A/N: Some more RyJa. I think this'll be a 2-3 parter (maybe more). In the show, Quinn seemed to imply that Ryder and Jade used to be together when they were much younger, but when you see them together in private, it doesn't seem like they were ever apart. So, what if they were sneaking around long before she became engaged to Quinn? Here are some snapshots of during that time.

*I own nothing. No copyright infringement intended. If it was up to me, these two would've had way more scenes and it would be easier for me to make videos.

…

He watched her from his position leaning against the house as he always did. He knew it was tough work – picking poppies – but she was a beauty when she did it. Her hair sticking to her face and sweat gathering at her temple didn't detract from that. Because when she finally looked at him, when she caught him staring at her, as he always made sure she did, a smile spread across her face and her eyes sparkled and she ran to him when she was sure no one was watching. And he gathered her into his arms and kissed her and they ran off for a few hours to a place beyond poppies and clippers and colts to an orchard bordering the woods on the far end of the property. They chased each other and he grabbed for any apple she wanted and they ate together in the shade of the trees and it was perfect.

Today was no different, except for the fact that she still hadn't looked up at him. He wasn't that far off, so it puzzled him that she couldn't sense his presence. The possibility that she did and just refused to acknowledge him caused a turning in his stomach that ate at him and was all too familiar.

Because today was different, even if he didn't want to admit it.

Because two weeks ago today, his father had grown ill with fever and stayed shut off in his room. The only people allowed in were his mother, Lydia, and any manner of cooks and maids inside the house to deliver food and herbs and drink to quell his sickness.

In a few days he had healed and everything resumed as it had before the incident.

But not Jade.

She mentioned offhandedly that it was she who had delivered the soap to his chambers. She had expected only to do it once because her main duty had always been picking poppies. But on that first occasion, Quinn had seemed so taken by her that he insisted she be the one to deliver whatever he needed as long as he needed it while he was ill.

Ryder hardly saw her those few days.

Afterwards, she had seemed a little shaken whenever his father's name was mentioned. And whenever she saw him – Ryder – she was always initially wary. His natural charm and complete devotion to her inevitably brought her out of her shell and made her forget these new burdens, but there was no more running out to the orchard. Quinn had taken to her so much that he resigned her to the kitchens with only a small part of her work day being designated to the poppy fields.

"Jade!"

Finally, she looked up, but not towards him for he had not called to her. Someone else. A worker maybe, or another cog. At any rate, she got up without looking towards him, took her basket of poppy shavings with her and headed towards whoever had called to her.

Frowning, Ryder's eyes followed to where she went – straight into the house. His face paled then because he knew she had been summoned by his father and the twisting in his gut intensified.

…

After a week of being more or less ignored by Jade, Ryder decided he'd had enough. Mid-morning as she was headed out to the field, he snagged his arm around her waist and pulled her up against him. He put a finger against her lips, so she wouldn't speak and then pulled her along to a distance. Not as far as the orchard, but far enough for no one to hear, behind some tall bushes.

"What is going on, Ryder?" she gasped when they finally stop. "I have to get to work. I can't—"

"You've been avoiding me," he cut her off. "Tell me why."

"I haven't been avoiding you," she said, avoiding eye contact. "I've just been busy. I'm working both in and out of the house now. I can't—"

"By my father? Did Quinn change when and where you work?" he demanded.

She kept her eyes down and swallowed. "You know I cannot defy anything he does, Ryder. If he decides he wants me to work in the house…"

"Where he is," Ryder muttered under his breath.

Jade's brows furrowed and she looked up at him finally. "Of course. What other reason would there be for me to be there?"

He looked at her in disbelief that she hadn't connected the dots.

"There isn't, Jade. Don't you get it? He wants you near him."

"But for what…" The question went unfinished as the revelation dawned on her. "No. He wouldn't. He's been taking a fancy to Beatriz, and I'm much too young."

"Maybe, but if you haven't suspected that he's considering you, why have you been avoiding me?"

"I think I'm allowed to some private time."

"I thought you private time was with me," he said stubbornly, and then swooped in for a kiss, cutting off whatever it was she had planned to say, but eventually she pulled away.

"Ryder…" she swallowed.

"Or maybe it was just stolen moments."

He looked so dejected, so hurt, that Jade pushed aside her fears, pulled him close and kissed him. She let herself get lost in it, because as long as they were hidden, she was safe to do as she liked.

She would break the news to him later that Quinn had warned her against fraternizing with his son.