The Bath

The Bath

by Magnolia Belle

1 Jade lowered herself into the large galvanized washtub, sighing as the hot water hit her skin. Baths were such a luxury that she rarely treated herself, and she intended on enjoying every minute of this one. Once settled, she leaned back and relaxed her muscles, her eyes closing in pleasure.

Slowly

opening them, she scanned the familiar horizon behind her sod house. Flat ground lay between her and low rising hills in the distance.

A few trees, Live Oak mostly, dotted the Texas

landscape. Cattle gathered beneath them for shade. Her gaze rested on a mound of earth a quarter mile away. It had only been there one week, but the dirt was already starting to settle. angle.

The rough wooden cross lurched at a precarious

One strong wind, and it would disappear altogether

unless she found a way to tether it.

Her husband lay

underneath that dismal marker with not even his name on it to tell who he was. In a few months, there would be no sign that he existed. Resting her arms on either side of the tub, Jade lowered herself even further into the water and closed her eyes.

A

frown filled her face as her thoughts turned to her dilemma. Without a husband, she couldn’t run the ranch by herself. Somehow she had to gather up what cattle she could find and sell them. Moving brought mixed emotions. She loved the wild country, the solitude, and would hate leaving her home. But the thought of setting out on a new adventure stirred something deep in her, something she had always ignored. Jade was young, some would say beautiful, and the world lay wide open, tempting her like Eve’s apple. She wanted to take big lustful bites with her strong white teeth. ***

2 After riding horseback for several hours, Rick Carver finally found the Ellison Ranch. It looked like no one was home, so he rode to the side of the house. Reining to a stop at the sight before him, Rick realized the bathing woman remained unaware of his presence. He knew he should turn around and give her privacy, but he couldn’t — he just couldn’t.

Her eyes were

closed, making him wonder what color they were.

Her head

leaned back, exposing the most beautiful throat and elegant shoulders he’d ever seen. Soft, light brown hair piled on top of her head, with wet tendrils trailing against her neck and into the water.

The tops of her breasts teased him with the

perfection that lay just underneath the surface. It took him a moment to realize he’d quit breathing. *** The jangling noise of the horse’s bridle broke Jade’s reverie and she jerked upright, water splashing against the tub. Too late to run for cover, instead, she leaned forward, placing both arms in front of her to garner what modesty she could. Squinting her eyes against the sun, she tilted her head. “Excuse me, ma’am,” the silhouette drawled some yards away, “but I’m lookin′ for Mr. Ellison.” Jade shaded her eyes with her hand to see a young man on horseback. Rough stubble covered the chin on his handsome face. Dark hair spilled to his shoulders. He held the reins in his right hand, while his left forearm rested against the pommel as he leaned forward. “Who are you?” She sounded irritated and surprised, but not alarmed. “I’m Rick Carver. Mr. Ellison hired me to ramrod.”

3 “Well, Mr. Carver, I’m sorry to tell you that you came all this way for nothing. My husband is dead.” Rick straightened in the saddle and pushed back his hat. “Sorry to hear that, ma’am. I traveled a long way hoping for a job.”

Studying the surrounding area for a quiet moment, he

turned back to her. “I guess I oughta be ridin′, then.” “I’m sorry.” Jade watched him rein his horse around, noting his wide shoulders, the muscles in his arms bulging underneath his sleeves. His hands were those of a working man, callused, rough, strong. When he pushed back his hat, she had seen his eyes, deep cocoa brown.

They wore an expression that

intrigued her. He’d looked amused as if he thought it funny to catch her in the altogether outdoors.

He had also looked

hungry at the sight she made. “Mr. Carver!” “Yeah?” He reined his horse to a stop and looked over his shoulder at her. “Let me at least feed you supper. Town’s a long ways off. You can sleep in the barn and leave in the morning if you want.” He glanced at the barn.

“Alright.

Dismounting, he turned to face her.

I reckon I could.”

“My pa’s name is Mr.

Carver. You can call me Rick.” “Rick. I’m Jade.” In spite of herself, her eyes twinkled at

their situation. What will he do now?

Ground hitching his horse, he took a few steps toward her.

“How long’s your husband been dead?” “A week.” “What happened?” “Snake bite.”

4 “Damn. That’s a rough way to go.” Rick took a few more steps, waiting to be told he had come close enough. “Whatcha gonna do now?” “I’m not sure.”

Jade watched him draw nearer, and felt

something stir inside at his demeanor, at the sound of his voice, at the way he looked at her.

Instead of shooing him

away, she leaned back against the tub and picked up her soap. Leisurely washing her left arm and shoulder, she answered. “I thought I’d round up what beeves I could, sell ′em off, and move.” Rick’s eyes narrowed at her latest action. If this was a poker game, he determined to call her bluff and see this hand to the end.

“Move?

To where?”

With a few more steps, he stood

beside the tub and looked down. An intimate familiarity came over him, as if watching her bathe was as natural as breathing. “I don’t know.

I was thinking maybe New Orleans.”

Ignoring him, she began soaping the other arm. With her head turned to the side, she reminded him of a Greek goddess he’d seen once in a picture.

“New Orleans?

That’s a wild city. You ever been there before?” “No. No I haven’t.” She looked directly at him, an invitation in her tone. “Have you…Rick?” At the sound of his name, he knelt and rested both elbows on the tub’s edge. Flicking at the water with his index finger, he nodded. “Once. Almost got myself killed in a poker game. Couldn’t get outta there fast enough.” While he talked, his eyes devoured her. Jade raised her leg out of the water, putting her right foot next to his elbow, and began soaping that enticing limb.

5 Rick swallowed hard, trying not to show the effect she had. In an effort to regain his balance, he picked up the conversation again. “How long was you married?” “Two years. Mr. Ellison was much older than me. I was his second wife.” “Oh.”

He watched as she lowered her right leg and put her

left one up beside him in order to repeat the same intoxicating process. “Was it a happy marriage?” “What kind of question is that?”

Jade didn’t want to talk

about him. “It was a marriage. Plain and simple.” “Sorry.

Didn’t mean to offend you.

conversation.”

I was just makin′

Rick stood, the mood broken, and started to

walk away. “No. Wait.” She sighed, her hands splashing back into the water. “It wasn’t a happy marriage. He didn’t want a wife. He wanted a ranch hand he didn’t have to pay. I’m surprised he hired you.” A smile played across his face and a light filled his eyes when she called him back. He hid the smile before he turned around to face her, but his eyes refused to lie.

The cowboy

squatted down, but this time closer to her head. Reaching out, he touched her hair. “I can’t imagine any man not wantin′ you for his woman.” Jade closed her eyes at the gesture and felt tears just beneath the surface at Rick’s words. “Well, he didn’t.” “Why’d you marry him?”

His fingers languidly traced the

side of her face, letting his body talk to hers in the language of touch. “I had no one else. Seemed like a good idea at the time. Someone to be with.” She leaned into his hand, encouraging him.

6 “And now he’s gone,” Rick murmured. She looked at him, her blue eyes wide in too much revelation. He read her like he read tracks through soft dirt — fear, but no sorrow at her husband’s death. He also saw feral need imprinted deep on her heart. “And I’m all alone again,” she sighed. “Maybe. Maybe not. You just need a good man, that’s all.” Reaching up with a wet hand, she touched his chest, sending fire all the way to his belly.

“Are you a good man,

Rick?” Their eyes locked at the question, at all the unspoken questions underneath that one, electrifying the air between them. They’d just met, but there was no denying the intangible

something that pulled so strongly at each of them. “I’m a damn good man,” he whispered as he leaned in for a

long, slow kiss.