He'd slipped his tank top back on, hoping to God that Mike would never find out about the romantic endeavor that should have never happened in the first place. Sighing as he watched Jordan get dressed and take a sip of whiskey to celebrate the occasion, Steve shook his head, wondering once again why these types of situations seemed to find him wherever he went.

"What'd you do to your shoulder?"

Visibly confused, he was about to remind Jordan of his impromptu exit off a certain horse the other day, when he heard her walk up to him, before putting a hand on an old scar. Amongst several others like it, the scar was that of a bullet he'd taken in the line of duty.

"Oh, I can't remember honestly. Must have been from that time I got into a car wreck…", he tried, feeling pathetic that his drug-poisoned mind was too sluggish to operate properly and give him a better answer.

"Don't try to lie to me. I used to go out hunting with my grandpa. That's from a bullet.", Jordan said firmly and stepped around to face him, her bright blue eyes filled with apprehension, "Is that another one of your strange secrets, like the lie about the petty theft? You never did tell me the real reason you are here."

Swallowing hard when he watched her scan his other arm and the three similar scars, Steve fell quiet.

"These are stitched and cleaned up way too nice for somebody off the streets…that is some fine handiwork by a talented surgeon. Regular people don't ever get that treatment. Takes somebody special.", she continued suspiciously and ran her long fingers across his upper arm, stopping at every reminder of a case gone under his skin in more ways than one.

After a long moment, she glanced back up, her eyes turning into tight slats.

Steve inhaled deeply, pursing his lips as he tried to come up with the right words. In the end, there was only one thing came to mind.

"Jordan…I am a cop."

Sighing as if she wasn't exactly surprised to hear the news, Jordan returned to her liquor cabinet, drowning another double shot of whiskey wordlessly.

As a tense silence filled her camper, Steve drew in a deep breath, sliding his hands in the pockets of his jeans as he waited patiently for her to calm down. And yet, even as his eyes traced her slender body leaning against the cabinet, they eventually ended back up at the newest piece of evidence on her table.

"Who gave you the bracelet?"

Keeping his voice calm and steady to avoid any repercussion from blowing his cover, Steve slowly walked up to her, resting a warm hand on her arm, surprised when she didn't pull away.

"Why? It's not like it's going to matter now."

Steve sighed, having expected that reaction.

"It does, because whoever murdered Sally gave her the same one. I found it in the manure pile. She may have thrown it out or it was ripped off during a fight. We had our lab pull her prints off it. There's a chance that whoever killed Sally might be after you next."

Turning around to face him, Jordan clenched her jaw, fighting an internal battle of whether to be angry at him or not. When she didn't say anything, he gently grasped both of her arms, pulling her closer into his space.

"Was it the guy I saw leave your trailer before I came? Was that Rob McAllister? Did you fight with him?"

Much to his surprise, he saw tears well up in Jordan's eyes, as she began to shake under his touch.

"He scared me. He…he said those creepy things. Tried to touch me. If my daddy was here, he'd beat him up bad. But he's our boss and I…I was so afraid, I didn't know what to do, how to react, so I began to scream at him…Steve, I was so scared…and right now I don't even know if Steve is your real name…"

Pulling her against his chest as she began to sob uncontrollably, Steve rested his chin on her head, gently rubbing her back for many long moments.

"You did the right thing, believe me.", he said soothingly and felt her breathing slow down under his caring touch, as she held on to his back with a death grip.

"You're not really twenty-four either, are you?",Jordan asked completely out of context, her voice muffled against his chest.

"No.", Chuckling, Steve shook his head and took a deep breath, "I haven't been in my twenties for a little while."

"So, this was all just for show…?", she whispered, causing him to hold her tighter and shake his head.

"No…Not the important parts. The petty theft story yes, but everything from hereon out was the truth. You can believe that."

"I don't know if I can…", Jordan admitted and pushed herself away from his chest, just enough to look him in the eyes.

Steve hesitated for a second, finding himself caught amidst of a battle of wills.

The cop inside knew the standard answer, the explanation to give, the professional distance to put up; yet the man inside him, capable of feeling raw human emotion such as love and desire wasn't so sure anymore.

Reaching forward, he caressed Jordan's beautiful face and wiped her tears away with his thumb, sighing in silent defeat, before continuing.

"Well, there's one thing you can believe…", he whispered and leaned his forehead against hers, locking eyes with the woman who was stealing his heart faster than he could build walls to keep her out, "What I am about to do is strictly against the rules…and if…if my partner ever found out about it, it'd be in a world of trouble…"

Pushing the very realistic thought of the looming Mike Stone anger bestowed upon him out of his mind for the time being, Steve began to kiss her passionately, enjoying the sweet smell of her perfume envelop all of his senses.

As their lips interlocked, Jordan reached for the back of his neck, pulling him into her space in a desperate need for comfort and safety. Feeling her thumb gently brush over his two-day stubble before running through his wavy hair again, Steve closed his eyes, filing the moment away in a part of his mind reserved for only the most meaningful memories.

They stood there kissing, breathing and enjoying each other's company for many long moments, before he tried to release, only to have Jordan hold him back.

"It is Steve, right?"

"Yes.", he answered smilingly and played with a lock of her black hair, trying not to stumble over his words, "Steve Keller… Inspector Stephen Keller."

"Mhm…", Jordan mused surreptitiously and kissed him again, "The cop and the cowgirl. That's great material for a novel right there…"

Chuckling, Steve finally found the willpower to release the hug and straightened out again, when he felt the barrel of a gun in the center of his back.