by Kit Morgan
Chapter Eighteen
Lorelei froze. How did he know?! She glanced at Grandma and her friends, now talking about the Christmas play.
Jefferson reached for a scone, drawing her attention. He took a generous bite as if forcing himself to eat it. Maybe he was trying to act as if nothing had just happened. But something had. If she only knew what. She sometimes did wear her heart on her sleeve – could he see how her thinking was starting to overwhelm her and make her panic? Yes, that had to be it.
But what if he really did know?
She made herself finish her cake, then poured herself another cup of tea.
“I’ll take a refill,” Grandma shoved her cup and saucer toward her.
Lorelei poured her tea with a smile then looked at Imogene and Cutty. The latter was studying her intently. Did he know something? Was she an open book to everyone here? If she was, would they accept what she was, or lock her up and melt down the key?
“I’ll have some more, too,” Cutty said, his eyes still on her.
She nodded as he held out his cup and saucer for her. She glanced at Jefferson, who was staring at Cutty much the same way Cutty was staring at her. It was beginning to feel a little like a standoff in … well, an old Western. Showdown at the Van Cleet Hotel.
She finished pouring and set the teapot down. “Mrs. Holmes, did you want any?” The question broke the tension and Cutty smiled at his wife.
“Yes, please,” the old woman said. “How was the cake?”
“Fine.” Lorelei had barely tasted it.
“Jefferson, didn’t you like yours?” Imogene asked next.
He looked at his half-eaten cake. “I wanted a scone too. I can take this home if I don’t finish it.”
“Sally always outdoes herself at teatime,” Grandma said. “It’s amazing we don’t all look like pot-bellied stoves.”
Jefferson smiled, his shoulders shaking with silent laughter. It made Lorelei feel better.
The tension gone, she did her best to relax and enjoy the rest of their tea.Again, she reminded herself she should enjoy this strange adventure while she could. There was no way to escape it, but she could still have fun.
When the tea was over, Jefferson once again did the gentlemanly thing and went behind her chair to help her up. He did the same for Grandma. She would miss these people’s good manners when she went home. If she went home. That thought gave her an icy feeling in her stomach and her hand automatically went to it.
Jefferson was at her side in an instant. “Are you all right?”
NO! I am NOT all right, she wanted to scream. I’m from the future. I was kidnapped and brought here and I, Don’t. Know. Why! She licked her lips then smiled at him, ready to say, “I’m fine.”
But he spoke first. “You don’t have to shout,” he whispered.
She blinked at him. “What? I didn’t say anything.”
He leaned toward her and whispered more quietly, “You said no, you weren’t all right, you’re from the future and were kidnapped and brought here and you don’t know why. You just about screamed it.”
“But … I didn’t say a word …” No, no, she would not faint!
“Then how did I hear you?”
She stared at him, wide-eyed. “I don’t know.” She closed her eyes. “Now I really don’t feel good.”
He stared at her intently, then glanced at Grandma. “I think I’d better get her home. She’s a little tired.”
Lorelei knew when to play along. “I guess I didn’t get enough sleep last night,” she said with a chuckle.
“You sure you don’t need anything?” Grandma reached into her pocket for her special medicine.
Lorelei smiled and waved her off. “No, I’ll be all right. I just need some rest.”
They said goodbye to Cutty and Imogene who were staying at the hotel for the night, then took Grandma home. By the time that was done it was time to return to the ranch, and Lorelei was glad for it. Now she really was feeling tired.
“Can we talk?”
That was the last thing she wanted Jefferson to say. She shut her eyes tight, as if that would make everything go away. Of course it didn’t. Of course she was stressed – she was fourteen decades away from home and had been given no chance to prepare for it, she was having to keep that huge secret from almost everyone around her, the boy she found she liked was suddenly able to read her mind (!), and she never knew when her abductors would whip back in, tear her away from the nice boy and his nice family and drop her back into her depressing life.
She didn’t say that. No need to make Jefferson suffer even more for her troubles. Instead she said, “Um, sure.”
He nodded, breathed – had he been holding it? – and said, “I’m sorry you’re going through all this.”
She could’ve melted into his arms in that instant and sobbed like a colicky baby. She wanted to. But not in the middle of Clear Creek That Was. “How do … how did you know what I was thinking back at the hotel?”
Jefferson shook his head. “I don’t know. I just … did.”
“What’s happening to us?” Lorelei shivered, but not from cold. Were they an “us”? Could they be?
Jefferson was quiet until after they reached the wagon, helped her onto the seat, got up himself and began driving out of town. The rest of his family had taken another wagon home. “I don’t know that either.”
Lorelei nodded sadly. “Boy, when the MacDonalds get back here, I have some questions for them!”
To her surprise, Jeff laughed. “I think we all do. I know Father wants to sit them down and ask a few.”
Now she laughed. It felt good. Her situation was bizarre, but at least she wasn’t alone. She had Colin and Belle Cooke, and Adele, and Grandma and Doc Drake. And most of all Jeff, who she’d totally fall for if she’d met him in her own time. Who she was falling for despite meeting him here. Yeah, she could admit that to herself. “I guess tea at the hotel didn’t go the way you hoped.”
“It sure didn’t. I was figuring I’d be asking you about what life was like in 2019 and who’d be elected president next year.”
“Honestly, I’m not sure who’s president now.”
“Rutherford B. Hayes –”
“Yes – ‘Old 8-and-7,’ right?”
He laughed again. “That’s him.”
“I remembered that from U.S. History class in school.” Okay, so after Hayes came … hmmm, 1880, 1880 … “James Garfield is the next president. From Ohio. But he got shot and didn’t last long. Gets shot. You know what I mean.”
“Oh my. Why did someone shoot him?”
She racked her brain. “I think they’d been passed over for a political appointment. His vice president took over – Chester Alan Arthur, and the only thing I remember about him is that he had these big muttonchop sideburns.” She drew her fingertips across her cheeks to illustrate.
“Huh. I guess he isn’t much of a president?”
“No. All the presidents between Lincoln and …” He wouldn’t know Teddy Roosevelt – not for another twenty years. “… and the end of the century are just so-so. Sorry.”
“Aw, that’s too bad. Are they any better in your time?”
Lorelei wasn’t sure how to respond. How would he react to a president who was black? Or one who was a real estate developer? Or one who’d gotten caught with a woman under his desk? She finally settled on, “Some are, some aren’t. It’s kind of complicated.”
When they reached the ranch, Jefferson whispered, “Meet me in the barn.”
Her heart began to race. “Okay …”
“If anyone asks where you’re going, tell them you’re fetching some wood. I’ll bring some in too. It’s part of evening chores anyway.”
She nodded. She’d brought in wood before supper before. Sometimes you had to chop some, which meant it took longer. She shivered at the thought of being alone with him, even though they’d been alone the entire ride back to the ranch. Belle must trust her son to have let them ride home togethe
r alone. Still, what would the rest of the family think? No wonder chaperones were such a big deal in these times – you never knew what could happen.
Jefferson helped her down from the wagon. His hands were so warm that when he removed them from her waist, she could still feel them. It was an odd sensation, but she liked it. Something was happening between them, and though she didn’t know how, she was getting a good idea of what. If she was right, it would only make it worse when the MacDonalds came back for her.
They were coming back for her, right? Unfortunately, the only way to double-check was to ask them, and they weren’t around to ask.
As soon as Jeff left for the barn, she hesitated. Things were getting even weirder, and that was saying something. She headed for the door, stopped, saw no one around. “I’d better get some wood for supper,” she said to help.
“I can help,” Thackary said, coming around the corner of the house.
“No, I’m fine. Besides, I think Jefferson went to chop some. Between the two of us we’ll get the evening wood in.”
“Okay,” Thackary said, sounding disappointed. He trudged up the stairs and went inside.
She breathed a sigh of relief and went out to the barnyard. Jefferson was already chopping wood in the woodshed by the barn. He must have figured it looked better – anyone could see them there but wouldn’t be able to hear them.
“What do you want, Jeff?” Using his nickname helped calm her raw nerves. The thought that he might tell her something she didn’t want to hear loomed over her. Whatever he had to say, she hoped she could take it.
He studied her face before his eyes flicked over the rest of her. “Who are you?”
Her heart sank. “You know who I am. Lorelei Carson.”
“No, who are you really? Where did you come from? Why are you here? Why …” He stopped and looked away. “Why am I able to … to know when you’re scared?”
She sighed. “I’m not lying to you, Jeff. I really am from the 21st century, from Clear Creek then. As to why I’m here or how you can read my mind or my heart or … I really don’t know. No one’s told me.”
“I know. But it’s so hard to believe. Especially when …” He looked at her again, eyes full of pain, and waved his hand between them. “It’s like I’ve gone plumb loco! But everyone acts like I’m normal, I’m fine – it’s like only I know I’ve gone ‘round the bend … and I’m not sure what to do about it.”
She sighed. “You and me both. I don’t know what it all means. I am sorry for scaring you … for being scared and making you sca …” She put her face in her hands. “The English language wasn’t made for messes like this.”
“There’s another language that is?”
“I don’t know. Ask the MacDonalds.”
He groaned and set down the hatchet he was holding. “It keeps coming back to them, doesn’t it?”
She nodded, lifting her face out of her hands. “They made the mess. Only they can fix it.”
Now he looked hurt. “Is that what’s happening between us? A mess?”
She shook her head. “Bad choice of words. Sorry.”
Jeff came to stand in front of her. “Lorelei, this has been going on for days. I haven’t said a word to anyone except you. I thought it was just me, but this afternoon at tea I thought I’d have to leave the hotel, it was so strong.”
And here she thought she was the one in the hot seat. Now he was telling her the weird stuff no one would believe. She went to the chopping block and sat. “I don’t understand this at all.”
“Neither do I. That’s why I wanted to talk to you. To see if … you feel it too.”
“Feel what?”
“Feel me.”
She stared at him hard, as if that would help. But it did remind her of the calming effect he had on her with his voice, the tender looks he gave her, his presence. He touched her heart in ways no one ever had. “Now that you mention it … yeah. Though it’s not the same.”
He raised one eyebrow. “What do you mean?”
“I mean … I feel … I think I feel something from you or that is you or – see what I mean about language? – but … yeah. Only I don’t feel your fear. I feel your peace, your … faith? Your … it’s like you’re telling me everything will work out all right.”
That lifted his other eyebrow. “I am? Because I’m scared out of my wits.” He chuckled nervously.
“But I’d never guess that. When I’m around you, when you’re talking to me or looking at me, it’s like, it’s like I’m being wrapped in a blanket. I feel … protected, safe, no matter how stark raving terrified I feel otherwise. I can’t explain it, Jeff – it just happens … is it okay to call you Jeff?”
“Yes. I like it.” He paused, swallowed, as if steeling his nerve. “I like you.”
“I like you too.” But she couldn’t miss the despair in her own voice. “I don’t know what to do about it, though.”
He looked as sad as she felt. “Yeah.”
She sat and he stood in silence for a minute, thinking their own thoughts. Finally, she stood, knowing she had to do something. The wheelbarrow sitting to the side gave her an excuse. “I’ll load the wood, you chop it?”
He smiled, as if she were giving him a break too. “Good idea.” She went to the wheelbarrow while he came over and took up his hatchet again.
As she tossed wood into the barrow, she knew she’d made the right move. She was numb all of a sudden. Too much had happened in too short a time, and she – they – had too few answers for it. Some light physical labor was just the tonic to take their minds off it. Though not entirely – nothing could do that.
The wheelbarrow was halffull, and she was gathering more pieces when he stopped her with a hand on her arm. “Huh?”
“Don’t tell anyone. It was hard enough to tell you.”
“You know I can keep a secret.” She smiled.
He smiled back. “Yeah.”
“Though … maybe we should tell your parents. They’re in on it too, and … well, they’re your parents.”
He nodded judiciously. “I’ll have to think about it.” He half-turned to go back to the chopping block, then stopped and turned back. “I want us to be friends.”
Her heart sank to her toes. The “friendzone” was the kiss of death in her world. It meant someone wanted you around but didn’t want you for anything more. “Just friends?”
Apparently not, as he blushed almost purple. “Well, I mean … I … not … awww …”
She covered her mouth to keep from laughing. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to put you on the spot … er, to embarrass you. But … yes, I would like us to be friends. And maybe … if …” Drat, now she was blushing.
“Yeah, maybe. If.”
Before she knew it, her arms were around his waist and she was burying her head in his chest. “I’m sorry,” she sobbed. “I know I shouldn’t be doing this, but if I don’t …” Then she stopped hearing, stopped seeing, as something permeated every fiber of her being. A glorious peace filled her, banishing all fear and trepidation. She needed this. She needed him.
Why? her mind asked. Who cares? her heart replied.
“It’s all right, Lorelei, everything’s going to be all right,” he said against her hair. “You don’t have to be afraid.”
They shouldn’t be embracing like this. Even she was familiar with the general decorum of the period. But she couldn’t let go if she wanted to.
He held her tighter and something deep within her responded, as if it was diving into him. Like a dam breaking, she began blubbering like a baby in his arms.
“Shhh, it’s okay,” Jeff whispered. “You’re okay. I’m here.”
Lorelei’s body shook with racking sobs as everything she’d kept hidden from the world poured out of her. She was helpless to stop it. And it didn’t matter. Only being with Jeff did.
* * *
Jefferson felt his first tears fall. How could they not when the woman in his arms wept so desperately? He held Lorel
ei as tight as he could without hurting her, and she cried as if he were squeezing poison from a deep wound. It had to be done. He didn’t know how he knew that, but he just did. It was instinct – he was doing something he’d always known how to do, but never knew he knew.
Was it strange? Yes, but what had happened since she arrived that wasn’t?
Who was she, this beautiful young woman who’d been dropped into his life from another time? Why did his heart demand he do something to protect her, keep her safe from the fear that threatened to tear her apart? Were they both going loco? He didn’t know. Right now, he didn’t care. He felt a peace he’d never known while holding her. Was she giving it to him? Was it something new? Would there ever be an end to the questions?
“Jefferson?”
He looked up, his cheek resting on top of her head, and saw his father by the woodshed, a lantern in his hand. So another question: how much trouble was he in?
“Jefferson, what’s going on?”
Jeff squinted against the light, tried to let go … and couldn’t. “She’s scared.” He was more than a little nervous himself.
His father watched them a moment. “Perhaps we should send Major for the doctor.”
Lorelei, still crying, managed to reply. “I don’t think there’s much he can do …” She wept some more.
Jeff sensed she’d emptied herself of the worst of it but didn’t want whatever was left to take hold of her again. Again, he didn’t know how he knew; it was just there, like his own heartbeat.
Father fidgeted, like he felt there was something he should be doing but had no idea what. Which made two of them. “Bring her into the house,” he finally said.
“I will.” But he couldn’t move, only hold her tighter. The thought of pulling away made his blood turn to acid. What was this? He tucked a finger under Lorelei’s chin and brought her face up to look at him. “I’m taking you into the house now, okay?”
She sniffed back tears, reached a hand between them and wiped her nose on her sleeve. “Okay,” she whimpered.