Free Echoes of the Heart: Poems by Carole Bergman

Miss
Newell.   I heard you would be staying at
the house with Mr. and Mrs. Adams.   I’ll
just take your horse and get him bedded down in the barn.   A nice big stall leads into the paddock so he
can stretch his legs.”
    After releasing
the lead rope from the wagon, he again turned her direction.   “He sure is a beauty, ma’am.   He must be pretty hard to handle for a little
lady like yourself.”
                Oh, this is just great.   Do all
the men in this country talk down to women in this fashion?   She found this somewhat peculiar since
Uncle Mike had always treated Diane as an equal.   “I manage just fine.”   She wanted to slap the smirk off Cash’s face,
as he turned from her, his amusement obvious.
                Cash
leaped from the seat, walking to her side of the buggy in long easy steps.   He grasped her waist lowering her
effortlessly to the ground.   Her skin
felt feverish under his touch and breaths came rapid.
    Men had touched
her before, men not as despicable as this Cash fellow and she had never
experienced such a sensation.   He held
his hands too long on her waist and his gaze seemed to brand her, making her
feel a bit light in the head.   Catching
her breath, she yanked his hands from her waist and gave him a hostile glare
before turning toward the house.
                “I’ll
bring your trunks right over, ma’am,” Cash called after her.   He allowed his eyes take in the full backside
of her body and the sassy walk as she moved away.   He observed the perfect curves and her shiny
chestnut hair as it glistened in the afternoon sunlight.   What a
stunning girl.   He quickly led his
thoughts away from her, having no desire to get involved with an impudent
virgin or Diane’s niece.   She and Mike
had been friends for years and he did not want to do anything to cause trouble
in their relationship.
                Nick
led her horse away and disappeared into the barn while Cash carried Raeden’s
trunks into the house and Sadie met him in the hall with a pleasant smile.   An abrupt unexpected feeling of
disappointment at not seeing Raeden entered his mind when he glanced around the
house from the foyer before the thought disappeared just as quickly.
    “Hello, Cash.   It sure is nice to see you again.   Will you be here for dinner tonight?”
                “Mike
invited me.   I wouldn’t miss it for
anything.”   He looked forward to an
evening with Miss Raeden.   It would
surely prove quite amusing.   “Is Miss
Newell okay?   Does she need anything?”
                “Oh,
she’s just fine.   She is upstairs getting
ready to take a nice hot bath.   What a
lovely girl she is, don’t you think?”
                “She
is quite lovely, as long as she keeps her mouth closed.”   He strode out the door with a picture of her
naked in the tub on his mind while he jumped into the buggy and headed back to
town.

 
    Eight

 
 
                Tossing
her traveling attire in a heap by the roomy four-poster bed, Raeden fumed as
she undressed.   Unable to believe she actually
found such a contemptible man attractive made her temper flare.   Just
who does he think he is, speaking to me in such way?   In
addition, those lecherous stares!   With
any luck, their contact in town would be minimal.   Glancing around the bedroom suite, she
unpinned heavy curls to brush out the dust from the trip.
    A cherry wood
vanity sat along the wall from her bed.   It sported small drawers down each side.   A three-section mirror curved across the back and a small padded vanity
seat with ornately scrolled wrought iron for the legs and back, sat along the
wall across from her bed.  
    Footsteps on the
stairs drew her attention to the young man she met earlier, standing at her
door with two huge buckets of steaming water for the long awaited bath.   “Come right in, I truly appreciate your
help.   By the