Straddling the Fence (16 page)

He pulled her on top of him, fitting her hips to his, and
pushed strands of that pretty black hair away from her face. “Of course you can
stay with me. Whenever you want.”

She kissed him then nuzzled her face to his neck, mouth
tracing the ridge of his jaw before she jerked her head up. Her eyes went wide
and she covered his lips with a finger, whispering, “Listen.”

Focusing past the sudden southward rush of blood, he heard
the noise above their heads—a faint
ba-dump, ba-dump, ba-dump
across the
attic floor.

“Squirrel,” he murmured. “Watch the tree limb outside the
window.”

They both tipped their heads, waiting. Sure enough, a few
seconds later the small barren limb jerked with the sudden added weight of
Bellamy’s stowaway.

“Sneaky little shit. What’s it doing inside my roof?”

“Stealing insulation for a nest, probably.”

She cocked an eyebrow. “You think there’s some up there?”

He barked out a laugh, his body shaking hers, while she
grinned down at him. “They’ll chew through wiring too. I’ll bring a ladder over
sometime next week and cut that limb down. Deny the thief a way in.”

Bellamy pushed up into a sitting position across his hips,
the blanket sliding off her shoulders. She might as well have been naked by the
sudden punch of arousal he felt. Eli propped himself on his hands. “How shall I
ever repay all your kindness and generosity?” she drawled like Scarlett,
fluttering her eyelashes.

Wrapping a hand around the back of her neck, he pulled her
to him for a hard kiss. “I’m sure we can think of something.”

Thanksgiving Day found Bellamy in Ruby and Joe Carter’s big
country kitchen, surrounded by new friends and the amazing smells of dinner
being prepared.

Using the sharp tip of a paring knife, she traced the shape
of a leaf in the leftover piecrust she’d rolled out. She added a few fake veins
with a toothpick then slicked the back of it with egg wash and added it to the
top of the peach pie she made, with the help of Ruby’s well-stocked freezer.

“Bellamy Haile, that’s just about the prettiest pie I’ve
ever seen and it’s not even baked yet,” Ruby said. “I do declare, between Kai’s
cake-decorating skills and your pie-making expertise, I think I’m going to give
up making desserts altogether and hand it over to you girls.”

“Don’t you dare!” Kai said. “You make the best sorghum
cookies I’ve ever eaten, plus your banana pudding won a blue ribbon at the
Centennial Celebration this past summer. And just because I can frost a cake
doesn’t mean I can bake a decent one.”

“You’ll get there,” Ruby said. “Fritz brags on your cooking
all the time.”

“He knows it’s a surefire way to get lucky,” Kai whispered
to Bellamy while Ruby’s back was turned.

Snickering, Bellamy added a few more leaves to the pie for
decoration and brushed a final coat of egg wash across the entire thing,
getting it ready to bake.

“All done,” she said proudly. It really was a pretty pie, if
she did say so herself. “Ready for it to go in the oven?”

“Ten more minutes on the dressing, then we’ll start baking
the pies,” Kai said.

“Here’s hoping it tastes as good as it looks.”

“Sugar, you learned from the best. No way will it taste
anything but delicious.”

“Did you know my nana McCoy, Ruby?”

“Of course. Everyone in Serenity knew your grandparents.
They were wonderful people, kind and generous, and neither one of them ever met
a stranger. I graduated with your Aunt Trudy too. Your momma’s a couple years
younger than me I think, but I remember her from school. Where are your parents
spending Thanksgiving?”

“With Davy Crockett’s ghost at The Alamo in San Antonio,
Texas.”

Ruby and Kai blinked at her, more than likely wondering if
she was upset by their absence or not, but when Bellamy smiled wryly, they
decided it was okay to find some humor in her dry comment. “My dad loves that
sort of thing. He’s ex-Army. What started out as a four-week trip out west has
morphed into a tour of the entire southern half of the U.S.”

“Will they be home for Christmas?” Kai asked.

Bellamy shrugged. “Not sure. Mom called last night to wish
me Happy Thanksgiving, but she didn’t sound like they were tiring of the road
yet, so who knows.”

Surprisingly, the thought of not seeing her parents over the
holidays didn’t sting as much anymore. She was certain that being able to spend
the time with Eli and his wonderful family was the reason why. She only wished
her parents could meet all of the Carters too, especially Eli.

The back door opened and Grace and Fritz joined them in the
kitchen, both carrying covered dishes.

“Thanks for the help, Fritz,” Grace said. With Ruby’s
guidance, they found spots on the jam-packed counters for the casseroles Grace
brought along. Kai had explained earlier that Grace’s parents and brother were
spending Thanksgiving with extended family in La Grange, and since Grace had to
work tomorrow, she opted out of making the trip.

“No problem,” Fritz replied, then gave his fiancé a quick
smooch on the lips. “I set the cooler of ice on the back porch. Anything else I
can do to help?”

“We’re going to need the extra leaf in the dining room table
and more chairs,” Ruby told him. “After that’s done, y’all can go ahead and get
the table set for dinner. Eli and Sage are in the family room with your dad
watching football.”

Fritz nodded and strolled out of the kitchen to follow his
mother’s orders. It touched Bellamy just how close the boys remained to their
parents and how polite and respectful they were to them always, a sure sign
they’d been raised up right.

“I brought presents!” Grace said, digging inside a huge
leather purse. Even when Grace did casual, she still looked gorgeous. Today she
wore a pretty green tunic over black leggings. On her feet were gray suede
pumps. “I was going to save them for Christmas, but I figured you might like to
get some use out of them now. Plus, I’m terrible at waiting to give out gifts.”

She produced a stack of folded fabric with a nervous smile
then proceeded to hand Kai, Ruby and Bellamy one apiece, keeping the last one
for herself. When Bellamy unfolded the gift, she saw that is was an apron.

“I made them myself,” Grace said, blushing adorably beneath
her freckles.

“Grace, these are beautiful,” Ruby said, removing the faded
half-apron she wore to don the new one.

Bellamy couldn’t stop smiling and touching the fabric. They
were made in the style that covered you from chest to thigh and tied behind the
neck, with a small pocket on the front. The cloth Grace had chosen looked to be
vintage, in floral prints with pastel backgrounds. Around the edges, she’d
added a narrow eyelet ruffle in cream.

“They’re so pretty,” Bellamy said, smoothing her hands down
the front of hers. It reminded her of something Nana would’ve worn. “You’re
talented, girl.”

Grace shrugged. “I make a lot of my own clothes too. Stuff
for work mostly, like dresses and skirts. My mom is a brilliant seamstress. She
taught me how to sew when I was ten and I’ve been doing it ever since. I find
it cathartic in a sense, a nice way to unwind after a tough day.”

“I could see where it would be.”

“Her mom’s making my wedding dress,” Kai offered.

“Oh, how cool,” Bellamy said. “What does it look like?”

“Well, Fritz likes me in sundresses, so the top will be
similar to those, with spaghetti straps. The skirt is straight and simple with
a short train, and the entire dress has a lace overlay and a cummerbund-style
wrap around the waistline, which will be in a pale-peach color. I’m not wearing
a veil. I decided on a wreath of tiny flowers instead.”

“It sounds beautiful.”

“Here’s hoping it’s not too cool that day, otherwise I’ll
freeze my fanny off.”

Ruby smiled warmly. “You’ll be so excited you won’t notice
the temperature.”

“When’s the big day?” Bellamy asked.

“The second Saturday in March. We can’t push it back any
further because corn has to be planted soon after and Fritz will be too busy.”

“Ooh, corn,” Ruby said. “Should I grab a few bags from the
freezer and throw them in a pot to cook?”

“Good heavens, Ruby,” Kai said, gesturing to all the pots
and dishes of food scattered around the kitchen. “I think we’ve got enough to
feed an army already.”

“But I want Bellamy to have plenty of choices since she
won’t be eating any turkey or ham.”

“Don’t you worry about me,” Bellamy said, wrapping an arm
around Ruby’s shoulders. “I could eat nothing but your macaroni and cheese and
be perfectly happy.”

* * * * *

“Where in God’s name are y’all getting all this energy
from?” Fritz groaned.

It was the day of Ruby’s birthday party and they were
finalizing the decorations in the barn. Fritz was sprawled across a row of hay
bales Kai had draped with pretty red-and-white gingham fabric that she was
planning to use for extra seating.

“We’re staying away from the leftover turkey,” Kai said.
“And if you mess up that fabric with your nasty work boots, you’re sleeping on
the couch tonight.”

Fritz bolted upright, checking to make sure he hadn’t
dirtied anything. Behind him, Kai winked at Bellamy. The girl sure knew how to
keep her man in check.

Smiling, Bellamy twisted a length of wire around the raised
lip of a Mason jar. Eli was perched atop a ladder waiting for her to hand it up
to him, where he’d suspend it from another long stretch of wire wrapped around
a beam of the barn’s roof. For the party, the votive candles placed inside each
jar would be lit for a pretty ambient glow. In addition to candles, they’d
draped long strands of white twinkle lights across the beams. By the time they
were done, the place would sparkle like a Christmas tree.

“Last one.” She passed the jar off to Eli. Once he had it
secured with the wire, he climbed down off the ladder and dropped a quick kiss
on her mouth. “Nice job,” she said.

“Y’all did most of the work. I just followed orders. I’m
good at following your orders.”

He grinned, the teasing light in his gray eyes reminding her
of the night she’d chained him to the chair, making Bellamy’s knees weaken and
her heart flutter. Making her crave another kiss, then another and another.

Despite having spent most of the last two weeks’ worth of
nights in his bed, she was surprised to discover she didn’t feel the least bit
claustrophobic or pressured. Nor was she growing weary of his company. She knew
he wanted her there, but Eli left it up to her to decide whether she stayed or
ventured back to her own place.

Cold, empty house and a cheap, lumpy mattress—or warm home
and a great big soft bed occupied by Eli? Not a hard decision to make.

“What’s next?” she asked Kai, perusing the row of cardboard
boxes full of fabrics, more Mason jars, candles, and bundles of fresh flowers
from the florist in town.

Kai had gone with an old-timey country theme for the decor,
using vintage flour sacks, gingham print, sunflowers and farming accents. A
large wooden sign painted red with white lettering hung on one wall of the
barn. It read,
What happens in the barn stays in the barn
. Across from
it hung another, similar in shape and color scheme, that said,
Life is
better on the farm
. Bellamy was beginning to agree with the sentiment.

“Now that we’ve finished with the stuff that needed hanging,
I think we can start getting the tables and chairs arranged and decorated.
That’s really the last thing. Then all we’ll need to do is set up the food once
it arrives.”

“And what time is that?” Fritz asked, folding up a ladder.

“Around six forty-five. I didn’t want it to sit too long and
get cold,” Kai said. “Grace went to pick up the cake, and the band is setting
up just before the party starts at seven.”

Since Bellamy had clothes at Eli’s place, she could shower
and change with him when they were done decorating.

“Where are the tables and chairs?” Eli asked

“In the trailer hooked to the back of my truck,” Fritz said.
“Come on, we’ll start unloading.”

Following Fritz out of the barn, Eli groused, “Why is Sage’s
ass never around when there’s manual labor to be done?”

“Dunno,” was Fritz’s only reply before they disappeared from
view.

Bellamy set to work unpacking a box of decorations,
arranging them for easy access on the square raised platform Fritz and Eli
built for the band out of plywood at one end of the barn.

She was pairing up small salt and pepper shakers shaped like
ears of corn, remarking on how cute they were, when she heard loud, agitated
male voices outside.

“What in the world?” Kai said, cocking her head to listen.

“…because you never do shit, that’s why! And I’m sick of
pulling your share of the load when you still expect to reap part of the
profits!”

That was Eli shouting. Bellamy scrambled to her feet, skin
prickling with worry.

“I do my part, asshole! Just because you don’t see it
doesn’t mean it ain’t bein’ done!”

She thought that sounded like Sage.

Bellamy looked at Kai, who frowned, saying, “This could get
ugly real fast.” When she headed in the direction of the argument, Bellamy
followed.

Eli and Sage were squared off at the back of the open
trailer, practically nose-to-nose, hands balled into fists, with Fritz standing
to the side, his posture tense.

“I didn’t
see
you help haul the last load of hay to
Dawson, but I bet I’ll
see
where you’ve stroked yourself a check from
our hay profit account.”

“Yeah, and who balances those goddamn accounts? Who sees
that all the bills get paid on time? Me, that’s who!”

Kai had a death grip on Bellamy’s arm as they watched it all
unfold, repeatedly muttering, “Do something, Fritz,” under her breath while
Bellamy held hers.

“Oh, cry me a fuckin’ river,” Eli said. “A couple hours’
worth of bookkeeping a week is supposed to offset all the shit me’n Fritz do
all the time, day in and day out? Not even close.”

“Fuck you, Eli!” Sage shoved Eli hard enough to force him
backward a step and Bellamy covered her mouth to stifle a gasp, afraid of what
was about to happen.

One emotionally charged heartbeat later, her fear was
realized.

Eli and Sage went at it, fists hitting flesh, hard bodies
colliding, until they landed in a grunting, angry heap on the ground.
Apparently, Fritz knew better than to try to break them apart at that point
because he stepped clear of the danger zone, yet still remained close.

Dust flew as each scrabbled for dominance over the other.
Sage wound up on the bottom, but he managed to wrap an arm around Eli’s neck so
he couldn’t land any more blows to Sage’s face. Didn’t stop Eli from connecting
solidly with Sage’s ribs, though. Even from where Bellamy and Kai stood ten
feet away, they still heard the air whoosh out of Sage’s lungs, chased by a
groan of pain. Natural instinct took over after the hard blow, forcing Sage to
release Eli so he could protect his injured side from more punches.

Finally seeing a chance to step in, Fritz grabbed Eli by the
back of his shirt and physically hauled him off Sage, growling, “Y’all just
had
to go and pull this shit right before Mom’s party.”

Sage turned onto his uninjured side, breathing ragged and
uneven, then rolled to his hands and knees. Eli staggered away from Fritz and
bent double at the waist, spitting blood onto the ground at his feet before he
straightened and swiped the back of his hand across his mouth.