“… Er… No… Same old methods.”
“Well, he must be having a lucky day then.”
Bill commented on Craig’s incredible form and technique as his scores were posted. He had scored 336/360. Unless there was a flurry of dead-on bulls-eyes from other archers, it looked good that he would make this elimination round and go to the last one Sunday morning. Craig walked back to where they all were sitting to light applause.
“Fabulous, Craig…”
“Yeah, I wish everyone was here watching today,” remarked Bill.
Janie just smiled coyly and raised her eyebrows at him. He could tell what she was thinking. Sandy looked at them both and knew he would have more to tell Lily…
“Well, kids… Bill and I are taking off.”
“You’re leaving, Dad? Before you see me shoot?”
“Our plane is taking off at five and your uncle here is restless to get home. Something about wanting to sleep in his own bed tonight.”
“Ha, Sandy.” Bill gave Janie a hug and shook Craig’s hand. “Good luck with the final round tomorrow, Craig. Janie, good luck today.”
Sandy shook Craig’s hand and whispered, “Take good care of my daughter, son…” He winked at him.
Craig turned a little red. “I will, sir. We’ll be home tomorrow afternoon.”
Sandy hugged Janie. “My darling girl… Good luck with,” he looked over at Craig, but finished with, “the tournament.” Janie blushed too.
“Thanks, Dad. See you soon. I’ll call about the outcome… of the tournament.” She finished quickly.
They took off for the airport. Janie and Craig continued with the tournament… It didn’t finish until after six that evening. The final tallies put Craig into the final round on Sunday, but Janie had been eliminated. She almost felt relieved.
“Good…” She heaved out a breath. “Pressure’s off. Now I can just relax tonight and not worry about the tournament.”
Craig smiled. “Would your relaxing include any of last night’s activities?”
Janie gave him a sexy smile.
“You bet…”
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
The choices in Las Vegas that night were varied and grand: the Bellagio Hotel with incredible restaurants ranging from fine dining to casual, or the Mirage with its famous steakhouse and Japanese restaurant. There was a neat roller coaster at the top of New York, New York Hotel or the Excalibur with its medieval show and dinner. After weighing the choices, Janie and Craig just wanted to be alone -- So they ordered in room service for dinner and found an old movie to watch on television – ‘Sleepless in Seattle.’ It had just started, but they had seen it before.
“I feel like we could have starred in this movie, Janie.” They sat side-by-side on the bed in sweats and shorts, eating and watching the movie.
“What’s it about again?” She took a bite of her pasta salad.
“Tom Hanks’ wife has died and his kid calls a radio station to get him moving to look for a new wife.”
‘Oh, yeah… Meanwhile, Meg Ryan, across the country, is engaged to a nice enough guy, but he’s not right for her – There’s no magic…”
He turned to face her and put down his fork. “It took them the whole movie to get together… Janie?”
She looked up from her plate. “What?”
“How did you feel about Mike Church?” Oh, boy… she knew that would come sooner or later. “Forget about me in this picture. Tell me a bit about the two of you.”
“Craig, it’s not like you never dated a woman before we got together.”
“And I’m honestly not accusing you of anything. I’d just like to know.”
She thought about that for a minute. Janie put her plate on the floor and stretched out on the bed. She laced her fingers behind her head and looked at him.
“Honestly?”
“Honestly…”
“He was new, different… Mike was funny and nice… We just had fun together.” She looked at him. “But there was no magic like with Meg and Tom. It was more Meg and Walter…”
“… Meg and Walter?”
“Yeah.”
“No magic?”
“…No magic.” She pulled him down beside her on the bed and rolled on her side to look into his face. His eyes were dark chocolate pools.... Craig put an arm around her.
“So it takes a little magic, sweetheart? Do we have any?”
Janie cleared her throat, “Honey, we’ve had magic between us since we met. Don’t you remember?” She reached back in her memory. “You walked up to me – you must have been seven or so – and said, ‘I’m Craig. What’s your name?’ I couldn’t remember. I thought you were the cutest boy I’d ever seen, but then I was only four or five.”
He smiled. “I remember you tagging along after Colt and me. He kept trying to get rid of you.”
“But you didn’t?”
“… No… You were this lovely little doll with blonde hair and quiet eyes that followed me everywhere. I was hooked…”
“We must be a couple of sentimental fools.” He pulled her closer.
“So why did it take so long for us to admit how we feel?” He leaned forward and kissed her nose.
“I guess I just wasn’t ready and you never pushed…”
“… Are you sure you’re ready now?” He was so close that their lips were nearly touching.
“Ab-so-lutely. Just try to keep me away.”
“…That’s good enough for me.”
And then they were kissing – Deep, passionate kisses from the soul up. On the TV, Tom was giving soulful looks to Meg, while Janie’s mind emptied of everything, but Craig… He wanted to please her and took advantage of her sighs. Pulling off her tee shirt, he trailed a finger down between her breasts – She shuddered and he kissed one breast and then another…He reached lower and found she was quite ready for him. Wiggling out of her shorts, he pulled her on top of him, to let her dictate their movements. They made love slowly and wonderfully, like it was the first time all over again.
Janie fell back onto the bed and smiled a sexy smile, while Craig laughed at her antics. She snuggled into the crook of his arm again – He was already getting used to that and knew she would be getting sleepier and sleepier. He kissed her fragrant hair as she dozed off, and he wrapped the comforter around them both.
“I better get some sleep while I can…” he murmured, remembering their nocturnal lovemaking from the day before. “And pick up some vitamins.” Craig flicked off the TV and fell asleep wrapped in a Janie cocoon, as snug as a bug in a rug…as they used to say.
####
They got up in time for a quick breakfast the next morning, although Craig yawned a few times. Janie popped a bite of muffin in her mouth.
“You’ve really got to get more sleep at night, honey. You seem out of sorts today -- How are you going to shoot well, if you’re so crabby.” He shook his head and yawned again.
“I’m not crabby – I’m sleep-deprived.” He drank some of his orange juice.
“Would you rather I not wake you up in the middle of the night with wild, ravaging kisses?” She looked so cute…
He leaned over, tilted her face up to his and planted a juicy kiss on her – right in the restaurant. “You can’t embarrass me, Janie. I’ve waited too long to have you in my arms and in my bed.” She smiled at him. “You can wake me up any time you want.”
“That’s a good answer.”
He looked at the clock hanging behind the restaurant counter. Craig signaled for their check and paid it.
“We’ve got to go. Final shoot…”
Excitement in the air practically hummed in the ballroom. There were many more spectators now than archers. The last day of the event would feature the ten finest archers in the state – The finalists who made it past the last two days’ elimination rounds. The top three archers today would go on to the national tournament in Washington, D.C. in a month. Janie’s eyes shone with excitement.
They walked in
to the ballroom and looked around. People were everywhere. Craig held his equipment bag in one hand and Janie’s hand with the other. She was much more excited for this than he was – He was just so happy to be there with her. When she smiled at him, Craig brought her hand to his lips for a kiss.
“You look kind of Errol Flynn-ish, you know?”
“Who?”
“That handsome movie star from the 30s who was a bit of a rogue and played Robin Hood.”
“… Oh… him…” Craig laughed. “If you say so…”
“… Or maybe Kevin Costner… He played Robin Hood too.”
“Yeah, I look so much like Kevin Costner.” He rolled his eyes at her.
“I better go find a seat and you need to prepare.” She put a hand to his face and leaned up on her toes to kiss him. “That’s for good luck.”
With brown eyes staring at blue, he whispered, “Thanks… Don’t be far away. I want you to be where I can see you…” Smiling at him, she pointed to an area of seating behind the shooting line.
“I’ll just be over there.”
“Okay…”
“Go get ‘em, Kevin.”
“Right…”
The president of the state archery league came out to say a few words on this final day of the tournament. He commended all the archers who had participated, and congratulated the final ten archers who were walking up to the area just before the shooting line. He reminded them that the top three archers would be shooting in the national tournament in Washington, D.C. within a month. That said, the final shoot began…
Craig and the other archers were adjusting their compound bows and adjusting their peep sights. Sighting range to target, they mentally prepared as well. A whistle blew and the archers lined up at the shooting line. The whistle blew again and they pulled arrows out of their quivers and nocked the arrows on bowstrings. Arrows starting flying fast and deliberately… Craig took his time with every action that he took and his arrows flew in a straight line. After all the archers had shot their arrows, the first round was over and the whistle blew three times for arrow retrieval. When Craig walked down the shooting lane to retrieve his arrows, the man scoring for him announced his score to be three tens and 3 nines, 57/60 points. Walking back to the shooting line, he grinned at Janie and she knew he’d done well.
It took several hours for the ten archers to shoot the six rounds on this final day of the tournament. After they’d finished, Craig joined Janie where she was sitting behind the shooting line. He took her hand as the scores were tallied -- The winners would be announced soon.
She spoke to him softly. “… Your final score was 338/360. That should qualify you for one of the top three spots, surely. I know you’re a winner…”
He gave her a long look. “I’m a winner already, Janie. You said you loved me…”
“You are easily one of the most romantic men in the world…” She leaned over to kiss him.
“… Only for you.” Janie sighed.
Just then there was a rustle of movement from the president’s area and he was talking earnestly with other league members. Decisions had been made and the president was turning on his microphone.
“The points have all been tallied for the final scores. Again, I wish to congratulate all the archers here who have participated to make this tournament a success. Without further ado, in third place is Sam Larosse of Fallon, Nevada, with a total of 333 points. Sam, please come up to receive your medal.”
Janie gasped and looked at Craig. “Honey… you’re…”
“Shh…” he whispered to her. They watched as the president of the state archery league put a medal around Sam’s neck. He walked back to his seat with people applauding. Janie was now searching frantically through her pockets for her cell phone.
“I have to video this…” Craig looked blankly, as the president began to speak again.
“In second place is Craig Ferguson of Naples, Nevada with a total of 338 points. Craig, please come up to receive your medal.”
With a shocked look at his face, he turned to Janie and then got a big smile on his face. She took a picture of him smiling and then leaned over to give him a quick kiss.
“Get up there… They’re looking for you.” Craig walked over to the president who shook his hand and placed a medal with a ribbon around his neck. Janie got pretty decent video of it to send to the folks back home. Dad and Bill left too early, she thought…
He walked back in a bit of trance – It was pretty surprising to him that he had done so well. Janie wasn’t surprised. Craig had been an archer most of his life… He sat down by her and she took his hand. They tried to leave as soon as the first place winner was announced – Rod Taylor of Winnemucca, Nevada with a total of 342 points. However, the president wanted to have pictures taken of the three winners for the local papers. Finally, they started filing out of the ballroom -- Many people came up to congratulate him and shake his hand. It was hard to get away, but they were flying home today and needed to check out of the hotel.
Arriving at the Las Vegas Airport, Craig was still in a mild state of shock. Janie was nonplussed.
“I expected you to do this well. Why are you so surprised? You’re a great archer, like your ancestors…”
“… Now Janie. Let’s not drag in my Scottish ancestors who were in the Royal Company of Archers back in the 1800s. That has little to do with me today.” The airport was crawling with people and they were heading to their plane’s check-in counter. “There’s our check-in. Let’s get in line.”
“Sure and begorrah…”
“That’s Irish, not Scottish.” She laughed at that. “You mean ‘S math sin’ – That means terrific in Gaelic.”
“Oh… okay… I stand corrected.”
Grinning, they reached the counter and checked in their luggage. With boarding passes in hand, Craig and Janie headed up to wait for their plane. It was on time and got them in the air with time to spare. They’d be in Reno by three and home in Naples by four. Things looked good…
CHAPTER NINETEEN
The plane touched down early at the Reno-Tahoe International Airport. Craig smiled at her… It was good to be going home, together. After retrieving their bags and equipment, they walked across the main building to the immense parking garage to Craig’s car. Finding it, he loaded the back of his SUV and then opened the door for Janie. When she was settled, he closed her door and walked around to get in the driver’s side. Opening the door, he heard her already on the phone.
“Certainly… Yes, sir… Now? ...Where are you located? All right, sir, I’ll be there in probably fifteen minutes.” She hung up and looked at Craig.
“What was that all about?”
“You’ll never believe it.”
“Try me.”
“The U.S. Secret Service wants to interview me about that counterfeiting case.”
“Now?”
“Yes.” Craig thought about that.
“We just arrived back from Vegas this minute.”
“… Apparently, they have their ways… They asked to see me while I was still in town.”
“I’m not even going to ask how they knew that.” Janie shrugged her shoulders.
In twenty minutes, Janie was sitting in the U.S. Secret Service field office across from the high school on Booth Street. Two men in white shirts and dark suits sat across from her, and one was holding a folder with a report in it. She guessed it was about the Naples counterfeiting case.
“Deputy Johnson, thank you for coming. I’m Supervisor Ed Barker and this is my assistant, Ted Knowles.”
Janie blinked. Ted and Ed? She stifled a smile that threatened to creep onto her face.
“We need to ask you some questions, if we may.”
“Certainly, sir. How can I help you?”
Mr. Barker proceeded to ask her many questions about the Naples case and her involvement with it. What sort of research did she do? What sort of investigation techniques did she use? When was her last training in
interviewing witnesses and suspects? Then he started asking more personal questions about her education and background. When he asked about Craig, she decided to ask a question of her own.
“Excuse me, Supervisor Barker?”
“Yes, Deputy?”
“I understand why you’d ask about me and this case, but what does Mr. Ferguson have to do with any of this?” Ted glanced at Ed. He handed him a large envelope, which Barker passed to Janie.
“To be blunt, Deputy, the U.S. Secret Service would like you to apply for a position with them. The assets you would bring to the Service are commendable – You have a degree in Law Enforcement from the University of Nevada, Reno and three and a half years of experience in a Sheriff’s Office. You have a black belt in Tae Kwon Do and are an amateur archer. You were brought up on a ranch and are an expert horseman. In short, Deputy, you’re young, smart and talented. Plus the work you did on this counterfeiting case showed real knowledge of the crime and a tenaciousness needed to find the perpetrators. They’re hard to find.”
Janie was totally surprised. It was so unexpected that her mouth dropped open for a second, but only a second.
“You want me to apply for a position with the U.S. Secret Service?”
“Yes, ma’am. We could use you specifically in our counterfeiting section.”
“What does any of this have to do with Mr. Ferguson?”
“We presume he’s your boyfriend.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Will you be marrying him within six months?” Janie blushed.
“I’m not sure, sir. He hasn’t asked me.” Barker smiled slightly.
“Well, if he does, we will need to do a background check on him as well as you. When you’re married or even engaged, it’s a package deal with the Service.”
“I see…”
He fished a business card out of his inside jacket pocket and handed it over to her.
“I’ll need your answer within twenty-four hours. To be frank, I have several counterfeiting cases and I could use you. That said there’s no guarantee that you would be hired.”
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