She realized now why Josh had tried to talk her into getting married any time other than summer. It really was his busiest time of year and the thought of taking time off for even a short vacation or getaway was completely out of the question. At the time, she thought he was ridiculous for suggesting a winter or even early spring wedding. She wanted an outdoor ceremony in the summer and wasn’t about to listen to what he was trying to tell her.
The first few anniversaries that were spent with him out in the field and her at home pouting, he tried to make it up to her by taking her out to dinner and giving her extra special gifts. After the third anniversary, she finally understood what he’d been saying all along and resigned herself to making the best of it. He always took her on a nice trip in January when things were quiet and he had extra time to devote just to her.
She had a few plans of her own on how to make this anniversary special, despite their limited time together. She had to leave again on Monday for another two weeks out of town. Jenna was enjoying her work, even if it kept her separated from Josh much more than she anticipated it would. She knew summer would also be her heaviest travel time and by fall, he would be slowing down with farming and she would be home more. They just had to make it through August.
Pulling into the office parking lot right on time, Jenna picked up her purse and briefcase, hurrying inside. The quicker she finished up here, the sooner she could go home.
Jenna filed her last piece of paperwork an hour later and then ran a few errands before she headed home. Surprisingly, the closer she got to home, the grayer the sky became. If it continued at this rate, they would soon be getting a summer rainstorm. She hoped Josh had the hay all in. Getting rain on it would not make him happy at all, although a rainstorm would help her afternoon plans immensely.
Parking in the garage, Jenna didn’t see Josh around anywhere. His pickup was home and the flat bed truck was parked down by the barn, so she assumed he was out somewhere on the four-wheeler. She knew he would be in for lunch, so she hustled to put away groceries and get ready for his arrival. Josh wouldn’t expect her to be home until this evening, so she really wanted to surprise him.
At a quarter past noon, Jenna heard the back door open and footsteps in the house. Coming quietly out of the bedroom, she tip-toed down the hall and into the kitchen. A pair of long, muscular Wrangler-clad legs poked out from behind the open refrigerator door. Jenna smiled to herself, anticipating Josh’s reaction when he turned around to see her.
She stopped at the mall to pick up a gift for Josh, one that she was now wearing. The transparent black lingerie was not something she would normally choose, but she decided to walk a little on the wild side this one time for Josh. She applied an additional coating of mascara, put on a pair of strappy black heels and gave herself an extra spray of perfume.
Leaning against the counter, she lowered her voice and said, “If you’re hungry, I’ve got something much more satisfying than anything you are going to find in there.”
A plastic bottle of soda pop hit the floor and splattered everywhere. The head that popped out from behind the fridge door caused her to blush five shades of red and snatch the dish towel off the counter to hold in front of her.
After an initial ear-shattering scream, Jenna gasped, “Jake! What are you doing here?”
How could she have forgotten Jake was here? Shamed beyond anything imaginable, Jenna was hoping like everything that he hadn’t seen anything. Jake was like the younger brother she never had. Right now, she was fervently wishing the floor would open and swallow her up.
Jake, who was turning red from the top of his head right on past the neck of his shirt, spun around with his back to her, Mountain Dew soaking his legs and dripping on his boots. He’d seen enough to know he didn’t want to see any more especially when the woman standing scantily clad behind him was like an older sister.
“Dang it all, Jenna. What are you trying to do?” Jake spluttered. “I…we… Josh sent me in to get lunch.”
Josh, who had been watering Jenna’s flowers when he heard a scream from inside the house, threw down the hose and came on the run. As he plowed into the kitchen, he saw Jake’s red face turned toward the wall and Jenna, her face even redder, clutching a dish towel to her chest as she slowly backed out of the kitchen. Her outfit, at least what he could see around the dish towel, made his eyes widen in surprise.
Glad he was wearing a shirt that snapped up the front, Josh quickly yanked it loose, slipped it around Jenna and swept her into his arms. There was no way she could beat a hasty retreat in the shoes she was wearing. Carrying her into their bedroom, he kicked the door shut and dropped her on the bed. Standing up, he gaped at her.
“What are you doing?” he finally asked in a rough voice, confused, annoyed and wildly excited all at the same time. “You aren’t supposed to be home until this evening.”
“I wanted to surprise you,” Jenna said, clutching Josh’s shirt to her chest as her carefully styled hair fell across her face. Pushing it back, she let out a ragged breath. “I completely forgot Jake was here. I certainly didn’t plan on finding him in the kitchen.”
Josh continued to stare at her. Just looking at his lovely wife, whom he hadn’t seen in more than two weeks, was causing his heart to pick up tempo while his blood began to thrum through his veins. The fact that she was dressed in something so tempting was making it hard for him to think beyond his sudden desire to grab his shirt and the dish towel away from her so he could have an unobstructed view.
“Without a doubt, we are all surprised. What did you think would happen? It’s the middle of the day and I’ve got more work to do than I can handle,” Josh said, sounding gruffer than he meant to be. Jenna really caught him off-guard and he was more than a little perturbed thinking about just how much of his wife Jake may have seen. As he took a step closer to the bed, a huge burst of thunder shook the house. Glancing out the window, rain began pouring down in sheets.
Jenna looked up at Josh with tears pooling in her eyes.
“That is exactly what I hoped would happen. You can’t make hay in the rain,” she said in a whisper, inclining her head toward the window. “Although I never dreamed Jake would be the one in the kitchen. Honestly, I didn’t even think about him being here. I’m so sorry. I am going to positively die from embarrassment.”
“It’s okay. I don’t think you’ll die. I’m pretty sure you weren’t exactly what Jake expected to find when I sent him in to make sandwiches.” Josh chuckled, suddenly finding the situation very amusing. “As a matter of fact, I’m guessing his eyeballs are feeling somewhat scorched right now.”
Leaning down to give her a kiss that was meant to be brief and welcoming, it quickly turned into something heated and filled with longing.
“Babe, don’t move. I’ll be back in a minute,” Josh whispered with his lips against her ear before turning toward the door and going back out to the kitchen.
Jake, who looked to be in some sort of misery, was wiping up the last of the spilled pop.
“I’m sorry, man. I didn’t see anything,” Jake said, throwing the paper towels in the garbage while his neck and ears continued to glow a bright red.
“No need to apologize, Jake. Jenna evidently forgot you were here. Honest mistake, that’s all,” Josh said, pulling his wallet out of his back pocket and digging out a twenty-dollar bill. Handing it to Jake, Josh thumped him on the back and pointed him toward the door.
“We aren’t going to be able to finish anything in this rain. Why don’t you run into town and get yourself some lunch. Take your time. If you wouldn’t mind stopping by the tire store to see if the tractor tire I ordered came in, you can charge it to my account. I’ll meet you in the shop at three. Will that work for you?”
“Sure,” Jake said, walking through the mud room, regaining his sense of humor. Breaking into a wicked grin, he couldn’t stop himself from teasing Josh as he opened the door. “Dude, enjoy your… um…lunch. Jenna mentioned something about it b
eing quite satisfying.”
Giving Jake a shove out the door, Josh turned off the hose outside then hurriedly removed his boots, washed his hands, and hustled back to the bedroom.
Jenna was nowhere to be seen. His shirt was on the bed and her shoes were on the floor halfway to the bathroom. The blinds had been pulled down, throwing the room into shadows. He hoped she hadn’t changed. Josh was enjoying the thought of fully exploring her new outfit, now that he’d warmed up to the idea of a few hours spent inside on a rainy afternoon.
“Jenna,” he called, hoping she would quit hiding behind the partially closed bathroom door. “Jake’s gone, so come on out.”
When she pulled the door open and stepped out, she was wearing her soft cotton bathrobe. Staring up at Josh with tears in her eyes, she looked completely mortified.
Opening his arms to her, she hurried into them, burying her face against him. He could feel her tears dripping down his bare chest. “Babe, don’t cry. It’s okay,” he said soothingly, rubbing her back. “Don’t worry about it. It was just a mistake.”
She mumbled something against his chest, so he used his thumb to push her chin up far enough he could hear what she said. “What did you say?” he asked, wiping at her tears with the dish towel she had left on the bed, then blotting up the trails of mascara on his chest.
“I said I’ll never be able to face Jake. I’m so ashamed,” Jenna said, sniffling. “I will never, ever do something like that again as long as I live.”
Taking Jenna’s arms in his, Josh pushed her back far enough he could lean down close to her face. “Now, let’s not get carried away. I have to tell you, I wouldn’t mind coming in and seeing you dressed like that from time to time. Just make sure Jake isn’t around. I think I appreciated the show much more than he did.”
Jenna let out a choppy laugh and smacked Josh on the arm. “You are terrible, you know.”
“I don’t know anything of the sort,” Josh said, putting his arms back around her and pulling her close. “Happy Anniversary, Jenna.”
“Happy Anniversary, Josh,” she said, raising her lips to his in a kiss filled with love and longing.
When Josh reached down and untied her robe, she let him. He pushed back the sleeves to reveal the filmy little gown that had caused such a commotion. Taking a moment to drink in the sight of her, he knew she could see the appreciation written across his face.
“This just might be the best anniversary present ever,” Josh rumbled, pulling her toward the bed.
<><><>
After they ate lunch, Josh walked Jenna around to the back patio where a gliding wood bench sat, tied with a big blue bow. Jenna ran her hands over the smooth wood, taking in the detailed craftsmanship. The back of the bench said “Give me your forever, not a day less will do” and had been burned into the wood in a beautiful script.
“Josh, this is wonderful,” Jenna said, untying the bow and tugging Josh down to sit beside her. “Where did you get it?”
“I made it with some help,” he answered. “Despite what you think, I do remember our anniversary and thought about it weeks ago. According to the information I googled, we are supposed to give wood or iron for this anniversary, so I decided to go with wood. Clay, Pop and Jake helped me make the bench and then Bobbi and Callan helped with the wood burning. I guess you could call it a group effort.”
“It is beautiful, thoughtful and perfect,” Jenna said, leaning into Josh. “I can’t thank you enough. Every time we sit on it, I’ll remember today, remember how much I love you right at this very moment.”
“And don’t forget scorching Jake’s eyeballs,” Josh teased. “You can’t forget that.”
Jenna looked at Josh with a blush on her cheeks. “I’m sure even if I could forget it, you’ll keep reminding me.”
Josh kissed her again and cuddled her close for a few minutes before he looked at his watch and stood. Giving her a hand, they walked back in the house and Josh turned to look out the kitchen window just as Jake pulled his pickup in by the shop, a large tire bouncing in the back.
“I told Jake to meet me at the shop, so I better get moving,” Josh said, pulling on his gloves and settling his ball cap back on his head. “Do you want to go out for dinner tonight?”
“I think I’d rather stay home,” Jenna said, kissing his cheek. “I’ll see you later and please give Jake my apologies. I don’t think I’m quite ready to face him myself.”
Jenna managed to avoid seeing Jake the rest of the weekend and was glad she didn’t have to face him. Every time she thought of what had happened, her face flushed red and a wave of humiliation swept over her. She knew it was a blunder that could have happened to anyone. Although, she argued with herself, most women would not be prancing around in their unmentionables in the middle of the day, trying to beguile an over-worked husband.
Packing her suitcase yet again, Jenna had two more weeks on the road, three days off and then another two weeks before she would be home to stay for a few weeks. She couldn’t get through the next few weeks fast enough. She was really starting to dislike all the travel of her new job.
CHAPTER SEVEN
Josh hated Jenna’s new job. He thought he could count on his two hands how many days she’d been home since she started it.
He missed her with an ache that started in his heart and spread out to every part of his being. He missed her laughter, her smile, and her witty conversation. He missed coming in from the fields at night to see her cooking dinner and knowing something delicious would be ready to eat by the time he got out of the shower. He missed the smell of her perfume lingering even after she walked out of a room. He missed seeing her shoes kicked off under a kitchen barstool and her purse sitting on the chair by the back door. He missed looking into her eyes and getting lost in the molten pools of chocolate.
Most of all, he missed her presence, her spirit. The house seemed so empty and cold and unwelcoming without her in it. For him, Jenna was home. At night he could barely sleep without her beside him. He was used to her warmth and the funny little sounds she made while she slept.
The additional income she made was nice, but he’d rather they both be completely broke than have to spend all this time apart. He knew she was enjoying the challenge of her position but he honestly didn’t know how much longer he could stand having her gone.
She arrived home Friday afternoon for what was supposed to be three days off. Instead, she got a call Friday evening asking if she could fly to Boston Sunday for a meeting that had popped up. When she returned from it, she would be back on the road for another week and a half before coming home. Josh worked long hours Friday and came in so late he did nothing more than eat dinner and collapse on the bed. The custom job he had to finish Saturday would keep him working late as well so they hardly saw each other at all.
Exhausted and disappointed, they went to bed with barely a kiss goodnight and fell into a deep sleep. Josh got up as she hurried to get dressed and leave for her early flight, giving her a kiss filled with desperation and longing as she walked out the door.
“Jenna, I love you. Always have, always will. Don’t forget that,” he said, holding her close and breathing in her scent one more time before she left.
Struggling not to cry, she kissed him back. “I love you, too, Josh. I miss you so much. I promise in a couple weeks we will spend some time together.”
<><><>
Jenna felt exhausted the entire time she was gone. She woke up in the mornings tired and sometimes with a headache. For the first time in her life, she thought she might be sick on her flight back from Boston. It took every bit of her fortitude to keep herself from being violently ill. She wondered if she might have a touch of a flu bug, but quickly decided the stomach flu wouldn’t linger for a couple of weeks.
Tomorrow, she would be home and had two weeks reprieve before she was scheduled to hit the road again. She couldn’t wait to relax in her own home, sleep in her own bed and see Josh.
Driving into the garage la
te the next afternoon, she was surprised when the house door opened before she turned off the motor and Josh hurried out to open her car door, pulling her into his arms.
Kissing her deeply, he gathered her close and held her there, trying desperately to fill the emptiness that had loomed over him since she left.
“Babe, I missed you so much,” he said, burying his face in her hair. “Please tell me you are home for more than a day or two.”
Hugging him tightly, she soaked in his warmth, the smells of sunshine and hay and his after shave teasing her nose. “I don’t have to go anywhere for two weeks.”
Picking up her suitcase, Josh carried it inside while holding onto her hand. He seemed reluctant to break contact with her.
“Josh, is everything okay?” she finally asked. He was acting strange, oddly clinging.
“Yes. No… I just missed you more than I thought humanly possible,” he said, once again pulling her into his embrace. “I wish you didn’t have to leave again. Ever.”
“I know, Josh. Part of me wishes that, too. The other part of me loves what I’m doing and I’m learning a great deal,” Jenna said, hoping he would understand how much it meant to her to be able to succeed in her work.
“Well, darn it, Jenna, do you have to be so good at everything you do?” he said with a teasing smile that worked its way up to his glowing gray eyes.
She smiled at his compliment, sitting down on a kitchen barstool while Josh poured them both a glass of iced tea.
“So what are you doing in the house on a beautiful day like today?” she asked, taking a sip of the sweet tea. “I assumed you’d either be out in our fields or doing custom work.”
Country Boy vs. City Girl Page 9