It's been a month since Matt and I told each other, I love you. I'll never want to leave him after that, and I'm glad that Mallory loves it here just as much as I do. Right now, I'm checking out Matt while he fixes a fence in a pair of blue jeans, no shirt.

He catches me staring at him and smirks. "What are you looking at there, beautiful?"

"Just watching my handsome man."

"Well, this handsome man could use a shower...wanna join me?" He takes my hand and leads me inside the house.

Soon, my back is pressed against the cool ties of the shower as Matt kisses me with passion. I sigh and relax as he trails his lips down my neck. When a stream of cold water suddenly hits me, I yelp in shock.

"Sorry." Matt turns the shower knob down, making the water hot. "Better?" He asks and pulls me into a kiss.

"Much better," I answer against his lips.

After we finish taking our shower, we head downstairs. Mallory is sitting on the couch, playing with Amy. "Mommy!" She yells and jumps into my arms.

"What's going on sweetie?"

"I did it, I rode a big pony all by myself, with no saddle!"

"It's true, she didn't fall off once," Amy says.

"Awe! I'm so proud of you!" I smother my little angel with kisses.

"Hey, Mommy?"

"What?"

"When am I going to meet Daddy?"

I knew this day would come, but I didn't expect it to be this soon. "Why do you want to meet him?"

"Amy was telling me about Liz's daddy."

An awkward silence falls as Amy leaves the room, giving me space to talk with my daughter. I sit down next to Mallory as Matt joins us. He holds my hand as I talk with her. "Mallory, you know how I told you that you're daddy is a hero?" She nods. "That the reason why we never seen him is because he's out saving lives?"

"Yeah."

"Well....he's not. He's not a nice person. He's a bad man who did some bad things."

"Is that why I'm not allowed to meet him?"

"Oh, honey." I pause, "I've never wanted you to feel bad about this. I've done everything I possibly can to keep you safe. Mallory, I want you to know that while you share DNA with that man, he is not and never will be your daddy."

"Are you upset with me, Mommy?"

"No, sweeties. I just want you to understand that he's not family."

"Where is Daddy? Since he's a bad man does that mean he's with the bad people behind bars, like jail?"

"What? How do you know what that is?"

"I watch a lot of TV with Liz. Since Papa is in jail, can Mr. Cowboy be my new dad?"

My eyes widen in shock, I turn around and look at Matt, who's not making eye contact with me. "I...I'm fine with just being Mr. Cowboy."

"You don't want to be my dad?" Mallory frowns.

"No, no, no I do!"

"You do?" I whisper.

"Yes...maybe?" Poor Matt has no idea how to react.

"Hey, sweetie? How about we have this talk later, okay?"

"Okay, mommy."

"Now, go run upstairs and see if Lizs wants to play."

"Okay." She walks upstairs and leaves the very awkward conversation.

"Wow." I release a deep breath that I didn't know I was holding. "What was that? She's never asked about Hunter before. I...I have no idea what happened."

"She's a kid, kids are curious," Matt says and takes my hand.

"What if she keeps asking these questions? She wants to know more about him, but what if she tries to contact him?" I get up from the couch and start pacing back and forth. "What if one day she's had enough and runs away, looking for him? What will happen if she finds him and he tries to hurt her?"

Matt puts his hands on my shoulders, shaking me a little. Helping me snap out of my panic attack. "Tessa, stop it." He whispers and pulls me into a hug. "I told you before that she's safe here, you both are." He cups my face in his hands, kissing me. "You're safe, okay?"

"Okay." I pull away and sigh. "I know that she has more questions, what if I don't know how to answer them?"

"I'll be right next to you, helping you figure out the answers."

"That whole thing about her wanting you to be her new dad was weird, right?"

"Well, I'm kind of the only father figure in her life right now. Naturally, she thinks of me as a dad."

I bite my lip. "I guess."

"Do you not want me to be her dad? Should I tell her to go back to calling me Mr. Cowboy?"

"I never said that."

"You were thinking it."

"No, I wasn't....okay, maybe I was. It's just way too soon to become a family yet. Don't you think?"

I can see the anger slowly seeping into his facial expression. "Um...wow. I thought we were a family."

"Matt-"

"No, it's fine. We're just dating for now, right? Because you're still thinking of leaving, right?"

I sigh in frustration. "I....I don't know! I....I don't even know what we are."

He's hurt and shocked by my words. "You don't know what we are? I told you that I love you, you've slept in my bed, you've slept with me in my bed. And you don't know what our relationship status is?" He huffs. "Well, when you figure out the answer, you know where to find me." He says and storms off.

I try to hold my back tears as he walks away, why do I have to ruin everything? I go back upstairs to check up on Mallory and give Matt some space. Time passes, and Mallory falls asleep in the guest bedroom. Maybe I should be thinking about moving back in here. I check the clock, it's almost midnight and Matt still isn't back yet. Is he that upset or did something happen to him? Maybe, I should go check on him.

Throwing on a jacket, I walk down the stone pathway and find Matt sitting on a bench, looking up at the stars. He sees me and scoots over so I can sit next to him. "So...this is what a couple's fight feels like? Well, it sucks."

Matt sighs. "My dad wasn't always the best father to me. He would pick on me growing up and he didn't show his love for any of us. I told myself that if I ever had kids, I'd always show them how much I love them. I'd spoil them rotten, and shower them with affection."

"Is that how you see Mallory....as your kid?"

"She's like a daughter to me."

"You're already a better father to her than Hunter. Mallory would be lucky to have you as her dad."

"You think so? Because for a second, I thought that maybe.....I wouldn't fit into your little family."

I reach out and caress his cheek, he kisses my hand. "I shouldn't have said that, you're a part of my family now. I don't know why I got angry with you, I think I was upset with myself. I've never been in a relationship like this before...and frankly, it terrifies me. Being in love with someone is scary, why don't the movies ever tell you that? All of this is so new to me, and I'm scared of screwing this up, even though I already did."

Matt leans down and pecks my cheek. "You haven't screwed anything up. I'm sorry, I shouldn't have stormed off like that. I was hurt when you said that you didn't know what we were, and I just hit me....we've never really about it."

"Let's fix that."

"I want a relationship with you, Tessa. A serious one that's not just physical."

"I want that too. I love you, so much."

"I love you too."

"If something were to happen to me...I'd want Mallory to go under your care. If the Harrisons or Hunter found us one day, I'd run away with Mallory and you too."

"Tessa."

"Yes?"

"Is something going to happen?"

"Not that I know of."

"Then why does it sound like you're planning your will right now?" We both chuckle. "I think it's a great plan to take Mallory and I'd love to join you. I also don't mind looking after her either. But...planning for your death is something I can't even think about. I don't want to talk about this like you know your fate, because you don't."

"You're right."

"There are other ways I could become Mallory's dad, ones that involve a ring."

I blush. "I know."

"Just making sure.

I pull him into a kiss. "I promise, no more crazy talk."

"I would never call you crazy."