Despite Riley's parents' admittedly justified anger, I didn't give up on Riley. She was the one person in the world that I wanted more than anything else. This wasn't just a matter of wanting something that I couldn't have, not like there was a challenge or that this was in any way a game to me. This wasn't someone who had teased and taunted me, seduced me and then jokingly - or maybe not so much - stayed an arm's length away. No, I knew how I felt about Riley and my feelings were real. I knew she felt the same about me. The pain in her expression, the way she'd looked at me when I was at her house the other day, I knew, deep down, that Riley felt the same for me as I felt for her.

I didn't want her to turn her back on her parents, not for my sake. She and her parents had a great relationship, or had anyway, until I had gone and ruined everything. But I had a feeling that over time, they'd be able to mend this rift in their relationship. I had to give it time. I had to be patient. Unfortunately, patience wasn’t one of my greatest virtues.

So, I'd come to a decision and a plan had formed, surprisingly enough, with a little bit of suggestions and support from my mother. I don't know what happened, but she'd been different ever since… ever since what I termed the fiasco. I was beginning to think that a leopard really could change its spots. She had held true to her word, retiring her position on the board at the bank, giving me close to full control over the business, its future and all associated decisions in its management. We'd talked a couple of times since that last phone call. She had admitted some things that still had me feeling if not uncomfortable, then wary and uncertain. Telling me things like how much she missed my dad, the regrets she had, regrets for which she could never make amends. Not with him anyway. She had reiterated her desire to repair our relationship as well. This new Iva Cross was someone I didn't know, someone that took some getting used to after our history.

I began to believe, as the days passed, that this was the Ivy my father had fallen in love with. It seemed as if she had let go of the reins of control, but she was more content. More approachable. She had admitted her faults and accepted the responsibility for what happened with my dad after the way she treated him. I'd seen the tears in her eyes, the true regret. I had no idea what prompted this change in her and I guess it didn't really matter.

Slowly, I was also stepping forward to find a new footing with this woman, this woman who was my mother but still a stranger at the same time. We both decided to take it slow, but so far, the change in her attitude and demeanor had been welcome. I couldn't lie about that. She gave me my space, didn't push anything, and seemed resigned to the fact that it would be up to me whether I wanted her in my life. Surprisingly enough, I did.

At the same time, I knew that I couldn't bear the thought of living without Riley being a part of my life. I wasn't sure how I was going to go about getting her back, of winning over her parents, of convincing them that my apology had been sincere and heartfelt. It was my mother who had broached an idea, and I had taken it from there, built upon it, and resolved that whether it worked or not, I was doing the right thing. If Riley's father wouldn't let me help his family directly, then I was going to do it indirectly.

This whole thing with Riley had me seeing my life in a new perspective. At the moment, I stood on the dock next to my yacht, listening to it gently splash on the ripple of water as a yacht from up the canal chugged by and left a small wake behind. The boat's captain shouted a hello and I waved back, my eyes still riveted to my mansion. It had hit me the other day. Standing in this very spot. I was a single man. What did I need with a four-million-dollar mansion? I used very little of the space. I was so busy I didn't have time to get out on my yacht as often as I would have liked, so why have these things, these material things, that had not ever been so important to me?

I had decided to downsize. I found a nice two-story home with two acres of property along the northwest and outside edge of St. Petersburg that I liked. I was thinking of making an offer on it. I wasn't going to say that I didn't like money, because I do. I like it a lot. I just... I guess I just realized that I was being wasteful and that these were just material. Riley was worth more to me than millions of dollars, and I should be spending my money more responsibly. I admired Riley for her devotion and dedication to her parents, especially in regard to her mother's care. She had made a great sacrifice to try to help her father and though it had turned out so badly wasn't Riley's fault. I had to make it right, somehow.

That's when I decided my plan. Over the next couple of months, I had begun to buy up derelict and dilapidated properties in Riley's neighborhood, had given endowments and funding to organizations throughout the area that focused on community involvement, improvement, and opportunities. Finally, my pièce de la résistance if you will, was to be the grand opening of a new community center that would provide a number of afterschool programs to neighborhood children. The large structure had been dilapidated for years, abandoned, but I took charge of renovation, expansion, and got together with community leaders to designate the formation of a number of afterschool programs. A media center, fully supplied with the latest in computer technologies and media equipment for job training in a number of today's media-related careers. There was a reading program, an ESL afterschool program with tutoring, and of course, new basketball courts and athletic programs that would hopefully keep the kids off the streets at night, away from the temptation of gang activity.

I called Riley later that afternoon, as I stood in front of the new community center, the signage covered with a huge tarp, ready to reveal. The grand opening was tonight and I needed the Hunts to be there. I dialed Riley's number, waited while it rang three, then four, then five times. Finally, she picked up.

"Wyatt, is that you?"

"Hello, Riley," I said. It'd been about three months since I had spoken to her last, seen her standing there in the living room of her parents' house, her features pale, her expression one of devastation. "How have you been?"

A pause. "I've been doing okay, Wyatt. Why are you calling me?"

"Riley, do you love me?" I paused and held my breath, waiting for her answer, hoping that her feelings for me had not changed. Finally, she replied.

"Yes, Wyatt, I love you. But what difference does it make? I can't—"

"I love you too, Riley, from the bottom of my heart. I've been busy trying to prove it to you and your parents. In fact, I need you and your family to do something for me."

Hesitantly, she spoke. "You want me to tell my parents that you need them to do a favor for you?"

I chuckled softly. "I just need the three of you to come down to the old community center on Bascom Street. You know the place?"

Another pause. "That old building that used to be some kind of a warehouse? Why? It's been abandoned for years."

"Can you get your parents here? Please?"

Finally, she sighed. "I suppose I could, but I don't understand—"

"You will, Riley," I said. I wanted to talk to her, to linger on the phone, but not now. When we had some privacy. "Seven o'clock?"

"All right," she said softly, hesitating, perhaps wanting to say more herself. "I'll do my best to get them there."

"Thanks, Riley. I'll see you later."