He tucked the helmet under his arm before stepping a bit closer to the shiny, red sportscar. This bar wasn't crowded enough to be parking on the side of the street, he thought to himself as he leaned to check for flat tires or a boot.

Nothing. He turned back to the flashing neon sign, its light periodically illuminating the small parking lot. There were plenty of pickup trucks, plenty of motorcycles, even a few beater cars, but certainly nothing else quite like this. There had to be a story, he shrugged as he headed for the door.

The smell of stale cigarette smoke and beer hit him as soon as the door swung open and he nodded at the face of the man he now recognized at the pool table. Billy scanned the room slowly. The bar was a far cry from anywhere his family would ever be. The chances of running into someone he knew were virtually nonexistent, but he still felt compelled to check. The last thing he wanted tonight was a lecture.

She sat perched on the edge of the barstool, her back rigid and stiff, her shoulders tense. Even from a respectable distance, he could hear her words as she spoke to the man next to her.

"I appreciate it, but as I've already explained to you, I can buy my own drinks."

"I'm sure you can," he crooned, "but a pretty lady like yourself really shouldn't have to. It's a tragedy really. Every man in here should be ashamed of himself."

"I'm fine. Really. I'm just waiting on a phone call and then I'll be on my way. I'm sure there are plenty of other women in here that would love to take you up on that offer."

"None as pretty as you." He leaned in a bit closer.

"Honey." Billy saw her jump slightly at the sound of his voice. He sighed in mock frustration. "I finally got in touch with the Auto Club. They're sending someone now. It should only be about twenty minutes and then we'll be out of here." He waited to see how she'd respond, if she'd go along with it or if she'd balk and tell him to take a hike too.

He turned to face that still sat stubbornly close to her. "She's just upset. We've been looking forward to those dinner reservations for weeks now. It's not easy to get a sitter for five kids. Tonight of all nights the car decides to break down."

"Oh," he stammered, almost tripping over his own feet as he hurried to take a step back. "I uh … yeah, that's too bad. Well, you two have a nice evening. I hope you can still make it to dinner."

Billy smiled as he quickly shifted onto the now vacant barstool.

"Uh, thank you," she said quietly. "I think."

"You think?" He nodded at the bartender as his usual appeared in front of him. "Why the caveat? I think I just helped you shake that guy."

She nodded before taking a drink from her glass. "You did, but you also just gave me five kids. Do I look like I've had five kids?"

He leaned over and pretended to study her, then broke into an easy laugh at her slightly horrified expression. "Of course not," he grinned boyishly. "I just needed to put the fear of God in him. I think it was an inspired choice."

"It certainly seemed to work. Why don't you let me get that one for you?" She gestured to the drink in front of him. "My way of paying you back. Unless of course you're running on a tab. It looks like you might be pretty well known in this place."

"I come here a pretty good bit. It's a nice escape, on the outskirts on town, don't have to worry about running into the normal crew. I haven't seen you in here before though. I'm guessing that pretty red speedster outside belongs to you?"

"It's not exactly speeding anywhere right now," she grumbled. "I was going down the road and the next thing I knew the temperature gauge shot up and smoke started coming out from under the hood." She sighed heavily. "I was afraid if I didn't stop here, I wouldn't make it into town. Since I'm not familiar with Genoa City, I wasn't exactly sure how far I was from where I needed to be. This place wasn't the best place, but it was better than the middle of nowhere."

"Right," he smiled easily as he talked with her. There was something something about her that he instantly liked. "Where were you headed exactly?"

"The Genoa City Athletic Club," she answered. "I'm staying there and then tomorrow morning I've got a business meeting with a potential client."

"The club? Yeah, you're actually not too far, but I don't think you would have wanted to chance it. So you're in town for business? What kind of …"

"Hey Abbott?" One of the men at the pool table called out to him from across the bar. "You gonna sit at the bar all night or you gonna come play?"

Billy turned to look at them. "I think I'll sit this one out," he grinned. "Give you all a chance to practice." He turned back to face her. "Sorry," he smiled. "I …"

"Abbott? Is that what he called you?"

He felt his body tense as the question rang out in the air. "Yeah. My name is Billy Abbott."

"As in the Abbotts that run Jabot Cosmetics? Jack Abbott? John Abbott?"

"Yeah," he said slowly, trying to piece together why any of this was of importance to her. "I'm John Abbott's son, Jack's brother."

She laughed and leaned away from the bar. "Well then, I guess we got an early start on our meeting."

Slowly but surely the pieces began to fit together. "Wait so you're the meeting tomorrow morning, you're the online marketing specialist?" He took her hand as she extended it towards him.

"I am. It's a hell of a way to make a first impression," she smiled, "But I'm meeting with Jack tomorrow. The name's Kelly Cramer. Nice to meet you, Mr. Abbott."