Lucy woke up with a start. It was shortly after sunrise. The house was quiet and beside her Dan continued to sleep soundly. She thought she’d heard someone shouting her name, but no echo lingered in the morning air. Outside her window, birds chirped undisturbed. Whatever had disturbed her must have been internal.
Slipping quietly out of bed, she wrapped her robe around her and went outside to see about the weather.
A thick mist still clung to the trees and the earth felt cool beneath her bare feet, but Lucy felt the promise of sunlight in the warm breeze that blew across her face. She breathed in deeply, grateful for all the fresh, green scents that rose from her garden. She let her awareness flow out over the yard, savoring the feelings of rightness, of peace, of boundless energy, of eternal, joyful creativity. She soaked in it, allowing herself to become a part of it. Allowing it to become a part of her.
“I knew I’d find you out here.” Dan surprised her a few minutes later, wrapping his arms around her waist and hugging her tight. “What are you doing up so early? I thought you’d want to sleep in a bit this morning. Aren’t you tired?” He leaned over to nibble on her ear and Lucy felt a small tremor shiver through her – an echo of last night’s pleasure. “I thought for sure I’d worn you out last night.”
Lucy smiled. “Oh, did you now?” He had a point, after all. She should be tired. But, then again, so should he. She turned within the circle of his arms, and laid her head against his chest, hugging him fiercely in return. She listened to the slow, steady beating of his heart and sighed contentedly. “Not even close, Cavanaugh. I just couldn’t sleep. Why’re you up?”
“Eh, I figured I’d get an early start on the day. I’m going to take the truck down to the fairgrounds now. Get the booth set up ahead of time, for a change. Seth’s up, too. He wants to come with me.” A laugh rumbled in his chest. “God help us both. So, you’ll just be taking the girls with you.”
Lucy looked up at him, startled. “You’re going now? But you haven’t even had breakfast!”
Dan leaned down and kissed her. “Mmm. Don’t worry about it. We’ll get something there. See you later, babe.”
He let her go, and Lucy watched him walk back towards the house. Striding off into the mist like some knight-errant, although she had serious doubts whether any suit of armor had ever looked as good as those jeans and work shirt did.
Just as he got to the house Dan stopped and pivoted, “Hey, babe, since you’re up anyway, why don’t you think about getting an early start yourself? Might be a good idea, you could beat some of the traffic.” He lifted an eyebrow suggestively. “Get there before noon and I could maybe even be persuaded to treat you to some lunch.”
Lunch. Right. “And here I thought I’d just throw together a couple of sandwiches for you,” she teased.
Dan smiled. “Well, that could work, too, you know. We could have ourselves a little picnic. Just you and me. Way out in the woods somewhere. All alone.”
“I don’t know about you, Cavanaugh.” Lucy shook her head in mock sorrow. “Food? Really? Is that all you can think about?”
His laughter drifted back to her through the mist. “Well, you know me, babe.”
Yeah, Lucy thought, brimming with happiness and energy, I certainly do. So, he wanted a picnic, huh? Good idea. Perfect, in fact. She imagined soft, creamy Brie paired with some of last night’s left-over focaccia. Maybe a roasted zucchini-mint salad. And, of course, some fresh strawberries and whipped cream.
Or maybe she’d save the strawberries for tonight and bring peaches instead. Yes, that was what they’d want today. Sweet, ripe peaches dripping with juice. She imagined the taste and the feel of peach skin against her tongue. Mmm. She could hardly wait. She’d better go in now and take her shower and get the girls up. That might not be so easy. No doubt they’d stayed up half the night talking.
And she would have to make sure Kate took all her stuff with her, since Nick was picking her up from the fairgrounds. Sheesh. Wasn’t that a nice mess? Well, she thought as she turned to head back in, she’d better get a move on, if she wanted to get there before noon—which she absolutely did.
It wasn’t until she was halfway back to the house that the words fell, clear as raindrops, into her mind and she knew what it was that had disturbed her sleep. Scout’s back.
Anger sizzled in her consciousness. Her pleasant mood was broken.
Such Fleeting Pleasures
An Oberon Prequel Novella
Love wasn't always strawberries and cream for Lucy and Dan Cavanaugh...or was it? In this Oberon prequel, we travel back in time to see how it all began.
Most of the material in this prequel novella (set some eighteen years before the series begins) also appears as flashback scenes in A Taste of Honey.
You can access a FREE DOWNLOAD of this novella when you join my Facebook group: The Crone's Nest
Or at BookFunnel: https://dl.bookfunnel.com/5xxljdbblb
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