Toni

Toni sat in their bedroom, knowing that sooner or later she was going to have to go down to Nico's office and face him. He let her hide in their room all afternoon after the commotion outside died down. She assumed he was busy finalizing the report that he and Heather were so tirelessly working on. He mentioned something about his team being under a great deal of pressure to get the research finished and their report turned in before the building commission held their vote to build more condominiums on the island's south side. Nico told her that if they moved forward in building the massive buildings on the already deteriorating land, they would jeopardize hundreds, possibly thousands of people's lives; not to mention the damage they would be doing to the ecosystem and marine wildlife.

Nico was so passionate about his work, and she wondered if she would ever find something she loved doing as much as he loved his job. Before her accident a year ago, she worked for her father's development company. She was like the rest of the businessmen that Nico was currently fighting to stop building on the South side of the island. She didn't have the nerve to tell him she used to work for her dad's company or that she was damn good at her job. Really, he didn't ask, so those topics were best avoided. Besides, it didn't matter now that Zac had control of her father's company. Her job was long gone, leaving her to wonder what her future looked like.

Toni hoped it involved Nico, although for her they were virtual strangers. She knew Nico wanted her, and that was evident after their night together. But she wondered if he meant it when he said he was in love with her. She just wished she could remember the way they were together before her second accident. Judging from the way her body and heart seemed to melt every time he walked into the same room as her, she might have felt the same way about him. It was too soon for sweeping romantic statements from either of them. She needed to figure a few things out first—the most pressing being what happened to her the night she fell off of Zac's boat and why her father would take his own life. Without those answers, she wouldn't be able to have a future with anyone, not even Nico.

The soft knock at the door startled her and she jumped. "Who is it?" she yelped.

"It's me, honey." Nico's usually growly voice was almost as quiet as a whisper. "Can I please come in to talk to you?" he asked.

"Of course," she said, standing to open the door for him. Nico stood on the other side of the doorway looking so lost and upset, she couldn't help but wrap him in her arms and hold him as close as she possibly could.

"What happened?" she whispered.

He shook his head. "Nothing new. I'm just so worried about you, baby," he said, banding his arms around her waist. "Please tell me you'll let me help you, Toni. I want to take care of you. I love you, honey," he whispered.

Toni wasn't quite sure how to respond. She didn't remember him, not all of him. She was starting to get echoes of their past together which felt more like déjà vu moments more than memories. He was familiar and even felt like home, but she didn't know Nico enough to tell him the words he seemed to need from her.

"I'm sorry, Nico," she sobbed. Toni buried her face in his soft t-shirt, loving that it smelled like him, another familiarity. "I feel like I know you, but I don't. When you hold me and touch me, it feels like home. I feel safe with you, and I can't explain why."

"It's because you know me, baby. Your mind just needs time to catch up to your body and heart, but it will. Please just give me time, Toni. Let me take you someplace safe, where Zac can't get to you. At least until we can figure out what's going on," he asked.

Nico looked so hopeful and yet so completely distraught, that she wasn't sure what to say. She wanted to say yes, he was right, she needed a safe place to think things through. But going to meet his parents for the first time was daunting.

"Why didn't you ever introduce me to your parents before?" she questioned. Nico pulled away from her and crossed the room, sitting on their bed. She wanted to go to him and sit next to him, but Nico looked like he needed some space.

"They didn't even know about you." He shrugged and shot her a guilty look. "I'm sorry to say my relationship with both of my parents is rocky, at best. Their occasional calls consisted of me asking how their work was going and them telling me how disappointed they were in me for not staying in Boston. I usually tried to end my call quickly and telling them about you would have only prolonged my agony." Toni gave up the fight to give Nico space and crossed the bedroom to sit next to him, on their bed. She took his hand into hers, linking their fingers together.

"You said you were an only child like me?" Nico nodded. "I know how lonely that can be, Nico," she whispered. "I have no one left in this world now. You should try to reach out to your parents. Tell them how you're feeling. You are so lucky to have them in your life, don't give up on them so easily." Toni wiped at the warm tears that fell down her face. She was going to have to come to terms with her father's death at some point, but she didn't think it would have had this much of an effect on her.

"You have me, Toni," Nico barked. "You aren't all alone in this world now. You have me." Toni nodded and smiled, loving that he was trying to comfort her at the same time she was comforting him. They were quite a pair.

"How about we go up to meet my parents and lay low for a while? I think it's about time they meet the woman I plan on marrying." Nico's voice was almost a whisper and Toni wondered if she heard him correctly.

"What?" she questioned.

"I know you aren't ready to hear this, baby, but I planned on asking you to marry me. I won't push, but my plans haven't changed," Nico said. He didn't give her a chance to respond or ask questions. He kissed her mouth and stood to leave the room.

"Oh, and be packed and ready to leave in an hour, honey. Heather is fine with handling things here and we can video conference when we need to. I'm going to call my mother and give her the good news that I'm coming home for a visit, and I will be bringing a very important guest." Nico left the room leaving Toni sitting on their bed with her mouth gaped open. Nico Andrews was turning out to be a man full of surprises and she realized she liked getting to know him again.