Charlene Sands (15 page)

T
he planting was going smoothly. Jenna had taken turns with Antonio and Cash and for three solid days they used what Cash named the “contraption” to seed the plowed-up earth. The seeder worked marvelously well and Jenna had never enjoyed planting time as much. She’d been out here each day, working the fields alongside of the men. The rows took shape and soon tiny sprouts would rise up from the ground, absorbing sunshine to grow into stalks of golden grain.

Jenna stumbled, feeling slightly weak-kneed, yet she managed to regain her balance before falling flat out as she walked along the edge of the last row. She peered over the farm her parents had tilled with love and named Twin Oaks. “Soon,” she whispered, wiping sweat from her brow, “soon, we’ll have us the greatest harvest ever.”

But Jenna’s limbs buckled under and she nearly went down again. The scorching sun beat down
with vigor. After the rains that brought new livestock to her farm, the heat wave they’d been experiencing had resumed. Jenna knew it would pass. It was far too early in the season for this degree of heat to continue. But for now, the sweltering heat pounded the earth.

Fatigue set in. Jenna’s usually abundant strength drained from her body. She ambled slowly toward the house, her head spinning with dizziness. She stumbled two more times, but managed to keep upright. And once inside the house, she downed two tall glasses of water. She hadn’t strength enough to sit down. No, Jenna needed to
lie
down. She made a tough journey up the stairs then once inside her bedroom flopped onto her bed.

Exhausted sleep claimed her almost immediately.

She didn’t know how long she slept or what time of day it was when pounding from below startled her awake. She lifted her head from the pillow to listen. The booming noise continued. Slowly, and with care she rose to investigate.

She made it to the landing and peered down. Cash had his head bent, intent on hammering nails into her staircase. “C-Cash,” she called out, feeling less strength in her limbs than earlier. She held onto the banister for support. Her head throbbed incessantly.

Cash glanced up. “Jenna, I didn’t know you were up there.”

“C-could you do t-that another t-time?”

Cash stood and stared at her, his face marked with concern. “Jenna, sugar, what’s wrong with you?”

“I’m…so…tired.”

Then everything went black and she floated, light as a feather, into oblivion. The last thing she recalled was the sound of Cash’s voice, cursing.

Cash bounded up the stairs two at a time. “Jenna! Jenna!” He let loose a string of curses until he reached her limp body. Lifting her gently, she appeared as ragged as a cloth doll. Cash held her with an arm then patted her cheek. “Jenna, sweetheart. Wake up.”

Cash noted Jenna’s eyes attempting to open. She struggled and only flashed them open for a second before they closed again. He bent his head down, placing an ear to her chest and sighed with relief when he felt the slow rise of her breathing.

Cash didn’t know what to do. She needed help. He could saddle up Queen and race over to Ben’s place, but he would never leave Jenna alone in this condition. He could bundle her up and take her over in the wagon, but as he looked at her pale face, weighed her wilting body, he knew he couldn’t do that, either.

He opted for putting her into bed and trying to revive her. As he carried her in and set her down,
shocking fear assailed him. He’d never known this kind of jolting anguish before.

He touched her forehead. She was hot, but not feverish. He touched many parts of her body, all feeling the same way, terribly hot. Cash brushed a kiss on her forehead. “I’ll be right back.”

He raced down the stairs to the kitchen, flinging open a cabinet, retrieving cloths and pouring a pitcher full of water, then headed upstairs.

Jenna hadn’t made a move. She lay there on the bed, weak, exhausted and unconscious. “Sweetheart, you need to drink.”

Cash lifted her, bringing a glass of water to her lips, but she hadn’t the ability to drink, so he lowered her back down. Dipping his finger into the water, he moistened Jenna’s lips, running his finger back and forth. Her lips were dry, almost completely blistered.

“Jenna, wake up. Please, sugar.” Cash’s heartbeats crashed against his chest. His words held no meaning for the woman lying unresponsively on the bed. He sank down next to her and peeled away her clothes gently.

Pouring water on a cloth, Cash washed Jenna’s dehydrated body, allowing the coolness to stay and linger on her skin. He pressed the cloth to her throat, her arms, her stomach, her legs, leaving only a few private areas untouched.

He sat with her for hours, prying her lips open,
fingering droplets of water down her throat, and soaking her hot bare skin with cool water.

Day became night. Cash wouldn’t sleep, but he tucked himself beside her, so that he could watch every movement she made, praying that she’d awaken. He stroked her golden hair, whispered in her ear and all the while, kept her cool and hydrated with water.

“I love you, Jenna Duncan,” Cash admitted quietly. But she would never know. He’d not tell her. Cash was just now learning how difficult farm life really was. Aside from the crops failing, there were so many more unknowns. He’d brought trouble her way and the last thing this strong tenderhearted woman needed was more trouble. Jenna didn’t want him here. He’d been a thorn in her side from the beginning. For her sake, as soon as he could, he’d leave.

He’d deal with the pain of that decision in his own way. He wasn’t the important one here, Jenna was. With gentle arms, Cash embraced her, praying for her to recover, praying that life would be easier for her from now on and praying that the crop Jenna wished for would be the best ever.

A safe haven surrounded her. Jenna sank down deeper into the cocoon of warmth, her body relishing the comfort bestowed upon her. She heard her own sigh, a penetrating sound coming from deep
within but her hazy mind wouldn’t allow her to question it.

She shifted her position on the bed, turning to her other side. A strong hand on her shoulder guided her. Slowly, for the pre-dawn hours of the morning were not her favorite, she opened her eyes. She stared straight into the beautiful blue eyes of Cash Callahan.

“Morning,” he said, with a smile that seemed a little forced. Lines of fatigue around the corners of his eyes told a different story. His jaw was clenched tight, and Jenna noted tension on his face.

Jenna blinked once, then twice and her mind began to clear a bit, beginning to comprehend. She was naked in bed with Cash Callahan. She searched for answers, but she couldn’t recall how she had ended up in bed with him. The last thing she remembered was feeling tired and going up to her room to take a nap.

Cash held her in a loose embrace. Had they slept this way the entire night? Had it been Cash providing her the safe haven she’d dreamed about?

When Cash made a move to brush hair from her cheek she noted his bare chest. Heavens, was he naked as well? Jenna didn’t have the courage to look any further down. It was bad enough he was here on her bed, and she couldn’t remember why.

“Jenna, sugar, say something.”

“Why are you in my bed?”

A chuckle erupted from the depths of his chest. “Not for the reason I’d prefer, sweetheart.”

Confused, Jenna gazed into his eyes. “Why am I naked then, if nothing happened?
Nothing
did happen, right?”

“Well, if you’d like to call your fainting dead away from heat and exhaustion ‘nothing,’ then, sugar, I guess ‘nothing’ did happen.”

“I fainted?”

“Don’t you remember?”

“I remember feeling real tired and thirsty out in the fields. I couldn’t wait to get a drink of water. But that didn’t seem to help much, so I took a nap.”

“That’s right. I was working on the stairs, making a ruckus, pounding nails and you came out of your room to see me. That’s when you fainted. Scared me half to death, Jenna.” Cash bent in to kiss the tip of her nose. “Don’t you do that again.”

“I’m sorry,” she murmured, still confused.

“Don’t be. Wasn’t your fault. The heat was too much for you. You’ve been working out in the sun for days now with the contraption. I should’ve said something, made you go into the house.”

“I’m not your responsibility, Cash.”

Cash grunted, not really acknowledging her comment.

“But you haven’t told me why we were sleeping together.”

“You needed water, so I stayed the night, trying
to get you to drink. I managed to get some drops into you and I figured if I couldn’t get much water down you, I could at least cool down your skin.”

Mortifying heat rose up Jenna’s face. “You took off my clothes?”

“I had to, Jenna.” Cash fingered a lock of her hair, rubbing it between his fingers. In a gentle tone, he added, “It’s nothing I haven’t seen before, Jenna. You’re as beautiful as ever, but my only concern was getting you to wake up. I prayed that you would.”

He
prayed?
Jenna’s heart melted and she realized something amazing. Not only did she believe him, but she trusted him as well. Jenna had come to recognize her feelings for Cash, but it had never dawned on her that
he
would have feelings for
her.
Yet now, she believed he did.

“Thank you,” she said, having no other words to express her gratitude.

“How do you feel?”

“I’m thirsty and hungry,” she answered.

Cash bounded out of bed. Thankfully, he’d slept in his trousers. But, oh, what a specimen he made, standing over her, with his pants dipping below his navel and that strong powerful chest fully exposed.

He poured water into a glass. “Here, drink up.”

Jenna took the proffered glass and downed its contents without the blink of an eye.

“Good girl. I would’ve cut off my right arm to
have you do that last night. What would you like to eat?”

Jenna sat straight up, clutching the sheet to her breasts, making sure she was fully covered, though a small part of her rebelled. Cash had slept with her fully nude. He’d seen all there was to see. “You don’t have to—”

“I do because, sugar, you’re not getting out of this bed today. Not once. And I want no arguments. You need a day to rest.”

Normally, Jenna would protest a complete day in bed. She’d never had the luxury before, but her limbs were tired and weak and her body ached. She couldn’t fathom getting up to do her daily chores. “Okay.” She slumped down onto her pillow.

“Okay?” Cash was nearly beside himself with satisfaction. “No arguments?”

“No arguments.”

“Good. What do you want to eat?”

“Surprise me.”

“Oh, believe me, my cooking is going to be your worst surprise.”

Jenna laughed, settling herself under the covers and wondered what Cash would be cooking up.

Half an hour later with a plate filled with fried potatoes and eggs and holding a glass of water, Cash entered Jenna’s bedroom. “Here you go.” He immediately noted two things; Jenna had dressed in a nightgown and fallen back to sleep.

Cash smiled. “Okay, so maybe you weren’t dying to eat my food,” he said quietly. He placed the plate down on the bedside table and watched her sleep peacefully. She needed rest. Cash had a few chores to do and one important one came instantly to mind. He’d leave Jenna to rest and come back later to check on her. “I’ll be back soon, sugar,” he whispered.

Cash left the house and entered the barn. He picked up the milk pail and walked over to Larabeth. “It’s time,” he announced to the cow. The animal wasn’t paying him much mind.

He opened the drawer that held his stash of sugar cubes. Nothing was left. Damn, when had he used up the last of the sugar? He didn’t recall. With a lengthy sigh, Cash grabbed the stool, set it down, positioned the milk pail and spoke gently to Larabeth. “Looks like it’s just you and me, darlin’. Jenna needs help, so I hope you plan on cooperating.”

Larabeth nudged her body toward him, nearly knocking him to the ground again. “Now, Larabeth, you just got to trust me,” he said softly, stroking her flank. He began humming the tune Jenna usually sang to the cow. He rubbed his hands together to warm them and began the milking.

To his surprise, Larabeth did cooperate. Milk squirted out, making clinking noises into the pail. Immediately, Button and her brood came running over to the sound, and Scrappy wasn’t far behind.
Cash chuckled. “Well, I’ll be damned.” He wished Jenna could see this, but a tall glass of milk by her bedside should be proof enough.

Cash didn’t neglect the animals. Each one of the kittens got a share. Button and Scrappy, more than their fair share. Heck, Cash was in too good a mood to be stingy. Once satisfied, the animals licked their chops then lost interest.

When the pail was nearly full, Cash stopped to stand and stretch out his legs. He patted Larabeth and walked away, grinning. Hell, this was better than an Ace-high straight, Cash mused.

Cash entered Jenna’s bedroom quietly. She was still asleep. He set the glass of milk down onto the table and stood over her. His own brand of fatigue set in, from worry and lack of any real sleep last night. His body fought exhaustion as long as it could, but admittedly, Cash needed to rest up some. “What the hell,” he said softly, removing his boots and shirt.

There was room enough on Jenna’s bed and the picture she made, with hair flowing over the pillow, looking more like an angel than ever before, was too enticing. He’d sleep next to Jenna and it would be the best sleep of his life.

Cash lowered himself down and angled his body toward her. She rolled over as if she’d known he was there, and curled herself into his arms.

Holding her lightly, he closed his eyes. It wasn’t long until sleep claimed him, too.

Hours later, Cash woke up as sunlight streamed into the window with heat and light. Jenna was beside him, her eyes bright but questioning.

“Sorry, sugar. I was tired, too.”

Jenna nodded her understanding. “You stayed up all night, watching me.”

“I did.”

“Well, then. You deserve the rest.”

Cash sat up, remembering the milk. He rose from the bed and handed Jenna the glass he’d brought up here. “You’d better drink up some more.”