This is my very first fanfic! So please be nice… English is not my native language and I don't have a beta reader, so if there are spelling or grammar mistakes… I'm sorry! But if you want to apply for the job as my beta reader… Be my guest!

Disclaimer: Sadly, I do not own the characters of "Dr. Quinn Medicine Woman"… One Beth Sullivan does… But I do own the character of Jonas "John" Kerrigan!

Rating: I don't know anything about these ratings, but let's say T or PG-13. Just to be safe...

Warnings: Nothing graphic, but there are references to child abuse! Oh, and I really suck at the towns geography. So I apologize to all the fans who do know exactly what Colorado Springs looks like and where which building is standing… Because I really don't, so I made up some things… So maybe this story is slightly AU… : )

Summary: A stranger visits Colorado Springs. Not everyone is happy to see him…

Wow! Thank you for all the lovely reviews! Sylvie, you're absolutely right. It already annoyed me while writing it, but I just didn't know what other words to use. I hope this chapter is better! And as for 'the pair of steel blue eyes', well, you just have to keep on reading to find out… But beware! I may surprise you…

Chapter 2

John Kerrigan looked around as he walked back into town. Sweet little town, he thought. And sweet little ladies!. He smiled to himself as he thought back to his meeting with Michaela Quinn just a few minutes earlier. She was one of the most beautiful women he had ever seen. No wonder he decided to live here, he thought, thinking about the person who was the very reason John decided to visit this town. His thoughts shifted back to Michaela Quinn. A petite young woman, decent and charming. Though, she looked like she didn't belong in a small town like Colorado Springs. The way she talked and the way she moved made him think she was more of a 'city girl'. But then again, she seemed happy where she was.

He looked up and stopped walking when he saw a black man struggling to get three horses back to their stables. He looked like he could use some help. "Hold on there!" he called and started to move towards the man. "Give me one," he said and the black man didn't hesitate to hand him one of the horses that was starting to go wild. "Something spooked them," the man said, "but now I just can't get them back to their stables! Damn horses!" The dark man was obviously annoyed. As they worked together they finally where able to calm the horses down and bring them back to their stables. "Thank you sir!" the black man said. "I don't know what would have happened if you hadn't came along." "Ah, maybe you would have handled it yourself! We'll never know, will we now?" John smiled. "The name is John Kerrigan. I assume you are the blacksmith?" he extended his hand to the black man. "Yes I am sir. I'm Robert E.," Robert E. answered as he took the hand of John Kerrigan and shook it firmly.

"Well, since I am here now I might as well ask you whether you lend out one of these horses. Just for a couple of days. There are some things I have to do while I am here, and I have some places to visit as well. I'm too old to walk these distances," he grinned. Robert E. smiled back at him. "Of course you can sir," Robert E. replied and walked to a stable. "Look at this beauty here! She ain't as wild as the others, but she's fast! She'll bring you anywhere!" Robert E. looked proudly at the beautiful brown horse. "She sure is a beauty Robert E.," John said, "So, how much?" he asked.

"A dollar a day sir," Robert E. replied. John reached for his wallet and gave Robert E. a twenty-dollar bill. "I probably won't need her for twenty days, but you can keep the change Robert E.!" John said as he took the horse. "I'll bring her back safe and sound," he grinned. "You know a nice place where I can eat by any chance?" he asked Robert E. "Yeah, I sure do sir! My wife owns a little restaurant. Real good food! It's down that road. Ya can't miss it!" the other man said as he pointed in the direction where the restaurant was located. "Thank you, Robert E.!" John said as he climbed the horse. "You're welcome sir!" Robert E. called after him. Then John Kerrigan rode away.

The restaurant wasn't difficult to find. It was called "Grace's Café". Well, it looks nice, John thought as he looked for a table. As he sat down he saw a black woman approaching him. That must be Grace. I don't think there are many other black women living around here. "Good afternoon sir," she said, "Can I get you something to drink? Or would you like something to eat?" John looked at her. She seemed real nice. He smiled at her. "Some coffee would be nice Ma'am. And as for food… What do you recommend?" he asked her. "Well…," she started, but she wasn't able to finish her sentence as a man came up from behind her. "Her meatloaf is real good, sir," the man said offering his hand to John. "The name is Jake Slicker. You're not from around here, are you?" John looked at the man carefully as he shook Jake's hand firmly. "John Kerrigan," he said, "and no, I am not from around here. I'm from Denver." He turned to Grace. "Let's try that meatloaf Ma'am." Grace smiled back at the man. "Meatloaf it is," she said and walked away from the table.

"Well Mr. Slicker, do you always know when someone is from this town or not?" John asked as Jake joined John at the table. "I'm the town's mayor, Mr. Kerrigan, so it's my duty to know who lives in this town and who doesn't. It's also my duty to introduce new people to this town. If people feel welcome here, they may come back here once in a while, which is good for the town's economy." John smiled at Jake. "So you are a mayor and a business man?" John asked as he nodded his thanks to Grace, who brought him his coffee. "I sure am, sir. But I think you know as well that everything is about money these days… as you are a business man yourself." John looked up and eyed him curiously. "How do you know?" he asked Jake. "Let's just say I know one when I see one… So, I wasn't far of then? What business are you in?" Jake asked sitting comfortably in his chair. "I'm a banker among other things," John said, "I own a bank in Denver." Jake smiled. "A banker? That's exactly what's missing in this town: a bank." John smiled, finally discovering what Jake was after. "I tell you what Mr. Slicker," John said as Grace brought him his food, "You let me finish my meatloaf, after that you can show me the rest of town. If I like what I see, maybe we can do business." Jake smiled and nodded his head. He could smell money from miles away and he knew this man had lots of it! "Very well, I'll be back here in 45 minutes. I'll see you then." Jake extended his hand to John who took it. "See you then Mr. Slicker!" he said. He shook his head and smiled to himself. He loved this town already! And this town is going to love me…, he thought as he started to eat his meatloaf.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

In a small room someone just couldn't keep his thoughts of John Kerrigan. Why in hell is he here? Please, just let it be a coincidence! What if he sees me? I truly hate that man and I don't know if I can hide that from the rest of town… Hell… He hates me just as much… But I don't want them to know… I don't want them to know about him… about him and me… about what he's really like… Oh snap out of it! You ain't scared of anything! You never let anything get to you! You're being ridiculous! Damn… He shook his head and sighed. Deep down inside he knew he was fooling himself. John Kerrigan always got to him…

TBC

Good? Bad? Tell me what you think! PLEASE!