Can I come in?" Kim asked, her voice barely above a whisper.

Shane blocked the doorway, still stunned by his unexpected visitor. For a moment they stood, neither sure of the next step to take. Then Shane replied, almost as if coming out of a stupor, "Certainly," and stepped aside. She walked past him and settled herself in the middle of the room. Shane motioned to the sofa but Kim shook her head, then took a shuddering breath. "Kim, are you all right?"

Uh, yes. I'm fine." Her voice quivered as her eyes darted about the room.

"Can I get you something? Tea?" He took a step towards her but in doing so, he unintentionally forced Kim to take an equal step back. She was determined to keep her distance. She glanced about the room avoiding Shane's questioning eyes.

Swallowing hard, Kim realized she had at last reached the point where there was no turning back. She stood resolutely, her voice suddenly firm and strong. She raised her chin and looked Shane directly in the eye. With measured words she began what she had wanted to say for so long. "You say I can't forgive you and I ask how can I?" Her piercing gaze challenged Shane. "How can I forgive you when not a day goes by that I don't remember how much I loved you, and loved being with you." Chastened, Shane cast his eyes downward unable to look at her. He felt the now all-too-familiar pain of sorrow and regret fill his gut.

Kim took another long breath. "Not a day goes by that I don't think about how much I wanted to always be with you, grow old with you, live all my days by your side." With firmness and anger in her voice, she concluded bitterly, "And not a day goes by that I don't remember how you ended it all."

Here were the words he had dreaded hearing. The finality in her voice made him lose all hope of them ever being together again. He desperately wanted to reach out to her, hold her, and kiss away all doubts she had about them. Instead he stepped back, defeated.

But then Kim paused and her voice softened, as she finally accepted a truth she could no longer deny. "How can I forgive you when not a day goes by that I don't think about how much I still love you and still want to be with you." Shane couldn't believe what she had just said. Hearing these words, his head snapped up. There in her eyes he saw the feelings he had so long hoped for.

Shane grabbed hold of Kim's shoulders and pulled her into his arms, crushing her lips to his. At the first tender touch of their lips, Kim felt the protective shell she had put around her heart crack and all the love she had for Shane came rushing forth.

Kim reached up and put her arms around his shoulders as he crushed her body into his. Their mouths grasped hungrily at each other, as if the next kiss would be their last. Shane held Kim tightly to him, burying his head in her hair, breathing in her intoxicating scent. Then looking deeply into Kim's eyes and fighting tears, Shane whispered hoarsely, "I never thought I would ever hold you in my arms again. Never be able to tell you how I feel. I love you so much Kimberly."

Fighting her own tears, Kim whispered back, "I love you." Shane seized her lips again and kissed her with such passion, Kim thought her head would reel. One kiss followed another as they became lost in their embrace.

Pulling back, Shane took Kim's face in both his hands and brushed his thumb along her cheek and traced the outline of her lips. "I'm so in love with you, I can't even find the words to tell you. Kimberly, it's always been you."

Hearing these words, Kim felt her heart soar. They gazed lovingly at each other, both knowing what they wanted, what they had wanted for a long time. Kim was brave enough to speak the words. "Shane, please make love to me." With one fluid motion, he swept her up in his arms and carried her into the bedroom, their lips never parting.

Kim clung to him as he gently laid her on the royal blue quilted bed. He ran a trail of kisses across her cheek, to her ear and down her neck, stopping momentarily to whisper "I love you so much." They hurriedly undressed each other, neither able to control the intensity of the passion rising within them. Kim ran her hands sensuously through his grey-streaked waves, arching her body to his. Shane couldn't believe, after so long of wanting her, hoping for her to love him again, he and Kim were once again going to become one. An instinctive moan escaped from his throat as they became lost in each other's arms.

The rays from the late afternoon sun were peeking through the slats of the closed shutters, casting soft shadows about the room. Kim was nestled in the crook of Shane's arms, snug in his embrace, basking in the afterglow of their lovemaking. Shane let out a long sigh, content to finally have the love of his life in his arms once more, determined never to lose her again.

A silence hung in the room, only their steady breathing and beating hearts could be heard. It was as if neither was willing to break the mood that enveloped them. They simply lay in each others arms, Shane tenderly caressing her shoulders, Kim lightly nipping at his chest.

Raising her head to gaze at him, Kim was the first to speak. "Where do we go from here?"

"Anywhere you want, I don't want to ever let you go." He smiled at her and then gave her a long, slow, sweet kiss that spoke all the emotions he was feeling for her.

"Anywhere?"

"Anywhere," he nodded. "L.A., New York, London, even good old Salem."

"Even good old Salem," Kim repeated with Shane.

"Oh Kimberly, I have so much to make up to you. I could spend forever making up for everything I did, for all the mistakes I made.

"Forever is a long time," Kim stated, echoing words she had said so long ago at the early promises of love.

"Not long enough. I've been a fool Kim, such a bloody fool. But things will be different, I promise. I'll never hurt you again. And I'll never leave you."

"What about your work, the ISA?"

Hearing her question, he wondered if he could put the magnitude of all he was feeling in to words. Looking deeply into her eyes and stroking her hair, Shane replied, his voice heavy with emotion. "I'm through with the ISA, Kim. I've sacrificed too much, let too many things, too many people get in the way." Shane hugged Kim tightly to him as she closed her eyes to his words. "I cherish you Kim. All I want is to be with you, always."

Kim reached up and placed her hand on his cheek. He turned his head slightly to kiss her palm. "And I always want to be with you." These words, ones he had so long wanted to hear, filled his heart, and he captured her lips once again in a passionate kiss.

Kim gently pulled back. Her look of contentment changed to one of unease. "Aren't we forgetting someone … Jeannie?"

"Jeannie?" he asked puzzled. "What kid wouldn't be thrilled to see their parents get back together?"

"Our kid!" Kim's look turned to one of concern. "Shane, you were right about Jeannie. There is something bothering her and it's not a few cancelled father-daughter visits."

"I told you, we had a wonderful night when you were away. We really connected," Shane said reassuringly.

"Shane, one night does not make a relationship. I don't know what it is but she's hiding something. It's not a good idea to tell her about us just yet."

Shane looked at her and let out an impatient sigh. "I think you're overreacting."

"I know I'm not. Please Shane." She looked at him pleadingly, biting her lip. "Let me tell her when the time is right. Trust me on this."

"All right, we'll wait," he reluctantly agreed. "Just don't take too much time." Then he leaned in and started running a trail of kisses down her neck as Kim succumbed to the pure pleasure of being with Shane Donovan.

Jeannie sat on a rock overlooking the beach, trying to decide what to do. She wasn't having fun at the party. There were a lot of kids here she didn't know, almost as if they bussed in a bunch from neighboring schools and colleges. There was also a lot of drinking and considering what happened at the last party, Jeannie did not want to repeat the consequences. Her mother had trusted her to stay out late and drive responsibly. That meant a lot to her.

She hadn't seen Stephanie or Chelsea in a long while and was contemplating heading home. Just then Tim rushed up to her. "Here's where you've been hiding. Everybody's down by the cove. Come on, let's go." He grabbed her hand and pulled her down towards the beach. As they got closer, Jeannie could hear the sounds of The Fray waffling towards them. Someone had really turned the volume up. Just as they reached the path heading to the cove, Tim turned off pulling Jeannie toward a more secluded spot. "Let's go over here for a while. It's too noisy down there."

Jeannie followed unquestioningly. Enjoying a little bit of peace and quiet sounded good to her and Tim had always been fun to talk to. When they neared a clearing, Tim pulled Jeannie down next to him and started kissing her. Jeannie had kissed boys before and although she hadn't "gone all the way" like some of her girlfriends back in L.A. had, she did enjoy the attention of boys and responded to Tim's initial kisses.

"Jeannie, you're so beautiful," he whispered between kisses. "Not like anyone I've ever known."

He pushed her down on her back and his kisses grew in intensity. Alarmed, Jeannie started to pull away. Tim responded by leaning over and putting his full weight on her. He reached his hand under her shirt which startled Jeannie. She tried again to push him away, whimpering "No."

"Come on, Jeannie. Stop being a tease," he pressured as he got more determined with his advances.

"No," she repeatedly cried, trying to squirm out from under him. He was strong and was firmly holding her down while trying to unbutton her shorts. She could clearly hear the last chords of How to Save a Life drift towards her. She cried out but they were too far away and the music was too loud, drowning any chance that someone would hear her. As Jeannie felt her shorts begin to slip down, she gathered all her strength and shoved Tim off shouting, "I said no."

Tim sat stunned. He watched Jeannie shakily button and smooth her clothes. She was fighting tears, her emotions torn between anger and fear. Tim started to say something about how sorry he was and he shouldn't have done that. Jeannie was certain she also heard him say something about not telling anyone. But Jeannie wasn't interested in his excuses or worries. She hurriedly turned away and marched up the path towards the party. Tears were streaming down her cheeks by the time she found Chelsea in a group at the cove. "What happened to you?" Chelsea asked.

"I'm leaving. If you want a ride with me, you have to go now," Jeannie said getting in control of her emotions.

"Jeannie, the party's just getting going. Come on, we'll find Tim –"

"No, I'm leaving now," Jeannie interrupted. "Find another ride home," she shouted back as she headed up the hill to her car.

When she got home, Jeannie was upset to find the house empty. She felt numb all over and her stomach was twisting into a knot. She really needed to talk to her mother. Kim hadn't left a note and Jeannie couldn't imagine where she could have gone. Looking down towards the guest house, Jeannie saw the light on and Shane's car parked in front. Maybe he knew where her mother was.

Kim was standing in the living area of the guest house, getting ready to leave. She knew Jeannie wouldn't be home for several more hours but wanted to be there waiting for her anyway. She was still troubled at how she was going to tell Jeannie about her and Shane. Despite Shane's reassurances, Kim knew their renewed relationship had the potential to cause problems.

"It will be okay," Shane said coming up behind Kim and putting his hands on her shoulders. "What matters is we've found each other again."

Turning in his arms, she looked at him and agreed, "That we have." Shane leaned down and gave her a long, sweet kiss. They were so lost in each other's arms that neither heard the door open.

"Oh my god," Jeannie cried.

"Jeannie," Kim gasped, staring at her daughter standing in the doorway.