Chapter 8

Samantha took the small table from near the door and placed it under the tree near the house with a small stool. Then, she walked to the barn and found him putting hay in the mangers. “I’ve got you some breakfast, if you’re hungry. Come to the house. There is a table set for you.”

He glanced up and nodded. She didn’t wait for him but went back to the house where she brought out a plate of eggs and bacon with several biscuits and a pot of coffee. Moments later he sat down to eat. He bowed his head for several moments then picked up his fork.

“If there’s anything else you need just call. I’ll be inside. I have a pretty mean dog and he is not keen on strangers so it is best if you stay away from the door.”

“I’m much obliged for your kindness, m’am.”

“I have some other work that I could use a hand with but I can’t pay you. If you want a few meals I can manage that. When you’re finished with your meal, knock on the door and I’ll come out so we can talk.”

Half an hour later, he knocked on the front door. Sergeant was up in a flash and stood growling with his nose to the crack of the door. “Heel, Sergeant, heel.” He obeyed instantly but with obvious reluctance. She stepped outside with Sergeant at her side. “Sit, Sergeant.” He moved between her and the man and sat down.

“My compliments on a delicious meal, M’am. And my thanks. My name is Reece Lawrence. You mentioned other work you might have for me?”

She was surprised to realize how tall he was. At this proximity, her head barely reached his shoulder. “Pleased to meet you. I’m Samantha Channing. No thanks are necessary. You earned it. If you are willing to clean the stalls and do the evening milking, I think I can provide you with two more meals. It is small pay for such a large job.”

“If you will throw in breakfast in the morning, I would be happy to take the offer. I need a bed for the night and your barn is quite enticing with that loft full of hay. I slept in a field last night with a stone as my pillow and a pine bough as my blanket. I always liked the story of Jacob in the Bible but after last night, I am not surprised he had strange dreams. I had a headache this morning and I could hardly move.”

“You are welcome to sleep in the barn. There are spare blankets in the storeroom in the barn. I believe they are in a trunk and they should be clean. Help yourself. In fact, there is a cot there also and you may even find a pillow. When my parents were alive we had a boy who worked for us and that was his room as well as the store room.”

As she reach down to stroke Sergeant’s head and scratch behind his ears, she studied the man. Reece Lawrence possessed a rare quality on the island, eyes that her mother would have called powder blue. Blue eyes were not uncommon on the island, they tended to be darker blues, like Rider’s amethyst colored eyes or her father’s sapphire eyes. His complexion was that of one often in the sun and the deeply tanned skin made his eyes striking. She had never seen eyes that shade of blue and it aroused her curiosity.

“I don’t think I’ve seen you around here. Are you from a neighboring province?”

“My family lives in the Bristow Province. I crossed the border from Middleton Province last night and slept in the woods. I was more than excited when I saw a house. Do you know you are the last house before the boarder?”

“I never thought much about it. The road can get quite busy some days.”

“I’m sorry about your parents. But surely, you don’t live alone out here?” He looked around and then at the house.

Sergeant stood up for no apparent reason and managed to force her back a step. “Heel, Sergeant!” she ordered. He obeyed, again sitting between her and Reece. She could still feel a rumbling in his chest as he leaned against her legs.

He smiled and said, “He’s very protective, isn’t he?”

Samantha felt a flush move up her neck. At first glance his was an average face with no memorable features, but when he smiled, something changed and he was extraordinarily handsome. You didn’t really notice the slightly Roman nose, the hard set of the square chin, nor the crescent-shaped scar on the cheek bone. You saw a smile of beautiful white, perfectly straight teeth set in a mouth that smiled easily, and if the lines at the corners were an indication, frequently.

She shook her head and responded to his question. “I live here but I am hardly alone. This brute at my feet is my constant companion. And yes, he is protective. He was trained for that purpose alone. No one dares cross Sergeant, at least, no who lived to tell it. I have three brothers and their families that come by frequently and sometimes they stay the night. My friends stop by every so often. I work in town several days a week. My neighbor, Mr. Wainwright, checks up on me as well, and gets his eggs from me. He doesn’t like chickens but he loves eggs. So, I am never lacking for company.”

“That’s good, then. You haven’t isolated yourself too much. Well,” he said, rubbing his hand together. “I best get started on that work. Any particular place you want me to start?”

They discussed the things she knew needed attending. She needed the wood her brother had cut stacked in the lean-to built onto the back of the house. Most houses on the island had such a feature. A door off the kitchen allowed her to step into the shed and get wood easily without having to go out in bad weather. The door was barred from the inside unless she had to get out. There was an outer door in the shed that allowed access from the outside. It was also barred from the inside except when restocking the wood supply. As a child she had often played in the shed during bad weather and she could never remember having to go out in a storm to get wood until after her father died. It happened only one time. She didn’t let the stock run out after that.

She showed him a broken section of fence along the road she wanted repaired. “There is lumber in the barn and tools in the storeroom. And along the back side of the pasture, toward the north, is another section that is down. I had to stop using that area because the cows can wander through to the Outland.”

“Outland?” he asked.

“Yes. As you noticed, I am the last farm before the border. If my livestock goes wandering into the Outland. . . well, I don’t want to have to go in there looking for them.”

He looked at her and then off toward the north. “I suppose that wouldn’t be a good idea,” he said.

“No, it wouldn’t,” she replied. “Now, I’ll let you get to work. If there is anything else you need, let me know.”

She turned and walked back to the house. Sergeant followed her inside, stopping once to look back at the man standing in the yard, looking north.