It was farfetched, but it made a lot more sense than a strange woman in period clothing wandering around the woods warning Connor about an impending injury.
Remounting, Connor headed home. She knew the little girl really meant her no harm. Renata was just frightened of losing her father. It was a very real fear based on the action her mother had taken. Was there that much difference between abandonment of affection and death? Not to a child. Especially one as desperately needy as Renata.
The entire incident made Connor’s head ache and her heart sore. There had to be a way for her and Clay to reassure Renata, to make her understand that Connor would never take anything away from her. If Renata would only allow it, Connor had so much to give her. The ride back to the barn was uneventful. Connor was surprised to see Clay’s BMW parked beside the arena, and he was pacing in front of the barn. He was wearing a gray suit with a white shirt and red tie, the politician. Only his hair, curling and unruly about his collar, revealed his love of mischief. Sadness like a sharpened arrow pierced Connor’s heart as she thought that she might have to leave Clay. For his own good, and for his children’s.
“I thought you’d be up at the house with Renata,” she said, as she rode up and slid to the ground. Together they walked into the barn, leading Tinker.
“I wanted to talk with you first. What happened?” Clay’s forehead was furrowed with worry.
Connor told him the entire story, including the “visit” by the stranger, as she unsaddled and groomed Tinker. She also told him of her findings along the trail and her belief that Renata had fabricated the story.
“She doesn’t really want you to leave, Connor. She’s upset, and she’s fighting back the only way she knows how. If she really understood how desperately I need you, then she’d want you to be here, too.” He led her into the office and closed the door. His arms went around her, cradling her against his chest. “When you said this morning that you wanted to stay here, I thought I’d never know a happier moment.”
Connor felt all resistance go out of her body. How could she consider leaving Clay? It was impossible. Nothing in heaven or on earth could force her away from him. Renata would have to be dealt with—in a way that made her feel secure and loved and wanted. And Clay’s political future, though not a way of life she’d have chosen, wasn’t impossible to manage. She could learn some of the subtleties of political life, and if the truth were known, she might enjoy some of the travel and entertaining. Her mother had always had a way of making any- and everyone feel welcome.
“We can work this out,” she whispered.
“Tonight, I want to talk with you about all of this.” He kissed her forehead. “But first I’d better have a little talk with my daughter.”
“Are you going to mention the woman in the woods?”
Clay hesitated. “I don’t think so. I’ll let them tell me. If Renata’s made this up, and I certainly can’t imagine some lost actress wandering around Oaklawn, I don’t want to encourage her by acting like I know about it. Maybe Danny’s come to his senses and won’t repeat it.”
“Maybe.” Connor wasn’t sure that ignoring the problem was the best way to deal with it.
“What do you recommend?” Clay waited for her answer.
“Maybe you’re right.” Connor didn’t have a better solution. “Let’s try it your way and see what happens. Just make her feel loved, Clay. I think that’s the most important thing right now. The rest will iron itself out as we become more sure of what we want.”
“I know what I want,” Clay said, leaning down to kiss her.
And Connor felt her doubts dissolve as she opened her mouth for his kiss. Clay’s touch was like a drug. She hungered for it.
She busied herself at the barn until dinnertime. As she walked up the shell drive, she thought how beautiful Oaklawn was. Did Clay really appreciate it as she did? Probably not. He’d grown up with it. The things that seemed so remarkable to her were part of his day-to-day consciousness of the place. Like the way the tallow trees were gnarled and twisted against the backdrop of the setting sun. They seemed ancient, perhaps a bit sinister. But also very beautiful.
Connor was almost through the pecan orchard when a flicker of movement near the woods caught her attention. The day was fading and the light was poor, but she was certain she’d seen someone moving swiftly from tree to tree.
She stopped in the middle of the path, shifting slightly from side to side to find out who it was. Probably Sally going off to meet Jeff, because there had been a furtiveness to the figure. In the dusky light, Connor strained her eyes, but she couldn’t see anyone. Sally had gone to the doctor, and she’d obtained advice on protection against pregnancy and disease, but her fever for Jeff had not run its course. Not even Willene’s stern disapproval could keep her away from Jeff for long.
If Sally was running around for some clandestine meeting, Connor didn’t want to seem interested. Sally, after all was said and done, was of legal age. Her affair with Jeff was her business.
Turning back toward the house, Connor walked on. Instead of the front door, she went to the back. By entering through the kitchen she could check the temperature of the household. If Clay was involved with Renata and Danny, it might be better if she took her dinner in her room. She pushed open the door and drew in a sharp breath.
“Eeeeiii!” Sally thrust the door back in her face.
“Sally!” Connor was shocked. She caught the edge of the door and held on, balancing precariously on the top step for a moment.
“Connor!” Sally pulled the door open. Her face was pale and her freckles stood out in bold relief. “You scared the living hell out of me.”
Connor, still clinging to the door, had been pulled forward by Sally’s grip. She stepped into the hallway. “You didn’t do a lot for me. I thought I saw you in the orchard just a moment ago.”
“Me?” Sally looked doubtful. “I’ve been in the kitchen all afternoon, helping Willene.”
Unable to stop herself, Connor glanced over her shoulder at the orchard. There was no movement in the trees. “Well, you couldn’t be standing here and out there, so I must have been mistaken.”
“I opened the door to call you and Jeff and Old Henry. Willene wants you for dinner and wants to give them some things to take home with them.” Sally looked out the door. “I hate going out there when it’s dark.”
“I’ll go with you,” Connor offered.
Sally shook her head. “No, it only makes them tease me more if I show I’m afraid. It’s just that sometimes I feel like someone’s watching me. Someone bad.”
“Like Jeff?” Connor couldn’t help herself.
Sally laughed. “I know you don’t like him much, but that’s not what I’m talking about. I mean like someone who would hurt me.”
“And Jeff wouldn’t?”
“Connor!” Sally scolded. “That’s hardly fair. You sound like old Willene the manhater. No wonder she never married.”
“I’m sure she has her reasons,” Connor said. “How have things been in the house?”
“Oh, with Mr. Clay here all afternoon? Well, he’s been in the library with the children. They’ve been talking, and there were some giggles. Maybe a few tears from Miss Renata. I heard she gave you a rough time this morning.”
“Not me so much as her pony. I’m afraid I snapped at her.” Connor walked past Sally and opened the kitchen door. The delicious aroma of apple pie wafted out to her. She was starving.
“That little girl has a mean streak a mile wide, just like her mother. And she’s not above making Danny suffer for it.” Sally’s hand lingered on the doorknob, but she made no effort to step out. In the few moments they’d spent talking, night had fallen.
“I’ll go with you,” Connor offered again softly. “I’ll say I forgot something at the barn.”
“Would you?” Sally looked at her and then down. “I know I’m a fool. I know it. But I can’t help myself.”
“Lots of people are afraid of things, e
specially the dark, Sally. No point in beating yourself up about it. Chances are you’ll outgrow it.”
“I might if my brothers would quit leaping out from behind bushes and barns. They like nothing better than to torment me, and Willene’s almost as bad. She thinks it’s funny to make me jump and scream.”
“Let’s go.” Connor held open the door, and together they walked through the orchard.
“I really thought I saw you earlier,” Connor said, remembering the furtive flash of movement.
“Are you trying to scare me now?”
Connor chuckled. “It sounds like it, doesn’t it.” She walked a few paces before she heard the sound of an ax falling. “Jeff!” Connor called the foreman’s name. “Jeff!”
The chopping stopped, and Connor and Sally walked on.
“Jeff!” Sally called out. “Where are you?”
“Right here!”
The voice behind them made both women scream and whirl around.
Jeff’s laughter was rich, smug. “You both got a case of nerves tonight, don’t you?”
Connor bit down hard on her lip to stop the ugly reply that fought for release.
“Jeff, you shouldn’t scare us like that.” Sally giggled, but it was weak and nervous. “You might give somebody a heart attack.”
“I thought you wanted to play games in the dark with me, girl,” Jeff said. “Maybe Connor, too.”
“Jesus Christ!” Connor snapped. “Tell him the message, Sally, and let’s get back to the house.”
“Oh, why don’t you let me walk little Sally home?” Jeff said. “She might feel safer in the dark with a man.” He chuckled again.
Connor couldn’t see well, but she could see well enough to know that Sally wanted nothing better than a walk with Jeff in the dark. “Find Old Henry and give him Willene’s message. Then you’d better get back inside. Willene will be counting the minutes. You know how she is.”
“If that old bat had a man of her own, she wouldn’t be so worried about what Sally does,” Jeff said slowly. “I used to think the same about you, Miss Tremaine. But I’ve been noticing that our boss has been bird-dogging you pretty good.”
Connor felt Sally’s stare. “You have an active imagination, Jeff. I’ve heard that can be a dangerous thing.”
“I’ve heard sleeping with the boss can be even more dangerous. That’s another area where your performance, or lack of performance, might get you fired.” He laughed out loud.
“Jeff, that’s not very nice.” Sally’s voice trembled. “I don’t think you should imply those things about Connor and Mr. Clay. You know how he is about gossip.”
“Oh, well, that’s gossip,” Jeff said. “Let’s forget about it and see if we can’t find Old Henry before he falls asleep in the woods and rusts.”
“He’s in the woods?” Sally didn’t sound very enthusiastic.
“He was checking the fence over by the lake.” Jeff had grown impatient. “Are you coming with me, or are you going back with Connor?”
“I’m coming.” Sally touched Connor’s hand. “You okay to go back alone?”
“Sally, I think I’m a lot safer alone than you are with Jeff.” Connor turned on her heel and started back to the house. She didn’t mind the dark, not in the least, but she did mind the idea that Jeff Helveston was traipsing around in it.
“Connor?”
She was almost at the patio when she heard Clay call her. “Right here.” The patio flooded with lights as Clay hit the switch.
“A vision from the gods,” Clay said, reaching out to her.
“Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, that’s for certain.” Connor laughed as she walked up the steps and into his embrace. “How are the children?”
“Reassured, coddled, chastised, and ready to beg your forgiveness.”
“Aha, not only the future salvation for the State of Alabama, but a miracle worker.”
“If anyone is going to save this state, it’s going to take a miracle worker.” Clay’s teasing tone dropped away. “Things are worse than ever.”
“Oh, Clay, I didn’t even ask how things went with your campaign director.”
“We’ll talk about all of this once the children are asleep.”
“We’re actually going to talk? I had other things in mind.” Connor brushed her hand along his leg as she spoke.
“You’ve become quite wanton in the last few weeks.” His hands cupped her breasts. “What do you attribute that to? I thought you horsewomen were … self-sufficient.”
“I stumbled onto this wonderful lover, and I’m becoming increasingly addicted to his touch.” She stood on tiptoe and kissed him. “To his kisses.” Her hand slipped to his waistband, her fingers sliding provocatively inside his pants. “To his … ability to pleasure me.”
Clay’s groan was a mixture of anticipation and reprimand. “Where did you get that southern phrase?” he asked her even as he slipped his hands down the back of her riding pants, cupping her buttocks and lifting her against him.
Connor laughed as she kissed his neck. She could feel his immediate desire for her, and she felt a rush of power, of warmth and happiness. “You inspire me, sir.”
This time Clay’s groan was physical. “The children are waiting for us and I can’t go in there like this.” He took her hand and demonstrated his predicament.
“You’re just an animal, Clay. Face it.” Connor backed away, laughing.
“I’ll get even with you tonight,” he warned her.
“I’m counting on it.” She darted down the hallway and into the warmth of Willene’s kitchen, her face still flushed with happiness and anticipation.
“You look like the cat that ate the canary,” Willene said, as she spooned streaming mashed potatoes from a pot into a bowl.
“I don’t have any complaints about life tonight,” Connor said.
“I do.” Clay entered the kitchen. “I have a willful, smart-mouthed horse trainer for an employee.”
“You get what you pay for,” Willene added, entering into the fun.
“Aha, the women are ganging up on me,” Clay said. “I’ll retreat to the library until I’m notified that dinner is served.”
“Take your willful horse trainer with you,” Willene said. “It won’t be ten minutes.”
Connor hesitated at the library door, but Clay stood so close behind her she walked in. Danny and Renata were playing Monopoly in front of the fireplace. Both looked up.
“Hi,” Danny called. “Want to play?”
“Looks like you’re in the middle of a game. You’d better go on without me.”
“Hello, Connor.” Renata put the dice down. “I’m sorry for the way I behaved this morning. If you’ll say Danny and I aren’t grounded, I promise I won’t ever mistreat Erin that way again. At least let Danny ride—he was only trying to keep up with me and stop me.”
Although Connor searched for some hint of play-acting in Renata’s face or voice, she could find none. The child sounded sincere.
“I’m sorry I threatened to spank you, Renata. Only your father should discipline you like that. I was upset about the pony. You could have injured Erin.”
Renata got up and walked to Connor. “I love Erin. I know now that I can’t do things that might hurt her. Daddy explained that I’m responsible for taking care of her at all times. Please let us ride.”
Connor smiled. She brushed Renata’s bangs back and let them fall across her forehead. “Okay. This time we’ll forget the whole thing. Just remember, Erin’s counting on your good judgment.”
“Great!” Danny threw his hands in the air. “Up until we saw the … I mean, Renata and I had a great ride up until we went too fast. Tomorrow, can we ride together again? There’s this great place Dad was telling us about where there’s a spring and all with a tree growing over it. We want to go there. To explore. There might be treasure or something there. Willene says those outlaws rode around here all the time. She said James Dickerson hid out in our very woods and he might h
ave left something there. Renata and I might find it and then we’ll buy presents for everyone.”
Connor looked at Clay. “I’m comfortable with them riding together, are you?”
Clay nodded. “I think it’s a good idea. I want them to love Oaklawn as I do. One way to do it is to explore it and learn it for themselves. Then it will always be theirs, with their own secret places that they can show their children.”
“Dinner is served,” Willene said. She bonged a large wooden spoon on a pot. “I thought I’d announce it formally.”
Everyone laughed as they walked to the dining room and took their places.
The glance Clay gave Connor as he took his seat beside her was filled with mischief. “Eat hearty,” he whispered, “I have plans for tonight. You’re going to need your strength.”
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Connor awoke the next morning to bright sunshine and an empty bed. Clay had slipped away sometime in the wee hours of the morning, dousing all the candles and removing the empty champagne bottle. She smiled at her memories.
They’d spent little time talking. Instead, they’d fallen on each other as if they’d been separated for years. When their first, driving hungers were satisfied, they’d turned playful. Clay had a way with champagne and his tongue. Even now, completely sated and bone-weary, she could still feel the rising tide of desire as she thought back over the night. There was nothing she and Clay did that seemed wrong. Tender, savage, playful or in deadly earnest, their lovemaking was wonderful. How had she ever lived without him?
She stretched, sorry to know she’d missed the early morning hours at the barn, but so satisfied that she couldn’t summon even a shred of regret. The future had never looked so promising, and the present was wonderful. She thought of her father, galavanting around Australia, and hoped he had awakened to his own version of some tantalizing promise.
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