She was almost back to sleep when she heard a sound and sleepily opened her eyes to see him standing there next to her table looking at her. He even looked like a good dream this morning with his button down sans the sleeves showing off the sun browned muscles in his arms and shoulders. She blinked to see if he would disappear into her head again, but he was still there and she rubbed her eyes to clear them. His quiet good morning finally shook her out of her reverie and she lifted her head, startled that he really was there in front of her.
He put a paper plate covered by an inverted one, down on her table and put a nearby rock on top to keep them there and then turned to go out into the sage to catch the helicopter she realized she was hearing. She turned her head to watch him walk across the flat with the fluid motion of a mountain lion. Somehow that's what he reminded her of with his golden brown hair and muscles rippling under his skin when he picked up his gear. When he was gone and the sound of the chopper died away, she yawned and stretched and gave herself a lecture about the fact that she wasn't fifteen anymore and she should be able to actually say good morning without wondering what had happened to all the oxygen.
It wasn't until she got out of bed, that she noticed Zeus was happily gnawing on a bone at her feet. She should have known there was a reason he wasn't trying to take Matt apart any more. She picked up her bedding and took it inside after calling Zeus easily bought off. She was a little slow getting started that day and even once she was on Horse and underway, she kept catching herself daydreaming about his music last night and she'd feel adolescent again. He'd only been here eight days and she needed to get a handle on herself right now before he caught her staring. She spent the rest of the day giving herself a talking to about what an adult she was.
It was time to move the trailer again and she was glad the terrain was gentle enough that she could move it and handle the sheep too so she didn't need to call Zan in just now. There was no doubt about the lecture he would dole out about her being too trusting. She would have agreed that he had a point except for the prompting she had felt the night she'd recommended Matt camp near her. She'd followed her gut on this one and had obviously been right in doing so.
She moved the trailer a couple of miles down the little valley in the direction he was working, to where it couldn't be seen from the road, but Matt wouldn't have any trouble reaching it in his four wheel drive and she set it all back up before going back to get his stuff. She knew he would come in tired and she hoped he wouldn't care if she just pulled the tent pegs and put it in the back of his Jeep intact. They'd find out when he got back at any rate.
It was Saturday and she needed to go buy groceries and ship plans, but she was more than a little hesitant to be seen in civilization. She wanted to go to church tomorrow as well, which was also impossible to do without being seen. She thought about it all day while she watched over the sheep, and finally decided that even though it would be breaking the Sabbath, she would do all three tomorrow when she went in to church. She even decided she would go to a different town than she had been going to in case that was how they had figured out where she was.
She tried not to admit to herself that sooner or later whoever it was who was looking for her was going to figure out that she truly was the woman sheepherder and come back. She wasn't sure if it was John and he just wanted to demand the missing diamond back or if it was someone else who was going to try to find a way to make sure she couldn't testify against him. The one made her disgusted; the other scared her more than she wanted to admit. If she was honest with herself, it was probably both.
Matt came in early that afternoon and as she saw him drag in, she could tell he was tired to the bone. She had watched the helicopter drop bundle after bundle of whatever it was that Matt was stringing and recording, and Matt had crossed literally miles and miles of desert today with his heavy pack. She was glad she had brought over his gear and then made them a Dutch oven dinner before going back out with the sheep, and hoped he saw the note she'd left on his tent flap.
When she and Horse and Zeus came past his tent on the way in, she found him asleep in the camp chair near his table with one hiking boot off and one half way undone. She knew he hadn't even made it to the shower let alone to the Dutch oven. She almost decided to just let him sleep, but worried about him getting a stiff neck from sleeping with his head kinked in the chair.
She was sitting her horse there beside him wondering how best to wake him up when Zeus walked up to him and started to nose his hand. He woke up and started to pet the dog before he realized she was standing there watching him. When he looked up at her, she smiled at him and then accused him of ruining her guard dog.
He gave her a tired smile in return and said, "Hey, it was pure self preservation. For the first week I was here, he only didn't eat me because he knew you'd be mad at him. I had to do something to convince him I was on the same team. He still guards you; he just doesn't threaten to rip my limbs off anymore."
"You're neck is never going to forgive you if you don't get out of that chair. I made Dutch oven chicken for dinner if you decide you have the energy to eat tonight."
"Thanks. I'll take you up on that. The offer of something other than peanut butter is probably the only thing that could make me move right now. When are you eating?"
She shrugged. "Whenever you make it to my fire. I hope you didn't mind that I moved your stuff. I didn't get into anything, just moved it all in one piece, I promise."
"I'm just grateful you did it. I'm so tired tonight I think I'd have just stayed over there until tomorrow if you hadn't."
"You've put in a week. Have you heard from your boss lately?"
"Not a peep. I don't know whether to be thrilled or worried."
"Did you ever finalize what's going to happen to your contract?"
"I made an appointment to go talk to the man who hired my boss on Monday. Now I just have to find the energy to make it to Monday."
"A shower and food and sleep will help. See you in a while."
****
It was a few minutes before he realized that he was staring at her as she rode back to camp. It had been a busy week, but not too busy for him to have become even more fascinated with the sheep princess. He'd been okay those first couple of days, but then on Sunday, he'd slept in and only made it to the door of his tent as she came out of her trailer in an indigo blue dress and with her hair cascading down her back in shining waves and curls.
He hadn't been able to do anything but stare. Not even breathe. She looked like a different person altogether, and he'd sighed, wishing he was closer so he could have had an even better glimpse of her before she got into the beat up old truck and left. He realized later that she must have been headed off to church, and he remembered what one of the men who were looking for her the other night had said about her being too churchy to live with a boyfriend. The thought made him feel the guilt he'd been working on losing for the past couple of weeks now. He'd felt like he was doing better as far as repenting, but she obviously out classed him as a good person. Especially if she went to find a church from this remote place.
He'd rolled over onto his back, and tried to expel both the guilt and the fascination with her, but it was difficult on both counts. He had a lot to feel guilty about after Stacy, and the vision in the blue dress had left a deep mark. She was a beautiful girl, and seemed to get prettier every time he saw her, something he wouldn't necessarily have thought possible if he hadn't seen her with his own eyes.
And then this morning. Holy Cannoli! Coming upon her there on the swing asleep, she had looked like a beautiful sleeping angel. And when she'd opened those sleepy, blue eyes! Man! Maybe living this close to her was going to be harder than he'd come to assume it would be. He hadn't had a rational thought since.
He finished unlacing his boot and got his out shaving kit to go shower. Dutch oven chicken sounded divine right now, but the dust and sweat from the day needed to come off first. He stretched his back and shoulders as he s
tood up. He'd used muscles today that he hadn't even known he had. He certainly didn't need a fitness club out here to stay in shape. Today had been brutal.
The sun was setting in the west as he approached her camp, and the light was a clear saffron that brightened the sage into nearly lime green instead of its usual muted gray. The little valley spread out below them fairly glowed, and the peace of it seemed to smooth out all the wrinkles in his life in a way that was almost tangible. He just about wished that this project wasn't nearing completion. He could use a big dose of the serenity that permeated this place. Even with the grueling hours of hard work, his spirit was soaking in the stillness.
She was sitting in her little swing with one leg tucked underneath her and the other gently pushing off occasionally as she looked clear down the valley, lost somewhere far away in thought. She turned when she heard him and gave him a mellow smile. "How was the shower?"
"Great, thank you. I feel human again. Who came up with that rig anyway? It's pretty ingenious."
"Zan and I collaborated on it. It's been my lifeline some days. The heat here sometimes drains me, but the shower helps."
"Now, Zan is the man who owns the sheep? Or is that Joseph?"
"Joseph is Zan's father. So technically, they both own them, but mostly Joseph owns them and Zan usually handles other business for the Navajo Nation off the reservation. He's got a degree in some kind of business. Business law maybe. Something along those lines. I think Zan tends to pay far more attention to me than to the other sheepherders they employ. At first, he thought he had a thing for me, but now he just thinks he's my big brother supervisor slash baby sitter. He tends to over manage me, but his help has been invaluable. I think you'll like him, although he's not going to be very happy with me for having a stranger camping nearby."
She got up to put the Dutch oven on the table next to the dishes and utensils she had there. Pulling the folding chair over to the table, she said, "I think you'd better sit in the canvas chair. These plastic seats are not all that sturdy and I'd hate to have it collapse with you. I'll pray okay?" She did and began to dish the food up and then put the heavy cast iron pan back into the fire pit to get it out of the way. They each ate for a second and then she asked, "Did you say you've been eating a lot of peanut butter sandwiches?"
He grimaced. "Almost every day for awhile. I used to love it, but I'm well past that point after this summer. It works though. It's portable and doesn't spoil in the heat. I'm living proof that eating a lot of it won't kill a person, just their preference for it."
"I have it too sometimes. I have one sheep that follows me around trying to steal my sandwich if she's close enough to smell it. One time I let her eat a whole sandwich just to see what she would do. She got some stuck on the tip of her nose and it drove her crazy trying to lick it off that afternoon. It was very entertaining.” She paused and said self consciously, “I have to get my entertainment where I can out here, you know."
"I can imagine, although the peace here more than makes up for the lack of entertainment."
"I think so, but then I'm strange enough to be a sheepherder. Even Zan and Joseph think I'm eccentric."
"Well, you have to admit that a woman sheepherder is a little unusual."
She was quiet for a minute and then said, "Maybe that was part of the allure for me."
He noticed she was fiddling with the splint on her hand again, and asked, "What happened to your hand?"
She shook her head and said with a sigh, "Something ugly happened to my hand. It's a long and not very interesting story. Let's don't talk about it. Tell me what it is that you're doing out there everyday."
"Technically, seismic petroleum exploration using geophysics. Now that is a long and not very interesting story."
"It sounds a bit more technical than sheep herding, huh? You said you don't typically do what you're doing out here. What is it you typically do?"
"Total computer geek stuff. I take the information we find out here and process it to standardize it and then interpret what it is that we're finding. I'm usually the office guy, not the field guy."
"Are you enjoying being the field guy on this one, or can you not wait to get back to your office?"
"At first, it was hot and tedious and the company was abysmal, but it's growing on me. I don't think I'll be very happy just in the computer lab ever again. And I'm finding that calling my own shots is much more satisfying than having a supervisor."
"You're one who can handle calling his own shots because of your self discipline. Not everyone can do that. Most people need to have a supervisor in order to get anything done."
"I guess being a sheepherder is the ultimate in unsupervised. You're alone all the time, aren't you?"
"Oh, heavens no. I have three dogs and a hundred and ninety-three sheep and Horse."
"A horse or just Horse?"
"Just Horse. I named her myself. It's kind of catchy, don't you think?"
"Positively poetic. Please tell me all the sheep aren't named Sheep."
She laughed. "No. Usually the only times I call the sheep names are when I am trying not to swear at them. There are a handful that stand out and have nicknames, but mostly they're a herd of sheep to me."
He finished eating and pushed his plate back. "Thank you for cooking. I know what you mean about not cooking just for one. And tonight I was too tired to even consider it. By morning I would have been starving. Can I help you clean up?"
"You know how the Dutch oven is to clean. And I'll burn the plates, so no. Go home and go to bed. Are you going anywhere to church tomorrow?"
"I hadn't planned on it. I have no idea even where there is one out here."
"I'm going to go, and you're welcome to come with if you'd like. I'm going to leave at about nine-forty-five or so."
"I'll think about it. If I'm awake by then that is. The helicopter doesn't fly on Sundays so I usually try to sleep in and rest up all in one day before the next week. Where do you have to go to find a church?"
"There are several around, but tomorrow I'm going to go to La Honda. That's about ten minutes from here."
"I should go with you, but the closest thing I have to dress clothes is a pair of chinos."
She waved a hand at him. "I can't imagine that God would mind if you wore a pair of Chinos to worship him. Especially out here. I'd guess He's just glad we show up."
"You have a point, but I'd hate to embarrass the sheep princess. Do I ever get to know what your name is?"
She looked at him surprised. "I've never told you my name? I'm sorry, I didn't even realize. It's Taya. Taya Kaye. And you are?"
“Matt Maylon. From Steamboat.” He got up and threw his paper plate on the fire. "Well, thanks for dinner, Taya Kaye. It was great. See ya around." Taya. It fit her perfectly. A little exotic, slightly mysterious, beautiful, but unpretentious.
Chapter 11
Deep in the night he was awoken by the sound of coyotes yipping and howling out in the valley. He heard her trailer door shut and sat up in bed. He could hear her talking to her dogs and heard her whistle once and then there was nothing but the coyotes and the sounds of agitated sheep for several minutes.
The sound of the coyotes was abruptly cut short by the sound of a shot and then the short, crying whine of a dog and then silence. A minute later there were another two shots, one right after another, followed by another yelp and then nothing again. Slowly, the sheep began to settle down and from time to time he could hear her calm voice as she walked among them talking to them and the dogs. Her voice even calmed him and he fell back to sleep before he heard her come back in. In the morning, he felt guilty for not making sure she came back safely before drifting off.
He decided he was going to go to church with her after all, for a couple of reasons. One was that he knew he needed it in his life, especially right now, and the other was that he wanted to see her up close dressed up again. His glimpse of her from a distance last week had been enough to make him get out of bed even when
he felt like he could have slept all day. Seeing her step out of her trailer this time in a tan suit dress and heels with her hair a shiny tumble of the deepest chocolate waves and curls, convinced him he'd made a good decision. Even as tired as he knew she had to be after spending hours with her herd in the night, she looked like a million bucks.
One thing she didn't look like was a nomadic sheepherder. More like a business executive maybe. Something still wasn't adding up with all of this, but he figured she'd either level with him eventually, or she wouldn't and he'd know it was none of his business. Either way, he was enjoying the view and the interesting company occasionally. It beat the heck out of dealing with Hyatt and the others and their "ladies".
She had gone back into her trailer and emerged with what looked like a huge canvas beach bag full of several cardboard tubes like the ones posters or architectural plans came in. She set the bag on the table and then he heard her grumble to herself and open the door of her trailer and set it back inside and close the door. She turned with a yogurt smoothie in one hand and a handbag that exactly matched her shoes in the other, and he had to grin to himself at the thought that somehow in that little trailer she had a stash of matching purses and shoes.
As she headed for the trailer hitch of the battered truck, he asked her if she would be offended if he drove. Somehow, there was just no way she could put that dress and that truck together. It was too incongruous. His four wheel drive Jeep was bad enough, but at least it was relatively new and unscathed in comparison.
When he asked, he startled her, and she looked up in surprise and then smiled at him. "Good morning. I thought you were going to pass. I'm glad you're going to go. You'll love it and I won't have to walk in alone. I hate that sometimes." She looked him over. "I thought you were whining about not having clothes. You look perfect. And yes, I'd love it if you'd drive. We have a much better chance of actually arriving at church if you drive than if we take Lancaster."
The Sage After Rain A love story Page 8