The water off the pier beckoned me to stop. I tried to resist its pull to stop but couldn't. I stood there staring out into the vast darkness of the water. I almost wished that my problems could be swallowed by that darkness and be carried away. I sighed, knowing that such dreams were hopeless.

I shook my head at my silliness and started my trek toward the warehouse once again. My heart sped up at the sound of footsteps behind me. I snuck a look behind me but saw nothing. You're just being paranoid, I told myself, and yet, my steps quickened. Hearing the footsteps behind me speed up, I ducked into a dark corner and pulled out my switchblade. As the steps came closer, I pushed the button and felt the knife jump in my hand as the blade became exposed. I took a deep breath as the person following me almost passed my hiding spot.

My fingers covered a mouth, hauling my stalker into position in front of me. The person was about my height, and soft hair brushed against my cheek. My other hand held the blade against the neck of my stalker. "When I lift my hand from your mouth, you're not gonna scream." I let a slight pressure of my knife blade speak for me. "Right?" I whispered harshly into the woman's ear.

When I felt the slight nod of her head, I uncovered her mouth. "Now, who the hell are you and why are you following me?"

I felt a shiver pass through the body in front of me. When no answer seemed to be forth coming, I gave it a slight shake. "Well?"

The slight movement of my knife blade told me she'd just swallowed. "My. . .my name is Courtney."

"Well, that's a start." My grip slackened slightly. "Now, why were you following me?"

"I. . .I. . .wasn't. I came out here to visit my brother's warehouse. To see where he worked."

Snort. "Yeah, right."

"It's true," she insisted.

"Of course it is," I state sarcastically. "You come out to the pier in the middle of the night to check out a closed warehouse your brother supposedly owns. C'mon, Courtney, you gotta do better than that." I pushed my knife against her throat one again. "Now, really isn't the time to be lying, ya know what I mean?"

I felt her heave a heavy sigh. "Fine. I was supposed to meet someone out here and when I heard your footsteps, I thought you were him."

"That's not much better n the last one. Only an idiot would ask a girl to meet 'em at this time of night in this neighborhood. It ain't safe."

"Well, considering my current situation, I'd have to agree," she shot back.

I chuckled but tightened my hold. "Now, why are you following me? Did Del hire you?"

"NO!" she shouted in frustration. "Who's Del? and how many times do I have to tell you? I WASN'T FOLLOWING YOU! God, you're almost as bad as my brother."

I chuckled at her frustration. The sincerity in her voice forced me to let her go. "Now, if you'da tol' me that before, we wouldn't have had to prolong all that," I stated, stepping away from her and retracting my knife.

She swung around. Fire spit from her blue eyes. "Who do you think you are?! Grabbing people like that and holding them at knife-point! That's illegal!"

I shrugged, tucking my knife into my jeans pocket. "So sue me."

"Argh! What is it with men like you and my brother? You think you can do anything you want and get away with it. Well, I'm here to tell you that I've had enough of being pushed around and being told what to do."

She started to walk off. Curiousity gnawed at me. I knew I shouldn't, but I found myself saying, "I take it we ain't talkin' about me no more."

Stopped her in her tracks, and surprised the hell out of me.

She swung around, sending her blonde hair swinging. "No.Yes." She gave me an exasperated look. "Men like you and my brother."

I leaned a shoulder against the nearest wall, tucked my hands in my pocket, and crossed my booted feet. "That's like the fifth time you've mentioned this brother of yours. Who is he?"

She plopped down in a nearby bench and stared down at her hands. "Sonny Corinthos." The dread and authority expressed in those two quietly spoken words told me she expected me to have an adverse reaction to it. Apparently, I was supposed to recognize it. As I walked over and sat down next to her, I couldn't remember a single person I'd met in my life named Sonny Corinthos. She peaked up at me from beneath her layer of hair.

I stretched my arm out on the back of the bench. "So?"

Her head came straight up. "You don't know him?"

I thought about it again, bringing a finger to tip my hat back a bit. "Nope. Can't says that I do."

Shock covered her face. "You must be the only person in town."

I shrugged. "Well, I'm new."

She gave me a rueful grin as she took in my attire for the first time. Her gaze took in the beat-up black Stetson hat on my head, the tan denim jacket that covered a light blue denim shirt, the dark blue jeans, and the scuffed cowboy boots. "I should've known from the get-up."

I smiled, and a silence settled between us as I waited for more details. When none came, I knew I had to ask it. "So who is he?"

"He's. . .he's. . ." I looked at her expectantly. How hard could it be to describe your brother? I wondered, tapping my finger against the wood of the bench. The song of the Jeopardy song came into my head. Doo-dee-dum dum-dum doo-dee-dum. Finally, she said, rather lamely I thought, "He's in the coffee business, and the longer you stay in town, the more you'll hear about him. Just so you know, most of its true."

"Thanks for the heads up, but I think I'll make that decision." I stared out at the darkness once again. Decisions were the thing that had brought me here. Five years of decisions and planning. Now, I'm here. No job. Almost out of money. No answers to the questions that had brought me here. If things don't start to shape up, I'll just have to go home. At the thought, disappointment and guilt washed over me. I'd come out here as part of a responsibility and failure ate at my soul. I will not. . .I CAN NOT fail. Things have to turn around sometime, I told myself sternly. Trying to distract myself from my thoughts, I focused on what Courtney has asked me. "So where are you from, cowboy?"

"Around," I answered vaguely, knowing a more precise answer could get her or me into trouble. "So what's this brother of yours doin' to bug you so much?"

She rolled her eyes. "You're just like Sonny. A vague answer and a question to distract me." A smile crossed her face. "Only he tries to feed me."

"Food's important," I pointed out with a grin.

She got up with a sigh and began to pace. "Yeah, then he tries to tell me what to think, how to feel, who to be friends with, who to trust, where to go. . ."

The frustration in her voice at what she obviously saw as controlling behavior really got to me. It seemed only right that I jump to this guy's defense. A small voice in my head wondered, Why do you have to go and butt into this?

"Yeah. Well, he's just doin' what brothers do." She looked at me with a frown. I could tell she was about to argue with me. "Hear me out before you go postal." I leaned forward, placing my elbows on my thighs and dangling my crossed hands between my knees. "He loves you. You're family and that means you're his responsibility. He's just tryin' to look out for you." I held a hand up when I saw her mouth open. "He may not do it in the way you want him to or say the things you want him to, but he's just tryin' to look out for you as any brother would." I smiled. "It's a man's duty as a brother to look out for any siblings he has." Feeling someone else presence, I shot a look behind her, seeing a shadow duck behind a wall. I got up from the bench and walked toward her. "Now, with that insight into the male psyche, I gotta go to a meeting." I stuck out a hand, and she shook it. "It was nice to meet you, Courtney, and I'm sorry about earlier." Shooting a look toward the shadow's hiding place, I whispered, "I believe your friend's here."

She swung around, a look of delight on her face as her friend stepped out of his hiding place. "A.J.! You have to meet. . ." But by then, I'd already left.