Chapter 1

The music blared from the loud sound system at the front of the bar. Karaoke night was always a huge hit at Pigkins. Danny had just arrived after waiting ten minutes in the line outside. He searched through the throng for the rest of his friends and hoped that Lindsay had arrived as well.

Things hadn't been going well for the two of them lately. He had made a huge mistake, one that he regretted more than anything. What was the old adage? You don't realize what you have until it's gone. Yeah, that about summed it up. Danny shook his head, trying to remove the morose thoughts and remind himself that he was going to be a new man. A new man for Lindsay and he was bound and determined to set things right, get things back to the way they were. Now, just to find Lindsay.

Looking to his left, Danny noticed Flack motioning to him with a Budweiser in his hand.

"Hey, Danno! Over here! We saved you a spot." Danny noticed that Don was motioning to an adjacent high table where he, Stella, and Adam were sitting. Danny pushed his way through the mess of people and joined the group.

"It's about time. We've been waiting here for over an hour," stated Stella.

"Sorry. I was stuck in traffic. You know how people get when it's snowing outside. No one knows how to drive. Then, I had to wait out in the line just to get into this place," said Danny.

"Yeah, we had to wait forever. We were lucky that Lindsay got here first and saved us all a spot."

"Lindsay's here? Where" said Danny.

Flack responded with a quick wave of his hand to the front of the bar where the stage was set up. "Up there somewhere. She wanted to get a song in before it got too crazy in here."

Danny looked in amazement at the amount of people in the room and stated, "She's really going to sing tonight? I didn't even know she knew how."

"Of course I know how. There's not much more to do in Montana than go to the local bar and sing karaoke," Lindsay stated this as she seemed to materialize out of thin air behind Danny. "Just because I don't advertise, doesn't mean that I don't do it."

She gave Flack a quick wink and laughed with Stella who couldn't seem to keep a straight face.

"Hey, I don't mean any disrespect there Montana. I just didn't know about that part of you" replied Danny who seemed to have had the breath knocked out of him.

Lindsay lost the laugh and the smile when Danny called her Montana. Danny knew it was a gamble, but her wanted to gauge how she was feeling tonight. Some days she ran a little hot and other a little cold. Tonight she was hard to read.

"It's been a while since you called me that. I've missed it" whispered Lindsay so that only Danny could hear her. Maybe tonight would be a good night.

As the group waited for Lindsay's number to be called, "Before he cheats, by Carrie Underwood" they talked about little inconsequential things and sipped on their beers.

"Hey, that older guy over there can't keep his eyes off of you Linds" remarked Stella looking to the right, behind Lindsay.

"Is he cute?" replied Lindsay.

"I wouldn't say cute, but definitely ordinary" Came the reply.

"Hmmm. Ordinary could work" stated Lindsay. Both women dissolved into a fit of giggles. Maybe they have had a little too much to drink, thought Lindsay.

Danny witnessed the exchange and turned abruptly to see who Stella was talking about. He found the guy without much searching. This guy wasn't even trying to hide the fact that he was ogling Danny's girl. The guy was basic build, black hair, wore glasses, and was about 5'10". Danny didn't feel threatened by him, but something about the guy made the hair on Danny's neck stand up.

"Hey, I don't have a good feeling about that guy. Stay away from him. Okay Lindsay" said Danny.

"Danny, I am not one of those girls who goes home with strange men that I meet at a bar. You should know that about me by now. Remember, trust issues." Lindsay said as she put her hand on Danny's.

The usual tingle and shock went through their embrace and Lindsay pulled her hand away.

"Can I talk to you for a second?" said Danny. "Away from all of them?" he added when Lindsay lifted an eyebrow and looked as though she was going to question him further. "Please" he added hastily.

"Yeah. Sure. Hey guys we'll be right back." Said Lindsay as Danny led her a few tables away.

"Okay Danny. What's wrong? I know this look"

"I want to know if ….." Danny couldn't seem to find the words to complete the sentence before "Lindsay Monroe it is your turn" came blaring over the sound system.

"Hold that thought" Lindsay said as she grabbed his hand and squeezed. "I'll be right back". With that Lindsay pushed and maneuvered her way through the throng to the front of the stage.

Danny returned to his friends and yelled and whistled as loudly as they did when she took the stage. Danny drank in the sight of her. She looked so beautiful up there. The way that the light hit her hair made it shine and her eyes sparkled. The whole world seemed to melt away and no one else existed as she started the number. For her part, Lindsay was playing up the music and acted as though the stage was a natural part of her. This was a new side to her and she was letting him see it. Maybe things would be okay. Every once in a while she would make eye contact with Danny and he would catch his breath. She smiled and sang her heart out. Carried Underwood she wasn't, but she never had to know that. For now he was happy to sit back and enjoy the show.

Lindsay's song ended to massive applause and one beaming smile from the entertainer. As Lindsay walked back to the table, a man stepped into her path.

"I really liked what you did there." He said.

"Umm. Thanks. I enjoyed myself."

"I could tell. Can I buy you a drink? We could maybe get to know one another" said the man.

"I really should get back to my friends." Lindsay replied. There was something off about this man and her intuition was screaming at her to make her excuses and return to the safety of Danny….. her friends.

"They won't miss you. What harm could one drink do?

This was a very persistent man. "Sorry, but I'm seeing someone and I don't want to keep him waiting." The man's eyes narrowed and his lips thinned. Lindsay felt unsafe and wanted to get away as fast as she could.

"Now why is it that I don't believe you Lindsay" came his reply.

Panic began to set in and Lindsay's heart started to beat a staccato rhythm beneath her ribcage. "How do you know my name?"

The man stood there and looked at her for what seemed to be forever. He smiled. Goosebumps peppered her arms. She began to take a step backward. The man's hand shot out and grasped Lindsay's wrist.

"No need to go running off little Lindsay. They announced your name before your song." He took on an air of innocence. Lindsay looked down at her wrist and then back into the man's eyes.

"Please let go of me" Lindsay hoped that her voice wasn't as shaky as she feared.

"There you are darling." Danny came up behind Lindsay and gave her a peck on the side of her neck. His eyes widened as he noticed that the guy from earlier has Lindsay's wrist in a death lock. He could see the whites of the man's knuckles. Danny's smile instantly left his face and his stance changed to that of a protector. Before he could say anything though, the guy dropped Lindsay's wrist and put up his hands in the universal sign of surrender. Danny instinctively took a quick step and put himself between Lindsay and the intruder.

"Hey there buddy. No harm, no foul." said the man.

"Why don't you take a step back and leave now, man" said Danny.

"I will. Didn't know she was spoken for." The man started to turn away.

"Hey, what did you say your name was?" asked Danny.

The man turned around with a smile and stated, "I didn't".

Danny was just about to grab for him when he felt Lindsay's hand on his shoulder; it was shaking. Danny instantly forgot the man and turned to see a chalk white Lindsay looking back at him. She had unshed tears in her eyes and Danny instinctively opened his arms, which she went directly into. Danny turned them slightly so that he could look into the crowd for the man, never letting go of Lindsay while he did. The man was gone. Danny turned them again to witness their friends, with concerned looks on their faces, trying to work their way through the crowd to them.

Danny looked down and took a half step away from Lindsay, never releasing her from his grasp. She looked up into his face. She looked more calm and settled. She began to push away from him, wanting to put distance between them. Danny reluctantly let her go.

"You okay?"

"Yeah. That was one very unsettling man" Lindsay tried to hide her embarrassment at clinging to Danny by stating, "where are the others? I think that I have had enough fun for one night."

Danny was not convinced, Lindsay could tell by the way he was looking at her and by the tension that she could see in his body. She was grateful that he was there when she needed him, again. That seemed to be his M.O. . He was there when she needed him, she just had to allow him to be there.

"The others are coming now." Replied Danny. "You sure your okay? You looked like you had seen a ghost just now." The concern for her was clear in his voice and for a moment Lindsay almost kissed his cheek to calm him. Almost. They weren't there anymore. Something had changed and she thought that she knew what. That was a thought for another time though.

Stella reached them before Lindsay could reply. "Sweetie are you okay? You looked seriously spooked. I'm glad Danny got to you when he did."

Flack and Adam joined them shortly thereafter. Lindsay and Danny reported their different parts to the story to everyone and when they were done Flack wanted to talk to the manager of the bar and see if they had surveillance cameras.

"Don, no. I am fine. The guy was just creepy, that's all. I'm good, honestly" Lindsay pleaded.

"What do you think Danny?" was the reply that she got from Flack.

"I'd sure like to help you with that." Said Danny.

"No. I said enough. This happened to me, not either of you. I would just as soon forget the whole thing." Lindsay said, hotly. She didn't like being dismissed and talked over like she had no say. Whether the guys liked that or not, was of no consequence to her.

"Okay. We will leave it for tonight. We've all been drinking and should probably talk more about this tomorrow when we have level heads." Came Stella's reply.

Adam, wisely, stayed quiet.

"Now, I am going home and going to bed. Thank you for coming tonight, I did have fun, until…" Lindsay let the rest of her statement hang in the air between them.

"I'll drive you home." Lindsay turned to look at Danny, who had made the comment.

A par of her was relieved that he made the offer, but another part was apprehensive. She had made a place for him in her life and in the last two months had felt foolish because of it. Danny had been pulling away from her and was so closed off from her that she didn't know where they stood anymore.

"I'm not sure if…" Lindsay started, while at the same time Stella said, "That sounds like a great idea. The thought of you, Lindsay going home by yourself after what just happened would keep me up all night." Stella looked at Lindsay with a sincere smile and look of concern on her face. Lindsay knew her choice had been made.

"Okay. I'm ready to go when you are Messer."

Danny couldn't help but smirk. He was going to put up a hell of a fight if Lindsay tried to leave alone. Luckily, Stella made that fight moot. Danny still had a bad feeling about not investigating the incident, but he would respect Lindsay's wishes, for tonight at least.

They all made their good byes and Danny and Lindsay left the bar. It was a quiet ride to Lindsay's place and Danny was vigilant at making sure that they weren't followed.

"I doubt that he would follow me home Danny. He was just after…. something. Who would go to these lengths for me?" Lindsay said with a laugh.

"I would follow you to the ends of the Earth." Danny said quietly, he hoped that she didn't hear.

"Danny. We need to talk."

"Yeah, I know. Tonight, though? Are you sure that you're up to it?"

"I have been waiting for two months."

"Okay. When we get to your place. We'll have that talk." Danny stated as he looked sideways to see her reaction to the words.

Lindsay smiled a little and turned to face him in the truck, "Yeah Danny, when we get to my place. Tonight is the night that we finally talk things out." Lindsay then turned back to facing forward and sat quietly thinking about the possibilities for their future.