Rose Kelly by Janet Spaeth

Author:Janet Spaeth [Spaeth, Janet]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 978-1-62029-235-8
Publisher: Barbour Publishing, Inc.
Published: 2006-05-15T00:00:00+00:00

Eric splashed cold water on his face. He’d need all his wits about him today.

Rose had said he wouldn’t even know she was there. What were the chances of that? Whenever she’d been around him, he’d been painfully aware of her presence.

Last night he could have told her no, he wouldn’t be home, but he’d long ago made an agreement with God that he wouldn’t lie. Not anymore. He’d already told enough lies for a lifetime, and the last one was the worst. A lie never lived on its own. It had fingers that stretched into every part of his existence.

He’d barely wiped his face dry when he heard the distinctive sound of Big Ole’s clopping hooves. “And we’re off,” he whispered to himself as he went out to meet her.

At least this time she didn’t have on those worthless little shoes she’d been wearing before. Instead, sensible brown leather boots poked out from under the hem of her green-flowered skirt.

He was going to clean out the stable today before the sun got too high in the sky. Then he was going to go back into the fields and check on the crops. If there was time, he’d weed his garden and fix the wheel on the wagon that was wobbling.

He had the whole day planned out nicely. Without preamble, he told her the schedule, and she nodded. “Sounds good to me. I can help you, too,” she chirped happily as she headed for the stable.

Eric contented himself with rolling his eyes. He could picture how effective she’d be with the day’s tasks.

“How’s Downy?” she asked as soon as she got to the barn door.

“Growing bigger, but that’s what ducks do.”

“He’s not in his cage.” She stopped and frowned at him.

“The duck is all right. He’s swimming down in the creek now.”

“Do you think it’s safe for him to be out of his cage?”

He fought back a laugh. “This is the country, and he’s a duck. The ducks go in the cage only at night, and that’s only to protect them from predators.”

Her forehead crinkled with concern. “I’m not sure that it’s enough, but I’ll have to trust you.”

“I appreciate it,” he responded dryly.

Amazingly, she was a tremendous help, and she pitched in fearlessly, even when it meant digging in the dirty straw of the stable. Noon came earlier than he expected, and with it, a problem arose. What would they eat?

“I’m sorry,” he began, “but I have to say that I don’t have much for us to eat. I usually grab what I can and bring it with me.”

“That’s not a problem,” she said, running her hand over her sweat-stained forehead. “I’m not particular.”

Not particular? He thought back to the day he’d met her, how she’d been so impeccably dressed and so very elegantly out of place in Jubilee. Now she was sitting in his barn, scented with the odor of the stable rather than expensive perfume, her calico dress smeared with dirt, and she was beautiful.

He shoved the thought out of his mind.

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