An Unlikely Place for Love

by Ruth Ann Nordin

  She gasped and leaned back in the bed, notifying him that she enjoyed what he was doing. He’d made it a point to read up on the subject when he was married to Georgia, thinking she might want to join him in bed if he could make her feel good. But she didn’t want to do any of it. Kate, however, encouraged him to continue, which excited him. He kissed her neck and proceeded, marveling in the feel of her body and, again, trying to sear the memory of this moment into his mind forever. When she cried out and clenched his arm, he stilled his movements and waited to see what she wanted. After a few moments of watching her with a mixture of fascination and pleasure, she pulled him to her.

  His body trembled with desire. He had no more control than a virgin young man who was about to learn the pleasures of the flesh. Kissing her, he shifted so that he was over her. Any thought of self-control departed as soon as her legs wrapped around his hips. He entered her. He groaned as she accepted him. He opened his eyes and pulled back, checking her face for any discomfort. But she had her eyes closed and pressed her hips against his.

  He thrust forward and gave himself over to the onslaught of sensation flooding his body. He ached to be consumed by her and his building tension. He knew he wasn’t going to last long. Years of celibacy did that to a man—made him lose complete control, but she could handle the intensity of his passion and so he proceeded. No more thoughts. All he could do was feel and he’d never experienced anything so heavenly in his entire life. Making love to her was better than he imagined. He moaned in pleasure as his seed filled her.

  He collapsed on top of her and held her tightly to him, breathing heavily and sweating. His mind was clear while his body adjusted to its normal state. His heart rate and breathing slowed. Conscious thought returned and he was overjoyed to have shared this experience with her. He kissed her, lingering at her mouth, no longer in any hurry to enjoy her. Now he could take his time and hold her--just lie beside her and take satisfaction in the feel of her body against his.

  “Hmmm,” she murmured. “We’ll have to do this again.”

  He laughed. “I’m holding you to that promise.”

  “I won’t forget.” She kissed him and snuggled into his arms where they rested before enjoying each other’s bodies again.

  ***

  When they did wake up, it was time to do some chores. Just because he got married and could actually enjoy the benefits of being married, that didn’t mean the animals didn’t still need to be taken care of.

  “You have to let me help,” Kate said after they had breakfast. “I can do farm work.”

  “Alright.” He already knew it would be pointless to argue with her since she usually accomplished what she wanted when she set her mind to it. He considered that was a good trait since she had set her mind to be the kind of woman who would bless him. “But I’m not going to give you any work that requires heavy lifting.”

  She shook her head as they left the house and headed for the barn. “You didn’t mind doing that a couple days ago.”

  “That’s because you insisted on being Billy.”

  “I can do everything that Billy can. Haven’t I proved myself to be a good worker?”

  “Yes but I like you better as my wife.”

  “Then you have the best of both worlds.”

  He smiled at her. “You’re hard to say no to.”

  “Good. Now what do you want me to do?”

  “Which chore do you like the most?”

  “Checking the cattle in the field because it requires me to ride Reliable.”

  “Then go check on the cattle.”

  “Why do I get the feeling you’re going to let me get away with anything I want now that I’m your wife?”

  He chuckled. “Because I will.”

  “You’re a good man, Chad. I’m very fortunate that I came to this place to look for work.”

  “I just want you to understand that I see you as my equal.”

  “I know.”

  They entered the barn and she gave him a kiss and patted him on the butt. “I’ll be back soon,” she promised as she saddled up the horse.

  He had to admit that when she got on the horse, he enjoyed seeing most of her legs exposed since she wore a skirt. It was nice to be able to admire her body and know he actually had permission to touch it. When she left, he turned to milk the cows.

  By the time he finished milking the cows and putting the milk in the bottles, she still hadn’t returned. He sighed. He was anxious for her to return so he could be with her again. After he finished feeding the animals and went to the shed to get some tools to fix a wobbly shelf in the barn, she returned. She had a rope in her hand.

  “I found a cow stuck in a ditch so I pulled it out with this lasso!” She smiled. “And I did it on the first try.”

  “I thought you would come and get me if you found something wrong.” He didn’t hide the fact that he was proud of her.

  “I was determined to do it myself.”

  “You’re very independent for a woman.”

  “Yes, I am. Come along with me. I need to take a bath in the river and I need some company.”

  “Is that an invitation?”

  “Come with me and find out.”

  He chuckled as she rode to the barn. Kate, you have no idea how wonderful you really are. He left his tools outside the shed and joined her.

  ***

  The next morning, they went to the barn to feed the horses. After they were done feeding the animals, they began kissing and decided to go up to the loft since it was already mid-morning and none of the farmhands had shown up. He figured they would decide not to come by that day, and that didn’t bother him since he wished to be alone with his wife. They had just laid down on the blankets when he heard a horse approach.

  “Do you think Sam, Tim and Jeff are actually coming out to work?” she whispered.

  “No. There’s only one horse. They never come out alone.”

  She groaned. “If it’s Billy, I’ll kill him.”

  “At least whoever’s here is stopping something interesting from happening. I’ll be right back.”

  She nodded. “I’ll be waiting.”

  He grinned and went down the ladder. After being married to Georgia, he knew there were worse things than being stopped from having sex. He left the barn.

  He turned his attention to the stranger who was riding his horse towards the house. The man appeared to be in his late fifties. He had brown hair with streaks of gray in it and was skinny.

  “Can I help you?” Chad called out.

  As soon as he saw Chad, he got off of his horse and waited for him. “Are you Mr. Walker?” he asked.

  Chad noted that the man wore clothing that was typical of the wealthier class. His accent was similar to Kate’s speech. He must be from Virginia. Unlike her brother, the man had no resemblance to her, so he wasn’t one of her relatives.

  “Yes, I’m Chad Walker,” he finally answered when he reached him.

  “My name is Calvin York.” The man pulled out his wallet and showed Chad his identification card.

  A reporter. “You’re not from here,” Chad said.

  “No, sir. I am not. I’m from Virginia. My editor gave me the job of tracking down any information I can regarding Senator Tanner’s murder.”

  “What do you think that has to do with me?”

  “I’m sure it has nothing to do with you, Mr. Walker. I am seeking someone out.”

  “Do you think the killer is here?”

  “No. However, I did stumble upon this paper from your neighboring town.”

  Calvin pulled out a newspaper featuring an article about Billy Ingram rescuing the boy from the fire. “Billy’s” picture was right next to it. Chad was glad he hadn’t known she was Billy when she went off with Sam, Tim and Jeff to the next town. He would have had a heart attack.

  “What does this have to do with the Senator’s murder?” Chad wondered.

  “I have reason to believe that this man is really Kate Tanner
, the late Senator’s daughter. She has recently been seen in her hometown but quickly disappeared after going to the police and testifying to the murder of her parents. Her testimony is the key to getting the suspects she mentioned safely behind bars for good.”

  “Why would she hide?”

  “Well, she claims that she witnessed the murders and the killers saw her.”

  “Weren’t they arrested?”

  “Yes but she still hasn’t returned. Of course, there is no concrete evidence that link one of the men who was arrested to the murders.”

  “Why did you come to me?”

  “I heard that you just hired a new farmhand and that farmhand comes with a sister. The name of the farmhand is Billy Ingram and his sister is Kate. I happened to see both Billy Ingram and Kate Tanner on the same day she told the police what happened. I haven’t seen either one since. I think it’s more than a coincidence both people would appear and disappear at the same time, don’t you?”

  Calvin took out a picture of Kate dressed in a long black gown at a symphony. She stood with an older man and his wife. The caption beneath the picture read: Senator Tanner out on the town with his wife and daughter. Chad was struck by how beautiful Kate looked in her formal wear. And she looks happy here. The death of her parents had taken some of that innocence in her smile.

  “There are several people in town who say that Billy Ingram is a farmhand here and he has a sister who looks just like this woman. They also said you married this woman on Saturday,” Calvin continued.

  “When I read the papers, it said that there’s another person who may be involved in the murders, and that person hasn’t been caught yet,” Chad slowly stated.

  “Senator Rich. I’ve been following up on him too.”

  “Isn’t it likely that he’ll be looking for her if she’s crucial to the murder investigations?”

  “I knew the late Senator and his wife. I wouldn’t wish to put his daughter’s life in danger.”

  “But aren’t you doing that by searching for her? There could be someone following you.”

  “I suspect that she can explain the link between Senator Rich and the murders.”

  “And if she can’t?”

  “If she couldn’t, then why would she tell Detective Walter that he was behind them?”

  Chad finally decided that it was a bad idea to tell the reporter that Kate was in the barn. As her husband, it was his duty to protect her. If Calvin tracked her down, then Senator Rich would be able to also.

  “She doesn’t look familiar,” Chad lied.

  “She may be wearing a disguise,” the man thoughtfully stated. “Does Billy Ingram look familiar?”

  “He was my farmhand. I sent him back to Kentucky to make things right with his wife. He and Kate Tanner are not the same person.”

  “Then may I see your wife? She is Billy Ingram’s sister.”

  Chad was ready to protest when he saw Kate who was dressed up as her Lois character. Instead of looking unkempt, her wig was neatly combed. She had trimmed some bangs and had two pigtails. She wore the same blue shirt and brown skirt she had on earlier that day. She looks wonderful no matter how she’s dressed.

  “She’s right there.” Chad pointed to her as she walked over to them.

  Calvin looked at her. “Good morning, ma’am.” He tipped his hat to her.

  “Howdy,” she replied, using an accent that Chad didn’t recognize. “Are you here about the farmhand position?”

  “No, I’m not. I won’t trouble you with the details of my visit. I can see that I should be on my way.”

  “I’m sorry I couldn’t help you,” Chad responded.

  Calvin got back on the horse, nodded to them and left.

  Chad breathed a sigh of relief.

  “How did he find me?” She turned to him.

  “He saw Billy Ingram’s picture in the paper and said he saw you and Billy on the same day in Virginia and figured you were the same person.”

  She closed her eyes for a moment as she shook her head. “I didn’t realize anyone in Virginia would care about a western small town paper.”

  “Apparently, news of your heroic effort reached Virginia.”

  “This isn’t what I hoped for. Senator Rich is still searching for me. If Calvin York tracked me down, then it stands to reason that the Senator will too.”

  “Calvin said he was a friend of your father’s.”

  “Yes, he was.”

  “Do you trust him?”

  “I’m afraid to tell anyone that I’m here.”

  He could understand that. “Well, I told him I had no idea where you were.”

  She hugged him. “Maybe I should go back. At least, Derek and Dave are still in prison, and I can use the police force for protection.”

  “That would probably be best if a reporter found you.”

  “You’ll come with me, won’t you?”

  He smiled at her. “Of course, I will. It will be good to leave this place. I need to go to town and talk to the Montgomeries about selling this place to them. Once the sale is finalized, we’ll be ready to leave for Virginia.”

  “I promise you that you’ll enjoy my hometown much more than this place.”

  “I know that is true because you’ll be with me.” He kissed her. “Let’s go back to the loft and finish what we started.”

  ***

  Chad didn’t want Kate to go with him to town since he couldn’t be sure that Calvin York had left the area. As soon as he arrived in town, he was glad he chose to keep Kate safely at the farm. He saw Calvin talking to a couple of people. He considered that he and Kate couldn’t leave town soon enough. It looked like Calvin wasn’t going to stop until he pulled off Kate’s red wig and properly identified her.

  He tied Reliable up to a post and knocked on Sam Montgomery’s apartment door.

  “If you’re looking for Sam and Tim, they are trying to talk Lacy out of letting Chris court her,” someone informed him.

  He looked over and saw Jeff.

  “Is that why no one came out to the farm this morning?” he asked Jeff.

  “Yes. They consider this an emergency.”

  “Are they at Mrs. Montgomery’s house?”

  “Yes.”

  Chad thanked him and went to the house. Sure enough, Sam and Tim were giving Lacy all kinds of reasons as to why she shouldn’t pursue a relationship with Chris. They stood around her on the porch. She sat in the swing and was sewing some buttons onto her father’s shirt.

  “You can’t trust a Walker,” Sam told her. “He’s Chad’s brother. Can you imagine what he will be like?”

  She glared at her brothers. “Georgia spent all her time making sure no man would take an interest in me, and now that she’s gone, you two have taken over. I’m sick of being single. I want to get married and settle down. No one in this town will take note of me since you threaten them. Chris is the first one who hasn’t been intimidated by you.”

  “That’s not true,” Tim argued. “We were willing to have you marry Billy.”

  “And we all know how well that turned out,” she snapped. “Let me live my own life. I’m not a child anymore.”

  Chad cleared his throat.

  They looked startled to see him.

  He forced himself not to roll his eyes. Once again, he felt invisible.

  “What are you doing here?” Sam grumbled. “Haven’t you done enough damage by marrying Kate so that your brother would pursue Lacy?”

  He decided to ignore Sam’s sour mood. “Kate and I will be moving back to her hometown. Who will buy the farm?” He looked at the stunned faces.

  “You can’t be serious,” Sam scoffed.

  Billy happened to walk by and stopped when he saw them. “Good morning, gentlemen. Lacy.” He turned to Chad. “Shouldn’t you be enjoying your bride?”

  “Mr. Calvin York paid a visit out to the farm this morning,” Chad informed him. “In light of that fact, we feel it prudent to sell the farm and go back to her home.
”

  Billy didn’t hide his surprise. “Mr. York is in town? I just left the inn, so that must explain why I haven’t bumped into him yet.”

  “What would a reporter want with Kate or Billy?” Tim wondered.

  “He wants to do an article about the rescue,” Chad lied. “Anyway, I came to sell a farm. Are you interested or not?”

  “How much?” Billy asked.

  Chad hadn’t expected her brother to be interested in the property.

  “You can’t sell it to an outsider,” Tim protested. “That farm used to belong to our grandfather.”

  Chad told them how much the property and everything on it was worth.

  “This place doesn’t even belong to you,” Sam argued, clearly upset. “You married into it.”

  “We’ve already been through this with the lawyer. It belongs to me,” Chad replied. He wasn’t going to be intimidated into handing the property over to them.

  To his surprise, Kate’s brother spoke up. “I’ll offer you 80% of what you’re asking.”

  “Make it 90% and you have a deal.”

  He smiled. “I’m impressed with you, Chad. Alright. You just sold this place.”

  “Why do you want it?” Sam asked him.

  “I know a couple of men back home who are interested in owning a farm or ranch out west. This place can handle crops and animals. It’s perfect. I can sell it for twice the amount I paid for it.”

  Chad didn’t mind her brother’s intention to sell it for a profit. He was intrigued by the man’s good business sense. It had been a long time since he came across someone who was skilled in the art of making money.

  “Fine,” Tim anxiously said. “We’ll buy it.”

  “Are you trying to outbid me?” her brother wondered, seeming to be amused.

  “We can come up with the money if we take out a loan.”

  “Then you’ll have to pay the full asking price,” Chad responded.