Natalia was walking toward the door of Company when her phone rang. She paused and reached into her purse. Caller ID said: Olivia. She smiled and rolled her eyes at herself for feeling a burst of happy butterflies flutter through her chest.

"Hey," she said into the phone.

"Hey you, did I catch you before you got there?"

"Barely. What's up?"

"Just wanted to ask a favor… do you think you can call me on your way home?"

"Um, yeah. Of course. How come?" She heard a grumbling sigh come through the phone.

"I just uhm, want you to?"

Natalia laughed. Smooth, Olivia. "Okay. I'll be sure to do that. Anything else?"

"That'll do it. Good luck with Frank."

"Thanks. I love you."

"I love you… see you soon."

Natalia ended the call and took a moment to smile as widely as her face would allow. Our first phone I love you's. She bounced a little on the balls of her feet and felt like a silly teenager. Stop it. This isn't the time for giddy. Collecting herself, she took a deep breath and turned back toward the door of Company. Her face sobered immediately when she remembered the task at hand.

"Natalia!" Frank said happily the instant she walked through the door. He walked over and hugged her.

"Hey, Frank," she said, stiffly hugging him back.

"Oh, you don't know how glad I was when you called. I can't stop thinking about you."

Natalia forced a smile onto her face. All the happiness of the day seemed to suddenly vanish. Wearing a smile was so difficult she felt like it was physically hurting her. The minute she walked through the doors to Company, guilt had begun piling onto her heart. It left her feeling heavy.

"I've been thinking about you too, Frank," she said quietly.

Frank's face broke into a wide smile. "Oh Natalia, I'm so glad. I know you still have to work through your feelings for Gus, but I have a feeling if we give it some time…"

"Please, Frank." She held up a hand, breaking him off. "Like I said on the phone, I have a few things I need to tell you."

"Oh sure! Why don't we…" He laid a hand on the small of Natalia's back. She tensed up. Oblivious, he leaned closer and said, "I reserved us a nice little table over there." He pointed across the room at a dark corner where a small table sat. A single candle burned in the center of it.

"Alright," Natalia agreed reluctantly. She would have much preferred a less romantic setting… like maybe outside on the sidewalk where she could easily sprint away after revealing the truth.

They made their way to the table and sat down. For an awkward length of time they said nothing. Natalia fidgeted in her chair, feeling the weight of Frank's happy stare bore into her.

"I'm so happy you wanted to talk," Frank said. "I'm glad we're having dinner, too. Hey, what's Rafe doing tonight?"

"Oh, he's out catching up with some old friends. He was really excited about it. I think he worried a little that people forgot about him while he was in jail."

"Oh no. Who could forget Rafe? He's a great kid." Frank smiled, remembering the badge Rafe had given him. "He's the best. Well, I'm glad we're having dinner then. I wouldn't want you to be lonely out there at the farmhouse."

"Oh, um." She looked down and began fiddling with the corner of her napkin. "Well, about that. Olivia and Emma have actually moved back in."

Frank stared at her in confusion. He wasn't sure why, but he felt a surge of jealousy move through him. "Why?"

"Well," Natalia began. She supposed saying, "because we're in love and I'll simply die if I have to spend any more time away from her" probably wasn't the most tactful way to handle this, so she went for the technical truth. "It was sort of strange. She got a call and… Philip Spaulding wanted them to move back in."

"Philip? That doesn't make sense."

"Well, apparently he thinks it's a good environment for Emma… a good place for her to grow up."

Frank frowned. "They can't stay there forever, Natalia. It's your house, not theirs."

Natalia clenched her teeth. It was all she could do to not go off on a long, ranting explanation about how it so very much was their home. Tactful, Natalia. Calm and nice. "I'm happy to have them back, Frank. We make a good team."

"But what about us? What about our plans? I'm sure it will break Emma's heart when she has to move out. Why would Olivia want that for her? I mean, I don't want to rush you. I know you're having trouble getting over Gus, but I think… I have a really good feeling that we can get through this together."

Natalia sighed. The man really was clueless. Even the math teacher who never met Olivia before knew. Oh, Frank. Why are you making this so hard? "I… What Olivia said about Gus, that wasn't exactly true." Frank squinted at her in confusion. "I miss Gus… I'll always miss Gus, but I've accepted he's gone. I've moved on."

"Then why?"

"Oh Frank, I'm not sure there's ever going to be a good way to tell you this. So I'm just going to come out and say it…"

Frank blinked at her. He suddenly noticed her face looked very sad. "Say what? You know you can tell me anything. If something's bothering you…"

She sighed and tilted her head sympathetically. "I never wanted things to turn out like this. I respect you and your family, but…" She shook her head. Frank reached out to take her hand but she pulled back. He frowned and leaned back in his chair. "And I do love you, Frank… It's just… I'm not in love with you. I can't change that and we aren't getting married." She said the last words quickly, as if pulling a band aid off a wound.

Frank stared at her for long moments. He stopped hearing the soft sound of music in the background. He stopped hearing the voices of fellow diners. He stopped hearing until the only thing that filled his ears was the distant rushing thud of his own heart. He felt the world sink in around him until the only things that existed were Natalia's face and the small, burning candle between them.

Natalia watched him with a rising nervousness. It looked to her as if a veil of darkness was slowly lowering itself over his face. It seemed unnatural and instantly set her on edge. She felt an irrational desire to flee. She knew she'd want to tuck her tail between her legs and run when she finally told him, but she also assumed it would be an abstract fear like wanting to run out of the dentist's office after he informs you he'll have to fill a cavity – not a desire on which she'd actually act. But this was something different. The look on his face was something she never expected.

"I'm so very, very sorry. Please, Frank. Please, say something," she said in a small voice, trying to hide what she wanted to believe was irrational fear.

"Why would you…" His eyes were large and he scanned her face. "Why did you say you'd marry me?"

"Please Frank, you have to understand."

"No. No I don't, Natalia. When you told me you'd marry me I believed it." His words were coming out fast and loud. "When you stood by my side and we told my family we were going to get married I believed it. I believed it all. I believed in you. I trusted you. I love you." He clenched a hand into a fist and let it drop heavily onto the table. Natalia flinched as the silverware and empty plates jumped and landed with a tiny clatter. "What… why would you do this? What happened… why would you change your mind?"

Natalia felt her heart beating fast. "I didn't mean to hurt you. I was so confused for so long. I thought us marrying was what I wanted. I thought it was the right thing to do."

"The right thing to do? What does that even mean, Natalia? What aren't you telling me here?" His eyes were large and dark. He was grabbing the edge of the table and his knuckles were white from the force of the grip.

Natalia swallowed hard. She was finding it hard to breathe and knew she looked guilty and scared. "What do you mean?"

"What is it? What made you change your mind?" His voice was low, menacing. She sat frozen, shaken to the core by the notion that this calm, sweet man - this man she almost married – could be acting like this. "Hmm?" he intoned loudly, eyebrows lifted, demanding an answer.

"I… I think maybe I should go, Frank," Natalia said and moved to get up from her chair.

"Oh no," Frank growled. He grabbed her arm. She was forced to lean in toward him. "Tell me. Is it someone else? Is there someone else, Natalia? Someone other than the ghost of Gus?" He said the last three words with such a dark sarcasm it made Natalia flinch.

"I… I..." she said shakily, staring down the hand that gripped her arm.

"Tell me, Natalia," he said, moving his face closer to hers.

"You're hurting my arm. Please, Frank. Don't do this," she pleaded. Frank released his grip and threw Natalia's arm back toward her.

"Go," he muttered darkly.

She grabbed her purse, stood up as quickly as possible, and began moving toward the door. As she passed through the door, she glanced back to make sure he wasn't following her. She breathed a sigh of relief. He was still sitting at the small table in the corner, staring down at the tiny candle.

Natalia sat in her car, doors locked, gripping the steering wheel tightly. She knew if she stopped grasping onto the wheel she'd start shaking uncontrollably. She breathed deeply, trying to calm herself. "What was that?" she whispered to herself in the dark of the car. "Who was that?" As her racing pulse began subsiding, she reached for her cell phone. She dialed and held her breath as the phone rang.

"Hey you, on your way home?" came a gentle purr from the phone.

Natalia released the breath she'd been holding and felt her tension instantly begin fading. "I missed your voice," she said, making her voice sound strong.

"I missed you too."

"I'm on my way," Natalia said, and started up the car.

"Good. I'm waiting for you."

Natalia smiled and cradled the phone closer to her ear. She wanted to forget what just happened. She didn't want to talk about it or analyze it or even think about it. She wanted to lose herself in the comfort of Olivia's voice. "You are, hmm?" she said.

"I am," Olivia replied, her voice sounding lazy and flirtatious. "How'd things go with Frank?"

Natalia sighed, "I'd rather not talk about it right now. I told him. But… tomorrow, okay?"

"Anything you want. How far are you?"

"I just left Company when I called," she said. Suddenly, she heard a loud, indistinguishable noise from the other end of the phone. "What was that?"

"Umm," Olivia said and paused for a moment. "I think it was an owl maybe?"

"An owl? That didn't sound like an owl. Where are you?"

"Well, it was some sort of winged creature that makes loud noises at night. Maybe a bat?"

"I don't think bats make loud noises."

"Sure they do. Like, eee, eee, eee."

Natalia laughed. "I think that might only be in cartoons."

Olivia laughed. Natalia smiled into the darkness of her car as she thought of the way Olivia's nose crinkled when she laughed.

"Maybe it was Bigfoot," Olivia said, amusement evident in her voice. "If there were lights I would suggest aliens, but no such luck."

Natalia laughed harder. "Stop it. Where are you?"

"On the dock by the pond."

"Why?"

"Waiting for you."

"By the pond? The ducks aren't back yet, are they?"

"Natalia, stop asking questions and come down to the pond when you get home."

"I'll be there soon."

"I'll be here."

Natalia slid her phone back into her purse. It felt almost inappropriate to be so happy after what just happened with Frank, but she simply couldn't process the memory of it. It was so out of character for him to act like he did that it was hard for her to keep the idea of it in her head. She decided to deal with it later. All she wanted to do was go home to her Olivia. That was all that mattered right now.

Natalia walked through the darkness of the yard. She knew she was going in the general direction of the pond, but it was so dark she could hardly see. Eventually, she spotted a tiny light in the distance and followed it. After a minute or two of walking, the tiny light came into focus and Natalia stumbled to a stop. The light had turned into what was, at least, thirty flickering candles dotting the outline of the dock. Olivia stood in the center with her hands snuggled deeply into her coat pockets. Natalia stood quietly, still unnoticed by the other woman. Her breath caught in her throat as she watched Olivia close her eyes and turn her face into a light breeze that made all the candles around her flicker. So beautiful. Breaking out of her reverie, she began walking toward the dock again. Within seconds Olivia heard her footsteps and looked up with a smile.

"What's this?" Natalia asked and returned the smile.

Olivia bit her lip and couldn't help but notice how the candle light accentuated the adorable dimples in Natalia's cheeks. "I'm being romantic," she said with a little shrug.

"Oh, is that what this is?" Natalia said with a small laugh. She walked into the ring of light and came to a stop directly in front of Olivia. "It's beautiful."

Olivia reached out and cupped Natalia's face in her hand. "You're beautiful," she said so softly her voice was almost lost in the breeze. Natalia leaned into the hand and accepted the words without protest. Frank had told her she was beautiful countless times, but she never believed it. The words coming from Olivia's mouth made her feel like beauty personified.

Olivia leaned down and pressed their lips together. Natalia reached up and buried her hands into Olivia's hair. They kissed for several sweet minutes, enjoying the feel of soft lips sliding against each other. The kiss remained slow and gentle until Olivia finally pulled away.

"Hi," Olivia said softly and pushed a dark lock of hair from Natalia's face.

"Hey," Natalia replied with a smile and dropped her hands to the back of Olivia's neck. She rubbed tiny circles with her thumb at the base of her hairline. "I think I like romantic Olivia."

Olivia laughed a little. "I just stumbled across her today. I'm glad you like."

"I love," Natalia said and leaned in for a small kiss.

When they broke apart Olivia pulled back farther than before. "I wanted to ask you something important. That's why I did all of this," she said, her voice sounding formal and a bit nervous.

Natalia tilted her head curiously. "Anything," she said.

"I'd like to ask you out on a date. Dinner, movies, that sort of thing. I'd like to do this right." She took a deep breath. "So, Natalia Rivera, will you do me the pleasure of accompanying me on a date?" She bit her lip in nervous expectation.

Natalia looked at her for a moment and laughed softly. "What?" Olivia asked nervously, not expecting this exact reaction.

"If this is how you ask me on a date," she said with wonder in her voice, "I would be an absolute fool not to say yes."

Olivia laughed a little and looked down. Natalia could see a small blush tint her cheeks even in the flickering candlelight. "You deserve it. You deserve all the romance in the world. You deserve everything."

Natalia felt her heart melt. "You. You're all I could ever want." She leaned in for another kiss. Within moments they were lost in feel of lips and tongues moving in a slow dance against each other. A strong breeze blew through and half of the candles flickered out. They didn't notice. They continued kissing until the breeze turned into a cold wind that caused Natalia to shiver.

Olivia broke the kiss and pulled Natalia into a hug when she felt the shiver. "I think we should stop making out on the dock and go inside."

Natalia laughed and looked around. All the candles were out and her hair was being whipped around by the wind. "It's going to rain," she said. Seconds later they felt cold raindrops on their faces.

"Are you psychic?" Olivia asked.

"Yes. I predict we're going to get very wet soon. Let's go."

Olivia smirked and watched her jog toward the house. "Too late," she said under her breath and began running after Natalia.

The lights at Company were dim and the doors were locked. Everyone was gone except Frank Cooper. He sat in a dark corner, staring at the burned out remnants of a candle. A bottle of whiskey and a glass had joined him on the table an hour earlier. He filled the empty glass again and downed the brown liquid in one gulp. He swayed in his chair and pressed the empty glass to his face. He closed his eyes as a surge of grief and anger invaded his body. He leaned his head back and yelled loudly. He clenched his fists and heard the crunch of glass against his hand. He felt no pain as blood dripped silently onto the table.