Chapter 41

The four late-night revelers ended up sleeping in, so they spent the latter part of the morning enjoying each other's company for breakfast.

"So, Lex…" Frank teased, "You ready to go back out dancing? Maybe we can find your little friend again."

The dark-haired woman chuckled. "Think I'll give it a miss…I don't want to end up bailing Amanda out of jail."

"Me? I have no idea what you're talking about." Amanda tried to look innocent, but failed miserably when Lex gave her a knowing grin. "Stop that."

Choking on her coffee, Jeannie gasped, "Mandy…you know darn good and well what Lex is talking about." She wiped tears from her eyes, "You've still got a bad temper…I was hoping that staying with Gramma and Grandpa would have had a positive effect on you." She changed her focus of attention to the still smiling rancher. "Has she taken a swing at you yet, Slim?"

"No…not…" Lex shook her head, then stopped. "Well, actually…" she grinned. "Just yesterday, she slapped me."

Amanda looked shocked. "I did no such…" she paused, then rolled her eyes. "Oh, for god's sake! You deserved that - scaring me half to death, chasing after that guy." She glared at Lex. "And I'll do it again, if you ever pull another stupid stunt like that!"

"Yes, ma'am." Lex teased, then sobered. She ran gentle fingertips over the still-purple bruise on her lover's face. "How's that feel today? Looks like all of the swelling is gone, at least." The rancher barely controlled the urge to lean over and kiss the contusion.

Capturing the hand with one of her own, the blonde smiled. "Fine. Doesn't even hurt today, honest." She happily leaned into the touch.

Jeannie sighed. They are just so cute together…"Well, I hate to leave such wonderful company, but I promised Mother that I'd go by and check on the gallery." She tossed her napkin onto the table. "You ready, darling?" She asked Frank, who nodded.

"Sure. I've got a couple of last-minute things to pick up before the dinner tonight, anyway." The big man smiled at Amanda then stood up and pushed his chair back to the table.

Lex gave Amanda a look. "Yeah, I still gotta get something too, I guess." She missed the wink the blonde gave Frank.

"Miss Amanda…I'm terribly sorry to interrupt you, but your father has requested that you join them in the library." Beverly stepped into the dining room quietly, a subdued tone in her voice.

"Our cue to leave." Jeannie and Frank headed towards the doorway. "Good luck, guys." She waved a hand and hurried from the room.

Amanda smiled at the maid. "Thanks, Beverly…we'll be right there." As the woman began to leave, she asked, "What kind of mood is he in, or dare I even ask?"

"That's just it, Miss Amanda. He's in a really good mood - it's very strange." She shook her head and left the room quietly.

Turning to face Lex, Amanda frowned. "I don't think I like the sound of that. You sure you want to go with me?"

The rancher leaned forward, kissing the top of the younger woman's forehead. "I'm with you, sweetheart…as long as you'll have me."

"Forever sounds pretty good to me, at least to start with." The blonde captured Lex's lips with her own, sharing a kiss full of love and promise. Pulling back and releasing a heavy sigh, Amanda forced a smile. "Let's go 'visit', then we'll go shopping, okay?"

"Right." Lex stood up, then pulled her friend into a strong hug as soon as the smaller woman got to her feet. "One for the road." She buried her face into the soft hair. "I love you, Amanda." She spoke quietly, savoring the moment. "With all my heart and soul."

Amanda felt the tall woman tremble slightly. "I love you too, Lex." She returned the embrace, kissing the collarbone that peeked through the v-neck of the shirt Lex as wearing. "And I always will."

***************

"Come in and have a seat, you two." Michael motioned the young women into the library. Elizabeth was comfortably perched on the loveseat, while he stood at the bar, a set of papers in his hand.

Amanda pulled Lex over to the sofa, which was at a 90-degree angle from the loveseat, and directly across from the bar. She sat down next to the rancher, close enough to touch if she needed to. "Good morning, Mother." Giving the older woman a friendly smile.

"It's almost afternoon, Amanda. But I hear you had a late night last night." She gave the rancher an almost civil look. "Lex."

The dark-haired woman smiled politely and nodded. "Mrs. Cauble."

Michael interrupted. "Coffee?" he nodded to his wife. "Oh, I'm sorry Lex…" He raised a decanter filled with an amber liquid. "I hear that whiskey is more to your liking in the mornings." He poured a glass. "I'm afraid that all I have right now is scotch, but we can send one of the servant's out for some Jack Daniels, if you would prefer." Michael watched with hidden glee as his daughter's face showed confusion.

"What are you talking about, Daddy?" Amanda turned to face her lover. "Lex?"

The rancher was looking down at her feet, a resigned look on her face. Then, taking a deep breath, she looked up and locked gazes with Amanda's father. "No thank you, Mr. Cauble. I haven't drank hard liquor in years." She turned and met her lover's eyes. "Remember I told you about Linda?" she asked softly.

Amanda frowned, thinking. "Yes…what does that…"

"After that, I got a little wild for a while… but Martha got me straightened out." Lex felt a small hand on her leg, the presence reassuring. "I'll tell you all about it later, I promise." She whispered.

"I'm not worried, love." The young blonde smiled.

Michael frowned. Damn that Richards… this is not going as I had planned at all. "My mistake, Lex…" he conceded the point to the dark-haired woman. Let's just see if I can shake her up a little more. "So…do you have family back in Texas, Lex?"

Confused by the sudden change in topics, the rancher nodded. "Yes…I have an older brother, Hubert."

Stepping away from the bar, Michael sat down next to his wife on the loveseat, who was sipping from a china cup. "How about your parents?" He leaned over and poured three more cups of coffee, offering one to both Lex and Amanda.

Lex accepted the offering politely, even though the thought of ingesting anything right now made her stomach cramp. "Thank you." She acknowledged the coffee, balancing the cup and saucer on one thigh. "My mother died when I was four - and my father…travels a lot." No lie there, but I guess I could just say he's a drifter who would rather wonder where his next meal is coming from, than have to look at his daughter.

Elizabeth wasn't certain what her husband had in mind, but she decided to play along. "And does your brother work with you at your ranch?"

"No, ma'am. He's a CPA in town." Lex shared a smile with Amanda. "He's not much for the ranch life."

"A professional, then…you must be very proud of him." Elizabeth gave her daughter a look. Much more suitable than a common cowhand, that's for sure."You only have one sibling? Must have been lonely growing up." She gave Lex a mock sympathetic look.

Lex swallowed the lump that had formed in her throat. "I had a younger brother…but he died…about nine years ago." She felt Amanda grasp her hand for support.

"I'm terribly sorry to hear that. It's always so tragic when a child dies." Michael shook his head sadly. "Especially when it can be avoided…" Wait…I seem to recall a boy named Walters that was killed at the lake around that time." He looked at the rancher, an understanding look on his handsome face. "That was your brother, wasn't it?"

"Louis…" Lex nodded, trying to keep her emotions under control. Almost ten years ago, and it still hurts as much as the day it happened… why can't I get past this?

Michael smiled, adjusting his glasses slightly. "That's what I thought. If I recall correctly…" he knew all of the details, since he had just read them this morning, "There was a boat full of kids, and they were hit by another boat, right?" Seeing the dark-haired woman nod slightly, a pained look on her face, he continued," Absolutely horrible. The whole affair could probably have been avoided with the proper adult supervision." Seeing Lex pale. "Don't you agree, Lex?"

"That's it!" Amanda stood up. "C'mon, Lex." She pulled the silent rancher to her feet. "We've got things to do, if you'll excuse us."

Lex allowed the younger woman to lead her through the doorway, her mind a million miles away. He's right…I should have been there, she mentally berated herself. If I had been driving the boat, maybe the entire accident could have been avoided. Numbly she continued to follow Amanda, feeling a small amount of comfort in their linked hands. The cool breeze on her face brought Lex back to her senses. Looking around she found herself standing in the garden, under Amanda's favorite tree.

"C'mere, love…sit down." Amanda sat down under the tree and patted her leg. She waited patiently until the blank look faded from Lex's face, and then she held out her arms. "Please?"

Forcing a small smile to her face, the rancher sat down in front of Amanda and stretched out, allowing the smaller woman to wrap her arms around her. Lex ended up lying on her back between Amanda's legs, her head resting against her lover's chest.

Amanda began gently running her fingers through the thick, dark hair, feeling Lex finally begin to relax. "I'm calling the airline…we're going home on the next flight out." The blonde murmured, angry tears threatening to fall.

"No." Lex finally spoke, her voice hoarse from holding back tears of her own.

"Yes! There's nothing here worth putting you through this - I'm tired of defending my actions to them, and having them try to get to me through you." Amanda absently straightened the bangs on Lex's forehead.

Lex turned slightly, so that she could look into Amanda's face. "Don't let them win, sweetheart…they'll never let you live it down." She raised a hand and caressed the unbruised side of the younger woman's jaw. "I can handle this…they just kinda caught me off guard, that's all."

Leaning down until their noses were almost touching, Amanda dropped a light kiss on the rancher's mouth. "Are you sure about this? We can be home before it gets dark tonight."

Lex raised her head slightly to capture the blonde's lips for a more prolonged contact. "Mmm…" Home…I think I like the sound of that, Lex thought for a wistful moment. "Yeah, I'm sure…we've got a dinner to sit through tonight." She gave her lover a small smile. "But it won't hurt my feelings if you decide that you want to leave Saturday morning."

Amanda grinned. "That's a great idea. I'll call and change our reservations." She wrapped her arms around the reclining woman and squeezed hard. "Have I told you lately just how much I love you?" She whispered into the ear next to her face.

"You may have mentioned something about it a time or two." Lex teased, raising up slightly to return the embrace. "I'm sorry about all that stuff with your father." She said quietly. "I guess I should have told you about that mess before you heard it from someone else… it was just a matter of time before somebody told you."

"No, Lex. I don't expect a day-by-day account of your life before you met me. What I don't understand is how he knew so much about it." Amanda had pulled back enough so that she could look Lex in the eye, angered by the poorly hidden pain she could see there.

The rancher swallowed. "It's a small town…my little 'binge' was certainly no secret." She closed her eyes at the gentle touch on her head. "I spent over a month drunk out of my mind… got thrown out of quite a few bars, and was even picked up by the law a time or two. I imagine that everyone in town knows all about it."

Amanda continued to run her fingers through the dark hair. "You were young, and had been terribly hurt emotionally. Didn't anyone try to help you, talk to you?"

"Yeah…right." Lex scoffed, then looked up into green eyes sparkling with unshed tears. "You've got to understand, Amanda…I was young, it's true. But I was so full of anger and hatred at how unfair I thought my life was, that most folks steered clear of me." She blinked, then looked down, afraid to see the look on the blonde's face. "I had been so nasty to her, even Martha threatened to leave me." She took a ragged breath, "I think that the fear of losing her was what finally snapped me back to reality."

"Oh, sweetheart." Amanda pulled Lex's chin up, so that she could look into her sad blue eyes. "I don't think that Martha would ever leave you…no more than I could." She gave the rancher a gentle kiss.

After returning the kiss, Lex smiled. "God, I love you." She ran a shaky hand down the younger woman's face, then chuckled. "I don't think she was actually going to leave, either. But she did toss a bucket of muddy water on me while I was passed out on the front porch one morning."

Amanda giggled. "I'll bet that went over well." She could almost picture the young rancher's face as Martha dished out her own brand of 'tough-love'. "Wish I had been there to see that."