by Carol Rose
"And Nora is Stoneburg's official jezebel," Bret inserted for him.
"Well, it's probably just mean spirited talk. Some folks don't have anything better to do." Jim shuffled some papers on his desk. .
"They're talking, all right." Bret straightened from the chair. "You're right about one thing, Jim. I don't have to do anything right this minute."
It could still work out. There were at least a dozen obstacles to Nora getting that land. And even if she did manage to overcome them, things had gone too far for him to confess now.
Too many people knew about his plans for the Turner property. If he withdrew his bid, Nora could still hear about it. And if she did, he was likely to see an ugly end to her warm embraces. On some level, she still held back from him, even without knowing of his interest in the property she coveted.
Bret shoved his hands into his pockets. He'd just have to bide his time and hope his luck held out.
"Just come look at it, Nora," Bret said, propped against the stall as he watched her fussing with Chessie's tack. "There are fifteen acres just outside of Bluegrove. It has a barn that's in pretty good condition and plenty of room for a riding ring."
She brushed at a spot of mud on the leg of her jeans. "I can't now. I have to go change. I have that appointment with Mrs. Turner this afternoon."
"That's hours away. We'll run over to Bluegrove, see this property and be back with time to spare."
"You must think she'll reject my offer. That's why you want me to look at this other property," Nora accused.
Bret tried to draw her into his arms. "It never hurts to have options. Maybe you'll like this place better."
"I won't." Nora tugged free, remembering her promise to herself to try and stay Bret-free for at least a day. Ever since they'd made love in the pasture, she'd felt irrevocably bonded to him, connected in a way that made no sense. Despite all she knew about men, everything felt different with him.
Even though she knew it wasn't.
It still amazed Nora that she'd allowed herself to roll around naked in an open field with Bret. There'd still been no talk of love between them. If she'd completely left sanity behind, she'd ask him how he felt about her. But the thought of an answer she didn't want to hear left her paralyzed.
Still, she loved him, even without knowing the terms of their relationship from his viewpoint. With her heart wide open, she was taking the biggest risk of her life.
"Do you think anyone would notice if we got naked right here and did the wild thing?" Bret murmured against her temple as he cupped her bottom. ''I've taken to carrying a few condoms."
Nora squirmed in his grasp, her body heating to near readiness at the thought. "We're in the middle of a busy barn," she said shakily as he nibbled her neck. "Anyone could walk in."
"Let's risk it. All I can think about is making love with you." He caressed her breast through the chambray shirt she was wearing.
"Bret, please," she whispered raggedly. "One of your ranch hands could walk in.”
"Okay." He straightened with a regretful sigh. "At least come with me to this property. It's a glorious day. We should enjoy it since we're bound to get another thunderstorm soon."
"I don't know," she hesitated, struggling with an urge to go home and get dressed for the appointment.
"Come on. It'll take your mind off Mrs. Turner." He took her hand and tugged gently, leading her out of the stall.
"Are you sure we'll be back in time for me to change? I can't go to see Mrs. Turner smelling like a horse."
"We'll just nip over there and come right back. I promise." He tucked her hand in his. "And I try never to break a promise."
"You have to do more than try," Nora threatened, allowing the distraction of his presence to lift her anxieties. There was too much riding on the meeting this afternoon.
She followed him to his Jeep.
All around them, birds chattered, saturating the warm air with the sounds of spring. As Bret started the Jeep, Nora stretched her arms up, filling her lungs with the scent of grass.
A foolish sense of contentment flooded her as they drove out of the barnyard. It was the same sensation she'd carried with her since making love with Bret under the tree. Only her anxiety about getting the land ruffled her bizarre sense of well-being.
Her life had never been more disrupted or uncertain. She lived under her mother's roof, unable to afford a place of her own, the people of Stoneburg were still convinced she was a hussy, and she'd lost her heart to a man who would only hurt her.
She lifted her face to the rushing wind. So why she did she feel so thrilled just to be alive?
As they jounced down the dirt road, rutted by rains, Nora turned to study Bret, trying to temper the idiocy he caused in her. She'd been burned by a man before. What made her feel any more safe this time around? Her reverie ended as the Jeep bounced over a rut in the road, the movement lifting her out of her seat.
Bret pulled the vehicle to a stop where the gravel drive met the blacktopped road.
"How do you know about this place?" she asked.
He shrugged. "I drive over that way sometimes. I know a couple of people who live in Bluegrove."
"I saw you out riding General this morning," Nora volunteered, shoving back her windblown hair as he turned the Jeep away from Stoneburg.
"Yeah. Just getting a little work out."
"You looked good. I can see why the two of you have won the Association race so many times.
Bret grinned. ''I'm not a bad rider, but General's the fastest horse in six counties."
"Chessie's pretty good too," Nora said with pride. "I bet we could give you a run for your money."
He glanced over, surprise on his face. "You think so?'!
"Don't be misled by Chessie's manners," Nora warned him. "She has a great heart."
''I'm sure she has," Bret laughed. "But it'll take more than that to catch General"
Nora made a face at him. "You're so cocky."
"Maybe so." He threw an arm around her shoulder, the other hand carelessly controlling the Jeep. "I tell you what. Let's have our own personal race. And the winner gets to have his or her wicked way with the loser."
"You might be surprised," she warned.
"Possibly," he said, grinning at her.
Nora looked away. He obviously didn't believe she and Chessie were any competition. Leaning back against the seat, she let the subject drop. The day was too perfect to argue.
They sped along the quiet country roads, the occasional pickup truck pulling courteously onto the shoulder to allow them to pass. Farm-to-market roads webbed the countryside, a tangle of turns leading from Stoneburg to Bluegrove in the next county.
Nora leaned her head back against Bret's arm, soaking in the warmth of the moment and refusing to allow herself to worry about the meeting later this afternoon. The sun streamed down with a faint sizzle as it hovered near the pitch of the arching blue sky. The whip of the wind felt good against Nora's skin as they neared Bluegrove.
"The piece of land we’re looking at is just west of town," Bret said as he turned the truck again.
"This is quite a way from where I am now," Nora reminded him. "Most of my riding students are east of 287."
"That's the nice thing about Texas. People are used to driving with all this wide open space."
Within a few minutes, Bret turned off the highway onto a dirt road with deep, water-filled ruts.
The barn was visible from the road. A ramshackle gray structure with boards missing, it didn't look like a bargain.
She held her tongue as they jolted down the short, obviously unused drive. Although there were two other small buildings next to the barn, Nora couldn't see a house anywhere nearby.
Bret pulled the Jeep up in front of the barn. "Well, this is it." He got out and walked around to her side, holding out his hand. "Let's go in. I don't think they keep it locked."
"I wonder why," Nora said under her breath as he towed her toward the structure.
&
nbsp; "I know it doesn't look like much now," Bret conceded as he dragged the barn door open. "But there's potential here and even the Turner property needs a lot of work."
"True. But not nearly as much as this place does." Nora peered through the dim light at several inadequate stalls.
"But you could probably get this place cheaper," he argued. "And you'd have more money for repairs. Let's look it over."
Nora followed him, picking her way around the debris that littered the wooden floor. Sunlight streamed through holes in the roof, the dusty shafts filtering down to illuminate a huge, splendid spider web.
Drawing in a sharp breath, Nora stepped back.
"I...think I've seen enough," she groped her way gingerly back toward the door. Stepping out into the sunlight, she breathed a sigh of relief.
Bret followed her, pausing to shoulder the barn door shut. "Okay. There'd be a lot of clean up."
"Clean up?" she echoed incredulously, glancing back. "This place needs a wrecking crew. Or a strong wind."
"You're being negative," Bret chided. "Come around back. There's a great place for a riding ring."
Nora followed him, grateful for her jeans as she clambered over grass and weeds that reached up to her knees. The area behind the barn was level and open, not counting the weeds.
"Well?"
"It's a nice clearing," she admitted. "But in and of itself...I mean, it would have to be mowed and plowed, a fence put in .... "
"You'll have to do some of that with the Turner place, too."
"You're giving me such a hard sell, I have to believe you're sure Mrs. Turner is going to reject my offer," Nora said dryly, as he lead her around the barn to where the Jeep waited.
"Not necessarily," he said. "I think you're relying too much on getting that particular land. It never hurts to look."
"I've looked," Nora said, bending to scratch her ankle above her short hiking boots. "Can we go now?"
"I just want to show you one more thing." He climbed back into the Jeep. "Come on. We'll drive down to it."
Nora got in and hung on as Bret veered off the waterlogged drive and headed the Jeep over a field alongside the road. They jounced over the soft surface, the Jeep engine straining and whining as the wheels slipped.
"Exactly what are you showing me?" she shouted over the noise of the engine.
"A creek. It runs right through this place."
The Jeep slipped to the right and hung for a moment, its wheels spinning before catching harder ground.
"Maybe we should go back," Nora said, spotting bigger puddles as the ground sloped to the valley where the creek ran.
"We're almost to the road," he said. "There's a bridge I want you to see."
Hanging onto the windshield with one hand and her seat with another, Nora waited until the Jeep had come to a stop at a flat place not far from the creek. Trees grew thickly around the creek bed, their roots gravitating to the source of water.
Water rushed and bubbled over rocks, the shallow banks almost overflowing from the recent rains. To their right was the main route to Bluegrove, spanning the little stream by means of a picturesque stone bridge.
With the Jeep engine turned off, the only sounds to be heard were a delightful mixture of gurgling water and the song of birds. A damp carpet of new grass spread underfoot and the bright hue of tiny leaves sprang out from the branches overhead.
Nora glanced at her watch. A little over an hour until her appointment. "It's really beautiful, but why didn't we just drive down the road?" She gestured at the blacktop not eight feet away.
Bret grinned. "We get a better angle this way."
"Maybe so," she conceded, staring at the brown stains gathering around their footsteps, "but the ground is really wet."
“Just a little surface mud. Hey," he whispered suddenly, "we could go skinny dipping!"
Nora shifted out of reach. "We'd freeze."
"You wanted to take a bath before you see Mrs. Turner." He stretched out a hand as she backed away, laughing.
"No playing around. You promised to get me back on time."
He sighed heavily. "So I did. Okay, but I think we're missing a terrific opportunity."
Nora thought so too, but she didn't dare agree. Before she knew it, Bret would have her flat on her back, naked as the day she was born, locked in an ecstasy she had to give up.
Climbing back into the Jeep, she waited while he came around to join her. The engine roared to life and they rolled forward an inch or two when he pushed the clutch down. Nora grabbed at her seat again preparing for another rackety ride.
Shifting into first, Bret gave the Jeep some gas. The tires slipped on the grass and mud, the rear end sliding to the right.
Nora looked down in alarm, spotting a slick muddy patch under the wheel nearest her.
"Oh, no." She pivoted to face Bret.
"Relax." He stepped on the gas pedal again, trying to rock the Jeep out of the growing rut.
"I have to make this appointment."
"I know." He frowned. “Just hang on."
Minutes ticked past as he wrestled with the gas and the steering wheel, trying first one direction and then another.
"Here," he thrust the Jeep in neutral, "you give it the gas while I push." Jumping out, he went around to the back.
Nora nervously clambered into the driver's seat, reluctant to drive the beast and unsure how to do what he wanted.
"You do know how to drive a stick shift, don't you?"
"Yes," she said. "But I've never driven a Jeep."
"Same basic principle," he said. "Just go forward."
"Well, I'm not going backwards when you're standing there," she snapped.
"That's a relief," he said, laughing.
"Can we just get going?"
"Sure. One-two-three, go."
Nora stomped on the accelerator. The engine bucked under her, whining and roaring, shaking the Jeep, but not moving.
"Wait a minute! Wait a minute!"
She swiveled around to look and, despite her growing anxiety, she had to bite her lip to keep from laughing. Bret was covered in mud from head to toe.
"Oh. Oops." She tried to keep the smile off her face.
"Yeah, oops." He wiped a glob of mud from his cheek and slung it away. "Just give it gas gently this time. "
"Okay." Nora glanced at her watch again, and groaned. The minutes were ticking away. They just had to get out of here.
"Now." Bret called out. "Gently."
She pressed down on the gas pedal, concentrating to keep herself from losing patience with the stupid vehicle. Weren't Jeeps supposed to be able to go anywhere?
"Okay, okay," he yelled out again. "This isn't working." He slogged around from behind the Jeep looking like he'd been dipped in chocolate.
Nora didn't even smile, her anxiety over the appointment keeping humor at bay. "What now?"
"Now I try something different." He bent down and rummaged under the driver's seat. "Have you seen a rope or a chain in here? I usually keep one under this seat."
"No." She ducked down, eagerly helping him look.
"How are we going to use a chain?"
"There's a winch on the front of the Jeep," he pointed out, reaching back to explore behind the seat. "If we have a chain, we can hook it around a sapling and pull the Jeep out."
Nora glanced in the direction he gestured, noticing for the first time that when the rear wheels slipped toward the road, the front end pivoted toward a grove of small trees.
"But I'm not finding the damn chain."
The frustration in his voice comforted her some. At least he was taking this seriously.
Bret straightened and went around to the passenger side. "Where the hell is that chain? There's nothing in here. No chain, no rope." He searched a few minutes longer before standing up and staring into space as if scrutinizing his mind for the answer.
"Surely there's something in here," Nora bent to look under the seat, panic rising in her. After a moment she gave
up, a helpless, doomed despair starting to creep in. She had to make that appointment with Mrs. Turner, and that was that.
"Let me try something else." He grabbed up some branches lying under the trees and pushed them down under the rear tires. Then he came around and got into the driver's seat.
For what seemed like hours, he coaxed the Jeep forward incrementally, again and again. Each time, it slipped back. Nora felt her nerves tightening and made herself promise not to burst into tears. They were losing precious time. There was no way she'd be able to get home, get dressed and make the appointment.
"If I could just get it to stay forward," he muttered, the Jeep idling between onslaughts. "What could we use as a rope?"
Nora didn't respond, using all her energy to keep from looking at her watch again and trying not to cry.
Bret glanced around the Jeep, his eyes stopping on a huddle of fabric in the rear. He laughed out loud, startling her.
"What's so funny?" she asked with an edge.
"Me," he chuckled. "How about we take off our jeans and use them with this denim jacket to make a rope?"
Swiveling around to gape at him, Nora wondered if he'd lost his mind. "A rope out of jeans?"
"You know, like using bed sheets to escape from a window," he laughed again.
''I'm glad you're finding this amusing," she muttered.
Bret stared at the windshield for a moment. "You know, it's not a bad idea."
"Are you nuts? You seriously think we could use our clothes to get this stupid thing moving?" Her voice rose with her frustration.
"Yeah, I do." He smiled at her, his eyes alight. "Come on, sweetheart. Get naked with me."
******
Chapter Nine
"I don't appreciate your joking at a time like this." Her voice trembled with the effort to remain calm.
"I'm not joking. I think this could work."
"How? How could it work?" she challenged him.
"We tie the jeans and the jacket together and knot them to that sapling," he nodded toward a nearby tree, "then we attach the other end to the winch and I crank us forward a little."