Lone Star Cinderella (13 page)

F
riday was a beautiful day for spelunking. Melody had been outside waiting on Seth when he drove up. She'd been determined that today she was not going to let problems weigh her down.

She'd also left her phone unplugged, but she wasn't going to think about
that
either.

“You're in a good mood this morning,” Seth said as she jumped into the front seat, depositing the small cooler with their sandwiches in the seat.

“I am. So don't mess it up.” She shot him a warning look. “Now, hit the road, Jack. We have a treasure to find.”

Seth gave her a curious look but put the truck in gear. “I've got us packed up and ready for an all-dayer.”

“Sounds great.”

They small talked all the way to the ravine. She was glad he had taken her hint and was going to keep the conversation on neutral ground…that was part of the reason she'd been waiting outside for him, not wanting him to see that her phone or answering machine were
unplugged. Today was about the quest, and she didn't need him asking questions or judging her actions.

Since they knew where the cave was, Seth was able to park the truck in a location at the top of the ravine that would minimize their hike. Instead of bringing Dough Boy, he'd brought a backpack. As they unloaded and he pulled down the tailgate she surveyed the assortment of gear. Lights, a couple of shovels, rope. She looked at the rope. “Surely we won't have to use that. I mean, our guy was an 1800s cowboy on a horse and he was sick.”

Seth pulled the backpack on and grinned at her. “I seriously doubt we're going to have to use it, but it never hurts to be prepared.”

“You're right,” she said, pulling the strap of the small cooler over her head and situating the square container so that it hung at the small of her back. “So I don't get a backpack?”

“Not today. Like you said, the dude was on a horse. I'm expecting that if he buried the treasure, it's somewhere near the opening. That means I don't think we're going to need to test our limited spelunking techniques much.” He grabbed a shovel and handed her one. “You can carry that,” he said while he picked up a machete in a sheath and clipped it onto his belt.

This was it. They really were about to hack their way through a tangle of yaupon and vines and enter a cave that had maybe not been explored by anyone in over a hundred years. She got goose bumps.

Seth led the way, and it took them less than an hour to make it to the ledge. But since he now knew where the cave was Seth was able to lead in a quicker way, bypassing the walk along the ledge. “This was so much easier,” she said.

“Yeah. It's a lot easier to find when it's not hidden in a backward map.” He set his backpack down and slid the machete out of its holder. “Stand back while I get rid of this.”

He didn't have to tell her twice. She watched as he expertly wielded the sharp blade. She watched the muscles in his arms and back bunch and stretch with each swing of the machete. Her insides melted watching him work. The morning was already hot even though it was only about ten o'clock, but she shivered remembering the feel of those arms each time he'd pulled her close. He paused to swipe perspiration from his brow with his forearm and caught her watching him. He winked and went back to work.

Her heart hammered in her chest as if she'd been the one swinging the machete. It didn't take too long for him to have a path cut to the rocks, and sure enough—just as they'd believed—there was a slim opening. “Amazing,” Seth said, sheathing the machete as he leaned into the crevice for a first look.

Melody was right behind him carrying the backpack. She set it on the ground and pulled out the lights. Her fingers trembled doing so.

“I'll go first. I'm thinking I've made enough noise to scare off anything hiding inside, but just in case let's take it nice and slow.”

“Gotcha,” Melody agreed. Texas had an abundance of wildlife, including snakes—rattlers and copperheads, to be specific—and she prayed again that none of them was waiting to ambush them inside the cave. Out in the woods everything had the chance to hear them coming and had gotten out of their way before they had any encounters. But this was a cave. “Be careful.”

“If I get hurt, are you going to be my nurse?”

The teasing question startled her. “Maybe,” she teased back.

“Maybe isn't much incentive for a guy to put everything on the line for,” he said, his voice a low rumble as he seemed to lean closer in her direction. “Come here.”

She stepped forward. Her insides had gone to complete mush. “I—I would be your nurse,” she said, but it came out as a whisper. A cracked whisper, like she'd been stranded in the desert without water for days.

He didn't touch her—just leaned forward. As her stomach and heart seemed to knock together, he touched his lips to hers. The erratic knock of her heart thumping and banging surely could be heard as he kissed her. This was not the kiss on the temple like the day before. This was toe curling, lose-your-heart kind of dangerous. And when he pulled away, he looked as shaken as she felt. She blinked and tried to stop her world from spinning but she knew that was probably not going to happen.

If she'd ever wondered what it would feel like to hop on that mechanical bull, she didn't need to wonder any longer. She was so there. And so in trouble. Because she had no idea what she was doing…

What was he doing? Seth practically stumbled away from Melody. The dazed look in her amethyst eyes and the feel of her lips scorching his skin very nearly knocked him to his knees. All night long he'd fought his feelings for her. It would be easy to love Melody—but implementing and sustaining that love when the issue of her brother was concerned wasn't likely something they could come to a compromise about. It had taken
all his willpower so far this morning not to ask if she'd called him back.

He'd known kissing her was a dangerous step that he needed to stay clear of at all costs. But here he'd gone and done it anyway.

He stepped into the cave. Taking a deep breath of the cool, dank air, he let his eyes adjust. As he directed the flashlight beam about the cavern, he saw that it wasn't terribly big. But there was room to stand, and there would have been room for a man his size to stretch out on the floor without having to curl up in the center area. He walked forward and shined his light into another opening. This room was dark, cut off from the slight light source the outside opening provided, and it was much larger.

“Seth.”

He took a deep breath. He wasn't sure what was happening between them, but he knew he was getting in way over his head. If it was just about them, he'd be all gung ho about the way she tore him up inside…it was a good feeling. But there was her brother to contend with. And his gut told him he'd better tread lightly.

“You can come in,” he called. “All's clear.”
He wished.

Her gasp filled the cavern, and he couldn't help smiling at the look of amazement that lit her eyes.

“Oh, Seth, this is so awesome.”

She was awesome. This was just a cave. “You might want to look through here,” he said indicating the next opening. She smiled, and the slight hesitancy in her step, as if not sure she should get close to him, was the only thing that made him think she was still thinking about the kiss. He stepped back, giving her wider berth.
She took the opening and moved past him, shining her light into the next room.

“Oh, wow!”

Looking at her profile, Seth knew exactly how she felt.

 

Melody didn't know if it was the fact that she was fulfilling so many dreams by standing inside this cave—feeling like she was discovering history versus just teaching it—or that she was standing beside Seth that her knees were still shaking from the kiss that he'd given her.

There was nothing about her life that wasn't complicated. Everything was running on parallels. She had the depression and hardship of dealing with all things Ty running on one track. On another track she had the thrill of discovering the treasure map. The thrill of discovering this cave and maybe, just maybe, having the thrill of discovering a treasure that had been long buried and actually becoming a part of what that find would represent in the vast, rich fullness of Texas history. It was amazing to her. But on the last track, there was the runaway train that was her emotional attachment to Seth…it was still hard for her to believe that he could possibly be interested in her on the same level that she felt about him.

“You ready?” His voice brushed across her neck as he leaned close behind her.

She turned her head slightly, bringing her face close to his. In the light of the flashlight, his brown eyes searched hers. She swallowed, wishing for things she couldn't let herself voice. “Yes,” she whispered. “Let's do this,” she said more strongly, grabbing her emotions
by the throat. Moving away from him, she hurried outside for the shovels while he tugged open the backpack and pulled out a high-beam lantern.

“Oh, that will help,” she said.

“It's rechargeable. I keep a few of them on hand on the ranch for emergencies.” He looked boyish as he turned the lantern on and smiled at her when the light came to life. “We should be able to see anything hidden above ground with this.”

Melody rolled her eyes. “I do believe I may have awakened a sleeping giant.”

“Oh, yeah. Stick with me, kid, and if there's treasure to be found we'll find it.”

“Lead on.” She laughed, grabbing her shovel and waving him forward. “Although, I was reading about caves and exploring and such. We aren't really supposed to touch things. So maybe digging is out of the question.”

He stopped and looked over his shoulder at her. “Are you serious?”

“Well, that's just what I read.”

He continued on inside the cave with her following at his heels. “I've read all of that, too. But see, that's all that stuff with letting folks in on my business. This is my land, and as far as I'm concerned, you and I will be the only two folks ever to set foot in here.” He grinned. “We can pretty much do what we want to do.” He set the lantern down and placed his hands on his hips as he surveyed the brightly lit cavern.

“You're serious?”

“You bet I'm serious. I'm all for preserving history, but you won't ever change my mind about my right not to alert the masses if I have a part of that history on my private land.”

They both began walking the cave looking for any obvious signs that something had been disturbed. There were different sized rocks and various nooks and crannies where saddlebags could very easily have been stuffed. Melody shined her light inside one such opening and saw nothing so she moved on to the next one. “What if everyone felt the way you do?”

“What if?”

She couldn't believe him. “Honestly, Seth. What about stewardship?”

His chuckle bounced off the walls. “I think my way of thinking is great stewardship.”

“But—”

“But what?”

“You are exasperating.” She shined her light into a hole and thought she saw the flash of eyes. Probably a raccoon or possum—whatever it was, Melody moved on quickly.

“I could say the same thing about you.”

“Then I guess we're on the same page,” she said and hoped he didn't start up about Ty. If he did, she was just going to tell him to mind his own business. She could handle this on her own. She'd decided that having someone to confide in was overrated, and she'd rather go back to the way it was when no one from Mule Hollow knew about her brother.

Seth's jaw muscle jerked as he stared at her, and his dark eyes reflected the lantern light like a mirror. Turning away, Melody grabbed the lantern and strode toward the interior room. She felt pretty certain that if treasure was to be found above ground it would be there. Normally, striding off into dark places wasn't on her list of things okay to do. But at the moment that
seemed safer than waiting for Seth to start up a dialogue about her brother.

In the second cavern, the ceiling wasn't much taller but it gradually rose as it receded into the shadows that the lantern light didn't reach. Melody held the lantern higher, and it bathed the rock in a golden light. “I think I could get used to this,” she said as Seth entered the cavern.

“It is pretty cool,” he said. “And if I keep this place a secret, it could be another two hundred years before someone else comes in here and disturbs it. But if word—”

Melody swung toward him. “Yes, if word gets out about the map, no telling how many loonies will be out here swamping the place and painting graffiti on the walls as they dig for the treasure.”

“It could happen.”

She threw her head back and stared at the ceiling in exasperation. The man didn't want folks on his property, but was he teasing her? She looked at him and shook her head. “Sometimes you drive me crazy.”

He smiled and started walking the room slowly, flashing his light the same way he'd done before. They worked this way for several minutes.