Under the Open Sky (Montana Heritage Series)

by Michelle Maness

  “I need to get ready for work. What are you doing today?”

  “Going to see Daddy.”

  “Will it be awkward seeing Cade?”

  Amanda shook her head, “No, Cade and I seem to be able to smile at each other and somehow understand what that means. My only concern is my brother picking up on any tension between us.”

  “Oooohhh yeah that would not go over so well,” Jenny winced.

  “It’s none of his business; I’m eighteen but he seems to think I’m still a child.”

  “He loves you, Mandy; he just wants to look out for you.”

  “I know, but sometimes he crosses a line.”

  “Well I have to tell you that as soon as I saw you two together today I knew something had happened; I thought maybe a lot. Oh, and you have whisker burn all down your neck and collar,” Jenny supplied with a smile. Amanda groaned. “Is it too warm for a turtle neck?” she joked.

  “Yes,” Jenny laughed.

  Amanda sat up and rubbed at her collar bone. “Will it fade?”

  “At some point.”

  “But how long?” Amanda, her eyes wide, demanded.

  “How am I supposed to know? I don’t bring drunk cowboys home and make out with them.”

  “I’m serious, Jenny. Do you think it will fade soon?”

  “Aren’t we funny, two virgins trying to hide our illicit behavior. Or yours rather; I’m innocent in all of this.”

  Amanda grabbed one of the pillows they had dropped and slapped Jenny with it before standing to go shower; maybe a shower would help.

  Amanda visited with her dad and aunt for much of the afternoon until her dad got a call to come and pick up a bull he had bought. Amanda then meandered her way to the barn where, as luck would have it, Cade was brushing down one of the horses. Several hands were working in the field just off from the barn, installing a new gate.

  “Hello, Cade,” Amanda, her hands in her pockets, moved to lean against one of the nearby stalls.

  “Hello, Manny,” his smile was rather wicked and garnered one from Amanda in return.

  “You still mad at me?” he asked her.

  “I’m still thinking about it,” she pouted and watched his smile widen.

  “Manny, love, you are going to give me a run for my money, aren’t you?”

  Amanda moved to stand by the horse he was currying and rubbed the gelding’s nose. “If you would just co-operate,” Amanda shrugged and watched him laugh.

  She spotted her brother coming through the open doors and quickly schooled her features. Whether it was any of his business or not she had no desire to pick a fight today.

  “Hey, Mandy,” Her brother grinned as he approached and kissed her forehead.

  Cade moved to turn the horse into his stall; his expression was neutral when he returned.

  “You still missing your woman?” Amanda teased her brother.

  “Terribly. Getting back to school will be something of a relief. How are you and Jenny doing down there all by yourself?”

  “We’re doing fine,” Amanda assured him.

  “You and Cade write each other and share all your secrets; right?” her brother’s question held sarcasm.

  “Some things,” Amanda bristled at his tone.

  “So see if you can get Cade to tell you where he spent last night,” Trent suggested.

  Amanda knew he was goading her; making sure she knew that Cade had been out all night the night before. Little did he know. Amanda watched Cade turn to grab his water bottle and shook her head; if her brother wanted a fight she’d give him a fight.

  “He had too much to drink and I took him to my place to sleep it off. Don’t worry, he turned me down,” Amanda informed her brother. She turned to leave; she could hear Cade coughing behind her.

  “Damn, Manny,” still sounding slightly strangled, he called after her a moment later.

  “Amanda Lynn!” her brother exploded as he started after her.

  “What?” Amanda snapped and turned to face him, her chin high in challenge.

  “Since when do you take men home and proposition them?”

  “I am eighteen who I do or don’t proposition is none of your business!” she yelled back at him.

  “You may be eighteen but Dad is still paying half your bills; what do you think he would have to say about your actions?” Trent was in her face now, fairly gloating.

  “I won a scholarship that covers my schooling. After I turned eighteen the lease went into mine and Jenny’s name and we’ve been paying the bills with no help. I am an independent woman and I do not have to answer to you, Trent.”

  Her brother looked as though he had been slapped.

  “I love you and I thank you for looking out for me but I get to make my own decisions and if I make mistake they are MY mistakes, Trent. I get that right too, just like you. I get to live and learn. If I get my heart broken, it’s my heart.” Her brother staring after her, Amanda turned to leave. She hadn’t wanted to fight with him but he was going to have to learn that he didn’t get to make her decisions for her.

  Nineteen

  Amanda walked around the county fair and enjoyed the crisp air as it tugged at her hair. She and Jenny had driven back up for a weekend with their families and had agreed to meet at the fair that night. They now stood in line for one of the rides, both scanning the crowds around them.

  “Maybe we should ride another of the rides,” Jenny suddenly suggested as she grabbed Amanda by the arm and started trying to drag her from the line.

  “What is your problem, Jenny? This is your favorite ride and all I’ve heard all evening was how you were going to ride it first,” Amanda held her ground and looked at her friend as though she had taken leave of her senses.

  “It looks scarier than I remember,” Jenny insisted and started pulling at Amanda’s arm again.

  “Jenny, what is wrong?” Amanda insisted.

  Amanda glanced around expecting to see one of Jenny’s ex-boyfriends or at least someone she didn’t care much for. Instead, she spotted Cade several feet away with a tall brunette on his arm. The woman fairly draped herself on him and was hanging off of his every word.

  “We aren’t a couple, Jenny,” Amanda reminded her friend and tried to ignore the tight knot that had settled in the region of her heart.

  “Don’t pretend that it doesn’t bother you, Mandy!” Jenny hissed at her.

  “He made me no promises and nothing really happened; I mean not really so…” Amanda shrugged.

  “You aren’t upset?”

  “Yeah, I am but for all the reasons I just gave you I have little right to be,” Amanda admitted.

  “He…the things he said and….”

  “Let it go, please?” Amanda begged.

  “Mandy, you didn’t tell me you were coming,” her brother accused, as he approached; he had his arm around Christy. Christy had ridden over from Washington with a friend and would be riding back to college with Trent the next week.

  “Jenny and I were talking about it last night at dinner,” she reminded him.

  “How are you, Mandy?” Christy asked.

  “I’m fine,” Amanda lied.

  “You’re Jenny; right?” Christy smiled at Jenny in greeting.

  Amanda watched her friend smile back and knew it wasn’t easy for her to do so.

  “Have you seen Cade? We lost him and his date earlier,” her brother inquired of her.

  “There he is,” Christy pointed him out.

  Amanda steeled herself, she was the one always pursuing him, not the other way around she reminded herself.

  “Cade!” Trent called and waved. “Look who we found.”

  Beside Amanda, Jenny suddenly looked outraged and stared at Trent with pure malice.

  “What is wrong with you?” Amanda whispered furiously.

  “Hey,” Cade offered a strained smile to the group.

  Amanda smiled in return; at least she hoped it was a smile.

  “Cade,” Jenny nodded
curtly, though her angry gaze was still pinned on Trent.

  “You haven’t met Cade’s date have you?” Trent inquired. “She’s in our class; she drove Christy over. Amanda; Jenny this is Shauna. Shauna, my sister, Mandy, and her best friend Jenny.”

  “It’s nice to meet you,” Shauna offered her hand.

  “Nice to meet you,” Amanda managed to offer the woman a tight smile. Jenny, refusing the woman’s hand, nodded. Amanda noted that Shauna was attractive in a voluptuous way. Was that Cade’s preference, she wondered?

  “We should have made plans for you two to bring dates and then we could have all had fun together,” Christy mused.

  “I’m sure Amanda could turn around, smile, bat her lashes a little and have three or four at her beck and call. She certainly has them lined up waiting for any hint of encouragement at school,” Jenny offered a brittle smile that seemed aimed at Cade and then Trent.

  “Jenny!” Amanda elbowed her friend and shot her a look that begged her to stop. The group seemed frozen; the air tense and frigid and Amanda wanted to find a hole and crawl into it.

  “Who says you have to be able to get a date to have fun?” Shauna demanded. “You two have to ride a few rides with us; don’t they?” Shauna gazed up at Cade with adoring eyes as she linked her arm though his.

  “Of course,” Cade nodded.

  “Right,” Amanda returned and cleared her throat.

  “Hey, we should all ride the giant Ferris Wheel first,” Christy jumped in; she looked relieved for something that might break the tension in the air. Amanda and Jenny followed the two couples, their feet dragging.

  “Please stop making this worse,” Amanda, pulled Jenny back a moment.

  “I’m sorry but…”

  “Hey come on you two!” Christy waved to them.

  Amanda sighed and turned to join the others. She found herself seated between Cade and Jenny who was sandwiched against Trent on the other side, the other two women sandwiched opposite them. Amanda and Jenny exchanged glances of commiseration and settled back to pray for the end of the ride. By the time they were next in line to get off Amanda wanted to shove something down Shauna’s throat so she would shut up, if only for a minute.

  An hour and a half later and Amanda was beginning to feel truly and honestly sick at her stomach. Shauna was making it more than clear she wanted Cade in her bed. When Trent suggested they eat, Amanda decided that she would make an escape soon.

  “Here, you all hold us a seat and give me your orders,” Trent instructed. As soon as he was gone, Shauna started talking again. Amanda glanced at Cade to find him staring at her. She dropped her gaze only to look back up a moment later. If she had to make a guess she would say that Shauna’s incessant prattle was getting to Cade as well. In fact every smile he gave Shauna was more brittle than the last. She felt a small stirring of hope but she was still hurt and confused.

  “I am starving,” Shauna announced. “I hope their burgers are good; I know the burgers at our home fair are good. Oh! And they have the best peach cobbler. I got the recipe; I’ll have to make it for you sometime,” Shauna smiled up at Cade.

  “He doesn’t like peaches,” Amanda’s voice was monotone.

  “Oh, well, apple then,” Shauna suggested.

  “Here are the drinks,” Trent set them on the table. “Be back in a few with the rest.” He turned and left.

  “Speaking of drinks; do you like Daiquiris? A friend of mine is a bartender and she taught me to make…”

  “He doesn’t drink; at least not usually,” Amanda added.

  “Oh well, so I’ll stick to cooking for you,” Shauna glanced at Amanda quizzically and then returned her attention to Cade. “You like seafood?”

  “He’s allergic to shellfish.”

  Shauna’s turned her gaze to Amanda and frowned at her. Amanda held her gaze; she’d be damned if she was going to watch this woman swoop in and take Cade without a fight. Cade eyes were lit with a hint of amusement.

  “Here are the fries and onion rings, I’ll be back with the burgers and the hotdogs,” Trent set them down and disappeared.

  Shauna opened a straw and poked it into her drink with a little extra force before picking her next topic to move on to.

  “Tell you what, Christy, why don’t we plan a little swap. One that I know Trent would love and one I could make worth’s Cade while. After everyone else is in bed and the house gets quiet, you can slip over to Trent’s room and send Cade to ours,” Shauna grinned and cast a sideways glance at Cade. “I would love to see if you wear boxers or briefs and then help you out of them.”

  “He wears boxer briefs,” Amanda announced in the same monotone she had supplied all the other tidbits in.

  Shauna opened her mouth to speak, stopped short, her mouth still hanging open, as her eyes went wide and her gaze snapped to Amanda. Christy spit soda half way across the table and Jenny smiled so widely Amanda was sure she would stretch her face out of shape. Across from her Cade’s face broke into a wide smile, his shoulders started shaking, and a moment later he threw back his head in laughter.

  “Oh my,” Christy glanced between Amanda and Cade, her eyes huge. “Your brother…”

  “Don’t get me started,” Amanda muttered.

  “He always complaining about the letters…okay, so I’ll just pretend I know nothing,” Christy decided aloud.

  Shauna was frowning now, though it was obvious she hadn’t quite figured out what wasn’t being said.

  “Here we go, burger and hotdogs,” Trent put the last of the food on the table.

  “Thanks, baby,” Christy offered brightly.

  “You’re welcome,” Trent returned as he glanced around at the table. Jenny was still grinning, Amanda was sure she looked quite pleased with herself, Shauna looked ruffled and confused, and Cade was truly grinning for the first time that night. “Everybody okay?”

  “Yeah we were just discussing preferences and found we shared some and differed in others,” Amanda offered her brother with a smile.

  “Never mind,” her brother looked at her suspiciously.

  Amanda lay in her old bed reading and trying to readjust to a room that had always been hers. Now after living on her own for a while it felt odd to be back in her old bed. Amanda found herself replaying the night. Shauna had returned to talking incessantly and flirting outrageously as the night wore on but Amanda found it didn’t bother her as much. Cade kept catching her eye and winking or smiling and Amanda had decided to let him explain what he had been doing out with Shauna before getting bent out of shape.

  Amanda heard movement in the hall and frowned. She was not going to go see if they were carrying through with Shauna’s plans, she decided, though her stomach knotted. A moment later a soft knock sounded on her door and Amanda threw aside her covers to answer her door cautiously.

  “Hi, so your brother and Christy threw me out,” Cade shared on a whisper.

  Amanda’s eyes widened, “Dad will kill them!” she whispered furiously.

  “Feel free to go break it up,” Cade looked amused. “Christy told me that I could take my chances where I wanted,” he grinned down at her as he leaned against her door frame.

  “Did she?”

  “Yeah, she also said Shauna would be happy to see me. If you prefer…” Cade pushed off the door.

  “Get your ass in here,” she whispered as she yanked on his arm. Cade slid his arms around her as he entered the room and dropped a light kiss on her lips before letting his grasp slip to one hand so she could close the door. Amanda was smiling at him now, even knowing he had some explaining to do. She looked up as she was about to close the door to find Shauna watching them. Amanda offered her a triumphant smile and a wave before she shut her door and locked it.

  “Manny, I’m surprised at you; I didn’t know you could be so catty,” Cade teased.

  “I have claws but most the time I keep them sheathed,” she offered as she settled against the door. “So who is she anyway?” Amanda demanded.r />
  “She is Christy’s friend from her home town who also attends college with us. I have met her three times before tonight, one of those a blind date that your brother talked me into that ended early when she got sick from something she’d eaten earlier in the day.

  “When Christy arrived with her in tow last night, your brother begged me to take her to the fair tonight so he could be alone with Christy; though it all back fired on him,” Cade shared with a smile. “He was really insistent.”

  “He knew I would be there,” she informed him. Cade had been absent from dinner because he was filling in for a sick hand.

  “What?” Cade was frowning at her now.

  “My brother knew I would be there and see you with her.”

  “Oh,” Cade looked vaguely angry now.

  “It backed fired on him in more ways than one,” Amanda pointed out.

  “Who cares, come here,” he took her hand and pulled her close. Amanda tilted her head back and welcomed his kiss. A moment later he groaned and pulled away.

  “One of these days we’re going to be in the right place at the right time,” Cade informed her. She frowned at him but he was kissing her again before she could ask what he had meant. It didn’t take her long to figure out that he was in charge of the rules again. She was free to explore as long as it was above the waist line, the same seemed to apply for him.

  “You’re doing it again,” she accused.

  “What?”

  “You’re going to leave me sitting here frustrated beyond belief aren’t you?” she demanded.

  “I have to,” he announced, his hands lightly rubbing up and down her hips.

  “Why?”

  “Not here, not like this.”

  “Like what?” she demanded of him.

  “Manny, eighteen or not this is your father’s house and your brother may feel free to break the rules but I don’t.”

  “You’re in my room; that’s breaking the rules,” she countered.

  “Okay, I’ll push them, but I’m not breaking them,” he grinned down at her.

  “So want to make a date to come over to my house?” she invited as she leaned against him.

  “I’m not making an appointment to sleep with you,” he was smiling; she wasn’t.