One Night With a Sweet-Talking Man

by Ana Leigh

  “Well, how come he’s a cousin to all of you, but not mine?”

  “He is, in a way. You understand that Lissy’s and my brothers’ children are your cousins, right?”

  “Right.”

  Jed nodded. “Good. That makes them your first cousins.”

  “But there’s a lot of them. How can they all be the first one?”

  “That’s what it’s called if it’s a child of your aunt or uncle.”

  “Which uncle?” Garrett asked.

  “Any of your uncles.” From the blank look on the boy’s face, Jed knew he’d just confused him. “I guess we’ll have to back up a bit. My father had a brother, my uncle Henry. And Uncle Henry had a son named Rico. That makes Rico my cousin, because he’s the son of my uncle.”

  “Your first cousin.”

  “Absolutely right! My first cousin. And just like Rico is my cousin, because he is the son of my uncle Henry, you are a cousin to all the children of your father’s sister and brothers: Jake, Clint, and Cody; Jeb and Sam; Danny; Ted, Sarah, and Rachel.”

  “You forgot Baby Hope, Dad,” Garrett said.

  “Of course, Baby Hope,” Jed replied, trying to keep a hold on his patience. “They’re all your first cousins. But since Rico is my first cousin, he’s your second cousin.”

  Garrett reflected for a long moment. “I don’t understand. Rico’s older than my other cousins. Right? So how come he’s not my first cousin, if he’s the oldest one?”

  Jed closed his eyes. He wasn’t sure he was ready for fatherhood. Maybe fatherhood was something a man had to be gradually conditioned to rather than having it thrust upon him.

  “No, Garrett. It has nothing to do with age. It’s about generations.” He sighed deeply. “Let’s start over. Your grandfather was born before your father. Your father was born before you. And then you were born. So that’s three generations. Right?”

  “Okay,” Garrett agreed. “What’s a generation?”

  “What are the two of you talking about so seriously?” Caroline asked, sitting down and joining them.

  “Caroline! I’m glad you’re here.” Jed got to his feet. “I have to go and hitch up the buckboard. Garrett has a question he wants you to explain.”

  He hurried away.

  The day finally arrived when Jed felt it was time to introduce Garrett to a saddle. Fortunately the horse was already saddle broken so there was only the need to do the same to the intended rider.

  Caroline and Nathan stood back and watched. Trembling with excitement, Garrett waited as Jed led out Liberty and Runt.

  “Now, Garrett, the first thing you have to know about mounting a horse is that you always do it from the left side of the horse. You gather both reins together loosely in your left hand, grasp the saddle horn with the same hand, then raise your left leg and put your foot into the stirrup. Then you swing your right leg over the horse and slip your foot into that stirrup. But you don’t hesitate between these steps; it’s all done in the same movement.

  “I’ll demonstrate what I just said. The only difference will be that I’ll do it slowly.” He went over to Liberty and gathered the reins, then grasped the saddle horn. “Do you see what I did?” he asked. Garrett nodded. “I’ll do it one more time.”

  When he finished, he said, “Now let me see you do that with Runt. At first you might need to grab the saddle horn with both hands; that will give you a stronger lift to pull yourself up.”

  Caroline held her breath as Garrett followed Jed’s instructions. He looked so small, even next to the little horse.

  A half hour later, Garrett had succeeded in swinging himself on and off the horse without mishap.

  With Jed astride Liberty and Garrett on Runt, she watched nervously as Jed demonstrated how to hold the reins and coordinate leg movements with them to indicate direction and speed to the horse.

  When Jed was satisfied with Garrett’s progress, he dismounted, leaving Garrett on his own. “Let’s see you ride down to that pine clump and back again.”

  “Are you sure he’s ready to ride alone?” Caroline asked worriedly.

  “Of course. Frasers are born knowing how to ride.”

  Garrett passed the test with flying colors to the applause of his mother and grandfather. Dismounting, he rushed into her open arms and flung his arms around her neck.

  “I did it, Mama! I rode Runt all alone. I can ride a horse!”

  Hugging him, she glanced up and saw Jed grinning as he watched them, unaware of the tears of happiness sliding down her cheeks.

  Garrett scrambled away and remounted Runt. “Come on, Buffer,” he shouted.

  “Keep it slow, son,” Jed shouted to the departing rider.

  “And stay in sight,” Caroline called out.

  Nathan came over and shook Jed’s hand. “Well done, Jed. You’re a good instructor.”

  “I had a good student.” He glanced at the distant rider wheeling his horse around to return and smiled with pride. “He’s a Fraser, all right.”

  Caroline could feel his sense of pride in her own heart. She slipped away and returned to the house. Seeing how thrilled Garrett was warmed her heart, but riding a horse was also dangerous. He could be seriously injured if he fell off it.

  Why did Jed have to do this so close to the time he was leaving? Had he discussed it with her, she could have explained her reservations and recommendations. Garrett would be a year older by the time Jed returned, and at the speed he was growing, it would have made a big difference in his size and maturity.

  Her father came into the room and sat down at the table. “He did well, didn’t he, honey?”

  She looked up and smiled. “Yes, he did, but it’s another thing I have to worry about. Now that he can ride, it could be opening up a Pandora’s box if Garrett starts disobeying the rules Jed established.”

  “Aren’t you being pessimistic, honey? There’s no reason to think that he’ll do that. Garrett usually obeys what he’s told to do.”

  “I hope you’re right. I just wish Jed had discussed his intentions with me. ‘Frasers are born knowing how to ride.’ Does he actually believe that? It’s ludicrous.”

  Nathan reached across the table and squeezed her hand. “Caroline, from the beginning you’ve convinced yourself Jed is a threat in some way. It goes deeper than that, doesn’t it, honey? What’s wrong, Caroline?”

  “I’m afraid of losing Garrett, Father. He worships Jed.”

  “Do you resent that?”

  “No, I’m…I’m hurt by it. He once came to me for answers, but now he seeks advice from Jed.”

  “Because right now Jed is a novelty to him, honey. In time he’ll turn back to you, and you’ll be able to scoff at these fears.”

  Caroline leaned on her elbow and cupped her head in her hands. “I’m not sure, Father. One minute I’m grateful he’s around, and the next he does an impulsive thing like this and I want to curse the day he came into our lives.”

  “Are you in love with Jed, Caroline?” Nathan asked gently.

  She raised her head, her expression tortured. “I wish I knew. I feel something for him, but can I call it love?”

  “Well, I think you should decide soon, because he’ll be gone in another week. If you love him, you’re wasting precious time when you could be together.”

  Caroline got to her feet. “I’m going to take the buggy and ride over to the mill. I’ve neglected my bookwork.”

  “You’re riding over alone?”

  “I’ve done it plenty of times before, and the ride there and back will give me time to think about my situation with Jed. Where are they now?”

  “They rode off to the river to go swimming.”

  “I guess it didn’t occur to either of them to ask me to go along.” She walked to the door. “I’ll be back in time for supper.”

  “Where’s Caroline?” Jed asked when they returned home.

  “She rode over to the mill to catch up on some of her ledger work,” Nathan said.

  Jed glanc
ed up at the darkened clouds overhead. “How long has she been gone? It looks like we’re in for quite a storm.”

  “Caroline said she’d be home for dinner.”

  An hour later, when the distant rumbling had grown more severe, Jed had begun to pace the floor. “I’d have thought she’d be home by now.”

  “Frankly, I did, too. Caroline’s got more common sense than to let herself be caught in a downpour,” Nathan said.

  “Maybe I’ll ride out and meet her. Is there any possibility she’d take a shortcut home?”

  “The trail is the shortest route home,” Nathan said.

  “Maybe she’s run into a problem with the buggy. I’m going to saddle up Liberty and check it out.”

  “There’s a couple of rain slickers in the barn. It might be wise to take them with you in case you don’t make it back before the rain hits.”

  “Thanks. Hopefully we’ll meet up on the trail.”

  Jed quickly saddled Liberty, stuffed the slickers into the saddlebags, and took off on a gallop.

  Absorbed in her work, Caroline let the hours slip by. Now, as the rumble of thunder announced the approaching storm, she went to the window and saw she had better leave if she intended to get home before the storm struck.

  She closed the ledger books and gathered them up to take home to finish them, then carried them outside and tucked them away in the carriage where they would remain dry. Then she quickly reharnessed Belle to the buggy.

  The skeleton crew at the mill waved to her as they hurried to the comfort of the bunkhouse for the evening.

  Caroline ran back inside to get some papers she needed and reached to extinguish the oil lamp. She jumped back as a rifle blast shattered the window glass, and the oil lamp at her fingertips fell over. A narrow stream of oil and flame slithered across the desktop, then raced down a table leg to the floor and began to consume a wooden chair.

  The smoke that was swiftly filling the small cabin stung her eyes, and she tripped on a chair and fell to the floor. She began to crawl on her hands and knees toward the door, when a pair of strong arms suddenly snatched her up and carried her outside.

  “Caroline, were you shot?” Jed asked.

  “No,” she managed to gasp through her coughs.

  Several of the men had come outside when they heard the gun blast, and they ran over to the cabin at the sight of the flames.

  “Let’s get that hose working before this spreads,” the foreman, Pete Dodge, shouted.

  A couple of the men came running with buckets in hand and began to throw water on the burning building, while several others strung a hose into the river and began to pump water onto the roof and walls of the mill to wet it down.

  “It’s too late to save the office,” Dodge shouted. “Some of you men spread a fire break with dirt to keep the fire from spreading to the trees.”

  Jed was struggling to move the buggy, but Belle, who had smelled the smoke, was rearing in a frenzy to break lose. He finally managed to control her enough to get to the river, away from the burning building.

  He grabbed a scarf of Caroline’s lying on the seat and dunked it in the water, then raced back to the compound and handed the scarf to her. “Tie this over your nose and mouth.”

  The air was thick with smoke, but fortunately there was no wind to scatter the sparks into the trees. Despite the valiant effort of the limited men, though, patches of fire had crept to the shrub and brush near several trees and their bark had begun to burn.

  Caroline felt near to exhaustion when, like an answered prayer, the sky opened up with a downpour. Within minutes the fires all fizzled out, and the men tossed shovels of dirt and mud over the ashes that fought to survive.

  Despite the downpour, they formed teams and sawed down the trees that had been burning in case any sparks remained. As lumbermen, they knew what a few sparks fanned by the wind could do to a forest.

  When they were finally confident that all was secure, they looked around at the damage. Only sodden ashes remained of the office and nearby privy, but the two main structures, the mill and bunkhouse, were unscathed.

  Suddenly a rifle cracked, and Jed shoved Caroline to the ground and threw his body across her as a bullet whizzed by from some nearby foliage. Pete Dodge drew his Colt and returned the shot. The bullet found its mark, and they heard the sound of the concealed shooter falling to the ground.

  They approached cautiously.

  “It’s Bomber!” Caroline exclaimed. “Oh, my God! We shot an innocent man?”

  Pete Dodge knelt down and examined his gun, then shook his head.

  “Bomber, did you fire the shot?”

  The man nodded. “But why did you try to kill me?” Caroline asked, stunned.

  “Your fault,” he managed to gasp. “Yours and your Reb husband’s. All this would be mine. Calhoun promised…if I’d help drive you out.”

  “Did you tamper with the axle of the buggy, too?” Jed asked.

  “Yeah. Meant to scare the boss.”

  “What about the accident when you were blowing stumps?” Jed asked, trying to tie up all the loose ends.

  “Did that on purpose. Didn’t put up warning flag, and knew when to light the fuse so the kid wouldn’t get hurt.”

  The dying man’s voice was fading, and Caroline had to lean over to hear him.

  “Then he left…told me the deal was off.”

  “You mean Calhoun?” Jed asked.

  Bomber nodded. “He laughed when I told him I’d tell the sheriff.”

  “But why did you even get mixed up with him, Bomber? You’ve worked for my father for years. He liked you, trusted you.”

  “Tired of working for other men. Wanted my own…” His voice trailed off as he closed his eyes.

  “He’s gone,” Pete said.

  Caroline stared into space, shocked and confused, until Jed slipped an arm around her shoulders and led her to the buggy. He put one of the slickers on her, seated her, then went back to the other men.

  “Did Bomber have any relatives that should be informed?” Jed asked.

  “None that we know of,” Pete said. “He was a loner. Kept to himself and never spoke much to anyone.”

  “Then you might as well bury him. Since we all witnessed what happened, and heard him confess to it, there shouldn’t be any problem with the sheriff.

  “I’m taking Caroline home now. On behalf of the Collins family, thank you, men, for the great job you did. I know Nathan will come tomorrow to thank you himself.

  “Since you’re the foreman, Pete, I’ll leave it to your discretion what you want done here. But if these were my men, I’d sure as hell figure they’ve earned a rest,” Jed added with a grin as he tied Liberty to the back of the carriage.

  Pete laughed. “I had the same thought in mind.”

  Jed shook their hands and thanked them again, then drove away.

  They were about halfway home when the sky darkened, and the rain and wind increased violently. Soon the torrential rain made visibility impossible.

  Jed had to shout to be heard above the howling wind. “Is there any place nearby where we can take shelter?”

  Caroline shook her head. “N-none th-that I kn-know of.” She was shivering so badly, her teeth were chattering.

  A back wheel hit a rut and was sucked down into a muddy sinkhole. Jed jumped out of the carriage to check it out.

  He’d been at sea during hurricanes, and although this storm wasn’t quite as severe, he didn’t even attempt to harness Liberty for some extra horsepower; the wisest thing they could do was to find some shelter and get out of the path of the wind.

  He lifted Caroline out of the carriage and carried her into the trees lining the path. Then he slogged back in the mud to the carriage and returned with the two horses.

  The trees did little to protect them from the rain, but at least they were out of the force of the wind. He looked around at the dead and fallen branches lying on the ground, and thought of an idea.

  He tied the end
s of Liberty’s reins around one of the big branches and propped it up high enough against a tree to form some cover below it. By the time he added two more branches, he had enough of a lean-to for both of them to crawl under. It was a crude shelter, but it warded off the rain.

  He took off his slicker, shook it out as best he could, and spread it on the ground. Then he peeled off Caroline’s and shook it out as well, and proceeded to pull off her boots and stockings.

  “Wh-what a-are y-you d-doing?” she protested, when he started to unbutton her shirt.

  “Getting you out of these wet clothes before you catch pneumonia.”

  He stripped off her shirt and skirt. Her camisole was just as wet, so despite her attempt to ward off his hands, he pulled it off and tossed it aside.

  “D-don’t e-e-even th-th-think it, Fra-fraser,” she ordered through her chattering teeth when he reached for the waistband of her bloomers.

  “This is no time for modesty, Caroline.” He yanked them down her legs and pulled them off her ankles.

  “Now lie down.” His firm hand forced her back. For several minutes he rubbed her legs and feet vigorously, then her arms and shoulders. “Turn over.” She continued to shiver, and he rubbed her back.

  “D-don’t tr-ry t-to t-tell m-me y-you ar-ren’t en-enjoy-ing th-this,” she accused when he did the same to the cheeks of her rear end.

  “I shall think of this moment very fondly some night when I’m standing a lonely watch at sea.” He couldn’t resist giving that little butt of hers a tender swat. “Are you feeling any warmer, darlin’?”

  “N-not mu-much.”

  “Funny, I’m beginning to feel a lot warmer.”

  Jed stripped off his clothes and rolled her over. Then gathering her in his arms, he held her tightly against him, and pulled her rain slicker over them.

  The heat of their bodies melded, and soon he felt her relax and her shivering cease.

  “Thank you, Jed. I feel much better now.”

  “Since it’s still raining, there’s no sense in moving yet. When we do, we’ll have to leave the carriage since it’s stuck in the mud. Do you think you can handle Liberty?”

  “I can give it a try. What about you? You’ll have to ride Belle bareback.”