At this point I was crying from joy. "Sweetie what's wrong?" Damon said as he pulled back a little and looked at me with concern in his eyes. His gun was now back where nobody could see it.

"I missed you so much!" I whispered pulling him closer to me again. I never wanted to let him go.

"I missed you too Kandi," he whispered. It sounded as if he was about to cry as well. "I love you so much and when you disappeared I didn't think I would survive it! Everyone thought you were dead! Then Matt..." He stopped mid-sentance unsure if he should continue. This made me very nervous.

"Matt what?" I asked as I looked up at him.

"Matt killed himself," he whispered as he closed his eyes. I saw a tear run down the side of his face. I just stood there, taking it in. It was getting harder for me to breath and I was becoming light headed. My best friend was dead. Damon must have noticed that I was about to black out and he picked me up bridal style. "Hang in there babe," he said as he started to carry me back to his apartment. After a couple minutes I passed out in his arms. My best friend was dead!

When I woke up I was laying on a soft bed in a small bedroom. Damon was sitting on the edge of the bed looking at me. "Good morning beautiful," he said quietly as he leaned down and kissed my forhead.

I smiled and said, "Good morning!" Then I remembered why I had passed out. "How did he do it?" I asked. I still couldn't believe that Matt was gone.

"He slit his wrists," Damon whispered knowing exactly what I was talking about. I burst into tears again as I thought about Matt killing himself. Damon laid down beside me and pulled me into a hug. "It'll be OK honey! Please don't cry," he whispered into my ears trying to comfort me. He continued trying to comfort me and finally I started to calm down.

Then Damon asked me to tell him everything that had happened to me over the past 3 months. I told him everything, starting from when the two men took me until he called my name at the horse sale. I could tell he was getting angrier by the second. When I finished I paused and asked, "Why are you in Italy anyway?"

"I got a new job. It pays well and I get to travel," he answered as he stared intently at my ring finger which I once wore his ring on.

"What do you do?" I asked trying to start a conversation that wouldn't make me sad.

"I buy horses for a company that trains them to become dressage champions," he said quietly. "Which is why I was at the horse sale...I'm in Italy for another week and then I'm supposed to take a ship back to the US!"

"You work with horses?" I said laughing a little bit. He had never been that great with animals.

He chuckled and said, "I just buy the horses!" He paused and asked, "Are you hungry?"

"Very," I said as I giggled a little bit. "I'm going to go take a long shower though so can we eat later?"

He chuckled and said, "Dinner will be ready when you get out..."

"You cook?" I asked as I looked at him with amusement in my eyes. "The last time you tried to cook something you nearly burned my house down!"

"That was a long time ago sweet heart!" he said while laughing.

After a couple more minutes of talking I got into the shower and scrubbed my body relentlessly. No matter how hard I tried I couldn't get the feeling of Master off of me.

After about an hour I gave up and wrapped myself in a towel. I walked out into the bedroom and it was filled with red roses and lit candles. I smiled and got dressed. I followed a trail of rose petals out into the hallway. The entire house was filled with candle light and roses. "Damon?" I called, but I got no response. I wondered around his apartment until I found him in the dining room. He was lighting two more candle wich were sitting on top of the table. "Damon this is beautiful!" I stated breathlessly.

"Just like you," he said turning back to me. He walked over to me and took my hands lightly. He leaned in and kissed me gently on the lips. My whole body shook because it reminded me of Master. I managed to calm myself and smile at him. He led me over to my seat and pulled my chair out for me. I smiled even more and sat down. There was a plate of spaghetti sitting in front of me. It was my favorite dinner. I smiled at the fact that he actually remembered. He sat across from me at the small table. In the backround I could hear my favorite song playing on repeat. I laughed at this and looked at him.

"Your amazing," I whispered.

He smiled back at me and said, "No where near as amazing as you are!" He reached over and lightly put a finger to my lips before I could protest. I giggled and started to eat.

After we both finished Damon stood and walked to the stereo. A new song started to play. He walked over to me and held out his hand. "May I have this dance?" he asked as he flashed me a smile.

"Of course you may!" I said while smiling as I stood. "But Damon answer me something..."

"What's that princess?" he asked.

"How are you going to dance with me when you can't dance?!" I asked knowing that he was one of the worst dancers in the world. He smirked and spun me in a circle. He started to do the waltz with me.

"Can't dance huh?" he asked after he saw my expression.

"I'm impressed my love! In 3 months you have managed to get an amazing job, learn how to cook, and learn how to dance!" I said while laughing.

"That's not all!" he said as he turned off the music. He smiled as he turned back towards me. "In the past hour I have managed to cover my apartment in candles and roses, make your favorite dinner, find an english version of your favorite song, and get you a new engagement ring!" I looked at him questioningly, and he pulled out a diamond ring. He slowly got down on one knee. "Kandi I love you with all my heart! Your the most amazing girl I have ever met, and I want to be with you for forever! I want to grow old with you! I want to be there when all your dreams come true! Will you marry me?"

Instantly I said, "Yes!" He slid the ring onto my finger and stood back up. He kissed me passionatly, and I tried my hardest to kiss him back even though I was in the middle of a flashback when Master kissed me.  When the kiss ended I smiled at him. I was finally happy again for the first time in 3 months! I was content with my life...but that was all about to change...