Casey's Courage

by Neva Brown

  The sun had risen by the time Vera finished recounting the details of Casey situation. They went to the kitchen to prepare breakfast. Raider, toenails clicking on the hardwood floor, padded along beside Casey. While the three ate a mix of egg, sausage, and cheese rolled in hot flour tortillas, Raider crunched on a dog treat Casey had given her.

  Casey hadn’t asked questions during Vera’s discourse but once at the table, she asked, “Did Sassy Silk have to be put down?”

  “No,” Brad said. “She still has to have a lot of rehabilitation and has to be in her body swing some of the time. The bones in her leg have mended, but the muscles, tendons, and ligaments need more therapy. The weight of a horse creates some problems, but she is doing well and probably will be able to live pain-free and have lots of colts to carry on for her.”

  “When can I see her?”

  Brad hedged. “We better postpone that for a while. We don’t want you to have another episode like the one you had last night. There’s no way to know how completely your head injury has healed inside.”

  “How will you finally know?” A touch of impatience tinged Casey’s voice.

  Bard, unruffled, replied, “When you can do the activities we’re working on in your therapy with ease.”

  She sipped her coffee in silence for a minute. “I felt clumsy and weak as I walked around in here by myself this morning. Will the exercises help me get back to normal?”

  Purely professional, Brad answered, “The weakness should be gone in a few weeks as we do strengthening activities. The clumsy feeling comes from your head injury, and we don’t know how long it will take the brain to mend itself or if it will ever be one-hundred percent like it was before.”

  Casey seemed to ponder his words. “I do remember when they were doing all those tests in the hospital; I couldn’t read well enough to make sense of the material. Will that get better?”

  Brad wished he knew what had happened in her head last night, because she was no longer the ‘little girl’ personality he had been dealing with, but a woman with a need to know. He spoke in a matter-of-fact voice. “We believe so. Many of the crawling and balancing activities we do should help to reprogram the area of your brain that was hurt. Some of the swim strokes I will teach you have a crawl motion that will be useful, too.”

  Without blinking or frowning, she stared at him, determined. “Strength, coordination, and balance are the goals I need to work toward, right?”

  Brad smiled. “You got it!”

  Casey rose up from the table. “In that case, we better get started.”

  Brad warned, “Just remember Rome wasn’t built in a day. You don’t want to overdo and end up with a headache like the one you had last night.”

  For the next few weeks, Casey pushed herself to her limits. She had learned in college that physical training and conditioning enhanced her innate abilities and helped her win when she and her horses entered competitions. Winning back her normal self became her passion.

  Raider stayed by her side and walked or trotted or just sat with her until she got in the pool, then the old dog went off to Dan’s house, not to be seen again until the next morning.

  As Casey lay stretched out on a lounger one afternoon while Brad massaged her tired muscles, she said, “I need to see if I can read any better now than I could when I was in the hospital.”

  “You can’t expect a lot of improvement this soon,” Brad said.

  “Maybe not, but I need a baseline, so I can gauge my progress or lack of, don’t I?”

  Brad cautioned, “Just understand you can’t rush some kinds of healing, regardless of how hard you work.”

  Casey rolled over and sat up. “Don’t worry about me. I realize you’ve been guiding me step-by-step through childhood development. I feel like I’ve been living those courses I had my sophomore year in college.”

  His body language showed the easing of his tension. “You are making amazing progress and I don’t want any stumbling blocks getting in your way.”

  Casey grinned at him. “If I remember right, life is full of stumbling blocks. I doubt it changed just because I got hurt.”

  He chuckled. “Yeah. You’re right, but you’ve got lots of time to deal with them after we get you in tiptop shape.”

  “One more thing, I really need to go see Sassy Silk.”

  “Let me talk to Dr. Newton. If he says it is okay then we’ll move onto these things.”

  After Brad’s detailed report on Casey’s progress, Dr. Newton assured him that exposing her to new experiences would be good. He did emphasis removing her from any situation that produced excessive stress.

  The next afternoon they went to the old headquarters—the only real home Casey had ever known—to see Sassy Silk. Raider sat in the back of the Suburban with her chin propped on the back of the seat near Casey’s shoulder. As the barns and corral came into view, Casey became edgy and reached up to stroke Raider’s head. “I should have put on boots and jeans,” she said.

  “Your sweats and running shoes are fine. Don’t worry,” Vera assured her. “We’re just visiting today. We’ll stop by the house and get the clothes you want before we leave.”

  Ira hobbled out to meet them. If anybody knew about being hurt on a horse, Ira did. “Casey, lass, good to see you. Come on in and say hello to Sassy.” Casey smiled at her old friend. “Hello, Ira, how’ve you been?”

  “Can’t complain.” He spoke to the others then fell into step beside Casey and Raider. “What’s Raider doing these days?”

  Casey touched Raider’s head. “She exercises with me every morning and expects dog treats regularly.”

  Sassy Silk whickered as they approached the stall. Two stable hands unhooked her body swing, which supported much of her weight for part of each day. Once out of the stall, Sassy ran free in the exercise arena. She came straight to Casey and bumped her head gently against Casey’s shoulder, then dropped her head to touch her nose to Raider’s.

  “Hello, pretty girl, how you doing?” Casey began to rub and feel all over the mare, and finally ventured to the scarred, slightly crooked leg. Heartsick that the mare would never be able to compete again, Casey did not stop but touched all the spots she knew might still be weak in the mare’s leg. The animal never flinched, just nibbled on the shoulder of Casey’s sweatshirt.

  Casey looked at Ira. “Can I take her outside for exercise?”

  Just as Casey, Sassy, and Raider began to trot around the grassy paddock south of the barn, Tres drove up. He’d driven back from Austin to see for himself if Casey was really doing as well as Brad had indicated when they’d talked the night before.

  Before long, Casey slowed and let out the coils of the lunge so Sassy could continue while she and Raider stayed in the middle of the paddock. Finally, Casey tugged on the line. Sassy slowed and ambled over to her exercise partners. Casey unsnapped the line from the halter. The mare went a short distance and dropped her head to crop the sweet, green grass.

  Raider crept on her belly, inching closer to Sassy. As if on cue, the mare took her cutting stance as she faced the dog. Raider darted to one side as if to pass. With a quick jump, the mare was in front of the dog, that turned trying to pass on the other side and was again blocked by Sassy’s swift move. Again and again, they played a slow-motion game of what both animals had been trained to do.

  After a few minutes, not wanting Sassy to overdo, Casey whistled. Raider stopped her challenge, came to Casey, and sat down with her tongue lolled, looking pleased with herself.

  “You’re a good exercise partner,” Casey said, patting the old dog.

  Sassy, not wanting to miss out on the petting, came to Casey for her share of attention. After scratching the mare in her favorite spots, Casey clipped the lunge line into the halter and the three of them started back to the others who had been watching. Her heart skipped a beat then pounded in double time. Tres stood inside the paddock leaning against the fence with a boot heel hooked on the bottom rail. No man had a right to look s
o good.

  Talking to herself as much as to the animals, she patted Sassy on the neck and said, “Did you ever see anyone even close to as perfect as he is?” Her husky, low laugh made Sassy twitch her ear. “My brain may have been ‘out to lunch’ for a long time, but my heart seems to have a one-track mind of its own. You’d think after more than a decade I’d be over my crush on the boss’s grandson.”

  Tres levered himself away from the fence. When he saw Casey pat Sassy’s neck, he remembered the feel of Casey’s hand on his neck that day at the pool. He marveled at the change in Casey as he watched her walk with a confident, subtle grace, no evidence of a problem with balance or coordination. His anxiety about her eased as she drew near. The sparkle in her eyes as she smiled at him, then the touch of her hand on his sleeve banished the fatigue of too many hours without sleep. His body hummed with desire to hold this woman close.

  Appalled at his thoughts, Tres reminded himself, This is Casey, the little pal of my youth. I don’t even know her as a woman.

  Casey started to pull away, but he placed his hand over hers, sending electric shocks tingling along his arm.

  The ethereal quality, along with the translucent skin and hollow, drawn planes of her face were gone. A peachy tint to her skin highlighted the smooth, classic beauty he saw before him. Watching the hint of a blush rise to her cheeks, he realized he had been staring at her. “Sorry. I know I’m staring. I just now realized that the little kid with a sprinkle of freckles across the bridge of her nose somehow turned into a beautiful woman while I wasn’t looking.”

  Stuffing down her wayward feelings, Casey said, “You’re good for my ego that has suffered somewhat of late. Thanks. I haven’t seen you around lately. Have you been away?”

  “Seems like I’ve been gone forever. J.D. had some irons in the fire that had to be dealt with in Austin, some business, and some politics.”

  She slipped her hand away as they continued across the paddock. From the corner of her eye, she admired his tanned face with a day’s growth of beard. Goose bumps skittered over her body as she watched the ripple of his muscles under a light blue shirt and the contour of his thighs and legs under the smooth-fitting denims. He exuded an animal magnetism and vitality that mocked her nondescript existence.

  He felt her withdrawing from him and didn’t like it. Brad had told him about the remarkable progress she’d made during the weeks he had been away on business. He wanted to spend time with her.

  “Brad says you’re swimming well these days. Are you ready to take that swim with me I promised before I left?”

  With an embarrassed laugh, she said, “Tres, I acted pretty spoiled there for a while. You don’t have to keep that promise.”

  “Sure I do. I liked that little girl. Besides, after weeks in stuffy boardrooms and hallowed halls of government, I can use some exercise and relaxation. Are you up to a swim later this afternoon?”

  “Of course. I usually swim from five to six. That rounds out my exercise routine for the day. Brad says it’s a good way to work out the kinks.”

  “Then it’s a date,” Tres said as they reached the others. He handed Sassy over to the stable hand.

  Vera reminded Casey they needed to stop by Jake and Pauline’s for a few minutes to pick up some clothes.

  Ira patted Raider on the head. “You bring Casey back over so you two can help Sassy get her exercise.”

  Tres wanted Casey to ride back to Spencer Mansion with him but realized he was odd man out. Plans for her day had been made without him in mind. He’d have to change that.

  Chapter 7

  A phone call delayed Tres. He fumed and paced as he talked, wanting to be in the swimming pool with Casey. Looking out the office window, he could see Casey swimming with steady, even strokes, concentrating on exercising every muscle.

  When he was finally free to join her, she flashed a grin at him, but said nothing.

  He matched his strokes to her, lap after lap, feeling the ripple of the water on his over-sensitized skin. Casey’s slender body gliding rhythmically through the water had set off a clamor of need in him. His mind refused to let go of the thought of touching her. He wanted to run his fingers through her hair, caress her neck, then glide them gently down her back and cup her curvy bottom. He wanted the freedom to let his hands roam all over her body, to pull her close with his throbbing need pressed firmly against her belly, then kiss her until they were breathless.

  When they finally stopped swimming and stood up in the shallow end of the pool, the icy wind of early fall shocked them both into quick action. Tres placed his hands around her waist and boosted her up on the side of the pool then levered himself out. Taking her hand, he yanked her up and raced to the bathhouse. Once inside, he grabbed a huge beach towel and wrapped it round her and hugged her tightly, pressing her body against his own.

  Shivering from the cold, Casey snuggled close to Tres. As her shaking eased, she became more aware of his body. He had one arm round her shoulders and the other lower. His hand was on her bottom, pressing her against him from head to toe. He wasn’t cold. His hot, full arousal pulsating against her abdomen fueled a new kind of shiver in her. She leaned into his maleness with primal need. His eyes, bright and feral, devoured her. As she wiggled to step away, he moved his hand from her shoulder to the back of her head. His lips brushed her temple and cheek, trailed down to her neck, then settled gently on her lips that had parted in awe at the sensations she felt. The motion of his mouth against hers sent sparks through her blood. His tongue traced her lips, slipping inside to touch her tongue as he moved his hand to palm her breast and smooth his thumb across the engorged nipple.

  The towel slipped to the floor. He gently brushed aside a strap of her swimsuit. As his lips left hers and closed over her exposed breast, her eyes flew open in panic. Jerking her arms from around his waist, not remembering having put them there, she whispered, “Tres, please. I can’t handle this.” She breathed in shallow gasps.

  Slowly, he released her breast and raised his head. Pulling the strap up and encasing her throbbing breast, he frowned. “You look like you’ve never been kissed before.”

  In awe, she said, “Not like that.”

  Tres studied her through a haze of thwarted desire and let her step away from him. His thoughts raced. Has she forgotten that part of her life, or is she telling the truth?

  “Get dressed and come have supper with me,” he suggested. “Mattie Lou’s gone to Cielo Alto for a few days.”

  “I should check with Brad.”

  Not in the mood for obstacles, he said, “I’ll talk to Brad. Rosalinda will have supper ready in an hour. While we eat, you can catch me up on what’s been going on since I’ve been gone.”

  Casey found the normalcy of Tres’ voice steadied her nerves. “I haven’t been away from Brad and Vera since leaving the hospital.”

  “And they’ve taken good care of you. Let me look after you for a little while tonight and give them a rest.”

  Even a cat can look at a king. “That would be nice. Thank you.”

  Tres turned her toward the women’s shower area saying, “Get a move on, I’m starved.”

  While Casey blew her hair dry, Vera brought a silk turquoise-and-navy-blue wrap-around dress from the closet. “Why don’t you wear this with these turquoise shoes?”

  Casey eyed the garment. “Am I supposed to remember wearing that?”

  “Heavens, no. It’s brand new. I bought it when I was getting stuff ready for you to leave the hospital.” Vera held out the garment and gave it a little shake. “Try it on. Let’s see how it looks.”

  Fifty-five minutes after Tres had shooed her into the shower, Casey entered the den where he stood at the floor-to-ceiling windows watching the clouds roll up over the distant mountains. Her quiet footsteps made him turn around.

  The light from the chandelier danced across Casey’s auburn hair and shimmered over the motion of the silk dress as she walked. Slender, shy Casey, in a dress no less, sent his
heart pounding. Tres felt like he’d been mule-kicked.

  Casey’s eyes skittered away from his as a faint heat washed across her cheeks. Tres’ crisp white shirt and creased jeans covered solid, hard muscles. Her body remembered every one of them from their short embrace. His eyes created an electrical charge in the air that tickled her skin.

  Tres moved toward her and took her by the hand. “Come watch the clouds boiling up over the mountains.” He felt a tremor in her fingers, reminding him of Brad’s stern warning that Casey, though much improved, was still extremely fragile.

  He thought he knew a lot about this beautiful woman who had once been his daily companion, but realized he didn’t know her as a person at all. The urge to ‘storm the citadel’ of her senses would have to wait, a message his body still refused to accept. He knew she was not his little pal from long ago, nor was she the efficient, talented woman he’d found when he returned to the Running S. She certainly was not the uninhibited, captivating woman-child he had come to adore before his last trip to Austin.

  Standing with her shoulder almost touching his, she said, “The horses will be restless tonight with the first storm of the season coming in.” She gasped and dodged as the jagged blue-edged lightning sliced across the sky and the thunder cracked. One arm flew up involuntarily as if to ward of a blow.

  Tres wrapped her in his arms and pressed her to his chest. He felt her tense body begin to quiver as her heart threatened to pound out of her.

  “Can you tell me what’s wrong?” he urged. “Talk to me. What happened? Are you hurting?” Finally, he felt the tension ease in her body. She pushed away from him, taking a deep breath. He watched the terror fade from her eyes, leaving a haunted look that broke his heart.