Eric was definitely different without the Vicodin. He was a little grumpier and less mellow, that was for sure. But he was also so much more awake, and that part was good.

We had a great day together in spite of the fact that he was still recuperating. He went to the pool with me and we went out to dinner on our very first real date in public. And then, when we were in bed, the kissing got a lot more serious.

I could tell he was as aroused as I was for the first time since his surgery. It took every ounce of resolve for me not to touch him. My hand was just itching to reach out and grab him, but I used amazing self control, remembering first, that he was still recovering from his surgery, and second, that my lustful behavior had nearly cost me everything with Eric before, and I couldn't risk screwing everything up again.

Eric was touching me and kissing me and when he asked if it felt good, I very nearly pushed his hand down into my panties. I wanted him so badly, but I didn't want him to think I was trashy. I was trashy, of course—I'd certainly proven that with him, but I was determined to behave myself, and I was relieved when he finally fell asleep.

I lay there and thought about the stolen moment at Universal and no matter how ashamed of it I was, there was still a part of me deep down that loved it and wanted more of the same.

I remembered how powerful I felt with him in my mouth and how rewarding it was to know I was pleasing him. It made me sad to think I would have to suppress those impulses whenever I was with Eric in an intimate moment again. Heck, I thought, I was having to suppress them at that very moment with Eric lying beside me.

As much as I loved kissing him and felt sure making love to him would be wonderful, I knew I'd always have to rein my lust in and that sat at the back of my mind and troubled me until I finally fell asleep.

Eric was supposed to see his surgeon for a follow up on Friday, but Thursday morning, he said he was feeling well enough to make the trip to L.A. and eager to get out of the hotel. Even though the circumstances were really bad for Eric, a part of me—okay, a pretty big part—had loved our little love nest here. I knew, though, that we had to get back to the real world and was also excited at the prospect of starting a real relationship with Eric.

Eric called his surgeon's office and they said they could squeeze him in at 11, so we started packing. As soon as he was through with his appointment, we planned to drive back to L.A.

We were dressed and ready to go with our suitcases packed when I did a last sweep of the bathroom to make sure we hadn't left anything. When I came out, Eric stood from the bed and held his arms out to me. I very carefully put my arms around him and he bent down and kissed me on the lips. It was a very sweet kiss, and when he pulled back, he said, "Thank you for taking such good care of me, Sookie."

"You're welcome."

"Even though it sucks that I had to have surgery, at least it gave us some time alone to be together. And now things are working out for us. It's not the most romantic set of circumstances with which to start a relationship, but …." He smiled. "This probably would have never happened if I hadn't needed to have my appendix out."

I thought, well, actually, it could have happened if you had just called and asked me on a date, but I kept it to myself. It didn't matter how it happened, just that it finally did, right?

I pulled both our suitcases downstairs and through the casino to the front desk. It probably looked a little funny, but Eric could barely walk upright, much less pull a suitcase. We checked out at the front desk and Felipe DeCastro was good for his word. We didn't owe a penny.

I drove Eric's car and his GPS led us right to his surgeon's office right on time for his appointment.

I waited in the waiting room and he came out smiling and said, "We're good. Let's go home."

We stopped to eat lunch before getting on the freeway, and then Eric and I were finally on our way back to Los Angeles.

After days of being secluded together, we were very comfortable with each other on the long car ride home. Eric slept some, and when he was awake, he talked at length about his work. I felt really horrible about his losing the job in Las Vegas. It was obvious that he'd wanted it and worked for it for so long, but he took the loss in stride.

I told him that I was still hopeful to get more work doing wardrobe, but it was tough getting started. I had submitted my resume to several film and theater projects, but there was only one job on it. I hadn't had any luck yet.

"It's really admirable, Sookie, that you have ambitions to improve yourself," he said.

I kept my mouth shut, but I never really thought there was anything wrong with waitressing.

"Well, I liked what I saw working at Knott's, but I obviously have a lot to learn," I replied.

We decided to take Eric home first since he couldn't get his suitcase up to his condo alone. Then he thought he'd be able to take me home. If he didn't feel up to it, I figured I could always take the bus.

I parked the car in Eric's underground parking garage and we took the elevator up to the third floor. Eric's place was a mere three blocks from the beach in Santa Monica and on a very fancy street with nothing but beautiful condo and apartment buildings on it.

I wasn't sure what to expect since … well, Eric is a guy and his taste in cars was kind of cliché (a red Corvette—more than slightly macho). But, I was pleasantly surprised by his home. It was simple, but very tastefully decorated. The living room and dining room were furnished with dark wood and neutral fabrics. His sofa was brown leather and the accents were in deep rust and gold. It was very masculine, but still warm and quite lovely.

I rolled his suitcase into the bedroom and he immediately started to make the messy bed.

"Don't, Eric. It's fine. You'll need to get right back into it anyway," I said.

He looked a little guilty, but stopped and sat on the edge of it. He seemed tired.

"I should let you get some rest," I said. "Is there anything you need for me to do for you before I go?"

"No, I think I'm fine. But I don't want you to go."

"I need to get home too, sweetie."

"I know. It's just that I'm going to miss you. I'm so used to having you with me."

I walked over and bent down to give him a kiss. Then he took my hand and kissed it and said, "I'll drive you home."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, especially if you drive yourself there. Then, I just have to drive myself back. It should be fine."

"Okay," I conceded.

I drove us to my apartment in West Hollywood and found a spot on the street in front of my building.

I turned to Eric and said, "You're welcome to come in, but you should probably go home and get some rest."

"I know, I should. I'll be so glad when I'm back to normal. I'm tired of this."

"It won't be long, sweetie," I assured him.

"So, when can I see you? How about tomorrow night? I don't know if I'll be up for going out, but maybe you could just come over to … "

I interrupted him. "I can't tomorrow. I mean, I'll probably have to work."

He got the oddest look on his face, like I'd just told him I planned to bomb the White House. "Work?" he asked, quite incredulous.

"Yeah, work. Remember that? Waiting on tables. Bringing people food. Work."

He seemed relieved. "Oh, right. I forgot you were a waitress too. Where is it again?"

"Merlotte's, just down the street. Well, I'm assuming I'll be working tomorrow. I need to work as much as I can to make up for the time I've been gone and not making a dime."

"Oh, shit, Sookie. What was I thinking? I should pay you for your time."

"No, don't. Really. I was happy to help you. I'm glad I was there and it all worked out. I don't want you to pay me."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, I'm sure. I'll just try and get as many shifts at the restaurant as I can to make up for it. Really, I don't mind."

"Well, let me know as soon as you have a free night, okay? I want to see you as soon as possible." I nodded and he smiled a sweet smile and added, "I miss you already."

"Me too."

He leaned over and gave me a kiss. When he stopped kissing me, he sat back and said, "When are you going to talk to Sam?"

"I guess tonight. I should probably go and see him in person."

"Are you sure you don't want me there?"

"Yeah. There's no need, really."

"You don't think he'll hurt you, do you? Is he violent?"

"Violent?" I couldn't imagine Sam getting violent over anything, much less a woman telling him she couldn't date him anymore. "No, he's not violent. I'm sure it'll be fine. It's not like he's in love with me or anything."

"Well, just be careful, okay?"

"Okay." Careful? What in the world did he mean by that?

We both got out of the car. I retrieved my suitcase from the back and Eric carefully got into the driver's seat. He rolled the window down and I gave him a last kiss before he drove off.

I went inside and started sorting through my mail and checked my answering machine. I didn't have any calls—most people called my cell phone if they needed me anyway.

I sat on the sofa and set the mail aside, thinking about everything that had happened since I was last home. When I left, I thought I was going for a girls' weekend. Who would have thought I'd see Eric, then have to take care of Eric, and finally, get involved with Eric—all in the short time I'd been gone? It was kind of mind blowing.

I was crazy about Eric. He was so sweet and so sexy and we'd had fun together in spite of the circumstances of his surgery. I knew that I could easily fall in love with him and be very happy with the result.

But there was something nagging me—something in the back of my mind that was not quite right. I couldn't really put my finger on it, but well, actually, I guess I could. It was the whole blowjob thing. I liked doing that. I knew it was trashy, but if I were being honest with myself, I did enjoy it. Tremendously. I'd told Eric I was sorry—that I was ashamed of myself for doing it, but really, was I? No, not really. I liked it. And he didn't.

And then, he seemed kind of weird about my working at Merlotte's. I guess he didn't like the idea of my being around Sam so much. He did say he was jealous. But still, he was kind of—I don't know, not quite right about it. Kind of cavemanny. Did he not want his woman to work for a living or something? It was odd.

I unpacked my suitcase and called Merlotte's. Sam was there (as always) and said he could put me on the schedule the following night and would try and give me as many nights as I needed. I thanked him and asked if it was a good time to stop by to talk to him about something. He said it was and I could hear the resignation in his voice. We had just talked about work, and what else would we have to discuss except our personal relationship?

I hung up and walked down the block to the restaurant. Sam gave me a hug and welcomed me back and then we went into his office to have the talk.

"What's on your mind, Sookie?" he began.

"I hate to do this here, Sam, but I didn't want to put it off any longer. I don't think we should see each other any more. I mean, to date each other."

"I see. Okay. I'm sorry to hear that."

"Well, I'm sorry to have to say it. You're a wonderful man, Sam. I obviously have strong feelings about you. But they're just not the right kind of feelings. Do you know what I mean?"

"Yeah, I think so. I do." He paused for a beat and then asked, "Is there someone else?"

"Kind of." I watched his face, wondering how much I should say. He smiled and seemed okay, so I went on. "It's someone I knew before. I'm not sure what's going to happen there. Maybe not much, to be honest, but I have to find out."

"Okay." He took my hand and squeezed it. "It sounds like you've made up your mind."

"Well, I guess I have. My gut tells me what's between you and me just isn't … you know … serious relationship material. And it seems wrong to continue it knowing that."

"Well, you should always listen to your gut," he said, and then added with a smile, "I hope we can still be friends."

"Oh, of course. Nothing will ever change that, Sam."

We ended the conversation with a hug and a promise that it wouldn't be icky at work between us because of this and I believed him. He really was a lovely man. I just knew he wasn't the one for me.

I walked home feeling good about ending things with Sam and better about moving forward with Eric. Hopefully, together Eric and I could work through the little nagging problems I had in the back of my mind and everything would be okay … more than okay, actually. I hoped they could be great.