Bait Shop Blues

by Nancy Pirri

  “I’m fine,” he managed to say, rising gingerly into a sitting position, then to his feet as he pulled her up with him. He slung an arm around her shoulders and walked with her back to their campsite.

  “Remember what I said about adventure?”

  She gave him a brief nod. “You were right, and I think I can do without any more of that sort of adventure for the rest of the trip.”

  He grinned devilishly. “Hell, we haven’t met up with those mosquitoes, yet.

  “Speak for yourself,” she snapped.

  ~ * ~

  With the dawning of a new day came the rain. Leif had warned Cassandra it rained often in the fall. “There’s no sense leaving now.” He backed away from the tent opening and crawled inside his sleeping bag.

  “You mean we’re stuck here until the rain stops?” she asked, a stunned look on her face.

  “That’s right. We might as well get some extra shut eye.”

  “I’m not tired.” Cassandra knew she sounded little better than a petulant child, but didn’t care.

  “Close your eyes and give it a try.”

  She stood facing the closed zippered tent flap. She reached out and touched the tab of the zipper when Leif’s words stopped her.

  “Don’t touch it or the rain will leak through.” He folded his arms beneath his head.

  Cassandra’s cheeks grew warm from the intense look in his half-slit, drowsy eyes and she clenched her hands into fists at her sides.

  “There’s no sense in us getting wet. As soon as the rain stops we’ll leave.”

  She stared at Leif, amazed and envious when he closed his eyes, then, within seconds, started snoring. Cassandra couldn’t believe he’d fallen asleep so quickly. He was a handsome man and she decided with little effort on his part, he could coerce her right into his sleeping bag. But after his initial advance toward her, followed by her rejection, he’d made no more moves on her. She should be satisfied.

  When he started snoring even louder she rolled her eyes and sighed. Her forearm itched and she scratched it. When she removed her hand she looked down and saw blood on it. Mosquitoes. She’d encountered a few during the day already. Hadn’t he warned her about the varmints? They must have attacked her during the night, even though he’d sealed the tent tightly. She figured a few must have gotten inside before he closed up for the night.

  She shivered, realizing the temperature wasn’t warming up as it usually did with the dawning of day, but seemed to actually be getting colder. She buttoned the flannel shirt she wore over a t-shirt, and zipped her khaki vest. Oh, how she wished for the warmth of a fire, but there was no way they’d be able to keep one going in this downpour, she mused, listening to the rain pelting the canvas.

  Pacing, she hummed a tune until Leif growled at her.

  “I can’t sleep with you rustling around like that. Sit on your bag and be quiet,” he ordered.

  “You were snoring a minute ago,” she scoffed.

  He opened his eyes a bit. “Your pacing woke me. What’s wrong?”

  “I’m cold,” she murmured, winding her arms around her waist. She widened her eyes when he unzipped his bag and held out his hand.

  “Come on inside and I’ll warm you up.”

  “Uh-uh.” She backed up a step.

  “The way I see it,” he said, lowering his arm, “is you either get in here with me, or find your own bedroll. We’re not leaving for awhile, so let’s get some more rest.”

  Cassandra saw the set look on his face and finally stomped over to her sleeping bag. Once she zipped herself inside and settled down she heard him snoring again. As time passed she counted sheep and hummed, but her eyes wouldn’t stay closed. And then she went utterly still, although her heart raced at the sounds of movement close to the tent.

  She sat up, listened, and stifled a gasp when she heard a noise that sounded suspiciously like snorting.

  “Uh, Leif,” she whispered, “There’s something outside.”

  “Probably a squirrel or porcupine.”

  After a moment’s silence she heard thudding footsteps. Frowning, she lay down beside Leif, snuggled close to his back. “I don’t think so. Sounds like a person walking.”

  Leif groaned and rolled over. Before Cassandra had a chance to move back he slid an arm beneath her and tucked her close against his body.

  “There,” he said sleepily, “It’s just your imagination. I’ll warm you and you’ll sleep like a newborn. Damn, but you’re cold, woman.”

  She heard the tent’s zipper sliding. “Uh, Leif? Unless the wildlife around here have hands somebody’s coming into the tent.”

  Leif swore and shot up into a sitting position. He slid out of the sleeping bag, came to his feet and Cassandra followed. She stood and huddled behind him when a man outside the tent spoke.

  “You folks all right in there?”

  “Don’t come any further, Mister. Who are you?”

  “Park Ranger Gordie Smith, that’s who.”

  Leif sighed in relief and yanked the zipper up. He invited the soggy ranger inside and shook hands with the older man. Gordie stared at Cassandra then grinned at Leif.

  “Hell, boy,” he said, removing his trooper hat. “Who’s your little gal friend?”

  Leif sighed. “This is old Roy’s granddaughter, Cassandra Thompson.”

  “Huh?” Gordie frowned and scratched his head. “I thought you was Roy’s only family.”

  “So did I,” Leif replied under his breath.

  Cassandra stuck out her hand. “Nice to meet you, Ranger. I didn’t hear your boat arrive.”

  “That’s cause I got me one of those new, quiet motors.” He grinned. “I got no chance of catching poachers if they hear me coming.”

  “What brings you here?” Leif asked.

  “Do you two know you’re surrounded by tornados?”

  “Hell,” Leif said.

  Cassandra’s voice trembled, “We are?”

  Leif heard her worried tone and sighed.

  “Guess we’ll have to head back home,” she added.

  Leif lifted his brow. “You ready to concede defeat already?”

  Cassandra bristled, “Of course not, but we can’t stay here.”

  “I know of a big, hollowed out tree trunk we can move in to. Once this all blows over, we can leave.”

  “Are you crazy?” Cassandra asked shrilly. “You heard the Ranger!”

  Gordie shook his head. “I don’t know what in the hell you two are up to, Leif, but you know better than to play around in weather like this. The tornados are mostly to the west, but they’re moving in a south-eastly direction, toward us, so if you’re smart you’ll hightail it out of here and get to safety. Ely’s just a stone’s throw away.”

  Leif shrugged and crossed his arms. “I’ll leave when the little lady here tells me she’s ready to call it quits.”

  “If you were anyone else but who you are, I’d order you off this island. You know that, don’t you?” Gordy retorted.

  Cassandra shouted, “Then order him off!”

  “Want to tell me why I shouldn’t make you leave, son?” the ranger asked.

  Leif sighed, then said, “Cassie and I are involved in a contest of sorts, and the outcome is too important for us to quit.

  The older man stared at Leif for the longest time before turning to Cassandra. “Don’t you worry, little gal. Leif knows how to handle himself in the wilderness. He’ll take good care of you.” He looked at Leif once more. “I got to get going.”

  The ranger let himself out of the tent and Leif stood beside Cassandra staring at her. He met her worried expression but a moment later she thumped his chest in anger.

  “Are you crazy? You heard the Ranger. Let’s get out of here.”

  She turned away from his stoic face and proceeded to roll up her sleeping bag. She tucked her pillow inside the bedroll, pausing at Leif’s softly spoken words.

  “You tell me you’ll return to Chicago when we get back to Gateway and we’ll
get out of here.”

  She glared at him. “You are the most stubborn man I’ve ever met.” She rose and jammed her hands on her hips.

  “Yes or no?”

  Cassandra sighed. “If anything happens to me, you’ll be very, very sorry.”

  “Nothing will happen to you if you follow my directions. You call it.”

  “I’m staying! Gateway belongs not only to you, you know.”

  “It should, damn it all,” he growled as he sank back down on his sleeping bag. He turned his back to her and lay still while she unrolled her bedroll and slid inside. After a long while she said, “When do you think we should find that tree?”

  “I’ll let you know if we need to. We’ll have plenty of time, so don’t worry.”

  So don’t worry,” she mouthed, mimicking his words.

  ~ * ~

  Cassandra slowly wakened, clawing at her flannel shirt as stifling heat penetrated her body. She opened her eyes then shut them quickly.

  Leif was standing next to her, removing his clothing. With his back to her he’d stripped down to a pair of drab olive pants, the kind he usually wore loaded with lots of pockets. Then he faced her and she stared at his open fly. Slowly, she raised her eyes and met his.

  “You’re awake. Good,” he growled.

  And with those three little words he slid his pants down and yanked them off. Standing tall in a pair of black jockeys, he looked masculine, dangerous and sexy. She lowered her gaze and gulped at the bulge in the front of his shorts.

  Her head shot up when he said, “What do you think I am, a eunuch?” When she didn’t reply he added, “Well, damn it, I’m not! Let me tell you something. This is just going to continue to get worse, and we just started the trip. I think you’ll be able to guess what condition I’ll be in by the time we end it.”

  Cassandra shot out of her sleeping bag. She stood across from him and jammed her hands on her hips. “Have I done something to put you in this condition? Have I?” she insisted.

  “Just you being here and knowing you don’t want me to lay a finger on you is reason enough for this,” he snapped, pointing a finger downwards. “Get changed into something cooler. The sun’s come out and you’ll cook in that flannel shirt and pants.”

  She tapped her foot as he pulled on a pair of shorts. Then he tugged on a T-shirt with a huge fish on the front with the words, ‘Catch and Release’ below it. He finished tucking his shirt inside his shorts, zipped up his fly and pulled a belt through the belt loops. Finally, he looked up and pierced her body with a long look then shrugged. “Suit yourself, but let me tell you something, Princess. There’ll be no changing once we’ve packed up.”

  “I’ll change, after you leave the tent.”

  He grinned. “Shy, huh? We’ve got a lot of days ahead of us—living, eating, sleeping together.”

  Cassandra grimaced at the sound of that.

  “And don’t forget answering nature’s call. Since you seem to have an aversion to wildlife, I’ll have to keep a close watch on you.”

  She narrowed her eyes on him until he left the tent, whistling a tune she recognized but couldn’t name. She squirmed out of the clothes clinging to her hot, sweaty body, muttering, “Princess, Baby. Why can’t he just call me by my name?” He could be such an irritant. Two could play at that game. ‘Wilderness Man’ suited him just fine.

  Cassandra buttoned the top button on her shorts and had just left the tent when it collapsed on one side, startling her. She shrieked, and pressed her hand against her chest when she heard Leif’s laughter. She found him on his haunches at the back of the tent, taking down the poles, grinning.

  “You scared the devil out of me and you did it on purpose,” she accused.

  “I’ve been standing out here waiting for you to finish your toilette, my lady. We’ve lots of ground to cover before nightfall, which, by the way, is only about five hours from now.”

  “All right. What can I do to help?”

  Surprise crossed his face and she made a mental note to try to be more cooperative. He wasn’t forcing her to take this trip, after all, even though he’d been the one to throw out the challenge. But a bargain was a bargain. She knew if she asked her attorney, Leif wouldn’t have any choice but to share Gateway with her, but she lived by a code of ethics. She’d live up to their agreement and she’d live it well.

  His eyes reflected admiration, but he gruffly replied, “Help me fold and pack this up.”

  She squatted beside him, followed his instructions and soon they were on their way. As they paddled in unison, Leif passed her two Granola bars and half a banana.

  “When we set up camp tonight, we’ll have something more filling.”

  “Sounds good.” She tried to keep an upbeat attitude, all the while dreaming about a cup of coffee.

  The further they paddled and the more passages they portaged, the more adept Cassandra became at the tasks, and the more she enjoyed the adventure. While the weather wasn’t threatening rain and storms, it was overcast, hot and muggy. They paddled well into evening in order to make up for lost time.

  Leif had plotted a map of their travels, insisting that this wasn’t just any ordinary trip, but one of skill and brevity. They would be traveling roughly one hundred miles by the time they finished, crossing lakes, rivers, and land over a twelve-day period. When Cassandra asked how many miles they’d traveled thus far, she grew depressed by his reply—eight. They’d lost time due to the bad weather.

  They reached their campsite for the night, quickly set up the tent before it grew too dark to see, then set out together to gather wood for a fire. Later, they drank their coffee in silence as they perched on tree stumps, on opposite sides of a blazing fire.

  Cassandra had come down with a pounding headache, likely due to lack of caffeine. She hadn’t said a word about it to Leif, but he must have known for he poured her a third cup of coffee. Her hand shook when she held the cup to her lips. She took a few sips then lowered the cup and met his scowling expression.

  “What?” She raised her brow.

  “How much caffeine do you usually consume in a day?”

  She shrugged. “Too much, as you can see.”

  He nodded. “Starting tomorrow morning, we’ll wean you.”

  “What’s this ‘we’ business?”

  Too much caffeine’s not good for you. A couple cups of coffee in the morning should do you fine for all day, not a couple pots.”

  “Then I might say the same thing about your smoking,” she replied.

  “Haven’t you noticed that I quit?” he asked, a self-satisfied smirk on his lips.

  She had noticed that after her first few days at Gateway he hadn’t lit up another cigarette, at least around her and Maxie. “Yes, I had noticed.”

  “Then why in the hell didn’t you tell me so? I could have used some support, you know.”

  “I was afraid I’d jinx your running streak.”

  He shook his head. “That won’t happen. You let me know I’m doing a good job from now on. Okay?”

  She smiled. “Okay.”

  Cassandra thought about Maxie’s telling of Leif’s upbringing and the lack of decent parental support in his life before Roy took care of him. She guessed he hadn’t received much praise from his mother, who’d been either in a drunken stupor, or too depressed with her own life to recognize her son’s craving for love and attention.

  Cassandra slapped her hand against her arm where a mosquito had landed, then another. Suddenly a swarm of them invaded her space.

  “The natives have found us. Guess it’s time to turn in.”

  “Why in the world did the good lord invent the pests, anyway?” she asked irritably.

  Leif doused the fire with a bucket of water. “Believe it or not the things have their use for being on this earth. I’ll tell you about it some time.”

  In the tent, Cassandra tucked herself into her sleeping bag, turned onto her side, facing Leif. Immediately, she fell into a deep sleep. Leif wasn�
�t so lucky. As he lay on his back beside Cassie all he could think about was her lush body splayed across his on the ground today. The image brought a smile to his lips, but the smile slowly faded when he recalled how good she’d felt in his arms; too good. He couldn’t recall when he’d grown that hard for a woman. Because he couldn’t remember he knew it had to be years ago, yet the little voice inside him said, never.

  ~ * ~

  Six o’clock dawned hot and humid. Cassandra and Leif had quickly packed up their gear and loaded it all into the canoe. They’d wasted the entire day yesterday, waiting out the rainstorm and had to make up for the lost time. They’d just passed through a narrows leading into another lake.

  “Stop a second, Cassie.”

  She turned to see Leif looking beyond her, at the lake. Then she faced forward and gasped, “You’ve got to be kidding.”

  Cassandra’s eyes widened on the two-foot waves on the lake they were about to tackle.

  Leif said, “This is the biggest lake in the chain. It’s called Kabetogama, which means ‘the lake that runs parallel’ to, in this case, Rainey Lake.

  She shook her head. “Uh, there’s no way I’m paddling through that!”

  “We don’t have much choice. Cass Lake is even worse than this. I thought the winds would have died down some, unfortunately they haven’t. We can do it. I’ve done it before, but I’ll warn you now, it’ll be rough going.”

  Cassandra bit her lip then nodded. “Then let’s get it over with.”

  Leif’s big grin took Cassandra’s breath away.

  “That’s my girl,” he praised as he dug his paddle into the water.

  They entered the waves and Cassandra didn’t have time to think about the danger. She spent the next several hours following Leif’s directions he shouted out over the noise of the wind gusting across the lake. They stayed close to shore, the trees there offering some protection as they paddled around inlets.

  Halfway across the lake, the rain started.

  Soon the waves were three feet high and Cassandra stopped paddling. The rough waters tossed her from side to side so she reached out, clutched the sides of the canoe, and clamped her eyes shut.

  “Hey! I could use some help here,” Leif shouted.