Scott Cardinal sat in his truck and stared at the steering wheel without actually really even seeing it. He was zoned out, caught inside his thoughts and trying so hard not to shake. It wasn't a cold that made him shiver, since it was a warm, sunny summer day, but a feeling that had been building up.

"Your truck won't start, huh?" Jack Bartlett's voice startled him as the old man leaned to greet him through an open car window. Scott looked at him and smiled apologetically. He had overstayed his welcome, he figured. Jack had a knowing face and Scott soon realized his words were not to be taken seriously, but as a way to let him know that the cowboy knew something else was up.

Scott's answer began to unravel as his eyes drifted toward the ranch house. The house looked empty, but Jack knew his granddaughter, Lou Fleming, was inside.

"Oh…" Jack let out, still emphasizing how aware he actually was about what was going through Scott's head in that very minute. The older man glanced back at the vet and pursed his lips as he tried to figure out a way to encourage the man sitting in the truck. "Well… what are you gonna do about it?"

"I don't know… I wanna go inside, but… what can I say? What can anyone say?" Scott asked, sighing sadly.

"Maybe it's not so much about what you are gonna say, but more about you stepping over that threshold to let her know you are there for her?" Jack suggested. Scott looked at him and thought about his words for a second, finally nodding as he unbuckled his seat belt.

It had been a while since Scott had been inside the ranch house. Just like 30 minutes before, he had visited the barn more often than the main building. Lou's sister, Amy, had needed his vet skills to help figure out a horse that was having a behavior problems. But he wasn't familiar with the barn only through his vet visits, but also beyond that. Once upon a time, he had lived in the loft upstairs and called this place a home too.

"Would you like something to drink? Coffee? Lemonade, maybe?" Lou fussed, almost making visible trails between the fridge and the cabinets as she went back and forth. "It's really hot outside, so you could really go either way. I mean, coffee makes your blood rush, so you start sweating and therefore you feel colder. But a good lemonade with ice cubes–"

"Lou, it's okay. I'm good", Scott interrupted and the brunette stared at him for a while, then nodding as she realized she was babbling again. It was a habit of hers when she was nervous. Lou felt restless and didn't know what to do with her hands.

"It just helps. Keeping busy, you know."

"Yeah, I would think. But you need to take it easy. If only for the baby", Scott said and nodded toward the belly that had grown bigger since they had last seen each other.

Lou looked down and laid her hands on it.

"Yeah…" she said weakly and sighed. "It's almost like a cruel joke, you know", there was an attempt of a laugh, but it came out really heartbreaking. "Like I always told Peter to have a safe flight and he just said that it wasn't the flight that he was worried about, because… as they say, the dangerous part is when you drive to the airport… and now–" Lou felt out of breath as the tears started to fall. She still couldn't face the fact that his husband had died in a car accident on his way to the airport few weeks ago. "And I can't just drop everything and mourn", she said, looking like she was angry about it, "I need to go on… because of the baby. His baby."

"It's not just his. It's yours too, just as much", Scott said.

"Yeah, but he's gone, Scott. Peter's dead. How am I gonna look at this baby and not think about him every time?" Lou cried.

"Because you're not meant to. You are supposed to look at the baby and remember him every time. That way he stays alive for you", Scott spoke. He hoped he wasn't overstepping his bounds by saying all this.

Lou looked at him for a while and nodded, swallowing dryly.

"I guess it's good that I still have few months to go… Maybe somehow I get things to a better state… and I won't be so sad. Wouldn't wanna be sad for her…" Lou said.

"Her…?" Scott echoed carefully.

"Well, we didn't want to know the sex of the baby, but… I don't know, I just think it's a girl", Lou let him in on a secret she had not told even to Peter. Scott smiled a little.

"You just take care of yourself and it's the best thing for the baby too", Scott knew this from experience. Maybe he had never been so close to anyone who was having a baby, but as a vet, the mom's well-being always came first in a difficult situations.

"I guess you're right…" Lou nodded. She stepped closer and for some reason, Scott froze in fear. "Can I hug you?"

"Y-yeah…" Scott nodded, hoping Lou wouldn't notice. He wasn't sure why he was so nervous. It wasn't about Lou, but maybe it was about Peter. Some part of him felt wrong about doing this, even though it was just a friendly gesture. They had not been nothing but (distant) friends for years now with Lou anyway, so it wasn't like he had some alternative agenda in the back of his mind. Here was here as a friend, and nothing more.

Still, the guilt tingled his insides as he wrapped his arms around Lou, being carefully as the baby bump pressed against his abdomen. He wanted to be there for Lou, but feared that he would somehow force himself back into her life and she wouldn't appreciate it. How could he make it clear that even though they had not been in so close contact lately, nothing had really changed and he was there if Lou ever needed help. Maybe he was over-thinking this again. Maybe he just needed to stick to what Jack was telling him.

"If you need anything, anything at all, Lou, I'm here…" Scott wanted to let her know. But from now on, he would let actions speak louder than words. He had never been good with words anyway.