Thank you for the review, nice to hear people's reaction to the various "couplings", hopefully they'll still keep reading...

CHAPTER THREE

Sutton woke up, blinking at the light streaming in through the windows. She blinked even harder when she saw her surroundings. She'd slept on what seemed to be a padded bench in a cramped living area, a quilt draped over her. She could see her clothes scattered around the small space and it took her a second to recognise Ethan's trailer. Her breath caught in her throat. Had she slept with Ethan? Not too long ago, the thought would have pleased her but now…now Emma would kill her, Laurel would never speak to her, Kristin would give her disapproving looks and Ethan would probably leave town.

Then she remembered. It hadn't been Ethan.

Dan appeared from the trailer's kitchen area, carrying two mugs of coffee. He had dressed in a t-shirt and shorts. He smiled when he saw she was awake. "Morning,"he greeted her, handing her one of the coffees and kissing her lightly on the lips before sitting down on what she assumed was his bed.

Sutton felt suddenly self-conscious, pulling the quilt up to cover as much of her body as possible. "Morning. I, er, guess some stuff happened last night then?"

Dan nodded, suddenly awkward. "I guess so."

"So, er, any idea what happens now then?"

Dan looked at her sorrowfully. "You're a seventeen-year-old schoolgirl and I'm a police officer. If your parents decide to make a complaint, losing my job is the least that would happen to me."

Sutton nodded. She'd been expecting something like that. She put the coffee down and shifted into a less relaxed position. "Well, don't worry, I won't tell anyone. We'll just forget it ever happened. If you pass me some clothes, I'll be on my way."

Dan took her hands in his, stopping her. He smiled at her fondly. "Sutton…I'm not sure when it happened but somewhere along the way you turned from a mean girl into a pretty good-hearted young woman. And these last few weeks, I've seen a lot in you that I like. Now, maybe you want to end this here, I get that I'm not much of a catch. But after Theresa, if there is a chance of us being happy here, then I'm not going to walk away from it because I'm scared. If there's consequences, then we'll deal with them later. So…do you think it's worth it?"

Sutton looked at him. Until the previous night, she'd never thought of him in that manner. But he was kind and gentle and, she had to admit, not bad looking. And at some point in the last few weeks, she'd started caring what happened to him. Maybe more than she'd realised. She nodded slowly. "I think it's worth a try. If you're willing to put up with Scottsdale's number one troublemaker."

Dan shook his head. "It's all forgotten. That's not the person you are anymore."

She leaned forward and kissed him, feeling a warmth in her chest as she did so that convinced her that it was worth a try.

Thayer settled Laurel at her place at the kitchen table, placing a glass of fruit juice in front of her. "What did I do to deserve this?"she asked.

"Do I need a reason to spoil my girlfriend?"he returned. He obviously sounded sincere since it prompted a happy smile from her in exchange. He took a seat at right angles to her. "So, got any plans for today?"

Laurel gave him an enticing look. "Why? Did you have something in mind?"

Thayer found the prospect appealing but Rebecca was expecting him to report in. "I just wondered if you were seeing your dad."

Laurel sighed theatrically. "Well, I'll see him in the sense that he'll wander in, tell me what a terrible shift he's just worked and then go to bed for twelve hours."

"You're okay living with him, though? You wouldn't rather be living with your mum?"

"I'd rather be living with both my parents."

"But that's not going to happen?"

"Well, they did have lunch yesterday."

Thayer suddenly became alert. This was something Rebecca would be interested in, his getting the information might even make her more willing to keep her promises to him. "Are they getting back together?"

"They didn't say so but it's a step in the right direction, right?"

Thayer looked thoughtful. "I guess so."

Emma and Ethan emerged from the bedroom to find Kristin clearing her breakfast things away. She looked up as they approached. "I wasn't sure when you were getting up."

"We thought we'd better come out, since you offered breakfast,"Emma explained.

"Thanks for that,"Ethan added.

Kristin nodded, gesturing to the table. "Well, your places are set. I have to meet Evelyn at the club so I'll leave you to it. Give Sutton a knock if she hasn't surfaced by mid-morning."

"How awkward was that?"Emma asked Ethan once Kristin had gone.

"Actually, in the circumstances, not that awkward at all."

Emma had to agree with the assessment. "So, do you want some cereal?"

As they headed to the breakfast bar, Sutton entered the house behind them. She had a brief moment where she considered turning and running out of the house before deciding to ride it out. "Well, look at you two all up and out,"she greeted them. "Maybe I should have kept the same boyfriend for more than five minutes, then I'd be allowed sleepovers."

Emma looked at her in astonishment. "Didn't you come home last night?"

"Of course I came home last night. It's not like I've got anyone to take me off for quiet little nights at the cabin. I woke up wired and thought I'd go for a drive. Now if it's all right with you, I'm going to take a shower." She sauntered off towards the bathroom.

"Was she wearing those clothes yesterday?"Ethan asked.

Emma nodded. "You noticed that too."

Rebecca raised an eyebrow ironically as Thayer entered. "Have you finished playing with your little friend?"

"It's what you want me to do,"Thayer pointed out defensively.

"Only so long as it's useful to us."

Thayer sat down. "Well, get this. Ted had lunch with Kristin yesterday."

He watched the subtle reaction on Rebecca's impassive features. "He's getting back with her?"

"Not yet. But Laurel thinks he might."

"Kristin." Rebecca said the word with utter hatred. "Everything that should belong to me she takes. No matter what I do for Ted, he keeps going back to her."

Thayer shrugged. "Guess you'll just have to make yourself look like the better option."

"Perhaps." There was a sudden coldness in Rebecca's eyes which made even Thayer shiver. "Or I could just make sure Kristin's out of the way for good."

End of Episode Seven