"The Little Bit of Paradise" picks up from this point and speeds through the emotional dynamic between Jesse and Billy, playing it out in fast-forward. Jesse is overjoyed to see Billy alive and well, but his happiness is quickly overshadowed by the realization of what has transpired. A series of passive-aggressive macho exchanges ensues between the two, culminating in a classic Wild West duel brimming with implications, if not bullets. Jesse, eager for Billy to ride with his crew, is advised by one of his associates that it's ill-advised given Billy's bounty on his head in two counties. Nevertheless, Jesse continues to stare at him through windows and makes loaded comments to Barbara about their supposed connection. And it's understandable why; Billy and Barbara share a kiss yards away from him, and Billy tells her he loves her. Despite this knowledge, Jesse lends Billy a horse, and when Billy departs after a touching goodbye with Barbara as if they were a real couple and nobody's watching, Jesse points a loaded rifle at Billy's retreating back – he can't fire, though, because as Barbara points out, he loves Billy. But does he?
Frankly, this whole sequence is nonsensical; we haven't seen enough of Billy's time with Jesse, and especially not Barbara, for any of this emotionality to ring true. In truth, I was relieved when Billy cantered away, sparing us all from any more of these melodramatics.
Billy moves on to Chihuahua, where he's prompted to reminisce about his family. We get the idea that the show is going for here; that Billy is a fundamentally nice guy whom the Wild West is determined to make a killer of. A limping young boy abuses his kindness and steals his boots. He's mugged and beaten by three men until he's saved, in some ways, by Melquiades Segura, a degenerate gambler in a fair amount of debt to a man named Don Ortiz.
Segura's eyes flash with dollar signs when he sees how handy Billy is with a six-shooter, and he wants Billy to help him expose Don Ortiz's cheating in a game of poker and recoup his losses. The vibes are off in the illicit poker den, but Billy performs as advertised, and he and Segura make off with a hefty amount of loot. And, of course, they blow it in celebration. Well, kind of. During the night, they meet two women who invite them for dinner with their supposedly well-to-do mother. They flatter Billy and Segura, get them drunk, and eventually steal all their belongings while they're passed out. The next morning, the "mother" explains that the girls were her nieces, and they've already left for Sacramento.
With no other way to regain their funds, Segura tries to talk Billy into robbing a bank. But we're to understand that Billy is dead against crimes that hurt people. Cattle rustling is one thing, but stealing the savings of innocent women and children like his mother and brother? Not the same. With his moral code still intact
