C.J. had been so busy what with working overtime in the office with Jack and then taking more work back home with her that she paid little attention to what was going on around her.

And when she walked in the darkness surrounded by quiet neighborhoods, she didn't pay much attention to what happened around her because she had such a hard time turning her mind off from her work. Often it took an hour and a few cups of sweetened chamomile tea before she would even relax enough to head to bed.

She had gotten several emails from Matt though she didn't know where they came from because once again, his assignment had been top secret though he mentioned running into some girl he'd been serious with in college, Christina and that they'd been spending a lot of spare time together.

C.J. mostly remembered how pretty the coed had been, with dark brown hair and a lean body afforded to her by genetics and toned by playing tennis if she remembered. Seriously, she had never gotten what had attracted the two of them to each other because they couldn't be more of a study in contrasts. But based on his emails, it seemed to be getting serious again between the two of them.

In contrast, she had no romantic relationships of any type going on in her busy life. She'd had drinks with a couple locals at the club but nothing much had sparked with them. The truth was she was too focused on her career and too exhausted from the workload to do much socializing.

Besides with Nadine's constant accusations that she had rekindled her romance with Dylan, she didn't have much energy to even defend herself. Really, there had been nothing between her and Dylan since he dumped her not long after taking her virginity. But for some reason, he seemed intent on trying to prove to Nadine that she had the hots for him, when she found him creepier now than anything else.

Then there had been the strange hang up phone calls and creepy notes without much written on them. Just some crazy lyrics she almost remembered from somewhere but couldn't quite place. Julia had teased her over the phone from miles away about it being some kind of secret admirer but C.J. said she didn't like that kind of attention. In one of the envelopes had been a picture of a woman wearing a sheer black negligee whose head had been cut off.

She thought about calling the sheriff but decided against it. No one would take it seriously calling it the work of a prankster. They'd tell her it was probably someone she knew who decided that negative attention from her was better than none at all and that she should just ignore it.

But she couldn't, not even in her dreams. For so long, her dreams had been packed full of the details of her work life, the different cases, the different characters who came and went at the office. But now, it was filled with strange lyrics and looming shadows, whose faces she would look for but never quite see.

She'd changed the locks on the door twice when she walked in her house and felt as though she were being watched, or someone had just stood where she did now looking around her bedroom.

Trying not to think about it, not to worry worked great during her busy days packed with projects and work assignments, not as well when she sat on the couch working on case files or lay in bed at night while shadows caused by passing cars danced on the walls. On nights like this, she thought about Matt and how much she missed him, god her relationship with him had always been so complicated. They'd been friends forever even during times when life pulled them in separate directions but the week that they'd gone further than that and become lovers had altered that relationship though they didn't admit it.

His cousin Will had found out about it at some point and teased him though he'd never do it in C.J.'s presence because his cousin had been genuinely fond of her. And it had been the same with her and Julia. Her friend all through law school had hinted that she and Matt should be more than just close friends but C.J. told her they had unwritten rules in their relationship and weren't about to change them.

She heard noises on the roof sometimes as she lay underneath the covers but figured them to be squirrels or raccoons scurrying around. But at night everything took upon a life it didn't have during the daylight hours.

Earlier, she had pulled out a stack of mail, including a postcard from Robert Tyler who had been camping in the Amazon river basin and a longer more detailed letter from her ex, Carl who had just started a new job at a business in San Francisco. She missed the latter much more than she did the former who she hadn't really warmed to as much as Matt did. Between the two of them, they got into more exploits that they often found their friendship sorely tested.

Carl on the other hand had been quieter, much less flamboyant but talk about still waters running deep when it came to being passionate about many things including one woman inside the bedroom. They still remained close even when he moved to London before heading back to California

After putting aside his letter, she had went to steep some more tea to help her sleep. She had answered Matt's earlier email with something light and friendly because she didn't want to worry him while he likely had been assigned to some combat zone in either Afghanistan or Iraq. There had been so much more she harbored inside of her that she wanted to say to him, that she needed to say but she decided to wait until he returned back to Wild Fork after his latest tour of duty.

She heard a rapping sound against the side of the house while in the kitchen and it took her a moment to figure out that it was an old branch from the tree on the side of the house.

Rather than a prowler, she reminded herself again, feeling so on edge these days but with Nadine on a constant tear telling C.J. to stay away from her husband. Not to mention the creepy missives showing up and the hang up phone calls, she could hardly blame herself. If Matt were here, he'd insist she report everything to the sheriff but he wasn't so she had to handle it the way she knew best which was to keep it to herself.

But unbeknownst to herself, outside someone watched and waited.

Matt rolled over in bed and Christina who lay next to him wrapped in a sheet began to stir. Just as well because she had an early makeup call for a fashion shoot she had to do in Bagdad of all places.

The modeling jobs were coming in fast and furious and Cosmo and other magazines just kept calling and calling for cover shots and fashion spreads. If she could just sew up a few product endorsements she'd be set and then she could branch out perhaps into acting in movies or television.

Matt felt like he couldn't keep up with all of her energy and drive towards her career. He had been busy enough securing some connections so that when he was released from his military obligation he could start his own company apart from his father's empire. That had been his goal since he'd been a young kid even though his father hadn't really liked it.

But Matt knew enough that he had to make his own way in the world.

His military career had some harrowing moments spent dodging mortar fire and land mines but the training he received in intelligence gathering and analysis would prove invaluable later on.

And Christina had flown in on a jet on her way to Moscow for a fashion shoot to stay overnight with him. The Bagdad job had been sponsored by a charity organization to increase land mine awareness that she had agreed to do. By the time she finished with that, Matt would be too buried in work to see her plane off at the airstrip.

In not too many months, he'd be heading back to the States to begin his new life. He still wished C.J. hadn't proven to be so stubborn when it came to working with him as his partner. No, she had decided to pursue criminal law, she'd told him and had been working for Jack back in Wild Fork. After his discharge, he'd go back there to persuade her in person again to change his mind and move to California with him and maybe even Christina.

She had always been a bit high maintenance but he had been drawn to her classic beauty and her ease at any social gathering. They had met up at Rice University and had been an item before their disparate ambitions had split them up until just recently. Now it appeared that life had been handing out second chances.

But though he should be focusing on his reunion with his college girlfriend, he found his mind focused on C.J.

He really wanted, no he needed her to work alongside him with his new company, and her legal degree would prove to be a plus but she kept telling him nicely of course that she'd made her own decision.

Christina woke up and just looked at him, as if trying to decide whether or not to get up and hit the modeling job. Matt had a conference meeting at 01000 so he got up and hit the shower across the building. The conditions were not ideal and Matt had told Christina she could stay in the VIP section but she had wanted to remain with him so they could make the most of their time together.

And as they did, Matt thought that she could become a part of his life once his service ended. That they could give their relationship a second chance and maybe get it right this time.

But in the back of his mind, he thought of someone else.