Ride With Me (A Quaking Heart Novel - Book One)

  Chapter 15

  Jessica decided Clint's clothing needed to be removed, to cool him down. Mary was in the kitchen, boiling water and retrieving medical supplies, so Jessica hesitated, thinking of propriety. But, she was his acting nurse, right? Agreeing with herself, she plunged right in; unbelted, unbuttoned, and stripped off clothes. She struggled with Clint's dead weight. She'd already guessed him to be nearly six and a half feet tall, but now she wondered about his weight—220, 240? He was sticky with sweat, making it harder to remove his denims.

  Finally finished, she left him in his undershorts. Taking a moment to check him over, she was aware when her caregiver inspection shifted gears into womanly thoughts. Guilt shot through her, but still she stood motionless, in awe of him.

  Clint had been gifted with a perfect body. She let her eyes slowly scan the remarkable man, from his dark hair—curling damply about his forehead—to wide shoulders, narrow hips, and hard, flat stomach. Even his hands and feet were pleasing in their sturdiness. Each straight, dark-haired leg flaunted substantial thighs—no doubt from years on a horse. Below his well-formed knees, strong calf muscles spread beneath the weight of his leg creating an appealing hollow along his shin bones.

  In his clothes he'd looked flawless, but now with the evidence put before her she saw that God had created perfection in this man.

  Then, the thought hit her. Was there a difference between admiring and lusting?

  Mary came through the door then, startling Jessica. She flipped the sheet over him as she heard Mary say, "Oh my, you should have hollered. I could have helped you. I've brought the water and some towels. Also, bandages and silver. Now, how can I help?"

  Jessica could have sworn she glimpsed a brief smirk on Mary's face when she first came in. Ignoring that thought she inhaled a much needed deep breath and blew it out through taut lips.

  "I'm concerned about bacteria—tetanus in particular. We'll know soon enough if his muscles harden; the jaw mainly. Pray, Mary. That's the best we can do for now. As soon as I'm done here, we'll do that together."

  Jessica soaked his arm in hot water laced with colloidal silver, making mental notes that she would need to do this two or three times a day to help it heal. She soaked a wash cloth in cold water, wrung it out, and placed it on his forehead. Once he was neatly under a sheet, with the cool cloth on his head and the arm re-bandaged, Jessica and Mary got down on their knees.

  Mary was silent, so Jessica spoke, "Lord, we put Clint in Your Mighty Hands. Please heal his body. Please guide Mary's hands, and mine, in caring for him. We ask this in the precious name of Jesus."

  "Amen," they said in unison.

  Jessica got up, and helped Mary to her feet. She touched Clint's head one more time and followed Mary through the kitchen, then beelined it straight out of the door. "Be right back, Mary."

  Jessica slogged back into the cabin after unhitching and doing all she knew to do for the comfort of the horses. She slumped into a seat. Mary had put oatmeal cookies on the table.

  "Thanks Mary, for your help with Clint," Jessica finally said.

  "You don't have to thank me, Jessica. I've known Clint for many years, and am quite fond of him. He's like a son to me." She set a glass of lemonade in front of Jessica, and had a cup of coffee for herself. "You two make a cute pair. How long have you known him?"

  "No. We're not a—"

  "I must say"—Mary swiped two cookies and laid them on a napkin—"I am pleased he's finally met someone who knows the Lord. You'll be good for him, I believe."

  "You don't understand, Mary, we're—"

  "You seem like a sweet, caring sort of girl." Mary pushed the napkin of cookies toward Jessica. "So, how long have you been courting?"

  "Mary!"

  Mary jumped a little.

  "Sorry, but Clint and I aren't a couple. I've only known him a few weeks. He brought me up here to meet you. Uncle Roy thought Clint could fix things in the cabin, while you teach me how to quilt."

  "Oh, I see. I'd love to teach you to quilt." She smiled. It looked very much like a cunning smile. "But, I still think you'll be good for Clint. You are smitten with him."

  How did she know? But if Mary was such a straight shooter, Jessica could be, too. "I'm not his type. He's made that abundantly clear." She grabbed a cookie and took a big bite, hoping Mary wouldn't see her disappointment.

  Mary feathered her hand across her throat. "Oh my, he hasn't been unkind to you, has he?"

  "No. Of course not. In fact—"

  "I mean, that wouldn't be like him at all." Mary glanced at the door to Clint's room.

  Jessica blew a curl off her forehead. "He's gone out of his way to make sure I've been safe, and not just on this trip. He's kind and compassionate—"

  "You must let me know if he mistreats you."

  "No. He wouldn't. It's just that . . . that he doesn't want—"

  "Clint is usually charming and attentive."

  "Yes. He is. It's just that—"

  "He's a wonderful, caring man. A little wild sometimes, but—"

  Jessica reached across the table and grasped Mary's hand.

  Surprised, Mary stopped her prattle.

  "Clint has been nothing but wonderful." Jessica sighed. "He doesn't want me the way you mean."

  Mary slumped in her chair a little, looking weary. "He needs someone like you, Jessica." Jessica gave Mary a dubious look.

  "Listen, I've only known you a few short minutes and yet I know this: you love God. You're caring. You're not self-centered or conceited. You're gracious and well-mannered. That all adds up to one big heart. Just what Clint needs. And deserves."

  "Mary . . ."

  "I know what you're thinking. How can someone think they know who's meant to be together in so short a time? Trust me. I know."

  No wonder everyone loved Mary. She cared. Really cared. But the poor woman was misguided when it came to Clint. Jessica knew one thing about him for sure. He would never settle down with just one woman. Least of all her. It saddened her for him. She was sure something had happened in Clint's young life to bring about his reckless playboy existence when everything else about him screamed commitment, loyalty, and honor.

  "By the way, how's Roy?" Mary asked.

  Jessica grinned. "He's fine. He thinks of you, you know."

  Mary looked pleased. She swung her gaze to the kitchen window. "I think of him often."

  "Tell me about you two."

  Mary sighed and dropped her gaze. She ran a fingertip around her cup's edge. "It's a long, sad story."

  "Well, I'm not going anywhere. You two were in love once."

  Her head snapped up. "He told you that?"

  Jessica just gave a fleeting smile.

  Mary looked ten years older all of the sudden. "We were in love once. But circumstances tore us apart for a time, and that's when Bill asked me to marry him. We married and Roy gave us this little cabin to live in. Bill was a logger and was gone a lot of the time. We had a good life. He died while on the job—a tree felled in the wrong direction."

  Jessica's chest constricted as tears pooled in Mary's eyes. "That must have been dreadful."

  Mary sniffed hard, straightened, and shifted her gaze back to Jessica. "That's life, and God's in control." Her voice was thick with emotion. "He must have wanted Bill home. Who am I to argue with The Almighty?" She smiled, but it didn't reach her eyes. "He was a good man."

  "What happened with you and Roy?" There went her mouth again, saying things of its own volition. For goodness sake, she had just met this woman. "I'm sorry. You don't have to tell me anything. It's really none of my business."

  Mary's smile grew. This time joy flooded her eyes. "Ah, Roy. What a saint he is. Well, it was kind of a misunderstanding. Roy had ranch business in Georgia and was driving back home across the southern states when he was caught in the great flood of 1927, in Mississippi. Countless lives were lost—Roy was thought to be one of them. I was devastated." She swallowed hard. "But, Bill stayed around to com
fort me. He was very persuasive and I was impressionable and lonely, and thought never to see Roy again. So, I married Bill only four months after no news from Roy."

  She rose to fill her coffee cup, then raised the pitcher of lemonade. "More?"

  Jessica shook her head.

  Mary sat back down. "Come to find out, Roy had been trapped in an area where he couldn't get word to anyone that he was alive. He spent months helping others rebuild. When he finally made it home, Bill and I were already married."

  Jessica was dumbfounded. She stared at Mary.

  "I know . . . young and stupid. Bill had been vying for my attention along with Roy all of our high school years and a multitude of years after. I think he finally wore me down. And when I thought Roy was dead, well you know how it ended. The sad thing is, I don't think Roy ever got over it since he never married. He had been in love with me for a long time. I knew it, but he never did ask me to marry him. He waited too long and then never got the chance."

  "You know, it's never too late, Mary. I think he's still in love with you."

  Mary blinked. "Well . . ." Regret seemed to be imprinted on her face. Mary patted Jessica's hand. "Take it from me, my girl. Don't settle. I should have waited longer. I loved Bill in my own way, but it should have been Roy I married."

  The afternoon passed quickly after that. Jessica unloaded Mary's supplies, and cared for Clint throughout the day. Later that evening, she was dozing in Mary's rocker by the fire while Mary finished up the tasks in the kitchen when she heard a thud on the floor in the bedroom.

  Jessica leaped from the rocker. The room spun briefly, but she shook off the dizziness and sleep, and ran to the bedroom. Mary's footsteps padded close behind. Clint had fallen off the bed and was lying face down on the floor.

  "Clint!" Jessica raced toward him and dropped to her knees by his side.

  In the pale light of the kerosene lamp something shiny on his back caught her attention. Multiple thin scars traversed the expanse from his shoulder blades to his waist. Her head jerked up to Mary. Swallowing past the lump in her throat, Jessica mouthed, "He was beaten?"

  Mary's look of concern matched hers. She shrugged and looked unsure.

  Tears filled Jessica's eyes. "Oh, Clint," she said on a sniff.

  He moaned. She turned him over and laid his head in her lap. His nose was bleeding slightly. A careful check proved it wasn't broken. Mary handed her a tissue, and Jessica wiped it clean.

  "I'm so sorry, Clint." And she wasn't talking about his nose.

  He cracked his eyes open and peered up at her, then down at his body. When he looked back up his eyes were wide and blazing. "What the heck's going on here?" he demanded.

  "We need to get you back to bed, and I need to soak your arm again," Jessica said in a heavy voice.

  "Why am I naked in front of you, Jessie?"

  The comment stung—the connotation obvious. "You're not naked. Do you remember that your arm was injured when the wagon wheel fell off?"

  "Yeah. It's fine. Now help me up, we have things to do. Where's Mary?"

  "I'm right here," Mary said with irritation in her voice. "Jessica is taking good care of you, so settle down and listen to her."

  Clint calmed. "Why am I on the floor?"

  "You fell out of bed. Don't you remember?" Jessica asked.

  "No, but I think I know why I was trying to get up. I need to see a man about a horse."

  Since Jessica had brothers, she knew exactly what he meant. She sat still for a moment, though, trying to figure out how they were going to manage this little problem.

  Mary came to the rescue. "I have the thing you need, and this little old lady will help you." When Mary returned she had a container in her hand.

  Jessica had helped Clint to the end of his bed by the time Mary got there. "Okay, Jessica, you can leave now, sweetie. I'll help Clint, give him a little scrub down, and put him back to bed. By then the water on the stove should be warm enough to soak his arm."

  Jessica left the room, closing the door quietly behind her.