Kayla looked through the window in Shane's hospital room and saw that he was alone. After her talk with Eve, Kayla had returned to her office. She had not wanted to interrupt Shane's time with his family, but it now appeared that Kim and the kids had left.

Nodding to the guard outside the door, Kayla opened the door and entered. Shane looked up at the noise.

"Kayla," he said. A smile appeared on his face.

"Hi." Kayla stopped just inside the door. "I hope this isn't a bad time."

"Of course not." Shane motioned her over to the bed. "It's not like I have a lot going on right now."

Kayla walked to the chair beside the bed. Taking a seat beside the bed, she looked Shane over closely. His color appeared good, but she did not miss the grimace as he shifted slightly so that he could face her.

"How are you feeling?" she asked.

Shane sighed and rolled his eyes slightly. "I'm fine."

Kayla grinned at Shane's response. "Why do I get the feeling you're a little tired of that question?"

Shane gave an apologetic grin in return. "I'm sorry. It's just that if I had a nickel for every time I've been asked that same bloody question the last few days, I'd be a very wealthy man. Or an even wealthier man, I guess."

"We're all just worried about you," Kayla replied. "You gave us all quite a scare, you know."

"I know." Shane looked closely at Kayla. "Marcus says I have you to thank for being here. He said if it weren't for you taking care of me at the hanger, I wouldn't have even made it to the hospital. Thank you for that."

Kayla felt a wave of guilt wash over her. "Don't thank me," she said, shaking her head. "You wouldn't have been hurt if it weren't for me."

"What are you talking about?" Shane sounded confused. "You didn't have anything to do with my getting shot."

Kayla should have been surprised at Shane's response, but she wasn't. "It's okay, Shane. You don't have to deny it. We both know that you went to help Steve because I begged you to." She averted her eyes from his and looked at her hands. "I practically guilted you into it."

Unable to stop herself, Kayla looked up when she heard Shane chuckle softly. He caught her glance. "You didn't guilt me into anything, Kay. Whether you would have said anything or not, I wouldn't have left Steve in that hanger."

Kayla stared at him curiously. "But you were working on the lock until I begged you to go."

Shane nodded. "Yes. I wanted to get you and Kim out if I could, but that blasted lock wouldn't open." He smiled again. "Come on, Kay. You know me. I wouldn't have left Steve there even if you'd been home safe with Stephanie."

Kayla lowered her eyes again. "I guess . . . I just shouldn't have said what I said. I shouldn't have been thinking only of Steve . . . and myself."

"It's okay," Shane replied. "You were scared and your reaction was perfectly natural." He shifted in the bed again and let out a small gasp of pain. "Bloody ribs," he muttered before continuing. "When Steve and I found the car and realized Andrew had ran into the woods, the only thing I could think of was finding Andrew. In that moment, it didn't matter that you and Kim were in trouble. All that mattered was finding my son."

Kayla looked up once more. "Andrew's a little boy and he was in danger. Of course he was your priority."

"And Steve's your husband and you love him," Shane said firmly. "You think I don't understand that, in that moment, he was your priority?"

Kayla did not respond. She had no idea what to say.

Shane took her silence as an opening to speak again. "No more guilt, Kay. I didn't get shot because of you or anything you said." In a soft voice, he added, "I got shot because I didn't move fast enough. Besides, it doesn't matter anymore. The only thing that matters is that you and Kim are home safe again."

That made Kayla think of something else. "Speaking of Kim, I stopped by earlier and saw her here with Andrew . . . and Jeannie."

At the mention of his children, Shane's eyes lit up with that same happiness and peace that she had seen earlier. "It was a wonderful surprise to see them again," he said. "Holding Jeannie, knowing she's my daughter. . . ." His voice trailed off.

"I'm really happy for you," Kayla said quietly. "For you and Kim both. After everything that has happened, you both deserve it."

"Thank you, " Shane said. "It's all still a little hard to believe sometimes. So much has happened in just a few months."

Kayla thought back to all that had happened. "I know what you mean. . . . Sometimes it feels like the last year was all just a bad dream." Her eyes widened as she realized what she had said. "I . . . I didn't mean that the way it sounded," she stammered.

"It's okay." Shane raised his hand.

"No," Kayla said, forcefully. "It's not okay." She took a deep breath, ran her hand across her forehead, and gathered her thoughts. "I had a lot of time to think when Kim and I were stuck in that hanger and I realized some things."

Shane raised a brow, but did not interrupt.

"One of the things I realized is that no matter what the fallout was, I couldn't regret what had happened between us." Kayla shrugged slightly. "Whatever we were and whatever the cause, you were a bit of happiness in a very difficult time in my life. I will always be grateful for that. And you will always be very special to me, Shane Donovan."

Shane gave her a soft smile. "You and Stephanie were a bright spot in my life too. And seeing you happy again . . . well, that is everything I ever wanted for you."

Kayla nodded. "I hope you know that I want you to be happy too. Not just because Kim is my sister. I want you to be happy because it's what you deserve. I hope you know that."

"I do," Shane said. "And Kim and I are going to be happy. I'm going to make sure of that. We might have to wait a few years to really be together as a family, but it will happen."

"I know it will." Kayla paused to check her watch. "I better get going. Steve's expecting me home for din-"

A loud crash interrupted Kayla's thoughts. In her mind's eye, she saw Cal firing his gun at Andrew and felt the gun against her head.

"Kayla?" Shane was calling her name. "Are you okay?"

She blinked rapidly. Her eyes darted between the doorway where a nurse was kneeling down to pick up the equipment she had dropped and the bed where Shane was looking at her with a worried expression on his face.

"I'm fine," she said, trying to keep her voice steady. "The noise just surprised me, that's all."

Shane's eyes narrowed. "It's more than that. Your face is pale and you were trembling. That's much more than just being surprised."

Kayla stood and moved towards the door. "I think you just can't help investigating things." She tried to maintain a light tone. "I'm really fine. I'm glad you're doing so much better."

"Kay-"

"Take care of yourself, Shane," Kayla called over her shoulder as she walked out of the door. Once outside, she took a few deep breaths.

You were just surprised. Nothing to worry about.

Her breathing began to return to normal and she rolled her eyes at how silly she must have looked to Shane. Once she was calm, she headed for the elevator.

As she walked, she let a small smile play on her lips as she relived her talk with Shane. After everything that had happened, they both finally seemed to have found some happiness and peace. She had Steve and Stephanie waiting at home for her, and Shane, Kim and their children would be a family again. Finally, everything was the way it should be.