by Peggy Webb
Where the devil was she? Probably off somewhere flying a kite—or skinny-dipping. He grinned.
When the sunset began to paint the sky. Josh turned toward camp, empty-handed again. The only thing he’d caught for the last two days was Hallie Donovan’s black lace bra.
He stripped off his clothes, took a quick dip in the river, and put on his jogging shorts. His physical fitness routine consisted mainly of running five miles a day. He’d missed his run the previous day, but he was determined to make up for it by going an extra mile.
Exhilaration filled him as he ran along the lake. When he realized he was headed in the direction of Hallie’s camp, he told himself it was by chance and not by design. It was probably a good idea, anyway, he decided. She was alone, and he hadn’t seen her since morning. He’d just glance her way and see if she was all right.
Twigs snapped under his feet as Josh ran.
o0o
After her kite had gotten stuck in the tree, Hallie and her dogs had spent the day exploring the area. Wolfgang and Ludwig had spotted a rabbit and were still on a merry chase when she turned toward camp at dusk, a bouquet of Texas bluebonnets in her hands. She’d found them growing in a small meadow about five miles to the west. She was as pleased as if she’d been Admiral Peary discovering the North Pole. Although she’d camped at the lake many times, she’d never known about the meadow. Nature was an endless delight to her.
She burst into a peppy rendition of I’m Just A Girl Who Can’t Say No as she approached her camp. The first thing she saw was her lavender car, its front fenders sprouting the usual two enormous Texas bullhorns and its back fenders sprouting two new, enormous Texas pests—Bradford and Redford Dukes, Dallas’s terrible twins. Drunk, no doubt, and looking for sport.
They meted out more aggravation than harm.
Hallie never stopped singing. Balling her hands into fists, she kept on going. She’d handled them before.
“Howdy, Miss Hallie. You sound like a songbird.” Bradford was doing the talking.
“‘Evening, boys. If you’re partial to your behinds, you’ll get them off my car. I happen to be fond of that heap of metal, and I don’t want to see a dent in it.”
Grinning sheepishly, they slid off the car. “Now, Miss Hallie,” Bradford said, “is that any way to greet friends. And after we came all this way to find you?”
“How did you find me?”
“You’re not hard to find. Everybody in Dallas knows that lavender Cadillac. Our buddy, old Hank, on the highway patrol spotted you heading this way. Said you must’a been doing seventy. The only reason he didn’t give you a ticket is ‘cause he likes you.” All the while he talked, Bradford was moving in on Hallie. He was now so close, she could smell his sour breath. “We like you too. That’s how come we’re out here. You’ve been promising us a dance at Cactus Pete’s.”
“Wrong. All I’ve been promising you is a black eye.” She backed away from Bradford, straight into the arms of Redford.
“I’ve been waiting a long time for this,” he said.
Hallie stomped Redford’s foot and kicked Bradford’s shins. Dropping her wildflowers, she raised her fists.
“If you don’t let me go, Redford Dukes, I’ll blacken both your eyes.”
Suddenly she saw Josh. He came running into her camp and plucked her out of Redford’s arms. “I’m sorry I kept you waiting, darling. I hope you didn’t give up on me.” He wasn’t even out of breath when he spoke.
The whole situation was beginning to be comic to Hallie. The only thing that kept her from laughing was the way Josh was holding her. He had her pressed tightly against his chest, and every inch of it bare. His golden mat of chest hair would have sobered the Mona Lisa. Hallie could do nothing except ogle her new captor.
Bradford wasn’t having the same trouble. He stepped toward Josh, red in the face, fists cocked, ready for a fight. “Just who in the hell are you?”
“Josh Butler, Hallie’s fiancé. I’m happy to make your acquaintance.” Bradford ignored the hand Josh extended.
Hallie came out of her trance. “You’re not—”
“Hush, darling. I know I’m late, but we’ll discuss it later.”
“Hallie never mentioned any fiancé.” Redford took a step toward Josh as if he meant to take issue with his statement.
Hallie lifted her fist, intending to give him a poke in the eye, but Josh grabbed her uplifted arm and draped it over his shoulder.
“Would you gentlemen excuse us? Hallie and I have a traditional greeting that has been delayed far too long.”
Josh Butler’s lips came down on hers. They were hard and demanding, brooking no resistance. After the initial shock, Hallie was outraged. She’d had about all of Josh Butler’s manhandling that she intended to take. She drew back her foot to kick his shins, but suddenly a strange thing happened. A warm pleasure surged through her, and her body leaned into his. Her mouth opened, responsive to the persuasive power of this outrageous, gorgeous golden man.
Oh, help, I am lost. Hallie felt a jubilee rising inside her. Jubilee. That was the only word to describe what was happening—a wonderful sensation that was part joy, part triumph, part passion, part music. She fought to suppress the jubilee, but it kept on rising.
Josh lifted his mouth half an inch from hers. “Keep kissing. They’re leaving.”
Then his mouth played expertly over hers once more. Kissing him was like being reborn. Hallie knew her feelings were completely out of control, but she didn’t mind. Anything that felt so wonderful couldn’t be all bad.
Abruptly, Josh ended the kiss. Hallie felt as if her supports had been knocked away. She actually swayed for a moment before standing firm to face him.
“Why did you do that?” she asked quietly.
He looked deep into her eyes. She was caught up in the power of his gaze. He seemed to be trying to search her mind, trying to uncover her very soul. She held her breath as she returned his look. She was vividly aware of him, achingly aware of the kiss they’d exchanged.
“Hallie.”
That’s all he said. Just one word. Hallie. His voice was deep and rich and vibrant with hidden meanings. A man’s voice speaking her name had never made her shiver. But she did now. Tiny goose bumps popped up along her arms. In the deepening dusk, she tilted her face toward him.
“Yes?”
“I . . .” He half-lifted his hand, as if to reach out, and gather her back into his arms. Then he stepped back. The tenuous bond that had been growing between them was broken. “Violence is not my style, Hallie. I kissed you because it was the best way to handle the situation.”
“I was doing all right by myself until you came along and messed everything up.”
Josh had the audacity to laugh. “I saw the little fist you had raised.” He reached for her hand, lifted it to his lips for a swift kiss, then let it go. “These are lethal weapons, ma’am. I figured if I didn’t rescue those poor helpless men, you’d pound them to pieces.”
“I would have too. And I would have won.”
“Remind me never to get into a fight with you.”
“You’d be well advised not to. My brothers taught me to defend myself when I was five years old.”
“Did they train anybody else? Mohammed Ali, perhaps?”
“No. Just me.”
“Who were those men, anyhow? Maybe I should move my sleeping bag over to your camp to protect you.”
“They’re Bradford and Redford Dukes, harmless Texas pests. They won’t be back, and if they do return, I’ll sic my dogs on them.”
“You’re an unusual woman, Hallie.”
“Thank you.”
“I’m not sure I meant that as a compliment.”
“I’ll take it as one, anyhow. I can use all the praise I can get.”
A sudden look of concern came into his face. “Are you all right? They didn’t hurt you before I got here, did they?”
“Oh, no, of course not.” She bit her bottom lip and looked down. “They
squashed my bluebonnets.”
“They squashed your what?”
“My flowers.” She pointed to the ground. “I had a lovely bouquet of Texas bluebonnets, and now they’re trampled in the dirt. You should have seen them when they were alive, Josh. They were so bright and perky, they painted rainbows in your heart.” She knelt beside the broken flowers.
Bending over, Josh took her shoulders and lifted her up. “Hallie, I’m sorry.”
“They were just flowers.”
“I’m sorry about everything, Hallie.”
“It was just—”
“Don’t you dare say it was just a kiss.” He released her shoulders and touched his finger to her lips. “My ego will never recover if you do.”
She smiled. “I was going to say exactly that.”
Swiftly, like one of the nighthawks she’d seen soaring in the Texas sky, Josh kissed her once more. The kiss was quick and hard. “Keep that smile on your face, Hallie,” he said, and then he was gone.
Hallie strained her eyes to see him as long as she could, but the darkness quickly swallowed him up. One bright tear inched down her cheek. Sadness was a stranger to her, and she had a hard time identifying the cause of her melancholy. She suspected it had something to do with the trampled beauty of her fallen bouquet, but more than that, she feared it had something to do with the strange jubilee of her rescuer’s kiss.
She touched her fingers to her lips. “Oh, Josh. Please stay on your side of the cove. You tempt me so.”
CHAPTER THREE
Josh Butler woke up in time to see the sunrise. He stood beside the water and watched the awesome display of color. The water and the sky both shimmered with brilliant pink and gold beauty. But none of it could compare to that single tear he’d glimpsed in Hallie Donovan’s eye.
What kind of woman cried over a bouquet of crushed wildflowers? A sensitive woman, he decided. A gentle woman.
He shook his head to rid himself of the image of that bright tear. Striding back to his camp, he picked up his rod and reel. The fish should be biting, it was early. Maybe today he would get lucky. He had his arm thrown back for a cast before he realized that he wouldn’t be going fishing after all.
“I can’t believe what I’m about to do,” he muttered as he stowed his fishing gear and set out through the woods.
It was eleven o’clock before he’d accomplished his mission. He was inordinately proud of his morning’s work. When he walked into Hallie’s camp, he was whistling.
Hallie was playing a game of tag with her dogs. The dogs were barking, and she had her head thrown back, laughing. Josh was mesmerized by the sight of her. The whistle died on his lips as he leaned against a tree and watched. She played with the joyful abandon of a child, and yet the delicious curves of her body left no doubt that she was a woman. She had the look of an innocent child-woman. He found her aura of innocence very appealing. Although he knew she’d been married, knew she couldn’t possibly be untouched, he clung to the idea, indulged in his fantasy. He needed a fantasy; he’d be back in the real world soon enough.
Suddenly Hallie saw him. Her smile was a glorious thing to see. He felt like a schoolboy as he left the shelter of the tree and started toward her. She ran to meet him, her dogs trotting at her heels, her face flushed and bright with laughter.
They stopped when they were two feet apart.
“Hello, Hallie.”
“Hello, Josh.”
A breathless silence stretched between them, finally broken by a male yellowthroat, flying high in the air, singing his flamboyant aria of love.
Hallie looked up. “I always know it’s spring when the yellowthroat starts courting.”
“Spring does strange things to us all.” Josh held his offering toward her, a bouquet of Texas bluebonnets, their spires of delicate blossoms glinting in the sun, their side petals puffed out like little babies’ cheeks.
Hallie took the bouquet and pressed her face to the lavender blossoms. When she looked back at Josh, he saw a bright moisture in her eyes that hinted at tears. “You did this just for me?”
“For you. I wanted you to have rainbows in your heart.”
“How sweet. You remembered.”
“Yes, I remembered . . . everything.” He loved the blush that pinked her cheeks. He hadn’t seen a woman blush in many years, maybe even since high school days. He felt refreshed, as if he’d found a cool fountain of water in the middle of a desert. “The flowers are my way of saying I’m sorry.”
“For the kiss?”
“No. For the death of your bouquet and for the shattering of a peaceful evening. I’m sorry you had to go through that.”
“Thank you.”
The shimmering silence was between them again, the air pulsing with expectations. Unconsciously, Josh stepped closer, so close he could feel Hallie’s body heat, smell her fragrance. Honeysuckle. The sweet, heady smell of his youth. He took a deep breath, inhaling her fragrance, absorbing Hallie. He was reminded of carefree summer days along the river, of walking along the limestone bluffs, of daring to plunge into the cold, deep Tennessee. She took him back to the days when dreams were real and the future was a bright promise.
He had meant to deliver the bouquet and go, but he couldn’t. Hallie made him feel nostalgic.
“The meadow where the bluebonnets grow is beautiful, Hallie. It’s a shame to let it go to waste.”
“Is that an invitation?”
“Yes. For a picnic. I haven’t been on a picnic in years.”
“What a wonderful idea. Let me put the bluebonnets in water.” She turned toward her tent, then called over her shoulder. “Do you have food?”
“Nothing but cereal. The fish don’t seem to be biting for me, and I hadn’t planned on a picnic.” He watched the backend of Hallie disappear into her tent. It was a sobering sight. She emerged carrying a small empty fruit jar.
“Why don’t we hop into my heap and go to the store for supplies?” As she talked, she filled the jar with water from her thermos and set the bouquet on a small fold-up metal table beside her camping chair then headed toward her jazzy car.
Wolfgang wanted to sit in the front seat beside Hallie, but she persuaded him to let Josh take his place.
“He likes to copilot,” she explained. Gravel spewed up behind her as she wheeled the big Cadillac out of the campsite and raced along the unpaved road.
“Copilot is an apt description.” As they rounded a curve Josh grabbed the dashboard to keep from being thrown into her lap. “Who taught you to drive like this? Your brothers?”
She laughed. “Goodness no. Paul, who is a minister, thinks my driving borders on being a mortal sin, and Tanner, the football star turned serious husband and father, thinks it’s going to land me in jail. Theo, who is a doctor, says he’ll patch all my bones, and Charles and Glover and Jacob just laugh.”
“That’s a big family.”
“A big wonderful family. I didn’t even mention my twin sister, Hannah, my parents, Matthew and Anna, and all my nieces and nephews and aunts and uncles and cousins. Every time we get together, it’s just like Christmas.” She shot him a glance. “Tell me about your family.”
“There’s not much to tell. One brother. A father at home.” And every time we get together, it’s just like a funeral, he thought.
“I can’t imagine having only one brother. But I suppose the two of you are very close and have lots of fun together.”
“I’m afraid the Butler family saga wasn’t written by Laura Ingalls Wilder.”
“I’m sorry.” Her right hand reached out and touched his arm. “I’m a good listener, you know.”
“Thanks, but not today.” He kept his voice light. “The sun is shining and I hear a meadow of bluebonnets calling our names.”
“I do, too.” Hallie turned slightly toward the backseat and spoke to her dogs. “Hang onto your ears, boys.” She whizzed into the parking lot and came to a heart-stopping halt right in front of the plate glass window of the store. Anothe
r three feet would have put them on the shelf with the Hershey bars and the Baby Ruths.
Hallie pressed her horn, and The Eyes of Texas Are Upon You shattered the air. Raymond came out of the store, laughing.
“I knew that was you the minute you turned in.” He grinned at Josh. “She beats all I ever saw. Hallie can stir up more excitement than a nest full of hornets.” With a gallant sweep, Raymond opened her door and helped her out. “What can I do for you this beautiful day, Miss Hallie?”
“We’re going picnicking, Raymond. Got any food?”
Raymond slapped his thigh and hooted. “Lord, she’s a sight,” he said to Josh. “Always clowning around. Got any food? Why, I got a store full of food. Special prices just for you and your young fellow. Come on inside.” Inside the store, he scrutinized Josh while Hallie rummaged around. “Say, are you the young fellow was in here the other day asking about the fishing up at Armadillo Cove?”
“I’m the one.” Josh stuck out his hand and reintroduced himself. “Josh Butler.”
Raymond scratched his head. “I’m gettin’ so old I can’t remember names anymore. Seems like I heard that name somewhere else though.”
“You probably did. Butler is a pretty common name.” Raymond was still trying to remember, and Josh hurried on before he could say anything else. “The fish have been biting pretty well for Hallie, but I can’t seem to catch a thing. She tells me I’m using the wrong bait.” He didn’t want his cover blown with Hallie—not today, of all days.
“I got a red and white spinner bait over here that the bass would kill each other to get to. Let me show you.”
Josh grinned as they passed by Hallie. She was studying the selection of chips as if world peace hung on her choice.
Raymond noticed too. “Better get plenty of corn chips, Hallie. If you don’t, Josh will have to be comin’ back for more.” He led them past the pickles to his rack of fishing plugs. “That woman’s a sight. Can eat her weight in corn chips and still not gain an ounce. Must be all that rodeoing she does.”