The Touch of Sage

by McClure, Marcia Lynn

  “Well, sure thing! I think I can put ya to work ’round here. At least for a few days. No doubt my brother will have some things needin’ doin’ as well.”

  “Oh, thank ya, ma’am! I’m most grateful!” the boy sighed with relief as he reached out and shook Jolee’s hand in gratitude.

  At the first touch of the boy’s hand, Jolee’s suspicions were confirmed, and she silently congratulated herself on her keen eye. Yes, she thought, this might prove to be a very interesting few days.

  

  “Who in tarnation have ya got cleanin’ out the stalls, Jo?”

  It was Paxton. Jolee giggled at her brother’s predictability.

  Smiling she answered, “Just a young man needin’ somethin’ extra to do.”

  “Well there ain’t nothin’ at all to him,” Paxton grumbled. “Pitches manure like he ain’t never seen a pitchfork and a pile before.”

  Jolee turned and smiled at her brother as he swaggered through the back door leading to the kitchen. “Now, Pax,” she began as he worked the pump, rinsing his face with the water it produced. “He’s obviously travelin’ all alone. And did ya notice how small he is? Probably ain’t had a decent meal in weeks. All he wants is a couple of meals and a bed in the barn for a while. I think we can allow that.”

  Paxton Gray dried his hands and face on the towel his sister handed to him. “We can’t be feedin’ every dang drifter that hops off the train in Blue River, Jo. ’Sides…somethin’ ain’t right with that boy.”

  Jolee quickly glanced at her brother. “What ain’t right, Pax?”

  “Oh…I don’t know. He’s too darn small to be on his own. What if he up and dies out there in our barn tonight of some grisly disease! Then everyone’ll think we’re infected, and they’ll…”

  “Oh for pity’s sake, Pax!” Jolee interrupted with a relieved sigh followed by an amused giggle. “He ain’t got any strange sickness. Let the boy work and have a few nights of restin’. Maybe my cookin’ will put some meat back on his bones.”

  “Well, all I’m gonna say is he’s your wounded bird, Jo. I ain’t takin’ no responsibility about him. You fatten him up and be his mama…but I ain’t gonna be bothered with it,” Paxton rumbled.

  Jolee smiled to herself and said, “All right, Paxton. All right. Now, just eat your lunch and get your own self back to workin’.”

  She set a plate on the table and watched affectionately as her brother enjoyed the ham and biscuits. Tipping her head to one side, she studied her brother’s rugged and absurdly handsome face. His own sable-smooth hair was a bit mussed from the day’s required chores, but his eyes were as brilliant a blue as ever. She thought on them a moment, noting how they held the tranquil blue of a robin’s egg one instant, and the next caused a person to shiver with trepidation. When Paxton was vexed or provoked, the tranquil sky-blue of his eyes turned stormy, and even Jolee could be unsettled by their intensity.

  Jolee stood behind her brother and ran her hands the breadth of his strong shoulders. She wondered then at the true age of the young person outside cleaning Paxton’s stalls as she said, “Paxton Gray…you’re wastin’ this fine form Mama and Daddy blessed you with. Tall, fine, handsome men like you shouldn’t wait so long to settle down. Ya oughta find ya a cute little girl and…”

  “Ah,” Paxton growled, brushing his sister’s hands from his shoulders. “Don’t ya go startin’ in on me again, Jo. You go ahead and work ol’ Weston Warner into your weddin’ bed, and then ya can talk to me about such nonsense as marryin’.”

  Jolee bent and kissed his cheek affectionately. “Me and Weston Warner? What’re ya goin’ on about? Such silliness I never did hear. Now, eat your lunch and leave that boy I hired alone,” she scolded. A knowing smile broke across her face, however. Glancing out the window into the beauty of the day, she nodded. She had a feeling. And Jolee Gray’s feelings had never steered her wrong.

  

  “Well, Tommy,” Jolee began as the boy stood waiting her instruction. “Why don’t ya carry some water to the tub for my brother’s bath tonight? That’s somethin’ I like to do for him after he’s been workin’ hard all day. He don’t run me, mind you. But he gets so awful sore and tired. I already have the pot on the stove heatin’. You can carry some cold water in buckets from the pump at the sink.”

  The boy nodded and within a few minutes had a nice, smooth routine going. Fill a bucket from the pump, lug it into Paxton’s bedroom where the tub sat, and empty it in.

  “It’s nearly full, ma’am,” the boy announced directly.

  “That’s fine, Tommy. Pax will be in any minute. Here.” Jolee handed the boy two folded towels and pointed to the pot of boiling water sitting on the stove. “Now, lug that on in, and pour it into the rest. Be careful! We don’t want ya burnt, now do we?”

  The pot was extremely heavy, and Rivers wasn’t at all certain she could carry it to the bedroom. The steam from the boiling water stuck to her face, causing her discomfort.

  Setting the pot on the floor in front of the tub at last, Rivers stood up and arched her aching back. She was glad Jolee Gray had let her do some chores around the farm. She did indeed need a good meal and shelter, but she was beginning to tire rapidly now that the day was drawing to a close. Her hands, arms, and legs were sore from the strenuous work, and she hated having to wear a hat! It stifled her so. Especially when she wore it pulled down so far over her brow. Still, she’d found a kind soul in Jolee Gray.

  What a kind person Jolee seemed to be. Rivers guessed Jolee must be close to her own age. She was small like Rivers, yet sturdy looking. The woman’s blue eyes and golden hair had a serene and calming influence on Rivers’s tired and anxious state. It seemed Jolee was a lovely woman within and out.

  Rivers thought of her own dark brown hair and black-brown eyes. She’d always felt her features were too severe. Her skin was fair, but her hair, eyes, and eyelashes were varying shades of dark brown. She had never been able to see a trace of beauty in herself. She had almost been able to convince herself once that her mouth was pretty enough. Her perfectly shaped lips held a natural red ripe-cherry color that she found herself having to disguise with dust and chapping when she was riding the trains. But even with that one claim to possible beauty, Rivers had known she was only fooling herself. And considering her circumstance, it was all the better. If she had been some dazzling beauty, Jolee would have known instantly that Rivers was, in fact, a young woman and not an adolescent boy searching for work.

  Rivers’s mind quickly left Jolee then. That man—Jolee’s brother! A heavy sigh of admiration escaped Rivers’s lungs at the thought of him. When he’d come upon her in the stall out in the barn, she felt sure he suspected. He’d stood glaring down at her for several moments and then, without a word, turned and determinedly strode away.

  He was frightening after a manner. His frown, for one thing—so severe and intense. Still, he was the most physically appealing man Rivers had ever seen in all her life! Tall, broad-shouldered, onyx-black hair, square and unshaven jaw, piercing blue eyes. He was astonishing! The mere sight of him had caused Rivers’s heart to miss several beats—caused her to feel breathless and overheated. His physical build was as flawless as his face, and he moved with an incredibly intimidating air of confidence and determination. This Paxton Gray was, from all outward appearances, an embodiment of perfect masculinity.

  Rivers had been so greatly relieved when he had left her to her work. And now, she was anxious to leave his bedroom before he arrived for his evening bath.

  Lifting the great pot of water, she began pouring it into the tub. Then having finished, she set it down again and said out loud, “There now.”

  “Thank ya kindly, boy.”

  Whirling around, Rivers gasped in horror as she saw Jolee’s brother standing before her in the process of removing his clothing. He grinned at her in a friendly manner, revealing one long, thin dimple on his left cheek at the corner of his smile. He’d already stripped his shirt from his broad
torso; his trousers, too, lay in a heap at his feet. The man was nearly finished unbuttoning his flannels. As he peeled the garment from his arms, Rivers turned to face the other direction.

  “Pardon me, sir,” she apologized.

  “You’re a bashful little feller, ain’t ya?” the man noted, and Rivers held her breath when she heard him disturb the tub of water as he stepped into it.

  “Aaahhh,” he sighed. “Ain’t nothin’ like a warm soak after a long day. Ain’t that right, boy?”

  “Um…yes, sir,” Rivers agreed, stepping sideways toward the door.

  “Hold up there, would ya? Hand me that there brush and lye ’fore ya run off, young feller,” the handsome man commanded.

  Rivers saw the brush and soap lying on top of a trunk sitting before her. Swallowing hard, she reached out, taking hold of them. She took several steps backward, keeping her eyes on the wall directly in front of her. Holding the items firmly, one in each hand, she stretched her arms out behind her.

  “Thank ya kindly,” the man said. An unsettling sensation akin to some sort of delightful shiver wracked her as he took them from her. “You can be on your way now, boy.”

  Rivers rushed from the room and slammed the door tightly behind her. She could hear the man chuckling. He must think her an odd duck indeed.

  “There ya are, Tommy. Come have a plate,” Jolee coaxed, motioning toward the kitchen table.

  Jolee smiled to herself. The girl was as red as a radish. Leave it to Paxton, she thought. No doubt he’d nearly dropped his drawers right there in front of her! Still, if Paxton was too mule-stubborn to see what was standing right before his eyes, then it served him right. She wondered how long the girl’s pretending would go on before Paxton figured it all out.

  She sighed and shook her head. Knowing her brother as she did, the girl could be doomed to masquerade as a boy forever.

  The food Jolee had prepared was pure satisfaction to Rivers. It had been so long since she’d had a decent meal. She enjoyed it thoroughly, savoring every morsel so her mind could think back on it when tougher times came again. She looked up when she’d finished to see Jolee smiling pleasantly at her.

  “Ya know, Tommy,” Jolee began. “Ya really should take your hat off before sittin’ down to a meal.”

  Rivers dropped her head self-consciously. “Beg your pardon, ma’am.”

  “Well, ya ought to…even when you’re just enterin’ the house, to be honest,” Jolee added.

  Rivers did not respond but only continued to eat. Hopefully Jolee would leave the subject be.

  “Jo!” came the booming, masculine voice from the other room.

  Rivers stiffened in her chair as she heard the door leading from the room where Jolee’s brother was bathing open.

  “Jolee! There ain’t one pair of clean flannels in my chest-a-drawers! What do ya expect me to do? Catch my death of cold sleepin’ in my birthday suit?”

  Rivers jumped anxiously in her chair as the man strode in and stopped directly beside her. He stood with only a towel wrapped about his waist and nothing else to cover him.

  “For pity’s sake, Pax! You’re drippin’ all over my clean floor! Towel off before ya go trampin’ through the house!” Jolee scolded.

  The proximity of the unclothed man caused Rivers’s reflexes to spring her from her chair so violently that it toppled over backward, crashing to the floor.

  “He sure is a jittery little feller, ain’t he?” the man said to his sister.

  Rivers mumbled an apology and bent to pick up the chair. Her gaze fell spontaneously to Paxton’s feet, standing in a small puddle of water rapidly accumulating around them. Rivers couldn’t stop her eyebrows from rising in astonishment as her gaze involuntarily continued up the length of his solid, muscular calves. As she stood, replacing the chair, her eyes traveled over his stomach, chest, and arms. His own fabulous eyes were fastened on her when she straightened at last, looking him full in the face.

  His hair hung dripping wet about his head, and he said, “You all right there, boy?” Rivers could only nod in response. “Well then, where might a drownin’ man find his flannels, Jolee?” he repeated, sighing with impatience at his sister.

  Jolee giggled. “I’m sorry, Pax. I plum forgot to bring ’em in off the line. I’ll run out and get a pair.” With a sideways glance and mischievous smile at Rivers, she left.

  Rivers squirmed uncomfortably. Standing in a stranger’s kitchen with a scantily clad man was most disconcerting. Even so, she couldn’t keep her eyes from straying once more to the magnificently broad shoulders and chest boasted by Paxton Gary. He was perfect! Rivers had seen many men, cowboys, rail-riders—but never had she seen the likes of Paxton Gray.

  She jumped as he spoke unexpectedly and slapped her soundly on one shoulder. “Don’t worry there, boy. You’ll fill out soon enough too. Shoot…I was nearly as wormy lookin’ as you are when I was your age.”

  Rivers cleared her throat and cast her gaze down to the floor once more.

  He continued, “Tell ya what…I reckon it’s been awhile since ya had yerself a real tub bath. You go on in there…the water’s still warm enough. Have yerself a good long soak.”

  Rivers looked up quickly, shaking her head. “Oh, no, no, no. But thank ya all the same.”

  Paxton Gray frowned. “Now look here, boy, Jolee don’t go in for smelly men. You had better get yerself in there and bath up.”

  Paxton had seen this boy pitching manure earlier in the day and knew he must be in need of a bath. Maybe Jolee liked taking in these motherless pups, but if they were gonna eat under his roof, they were gonna do it cleaned up!

  “Now, you go on in there and get yerself washed. I didn’t leave the water too all soapy,” he repeated, trying to remain calm.

  “Um…I think I better be gettin’ on out to the barn, if ya don’t mind, sir,” the boy muttered.

  “Like hell you are, boy!” And having let his temper get the best of him, Paxton hoisted the boy up over his own shoulder and turned toward the bedroom. He was a weasel of a child! It didn’t take any effort at all, only one arm to heft him up. Good thing, too, considering Paxton was tightly holding his towel at his waist with the other hand.

  “No! Please!” the boy hollered.

  “Now, you soap up. We bath up quite frequent ’round this house,” Paxton grunted, dropping the boy bottom first into the tub of water. “And ’cause I know you’re unusual bashful…I’m gonna leave ya in here…trustin’, mind you…trustin’ you’ll wash your own self,” he warned, pointing a finger at the boy. “I don’t wanna have to come back in here and scrub ya down, you hear?”

  “Yes, sir,” the boy stammered. Paxton fancied for a moment the child was near to bawling. The boy better toughen up quick or he wouldn’t get nowhere in life at all!

  “What in tarnation have ya done, Pax?” Jolee scolded as she saw her brother coming out of the bedroom, a triumphant grin on his face.

  “That boy needs a good washin’, Jo,” he stated.

  Jolee rolled her eyes and put her hands squarely on her hips. “So ya took it upon yerself to see he done it, is that it?”

  Paxton nodded. “Shore ’nough,” he confirmed. Jolee shook her head and threw the flannels she’d gathered at him. “You’re too tenderhearted, little sis,” Paxton grumbled as he stomped away into the parlor. “A man can’t even put on his underwear in his own bedroom ’round here,” he muttered as he went. “Gotta be draggin’ every stray thing for miles around in here to patch up, don’t ya, Jo?”

  “And you’re as blind as a bull with his eyes poked out, big brother,” Jolee retorted. Then going to the closed bedroom door, she said, “There’s a towel right there on the chest, Tommy.”

  “Thank ya, ma’am,” came the timid reply.

  “I’m goin’ on to bed now…you go ahead and slip out to the barn when you’re finished, all right? I’ll leave ya a clean pair of flannels out here, ’cause I know for a fact that Pax didn’t take the time to strip ya ’fore he fl
ung ya in there.”

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  Jolee Gray shook her head. Paxton—the man couldn’t see past the nose on his own face.