CHAPTER 6 #2
driveway and nervously walked towards the house. Jesse ran down the
sidewalk to meet her, arms outstretched. He was such a loving
child! Two happy dogs bounded up with him. Sandy walked up behind
Jesse smiling broadly. Norman Rockwell could have painted this
scene. The dogs and Jesse all converged on Lily at the same
time.
“Down, Rascal. Get down, Bogart!” Sandy
yelled at his dogs.
“Rascal and Bogart? I’m sure there’s a story
there,” she kidded. Lily stopped to pet the dogs just before Jesse
hugged her. She gave him a huge hug back and straightened to meet
Sandy. It had crossed her mind to wonder if coming here was really
such a good idea.
“Before you change your mind about staying,
let us give you a tour of the place,” said Sandy.
Had she looked like she was ready to get back
in her car and go? They started walking toward the front door.
“The house has gone through several
renovations. The latest was after my wife died.” He glanced at
Jesse who was skipping in front of them with the dogs at his heels
and lowered his voice to speak confidentially.
“I’m so sorry.” Lily reached out to touch his
arm.
“Thanks. There were so many reminders of her
that I had to do something or move. Since this has been my only
home and originally my parents’ home, I decided to make major
changes. It looks nothing like it did before.” Sadness clouded his
face momentarily but he was able to shake it off.
“What kind of wood is that? It looks
fantastic when the light hits it.”
“That’s white pine. It used to be redwood,
but that was too dark. Inside there’s a lot of cedar, a nice golden
wood.” Sandy opened the front double doors for her. “Shall we go
in?”
She hesitated. Somewhere deep down inside,
those words rang through her. The house was a bulwark in some way.
Going into it was like crossing a finish line or finally making
that hard decision. No going back once you’re in, said the little
voice pinging in her head. She shook her head to quiet the
voice.
“No?”
“No, I mean yes, thank you,” Lily felt her
face warm because of the way he was looking at her. He seemed to
keep her off balance but it wasn’t bad--just like eating a new
flavor of ice cream.
Stepping into the house was a kind of
revelation. How a house looks says much about what kind of person
living there
Hold it… Was he an interior decorator
as well? He walked her down a long hallway towards the family room
and kitchen. Stopping to show her the first room, he said, “The
dining room, of course.” But it was much too simple a statement.
The room was something out of Architectural Digest or a Western
living magazine.
She was amazed at the high ceiling with large
wooden beams. A long metal chandelier hung over an elegant, wooden
dining table with many chairs. French doors opened onto a sunny
stone patio with a grass yard that seemed to stretch on
forever.
“You must like to mow.” Stunned at what she
had seen so far, Lily cracked a small joke hoping he wouldn’t see
her embarrassment.
“Maybe once in a while, but my foreman, Jason
Bates, has a man do it. Don’t worry – he has a John Deere riding
mower and enjoys the heck out it, or so he says.”
He led Lily on down to the family room and
kitchen.
“This is where we spend all our time anyway.
That dining room gets lonely from disuse. Well? What do you think
so far?”
“… Sandy, this is wonderful. Homey, stylish,
warm,” she gushed. “I have to ask: did you do this yourself or have
help?”
A small smile spread across his face. “Okay,
now I see where you’re going. And no, I have no interior decorating
skills. I hired a decorator from Tahoe to help me. Would you like
to see more of the house?”
It was hard for Lily to leave the comfort of
the family room. Again she saw high ceilings with a Western-style
chandelier hanging in the center. An immense stone fireplace blazed
with heat and light. Comfortable chairs in soft greens and browns
sat on a luxurious braided rug covering much of the hardwood
floors. Was that oak? A few paintings of horses and stagecoaches
hung here and there with table lamps giving the room a warm
glow.
“If you tell me you painted those pictures,
too, I will have to leave,” said Lily smiling. “I don’t think I
could take it if you were a poet and a painter.”
“Ha. Don’t I wish I were that talented…
Again, the decorator from Tahoe found them. I think they look real
nice in here, though. Don’t you?” He seemed anxious for her
opinion.
“Oh, Sandy. This is the most welcoming home
I’ve ever been in. It’s lovely! Your decorator filled it with
beautiful things, but it’s the people who make it a home.” Lily
blushed again. Why was she lecturing him?
He smiled as he looked around. “Thanks. I
feel that way too. Come on and let me show you the rest of it.” He
turned to speak to his son. “Jesse, it’s your turn to feed the
dogs.”
Jesse went off to do his chore. The rest of
the house was as terrific as she thought it would be. Bedrooms,
exercise room and media room were all beautifully decorated. Wait a
minute. Media room? In the middle of an enormous room with
dark shades on the windows was a large television that covered
nearly one whole wall. On other walls were rows and rows of movies.
Was he a movie lover? Now things were getting interesting.
“I have to ask about the media room with the
huge TV. Are you a movie buff?” Beads of sweat dotted his forehead.
Was he uncomfortable or had she said something wrong?
Sandy shrugged. “It’s really for my mother.
She’s the movie buff, but I’m learning. Do you like movies?”
“Absolutely. Movies and books are my
pastimes.” She wondered if his pastimes were roping or calving,
besides the cowboy poetry.
They ended the tour back in the family room.
The atmosphere was warm and cozy. Sandy was clearly a man of
substance and she wondered what the heck she was doing with him.
Jesse ran up, dogs at his heels.
“Miss Cable, Miss Cable! Would you like to
see my horse now?” Jesse smiled broadly and Lily longed to sweep
back that mass of hair always falling in his cherubic face. She
smiled back at him.
“You bet. Lead me to him. Is it a him or a
her?” she asked Sandy.
He laughed, “A her. This way.” He cupped
Lily’s elbow to usher her out the back door towards the barn. That
now familiar spark from his touch no longer made her uncomfortable.
Sizzle, maybe, but definitely not uncomfortable. He smiled at her
and clutched her arm even tighter.
The backyard area also seemed to go on
forever. A large barn sat on one side with other low level
buildings mixed in the countryside. He must have a building for
everything. The main house backed up on one side to tree-covered
hills. Behind the hills were the Sierra Mountains complete with
remnants of the snow pack. Like the town, his ranch was a picture
postcard. It would be hard not to love this place.
Once they were in the barn, Sandy nodded to
her. “Have you ever ridden before, Lily?”
“Actually I have. I grew up on my parents’
ranch in Sonoma. My Dad still breeds ranch horses.” She looked
around at the airy loft filled with hay and the individual stalls
housing several sturdy horses chewing complacently.
“So you might be a Westerner after all,” he
teased.
“I have a funny feeling I might.”
“I thought you said he had a winery.”
“He does that too. He doesn’t have many acres
of grapes, but Dad loves the process of winemaking. He sells a few
bottles around town. I’ve learned a lot from that man.”
“What about your mother?” Sandy pulled down a
worn saddle decorated with silver rounds. “You haven’t mentioned
her or is it none of my business?”
Lily touched the soft leather of the saddle.
“She died several years ago. Had a heart attack one night after
dinner and just died sitting in a chair in the living room. We
thought she was asleep… She wasn’t.”
“I’m so sorry.” Sandy took her hand as Jesse
ran up.
“What’s taking you guys so long, huh? Scout
wants to take off. Let’s go!”
Sandy put saddles on two of the young horses,
a bay and a lovely chestnut mare. After cinching the saddles, he
helped Lily mount and handed her the reins. “Okay?”
Sitting a horse felt so familiar and she felt
her childhood stirring. She tied her hair into a quick ponytail and
took the reins. “Yep, let’s go.”
They walked their horses for a while, began
to trot and then Sandy arched a playful eyebrow. “Ready,
ma’am?”
Lily laughed, “Yes, sir.” And they took off
at a gallop. Jesse was already far ahead shouting for them to catch
up. The happy dogs were out loping along with him. They’d turn and
run back to Sandy getting what looked like a pretty good
workout.
Wow! What a gorgeous view.
Their horses ran through a meadow covered
with yellow and purple wildflowers. Recent rains had green grasses
sprouting everywhere. Gentle sloping hills in the distance
resembled steppingstones to the gigantic mountains behind them.
When they stopped at a stream for the horses to drink, Lily wanted
to run through the meadow like Maria in the Sound of Music
singing about the hills being alive.
Sandy bent forward in his saddle. “Penny for
your thoughts.”
“You’re going to think I’m a hopeless
romantic, but I feel like Maria in the Sound of Music.
“Does that make me Captain Von Trapp?” With
an infectious laugh, Lily laughed with him.
“You’re so exotic to me that you should be
the Frenchman in South Pacific instead.”
“Why exotic? And you’re the second person to
bring up that movie to me recently.”
They were walking their horses now while
chatting across the saddles. Conversation was easy, natural. Jesse
rode ahead and was busy giving the dogs orders, which they
blatantly ignored.
“Who else brought up that movie to you? And
why?”
“Hmm… I guess I can tell you this.”
Sandy told her about the conversation he had
with his mother last night. He admitted that he was apprehensive
about inviting a woman over and needed a sounding board. Lily
grinned during his recitation, but her eyes widened with the
information about her grandfather, Joe Cable.
“My dad told me he had gone to school with
your father, Miles, but he didn’t say anything about Grandpa Joe
knowing your grandfather. I didn’t realize the Cables had such deep
roots in Naples. Dad never mentioned it.”
She looked at him sheepishly and continued.
“I called Sam, my dad, probably when you called your mother.
Interesting that we did the same thing, don’t you think?”
He nodded and gave her a look that said many
things were interesting between them, their families and where this
relationship might be going. Perhaps she saw what she wanted to
see…
“But wait a minute. You called me exotic.
What did you mean by that? You’re the one with the exotic flower
name of Lily.”
“I’m not sure that a lily is an exotic
flower. I think of orchids as exotic,” she began.
Sandy shrugged, waited for her to go on.
“Okay, why are you exotic? Well,” she
blushed. “Uh…I think our horses want to run again, don’t you? Let’s
go!” With that Lily flicked the reins on her horse’s flank and the
mare took off running. Sandy laughed and took off after her.
Jesse yelled, “Wait for me, Miss Cable!” So
they slowed to wait for him and rode together for a while, enjoying
the day. Walking the horses on the ride back to the ranch, Sandy
told her he had invited his mother to come over for dinner.
“Actually, Mom invited herself. She’s a
pretty strong character and I know she wants to meet you. I’m sorry
about this, since I barely know you myself.”
“No, it’s fine. I would like to meet her and
ask her more about the Cable family. She seems to know more than I
do.”
With the horses back in the barn, fed and
watered, Jesse ran to the house yelling about his new computer
game. Sandy walked over to his pregnant mare and started to examine
her. The horse was a beautiful Appaloosa with white and gray
markings. Lily stood back to take a good look. She didn’t know
anything about horse pregnancies but Sandy began to explain a few
things and how the procedure should go.
“My foreman is busy this weekend and my vet,
Dr. Walker, is on call. He knows she could deliver anytime.”
“Doesn’t the horse pretty much give birth by
herself? What do you want the doctor for? An emergency or
something?”
“Exactly. Horses are too expensive to leave
anything to chance. And this is my horse, Anna. I’ve had her for a
few years and wouldn’t like anything to go wrong. This is the only
time I plan to breed her. She’s too valuable to me.” He had been
looking at the horse. Glancing at Lily he shyly said, “When you
find something of value, you want to keep it.”
Oh, man… This guy really was from Jane
Austen’s time. He was eloquent, sensitive, a good father and loved
his mother. He seemed to good to be true. Maybe he’d turn into a
frog if she kissed him.
“Lily? Are you there? You spaced out on me.”
His eyes twinkled. “Come on. Let’s go and get an early dinner
started. I planned to barbecue various meats. I hope you’re not a
vegetarian.”
“Absolutely not.” Especially since she had
recently pictured him as a big, juicy steak.
“You look like you’re ready to take a bite
out of me,” laughed Sandy as he headed to the barbecue area.
You’ve no idea. Lily sighed as she
joined him.
* * *