Page 17 of Her Property

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Twenty minuteslater they were bumping down a dirt road that split off the highway halfway between Barkley Falls and Ruby Lake. Somehow Jake had convinced Catherine that they should eat together rather than go home—and he knew the best spot.

“The swimming at Ruby Lake is amazing, but my favorite place is this little hideaway back here.”

“You’re not planning on taking another dip, are you?” Catherine asked, dubiously. The sun was heading towards the horizon and the air had taken on a decidedly more November-like chill when they’d stepped out of the adolescent hormone factory that was Aubrey’s tonight.

“Maybe,” Jake said, winking. God, teasing her was fun.

The road they now rambled down was worse than the one Alfred and Jake’s place was on. It was riddled with potholes and rocks, and the long grass running between the tire ruts twanged against the bottom of the truck.

“You call this a road?” Catherine said, gripping theoh shitbar over the window. Because of her injury, she had to hold it with her left hand, which meant she had to cross her left arm in front of her. The angle of her body lifted her up off the seat, giving him a fine display of the curve of her ass. Once more, Jake had to work hard to concentrate on keeping his eyes on the road.

Luckily it wasn’t as easy to coast here as it had been on the highway.

“Guess it’s more of a wagon trail,” Jake agreed.

Said wagon trail wound its way down a steep slope before ending at a clearing next to a tiny lake—more of a pond. Lining its sides were trees hanging with orange and red leaves, and at the edge of the clearing they were crossing, a cottonwood tree with a rope hanging from its outstretched branch sprawled out over the water. The water reflected the peach-tinged clouds on the horizon. It was so perfect for a moment Jake stood there and stared. He hadn’t been here since he’d come home, and looking out at the place he’d spent many a summer day with James, swinging out into the water from that very tree, made his throat go thick.

Catherine handed him one of the paper bags, a curious expression on her face. She said nothing though, and for that he was glad. They sat down in the grass and spent the next few minutes devouring their food. Catherine had some trouble getting at her burger through the checked wrapper with her injured hand, and finally she held it out to Jake, who helped her unwrap it without a word, spreading the paper out on the ground like a plate.

“Oh my god,” she said after she’d taken her first bite. She mopped up the juice threatening to run down her chin. “How have I not gone into town for dinner yet?”

“The milkshake’s pretty damn good too,” Jake said, taking another slurp. “My grandpa used to take me and my little brother down here for a change of scenery. Sometimes he’d drop us off while he got provisions in town. Probably not that safe to leave two kids at a body of water on their own, now that I think about it,” he said.

Catherine laughed. “Somehow I feel like we did a lot of stuff back then that wouldn’t fly now.”

“We were strong swimmers, anyway,” Jake said.

Catherine looked out over the little body of water. There wasn’t really a beach at the end of the grassy patch they sat on, so much as a tuft of grass that went down to the water. On the other side, cattails and rushes lined the shore, their shadows long on the water.

“It sure is beautiful,” she said.

“Sure is,” he replied. But he was looking at her. He thought he’d taken her here on a whim, but looking at his own motivations, he realized he wanted to invite her to this place, not just to show it to her, but to see how she’d react. Not like a test, exactly, but to see if the way he felt about it was warranted. If it was so precious to him because it was tangled up in old memories or if it really was just a gorgeous jewel. Now, seeing the way she looked at a place he’d thought of several times over the years from thousands of miles away, he felt in some strange way like she’d always been here.

Jake’s chest ached as he looked at her staring out onto the water. He turned away, focusing on finishing his food. Maybe he should have taken her home. He hadn’t tested his feelings like this in a long time. And he was doing it to himself.

They were quiet for a few more minutes, polishing off their fries. Then Catherine reached the bottom of her shake with a loud slurp. She pulled it away and looked up at him, clearly embarrassed.

“That good, huh?” he asked, relieved at the interruption to his thoughts.

Jake took a few more sips until he reached the end of his own shake and proceeded to carry on with a long, loud slurp, looking over his straw at her, his eyebrows waggling.

She laughed, and it was the most beautiful sound in the world.

He put his cup down in the grass.

“I haven’t had a milkshake-off like that since I was a kid,” Jake said, patting his belly.

“That was just what the doctor ordered,” she mused, stuffing her garbage into her bag.

“That and four stitches,” Jake said.

“Right, that.”

“You know, you didn’t tell me exactly how that happened,” he said, leaning back casually on his hands.

“Oh,” she said. “I just… dropped my mug. Stupid, really.”

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