"Dere a little part o' me does." She hated to admit it. It actually brought her to tears. "But if I do dat, what's to say I won' lose another limb, or get killed. He'd never love me back. Jus' ... he'd jus' use me all over again. No matter what he tells me, he'd never change! So... why does dis tiny part o' me still exist, Ryan?"

It hurt to actually say that. Once she had a clear head (and Alistaire had his clothes ON), she realized he was manipulating that small, insecure part of her. Playing her like a violin, offering her an easy way out instead of all the hard work she had been trying to do.

"Ryan? You haven' touched me in a long time. You don' invite me to go meet your friends, or meet your family. Are you ashamed o' me?" She had to ask. "Did I do sumt'ing wrong to you? I jus' ... I love you. An' I don' know if I am doin' sumt'ing wrong or somet'ing to drive you away from me."