Emilee was into hour fifteen of the road trip from hell when the blizzard started.

Okay, that wasn't exactly true. She wasn't driving in a blizzard...yet. But it was snowing and it had been for the last hour, though earlier it had just been small flakes of snow; very tiny, hardly visible. And now, well, now the snow was picking up and while Emilee had been optimistic about the snow and had thought it would be picturesque to see the countryside covered in a blanket of white, she was quickly starting to change her mind.

The snow was now coming down harder than ever in big, fluffy, white flakes, and while it wasn't exactly blizzard like conditions, it was making for some not so fun times on the road.

This was the most ridiculous idea she had ever had, Emilee thought. What had she been thinking when she decided that driving to Rosewynn, Connecticut from Charlotte, North Carolina would be a good idea? She hadn't been thinking, had she? Obviously, she hadn't. Had she been using her head, she would have gladly accepted the free plane ticket her Aunt Diana and Uncle Jack had dangled in front of her as an enticement to come home. Well, no one had ever described Emilee as being level headed. No, stubborn and free willed were more like it; those were the words that people used to describe Emilee and this stellar plan of hers was just another example of that.

But Emilee had wanted to make the trip home on her own terms, not ones set by Diana and Jack, and had she accepted that plane ticket, she would have been bound by the conditions her aunt and uncle set, ones she just wasn't willing to abide by. It had been five years since Emilee had been back to Rosewynn and Diana had been itching to get the niece she had raised from infancy back home and for longer than a day. The plane ticket had been a ploy to do just that, but Emilee had seen right through that little trick and had instead insisted on making the trip by car, if only so she could leave whenever she felt like it...which would most likely be the next day.

She was an hour away from her destination and Emilee could see the light at the end of the road; or well, she thought it was that particular light she saw, but then she realized it was just the low fuel light on her car's dashboard that she was seeing.

"What the flip?" she muttered. "I don't have time for this." But her car was having none of that and if she didn't pull over soon, she was going to be stuck on the side of the road and Emilee really didn't have time for that.

Luck was on Emilee's side and she soon came upon a gas station that appeared to be open for business even though the weather had kept the stream of customers to a crawl. There was one other car in the parking lot and the light was on inside the small shop that sat adjacent to a small garage, and while the sign bolstered that the station was full service, there were no attendants to be seen.

A few minutes passed and Emilee had just geared herself up to leave the warm comfort of her car with the heater that worked like magic when a loud rapping had her jumping in her seat and her heart racing with surprise.

"Oh, thank heaven," she exclaimed as she put the window down.

"How much do you want, ma'am?" A man, younger than Emilee, dressed in coveralls and a tan, Carhartt coat, stood next to her car stepping from foot to foot in a dance to stay warm. He looked less than pleased to be out on this cold night and Emilee started to feel bad for him.

"As much as it takes to fill it up," Emilee replied sweetly. "Thank you...so much," she added when the man only nodded curtly.

The gas attendant went about his business in an efficient manner, filling her car with gas, checking the tire pressure, and even washing the front window, though it was pointless in this bitter cold spell, and Emilee watched him with interest until her phone rang and pulled her away from her thoughts.

Looking at the phone display, Emilee couldn't help but smile. "Hi, Aunt Diana," Emilee exclaimed.

"Emilee, sweetheart, where [i]are[/i] you?" Diana Copeland asked. The anxiety in Diana's voice was clear and Emilee knew her aunt fully expected her to tell her that she wasn't coming. Well, she wasn't going to let her family down, not this time. There had been numerous occasions where Emilee had gotten their hopes up with promises to visit, only to have her plans change at the last moment. This was not going to be one of those times.

"I'm just outside Fairfield," Emilee told her. "I needed gas. This has been the trip from heck, Aunt Diana."

"You should have just taken a plane. You're too stubborn for your own good."

"I know, I know, but I will be home soon. Just as soon as the attendant is done filling up the car, I'll be on my way."

"We'll be waiting for you, but I want you to take your time. Jack and I are not leaving for New Haven until we get you home first."

"Oh, Aunt Diana, no," Emilee protested. "You really shouldn't wait for me. I know how to get to New Haven on my own. And I really don't want to hold you guys up. It's snowing pretty hard where I am. It's going to be a bit longer."

"We're waiting," Diana said firmly. "I need to know that you made it home safely. Take your time and be careful."

Emilee said goodbye and turned off the phone with a sigh. There was no point in arguing with Diana. She called Emilee stubborn, but it was obviously a trait Emilee had inherited from Diana's side of the family. And now she not only had the pressure of not letting her cousin and his fiancée down by missing the party, now she had the pressure of possibly making her aunt and uncle late to Drew's engagement party.

"Fudge," she exclaimed to the empty car. "We just had to have a crap load of snow today, didn't we?" She was just about to answer herself when the attendant rapped on the car window, again surprising Emilee who had forgotten about him.

"It'll be sixty-two dollars, ma'am," he told her. Emilee dug in her purse and pulled out four twenty dollar bills and handed the money to the man. "I'll be right back with your change."

"No, no," Emilee said absently. "Keep it. You deserve it on a night like tonight. Thanks so much."

"Thank you," he exclaimed, smiling for the first time during their short encounter, no doubt cheered by Emilee's eighteen dollar tip. "I don't know how much further you have to go, but the roads are getting bad. Be careful."

"Perfect, just perfect. Thanks, again." And with a quick wave, Emilee was on her way and back to braving the roads on this snowy night. If she was lucky, the roads would be empty and nowhere near as bad as the man had made them out to be and she'd make good time with no troubles whatsoever.

#

Luck had not been on Emilee's side.

The drive from Fairfield to Rosewynn had taken two and a half hours. The snow never let up, coming down harder than before, and it was still falling heavily when Emilee arrived at Jack and Diana's house. By the time she arrived, there were at least six inches of fresh snow on the ground, which only served to put Emilee in a worse mood than she already was. She had been happy and looking forward to the end of her trip when she had last talked to Diana, but now, all she wanted was to get out of the car and not look at it for at least twelve hours.

The house was lit as Emilee pulled up the long driveway, but the only car present was one she didn't recognize. She hated that she was so late and now she would be hurrying to get cleaned up and back on the road to make the trip to New Haven for her cousin's engagement party. Emilee was struggling with getting her bags out of the trunk while trying to keep the icy wind and snow out of her face when she heard her name being called.

"Emilee Pearson?"

Emilee paused. The voice calling her name was so familiar, but she hadn't heard it in so long that she was certain it was her mind playing tricks on her. But then her name was called again and yet again she couldn't help thinking that she knew the voice.

"Emilee, is that you?"

"Yes, it's me; it's Emilee," she called as she turned and came face to face with the last person she expected to be waiting for her at Jack and Diana's house. "Brandon?" she exclaimed. It came out as a question and she couldn't hide the look of surprise that came across her face as she laid eyes on Brandon for the first time in ten years.

"You sound surprised to see me," Brandon said with a smile.

"I am. No one said you would be here."

"You didn't think I would come for Drew and Randi's engagement party?"

"I don't think about you at all, actually," she said. It came out with a bitterness that Emilee hadn't planned and that Brandon found surprising. "I just...I mean, it wasn't something I would have thought to think of. I just..." She trailed off when she realized how stupid she sounded trying to rationalize to Brandon why she didn't think of him.

"Can I help you with your bags?" Brandon asked. There was no reason to drag out this awkward first meeting, at least not out here in the bitter cold and snow. They could easily continue this inside the warmth of the house.

"I got them," she told him, but Brandon had grabbed her bags and started back towards the house before she could say anything else.

The house was quiet and empty when Emilee entered the house after Brandon. "Where is everyone?" she asked. Diana had assured her that they would wait for her, and while Emilee hadn't wanted or expected them to actually wait for her, not when the last leg of the trip had taken over double the time she had planned it to, she was a bit disappointed to find them all gone, if only because she was stuck here with Brandon with no buffers.

"They had to leave for New Haven," Brandon told her. "Diana wanted to wait, but the roads were getting bad and they have to be there for the party."

"Oh, right. Well, I guess I better call Diana and let her know I made it okay and then get ready to make the trip to New Haven." But then a thought came to Emilee, one she couldn't dismiss. "What are you doing here? Why aren't you in New Haven?"

"I offered to wait for you."

"You offered?" That was news to Emilee and she really had no idea why Brandon would have offered to wait for her.

"Diana didn't want you to have to come home to an empty house or make the drive on your own. She and Jack shouldn't miss any of their son's engagement party, so I offered."

"That's...nice of you." Emilee couldn't think of anything else to say. The day had been long and exhausting and seeing Brandon again for the first time in so many years was just icing on the cake. It wasn't that she was unhappy to see him, but everything between them had ended in such a wrong way, that to be thrown together with him so unexpectedly was too much on this day. "So, I guess I'll get changed and we can be on our way."

"There's no point going now," Brandon said with a laugh. "The party started an hour ago, Emilee. And it's still snowing like crazy. The party will be over before we even get there. I'm sorry we're missing it, but...that's the weather for you."

"Then, I guess it was pointless for you to wait for me. It was good seeing you again, Brandon." She picked up one of her bags and started up the steps to the second floor.

"Where are you going?" Brandon asked.

"Upstairs to change...for the party. Just because you don't think we should go, doesn't mean I'm going to stay here with you. The only reason I came home was for this stupid engagement party. I can't miss it, Brandon."

Brandon was just starting to respond, to offer another argument, when the house phone rang and they both turned in surprise. The phone continued to ring shrilly until Emilee realized that no one would answer it unless one of them did. The phone was on its last ring when she finally picked it up with a breathless hello.

"Emilee?" It was Diana. "You made it."

"Only just a few minutes ago," Emilee told her. "I just need to change and I'll be on the road again."

"You can't," Diana insisted. "The roads are horrible. We had a terrible time getting here and it's not worth it for you come all this way."

"But, Aunt Diana..."

"Drew and Randi understand, Emilee. You can see them tomorrow, or the next day. All that matters is that you made it safe. Is Brandon still there?"

"Yes," Emilee said grudgingly as she shot him a look. "He is."

"Good. At least you have some company. Please don't leave until we get to see you."

"I won't." Emilee had no idea how Diana knew that she planned to leave the next day no matter what the weather was like, but now that she had told Diana that she wouldn't, how could she? "Have fun. Tell Drew and Randi I'm so sorry I couldn't make it."

"You sound so sorry," Brandon said when Emilee hung up a few moments later.

"Shut up," she said with a laugh and she couldn't help wanting to stick her tongue out at him. "I am sorry to miss seeing Drew and his fiancée, but that doesn't mean I want to be here."

"I'm glad you're here," Brandon said. His words took Emilee by surprise and he laughed when her mouth opened in surprise.

"You are?"

"Of course, I am. I haven't seen you..."

"In ten years," Emilee finished. There was so much more she wanted to add, but she kept her mouth shut. Dwelling on the fact that Brandon had left and forgotten all about her was a sure way to have her feeling sorry for herself in no time. And she didn't want that.

"Yeah, well, I knew it had been a long time, but I hadn't been keeping track."

Emilee instantly felt stupid for saying anything and she looked down so Brandon couldn't see the blush that colored her cheeks. Why was he even here? It made no sense at all.

"So...I guess I'll go change...into my pajamas or something like that, since I have no place important to be. It will be nice to have some company."

#

"This room brings back a lot of memories," Brandon said as he glanced around Emilee's old bedroom.

He had insisted on helping her to carry her bags, the two of them, up to the room she was staying in. Even though she had only planned on staying through the morning, Emilee had packed for every contingency, on the off chance she was stuck in Rosewynn for longer than expected. Unfortunately, it was beginning to look like her contingency plan had been a smart idea, though that irked her to no end.

Emilee hadn't been in this bedroom in years, and yet nothing had changed. It was all the same. Even Brandon was surprised by the way it hadn't changed. It had been even longer since he had spent any time in the room.

Brandon turned in a circle, slowly taking in all the details of the room, until his eyes fell on a picture that sat on the bedside table. It was a typical picture, but it brought back a lot of feelings he thought were long gone and he couldn't believe she still had the picture of him and her sitting on her nightstand.

"A lot of memories," he murmured. He was still looking down at the photo, unable to tear his eyes from it. "You haven't changed at all."

"Yeah, right," she said with a small laugh.

"You're still just as beautiful as ever."

"Brandon," Emilee mumbled as a blush colored her cheeks. "Don't do this."

"What am I doing?" he asked. He walked the length of the bed until he was at the foot of it and he looked down at it with an unfathomable look. Emilee watched him for a moment before looking away, uncomfortable with the silence they had fallen into. "This bed...I remember getting shot down for the first time on this bed."

Emilee laughed unexpectedly and Brandon turned to look at her with a surprised look. "It's probably the first and only time you haven't gotten what you wanted." Brandon only nodded absently and once again they fell into a tense silence.

"And here..." Brandon walked over to the bedroom door and closed it. Taking Emilee by the hand, he spun her around so that she was pressed against the back of the door, pinned between him and solid wood.

She looked up at Brandon, uncertainty clear in her eyes. Her breath was coming slow and raspy with anticipation, but she couldn't say what she was waiting for. Brandon looked down at her, his eyes bottomless and filled with an emotion Emilee couldn't place. It was something she hadn't seen in a very long time, but it felt so familiar to her, too.

"Brandon," she said softly as she reached up and placed her palm against the side of his face.

Hearing his name and feeling her soft touch, Brandon seemed to come to his senses. He shook his head slowly as if trying to clear a mental fog and gave Emilee a small smile.

"This all feels so familiar, doesn't it?"

"You must spend a lot of time pressing women up against bedroom doors," Emilee said with a laugh.

"You are too funny, Emma," he said as he joined her laugh. But Emilee paused, her laugh catching in her chest at his use of his nickname for her, and the way it had sounded coming off his tongue. "You are too much," he whispered as he bent forward. He was wearing that deep expression again and Emilee felt her heart hiccup in her chest as once again anticipation washed over her, though this time she knew exactly what she wanted.

Brandon took her face in his hands and he was leaning towards her, but he stopped suddenly when his name escaped her lips on a sigh.

"What am I doing?" he asked, though Emilee wasn't sure he really wanted an answer as he turned away from her quickly.

"I have no idea," Emilee said, but the room was empty as Brandon made a hasty retreat. Without thinking, she walked over to the bedside table, and pushed the picture frame that sat there, the one Brandon had spent so much time studying only moments ago, down so that she didn't have to look at the picture and remember how happy they had supposedly been. This was a mistake, she thought to herself; coming home had been a mistake. And now she knew why she had stayed away for so long.

It had been five years since she had returned to Rosewynn, and ten years since she had last seen Brandon, and here she was, entertaining feelings for the man who had broken her heart all those years ago, after spending just minutes with him. There was no way she could stay here longer than a night, especially if Brandon was staying at the house, too.

#

Brandon had no idea what he was thinking; all he knew was that he needed to get out of the room. He hadn't seen or thought of Emilee in years; okay, that wasn't entirely true. Yes, it had been a long time since he had seen Emilee, but he hadn't thought of much, but her since Drew had told him she would be at the engagement party. But he had never expected the effect that seeing her again would have on him.

Obviously, she still held sway over him. What else would explain why he had been inches away from kissing her after spending only a few minutes with her? She was exactly the way he remembered her, though she did look a bit more grown up, a bit more polished, but that was to be expected. She was twenty-six now, not the sixteen she had been when he left Rosewynn for Los Angeles.

But now she probably thought he was crazy. He should have just kissed her. It wouldn't have been a big deal, and he had just made it a big deal, not to mention awkward.

What the hell was he doing? This was only Emilee here with him. Next to her cousin, Drew, she had been his best friend when he had lived next door to the Copelands and this meeting should not be so damn awkward. But it was...because he had left everything with her unfinished all those years ago and she obviously remembered that; but he was going to make her forget that, if he could. How? He didn't know, but he was going to start by smoothing this most recent situation over with her.

Brandon found Emilee still in her bedroom. She was sitting on the bed now, and she either didn't hear him come back into the bedroom, or she was purposefully ignoring him, but either way she did not look up from her phone. She was smiling, which he took as a good sign, but then he instantly decided it wasn't a good thing because there was only one thing he could think of that could make her smile like that. And he didn't want to think of that.

"Hey," he said after she still refused to acknowledge him.

"Oh, hey," Emilee said as she looked up. "Are you...?" She trailed off as she realized she really didn't know what to say. "You should see this." It was the only thing she could think of to say and she held out her phone to him. "Lucy texted me a picture from the party. It sucks that we're missing it."

"Yeah, it does." Brandon took the phone and he did look down, but he couldn't say what he was looking at. "About earlier," he started to say, but stopped when Emilee gave him a funny look. "Why don't you come downstairs? You're right. It does suck that we're missing the party, but we could have our own."

Emilee smiled lightly and shook her head. "I don't know, Brandon. This is a bit strange, don't you think? It might be better to just keep our distance. It's been a long day. And to be honest, I'd rather just go to bed."

"I get it," Brandon said as he turned back towards the door. "I understand."

"I really don't think you do," she said. "It's nothing personal. Like I said, I'm just tired. I had the road trip from hell and I'm making the same one tomorrow. But, thanks." She watched him, waiting for him to take a hint and leave. It wasn't that she really wanted him to leave, but she didn't trust herself around him. And she really didn't trust him.

"All I want is one drink with you, Emilee. Come on, one drink won't hurt anything, will it?"

"Okay," she finally said. He was giving her a look she couldn't resist and while thoughts that this could be a mistake ran through her head, she couldn't think of one good reason why she shouldn't have one drink with Brandon. "One drink, but I want a shower first. I need to wash this day off me. Is that okay?"

"Sure. I'll be downstairs."

#

Brandon waited until he heard the water kick on in the bathroom and until he was fully certain that Emilee was under the water before he entered her bedroom again. It had been so long since he had been in her room, and he hadn't been just making a random comment when he said the room brought back many memories.

The room screamed Emilee, and it still held her familiar scent of honey and suntan oil, even though it had been over ten years since she had stayed in the room on a regular basis. He picked up the picture frame she had turned over and once again studied the picture of her and him before he found himself removing the picture and slipping it into his pocket and returning the frame to the position it had been in.

It was weird being in her room alone and it felt almost wrong to him, but Brandon couldn't seem to make himself leave the room, finding that he liked being close to Emilee even after a decade away from her. He did another slow turn, trying to see if there was anything that she had changed and he happened to look up. It was then that he saw all of the writing on the ceiling. Seeing it, he couldn't help but laugh.

He had forgotten about the strange tradition Emilee and her friends had had of signing messages to each other on their bedroom ceilings. And while it had seemed weird to him at the time, and it still seemed a bit odd, he had partaken in the tradition, and he searched the ceiling for his handwriting.

But he found nothing and there were odd splotches of white paint in random areas of the ceiling, and a more concentrated area over the head of the bed where Brandon distinctly remembered leaving his most personal messages for Emilee. His hand went back to his pocket and he pulled out the picture he had stolen. She had erased all memory of him from the room, but she had kept this picture of them on her bedside table. What had she been thinking?

Searching the ceiling one last time, Brandon decided to leave the room before she caught him in there and demanded to know what he was doing, but it was as he was leaving that he saw the Sharpie markers that Emilee and her friends had used to do their writing still sitting atop her bedroom dresser. And then he picked one up, and because he couldn't help himself, he walked back over to the bed and scribbled a message onto the paint that covered the ceiling above the head of the bed with hopes Emilee would find it later that night while she lay in bed.

#

Emilee came downstairs after a long time. It was quiet, and she couldn't be sure Brandon was still there. She had taken a lot longer in the shower than she had originally planned and that was because she still wasn't sure how she felt about spending the evening alone with Brandon. It had been so long since they had seen each other, but seeing him again had thrown her off balance. And then that moment in her bedroom...well, she was just confused.

Brandon was just coming through the front door when Emilee came down the stairs.

"Is it still snowing?" she asked him.

"Yeah," he told her. They had fallen into awkwardness once again and silence engulfed them, much to both of their dismay. "I don't think you'll be leaving tomorrow. There's a good foot of snow on the ground and I don't think it's going to stop anytime soon."

"What?" Emilee exclaimed with a groan. "I have to leave tomorrow." Brandon wanted to ask what her hurry was to leave the town, but it didn't seem like something he should ask, at least not yet.

"So, that drink?" he asked. Emilee nodded and they walked into the kitchen together. "Beer or wine?" He had the refrigerator open and was bent over, studying their options. "It's red wine," he added. "And crappy beer."

"Well, when you put it that way," Emilee said with a laugh. "I'll have a glass of wine."

#

One glass of wine turned into two glasses of wine and then two glasses turned into three. The awkwardness that had surrounded Emilee and Brandon earlier had seemed to melt away as the night wore on and they found themselves asking and talking about things that neither could have imagined they would be talking about had Emilee not agreed to share a drink with him.

"Is there anyone special back in...um, where are you living now?" Brandon asked. He hadn't expected to get so personal with the questions, but he was finding himself wanting to know more about Emilee's life and she seemed more than willing to answer his questions as he plied her with wine.

"Charlotte, North Carolina," Emilee told him. She looked down, her attention falling to the glass she held in her hands. So long ago she would have never felt this uneasy with Brandon, but that was a lifetime ago and they were both very different people. She wasn't sure about his line of questioning, if he was honestly curious about her life, or if he was trying to find something out. "And I don't think it's really any of your business," she added. "About the special someone, I mean." She looked up, meeting his eyes again, and realized that it might have been a mistake to give him any attention.

"So, there is someone." It was a statement, not a question and Brandon gave her a rueful smile. Emilee just shook her head and looked down once again. She busied herself with smoothing out an imaginary wrinkle in the yoga pants she wore. "Emma...lee," Brandon said, drawing out the syllables of her name, but she didn't give him an answer. "Oh, Emilee. Tell me about this man of yours. Or woman," he added."

"It's a man," she finally said. "And he's not really a special someone any longer. I'm not seeing anyone, Brandon, not that it should matter to you."

"Oh," he said softly with a slight frown. "I'm sorry to hear that." And he genuinely was, but he also couldn't help feeling a bit relieved to hear that she wasn't attached to anyone. Brandon hadn't realized how much he had missed Emilee until he had seen her again. "Was it serious?" The question popped out without his meaning to ask it, and he wondered why he even cared.

"Uh, yeah, I guess so," Emilee told him. The words didn't come easily for Emilee and she really couldn't say why. It might have had something to with the way Brandon's eyes kept dropping to her lips. Maybe it was his smile, playful and mischievous, hinting at fun to be had. Or, it could also have been the memories he had evoked earlier that evening of his mouth pressing against hers, his hands roaming as he touched and caressed eagerly.

"Emilee?"

"Huh?" She looked up quickly and Brandon couldn't help noticing that she looked a bit dazed.

"I wanna go where you were. You looked to be enjoying yourself." Emilee blushed, her cheeks reddening as Brandon called her out on the daydream she had been enjoying, and she only blushed deeper when a flash of emotion, one she could only describe as longing, crept into his eyes. "Emma," he sighed, again using the shortened version of her name that she had only ever let him use. "I want you."

"Then take me." Her exhaustion from the drive and the relaxed state the hot shower and wine had put her in were doing a number on her and her words were coming fast and loose without any thought.

A slow smile spread across Brandon's lips and Emilee blushed yet again. His eyes had that playful glint again, but the longing she had seen in them only a few moments earlier still lingered, too.

"Oh...you're sure?"

Emilee nodded, but she suddenly wasn't so certain. Brandon's eyes had never left hers and the playfulness that had been there had since left only to be replaced with an intensity that Emilee hadn't seen in a long time. "Um, yeah," she all but stuttered. She was flushed, from the wine, or possibly desire, and a wave of butterflies rolled in her stomach. Brandon had her on edge with his searching looks and pregnant pauses.

His eyes stayed locked on her as he leaned forward and moved towards her slowly. Emilee licked her lips lightly, a nervous gesture, but in anticipation, too. As Brandon continued to move towards her, as if in slow motion, her eyes fell shut when she could no longer hold his gaze. Her heart thumped anxiously in her chest and the butterflies continued to roil madly as Emilee waited to feel Brandon's lips on hers.

He was going to kiss her, she realized suddenly. And she wanted him to. She had been waiting for Brandon to kiss her again ever since he had had her pinned against her bedroom door earlier in the night and she was just now realizing it.

Emilee licked her lips once again and Brandon paused. She had no idea what that nervous flick of her tongue did to him, but she would. There was no way he was going to let her get through this weekend without her knowing just how she affected him, but tonight...tonight wasn't the right time for that.

"Brandon...?" Emilee questioned anxiously when a few tense moments passed between them. His fingers brushed her cheek and then...nothing. Her eyes opened quickly when she felt him pulling away from her.

"Goodnight, Emma," he said softly.

"What? What just happened?" She was confused. Just seconds earlier she had been certain he was going to kiss her, but now she watched as he walked out of the room to leave her wondering what she'd done wrong.

#

Later, Emilee sat up in bed unable to sleep. Brandon had disappeared hours before and Emilee had no idea where he was or if he was even still in the house. She expected he was still there as he would have said something had he left and with the snow piling up as it was, it would have been stupid on his part to leave that night.

It had been a crazy day and she had been a fool to wash it down with a couple of glasses of wine. She hadn't been thinking clearly downstairs with Brandon; actually, she hadn't been thinking clearly since the moment she arrived at the house and he had walked back into her life.

So, now, here she was, exhausted from the all day drive and a bit tipsy from too much wine, but she couldn't sleep. Her mind wouldn't rest and she couldn't stop thinking about the almost kiss...the two almost kisses and what Brandon could possibly be thinking.

Emilee threw herself back against her pillow with a sigh and it was then that her eyes fell upon the ceiling. Moonlight filtered through the window and there was just enough light for her to see that something was written on the ceiling in the space that had been blank just hours ago.

"I missed you, Emma...a lot."

Emilee's heart skipped a beat as she read the words again and she couldn't keep the smile from spreading across her lips. "I missed you, too," she said softly, a hint of sadness edging into her voice. "I missed you so much." It was too bad Brandon would never know just how much she had missed him.

#

Author's note: Please let me know what you think of this new story. I have a lot of ideas for this new story and I plan on having this updated at least once a week. Thanks for reading!