Alex couldn’t believe! Michelle’s parents hadn’t noticed anything amiss! Dylan and Tallia were still talking and Danny had his nose in a new book. Alex sat himself down and made as obvious a yawn as he could, drawing attention to himself.

"I think I’ll head up for a nap too. Be down for dinner okay?" And with that he trudged upstairs.

On the landing he met up with Aaron, a beaten look on his face. When the old man’s eyes fell on Alex, it changed to that of a defensive bear, with cubs at that!

"I’m telling you now not to bother her, young’un!" Aaron made as if to haul him bodily back downstairs but Alex backed down two steps and held out his hands in a conciliatory gesture.

"Whoa! I’m just going up to take a nap. That’s all!" The boy’s eyes were a little too innocent but Aaron could hardly toss a guest around like a sack of potatoes. He shifted just enough to allow Alex to squeeze by but Alex wasn’t fooled. He stayed right where he was.

Aaron’s mouth twisted into the grotesque image of a pleased smile. It was like a mountain was trying to move. His flinty eyes warmed as a glacier melts, but Alex was glad that he hadn’t rushed to Michelle’s room.

"Well. . . all right. But you had just better remember what I said." Aaron took a menacing step toward Alex and the teen shot into his own room like a scared rabbit. He could hear Aaron chuckle through the door and begin down the steps. Alex waited till he was sure the old man was down stairs to open the joining door into Michelle’s room.

She was propped up against the headboard with a multitude of pillows but looked none the worse for the wear. She invitingly fluffed a pillow at her side but Alex was still wary of Michelle’s godfather. So instead, he sat gingerly on the foot of the bed with one eye on the door, ready to bolt into his own room. Alex wasn’t about to test Aaron’s tolerance, being a guest or not.

"You look all right, but how do you feel?" Alex inquired.

"I just feel very worn out, physically and emotionally. Did I faint?"

"I’d say you did! You just fell – I tried to get to you but. . ." Alex paused as a scowl forced its way to his lips, "but Aaron got to you first and carried you up here."

Michelle’s mouth had the faintest of smiles and her blue eyes glowed. Poor Alex, she thought, still competing with Aaron. "I know you tried, Alex. Besides, Aaron is just protective. I don’t even think he does it consciously; it’s just reflexive by now. You two may get along, and I know he likes you, but in his eyes you’re still some young upstart and one not worthy of caring for me." Michelle’s eyes softened and her eyes misted over. "It’s his way of showing his love." Now Michelle looked at Alex and startled him with a hearty laugh. "Oh, Alex! If only you could see your face, like you’ve swallowed something distasteful," she chortled. At first Alex just stared at her and then he too broke into a laugh.

His laugh lightened and he stood up to move close enough to grasp Michelle’s hand, bringing it to his cheek. He gazed into her eyes and something about his face made a warmth stir all up and down Michelle’s body. She gave a delighted little shiver and her mouth curved into a devoted smile. "I don’t know why I’m so jealous. I have my whole life to hold you in my arms, don’t I, Michelle Valentine?" The young woman let the question sink in and then it dawned on her what he was saying. She mutely nodded her head and held her arms out for Alex to fill. He obliged her wish and held her in his loving arms. Michelle was too exhausted to cry but she whispered something instead.

"I love you, Alex. I love you so much that it hurts to be away from you. I’ll always be yours and gladly. Oh, Alex. . ." Her eyes shone brightly and Alex pulled away enough to look full into them.

"I love you too, Michelle," he whispered. A relieved chuckle sounded and Alex smiled. "You have no idea how long I’ve been waiting to say that. I was afraid that over the year you would realize what a fool I was and find someone else. I decided then that I would tell you when the time was right and you could make the decision for yourself. You’ve made me so happy Michelle." He held her again and this time it was ended with a slow kiss. Michelle rested her forehead against his and sighed contentedly.

"Now I know how my parents must have felt when they were first together. I feel as if I have the world at my fingertips. Thank you, Alex. For your strength, your devotion – for just being here." They pulled apart and smiled.

"Not to break the moment, but I think I’m going to go soak in the bath for an hour." Michelle moaned a little as Alex pressed too heavily on her back.

Alex flashed a roguish smile. "I could go in and give you another massage," he suggested.

Michelle looked appalled, even though she knew he was kidding. "I don’t think so. What you saw this morning was an accident and you won’t see it again until we get- until much later," she finished stiffly.

Alex just smiled at her uneasiness.

Michelle decided to get him back for his dirty thoughts and threw back the comforter. She never saw him move so fast in his life. He was up and turned around before she even had time to swing her legs to the floor. Alex heard a nasty little chuckle from behind him and peeked over his shoulder. Michelle was fully clothed.

"Not so anxious to see now, huh?" Michelle taunted.

"You’re a brat, you know that, don’t you? But you’re a beautiful brat, and you’re my brat so that makes all the difference." Alex kissed Michelle on the forehead before going into his room.

She looked after him with a beautifying smile shining forth. Then she grabbed a towel and slipped into the bath. As the heat seeped into her body and eased the hour old knots, Michelle’s mind drifted like morning fog. She propped her head against the edge and made the mistake of closing her eyes, for as soon as she did she fell into an exhausted sleep. . .

"You know, it’s been a good hour since Michelle went up to her room. Don’t you think we should check on her?" Dylan mused.

Tallia glanced at her husband and saw the concern in his eyes. "Don’t worry, honey, I’ll go check on her."

When the slender mother reached the second floor, she noticed the bathroom door was closed. When she knocked, there was no response so she went, instead, to Alex’s room. She knocked on his door and got a quick response.

Alex was slightly mussed from his nap but Tallia narrowed her eyes at the expression his face. It wasn’t just the expression but the light that emanated from his every pore. She shook it off and asked him if Michelle was okay.

"Oh yeah, Mrs. Valentine. She’s great. She is in the bathroom, taking a bath. You mean to say she’s not out yet?" Alex craned his neck around the doorjamb and looked down the hall to the bathroom. "Hmmm. She went in there about fifty minutes ago. She probably fell asleep."

"Thanks, Alex. That nap must have really refreshed you because you look very. . ." Tallia was at a loss of words as how to describe what this young man looked like. If it had been Michelle she would have said that she looked like she was in love, but this was Alex. "I don’t know, Alex. You just look exceptionally happy now."

Alex’s mouth dropped open as Tallia advanced down the hall. How could she have possibly known, he thought. What, is it written across my face or something?!

Still wondering he drew his head back into his room and combed his hair.

Tallia knocked on the door again but still it elicited no response. She tried the handle and it was unlocked so she opened it up. The room was moist with steam and Michelle was submersed in hot, bubbly water up to her chin. Her face was smooth and she seemed truly relaxed.

Tallia walked to the tub and gently shook her daughter’s shoulder. "Michelle, Michelle, sweetheart. You need to wake up. Come on," she coaxed.

Suddenly the young woman awoke and her eyes got wide at the presence of another in the room. When she realized it was her mother, she calmed back down.

"Honey, you’ve been in here for almost an hour. Do you feel better?" Tallia asked.

Michelle smiled up at her mom. "I feel completely rejuvenated. Didn’t mean to worry you," Michelle apologized. She didn’t like to worry her parents; it made her feel guilty.

"Oh, it’s nothing, Michelle. You had just been up here a while. That’s all." Tallia turned to leave the room, but then she turned around again. That same inner glowing was in Michelle’s face. Her daughter was. . . No, it couldn’t be. She was only seventeen. But, then again, she and her Dylan had known even earlier. Her oldest child was in love! Tallia realized that Michelle was looking at her oddly so she just smiled and left, closing the door behind her.

She walked down stairs in a half daze, amazed that she hadn’t seen it before. It was bound to happen. With her and Alex spending so much time together. And it wasn’t like Alex was bad. In fact, the two teenagers complemented each other perfectly. A little giggle escaped from Tallia’s lips as she made her way back to the living room.

She sat back down beside her husband. "Is she okay?" he asked.

"Of course. I’ll bet she’s never been better."

Michelle stepped out of the tub and dried herself off. Her mom had acted strangely but then tried to act like it was nothing. Michelle shrugged and wrapped the towel around her. She padded to her room and locked the hall door. Then she changed into a clean pair of jeans and a loose navy blue sweater. As she was brushing out her hair she heard a light knock at the joining door. She called for Alex to enter and he walked to the chair by Michelle’s bed.

"Enjoy your nice, long soak?" Alex politely asked. "Your mother asked where you were because your soak was so long. Did you fall asleep or something?"

"Just a little bit. She acted kind of weird though." She looked questioningly at Alex.

"Well, your mother is very perceptive. She knew that I was blissfully happy," this accompanied by a wink, "with out my saying one word about before. It gave me the shivers."

"How’d she know? How could she possibly have known what we said to each other?" Michelle wasn’t upset but she wasn’t sure if she wanted her parents to know how she and Alex felt towards each other yet. She, herself, was still getting used to it. "That might explain it though. Oh well, I guess my mother would have been the first to figure it out anyway."

They sat silently as Michelle finished brushing her hair and for the first time Alex knew of, left her hair down. He liked it better than when she pulled it into a braid. The long hair softened her face and framed the glow that Alex could now detect radiating from her.

"Your hair looks nice down, Michelle. You should wear it like that more often." He ran his hand over one strand of the soft brunette lengths and smiled at Michelle.

"Did you want to do something or just sit around. It’s up to you because you’re the one who’s had the bad morning."

Michelle tilted her head to one side, a posture she adopted when she was thinking. "Let’s just vegge out today. My dad has to work and Danny, with him. Mom was planning on going to town in the car so we would practically have the house to ourselves." Michelle looked at Alex for an answer and Alex smiled in acceptance. He stood up and offered his arm to his lady and they floated downstairs.

When they reached the living room, the only one left was Aaron. Alex saw his eyes narrow at their linked arms but the old man’s eyes were glinting with happiness.

"Your dad and brother went out on the ranch and your mother went to town for that little luncheon she had planned with the other ladies in the area. I was just waitin’ down here to tell ya’ so’s you wouldn’t be worried." Aaron took one last long look at the two teens and walked out the kitchen door, whistling a tuneless little song.

Michelle looked after him and Alex squeezed her waist, looking at the living room couch with an inviting lift of his eyebrows. His mouth held a playful grin and Michelle let him lead her into the living room.

The room had a southwestern motif with a dash of the country log cabin thrown in. Along the walls Native American artifacts could be found: flutes, feather fans, drums, rattles, and old, black-and-white pictures of Native Americans in full ceremonial regalia. There was a large, bay window looking out over the rest of the ranch and slight hill behind the spread. A worn-in couch and armchair created a loose semi-circle around a rustic coffee table, the four legs resembling rough cut logs and a huge, flat slab of wood made up the surface. A t.v. set against the wall in an entertainment center in which a radio, tape and CD player, and VCR also resided. Behind the couch was the one thing that didn’t mesh with the decor but without which the living room would not have been whole. Another trunk-slab table held a myriad of pictures in a wide assortment of frames. Wedding pictures of Dylan and Tallia, both smiling happily. Pictures of Michelle and Danny at various ages, sometimes on horseback, sometimes not. There were also faded black and white pictures of people that Alex didn’t recognize. When he asked Michelle who they were she responded that they were her grandparents from her father’s side. When he had looked closer he could see the resemblance between the pictures and Michelle.

She had proceeded to tell him about her parents’ marriage and the trouble it caused between her maternal grandparents and Dylan and Tallia. According to Michelle, the Sehants had not approved of Dylan’s background and the thought of their daughter living in the mountains sent them into fits. She ended by saying that they had disowned Tallia when she refused to forsake Dylan and her newborn baby girl. That was the reason that no pictures of the Sehants hung in the Valentines’ home. Michelle sounded as if she were talking about complete strangers when she spoke of her mother’s parents and Alex asked her where her grandparents were now. When Michelle hesitated before answering, Alex wondered if he had asked the wrong question. Then she answered his question, telling him about both sides of the family in a misinterpretation of his question.

"The Valentines have a long background here in Montana. The first Valentines arrived here just months after Montana had been first colonized. We’ve always owned large amounts of land, even though it’s gradually gotten smaller. My grandparents lived in this very house before they passed away.

"My grandfather, Dylan Valentine, Sr., was a horse starter also and was born in this house. My grandmother, Sorean Wilkson, had met my grandpa while on vacation with her parents. They were supposed to be here for a month and then go on to California but when her parents left, she stayed. They were married not long after. It was a romantic love and I was told that you couldn’t separate them with a herd of mustangs. Then my grandma came down with cancer. By the time it was diagnosed the doctors could do nothing but make her last months on earth comfortable. My dad said that he watch his father watch his mother as she wasted away before his eyes. A little more than eight months after the cancer had been diagnosed Sorean died. My dad said she died in her sleep, not completely painless but not awful either. After that, my grandpa lost his will to live and a couple months after she died, he followed her. Many say he died of his broken heart. Pretty tragic." She had paused then, a sad smiled curling her lips.

"As for my maternal grandparents, they live someplace in Europe, Britain to be exact. Theirs was a long and prestigious line, both grandmother and grandfather. They had a daughter before my mother and she was raised in the stiff tradition of the family. They had moved out here to experience the ‘adventure’ that the U.S. was famous for. My mom was born a year after they moved out here, leaving a seven year difference between her and my aunt. My mom told me that her parents never approved of her carefree style. When she met and fell in love with my dad in high school, my grandparents tried to separate them but it was useless. After dating for three years, he proposed and they married not long after. It was then that my grandparents moved back to Europe and my aunt with them. I was born two months after they returned to Britain. When they found out that I was born they ordered my mom to come ‘home’ and to bring me with her. She refused of course and that’s where the relationship with the Sehants ended. As far as I know, my mom hasn’t contacted either her parents or her sister since that last ultimatum." Alex had enjoyed that conversation immensely, not knowing much about Michelle’s background excepting that which had been divulged to him through his parents.

Now he drew Michelle down on the couch and cradled her against his side. She curled up with a familiarity that belied the little time they spent with one another. Michelle snatched up the remote control and began flipping through the stations to find something worth watching. Eventually she found a movie that neither of them had seen yet, a movie by the name of Undercover Blues. Every time that Michelle would laugh, for it was a funny movie, her hair would tickle Alex’s face. He began to think that she was doing it on purpose. He could detect the faint perfume of Michelle’s shampoo, which smelled like cherries and flowers of some sort. He took many deep breaths in order to capture some of the scent.

After the movie had ended, Alex got up to get a snack while Michelle popped in a pre-recorded movie. This time, one that they both had seen before and loved, Return to Snowy River. When he came back to the couch with a bag of chips and sodas, Michelle moved so that Alex could fit himself between the couch arm and her slim body. He wrapped his arm around Michelle and she laid her head against his shoulder, mirroring her parents from just nights before. They snacked and watched movies without talking well into the afternoon.

Dylan and Danny were the first ones to come back. They found Alex and Michelle curled around each other, the couple not having changed their positions throughout the day. The intimate way in which they held each other sparked a flame of anger deep in Dylan’s heart. The way that Alex’s arm held his daughter to his side and how the boy’s lips rested on her hair, the two teens’ whole posture yelled at Dylan’s mind to pull them apart. But he didn’t. He could tell that the kids were asleep and he convinced himself that they probably just shifted into that position.

"Hey, Michelle! Wake up, mousy. Guess what? Dad got offered another mare to start from the Kyneeses. Isn’t that great?!" Danny slipped between Michelle and Alex and shook his sister awake.

Michelle’s eyes opened and soon became focused as she fully awoke. Dylan grated his teeth as she wiggled closer to Alex and a contented smile curled her lips. "That is great, Danny. Is it because of the excellent job you did with his colt, Dad?" Michelle turned her shining eyes upon her father.

The frown that had settled on his brow since he walked through the door disappeared without a trace before Michelle settled her gaze on him. "Yeah. Travis said he was very pleased with the way that Checkered Past has turned out so he decided to try that new mare of his out. I also asked that Johnny help so that he can train the mare instead of me. Travis said he’d bring the mare down in a couple of days. After the first week, Johnny is going to stay over so that he won’t have to travel to and from our spread everyday. It’ll last about five months, he’ll only stay until the end of the summer," Dylan finished up. He abruptly left the room but not before Michelle caught the unease behind his eyes.

Danny was still standing in front of Michelle and Alex, a goofy smile plastered across his face as he took in the couple. His face was also aglow with his excitement at working another horse. Michelle assumed that her father had promised Danny that he could do more of the actual training this time; only that would excite Danny so much. "Well, what’re you staring at?" Michelle asked suspiciously. Danny’s smile only grew broader and he wiggled his eyebrows back and forth. "What?" Michelle asked exasperatedly.

Then she looked at her side and Alex was still there, his arm around her back and his head now on her shoulder. She pointed to her friend and asked, "Is this what you find so funny?" Danny just shrugged noncommittally and his grin became a little smirk.

"Hey, I didn’t say anything. Dad’s a little – oh, should I say – steamed about it, but I wouldn’t mind having him for a brother-in-law." Danny ran up the stairs to get cleaned up, leaving Michelle down stairs trying to stutter out a response.

Finally she gave up on tying to speak and looked at Alex. He was beginning to stir, his eyelids fluttering open but his eyes not recognizing his surroundings. Michelle turned off the white fuzz-filled screen of the t.v. and slipped out of Alex’s arms. This did a fairly successful job of fully awaking him. Alex sat up and scrubbed his eyes with the back of his hands. He ran his fingers through his disheveled hair and smiled a sleepy smile at Michelle. She fixed her hair and shifted her shirt so she looked somewhat presentable.