The early rays of dawn streamed in through the window, throwing a golden glow on the couple cuddled together in bed. Brandon opened his eyes first, his internal clock tuned to the early hours of the day due to his job. But instead of jumping out of bed like he usually did, he turned to face the sleeping golden haired angel laying on his arm. He smiled, silently observing the face that made his heart soar. He gently reached out and touched the area where her dimple usually was when she smiled – and a soft hum came from her throat. Her eyes fluttered open and she found Brandon looking at her the way a man looks at a precious treasure.

"Good morning, my Angel." He nuzzled his cheek against hers as he spoke. A wide smile spread on her face and she ran her hands through his tousled, golden brown hair.

"Good morning, my dashing knight." Brandon laughed at her name for him and pulled her fast against his chest.

"This is how I want it to be every morning," he said contently, "however, there's too much temptation to stay in bed all day with you and I have to get to work." Gabriella sighed.

"Me too."

"Angel, are you sure you can handle it?" Brandon asked, concern filling his eyes. "You don't have to go if you don't feel ready." Gabriella shook her head.

"I have to go, Brandon. My boss will blow a top if I take any more days off. I'll be fine, I know who I'll be coming home to and that'll get me through the day." Brandon wondered if his joy would cause his heart to explode. However, the thought of everything he had to do today sobered him up.

"I'm going to end things with Archer once and for all today," he said tentatively, gauging Gabriella's reaction. She tensed up.

"Okay," she said quietly.

"He may want to settle fast. A court case could result in a lot of negative publicity for him."

"And... you want me to agree to it?" Gabriella asked, meeting his eyes.

"No Angel, I would never ask you to do that after all he's put you through! But the thing is," Brandon hesitated, "dragging this into court would mean you'd have to come and testify. And that means seeing him again—"

"Settle with him," Gabriella said quickly, "I don't want to see him ever again, day in and day out, battling a court case."

"Are you sure, Angel? I don't want you to make this decision and regret it later—"

"I'm sure, Brandon." Gabriella nodded. "I don't want to waste precious time in court when I can spend that time with you." He placed a long kiss on her forehead.

"I'm glad you feel that way, Gabriella. I know it's a hard decision but I'm proud of you," his eyes glinted as he continued, "and I'll make sure he pays through his nose for everything he's done."

"I know you'll do what's right," Gabriella said with a soft smile. Brandon's expression lightened.

"For you? Always. Now, would you be interested in a quick breakfast before we go? I'll whip up a vegan mouth-watering omelet du fromage for my lovely mademoiselle." Gabriella laughed in delight, the happiness of being with Brandon washing away the last dregs of her bad memories with Archer.

Gabriella stepped into the elevator leading up to her office, feeling like she was about to throw up from nervousness. True, that would be a shame as her stomach was well filled with the delicious omelet Brandon made her so she forced the queasiness to go away. No matter what her coworkers said or gossiped, she had to ignore it all. She would think of Brandon... she closed her eyes, envisioning him as he dropped her off a minute ago – the sparkly smile he'd given her, the attractive cut of his black and silver suit, hiding the perfect body she had been dreaming of all night...

Suffice to say, by the time she entered her office, her head was filled with nothing but Brandon.

She sat down at her desk and braced herself for any attacks that might come her way – after the way she left two days ago, she knew she was in for an earful from her boss at least.

"I can't believe she had the nerve to show up at work again!" Strike one, Gabriella thought, as the buzz of voices reached her ears.

"Do you think all the articles are true though? She doesn't look... inoculated." Strike two from Wanda and Marci, it hit a nerve. Gabriella clenched her fist around her mouse.

"It must be true though... Think they broke up? Maybe he didn't want to be her millionaire baby daddy..." Strike three and Gabriella shot up from her desk, seething. The buzz of chatter immediately ceased.

"If you people have the time to gossip about other people's lives, I'm sure you have time to get some actual work done!" Gabriella lashed out at everyone, her hands shaking with anger. "You ought to be ashamed, drawing a salary without doing any work, all you people know how to do is obsess over ridiculous tabloid articles! If you had any decency, you'd mind your own businesses and not discuss wild stories about other people!" Gabriella sat down with a bump after her hard hitting speech, shocking everyone. Her boss, Jess, had walked into the room a minute ago and had heard the entire thing. She felt pleased with Gabriella for showing diligence and dedication to her work – but that only made her job harder. For she approached Gabriella with a look of uneasiness.

"Well said, Gabriella." She commended her.

"Oh, boss, I didn't know you had come..." Gabriella bit her lip nervously. Jess patted her shoulder.

"Actually, I wanted to have a word with you, in private. Can I see you in my office?" A ball of lead dropped in Gabriella's stomach. That didn't sound good. Jess didn't look angry, just worried; Jess rarely looked worried. Gabriella felt the worry infect her insides on seeing the look of disquiet in her boss's eyes. Whatever she had to discuss, it couldn't be good news.

Brandon put down the telephone in it's receiver and leaned back in his chair, blowing out his cheeks. He just got off the phone with his attorney and felt lighter in his mind as he did. He had consulted him about the cases against Archer and just as he expected, Archer didn't have a leg to stand on and had requested a settlement. Brandon clenched his fists. He wasn't going to let him off that easily; after all the notoriety he caused his angel, Brandon would make sure Archer paid his retribution in full.

"Hey, Barry, you in here?" Peter knocked at his office door and opened it a crack, poking his head through it. Brandon beckoned him over.

"Pete, yeah I'm here."

"The board of directors are all hot and bothered at the collar because this whole mess with the tabloids hasn't been cleared up yet," Peter said worriedly. "What are you gonna do about it?"

"Let them know that by tomorrow, everything will be back to normal," Brandon reassured him confidently. "I've already gotten things moving. The tabloids are pulling out their articles, paying their dues and reissuing new articles rectifying their previous statements."

"And the motel leak?" Peter asked tentatively. Brandon nodded, his expression calm. The motel he and Gabriella had stayed in after the wedding had gotten a wind of the tabloids and came forward with a scandalous opinion about them sharing a room. It added to the tally of black marks the company piled up against him. He wished he had been more careful with that receptionist. Still, he waved a lawsuit in front of them guaranteeing that they would close down for good if they gave out erroneous information about their guests. There wasn't a peep out of them after that.

"Dealt with," Brandon said, "they'll think twice before they fan any flames again."

"Oh good, that's a load off our shoulders. And you were right about Archer by the way."

"What do you mean?" Brandon perked up his head sharply.

"I have a reliable source that claims he was the one that leaked Gabriella's address to the media last week. That's how things blew up on Saturday."

"Archer," Brandon's eyes glinted icy blue as he spoke, "is going to get his comeuppance soon. I have him cornered right where I want him."

"You sound like you have something up your sleeve."

"Peter, please. You know I never make a move without a flush in hand."

"I do know that too well," Peter grinned, leaning against the wall and balancing his weight on one foot, "heaven knows I've lost enough games to you. I can't wait to hear what you have in store."

"That little weasel likes to smear dirt on a lot of innocent people, as it turns out," Brandon explained, "he's been on a defaming streak for quite awhile now."

"And you know this, how?"

"Hired detectives to dig the dirt on him."

"Ah," Peter nodded understandingly.

"It's time someone put it to an end. I thought I'd have to bring up all his past victims to clinch the case against him but he's pushing for a settlement."

"You're not gonna hand it to him on a silver platter, are you?" Peter asked in surprise.

"Not while I'm alive!" Brandon exclaimed. "Since he's so fond of rolling in the mud and dragging innocent victims through it, I'm gonna make sure the whole world sees him doing it himself."

"By?"

"By having him admit to all the tabloids that he spread all those false defaming comments about Gabriella. By the time I get done with him, he won't be able to show his face in public again."

"Ooh, that'll do wonders for a man's reputation," Peter said with a wince. "But what if he decides to fight back?"

"He won't," Brandon said, knitting his hands behind his head, "his funds won't allow for the kind of case I'm bringing against him and if he's still kicking, I'll flash all the women he's ruined for rejecting him in his face. That's a last resort though, I hope it won't come to that. I wouldn't want to subject any other woman through the same ordeal I'm trying to save Gabriella from."

"You're a regular Superman, aren't you, putting out fires and rescuing ladies?" Peter asked with a sly grin. Brandon smirked.

"Just one lady in particular. And I prefer the term 'knight'." He picked up his phone as he spoke, his eyes softening with tenderness as he gazed at the picture of his wallpaper – a picture of Gabriella.

"Soon, my Angel," he whispered quietly, "I'll get you the justice due you very soon."

Gabriella caught the bus after work, her mood being considerably low. Her boss had given her some rather depressing news about her job and it weighed down her mind all through the ride home.

"I know what an excellent work ethic you have, Gabriella," Jess had said, "which makes this even harder for me to say. Things have been shaky at the company lately and the higher ups are leaning towards lay-offs. Now nothing is definite but I just thought I'd inform you before calls are made. What with budget cuts and insufficient sales, unless something picks up..." here Jess sighed and knit her hands together.

"They're looking into each employee's image and evaluating whom to lay off based on their reputation." Gabriella swallowed, knowing where this was going.

"As far as work is concerned, your record is spotless," Jess continued, "exceeding expectations even. But I'm afraid if all the publicity with the tabloids continues... Diana Cosmetics won't be able to keep you on. The company doesn't want employees who give the company a bad name and they especially don't want to be mixed up with the tabloids."

"I understand." Gabriella nodded bravely.

"I know this must be hard for you to hear, Gabriella, and if it were up to me I would have kept you on." Jess terminated the meeting on a kind note but Gabriella still felt miserable. Because of Archer, even her job was on the rocks! This day couldn't get any worse.

"Perch Street." The bus driver announced. Gabriella looked up in surprise. She had forgotten that she was supposed to go to Brandon's house and had arrived home instead! Feeling frustrated, she got off the bus and waited outside her building. She would have to call Brandon to pick her up—

Ring, ring! Gabriella wondered if Brandon was psychic. She pulled out her phone from her purse and gave a little smile on seeing his name in the incoming caller id. She answered the call.

"Brandon, you have perfect timing, you know that?"

"I do? Huh, good to know." She could hear the chuckle in his voice. "I was calling to find out if you're done with work, I'm coming by to pick you up."

"Actually, I accidently took the bus to my apartment and I'm on Perch Street right now."

"Really? Well, I'll be right over to pick you up, don't go anywhere!"

"I won't." Gabriella smiled at the protectiveness in Brandon's voice as she hung up. She waited until Brandon's car whizzed up to her and stopped by the curb.

"Hello darling, I hope you didn't have to wait very long," Brandon said as he got out to get the door for her.

"No, you came right on time," she assured him as she got in the car. Brandon noticed her face wasn't as bright as when he saw her in the morning and guessed she had a hard day at work. He clasped her hands in his own, massaging them slowly.

"Rough day?" He asked her.

"You could say that." She didn't want to tell him her job was in trouble so she sighed and closed her eyes leaning against the seat.

"What you need to cheer you up is a delicious meal prepared by yours truly," Brandon said lightly, "what are you in the mood for? French? Italian?"

"I might be in the mood for some ravioli—"Gabriella's eyes flew open as she suddenly remembered something.

"Italian, pasta, Brandon!" She exclaimed suddenly, startling him.

"What? What is it?" He asked, getting panicky. Gabriella looked dismayed.

"All the food I cooked this week – it's still in the fridge!"

Ten minutes later, after a quick trip upstairs to her apartment, Gabriella and Brandon were busy clearing out her fridge of containers and containers full of spoiled food. The power was still out and the manager informed her it would be several days before it was fixed.

"Oh, this is horrible! What an awful waste! I cannot believe I forgot to clean out my fridge!" Gabriella wailed. Brandon chuckled in amusement, thinking how she hadn't changed one bit since the day he met her – she would still fret over little things.

"Angel, it's okay. I'll replace everything for you."

"But this is all the food we bought together that day! And I prepared it all just for you! Oh, this is the most awful day I've ever had, and I didn't think it could get worse!" She sank to the floor in a curled up ball with her hands on her head in despair. Brandon came beside her and sheltered her with his arms in a comforting embrace, knowing she wasn't in the mood for jokes.

"Gabriella, darling, this isn't just about the food, is it?" He asked intuitively. She sighed.

"I've been having a really lousy day at work and to think all my hard work went to waste makes me want to keel over," Gabriella moaned. Brandon helped her up, holding her close.

"Angel, it's just food. Let it go, don't let it get to you. As for whatever's going on at work, I can assure you everything with the articles will come to an end soon. That is what was worrying you, wasn't it?"

"Yes, well..." Gabriella avoided Brandon's eyes. He lifted her chin gently.

"I know, you've been going through a lot these days. But Angel, I want you to remember that you've got me." Looking up at Brandon's earnest eyes, Gabriella couldn't help smiling and felt better.

"I know, Barry." She placed a kiss on his cheek.

"Now," he fondled her hair as he spoke, "shall we dispose of all this food and be on our way?"

"I need to pick up some more clothes since I'll be staying at your place longer," Gabriella said.

"Let me help you," Brandon offered, but Gabriella shook her head and gave him a gentle push backwards.

"Uh-uh, I don't want you seeing anything you shouldn't," Gabriella insisted with a stern look, though there was a twinkle in her eye. Brandon gave her his puppy dog face.

"But I already know what your bras look like!" He got a swat on the arm for that before Gabriella skipped off to the bedroom and shut the door. Brandon laughed. She was so innocent it made her all the more adorable. A few minutes later, she came out carrying a duffle bag.

"I'm all set," she said, walking towards him. The sun had set and the room was quite dark since there were no lights and in her haste to go, Gabriella didn't see her slippers on the floor and tripped over them.

"Oh!" She gasped, but Brandon stepped forward and caught her delicately by the waist in the nick of time. He smiled suavely down at her surprised face.

"Now why do I feel you did that just so I could catch you?" He cupped her waist and pulled her against his lips, savoring her mouth in a quick but heated kiss. Gabriella pulled away, laughing. No matter how bad things might be, she could always count on Brandon to warm her heart and bring a smile to her face.

"I did not, as you well know," she replied to him. "Come along, my rake of a knight, before you cause any more trouble in the dark."

What it is to have someone who's always on your side... It's a blessing, truly. Appreciate it. 

Love is the anchor that keeps you grounded in the storm. Cherish it.

😘Moving on,