Duke pulled the bandana out of his back pocket and mopped the sweat from hisbrow. Fixing fences was backbreaking work. The heat didn’t help things. Then again, Duke would rather do the job in summer than, say, January. He didn’t fancy messing with post-hole diggers and barbed wire in a heavy winter sweater and oilcloth duster. In summer, at least, he could take off his shirt and feel the breeze against his skin.

    Duke stuffed the bandana back in his pocket and brandished the wire cutters. Two snips to neaten up extra wire, and the job was done. He looked at the new section of fence with satisfaction, "well, Wally, the east pasture is again open for business."

    A large black stallion tethered to a nearby tree snorted.

    The stallion farted loudly.

    "My sentiments exactly."

    Duke reached inside the large brown paper bag that his mother had gotten up early that morning to pack for him. He had been at the fence since seven, tearing away the old, rotten post and rusty wire and replacing it with the new post and wire his uncle had trucked up to the pasture the day before. He had been somewhat surprised to drag himself up the steps from his basement room at six o’clock to find his mother making sandwiches in the kitchen. She hadn't done it for him for years. Not that he minded.

    Duke pulled out two large sandwiches which proved upon closer inspection to be ham, cheese, and bacon. Two very yellow bananas rounded out the meal. Duke unfolded his napkin and smiled.

    "Will you look at that?" he called up to the stallion, "all grown up, and Mom still writes messages." Duke yanked off his gloves and took a large bite of one sandwich. Chewing slowly, he cast his eyes over the pasture’s gentle rolling hills. It was a lot of land, waiting for him. All he had to do was retire and settle down, and he could live a quiet life of raising horses and fixing fences.

    "And be bored out of my skull," Duke refilled the thermos top and took a slow sip. He scratched his chin and sucked lemonade out of his mustache. He hadn’t wanted to grow a beard, hadn’t really ever planned on it. It was a natural result of lying on his back in the infirmary for weeks, unable to get to a sink, mirror, or razor. He had started to shave the whole thing off the first day of his leave, when he was strong enough to hold himself up in the bathroom at home, but something had stopped him once he saw the whiskers from his cheeks floating in the sink. So he left the mustache and goatee, which his youngest sister had promptly told him was passé. Duke never cared much for fashion, and he sort of liked the beard, even though it itched a bit now and again. It made him look--different.

    As he finished his second sandwich, Duke wondered once again how his new look would be received. It was an interesting thing to imagine. He smiled at the stallion, who was sniffing a banana with interest, " I guess I’ll know come tomorrow."

    Duke stood and stretched. He grabbed his shirt and slid his arms into the sleeves, but didn’t bother with the buttons; the breeze was pleasant, and the fabric tended to chafe his scar when he didn’t wear an undershirt. He retrieved his tools and slid the wire cutters into their pouch on his saddle. The bananas went back into the brown bag and joined the now empty thermos in a saddlebag. Duke untethered Wally and swung easily into the saddle. He leaned down, grabbed the post hole digger from where he’d leant it against the tree and slung it over his right shoulder. His left side was still weaker than he’d have preferred.

    With his free hand, Duke gently snapped the reins. He clucked to his horse, "C’mon Wally, let’s get home."

    After a few minutes, Duke turned and put the tools away. He was about to do the same with his tack when he noticed a few places on his saddle that could use a good scrubbing. Slinging the saddle over a nearby saddle tree, he went into the tackroom to get the saddle soap. He returned to find his mother taking the thermos and brown bag out of his saddlebags.

    "Is the fence all fixed, dear?"

    "Uh huh. Good as new," Duke untied the latigo holding the saddlebags to the back of his saddle and slung them over a nearby rail. He took the top off of the can of saddlesoap, dipped in a cloth, sat on a stool in front of the tree, and began cleaning the leather, "thanks for the lunch. The bacon was a nice extra"

    His mother kissed him on the cheek. Were he Falcon’s age, he might have winced, or even pulled away in embarrassment. Duke smiled up at her. He’d learned once again to appreciate her affection. She was a good woman.

    She laid a gentle hand on his shoulder, "maybe it would be a good idea for you to take a nap, now that the fence is done."

    "Nah, I took a look at some of the other tack when I was in there. Some of it is really filthy. I’ll give it a good going over while I’ve got the soap out," he flipped a stirrup up to get underneath, "tell Drew saddles are expensive. If shedoesn’t take care of the one she’s got, she’ll have to buy new one herself."

    "Which is why you’re going to clean it for her today..." his mother sounded amused.

    "Well," Duke stopped polishing and thought for a second, "I’ll go for the guilt value."

    "Yes, dear. I’ve found that about as effective with her as it was with you at her age."

    "Hrm," Duke went back to cleaning, "well, she’ll owe me then. I hate to leave it while I already have the soap. There’s a few bridles that could use mending, come to think of it."

    She smiled, "You’re nervous, aren’t you dear?"

    "About what?" Duke slid his stool around to the other side of the tree.

    "About tomorrow."

    "What makes you say that?" Duke concentrated on what appeared to be a very tough spot of dirt and refused to meet his mother’s eye.

    "Worry about what?"

    She sighed, "about tomorrow, dear, although I don’t know why. From what I’ve seen she’s about as enamored of you as you are of her. But you’re working yourself silly to avoid thinking about it."

    "Now that’s a funny idea," Duke dipped the cloth again into the soap, "why would you get the idea that I’d do a thing like that?"

    Duke felt her hand on his chin. She lifted his face until so she could look at him, "Because, Conrad, your father used to do exactly the same thing," she smiled at him, "try to get a rest soon, dear. It’s not good for you to overwork yourself. You’re supposed to be relaxing," she ruffled his hair and straightened up, "do you think that we should have ribs for dinner tomorrow? I was planning on burgers for tonight, but if you want to switch..."

    "Burgers tonight is fine. Ribs tomorrow is even better," Duke sat staring up at his mother. She smiled and turned to go back to the house. "Momma?" his voice was almost a whisper. He rarely called her that anymore. Now, it was usually "Mom", or "Mother".

    "Mmmm?" she stopped and smiled over her shoulder.

    "Sometimes I have trouble remembering him," Duke looked back down at his saddle. It had been his father’s.

    "Don’t worry, dear. I see a lot of him in you, especially now," she continued on to the house. Duke finished the saddle and went to put it away and start work on his sister’s.

    That night after dinner, Duke relaxed in the den in his favorite chair. It was actually favored by pretty much everyone, and was usually the cause of many arguments among siblings. Duke solved the problem when home on leave; he simply grabbed whoever was in the way and tossed them onto the couch. Of course he always made sure to offer it to his mother, who, in turn, demurred on the grounds that he was so very rarely home to sit in it. His stepfather had his own solution- he went out and bought himself another chair and forbade anyone to sit in it. Both methods worked reasonably well.

    Jennifer drifted off to occupy herself with whatever teen girls found interesting. It was a mystery to Duke, but for Jennifer it seemed to involve a large chunk of time glued to the phone. Drew dangled her arms around her brother from behind the chair. She rested her chin on his shoulder.

    "Duke, can I go with you to the airport tomorrow?"

    "Drew," their mother looked up from her book, "I think he’ll want to spend some time alone with Scarlett."

    Duke scratched his chin absentmindedly, "It might not necessarily be a problem. But you didn’t really ask me the right way, Rabbit."

    "May I go with you to the airport?"

    "Well, better, but not what I meant. What’s the magic word?"

    "Alakazam!"

    "Not that one, you little weirdo. Now I don’t know if I want you there at all," Duke grabbed the sports section and opened it to the NBL listings.

    "Please?"

    "How about this; I pick her up at the airport, and later we can all go on a long ride?"

    Drew sighed and let her arms slide off his shoulders, "I guess..."

    Duke reached back and took hold of his kid sister. With a firm yank, he dragged her over the back of the chair and into his lap. She giggled and squirmed out of his grip, "thanks for cleaning my tack, Duke."

    "Mmmm. yeah, you’re pretty spoiled."

    She kissed him on the cheek and flounced out of the room, calling over her shoulder, "Better shave! You feel like a porcupine."

    Duke looked up from the sports section to find his mother regarding him with raised eyebrows. "Another year, dear, and she’ll be too old for that kind of thing."

    "You think? She’s always been a cuddly sort of individual. It’s hard to imagine her not. She’s not exactly into the girly thing, though."

    "Maybe. But she’s already noticing boys in her class."

    Duke dropped the paper to his lap, "Really? Little Drew?"

    "Really. She’s at the right age."

    "I guess. I’ll have to go on the offensive. Jennifer’s guys are always good fun," Duke smiled and stretched luxuriously.

    "Which reminds me-I’m not quite sure where to put Scarlett."

    "Huh?"

    "Well, the guest room is nice, of course, and I can have it ready in a minute. Had you had any other ideas?" Across the room, Jack cleared his throat loudly.

    "Ahhhhhhh, well, um." Duke felt himself blushing.

    "I thought you might have been planning something different, dear," her blue eyes blazed through him with a look that troops might have recognized on Duke. It wasn’t an unpleasant smile, but it was, somehow, uncomfortable. Duke took refuge behind the newspaper.

    "I don’t know... I, uhhh, hadn’t talked to her about it yet."

    "Well, Its not urgent. Let me know where you think she’ll want to be tomorrow."

    It made Duke cringe inside, thinking about discussing his intimate life with his mother.

    "Dear?"

    "Oh, sorry. Yeah, sure, OK."

*******

    Duke wiped a sweaty palm on his jeans and returned it to the steering wheel. He hadn’t expected to be this nervous; it was only Scarlett, after all. He was used to seeing her on a daily basis. Good old, dependable, familiar drop dead gorgeous Scarlett. She was a sensible woman; absolutely refusing to compromise herself for anyone.

    Duke preferred that to those silly, giggly women that had been flinging themselves at him ever since Joe had become a media icon. Odd, Duke thought to himself, had he been Vincent’s age, he would have enjoyed the fame and used every advantage it gave him. In fact, he surprised himself the first time he turned down the star struck and undeniably willing little thing that accosted him on a weekend pass. The boys had given him Hell for it later, too. She had been quite the looker. Still, Duke could remember feeling a definite lack of interest.

    After meeting Scarlett, he found the fawning, bright eyed, possibly drunk-definitely easy type somewhat of a turn off. They seemed...insubstantial. Duke thought of Scarlett as on a completely different level from them. He found he enjoyed an hour or two just talking to her, and would choose it over a year of one night stands. Of course, eventually, she proved to him just how right his choice had been.

    Duke smiled to himself at the thought. Lost in pleasant memories, he nearly missed the turnoff for the airport. Swearing to himself, Duke cut across three lanes of traffic. He just barely made the offramp, choosing to ignore the angry gestures and horns now left behind. Duke turned into the airport and managed to find a reasonably good parking space close to Scarlett’s terminal. He sat in the car for a minute, calming his nerves and wondering why he was so hopped up in the first place. It was Scarlett, for Christ’s sake! Scarlett, who ate a grapefruit and yogurt almost every morning since he’d first met her. Scarlett, who could kill a man ten different ways, but would rather eat molten lead than get less than ten feet away from a spider. Scarlett...whose face was the first one he longed to see when he came home from combat. That welcoming smile, those bright blue eyes...

    Duke took a deep breath, grabbed his cap and slid out of the car. Normally he avoided hats, managing even to cut the Special Forces beret from his daily uniform. Drew had given him this cap for his birthday, and he actually had to admit to liking the thing. It was black, and a large wolf skulked across the front. She’d said it reminded her of his tattoo. It kept the sun out of his eyes enough to be useful. And he needed that on a bright day like this one. Duke put on his sunglasses, locked the car and headed for the terminal.

    He checked for her flight number on arrivals the screen and was surprised to discover that it had arrived early. Duke dashed to the gate and found it nearly deserted. He stopped an attendant heading for the desk, "excuse me, did flight 1342 come through here?"

    The attendant smiled perkily at him. Duke had heard once that they were required to. Stupid job requirement. "You just missed them sir. I imagine they’re all in baggage return by now."

    Damn. Duke thanked the attendant and jogged across the terminal and down the escalator to baggage return. The room was packed. There were probably four or five planeloads of people gathered around the carrousels. Duke scanned the crowd and licked his lips nervously. There. Next to carousel three, a long red ponytail. Duke felt his heart jump and start to dance around in his stomach. He made his way through the crowd, getting to her side just as she spotted her bag. It was a huge thing, and she struggled to get the leverage and lift it off and over the lip of the carrousel. Duke reached down and grabbed the handle, easily hefting the monstrous suitcase up and then gently placing it on the floor. Scarlett beamed up at him, "Thank you!"

    Duke smiled, but the grin slid from his face as she turned, grabbed the thin leash for her bag, and headed out of the terminal. He stood there for a second, confused, and then ran to catch up, "Hey!" he grabbed her shoulder and spun her around, looking slightly peeved. Duke recalled it wasn’t always good policy to surprise Scarlett from behind. In the half second it took for her to turn, it dawned on him that his hat and glasses did a lot to hide his face and familiar blond hair.

    "Scarlett,’" Duke whipped off the glasses and hat. Scarlett’s annoyed frown grew into a smile.

    "Duke!" She jumped into his arms. He swung her around once and gave her a tight hug; not letting her feet touch the floor. She laughed happily, and his heart jumped again at the sound. He gently let her down.

    "Didn’t you recognize me?" Duke looked into her eyes sadly. He would have thought...

    She laughed again," Well, the height was right, but most of you was hidden," she reached up and stroked his cheek. Duke couldn’t help sighing. She tickled him under his chin, "It was this that threw me off. What’s this all about?"

    Duke had completely forgotten his goatee, "Oh, that. After I left the infirmary, I sort of never bothered getting rid of it all. What do you think?"

    She rubbed his chin with her thumb, "Hmmmm.. I don’t know. It’s... different," She smiled up at him "I’m not sure."

    He found himself lost in her eyes, "Here, try this," he mumbled, and pulled her into a kiss. He brushed his lips across hers gently, smelling the warm sweetness of the vanilla perfume she wore off-duty. He felt her wrap her arms around his neck. She relaxed against him, sighing. Duke deepened the kiss, holding her to him tightly and letting his cap drop to the floor. He let his tongue play across the tops of her teeth, and was pleasantly surprised when she met it with her own. Heart pounding, he was aware of a number of people watching them. It wasn’t like him to be so affectionate in public, but he found he couldn’t help himself. He found her irresistible. He was glad to have left Drew at home.

    The kiss ended, and he nuzzled her ear gently, "how was that?"

    Scarlett rested her head against his chest, "Scratchy," she chuckled, "but very nice."

    "Sounds great, I’m starving."

    Duke smiled down at her. With one arm wrapped around her shoulders, he leaned down and grabbed the leash to her suitcase, "let’s go then."

    "Hang on, " she stooped to pick up his cap, "you almost forgot this."

    Duke took the cap, but decided not to put it on. Holding her hand, he lead her out of the terminal to the car.

    They ate lunch at a small cafe Duke had discovered in Laclede’s Landing few years ago. In truth, he had been on a date at the time; the fact embarrassed him slightly. It had been a blind date set up by his mother, of all people. It hadn’t really gone well. G.I. Joe had been revealed to the media a year before, and Duke, to his dismay, had found himself somewhat of a minor celebrity. Being approached constantly had worn thin pretty quickly; spending an entire evening with a woman whose main concern was being seen with him had been a complete bore. Still, the food had been good enough to warrant a return trip or two. Duke was relieved to find the curiosity of the other diners restrained to mere stares and whispers that eventually faded into the background noise of the busy shopping area. They sat on the patio, watching the people and the river flow by.

    Scarlett put her knife and fork together at the edge of her plate, and gently dabbed her lips with her napkin before laying it on the table next to her plate, "that was a nice piece of fish," she smiled and leaned back in her chair.

    Duke had long since finished his roast chicken and was taking slow sips of a very good local lager, "mmm. Hope you’re not too full. My mother’s fixing a mess of ribs tonight."

    "Real St. Louis barbecue, huh?" she teased him.

    "Damn straight. When my mother makes ribs, she doesn’t fool around."

    Scarlett laughed. Duke watched her eyes twinkle. It made him feel warm inside. He covered her hand with his, rubbing his thumb softly over her smooth skin, "I missed you, Red. Talking on the phone isn’t the same as having you here."

    Her laugh relaxed into a warm smile. She slid her fingers between his, "I missed you too. The base seems empty without you there."

    He looked down at their entwined hands. Hers was soft and creamy. His was rough from years of hard work in the military and at the ranch. Together, they felt right. "You know, stuck on my back in the infirmary, half doped up most of the time..." he didn’t look up from her hand, "thinking about you...well, it helped me get through. It was harder when I came home, though. There were days here when I couldn’t bring myself to get out of bed. It hurt like Hell, and all I wanted was to see you," she squeezed his hand, "but you weren’t here." He felt her touch his cheek and looked up at her.

    "I’m here now" her voice was soothing. She knew it wasn’t always easy for him to open himself up that way. Duke tended to keep his deeper feelings to himself.

    "Yeah. I tried to call you as much as I could. Getting stuck like that...almost drove me nuts. I got on my feet and in shape as fast as I could," Duke had lost a lot of weight in recovery, most of it muscle. It had taken time and pain, and his doctors hadn’t approved, but Duke had spent a lot of time and sweat getting his body back to its original condition. Scarlett looked him over and smiled with approval.

    Duke looked down to hide his blush, "I’ve had a lot of free time, lately. There’s a workout area next to my room in the basement. I, uhh, I’ve been lifting a lot."

    She ran her hand lowly across his broad chest. Duke felt his skin tingle under her touch. His reverie was interrupted by the waitress, who snuck up behind him with the bill. The little plastic tray hit the table with a smug clack.

    "Right, let’s look at the damage," Duke looked at the total.

    "Here, let me-" he cut her off with a raised hand.

    "I was kidding. My treat, no problem," Duke pulled out his wallet and tossed his credit card on the tray. The waitress swept it up immediately, "I’m supposed to be showing you a good time on your leave."

    "I’ m here so we can have a good time together, Duke."

    Duke smiled at the pictures that brought to mind, "that’ll be a treat, too."

    "Duke!" Scarlett blushed and laughed, looking to see if the waitress, who was bringing the receipt back for a signature, had heard, or even understood.

    "Sure, I’m looking forward to seeing everyone again. You know your mother sent me little updates every week?"

    "Sounds like Mom, all right," they stood and made their way to the sidewalk. The car was in a parking lot a block away, "Speaking of my mother, she wanted to know.." Duke broke off, uncertain of how to ask. He didn’t want to seem too presumptuous; they had spent the night together before, certainly, but usually there was very little actual sleep involved. Weekend passes being what they were, two nights in a row was the longest they had shared a bed. He wasn’t sure if they were at a ‘one bed for two’ stage, and he was afraid to ask. The thought that she might prefer the guest room was a daunting one.

    "Duke?"

    "Huh?"

    "Your mother wants to know what?"

    They reached the lot, and began climbing the stairs to the second level.

    "Oh...never mind..I’m sure she’ll ask you later."

    "Oh."

    THAT thought scared Duke more than anything.

***

    In the time it took to drive back to the ranch, Scarlett brought him to speed on base happenings.

    "...You’re kidding me, right?"

    "Nope, the whole obstacle course. All that was left was a sort of crater."

    Duke grimaced. He had held the speed record on that course since it was built, single handedly holding off all comers, "I’ll miss that stupid mud hole the most, I guess. It was nice on the hot days."

    "That was thrown into the air, most of it landed on Beach Head" she laughed.

    Duke grinned, "you know, I don’t mind the guy, myself. But I imagine that made a lot of people’s day."

    "Your brother took a picture. I though it sort of suspicious that he had a camera, come to think of it."

    "Don’t . I asked the kid to get me pictures of everyday things on base to keep me in touch with you guys," he left the highway. The scenery had gone from urban, to suburban, to downright rural.

    "Exploding obstacle courses aren’t everyday base happenings, Duke."

    "They are on our base. I imagine Beach Head let Shipwreck have it," he mused.

    "Hey, I didn’t finish yet. How did you know it was him?"

    "Call it a hunch."

    "Oh. I guess it isn’t too hard to figure out. Hey, where’s the Harley? I imagined you’d pick me up on the big beast.," Scarlett had surprised Duke by actually liking his motorcycle. A few years ago, he had taken a long leave, flown home, and spent a little over a week riding it back to base. She demanded a ride, and made a sexy picture sitting on the passenger seat. He’d bought her a leather jacket, supposedly for protection, but really because he thought she looked damn good in it. She certainly got the attention of the other drivers out on the road. He’d ridden it home for Christmas last year, planning another leisurely road trip back to base. A sneak COBRA attack had demanded his speedy return, and the bike once again had taken up residence in the garage, protected by a canvas cover and his mother’s proclamation to ground the Hell out of anyone that got within thirty feet of it. Scarlett had been disappointed.

    "I couldn’t figure out how to get both you and your luggage home on it. I’ll take you out for a spin later," he promised.

    They drove through the small town of Musicks Ferry. "We’ll be there in a bit."

    "Nice place," Scarlett sighed as she looks out the window, "must be quite a break from the base."

    "Yeah, " Duke turned onto a small road that wound through the trees, "things seem to go at half speed here. Nobody’s in any real hurry. Nobody really bothers anyone else."

    "How much longer?"

    "Well, technically, we’re there already. This is my family’s land."

    " Family’s land? You sound like Lady Jaye when she’s putting down her parents. You never said you were rich."

    "No, go on."

    "Well, anyhow, when my great, great uncle died. Oh, hang on. How’d that get there?" Duke stopped the car and hefted a large rock off the road. He climbed back in, and left the car in idle, "kids, I guess. Last year they tried to come up to the house to TP it. My stepfather says he went after them with the shotgun. Look over there," he pointed to a string of horses way off on the horizon.

    "Nice. What about your uncle?"

    "Oh, sorry. Got side-tracked there." Duke smiled, "well, old Uncle Orman died, and left the land to my great grandfather Jarvis, who had no intention of leaving Germany. Now, my mother’s great grandfather was hired to care for of the place, and then her father- you get the idea- for the family which still lived in Germany. By the time World War Two rolled around, my grandfather Sebastian had inherited it, and he sent all 10 of his kids, my father being the oldest, to America. Sebastian hated Hitler, you know. Couldn’t stand bigots. He figured something big and nasty was headed for Germany, and sent his kids here. My father caused a scandal by marrying my mother when she was really young. A little over a year later I came along. And there you have it," he watched as the horses came towards the fence.

    "So the who owns the land?"

    "My grandfather. Still lives in Germany, by the way. He’ s a pretty tough character. Shows no sign of going anywhere anytime soon."

    "Sounds familiar," Scarlett mused, "what about all your uncles and aunts?"

    "And when your Grandfather dies?"

    Duke felt embarrassed, "well, it may come to me, I guess. Doubt I’ll have any time to enjoy it. I’m not rich, Scarlett. I don’t want to be. My family lives on the land, and makes a little money with the horses, and whatnot. If I do inherit the land, I’ll own it in name, but I’d never sell it, or force the family off. They’re, well, family. When Dad died, they all got together to take care of me."

    "They let your mother stay in your father’s house?"

    "They love my mother. They’d never abandon her, or me, I guess."

    "Even when she remarried?"

    "Well, we moved around a bit for a few years when Jack was still in the army. Then he retired and we moved back. They all like Jack. Vincent, Jennifer and Drew, too. They’re all part of the family. Ready to see them again?" Duke waved at the road ahead and moved to put the car in gear. She caught his hand.

    "In a bit."

    Scarlett leaned over and pulled him into a kiss. He gave in eagerly, and wrapped his arms around her to guide her into his lap. Eventually, they parted. Looking into her eyes he saw a familiar sparkle that excited him. He turned off the ignition, and held her to him again.

***

    The car was too hot and cramped to allow any serious lovemaking. Duke smiled happily as he straightened his shirt and started the engine. He was already imagining ways to finish what they started. Scarlett did her best to neaten her hair while looking in the vanity mirror.

    "That was fun," she smiled at him.

    Duke caressed her thigh and grinned, "you torture me, Red. It’s going to be impossible for me to look at you all day and not be able to do to you the things I’m right this minute thinking about." he squeezed her knee.

    She blushed deeply, "Duke....You’re not usually like this."

    "Yeah...well. You know what they say about absences," Duke guided the car the rest of the way to the house. He heard the door slam as he parked. Drew made it across the driveway before he could even shut off the engine. She threw open the passenger door.

    "Hey Scarlett!"

    Scarlett slid out of the car and gave Drew a hug, "Good to see you again! How are you?"

    Drew smiled, "Great!"

    "Have you been practicing those katas I showed you?"

    "Yep, " she led Scarlett up to the porch, where Duke’s mother stood to greet them. "I have those pictures I took on base, I’ll go get them!" Drew pounded up he stairs.

    Duke lifted the bag from the trunk, shaking his head. His mother greeted Scarlett with a hug, "You look wonderful, dear. I hope the flight was a good one."

    Scarlett sighed, "Good and short. The seats seem to get more cramped every year."

    "Well, you’re here now. Why don’t you come on in and sit down? I’ll find us all something cold to drink," she ushered Scarlett through the screen door, "I’m sure you’re right about ready for a rest and something refreshing." Duke followed them inside.

    "That sounds wonderful, Mrs. Falcone."

    "Now, dear, call me Jane. ‘Mrs. Falcone’ makes me sound so old," Duke rolled his eyes. His mother’ youth often came as a surprise to his friends. She looked even younger than she was. She always put it down to clean living and country air, "Conrad, you should probably put that in Scarlett’s room, whenever you figure out where that will be. Please have a seat, dear."

    "Oh, wherever you can put me is fine," Scarlett sat on the couch and smiled.

    "We hadn’t quite decided what you’d prefer," Duke’s mother called over her shoulder on the way to the kitchen. Duke felt the heat rush up the back of his neck. Scarlett looked at him questioningly.

    "Ahhh...well...you see...Mom wasn’t sure weather you would prefer the guest room...or..." he felt his cheeks grow hot.

    "Is there a problem with the guest room?"

    "Oh no, not at all," Duke’s mother returned with a tray of iced tea, "I could have it ready for you in a jiff. I just thought you might prefer staying together,"

    Suddenly, Duke found it easier to look anywhere but at Scarlett or his mother. He stood in the doorway, holding Scarlett’s bag and glancing about. When he could finally bring himself to look at her, he saw a rosy glow brightening her cheeks. Duke’s mother seemed to be the only comfortable person in the room. She smiled at him, waiting for an answer. He looked helplessly at Scarlett. "Yeah..well...whatever you want is fine with me."

    "You’ll probably end up there anyway, if you can stand the beard," Drew pushed past Duke and flopped down on the couch with a large photo album.

    "Drew!"

    "But his goatee is all scratchy, Mom."

    "Not that, dear. You know what I mean," Duke’s mother looked more angry than embarrassed.

    "It’s true. She probably will," Drew shrugged

    "I think I’ll put this away and go feed the horses," Duke backed out of the room and made a hasty retreat. Not knowing what to do with Scarlett’s bag, he dropped it by the stairs and made it out the back door before anyone could stop him. As he strode to the stable, he could hear the conversation drift out the living room window.

    "What’s up with him?"

    "It’s surprising to hear you talk that way, Drew. I don’t know where you learn these things."

    "It’s OK," Scarlett’s laugh bubbled across the yard, "I’ve never seen him look like that."

    Duke found refuge in the warm, alfalfa sweetened stable. He loaded the hay racks and poured oats into the feed pans, managing to lose himself in work and deaden his embarrassment. Wally reached over his stall door and whickered softly to get his attention. Duke smiled as he rubbed the fresian’s soft nose. "Well, Hoss, that was a graceful exit." Wally nibbled gently at his fingers. "Not exactly my best moment. It’s not a conversational skillI’ve practiced, discussing my sex life with my mother and kid sister. Must’ve looked like an idiot," Wally lowered his head so Duke could scratch his ears. Duke again thought of the surprised look on Scarlett’s face, "What a mess."

    "Looks pretty clean to me."

    Duke turned to see Scarlett standing behind him, "What?"

    "This is one of the cleanest stables I’ve been in. But then, I guess that’s no real surprise, considering who’s in charge of it," she smiled.

    The stallion destroyed the effect by mouthing his hair. Scarlett laughed. "Hey!" Duke gave the horse a gentle push.

    "So this is Wally, huh?"

    Scarlett stepped forward and offered Wally a lump of sugar. He ate it noisily and happily snuffled her hand. "Pleased to meet, you, Waldemar," she giggled as the fine hair on his nose tickled her palm, "or do you prefer Wally?"

    "You can call him whatever you want, if you keep giving him those."

    Wally reached over his stall door and inspected her shirt pocket hopefully.

    "Your mother said sugar was my ticket into his heart," Scarlett stroked the Wally’s neck. Duke wrapped his arms around her waist and gently pulled her back into him. He nuzzled her ear.

    "I’m the same way."

    Without turning, she reached up and caressed his cheek. "Oh, you are, are you?"

    He moved slowly down her neck to her shoulder, "I like a little sweetness, now and again," he tightened his grip around her, and gently nibbled at the base of her neck.

    "I see. You’re hoping I can help you with this like?" She gasped as he slid back up to her ear.

    "More of a craving," he began to explore her with his hands.

    "Wasn’t earlier enough for you?" her voice had grown husky.

    Duke growled in answer and turned her to face him. Burying his fingers in her thick hair, he pulled her lips to his. She met his kiss, eagerly, and returned it with passion. He grabbed her hips and pulled her to him firmly; he could feel her heart pounding. He felt her arms wrap around his neck, fingers teasing at its nape.

    "REALLY, you guys..."

    Duke spun around quickly to see Drew silhouetted in the large doorway. She shook her head in mock disgust, "Jennifer said you’d be like this, but I held out hope. And in front of innocent children, too." She often reminded Duke of her brightness by sounding older than her years.

    "As if there’s anything innocent about you, Rabbit."

    Drew came close enough for Duke to see her roll her eyes, "Anyhow... you said we could all go for a ride."

    "I remember saying something of the sort."

    "How about now? Do you want to ride around a bit, Scarlett?"

    Scarlett looked around the barn, "Sure, sounds like fun, although its been years since I’ve been in a saddle."

    Duke rubbed her shoulder, "I’ll put you on Misty over there. She’s a gentle ride. All you do is point her the right way and let her take over."

    "Good enough for me."

    "Looks comfy enough," Scarlett hefted the saddle. Duke threw a blanket over the top and hung a bridle over the pommel.

    "Oh, you’ll be sore in the morning, no matter what. You always are, after the first ride. It’ll fade as you get used to it." Duke collected his own tack.

    "What’s behind that?" Scarlett nodded at a door protected by a large padlock.

    "Parade saddles. We have a few for the town Fourth of July parade and the County Fair." Duke walked back out into the stable.

    She followed him, "Why the extra lock? I see that the tack room is already locked here."

    "You’ve seen the saddles in the Rose Parade? These are like that; dripping with silver. They’re pretty old and cost a fortune." Duke slung his saddle over a rail. He grabbed the bundle out of Scarlett’s arms and slung it alongside, "I’ll take care of Wally first, and then I’ll show you what to do with Misty," He grabbed a grooming box and halter and went in to get the stallion.

***

    Duke decided to give her a quick tour of the nearby land; through the little woods, up to the river, across the meadow and back. Drew chatted to Scarlett nonstop.

    "...and so I told them that you’d shown me some moves and they didn’t believe me! I had to show them. Robby Mathis was really surprised. It was great, he’d been SUCH a jerk. He really deserved it."

    "You didn’t hurt him, did you?" Scarlett sounded surprised.

    "Not too badly. I didn’t mean to actually kick him, but my foot sort of slipped. Still, it definitely made an impact. More than the one on his head, I mean. You could tell, he was impressed. So then I showed them...

    Duke turned Wally to lead them home. Scarlett pulled Misty to a halt and pointed at a small trail that meandered the other direction, "Wait a bit, what’s over there?"

    Drew sucked in her breath, "That goes to the old quarry."

    "So let’s go there. It sounds interesting," Scarlett called to Duke. He stopped Wally, but didn’t turn him.

    "No, it’s getting close to dinner."

    "Surely it won’t take more than a few minutes, Duke. I’d like to see it."

    He couldn’t face her. "We should get back."

    "Come on, Duke, it sounds like a great place to look around. An old rocky quarry- craggy, filled with water...is it filled with water, Drew?"

    Drew nodded quickly, but she looked nervous.

    "I don’t go there," Duke’s fingers tightened on the reins until his knuckles turned white.

    "Why not? What’s wrong with a quarry?"

    "I don’ go there, ever," he urged Wally forward. He felt cold needles going down his back--he had to get away. Slowly, he moved off down the trail, listening to Scarlett and Drew as they followed.

    "What is it about the quarry, Drew, that bothers him so much?"

    Drew looked down at her horse, "I’m not really supposed to say."

    "Something bad happened there?"

    "Well.."

    "But it’s just a quarry, Duke."

    "My father was murdered there. I watched him die."