Being Emma (6 page)

“You realize how wrong you were to interfere
with Diane now?”

“Yes, absolutely. It was a wrong move. Craig
really scolded me about it.”

“Craig knew?”

“Oh, yeah… I swear Craig knows everything I’m
thinking. He told me to quit being Emma.”

“Emma?”

“Oh, Mom, you know… the matchmaker in the
Jane Austen book?”

“Yeah…Emma…Huh…”

“Craig guessed I was trying to set up Ethan
and Diane, and confronted me at the archery range that night we
came to dinner.”

“And you were angry with him?”

“Well, sure. He can make me feel pretty
shitty sometimes.”

“But he was right…”

“… Okay. I’ll give him that. But obviously
I’m still learning about relationships.” Lily gave her a sharp
look.

“I didn’t think you were interested…”

“I might be, if the right man came
along.”

Lily looked at her and wondered when it would
finally dawn on her smart-but-not-so-smart-right-now daughter that
Craig Ferguson was probably in love with her. Lily had seen the
same scene that Jeanne had and come to the same conclusion. But she
wasn’t going to be the one to point it out to her. Janie had to
learn this one by herself…

“Come on. Sammy and little Sandy are going to
open their presents soon. We don’t want to miss that…” She took
Janie by the hand and led her out to the back yard. The noises of
children shrieking, glasses clinking, horses whinnying and people
laughing hit them the minute they stepped outside. And they were
wonderful sounds…

CHAPTER SEVEN

His name was Mike Church and Sandy had hired
his company to drill a new well on the property. The company was
based in Reno. Her father had gotten a good referral about his
services when Sandy had called his brother, Bill, about needing
another well. Bill’s law firm had recommended his services
before.

“So where’s the new well going in, Dad?” Joey
had stopped by on his way into town. He was sitting at the kitchen
counter with Janie, who had stayed over for the night. It was over
a week since the birthday party and her routine had resumed, except
Diane was mad at her. She had had to tell her about Ethan liking
her and that didn’t go down so well. Diane blamed Janie for the
whole mess and Janie accepted the blame. However, now Diane wasn’t
speaking to her… Thus, she elected to spend a few nights at the
ranch instead of going home to a cold, silent apartment.

Ethan wasn’t speaking to her at work either.
She supposed things could get worse, but didn’t want to find out
how. She had partnered more with James this past week, but she knew
Bud would notice sooner or later. They’d have to deal with it
eventually. She decided she’d wait until the Sheriff noticed…

And then Craig had gone to Scotland to visit
his grandparents this week. His grandfather was in poor health and
Craig also had archery events to participate in. She realized he
had a calming influence on her and usually helped talk her through
the latest jam she had gotten herself into. With him gone, Janie
felt adrift…. Vulnerable even.

When she tuned back into their conversation,
it was still about the well.

“… So it will probably take a week to get it
drilled. Mike says that the section we selected should be good as
it’s far enough away from the last one and still taps into the
underground aquifer on that side of the property.”

“I thought you drilled there a few years
ago.” Joey asked.

“No. We hired another geologist who gave us
good information on the general location of the aquifer based on a
new topographic map we had drawn.

I think we’ve hit a good spot. Mike seems to
think so too.” Sandy got a bottle of water from the refrigerator.
He opened it and took a sip.

“What are your plans today, Janie?” He and
Joey looked over at her.

“Just hanging out today, Dad. I don’t feel
like archery practice with Craig gone, so I was thinking about a
ride.”

“Excellent idea. I was just going to ask if
you could ride to the south part of the property – about two miles
from Jeanne and Sam’s house and talk to Mike Church… Check his
progress.”

“… Mike Church?”

“That’s the man I hired to drill the well,
Janie. I guess you haven’t been following the conversation.”

“Sorry...” He smiled at her.

“It’s okay… You must have a lot on your mind.
Anyway, saddle up and go talk to him. I’ll draw you a map on how to
get there. A ride will do you good anyway.”

“Exactly right.” She got down from the
kitchen stool, said goodbye to Joey and went into her room to
collect a few things for the ride. Pulling on her boots, she
grabbed her cowboy hat and then went back into the kitchen to get a
bottle of water for her saddlebag. By that time, Sandy had the map
drawn and showed her where to go. It would be a few miles back on
the southern part of the property, but looked easy enough to find.
Besides, he told her, the equipment made enough noise to wake the
dead. She would hear them long before she saw them.

Janie went out to the barn and saddled one of
the big Palominos Colt liked to ride. His name was Golden and truly
was the most beautiful horse she had seen in a long time. A
spirited horse, Golden liked to do things his way and Janie knew
just how he felt. They were kindred spirits… Smiling, she had him
saddled and ready to go within five minutes. They were both itching
for some exercise.

They galloped off toward the back meadow and
then slowed to walk a while. Janie was turning a few things over in
her mind, while Golden enjoyed being outdoors. After a sprinkling
of rain the past week, the meadows were shining with the yellows
and blues of wildflowers. It looked like an Impressionist
watercolor canvas with colors blurring and sliding into one
another. Golden stopped to drink from a stream and Janie jumped
down to look around. Listening to a flock of geese honking
overhead, she wondered absently why she felt so restless. Something
was up, the universe had shifted, but she didn’t know how.

Shielding her eyes, she looked off into the
distance. This land… her home… Low hills in the foreground were
miniscule compared to the jagged Sierra Mountain Range that rose up
behind them. The mountains had snow on them even in summer because
of their high elevation. It was a postcard with the blue sky and
pillow clouds completing the picture. Gorgeous country…

She got back in the saddle and pulled out the
map from her saddlebag. She figured another mile east and she
should come to the drillers’ camp. Golden was ready, so they
galloped off to find them.

Her dad was right… She heard the grating of
metal upon metal long before the camp came into view. Riding up,
Golden snorted and displayed annoyance at the unfamiliar sounds. He
pawed the ground and looked as nervous as Janie felt. She saw
several huge trucks with equipment and cranes littering the area. A
huge derrick covered the drill, she presumed, that was slowly being
sunk into the ground. Several men were working at various jobs and
everyone was busy. They were wearing safety helmets and, she hoped,
earplugs. Finally, a man noticed her and came over. She kept the
horse back from the equipment, as he looked ready to bolt at any
moment.

“Hi… “ He reached up to shake her hand.

“Hello…” She extended hers and they shook
hands.

“
Mike
Church.” Janie actually took stock of him.
Handsome guy with dark blonde hair
curling around his ears… Not bad
…

“Janie Johnson. My dad is…”

“
Sandy
Johnson. I know. Come look at the operation.” He had taken a quick
look at her too.
Pretty girl with a blonde ponytail... Blue eyes.
Hmm…

Janie got down off her horse and tied him to
a pine tree farther away from the camp. She thought Golden would be
all right for a while, but not long. She made her way through the
camp to where the derrick stood. Mike gave her a headset to wear
and started explaining the operation to her through the
headset.

It was all about water tables, layers of
clay, submersible pumps and gravel aquifers… He explained about
pressure tanks and well caps and pitless adaptors. She could still
hear a lot of the grinding noise and her head was soon swimming
with drilling information. Mike noticed her eyes beginning to glaze
over… Uh-oh… He thought… Too much information probably… But they
were pretty eyes.

He motioned for her to come back to where he
had set up an office. They had actually put up a metal shed that
was reasonably quiet on the inside. She gratefully sank into a
chair as he showed her in. The din finally subsided when he closed
the door.

“Better?”

“Much. Thank you…”

“What brings you out my way? I don’t think
you live at the ranch, do you? Sometimes the drilling bothers
Jesse’s wife, I know.” He poured her a glass of water and handed it
to her.

“Thanks. No, I don’t. I’m not here to
complain. Dad just asked me to get a progress check from you… See
how it’s coming along.” She took a sip.

He smiled. “Oh… Great then… We’re about
halfway there. The drill bit is down about thirty feet and we
should hit water around fifty. If the information from the
topographic report is correct, I’d say two more days to go. Four to
cap it off and attach the equipment…”

“So you expect to hit water about fifty feet
down? How much water should be produced?” Janie tilted her head at
him, assessing the information.

“This aquifer should produce a thousand
gallons a day.”

“Wow! That much?” He was beginning to like
her. She seemed interested.

“Yes. Reports indicate that this should be,
as we in the biz say, a gusher…” He laughed and she laughed with
him. He had a nice way of crinkling up his eyes when he smiled.

They just looked at each other a beat and
spoke at the same time.

“Anything else I should tell my dad?”

“
What
else would you like to know?” They laughed again and he sat down
next to her. “Serious, Janie, is there anything else you’d like to
know? Anything about me perhaps?”
Whoa…. A little fast
maybe
…

“Mike, is it?” He nodded. “No… I’m sure
you’re good at your job and Dad checked you out thoroughly, or else
you wouldn’t be here.”

“May I ask you a question then?”

“Sure…”

“What do you do for a profession?”

“I’m a deputy sheriff in the Naples Sheriff’s
Department.”

“Really?”

“Yup…”

“… I’m impressed.”

“Why? Because I’m a woman doing a man’s job?”
He laughed.

“Oh, hell no. You could probably lay me out
flat with your martial arts skills or something.” She laughed. “I’m
impressed that you’re in a peacekeeping profession.”

“Why is that impressive?” She was curious
now.

“Because I like to disturb the peace
sometimes. I can be a bit of a hell-raiser, as my daddy used to
say.” She liked him. He was nothing like anyone she’d ever met and
that was, indeed, interesting. And he must be a solid professional
or else he wouldn’t be working on the Johnson Ranch.

He stared at her for a few minutes and she
stared back.

“What are you doing tonight, Janie Johnson?”
She grinned.

“You don’t waste time, do you?”

“No. How would you like have dinner with
me?”

She looked at her wrist. He looked over at
her arm.

“What are you doing?”

“If I was wearing a watch, I’d be checking
for the ten seconds it’s going to take to respond to you — 8,9,10 —
Yes…” He laughed. Good sense of humor.

“Where can I pick you up around seven?”

“Nice try…” She smiled at him. “I’ll meet you
at the Naples Bar and Restaurant in the downtown area. You couldn’t
miss it if you wanted to. Pretty decent food and there’s a band
after nine.”

“I guess it’s a date then?” His smile hit
high beams.

“Yep.” She rose from her chair and he walked
her out. “I guess that concludes our business, Mr. Church.”

“Indeed it does, Miss Johnson. See you
tonight.” He watched her walk away, gracefully get on her horse and
gallop off at top speed. She didn’t look back. “Tough girl…” he
said to no one. And then he smiled and got back to work.

* * *

She didn’t tell anyone about her date with
Mike Church tonight. It was relatively easy, since Diane still
wasn’t speaking to her, although she was warming up. She knew Diane
wouldn’t stay mad forever and looked forward to telling her about
Mike. She was back at her apartment, so her parents wouldn’t know
anything. She did think briefly that her dad might not like her
dating his new contractor, but the situation had never come up
before. Janie decided she’d rather get yelled at, than ask for
permission. Besides, she was of age to make her own decisions about
whom she dated. If anything, they’d be surprised that she dated
anyone. Not her style… Once she thought of Craig, and then pushed
that thought away… That had become a no-go area.

Since she was breaking all of her rules
anyway, she decided to wear her hair down. Nothing was typical in
her life right now and wearing a different hairstyle seemed to
signal she was stepping out of herself as well. At least, that’s
how she saw it. And then maybe Janie was overthinking everything…
That was surely possible.

She arrived at the restaurant on the dot of
seven, and parked her car in a side lot. Cops were always punctual
– Sometimes it was a curse… Wearing jeans and her favorite white
long-sleeved shirt tucked in, Janie felt good. She had worn a
little makeup, which she just about never did – Mascara, blush and
lipgloss. She smoothed her hair, hanging straight in back, and
tucked one side behind an ear. With her diamond stud earrings, she
knew she looked pretty. It just had never occurred to her to want
to be.