Hey my loves! I'm so sorry to have been away for so long. Thank you to everyone who has followed and favorited. I never had any intention of abandoning this story, but after the second chapter, I got a massive case of writer's block. With my other two fics, I knew exactly how I wanted them to end from the very beginning. I just had to fill in the space between. But this is the opposite. I know how I want most of the story to unfold, but I have no clue as to how I'm going to end it. So I've just been kind of stuck, but I missed writing and I missed all of you, so I figured it was about time to get off my ass and get back at it :)

Thanks again for sticking with me. I really hope you like the next chapter in Sarah and Happy's story. And as always, please review!

Chapter 3

The moment Sarah's eyes fluttered open, she immediately covered them with her hand, shielding them from the bright morning sunlight. Oh god, my head…Then she closed her eyes again and rolled onto her side, but the second she moved a low groan escaped her lips as seemingly every muscle in her body tensed with pain. Shit, did I get hit with a truck last night? She slowly reached one of her arms over to get some ibuprofen out of her nightstand, but when her hand met the end of the bed and only found empty space where her table should have been, her eyes popped open once more.

As the last remnants of sleep faded away, fragments of the night before invaded her mind, and Sarah wished like hell she could pretend she was still dreaming. Ok, I got home from work and went to a bar. And I got drunk…like, really, really drunk. And I was walking home for a while, but I got lost. And then…she swallowed the lump in her throat and clenched her fists in the bed sheets…then that guy…that guy attacked me. Oh my god, he was going to…She shut her eyes again and shook her head softly, swallowing down the sickness that threatened to come up her throat. He was going to rape me. I was on the ground, bleeding and hurt, and he was on top of me. But then someone saved me.

So much of the previous night was hazy, blurred by the pain and fatigue and the gin, but the one thing that Sarah could remember with perfect clarity was him. Benny. The tan of his skin, the tone of his voice, the strength in his arms, and the warmth in his eyes; all of it flashed through her memory in an instant. And with those images in her mind, she felt her heart beat slow back to normal, her nausea dissipate, and her body relax. I'm fine. I'm safe. Nothing happened to me…because Benny stopped him.

Only after repeating that thought to herself a few more times did Sarah finally open her eyes again and look around the room. She had no idea how she ended up in what looked like a teenaged boy's bedroom, sleeping in a clean t-shirt with fresh bandages expertly applied over all her cuts and scrapes. The last thing she could remember was trying like hell to stand up straight and then throwing up all over the parking lot. But even though she didn't know where she was or how she got there, Sarah realized that she wasn't even a little afraid. Curious? Yes. Confused? Absolutely. But no, she wasn't afraid. Because I know I was with Benny last night and for some reason, and I have no idea why, I know that he kept me safe.

"Um…Hi."

Hap heard her quiet, unsteady voice and looked up from where he was sitting at the kitchen table. She was still wearing his t-shirt, plus the sweatpants he'd left folded beside the bed, and she was carrying her shoes, purse, and torn, bloodied clothing in her arms.

He stood up from his chair and met her eyes, but didn't move towards her. Uncertainty wasn't something Happy Lowman was accustomed to, but after thinking about her every second of the morning, he still didn't know what to do or say. So he just took a breath and shoved his hands in his pockets. "Hey."

He didn't know what he expected to feel when he saw her that morning, a part of him hoping that in the daylight she'd be just another woman instead of the magnet that had drawn him to her the night before. But as he studied the chocolate brown hair falling around her shoulders, her dark blue eyes, and her pretty fair skin, he realized he had to fight the urge to reach out and hold her.

Apparently nothing had changed. He was still nothing short of fascinated, and he had no idea why.

She wasn't able to hide her nervousness as she tucked her hair behind her ears and hugged her wadded up clothing closer to her chest. "I, uh, don't remember how I got here last night."

Hap took a half a step in her direction and nodded. "What's the last thing you do remember?"

A deep red blushed bloomed in her cheeks as she bit her lower lip and cringed. "Vomiting all over your shoes." Then she met his eyes and shook her head. "I am so sorry."

He couldn't stop the corners of his mouth from momentarily twitching upwards. "It's alright. Don't worry about it." When she returned his grin with the smallest of smiles, he continued. "You weren't gonna make it to your place last night, too long of a walk. So I brought you here to clean you up a little and then drive you home. But you passed out. Figured I'd let you sleep it off."

A few seconds passed by, but when Hap saw her smile fade along with the color in her face, he knew what question was coming. "So, what…what happened? With that guy?"

Happy had to take a moment and steel himself for the lie he was about to tell. Other than to cops, he never lied, ever. He just didn't see the point. He was proud of who he was and what he did, and he'd be damned if he ever let himself feel the need to hide from anyone or anything. But although it went against his code and would taste like acid in his mouth, Hap knew he couldn't tell Sarah the truth. Because he didn't know where she worked. He didn't know where she grew up. He didn't know if she had a boyfriend or a brother or a dog. Fuck, I don't even know her last name. But he was 100% certain, from the moment he looked into those big, round eyes, that she was good; good and sweet and normal and the type of woman who'd see him for what he really is and run screaming in the other direction.

Happy Lowman didn't care if the whole world saw him as a killer. But not her, just…not her.

So he met her eyes, straightened his shoulders, and lied. "After you fell asleep I went back to the convenience store to check on him. He was dead."

"Oh my God." Her voice was little more than a whisper as she sank down into the closest kitchen chair, a mix of horror and relief drifting across her pale face. She took a few deep breaths before looking back at him. "Did you call the police yet?"

Hap never broke eye contact with her, but barely shook his head. "No, and I'm not going to."

Her brow furrowed in complete and utter confusion. "What? What are you talking about? What do you mean? We have to…"

But Happy interrupted her ramblings with three words, and this time they were true. "I'm on probation." He watched as all her questions caught in her throat and she blinked her eyes a few times, speechless. Then he just shrugged. "I can't tell the cops I killed someone, because I'll go back to jail."

He could tell from the look on her face that she wanted to know why he'd been in prison, but he was grateful that some part of her kept her from asking. Instead she quickly came to his defense. "But…you didn't do anything wrong. You kept him from hurting me. You…you saved my life. How could you get in trouble for that?"

"It won't matter. Trust me."

Sarah ran a hand through her hair and frowned. "But, God, someone's going to know, right? I mean, he's still there. There's a body and…"

"He's not there anymore. I took care of it."

She couldn't hide the tremors in her voice. "I don't understand."

Taking slow, cautious steps, Hap sat down in the chair closest to hers and hesitantly reached across the table to hold her shaking hands. "You don't want to know the details. But I promise, it's over. No one knows. No one will ever know. It'll be like last night never even happened."

She didn't move away from his touch, but stared silently down at their joined hands for a few long minutes, before finally meeting his gaze once more. And he didn't know what she was about to say, but he would have never guessed it would be an apology.

"I'm so sorry."

Hap tilted his head slightly to the side and frowned. "What? Why?"

She tried to swallow the lump in her throat, but couldn't stop a few stray tears from escaping down her cheeks. "You risked your life, your freedom, to save me. I'm a complete stranger, and you've done nothing but help me, and look at the position I've put you in. Look…look at what I forced you to do. I'm so, so sorry you had to do that."

Hap couldn't remember the last time he felt guilty about something, but in that moment, the guilt he felt for lying to Sarah nearly ate him alive. There she was, apologizing for being fucking attacked; blaming herself for making him kill that asshole. If only he could tell her that he did it happily, gladly, that he enjoyed it. That he would have done it a thousand more times with a fucking smile on his face, as long as it meant keeping her safe.

He tightened the hold he had on her hands and held his breath as he tentatively leaned forward and placed a soft kiss on her forehead. "Don't. Don't be sorry. I'm not." Then he repeated the words he said to her the night before. "He can't hurt you again. That's all that matters."

After a couple of minutes, Sarah gently pulled her hands away from Happy's and slowly stood up from the chair. "I need to go get my car. It's still parked in front of the bar I went to last night. Could I, um, borrow your phone to call a cab?"

Hap's chest tightened slightly at the thought of her leaving, but he pushed aside the sensation and shook his head. "I'll drive you there, if that's ok?"

He hoped like hell he hid the anxiousness from his voice. Sure, he'd lied to her about the way he'd murdered that fucker. But she knew he was a criminal, knew he hid a body from the cops, knew enough to know that he was dangerous. So a part of him was prepared for her to say no, to just walk out the door and out of his life as quickly as she possibly could.

But much to his surprise, a tiny grateful smile graced her lips as she nodded. "Yeah, I mean…you don't have to. God knows I've disrupted your life enough already, but…yeah, that'd be great if you could give me a ride."

Hap watched as she slipped her shoes back on her bare feet and then gathered her clothes back up in her arms, and he couldn't help but notice the strange look on her face or keep himself from asking what it meant. "What are you thinking about right now?"

Sarah blushed and rolled her eyes, shaking her head as she averted her gaze to the floor. "It's stupid, really. I was just thinking how I've never broken the law before."

He wanted to smile at her sweetness, but just shook his head instead. "You still haven't. I did." Then he walked to the door that led to the garage and opened it, holding it for her as she walked through. "Come on. Let's get you home."

Hap pulled the Lincoln up behind Sarah's Toyota and watched her get in before following her a few more blocks to her house. He knew she was a grown woman, but he wanted to make sure she got home alright. At least that's what he told himself instead of admitting that he just wasn't quite ready to let her go.

Less than five minutes later, she pulled into a driveway in front of an older but well maintained little house as Hap parked his car in front of the curb. Then they both climbed out and met on the sidewalk, standing just a few inches from one another.

Sarah glanced over to the house and shrugged. "Well, this is my house. I mean, I rent it, but this is where I live."

Happy took in the little green two story with pink flowers hanging from a porch and roses lining the walk way. Then he looked around at the other houses that surrounded it, most of them falling into disrepair with broken staircases and bars on some of the windows.

He stared back in confusion at the beautiful woman in front of him. "You live here alone?"

"Yeah."

Then he took in her fair skin, pink manicured fingernails, and kind, innocent eyes. "Don't take this the wrong way, but you don't exactly look like you belong in this neighborhood."

Sarah let out a tiny laugh and sighed. "Yeah, I get that a lot. I moved here a few years ago after my divorce." When Hap's eye widened slightly, she just shrugged. "It's a long story."

A few quiet seconds passed before she started to take a small step backwards. "Well, I guess I should…"

"Sarah, listen." Happy had been perfectly contented in those moments to just stand there with her, not touching but close enough that he could still smell the slightest hint of her perfume. But when he saw her start to walk away, he knew he had to say these words, even though he didn't want to. "I know last night was…hard for you, and I know you probably want to talk to someone about it. But you can't. I'm sorry. I know that's fucked up, but I can't risk someone else finding out and calling the cops."

She stared up at his face for a few more moments before reaching forward and grabbing one of his hands. "Benny…" It was the first time she'd said his name since the night before, and hearing it again sent warmth rushing through his chest. "I'll never be able to pay you back for what you did for me last night. But I swear I'll never let you get in trouble over it. I'll never a say a word to anyone. Not one word. Ever. I promise."

That was when Happy looked into her eyes and realized he trusted her. He couldn't explain it, couldn't even begin to understand it, but he did. He believed every word she said, and more than that, he wanted to.

Not knowing what else to do, Hap just squeezed her hand a little tighter before letting it go and walking back to his car. And he was just about to get in when Sarah took a couple steps towards him and called out his name.

"Benny, I don't know if…this might sound weird, but…would you, do you want to come over for dinner sometime? I just, I thought maybe we could…"

"I don't think that's a good idea." Hap wished like hell he could take back the words as soon as they left his mouth, but he knew in his heart it was right thing to say. I can't keep lying to her. A woman like her has no business being around me, around my life. Let her keep believing I'm the good guy she thinks I am right now. And let that be the end of it.

He hated himself when he saw the disappointment etched across her face. "Oh…um, ok. Sure, I understand." Then she just looked down to the ground for a moment and shook her head before raising her eyes up to his. "Well then, just…thank you, again. Thank you."

Happy watched her as she turned back around and walked up to her porch, waiting until she unlocked her front door and was safely inside the house. Then he got into the car and headed back to his mom's, where he packed his shit as fast as he could and climbed on his bike. Then he started his Harley, peeled out onto the street, and headed north back to Charming. And with every mile away from Bakersfield, he hoped the images of pretty brown hair and gorgeous blue eyes would fade away like the road beneath his tires. Because it didn't matter how much he wanted to be with her. And it didn't matter how much he wanted to see her again. He had asked her to pretend like the night they met never happened, and now he would do the same.

From this moment on, Sarah would be nothing but a memory.

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