Finding Home (26 page)

Marissa nodded her head, but it did not
stop the flow of tears running down her face. Nat hugged her close
and held her as her body was wracked with sobs.

“
I will miss you terribly,
and worry about you while you are gone,” Marissa said.

“
I will miss you too,” Nat
said. “There is no need to worry. I have Gyp and the boys to watch
over me. ”

Nat held her until her tears subsided
and then sat down with her at the table. “I have checked supplies
and you are in good shape. I also gave you access to my bank
account, if you are in need of anything while I am away.
”

“
You didn’t need to do that,
Nat,” Marissa said as she wiped her tears away.

“
It gives me comfort to know
you won’t go without something if you need it,” Nat
said.

Marissa smiled at Nat. “I love you so,
Nat.”

“
I love you too,
Marissa.”

“
Are you all packed
up?”

“
For the most part, yes, I
will bundle up my clothing tonight or tomorrow morning and then we
will have all day together.”

“
That will be nice,” Marissa
said.

“
Maggie will come by
sometime after lunch to say goodbye, but other than then, I am all
yours.”

“
So we don’t need to jump up
out of bed in the morning,” Marissa said.

“
No, there is no hurry, so
we can sleep in if we want.”

“
Good, because I plan on
keeping you up tonight,” Marissa said with a coy smile.

“
I guess I had better eat a
good dinner then,” Nat teased.

“
Are you ready to eat now?”
Marissa asked.

“
I am hungry, but it will
wait, if you are not hungry yet,” Nat said.

“
I will put the food on the
table then if you will get us a bucket of fresh water,” Marissa
said.

They shared a simple meal of leftovers
and cleaned the dishes together. “It is such a beautiful night
would you like to sit on the porch for a while?” Nat
asked.

“
That would be very nice,”
Marissa said.

Nat took her hand and lead her out to
the porch. She sat down and leaned back against the porch rail post
and sat Marissa between her legs. She pulled her back onto her
chest as her arms circled Marissa’s waist. They enjoyed the comfort
of their closeness until the moon was high in the sky and then
walked inside to go to bed.

They didn’t bother with night shirts as
they stripped from their clothes and crawled beneath the covers.
Nat climbed on top of Marissa’s body and looked down into her
sparkling eyes as Marissa’s hands circled her waist.

“
I feel like I am in heaven
when I am with you,” Marissa said.

“
You do have a heavenly
body,” Nat said with a grin.

Marissa lifted her hand to Nat’s face
and her fingertips caressed the length of the fresh scar. “On
anyone else, this would be just an ugly scar, but on you it adds to
your rugged charm,” Marissa said as she lightly touched her
skin.

“
I am glad you don’t mind
it. The Doc said it will be with me for a while yet. ”

“
I love every inch of you,
my darling,” Marissa said.

Nat leaned down and pressed her lips
softly against Marissa’s eyelids and down her cheek to her lips.
The tip of her tongue traced across her lips, memorizing the
sweetness that lay there waiting for her. Marissa parted her lips
and welcomed Nat’s tongue into her mouth, as their kiss turned into
a sensual dance. Their hands explored each other’s body as they
made love slowly and deep into the night.

Later, as they lay relaxing in one
another’s arms, Nat whispered to Marissa. “I will love you
forever.”

Nat felt the touch of warm tears on her
chest as Marissa cried softly in her arms. She wiped the tear away
from her cheek with soft fingers. “I would be worried if I didn’t
know that those are happy tears,” she whispered softly.

“
Yes, Nat, I am so happy
with you.”

“
We will be happy for years
to come,” Nat promised as she stroked Marissa’s hair. “Relax now,”
she softly whispered.

Nat held her until they fell asleep and
when they woke the following morning their bodies were still
entwined in a lover’s embrace.

Nat woke first and watched as Marissa
slept peacefully on her arm. She was so beautiful and Nat struggled
with her heart. She did not want to leave Marissa, but she was
compelled to return to the woods. Only time would tell which was
the right place for her. She snuggled closer to Marissa and closed
her eyes to fall asleep once more.

PART SEVENTEEN

Nat and Marissa slept until
mid-morning, until the call of nature woke Marissa and she climbed
from the bed to walk out to the privy. Nat was awake and smiling at
her when she returned.

“
Good morning, my love,” she
said when Marissa sat on the edge of the bed.

“
Yes, it is barely still
morning,” Marissa said with a grin. “I bet you are
starving.”

“
How did you know that? Did
my stomach growling wake you?” Nat teased.

“
That was your stomach? I
thought it was thunder rumbling in the distance,” Marissa teased
back.

“
Yes ma’am, I am starving,”
Nat said. “What’s for breakfast?”

“
How about sugar cured ham,
flapjacks and syrup?” Marissa said.

“
Oh yes, darling, that
sounds wonderful.”

“
Let’s wash up and get
dressed then and I will cook.”

“
I will start a pot of
coffee,” Nat said.

Marissa poured cool water in the wash
basin and they washed their hands and faces before dressing for the
day.

“
What can I do to help?” Nat
asked.

“
Nothing darling, you can go
ahead and get your clothes together while I cook, to have that out
of the way.”

Nat kept out clean socks, a work shirt
and one of the new pair of buckskin breeches Maggie had made for
her and packed the remainder of her clothing. Nat tied the bundle
up neatly and sat it beside the bed.

Marissa had warmed the ham slices and
was pouring the batter into a frying pan to cook the first of her
large flapjacks. “That smells good,” Nat said as she walked back
into the kitchen.

“
It won’t be long, before
breakfast is ready.”

“
I will get some fresh
water.”

Nat walked out the front door and bent
to pick up the water bucket. Her eyes came to rest on the block of
wood she had been whittling on all week. Today she would finish it
and give it Marissa before she left.

Marissa placed the first of the
flapjacks on Nat’s plate. “Cut some off for Gyp while I cook the
next batch, please,” she said to Nat.

Nat cut a large piece of the flapjack
into smaller pieces and tore a slice of ham into smaller strips.
“Do you want syrup too?” she asked Gyp.

Gyp licked her lips in response and Nat
poured a small amount of the sweet liquid across the
food.

“
You are so rotten,” Nat
said to Gyp as she put the bowl down on the floor.

“
Just like her master,”
Marissa piped in.

“
So it is your fault then,”
Nat said.

“
I will take ownership of
that blame,” Marissa said. “Eat, before it gets cold. I will have
another ready in just a few minutes. ”

Nat and Gyp began to eat their meal as
instructed. “This ham is really good,” Nat said.

“
I am glad you like it, I am
going to cook some for you to take with you tomorrow,” she said
with a weak smile.

“
Thanks, Marissa. I sure am
going to miss your cooking. ”

“
Back to camp fire grub for
you,” Marissa teased.

“
Don’t remind me that I have
to eat my own cooking,” Nat said. “Enjoy it Gyp, we are back to
camp stew and fry bread soon.”

Marissa put another flapjack on Nat’s
plate and cooked one for own. She sat down beside Nat and poured
syrup over the flapjack. “These are pretty good,” she said. “You
can take cornmeal and cook these for yourself you know,” she
added.

“
I bought five pounds
yesterday, but they won’t taste near as good as yours,” Nat
said.

Marissa smiled at Nat’s compliment.
“You will just have to hurry back then.”

Nat took a bite of the ham and smiled
at Marissa. “That I will,” she said after she swallowed.

After breakfast, Nat and Gyp walked
onto the porch as Marissa cleaned the kitchen. Nat said in the
rocker and picked up the carving she had begun. The top portion of
the bear had been finished, so Nat went to work on the bottom half
of the wood block, slowly whittling until the bears thick legs
began to form.

Marissa joined them on the porch and
sat next to Nat. “That is coming along nicely,” she said as she
peeked over Nat’s shoulder. Marissa propped her feet upon the porch
railing and enjoyed the sun on her skin as they sat together on the
porch.

Gyp napped at their feet until she
heard Maggie approach and she bolted from the porch to meet her.
Nat walked inside to grab a chair for Maggie to join them on the
porch. When she finally came into sight, Nat said, “Good day,
Maggie.”

“
A beautiful day indeed,”
Maggie said as she stepped onto the porch carrying a small crate.
“How are you three doing today?”

“
Just wonderfully, thank
you, Maggie,” Marissa said.

“
I brought some things for
you,” Maggie said as she sat the small crate on the porch
floor.

“
Thank you,
Maggie.”

Maggie reached in and pulled out the
new pair of buckskin boots. “Marissa helped me with these,” she
said as she handed the boots to Nat.

Nat looked at Marissa and then at
Maggie. “These are beautiful.”

“
Maggie, all I did was braid
the leather for the boot strings,” Marissa said.

“
That is still helping,” Nat
reminded her.

Nat took her boots off and slipped the
new ones on her feet. “A perfect fit,” she said as she danced
around the porch. “They are comfortable too.”

Maggie smiled proudly and reached back
into the crate. “I thought I would send a few jars of chowder out
with you too,” she said. “Instead of bringing them back empty, you
can fill them up if you find that honey tree again,” Maggie said
with a smile.

“
Sounds like a fair trade to
me,” Nat said.

Gyp sat in front of Maggie wiggling in
anticipation. “I did not forget you,” Maggie said as she pulled a
large bone out and handed it to Gyp. Gyp took the bone and moved to
the edge of the porch and began gnawing on the gift.

“
I also made you a new
blanket for your bedroll,” Maggie said as she handed Nat a colorful
blanket.

“
That will come in very
handy on the cool nights,” Nat said, and reached down to hug Maggie
tightly. “Thank you, my friend.”

“
Thank you for all that you
have done for me,” Maggie said.

“
I do believe we have one
more item to care for,” Nat said. “I want you to keep the bear pelt
and use it to warm your bed next winter,” Nat said.

“
But, that pelt is worth a
lot of money,” Maggie said.

“
Okay, then sell it to
Smithy,” Nat said. “Either way, it is yours.”

“
It will warm my bed for
many years to come,” Maggie said, her eyes glistening with tears.
“I will be going now, but I wanted to give you my gifts and tell
you goodbye. I hope to see you again soon,” Maggie said. “Take good
care my friend,” she said to Gyp as she stood and hugged Nat
tightly.

“
I will miss you, Maggie,”
Nat said. “Gyp will too.”

“
Come home to us soon then,”
Maggie said.

“
I will,” Nat
promised.

They watched Maggie as she picked up
her crate and walked across the yard to return home. She stopped
once at the edge of the yard and turned to wave at them.