Chapter 4

No, it couldn't be. Nick was dead, wasn't he? Allison stared at his face, though the face before her was rugged and very manly, she could see a hint of the boy she used to know, now that she was looking for it.

"Nicky?" she said hesitantly. Nick, who was now turning down the covers on the bed, his back to her, snapped to attention immediately. He spun around to face her, and in that moment she knew for sure. This was her Nick. She didn't know how it happened, but it was him.

"Oh Nicky," she said flying into his arms. Forgotten for the moment was the time she had recently spent with him, and she was just greeting her childhood love. She hugged him like she wanted melt her body into his, and he held her tightly in return. Nick was at first surprised by her greeting, but soon was immersed in the memories of when he had last seen her, and felt guilty for thinking she would greet him in any other way. This was his Ally. She would always be his.

After a long time of the two of them just holding each other, Allison pulled back and unceremoniously punched him in the arm. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"It seems stupid now," he said, not wanting to admit he didn't tell her who he was because he was scared she didn't love him anymore.

"Oh, Nick. Where have you been? I thought you were dead," she said, once again wrapping herself around him.

"Dead? Wherever did you get that idea?" Nick asked.

"You're brother told me. But it wasn't just me; everyone thought you were dead, even your family, your father. Oh Nick," she said her voice growing mournful for him, "Your father..."

"I know," he cut her off, sparing her from having to tell bad news, "He died last year. I heard. I also heard about your parents. I'm so sorry, sweetheart."

"It was hard, especially since you weren't there," she said burying her face in his neck. Nick felt regret that he wasn't there for her when she needed him, but also felt his heart do a little flop upon hearing her say she had needed him. "And then I found out that they left me with nothing, all the money was gone. Even our house no longer belonged to me, but had been sold to your brother. He was very kind though, letting me live there, and then offering to marry me when I had nowhere else to turn."

Nick had listened to her with growing pity and compassion, but had stiffened when he heard the last part. He pulled away from her, "You were going to marry my brother?" he asked, not really grasping what she was telling him.

"What else could I do?" she said, trying to make him understand that it was her only choice.

"So that's who was going to save you, who you were so desperate to get back to. Do you love him? Do you make love to him?" he said so cruelly, that Allison reeled back.

Nick was desperately hurt. Here he was, thinking that he had her love, but now it seemed to him that she was just greeting an old friend. In his jealousy, he could only see her hug as the hug for the brother of a fiancé; she had not kissed him.

"How can you say that? I only said those things to keep you from killing me. As you know I thought you were a ruthless murder. I suffered in terrible fear of you, while you laughed at your little trick." Now that Allison was over the shock of seeing him again after six years, she had time to be angry with him.

"Why didn't you tell me who you were?" she asked angrily.

Nick looked at her sheepishly, ashamed with himself. Of course she was scared of him, he had kidnapped her. "You didn't recognize me, and I waited until you did," was his reply.

Allison's anger raged to boiling point at his words. "I didn't recognize you?!" she screamed at him. "Is that really so unexpected? Do you have any idea what I went through when I thought you were dead? How I mourned you? I had to train myself not to think about you, not to look for your features in a crowd, not to expect to see your face. You were dead and I had to stop dreaming that you weren't, it was the only way I could get on with my life."

Nick felt overwhelming guilt at what she had said, not only that he hadn't told her who he was, but also that she had mourned him. "And just when you did get on with your life, and got engaged, I had to come along and ruin things for you. I'm sorry," he said, avoiding her eyes.

"Nick, once again you completely misunderstand me. Haven't you been listening to a word I've been saying?" She said in a much softer voice, "I tried to get on with my life, but I didn't really. I just pushed you to the back of my mind and forced myself not to think of you, because it was too painful. You were always there though; I never got over you. I love you Nicky, I always have and always will."

Nick instantly pulled her into his arms, feeling as though heaven had opened up to him. She loved him! Nick bent his head and kissed her: a sweet, sensual kiss. They had shared kisses as children, soft kisses of affection, but this was their first kiss shared as adults. They had adult hearts now, and adult bodies. And both could acutely feel the difference between this kiss and the kisses of their youth.