[[ wheelsy, south carolina // saturday night, henenlotter's saddle lounge ]]

[justdidntseeit]

[ "we can't cancel, can we?" ]

She threads her fingers with Bill's as she takes his proffered hand.

(Convincing him had been easy; a simple, "It's your last weekend as a free man -- let's go out on Saturday" had gotten an immediate smile and a nod of agreement. The hard part was assuring him they should stay in town instead of driving to Columbia for a night out.)

Gravel crunches beneath her heels as she slides from the cab of the truck.

"S'pretty crowded tonight," he says with a glance around the parking lot.

"Let's hope there's not another rodeo on," she teases, squeezing his hand. She ignores the tight feeling in the pit of her stomach and doesn't let herself double-check for June's car as they cross the gravel lot.

Bill holds the door for her and she ducks inside; the four-piece band stops warming up and the lodge buzzes with the hushed hum of nearly a hundred people.

When Bill steps in beside her, the house lights flash.

"SURPRISE!"

Resisting the urge to bite the inside of her cheek (and stifling a laugh at the hand-painted Welcome Back Sherr Sheriff!! banner), Kate turns to give him a hopeful smile.

Comments

[justdidntseeit]

She returns the smile, studying his features in the soft light of the lamp on the nightstand.

(She can count on one hand the number of times she's seen him this relaxed -- this happy -- since the shooting in August.)

"Yeah."

She inches closer and leans in, resting her forehead against his.

"We should."

[wheelsy_sheriff]

He stares at her a minute, into her pretty blue eyes, then tilts his head and kisses her, light and warm.

"I love you, Kate."

[justdidntseeit]

"I know you do, sheriff."

One hand slides up his torso to cradle his cheek, and she shifts to press a kiss to his forehead.

"Love you, too."

[wheelsy_sheriff]

His face turns the slightest bit pink and he settles back on the pillows.

"Real good day, today."

He pulls in a slow, deep breath and his eyes close as he starts to relax.

"Thank you... Kate."

[justdidntseeit]

"Shh, no thanking."

She pulls back and strokes his hair, a small smile still curving her lips as she takes in the contentment on his face.

"I'm glad you liked the surprise."

[wheelsy_sheriff]

He smiles at that and as hard as it was to get him here, now that he's finally laying down sleep comes swiftly.

He doesn't even finish mumbling 'goodnight' before his head turns sideways and he relaxes completely.

[justdidntseeit]

Watching him fall fast asleep, her fingers still a few minutes later.

She eases the sheet and comforter higher on his torso, her eyes carefully avoiding the scarring on his side -- it's been a good day (a great day), and she doesn't want to think about what happened inside that gas station last summer.

Clicking off the light, she settles beside him and listens to his deep, even breathing; it's not long before she slips into sleep.