Sam watched her and listened to her.  He also tried to hear the unspoken words.  There was a hint of something that he didn’t quite get in her reaction to what he’d said.  He shrugged internally.  They still had some stuff to learn about each other.  There was no way yet for her to know two things about himself.  First was he never said anything he didn’t mean and second . . . he’d never said what he had said to her to anyone ever before . . . and he’d no intention of saying it to anyone else ever.  He was happy enough with who they were and how they were with each other so it was passed over as he grinned at her as she told him that she loved him.  He knew he’d never tire of her saying that to him.<br/><br/>“Maybe somewheres more temperate . . . you know where they have more than one season . . . like summer, spring and fall . . . even winter . . . but not like in the mountains winter.  More like a Christmas winter and then it’s about over.”  He chuckled.  “And regular sex?  Like every day, sex?  You want a thousand children honey?”<br/><br/>He slipped his index finger into her damp hair and curled a strand of it absently around his finger as she drew designs of some kind on his chest with her fingertip.  He looked at his chest as best he could but Sam wasn’t able to see if he had left any red lines on his chest from her nail. When she talked about Tim’s murder and letting it go, he wasn’t really surprised by what she had to say about ending her quest to find Tim’s killers.  Her attitude on the trail on the way back to town and since had foreshadowed it some.  Given her feelings about the man he wondered why she’d bothered at all about it . . . except maybe out of guilt about her thoughts and his getting killed or necessity.  He knew that everything about the consequence of her dishing out retribution would be true . . . and he knew he couldn’t bare that happening.<br/><br/>“You sure about that Darlin?  I’m fine with dropping it if you’re sure that’s what you want.”<br/><br/>Sam looked at her and stroked her arm with his hand before he moved on to the list.<br/><br/>“The list?  Well . . . it was a short list Irene.  Checking on you wasn’t on there.  Seeing if there was anything I could do to clear you of any suspicion once and for all was on it.  You know best how it was for you when it happened. But I have an idea cause we lawman types always suspect family and friends first cause it’s the most common reality.  Based on the file the Judge had me review, I never thought that you had a thing to do with it.  In person . . . when I first met you I was sure you clearly were not.  Gosh but I’m sorry for all the shit you’ve been through honey.  I wish I’d been around then to help you with it.”<br/><br/>Sam caressed her cheek with the backs of his fingers as he spoke.<br/><br/>“Mostly I guess I was to get to know the area and the people here.  Check on the Marshal . . . there’s a fair amount of talk about him, especially since there don’t seem to be any record of his swearing in . . . not anywhere official anyways . . . and of course I was to see if anyone is here or shows up that missed their court date . . . or are on any of the posters over there in my bags.  I guess that mostly I’m to just check things out as I’ve never been in these parts before.”<br/><br/>Sam smiled at her and cupped her face in his hand.<br/><br/>“I told you that I owed the Judge a lot before coming here . . .  for this job and his support and friendship . . . but Darlin . . . I owe him big time now . . . since we got hitched and all.”  He snorted as she gave him what seemed like a questioning look.  “Hell honey . . . I mean that in the most positive way . . .  if you were wonderin.’”<br/><br/>Sam shifted his body so he could kiss her.  It was a soft quietly deep set of kisses that stirred him up inside a bit.<br/><br/>“Now about moving on . . . how the heck do we find the perfect place we just conjured up a few moments ago?  This is one big country you know . . . and if we’re to have a thousand children . . . I don’t want to be moving around hunting for it while you’re having them. And what will we do when we get there?  Besides making babies, I mean.”<br/><br/>Sam gave her a broad grin, even though his question was a serious one said with some humor.