It wasn't even 24 hours before he sent her a message and she encouraged him to stay. They would meet for lunch tomorrow, take it one day at a time she advised, knowing it was going to be hard for him. He had grown to rely on her and only her over the last several weeks, but she was positive he needed to try. She knew Brook would look out for him and even though Olivia was frustrated by the whole situation, she knew that she loved him. What she said at the start about not intending to come between them, she had to honor that. Because when he did finally remember, he would want to be back with his family. He would want to try and regain all the time he had lost and work to prove that he wasn't deserving of all the blame for what happened with Carly and Drew.

It had been a long day at the Invader and she was looking forward to a relaxing evening at home. What she didn't prepare herself for was missing him. She took out her phone. Wanting to check in with him, maybe more for herself than for him. She hadn't realized just how much she had fallen into their pattern until he agreed to try and go back home. Before she could type a simple how are you, she was brought from her thoughts by a knock at the door.

"Ned, what are you doing here?" She was genuinely surprised to see him there, but she wasn't shocked.

"I think you know."

"Haven't we been through this all before?"

"I know. It's just…"

"You didn't think it would be this hard."

"For you too?"

She simply nodded and opened the door wider and let him in. They walked over to the sofa and sat down. She turned slightly to face him. He was so close and she resisted the urge to reach out and touch his arm. Take his hand. "Ned…"

"I can't seem to let this go. I went to the Quartermaines, I tried. But you seem to be the only one who can accept me, for me. Who I am right now.."

"I see you. Your memories may be out of reach, but deep down you are still the man that I–" She hesitated and got up and walked to the other side of the room. They were playing a dangerous game.

"That you what?" He asked as he got up and followed her. Placing a hand on the small of her back.

"We can't do this. You have a family that loves you. A wife. They need you in their life."

"But what I need is to be here with you." He leaned in closer to her as she turned to face him.

They were inches apart. "I– I," She fumbled, trying hard to stay in control and listen to her head over her heart and as she did he leaned in and their lips met. She got caught up in the moment and their kiss turned to urgency as the weeks of pent up feelings were finally surfacing. He stopped and pulled away, she was relieved. They needed to come to their senses.

He kissed her, he couldn't deny the feelings that were there from the moment he saw her that night from the stage. As their lips met, a flash. A small memory, them dancing on a balcony. A kiss, soft and slow, but the memory was so clear. He pulled away as the memory came flooding in. He needed to tell her. "I remember you." He said quietly, replaying the memory in his head. He had remembered her before, but this time was different, not only did he remember her, but he remembered how he felt about her.

'What?" She said as confused as she was surprised.

"You were wearing a purple dress. I asked if I could kiss you. And you didn't stop me."

A small smile appeared across her face at the memory. "The Nurse's Ball. Our first kiss.."

"So, this memory…"

"It's real." She said as he wrapped her in his arms and kissed her again, causing her to step back. "But this doesn't mean we should be doing this. I'm so happy that you remember, and I hope it's a sign the rest of your memory will follow soon, but it doesn't change the facts. You're married to someone else."

"I won't stand here and deny that I have feelings for you. This is real, what we have is real.I know it. And I think you know it, too."

"You would if you had all of the facts, Ned, and that's why we can't pursue this. I'm stopping us, for you. Because I won't be the reason you get hurt again."

"You keep saying that, but I don't believe that's true."

"Well you should. I'm the reason we didn't last and I'll be thankful everyday for the rest of our lives that we've been able to stay friends. I won't put that in jeopardy. I need you in my life."

"Maybe my memory loss is a second chance. Maybe we were supposed to find each other again." He was determined. He felt connected to her and only her.

She let him wrap her in his arms and they stood there for a few moments. "We've always come back to each other." She whispered as she let him kiss her again before stepping back and taking his hands. " And spending this time with you, it's something that I never thought I'd ever have again. But I've been selfish. And we agreed. You need to go back to your family. You need to try and put the pieces of your life back together, without me." She let him go and and tried to cross the room, but he wouldn't let her and he stepped in her path as if she had telegraphed her every move.

"It doesn't have to be this hard, Alexis." He said, grabbing her hands and pulling her closer.

"What are you afraid of?"

She laughed slightly. How could he know her so well and yet not at all. "I'm afraid you'll remember how badly I hurt you, and you'll regret this. What if doing this right now breaks everything we've worked so hard to repair. What if you remember and it's too much for you, for us And… I can't lose you…I can't lose you," she whispered. He pulled her closer and engulfed her lips with his again. She let him at first and then pulled away. She had to be the rational one. "I need you to go."

He didn't want to walk away. He saw how hard this was for her. He knew she had feelings for him, he was certain of that. He stepped closer and kissed her hair as he hugged her tight.

She was about to break, being that close to him. "Ned, please go before we do something you'll regret."

"Ok.I'll go.." He held her hand as he backed up and headed toward the door, " for now. But promise me….."

She interrupted, "I promise." He didn't need to finish the sentence. She knew he needed to know she would always be there. That what just happened between them wasn't going to cut her from his life completely. She was his rock and he was hers.