"Come on," Andrew urged as he prepared for his typical full-speed run towards Shawn and Caroline's stairs. Shane was pulling Jeannie out of her car-seat while Kim and Eve were figuring out the logistics of transporting the trunkload of presents to the house. Shane looked over at Kim, who caught his gaze and smiled. She raised her hand and wiggled her ring finger so the sunlight shimmered off the diamond.

Shane smiled back and then had an idea. "Eve, sweetheart, would you take Jeannie? Leave the presents. We'll worry about them in a little while." When Kim gave him a confused look, Shane added, "Just trust me."

He turned Jeannie over to Eve and Kim closed the trunk. He nodded at Eve, who headed toward the Brady house with Andrew and Jeannie, leaving him alone with Kim.

"So what's going on, Shane?" Kim asked. "I don't know if I can take any more surprises today."

"Are you complaining about the surprise?" he asked.

Kim swatted him playfully. "Not at all. . . ." She looked down at the ring and then up at him. "Marrying you again is what I want more than anything in the world. And . . . after everything that's happened, the idea that we're actually going to be able to be together is almost beyond my wildest dreams. I just don't think you can top that."

Knowing exactly how Kim felt, Shane replied, "I wouldn't try." He put an arm around her shoulder. "I just thought we could take a little walk." He could tell she was suspicious, that she thought he had some plan. "I promise you there isn't a marching band or some big surprise on the pier. I just wanted to walk down there."

Giving in, Kim let him guide her down the stairs to the pier. It was not long before they reached the location where Shane and Steve had fought off the dockworkers a few weeks ago. He stopped and looked around the spot.

"Do you remember-" He and Kim said the words almost simultaneously, then stopped. They both chuckled a little momentarily, but they soon grew somber. This part of the pier held a lot of memories.

"You followed me here when I ran out of Roman's wake," Kim said softly. "You were the only one who realized what seeing Uncle Eric after all those years did to me. . . ."

Shane remembered that night well. Looking back now, he could say that he should have known then that he and Kim were meant to be. The connection they had . . . it was always there.

"Not even my family could see it," Kim said.

Shane held her a little more tightly. "Hey, you don't have to think about that. Let's think of something happier."

"Like what?" Kim asked.

"Like the second time we ran into each other here," Shane said, remembering a bitterly cold Christmas eve. "That was the night you invited me to your family Christmas for the first time." He looked out at the river. "That was probably the first time I began to feel a part of a family again, and maybe that's when Salem began to become my home."

Kim turned her body into his and nestled her head against his chest. "I had very good taste, I think."

He held her silently as they both listened to the sound of the water lapping around the pier's pylons. When he spoke again, he realized he almost sounded wistful. "You always had your family, Kimberly. You have no idea what it's like to look back at how lost I was . . . at how empty that way of living was. You gave me a life I had stopped even imagining in my dreams - no, what you gave me was even better than I ever imagined."

Shane felt funny, hearing the emotion in his own voice, but he continued. "And it was only a few months ago that I was back in that dark place, without a family, all alone, thinking I would never find love again."

"Shhhh," Kim said, silencing him. "That's the past, Shane. We've worked through that and I think we both know that's not how you want to live."

"No, it's not." Shane had to agree. "I just want to thank you for giving me a family in the first place - and then for giving it back to me when I was a fool and nearly threw it away. It's like I told that man from the CIA. . . . Family is all that matters to me."

There was a funny look in Kim's eyes when he said that, a look Shane could not read. She stared up at him and then reached up and caressed his cheek. "I think you mean that," she said.

Does she doubt me? Shane wondered. "I do mean it," he insisted.

"I know," Kim said. "I'm sorry . . . I didn't mean to suggest I didn't believe you." She seemed to think a little before she spoke again. "It's just I was thinking about the ISA and that offer. . . . And . . . maybe you turned it down too fast."

Shane was confused. He thought his decision was settled and Kim approved. After everything they had gone through, he was sure she would be thrilled that the ISA would no longer interfere in their lives. "I turned down the job, Kimberly. Isn't that what you want?"

"But what about what you want?" she asked.

That answer was easy. "I want to be with you and our children; I want to have a happy family."

But Kim pressed him. "Can you really give up being an agent? In a few years, will you look back at today and regret that you didn't take the job?"

"I don't understand," Shane said. His head was spinning. "I thought you, of all people, would be happy. Finally, I've put you and our family first."

"And I love you for making that choice - and for sincerely believing it's the right choice," Kim replied. "But I also think of what you could do as ISA Chief-"

Shane shook his head. "What I could do?"

"You could do a lot of good, Shane." Kim turned in his arm so she was now facing him. "You figured out Lawrence's toxin and you found him when nobody else could, so I know you could lead the ISA. But it's more than just how you solve crimes. It's how you feel about the ISA. Look at the way you wouldn't compromise the ISA even when your life and your future was at stake. Maybe the ISA could use a leader like that, not one who puts children at risk for leverage or barely cares about the lives of the people that work for him."

Shane was floored. This was not what he expected to hear from Kim.

"And I know that, even if you took the job, you would make time for me and your children. We'll always be your priority. That you're ready to turn down the job for us proves that." Kim smiled again. "So think about it." She started to pull away, but took his hand in her's. "Think of the good you can do. . . . Now, come on and let's get over to my folks before Papa sends out a search party."

"Wait. . . ." He held on to her hand. "I think we have a few more minutes before they come looking for us." He pulled her back and wrapped his arms around her again. Kim relaxed against him and they both stared out at the river.

The sun was shining, creating shimmering reflections off the small waves. The water seemed to dance in the light. In the distance, a tugboat blared its horn. It cut through the peaceful lapping of the waves, almost a protest that its occupants were working on the holiday.

"Will you take it?" Kim asked.

She meant the job. Shane did not have an answer. His mind was still reeling and he was still stunned that Kim might want him to return to the ISA. "I could be very happy just like this," Shane answered truthfully. "With no job . . . no obligations other than to hold you and love you and our children."

"I think you would," Kim replied. "But I also know there is a part of you that believes you have obligations that go beyond our family. It's that sense of duty that brought you to Salem in the first place - to stop Stefano - and kept you here after Roman died. You felt responsible to Marlena and wanted to protect Bo, and that's the man I fell in love with. That's always been a part of you, and I'm not sure you'd be the same man if you weren't trying to save the world."

Kim fell silent and leaned her head back against his chest. Shane softly kissed the top of her head and stared out at the river of the town that had become his home.

In his arms, Kim smiled and said, "Whatever you choose, Shane, I'll be happy. I want whatever makes you happy."