Fires of Autumn (18 page)

He winked
at her. “My grandmother was big on manners.”

“The same
one who made you learn how to quilt?”

“The same.”

Casey
grinned. “I think I’d like to meet her someday.”

“You
will.”

With a
lingering gaze on him, she returned to her suitcase.  She pulled out her dark
denim skinny jeans, an oversized lightweight sweater and a tank top for
underneath it, and her tan leather knee-high boots with the heavy flat sole. 
Without a hint of embarrassment whatsoever, considering they had spent the past
twelve hours stark naked, she pulled off her sweats and changed into her jeans
and the big cream-colored sweater.  The boots went on over the jeans, giving
her a very casual and attractive look.  

Colt
watched her as he got dressed. He couldn’t seem to take his eyes off her. He
pulled off his casual pull-over shirt and replaced it with a tee shirt and a
heavier plaid shirt.  He also put his big cowboy boots on.  As Casey emerged
from the bathroom where she had gone to collect her lip balm, she stopped to
gawk at him.

“You look
like the Marlboro man,” she said.  “God, Colt, could you be any more of a hunk?
Seriously?”

He laughed
softly.  “I don’t know. Can I?”

She
giggled and shook her head, going over to him and putting her arms around his
neck.  He scooped her up, her petite size against his big frame, and kissed
her.

“You’re
the handsomest man I have ever seen,” she murmured as he kissed her. “You make
my heart jump every time I see you.”

He
grinned, flattered. “’Coming from the woman of my dreams, that’s quite a
compliment. Thank you.”

“You’re
welcome,” she kissed him one final time and let him go, looking around to make
sure she had everything. “What else do I need?”

“A
jacket,” he reminded her, repacking his luggage and zipping it up.

“Oh,
right,” she said, digging in to her suitcase and pulling out a lightweight
zipper front jacket with a fleecy inside. “Anything else?”

He thought
a moment.  “I don’t think so,” he said. “But no purse. Bring only what you can
carry on you.”

He
expected an argument but was impressed when the worst she did was lift her
eyebrows. “Hmmm,” she put her hands on her hips, looking at her luggage and
purse thoughtfully. “This is getting more mysterious by the moment.  Should I
bring money or a credit card?”

He fought
off a grin. “No,” he said. “You’ll have nowhere to use them.”

She
puckered her lips, thinking.  Then she went to her purse and pulled out her lip
balm and sunglasses, sticking them both in her pocket. Then she looked at Colt
and threw up her arms.

“I’m
ready,” she announced.

His smile
broke through and he finished with his suitcase, grabbing his wallet, his keys
and his sunglasses.  He held out a hand to her.

“Come on,
angel,” he said. “Let’s go on an adventure.”

Her smile
vanished unnaturally fast as she took his hand.  “It doesn’t involve an
airplane, does it?”

He
laughed. “No,” he replied. “I don’t think I could get you on one.”

“Swear it?
No bi-planes, prop planes or acrobatic planes?”

He
continued to laugh. “I swear, no airplanes. No hot air balloons, either. I have
a feeling you’re a girl who likes to have her feet on the ground.”

She
nodded, relieved, and followed him to the door. “Sorry to be a party-pooper,
but as you’ve seen, airplanes and I are mortal enemies.”

“I promise
I will never take you on anything that involves an airplane unless it has to do
with a vacation or work.”

“Thank
you.”

He pulled
her out of the
casitas
, taking her through the rock garden, past the
swimming pool and the eco-friendly garden, and into the main resort.  He had
her wait in the artsy Southwest-inspired lobby with its gold and green colors
while he went to the concierge and had a few words with the woman. The
concierge got on the phone as Colt came back to Casey and took her hand again.

“Come on,”
he encouraged.

Casey
followed. She was just along for the ride, thrilled that the man thought enough
of her to surprise her with an adventure. It had been such a very long time
since something like that had happened. By the time they reached the front
entrance, a couple of young men were leading two horses into the valet area. 
Grinning, Colt walked her up to the pretty palomino pony with the blond mane
and tail.

“Can you
ride?” he asked.

Casey was
already stroking the horse’s golden neck. “She’s beautiful,” she crooned. “Of
course I can ride. I haven’t ridden in years, but I can do it.”

He went to
help her mount, but she didn’t need his help. She climbed right up and got
comfortable in the saddle.  Colt mounted the other horse, a big hairy
half-draft breed that seemed to be quite lively, but Colt handled him with a
confident hand. I was apparent he knew how to handle a horse.  One of the young
wranglers told Colt where to go, pointing off to the north, and Colt directed
the big horse forward with Casey right behind him. 

They were
off on their adventure. Colt took the trail around the side of the resort that
led down to a small riverbed surrounded by growth.  They followed the trickle
of water south until the riverbed forked off and they followed a small creek
northwest for a couple of miles.  Small talk bounced around between them as
they enjoyed the scenery and each other. It was so peaceful and lovely, and Casey
directed her horse up next to Colt’s so they could ride side by side.

Birds were
singing in the bushes and little creatures scooted in the underbrush. They came
out of the canyon and onto a plateau that overlooked the Santa Fe, and they
continued up the plateau until it leveled out.  Once it leveled out, Casey dug
her heels into the side of her horse and the animal took off at a canter.  Colt
kicked his beast forward, following.

Casey
galloped across the flat of the plateau as her hair blew behind her like a
banner, slowing when the plateau started to dip downward into an area thick
with trees. They could smell the water.  Casey eventually came to a halt and
Colt pulled up beside her, eventually finding a small path down into the
foliage.

Once down
in the shade of the small trees, Colt dismounted and tied off his horse, going
to Casey’s horse and lifting her off.  He tied off her horse as well, returning
to his own mount and removing the saddlebags.  Casey wandered over by the
trickling creek, admiring the sounds and sights of nature.  It was peaceful and
beautiful as the sound of trickling water and birds filled the air.  No
politics, no craziness, only nature to keep them company. It was serenity at
its best.

“When I
was a kid, my parents used to take my sister and me to Yosemite National Park,”
Casey said, her gaze moving over the foliage. “We used to hike all over the
place. I loved it there.  This kind of reminds me of it, the peacefulness of
it.”

He came
over with the saddle bags, looking at what she was looking at.  It was all so
lovely and calm.  Then he looked around for a patch of ground that was somewhat
level and removed the saddle bags from his big shoulder.  Digging around, he
came out with a blanket, which he spread on the ground, and then he began
pulling out containers of food.  Casey looked over her shoulder from the creek,
noticing what he was doing. She went to help.

“My
goodness,” she sank to her knees on the blanket. “What’s all this?”

He grinned
as he began opening up the containers. “I’m not sure,” he said. “I told the
concierge we wanted a picnic lunch, so your guess is as good as mine.”

Casey
began opening containers, too, discovering sandwiches and potato salad, cookies
and fruit.   There was also a bottle of white wine.  Colt popped the cork and
poured them a couple of glasses in the plastic cups provided. He handed her one
of the glasses.

“To the
best vacation I’ve ever had,” he said softly, holding up his plastic glass.

She
smiled, clinking her glass against his. “Thank you,” she said sincerely.
“That’s really sweet. I hate to see it end.”

He downed
half his glass before handing her half of a pastrami sandwich.  “Me, too,” he
said. “But we’ll have more vacations like this, I promise.”

Casey
chewed on her sandwich, watching him as he devoured the other half.  Now that
she was coming to know the man on a deeper level, she wanted to know
everything. He had been open and honest with her as far as she could tell, but
there still seemed to be a hint of mystery about the man. It wasn’t so much in
his manner or in his words, but more a glimmer in his eyes.  There was an
intangible hint of intrigue. She wanted to know all about him.

“So tell
me something,” she said casually. “What’s your goal in life, Colt? Do you have
any big ambitions beyond the Secret Service?”

He
swallowed the bite in his mouth. “I really like what I do,” he said. “Someday,
I think I’d like to run the agency. I think I have a pretty good shot at it.”

She
listened intently, eating grapes. “So that’s it?” she asked. “No big dreams?
You don’t want to retire to the Adirondacks and raise goats? Or maybe have an
art studio and make clay pots for retirement homes? What are your
dreams,
Colt?”

His
chewing slowed as he thought on her question. “I don’t really know,” he said
honestly. “I’ve never really had dreams, just goals. I’ve already met most of
my goals.  What are your dreams?”

She
thought a moment, popping grapes into her mouth. “You won’t laugh?”

“Of course
not.”

She smiled
bashfully. “I’ve always wanted to have a racehorse rescue organization,” she
said. “I grew up near the Santa Anita racetrack in California. I’ve always
loved racehorses and I used to know people who worked there. They told horror
stories of what happened to race horses after they could no longer race and
owners got tired of them. So I want to buy a bunch of land in California and
have a racehorse rescue, maybe just an animal rescue in general.  I guess I
want to save the animal world.”

He was
smiling at her by the time she was done. “My grandparents have three thousand
acres in Montana,” he said. “I’m sure they’d be willing to turn over some of
that acreage so you could have your horse rescue.”

She
smiled. “That would be great, but it’s going to have to wait until the boys
grow up and I retire. I have to earn a living between now and then.”

He
stretched out on the blanket, his hand ending up by her knee.  He put a big
hand on her leg, caressing her.

“I guess I
do have a dream,” he said softly. “I want to find a good woman and make a life
with her, and maybe have a kid or two. I’ve got a responsibility to carry on
the Sheridan name, you know.  Somehow, someway, I have to pop out a Phil
Sheridan the Sixth.”

Casey
laughed.  “Good luck with that.”

“You don’t
want to help me out?”

She
continued to giggle. “Not at this moment, no.”

“When?”

“I’m not
sure.”

He sat up,
a grin on his face.  “Don’t you see? It’ll work out perfectly.  We can retire
to Montana and have a horse ranch and a bunch of kids.”

She was
grinning dubiously at him. “What about the Secret Service? I thought you wanted
to run the agency?”

“I’d give
it all up for you.”

Her smile
left her and she gazed at him steadily.  Then she just hung her head, picking
at the grapes.

“I
wouldn’t want to see you do that,” she said softly. “You have a great reputation
and a great career in front of you. You’ve worked for it your whole life.”

She was
messing with the grapes, averting her eyes, anything to keep from looking at
him. He sensed confusion and perhaps some sense of self-protection. He expected
that. But what he told her was God’s honest truth.

“Casey,”
he said softly.  “Look at me, angel.”

She lifted
her head after a moment, crossing her eyes at him and giving him a quirky
smile. He laughed, moved closer to her, and rolled over so his head was on her
lap.  He gazed up into her beautiful face.

“I want
you to think about something,” he said quietly. “Imagine that after this
vacation, I drop out of your life forever. How would you feel about that?”

Her
expression darkened. “I’d hate it. I’d be miserable.”

He smiled,
reaching up to tuck a stray piece of hair behind her ear. “Me, too,” he murmured.
“I hate every single minute that I’m away from you. Even when I’m away from
you, I’m thinking about you and when you’re around me, it’s like I can’t focus
on anything else.  I guess what I’m trying to say is that I don’t ever want to
be without you. I want to be with you forever.”

She gazed
down at him, a soft hand on his cheek. “These past few days have been so
amazing,” she agreed softly. “I’d love it if the rest of our lives could be
like this, but the reality is that it won’t be.  We’ll go back to Washington
and things will go back to the way they were. “