An Unlikely Place for Love Read online

  “I had a lot of time to learn out here.”

  “Remind me not to race you in town. I don’t need you to show me up.”

  Chad grinned. “There’s no danger of that.” He had forgotten how much fun it could be to do something for the sake of having fun. He was enjoying having Bob around. Bob was a good friend.

  Chapter Seven

  The next day while Kate was in her Billy outfit and painting some of the roof on the barn, she was able to look out along the fields to see what was going on around the farm. She noticed that Chad, Sam and Tim were on their horses and leading the cattle from one field to another. She recognized Chad’s lean and muscular frame as he gracefully moved with Reliable as the horse chased the cattle. She set the paintbrush down for a moment so she could admire the way he looked while working on the horse. He was in tune with the animal and easily handled its movements. He would do well in the horse competitions back home.

  “Billy! Some of that paint is getting on me!” Jeff complained.

  “Oh, sorry.”

  She immediately put her paintbrush back into the can of black paint. While she painted the roof, Jeff was painting the side of the barn. She quickly ran the paintbrush over the section of the roof where the paint had dripped off of her brush before it had time to dry. Though no one would actually see the error, she didn’t wish to have it there.

  After the men returned from the pasture, their shirts clung to their bodies from the sweat of working in the hot sun. She tried not to stare at Chad as he took his shirt off so he could wash his sweaty face, arms and chest with the cool water that he pumped from the well but he was too tempting to resist. Sam and Tim also took their shirts off but they weren’t nearly as muscular as Chad was. Her eyes drank in the sight of her employer, trying to memorize each muscle on his body. She sighed. He had the kind of body that a woman would be very happy to touch.

  “If you’re thirsty, go ahead and get some,” Jeff told her. “I’ll paint this section of the barn for you.”

  She quickly looked away from Chad. She was glad the beard hid her embarrassment. She hadn’t realized she was staring at Chad. She cleared her throat. “Yes. I think I will get some water.”

  Her hands and legs were shaking as she made her way down the ladder. She took her time in walking to Chad. She hoped that he would be gone by the time she reached the water pump. She was aware that Jeff was glancing at her to check on her progress. She took a deep breath. Sam and Tim had already left the pump and had put their shirts back on but Chad was taking his time and was washing his face. She stood uneasily before him, acutely aware of the butterflies fluttering wildly in her stomach. She had seen her brothers without their shirts on when they were younger but they weren’t anywhere near as attractive as Chad was.

  I could stare at him all day and never get bored, she thought. She knew that if she were in front of him as a woman, it would be inappropriate for him to be without his shirt on. But since she was a man, no one thought anything of it. Only, she was pretending to be a man, and she was strongly attracted to him.

  “Oh, hey there, Bob,” he greeted when he noticed her. “Did you need something?”

  Yes. I need you to take me in your strong arms and kiss me. Of course, she couldn’t actually say this, so she cleared her throat and asked, “I saw you and the others in the fields. I noticed you lassoed a couple of cattle.”

  “We do that when we need to rein them in. Some of the cattle like to veer off to a different field, so they have to be lassoed to stay with the rest of the group.”

  Though she nodded, she wasn’t really paying attention to what he was saying. She was too busy thinking of how wonderful he looked as the sun dried the water off of his body.

  “I was thinking of some lassoing techniques you can use to improve your skill,” he suddenly said. “If you’d like, I could get a lariat out and show you different methods to spin the rope. You could stand to improve your knots too.”

  She dumbly nodded, not sure what she was agreeing to.

  “Alright. I’ll get a clean shirt on and join you in the shed.” He left to go into the house.

  She sighed, disappointed. She was enjoying the view of him way too much. She shook her head. Stay in character. I’m Billy, not Kate.

  She mutely walked to the shed. She had a hard time believing that he couldn’t perform his husbandly duty to Georgia. A man that gorgeous surely didn’t have trouble in that area. Even if he was, there were other ways a man could please a woman. Sex wasn’t merely about physical activity. A man had to be kind, considerate and loving. What woman would want a man who treated her poorly, even if he could do the physical act of sex? She decided that she would rather be with a man who treated her well. She hadn’t had sex but she had enough of an imagination to understand that should Chad be impotent, then he had other ways to be physically satisfying to her. After all, sexual pleasure wasn’t restricted to intercourse.

  “Billy,” Jeff called out.

  Startled, she stopped at the shed door and glanced at the barn where Jeff was taking his time painting. She cleared her throat. “What?”

  “I noticed you didn’t get any water.”

  “Oh.” She had forgotten about that. “Boss said he wanted me to go to the shed. I’ll get a drink later.”

  Before he could say anything else, she slipped into the shed and waited for Chad to show up. Once again, she contemplated appearing before him as Kate. But would he welcome her as a woman? After his experience with Georgia, would he be willing to open his heart to someone else? How would she even approach him as a woman? She couldn’t just show up on his doorstep.

  Chad appeared in the doorway in a fresh blue and white shirt with black britches and black boots. His black hat completed the look. His clothes were well worn with time, but he still looked amazing in them. She hadn’t been so aware of how appealing he was until she saw him without his shirt on, and now that she knew what was under his shirt, she found it hard to focus around him. She desperately wanted to kiss him and feel his strong arms around her.

  This has to stop! I can’t keep thinking this way! She took a deep breath and turned her attention to the lariat he handed her.

  “I think this will work,” he said. He picked up another lariat. “I’ll use this one.”

  “Do you mind if I ask you a question?” she asked, hoping she sounded adequately masculine.

  He shrugged. “No.”

  Now that he was standing in front of her and looking at her, she had trouble knowing how to word her question. How would one man ask another man the question that was on her mind? She cleared her throat. “I was just wondering if you would be interested in marrying again?”

  He frowned. “You’re not going to play matchmaker, are you? I already told you that I have no interest in any of the women in town.”

  “No. There’s no one in mind.” Well, that was technically a lie, but she couldn’t tell him that without revealing her secret. “What I meant was that since your relationship with Georgia was far from ideal, have you sworn off women all together?”

  “That sounds like a loaded question.”

  “Depends on how you take it.” She looked down at the rope in her hands.

  “I realize that Georgia was unusual, but considering the fact that everyone in town thinks so well of her, I would rather not get involved with the women who knew her.”

  “So you don’t want to marry again?” She dared to look back at him.

  “It’s not likely to happen since I’m not leaving town.”

  “Let’s say a new woman showed up in town. Would she be interesting to you?”

  He crossed his arms and studied her.

  She suddenly felt as if he could tell that she was really a woman, so she quickly knelt down to retie her bootstraps.

  “Did a new woman show up at the potluck on Saturday?” Chad finally asked.

  She paused before answering. “You could say that.”

  “Then I’m sure the other availa
ble men in town will be anxious to court her.”

  “You wouldn’t be interested?”

  “I probably would be.”

  She was relieved. At least, he hadn’t dismissed the very notion of marriage.

  He glanced at her. “Are you trying to fix me up with this new woman?”

  “No. I was just wondering if you had let Georgia sour you from other women. There are some women out there who are good and would make a loving spouse.”

  “I know. I had good female relatives while growing up.” He turned his attention to the lariat in her hands. “Are you ready to learn how to lasso?”

  “Are we going out to the field again?”

  “No. We can do it here. Come on.”

  She followed him out of the shed.

  “I’ve been thinking of what I did wrong when I had you go out to the pasture to lasso a cow. I never took the time to show you the technique to use when you swing your rope. So, we’ll start here. Do you remember how to make the loop?”

  She nodded and repeated the procedure for making the appropriate knot.

  He took it from her and tested it. “It’s better than last time. You’ll get the hang of it.”

  She was pleased by his compliment. She watched as he expertly made his own knot and began spinning the rope, pointing the noose at the ground. She imitated his actions but he made it look easier than it really was.

  “Your wrist needs to be flexible,” he remarked.

  She tried to loosen her wrist movements but she realized her wrist was still stiff.

  “It comes with practice.” He stopped spinning his rope and went over to her. He took her hand and guided it. “There you go.”

  She could hardly concentrate on the task at hand. His hand felt wonderful on hers.

  Sam and Tim walked over to them.

  “Billy, you mean to tell me that you’ve never lassoed before?” Sam asked.

  “I’m learning,” she replied.

  “Now move the rope over your head,” Chad told her.

  She did as instructed but the very closeness of him caused her to lose her concentration.

  “It’s a good thing you didn’t go out with us today.” Tim chuckled. “You may handle a horse well, but you’re not much good at lassoing cattle.”

  “I just need practice,” she insisted. “I didn’t start out good on a horse. I worked hard at it.”

  “We can’t be experts at everything,” Chad commented. “But I’m sure with practice, you’ll manage to lasso a couple of cattle.”

  She nearly fell over. That was the first time she could recall hearing Chad actually stand up for her in front of the other men.

  She wasn’t the only one who noticed it. “Having Billy out here has been good for you, Chad,” Sam noted. “You actually said something nice.”

  “It’s been long overdo since Georgia’s death,” Tim agreed.

  “I do take notice when people work hard,” Chad simply replied. He stood close behind her and took her hand again. “Alright. Let’s try it again.” He guided her wrist and hand as she swung the lasso over her head. He grinned. “Which farmhand do you want to catch?”

  Tim scoffed at him. “You’re not going to lasso us.”

  “How about him?” She could play along. She watched Tim.

  “Oh come on. You wouldn’t really lasso one of us,” Sam said.

  “You better run before he does it,” Chad warned.

  She was disappointed when he let go of her hand and walked away from her. Realizing she was being watched by everyone, she decided to try to lasso Tim since he was closest to her. She let go of the lariat and it landed around his chest.

  “Why didn’t you run?” Jeff called out from the ladder.

  “I didn’t think he’d actually do it,” Tim stated.

  “Good work!” Chad patted her on the back.

  She nearly fell over. He clearly didn’t know his own strength.

  “You should be practicing on the animals,” Tim commented as he threw the rope off of him.

  “I thought I was,” she joked.

  The men chuckled.

  “Seriously, Tim is right. Go on ahead, take Buck out to the pasture and see if you can lasso one of the cattle,” Chad replied.

  “Alright.” Though she would have preferred to stay with Chad and pretend she was having difficulty so he’d further instruct her on how to handle the rope, she was too self-conscious in front of the other three men to keep practicing.

  ***

  During the rest of the week, Kate continued practicing with the lariat. She was determined to succeed in lassoing cattle. She also continued to paint the rest of the barn while Chad worked on his gardens. Sam, Tim and Jeff occasionally did some work between periods of sitting down and drinking whiskey. Their talks ranged from which brand of whiskey they liked best to a possible new game they wanted to play at the potluck that upcoming weekend. It seemed to Kate that the people in town had a potluck every weekend.

  On Thursday, she asked Chad if she could go to town to pick up some newspapers, and he said she could go on Reliable. She figured that Sam, Tim and Jeff wouldn’t do much work with her gone, but she was anxious to find out what was going on back in Virginia. The other farmhands had forgotten to bring anymore papers out for her after the previous Wednesday. By the time she reached town, it was midday.

  When she reached the newspaper office, she realized she was hungry. She hadn’t thought to grab a bite to eat before she left. She decided that she would have to eat lunch at the local diner. She had heard that the two women who cooked there had made the pot roast and blueberry pie at the potluck, so she knew the food at the diner would be great.

  While she read through the papers, she waited for her lunch at the diner. There was one article that sparked her interest.

  Senator Rich Gains More Land

  Virginia Senator Ethan Rich, who had been working on acquiring ten more acres along the southwestern Virginia border, finally succeeded in expanding Ethan Rich National Park. Since Senator Murphy Tanner’s death, no other senator has come forward to claim the Tree Removal Bill, so the bill has been thrown out of Congress. Senator Rich was able to purchase the acreage without any opposition.

  The article continued to explain Ethan Rich’s concern for the environment and his plans to preserve the land granted to his care. She sighed as she put the paper down. Another paper described her disappearance and how she was feared either dead or kidnaped. She was relieved that she wore her Billy disguise because there was even a picture of her with a reward for any information leading to her whereabouts.

  As soon as she finished eating her lunch, she made her decision. She knew it was a daring venture, but she needed to find out why ten acres were so important. She didn’t know why Ethan Rich was so determined to have that land for himself when he hadn’t even done anything to the fifty acres he currently possessed. He had named it a park but had done nothing to cultivate it for sightseeing as he claimed he was going to. She recalled how her father was confused that Rich even cared for the extra ten acres.

  Is there a connection between the Tree Removal Bill and my parents’ deaths? That was the big question that loomed in the back of her mind. She had been her father’s secretary, so she had access to a lot of the politics he engaged in. She recalled how controversial the Tree Removal Bill had been. Would it be controversial enough to kill someone over? She decided that she would have to find out what was at Ethan Rich National Park.

  When she got back to the farm, she knew she had to talk to Chad. She found him cleaning out a stall. She put Reliable out in the field behind the barn.

  “Sir, can I have a word with you?” she asked.

  Chad glanced up from his shovel. “Sir?”

  Realizing her formal name of him was unexpected, she quickly said, “I have something serious to discuss with you.”

  He blinked in surprise. “Alright.”

  “It’s something I would rather keep private. Where are the other far
mhands?”

  “Drinking in the other barn.”

  She took a deep breath. “Do I have your permission to take a leave of absence for a week? There’s something I need to check out but it’s in another state.”

  “Should I find another farmhand?”

  She had hoped he wouldn’t consider it but she couldn’t fault him if he wanted to do that. “I’ll leave that decision up to you. I have a personal matter to take care of and it can’t wait.”

  “Can you give me some idea of what this personal matter is about?”

  She hesitated to tell him but she knew she could trust him. “I saw something I shouldn’t have seen and now my life is in danger until the criminals are safely behind bars.”

  His eyes grew wide. “That’s why you’re hiding out?”

  She nodded. “I suspect there is a third party involved in this but I have to check on a few things to make sure my suspicion is warranted. I cannot afford to reveal my whereabouts yet. If you wish to get another farmhand, I’ll understand. I don’t expect you to hold my job for me.”

  Chad sighed. “I can’t blame you for running. Do you think you’ll be gone for longer than a week?”

  “I hope not. I plan to be quick. It’s not time for me to go back to my old life just yet. As long as the killers are free, I won’t be able to stop hiding.”

  “I’ll keep your job here. You shouldn’t have to worry about finding another place to hide.”

  She was relieved. She was tempted to ask him to go with her, for she would feel safer with him there, but she couldn’t bear the thought of seeing him in danger because of her, so she quickly left for the next train due to pull into the town. She felt better knowing she had a place to go back to. Chad had offered her money but she had more than enough from her brother Paul.

  ***

  Five days later, Kate was back on the train and heading for her hometown in Virginia. She wished she had thought to bring another change of clothes but hadn’t wanted to drag herself down with a suitcase. She decided that she was going to have to buy a change of clothes when she reached her hometown. Her suspicions had proven true. She considered the dirt and grime all over her was worth the information she found when she was in the ten acres that Ethan coveted so badly. It took her a full day to find the mines but she discovered a wealth of gems safely hidden in the ground that Ethan had carefully mined. The entire operation was top secret and his workers were well compensated for their work. Her father’s Tree Removal Bill was a direct threat to Ethan’s secret mining operation.