by Ali Spooner
“Hello, darling,” Nat said when Marissa turned to face her.
Nat could see tears pooling in Marissa’s eyes as she walked toward her and encircled her body with her strong arms. “I will be back,” Nat promised. “I just can’t say when.”
“I know, but I have become so used to coming home to you every day,” Marissa said.
“I will be right here with you every day,” Nat said as she tapped lightly on Marissa’s chest above her heart. “It is not easy for me to leave you, but I must go to find out where I am destined to be,” Nat explained.
Marissa nodded her head, but it did not stop the flow of tears running down her face. Nat hugged her close and held her as her body was wracked with sobs.
“I will miss you terribly, and worry about you while you are gone,” Marissa said.
“I will miss you too,” Nat said. “There is no need to worry. I have Gyp and the boys to watch over me. ”
Nat held her until her tears subsided and then sat down with her at the table. “I have checked supplies and you are in good shape. I also gave you access to my bank account, if you are in need of anything while I am away. ”
“You didn’t need to do that, Nat,” Marissa said as she wiped her tears away.
“It gives me comfort to know you won’t go without something if you need it,” Nat said.
Marissa smiled at Nat. “I love you so, Nat.”
“I love you too, Marissa.”
“Are you all packed up?”
“For the most part, yes, I will bundle up my clothing tonight or tomorrow morning and then we will have all day together.”
“That will be nice,” Marissa said.
“Maggie will come by sometime after lunch to say goodbye, but other than then, I am all yours.”
“So we don’t need to jump up out of bed in the morning,” Marissa said.
“No, there is no hurry, so we can sleep in if we want.”
“Good, because I plan on keeping you up tonight,” Marissa said with a coy smile.
“I guess I had better eat a good dinner then,” Nat teased.
“Are you ready to eat now?” Marissa asked.
“I am hungry, but it will wait, if you are not hungry yet,” Nat said.
“I will put the food on the table then if you will get us a bucket of fresh water,” Marissa said.
They shared a simple meal of leftovers and cleaned the dishes together. “It is such a beautiful night would you like to sit on the porch for a while?” Nat asked.
“That would be very nice,” Marissa said.
Nat took her hand and lead her out to the porch. She sat down and leaned back against the porch rail post and sat Marissa between her legs. She pulled her back onto her chest as her arms circled Marissa’s waist. They enjoyed the comfort of their closeness until the moon was high in the sky and then walked inside to go to bed.
They didn’t bother with night shirts as they stripped from their clothes and crawled beneath the covers. Nat climbed on top of Marissa’s body and looked down into her sparkling eyes as Marissa’s hands circled her waist.
“I feel like I am in heaven when I am with you,” Marissa said.
“You do have a heavenly body,” Nat said with a grin.
Marissa lifted her hand to Nat’s face and her fingertips caressed the length of the fresh scar. “On anyone else, this would be just an ugly scar, but on you it adds to your rugged charm,” Marissa said as she lightly touched her skin.
“I am glad you don’t mind it. The Doc said it will be with me for a while yet. ”
“I love every inch of you, my darling,” Marissa said.
Nat leaned down and pressed her lips softly against Marissa’s eyelids and down her cheek to her lips. The tip of her tongue traced across her lips, memorizing the sweetness that lay there waiting for her. Marissa parted her lips and welcomed Nat’s tongue into her mouth, as their kiss turned into a sensual dance. Their hands explored each other’s body as they made love slowly and deep into the night.
Later, as they lay relaxing in one another’s arms, Nat whispered to Marissa. “I will love you forever.”
Nat felt the touch of warm tears on her chest as Marissa cried softly in her arms. She wiped the tear away from her cheek with soft fingers. “I would be worried if I didn’t know that those are happy tears,” she whispered softly.
“Yes, Nat, I am so happy with you.”
“We will be happy for years to come,” Nat promised as she stroked Marissa’s hair. “Relax now,” she softly whispered.
Nat held her until they fell asleep and when they woke the following morning their bodies were still entwined in a lover’s embrace.
Nat woke first and watched as Marissa slept peacefully on her arm. She was so beautiful and Nat struggled with her heart. She did not want to leave Marissa, but she was compelled to return to the woods. Only time would tell which was the right place for her. She snuggled closer to Marissa and closed her eyes to fall asleep once more.
PART SEVENTEEN
Nat and Marissa slept until mid-morning, until the call of nature woke Marissa and she climbed from the bed to walk out to the privy. Nat was awake and smiling at her when she returned.
“Good morning, my love,” she said when Marissa sat on the edge of the bed.
“Yes, it is barely still morning,” Marissa said with a grin. “I bet you are starving.”
“How did you know that? Did my stomach growling wake you?” Nat teased.
“That was your stomach? I thought it was thunder rumbling in the distance,” Marissa teased back.
“Yes ma’am, I am starving,” Nat said. “What’s for breakfast?”
“How about sugar cured ham, flapjacks and syrup?” Marissa said.
“Oh yes, darling, that sounds wonderful.”
“Let’s wash up and get dressed then and I will cook.”
“I will start a pot of coffee,” Nat said.
Marissa poured cool water in the wash basin and they washed their hands and faces before dressing for the day.
“What can I do to help?” Nat asked.
“Nothing darling, you can go ahead and get your clothes together while I cook, to have that out of the way.”
Nat kept out clean socks, a work shirt and one of the new pair of buckskin breeches Maggie had made for her and packed the remainder of her clothing. Nat tied the bundle up neatly and sat it beside the bed.
Marissa had warmed the ham slices and was pouring the batter into a frying pan to cook the first of her large flapjacks. “That smells good,” Nat said as she walked back into the kitchen.
“It won’t be long, before breakfast is ready.”
“I will get some fresh water.”
Nat walked out the front door and bent to pick up the water bucket. Her eyes came to rest on the block of wood she had been whittling on all week. Today she would finish it and give it Marissa before she left.
Marissa placed the first of the flapjacks on Nat’s plate. “Cut some off for Gyp while I cook the next batch, please,” she said to Nat.
Nat cut a large piece of the flapjack into smaller pieces and tore a slice of ham into smaller strips. “Do you want syrup too?” she asked Gyp.
Gyp licked her lips in response and Nat poured a small amount of the sweet liquid across the food.
“You are so rotten,” Nat said to Gyp as she put the bowl down on the floor.
“Just like her master,” Marissa piped in.
“So it is your fault then,” Nat said.
“I will take ownership of that blame,” Marissa said. “Eat, before it gets cold. I will have another ready in just a few minutes. ”
Nat and Gyp began to eat their meal as instructed. “This ham is really good,” Nat said.
“I am glad you like it, I am going to cook some for you to take with you tomorrow,” she said with a weak smile.
“Thanks, Marissa. I sure am going to miss your cooking. ”
“Back to camp fire grub for you,” Marissa tea
sed.
“Don’t remind me that I have to eat my own cooking,” Nat said. “Enjoy it Gyp, we are back to camp stew and fry bread soon.”
Marissa put another flapjack on Nat’s plate and cooked one for own. She sat down beside Nat and poured syrup over the flapjack. “These are pretty good,” she said. “You can take cornmeal and cook these for yourself you know,” she added.
“I bought five pounds yesterday, but they won’t taste near as good as yours,” Nat said.
Marissa smiled at Nat’s compliment. “You will just have to hurry back then.”
Nat took a bite of the ham and smiled at Marissa. “That I will,” she said after she swallowed.
After breakfast, Nat and Gyp walked onto the porch as Marissa cleaned the kitchen. Nat said in the rocker and picked up the carving she had begun. The top portion of the bear had been finished, so Nat went to work on the bottom half of the wood block, slowly whittling until the bears thick legs began to form.
Marissa joined them on the porch and sat next to Nat. “That is coming along nicely,” she said as she peeked over Nat’s shoulder. Marissa propped her feet upon the porch railing and enjoyed the sun on her skin as they sat together on the porch.
Gyp napped at their feet until she heard Maggie approach and she bolted from the porch to meet her. Nat walked inside to grab a chair for Maggie to join them on the porch. When she finally came into sight, Nat said, “Good day, Maggie.”
“A beautiful day indeed,” Maggie said as she stepped onto the porch carrying a small crate. “How are you three doing today?”
“Just wonderfully, thank you, Maggie,” Marissa said.
“I brought some things for you,” Maggie said as she sat the small crate on the porch floor.
“Thank you, Maggie.”
Maggie reached in and pulled out the new pair of buckskin boots. “Marissa helped me with these,” she said as she handed the boots to Nat.
Nat looked at Marissa and then at Maggie. “These are beautiful.”
“Maggie, all I did was braid the leather for the boot strings,” Marissa said.
“That is still helping,” Nat reminded her.
Nat took her boots off and slipped the new ones on her feet. “A perfect fit,” she said as she danced around the porch. “They are comfortable too.”
Maggie smiled proudly and reached back into the crate. “I thought I would send a few jars of chowder out with you too,” she said. “Instead of bringing them back empty, you can fill them up if you find that honey tree again,” Maggie said with a smile.
“Sounds like a fair trade to me,” Nat said.
Gyp sat in front of Maggie wiggling in anticipation. “I did not forget you,” Maggie said as she pulled a large bone out and handed it to Gyp. Gyp took the bone and moved to the edge of the porch and began gnawing on the gift.
“I also made you a new blanket for your bedroll,” Maggie said as she handed Nat a colorful blanket.
“That will come in very handy on the cool nights,” Nat said, and reached down to hug Maggie tightly. “Thank you, my friend.”
“Thank you for all that you have done for me,” Maggie said.
“I do believe we have one more item to care for,” Nat said. “I want you to keep the bear pelt and use it to warm your bed next winter,” Nat said.
“But, that pelt is worth a lot of money,” Maggie said.
“Okay, then sell it to Smithy,” Nat said. “Either way, it is yours.”
“It will warm my bed for many years to come,” Maggie said, her eyes glistening with tears. “I will be going now, but I wanted to give you my gifts and tell you goodbye. I hope to see you again soon,” Maggie said. “Take good care my friend,” she said to Gyp as she stood and hugged Nat tightly.
“I will miss you, Maggie,” Nat said. “Gyp will too.”
“Come home to us soon then,” Maggie said.
“I will,” Nat promised.
They watched Maggie as she picked up her crate and walked across the yard to return home. She stopped once at the edge of the yard and turned to wave at them.
“I think she will miss you almost as much as I will,” Marissa said.
“She has been a good friend to us,” Nat said. “These boots are beautiful,” she said. “You did a good job on the boot strings too.”
“Maggie put a lot of love and time into sewing them for you. She really appreciates all you have done for her. ”
“I know. That’s what makes it so easy to hunt or chop wood for her,” Nat said.
Nat settled back into the rocking chair as Gyp trotted back onto the porch. She picked up her knife and the bear carving and after another hour, she put the finishing touches on the base of the carving. “Not bad for a first try,” she said to Marissa. “I want you to have this,” she said.
“It is beautiful, Nat,” Marissa said as her fingers moved over the smooth wood. “I can’t believe this is your first piece. You made it look so easy. ”
“You just have to open your heart to the creature hiding in the wood and let him come to life,” Nat said. She picked up the honing stone and sharpened her knife and then slipped it into the boot sheath Maggie had sewn into the boot. She smiled at the fact Maggie had remembered that detail.
As the sun started to fade, Marissa turned to Nat. “Would you like to share a bath tonight?”
“I would love that, yes,” Nat said with a smile.
“We have cornbread and chops left for dinner if that is fine with you,” Marissa added.
“Sounds wonderful,” Nat said. “Would you like me to start the fire?”
“Yes, please and I will pack up the ham and biscuits for your trip. I already have the chicken wrapped up for you,” Marissa said.
“Thank you,” Nat said. She kissed Marissa and walked out to start the fire under the wash pot as Marissa went inside to wrap up the food.
Nat was kneeling down beside the wash pot when she felt Gyp brush up against her thigh. Gyp looked up at her with sadness in her eyes. “I know you like it here too, don’t you, my friend?”
Gyp responded by licking Nat’s hand. “We will be coming back here,” Nat promised.
The longer she stayed, the harder it would be for Nat to leave and it was already difficult for her to separate from Marissa. Never in her wildest dreams had she thought four months ago she would meet and fall in love with someone like Marissa. Her life was changing quickly and thoughts of the future scared Nat, even though she would not admit that to anyone beside herself. If she left the woods, would she make enough money to compensate for not trapping or would she need to change her standard of living, she wondered. Nat chuckled softly at her thoughts. Her standard of living was much improved with Marissa. She had a roof over her head every night, a home cooked meal and a beautiful woman to wrap her body around each night when she went to sleep. Nathan would probably think she was crazy to leave that behind, but Nat had to know.