She could smell bacon, strong and rich. "What the...." she started to say, but the sound of her own voice was far too loud in her head. She felt as if she had been on a weekend bender, though she hadn't taken a single drop.

"Can you eat something?"

Ridley screamed, turning quickly toward the voice. The dark haired officer stood in the doorway. "I keep having that affect on you," he laughed, the smile resting easily on his face. "You scared us all pretty good last night. You up to eating something?"

Ridley's breathing began to slow as she looked around the room, seeing it for the first time. She was in her bedroom, boxes piled high in several corners of the room. "God, what happened? I just wanted to eat and then...." she stopped, wincing as she brushed past the knot on her head.

"You took a pretty good header off one of the bar chairs. We thought you were drunk at first, but one of the other officers noticed your medic ID bracelet. That's pretty smart," the officer said, leaning against the door frame. "You were pretty out of it. You came to briefly, mumbling about a storm, drink some orange juice and passed back out."

Vin smiled, running a hand through his unkempt hair. "Come on, I've got some food out on the patio."

Eagerly, Ridley followed him down the hall, the smell of bacon taunting her. Stepping out into the bright sunlight of the morning, a searing pain shot through her head. "Dammit," she cursed as her vision blurred. Grabbing on to the table, she steadied herself.

"Hope you don't mind me making breakfast. I was starving," he said, setting a heaping plate of eggs and hashbrowns on the placemat in front of her. "Had to dig in some of your boxes for stuff to cook with." Vin watched as Ridley stood on wobbly legs, her fingers clinging tightly to the side of the table. "Damn, how long has it been since you have eaten?" VIn asked, taking a seat across from her at the wrought iron patio table.

Auburn silky strands fell in her face as Ridley looked up at him. "It's not that. It's my medication. I'm supposed to eat and yesterday I forgot, that's all," she said, hazel eyes full of anticipation as she waited to see if he would accept her explanation.

Vin shook his head. "Yeah, we brought you back here last night after you passed out. We had a doc come in and check on ya. She said everything was fine and figured that it was the medications, coupled with the fact that your fridge is bare."

Ridley looked down at the food in front of her. "I'm very sorry to be so much trouble. I just came in last night." She stopped, her brow furrowing. "How did you know where I lived anyway?"

"You told me last night," Vin said, shoveling a spoonful of eggs into his mouth. "This is a great place." Vin looked passed the large in-ground pool, out at the surrounding lands. He had always wanted to see the inside of the estate since the day he arrived in Four Corners. But it had been far out of his league.

Ridley smiled, squinting tightly as she looked out into the bright Arizona sun. "Thank you. I like the stables. That's basically why I bought it." Ridley lifted the cup of coffee to her lips, her hand unsteady. Drinking greedily, she nearly choked on the the harsh liquid as she spit it out on the patio beside her. "God, that is awful."

Vin laughed heartily, wiping his mouth with his napkin. "I've been told that before," he said playfully, smiling as he drank from his own cup. "So you ride then?"

Ridley smiled, shaking her head as she bite on the wheat toast. Her taste buds burst from the simple, yet wonderful taste of the bread. It tasted like heaven to her. "Yeah, it's pretty much been my life. Up 'til a year ago that is," she said regretfully, cramming nearly half of the piece of toast in her mouth.

Vin could see the shift in Ridley's posture, the lines in her face tightening as she ate the food laid before her. She was a small woman, no more than 5'5", but there something very comforting about her. It was her eyes, Vin determined. He could see that she was frightened, confused and extremely tired, but there was a softness in her deep hazel eyes that made Vin smile despite himself.

"That were the scar came from?" Vin asked curiously, the dark jagged line barely hidden by her auburn bangs.

Ridley stopped in mid-spoonful and Vin could see that he hit a nerve. She quickly raked her fingers through her hair, pulling it forward as she stared at the plate in front of her as if it were the most interesting thing she had ever seen.

Scooping the last bite of food into his mouth, he pushed away from the table. Laying his linen napkin on the plate in front of him, Vin stood. "I didn't mean to pry Ridley. You don't have to answer." Slipping his tan uniform shirt on over the white T-shirt he wore, he smiled. "We'll save that for another day."

Ridley stood from the table, absently fidgeting with one of her nails. Smiling nervously, she extended her hand. "I'm forever in your debt. How can I repay you?"

Vin looked down at the hand offered to him and smiled grandly. Taking it, he winked at her. "Make sure that you eat something more today. I left my card on the sink. The number to the station is on the front; my cell is on the back. If you need anything," he said as he headed toward the front entry way. Vin stopped, turning back toward the auburn haired beauty. "I'm just a phone call away."

"Oh yeah," he called over his shoulder as he continued toward the door. "There's food in the fridge."

Ridley felt her head spinning. "Wait," she called after him, heading toward the entry way, but she stopped when she saw the tail lights of his truck as he drove down the drive. "I don't even know your name," she said quietly to herself as she leaned against the doorway.

She watched until the truck was completely out of sight. Sighing, she went into the kitchen. A loaf of bread lay on the counter and a small bouquet of flowers sat on the center island. "Aww," she said as she crossed to the island, picking up the clear vase and sniffing deeply on the soft fragrance.

Replacing the vase to the counter, she crossed to the refrigerator. Pulling the squeaky door open, she smiled, seeing the fridge fully stocked. She closed the door and stood before it, her mind on the deep blue eyes of the man that had made her breakfast when the small white card laying on the countertop caught her eye.

Picking it up, she ran her fingertip across the embossed letters. "Vin Tanner," she said softly, smiling as the name rolled off her tongue.

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