No Place for a Lady (16 page)

Life at Aspengold was anything but routine in preparation for
the anticipated trail drive. Everyone rose before daylight for
meals and chores, and later in the evening congregated on the
front porch. Sometimes Crystal would curl up in a chair by the
fire to read her father's Bible. She fell into bed at night, exhausted
but feeling like she had more purpose in her life.

Now it wasn't yet sundown, but Crystal felt a need to be
outdoors after doing the supper dishes, away from the heat
of the kitchen. She strolled in the early dusk, the air fragrant
with the pungent smell of evergreen and pinion pines. Soon
she found herself in the grove of aspens that ran alongside the
back of the ranch.

Here the breeze stirred the aspen leaves, creating a quaking
effect that suggested a season change was nearing in their greengold color. Delicate cerulean columbine and mountain bluebells
thrived in the thick undergrowth of the forest floor, a striking
contrast to deceased conifers dotting the rocky terrain.

Crystal leaned back against a fat, white aspen trunk scarred
with holes, understanding now why Kate had so named the ranch. She could almost feel her aunt's presence. A gurgling
stream carved its way over flat, shiny boulders as it went farther
down the mountainside. The entire alpine vista lent itself to a
quiet peace and stillness that she was unable to describe but felt
deeply. God had painted the azure blue sky as his backdrop for
the majestic mountains. How could anyone doubt that there
was a Creator? She was suddenly energized at the thought that
God was so magnificent but still cared about what happened
to her.

Yet she was lonely for Kate and felt an emptiness that she
had never experienced before. More like a longing to belong
to someone. She wasn't sure. She closed her eyes and thanked
God for all that He had provided for her since her father's and
Kate's untimely deaths. She prayed for guidance about her future. She ended her prayer by thanking Him for this splendid
country and all that His hands had created.

She couldn't wait for Carmen to return. Not that anyone was
demanding, but she was not used to cooking and cleaning and
was worn to a frazzle. Now, looking at her hands that were once
soft with ten perfect oval nails, she felt like crying again. Half
of the nails were broken, and her hands chafed from being in
water constantly. Then she giggled out loud when she thought
how horrified Drew would be at her lack of sophistication if
he were here with her now.

She bent over to untie her shoes and roll down her stockings,
then discarded them both. She threw propriety to the wind,
tucked her skirt into her waistband, and headed to the stream.
With trepidation she stuck one toe in and then her foot. It was
icy cold. Ah, but it felt good and refreshing, and she slowly placed the other foot in. She let her fingers trail the water and
clutched her skirts with her other hand, then splashed the cold
water on her face and neck. It cooled her skin, and she was just
stepping up to the bank when she heard the piercing scream
of a woman.

Fear gripped her heart, and it beat violently in her chest.
She reached out with both hands to the bank but slid on the
mossy rocks. She felt something pull at her skirt and turned to
find that it was snagged on a rotting log. The scream sounded
again, and she struggled frantically to loosen her skirt from the
log. The material ripped, and she fell backward into the water
and drenched herself thoroughly. The cold water shocked her
senses.

Panic swept over her. Dragging her torn, wet skirt and petticoats, she was able to scramble up the bank-right into a
pair of black, dusty boots. She looked up and saw Luke with an
amused look on his face and his hat pushed back, lazily leaning
against a huge boulder as if he had all the time in the world.
She was gasping for breath, and he just stood there grinning
down at her. She was acutely aware that in her sodden state,
her clothes clung to her body.

"Did ... didn't you hear that ... woman screaming? Someone
is hurt ... or in trouble. Did you ... see anyone?" She choked
and sputtered on the water in her throat and blinked it out of
her eyes.

"Well, Miss Crystal, what a harebrained thing to do! Go
swimming with your clothes on. And you being a Southern
lady and all." He could hardly drag his eyes off her wet, curvy
form.

In the distance, the crack of a rifle rang out, causing Crystal
to jump.

"Never mind that. What about the lady?" she said.

"That was no lady," he said. "That was a mountain lion. You
shouldn't be roaming out here this far by yourself. The gunfire
might've been Rusty trying to scare her away from the livestock."

Crystal was starting to shiver now and walked right past
Luke to retrieve her stockings and shoes. He grabbed her by
the arm, and she turned to look up at him. She was so close
that he could feel her breath on his skin. The waning sunlight
filtered through the trees, leaving just a trace of light, so it was
hard to see her face.

"No need to get in a huff, Crystal. But don't come out here
alone at night, understand? It might not be safe."

I don't remember taking orders from you, Mr. Weber. And
when I need your advice, I'll ask for it, thank you very much,"
Crystal snapped. "You had no right to follow me!"

Luke reacted like he'd been branded with a hot iron, bringing his hand back to his hip pocket. "I came up to the house to
give you the list for the supplies we'll be needing for the trail
drive. When no one answered the door, I decided I'd better go
looking for you." He walked off and called over his shoulder,
"Find your own way home, ma'am"

After stripping her wet things off, Crystal donned a warm
flannel gown and prepared to retire. She had decided to stay
in the small room, preferring it to her aunt's. Somehow she just couldn't bring herself to move in there. Not just yet. Her
thoughts turned to Georgia. She shivered when she thought
of the screams of the mountain lion sounding so much like a
woman. Everything about this place was so different. Georgiaand civilization-seemed a million miles away. Would she be
able to stick it out and keep her part of the bargain?

Even though her headaches finally went away, she was always
thirsty, and her skin itched from the dryness. At this rate, her
soft complexion would take on the appearance of the dried
apricots she'd found in the pantry. Next time she was in town,
she'd ask Mary at the mercantile store for some special cream
for her hands and face.

She smiled, thinking how kind Rusty was. An hour before
supper, he had walked in and said he was going to help her cook
supper. She readily acquiesced, and he began to panfry slabs of
beef while she peeled potatoes. Such a sweet man. He told her
the story again of the blizzard in '87 when the drifts were as
high as the roof of the barn. That year it was 46 degrees below
up in Montana where his family lived. Many of the smaller
ranches were about wiped out.

Crystal could only shake her head in disbelief at his stories.
She noticed Rusty refrained from talking about Kate. She knew
his loneliness was deep for Kate, though he never said anything,
and her heart went out to him.

In a short time, supper was made, steaming hot and on the
table before the rest of the crew staggered in. The meal vanished
in a matter of minutes.

Crystal spent some time reading her father's Bible before
going to bed. When she read Galatians, a verse in chapter 6
seemed written for her. It said not to lose heart in doing good
and you would reap a reward. As always was the case, she found
the strength and encouragement that she so needed. She knew
that she wasn't alone.

Once she was snuggled under the quilt, she remembered
April's party. She wearily got back out of bed, opened the wardrobe, and pulled out her lavender gown. Kurt had told her that
anyone who was anyone would be there. She wished she had
the material she had lost in the twister. Perhaps she could ask
one of the cowboys to go looking for it.

Mindful of the talk about her dress at the last barn dance,
Crystal decided to add more material to the decolletage. Not
wanting to be the topic of conversation again, she would add
a little lace with bits of ribbon here and there to reconfigure
the neckline a bit. She dragged her rocker near the lamplight,
opened the sewing kit, and began working until there was a
nagging pain between her shoulder blades.

From where Luke stood at the bunkhouse, he could see a
light still burning in Crystal's window. He hadn't been able to
sleep. His thoughts had been consumed with running the ranch
and wondering just how Kate had managed to keep up with
everything. He sure missed her advice about horses and cattle
alike, not to mention her presence.

He wondered what on earth Crystal was doing up so late. She
sure was a feisty and outspoken little thing. In fact, he admired that streak in her, but he didn't want her to know it. He knew
that once you told a woman she was pretty and took her to a
church social in these parts, you were considered practically
engaged. Yes sir, he'd better be real careful where this one was
concerned.

Crystal had stayed up late the night before working on her dress.
Although her sewing left something to be desired, it turned out
better than she thought it would.

Once the breakfast dishes were put away and the kitchen was
tidy, Crystal hurried through her morning laundry. She wanted
to spend some time going over her aunt's ledgers, a task she had
put off longer than she had intended to. She settled down in the
high-back chair beneath the antique desk whose very existence
showed its years by the many scars on its surface. If only the desk
could talk, she thought. She lifted the rolltop and pulled several
journals from their dusty cubbyholes. It seemed very peculiar to
be going through someone else's possessions. She felt as though
she was violating her aunt's privacy.