dad. Seems she's been match
making and they caught her at it. Clay's in on it too. But I think
my little talk with her straightened her out."
"I don't know. That kind of thing is inbred.
She takes right after Emma." Cal chuckled. "Who'd she hook you up
with?"
"Me? No one. It was a couple of teachers at
her school, seems she caused a little problem, but I managed to
smooth things over with the counselor." Jake smiled to himself,
thinking about Samantha and wondering why she had been so
secretive.
"I was surprised to see Sam, I mean Samantha
there. But then, again, I'm not. She was always smart."
"Well, tell her hello for me, and invite her
to the wedding."
"I'll do it, if I see her again. I'm not in
the habit of bumping into teachers though dad." Jake chuckled.
"Sammie Jo is matching making big time, huh?
That's worse. She should start at home," Cal mumbled and walked
off.
"Yeah…well. Pumpkin are you about ready?"
Jake called down the hallway.
"Just one more minute, Uncle Jake," Sammie Jo
cried out.
"Have a nice time son," Cal called as he
passed him, and strolled down the hallway. He kissed his
grandchildren on the top of the head and went into his bedroom.
Sammie Jo waltzed out of her room wearing
lipstick, and Jake almost said something, but decided it was
definitely time to shut up. After all, Sammie Jo was growing up,
and there wasn't a thing he could do about that.
"Do I look alright, Uncle Jake?" Sammie Jo
asked.
"Perfect," Jake smiled, and took her hand.
"Let's go get 'em."
But as he was about to mount the bike, Sammie
Jo pulled at his arm, "We can't go on that, tonight, Uncle Jake. My
dress….."
"Oh…yeah, I guess you're right. Hang on. I'll
get the keys to the truck from Dad." Jake spun around and went into
the house again.
***
The school gym was deserted when they
arrived, but the supplies were all sitting there waiting for Jake
to do something with.
Jake glanced at Sammie Jo, then the lights.
"Guess I better get started. You want to show me how they usually
string these?"
Sammie Jo looked at him as though he had
grown two heads, "I don't know. I thought you knew…."
"Well….I can use my imagination…I guess."
Jake saw the ladder and checked the rafters. "Sammie Jo, can you
hand me those lights, now," he asked as he climbed the ladder and
began making fastners for them.
But it wasn't Sammie Jo who handed him the
lights. It was Samantha Courtland.
He looked down at her and smiled. She looked
good enough to eat. She had worn a soft white blouse and a pair of
jeans that clearly showed off her figure. Something inside him
heated up. He might not be as much a cowboy as his brothers, but he
did like that comfortable look in a woman.
He tried to ignore what the site of her did
to his libido, after all, he couldn't remember reacting to another
woman like that in a lot of years.
Her cheeks pinked, "Sammie Jo is in a
beautiful dress and I don't think it's appropriate for climbing
ladders."
"Thanks, I hadn't thought of that. How come
you are here?" He asked.
"I'm chaperoning the affair, and usually they
need help with the decorating, and have very little. So I came
early. They said someone was suppose to be here yesterday but
couldn’t' make it."
"That would have been me, guilty as charged.
I had a sick cow to tend to."
"Oh, so you came early today. I see. Well,
I'll have to leave in a few minutes, to change. Fridays they let us
wear jeans, so it just happens I'm dressed for this occasion."
Samantha explained, her breath hitching at his intense glance.
Had she known he would be here? Nah…she
wasn't interested in him.
And he wasn't interested in her. He planted
that thought in his head firmly.
He tried concentrating on hanging the lights,
but it was too no avail. His eyes kept straying to Samantha who was
untangling a mass of lights on the floor. She was sitting with one
leg tucked under her, the other outstretched as she tried to
untangle the mess before her. He liked the way she fumbled
Jan (ILT) J. C.; Gerardi Greenburg