Readers: I began this new story with inspiration from a song I heard recently. Characters from SMK are the same, but their occupations/interests are different. If you are wanting to read a story that is very similar to the television show, this isn't it. This story follows the lives of Amanda and Lee and their life together after meeting one late evening at a bar. Please leave me a review and let me know what you think.

Chapter 1 – Problems Lie Deep Within

As a child, Amanda West grew up wanting nothing. Her parents were well off and owned an expansive farm owning, raising, and selling horses. At a young age, her father died unexpectedly and left the family business to Amanda for when she turned 21 years old. Her mother kept the business going and raised Amanda with a firm, but relaxed, upbringing.

As she grew up, she was much of a tomboy. Boys in school considered her one of the "fellas" and the girls wanted nothing to do with her. She was raised to be determined and to make something of herself, a trait that her father instilled in her from a young age before he passed.

Her weakness in life was horses. She loved horses and felt like one with the horse. After riding horses since she was 3, she knew horses and horseback riding better than anyone.

She went off to college and majored in business to help her understand how to manage and handle the family business. Turning 21, her mother signed the business over to Amanda. Her mother moved out of the house and retired to Florida.

The house her parents owned was on 60 acres in a rural area. The house itself was around 5,000 square feet and tastefully modernized over the years. Even though the house was huge, Amanda loved it and wouldn't leave. Her home reminded her of her parents, and she felt especially close to her father in her house.

As she got older, she realized she loved farm life. Most people called it a "man's industry" and Amanda found it hard to wheel and deal with the men since she was a woman. As the years passed, she grew in the business and became a very knowledgeable businesswoman, surprising the men and employees who worked under her and with her.

Regarding her social life and love life, Amanda didn't date very often. When she did, one date and it was over quickly. Most men found her stand-offish, stubborn, and hot headed. They didn't want anything to do with a woman who was very independent and told them what she thought.

As the years passed, she met a man named Joe King who she fell in love with. She realized early on that she could see them getting married, settling down and living their life together. Unfortunately for Amanda, after six months together, Joe realized he wasn't really in love with her and broke up with her. He had only been interested in her due to her wealth.

A few weeks after her and Joe broke up, she found herself at a bar in town late at night. She was downing her sorrows in alcohol, not a wise combination. She was a regular at the bar in town and the bartender knew she couldn't handle too much alcohol.

As the evening went on, she kept reflecting on her now ended relationship with Joe, what had went wrong, and how her life now was empty. Her father had died, her mother had moved away, she was by herself. Tears spilled out of her eyes down her cheeks and onto the table below her beer bottle.

On the other side of the bar at the front door, a man walked in wearing dark jeans, cowboy boots, a white t-shirt with an orange flannel long sleeved shirt over it with a grey vest over that, as well as a brown cowboy hat.

He looked around the bar, as he hadn't been there before. Truth be told, he was from out of town and not sure of the "social" places in this small town. He decided to make his way up to the bar to order some bourbon and to take in the bar and the social setting.

Sitting down at the bar, the bartender brought him some bourbon and he swung the glass back and swallowed it down, sitting the small clear glass back on the bar counter. He continued to look around the bar, noticing it was quiet and not very busy for a late night.

As he continued looking around, his eyes froze on a woman sitting off in the corner to herself. His breath caught in his throat as he took in how beautiful she was. He wanted to get to know this lady. He decided to fill up his glass and head over to her table.

The woman was wearing a pair of distressed skinny jeans with holes in the knees, a black plain tank top with a grey flannel long sleeve shirt over top of it. Her wavy long brown hair cascaded down her shoulders onto her back.

As Amanda was lost in thought, the man who saw her across the bar walked up slowly to her table. He didn't want to startle her.

He walked up, standing there for a few seconds, and cleared his throat to get her attention. Amanda's head jerked up and the man realized she was crying. Amanda looked back down at her beer bottle and quickly wiped away the stray tears on her cheeks. She glanced back up at the man standing before her who was just staring at her.

"Yes?" Her voice croaked as she pulled a tissue out of her pocket and continued to wipe away her tears.

"Uh, I'm sorry. I didn't realize. I apologize." The man turned to go back towards the bar, clearly unsure how to handle the awkwardness of the woman crying before him.

As Lee took a few steps back towards the bar, Amanda called out to him.

"Hey, what did you want? Clearly you came over here for a reason."

Lee turned around quickly, unsure how to take this headstrong woman. He walked back to her table and stood there holding the small glass of golden bourbon.

"Well, are you going to just stand there and stare at me? Or are you going to have a seat?" Amanda was clearly annoyed at the man before her who was bothering her and saying nothing.

Lee, taking a deep breath, wasn't sure what came over him. He sat down at the table across from this stunning woman. There was something about her that he couldn't put his finger on.

Amanda sat staring at the man sitting in front of her, raising her eyebrows as she wondered what the man wanted. Clearly, he had come over here for a reason. His silence frustrated Amanda.

"Uh, I saw you from across the room and I wanted to come over here and introduce myself. My name is Lee Stetson. I'm from out of town and unsure of the area. I do apologize for bothering you. I didn't realize you were crying."

Lee gave her a quick smile and Amanda looked at him and then rolled her eyes, looking up at the ceiling.

"Gosh, you saw me from across the room, so you wanted to come over and introduce yourself? Where have I heard that line from? Listen, I don't need your sympathy, okay? I'm perfectly content sitting here wallowing in my self-pity, so don't think you owe me anything, okay?"

Lee was taken aback by her statement. He'd never met a woman so brazen and determined. Still, there was something here about this woman that he couldn't put his finger on. Even though she clearly didn't want company, he wanted to stay with her and get to know her more.

"Listen, I'm not here to give you any sympathy. I just saw you from the bar and I want to get to know you more."

Amanda huffed and rolled her eyes again, clearly irritated. She turned towards the bar and grabbed the attention of the bartender. She held her beer bottle up in the air, signifying she wanted another beer.

"Uh, just how many of those have you had tonight?"

Amanda's eyes shot up to look Lee in the eyes and he realized he'd never seen a pair of stunning brown eyes like hers. The anger that she had behind her eyes was evident.

"I don't need babied. I'm perfectly content of holding my alcohol, thank you very much."

The bartender walked up and handed Amanda another bottle of beer, popping the top with a bottle opener. The bottle top hadn't hit the table for two seconds before she took a couple of sips from the beer bottle. The bartender walked away, rolling his eyes at how reckless she was being.

"Very well. What's your name?"

As Amanda took another drink of her beer, she sat it down on the table with a loud thud.

"Why do you care? What's your agenda here, Lee?"

Again, Lee saw the anger evident in her deep brown eyes.

"Look, I'm just a friendly guy wanting to get to know you better. Is that such a bad thing?"

Amanda looked down at the table, pushing the bottle opener around with her fingers as she contemplated what Lee had said. Taking a deep breath, she answered Lee's question.

"Amanda." Her voice was barely above a whisper.

"What?"

"My name is Amanda, Amanda West. Happy?"

Lee gave another small smile to Amanda. He took a small sip of his bourbon.

"Are you from this area?"

With that, Amanda sat her bottle down again with a loud thud.

"What is this, twenty questions? Why do you care about my life suddenly?"

Again, Lee wasn't sure what it was about this woman, but he wanted to find out. Why was she so bitter? What had caused an attractive woman to turn against people so easily?

"I'm just trying to get to know you better. Now, will you answer my question?"

Lee smiled and Amanda realized for the first time that night that Lee was good-looking. Maybe it wasn't a bad idea to get to know him? What did she have to lose? Her relationship with Joe was already over and she was alone.

"Yes, I live around here. I own a large horse farm of 60 acres out in the countryside."

"You own it all yourself? Wow, that's impressive."

"Yeah, my parents left it to me. My father, mostly, before he died, wanted me to have it when I turned 21. My mother retired to Florida after signing the business over to me, so it's just me and some farmhands."

"I'm sure that's a big responsibility."

Amanda shot a look at Lee again, clearly agitated at his statement.

"What, you think since I'm a woman, that I can't handle something so significant? Man, what is it with men? Do you think all women are inferior to men and only men can own businesses?"

With that, Amanda took another few sips of her beer and began to feel the effects of too much alcohol.

"No, no. I think it's respectful that women can do anything men can. I don't see a problem with that."

"Well, you are the first man who's said that to me. Most men can't believe I own the horse farm all to myself without any help from outsiders. I'm sorry, I'm used to defending myself against men and their dumb thinking."

"Oh, don't worry about it. So, do you ride horses?"

"I've been riding horses since I was 3 years old. My father taught me from a young age. I guess you could say I'm hooked."

Amanda smiled gently at Lee, still clearly feeling the effects of the alcohol.

"I love riding horses too. I own two horses – one brown quarter horse and one appaloosa. The quarter horse's name is Ruby and the appaloosa's name is Freckles. I try riding every so often, but living in the city prohibits me from riding full time."

"Well, you'd enjoy my horse farm. I own roughly 30 plus horses of all different breeds. My father inherited the business from his father and his father before him and so on, so our family has been in the horse business for a long time. We breed horses and sell them all over the country."

Amand realized her beer bottle was empty and she threw her bottle up in the air, waving it around, to the attention of the bartender, who knew she was at her limit.

"Don't you think you've had enough?" Lee realized she was getting a little bit drunk, as her words had slurred together at the last statement she had made.

"Listen, I know when I've had enough. And now is not the time, so back off."

Amanda let out a loud whistle with her fingers between her lips, clearly agitating the bartender. The bartender huffed, grabbed another bottle, and took it over to Amanda. He placed it on the table, turned and shook his head. The bartender looked over at Lee and they both had a silent agreement that Amanda was on the verge of being drunk.

"Hey buddy, look after her, huh? I think she's had one too many."

The bartender walked back towards the bar, but not before Amanda said something back to him.

"Oh, what do you care, George?!"

Amanda grabbed the bottle opener and proceeded to open the bottle, finding it difficult as her vision became crossed, and the room was spinning for a few seconds. Her vision leveled out and she snapped the top off her bottle and began to drink.

Lee continued talking to Amanda and learning more about her. He watched her carefully as she was clearly drunk as the night went on. Lee sipped on his bourbon that he had since he came in and was content with nursing this drink all night. One of them had to be levelheaded.

Before long, the bar was closing, and everyone began leaving. Amanda was staggering over her feet, clearly drunk and not able to drive, as she made her way on Lee's arm out the door.

Amanda pulled her car keys out of her purse. Before she could even think about where she parked, Lee grabbed her keys from her and put them in his pocket. He knew she didn't need to be driving.

"Hey! Give me my keys! I can drive myself home, Lee!"

Amanda tried to grab her keys from Lee before he placed them in his pocket. Much to his surprise, Amanda tried to reach into his pocket to retrieve her keys.

"Hey, no! You are clearly drunk, Amanda! You don't need to be driving!"

"I am not drunk! Just give me my keys and I can head home!"

"No! I will drive you home. What's your address?"

"I'm not telling you."

Amanda leaned up against the brick exterior of the building, crossed her arms, and planted her feet. She wasn't moving until Lee gave her keys back to her.

"Amanda…"

Lee drew out her name and Amanda glanced over at Lee. His saying her name like that made her feel somewhat exceptional, like someone appreciated her enough.

Amanda took a deep breath and told Lee her address.

"426 Cotton Drive. It's a few miles from here."

"Okay, we will take your vehicle. What do you drive?"

Unbeknownst to Lee, their two vehicles were the only vehicles left in the parking lot of the bar. Amanda tossed her head towards her head. Lee glanced over and saw a beat-up old Chevy truck off to the side.

"That's your truck?" Lee was somewhat surprised that she wasn't driving something nicer than a rust bucket of a truck. Knowing that her family had money, he was certain this must be a truck that she just drives around occasionally.

"Hey, don't knock it. It was my father's."

Lee threw his hands up and began walking towards the truck. Amanda followed him. He held the passenger door open for Amanda as she climbed up in the truck. The door squeaked as he shut the door and made his way around to the driver's door. Opening the driver's door and getting in, he realized it was s stick shift. He hadn't drove a stick shift in a long time.

"What, you don't know how to drive a stick?"

"No, I do. It's just been a while."

Amanda laughed and rolled her eyes.

"Well, thankfully for you, it's like riding a bike. You never forget."

Lee laughed slightly and turned the key in the ignition. The truck fired up and Lee began shifting gears to find the reverse. The gears grinded together and sounded unbearable.

"Hey! Don't mess up my truck!"

"I'm trying my best here, okay? Just give me a minute to get my bearings."

"Bearings? What, are we sailing a ship?"

Amanda leaned her hand against her temple and closed her eyes. Lee continued to fiddle with the gears until he got a handle on it and proceeded down the road to Amanda's house.

The two headed down the dark country road for a few miles and Amanda instructed him to pull off and turn into a private driveway.

The driveway of Amanda's property was long. Turning into the driveway, the headlights flashed on a dark black wooden fence that ran the entire length of the property towards the vast farmhouse. Lee drove slowly up the long driveway towards the house, looking out at the property itself. He could make out the lights that were on in the farmhouse and a few stray lights on the large wooden barn.

"Wow…" Lee whispered as they slowly pulled up to the front of the farmhouse.

As Lee placed the truck in park and shut off the ignition, Amanda made her way out of the truck, still stumbling down the sidewalk towards the front door. She was digging in her purse for her house key, only to realize it was attached to her truck key that Lee was holding in his hand.

Lee stood staring at the huge house before him. The house itself was large and grey in color. A dark red brick paver sidewalk ran directly in front of the small porch that led to the front door. Lights shined through the house from the inside, casting a golden glow out the windows.

Lee slowly followed Amanda up the large steps to the front door, removing the key from his pocket and handing it to Amanda to unlock the front door. The lock turned and Amanda pushed open the door, tumbling inside the door and hanging onto the door as she slid across the floor as the door opened.

"Careful!" Lee ran quickly to her and grabbed her to stop her from sliding. Amanda was positively drunk. The alcohol was making it challenging for her to stand.

Before Lee helped her up, Amanda stared into Lee's pressing blue eyes, unwillingly to look away. What was it about this man that fascinated her? Her vision was blurred and cross eyed at times due to the alcohol. She closed her eyes and shook her head, trying to make the blurriness go away. She opened her eyes again and concentrated merely on Lee's blue eyes. It was as if she was staring into the dark blue depths of the ocean.

Lee helped Amanda stand and she leaned onto Lee, as he made their way into what he assumed was the living room. Amanda's feet were like cement, and she was unable to walk very well. Lee held onto her for fear she would fall again on the marble floor below them.

As he made his way through the large house, the design and modernization of it caught his eye. Seeing the farmhouse from the outside, one would assume it would be aged and dated on the inside. That wasn't the case here. He assumed her parents had modified it years ago and Amanda kept it as it was.

They walked into a huge room with black painted walls, modern lights, a big bookshelf with various books, a small bar in the corner, and large windows that looked out to the broad property.

Lee led Amanda over to a white sectional as he took a seat across from the sectional in a black leather chair.

Lee thought to himself if he should leave Amanda here on the sectional or try to find her bedroom. Looking around at the largeness of the house, he realized it may be somewhat difficult to find her bedroom. Did he even want to go there? It was private and he barely knew the woman.

"Lee, I'm sleepy." Amanda said as her head was bobbing up and down as she tried to hold it up. Fatigue was taking over and Lee realized he needed to decide what to do. Did he want to take her to her bedroom or leave her on the sectional? Lee decided to try and find her bedroom.

Lee walked up to Amanda and crouched in front of her, taking her face in one of his hands.

"Amanda… give me a minute and I can help you to bed, okay?"

Amanda nodded slowly up and down with her eyes closed. Sleep was taking over her quickly from all the alcohol in her body.

Lee stood up and looked around as he began to slowly walk through the large house. He saw the enormous kitchen and all its white cabinets with gold fixtures. Heck, the island was so long, it could easily fit ten people on it. It was so spotless, he assumed Amanda probably never cooked and never ate at home.

He ventured down a slender hallway that led to a colossal stairway that led to bedrooms upstairs. He walked into the first bedroom, flipped on the light switch, and was sure it wasn't her bedroom, as there was nothing in the bedroom except a bed. He continued walking down the hallway to the end of the hallway and opened the large double wooden doors before him.

Lee was speechless. How could one woman need all this space? No wonder she was lonely.

Lee turned on the light. The bedroom was so immense that you could probably fit three of Lee's bedrooms in hers. The room was painted white with large windows that showed off the expansiveness of the farm. A California king bed was in the middle of the room with numerous pillows and a white down comforter. Across from the bed was a double door balcony with a view of the rolling hills. To top it off, a black marble wood burning fireplace with white accents finished off her bedroom.

Lee continued walking further into her bedroom, even though he felt like it was an invasion of privacy. He came to the bathroom, flipped on the light, and was surprised at its size. The flooring was white marble with a white clawfoot tub with gold accents that was front and center in the room in front of a large window that ran from floor to ceiling. There were two vanities on both sides that led to the clawfoot tub. The bottom cabinets were painted black, like the living room downstairs, with more gold accents. There was also a mirror trimmed in gold that ran the entire length of the vanities on both sides.

Lee had seen enough. He made his way back downstairs to Amanda, who was passed out on the sectional, sleeping. He squatted down and picked her up, surprised at how light she was. He carried her back upstairs and laid her down on the bed. He grabbed a blanket from across the room and pulled it over her. As he made his way out of her bedroom, he turned off the light and ventured back downstairs.

He found a pad of paper and a pen lying on the large island in the kitchen. He decided to leave her a note explaining what happened and who he was, as he was pretty sure she wouldn't remember much when she woke up the next morning.

As he walked towards the front door, he quickly realized he didn't have a vehicle to drive back to his car at the bar. Now what would he do? He pulled his cell phone out and decided to call an Uber to pick him up and drop him off at the bar. He quickly clicked the app and secured a ride. The ride would be there within the next 15 minutes.

Lee went back to the living room and sat down in the leather chair to wait on his Uber. He was flipping through his cell phone, trying to kill time, when he heard the faint whisper of his name.

"Lee?"

Lee glanced up and Amanda was standing off to the corner of the living room, walking slowly towards him. How did she make it downstairs without falling? She hadn't been able to walk earlier.

Lee placed his cell phone in his pocket and stood, making his way towards her in case she would tumble due to her drunkenness.

"Amanda… How did you make it downstairs? I just helped you upstairs. I was just heading home."

Amanda continued walking towards Lee, stopping in front of him, her face just inches from his. Lee examined her brown eyes, seeing something much different than earlier. The anger was gone from her eyes.

Without any warning, Amanda lunged at Lee with such passion that it almost knocked him off his feet. He wasn't expecting her to leap at him with such strength. She kissed him with every fiber of her being, like she was trying to prove something to herself and to him.

It wasn't that Lee wasn't enjoying the attractive woman throwing herself at him, but they barely knew each other, and this wasn't something he did. It wasn't right.

Lee broke her kiss and pulled himself away, trying to break Amanda's hold. For a little woman, she was very strong.

"Amanda, stop. You don't know what you are doing."

Amanda slowly walked towards Lee as he was walking backwards.

"Lee don't deny it. Don't act like you don't want me."

Lee was trying to make sure he didn't bump into anything while he was walking backwards. He knew this was still the alcohol talking.

"Amanda, please. You are drunk. You need to sleep it off. You don't realize where you are or who you are with."

"Oh, I know plenty. I know that since I saw you, I've wanted you. You can't refuse it, Lee. You want me too."

Within mere seconds, Lee had backed up as far as he could by running into the wall. He had been trying to make it to the front door but didn't succeed. Amanda was too fast for Lee, and she caught him before he was able to escape her grasp. She pulled him into a kiss that was so fiery that it made his mind forget where he was or who he was with for a split second.

Lee pulled himself away from Amanda's kisses. But, with each kiss, it seemed easier to fall for this woman that was appealing to him. Yes, he was attracted to her, there was no denying that. He just knew he needed to keep a level head about him.

Kiss after kiss, he realized he was slowly falling for this woman. She was so captivating that he didn't want to leave her. His phone chimed in his pocket, signaling that his Uber had arrived outside. Did he dare leave Amanda? Or did he want to stay with her? His mind was trying to decide.

Amanda began pulling Lee back towards the steps in the narrow hallway and Lee decided to forgo everything and go along with it. Clearly, she was attracted to him as well.

As they made their way to Amanda's bedroom, Lee quickly realized this was turning into something larger than he thought it would. He was trying to keep his mind levelheaded, but it was proving difficult to do with Amanda kissing him every few seconds.

Lee's mind was telling him this was wrong. She was drunk. He didn't want to take advantage of her in this state. He had to figure out a way to convince her to just go to sleep.

Amanda made quick work with Lee's clothes and before he realized, his vest and t-shirt were removed, and he was standing before her in his jeans and socks. Amanda reached for his belt and Lee grabbed her hands, stopping her before she went further.

"Amanda, we have to stop. This isn't right and you know it."

Amanda looked back up at Lee, not moving an inch. She studied his eyes and stared at him for what seemed like forever. She backed herself up and sat down on the bed, crying, as she placed her hands over her face and cried into her hands.

Lee's heart broke for her. He grabbed his white t-shirt off the floor, pulling it over his head. He made his way up to her and sat down on the bed beside her, pulling her into his chest.

"Hey, it's okay. Listen, why don't you try to sleep? I'm sure you are tired. I'll sit here with you until you fall asleep, okay?"

Amanda looked back up at Lee, tears streaming down her cheeks.

"You must think I'm a horrible person, huh? Like, I sleep around with men just because I don't care." Amanda whispered and then took a quick chuckle.

"You know, it's funny."

"What's that?"

"Most men I meet don't give me the time of day. You're different, Lee. I've never met a man like you before. You don't judge me based on my roughness and bullheadedness. You see me for me. Thank you."

With that, Amanda leaned in and lightly kissed Lee on the lips. Breaking their kiss, both stared into each other's eyes.

Amanda smiled at Lee and leaned back and scooted her way back into her bed. She pulled the white down comforter over her and laid down, closing her eyes.

Lee decided to make his way to the opposite side of the bed, laying on top of the comforter, until she was fully asleep. He would leave once he knew she was asleep and safe.

Before Lee realized, his mind began to shut down and take in all that happened during their evening together. Sleep was taking over his mind and darkness engulfed him quickly.

The next morning, the sun was shining through the large windows onto Amanda's bed. Amanda stirred gently and slowly opened her eyes. She squinted at the sun coming through the windows and pulled the comforter over her face, realizing she was hung over.

"Ugh. I drank way too much last night." Amanda stretched out, pulled the comforter off her face, turned over in bed with her eyes closed, and slowly opened her eyes to come face to face with Lee sleeping in her bed.

Amanda jumped quickly and wondered why he was here in her bed with her. Her mind began to race and think about the night before, but her mind was fuzzy. All she could remember was being at the bar and talking to Lee and nothing after that point.

"Oh gosh…Oh gosh…" Amanda whispered and began to slowly freak out over the thought of sleeping with Lee.

Lee stirred gently and turned over on his back, slowly opening his eyes as he wondered where he was. The room was unfamiliar to him. Realization quickly hit him. His eyes became large, and he quickly turned over and came face to face with Amanda, who was staring at him with such fear that it almost scared him to his core.

Lee jumped up out of the bed and began looking around for something, though he wasn't sure what. He looked down and realized he was fully clothed. He breathed a sigh of relief. He looked back at the large bed and saw Amanda still lying there with fear etched on her face.

"Amanda…"

Amanda held her hand up to Lee, signaling she was completely sober and wondered what had happened between them during the night.

"What are you doing here in my bedroom?!"

"You don't remember?"

Amanda pulled the comforter up to her neck, trying to hide herself from Lee. Even though she herself was fully clothed, she felt like this was way too personal.

"All I remember is talking to you at the bar. What did you do, take me home and try to seduce me?"

Lee began to shake his head and pace, running his hand through his hair, clearly flustered.

"I didn't seduce you! You tried to seduce me!"

"Me?! I don't even remember how many drinks I had last night. You are going to sit there and tell me that I came on to you last night?!"

"Yes! You threw yourself at me, Amanda! I had to stop you before something happened!"

"Oh, so I guess it's my fault if something did happen between us? Jeez, all you men are the same. You are only after one thing and one thing only. Just leave, Lee. Leave and don't come back. Just get out of here!" Amanda picked up a small throw pillow and chucked it at Lee. Lee caught the pillow before it hit him.

"Fine with me! I wouldn't be with you for anything in the world! You know, Amanda, you have problems, and you need to figure out what to do about yourself before you throw yourself at someone who may not be able to restrain themselves next time!"

With that, Lee grabbed his vest, flannel shirt, and shoes off the floor and stormed out of Amanda's bedroom, running down the steps towards the front door as quickly as possible.

Lee's statement was like a slap in the face to Amanda. He was right. She did have problems, major problems. She realized that he was the only one who had been able to see past her stubbornness and see deep inside her soul to determine who she was.

Amanda jumped out of bed and ran out of her bedroom, down the steps, and out the front door.

"Lee! Lee, wait!" Amanda yelled as she continued running through the immense house towards the front door.

Surprisingly, Lee was sitting outside on the front porch steps with his head in his hands, looking down at the ground, trying to compose himself, while running his hands through his hair.

Amanda quietly walked up behind him and took a seat beside him on the large front porch steps.

Silence fell between them as they both were unsure of what to say or how to say it.

"Lee…" Amanda barely whispered, and Lee turned and glanced at Amanda, whose eyes were teared up and her eyes were bloodshot.

"I'm so sorry, Lee. I'm sorry I got so upset at you and taking my anger out on you. You're right, I do have problems. I guess I've always tried to hide my problems from, not only myself, but other people."

Amanda laughed gently and continued.

"Somehow, you were able to break through my barrier and reach out to my soul with your gentleness. No one has ever done that before, except my father. I was always able to talk to him about anything and everything. When he died, it left a void in my heart that no one was able to fill. I guess I lost the guidance I needed from myself. You came into my life last night and changed my perspective of myself."

Amanda took a ragged breath before she continued spilling her soul to Lee.

"Last night when I met you at the bar, I was wallowing in my self-pity because I had just gotten out of a six-month relationship with a man I thought I was going to marry. Apparently, he had other plans, and we broke up three weeks ago. I've always been someone that no man has looked at or wanted. Sure, I was a tomboy growing up, but that wasn't to say that I wasn't willing to be in a relationship with a man. I really thought that Joe, the man I was seeing, was the man I'd marry. When we broke up, I took it hard. Heck, that was the first serious relationship I'd ever been in before. Talk about embarrassing. But you…"

Amanda looked deeper into Lee's blue eyes as she continued.

"You came into that bar last night and sat down and talked to me like a caring person. You were interested in getting to know me more and I kept shutting you out. I wouldn't blame you if you wanted to walk away from me right now after I treated you so horribly."

"Amanda, I…"

Amanda shook her head, wanting to continue.

"Please… just hear me out. I want to thank you, Lee. Thank you for taking the time to sit with me and getting to know me. Even though I came across as a complete jerk, I did have a nice time with you. And I'm sorry for last night. I was clearly drunk and don't remember what happened. I shouldn't have blamed you for what I did. Can we start over?"

Amanda stuck her hand out for Lee to shake but Lee pulled her in for a hug.

"Yeah, we can start over. Hi, I'm Lee Stetson, and you are?"

Amanda pulled back and smiled at Lee.

"Hi, Lee. I'm Amanda West. It's nice to know you."

Lee pulled her in again for a hug and looked out at the expansiveness of the property. With the sun coming up, the green rolling hills were plainly seen, and the view was remarkable.

Amanda glanced up at Lee, noticing he was surveying the property.

"It's a lot to take in, isn't it?" Amanda whispered as Lee looked down at her.

Lee looked back out at the scene before him and then back at Amanda.

"It is, but this view is much more beautiful."

With that, both locked eyes with each other and stared into each other's eyes for a few seconds before they inched their way slowly towards each other. Their eyes were darting between looking in each other's eyes and down at each other's lips, their lips meeting in unison and kissing.

Lee stood and looked down at Amanda, who glanced up at Lee, shielding her eyes from the bright sun.

He held his hand out for her to take, pulling her into him. He kissed the top of her head as he led her back inside her house.

"What do you say I cook you some breakfast?"

Amanda grinned and pulled herself further into Lee's body.

"I'd love that, Lee."

With that, Lee led the way into Amanda's kitchen and began to fix her a hearty breakfast to help her hangover from the night before.

As Lee began to make breakfast, Amanda was lost in thought. How did she get so fortunate to find a man like Lee Stetson? He came into her life at a time when she was at her lowest and pulled her from the depths back to the person she loved being. She was eager to see where this new relationship would take them. Would this be the person she would marry? She pledged not to get too deep into the relationship, in fear that he may leave someday too. Deep down though, she felt in her heart that she and Lee were soulmates and could overcome anything that life threw at them.