her case. “Give it just ten more minutes. If we haven’t found the hive by then, I’ll go without complaint.” She gave him a cajoling smile. “Besides, who doesn’t like the idea of a treasure hunt?”
He had to bite back a smile at that—the woman really was incorrigible. “Oh very well—ten minutes.” He hoped he didn’t regret the decision. “What’s the next landmark we’re looking for?”
She released his arm and settled back into her seat. “Thank you. There should be a small cabin of some sort just a little way farther along. Then we’ll need to go the rest of the way by foot.”
Of course they would. But he absolutely drew the line at wondering through the woods. If it wasn’t in easy sight of the trail he would most definitely put an end to her quest. “If Danny didn’t set eyes on the hive itself, how do you know you can find it?”
“He says he got close enough to hear her working. Don’t worry, I’ll find it.”
The small cabin turned out to be a one room building that looked as if it would topple over with the next good wind that blew by.
Eli tied the horse to a bit of brush, then paused as he considered a possible flaw in her plan. “Do you even know how to collect honey?”
But she nodded confidently. “I’ve done it a time or two—remember, I have two brothers and I grew up on a ranch.” She smiled as he took her hand to help her down. “How about you?”
“I have not yet had that pleasure.”
His sarcasm seemed lost on her. “Don’t worry, I’ll show you how. I have some netting and gloves for the two of us so we shouldn’t have to worry much about getting stung. And I also have some oil-soaked rags for smoking the little critters, along with a bucket to collect the honey comb in.”
He’d wondered why she’d packed so many provisions to deliver to her brother’s ranch. “Sounds like you came prepared.”
“Of course. Actually, I don’t know how Josie managed it on her own. I’ve always thought of this as a two-person job. Come to think of it, it’ll be interesting to see how she managed to not destroy the hive while she was at it.”
He stepped forward to assist as she reached behind the seat of the buggy to collect her supplies. He was irritated with her, yes, but he was still a gentleman.
Miss Lassiter studied the brush beside the road and finally pointed toward a narrow space between two scraggly saplings. “There’s a trail here, just like Danny said. But it’s overgrown and looks to be marshy in spots, so watch your step.”
He stepped forward. “I’d better take the lead.” He wasn’t going to risk her getting them lost or wandering too far afield.
Saying the trail was overgrown was an understatement. Within minutes Eli began to wonder if this was actually a trail at all. When his left shoe sunk into a muddy patch a few moments later, he was ready to call the whole thing off. “I’m sorry, Miss Lassiter, but I think—”
“Look, there it is.”
Eli glanced to his left where she was pointing and sure enough the brush gave way to a small flower-bedecked clearing. And right at the edge of it was a crudely constructed man-made hive.
Without waiting for his lead, she moved toward the clearing. “Why Josie, you clever girl. So this is how you were able to harvest honey from the same hive time after time.” She glanced over her shoulder at Eli. “Normally, when you harvest honey from a natural hive, you end up destroying the hive itself or killing the queen. But Josie’s created a cleverly designed artificial hive using this log. This way, you can get at the honey with minimal disruption to the bees.” Then she looked around. “Oh my—no wonder the honey has such a distinctive flavor. I see honeysuckle vines, wild roses and larkspur, but I don’t even know what half of these other flowers are.”
Eli was struck by the way her face fairly glowed with pleasure as she took it all in. That simple joy made her look even more childlike than usual.
Then she turned back to him and her expression immediately sobered. “Sorry. I know you’re in a hurry to get this over with.”
Oddly moved by the loss of her smile, he almost felt as if he should apologize to her for having dampened her mood.
She waved toward the bag he carried. “You can set that here.” As soon as he’d set it down, she dug around inside and withdrew two pair of gloves and netting.
She turned and handed him a large piece of the netting. “Place this around your head and tuck it securely into the collar of your shirt. It’ll keep the bees from getting to your face and neck. Then put these gloves on to protect your hands.”
Eli studied the material uncertainly. He hadn’t really expected them to find the hive, hadn’t considered that he might actually have to assist in the harvesting. Where was his backup plan when he needed one?
But it seemed he was committed to this project now. With a mental sigh he did as she’d instructed.
Despite his misgivings, he actually found himself intrigued by the whole honey-gathering experience. Miss Lassiter spent some time exploring the setup of the hive and the implements Mrs. Collins’s sister had left on site, all carefully wrapped in oilcloth and stored off the ground to keep them from rotting or rusting. His companion seemed delighted with each new discovery and her explanations were filled with superlatives. When she finally set to work, she patiently explained everything she did and everything she needed him to do in great detail, from how to gently waft the smoke into the hive to how to slice the comb as she lifted the frames.
Her bubbly enthusiasm and childlike pleasure in the task puzzled him. The woman seemed to tackle every job she undertook as an adventure to be savored. Which, while naive and inefficient, was also an intriguing novelty. One, he was certain, would become tiresome over time. And surprisingly she seemed much more confidant and capable than she had with her duties at the boardinghouse.
Once they’d finally collected enough honey to satisfy her they moved a safe distance from the hive with their treasure. She set her burdens down and removed the netting from her head, losing a few hairpins in the process. “Now aren’t you glad we came?” she asked as she tucked the cloth into the sack. “You had a chance to experience something new, and Cora Beth will be so pleased with the honey.”
He added his netting and gloves to the sack and then glanced up at the sky as he picked it up. “Let’s just try to make it to your brother’s ranch before that rain starts.”
She seemed disappointed with his staid response, but nodded. “You have the sack, so I’ll take—”
They both reached for the bucket of honey at the same time, their hands overlapping on the handle. He studied her small, delicate hand next to his larger, coarser one and felt that same something strange that had jangled through him in the boarding-house kitchen yesterday.
He forced his gaze up to meet hers and was surprised by the soft warmth in those sorrel-brown depths. Shaking off his momentary disquiet, Eli released the bucket and straightened. “We’d best hurry.”
He preceded her as they marched toward the road, wondering what had gotten into him lately. Perhaps all the events of the past few months were finally starting to have an effect on him. He—
A movement on the ground in front of him caught his attention and he halted mid-step. His pulse quickened as he recognized the coiled form. He hated snakes!
His companion bumped into him and he took firm hold of her arm. “I don’t want to alarm you, but there’s a snake directly in our path. Move back.” He tried to keep his voice calm, to ignore the sweat trickling down his back. She would no doubt count on him to keep her safe.
The snake lifted its head and flicked its tongue in their direction. Fighting his own visceral reaction, Eli tried to tug Miss Lassiter back with him. Problem was, she didn’t seem to feel the same sense of urgency.
Blabbering