Chapter 3

While Connery took a shower and changed into the clothes Caleb had found for her, some things his sister-in-law, Ana, had left at the ranch, he went through the refrigerator to see what he had to offer her in the way of food. Saying a silent thanks to his housekeeper, Hannah, he pulled out a plate of fried chicken, containers of potato salad, green beans, and corn.

Hannah had been working for him ever since his father took office and Caleb took over running the ranch. She was the wife of his ranch foreman, Clyde, and one of the best cooks in three counties. Not only did she always make sure he had plenty to eat, but she kept the place as immaculate as Clara, his stepmother had done all his life.

He filled two plates and put them into the microwave to heat. He leaned back against the counter. He wondered what his family would say if he told them a woman fell out of the sky and damn near drowned him? They’d probably call him loco. Hell, he was having a little trouble believing it’d happened.

He and Connery had decided to head back to the ranch during the night. They could both probably use a good night’s sleep, and he wanted to do some checking before daybreak, just to see if he could find out anything about the military helicopter she told him about.

Not that he didn’t believe her. Exactly. He just wanted to check. He got his laptop from the office and brought it to the kitchen, accessing the local news site. There was nothing about a crash of any kind or a missing woman.

Acting on impulse he called his father.

“Hey dad,” he said as soon as the call was answered. “Listen, have you heard anything about any plane crashes around here?”

“What makes you ask, son?”

“No real reason. Just thought I heard an engine when I was packing it in for the day at the lake. Sounded like it was having engine trouble. But I never saw anything…”

“You heard this where?”

“At the west end of TR Lake.”

“Caleb, you know that if there was information about a crashed military helicopter I couldn’t’ tell you about it. Hell, boy, if the two pilots had miraculously escaped when the bird hit a substation and blew up, blacking out power for fifty square miles, I couldn’t tell you. Couldn’t say a damn word if both of the pilots claimed that a woman died in the crash. Sorry boy, but I just don’t have any news to share with you.”

Caleb grinned. Charlie took his position as governor seriously, but his loyalty to and trust of his sons was still rock solid.

“I hear ya. Well, thanks anyway Dad. Love to Clara. Talk to you later.”

He hung up the phone and leaned back in his chair. Things were really getting strange. The beeper on the microwave sounded and he rose to take the plates to the table. He was pouring two glasses of iced tea when Connery appeared in the door.

“Whatever that is it smells delicious.”

The sight of her had him overfilling the glass. Tea slopped over the rim and onto the kitchen counter. “Shit!” he put down the tea pitcher and made a grab for the towel, but she beat him to it and started mopping up the mess.

She smelled of soap and woman. Clean and inviting. Her long hair was still wet, hanging nearly to her waist. Even without the enhancement of makeup she was stunning.

And the clothing he’d given her would have made most women green with envy to have achieved such a look. The jeans, an old pair of Ana’s she’d left at the ranch, were a bit loose and hung low on her hips. The tee-shirt was tight across the chest, emphasizing her full breasts, and fell a good three inches short of her navel, displaying her tight torso and an interesting belly ring in her navel.

It was enough to have things south of the belt taking way too much of the blood supply from his brain. All he could do was stare. And breathe. Damn, she smelled good.

“Thanks,” he finally managed as she moved to wring out the wet cloth in the sink and rinse it out.

He took the glasses of tea to the table. “Hope this is okay.”

She took a seat and looked down at the plate in front of her. She picked up her fork and pointed to the chicken leg on her plate. “What’s that?”

“Chicken.”

“That is a breed of domesticated fowl, correct?”

“Uh, yeah.”

She shuddered and pointed to the potato salad. “And this?”

“Potato salad.”

She speared a chunk and popped it into her mouth. Her eyes closed as she chewed and a moan of came from her throat. She opened her eyes, grinned at him, and dug in.

Caleb watched in amazement. Aside from the chicken, which went untouched, Connery cleaned her plate in a matter of minutes, the whole time making little sounds of pleasure like it was the best food she’d ever tasted.

She put her fork down on her plate, lifted her glass of tea, and drained it.

“That was so delicious,” she said with a smile. “Did you prepare all of this?”

Caleb shook his head with a smile. “Nope. My housekeeper, Hannah deserves the credit.”

“You have a housekeeper? Well, she is quite an accomplished chef, and that potato salad is the most marvelous thing I’ve ever tasted. Thank you.”

“Rain—shit on a stick! I mean Connery. I’ve got to get used to that. Anyway, I talked with my father and apparently a military helicopter went down, crashing into an electrical sub-station and blacking out power for miles. The two pilots survived and from what I know claim that a woman died in the crash.”

There was no reaction at all from her at the news. Her expression did not change in the least. Either she was really good at concealing things, or she was in shock.

“Why would they claim you were killed?”

She stared at him without expression. “Come on,” he encouraged. “I swear you can trust me. I just need to know how you ended up in that lake and why…” He shook his head and ran one hand back through his hair. “…why when you hit the water it moved out like something big and round had hit it.”

Connery watched him for a few moments then leaned back in her chair. “Caleb, there are some things that are best left unexplained. You already know too much. And you’re such a wonderful man. Smart, compassionate, sexy as…as sin, and you have a good life. Getting involved with me could be disastrous. While I appreciate everything you have done for me and all you have offered, I have to remind you that the best thing for you and everyone you care about is for me to just walk out the door and disappear and you to pretend that you never saw or heard of me.”

The words “sexy as sin” hit him like a dose of Viagra. One moment his mind was completely focused on the mystery of her and the next he had a raging hard-on and could barely think of anything but jumping up, throwing her over his shoulder and taking her to his bed.

Christ on a crutch! He shifted in his seat, trying to get more comfortable and will his erection to subside. “Darlin’ that’s the absolute worst way to dissuade me. Not that I don’t appreciate the compliments, but right now I’m sitting across the table from the biggest mystery I’ve ever encountered and I’m a true-blue sucker for mysteries.”

“Curiosity killed the cat,” she said.

“And satisfaction brought it back,” he countered and was rewarded with a rise of color on her face.

She pushed back and stood. “Trust me, Caleb, there’s nothing I’d like more than to discover the satisfaction I’ve no doubt you could deliver, but the longer I stay the more dangerous it is for you.”

He stood and rounded the table to her. “Why don’t you let me decide if you’re too dangerous?”

She looked up at him and for a moment a wistful expression appeared on her face. He put his hand on top of her shoulder. “Just level with me. If it’s too much, I’ll back down. But at least let me make the decision for myself.”

It had been a while since she’d trusted anyone but the urge to trust Caleb was getting stronger every moment. Was it because of the chemistry between them, or was it what she saw in his eyes? That look of honesty and integrity that shown like a clear light.

Help! She was afraid and didn’t know what to do. She needed a sign.

“I have to be outside,” she said in a choked voice, feeling suddenly claustrophobic. “Please, the walls are crowding in.”

Caleb took her by the arm and led her out of the back door onto a wide porch with wooden rocking chairs padded with thick cushions. The stars twinkled overhead in the clear sky and a breeze lifted her drying hair. She pulled away from him and went to the railing circling the porch.

Closing her eyes, she put both hands on the rail and raised her face, taking in a long, slow, deep breath. The sound of the wind and the night creatures filled her mind, soothing and comforting. For a long time, she stood rooted in place, sending out a silent plea for guidance. Finally, she opened her eyes. And a star shot across the sky.

“Penny for your thoughts,” Caleb said softly from beside her where he leaned against one of the wooden columns that supported the roof of the porch.

Connery looked at him for a moment. Did he have any idea how truly gorgeous he was? Like some Norse legend sprung to life, a god of old, capable of conquering the strongest opponent or soothing the most horrific fears from a frightened heart.

“Tell me about this military transport again,” she said “All I know is that it went down at a substation and blew up.”

“But the pilots are unharmed?”

“Yeah, they’re fine.”

“Thank the stars.”

“You were worried about people who were holding you captive?”

She nodded. “Those men were simply following orders. They believed it was for the greater good. I could not bear the responsibility of their deaths.”

“And all of this is because you can—levitate stuff?”

“No.”

“Then what”

She sighed and dropped her head for a moment then looked up at him. “Because of that,” she said, “and other things.”

“What other things?”

When she didn’t answer he took hold of her upper arms and leaned down, looking her square in the eyes. “Come on—Conn. What other things?”

“You do not want to know.”

“Oh yes I do.”

She chewed her bottom lip for a moment, her eyes searching his. “Very well. Things such as this.”

And with that she vanished.

“Holy fuck,” he breathed. “How’re you doing this?

“I have no idea,” she answered, becoming visible again and dreading the barrage of questions she knew would be forthcoming.

But instead of questions, he pulled her to him, engulfing her in his embrace. “Don’t be scared, Conn. I won’t let them find you. You’re safe here. I give you my word.”

She wanted to believe that. More than she could express. But at the moment expressing anything would have been a monumental task. The feel of his hard body against hers and his arms holding her tightly had her body singing like electricity on a wire.

“You must release me,” she managed to whisper.

“What’s wrong?” He ended the embrace but kept his hands on top of her shoulders.

“You affect me, Caleb.”

“Affect you?”

“Yes,” she looked up at him. “Sexually.”

“And that’s bad? Baby, you’ve been affecting me since I woke up and saw you kneeling beside me.”

“It’s not the same.”

“Oh? Well, what’s different about it? Sexual attraction is pretty simple.”

She did not know how to say it and not sound insulting. “Desiring may be simple. But acting upon it presents many complications.”

“Like what?”

“Like whether you would be able to satisfy my needs.”

He chuckled then laughed out loud. “Honey, if that’s all you’re worried about, then you’ve got no worries at all because I promise you that when we’re done, you’ll definitely be satisfied.”

She admired his confidence and was tempted to test his claims. But now was not the time. She still had much acclimating to do in order to fit in and sex would only distract her from what she needed to learn.

Not willing to insult his manhood, she smiled at him. “I will keep that in mind. However, right now there are more pressing matters to attend to. If I am going to act in the role of your assistant, I need to learn about the care of animals. And I need to learn to speak in the same rhythm and cadence of the natives of this area. Otherwise, I will be unable to blend in and if I do not blend in, then I could attract undue attention.”

“Babe, you’d attract attention if you didn’t mutter a word.”

She couldn’t help but smile. “I doubt that. But I do need to learn, and you are the only teacher I have. So, will you teach me of animal medicine?”

“Sure, what do you want to know?”

“Everything.”

“That’s a tall order, honey. I guess I could dig out my old textbooks and you could start on them. But there’s no way you’ll know it all by morning.”

“Books would be excellent,” she agreed enthusiastically.

“Okay, I think I have them packed in a box in the attic. I’ll go look.”

“Thank you, Caleb.” She stood on tiptoe to brush her lips against his. He gathered her to him and slanted his mouth across hers. Despite her intentions to not fall victim to desire, she could not stop her lips from parting beneath his. Could not stop her tongue from twining with his. It was a kiss that promised of great passion, and also great tenderness. She wanted it to last forever, but he pulled back.

“A promise,” he said.

“A promise?” She did not understand.

“Of what’s to come.”

She actually felt her knees go weak. He gave her a sexy grin and went inside the house. She turned and looked up at the stars. If only she could find a way to remain here and explore the possibility of passion and emotion he offered. Closing her eyes, she sent the wish skyward.