To say y'all blew me away with the response to my last chapter is an understatement. I couldn't believe it - the reviews, the alerts, all of it. AMAZING. I still owe a few replies, but please, know that I am so sincere when I say thank you! This was a doozy of an update to write, but here it is - the longest one yet! And I really really hope it meets your expectations.

This update is based on Billy Currington's "Let Me Down Easy." I love the soundtrack on Hart of Dixie and I think that this song was playing in the second ep during Wade and Zoe's scene at his house is pretty telling.

THINGS I OWN: A new obsession with saying 'Fancy Fix.' Thanks, New Girl. THINGS I DON'T OWN: Hart of Dixie

An hour passed and then two. As the minute hand ticked ever closer to a third hour, Zoe dialed Wade for what she was sure made an even dozen times. Again, she got his voice mail. She hung up without leaving a message.

"Still nothing?" her mother asked. Zoe responded by holding up the phone to show no one was on the other end. Sybil sighed and went back to her iPad. She had been working on the device for the last hour, too anxious to do anything but keep herself busy.

Zoe stood and resumed her path around the carriage house, glancing out of the windows as she passed them. She had been alternating between pacing and calling Wade ever since he'd taken off. The more time that passed, the more anxious she became. Headlights flooded her house momentarily. Zoe stopped at a window and watched as a police car turned around in her yard and headed back down the road away from her house.

Like clockwork, every thirty minutes one of Bluebell's officers would drive up to Wade's, circle around to her house, turn around in her yard, and drive away. Once, an Alabama State Trooper had driven up, let the car idle for several minutes, and then drove away. She had been tempted to go outside and demand to know what was going on but Wade's words telling her to remain locked inside stuck with her and out of her growing fear, she did what he'd asked. She had taken to calling Lavon and even George Tucker after that. Certainly the Mayor and only lawyer in all of Bluebell knew what was going on if the police were involved. But like Wade, they didn't answer.

She'd always had a strong intuition. More than one attending physician had told her as much while she was going through her residency after witnessing her rely on instincts and gut feelings when tests results weren't enough to diagnose a patient. Now, pacing the floor of her carriage house, her gut was telling her that whatever was going on had to do with her and it wasn't good. She felt like the answer was just out of reach, that she knew what it was but couldn't quite dredge it up. It was the same sort of feeling she identified with trying to recall a date or a name she couldn't remember when taking a history test in college.

Several laps around her small home later, she sat back down on the sofa and picked up her phone again, debating on who to dial next. She was considering calling Addie at home and risking her ire at being awoken in the dead of night over a holiday weekend to see if Bill was involved in whatever was going on when she heard the familiar sound of Wade's car growing louder. She dropped her phone on the sofa and hurried to the door.

"Is that him?" her mother asked, putting aside her iPad.

"Yeah," Zoe answered. She stood by her door and peered around the curtain, watching as Wade's headlights grew closer. He pulled into her yard and cut the engine. She waited until he was climbing her porch stairs before unlocking the door. "What's going on?" she demanded. "I've been trying to call you."

"I know," Wade answered. He looked exhausted, weary. He put a hand on her arm and guided her back inside, closing the door behind him.

"Wade, this isn't funny anymore," Zoe said, spinning around to face him. She was tired, confused, and sick of being left in the dark. "What's going on? There are police cars circling my yard every 30 minutes, no one will answer their phone, a state trooper showed up… I want you to tell me what's going on and I want you to tell me now." Wade looked from her to her mother who was standing several feet away, waiting for the answers to Zoe's questions.

"You ladies get whatever you'll need for the night. Y'all are gonna stay up at Lavon's," he said. Zoe opened her mouth to protest but he held up his hand to stop her. "We'll explain when we get up there," he told her. Sybil nodded and went to her suitcase, sensing the seriousness of the situation. She was out of her element in Bluebell and in no position to argue.

"Who's 'we?'" Zoe asked, crossing her arms and remaining where she was.

"Not now," Wade answered. "I need to get you up to the house first. Now come on." Zoe looked at him, determined to stare him down until he gave her some sort of answer. He sighed and ran his hand through his hair wearily. "You can do what I'm askin' and come quietly or I can pick you up and carry you out of here myself," he said. "Ain't like it'd be that hard to do."

"Fine," Zoe said, taking pity on how tired he looked. "But you're going to tell me what's going on the second we get to Lavon's." She pulled on her boots, picked up her purse and as an afterthought, went into her bathroom to grab her toothbrush. Her mother was waiting by the door with a small bag, Wade leaning against it to keep himself from collapsing from exhaustion. He pushed himself off the door when she appeared.

"Let's go," he said. He took Zoe by the elbow and led her outside, leaving her mother to follow them. He deposited Zoe in the backseat behind him and helped her mother into the passenger's side. No one said a word as he made the quick drive to Lavon's. This time, he put a protective hand on Zoe's lower back and led her up the stairs into Lavon's kitchen. Lavon met them at the door.

"Everything okay?" he asked Wade in a low voice as he ushered in the Hart women.

"Seems so," Wade answered. "Didn't check my place though. I wanted to get them out of there first." Lavon nodded in agreement. Zoe heard them, but her attention was on the group of people gathered in the living room just beyond the kitchen. George was there as was Sheriff Bill, another Bluebell officer and two men she didn't recognize, one in street clothes, the other in a state trooper's uniform.

"Let's step into the living room," Lavon said. He went to stand behind the sofa next to Bill after indicating that Sybil and Zoe should take a seat. Sybil did so but Zoe remained standing. Wade perched on the arm of a chair near her.

"Okay," she said, putting her hands on her hips. "Half of Bluebell is in the Mayor's living room at four o'clock in the morning, a police car is circling my house every 30 minutes and Wade took off like a bat out of hell after yelling at me to stay inside with the doors locked three hours ago. I want to know what's going on and I want to know now." She looked around, waiting for someone to say something.

"Zoe, this is Detective Stevens," Lavon spoke up, motioning to the plain-clothed man in the room. "He's with the FBI. He can fill you in best."

"FBI?" Zoe asked, confused. What was the FBI doing in Bluebell? Detective Stevens stepped forward.

"Ms. Hart…"

"Doctor," Lavon and Wade corrected the detective at the same time.

"Dr. Hart," Detective Stevens started. "What do you know about a man by the name of Judson Lyons?"

"Judson?" Zoe asked, raising an eyebrow. What did he have to do with anything? "He's the town's vet. We dated briefly, but I broke up with him a few weeks ago. Other than a phone call asking me to reconsider a couple of days later, I haven't seen him or spoken to him since."

"Did anything about Judson stick out as strange to you?" the detective asked. "Any odd or out of the ordinary behaviors? Something that you may have noticed but dismissed as a personality quirk?" Zoe shook her head.

"No, he was…" she trailed off. "Actually, he was on his phone. A lot. He usually said it was work-related, but if that many animals are in need of a doctor around Bluebell, I'm in the wrong line of medicine." Detective Stevens nodded.

"Those most likely weren't work-related phone calls," he said. "Dr. Hart, Judson Lyons is actually a man by the name of William Blackburn. His family and close friends know him as Will but they haven't seen or heard from him in months. The FBI has been trying to catch up with him for quite some time." Zoe frowned.

"What?" she asked. "William Blackburn?"

"Zoe, Judson – or William – is wanted on felony drug charges in three states, four now that he's made trouble in Bluebell," Bill spoke up. "He's been running from the law for years, has a laundry list of charges and misdemeanors.

"Like I mentioned, the FBI has been trying to catch up to him, but he's good at staying one step ahead of us. While not a user himself, he's been running a complex system of buying and selling drugs for a number of dealers, using money from one exchange to pay for another. It's started to collapse around him however and now he's got one of the most powerful and dangerous dealers in the southern states after him."

"How do you know all of this?" Zoe asked, crossing her arms across her chest. She could admit that there was something odd about Judson, but this was just too crazy.

"We've been on his trail for years," Detective Stevens said. "Even the savviest of dealers slip up and it's amazing, what someone will reveal about someone else if it means reduced jail time. William's trail – or Judson, to you – went cold in Oklahoma about a year ago and as best we can tell, that's when he created the Judson Lyons alias. It was clever, really, creating a fairly unique name and bouncing from small town to small town along the Gulf. The only part of Judson Lyons that's true is that he did go to veterinarian school. He didn't graduate however – that's when he got involved in dealing, both illegal drugs and animals meds. We were able to pick back up on his trail when George and Wade here decided to do some investigating of their own." Zoe looked from George to Wade.

"What did you two have to do with this?" she demanded. They looked at each other, willing the other to speak first. Neither were too keen to let her know just how far they had interfered and without a real good reason for getting involved other than their dislike for the guy. They would have never guessed they'd uncover something like this when they made the decision to get the guy's backstory.

"Sherlock and Dr. Watson here decided to check out Judson's background, based on no other reason than the fact that they didn't like him," Bill said, indicating George and Wade. His voice revealed how much he disapproved of them getting involved. "It seems George called in some favors while Wade kept an eye on Judson and reported anything he found out the ordinary – including a phone conversation overhead outside of your house between Judson and the dealer he owes which turned out to be the missing piece of the puzzle we'd been looking for once we'd gotten our hands on what George had dug up." Zoe whirled around to face Wade.

"So that's why you've been around even more than usual," she accused as things started to fall into place.

"Not entirely," Wade said, sensing his relationship with Zoe had reached a delicate moment. He'd been dreading when it would come up that he and George had been part of exposing Judson. The last thing he wanted her to think was that he'd only been spending time with her to get to the guy.

"You didn't think to tell me I was dating a felon?" she asked him. She turned to George. "Nor did you? You two were just going to let me continue seeing him knowing all the while that he was a drug dealer? Let me guess, you two were counting on my relationship to get the goods on Judson."

"We wanted to tell you, but we couldn't," George said, aware of how lame he sounded. "For what it's worth, Wade especially wasn't too happy about it."

"If we would have told you, you would have gone to Judson and things would have gotten out of hand," Wade explained.

"Because they're not out of hand now?" Zoe shot back.

"All of this leads us to what happened tonight and why you're standing here at four in the morning instead of sound asleep in your bed," Detective Stevens said, jumping in. He'd been a detective for a long time and could recognize when a conversation was heading South. "Wade, why don't you fill Dr. Hart in on what happened?" Wade didn't look particularly thrilled about being put on the spot, but he took a deep breath and faced Zoe.

"Remember that guy sittin' in the corner at the Rammer Jammer earlier?" he asked her. Zoe nodded.

"The one you said had been sitting there a while and was probably just passing through."

"I was sleepin' and there was a crash, sounded like somebody fallin' over something. It woke me up. I saw a shadow of a person moving around in the living room. I thought it was my dad for a second, but they tripped over something else and when they cussed, I could tell it won't him. I grabbed my old baseball bat out the closet and went after him. It was that same guy from the Rammer Jammer. We think he had the wrong house and he was lookin' for you." He watched the color drain out of Zoe's face. Her mother, who had been silent this far, gasped.

"Me?" Zoe asked, panic rising in her voice as she started to realize how she fit into the equation. "What do I have to do with anything? Who is that guy?"

"The man who broke into Wade's goes by the name of Thomas Rush," Detective Stevens explained. "Judson owes him a lot of money - thousands and thousands of dollars. It's surprising that he went after you himself. He's an extremely powerful man who could pay someone else to take care of things. But based on the description Wade was able to give, we're confident its him."

"But why me?" Zoe asked again. "I have nothing to do with this!"

"You were dating Judson," Wade told her. "Thomas may or may not have known that you aren't with Judson anymore but that didn't stop him from trying to get to Judson through you."

"Meaning?"

"We don't know his intent, but based on the information we have, we believe he was looking to do physical harm, possibly even kill you, as a means of getting back at Judson."

"Oh God," Zoe breathed. She felt short of breath.

"We've got Judson in custody," Detective Stevens continued. "My guys brought him in about an hour ago and he's been cooperating with us, giving us information that will help us bring in Thomas. Thomas, however, is still at large."

"What?" Zoe exclaimed, turning to face the detective. "What do you mean, still at large? He hasn't been caught? Bluebell's not that big! It shouldn't be that hard!" She was starting to panic.

"Bluebell is heavily wooded," George reminded her. "There are all kinds of wooded areas and marshes he can hide in. The Bluebell PD, units from the Alabama State Police, and FBI agents are combing the area for him as we speak. They've got every road in and out of town blocked and have put out an alert to all the surrounding areas to be on the lookout for him."

"The Bluebell PD is looking for him?" Zoe asked, hardly able to believe her fate was in the hands of the men who spent more time playing poker than they did arresting people. "All five of them? Or three, seeing as Bill and Deputy Brooks are here?"

"Zoe, you'll be safe here," Lavon said. "Police are watching the place and the house has a state of the art alarm system. You'll stay here for now while we work to bring Thomas in."

"Safe? You're telling me I'm safe? A drug lord is after me! He wants to kill me or kidnap me or do God knows what to me. How am I safe?" Zoe asked, her voice climbing higher.

"Zoe, I need you to stay calm," Bill said. "We've got the situation under control."

"Stay calm? You're seriously telling me to stay calm? Did you miss the part where someone wants to kill me? And under control? Last week's crime log included graffiti about Bluebell's quarterback painted by the other team and a burglar alarm activated by the wind! We both know the Bluebell PD has never dealt with this sort of thing! You don't have it under control!"

"Zoe, please dear, settle down…" her mother said, though clearly scared herself.

"Don't tell me to settle down!" Zoe took to pacing, a full panic attack slowly taking her over. "He could be watching us right now. He could be looking into this house right now. He could probably kill us all if he really wanted to!"

"Zoe, I know you're scared and that this is a lot to take in, but you've got to trust us. We're good at what we do and we'll capture him before he can harm you," Detective Stevens said.

"Trusting people isn't my strong suit," Zoe answered bitingly.

"You're not going to die," George said. "You'll be safe here and we'll catch Thomas as soon as we can…"

"It's easy to say that when no one is after you!" Zoe snapped. She tried to take a deep breath, but her lungs wouldn't quite fill. She continued to pace. "But you know what? If he does manage to kill me, Brick will have the practice all to himself. That'll make him happy. Do me a favor and let him pronounce me dead. Consider it my last wish."

"Zoe, please!" Sybil stood and tried to reach her daughter. Zoe continued moving however, her mind growing foggy as she tried to reconcile everything she'd been told.

"I can't believe no one told me. Wade and George, you knew all this time and neither of you breathed a word. You just let me keep dating Judson and trying to see the best in him. Fantastic. I'm a born and raised New Yorker and the city is full of sleazy guys, but I come to Bluebell, Alabama and end up with the only felon the town has had in probably its entire existence."

"Zoe, they couldn't tell you," Lavon said. "If you'd have known, you would have went to Judson and demanded the truth and that would have made things worse. You have got to calm down…"

"You people keep telling me to calm down but you seem to be forgetting the part where a dangerous drug dealer wants to hurt me or kill me or whatever to get back at a guy I can hardly even consider my ex-boyfriend. If he had shown up at the right house, I wouldn't be standing here right now. I would probably already be dead and my mother too for that matter. But what's a few more minutes? He's going to end up killing me anyhow!" She kept pacing, struggling to draw in a breath. Her chest felt like it was closing in on her.

"Hey," Wade said, reaching out and catching her by the elbow as she passed him in her pacing. She pulled away from him and continued pacing.

"What am I supposed to do?" she asked. "Am I just supposed to sit here and wait for him to show up? And what do I do if he does show up? Just let him kill me? I seen him at the Rammer Jammer. He's massive and I'm not very big. I don't stand a chance against him."

"Zoe!" Wade grabbed her arm as she passed him again. She stopped in her tracks, fell silent, and looked at Wade, her eyes wide. He turned her to face him and placed both hands on her arms to hold her in place. "Zoe, you have to calm down," he told her in a steady voice. "Freaking out ain't gonna help anything right now." Zoe looked up at him.

"You called me Zoe," she said in quiet voice. Wade furrowed his brow.

"Well, that's your name," he said, confused by her statement.

"But you never call me Zoe," she told him. "It's always 'Doc' or 'Dr. Hart.' 'Princess' a couple of times, but never Zoe." Wade realized she was right. He didn't really know why, but he'd never called her by her name, at least not to her face. He didn't have time to think about it right then though.

"Well, maybe I'll start," he said. Zoe nodded and went to start pacing again. He tightened his grip on her. "Zoe, listen to me, okay? Look at me." It was the sound of him saying her name that kept her from resuming her paniced pacing. "I know you're scared. All of are a little scared. This kind of thing don't happen here. But you're not gonna die, okay? He's not gonna hurt you. You're safe here." He let go of one of her arms to brush her hair out of her face. He cupped her cheek with his hand and tilted her head upward so he could look into her eyes. "I'm not gonna let anything happen to you," he told her. "I promise."

A sense of peace wrapped around Zoe as she stood there looking into Wade's hazel eyes. She believed him. Even though she knew Thomas was somewhere around Bluebell, likely hiding and waiting his chance to make a move, she knew she was safe, that Wade really wouldn't let anything happen to her if he could help it.

"Okay," she said softly, nodding her head but not breaking eye contact.

"Okay," Wade echoed, brushing his thumb across her cheek bone. "Come here." He pulled her to him. Zoe rested her head on his chest as his arms wrapped tightly around her. She clutched his t-shirt in both hands, willing herself closer to him. He rested his head against hers. "You're okay," he whispered into her ear. "You're okay." He felt her nod her head against his chest. He held her tighter.

No one in the room spoke. None of the Bluebellians were surprised to see Zoe clinging to Wade. They had all been waiting for it, expecting for the pair to somehow wind up in each other's arms although none of them thought it would be under the current circumstances. The two had a connection that was almost palpable and it only made sense for Wade to be the one to get through to her as she had panicked, the words he was whispering now calming her down as her body showed signs of letting go of some of the tension from minutes earlier.

Sybil Hart, however, was shocked. It wasn't that her daughter, her well-coiffed, educated, professional daughter, was wrapped up in the arms of a seemingly homegrown bartender from Nowhere, Alabama. It was that her daughter was wrapped up in the arms of a man who didn't see her as the daughter of a celebrity publicist and – as far as most everyone else knew – a world-renowned cardio thoracic surgeon. Wade saw her as just Zoe, not Dr. Hart. He saw past the stubborn piece of independence attitude. He saw the part of Zoe that she hid so well – the part that was a little insecure and had a big heart, the part that as a mother, Sybil wished Zoe would let the world see more often.

She had thought there was something between them. She had seen the way Wade had stolen looks at Zoe throughout dinner and had taken off as soon as he thought it was appropriate to go check on her after their dinnertime theatrics. She hadn't missed how close they'd been sitting on the porch when Lavon had driven her to Zoe's, nor the fact that Zoe's hand had been on Wade's knee. When they had been shopping, Zoe mentioned him frequently as she filled her mother in on how things had been going in Bluebell. There was a time when she would have died before she let Zoe fall for anyone that wasn't a doctor or lawyer or something equally respectable. But seeing the two of them now, her motherly instincts told her that was the man Zoe needed to be with.

"We should get back out there," Bill spoke up. The room collectively nodded. Wade raised his head from Zoe's and loosened his grip, but didn't let her go just yet.

"Zoe, Sybil, you'll stay here," Lavon directed. "Take any of the guest rooms. I'll set the alarm when we leave and police are watching the area. You'll be safe here."

"Thank you," Sybil said, her words meant to thank him for more than just offering a guest room.

"Stay inside," Wade said, letting go of Zoe. "Don't do anything stupid, okay? I'll come back to check on y'all in a little while. Call if you need anything at all. I'll answer this time." Zoe frowned.

"You're leaving?" she asked the room as they collectively started towards the door.

"We've got to help with the search," Lavon answered. Some of the panic that had disappeared when Wade had taken her into his arms returned now.

"But… You can't all leave… What if he shows up?" Zoe asked, her eyes wide with fear. Her eyes fell on Wade. He looked at her for a moment, torn between staying with Zoe and helping find the man threatening her. Then he nodded.

"I'll stay with them," he said, moving back into the living room. "Keep me posted?"

"We will," George promised. "And you do the same." Wade nodded and the rest of the men disappeared from the house. Zoe chewed on her lip. She could tell Wade wanted to be out there helping, but she felt better with him there. She was safer and, if truth be told, she knew he was safer too.

"Come on," he said, slipping an arm around Zoe's waist. "Let's get you ladies in bed."

It was after 5 in the morning, but he couldn't sleep. He was comfortable enough, lying across Lavon's couch, but he was on edge, every little sound, every little creak of the old plantation home making him jump. He had been halfway across the living room at one point before he'd realized the sound he was hearing had been Lavon's heat pump kicking in, the night air getting just cool enough to warrant a few minutes of heat to knock off the chill.

He hated not being in the middle of the action. He wanted to be out there trying to find the man who was looking to hurt Zoe, visions of what he'd like to do getting more graphic with each thought. But he also knew if he was out searching the woods, he'd be worried sick about Zoe. By staying behind, he at least knew she was safe and she had the peace of mind of knowing she and her mother weren't alone. He'd fallen into a light, fitful sleep when the sound of footsteps made him sit up on the sofa.

"Hey," Zoe said softly.

"Hey," Wade answered. Zoe stood by the sofa, her arms crossed across her chest. She looked as exhausted as he felt. "Can't sleep?" She nodded and settled onto the sofa next to him.

"I'm so tired," she confessed. "But every time I'm nearly asleep, I hear a floorboard creak or the wind whistles around the corner of the house and I'm wide awake again."

"I know the feelin,'" Wade said. She pulled her knees up to her chest and wrapped her arms around them. Wade took it as a sign that she was chilly and reached for the throw he'd been using. He spread it over her.

"Any news?" she asked. Wade shook his head.

"None," he told her. "But you're safe." He wrapped an arm around her and pulled her to his chest because it felt like the natural thing to do. She sighed and let her head fall on his shoulder. They remained like that, both of them dozing in and out of sleep, neither of them talking. A clock somewhere in the house chimed out six times. Just a few minutes later, Wade's cell phone rang out. It was George.

"Hey," Wade said by way of answering. Zoe sat up and looked at Wade, waiting.

"Thank God," Wade said in reply to whatever George had said. He hung up after a few more standard exchanges. "They got him," he told Zoe. "He's on his way to prison right now."

"It's over?" Zoe asked. Wade nodded.

"It's over," he confirmed. Zoe sighed in relief and returned her head to Wade's shoulder, too tired to react more.

"That's the most scared I've ever been," she told him.

"Well, when your life's in danger, I reckon bein' scared is a standard response, Doc," Wade answered. Zoe smiled as best she could, no longer able to hold her eyes open now that the danger had passed. Wade noticed. "Why don't you go upstairs and get back in bed?" he asked. "You should be able to sleep now." Zoe nodded in agreement and stood up, Wade doing the same. She made for the stairs, him for the door.

"Where are you going?" Wade stopped and turned. Zoe was standing on the bottom stair watching him.

"Home," he answered. "My bed sounds real good right about now." He could see the wheels in her brain turning as she pursed her lips.

"Can I come?" she asked softly. "I don't – want to be alone." Wade was so surprised by her request he could have been knocked over by a feather but he didn't let on. Instead, he held his hand out to see if she would take it. It felt like it took her an eternity to get to him, but she took his hand and let him lead her out the door.

Her eyes blinked open slowly, light pouring in through the window. She squinted as her eyes adjusted. Wade was still asleep next to her, the two facing one another, his arm draped over her waist. Zoe let out a content sigh and snuggled down into the pillow. It was the same way they had fallen asleep, lying side by side in Wade's bed.

Whether to prove he really was the gentleman he'd insisted he was on her porch steps Thanksgiving night or because he actually was more of a gentleman than some of his past behavior dictated, he had insisted at first that she take the bed and he'd sleep on the sofa. But Zoe had felt uncharacteristically needy after the night's events and had asked him to sleep next to her. They'd fallen asleep quickly and now, judging by the light outside, Zoe assumed it was well past noon.

Zoe took the chance to study him. She'd admitted to herself the very first time she'd seen him that despite the girls dancing on his sofa and his obnoxious comments, he was attractive. It had taken her a while to see that despite his bad boy reputation and the stream of women she hadn't seen in a while, he had a heart of gold. She figured there was a reason he kept that side of him tucked away, a reason he preferred to be known as the town's Casanova.

She had to wonder about the girls. It had been a while since she'd seen him bring one home and had even seen him turn down a girl who looked like his type. Shelley had insisted that he liked her, Lavon had made comments that made her suspicious that he thought the same. Addie had even made the comment that he was crazy about her. And as much as she had tried to deny it, she was falling for him. It was scary. She didn't have the time to ponder her feelings much further, however, because Wade started to wake.

"Hey," he said, his voice thick with sleep.

"Morning," Zoe answered, not raising her head from his pillow. "Or afternoon." Wade glanced at the clock on his nightstand.

"It's nearly two," he confirmed, looking back at her. He looked at her for several moments as though searching for something. "You okay?" he asked. Zoe nodded.

"I'm okay," she said. Then she smiled softly. "You made sure of that." Wade shook his head.

"I won't gonna let anything happen to you, Zoe." She felt her heart flutter and hoped she never got used to the way her name sounded coming out of his mouth. There was something so familiar about it and yet so different. She heard her name dozens of times a day but Wade said it once and made her stop in her tracks. She suddenly felt courageous.

"Can I ask you something?" Wade nodded. Zoe swallowed hard before she spoke. She'd never done anything like this before. "Shelley said you liked me. And Lavon makes comments. Even Addie mentioned it. And I'm not talking like as in a friend because we are friends. I'm talking like as in…. like." She cringed internally at how lame she sounded.

Wade had a choice to make. He could deny it. He could tell her she was just a friend, that he didn't feel the same way. But this was his chance and if he lied, he'd likely never have another one and if he did, it would be a very long time from now. He didn't know what would happen, but he had to be honest. The worst – and most devastating – thing she could do was say no.

"They ain't lyin,'" he admitted. "I uh… Well, I do. Like you, I mean." He wouldn't mind crawling under his bed and hiding there for the rest of the day. He hadn't even been this awkward in middle school when he'd asked Jade Henderson to the eighth grade formal.

"I like you too," Zoe confessed. A faint smile appeared on Wade's face.

"Yeah?" he asked, surprise evident in his voice. It was more than he could hope for.

"Yeah."

Wade reached out and brushed his thumb across her cheek. Zoe moved closer, leaving little space between them. Wade tightened his grip around her waist, closing the distance, their heads now on the same pillow. He just looked at her, waiting for her to make the next move. It took less time than he thought it would for her lips to find hers, cautiously at first but soon more urgent, him kissing her back with the built up tension he'd been holding in since he'd realized he was crazy about her. He felt her hands sneak under his shirt and as good as it felt and as much as he didn't want to, he pulled away.

"Not today," he told her, gently removing her hand but lacing his fingers with hers. "You're not that kind of girl and I'm not gonna change that." Zoe furrowed her brow in confusion.

"But I thought…" he shook his head.

"I like you, Zoe. And as much as I wouldn't be opposed to taking off those tight little leggings you're wearin,' I don't want to mess this up before I've even had a chance to get it started." Zoe let out a breath, touched by his words.

"So what happens now?" she asked.

"Well, I'm gonna ask you out on a date," he told her mater-of-factly. "I'm not gonna ask you today. You've been through too much and you just got burned by a guy who didn't deserve you in the first place. But one day soon, I'm gonna ask you to go on a date with me. And hopefully you'll say yes. Then we'll go from there."

Zoe, not one to be persuaded by smooth words, felt her heart stop and quite possibly melt. No one had ever said such things to her, treated her with so much respect. She'd been with her ex-boyfriend for six years and not once had he made her feel this way, nor had she ever felt like he respected her this much. Her skills as a doctor, maybe, but not as a person.

"Okay," she said. Because he couldn't stop himself, Wade kissed her one more time, soft and sweetly on her lips.

"I hate to cut this party short, but I need to be at the Rammer Jammer soon," he told her.

"The Iron Bowl," Zoe remembered. "I guess I should go face my mother. She's probably packed up the carriage house by now with every intention of getting me out of big, bad Bluebell and into big, suddenly not so scary New York." Wade grinned.

"Don't let one felon scare you off." Zoe shook her head.

"If Brick Breeland hasn't run me off yet, a drug dealer doesn't stand a chance." Wade laughed and begrudgingly tossed the covers off of them. He walked with Zoe to the midpoint between their houses, their hands somehow finding one another without any real knowledge of doing it.

"Sure you're okay?" he asked. "Last night was – somethin.'"

"I'm okay," Zoe assured him. "I might not sleep as well for a few nights, but I'm okay."

"If you need me…"

"I know," Zoe nodded. She felt self-conscious now, knowing their feelings had been admitted and there was a date on the horizon.

"Stop by the Rammer Jammer later if you get a chance," he told her. "Bring your mom if you want. It'll give her a real taste of the town, bein' in a room with most of Bluebell watchin' Alabama and Auburn." The thought of her mother hanging out at the Rammer Jammer during on the of the biggest football games of the year made her smile.

"I'll see what I can do," she told him. "And Wade? Thank you. For everything." Wade's answer was to smile at her and squeeze her hand before letting it go.

"I'll talk to you later," he told her. They exchanged one last smile before turning towards their respective houses. Wade felt like he was walking on air. And he missed Zoe already.

"Mom?" Zoe called as she walked into her house. She was more surprised than she should have been that there wasn't so much a sign of a suitcase being packed.

"There you are," Sybil said, appearing from the bathroom. "Did you get some sleep?"

"Yeah, I did," Zoe said, moving towards her dresser. She was suddenly desperate for a shower and change of clothes. "Mom, I'm sorry about last night. I had no idea Judson – or William – or whatever his name is was such a bad guy. I barely even dated him before I broke up with him."

"It's over and done with and no fault of yours," Sybil said dismissively. "What I want to talk about is that boy." Zoe felt herself bristle. She went into defensive mode, feeling protective over Wade and whatever was happening between them.

"Mom, I know you think he's…"

"Wonderful," Sybil cut her off. "I think he's wonderful." Zoe couldn't stop her jaw from falling open.

"What?"

"Any man who goes above and beyond to protect my daughter, who so clearly cares about her as much as he cares about you, has my approval. Even if he is a bartender in the great state of Alabama." Zoe could hardly believe what she'd just heard.

"He's pretty great," she admitted to her mother, a small smile playing out on her lips. It was all new to her, these feelings. But she was going to do her best not to run from them. Something told her Wade was worth the chance, even if she didn't have a clue as to what she was doing.

"You know, just a few short months ago I thought your moving down here was the absolute stupidest thing you've ever done. And we both know you've done some stupid things," Sybil told her daughter. Zoe grinned guiltily. "But any good mother wants the best for their child and Zoe, I think moving down here might just be the best thing you've done for yourself in a long time." Zoe moved to her mother and wrapped her up in a hug.

"I think so too," she admitted.

And she did. Even if she didn't know what was going to happen or where things were going to go from here, she knew that in this moment, she was exactly where she needed to be. Sybil pulled away from her after one last squeeze.

"Now. How about you shower and change and take me to this Rammer Jammer place?" Sybil said. "Lavon tells me they have the best po'boy around. Whatever that is."

Zoe couldn't help but laugh as she shut the bathroom behind her, already planning on order her mother a side of grits while they were at it.

I purposefully never had Wade call Zoe by her name in my story until now. He only recently started referring to her by name on the show, even. If you've paid close attention, you'll know this is nowhere near the end. We've still got some things to get through - except for Judson. This is, in fact, the end of Judson. :)

Thanks so much for reading and reviewing!