate your daughter's claims, she will be expelled as well and told if this ever occurs again, she will never be allowed to return at all. We do not leave any leeway for bullying here. Your daughter, by the way, doesn't fall under that same category. While I have no choice in my method of discipline, I do understand why she did what she did. She just made a poor judgment call on how to handle it and should have come to me for assistance instead."

Justin bristled slightly; if his daughter said it happened, it happened. "I can assure you, Mr. Winters, if my daughter told you she was being bullied, that was precisely what happened. My daughter doesn't lie."

Winters had to almost bite his tongue at that statement as he glanced over at the two girls who were about to engage in the biggest lie of all – switching places with their fathers and pretending to be each other instead. If you only knew…

"I'm sure you're right, Mr. Taylor," he replied politely as he smirked at the girls. "If you say your daughter doesn't lie, I believe you."

Justin could have sworn he heard what sounded like someone giggling. "Was that Kaylee?" he asked in confusion. If it was, she certainly didn't sound upset.

"Oh, no," Winters responded hastily as he shook his head and placed a finger over his mouth in an urgent quest to get the giggling girls to stop. Fortunately, they understood and quieted down quickly. "That's a play that some of the campers are rehearsing down the hall."

Justin nodded. "Oh. Okay. Well, is my daughter all right? I mean, how is she?" He imagined if she was about to be expelled, she had to be quite upset with not only the situation in general, but with herself, too, over her impulsive behavior. He also knew that she was probably afraid of what he was going to think about her and that she was probably fretting over whether or not he would think any less of her for what she did. He was a little disappointed that she hadn't come to the operations manager with her problem, but he could still understand why she had felt a need to do something to defend herself.

"She's okay," Winters reassured him. "I think she's actually relieved in a way that the situation is out in the open now. I don't think she likes the circumstances under which she is leaving, but in an odd way, I don't think she's all that upset over having to leave." He grinned at the two girls who beamed back at him in nervous anticipation. Ever since they had come back to his office, they had been chattering nonstop about meeting their other father again. Their excitement was contagious – he almost felt like HE was going to be participating along with them. "She'll be fine," he told him. "And she'll be welcome to reapply next year if that's what you both want."

Justin sighed as he looked apologetically over at Alex, who was apparently beginning to realize that their first real vacation together with just the two of them was about to be changed and not for the better. "Well, that's good, at least," he applied. "Although I'll have to give that some serious thought. Where will I find her?"

"She'll be here in the main office with me. That is, as long as you're able to come sometime today. Otherwise, I'll bunk her upstairs in one of the empty counselor rooms out of the other girl's reach. I can assure you she will be quite safe until you arrive. Do you have any idea when I may expect you?"

Justin worried his upper lip with his teeth as he looked at Alex and said, "Could you hold on for just a moment and I'll check?"

"Certainly."

Justin let out a heavy breath as he cupped one hand over the bottom of his cell phone and turned to his boyfriend. "Kaylee's been expelled," he told him simply.

Alex's eyebrows rose; he had a feeling he wasn't going to like what Justin would tell him, since he gleaned part of the story from Justin's part of the conversation, but expelled? "She's been kicked out? Why?"

"Expelled, Alex," Justin corrected curtly; somehow he didn't like the term 'kicked out,' although he supposed it was the same thing. "It's a long story," he added, not willing at the moment to fully go into all the details. "The end result, though, is that I have to go pick her up." He hesitated for a moment, not really wanting to ask Alex but seeing it as the best alternative. After all, they were already in Canada and it was on the way back home. "Alex…" he began softly.

Alex sighed. "You want to pick her up in my company's plane."

Justin nodded. "I'm sorry," he told the other man. He really was a little embarrassed to have to ask him for such a large favor, and he knew Alex had to be bitterly disappointed. Not only had he rebuffed his marriage proposal, but now he was asking to cut their vacation short and pick up his daughter on the way back to boot. "I know it's cutting our vacation short and I know how much you were looking forward to it. But I have no choice – their rules require that she be expelled from camp and I have to go pick her up right away, or else she'll have to sleep in one of the counselor's quarters." Alex blew out an exasperated breath between his lips as Justin added, "If you'd rather not, I guess I can rent a car and drive there."

Alex shook his head. "Justin, that's at least a five-hour drive," he pointed out. "That's not practical." He knew he was stuck. As much as he hated the idea of having to cut short their vacation, in addition to not obtaining what he wanted most of all, he also knew Justin. The man wouldn't stop at whatever it took to pick Kaylee up as soon as possible. He knew Justin had fretted from the start about being separated for such a relatively long period of time from his daughter, and now this would increase his concern ten-fold. Besides, this just might be a good opportunity to show his boyfriend that he could be supportive of his needs. "Of course we can pick her up in the plane. I agree it's the logical thing to do."

Justin smiled at him, grateful – and just a little surprised – by his understanding. "Thank you," he whispered. His eyes clouded over slightly as he added, "I'm sorry I ruined your plans."

Alex reached over and took Justin's hand. "I won't lie, Justin. I am disappointed that our vacation's over so soon. But I know how much you love your daughter, so I would expect nothing less from you." He gazed into the captivating blue eyes intently, so much so that Justin's face reddened in response as he added, "That still doesn't mean I'm giving up on what I want." The look he was giving Justin left no question as to what precisely he was referring to as he leaned over to kiss the soft lips briefly before pulling back. "Just remember that." And he meant it, too, he didn't know exactly how or when it would happen, but he had no intention of letting Justin's ex – whether he was completely out of the picture or not – come between what he wanted more than anything.

He quickly turned back to the camp's operations manager. "I will be there shortly," he told the other man. "Probably within a couple hours, in fact."

Winter's eyebrows rose in surprise; he could have sworn Kaylee has mentioned that they lived in Chicago when she and her sister had told him the truth about their scheme earlier. "I see," he said. "That will be fine; I'll be expecting you then."

As the two men concluded their conversation, Justin bit his lip as he watched Alex rise from the bed and walk quietly over to the closet to begin pulling his clothes out and drape them over the back of a nearby desk chair. He knew his boyfriend was disappointed over having to change their plans and he did feel bad about it. Was he as crestfallen, though, as Alex was? Probably not, he had to admit. If he were honest with himself, he had come mainly because it seemed to mean so much to the other man. Oh, he had liked the idea of exploring someplace new, especially the art galleries. He and Alex did have a lot in common, and he enjoyed his company. Alex was an attentive, considerate lover and companion. As he slowly rose from their bed, however, and watched Alex walk into the bathroom to begin gathering their toiletries, though, why did he feel just a bit relieved, too? Was it because Alex was expecting more from him than he was willing to give him?

He sighed, knowing he wasn't going to get the answers he wanted today. Walking over to the dresser, he slowly pulled out the top drawer to begin gathering his briefs and socks. In time, he would have to wrestle with all those questions, but for now, he had a scared little girl he had to comfort and reassure.

Back at camp, the girls stood up and gave each other a high-five as soon as Winters put the phone down. "One down, one to go!" Katie shouted to her sister in joy as they hugged each other, relieved that the first part of their plan had gone so well. "Now it's my turn!"

Winters smiled over at their exuberance as they did a little happy-type dance in a tight little circle. "Just remember, though," he cautioned them as he began to punch in the telephone number for the other father. "This is supposed to be a serious situation; no more giggling. That kinds of gives off the wrong sort of vibes," he said teasingly.

Kaylee and Katie grinned at each other, their eyes sparkling in barely-controlled joy over their accomplishment so far. "The man's right," Katie declared. "Less happiness, more drama." She still couldn't help grinning at her sister, though, as they gave each other a brief, tight hug before they sat back down in their seats, each mimicking the other's posture as they both sat forward in their chairs, their hands clasped together in between their legs as they looked over at Winters expectantly for the execution of the next part of their plan.

"Well," he said with a grin. "That's better. Remember, this is serious business." The two girls nodded with a smile as he added, "Now, let's try Mr. Kinney." He finished pressing the phone pad for Kinney's number and waited rather impatiently for it to connect. After a couple of rings, he heard a click on the other end.

"Kinney."

"Brian Kinney?"

"Yeah – you're the one calling my personal cell phone. Who the hell are you?"

Winters smirked. Well, the man apparently doesn't mince words. Let's see how he responds to what I have to say. "Mr. Kinney, my name is Perry Winters. I'm the operations manager for Camp Pineland."

"Katie?" was the instant response as Brian's caustic tone immediately changed to a softer one, inflected with concerned. "Is something wrong with her?" Despite his careful show of bravado around his friends and colleagues, when it came to his daughter – Justin's daughter – that was an entirely different matter.

"No," was the reassuring response as Brian's breathing started up anew; he hadn't even been aware he had been holding it in. "She's fine. But there is a problem, Mr. Kinney."

Brian urgently held up his hand for silence as Ted walked into his office with some papers, signifying he needed quiet. Ted nodded as he walked over and slid into one of the chrome and leather seats opposite Brian's desk as he noticed Brian's brows furrowed.

"What sort of 'problem,' Mr. Winters? Please get to the point."

"Well, it seems that your daughter and another camper didn't get along too well and she took matters into her hands to resolve it."

Brian's eyebrows rose. "Took matters into her own hands? What the fuck does that mean?"

Winters' eyes widened slightly at the other man's 'colorful' language. Katie had warned him, though, that her father could be 'blunt,' and he was beginning to quickly realize that she had been right. He took a deep breath before explaining, "It seems your daughter and another camper haven't been getting along too well together and it's resulted in some altercations."

"Altercations? Will you fucking get to the point, Winters? Did my daughter beat the shit out of someone or something? If she did, I'm sure the other girl deserved it." Brian knew his daughter could take care of herself, but he also knew that unbeknownst to a lot of people, despite her hard outer shell Katie was also like most girls her age and her feelings could be easily bruised. If his daughter had difficulties with another girl at camp, he knew she had to have been provoked before she resorted to violence.

"Well, not exactly," Winters answered; he hastened to elaborate before Brian had another chance to say anything further. "It was mainly what I would call pranks. She is accused of drilling a hole in another girl's canoe and placing a can of honey over the door ledge of the other girl's cabin so it spilled onto her when she opened the door this morning."

To his consternation, he heard the other man laughing heartily in response. "Mr. Kinney, I assure you this is a very serious situation! This is not a laughing matter," he said stiffly. He noticed both girls eyeing him intently with a smile on their face before they couldn't help it and proceeded to giggle at his answer, no doubt figuring out that their father wasn't taking this quite as seriously as he was. Winters quickly shook his head, again signaling them to be quiet as they reluctantly complied.

"To hell it isn't!" Brian responded, thinking he had heard his daughter in the background laughing just like he had been. "I think it's fucking hilarious. I'm glad my daughter can take care of herself."

"But Mr. Kinney, this is not the way to resolve this sort of thing! Someone could have gotten hurt."

"I can assure you, Mr. Winters," Brian said icily. "My daughter does not go around picking fights. If she did what you said she did, she must have had a good reason. What exactly was this other girl doing to her?" His face darkened at the thought of another girl hurting his daughter – Justin's daughter.

"She has been accused of bullying her and kicking her out of the cabin they shared," Winters admitted as he looked over at the two girls who had finally quieted down. "Not literally kicking her," he added quickly before the other man's temper exploded. "Just pushing her out last night and causing her to find other quarters temporarily. I can assure you, though, that your daughter is fine. In fact, she's here with me right now." Both of them…

Brian huffed out a tension-filled breath, not liking the sound of that at all. "And just where is this other girl?" he asked curtly. "What about her culpability in this?"

"The other girl is being questioned about her role in this matter, and her misbehavior will be dealt with accordingly," he assured Brian. "If she has been found to be in violation of our bullying policy, she will be expelled from camp and banned for any further attendance in the future."

Brian set his jaw at the thought of his little girl being subjected to such behavior. He had wanted Katie attend the camp to gain more experience with her painting ability and engage in some of the other activities that she enjoyed, but he had also been ambivalent about letting her travel so far out of his sight. It seems that his concerns might have been justified now. "Well, you fucking well had better take care of it," he warned the other man. "When I agreed for my daughter to attend your camp, I was under the impression that you were a first-rate establishment; I have serious doubts about that now."

"I can assure you, Mr. Kinney, we are; this is a very rare occurrence. And as soon as the matter came to light, we took immediate pains to address it." He glanced over at the two girls across from him before adding, "As a matter of fact, there's something else I need to discuss with you. While I can understand why your daughter felt like she needed to do what she did, unfortunately she did not follow proper protocol in handling it. She should have allowed us to investigate the matter instead of taking matters into her own hands. As a result, I'm afraid we have to follow the bylaws of the camp and issue an expulsion order for her."

Brian's blood pressure rose along with his voice as his eyes flashed in anger. "Let me get this straight, Winters; because some other camper saw fit to harass and bully my daughter and she defended herself, now she is being expelled? What sort of fucking nonsense is THAT?"

Ted, who was sitting across from his boss, stared over at Brian and actually felt somewhat sorry for the other man on the phone; like everyone else, he had occasionally felt the wrath of Brian Kinney; and when it came to his daughter – his and Justin's daughter – he was like a bear protecting its cub.

Winters closed his eyes in dismay, figuring that was going to be Kinney's response. But rules were rules, no matter how arbitrary and unfair they may be. "I can understand your viewpoint, Mr. Kinney," he finally said, trying hard to stay calm. "But we cannot allow these girls to take matters into their own hands. Your daughter signed the page from the handbook signifying that she was to take any such issues directly to me or one of the counselors and she violated that rule. We have to maintain order here or chaos would ensue." He took a deep breath before adding, "I'm afraid you will need to come and pick your daughter up as soon as possible. When can I expect you?" He left no room for negotiation as he waited for Kinney's response.

From their place across from Winters, Kaylee and Katie looked at each other and held their breath. This was the last – and other necessary part – of the puzzle that needed to come together before the girls could start to execute the next part of their plan.

Brian sighed, still disgusted with their unbending rules. If that was the way they were going to be, though, to hell with it; he didn't want his daughter in such an intolerant environment anyway. "My daughter is there with you?" he asked.

"Yes, she is," Winters told him, wondering if he was insinuating that somehow he couldn't make sure one of his campers was kept safe. "She will either stay with me or be upstairs in the counselor's quarters until you arrive," he assured him. "Nothing will happen to her, Mr. Kinney."

"You'd better make damn sure nothing happens to her," he told him almost menacingly. "Let me talk to her."

Winters sighed as he placed the phone on speaker. "I've got you on the speakerphone, Mr. Kinney," he told Brian as he lifted a finger to his lips in a motion and looked at the girls to signify they'd better watch what they said. He lifted his eyebrows at them as they nodded in understanding. "Katie's right here; go ahead."

Kaylee's heart soared at the first sound of her other father's voice that she had not heard in so many years. As he began to speak, her mind floated back to a time when she had heard that same voice when she was much younger; a voice from another time and place….

Flashback – approximately 10 years ago

"Oh, my God," Brian deadpanned as he walked into their kitchen and observed the mess near the eat-in breakfast counter. Just before the twins were born, he and Justin had had the kitchen remodeled so that a two-tiered, cherry-wood counter bar had been installed near the stove and refrigerator. Even though it looked a little silly, they had made sure that one of the levels on the eat-in counter was low enough so that two little girls would have a place to sit with them when they ate breakfast. They had even had two miniature chairs made especially for the twins so they all could sit together in the mornings and eat as a family before Brian rushed off to work. Brian had laughed at Justin's sentimental idea at first, but he was forced to admit to himself that he couldn't imagine not starting his day out now without their daily morning ritual. It was one of the best parts of his day, and it made the rest of the day so much more enjoyable. Now, as Brian stood in the kitchen doorway, he noticed a pool of milk and Cheerios on the floor under his daughter as she looked innocently over at him, and he had to purse his lips together to keep from bursting out laughing at the comical scene. Kaylee had a white mustache around her mouth and Cheerios stuck to her face as she looked over at him with a deer-in-the-headlights look and she blinked back at him with those large, baby-blue eyes that so reminded him of his partner.

At the first sign of her father's appearance, she flashed him a beaming smile that caught at his heart as she said brightly, "Hi, Daddy! Look what I did!"

Brian had to laugh now as he entered the room and noticed Kaylee's cereal bowl turned upside down on the counter with more milk pooled around the perimeter. He reached down and gingerly kissed his daughter on the one part of her cheek that wasn't adorned with Cheerios. "I see," he said with a smile. "You made yourself breakfast."

The little girl nodded.

"And just how did you get the milk?" he asked curiously, knowing that there was no way she could have opened the refrigerator.

"I took it out of my sippy cup," she explained helpfully as Brian noticed Kaylee's favorite cup – the one with Curious George on it – lying nearby on the counter on its side, the top off it and the container now empty. Justin must have forgotten to place it in the sink last night, he thought. His partner was normally very careful about not letting the girls go to bed with a bottle in their mouth, and he usually was very conscientious about emptying any leftover milk into the sink before they retired for bed. He knew, though, how tired Justin had been yesterday after being out of town for an art show in Philadelphia, so for once he must have abandoned his normal routine and merely left it on the counter, well within reach of inquisitive hands… It seems that their daughter had decided to take advantage of that fact.

"Where's your other Daddy, Princess?" he asked curiously.

"He's right here," Brian heard Justin say a little wearily as he turned to see Justin walking in with Katie's hand in his. The two slowly toddled over to Brian as Justin explained, "Someone was lying on the couch fast asleep a few minutes ago," he explained, knowing that Brian knew he never left the twins out of his sight normally. "It seems, though, that someone woke up," he added ruefully. "I'll have to be more careful." He picked Katie up and placed her down on the other miniature chair next to her sister as he sighed regretfully. If anything ever happened to his girls, he would feel awful.

Brian reached over to place a kiss on Justin's lips. "Hey, no harm done," he assured him softly as he smiled at him. "We may need to get another box of Cheerios the next time we hit the grocery, though; I think someone used the last of them up just now."

Justin grinned as he looked at the abundance of little 'O's' scattered on the floor and on the counter near their little girl. "Yeah, I think you're right." He turned to his other daughter. "How about Rice Krispies this morning, Sweetheart?"

Katie nodded with a smile as Justin walked over to the sink and procured a wet rag and some paper towels. He handed them to Brian, who began to clean up the mess around Kaylee and then stooped down to continue the task on the floor. As he stood back up, Justin placed a bowl of cereal with milk in front of Katie. "There you go, Honey." The little girl picked up her small, rubber-ended spoon and began to eat her cereal as Justin asked Brian, "What time do you think you'll be home tonight? I thought I'd fix something for dinner."

"About the normal time," Brian said as he picked up Kaylee's bowl and handed it to Justin. "You sure you want to cook?" he asked. "You still look a little tired from your trip."

Justin smiled at him. "I wouldn't look so exhausted if someone hadn't kept me up most of the night."

Brian waggled his eyebrows and curled his lips under. "Well, we had to get reacquainted, didn't we?"

Justin blushed. "I was only gone for a couple of days." He could still feel the effects of their passionate lovemaking last night; since they no longer had any latex barriers between them, every movement, every thrust and every touch was intensified tenfold. It made Justin feel it for hours afterward, but he didn't dislike that feeling; in fact, it was pretty damn incredible.

"That was two days too many," Brian whispered huskily as he slid his arms around Justin's waist and kissed him passionately. The two girls didn't seem to pay them much mind as they kissed; their fathers participated in this activity on a frequent basis and it was a common sight for them. As he pulled back from Justin, Brian whispered, "I have to go into work early today. I'll be home as soon as I can."

Justin nodded as he gazed up lovingly into Brian's eyes. "I love you," he whispered softly.

"I love you, too," Brian whispered with a smile as he gave Justin one more quick peck on the lips before releasing him. He leaned down to kiss Katie on the cheek. "Bye, Princess," he said to her. "Take good care of Daddy while I'm gone." Katie nodded as she continued to enjoy her Rice Krispies.

He turned then to his other daughter, who was now thankfully cleaned up from her breakfast endeavor. His daughter reached her arms up above her head and Brian scooped her up into his arms briefly and kissed her soundly on the cheek, too. "Bye, Sweet Pea," he cooed to her as he hugged her tight and grunted before placing her back down in her chair. "I'll see you later." He smiled once more at Justin before he picked up his briefcase by the door and turned to go. "Better fix dinner by yourself tonight, unless you want to be wearing it," he advised teasingly as Justin rolled his eyes and grinned. He quietly opened the door to the garage and, with one last loving look at his family, closed it with a smile on his face.

End Flashback

"Katie?" Kaylee heard the same melodious voice saying now, and her heart skipped a beat as she glanced over at her sister.

"I'm here, Dad," she heard Katie say.

"Are you okay, Princess?"

Katie nodded, even though she knew he couldn't see her. "I'm fine," she reassured him. "But I'm ready to come home." She smiled over at Kaylee who returned her smile with one of her own.

"You sure you're all right?" Brian pressed, still not liking the idea of his daughter being harassed.

"Yeah," Katie repeated. "How soon can you come and get me, Dad?"

"I'll call the airport and get the jet ready," he told her, not wanting to waste precious time booking a regular flight. He looked over at Ted, who nodded, knowing he wanted him to call and get it gassed up and ready to go. He quickly rose from his chair and headed out the door to take care of it.

Brian normally didn't like to use Kinnetik's private jet for anything except pressing business, but he couldn't think of anything more pressing at the moment than getting his daughter home where she belonged. He should have never let her go off by herself in the first place, he thought, even though he knew how important it was for her to experience new vistas and other cultures. Being subjected to a bully, however, was not what he had had in mind when he had allowed Jennifer to persuade him to let Katie attend Camp Pineland. He would have to make sure that she knew what a big mistake that had been the next time he saw her. "I should be there in about four or five hours," he advised her.

Kaylee reached over to excitedly take Katie's hand as her eyes lit up; she was absolutely fascinated by listening to her father's voice and it brought back so many happy memories of him that she thought she had forgotten. She couldn't wait to see him again! Katie smiled at her as she said to her father, "That's great, Dad! I'll be watching for you."

"Good," Brian said over the speakerphone. "Let me talk to Mr. Winters again." There was a slight pause before Brian added, "I love you, Princess."

Both Kaylee's and Katie's eyes filled with tears at that statement; Kaylee longed to say those words back to her father but knew she couldn't yet – or could she? She looked at Katie who nodded encouragingly before she said to her father in a choked-up voice, "I love you, too, Dad. I'll see you soon."

Winters swallowed the lump in his own throat as he switched the phone back over to "private" to conclude his conversation with the girls' father. "Mr. Kinney? She'll be waiting in my office for you, and I'll take good care of her," he promised.

"See that you do," Brian said sternly, not impressed so far with his efforts in that regard. "I'll see you shortly."

Winters let out a sigh of relief as he replaced the receiver and looked over at the two look-alikes. "Well, looks like that's settled," he told them. "It sounds like Mr. Taylor will be getting here first. If you'd like, I can have some breakfast sent over here to my office, and you can eat upstairs in the counselor's dining room. Sound good?"

The two girls nodded gratefully as they stood up to go. "I'll have someone send for you, Katie, when your father gets here," he told the girl. Looking over at Kaylee, he added, "And it goes without saying that you need to keep a low profile until your other father picks her up, or this will all be for nothing."

"Don't worry," Katie told him as the two girls looked at each other. "We're not going to give anything away." At least not yet, she thought. There would be time later to divulge what was going on, but not before they put a lot of plans into motion first. She turned to her sister to add, "Come on. We've got a lot of work to do yet."

Kaylee nodded; they had started providing each other with a crash course into each other's lives, but if they were going to successfully pull this off, there was still a lot of work to do yet.

As the two girls left his office to walk upstairs and Winters picked up the phone to order some lunch to be brought up to them, he could sense both their anxiety as well as their excitement over the momentous adventure they were about to embark upon. Good Luck, Girls, he silently thought as watched them disappear.

"No, her name is JR, not RJ!" Katie corrected her sister. "Remember – it's short for Jenny Rebecca!"

"Argh!" Kaylee growled as she closed her eyes briefly and shook her head in frustration. "There's so many names to think of! You have only a few!" she pointed out to her sister as they sat side by side at a small dining table in the counselors' area eating their breakfast. "Okay, okay… JR," she repeated as Katie nodded.

"And my cats' names are…?" Kaylee prodded her sister.

"Dali and Picasso," Katie responded quickly as her sister nodded before she plopped a slice of her orange into her mouth. She scrunched up her face as she watched Katie enthusiastically swirl her scrambled eggs in ketchup before taking a large bite. "That is so gross!" she commented. "I can't believe you eat your eggs with ketchup!"

Katie grinned at her. "Better get used to it," she warned her. "Daddy always expects it whenever I ask him to make me scrambled eggs for breakfast!"

Kaylee's face took on a pained expression as she watched her sister polishing off the rest of her eggs with alacrity. She silently vowed NOT to ask their father to scramble any eggs while she was with him. "What else do you like to eat for breakfast?" she asked, hoping fervently that something more agreeable to her stomach would be a possibility.

Katie laughed, realizing why she was asking her. "Don't worry – I can eat 'normal' food, too. But our father isn't that great of a cook," she added. "Most of the time I either fix old-fashioned oatmeal with strawberries in the microwave or maybe a whole-grain bagel with some low-fat cream cheese. Dad normally doesn't eat a whole lot for breakfast – usually he just has some coffee and a piece of whole-wheat toast or two with a little soy butter and sugarless jam."

"Wonderful," Kaylee replied with a definite lack of enthusiasm, although that feeling didn't extend to actually meeting their father again. She hadn't eaten much of her own breakfast – just a few slices of her orange. She hadn't even touched her bagel. Her stomach had too many butterflies as she thought about her other father coming to pick her up soon. The closer the time was getting, the more her stomach was churning. What if she and her sister couldn't pull this off? What if somehow her father figured out what was going on and exposed them to their other father before they had a chance to implement any of their plans? Not only would they be back at the beginning, but their two fathers might be even farther apart than they were now.

"It's going to be okay, Kaylee," she heard her sister say as Katie reached over to grasp her wrist. "I know it's a lot to remember, but I've written most of it down. You can sneak a peek on the sly when you get confused about something. You have to try," she urged her. "Everything else depends on this."

Kaylee nodded, her blue eyes wide and expressive. "I know," she answered solemnly. "My stomach is tied up in knots, though. Isn't yours?" She couldn't believe her sister had eaten so much of her scrambled eggs and bacon; all that was left was a half a piece of buttered toast.

Katie shrugged. "Yeah," she admitted as she plopped the last bite of toast into her mouth and licked her fingers. "But we still gotta eat, though." She grinned as her sister shook her head in amazement over how much she could wolf down. "Besides, I have a lot less information to memorize than YOU do; all I have to do is remember your cats' names and that stupid Alex." She was silent for a moment before asking a little worriedly, "You don't really think Daddy's serious about him, do you?"

Kaylee shook her head. "Nah," she said with conviction. "Like I told you before – he's more interested in Daddy than Daddy is in him. I do think he gets lonely sometimes, though," she said softly, her heart twisting just a bit at the thought of her wonderful father feeling that way. She knew how much he loved her, and she loved spending time with him, but she also recognized that he was still young and needed the company of someone his own age. She knew instinctively, though, that Alex wasn't the right choice. It was almost as if the man was trying too hard to win her over to 'his' side, but he was wasting his time. The right choice – the only one – was about to come pick her up, and it was up to both of them to right this horrendous wrong that had been made and bring their fathers back together again. She still didn't understand what had happened so long ago, but it was time to take care of it. "No," she said firmly. "He likes Alex, and I think Alex does love him, but Daddy doesn't feel the same way. His heart still belongs to our other father; I can feel it." At least I hope so, she thought silently, not wanting any doubt to spill out of her mouth for fear her sister would become concerned that their plan wouldn't succeed. It had to…

"Good," Katie said with a relieved smile. She dug into her pocket to make sure she still had the 'cheat sheet' with important information about her other father, as well as Kaylee's cell phone number on her. "Now remember what I said – make sure no one is around when you call or text me. And if you get stuck about something, contact either Grandma Jen or Grandma Debbie – they'll both help you out."

Kaylee nodded, her heart beating rapidly in anticipation of their plan finally taking shape. She looked at her sister and softly said, "This has got to work, Katie. It just has to." A sudden thought occurred to her. "What if by chance both of our fathers show up at the same time? Is that possible?"

Katie's eyes widened as she considered that. Her father was flying in on Kinnetik's private jet. How was their other father coming? And how long would it take? Both fathers would have to drive up here to the somewhat remote camp location once they arrived at the airport. "Oh, no," she exclaimed in dread. "You don't think that would happen, do you?" she asked. "Isn't Daddy coming in from Chicago by plane, too?"

Kaylee bit her lip. "Well, we flew up here, and I heard Mr. Winters tell him to get here as soon as possible, so I think he would fly. It only took us about an hour from the time we left our apartment and we arrived at Cheboygan. It took you longer than that to get here, didn't it?"

Katie scrunched up her face as she thought about their flight time before and told her, "Yeah… About four and a half hours, I think."

Kaylee's face relaxed somewhat as she nodded. "Thank goodness! If Daddy leaves right away – and I think he will – he should be here a lot sooner than our other father then. That should give us enough time to do what we need to do.

Katie nodded. "Yeah. Now let's go over all the names again."

Kaylee groaned. "We've gone over them three times now, Katie! I know them like the back of my hand!"

Katie's eyes flashed in irritation. "Don't complain! If you don't get all the names straight, Daddy might figure out what's going on before we're ready! Is that what you want?"

"Of course not!" Kaylee told her gruffly. "But it's not very likely," she told her sister. "Why would he figure out that we know about each other? It's not like he's worried about it before." Her eyes inexplicably filled with tears as she thought about how he had likely not thought about her at all. She wanted so badly to see him again, and to get to know all about him, but she was also hurt by his lack of contact with her.

"I'm sure that's not true, Kaylee!" Katie cried out as she turned to look into her sister's troubled eyes. "I mean.. yeah, Daddy didn't tell me about you, either, but there has to be a good reason!"

"I suppose," she conceded grudgingly.

"This is our chance to find out," Katie told her firmly. "Okay?"

Kaylee nodded; they both wanted to see their other fathers so badly, and she knew her sister was right. Now was the time to find out exactly how each man felt about each other and to hopefully get them all back together as a family. "Okay." She took a deep breath as she began to rattle off slowly, "So Michael is Daddy's best friend, and Ben is his husband…"

From the front passenger seat of their rental SUV, Alex glanced over at Justin as he drove toward the camp; he had been noticeably quiet since they had boarded his company's private plane earlier and had kept up the same sort of silence since they had entered the car twenty minutes ago. "Justin."

The blond turned to peer over at him briefly before he returned his eyes to the road, his thoughts concentrated on his daughter.

"Yes?"

"She's going to be fine; I'm sure the man's taking good care of her."

Justin snorted softly. "Like he did last night when that other girl kicked her out of her own cabin and made her find some other place to sleep? Doesn't sound like it to me." His hands were gripping the leather steering wheel so tightly they were white from the effort as he pursed his lips together in disgust. He was still fuming over what the other girl had done to his daughter. Kaylee wouldn't hurt a fly – literally; she couldn't even kill an insect if it wound up in the brownstone. She would shoo a wasp out the window rather than harm it. To have her in the middle of some physical fracas with another camper was ludicrous, then; there was no way his daughter could have instigated or participated in something like that. And to be accused of drilling a hole in the other girl's canoe? Kaylee was the least mechanical person he knew – she couldn't even handle an electric skillet, much less a drill! And she was petrified of heights – she would have had to use some sort of stool or ladder in order to get that can of honey on the door's ledge. No, there was no way she could have done those things, and yet here she was, about to be expelled over accusations that she had done just that. "This is crazy," he muttered.

"What?" Alex asked curiously.

"That my daughter would be accused of those acts! She would never do something like that!"

Alex silently wondered about the veracity of that statement; as far as Justin was concerned, Kaylee could do no wrong. He preferred to believe that she was the consummate actor when it came to playing on her father's sympathy. He wasn't totally convinced that she was the innocent party in this whole affair, but at the same time he wasn't about to call Justin out on it; that was not a wise thing to do in light of his wish to get Justin to accept his marriage proposal. He only wished the man's daughter wasn't going to be part of a package deal. He bit his tongue as he replied soothingly, "I'm sure you're right. But the man wouldn't be stupid enough to have any harm come to her, not when he knows you're on your way up to get her."

"Well, I would hope not," Justin curtly responded, still peeved over the whole incident. The sooner he got his daughter out of there, the better. "We're almost there," he told Alex as he recognized the turnoff up ahead for the camp. He turned off at the sign indicating the camp's gravel driveway as Alex looked around curiously. "Wow, this is really out in the boonies, isn't it?" he asked, noticing the abundance of pine trees and fields surrounding the driveway, which seemed to go on forever.

"That's the idea," Justin said just a little more harshly than he meant to; he was so concerned with his daughter, though, he couldn't help it.

Alex sighed. "Justin, I'm not the enemy here," he said softly.

Justin let out a tense breath as he turned to glance over at Alex apologetically. "I know, I'm sorry," he told him. "I'm just worried about Kaylee, that's all." He turned his eyes back to the road as he felt Alex's hand on his arm.

"I know," Alex told him as he gave Justin's arm a brief squeeze. "She'll be fine, you'll see."

Justin nodded in response, but he was still preoccupied with his daughter's welfare as he finally saw the camp's parking lot coming into view. "Finally," he breathed out in relief as he pulled into the large, gravel expanse and slowed the car down to a stop in a spot close to the main building. He quickly unlatched his seatbelt and opened the SUV's door as Alex hurried to exit the vehicle and keep up with him; he tried hard to keep the disdain from his face at the hold this little girl had over Justin as he followed close behind him.

As they opened the two wooden double doors, Justin glanced quickly around to locate Perry Winters' office. He hurried over to the next door on the right that had a glass panel covered with a wooden-like blind as he knocked on the door firmly. "Come in," was the reply as he turned the knob to open the door, noticing a gangly-looking, red-headed man sitting behind a massive, oak desk. "Mr. Winters?" Justin said coolly, noticing immediately that his daughter wasn't in the room. "I'm Justin Taylor, Kaylee's father."

Winters rose from his chair, observing another man striding into the room with Kaylee's father. As he studied the blond who had spoken to him, however, there could be no doubt that he was the biological father of both twin girls; they were like feminine miniature versions of their father, except for the slightly darker skin. They had the same color hair, the same shade of blue eyes and the same slender body structure. He walked out from behind his desk to extend his hand outward. "Yes, Mr. Taylor, I'm the person who spoke to you earlier on the phone. Thank you for getting here so promptly."

Justin shook his hand briefly as he asked, "Where's my daughter?"

Winters smiled slightly in reassurance. "She's upstairs. She had some breakfast a little earlier, and I told her she could wait for you up in the counselors' lounge area. I'll go get her for you. Please – make yourselves comfortable."

Before Justin could follow him, Winters quickly strode over to the doorway, silently praying the man didn't trail along behind him. The last thing he wanted after all the planning he and the girls had done was for their father to discover two of them hiding upstairs from his view. To his enormous relief, the girls' father stayed back in his office. Taking a deep breath and letting it out, he hurried over to the stairs at the end of the hallway and sprinted up them, two at a time. His heart was pounding in excitement at the prospect of being a participant in the girls' wish to be reunited with their other fathers as he hurried up the steps.

As he bounded onto the landing, he rushed over to the two girls who were sitting in a somewhat beat-up, maroon, paisley-print couch that was normally used by the counselors during their leisure time; since it was mid-morning when the camp participants were typically involved with an activity of their choice, however, the room was totally empty except for the two twins seated side by side.

"Katie," Kaylee nudged her sister as she saw Winters hurrying toward them. Katie looked up as her heart began to race in expectation. The two girls stood up as the man hurried over. "Is he here?" Katie asked anxiously.

Winters nodded with a broad smile. "Yes, Justin Taylor is downstairs waiting for his daughter," he told them, looking over at Katie whose eyes were wide as saucers. "He's ready to take you home."

Katie bit her lip anxiously; she couldn't quite believe that the father she hadn't seen in years was downstairs, waiting to see her; or at least who he thought was his daughter. Despite her previous bravado, now that he was actually downstairs, her courage was beginning to fade. "Kaylee… What if I mess this up? I'm not sure I can pull this off."

For once, Kaylee was the strong one as she sternly said, "Yes, you can, Katie! Remember you look just like me; we look the same, we sound the same. He'll never know, not if you play along like we rehearsed! Just remember everything I told you! And if you get stuck, call me! You can do it! You HAVE to! It's our only chance!"

Katie licked her lips nervously but nodded. "Okay," she said hesitantly. "I'll do my best." Her eyes bored into her sister's as she realized they would have to say goodbye. "I'm going to miss you, Kaylee," she told her sister. "Remember to wait for my call tonight. And don't forget the information I gave you! You've got a lot more to remember than I do!"

Kaylee nodded. "I will… And I'll be waiting to hear from you – 11:00! Don't forget!"

Katie nodded as she reached over impulsively to give her sister a tight hug. "Good luck," she whispered to her, the glimmer of tears in her eyes.

Kaylee nodded, a lump in her throat over the idea of them parting so soon after they had been reunited. She knew, though, that it was just temporary; and hopefully when they did see each other again, it would be to bring them all together again as a family. "You, too," she whispered back to her sister as they pulled apart to stare into each other's eyes.

Winters cleared his throat to hurry them along, not wanting to take the chance that their father would come looking for them. "We'd better go," he told Katie. We wouldn't want your father to see you both up here. Oh, and by the way, there's another man with him."

Kaylee and Katie frowned. "Another man?" Kaylee asked as her eyes narrowed. No, please, not HIM. "What does he look like?"

"About average height, dark hair, dark blue eyes, I think," Winters supplied as Kaylee rolled his eyes.

"Great!" she muttered. "Alex the pest must have decided to come with him! That's just great! Why am I not surprised, though?" she growled in disgust. Leave it to her father's obnoxious boyfriend to show up with him.

"Daddy's boyfriend came with him?" Katie asked in surprise.

Kaylee nodded. "It sounds like him. It can't be Daddy; he's a lot taller than average and I'm sure we'd know it if they both showed up together unexpectedly. It has to be him." She sighed. "I was hoping Daddy would show up alone, but I can't say I'm surprised he's here. He has a habit of showing up at the worst times." Typically, Alex liked to appear unannounced at their brownstone's doorstep with some type of carryout for dinner, hoping no doubt to ingratiate himself further in their father's presence. She hated the way he always seemed to saccharine sweet around her when their father was around; as soon as he left the room, however, he normally simply ignored her until their father came back, which was fine with her. She had coached Katie extensively on the man's tricks, and was confident her no-nonsense sister wouldn't let him get away with much while she was gone. "Remember what I told you about him," she reminded Katie, who nodded firmly.

"I will," she promised as she reached over to pick up Kaylee's suitcase, choking down the strangeness of assuming her sister's identity and feeling almost ill now that the moment was close at hand – the moment she had dreamed of for so long. "I'll talk to you tonight," she whispered to her sister. "I'll be thinking about you."

Kaylee nodded, hating to see her go but knowing she must. Her eyes followed her sister's slight form as she and Winters walked over to the steps and soon disappeared from view. She sighed as she sat back down, suddenly feeling very alone but knowing her sister's thoughts would be with her until they could see each other again. Up until a few days ago, she didn't even know she had a sister; now that she knew, though, she was going to miss her terribly. And while she was eagerly looking forward to seeing her other father again, she found herself mourning the loss of not seeing the father she loved so deeply waiting for her downstairs. "I'll see you soon, Daddy," she whispered aloud. "I love you." She clasped her hands in her lap, feeling small and vulnerable as she wondered what was going on downstairs.

Justin tightly hugged his arms around his body as he leaned against the side wall, waiting anxiously for Kaylee to return with Winters. He wouldn't be reassured that she was really all right until he could see her with his own eyes.

From his position on the couch, Alex watched Justin intently, knowing he was preoccupied with his daughter's welfare. He also knew that until this issue with his daughter was settled and she was safely on the way home with them that he could forget broaching the topic of marriage with Justin. He sighed softly in resignation as he heard footsteps softly approaching the office.

Justin glanced over to the door as he heard someone coming; a few seconds later, he saw Winters coming back in with his arm placed lightly around his daughter's shoulder. "Kaylee!" he cried out in shock as he noticed her appearance. "What happened to your beautiful hair?" Kaylee's pride and joy had always been her long, wavy, flowing hair; she was almost obsessed with ways in which to style it, enjoying using all sorts of glittery, shiny barrettes and scrunchies to hold her unruly main back. Now, however, all those hair accessories would be unnecessary as he noticed the short bob she was currently wearing. His mouth hung open in shock; he simply couldn't believe that Kaylee would have agreed to have her hair cut willingly.

Katie stood there agape like a statue as she finally got a look at the father that she hadn't seen in so long; he was just like he had appeared in the photograph, only a little older obviously. He had the same slim but fit built, with the same exact hair color and eye color as she and Kaylee did. He had the same perfectly-proportioned nose and the same full lips. There could be no doubt this man was her father. As he spoke to her for the first time, her heart sang at the sound of his voice. It was a strangely familiar voice, a comforting type of voice. She smiled broadly as tears of joy came unbidden to her eyes. "Daddy," she called out softly as she hurried over to fall into his waiting arms and hugged him tight as she fell into his comforting embrace, wrapping her own arms around his slender waist and laying her head against his chest, feeling his heart beating strongly beneath her. She reluctantly pulled back after several seconds to look up into his eyes. "I'm so glad to see you, Daddy," she whispered with a choked voice, overcome with emotion.

Justin frowned in concern over his daughter's reaction to seeing him, worried how recent events had affected his tenderhearted daughter. "I'm glad to see you too, Sweetheart," he replied softly. "Are you sure you're okay?" He glanced over at Alex, who was studying their reunion silently. Justin returned his attention to his daughter as he cupped his hands around her face to force her to look into his eyes. "Kaylee?"

Katie smiled. "I'm fine, Daddy," she reassured him. "I'm just so glad you're here." She sniffled through her tears as she repeated, "You don't know how glad."

Perry Winters blinked back some of his own tears as he witnessed the tender scene. If only this man knew… He cleared his throat. "Kaylee decided to take advantage of one of our counselor's talents, who's a hairstylist back home. She decided it was so hot up here without any air conditioning that it would be cooler on her if she got her hair cut." There – that sounded plausible enough, he thought in satisfaction as Justin thankfully nodded his understanding and didn't question his story.

He smiled down at his daughter. "I'm still surprised, though," he admitted. "I never thought I'd see the day when you would willingly cut your hair off."

Katie relished the feel of her father as she kept her hands around his waist and smiled. "I thought it was time for a change," she said simply as Justin grinned. She was grateful for Winters' quick thinking regarding how – and why – she had decided to change her hair style.

"Well, it suits you," Justin decided with a smile. "And it will definitely be a lot cooler when the humidity hits back home." Chicago, while near the lake, could be notoriously uncomfortable when late August hit.

For the first time, Katie broke apart from her father to stare suspiciously over at the other man: the boyfriend. She immediately pegged him as the enemy and decided she didn't like him one bit. "What's HE doing here?" she asked bluntly.

Alex tried to keep the glare off his face as Justin explained, "Alex and I were actually in Canada when Mr. Winters called. He was nice enough to let me use his company's jet to fly down here to get you so I could arrive here faster."

Katie's eyes narrowed. "What were the two of you doing in Canada?" She didn't like the sound of that at all.

"Kaylee," Justin chided her, a little embarrassed at her sharp tone of voice. "We can talk about it in the car, Honey. Get your things and let's get out of here." He wanted to discuss in more detail what had happened between her and this bully, Sandra, but as long as she appeared physically okay, he preferred to discuss it in private and whisk her away from the camp immediately.

Katie gave Alex one more suspicious stare as she finally nodded and picked up Kaylee's suitcase to begin pulling it along behind her father. She paused as she approached Winters to whisper to him, "Thank you," as he nodded with a slight smile, the words conveying much more between them than her father would ever know.

"Mr. Winters," Justin said politely as the man nodded while the trio turned to go. "Good luck, Katie," he whispered when they were out of earshot. "Good luck to all of you.