It took Sam a long time to fall asleep and she woke thinking about Stone. Her treacherous hormones had gotten the better of her. She'd allowed him to kiss her. She hadn't stopped him before he started because the truth, well, the truth was that she'd desperately wanted him to kiss her.

She wanted to be the girl who could have a fling on her vacation with a willing and oh-so-capable man. If Stone could make her body catch fire like that with a brief kiss... Just stop! She had to stop letting her mind wander back to last night. No matter what she wanted, the fact remained that she wasn't that girl.

It wasn't fair to Stone, leading him on. She would tell him that she was sorry, but he'd have to find his entertainment elsewhere. If he didn't want to spend so much time with her after that, she would miss him, she admitted, but she would understand.

Looking in the mirror of the shower stall reminded Sam how far away she was from ever being the kind of girl a man like Stone could entertain. The tattoo that started at the side of her left breast, then licked over her shoulder, covering the scars beneath, was her promise and reminder that she was on a mission.

She was here because Carla needed space and freedom from worrying about her, not because she was a girl who needed a vacation. Resolve regained, Sam returned to her cabin to change and get ready for the three-day cattle drive she and the others would embark on today.

It took a great deal of effort to hold onto that resolve when she walked to Beauty's stall a half hour later and found Stone affectionately petting and scratching the mare's neck, murmuring softly to her. Jasper was the one to announce her arrival with a small yip, scrambling from the ground to greet her cheerfully.

"I think he's as happy to see you as I am."

"Stone." Samantha began reluctantly, purposefully not responding to his statement. “I need to apologize for last night. It was a mistake on my part and I’m sorry. I need you to understand that nothing is going to happen between us. I appreciate the time you've spent with me and I'll miss it if you decide to spend your time with someone else, but I completely understand. You have so many women who would love to have you, who would be more than willing to be your fling, but I’m not one of them.” She heaved a sigh and shrugged. "If you want to get someone else to help me get ready to go, go ahead and do that."

Stone looked at her for a moment like he was studying her, measuring the weight of her words. Finally, he nodded. “Right, then. You keep trying to get rid of me. Reckon I'll have to adjust my play, but you're not getting rid of me that easy, Samantha.”

He reached out, put his finger under her chin, forcing her to meet his steady gaze. “I like you. Whatever does or doesn't happen is up to you, but I like being around you. I like spending time with you. So unless you tell me you want someone else to show you the ropes, I’m afraid you're stuck with me."

Sam smiled a wobbly smile. "No,” She whispered. “I don't want someone else. I'll stick with you. Thank you."

"Right." He grinned at her. "Ready to become a real cowgirl then?”

* * *

A few hours of being in the saddle taught Sam three things:

1. No matter what kind of shape you thought you were in, sitting on the back of a horse for an extended period of time would let your legs know there was a difference between normal, average-person shape and cowboy shape.

2. In all the movies where cowboys ride out to work the cows, or ride the fences, or the women are galloping though the fields with their hair streaming behind them, and they all still look sexy at the end of it ... lies. It’s all a bunch of lies. Sexy went out the window three hours ago.

3. There was a reason cowboys lived long lives. The physical labor was hard, harder than she understood, but the mental and emotional stress a person experienced in the city was on a totally different level. The freedom that came with thinking of little else than the trail in front of you, enjoying the beauty surrounding you, it was indescribable.

Sam groaned as she slid from Beauty's back, praising the mare gratefully for her patience, for standing still while Sam clung to her, desperately negotiating with her legs to hold her up. Everything from the waist down felt stiff and sore. She watched as Stone, Alex and Dean, walked towards her as if they were completely unaffected. She lifted one hand weakly, still clinging to Beauty with the other.

"Hey guys!” She called out more cheerfully than she felt. “It's good to see you completely unaffected by the hours-long ride."

"Ah, Sweetness." Stone replied with a chuckle, lifting his hat to scratch his head. "We've got a fair bit to go yet. ’Bout four hours more after lunch. We'll catch up to the cows in the North pasture about noon tomorrow, then head back with 'em."

Sam shook her head with a whimper. “Tell me again why people pay for this?”

“Because it’s fun!” Alex pointed out, much too cheerfully.

Sam looked at Stone, who stood with his arms crossed, laughing silently at her. She could tell. She saw it in his eyes. This was all very amusing to him.

“Thank you.” She offered anyway. Even though her inability to stand properly amused him. “For the chaps. My muscles are screaming at me, I can’t really stand on my own yet, but I’m not chafed, which I’m thinking is a blessing. Yay me.”

Stone bellowed, making her laugh with him. “Sam, you’re more than welcome.” He gave her a lopsided grin and she wondered with pleasure, if this was what real happiness felt like.

She found out just how much of a blessing those chaps were when Bryce and Sunny joined her and Alex for lunch. The horses had been unsaddled and watered first, because, Sam learned from Zeke, the head ranch-hand, a good cowboy always takes care of his horse before looking after his own needs.

Bryce and Sunny both had their pant legs rolled up, white cream covering the chafed parts of their calves.

"We already took care of the higher areas. Let me tell you, that is not fun!” Sunny shook her head emphatically.

Bryce added, “Zeke, helped me get bandaged and told me there were a couple extra pairs of chaps if we wanted them. I thought they would make me too hot, or that I’d look ridiculous, but at this point, I'll do just about anything to keep this from happening again."

The two women winced as they sat on the big log Alex and Sam procured for use as a bench. The four women hungrily ate the turkey sandwiches and greedily gulped the water that had been provided, each of them feeling at that moment that it tasted just as good as any five star restaurant. The silence they shared was one of hunger and companionship. After the quick lunch and re-tacking the horses, the group set out again. A merry band of wannabe cattle rustlers.

* * *

“How often do you need to move the cows around?" Sam inquired when she and Stone were riding side by side on the dusty trail.

She was trying to distract herself from the painful awareness of how attractive he was. Sam was used to seeing men in tuxedos and designer clothes, but she couldn't remember any of them having the affect Stone was having in his worn-out jeans and long-sleeved shirt. She told herself to stop staring, but her eyes kept wandering to him. He wore the same dark hat and gloves that he always wore when riding, but his saddle was fitted with a lariat and saddlebags. He and the other hands also wore handguns strapped to their belts. “Just in case we come across an unfriendly critter or two.” He'd explained, and Sam would never tell him how hot it was. Westerns were never her thing, but she was starting to think cowboys could be. When she realized he was talking, Sam blinked back to attention.

"We move them to the South pasture,” Stone was saying. “Closest to the living portion of the ranch for the winter. We supplement them with hay when the snow prevents them from grazing and there are shelters for them down there. In the spring, we move them back to the larger northern pastures where there's plenty of grazing. We also inventory three times a year."

"Why so often?” She asked curiously.

"We need to know how many we lost so we can write it off in our books. You lose a few each year to wild animals and a few to the elements, falling in a ditch, or getting ill before we can catch it. We also have calves every year. There's a number we should have, based on the number we breed, but there are always a few that don't make it. Hartstone’s not just a dude ranch for us. Our cattle are our main source of profit. It's a big business. We have to manage it as such."

"Well, if there's one thing I know,” Sam intoned. “It's running a business. I know that I buy beef and have it served to me at restaurants. I just never gave much thought to where it comes from, or how it gets to my plate.” She crinkled her nose. “All the meat we've eaten here, does it come from your herd?"

Stone looked at her with amusement. "It comes from our stock, yes. No sense going for others,” He said with a wink. “When you've already got the best."

"So, how big is Hartstone” She asked, changing the subject. “What’s the story behind the name?"

“The story goes that my great, great, great grandfather settled here. He and his wife worked tirelessly to build their cattle business, kept buying land, expanding. They had three sons together, but his wife died giving birth to their fourth. The child lived and became the son that took over the ranch when the other three left in search of greener pastures. That brother was my father’s great, great, grandfather. Anyway, he buried his wife under his cabin, because her love was the stone that he’d build his home on, and he named the place Hartstone. The big house sits in the same place as that original cabin.” Stone glanced sideways at her. “He couldn’t spell, but the name hasn’t changed since then.”

“It shouldn’t change.” Sam interjected softly. “That’s a beautiful and tragic story.” “The ranch is currently about twelve hundred acres,” Stone continued. “But it's been in our family forever. You might have noticed the town's named after us." He grinned down at her, his eyes twinkling. "How does it feel to be riding side by side with a real, live celebrity?"

She laughed back at him, then clutched her chest. “Be still my beating heart! I'll cherish this moment forever."

"I know I will." He said slowly, and just that quick, the moment went from light to heavy. His gaze on her was intense, like he was studying her, reading her thoughts, getting too close.

"Can I ask you something, Stone?" She glance ahead, then turned her head back towards him.

"Anything. Ask away."

"You don't have to tell me. If you don't want to."

"Ask, Sweetness.”

"Alex said that you were married. When she met Dean. What happened?"

The cloud that swept across Stone’s features made her wish she'd left it alone.

“My wife, she was...troubled. I was in the military when we met and she liked that I was that man - the warrior, I guess. I think she pictured me as her rescuer." He paused, looking to the horizon, but seeing a different picture than the one in front of him. "She had so many demons she was running from and I wanted to be that for her. Be her rescuer. As it turned out, she needed more than I could give." He paused, swallowed hard. "She killed herself two days before my retirement. Left a note, saying this life was just too much, that she loved me, but she wasn't strong enough. Said she just wanted peace and she was sorry, so sorry, but that I could have a good life, a better life, without her."

Sam swallowed past the lump in her own throat as Stone brushed a tear from his cheek.

“It's been a little more than four years,” He sniffed. “It still gets to me, though."

She desperately wanted to reach for his hand, but the distance between them was too great, so she just spoke quietly to him.

"Stone, I’m so sorry. Of course it still gets to you.” She said softly. “I think, that kind of thing, you never truly get over it. For sure, you never forget. The hardest part is the guilt, yes? Feeling like there should have been something ... something you could have done to prevent it. To make them feel like it would be worth it, if they could just hold on, just let you love them like they needed. Feeling like you missed something, like you failed the person you loved most in the world."

He looked at her with soft eyes and she met his gaze, letting him see the sadness she usually kept hidden away.

"Who was it Sweetness?"

She looked down at Beauty's neck, her black mane floating in the warm breeze.

"My mom." Taking a deep breath, she steadied herself. “I was nine. I found her in their bedroom. Bottle of pills, bottle of wine. For a long time I thought it was my fault, but I know better now. There were factors at play that I didn't see until later."

"So we share a similar grief, you and me. Thank you, Sam. For telling me. People try to understand and their intentions are good, but unless you've been there, you just can't."

Sam nodded her agreement and turned her gaze to the setting sun. There was a lot about her life that no one would ever understand, not even herself.

* * *

The late September days were beautiful in Montgomery, but the nights, though chilly, were downright spectacular. The hands had packed plenty of blankets and sleeping bags for the guests, which Sam was glad for. She'd never camped, would never have dreamed of doing such a thing were it her choice, but as she looked up at the multitude of stars through her tent’s open mesh, she had to admit that there was something to be said for seeing one's place in the world.

The vastness of the land around her, the overwhelming enormity of the sky above, it made her think about her place. What was she, but a speck, a grain of sand amongst billions? For the last thirteen years, she'd thought of nothing but vengeance. Her solitary goal being to purge her father's name from the earth, to see everything he'd worked for scattered like dust in the wind, to prove that he hadn’t mattered, that who he was and what he did was for naught. To prove that she could be more than he ever imagined, that in the end, she was the one who would win. She was the one who would bring his name low. To prove that he hadn't destroyed her so thoroughly.

There were things she wanted to do, ways she wanted to make a difference. But first, she'd always felt that first, she needed to have vengeance on her father and the men who sat by his side. She was wondering just then though, feeling so small beneath that great big sky, if it mattered at all? Then she thought about Stone and the conversation they'd shared. She thought about her mother, the only light in an otherwise dark childhood. She thought about how that light had been snuffed out by the evil that was her father, and she was resolved once again.

Sam would have her destruction. She would watch his kingdom fall, just as she'd watched with satisfaction as her childhood home burned to the ground. Watching the violence with which those unfettered flames consumed the place that had served as her prison for so long, was one of the most cathartic experiences she'd given herself. Watching his beloved company become the property of someone else, dismantled from floor to ceiling, that would be another.

No, she resolved, she would stay her course, see everything that had been so important to Michael Covington stripped away and parsed to nothingness.

Suddenly, a sound interrupted her thoughts. She lay still, barely breathing, listening intently.

She heard it again.

A whimper.

Carefully, she unzipped the flaps of her tent and poked her head outside. Then she quietly slipped into her shoes. She listened for it again, heard it. Another whimper, this time more pained, she strained to detect the direction, because that was a sound she knew all too well. She heard muffled sob. An agonized whisper.

“Heath, please.”

Sam was at Bryce and Heath's tent before she realized she'd left her own.

"You're nothing but a slutty bitch!”

Sam heard the growled remark just before the sound solid flesh meeting soft hit her ears, and she knew Heath had just landed a blow to the tiny woman in his tent.

Sam didn't even think about what she was doing. The rage that always simmered just below the surface, that she trained and worked so meticulously to contain was suddenly on the loose and the tent zipper was shredded as she violently ripped it apart.

The scene before her made her blood boil. She fought with everything she had to keep from delivering a killing blow to the man with his hands around Bryce's throat. The two turned shocked eyes on her, but Heath's look quickly turned menacing.

“You interfering bitch.” He hissed venomously. “You're going to pay for that."

"If you lay a hand on me,” Sam cautioned with a calmness she didn’t feel. “You’re the one who'll be paying the heavy price.”

Heath lunged at her with an angry roar, but she ducked under him, rolled to the side, letting his own momentum carry him past her. Heath tumbled to the ground, face-first. Before he had time to move, Sam jumped on his back, placing her knee firmly over his spine. With deadly speed she crashed her fist into the side of his face, hitting him with enough self-control that he’d see another day, but for the moment, his lights were out.

"Sam!"

She looked up, saw Stone rushing towards her, Zayne and Andrew close behind.

"What happened?” Stone asked, breathing hard, his face set like flint. “Did he attack you?"

Heath groaned, stirring to consciousness beneath her. She pulled his arm behind his back, ready to subdue him if it became necessary.

"He attacked Bryce." Sam answered, hating the tremor that tinged her voice. She nodded to the tent where Bryce knelt in shock. Her eyes the size of saucers, mouth agape, hands shaking, clutching a sleeping bag to her chest.

"Let me have him." Stone growled.

Only when Stone was positioned over Heath, hand out for the belt that Zayne was quickly removing from his waist, did Sam relinquish her position and move to Bryce who had begun crying openly.

"I thought he was going to kill me!" The shaken girl sobbed.

Sam gathered Bryce into her arms, rocking her, smoothing her hand gently over her dark, curly hair.

"Shh." Sam soothed. “It's okay now.” She whispered fiercely. “He's not going to hurt you anymore. You're safe now. Shh. It's okay now."

Sam had no idea what to do, wasn't even sure she was doing the right thing. This felt right, felt good, so she kept going with it, and slowly, Bryce's sobs subsided.

"How long?" Sam asked quietly, still holding the girl close. "How long has he been hurting you?"

"A-a-a few months." Another sob quietly escaped Bryce's lips.

"Bryce, we're going to take care of you. I’m going to take care of you.” She promised. “We'll have him arrested. He won't be able to hurt you anymore."

"But he has everything!” Bryce wailed. “I don't have anything, anyone! I have nowhere to go! He'll find me."

"No.” Sam answered adamantly. “No, Bryce. It's okay. You have me. I'll help you figure something out. He's going to pay for what he's done and you're going to be safe. I promise you that.” She told Bryce fiercely.

“I promise to keep you safe.”

The men dragged Heath to a nearby tree and tied him securely to it. Zeke stuffed a kerchief into his mouth so they wouldn't have to listen to his screaming rant about how he was going to sue them for all they were worth.

Dean had his hands full encouraging the other guests to go back to their tents or sit by the campfire while the crew sorted things out.

Zayne got busy with his phone, taking photos, gathering evidence like the lawyer he was. He asked Bryce if she would allow him to capture the already bluing marks on her neck, the angry red knot forming above her eye.

Bryce nodded, looking mortified, but lowering the sleeping bag she clutched so Zayne could get clear pictures.

"Sam?" Zayne turned to her when he’d finished with Bryce, giving her a slow once-over.

Sam shook her head. "I'm fine. He didn't touch me."

"How did you get him on the ground, then?" Stone asked, coming to stand by her.

This time, she noticed his shirtless torso. That hadn't registered before. He had beautiful brown skin, smooth over the muscular expanse of his chest. She nearly licked her lips, but caught her sanity just in time.

"He put himself there.” She replied slowly.

At Stones raised eyebrow, she added, “Judo.”

Stone cocked his head. "And the side of his face?"

Sam shrugged. “Martial arts. Boxing.”

He smirked. “Remind me never to rush you uninvited.”

"Heh.” She huffed. “Yeah. Don't do that."

"She was so fast.” Bryce suddenly interjected. “You should have seen her. Heath didn't even know what hit him. I didn't even know what had happened until she had her knee in his back."

"Bryce," Stone faced her with a solemn expression. "A helicopter is coming for you and Heath. I’m sending Zeke and Zayne with you. Dad is coming as well. Zayne will talk with the Sheriff, as well as anyone else you want him to, on your behalf. Alex will go with you to the hospital."

"I don't need the hospital!" Bryce protested. “I’ve had worse." Then she cringed, hearing exactly what she'd said.

Stone met Sam's eyes, his face set in hard lines. She held his gaze for one heartbeat before he looked back to Bryce.

"The hospital is as much for documentation as making sure you're really okay. We have to be prepared for anything Heath brings back on us legally. Do you understand?"

Bryce nodded miserably. "Yes, I understand that."

"Alright then.” Stone nodded. “We'll make sure you're taken care of, Bryce."

“Thank you.” Bryce nodded sedately.

* * *

"Thought it was the man's job to rescue the damsel."

Stone and Sam sat in her tiny tent, winding down from the chaotic events of the evening. She hadn’t asked him to come back with her, he’d invited himself, not willing to leave her alone after what happened. The chopper took off about twenty minutes prior. Zeke, Zayne and Greg accompanied a shaken Bryce and a bound, raging Heath. All Sam wanted was to be alone. To quiet her turbulent thoughts. Stone was making that more than a little difficult.

"In case you haven’t noticed.” Sam pointed out. “I'm no damsel. Besides,” She added quietly. "In my world, if you need rescuing, you'd better be doing it yourself. Nobody's going to come to your aid. Not when you're the one they need to climb over to get to the top.”

Sam looked up from the sleeping bag zipper she’d been fidgeting with to find Stone’s steady gaze settled on her. He shifted, curling one long, muscular leg underneath himself.

“Seemed you need rescuing not too long ago.” He reminded her. “Think I recall coming to the aid of a certain woman, lost on my ranch.” He let his words hang in the air. She wanted to squirm under his stare, but she wouldn’t give him the satisfaction of it.

“You rescued me, Stone.” She acquiesced. “It’s true and I’m grateful to you. I think we’re even though. I did dance with you. On second thought, I only danced with you. I think we’re more than even.”

Stone chuckled deeply. “I'm thinking I should have upped the payback.”

“You did also get a kiss.” Sam reminded him.

His eyes flickered. “I did get that.”

Suddenly, his expression softened. He scooted closer to her, reached out to cover her clasped hands with one of his own and looked into her eyes as though searching for something.

“Sam.” He finally spoke. “I'm sorry that you've been alone in the world. I’m sorry that you've experienced so much trouble for such a young life. In case you're wondering though, I did notice you're no damsel."

His eyes held so much compassion in their depths, regarding her with a gentleness that made her heart ache. “I took notice the second I laid eyes on you out there, huddled into yourself, soaked through, so grateful to see Jasper."

His thumb rubbed gentle circles along the back of her hand as he spoke. She was losing her ability to concentrate on his words.

“I thought you were the most beautiful creature I'd ever seen, even soaked through and covered in mud."

Sam let out a small huff, trying to break the spell he was weaving through her. “Thanks for the compliment."

"Then at the dance.” Stone continued without missing a beat, his eyes becoming heated. “When I put my hands on you, touched you, pressed you into me. That was so, so sweet."

He'd moved even closer, if that was possible. Her heart skipped and stuttered. Her breathing sped up. How does this man do that to me? Stone’s eyes were locked onto hers, so much fire burning within them, she couldn't have looked away if she’d wanted to.

"But Sam, that kiss.” He ran the pad of his thumb across her lower lip and she forgot how to breathe.

“Do you think about it?" He leaned forward and she felt paralyzed, lost in the spell he wove around her, through her. “I think about it, Sweetness.” He whispered huskily. His lips brushed her earlobe, sending a jolt of electricity through her. “I think about it all the damn time." He pushed the hand that had been over hers into her hair. "Let me kiss you again, Sam." He peppered her jaw with feathery kisses. Then worked his way to her cheek and she was melting.

"Sam?" He whispered urgently. “Please tell me I can kiss you. I’m dying here."

Sam didn't think she could say anything, her heart was racing so fast. She managed a nod and an exhaled yes.

It was all he needed.

She didn't have time to second guess herself because his mouth was over hers instantly. His lips a contradiction of strength and softness. He traced her lips with his tongue. A request for entrance, a command to open, all rolled into one. Their tongues danced, their hands roamed hungrily. Sam felt like she was on fire. Every place he touched, sizzled and sparked to life.

Stone pushed her back until they lay on the sleeping bag she’d been sitting on. He kissed her until they were both breathless, then moved to her jaw, her neck, nibbling there. He slipped a hand under her shirt, felt her quiver beneath his touch. Her skin was silk under his fingertips. When she rose, arched into his hand, made that little sound in the back of her throat because she couldn’t contain it, he couldn’t stop himself. He covered one full breast with his hand, squeezed it, and rolled her nipple between his fingers. She groaned, then bit her lip to muffle the sound. He made his way to her collar bone with open mouthed kisses. He was so hard, aching for her, the urge to rip the clothes from her body was so strong. Not here, he thought reluctantly. Not like this.

Stone wanted Samantha more than he’d wanted anything in a long time, but the first time he had her, he wanted her abandoned to him. He knew he wasn't going to get that in a tent with other people so close. No matter how hot she burned, he could tell she was holding back.

Samantha holding back was not his goal.

With Herculean effort he pulled away, nearly losing it when she whimpered at his departure. He withdrew his hand from her shirt, placed it tenderly on her cheek, and looked into those emerald greens that were nearly black with desire now. "I'm sorry.” He whispered.

Her quiet bark of laughter startled him.

"Sorry?” She quipped. “Stone, you have got to stop apologizing for kissing me. When you do it like that, sorry shouldn’t be the next word out of your mouth.”

“Ah Sweetness, I wasn’t apologizing for kissing you.” He tucked a piece of hair behind her ear. “I was apologizing for starting something I couldn't finish. I want you, Sam. I think that's painfully obvious. Not here though, not like this."

He gave her a serious look. "Sam, if you don't want this to happen, tell me to bugger off now. Because if you keep letting me think I have a chance, like you did just now, you'll kill me if you say no in the end. I'll respect it. You're choice always, no questions. Just like I’ve been saying. But please, have some mercy on a man.”

Sam went cold. All the arousal raging through her veins only moments ago was squelched. She stared at him, studying him, trying and failing to get a read on him. She was never open with people, especially men. That was a path that led nowhere good. For some reason unknown to her, she wondered if she could be, if she should be. Stone made her want to be, and that terrified her.

Stone watched Sam, felt the change in her. He waited patiently, letting her work out whatever was going on in that beautiful head of hers. It was a battle. That much was plain to see. When she finally spoke, what she said was the last thing he'd expected. It floored him.

"I need to tell you something.” She paused, looked away from him and swallowed hard.

"You may not want me at all. After I say it. Truthfully, it terrifies me to say it, because you could use it if you wanted to. Really use it against me. You could do a lot of damage to me."

She looked up at him with pleading eyes and his heart clenched. "Sam, whatever it is.” He told her softly. “I promise it stays with me. If you'll trust me enough to tell me, no other person will ever know. I give you my word, Sam. I know you don't have a base to know what that means just yet, but it means I'll die before I break it. I give you my word that what you say stays between us. Let me tell you right now, I can see that you're afraid, but nothing you say will make me want you, make me care about you, any less."

Oh, she wanted to believe him. How much she wanted to believe him. She took a breath to clear her throat. She'd never told anyone except Carla, but Carla was her person. Carla knew every little dark and dirty secret Sam had and she never judged, never made Sam feel like she was anything less because of it all.

“I’ve never,” She didn't know how to say it, how to tell him this and he was observing her too intently. "Ah, sex - I - I’ve never… "

"Sam," Stone interrupted gently. “Are you trying to tell me you're a virgin?” He raised his eyebrows. “Why would you ever think someone would use that against you?"

At her laughter, he looked surprised.

She blew out a heavy breath and tilted her head back, staring at the top of the tent.

"I pay.” She said quietly. So quietly, he thought he'd heard wrong, but then she lowered her chin, looked straight at him, and said it again. Still on a whisper, like there were listening ears all around, but loud enough for him to get it clearly.

"I pay for sex. I hire an escort.” She gave a little shrug. “Same guy for the last five years. Stone, I’ve never had sex I didn't pay for."

He was shocked. Of all the things that had run through his mind at her initial reluctance, that was not one of them. His usual ability to remain pokerfaced failed him and then Sam was back peddling fast.

"See!” She hissed, scrambling to sit up, pulling a blanket up around her shoulders. “I told you. I told you that you wouldn't want me anymore." Her eyes were anxious, pleading. “Please, just keep it to yourself, like you promised. I have to trust that you'll do it. This can't get out, Stone. It can't. Please tell me you'll keep your word."

Stone looked into her eyes and his heart broke for her.

"Sam. No.” He shook his head. “I won't say a word to anybody. Ever. You're wrong. I still want you. Just..." He sat up, reached a hand again to cover hers. "Can you tell me why? I’m not judging you.” He added quickly when she cast her eyes to the ground. “Just wanting to understand you." He gave her hand a squeeze, placed a finger under her chin, lifting her head so she had to look at him.

"Tell me why, Sweetness."

"I don't trust people. I can't trust people.” She acknowledged with frustration. "My work, my life, it's so complicated. I don’t have the time, or the energy, or the trust required to carry on a normal relationship.” She shrugged and sighed. “I wanted sex, but not the mess and fuss of a relationship. I need discretion, confidentiality, the guarantee that my life isn't going to be put on display by a disgruntled ex. The only way I could get that was to pay for it, to have contracts in place to protect myself and the man I hired."

"What about now?" Stone prompted gently. “Do you still want all that?"

“It's not a matter of what I want, Stone.” She shook her head sadly. “It's what I need. With what I’m feeling now,” She sighed with resignation. “I don’t know if I’m capable of being in a relationship. I mean, I watch Carla and Cameron and I think, Yeah, I would love to have what they have. Then I go back to my real life where I have to question everything and everyone and it just...” She fought the lump that formed in her throat. “It just seems so impossible for me."

“Nothing’s impossible.” Stone countered softly. “Almost anything can be accomplished with the right effort. I think,” He spoke resolutely. “That you have everything you need for a great relationship. You just have to decide whether it’s worth it. You have to be the one to decide what kind of meaning you want in your life. No one else can do that for you.”

“You make it sound so easy.”

“Not easy.” He corrected her. “Not easy at all. Simple, but definitely not easy.”