Rain Glade (6 page)

Rain gathered up her courage and decided it
was
her
turn to be bold. She walked slowly forward and put
her hands on his chest. From there, she wrapped them around his
neck and tilted her head upward for another kiss.

He responded even more passionately than
before, kissing her and wrapping his arms around her.

***

They lay in the grass, sheltered by the
magnificent trees and cleansed by the light shower from above. Rain
lay atop his warm body, running her fingers along his naked chest.
She thrilled in the way his skin felt against hers. The experience
of making love had been as magical as the glade they lay in.

“Rain Glade,” Jacob said, his voice rumbling
beneath her. “It is raining upon Rain in Rain Glade.”

Rain giggled. “You’re being silly.”

“Why did your parents name you Rain?”

She propped her chin on her arms and smiled
at him. “You are very comfortable to lie on, you know.”

Jacob grinned. “And you make for a warm
blanket. Why did your parents name you Rain?”

Rain stopped smiling. “My mother named me
Rain because she said it hid her tears.”

Jacob’s eyebrows furrowed. “That’s odd.”

“She used to cry a lot. I think she liked
crying. I never understood it though.” Rain got up and walked over
to the creek to splash water on her face.

Jacob followed her. “Was she sad?”

“I think so. My father was never there, and
when he was, he was drunk. She cried whenever he left.” Rain stood
and folded her arms, feeling vulnerable.

Jacob wrapped his around her, his warmth
against the skin of her back. “I’m sorry about your mother. I like
your name though . . . and your glade. Rain Glade.”

Rain giggled, relaxing some. She relaxed even
more when he kissed her neck and began moving his hands over her
body.

***

“It’s time to wake up, Rain.”

Rain lifted her head and rubbed her eyes.
Looking around, she saw they were between the roots of the tree.
Jacob had covered her with his jacket and held her in his arms
throughout the night. Once again, the morning mist had settled
in.

“I want to stay with you permanently, but I’m
not allowed to leave our lord’s service for five years on penalty
of death. I don’t rank high enough to have you move into the castle
either.” Jacob ran his fingers up and down the skin of her
back.

Rain looked up into his eyes. “Have you been
thinking about this all night?”

“I slept a little. Mostly I’ve . . . I’ve
been holding you and touching you. I can’t believe you’re in my
arms.”

She leaned her head against his chest. “I
can’t believe it either. There’s something I’ve been meaning to
tell you.”

“Oh?” The worry in his voice was
palpable.

“I think you’re handsome.”

“Oh!” He laughed. “I was worried it was
something bad.”

“No. It’s just that you keep telling me I’m
pretty, but I haven’t told you anything nice in return.” Rain
kissed his chest. “You really
are
handsome.”

He squeezed her and kissed her damp hair.
“And you really are beautiful. And wet. I swear this mist clings to
everything. I’ve never wanted a warm fire and dry room so much in
my life.”

Rain laughed and got up. Her dress was draped
across a root and she put it on, struggling a little bit because of
the dampness. She watched as Jacob put on his uniform and sword
belt. Then they made their way through the tunnel and back along
the creek.

When they reached the pool, Jacob kissed her
again. It lasted for much longer than their first kiss.

Rain watched him make his way along the creek
to the village. Then she jumped in the pool, dunked her head and
screamed in delight at the top of her lungs, letting the water
muffle the sound.

The mist cleared by the time she finished
bathing. Rain set her dress on the rock to dry and then she lay in
the grass, stared at the fluffy clouds in the sky and thought about
Jacob.

***

When she awoke, it was noon and her stomach
was growling in hunger. Looking down, she saw the bruising was
fading, though it still looked ugly. She got up, slid her dress
back on and then made her way to the path.

Before long, she reached Verna’s house. The
pixie-faced Druid came dancing out of the door, twirling in a
lavender dress that highlighted her eyes. “My best friend Rain! How
lovely to see you.” She grabbed Rain’s hands and caught her up in
the dance, accompanied by the delightful music of the wind
chimes.

They stopped to catch their breath after a
while, both smiling and laughing. Rain realized she was happier
than she had ever been in her life, happier than she thought it was
possible for a person to be.

“So what brings you here today, my friend?”
Verna led her toward the house.

“I was hoping for something to eat,” Rain
said in a small voice. She avoided asking whenever possible,
preferring to work for it instead.

“But of course! I have honey to spread on nut
bread I made today and then I’m going to roast some mushrooms over
the fire in a little while. Join me for both.” Verna led Rain into
the house and set her at the table. Then she proceeded to slice the
bread and spread honey on it.

As Rain chewed, Verna sat and studied her.
“You never have to ask me for food. You are more than welcome to
come into my home and eat whenever you are hungry. I’ve told you
this before and I’m telling you again.” She leaned forward. “Do you
understand?”

Rain looked down at the bread in her hands
and nodded.

Verna crooked a finger under Rain’s chin,
forcing her to look the Druid in the eyes. “Do you understand me,
Rain?”

“Yes, Verna.” Rain took another bite of the
bread.

Verna sat back and spread honey on two more
pieces, putting them on Rain’s plate. “So how have you been? Were
you able to work on your garden like you wanted?”

Rain finished chewing the bite in her mouth.
“I did
some
work, but then Jacob came.”

Verna’s head whipped around from the bread
she was slicing for herself. “Oh? Do tell.” She narrowed her eyes.
“He didn’t hurt you? . . .”

“No! He was perfect. He called me pretty
again.” Rain used her hand to fan her face, which was suddenly
hot.

“Interesting. He’s right about you being
pretty, but I’m naturally suspicious.” Verna took a bite of her
bread.

“He was wonderful to me. We went to the glade
and we . . .” Rain felt her face heat even more. She refused to
look Verna in the eyes.

“Did you share yourself with him?” Verna’s
voice was gentle as she put a hand on Rain’s knee.

Rain looked up at her. “Yes. It was
wonderful. We spent the night together in the glade again.” She
chewed nervously on her lower lip. “Are you disappointed in
me?”

Verna sat back in surprise. “Not at all! I’m
thrilled that it was wonderful for you. For many women it isn’t.”
She stood and moved to the firepit, grabbing a pot of water along
the way. “I’m going to make you some tea, and you
must
drink
it.”

“I’d love some tea, especially if you have
more honey, but why must I drink it?” Rain tilted her head in
confusion.

“I’m adding some special ingredients that
will prevent you from becoming pregnant.” Verna smiled over her
shoulder. “You do a good job of caring for yourself, but it’s just
not time for you to have a child, especially not with a soldier, at
least not until he’s able to help care for you.”

Rain took another piece of bread off the
plate. “What am I going to do with my life, Verna? Jacob says he
has to give Lord Greffen five years of service. He’s not allowed to
marry anyone yet and no one else would ever have me.” She picked at
a corner of the bread. “I’m not able to become a Druid.”

Verna set the pot of water over the fire to
heat and then came over to kneel before Rain. “I’m sorry you’re not
a Druid. More importantly, I’m sorry you think that no one else
would have you, Rain. You are a bright star in the world, even
though few notice you.” She put her hands on Rain’s knees and then
rested her chin on them. “I don’t know what you will do with your
life. I understand the forest, not people.”

“You’re the brightest star ever, Verna.” Rain
ran her fingers through the colors in Verna’s hair. The Druid
closed her eyes, making a small noise of contentment.

***

The next day, Rain watched the children for
Tonia all day. The day after that, she worked on the garden in the
morning and made wind chimes with Verna in the afternoon. Each
evening, she would go to the pool in the hopes that Jacob would be
there, but it wasn’t until morning on the third day that he showed
up at Rain’s house while she was gardening. Rain put a finger over
her lips for him to be quiet, took him by the hand and led him to
the pool.

“You’re dirty from working in your garden.
Take your dress off and I’ll wash you today.” Jacob put his hands
on her waist and began pulling up the dress.

Rain lifted her arms and let him remove it.
He began kissing her neck and running his hands over her body.

“I thought you were going to bathe me . .
.”

Jacob responded by kissing her and lowering
her to the ground.

***

They finally did bathe together before making
their way up the creek to the glade where they made love again.

Sometime later, Jacob lifted her and carried
her to their spot between the tree roots. “I can’t believe I’m
lucky enough to have you in my life, Rain. I’ve been so happy it
seems like I’m floating with the clouds.”

“I’ve been the same way, only I twirl with
the clouds, not float.” Rain kissed him on the cheek and curled up
against his chest.

“Your bruise looks much better. It’s still
brown, but almost gone.” Jacob placed his hand on her side.

Rain pushed herself up and pointed at a
particularly nasty bruise on his upper arm. “You, however, have a
lot of
new
bruises. What’s happened to you?”

Jacob reddened. “I can’t seem to concentrate
in drills and I’ve been taking a lot of blows. I think Sarge was
glad to get me away from the castle.”

“Do they hurt?” Rain pushed on the
bruise.

He jerked the arm away. “Ow! Yes they hurt!”
He chuckled. “But it’s better I take these bruises now while I’m
learning rather than when I’m in battle fighting for my life.”

“Do you think you’ll go to battle?” Rain
asked in alarm.

“I don’t know. Lord Greffen is mad at Lord
Bullot and has talked about going to war.”

Rain pushed herself away and stood up. “I
don’t want you to go to war.” Tears threatened to overwhelm
her.

He stood and took her by the shoulders. “I
don’t think we’ll
really
go to war. There are only ten of us
in Lord Greffen’s guard and Lord Bullot has fourteen. I don’t think
that’s enough for a war. Besides, I’m getting pretty good with the
sword.”

Rain slipped away from his hands and grabbed
her dress. “But you could
die
.”

“I’m not going to die. I promise.” He came up
behind her as she slid the dress over her head. “I’m going to
become a glorious hero and then we’ll have our very own cottage we
can move into.” He stood behind her, put his hands on her shoulders
and whispered in her ear. “We’ll have lots of children and they’ll
fight over who gets to take care of us when we’re old. Then we’ll
come to this glade every night and make love.” Jacob kissed her
neck.

Rain smiled and tilted her head against his.
“I want that more than anything.” She turned and put her arms
around his neck.

Jacob kissed her.

When the kiss ended, Rain spun away. “Let’s
dance!”

“But I don’t know how!”

“It’s easy! You twirl, you spin, you leap,
you fall to the ground and then you get up and do it all again.

Jacob laughed. “That sounds wild, but I’ll do
it!” He dashed back to the roots, put on his pants and joined
her.

They twirled around the glade. Whenever they
fell, they would steal kisses from each other before getting up and
doing it all over again.

Rain stopped and put a hand next to her ear.
“Listen to the sounds of the forest. The breeze shakes the leaves,
birds chirp, creatures rustle in the underbrush, insects buzz and
occasionally a twig snaps.” She put a hand in his and the other on
his shoulder. “Dance to the music of the forest. Dance to the music
of life!”

Jacob smiled in wonderment as they waltzed in
slow circles around the glade. Their steps fell in time to the
sounds around them. The magic in the air matched their movements
and they began to float above the ground.

Rain looked down at the grass falling away
below them. Jacob’s eyes grew wide and he nearly stopped. Rain
urged him to continue. “Don’t stop. Trust in the dance. The glade
will keep us safe. I know it.”

So Jacob continued the dance. It fell in time
with the sounds around them, becoming effortless. Their bodies
moved closer as they rose past the lowest branches. Rain wondered
if they would rise above the clouds.

A bright bit of color flashed by. They
looked, but didn’t see where it had gone. A minute later, another
bright light came nearby. Rain tried to catch a glimpse out of the
side of her eye, but it flitted away.

“What are they?” Jacob whispered.

“I don’t know, but don’t do anything to scare
them,” Rain whispered back.

“They’re scaring
me
a little.”

Rain looked into his eyes. “Let go of fear.
It’s heavier than air. Focus on the dance and let your heart be
light.”

Realization dawned on Jacob as he felt the
shift in his heart. “I love you, Rain.”

The words filled Rain with bliss. “I love
you, Jacob.”