Chapter 2

August 1860 – Colorado Springs

"When will you be back?" she asked, her eyes wide and full of curiosity. He smiled down at her and pulled her into his arms, giving her a soft kiss upon the cheek.

"I'll be back 'fore ya wake up. Don't you worry."

"You sure?"

"I'm sure. I'll see you tomorrow."

"I love you."

"I love you too."

September 1870 – Colorado Springs

"I can't believe nobody's come and swept you off your beautiful feet yet," Sully said with a laugh, as they sat in the parlor after dinner. She laughed comfortably with him, her ringlets bouncing slightly as she did so. Sully couldn't take his eyes off of how beautiful she was…more beautiful than the day he'd met her. He couldn't deny that the attraction was there. He couldn't deny the flutter in his heart that happened every time she smiled or laughed.

"Mother keeps trying to force me into marriage," she replied with a grin. She knew what he was thinking. He knew her too well.

"Nobody forces Michaela Quinn to do anything," Sully noted. She shook her head and smiled warmly. He was the only man she'd ever been able to talk with comfortably besides her father. She didn't feel like a fool with him. She felt as if she could reveal her deepest secrets to him, and he'd never tell a soul or laugh or tell her she was silly. He was the one person in her life that she could talk freely with, no matter how much time had kept them apart.

"I've missed you."

"It's been a long time." She nodded in agreement.

"How have you been? The last time we saw one another…"

"I know," he said quietly. "I'm sorry I left without sayin' goodbye." She shook her head.

"You left a note. You did what you had to do."

"Ya deserved a goodbye, Michaela. After all ya did. Ya did so much to help me. Ya changed my life, and you know that." He adjusted himself in the chair, and he watched Michaela look down at her hands. They were placed neatly in her lap, and she was still.

"You were in a bad place when we met, even if I didn't know it at first." Michaela noted. "I'm glad we met when we did." She took a deep breath. "So…tell me where you've been all this time."

"Everywhere," he responded. She raised her eyebrows, though she wasn't surprised. If she knew anything about Sully, it was that he was restless. He never could stay put in one spot for too long…not since he'd left home.

"Have you been back to Colorado Springs?"

"Not since I left home."

"That's been…what? Ten years?" Sully nodded. Michaela frowned. "Don't you think it's time to go home?" His eyes immediately searched hers.

"That ain't home, Michaela. Ya know I ain't got a home there anymore." Michaela saw the sadness creep into his eyes, and she wondered if it had ever gone away. Seeing her had made him so happy, and she could tell. Now all she was doing was digging up bad memories.

"I'm sorry, Sully."

"I've been…I've been takin' jobs any place I can get. I mostly do cattle drives…I've been all over the country. But one night, I looked up at the North Star, and I knew what I had to do. I had to come here. This is the only place I really feel at home these days." Michaela smiled knowingly.

"You are at home, Sully. You know you have a place to stay anytime you need it." His eyes met hers, and she shivered, seeing the pain of the past ten years flood into his eyes. She cleared her throat. "The North Star?" He grinned.

"Do you remember that night?"

"I do. How could I forget! You got us lost!"

"I got us lost? I think…"

"You think I'm mistaking?"

"No, I think you're lyin' through your teeth. That's what I think." Michaela feigned offense, but she couldn't help but follow it with a laugh. She couldn't help but feel like this with him. He made her smile and laugh and feel happy, yet he still had so much sadness inside of him that he'd yet to let go of. She'd tried to help him let go, but it was something he had to do on his own. He had to face home…yet he had no home to go back to.

"I remember it perfectly, Mr. Sully," she said, shaking her head at him. "It was…" His eyes met hers, his smile fading, but his eyes reflecting some of the happiest memories in his saddest time.

"It was the night we met."

October 1860 – San Francisco

"What do you think you're doing!" Michaela Quinn exclaimed, as she backed away from him. The handsome stranger stepped toward her, his eyes glittering under the pale moonlight. Those eyes were almost enchanting, but she had to keep her wits about her. This man had just chased her down the beach, and she wasn't going to stand for it any longer.

"Your ma just paid me good money to keep an eye on you, and that's exactly what I'm doin'." Not looking surprised in the least, she folded her arms across her chest.

"How much did she pay you?" He paused, thinking his answer over for a moment.

"Two dollars," he replied. Michaela rolled her eyes and pulled out her money purse.

"I'll give you four dollars to go away!" Sully thought for a moment, but he folded his arms across his chest as she had done a moment before. "Don't look at me like that." This time her hands moved to her hips.

"Like what?" he asked, his voice low.

"Don't look at me like I'm a child. You can't be much older than I am."

"Age don't matter, Miss. What matters is what I was paid to do."

"Well, I'll pay you to tell my mother to keep her nose out of my affairs."

"Your affairs?" He raised an eyebrow.

"Don't be rude!" she remarked with frustration, not being able to take her eyes off of his. They were a remarkable shade of blue…just like the ocean on a clear day. She started walking faster, and he watched her for a moment, smiling at the way she held her shoes in one hand, held her skirt up from the sand with the other, and let her toes bury themselves in the sands of the beach. He almost laughed, when the tide began to roll in, lapping at her ankles. She continued to walk so briskly that he wasn't sure that running would keep him up with her.

"Wait!" he called out. She huffed loudly, and he jogged to meet her pace. When he caught up to her, she glared at him.

"Leave me alone," she said quietly.

"What's got ya so mad?"

"At the moment? You!"

"Ya left that hotel in a awful big hurry. Ya didn't look so happy then either."

"It's none of your business, so I'd appreciate some privacy."

"Ya can't be more than fifteen…" She stopped in her tracks, placing her hands on her hips once more. She was used to people treating her like a child, but this time, it was too much.

"If it's any of your business, I'm twenty years old. I'm about to graduate from college and go on to medical school." She raised an eyebrow. "Can you say the same?" He knew what she meant, but something made him want to push her buttons. He wanted to see just how tough she was. She certainly acted tough enough!

"You sayin' I'm stupid?" She rolled her eyes.

"I said no such thing." Feeling the water rush around his legs, he chuckled a little. "What's so funny?" He pointed down, and Michaela noticed that the tide had caught her skirt, and it was soaked halfway up toward her knees. She groaned and walked away from the water, completely frustrated with everything and everyone, yet, she was fighting off the urge to laugh. "I don't think this night could get much worse."

"Ya have no idea, lady," he said slowly. "Things can get worse when ya least expect it." She heard a somber tone to his voice, and she snapped her gaze toward him, seeing the sadness shimmer in the moonlight for a moment.

"How long have you been here, Mr…."

"Sully," he said quietly.

"Mr. Sully?"

"Just Sully." He cleared his throat. "I been here about a month. Took a job at that hotel just long enough to make me some money."

"And what do you plan to do with it?"

"I plan on getting as far East as I can."

"East?"

"New York...if not…maybe Boston?"

"I'm from Boston."

"Figures."

"What does that mean?" she asked. He smiled a little. "It's obvious ya ain't from out West, and I got a good idea that ya ain't from 'round here either."

"Why's that?" she asked, folding her arms across her chest.

"Well, for one, you're stayin' in a hotel with your parents. Second, ya have no idea where you're goin'."

"On a walk."

"Do ya know where this beach leads?" She shifted uncomfortably.

"No," she said quietly, hating that she had to admit defeat.

"Me neither. Let's turn back." She almost smiled a little, but she remembered why he was there. Her mother. Her mother could never leave her alone for two seconds without wondering what she was doing and whom she was doing it with. Of all of the Quinn daughters, Michaela was the last one that she needed to worry about. She knew how to take care of herself, and she was more responsible than most people her age.

"All you want to do is get me back to the hotel so Mother won't make you give her back her money."

"That ain't it at all," he replied. "I don't really care 'bout two dollars, Miss."

"Stop calling me 'Miss.'"

"What do ya want me to call ya then? Ya sure don't look like no Mister." She moved into the dry sand and put her shoes back on.

"My name is Michaela," she replied. Sully nodded. She looked like a Michaela.

"Nice to meet ya."

"Are you certain about that?"

"Why are ya bein' so stubborn…tryin' to pick a fight? I'm just tryin' to get you back safely to the hotel."

"Because it's your job." Sully shook his head.

"I ain't even s'posed to talk to the guests. Truth of the matter is…your ma didn't pay me to come get ya. I lied about that. I just…I figured ya didn't know where you was goin', and I wanted to make sure you was safe." The truth of the matter was that he thought she was gorgeous…and for a few minutes, he'd forgotten all about why he was there…he'd forgotten about why he was running too.

September 1870 - Boston

"Then we forgot which way was which," Sully pointed out.

"Because, you had to run after me."

"You ran off," he said quickly. Michaela giggled.

"We're bickering just like we did that night. Who'd have known we'd become…"

"Best friends," he finished. She nodded and smiled.

"I'm so glad you're here. How long are you staying for?"

"I don't know yet. A little while, I guess." Harrison brought in a tray of tea and crackers. Michaela thanked him, and she took a cup into her hands. Sully watched as she sipped the hot liquid, and he smiled. She caught his gaze, and she felt her skin grow hot. What was wrong with her? This was her best friend…nothing more. "What do ya say we take a tour tomorrow? You got any patients?" Michaela sighed softly.

"I'm afraid not." She blushed. "It's not that I want people to be sick…I just…wish more people who were sick would come to me."

"Give 'em time."

"I've given them a year, Sully. I think it's time that I move on. I need to go somewhere…a place where I'm needed." Sully nodded.

"Like where?"

"I'm not sure," she said quietly. "I suppose if the opportunity rises…"

"Ya should take it." Michaela smiled. "Don't worry 'bout what nobody else says. If it's right for you, ya gotta take the chance." Michaela sighed softly and studied his eyes.

"You haven't changed, Sully," she breathed. "After all this time…you're still the man I met that night…you're still the man that chased me from the hotel to the beach." Sully laughed.

"That don't sound too good when ya put it like that."

"It's sweet that you came to make sure I was safe. You've always done that for me." Sully nodded.

"So have you. Getting to know you helped me through a lot, you know? It wasn't easy…you made it easier." Michaela nodded, her eyes starting to tear up.

"That's what friends are for." At that moment, the parlor doors opened again, and Elizabeth stepped in. Michaela stood. "Mother?"

"I just wanted to welcome you into our home, Mr. Sully," Elizabeth said with a smile. "You know you're always welcome here." Michaela raised an eyebrow. She'd forgotten that Elizabeth had always appreciated Sully for bringing Michaela back to the hotel unscathed that night. She was pleased that her mother approved of her friendship with Sully. She only wished that her mother trusted her enough to take care of herself. She was thirty now, well past being a grown woman, yet some things never changed. "Harrison is laying a fire for you now." Sully shifted slightly and nodded.

"Thank you, Mrs. Quinn."

"You should go to bed now, Mother," Michaela pointed out. "I'll show Sully to his room." For the first time, Michaela's breath caught, and she couldn't explain it. Her cheeks blushed red again, and she shook her head. "I think it's time we all went to sleep." Elizabeth eyed Sully and Michaela for a moment, but she'd never had any suspicions about them before. She wasn't sure what to make of his presence now, but she knew he'd never done anything to lose her respect.

"Good night, Michaela; Mr. Sully."

"Good night," they replied in unison. After Elizabeth left, Michaela turned to him.

"Follow me. I'll show you to your room," she said quietly. He caught the hitch in her voice; the unspoken nervousness that he hadn't noticed before.

"Is everything alright?" he asked, reaching out and touching her shoulder. She shivered under his touch, not knowing what was wrong with her. She trembled and swallowed hard.

"Everything's fine. I'm just tired; a little overwhelmed. It's been a busy day." Sully smiled, seeing her eyes twinkle with a secret. She flashed him a smile that spoke right to his heart, and he quickly took his hand off of her shoulder. He couldn't explain the way that seeing her again made him feel. He was happier than he'd been in so long. He knew that coming to see her would make things better. They'd known from the first time they'd met that if they only looked to the North Star, they'd find home again.

August 1860 – Somewhere Outside Colorado Springs

"Somethin's not right."

"The Spirits tell you this?"

"No…my heart tells me," he said quietly, digging the toe of his moccasin into the dirt impatiently.

"You have come under the light of the moon, and you should not leave until the sun rises." He paused. "But you know better." Sully nodded slowly.

"Go on. You know what you must do."