The evening spent with the Miller's was delightful. Mrs. Miller reminded Sydney of her grandmother who had died when she was a little girl. She was all warmth and welcome, and it was evident that she and her husband were very much in love.

Sydney was sitting at the kitchen table, which had a view of the front desk so that they could keep an eye on things as they ate their dinner. Mrs. Miller had let it slip that they didn't have as much business as they once had so the fact that the University had rented almost all of their rooms was a nice boost to their savings.

Mr. Miller had caught her telling Sydney this, and he had told her, "Hush Mama" in a gentle voice, and then they had changed the subject, but finally it made sense as to why there were only the two of them to run the entire hotel. They had a maid that came in a few mornings a week to help with the cleaning, but otherwise it was all on Mr. and Mrs. Miller.

It had been only three weeks since they had descended on the small hotel and Sydney had noticed that Mrs. Miller was starting to look a little tired and run down which was why Sydney had spent the last ten minutes trying to get them to let her help out a little in the evenings.

"But Mrs. Miller, you feed me, you lend me all of your books, and your daughter's bike, the least I can do is help out a little. Let me sit here in the office a few nights a week and read my book. You have the comfy sofa in the lobby, and it will give me something else to do. You and Mr. Miller are only a shout away if something comes up that I can't handle," she insisted yet again.

"Well it is our anniversary next weekend, and I would like to take Mama out for the evening," Mr. Miller said, thinking aloud.

"Excellent, it will be the perfect trial run. You know all of the students go into town on Saturday so there will be almost nothing to do, I'll lend you my cell phone, and I'll call you if I have any questions." She knew that the Miller's didn't have a cell phone.

"I'll think about it," Mr. Miller conceded as the bell to the lobby door rang.

Sydney, smiling at her success, leaned back in her chair while trying not to upset the Miller's cat, Tom.

Her eyes connected with Dr. Easton's as he entered the lobby. She leaned forward again letting her chair legs land on the floor with a thump that was similar to how her heart quickly rose in her throat and then fell to her feet.

He was supposed to be gone, and she was supposed to be headed out to the site's trailer when she finished dinner. Sydney listened silently, her smile pasted to her face as Mrs. Miller went on about her and Mr. Miller's potential plans for the following weekend, while she stroked the cat with a shaky hand.

She could feel Dr. Easton's eyes on her back as he had a quiet discussion with Mr. Miller, asking him if he had an extra room available for the weekend.

"Who's there Arnold?" Mrs. Miller asked as she rose to join the men. Sydney stood slowly, gently moving the cat to another chair before she began to clear the empty dishes off the table and move them to the sink. She needed to stay busy; maybe then she wouldn't notice him as much.

"No, we won't take no for an answer." She heard Mrs. Miller say as she drew Dr. Easton around the counter and into the kitchen. He had Flora with him, and the dog quickly crossed the kitchen and headed right for Sydney. Sydney looked down at Flora with a smile, giving her a soft hello as she leaned against her leg.

"Have a seat while I fix you a plate young man." Mrs. Miller bustled around the kitchen, patting Sydney on the shoulder as she thanked her for doing the dishes.

There were only so many dishes to wash, and once they were clean she had to turn around to face Dr. Easton, who was observing her as he listened to a somewhat one-sided conversation with Mrs. Miller. The lady was so pleased with the idea of a night on the town that she wanted to tell anyone that would listen.

"...And Sydney is going to watch things for us while we have an evening off, bless her. She says that we can even borrow her phone since we don't have one of our own." Mrs. Miller looked over at her and smiled maternally.

"Are you not going away for the weekend, Dr. Easton?" Sydney finally found the courage to ask as she looked down at an adoring Flora, who had wandered over to the cat in an attempt to make friends and been rebuffed with a swat only to return to the safety of Sydney's leg.

"No, I have a few things to catch up on this weekend." His eyes were cold, but his voice sounded friendly enough.

Having found out what she needed to know she nodded, giving Flora one last pat before she moved to the door. "I'm going to head back to my room Mr. and Mrs. Miller. I'll see you tomorrow." Sydney held up the book she had borrowed. "Thanks for this." Then she nodded at Dr. Easton and turned, leaving them as quickly as she could.

She didn't get very far across the property before she was stopped by a hand grabbing her arm.

"What's your game this time?" Easton asked in a harsh voice, forcing her to stop. "That nice couple in there have done nothing to you, what are you up to?"

Sydney turned to him, her eyes hard and her face flushed. The nerve of the man, suggesting that she would do something to upset or hurt the Millers. "Why do I have to have a game?" she hissed, pulling her arm from his grip. Noting that their private conversation was getting noticed by the students who had congregated by the pool.

"Because women like you always do," was his quick reply.

Well at least he saw her as a woman, mission accomplished, he just didn't see her as a nice one. "What kind of woman would that be, Dr. Easton?"

"The kind of woman who doesn't care about how her actions affect the people around her. The kind of woman who only thinks about herself and what she wants." He looked disgusted as he said the words.

"You're right. You've caught me red handed. I'm slowly stealing Mrs. Miller's library one book at a time because it's what I want, and I don't care how it affects her." She waved the book in his face before turning to walk away, but before she got very far, he pulled the book from her hand and looked at the title.

"I didn't take you for a cheesy romance reader." Easton threw the book at her, and she barely caught it.

"Be careful, it's not mine, and it's one of Mrs. Miller's favorites." Sydney tucked it protectively under her arm while watching his eyes narrow. She couldn't help but roll her eyes in response. "Why are you here, talking to me? You might give the others the wrong idea. Not that, as you so aptly pointed out, I care." She motioned over to the pool where they were covertly watched.

He looked at the group, frowning, then back at her. "And what idea would that be, Miss Mitchell?"

"That we're having a heated affair. How ironic that the one thing you're the most afraid of is what you are leading everyone to believe is true."

Easton's eyes narrowed, and his jaw clenched in frustration, but once again felt sorry for him, just as she had that night in the pool when he thought she might tell everyone what had happened between them.

"Don't worry, you've not been shy about letting everyone here know that you can't stand the sight of me, that I'm not worth talking to, and about your deep beliefs on my lack morals. You're belief in my inability to do my job has spread far and wide and become common knowledge among everyone involved with the dig, so I doubt that they think this is a friendly conversation, Dr. Easton." She started to walk away from him, but he grabbed her again.

"What are you talking about?" he looked furious and his face was turning a bit red in his frustration.

"Nothing, Dr. Easton." She didn't try to pull away since he was still holding her arm, but he wouldn't let her go as he stared at her as if he had never seen her before. His hand was burning her skin, and she was convinced that he was going to leave a burn mark.

"Why did you want to know if I was staying this weekend?" His sudden change of topic caught her off guard. Somehow, she didn't think that he knew that she was watching his dog, and she didn't want him to know for fear that he wouldn't allow it. She looked down at Flora who was smiling up at them utterly oblivious that they were arguing.

"Just simple curiosity, since you're generally gone by this time on the weekends," she shrugged, "or maybe I was planning my next game, Dr. Easton."

"Are you watching my movements, Miss Mitchell?"

"Isn't every girl here watching your movements, Dr. Easton?"

"Stop saying Dr. Easton at the end of every sentence!" he growled.

"Would you rather I call you Cole?" Sydney moved towards him as she dropped her voice. She was tired of the conversation, and she knew how to get rid of him. Especially when everyone was watching.

He took a step back and released her arm, but his gaze never left hers, and she felt a little thrill as his eyes dropped down to her lips and the tension between them grew. She felt her heartbeat speed up and her breathing became rapid as her gaze followed his lead.

"Dr. Easton!" Theresa called across the patio. "Come, join us."

He looked startled then alarmed as if he had been caught with his hand in the cookie jar.

Sydney forced a condescending laugh at his look when all she really wanted to do was cry. "Don't worry, they'll think the same as you, that I'm out to get the rich, handsome professor. It will be all my fault, not yours. Good for you for standing strong once more against my evil ways, but then you've already said I'm not worth it, right? Goodnight, Dr. Easton." She saluted him with her book then turned and walked away, her back rigid, wondering why every meeting with him had to be so hostile and, why despite that, he still had the power to make her palms sweat and her heart race.

She was almost to her room when Paige jumped out of the shadows and waylaid her.

"What was that all about? It looked as if Dr. Easton was mad at you," Paige asked with concern.

"He's still mad that I'm here Paige, and he was taking the time to remind me." Sydney unlocked her door, pushing it open. She was pleased with how realistic her lie sounded.

"I'm so sorry Syd, I'll tell him everything. That it was my-,"

"NO!" Sydney couldn't help her outburst. If Paige did that, he wouldn't have a reason to hate her. She took a deep breath knowing that she couldn't survive unless he hated her. "It will only make things worse. Please, it's only for the summer, and it doesn't matter what he thinks, I'll survive."

Paige followed her into the room closing the door behind her.

"Are you having fun?" she asked Paige, throwing her key and book on the bed while kicking off her shoes. Paige took the bait and Sydney listened for the next half hour about how awesome everyone was, especially Peter.

When Paige looked at her phone and saw the time, she gasped then ran for the door. "I have to go, or I'll miss my ride."

"Have fun and be careful!" Sydney called as Paige slammed the door behind her.

After her footfalls were gone, Sydney turned off the light and curled up on the bed, determined not to let Dr. Easton make her cry again. She closed her eyes tight and thought of all of the work that she had to do the next day until she finally fell asleep.