Another update for this rather strange FF story. Hope you enjoy it and thanks for the feedback.

The sun baked the valley as if often did, showing no mercy to its residents, animal or human. The monsoons had begun to break up the monotony of the summer heat but didn't last long enough to restore the parched soil back to life. C.J. had taken one of Roy's horses out to check the fencing after hearing complaints from neighboring ranches that some prowlers had been seen lately. No livestock had turned up missing yet but the ranchers suspected that rustling had once again returned to their region.

Roy and C.J. had met with the ranch hands including Bo and Lamar and had decided to set up shifts during the night hours to keep an eye for anything suspicious but so far, there hadn't been much to report except some wildlife scattering in the bushes. But it had been better to be safe than sorry, and when C.J. took her turn at night watch, she carried her gun with her.

Tonight, the moonlight streamed through the throng of dogwood trees that centered the meadow area where the grass and wild flowers that cloaked it had died off months ago. The air remained thick with heat soaked in dampness after the afternoon storm had passed and C.J. wiped her brow with her handkerchief as she had been doing all evening. She looked over at the partner on the security detail who sat on horseback.

"Houston, I don't see a damn thing out there," she said, tugging on her reins a bit, "Looks quiet to me."

He just threw her a look.

"Too quiet if you ask me."

She studied his face beneath his favorite worn hat. A hint of shadow showed on it and his eyes looked tired. He had flown in several days earlier after a business meeting on his jet to help his uncle out and frankly to get away from the chaotic nature of his urban lifestyle. He had hoped that Christina would come with him but she had begged off on a modeling job that she said would make or break her career. So they had both packed their suitcases and had left separately, she with her agent to head off to Seattle and he, to return to his hometown of Wild Fork, Texas. And he had been doing his time on lookout detail along with everyone else.

Things hadn't been all that great between the two of them since they had moved to California. The headiness of their romantic interludes during his military stint in various ports had been replaced by the competing natures of their very different lifestyles. Not that they had fought, hell they hardly ever had cross words with each other and maybe that in itself was a problem. Every couple fought from time to time but maybe she had been too reluctant to rock the boat by bringing up issues and he had been too wary of stirring the pot either.

Not to mention they were both so caught up in their careers, they hardly saw each other and more often than not when Matt came home to their rental place, silence greeted him along with perhaps a note from Christina that she had a job to finish and would be back later that night. The note that she wrote to him telling him she needed to have some space from him for a while caught him off guard. One reason she had opted for the modeling job in Seattle, he guessed.

Much later, as it turned out, not that Matt had been innocent in that regard. His new business had taken off so quickly, he had been busy interviewing and hiring new employees to help shift the workload off of his shoulder. The there had been the obligatory call or email to C.J. to reconsider her stance in not coming to work with him.

But the moment he had stepped off the plane onto the tarmac under the sizzling heat, he had put all his problems behind him and had refocused on just doing whatever was necessary to help his uncle and C.J. on the ranch.

And that's what he looked forward to most of all was seeing his best friend again. The last time they had parted had been after the two of them had brokered an understanding of sorts that he would butt out of judging her over her decision making about her own life. When he had driven up to Roy's ranch and had seen her out in front directing Bo and Lamar on some planting in the front drive, he had left his car and had gone over to embrace her. Holding her tight, he realized how much he had missed her and that her form against his own just felt too damn good.

She had put her hands on his broad chest and looked at him.

"You look good," she said, "Your uncle will be glad to see you."

"I can't stay long," he told her, "I heard there have been some problems with rustlers."

She had shrugged.

"You know how it goes," she said, "A lot of suspicion but nothing solid so far and no thefts."

"Sheriff been notified?"

She snorted.

"Like he gives a damn," she said, "Not unless you're a rancher who kicks back some money into his reelection campaign."

Matt knew the score that had dictated law enforcement service in Wild Fork and in other places served by the county sheriff's department. If you paid into the sheriff's war chest, you had regular patrols in your area. If not, you were on your own and were lucky if they even came out within the hour if you called them for help. Long ago, the area ranchers had put together their own security teams and they took care at looking out for each other.

"The police are useless around here and always have been," she said, quietly running her hand through her hair.

"I can help the few days I'll be here…"

"What about Christina," C.J. said, "I thought she would have been with you. Not that she seems to like the ranching lifestyle that much but she seems to care for you."

"She had a job in Seattle," he said, "She couldn't turn it down."

C.J. digested that and then took him by the hand.

"Come on, we'll get you settled."

They walked into the house together.

Now several days and nights later, they had ridden out together on horseback to face the long hours of darkness which might be hiding some rustlers who might be intent on doing harm. But so far all it had been was quiet. But they both knew better than to be lulled into a false sense of security.

"Bo did say that he saw something the other night," he said.

"Probably his own shadow Houston," she said, "Why are you out here anyway? You could have gone to Seattle with your girlfriend."

He sighed.

"I've been worried about Uncle Roy since Will's death and what's been going on with Aunt Flo…"

"She's doing much better," C.J. said, "She might be coming home soon."

"And I've been concerned about you."

She heard that in his voice but really there hadn't been any reason to be worried because she was doing just fine. She spent her days working hard under the summer sun on the ranch, forgetting everything else and at night, well when things got really quiet and her thoughts threatened to intrude, she just did the best she could to push them away.

But still, they directed her dreams.

"Houston, I'm fine…I've just been working hard on these horses."

He looked at her a long moment, taking in the strong features of her face that had been framed with mahogany hair that had felt as soft and as smooth as silk beneath his fingers. She wore her custom uniform of jeans faded to a pale blue and tonight, a cotton shirt with long sleeves.

"Houston…what's the matter?"

He looked away then.

"Nothing…maybe we'd better ride by the south side."

She thought about it and nodded and they both chirped to their horses to get moving along.

C.J. took out two sandwiches from her saddlebag and tossed one to Matt. He caught it deftly and they both started hitting their coffee as well as they sat beneath a tree. Behind them, they could hear the small stream burble through the rocks as it cut across the ranch.

Silence fell between them broken only by the sound of crickets chirping as they ate their food. She decided to break it.

"Houston, it's really good to see you again," she said, "I'm sorry about not keeping in touch."

He looked over at her.

"You've been busy here…I've been busy there…and we're together now."

She smiled.

"How does Christina feel about you coming here?"

Matt paused. A delicate subject indeed and one without an easy answer.

"She didn't object to me coming if that's what you're thinking," he said, "but she wasn't very happy about it."

C.J. sighed, trying to find the words.

"What about you," she said, "How's it been for you coming back here?"

He chewed his sandwich thinking about that too.

"I couldn't stay away," he said, "I had to come back."

She shifted her position.

"Houston, your uncle's doing fine, really he is. It's been hard but he's getting plenty of support here."

"C.J…"

"Flo's coming home soon from the hospital…"

"That's not it," he said suddenly, "I had to see you."

She tilted her face.

"Because of what happened last time," she said, "Nothing happened…well not really."

"I think a lot did."

She rubbed her eyes.

"You were lonely…Christina had just left the ranch to go back to L.A…we were in the barn and one thing led to another…"

"Is that how you read what happened?"

She sighed.

"Houston, I think we both were right to stop what we were doing," she said, "What we were about to do."

Not that it had been easy as she had remembered, because once she had felt his lips on her own, she didn't want to stop the progression of what she had been pushing back at for so long. How was a woman supposed to think rationally when a man like him had pressed her against the bales of hay and started doing these incredible things with his hands? She certainly wasn't a saint but somehow amid the flood of pleasurable sensations hitting her, a moment of clarity had slipped through and reminded her that he had a girlfriend a thousand miles away.

"It wasn't because I was upset with Christina, or even missing her," he said, "It was because I remembered that weekend we had spent together."

She had remembered it all too well herself but some years had passed and people had walked in and out of their lives, relationships changed and they had simply remained friends who lived in two different places apart from one another. And truthfully, her pushing him away from her that night hadn't been entirely out of concern for Christina. She had her own reasons, not that she could ever share them with him. That at the same time she had been physically drawn to him and how he could make her feel, she had been frightened as well.

Because she had looked into his eyes and for a moment saw someone else there.

"Houston, that's in the past," she said, "We were both free then and a bit footloose, having some fun before following our separate paths."

"We came back to the same place."

"Yes we did," she said, "but you had Christina and I…"

She stopped talking then, just playing with the wrapper of her sandwich.

"And you what," he prompted.

She bit her lip.

"Let's just say that life was a bit complicated back then," she said, "So much had happened."

He paused.

"I wouldn't know that because you never shared that with me, about what's been happening with you."

That had been the truth, she remembered, but back then he had returned to the ranch to recover from his own injuries and she had been in the middle of her own situation, trying to figure it all out.

"Nothing…at least nothing worth talking about now while sitting in the middle of the night listening to crickets."

He heard the defensiveness in her voice and sipped his coffee.

"Obviously."

Her face softened then.

"But we were right not to take it any further than we did…"

"I wasn't thinking about her that night," he said, "Maybe I should have been but all I wanted in the world was right in front of me."

She sighed, because those words had been running through her mind amidst all the emotion between them. His lips on her own had been gentle at first, then the kiss deepened and she felt herself losing herself in him. The straw from the bale dug into her back but she dismissed it, as his lips moved down her neck and her own hands stroked his hair.

"Me too….but it didn't change anything."

And she had stopped it, because her body had tensed against his and he'd seen something cross her face that made him pull away. Adjusting his shirt he had watched her carefully but whatever had caught his attention had faded away.

"There was something else there with us," he said, "or someone."

She just looked at him funny.

"What are you talking about," she asked.

"I saw it on your face," he said, "after that kiss in the barn. You pushed me away."

She shook her head.

"I didn't do that," she said, "You backed off before I could do anything."

"Because you didn't see me, you saw someone else."

She looked at him shocked and he knew that he had really caught her off guard. Well good then, because maybe she would just tell him what had been going on with her.

"Did I do or say something that scared you?"

She just stared at him and he saw something familiar there for an instant before she had pushed it away and replaced it with something that if it weren't anger, it was close.

"Why do you ask something like that," She said, "Nothing scares me…certainly not you."

Matt watched the emotions on her face change with his eye, sharp for detail. He knew there was a lot that she didn't say but the more he pushed, the more she would push back and then they'd reach an impasse. He didn't want her angry with him during the short time they had left to spend together.

"But someone did…"

She just looked away from him out into the quietness that surrounded them.

Matt had received a phone message from Christina that said she had finished the job in Seattle but would be heading off to visit some friends in Michigan for a while. The reason being that she needed some time to think about her future and whether or not it included him. He had thought about calling her back about it but had stopped himself because what had struck him when he had heard her words on the voice mail hadn't been just concern but that which had been laced with relief.

He had gotten up early and headed to the barn where he saw C.J. saddling up her own horse, her back towards him.

"Nadine called…"

Matt led the gelding out to be tacked up.

"What did she want?"

C.J. suppressed a smile at the wariness in his voice.

"To get into your pants, what do you think?"

Matt sighed.

"She's married."

"That's never stopped her before," she said, "Didn't stop him either."

"Dylan never did strike me as the family type especially taking off like he did."

C.J.'s expression hardened.

"No one's seen her husband in a long time now," she said, "He probably high tailed it on out of here for something better."

"Still he's been gone a long time and no word?"

She shrugged as they both took their horses outside.

"I'm heading to the south meadow," she said, "You doing the eastern side?"

He nodded.

"I'll meet you back by the stream later on."

She got on her horse and with a tug of the reins, took off.

He watched her go wondering why all the mystery with her since he had returned. Last time, her mood had appeared to change with the wind which hadn't ever been like her.

Not at all but the woman who had greeted him when he arrived at his uncle's ranch had been an enigma as well.

C.J. found some rotted posts when she reached the pasture but she had brought some tools to nail them up until they could be replaced with new wood. Bo and Lamar had headed off to the lumbar supply yard to fetch them enough to handle the fencing issues that they would likely encounter. The patch up jobs would hold until then.

She had been nailing the wood, feeling a gentle breeze against the back of her neck and listening to the birds flying in and out of the brush and trees. Matt had certainly not seemed happy this morning about something, maybe it had to do with Christina. She knew the model had hated being on the ranch and probably found any excuse to stay away. Well, Matt would be returning to her in a couple days and their lives could get back to normal.

And so could hers at least with what passed for normal these days.

The sweat trickled on the back of her neck and she reached for her handkerchief when she heard it.

"C.J…"

She stopped working and stiffened, listening further.

"I'm over here waiting…"

Her body filled with fear followed by adrenalin.

"Dylan?"

She heard the laughter suddenly as he approached her from the darkness. The look on his face…she backed away further. The odor of stale sweat and alcohol reaching her, making her mind swim.

"What are you doing here?"

"I'm looking for my wife…"

She closed her eyes then, waiting for him to touch her but nothing happened. A moment passed and when she opened them again, she saw nothing but the area around her. She shook her head, hating the flashbacks. Nothing could get rid of them; they just sprung up right in front of her at any time, leaving her feeling helpless all over again. When she was by herself out working or trying to sleep…when she had been with others…and when she had been with Matt. That last part had been the hardest part of all and if he knew…no she could never tell him.

Because it hadn't been him, it had been her.

Matt rode up to the stream and saw her there already, sitting a short distance from where she had tied up her horse. He dismounted and tied up his horse close to hers, then walked up to her.

"Mind if I join you?"

She smiled at him and shook her head.

"It's damn hot today," he said, "I'd forgotten what real heat was like."

"It just smothers you like a thick jacket this time of year," she said, "but the rains are nice."

He sat there silently for a while and she knew something nagged at him.

"Houston, what's going on?"

He picked up a pebble and tossed it in the water.

"It's Christina…she's going from Seattle to Michigan to spend some time with friends."

"So…she'll be back home at some point…"

"I'm not sure that she's coming back," Matt said, "at least not to me."

C.J. furrowed her brow.

"But things were going so great between the two of you…"

"Not really," he said, "We're so different in many ways, not the least of which is that I love being on a ranch and she's a city girl."

C.J. nodded.

"That she is," she said, "so what are you going to do?"

He paused.

"I'm going to live my life," he said, "and we'll talk when she comes back to figure out where we stand. But I think it's been over between us longer than we wanted to admit."

C.J. knew that Matt had really cared about Christina. They had been college sweethearts until their disparate goals had split them apart. Now after reconnecting again, they faced a similar outcome.

"I'm sorry…"

He studied her face and reached out to touch it.

"I'm not…"

He then reached over to kiss her.