AN: More in the M/K modern cowboy!verse. M rating. If you don't like lemons, don't read ahead.

Tough

"I wanted lace, I wanted pearls
To be a princess like the other girls
But life came hard to my front door
And I grew up tryin' to even up the score.

Tough; I ain't never been nothin' but tough.
All my edges have always been rough
But Jesus loves me anyway; oh, back off
There ain't nothin' wrong with a woman who got a little backbone
Just wait till you taste her kind of love.

You want a shy little thing
A pretty little high-heeled thing
You're gonna cry if I don't polish up
Tough.

The way I see it, the hand of Fate
Did me a favor with the cards he dealt my way
Found out fast life is a game
You're out real quick if you don't know how to play."

- Tough, Kellie Pickler

Mina has reached her absolute and final limit. The week before, she had rather stupidly convinced none other than her too hot to be real roommate to participate in a charity event. The club where she performed her burlesque show was raising money for Toys for Tots in the form of a date auction and Mina had more or less bullied Keith into showing up by signing him up and asking if he would like be included later.

Her plan had been to hope no one bought him, then slip in a few bucks to 'buy him' and voila they would have an excuse for a date. And then… Well, now she would never know. Never know if she finally had the courage to tell him how she really felt. That ever since arriving to Serenity Lake she couldn't imagine life without him. That she had put off looking for another place to live because she really enjoyed their cluttered apartment above the ice cream parlor and was fairly certain her life would fall apart without it…and him.

Everything was supposed to go according to her very simple plan.

Unfortunately, she hadn't planned on Jerry taking Keith's shirt off.

She quite clearly remembered the rough flannel work shirt getting ripped from her roommate's body. Certainly, she had peeked a few times in his coming and going from the shower, but those had been private moments. Once Keith's well toned physique had been shared with the rest of the female population of Serenity Lake, Mina hadn't had a chance. Stupid Beatrice Richardson and her buckets of money had won Keith before Mina's borrowed $20 even had a chance.

Tonight is the evening of Beatrice and Keith's date. Unable to see her plan continue to fail, Mina had grabbed her pink cowboy hat and made up some excuse to get out of the apartment before her roommate got ready. Citing 'Christmas shopping for Artie,' she had ducked out of the apartment and made her way to the bar where they had first met, muttering as she entered the darkened room, "No way he's going to bring her refined ass here."

There wasn't much in the way of fine dining choices in town, but Mina knew Beatrice wouldn't be caught dead in the smoky bar and Keith was too much of a gentleman to take her there.

An empty stomach, several shots of whiskey and an inspired version of 'Santa Baby' later, Mina squints through her drunken haze and sees Keith and his usual disapproving stare walking towards her. Fortunately, at that exact moment, 'I Fall to Pieces' by the incomparable Patsy Cline comes on the dilapidated jukebox rusting in the corner. Mina doesn't think, instead she prances up to her roommate, takes his hand and leads him to the crowded dance floor.

With the world spinning around her, Mina feels simultaneously surprised and grounded when Keith places his large hands on her waist. They sway gently in place and as she hums the melody, singing lyrics when she knows them (and even then, getting most of them wrong), Mina wonders what will happen when the song ends.

Unfortunately, as the strains of the music lapse into the next song, there is no romantic dip or twirl, merely the command, "I'm taking you home."

"You're not the boss of me."

"Someone clearly needs to be."

"And you're that guy?" Made confident by Jack Daniels and not much else, Mina figures she has nothing to lose.

"I'm not going to answer that."

Realizing she has reached her limit, Mina follows Keith outside, suddenly sobered by the crisp winter air. Ever the gentleman, he opens the door to his truck and she clambers inside. Fiddling with heater, she cranks it to full blast.

"Must you?"

"I'm cold."

"Maybe you should've thought of that before leaving the house wearing a mini skirt in December."

In response, Mina sulks. However, as she watched the familiar landmarks pass, she takes heart in realizing Keith is here with her and not Beatrice. As her mouth usually gets the better of her, Mina crosses her arms, turns down the Radiohead album that seems to always be in the car, and asks, "Where's your date?"

"None of your business."

"Why not?"

"Because it isn't."

"Beatrice doesn't put out on the first date?"

"Still none of your business."

"Hmph."

Mina purposely slams all the doors she could on the way into the house and goes straight to the kitchen, pulling the bottle of vodka from the freezer. Pouring herself a shot, she downs the bracing liquid and looks defiantly at Keith. Raising a delicate blonde eyebrow, she asks, "Care for some?"

"Stop acting like a child."

"Why? Why shouldn't I? Who says you have to have everything figured out when you're 23?""

"Okay, fine, then stop acting like an out of control drunk." In the small galley kitchen, he maneuvers around her and pulls out a glass, filling it with water and hands it to Mina. "Drink this instead. You'll feel better."

Dutifully, she follows his instruction. After a not so delicate burp, she says, "I'm sorry."

"Why? For having me to come get you again?"

"No."

"Then what for?"

"It should've been me on the date tonight." And there, the words were out before she can do anything about it.

Keith looks at her, cold steel, and says, "Explain."

"I… It should've been me. I was supposed to buy you. You were supposed to take me on a date."

After a few seconds longer than necessary, Keith responds with a simple, "Hmm."

"THAT'S your response? Forget I said anything!" Before he can react, Mina stumbles towards her room and slams another door.

Keith remains in the kitchen, wondering what the fuck he should do. He calmly grabs the glass she drank from and pours the reminder of the water Mina didn't drink down the sink. Not particularly thinking though his actions, he brings the glass to his lips…touching the cold surface to his own mouth. Shaking his head, he places the container down and walks to her door. Hearing her crying inside, he feels worse than he ever thought imaginable. Worse than when Artie went missing for a few days. Worse still than when Mina had come down with an unexpected case of chicken pox. With his hand on the door, he pauses, constricted by his own feelings.

This is wrong…

Fueled by alcohol, it's not how he pictured their first time or even how they would get together. And yet, he feels an overwhelming need to run into the room and comfort her.

Deciding it's best to give her space, he retreats to his own room and attempts to settle into a restless sleep. As the hours pass, it's clear he will not be getting any rest or relaxation. Clad in his flannel pajama pants and nothing else, he gently raps at her door – both hoping and denying he wants an answer. Practically since she's moved in, he's tortured himself imaging what she sleeps in… When there is no response, he hesitates another moment, then opens the door and walks in. Blonde hair strewn across the pillowcase, she's cuddled into a tight ball under the covers. He'll just have to figure out what she's wearing another time. He moves to walk away.

He can't leave.

Although he recognizes he isn't thinking clearly, he needs to apologize in some way and in some misguided attempt to silence his raging hormones lies down on the bed next to her. With her body nestled under the heavy duvet, it's not like they're really even sharing a bed...or at least that's what he tells himself. Truthfully, the full size mattress is not made for someone of his size and another person to lie without touching. And, as Mina settles against him, Keith's eyelids grow heavy and his intention to return to his own room fades away.

As the first rays of pale winter light filter into the room, Keith awakes a few hours later. He could leave and Mina would never know he was here, but that feels wrong. Somewhere in the night, they've both ended up under the blankets and he doesn't want to move. Instead he pulls her tight against him and heart thundering in his chest, says, "Good morning."

Mina blinks her long lashes for a moment and then looks at Keith strangely. He watches as she hesitates, pulls back and seeing her worn dressing gown, vaults out of bed and wraps it around herself. Setting herself down on a worn settee scattered with abandoned clothes a safe distance away, she asks, "Why are you here? What happened last night?"

"I didn't… We didn't…"

"What are you trying to say exactly? Did you want to 'do' something? Because as I recall, you made it fairly clear, you most certainly did NOT."

"Damnit, Mina, what did you mean last night? Why was I supposed to take you on a date?"

"Because…" her voice trails away as she fidgets with the tie of her robe.

"Because we're supposed to be together," he finishes her sentence.

Rather a woman of actions than words, she calmly walks back to the bed, strips back the duvet, straddles her smaller body over his, crosses her arms and asks, "What did you say?"

Keith shifts uncomfortably. Having woken up with a fierce case of morning wood, and now with Mina and the absolute barest amount of fabric between them, he is having a difficult time thinking, let alone putting a sentence together. Taking a deep breath and exhaling slowly, he answers, "You and me. Why have we been fighting it so long?"

"Do you really mean that?"

Instead of responding immediately, his hand, rather of its own accord, begins to trace lazy circles on Mina's tanned left thigh. Pleased she hasn't worn anything more than what he now recognized as a missing pair of his favorite boxer shorts and a black tank top, he waits for her to stop him, to slap his hand away. In a strange version of 'are you nervous,' his fingers reached further and further closer to a specific heat he is interested in exploring. Trying to find his voice, he says, "You have to say something or I'm not going to stop…"

In response, she draws a line across her mouth with her fingers and pantomimes throwing away a key. Her action is all the encouragement Keith needs. Flipping her over, he is on top of her and slipping his tongue into her mouth in the span of a few seconds. Although he has pictured the moment a million times over, nothing can stop the rush. He planned to take his time, to cherish her, but before he realizes what is happening, they are both naked and she is slipping a hand into her bedside drawer. Without breaking contact, she has ripped open the condom package and sheathes his dick in latex. As her hand moves up and down, she grins impishly and, tongue licking her lips, says, "Big boy."

Groaning, he can do nothing but guide himself into her. She's as tight and hot and wet as he dreamed. This is how he wants to wake up every morning. He can die happy now. While he's slept with plenty of women in the past, he's never felt such a connection before. Realizing this is actually happening and not some extended daydream, he focuses on his beautiful partner. Whether or not she'll be this quick to orgasm every time, he doesn't particularly care - he's more interested in her response to his touch and what her caress does to him.

He comes, shaking and heated in the cold room. He feels alive. He feels invincible.

Extracting himself from their tangle of limbs, he attempts to get his breathing under control and assess what the hell has just happened. Working up his confidence, he looks over at his roommate. Her eyes are closed, her cheeks are flushed, and she is smiling. Without opening her eyes, she says, "See something you like?"

Nibbling his lips along her upper arm, he gazes down at her naked body. What had been a blur now slides into perfect focus. She opens one eye and asks, "And have you been a good boy this year? Christmas is less than a week away."

"I must have been - I just got everything I ever wished for."