No Place for a Lady (32 page)

In the rush for preparations before the bazaar, Luke had barely
seen Crystal, and he had been relieved-as long as he didn't see
her, it was easier to put off telling her about Kate's will. But now
here he was with her pie and his hand on her elbow. He hadn't
figured on that at all.

Luke steered Crystal near the creek bed and placed the pie on a big
boulder. Taking out his pocketknife, he proceeded to cut large slices
of the delectable-looking apple pie. He had been shocked when he
discovered the pie belonged to Crystal and not Carmen. If it tasted
half as good as it looked, then the money was well spent.

"Crystal, I had no idea you could bake a pie. You surprise me
all the time," he said. He handed her a slice after she held out her
napkin. Luke licked the sticky apple off his fingers. "This is excellent, and the crust is so light. Who taught you this?"

Crystal beamed at his compliment. "My cook in Georgia did.
It's the one thing I like to do in the kitchen"

"Why didn't you tell me a long time ago when you and Carmen were baking?"

"Seems you had your mind made up that I couldn't do anything
... so I didn't care if you knew or not."

Luke sank his teeth into the last bite and swallowed hard. "I'm
sorry if I hurt your feelings that day. I just assumed the pies were
Carmen's and you were just there cleaning up" His legs felt weak
every time he looked into her large green eyes. Why does she do
this to me? He'd better hurry back to the churchyard, or April
would be looking for him. He'd seen how upset she was that he
picked Crystal's pie and not hers. It was an honest mistake, but
then, he had asked April to join them.

Crystal continued to look into his eyes, and he felt unnerved
somehow about keeping the truth about the ranch from her. Since
the trail drive, there had been an unspoken truce between them.
Luke genuinely enjoyed being around her with her infectious
charm and sweet Southern voice.

"Don't worry about it;' Crystal said. "Maybe April cooks a good
pie too. For your sake, I hope so, since you'll be married:" Luke
sensed that Crystal felt as uncomfortable being alone with him
as he did with her. "Speaking of April, here she comes:" Oh boy,
April's not happy about this, he thought as she headed their way.

"Luke, are you through devouring that pie? We need to return
to the bazaar. There will be a sack race, if you're interested. I will
be your partner" Luke noticed that she seemed to ignore Crystal
standing there. April placed her arm on his possessively.

"Sounds like fun, April. Care to find a partner for the sack race,
Crystal?" Luke watched her face.

"Don't worry about me, I'll go look for josh," she answered in
a sweet voice, and then left.

When Crystal was out of earshot, April turned on him. "Did you have to make a fool of yourself with that ridiculous bid for
Crystal's pie?" April spat.

Luke knew that April was jealous and answered firmly, "I had
no idea the pie belonged to her. It just looked delicious. Matter
of fact, it is. Would you like a slice?" he taunted her.

"I wouldn't eat it if it were the last piece on earth! You should
have been bidding on my pie! Now everyone's talking about it:'
April stamped her foot and folded her arms.

"You are acting just like a spoiled brat! I'm engaged to you,
not Crystal:"

"That's my point," April fumed. "Maybe you wanted to be alone
with her. I've seen how you look at her when you think no one is
looking. I will not play second fiddle to anyone, Luke!"

Now she was treading on thin ice. Luke did not like this irritable
and jealous side of April. It was not becoming, especially since
Crystal didn't have anything to do with it. But it was true, he did
steal glances at Crystal. Ever since the trail drive, he had a new
respect for Crystal. She was so much tougher than he thought.

"How was Ito know it wasn't your pie? And I won't have you
telling me what to do!" he slung back at her. He watched as her face
crumpled. With pouting lips she came close, fingering the button
on the top of his shirt. "Sometimes I get the feeling you don't want
to be married to me, Luke. You never touch me or kiss me"

"I must admit, I have been having second thoughts, April;'
Luke said. As soon as the words tumbled out of his mouth, he
regretted his timing.

Looking stunned, April took a step back and let her arms drop
to her sides. "What do you mean? Are you seeing Crystal behind
my back?" she sputtered.

"No, nothing like that, April. I'm just not sure we're right for each
other. We always end up fighting, and it's usually about your jealousy
and temper." Luke studied her eyes for clues to her reaction.

"No, you're lying. Ever since you got back from that blasted trail
drive, you've been different. Did something happen out there?"

"Nothing. Honest. Just a lot of thinking on my part. I had a lot
of time to do that," Luke admitted. He could see the hurt in her
eyes. But he had to be truthful.

"Well ... I reckon I'm not good enough for you. Who would've
thought it? A lowly cowboy without one red cent to his name,
rejecting a cattle baron's daughter. Well, I won't hang around to be
humiliated, Luke. You can consider this engagement of" April's
eyes flooded with tears, and she ran toward her family carriage
hitched outside the churchyard. She climbed aboard and turned
the horses out, and with a sharp snap of the whip across the
horses' backsides, she flew past the bazaar like the devil himself
was chasing her. Luke saw her mother call out to her, but her
voice was lost in the wind.

Luke stood rooted to the spot. He hadn't meant to pick a fight.
But now he was glad this farce was over. He admitted in his heart
that he didn't love April. She was just his ticket to the property on
the Blue River, nothing more. While he was ashamed to admit it,
if he were honest with himself, breaking things off was the right
thing to do. He felt disgusted for letting things go on as long as
they did. She deserved better than that.

The rest of the festivities passed in a blur. Luke knew people
were talking about April's hasty departure. Even when Rusty tried
to ask him about it, he brushed him aside. Rusty picked up his
fiddle and called a dance, probably trying to lift the mood of the cowboy. Yet Luke couldn't help but notice josh leading Crystal
by the arm in the dance.

Luke took his time in getting back to the ranch after the bazaar.
He listened to the night sounds of the mountains along the trail
and paused along the ridge overlooking the ranch. An owl hooted
from its perch, his enormous eyes glowing in the thick darkness.
Wind was stirring the spruces around, and their pungent fragrance
filled the night air. He saw the lights at the ranch softly glowing
in the distance and smoke curling from the fireplace. Crystal was
probably getting ready for bed.

As he thought of her, his heart lurched in his chest. He was
relieved that he had admitted to himself that he cared for Crystal.
Maybe he loved her. She had managed somehow to creep into
his thoughts most of the time. He thought back over the trail
drive, how she had worked as hard as the next cowboy. How she
didn't give up and gave it all she had. He was drawn to her, and
he thought she felt it too.

He knew she was strong in her faith, although not blatant about
it. He knew she prayed, and more than once she had said she
relied on God. Luke wished he could do that. He wanted that
confidence she had. Assurance that someone other than himself
was in control and cared about him. Luke had never thought God
was interested in him. Why would God care about him? He was
just somewhere above the stars.

Luke remembered the night that Curly and Crystal talked
about how God had created the stars. Luke looked up into the
cold, dark night at the beautiful full moon. Someone had to have created this vast universe. He was awed when he saw the billions
of twinkling stars sprinkled across the sky and the moon illuminating the valley.

Maybe it was just a matter of trust.

"God, if You can hear me ... Crystal has something special. I
need to know if You are there. The preacher said once that You
sent Your Son to die for us. I want to believe that and ask You
to forgive me. Bill said we are all sinners. I know I can never be
good enough, and I have messed up where April is concerned.
Crystal said that You care about everything in our lives. Gosh,
even Curly believed. I don't know how to handle this thing about
the ranch or how to tell Crystal. I need someone smarter than
me to point me in the right direction. Maybe You are just the
One to help me.

"To be honest, I've never thought about dying until Kate died,
then Curly ... I need to get things right with You. Maybe You
have a purpose for me since I didn't die from typhoid when my
parents did. Just show me what to do, and thanks for what you
did. Amen:"

Luke felt a heavy load lift from his shoulders. "I think I just
talked to the God of the universe, Buck;' he said softly, nudging
his horse down the steep slope toward the bunkhouse. Buck tossed
his mane, and Luke laughed out loud.

Indian summer was swept away with a blast of sudden northeast winds that brought heavy frost. The aspen leaves that once
shimmered brilliant gold and red were fading to a dull brown,
whispering that winter wasn't far behind. Crystal had settled into
a comfortable routine since the trail drive, and now work around
the ranch was slowing down a bit. Luke would go over the small
details that needed tending with her and then delegate one of the
drovers to do the tasks at hand. But for the most part, Crystal and
Carmen took care of the cooking and laundry. Rusty was always
there to lend a hand, whether it was mending fences or going to
town for supplies when needed.

Crystal was happy to see Carmen and Kurt becoming closer
than just friends. Carmen talked less about Curly now, and the
sadness was slowly fading from her eyes like the fall colors of the
leaves. Now her eyes lit up whenever Kurt was around.

Crystal hadn't seen much of April since the bazaar. April had
been absent from church that next morning, so Crystal didn't get
the guest list for the shower. She would have to ask Mrs. McBride
about it or perhaps send Rusty over to the Rocking M for it.

Crystal lifted her coat off the peg by the front door and stepped
out to the porch, carrying her cup of coffee. She loved the mornings here. They were almost always clear and bright, unlike Atlanta
with its morning haze from either humidity or fog, depending
on the time of year.

Carmen had draped blankets across the rockers, and now
Crystal placed one across her lap to ward off the morning chill.
The heat from the coffee warmed her hands, and she blew on the
steaming liquid. She saw Luke come out of the barn and watched as
he went about his morning chores with Jube. They had pulled the
barn doors wide open while caring for the livestock and worked
in companionable silence. Crystal was getting used to the fact
that most cowboys worked in a quiet fashion and communicated
with a mere word or two.

She sensed something different about Luke. He seemed quieter
than normal, but she couldn't be sure. Maybe he was thinking
about his marriage to April. Had they set a date? Life would be
easier once Luke no longer worked for her and moved to the
Rocking M. Then she wouldn't be reminded that he belonged to
another. She wondered if they could handle everything without
him.

While she followed Luke with her eyes, he paused and tipped
his hat to her. Crystal's heart gave a small flip-flop, and she
lifted her hand in greeting. She watched as he crossed the wide
yard with long, fluid movements. She liked the way his boots
caused his hips to swing slightly. I shouldn't be having thoughts
like this.

Luke reached the porch, placed one dusty boot on the step, and
propped an arm across his leg. He tilted his hat back in order to see her better and smiled. "The mornings are gettin' cold, but it
always warms up by lunchtime."