Chapter 3

Lying on the bed Alex looked at Nathan as he lay beside her. She felt so relaxed and comfortable just resting there on her back.

"You know a girl could get accustomed to this." Alex said with a grin. Chuckling Nathan gave her a peck on the lips.

"So could I." Nathan said.

Both existed in the moment not thinking of what tomorrow would bring. For the first time both were open with each other. Alex now loved one and was coming to care for another; the man that Anthony had been before the change and Nathan was the other.

Nathan graduated at the head of his class at medical school and was hired on under Paul who was head of the city morgue. Since then he had led the police to hundreds of convictions bringing many criminals to justice, and ensuring that they were taken off of the streets.

Those who worked with him admired his seemingly perfect intuition, and skilled investigations. He told the when and how allowing the CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, and the detectives on the police force to find the who and the why.

It was distinction that Nathan was proud of and worked hard for. Some nights Alexandra would sit in his home alone waiting for him to get off of work, sometimes waiting as late as early morning.

He would come into the bedroom and slip under the covers beside her falling asleep in her arms. It was a welcome life for both of them. A time of peace and great comfort. Neither of them wished it to ever end. They wanted it to last forever.

One morning Nathan said, "Tomorrow is Saturday. My family will be having a little get together. I would like you to come with me."

"Why would you want that?" Alex said unsure of how she should feel.

"I want to show you off as my girlfriend, and make my brother Peter jealous that I found a woman to care for me who is so beautiful and special." Nathan said with a grin while he stroked her hair.

"If you want me to come I will come." Alex said looking into his eyes.

Bringing her fingers to his lips Nathan kissed them saying, "Then you have made me very happy."

They awoke the next night and drove out to Samantha's home where she and the rest of his family welcomed them. All of his siblings were there while each of their mothers were not. Catherine had died a few years ago and the rest of their mothers had chosen to remain where they were in the background. The people gathered in the mansion that night were Paul's only real family.

Paul introduced Alex to the rest of them. Samantha immediately recognized Alex's name and remembered the relationship her father and her had shared. Part of her wondered how exactly the two had come together. Was it coincidence or fate?

Talking to Nathan alone Samantha said, "You know about her past?"

Nathan nodded, "I do, and I care for her deeply. It has been months since we first met and I think I am falling in love with her. Just because my father chose not open himself to the possibility, doesn't mean I have to share in his mistake."

Samantha heard the old anger in his voice and commented, "You never made peace with what our father did. The peace we now enjoy is a result of what he did."

"The man killed the woman he loved and made me like this. I owe him nothing and neither should you. It was you who kept the peace all these years. If you had not done so his "peace" would have ended long ago, thanks to the foolish groups who want the war to begin anew." Nathan said.

"Because of him most do not dare to spill the blood of the other factions. To do so would bring our father back and all the carnage that would follow him. He left us to save us, perhaps give us a chance. Does this sound like a man who did not care and was completely evil?" Samantha said.