“Yummy….” She managed to get out between kisses. Afterwards, they drifted off to sleep snuggled together like two spoons. She felt him reach for her during the night several times and kiss her neck. Lovely… Sometime in the wee hours, he had his arm around her waist and reached up to cup her breast. She turned around then and faced him. He smiled at her and bent down to kiss her breast. Now this was better than a movie…
Mandy moved with him and soon they were making love again. Who’s counting, and they slept very little that night. Who wanted to sleep when the person of your dreams is right there with you? She finally dozed off again snuggled into his chest. With his arms around her, for good this time, he sighed a sigh of relief. This was what he wanted…. This is what he needed -- Her in his arms and the world looked good. Conquerable even. It made him feel like he could do anything and just might. And long as she was there…
Finally, morning rays peeked through the curtains and Mandy began to wake. This time, Colt didn’t get up early to shower. He wanted to be there when she opened her eyes. He wanted to be the first thing she saw every morning of every day.
She stretched without opening her eyes and her arms bumped into him.
She felt his head, neck and arms. Then she opened her eyes…”Well, this can’t be. The Colt Johnson I know is up at the crack of dawn to slop the hogs, feed the chickens and shear the sheep. Who is this strange man in my bed?”
He smiled. She was fun – “The same man who did things with you all night that I hope weren’t too strange. You seemed to like them…”
“You’re not bad, but obviously in need of much practice. A bathroom break first and then…” She hopped out of bed and went into the bathroom. He could hear water running. She came out and dashed back into bed. “Damn, it’s cold!”
“You didn’t finish your sentence. “And then…” he coaxed.
“I think we need to practice some more tangling, Mr. Johnson.” She looked at him through her dark lashes. He was putty.
“Yes, ma’am,” and started kissing her again.
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
Sitting at the breakfast table, they were finally able to talk. Last night wasn’t for talking, it was for re-establishing the need they felt for each other. This morning, knowing there would be another night, they could talk. Colt scrambled some eggs and made the coffee. Mandy had showered and came out with wet hair barely combed. Colt laughed.
“Don’t you want me to see you at your best, Miss Evans?”
“I think you did last night, Mr. Johnson, and early this morning,” she yawned.
“I stand corrected. Hungry?” She started hungrily eating the eggs and toast he had made her.
“We didn’t have dinner last night, remember?” she said between mouthfuls. “We were kind of in a hurry to do other things.”
“Hey, slow down. There’s nothing planned for today. We need to get reacquainted, I mean, besides the lovemaking.” He started eating his own eggs and toast. Best meal he ever ate…
She finished breakfast and sipped her coffee. He watched her as he ate his eggs. She looked up at him and took a breath.
“Ready?” He knew what was coming.
“Yes.”
“Which first? Mother or ex-boyfriend?”
“Mother.”
“What did you say to her?”
“I told her she had to get her shit together, if she wanted to be invited to the wedding. She told me she had started drinking when Gary left and she was going to AA. I told her she had to do counseling as well.”
“How did she take it?”
“Actually, pretty well. She promised she would, so we’ll see. She has to prove that she’s going before she gets the invite.” He knew Mandy could be quite determined when she wanted to be. Her resilience came as a surprise.
“And Eddy?” She looked pensive at the name.
“He isn’t a bad guy. He took it well and wished us ‘congratulations’. I think he actually meant it.”
“Do you think he’ll stop trying to contact you?”
“I think so, but if he doesn’t, he’s all yours. I had my shot and did what I needed to do.”
“I’ve got to tell you that I was pretty nervous about your meeting with him alone. I don’t know him, so I wasn’t sure if he would try anything. It caused me some anxiety, I gotta tell you.” He looked at her pretty face.
Mandy traced his lips with her finger. “I love the protective part. It does make me feel loved.”
He leaned in to kiss her. “And I do love you so…” She kissed him back.
She pulled back to look at his handsome face.
“What happened with Miles? Did you talk to him?”
He got up to get the coffee pot and refill their cups. Thoughtful.
“Yes. It was interesting – he was in the media room watching ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’, of all things. We started talking about the movie and then we were suddenly talking about ourselves and our lives. Funny how movies are us and we are the movies.”
She smiled at him. “He was sorry?”
“Absolutely. He even said he would chip in for our wedding gift.”
She perked up, “Wedding gift?”
“Well, I haven’t had a chance to tell you anything yet. Let’s get dressed and go for a walk. It’s a crisp, clean morning and I have so much to tell you. We have plans to make as well.”
They walked through the woods by his cabin. There was a good trail and it was a mile around, then it headed back towards his place. They needed actually two miles to talk out all that had happened when she was in Sacramento.
Colt told her about the horse training business he was starting on the Johnson Ranch and that Sandy and Lily had given them fifty acres for a wedding gift. Currently, a house, barn, stables and corrals were being built for his business and for their residence.
“Your business sounds exciting… I’m so happy that you were able to work that out. And your parents have given us fifty acres of their ranch? Isn’t that expensive?” Mandy’s mouth dropped open.
“Ah…yes. It’s worth quite a lot. Land values fluctuate, but it’s still a substantial amount.”
“My God. How generous of them… I’m excited to see the house. When are we going?”
”Soon. I have to finish up with the camp and the last horse I was seeing. Even though I had terminated my contract, I still want to do this last job.”
“Yes, and I want to say goodbye to my clients and turn in my resignation. I want to invite Kim and a few people to the wedding, so I need to get addresses.”
“If you want to continue working, sweetheart, I think we can work that out. Naples isn’t far away – about five miles – and you could open a small practice there if you want. We could even build you an office at our place, if you would prefer.”
“I may want to at some point, but not right away.”
“Why not? I thought you loved your job.”
“I do, but I may love something else more.”
“You’re being cryptic,” Colt stopped and looked over at her. He took her hands. “What?”
“I don’t know for sure, it’s only been a little over a month really, but I’m late and I never am, and I probably should have told you first thing, but we grabbed each other and took off in that direction, so I…” She kept rambling.
“Sweetheart,” he started to smile, “tell me what you’re trying to tell me.”
She took a deep breath. “Honey, I might be pregnant.” She shyly looked up at him, wondering what his reaction would be.
“Really?” His smile became bigger. He lifted her up off the ground and swung her around, then gently put her down. He lifted up her face and kissed her sweetly. She had no illusions about his feelings.
“Yes.”
“That’s wonderful… I guess we really do need to get those wedding plans going now, don’t we? When we see the house, let’s pick out a good room for the nursery. I’ve got to tell you that my parents and grandparents will be a
bsolutely thrilled. Like I am...” He beamed at her.
“Colt, I fell into a big bowl of lucky when I met you. You are incredible. Not only are you handsome and smart, but you’re in love with me. That makes you really sexy to me…” She laughed. “Maybe we should wait to tell anyone though. It’s early yet and I haven’t even taken a pregnancy test.”
“Let’s pick one up today, okay? I’d like to know and I want everyone else to know too.” He took her face in his hands. “You’ve made me the happiest man on the planet, do you know that, sweet Mandy Evans?”
She leaned up to kiss him. “I do love you, Colt Johnson. That’s always and forever.” They kissed a lingering kiss. Then Colt took her hand and headed back to the cabin.
“Come on. Let’s take a ride to the drugstore.” He smiled at her and she laughed. Guess what the test results were?
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
Colt and Mandy spent the next five days packing up both their cabins, terminating leases and saying their goodbyes. They were actually sad to leave, since Donner Lake and Soda Springs had brought them together. It might just do as a great vacation place…
The horse that Colt had stayed to help was in pretty bad physical shape. He and the vet had decided it was probably best to ship the horse to Sacramento, where it would get more advanced medical treatment at a large animal clinic. The camp administrator was sorry to see him go -- His success rate at training the mustangs was 100%. All of his horses were now good ranch horses that the camp children could use. Working up at the Soda Springs camp had definitely enhanced his reputation as a hard-working, successful horse trainer. He was receiving more referrals than he could manage. Jeanne was eagerly fielding the requests and letting them know where Colt’s business was going to be set up in Nevada. They would have to take their horses to him, but no one complained. He was that good…
Mandy was sad to be leaving her young clients there at the camp, but made good strides at transferring them to other counselors. The administrator had also hired someone to take her place, and she worked to train him as well.
To her great delight, Colt’s newly trained mustangs would participate in a new horse therapy program, which had been her idea. It was already in progress when she came back to the camp and she was able to see how well it was going. Everyone gave her kudos for her great idea, and wished them the best of luck.
Early one morning, Colt’s phone rang. He was awake anyway and thought he’d try to get it. Colt gently disentangled himself from Mandy, but he couldn’t get to his phone fast enough. He tripped over his boots, and by the time he found the phone, the call had gone to voice mail. He leaned over to kiss a sleeping Mandy on the cheek, and took the phone into the bathroom. Seeing it was Sandy, he played the message.
“Colt, this is Dad. How are things going up there?” He could hear the smile in his dad’s voice. “Listen, give me a call. I need to get your ETA and talk about a few things. Bye.”
Colt called him back immediately. His dad was still close to his phone and picked up. “Hey, Dad. What’s up?”
“No, that’s my question. First, your mother wants to know how you and Mandy are.”
“Tell her we’re fine -- Great, even. We’re packing up here, turning in resignations, and all that.”
“When are you heading home?”
“Probably by the weekend. I’m hoping we’ll be ready to go by Saturday.”
“By the way. Did Jesse call you yet?” Sandy laughed.
“No.”
“He proposed finally to Audrey.”
“No kidding! Great… Did she say ‘yes’?” Colt laughed with him.
“Apparently, she did. Your mother wants to plan an engagement party for you, Jesse and your fiancés. I’ll let her talk to the girls when you are back here.”
“Sounds great! Thanks, Dad. I’ll call Jesse later today. See you soon.”
“Bye, son. Drive carefully.” He clicked off.
What to do? No way was Colt going to drive home without Mandy. His vehicle was newer and bigger, so they decided to leave her car with Kim, Mandy’s friend from the camp, until they could come back for it. Believe it or not, they managed to get all of her belongings and his into Colt’s truck. Luckily, it had a camper shell on it, and they put everything in the back. Neither of them had any furniture to speak of, and had rented furnished cabins. Basically, they had personal belongings and clothes. Lily would never believe that Mandy could travel so light.
The drive was fun… They talked and laughed, and discussed some future plans. Being young and in love has many advantages. One is that your life is all spread out in front of you – like a series of highways. You just have to decide which road to take.
Coming into Verdi, a small town about ten miles out of Reno, Colt got a phone call. Mandy took it.
“Hello?”
“Mandy, is that you?” It was Lily.
“Hi Lily. Yes, it’s me. How are you?”
“Fine, sweetie, but Jesse isn’t.” Lily sounded upset.
“What’s happened?” Mandy looked at Colt who mouthed, ‘What?’ at her.
“Can you get to the hospital in Reno? Jesse took a fall off his horse and was air-lifted there.” Mandy put the phone on speaker so Colt could hear.
“Hey, Mom, you’re on speaker. What’s going on?”
“From what Audrey said, Jesse rode out to do something and his horse was spooked by a snake. The horse bucked him off and he fell hard on his shoulder. I don’t think anything is broken, but it’s bad. We’re heading there now – Can you meet us?”
“Sure, we’ll be there in probably twenty minutes. Oh, Mom – which hospital, there’s a couple.”
“Washoe Medical, where they take trauma cases. Thanks, you two. See you soon.” She clicked off.
They had been poking along, really, not trying to get anywhere in a hurry. They were just enjoying the ride. Now, Colt speeded up, wanting to get to his brother at the hospital. Going through town, he stayed on the freeway to get quicker to the center of town – Where the hospital was located. Mandy had called Audrey, who was already there and told her pretty much the same as Lily had. She said he was lucky to have not landed on the angry snake. He had gotten out his cell phone and called her. Then she called 911 and the helicopter had to go get him. She didn’t sound upset or frantic, so, hopefully, Jesse wasn’t in bad shape. Audrey said they were waiting for x-rays to come back to determine the course of action.
By the time they arrived at the hospital, parked and found his room, Sandy and Lily were there, discussing the situation with the doctor. Nothing was broken, but he had badly sprained his shoulder and arm. He’d be in a sling for a while. Jesse was already grumbling about what he wouldn’t be able to do.
Lily took the girls outside the room, as the guys had to talk about ranch business. Jesse was an integral part of running the ranch and he would be out of commission for many jobs. They needed to decide who could take over for what job. Sandy asked Colt to step in for Jesse in the interim. Jason, as foreman, was instrumental in the running of the ranch, but he would need help. That was fine with Colt, since he had put his business on hold until the building and corral construction was completed. He couldn’t very well bring in horses to train when there were no corrals or barns in which to put them. Miles and Joey would be brought in as well.
Lily had the happier job – talking to her almost daughters-in-law. She smiled at them both.
“Let the men talk about their business, we need to talk about ours.” She gave them both big hugs and led them out to an area that had chairs and sofas.
“I’m so happy for you both. Congratulations… You are marrying the finest men anywhere, you know.” She laughed.
Mandy gave Audrey a hug. “Congratulations…Jesse’s a great guy.”
Audrey returned the sentiment and congratulated her as well.
“Have you had a chance to plan anything? What have you discussed?”
“Well,” Mandy started, “we need to live somewhere
while the construction is being finished. By the way, I want to thank you for the wedding gift that you and Sandy gave us. It was incredibly generous…”
“You’re most welcome. Sandy and I are just so thrilled you were able to put some problems behind you. And you and Colt can live in Jeanne and Sam’s house for a month or so. They won’t be back to Naples until after the grape harvest.” She stopped and smiled at Mandy. Then she turned her attention to Audrey.
“Audrey, we’re giving you and Jesse the same gift of fifty acres of ranch land. We haven’t had a chance to say anything to you, since you just got engaged and then Jesse had his accident.”
Audrey, a pretty brunette with a charming smile and sparkling eyes, looked from one to another and smiled. “It is an honor to be joining the Johnson family. And thank you for the terrific gift. Jesse will be thrilled too.” The Johnsons had already been her family for a long time, but legal is legal…
They were chatting about the engagement party that Lily wanted to have for them – family only – and then they could invite the town, if they wanted to the wedding. Was it to be a double wedding? A double wedding…Lily was beyond excited as were Mandy and Audrey. Talk continued of flowers, arches, invitations, clothes, wedding dresses and where to buy things. Should she hire a wedding planner? The girls were thinking it over and discussing the pros and cons, when Mandy all of a sudden looked sick, and put a hand to her stomach. She knew she was going to throw up and hurried to the bathroom. That made Audrey look uncomfortable too -- She put her hand to her mouth and rushed after her to the bathroom.
Lily narrowed her eyes as she watched both of them run to the bathroom.
Softly and to no one in particular she said, “ ‘It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want to a wife.’ ” And also, she concluded, a family… It was as plain as the noses on their faces that they were pregnant. Lily had had five pregnancies herself and could spot a pregnant woman a mile away. Jesse’s accident and the wedding talk had momentarily thrown her off. She was back on track now, and smiled a slow, broad smile. Grandchildren…. It all just seems to get better, doesn’t it?
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