~~~~~~~~It's Never That Simple~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Stringfellow Hawke and Caitlin O'Shannessy sat underneath a tree by the pond at her family's Texas ranch. He'd just declared his love for her after she'd left California nearly three months prior believing her feelings weren't mutual. After a good deal of angst on his part, he found out she was in danger. With Dom's help and Caitlin's own ingenuity, she was rescued and a dangerous drug lord had been taken into custody. After, Hawke thought he would have a chance to talk with Cait, but she returned to the ranch without wanting to speak to him. Dom chewed him out for "playing around" with Cait's feelings and told him to either leave her be or commit. One week later, he showed up at the ranch with an engagement ring.

"So, do you want to see if it fits?"

Hawke held the ring out. He pulled her left hand from his neck and maneuvered to slip it onto her finger.

"No."

He stopped mid stream. His gaze snapped to her eyes. He thought she just said no. He must have been mistaken, but she slipped her hand out of his and rested it on his shoulder. The edged of her mouth twitched upward.

"What?" he asked hesitantly. Somehow the word had come out as a long syllable his voice rising through it.

"No, I don't want to try it on."

Suddenly he was confused. Caitlin had said she loved him. They'd kissed like there was no tomorrow. Even now she had that look in her eyes that said I only want to be with you. He had searched every jewelry store on Rodeo Drive until he'd found the perfect ring and she said no?

He stood up quickly. He didn't know what to do. This part of his grand plan was not working out right. She was supposed to be giddy with delight. They were supposed to be making out on the spot. She wasn't supposed to say no. In truth, he thought she would have pounced on the ring and thrust it on her finger before he had a chance to change his mind. He ran a nervous hand over his hair.

"Are you saying you don't want to marry me?

His voice took on a guarded edge. His eyes had gone cold. His face was an impassive mask. His mind whirled and he held his breath while he waited for her to respond. It was hard for him to give himself over to feelings of love. He'd wanted to protect her from the fate of all the others. He'd loved before. And lost those he loved. He hadn't wanted it to happen to Caitlin. Didn't she understand how far he'd come? Couldn't she see how much he needed to be with her?

Caitlin sighed as she looked up at him. He was so typical. Once he'd made up his mind, he just expected everything to fall into place. He probably thought she would jump on the chance. When she didn't act according to his plan, his defenses went up. She slowly and deliberately got to her feet. He was giving her the silent treatment expecting her to read his mind.

"I'm saying we don't even know if we can get along as a couple yet."

She searched his eyes to see if he understood. All she saw was confusion, hurt, and a little anger.

He looked at the sky, at the trees, at the pond anywhere but at her. He jammed his hands in his pockets and walked over to the gazebo. His shoulders were hunched and footsteps heavy on the walnut stained decking. He didn't halt his progress until he made it to the railing. There he leaned against the wood and stared out over the the water.

He was angry. He was a fool. How could he have been so wrong? Caitlin had left because he wouldn't show her how he felt of that he was sure. He thought the only way to prove to her how he felt was to ask her to marry him. That way she'd be sure to come back to California. He figured they could work out the details during a pro-longed engagement. They just couldn't do that if she stayed in Texas.

"Hawke."

He hadn't heard her footsteps and stiffened when he heard her voice only a few feet behind him.

"For once listen to me without already deciding what I'm trying to say."

Caitlin put her hand on his shoulder and waited. He didn't flinch away at her touch. Encouraged she put her other hand on top of his on the rail. She concentrated on his face. His jaw was tensed and the vein in his neck throbbed. With effort he turned to face her. He looked so angry, but hurt also. She waited patiently until the storm that was taking place behind those blue eyes of his subsided.

"Okay. I'm listening."

He finally said. His voice calm. Part of him wanted to walk away. Collect his thoughts. Figure out where he went wrong this time. But she was looking at him with such love and compassion that he was rooted to the spot. No matter what she said. Even if it hurt him, he'd listen.

"I love you. I want to be with you. If everything works out between us, I want to marry you."

Caitlin paused to be sure he was listening. Truly listening and paying attention to what she was saying.

"I hear a but."

He shifted his stance so that they were facing each other fully. He pushed a strand of red hair behind her ear wistfully. Held her gaze and tried not to jump to any conclusions.

"But can we just be together? Without any pressure? Can we just take each day on its own merit? If we decide at some point us isn't working and I'm wearing a ring, it would just complicate things."

She put her arms around him. He hesitated an instant before he did the same.

"Lets just enjoy each other for a while. If you still want to me to marry you, ask me again sometime."

She kissed him deeply. He automatically kissed her back. They held each other wrapped in the others arms for a while.

Enjoy each other.

He was certainly enjoying the kissing and the way she felt in his arms. He liked the familiar scent of her shampoo as they rested their heads on each others shoulder. He also liked the way she fit with his body.

No pressure.

A small part of him was disappointed. Mostly, he was relieved. He hadn't really thought the whole marriage thing through. He'd just wanted a sure way to get her to come back with him.

She wants to be with me. She loves me.

The thoughts congealed in his head as they were kissing. He held her tight grateful she was giving him a chance. It wasn't what he had expected but it would do. The knots in his gut began to release just a bit.

"Will you at least come back to California with me?"

He asked the question hopefully. He didn't want to move to Texas. He also didn't want to live without her in his life anymore.

"If you keep your head out of the sand, I'll go practically anywhere with you."

Caitlin smiled at him. She could see the confusion at her remark being overcome by understanding. He gazed at her with unguarded love for just a moment and it took her breath away. He grabbed her up and whirled her around.

"Great. How fast can you pack?"

He kissed her again before she could answer.

"We can leave the day after tomorrow if you want."

Hawke frowned. He didn't want to take any chances. He wanted to leave right away before she changed her mind.

"Besides as long as you're all ready here, you might as well meet my family."

The frown deepened. He hadn't met a girl's family since he was a teenager. The first meeting could be pivotal to their relationship. If her family didn't like him would she still return home with him? Okay to be fair he'd all ready met her sister Erin. She'd seemed decent. Erin had told him where to find Cait. He'd heard some of Cait's phone conversations with her mom and thought for a fleeting moment that if Cait wore his ring he'd have no problem there. What really began to worry him was meeting Cait's dad. He'd never heard her talk much about him, but always had the distinct impression that she was a Daddy's girl. If he didn't impress the father, he could be in for some real trouble. He hadn't really been prepared beyond getting Cait back.

"Come on. Its almost time for dinner."

She pulled a reluctant Hawke back to the tree to retrieve her book.

"What if they don't like me?"

There was genuine concern in his voice. He had to know if this meeting was going to be a deal breaker. He was just accepting that she wanted to be with him and didn't want to do something to mess it up. Maybe he should quiz her on her family, since he'd never really paid much attention when she'd talked about them before. He began to wonder if he could just find a way to get out of family dinner by claiming he already eaten.

She couldn't help but grin. He was nervous and a little sheepish. She liked this side to him. It filled her with warmth that he had that much concern for the outcome. She just patted his arm and entwined her fingers with his. As they walked back down the path to the house, she teased him about meeting her parents. A part of her thought she should warn him. Her family usually latched on to someone new and asked twenty questions. Hawke was never known to be a great conversationalist. Things were about to get interesting.

~~~~~~~~A Girlfriend's Dad~~~~~~~~~~

Stringfellow Hawke was out of his element to say the least.

He was sitting at the center of a long dinning table. To either side of him sat Cait's sisters, Erin and Shannon. Cait sat across from him. To either side of her sat her brother, Sean, and brother-in-law, Henry. Cait's parents sat on either end where the could easily command the attention of anyone at the table. The table looked like something out of a Norman Rockwell painting. Every available space was taken up by one dish or another. He wasn't really all that hungry, but it seemed only polite to lightly sample everything. He created quite a stir when Maggie, Cait's mom noticed he put only the smallest bite of roast on his plate. He'd innocently relaid the fact that he preferred fish to most meat. His comment didn't go down well on a Texas cattle ranch. It took Cait's gentle reminder that she didn't like roast either to calm her father down.

Conversation quickly moved on to probing questions about Hawke himself. Other than Erin, Caitlin hadn't really confided in her family about her life in California and they were all curious to find out more about the man who had shown up looking for her. The short clipped answers he gave between bites of salad and mashed potatoes really didn't satisfy anyone's curiosity.

Caitlin would have giggled if he hadn't looked so miserable. She was beginning to think she should have warned him after all. When her mother asked him about his family, he shrugged. Hawke briefly told them his parents died when he was twelve. He and his older brother were raised by Dominic Santini the owner of the air service where he and Cait worked.

When questions turned to details of his parents' death and St. John's status, Hawke looked across the table and made a silent plea. Cait intervened. She wished, not for the first time that she was sitting next to him for comfort and support.

"So, Stringfellow," Catlin's father Patrick began. "How long are you here for?"

Hawke swallowed his last bite of apple pie before answering.

"Cait said she'd be ready to go the day after tomorrow."

He was oblivious to the sudden tension his remark caused. Everyone put their eating utensils down except Henry who had just taken another bite of pie.

"And, please call me String or Hawke."

The chaos and bustle of a large family meal ceased abruptly and Hawke stiffened with the sudden silence. He looked over at Cait whose eyes were fixed on the half eaten slice of pie on her plate. He glanced surreptitiously at the other diners until his gaze rested on Patrick.

Patrick's face had gone an angry shade of red. His pointed gaze directed firmly at his middle daughter. The man's jaw was set and his visible hand was clenched so tightly on the fork beside his plate that the whites of his knuckles shown.

"Well String," Maggie spoke up hesitantly. "I'm sure Erin would love to give you the fifty cent tour."

Her words were a call to action to practically everyone at the table. Cait's two sisters, brother, and brother-in-law all rose simultaneously. They gathered plates and empty dishes and moved quickly to the kitchen.

Erin placed a hand on Hawke's shoulder to spur him to move also. Cait gave him a nod that silently begged him to please just go along. He rose slowly to follow Erin his reluctance to leave Caitlin evident. He knew something had changed the mood in the room, but he couldn't quite put his finger on what. He gave a half smile to Maggie and spoke in a warning tone.

"I'll be back in a few minutes."

He gave Cait one more reassuring look before reluctantly following Erin.

Erin gave Hawke what he surmised had to be the ten cent tour it was so quick. The sudden silence in the kitchen when they waltzed through, had his guard up. When raised voices were heard from the dinning area, he was ushered up to the relatively insulated up-stairs. She left him in what had been Caitlin's childhood room.

He stood in the middle of it an looked around. The room had soft green walls that were covered with pictures. Caitlin's young freckled face looked back at him. She had a couple of different horses and was in various rodeo arenas. Some had her posing with a cow or sheep. Four shelves on one wall were crammed with trophies and ribbons from barrel racing and the FFA. He stepped over to the bed covered in a blue comforter. The white bedside table had a clock and a single five inch high trophy on it. He picked it up and turned it over in his hands for a moment. The date on it was the year his parents had died. Being surrounded by Cait's childhood suddenly made him feel old.

He thought back to when he and Cait first met in the Pope county jail. She had looked and seemed so young to him. Yet her attitude and bearing, especially her attitude, made him want to be around her. Tempted him on more than one occasion since to breach the friends barrier he had carefully construed to protect her. She had caught his attention not because of movie star beauty, but because she was fearless in the face of danger, and that sheriff had definitely been dangerous.

A movement by the door caught his attention. He whipped around to see Cait standing in the door frame.

She regarded him with amusement.

He quirked an eyebrow at her and held aloft the trophy in his hand.

"Mutton busting?"

She smiled as she crossed the room to him and relieved him of the trophy. She carefully placed it back on the bedside table.

"I was seven and it was my first trophy."

She wrapped her arms around him and held onto him tightly for a moment. She needed the quiet assurance his embrace gave her, needed more to know he would continue to be there for her. The discussion in the the dinning room hadn't gone well. She knew she was making the right decision, but needed to lose herself for a moment in their togetherness.

Sensing something was bothering her, he held her tightly imparting what comfort he could.

Feeling it would be inappropriate given the setting to lose himself in the other thoughts that swirled in his head at her being so close, he whispered in her ear.

"You want to talk."

He wondered if she had heard him it took her so long to respond.

"It's an old argument."

She sighed heavily.

"They just can't understand why anyone might not want to live in the great state of Texas for their entire life."

She picked at the collar on his shirt.

Hawke was silent for a long moment and shifted uncomfortably on his feet.

"Cait," he began a little roughly. "If you want to stay, I can make arrangements to... to be here."

He held her gaze. He didn't want to be without her again. The thought of leaving his mountain, and Dom had his throat closing up.

"It would take a little time..."

"No Hawke."

Cait cut him off quickly. She couldn't believe what he'd just said. She looked in his eyes and saw the relief there before it changed to trepidation.

"I want to return to California with you. I want to go home."

He saw the sincerity and truth of it on her face. She thought of California as her home and wanted to be there with him. He let the pleasure he suddenly felt erupt into a smile. He kissed her first with happiness and then with a quiet longing. He could wait another day and a half for her to be home with him.

Home with Cait.

His mind conjured up pictures of her in his cabin. She'd been there many times, but always as a friend. He thought about having quiet dinners, sharing a sunset, and serenading her with his cello. He thought about growing old with her. For the first time in too many years, he thought about the future. If he hadn't been holding on to her the thought would have staggered him. It was too much all at once. He pushed the thoughts away and decided to concentrate on getting her home. Everything else was too much to hope for. After all, she had said no to the proposal.

The next day and a half with Cait's parents were strained. They thought their daughter's wild California bent was over with when she came back three months ago. Now, she was leaving again. Leaving with a man they barely knew.

Patrick rightly ceased on Hawke as the true cause of his daughter's leaving. He was openly hostile. There was little Hawke could do to reassure the man though he swore to take care of Caitlin. He even told Patrick that he'd proposed to Cait when the man seemed hell bent on reaming him out for just showing up and whisking his little girl away. It had mollified Patrick a little but not until after he knew his little Caitlin had turned Hawke down and why. Patrick had grumbled something about taking the bull by the horns before he seemed to be able to control his ire.

When Hawke and Cait were finally in his rental car and leaving the ranch behind her bags safely tucked away in the trunk, he let out a dramatic sigh.

Cait giggled in the seat next to him.

"What's so funny?"

He smirked over at her as he turned on the main road leaving her childhood home firmly behind.

"You!"

Caitlin pointed at him for emphasis.

"Hawke, I've seen you shoot down MIGs without breaking a sweat, but facing my Dad..."

The laughter just beneath the surface of her voice threatened to over take her.

Hawke let out a chuckle.

"A MIG is nothing compared to the irate Dad of your girlfriend."

They both shared an easy laughter.

"Your girlfriend huh?"

Cait felt the corners of her mouth start upward in a sloppy grin.

"Yeah."

Hawke said with quiet satisfaction. He beamed at her. His smile lit up his eyes as they rode to town contentedly.