Author's Note: This story is set after North Star in season 3. It is part of an on-going Trip/T'Pol Shore Leave series that I'm writing. I know Archer was looking forward to leaving the North Star settlement but I imagine they spent a few days there before they shipped out to exchange information and allow the crew some shore leave (at least in my world they did!)

I own nothing, Paramount does. I don't make any money from this—I just do it for fun! Please read and review.

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"When are you finished today?" Trip asked cautiously as he leaned into her personal space.

T'Pol looked from side to side, wondering why he was being so secretive.

"I should be done in sixty to seventy minutes depending on…"

"Ok," Trip said with a smile. "Meet me at the stables where we got the horse."

"Why?" T'Pol asked.

"Just meet me," Trip whispered before he walked away from her.

She watched his retreating form confused. Usually when Trip did something secretive it led to difficulties. He had, in fact, been behaving strangely for the better part of this afternoon.

T'Pol looked around at the Enterprise crew members who were wondering around the western-style town. They had identified themselves, nearly been killed, and resolved the situation two days ago. Enterprise was breaking orbit tonight and would be back on the Xindi mission as of 22:00. Most of T'Pol's time had been spent sharing information with the people of North Star. The captain had stayed aboard Enterprise giving tours and talking about Earth to the leaders of the North Star society. Other crew members had been free to ride horses, camp, go to the saloon, and interact freely with the residents. Most crew members were thrilled with the opportunity to live in the wild west, if only for a few days.

As 16:00 approached T'Pol finished her last task and thanked Mr. Gilberts, the local scientist, for his work then she looked toward the stables. She should probably just board the next transport to Enterprise and not meet him as she sensed, he had something devious planned.

Since he had stayed with her on Vulcan, things had been the same, yet different between them. To, she was sure, everyone else onboard Enterprise, they were merely friends. Friends who ate together, took part in neuropressure sessions, attended films, and occasionally worked out together. In fact, since her relationship with Trip had become sexual, they argued a great deal less.

But privately, things had become…heated. Neuropressure sessions frequently ended with sexual activity, and T'Pol was sure that was not the intent according to Vulcan custom. He had come to her a couple of times during shift to arrange a time to meet and, after one particularly bothersome movie about a gambling, T'Pol had walked him to his quarters and followed him inside, undressing him the moment the door slid shut behind her. Trip initiated sex far more frequently than she did, but she was never averse to the act itself. She had to admit, if only to herself, that she quite enjoyed sexual relations with Trip.

T'Pol looked between the stables and the shuttle and closed her eyes sighing as she made her choice. When she got to the putrid smelling establishment she saw him waiting around the corner feeding a horse a carrot.

"I thought you were going to ditch me," Trip smiled at her.

"I considered it," T'Pol admitted.

Trip laughed and fed the rest of the carrot to the horse before he attached a satchel and got up on the horse, offering her his arm.

"You have already proven that your horse wrangling skills are less then stellar," T'Pol said as she eyed him.

"It's not far," Trip said as he shook his hand for her to grasp.

T'Pol walked toward him and mounted the horse with his assistance sitting behind him and wrapping her arms firmly around his middle.

"Do you have a plan for other crew members to not see us like this?" T'Pol asked with an arched eyebrow.

"There's a back door," Trip smirked as he encouraged the horse forward.

She obeyed far better than the last one they borrowed from this stable and Trip showed improvement on his horse handling abilities.

"I read a couple of articles and watched a video," he said, answering her question before she even asked it.

She nodded and said nothing as he led them down a back laneway and out of town.

"The last shuttle is at 21:00," T'Pol warned him as they got further and further away from town.

"We'll make it," Trip said as they started up a small hill.

"Can I inquire as to where you are taking me?" T'Pol asked.

"It's a surprise," Trip said over his shoulder.

Sure, she wasn't getting any more answers, she settled in for the ride and observed her surroundings. Their last ride had been out on the other side of town so this area was quite unfamiliar to either of them.

"Are you sure you know where you are going?" T'Pol asked him as the houses disappeared and the terrain became more rugged.

"Yes," he said slightly annoyed. "You know, surprises are usually considered romantic."

T'Pol thought about his comment.

"A heart attack is a surprise and it is not romantic," T'Pol countered.

Trip sighed heavily. "When a man surprises a woman with a romantic date involving a horse and a picnic by a lake it's usually considered romantic."

T'Pol thought about what he'd said again.

"If that is what we are doing, then I concur that it is a romantic gesture," she surmised.

"Thank god," Trip mumbled through gritted teeth.

"Has the surprise now been spoiled by your admission?" T'Pol asked.

"Kinda, yes," Trip huffed.

"Then I promise next time you tell me it's a surprise I will not question you so readily," T'Pol said as she laid her head against his back slightly.

"Thank you," Trip grumbled.

Twenty minutes later, they arrived at the destination and they dismounted the horse. Trip took the satchel off the horse and laid out a blanket and some containers.

"This is an aesthetically pleasing location," T'Pol noted as she looked at the willow tree, the calm lake, the setting sun and the grassy slope he'd chosen.

"I thought so too," Trip said as he sat down and patted for her to join him.

"What have you brought us to eat?" T'Pol inquired, knowing he was still slightly annoyed with her. She was trying to make the situation better.

"Some baked good and apples," Trip said as he opened a couple of containers. "I know you will gripe about the caloric intake and unnecessary sugar content of…"

T'Pol reached into the container and took a bite of the pastry. "It's delicious."

"I can't believe you just did that," Trip smirked at her.

"Did what?" She inquired.

"I…I brought a couple of plates and some utensils because I thought you'd…"

"It appears I have surprised you as well," T'Pol said as she continued to eat the treat.

"You have," he smiled at her.

"Good," T'Pol said back.

Trip reached for a pastry himself and ate it contentedly.

"This spot reminded me of my uncle's house in Missouri," Trip said softly as he pointed out to the lake. "We'd have had a rope swing hanging from that tree across the way."

"A swing made of hemp, twine or…?"

"Nah, just thick rope with a big knot on the end that you could place your feet on," Trip explained. "Kept you from sliding off. Lizzie loved that swing."

T'Pol sensed his mood darken at the mention of his sister.

"Would she and I have got along?" T'Pol inquired.

The question surprised him and he crinkled his brow. She was not a woman to talk in possibilities.

"I think you would have scared her at first," Trip said. "You can be quite intimidating."

"But later?" T'Pol inquired, honestly curious.

"Lizzie liked things that were unique, appreciated structures, people, places that were…different," Trip said as he eyed T'Pol. "She would appreciate your uniqueness and come to like you quite a bit, I think."

T'Pol nodded her head.

"And she would have really liked your sarcasm," Trip chuckled. "Lizzie had a dark sense of humor."

T'Pol looked at him for a long time as his face lit up in remembrance of his sister. He liked to talk about her, as much as it also brought him pain.

"Tell me," T'Pol said as she settled back onto her elbows and stretched her feet out in front of her. "About one of her birthdays."

So, Trip told her about Lizzie's seventh birthday when their dad had rented a donkey for the kids to ride and Lizzie had not wanted to share it with the other children and thrown a fit. He laughed at the memory and then went on to tell T'Pol about a couple of his birthday parties, a few Thanksgivings and the time he was picked up by the local sheriff with some friends for mischief. He laughed and chuckled and smiled throughout the entire conversation and T'Pol found herself relaxing to the sound of his voice. They were fond stories of a fun childhood and a mischievous youth that was in keeping with his character. She could see how, after all these events and misadventures he'd become the man he was today; confident, jovial, intelligent, and adventurous.

Before they realized, darkness had fallen.

"Shit, we better get back," Trip said as he jumped to his feet. "I got talkin' so much I…sorry, T'Pol."

"I enjoyed listening," T'Pol said before she folded the blanket. "I should have stopped you but…you seemed to be quite happy."

"It was nice to…well, to talk about those times, remember Lizzie, my friends…" Trip smiled at her in the darkness, his eyes glittering in the night. "T'Pol…"

"Yes?" She asked.

She watched him step closer to her and then he was grasping her face in both his hands and looking at her intently.

"I love you T'Pol," he said softly as looked at her.

"Trip…" she gasped.

He leaned in and kissed her softly on the lips before he pulled back with his eyes still gleaming.

"I just needed you to know," he said in an almost whisper.

"I…I needed to know that," T'Pol stammered. She was shaking slightly against his hands as they held her face.

"Well, I'm…I'm glad I told you," Trip said back to her, slightly scared and confused.

"Ashaya," T'Pol exhaled. "I think of you as my ashaya."

Trip dropped his hands from her face to her arms and felt her entire body shaking beneath his hands. She was just as scared as he was in this moment.

"Ashaya?" Trip asked her, unsure of the Vulcan terminology or what it could mean. He was hoping it didn't mean 'acquaintance' or 'friend' or 'fuck-buddy' or…

"My love," T'Pol said quietly, not meeting his eyes.

She could see the smile spread across his face out of the corner of her eye.

"Vulcans don't…don't speak of these things," T'Pol said as her eyes darted from side to side.

"Then, we won't speak of it," Trip said softly before he pulled her into his arms. She wrapped her arms around him and felt truly happy in that moment.

"OK," she said into his chest.

"From now on, we'll just know," Trip said quietly before he pulled back and pecked her on the lips.

They mounted the horse and slowly rode back to town, her arms clasped firmly around his body. They got lost twice but finally made it back to the shuttle just a few minutes before it was set to leave.

"Just in time," Ensign Hughes said when he saw them appear at the door.

"Sorry about that," Trip apologized as he held out a hand for T'Pol to get inside.

"Where were you two?" Malcolm's voice called from his seat.

"I had to collect some moss samples," T'Pol explained. "Commander Tucker rode me out to them."

"That was awfully nice of you Commander," Malcolm chimed.

"She can't ride a horse," Trip shrugged before he sat down beside T'Pol on a bench.

"I didn't know you rode?" Malcolm asked, his voice betraying his interest.

"Since I was a boy," Trip chuckled before he turned and winked at T'Pol.

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