Page 9 of Arranging Ayra
“Yes, perhaps. But those elegant and regal creatures are ferocious. Pretty soon the ducks and geese stopped coming around.”
“Oh. That’s too bad.”
“Come on,” he said as he grabbed my hand and led me to the far side of the lake. “Under that forest of...”
I heard nothing of his description of the various trees that made up the surrounding woodland. All I could think of was the grasp of his strong hand over mine. He wasn’t the type of guy I usually went for, the work-with-your-hands type, but there was something about him that so readily drew me in.
We reached the tower, and he released my hand.
“Think you can make it to the top?”
“Make it?” I shot back. “I’ll beat you to the top.” And before he could take a step, I took off and ran up the fifty or so steps to the top. Breathless, I waited for him.
Beet red, he finally made it and faced me with a sheepish grin. “You beat me this time, but I assure you, this is the one and only time I will allow that to happen.”
I grunted. “You didn’tallowit to happen. I beat you fair and square.”
Breathing heavily, he leaned back against the guardrail. “You’re pretty fast for a... you know... a...”
“A girl?” I said as my brow indignantly shot up.
“No. No. You’re fast for a... you know... a musical person.”
I threw my head back to let out a loud and not at all elegant guffaw.
Sobering up, he turned around to lean his forearms against the railing and look out into the distance. “Now that we’ve gotten our breathing back to normal, take a look at that view.”
I hadn’t even taken a glimpse. I immediately turned and let out a surprised gasp. Just as he’d promised, we could see well above the treetops and down into the valley for miles and miles. While I had a great view from my bedroom window, the view here was in the opposite direction and seemed to go on forever.
“Do you know where Jane Austen was born?” Jai quietly said.
“Yeah. Isn’t it Steventon, Hampshire?”
“Right you are. And would you happen to know what direction that would be?”
“I looked around. I have no idea.” I pointed in a random direction. “Over there?”
“Actually,” he said as he came up behind me and turned my head slightly to the left. Leaning in over my shoulder, he reached over me to point to a particular spot. “See that church steeple way over there... that is Steventon, Hampshire, the birthplace of England’s most beloved author.”
The heat of his chest pressing against my shoulder blade was insanely distracting. I had to swallow deeply before finding my voice to speak again. “You mean just down there in the next village?”
He nodded.
“But aren’t we towards the north of England and I thought Steventon was farther... much farther south.”
His sudden laughter was explosive. He backed away and came to stand beside me. “You got me there. You really know your stuff.”
“Were you trying to trick me?”
“Perhaps just a wee bit.”
Giggling, I leaned playfully into him. “So, you’re a prankster, are you?”
“I have my moments.”
I’m sure you do, I wanted to say. I was enjoying myself immensely and didn’t want the day to end. “Thank you so very much for taking the time to show me around. I’m sure you must have a hundred and one other things you need to tend to.”
“That I do,” he admitted. “That I do. But this is far more enjoyable than the hundreds of other tasks that await me. I have three windows to repair on the upper level. Several faucets in the various bathrooms are leaking. Then there is the orchard to tend to, the flower garden, as well as the vegetable garden. And there are the bees to contend with.”
