Just One Kiss (The Dream Catcher Series-Book Two) (9 page)

“Don’t waste your time flattering me, mister. There’s a line, and you are tryin’ to cross it. You are white, and I am black, and you gotta be some kind of man to cross that line. Now, first, you rescue me and my girls, and now you know my farm hand. You get around, don’t you?” She almost smiled. “But don’t be calling me pretty, because I know how I look, and lying won’t get you hired, that’s for sure. Just because I’m black don’t mean I am a sucker for the first white man that comes along. I been flattered before.”

“I am sure you have, ma’am. Excuse me, but, I wasn’t lying. Nor even trying to be too forward. I don’t see color like some. Maybe I should, but I don’t. Could get me in a heap of trouble, I know. But I never have. I just see the person. And as a person, you are beautiful. Sorry, I haven’t been home long, lost my manners. No man should stare, even if you are the prettiest woman I’ve seen in a while.”

She stared with her mouth open for a full minute, unable to figure him out. She staggered backwards for a moment.

“Somethin’ wrong, ma’am?” he asked with genuine concern.

She shook her head. “No, not exactly. No. Look. I appreciate what you did for us the other day, really. I’d like to help ya. But, I’m not hiring anyone. I can’t afford it. Why would Joe tell you that?” She frowned, not lowering the gun yet. “He knows I can’t afford to put anyone on now.”

“Said you’d been getting along with hardly any help. Said you had troubles last night and could use some help. I don’t expect wages for a bit, until I prove myself, just room and board, ma’am.” He smiled gently at her. “I come on too hard at times as you can see, but I’m as fit as ever and can pull my weight with work.”

He lowered his head, noting the curve of her hips in those tight pants. He shouldn’t have been looking at her like that, but he couldn’t stop. Not many women he knew wore pants and it was distracting. She drew him somehow. He felt his body react, and it aggravated him. That hadn’t happened in a long time. Her breasts strained with every breath against the small buttons. He wondered how she kept from popping them off. It wasn’t that she was indecent, but she wore a man’s shirt and it held no room for the obvious woman she was. He’d never reacted so blatantly aware of a woman, but the truth was he thought she was beautiful.

But he sought her sympathy now and had to concentrate. He wanted this job now more than ever. He wanted to know what made her so loyal to his memory. He wanted to ask her how Gloria had treated her and Sam. Had the years been kind to them or not? How could anyone hurt such a beautiful creature as Hattie?

She didn’t react. Her frown was still in place. “Who are you? I tried to get your name the other day when you rode off.”

“The name’s Luke Sayers, ma’am.” He took his hat off and nodded. “Sorry I didn’t introduce myself. Another thing the war kinda teaches you to forget, manners.”

His hair was dirty, plastered to his head. He needed a bath more than anything.

“That don’t explain who you are or what you are doing here. You just show up out of nowhere, after those men rode into the yard last night. They might have sent you to spy on me or something. How do I know?” She stared through the doorway, ready to slam it in his face, he expected from that tight frown. But the tense lines of her face began to relax. “I appreciate what you did for us the other day, truly. But I’m sorry, Mr. Sayers, I can’t hire anybody on, right now. Good day.”

“Ma’am,” He tipped his hat and held onto the door between them. “I know it’s hard to trust a stranger. I don’t blame you for being skeptical. And me here with one arm, I’m sure you are wondering if I could really hold up my end. I assure you I can. But Ole Joe knows me,” he groped for an excuse now. When his intense gaze swept her, she batted her eyes in hesitated confusion. “Nobody sent me, but Joe, ma’am. And I really need a job. I came home from the war…and found everything I had—gone.”

Her eyes were wide and almond shaped, and the lashes were lush and thick and curly. Provocative, his brain registered. Hattie was provocative but in a sweet and natural way, and the fact that she was totally unaware of it made her more so.

Obviously she didn’t trust him yet, and he liked her precautions. But given time she would. He’d see to that. “I lost everything I had from the war and my place…well, it’s gone now and I’m kinda hungry too. You wouldn’t turn a man out that’s down on his luck, would you? Joe said you was a fair person.”

“I do need help mister, but I can’t pay right now, not ‘til my crop comes in, and that will be next month. If I’m still here. Times are hard for everyone right now. And I’m sorry for you too, it must have come hard to accept, but…”

She firmed her lips, and eyed him. Not willing to relent completely, and yet unable to turn him away, she hesitated again. “The war did a lot of bad things to a lot of good people. I’d turn anybody out that tries to use me, or get something for nothing.” Her voice sounded almost harsh, but it began to soften as her eyes scanned him again. She stared at him long and hard and asked, “You ever farmed before?”

“Yes ma’am, before the war,” he answered, his glance holding at eye level now. Getting hired on was more than a little important. “You just point me in the right direction, I can do it.”

“Pretty sure of yourself, aren’t you?” she asked, shooting him another quizzical look.

“Well ma’am, when something like this happens you can either let it break you down or you get back up and start all over.”

Her smile spread slowly across her face.

“You smoke?” she asked out of the blue.

His eyes narrowed in question.

“No, ma’am, except, an occasional pipe,” he answered, finding it an odd question to ask.

“Drink?”

“Only at parties and such.” He smiled down at her changing expressions. Obviously he had her emotions in turmoil…

“I have kids and I don’t want anyone who can’t hold their liquor,” she said adamantly.

“Yes ma’am, I understand.”

“Are those rags all you have?” she asked, obviously looking at him more closely now. Her eyes were sharp and assessing as they traveled him thoroughly.

“Yes ma’am. I’m sorry, it is. I guess I don’t look presentable to go to work, but I need a job, ma’am. As you can plainly see.” He gestured to his clothes.

She turned to see Lily coming toward the door and held her with a hand. The woman’s eyes quickly softened. “This is my daughter, Lily. She’s my youngest; she just turned three. Violet is six and Daisy is eight,” she said, introducing him. “Lily, this is Mr. Luke Sayers and I just hired him.”

The little girl smiled, and stuck out a hand to shake. Luke smiled and shook her hand. The little girl saw his missing arm and her eyes rounded on him. “He’s Violet’s hero, isn’t he, Mama?”

“Yes, I guess he is.”

“Hello there,” Luke said, bending down to look at her.

“Oh, alright. Damn that Joe, he is always doing things before asking. His heart’s too big and he’s got to understand I can’t hire on everyone who walks up to the house and needs work. Been a few stragglers from the war, needing work from time to time. I guess you can bunk in the barn with him and take your meals at the house then. I’ll expect a full day’s work out of you though. And if I don’t get it, you’re out of here. And one other thing…”

“Yes ma’am?” His voice grew deep with question.

“Stop starin’ at me—like that,” her voice scolded, but her eyes flashed with mirth.

“Yes ma’am,” he answered with a crooked smile. “Uh, what do I call you, ma’am?”

She blinked hard. “My name’s Hattie, Hattie Tanner.”

When he didn’t say anything, she went on to explain, “My corn needs picking before the sun scorches it to death. And we’ve got to get that cotton ready for market. You see Joe? He’ll get anything you need,” she instructed. Then, after considering it, she asked, “If you know about the trouble last night, why you want to work for me? You might as well know, most folks around here consider me a squatter, that’s no secret. But for the record, I come by this land legal like.”

“Well ma’am, like I said, I need a job, and it sure wouldn’t hurt if you had an extra man around the place, now would it? Besides, I knew the men that owned this place before.”

Her mouth flew open and she stared long and hard again, then something soft passed in her eyes and a slight smile played at her lips. She nodded silently as though a lump had grown in her throat. She nodded, unable to voice her feelings any further. “You know they died, don’t you?”

“I heard that. I liked them both.”

“They were good men. Alright Luke.”

“Yes ma’am, and thank you ma’am,” Luke said as his eyes held her.

“Did you know them, ma’am?” He couldn’t stop himself from asking.

“I knew Lee Nelson, as good as I needed to know him. There was none better than Lee,” she whispered.

“Yes ma’am.”

The sadness in her voice haunted him. He wanted to tell her the truth, but it wasn’t wise for more reasons than one. He knew it.

“You seem kinda sad like.”

“I am sad, sadder every time I think of a man like Lee dyin’. And now that he’s dead and gone I can say it, ‘cause it won’t do no harm to nobody, but I loved him truly.”

She looked down, then nodded. A few seconds past before she could speak again.

“It’s nothin’. This old war took a lot of good men.” She nodded towards the old oak tree. “Good men, out there in the dirt, it doesn’t seem right.”

Luke frowned.

“Luke?” she called after him as he walked towards the barn. “When Joe finishes showing you about the place, you come inside and try on some of Lee's clothes. That worn out mess you have on is almost indecent. And you look like they might fit. No hand of mine will dress like a tramp.”

“Yes ma’am.” He smiled, once more probing her very soul with a glance.

It was working perfectly. Now he could have good meals, a clean house, his farm taken care of like he liked it and all he had to do was play along. The only problem: keeping his hand off of Hattie.

But for now he was satisfied with his scheme.

Joe laughed when he heard the news. “So she hired you right off, huh?”

“After a bit of a hard luck story, she did.” He chuckled. “She sure spoke well of me and Dil though. I think everything is gonna be just fine, Joe.”

“She’s a good lady.”

“Joe.” Luke looked at his friend. “I think you are right about that. She sure seems to have loved me.”

“How do you know?”

“She said so. Said it wouldn’t do a bit of harm to admit it now, that I was dead. She got kinda choked up when we talked. I saw tears in her eyes. Made me feel like a heel for not telling her who I am. But I’m convinced it’s better this way. And she’s safer not knowing, because if I ever tell her, I might not be able to keep my hands off her any longer.”

Joe nodded.

“She’s going to give me some of my clothes too, since I look so threadbare.”

“That’s good, you do look a little shabby. I guess the war took a toll on you. I sure hope this works out for everybody.” Joe shook his head, doubting their wisdom. “But it surprises me that you call her beautiful. Her being a Negro.”

Lee stared at his old friend. “Does it? I don’t know why it should. I’ve never judged anyone according to color that I know of. And beauty is something no one can deny. In fact, it would be a little easier if she was old and ugly.”

“Is there somethin’ you ain’t tellin’ me?” Joe stared back.

“Maybe. A few things I gotta work out in my head, first. I might as well tell you, I been thinkin’ about that girl all through the war. But when I left, she was just a kid. And I felt guilty for thinkin’ the things I did. But now, she’s grown, and damn she’s a pretty thing. I never seen a woman I wanted more, or needed less. It’d be pure trouble, to even contemplate.”

“And what happens if Mr. Luke falls for her?”

“Yeah…” Lee smiled sadly. “‘Fraid it’s too late to save Luke or Lee, he’s smitten with her and always has been.”

“It pleases me greatly to hear you say that, and just like that, Miss Hattie truly is a beautiful woman, it’s just sad she don’t know it.”

“It’ll be fine, stop fussing. You worry too much about everything and everybody. But, that’s part of why I love you too. Unless you want me to march up there and tell her the truth and maybe get us all in a world of trouble.”

“It’ll work out.” Joe nodded, his expression softening.

After an hour or so of walking the property, Luke felt as though he had really come home. It was good seeing that everything really had been cared for during his absence. And what needed doing he could tend to.

He walked up to the front door again and knocked. She came to the door, her frown still in place, her gun under her arm. He wondered why. Did she always walk around with a gun in her hand? Did she have to? Maybe so.

“Come on in, I’ve laid out some clothes for you,” she said with a contrite smile. She pointed the gun down now. He was relieved.

“Did you ever tell Lee how you felt about him?” Luke asked, hoping to get more information out of her, as he followed her inside.

“He was white…what you are suggesting is…wrong….Of course I never told him how much I loved him. And you’ll not speak of it again, you hear me? I’ll run you off this place.”

Her expression took on a faraway look then.

“Maybe I’m wrong, but…love’s never wrong…” His voice trailed off.

She looked away. “He was a special person. Why, he’s the very reason these girls are with me today. He taught me that family was everything, and that I should protect children. And that’s what I been doin’. These girls aren’t mine. Their folks died and I stumbled upon them along the way and took them in. They had no family, nowhere to go, just like Sam and I didn’t years ago when Lee took us in and found us someone to take care of us. He didn’t have to do that. Gotta love a man like that. He was just too good.”

Luke watched her and smiled. It pleasured him that none of the girls were hers by birth. That there was no man in her life. His little Hattie had learned well.

“You don’t think he’d mind me wearin’ his clothes?” Luke asked with a twist of his head.

“I don’t reckon he’d mind; he’s dead,” she said quietly as though that bothered her. In fact, the fact that he was supposed to be dead seemed to really bother her. A sadness came out at him and touched him. It made him want to talk to her, but he couldn’t. Not for a while. Not ‘til he could figure out how they could ever be together, or he figured out how to stay away from her. That was gonna be harder than anything else, because he wanted her and he knew it, and he was pretty sure by the things she said that she cared for him too.