by Terry Spear
"What?"
"One-hundred and fifty acres."
"Ohmigod, we're land rich." She hugged Ted tight.
He kissed her. "Yeah, we are. And we'll set the house on the property that overlooks this river, right here." He showed her a map of the property. "It's the area I had always wanted if I ever found a mate and finally took Hal and Tracey up on their offer of owning the property."
"We can fish in the river," she said.
"And paddle in it. And swim in it too, during hot summer days."
"When you took care of me in the barn, I had no idea it would mean me being mated, having a new job, a real home, and acreage. It's like a dream come true."
"You are that for me. We'll have to build some stables out there so we can have the horses whenever we want to ride. It also means we'll have to have security cameras up to serve as sentry duty, just in case any hunters show their faces out our way."
"But it's still safer than being in Grand Junction," she said. "Right?"
"You'd better believe it. We have each other and all of Yuma Town to protect us." He kissed her and she kissed him back. “We can ride out there and see the property.”
“I can’t wait to see it.”
Once they had apple cider donuts and sausages, they took the appaloosas out for a ride across the valley. The sun had already risen but it was socked away behind building clouds and it looked like they were going to get some rain.
Both horses were eager to get out and exercise and Stella and Celestina were getting along famously. "Have you thought about a wedding date and where to have the ceremony?” He wanted to get the plans rolling.
"Here. I'm not sure about the wedding date. Uhm, maybe in between Thanksgiving and Christmas? That way we can see your family for Thanksgiving, and they can return here for Christmas and the wedding?"
"Okay, that sounds good to me." Tying the knot was something he didn't want to delay doing. "And we could go over house plans this weekend while you're here."
"Yeah, that would be good. For the wedding, even Koda and Zula should be there, freshly washed, smiles on their faces, tongues hanging out, him in a bowtie and her in a lacy collar. I’ll never forget how both the dogs were sleeping by my side, as if protecting me while I was resting from my injuries.”
“Yeah, I was looking for them and Kolby said they went into the bunkhouse. I couldn’t believe I’d find them sleeping next to the guest room bed.”
“You let them stay.”
“Sure. They were worried about you.”
“Thank you.”
He didn't mean to get them all scheduled up with stuff, but he did want to iron out some things so they could begin building their own place and figure out the wedding plans. "I figure once you've moved into the bunkhouse, you can get with the other ladies and talk about the wedding. But for this weekend, I want you all to myself."
She laughed. “There will be time enough when I move here to work on wedding plans."
"Right. And the weekend in between, after you give your two-weeks' notice, we'll be busy packing up your place."
"And other stuff."
He smiled. "Yeah. The other stuff takes priority over anything else."
"And then I'll finish moving the next weekend and we'll be here."
But he was thinking, unless she had a lot to move, he wanted her here for that last weekend. He’d move her Friday night and then be here for the whole weekend so they could have fun together.
"You know, I should have thought of this before we said 'I do,' but what if our kids are white cougars too?"
"They may be, and they'll be adorable. The only difference is that you have a whole bunch of cougars to love them, and they won't be given up for adoption, or served emancipation papers. They'll be loved by everyone, whether they're white furred or tanned furred."
She sighed. "Okay, good. I thought about it once, and we've had so much going on, I forgot about it. But if you hadn't thought of it, I wanted to be sure you could back out of the relationship before we got married, if it bothered you too much."
Smiling at her, he shook his head as they walked the horses through the woods. "You're mine for keeps. I did think about our offspring, but only in passing and they will be much loved no matter what."
She breathed a sigh of relief again.
"I know you've suffered from this your whole life, but you really are just one of us now," Ted said. "Nobody wants to lose you for any reason. Your parents and your adoptive parents didn't know the treasure they had in their midst. We do. I do."
"That's why I love you. You say such nice things, but you mean them too. Did you want to run as cougars tonight to the waterfall? I want to check out the area behind the waterfall and climb the cliffs to see what's beyond them."
"Absolutely. It might be rainy tonight, but I'm game if you are."
"Maybe earlier then. It would be more fun if we're not getting soaked on the run there."
"Okay, we'll think of something else to do when it's raining."
She smiled at him. "A western movie."
"And more." He planned to do more when they got home from riding and after they had lunch. Or before. With Stella, he was always just winging it. He loved doing what she loved doing, so he was good with whatever they came up with.
Then they would help take down Halloween decorations afterward.
"Did you get the fixings for the steak fajitas? Ever since you mentioned them last weekend after I was injured, I've been craving them."
"I did indeed. Would you like them for lunch?"
"Yes! I will think of nothing else until we return home."
Then he steered them to an old stone building off in the distance.
"What's that?"
"The old homestead. The Havertons have owned this property for ages."
"Oh, if I'd known of this, I could have hidden here after I was shot."
"You never would have made it. It's too far from the main ranch house and we never would have found you in time."
He dismounted from Pablo and tied him to a tree branch, and then helped Stella down. Then he tied Celestina next to Pablo. "Okay, this is a rattlesnake haven, but we can have a peek inside. They'll overwinter in old buildings like this. But as cold as it is, if there are any in there, they'll be sluggish." He used his phone light inside and they moved slowly into the building that had only half a roof, most of the walls still standing.
He didn't hear any rattling, and he figured nothing would come out to strike at them, though he was being cautious just in case. "Sometimes the kids want to come in here when it's hot, to get in the shade, but we tell them it's not a good idea because of the rattlesnakes that want to get in the shade too."
“This is so cool. I can’t imagine living here way back in the old days.” Stella shivered.
"Are you okay?" He rubbed her back.
"Yeah, it just brings back memories of being bitten."
Ted should have thought about that. He took her riding all over, showing her the pastureland and forested land, the river and the site where he would have the house built.
"This is beautiful, Ted. Can we have a rock wall around a garden too?"
He smiled. "You bet. I've often come here to view the beauty of this spot, thinking the whole backside of the house would have big windows to look out on the mountains and the river. It's high enough that the house would never flood if the water rose, but we can just run out the back door and play in the river. With kids? It'll be perfect."
"This will be perfect. And we can see the sun setting in that direction and—"
Three deer ran across the property and stopped to drink way off in the distance at the river's edge.
"And see all the wildlife too. This is just beautiful."
"Yeah, but I would never have taken Hal and Tracey up on their offer of the land until I met you. And then, I knew it would be the place to build our own home."
She smiled at him. "Our first real home together, and our first real home."
"Yeah, it couldn't be more perfect." He was glad she loved the land as much as he did. He knew the whole lay of the land, or he would have asked her where she wanted to put a house. But she seemed thrilled, so he was glad.
They heard thunder off in the distance then, and Ted said, "Let's head on back before the thunderstorm catches up to us."
On the return to the bunkhouse, they spied more deer racing across the pastureland.
"I bet you have tons of wildlife here," Stella said.
"Yeah, goats, deer, bear, coyote, an occasional wolf, and lots and lots of cougars. Not to mention a wide variety of birds—several different kinds of waterfowl. It's a great place to teach the kids about the wildlife that lives in our area. We taught the kids how to swim in the lake, the ponds, how to climb the cliffs as cougars and—"
"How to ride horses," Stella said.
He smiled at her. "Yeah. I'm sure glad you love the horses."
"And everything western—one cowboy especially."
By the time they arrived at the stables, it was pouring rain and they put the horses up, rubbed them down, and fed them before they headed inside to shower and make lunch. He'd had a great time already with Stella, but he hated how fast the weekend would slip by and he'd be missing her all week long.
The Australian shepherds both ran up to greet them as they came in from the rain and Ted shook his head. "You two are a wet mess." Ted grabbed a couple of old towels and began drying Koda.
"Don't the dogs usually stay at the main house?" Stella grabbed the other towel and began drying Zula.
“Here with me usually. But Kolby’s been taking them to get them out of our hair for the time being.”
After making love in the shower—no plans were better than scheduling things out sometimes—they made the fajitas together. Usually when Ted and Kolby took turns cooking, one would cook, the other would clean. But Ted had fun actually making the meal with Stella. Though he hadn't expected her to hug and kiss him while he was cooking, when he was usually totally focused on the task at hand. And that made it even nicer.
They finally sat down to eat, and she raved about his fajitas and how they were the best she'd ever eaten.
She wasn't kidding and she placed an order for more. He laughed and obliged. They'd worked up an appetite since breakfast.
The rain was beating down on the roof and the lightning was streaking across the sky in sheets and then forking to the ground, thunderous booms sounding minutes later.
"I guess none of us will be helping to take stuff down from the Halloween party for a while," she said.
"No. It'll get done eventually. Do you want to watch a movie?" he asked, after they ate the rest of their fajitas and then cleaned up the kitchen.
"Yeah, anything you want. It doesn't have to be western, really. I love everything."
So they picked a futuristic dystopian story, he started a nice fire in the fireplace to warm them up and they snuggled under a plaid blanket on the couch, the rain pouring in waves, the wind blowing, the lightning flashing across the sky, and the thunder booming overhead. He just hoped they wouldn't lose their electricity, though he knew what he was doing if they did. Forget flashlights and lanterns. He was taking Stella back to bed.
They ended up watching another movie after that, the storm not letting up and he made mulled wine to drink while they enjoyed the movie. This was nice, being with Stella like this. It wasn't the same as watching movies with Kolby, though luckily, they liked the same kind of stories, but snuggling with Stella was super nice.
When it was time for dinner, Stella wanted more fajitas.
Ted laughed. "Sure, I've got more." He had enough to make them for Kolby and the other ranch hands too, and extras in case they wanted them. His mother had always told him it was better to have more than enough food for a meal, than not enough—when she was entertaining guests. And since Kolby was at his brother's house for the weekend, and the other ranch hands at the main house, Ted had plenty of fixings for more fajitas for Stella and him.
"Good," she said, and she was already cutting up more bell peppers, really getting into the role of being his assistant chef. Or maybe learning how to do this if he wasn't around and she wanted to fix these for herself. Like even next week while she was still at the apartment in Grand Junction.
"I'm glad you're enjoying them."
"Oh, I am. I've only had them this good on a trip once. They were out of this world, but you managed to top even those."
Chapter 14
After dinner, Stella and Ted worked on a board game and when the sky cleared, Ted called the Havertons to see about taking down Halloween decorations and got a hold of Hal.
"We took down the dance stage and pulled up the dance floor. Some of the fall stuff is being left up for Thanksgiving, including the scarecrows. We already put away the Wizard of Oz characters before it rained. There wasn't really that much stuff to put away in the haunted house, so it's done. We're good, so don't worry about it. You can help with the scarecrows after you return from Thanksgiving, if they're still up by the time you return from Texas."
"Are you sure?"
"Yeah, Ted. Hell, you work all the time. You and Stella just have a good time."
"Thanks," Ted said, and he was glad for it. When they ended the call, he said, “Okay, no working on the Halloween decorations. It’s taken care of.”
“Oh, okay.” Stella wanted to run as a cougar. Ted was always game, and the two of them stripped, then shifted and ran out the cougar door without another moment's hesitation. With the clouds slipping away, they would be able to see the sunset and he was glad for that since they hadn't been able to enjoy one at the falls yet.
He had to remind himself that they had all the time in the world now to enjoy the sunsets once she moved here and that made him feel really great.
They raced across the pastureland and through the woods, then finally made it to the pond. It was sparkling in the shining sunlight that had just begun to set. For a moment, she stood watching it, then she licked his face, and tore up the cliff face.
He took off after her, having the time of his life. They finally leaped on top of the boulders until they came to the peak of the cliffs and sat there together, watching the sun set.
It was beautiful up here, especially sitting with his mate, who was the most riveting color of all.
They watched geese flying overhead toward a lake and saw a bear rambling off in the distance through a meadow to a stream. Both of them watched the black bear, instantly captivated. At least the bear was on the other side of the ridge, the waterfall and pond behind them. Though if it was one of the bears he’d met this summer, who was a shifter, they had nothing to worry about. The sun continued to sink in the sky, coloring the drifting clouds pink and gold and red. Then he saw a rainbow cross the sky and he licked her face. She licked his back, acknowledging she had seen the majesty of the rainbow too.
When the sun was nearly gone, she bounded back down the rocks, the chilly breeze whirling around them as they made their way down to the bottom. With night vision cat eyes, she could see in the fading light as she swam across the pond to the waterfall and beyond. Their cougar coats kept them warm and he swam after her and found her looking through the screen of water at him.
He moved through the spray of the waterfall and joined her, winding around her, rubbing against her body like cats do and licked her face.
It was time to return to the bunkhouse, shift, take a hot shower, and more loving.
The next morning, Ted and Stella were making breakfast—cinnamon pancakes, and pumpkin spice lattes, and she had the notion to return to the cliffs where she'd been shot so that she would have no fear of the area. "Have you found the spent shells around the cliffs where I was shot? At least the blood would have been washed away during yesterday’s storm."
"We had rain while you were sleeping in the clinic too. Dan told me that there was no evidence of blood anywhere that you had left behind, and we cleaned up the h
ayloft and the barn where the rain couldn't wash it away, so you're good there." Ted got on his phone and then put it on speakerphone. "Hey, Dan, Stella was asking if any evidence was left behind where the hunters had shot her on the cliffs, or near there."
"We cleaned them up, and then we took pictures of the shots fired at the barn and the casings left all over the place. We have several rounds we dug out of the barn walls. All of it was taken into evidence, including the two that Vanessa dug out of Stella's arm."
"Okay, good."
"As cougars, we can still smell where the shooting took place earlier, and we can smell the blood, but the evidence of the blood is at least washed away, so if the men try to have a lawyer attest to the fact that they shot a cougar and the trail of blood led all the way to the barn, it won't fly."
"That's good news." Ted asked Stella, "Did you want to ask the sheriff anything else about the shootings?"
"No, that sounds like we're covered, story-wise," Stella said.
"Thanks, Dan, we're about to eat breakfast. I'll check in with you later," Ted said.
"Have a great day." Dan ended the call.
Ted and Stella ate their pancakes.
"I want to go out there," Stella said.
Ted frowned at her. "To relive the trauma?"
She sighed. "No. I just want to prove to myself the hunters are gone and not out there looking to shoot a white cougar."
"We can ride out there."
"You don't want me to go in my white fur coat."
"No. I can't help but worry that they got the word out to someone about the injured white cougar. So unless we run at night or in the morning before daybreak or just farther away from where they claim to have shot you, I don't want anyone to see you as a cougar running in that area."
"Okay. We can ride there. I would love that. And I'd probably feel safer anyway." Though she had wanted to climb up on the rocks as a cougar, to prove to herself that she was really safe there and that the men wouldn't be there to shoot her again. "What about the rattlesnake?"
"It's too cold for them to be out and about. We had that one day where the temperature had risen, but not now."