The Touch of Sage

by McClure, Marcia Lynn

  Suddenly, Sage felt a sharp pain in the vicinity of her heart. She knew Reb was only playing with her—teasing and toying with her to unsettle her. As much as she longed to stay in his arms—drink more deeply of his perfect kisses—Sage knew the only way to endure the life that stretched out before her was to face it. Dreams of Reb Mitchell were nothing but make-believe, and she must keep her feet firmly on the ground. After all, she had a boarding house to run—and supper to serve to guests.

  Reb drew away from her, breaking the seal of their kiss as Sage stiffened in his arms and pushed at his shoulders.

  “I’m…I’m late gettin’ supper on,” she said as she smoothed her skirts and pushed past him. Reb caught her hand, and she looked at him, trying to withhold the tears begging to escape her eyes.

  “Sage, don’t be angry at me now,” he said.

  “I’m not,” she told him. “I understand.” Reb’s brow puckered in a frown.

  “Ya understand what, Sage?” he asked.

  “Cowboys,” she flatly responded.

  Reb’s frown deepened. “What do ya think ya understand about cowboys?”

  Sage took the butter down from the cupboard shelf and scooped a bit out with the butter knife, letting it melt on one of the cobblers.

  “Oh, you know how cowboys get. They go too long on the trail without flirtin’ and sparkin’, and their blood just gets to boilin’ like Saturday night stew. You said it yourself, that first day you arrived. ‘Ain’t nothin’ wrong with a little sparkin.’ Milly Michaels’s daddy would tan your hide if you took to returnin’ all the attention she slathers on you, and Katie Bird’s would expect you to propose marriage before he’d even let you get close to lookin’ at her. So I figure that leaves me as the safe girl to spark with…not havin’ a daddy to worry about. And everyone knows no one’s ever even considered—”

  “I appreciate yer regardin’ me so highly, Miss Willows. Not to mention yerself,” he growled as he angrily pulled his shirt on. Instantly, Sage regretted her accusation—the words she spoke in trying to protect her heart.

  “I-I didn’t mean…I just meant I understand and I won’t expect…I don’t hold you to…” she stammered.

  His angry expression coupled with his index finger pointed in her face ceased any apology she was trying to offer.

  “Ya need to quit thinkin’ ya know so much, missy,” he growled. “Especially where I’m concerned. ’Cause when it comes to me…ya don’t know nothin’.”

  “Oh, don’t I?” Sage asked. Reb’s eyes narrowed.

  “I don’t doubt ya’ve heard tell of Ivy Dalton…and I don’t fault Aunt Eugenia for tellin’ the tale to ya,” he growled. “I ain’t even gonna deny that I purty much stay clear of women ’cause of her. And maybe I do take to teasin’ ya too much…but it’s ’cause I like ya, Sage. And I like to think we’re good friends.” He stepped closer to her again, lowering his voice as he added, “And don’t tell me ya didn’t enjoy that kissin’ just now as much as I did.” Sage felt her cheeks turn vermilion and glanced away for a moment. “Everybody needs a good kiss now and then, Sage. And unless ya haul off and slap me right here…well, ya can bet I’ll do it again. I warned ya today…out in Ruthie’s pasture that I had a mind to kiss ya again.”

  “I thought you were only teasin’ me,” Sage whispered.

  “Oh, I wasn’t teasin’ then, sugar,” he mumbled as he looked down at her. “But…go on ahead and slap me,” he said. “Slap me now—hard as ya can across the face—and I’ll walk away and never touch ya again. I promise.”

  Sage looked down to the floor, catching sight of the peach lying there. Instantly her body began to shiver with pleasure—residual delight at having been kissed by Reb again.

  “I couldn’t slap you, and ya know it,” she mumbled. She fought the tears gathering in her eyes. “But…but I still know that you tease me because I’m safe.”

  “Ain’t no woman on the earth that’s safe, Sage Willows,” he grumbled. He shook his head, sighing heavily before chuckling, “ ’Specially ones named after plants.” He smiled and took her hand in his. “Ya gonna forgive me…again?” he asked. He smiled, “There’s just somethin’ about ya that winds me up…puts the devil in me, and I can’t help but try to make ya blush.”

  Sage smiled at last—although rather wistfully. He was too wonderful not to forgive—too wonderful not to hope for another kiss. Even if he was just teasing her, at least he counted her his friend—and that was something to be cherished.

  “I do understand,” she said. “My daddy was that way with my mama.” When he raised a suspicious eyebrow, Sage babbled on, “I mean…I mean…not that you…not that I…I know you don’t…”

  “I know what ya mean, Sage,” he chuckled. “Ya see? That’s just what I’m sayin’. I like to rattle ya. And ya rattle easier than them other ladies in the parlor.” Sage’s heart fell to her stomach with a thud. He was comparing her to the widows now. Had she become his sparking target simply because she was younger than the rest of the residents of the boarding house?

  “I better get back in there,” he said. “ ’Fore my Aunt Eugenia decides I’m in here ruinin’ yer good name.” Taking her hands in his he raised them to his lips, kissing the back of each one tenderly.

  Once he was gone, Sage released a heavy breath and blinked back her tears. Pulling one kitchen curtain aside, she glanced out the window into the night sky. She was disappointed to see the stars in the heavens, wishing instead for clouds and rain. Oh, how he had toyed with her emotions! Without even realizing it, he had taken her to the very zenith of joy one moment only to drop her into the depths of misery the next.

  Sage’s mind told her she should be flattered, glad and content with the fact Reb liked her enough to tease her—kiss her and be honest with her. But her heart longed for him to be hers—to want her and love her the way she did him. Oh, how she did love him! How she wanted to belong to him—be the cause of his happiness—feel safe in his arms every moment. But, as with everything in her life, it seemed she would have to settle for less than a dream, less than even the love many people found together.

  Sage had reconciled herself to her life as the lonely proprietress of a boarding house before, and she could do it again. At least this time she would have the memory of Reb’s kisses to keep her company in the lonesome years to come. She would hold to those blessed moments in his arms, be glad for them, and try not to pine away after what she couldn’t have from him. Truth be told, as miserable as she was knowing Reb would never belong to her, she was happier for having the small part of him she did.

  Reb sat in the parlor listening to the friendly banter of the card players. Yet his mind couldn’t let go of his behavior in the kitchen. What was the matter with him? Hadn’t he just that morning asked Sage to forgive him for what happened in the barn? Hadn’t he had to explain to her why it happened? In truth, he hadn’t really explained to her why he had kissed her in the barn. Oh, he had come up with some ridiculous excuse—being happy over his herd finally arriving—and in her innocence, Sage seemed to accept his sad rationalization. But now—this incident in the kitchen! What had he been thinking? The fact was he had not been thinking. He had walked into the kitchen to offer his help and hadn’t been able to resist teasing her.

  He adored the way her face turned cherry-red when he teased and flirted with her. He savored the taste of her kiss—the way her body fit so perfectly against his own. Again, he had offered some pitiful reason for his behavior—tried to wiggle his way out of telling her the truth. The truth was she was getting under his skin—and not the way a tick buries its head in either. She was entirely upsetting his plans to stay clear of a woman with the ability to claim his heart. Sage Willows was really getting to him—making him forget the way Ivy had crushed his ability to trust—to love.

  “Ya all right, Reb?” Charlie asked. Reb nodded and pulled his thoughts back to the moment.

  “Yep,” he said. “Just thinkin’ on that mountain lion and the herd,�
� he lied.

  “Well, don’t worry about it,” Charlie said, yawning. “Soon as we’re through with supper, I’m headin’ back to the ranch and get me a short rest. You been up the past two nights. I’ll keep an eye out tonight.”

  Reb just nodded, his thoughts still with Sage.

  “Anyone for supper?” Sage asked stepping into the parlor. She glanced at him when everyone stood up and started toward the dining room. He quickly winked at her and was relieved when she bestowed a forgiving smile on him. He wished her hair were folded in a long, loose braid the way it had been the day the herd came in. Still, it would’ve made her all the more tempting, and that was the last thing he needed—Sage to be any more tempting than she already was.

  Chapter Seven

  Two weeks later Forest Simmons’s lady dog finally bore her litter, and Reb was in town to pick up the dogs he had promised to look after. He had stopped by the boarding house, and it being Tuesday night, Reverend Tippets, Scarlett, and Winnery were there too. The residents of Willows’s Boarding House and their guests sat in the parlor after supper, visiting the way they always did.

  Sage couldn’t keep from staring at Reb. Every time she looked at him, her stomach filled with butterflies, and she couldn’t help but linger in the memory of the kisses she had shared with him. She let her gaze loiter on his mouth as he spoke—unable to think about anything except the feel and the taste of his kiss! The fabulous knowledge that Reb’s mouth—the same mouth that spoke and smiled and laughed here in the parlor with friends and family—that same mouth had been pressed to her own in a delicious exchange. Sage bit the inside of her cheek in an effort to keep from smiling—tried to swallow the excess moisture that flooded her mouth as she thought of his kissing her.

  Yes, her heart ached with the knowledge he would never be hers—but it soared at the same time with owning the attention she received from him. It was just as people always said—it was better to have known him for a time than to never have known him at all.

  Reb glanced over and caught Sage looking at him. He winked at her before telling his aunt, “Oh, now don’t go tellin’ that story, Auntie. There won’t be a woman left in the world that’ll want me kissin’ her now.” Sage blushed slightly under his gaze and turned her attention to Eugenia, who had begun to tell a story about Reb.

  “Well, Reb was maybe…oh, how old were you, boy?” Eugenia asked.

  “ ’Bout three, I reckon,” Reb admitted, slouching down further in his chair. Sage smiled, excited to hear the story. Apparently, it wasn’t one Reb was comfortable with, and that fact made it all the more interesting.

  “Yep. He was about two or three and cute as a button. Buck and I had given him a kitten from one of our litters, and Reb just doted on the cat something terrible. Anyway, he’d named the cat Calico, and eventually she had herself her own litter. Reb was just as kind and as carin’ as a child could be…set her up in the barn with a basket and a blanket so she could keep her kittens warm after they come,” Eugenia explained. “Well, one day, Buck and I was out visitin’, and all of a sudden, Bridie notices Reb ain’t nowhere to be found. All of us were in a panic, of course, ’cause Reb was forever gettin’ into trouble in some way or the other, and we just knew he was up to no good somewhere. Well, we were all lookin’ high and low for the boy…and when we found him…” Eugenia had to pause, for she had suddenly begun to laugh and was having trouble catching her breath.

  “It ain’t that funny, Auntie,” Reb mumbled, shaking his head and chuckling.

  “We found him…we found him…” Eugenia said as she tried to keep from laughing and catch her breath. Everyone else in the room began to catch her laughter, and Sage giggled at the sight of the older woman so knotted up with mirth.

  “Oh, for cryin’ in the bucket, Eugenia,” Mary grumbled. “Get on with the story. We ain’t got all night.”

  Eugenia inhaled a deep breath, “We found him out in the barn helpin’ Calico cleanin’ up her kittens…”

  “Oh, how sweet,” Scarlett said. “Reb, if that isn’t the cutest thing I ever heard!”

  “Unfortunately, Mrs. Tippetts,” Reb began, “ya ain’t heard it all.”

  Eugenia wiped the tears from her eyes and continued, “Oh, he was helpin’ that fool cat clean her kittens all right…lickin’ them over with his own tongue!”

  “Oh, good gravy,” Mary mumbled as even she broke into laughter. “Is that true, boy?” Reb nodded, and Sage laughed out loud at the thought of an innocent, caring little boy helping his mother cat clean up her litter.

  “I’m afraid so,” Reb admitted, though he obviously wasn’t as amused at the story as everyone else was. “I come into the barn and seen ol’ Calico a cleanin’ up her kittens,” he began, “and I remember thinkin to myself, Poor ol’ cat…tryin’ to clean all them kittens with just her one little tongue. I mean, she had eight kittens in that litter, and I knew how sore her tongue must be from lickin’ ’em all…so, I picked one up and started into helpin’ lick ’em clean.” Reb chuckled at the memory. Everyone was overcome with laughter, even Mary and Mr. Winnery.

  When Eugenia finally caught her breath she said, “Buck and I nearly dropped down and died right then and there!” She paused to laugh for another moment before continuing, “There he was…our little Reb, a tiny kitten in each hand, just a-lickin’ the little things clean like it was nobody’s business!”

  Mary was still laughing too, although not quite as heartily as perhaps everyone else. Still, she added, “It’s a wonder ya didn’t get sick, boy.”

  “Oh, but I did, Miss Mary,” Reb said. “Not with any disease or the like…but them cat hairs just kept pilin’ up in my mouth. I swear my stomach still rolls around at the thought.”

  Livie was fanning herself with one hand, torn between humor and horror as she said, “Oh, Reb! That’s just…that’s just awful!”

  Reb shook his head and said, “I told ya, Auntie…not a woman anywhere will have me now. Ya’ve spoiled my reputation with that story.”

  “I’ll still have you, Reb,” Rose flirted, promptly sitting down on the young man’s lap.

  “Will ya, Miss Rosie?” Reb chuckled.

  “Rose Applewhite!” Mary scolded. “Now ya leave that boy be.”

  Sage laughed too—although a tremor of jealousy traveled through her as she watched Rose harmlessly flirt with Reb. She wished she could be so forward and flirtatious with him—plop right in his lap as Rose had done and smother him with kisses.

  Reverend Tippetts wiped the moisture from his eyes and said, “Boy…that’s the funniest thing I done heard in a long time! In a long time!”

  Reb smiled, bouncing Rose on one knee sending her into schoolgirl giggles.

  “I’m glad ya found it amusin’, Reverend,” Reb said.

  “Rose Applewhite!” Mary scolded again. “Ya shameless flirt! Get down off that boy’s knee! For pity’s sake, woman…the Reverend Tippetts is sittin’ right here!”

  “Oh, you’re just jealous, Mary,” Livie said, going to sit on Reb’s other knee.

  “Hush, Mary!” Rose said. “We’re just reassurin’ Reb that he’s still attractive…even if he did spend his young years playin’ at bein’ a mama cat.”

  “Why, thank ya, Miss Rosie…Miss Livie,” Reb chuckled as the laughter continued. Reb bounced the two women on his knees, and they giggled like silly little girls. Sage smiled. She loved the way Reb teased her friends. He brought happiness and a fresh sort of joy to their lives, the way no one else ever had or ever could.

  “Anyone for more cobbler?” Sage asked. It was getting near to eight, and she knew how Scarlett liked to turn in early.

  “After a story like that,” Livie began, “I don’t think I could eat another bite of anything! Even peach cobbler, Sage.” Sage nodded and smiled.

  “And we better be gettin’ on home too, Whipper,” Scarlett said with a sigh. “Though I do so hate to see the evenin’ end.”

  “Me too, darlin’. Me too,” the reverend agreed. “N
ow, don’t ya go helping Forest Simmons’s lady dog too awful much in cleanin’ up her pups there, Reb,” the man chuckled.

  “Oh, I won’t, Reverend. I won’t,” Reb said.

  

  Once Reverend Tippetts, Scarlett, and Winnery had left, Sage sat down on the parlor sofa and sighed. She smiled as she looked to Reb, who had been talked into playing a few hands of rummy with her lady friends.

  “Now, Reb,” Mary began, “I’m assumin’ ya know how to deal correctly.”

  “Yes, ma’am, I do,” he said, grinning.

  Mary nodded and said, “Good. Don’t need another shifty dealer like Livie here.”

  “I deal fine, Mary, and you know it,” Livie defended herself.

  “Come on, Sage,” Eugenia said. “Play a game or two with us.” Sage smiled and shook her head.

  “I really should do up the dishes and…” she began.

  “Nonsense!” Rose exclaimed. “The dishes can wait. You’ve been workin’ all day, and it’s high time you had some fun. Now come on. Deal her in, Reb.”

  “Oh, I don’t know…” Sage began to argue.

  “Oh, come on, Sage,” Reb said, winking at her. “I’ll make it interestin’.”

  Sage frowned.

  “What do ya mean by that?” Mary asked. Reb raised his eyebrows and shrugged his shoulders.

  “You’ll see,” he said. “Charlie’s got his eye on the herd for a while yet. I got some time to spare.” He looked to Sage, a rather daring expression on his face. “Ya ain’t chicken are ya, Sage?” Sage smiled at him. How could she possibly refuse?

  “Deal me in,” she said. Reb chuckled and dealt a hand to Sage.

  An hour later, the residents of Willows’s Boarding House and their handsome guest still sat in the parlor playing cards. Sage was having a wonderful time. Reb made the game far more exciting just by his teasing manner and inability to win.