"Thank you for being willing to meet me this morning. I thought it would be good for us to talk, clear the air."

Walt nodded.

Barlow and Walt were sitting in the back booth of an otherwise empty Busy Bee at 10:00 AM on a breezy day in late July. Barlow had given Walt and Martha their space, but it was less a result of his brother's prompting and more as a way for him to regroup. He realized he had been so obsessed with Martha that he had neglected some things at home and work and actually welcomed a break to refocus his priorities. With the end of summer approaching, he knew Walt would be heading back to college leaving Martha behind and his thoughts once again turned to the object of his desire. Barlow called Walt and asked if they could meet before he left. He thought the Busy Bee would be a safe, neutral location to talk. Dorothy brought two mugs and a carafe of coffee to their table, "If you two don't want anything else I'll be prepping for lunch. Holler if you need anything."

Dorothy glanced back at the two men as she returned to the kitchen, She was concerned. She couldn't see anything good coming from Barlow Connally and Walter Longmire sitting together in her restaurant. She liked to stay out of people's drama, but not unlike a bartender, people told her things whether she wanted them to or not. As a result, she heard everything that transpired in their little town. No one seemed to know exactly what had happened in the back hallway during the Spring Dance in May, but they knew that Barlow and Martha had left the dance floor through the back door and that Walt and Martha had entered back through it without him. No one remembers seeing Barlow leave the Community Center that night, but his truck was gone by the time the dance was over. He seemed to have kept to himself through the summer and she was a little surprised when she saw him walk in her front door. She was even more surprised when Walt came in and joined him.

Martha and Walt had been dating the last few months. They were always together and Dorothy thought it was only a matter of time until things became more serious. She was happy for both of them. They were a good fit for one another. Still, the intense interest Barlow had shown in Martha when he first saw her remained in the back of her mind. She thought Barlow had backed off but she knew how he was when he set his mind on something. She was concerned this meeting was a sign that Barlow was going to pick up his relentless pursuit of the girl again.

Barlow poured coffee into the two cups, "Tell me, how are things going at USC? You're getting ready to start your junior year, right?"

"Yes."

Barlow waited but Walt didn't expand on his answer so he continued, "What are you studying?"

"I'm majoring in English."

Barlow attempted to stifle a laugh and cleared his throat, "Seems like kind of a soft major for a big strapping guy like yourself, don't you think? Are you one of those sensitive types? How many times have you seen Love Story?"

Walt just looked at him and Barlow changed the subject.

"The Trojan football team has had two pretty impressive seasons the last two years: Took the conference and won the Rose Bowl your freshman year, finishing second in the nation. Then you were what, 3rd in the conference this past season, ranked 11th overall?"

"Yep."

"I'll bet you have lots of fellow English majors playing on the football team with you." Barlow made no attempt to hide his sarcastic tone and his remark was met with more silence.

"Must have been quite an adjustment for you to go out to Los Angeles, California after living in Durant. Bit of a culture shock I imagine."

"Is this really why you wanted to meet me, Mr. Connally?"

"Tell me more about this English degree. Down what career path does an English major go? I mean, there's not a lot of prospects for employment with that degree is there?"

"I have some ideas."

"Ideas. That sounds very...solid. What sorts of ideas?"

"May I ask why you're concerned with my future employment? I know I turned down your job offer two years ago, but it was nothing personal. I had a football scholarship and my mother wanted me to take full advantage of the opportunities available to me to further my education. My parents have a vested interest in my future, but why do you?"

Barlow looked intently into his coffee before lifting his head, "I'm trying to see what you think you have to offer her, Longmire, and to help you realize it's not much." He shook his head, "From where I'm sitting, you have a lot of shortcomings."

Walt took a sip of his coffee and set it back on the table, running his fingertips over the lip of the cup, "This is about Martha."

"Hell yes, this is about Martha! She's a bright girl with a great future ahead of her. She needs to be guided and nurtured to grow to her full potential. She needs safety and security. How do you think you're going to provide that for her? You're only halfway through college with no prospects of a job. You have no income and no home for her. I can provide her with financial stability, a nice home and a solid family reputation. She'll have position in the community. Now why don't you be a gentleman, and bow out gracefully? Allow Martha to make the smart choice for her life: to be with me."

"I'm sorry but I can't do that."

"Can't or won't?"

"Both."

"You have no way to provide for a wife and a family. What exactly do you think you can give to her that I can't?"

"I love her."

"So that's it? You love her? Don't be naive boy. I know your father and he wouldn't raise a pansy for a son; someone who really believes that life is all about love. There's nothing practical about that. How are you going to eat? Where are you going to live?"

"A relationship's not a business transaction. You don't lay out the pros and cons, run the numbers, check the stock prices and then decide what to do from there. It involves people: with hopes and dreams, thoughts and feelings. We'll work out the rest when the time comes."

"Are you gonna ask her to put her life on hold for two years while you finish school? To wait for you? What about her plans? She wants to be a nurse. Has she told you that?"

"She has. I support her 100%."

"That's funny, 'cause you can't really support her like I can. I plan on paying for her education. She won't have to worry about anything. What are you going to do, drive her to the job she'll have to have in order to pay her tuition?"

"I'll do whatever I can to help Martha achieve her goals."

"And what do you think she's going to do while you're away at college? You cannot actually expect her to sit at home all the time. You think other men will stay away from her just because she has some boyfriend in another state."

"I've talked to her parents and they've given me their blessing to ask Martha to marry me. It's her choice to make from there."

"If you think her being engaged will keep men away you really are naive." Barlow narrowed his eyes, "Or is your plan to just beat up anyone who looks sideways at her?"

Walt had thought Barlow would eventually bring up what happened the last time they had seen each other. He leaned in and dropped his voice, "You were forcing yourself on someone half your age and when I asked you to step back you jumped me from behind. I was defending both Martha and myself. I don't go around looking for a fight, but I will fight when it's necessary to protect those I care about."

Barlow crossed his arms and leaned back in his seat, "It's a shame you won't be able to defend Martha's honor all the way from California."

Walt's carefully controlled temper was starting to rise at what he perceived to be a direct threat to Martha and her well-being.

"There are a lot of good people who live in Durant. I don't expect Martha to have problems from anyone with one exception."

"What's that?"

"You. You've made it perfectly clear that my only concern regarding Martha should be you."

"Well, I'm certainly not trying to hide that fact. She belongs with me. It's only a matter of time until she sees that for herself. And when she does, I won't have to force anything. She'll come to me and beg me to kiss her.

Walt's fists clenched tightly. It was all he could do to not pull the pompous man out of the booth and beat him until he stopped breathing.

"If you come near Martha or ever touch her again, you need to be prepared for the consequences. I went to the Sheriff and told him what I did that night. Given a reason, I will not hesitate to go back and tell him what you did so he knows exactly what kind of person you really are. It would be a shame for one of Absaroka County's most wealthy and prominent citizens to experience a very public revealing of his true character because a hard working family had to take legal action against him in order to protect their 18 year old daughter."

"Don't threaten me, boy! I can take you and everyone else you care about in this county down with one word."

Walt refused to back down and attacked Barlow where he thought it would hurt him the most, "We both know you'll do what you want but you need to know none of that will change who you are... " Walt stood up," and it won't make Martha love you."He dropped a dollar on the table before he turned and walked out of the Busy Bee.

The 20 year old was a more formidable adversary than Barlow expected. As he watched him leave the restaurant he realized he had a lot of thinking to do. He may not be able to have Martha as his own, but he would make sure Walt Longmire didn't get to have her either. He wasn't sure how, or when, but eventually Barlow would make him suffer.