Once again, Max and Gabrielle gave into their passion and finally declared their love for each other.

After Max took a bullet meant for her, Gabrielle made a pact with God: if the Almighty allowed Max to survive, then Gabrielle swore that she would devote her life to the church. Miraculously, Max rallied and recovered. True to her word, Gabrielle readied to become a nun! Max discovered Gabrielle�s whereabouts and raced to the convent. He caught up to her on the convent lawn where he forced her to declare her love for him. The night air was thick with passion as Max kissed Gabrielle again. This time, she couldn�t resist. They sank down to the ground and, by the light of the full moon, made love on the convent lawn.

After making love, Max proposed to Gabrielle, who jubilantly accepted. During the night, Gabrielle woke up screaming because the nightmare of Max, consumed in flames, had returned. Soon, her fears were realized. On the way to pick up a wedding ring, Max crashed his car into a tree. Gabrielle learned that Max�s charred corpse had been pulled from the fiery wreckage, but in actuality, Max Holden was alive! It was a hitchhiker Max picked up by who died in the blazing wreckage. Max decided to allow his friends and family to believe he was dead, rather than put them through the agony of living with his deformity.

Father Tony Vallone proved a valuable friend to Gabrielle in her time of grief. These were difficult times for Tony, because he had fallen in love with Gabrielle, but fought his feelings to remain committed to the church.