Four

Not being one for dresses, Kara took a hot bath with Epsom salt and baking soda to ease her sore muscles and put on jeans with a nice top and her newer pair of boots.  In fact she did not own a single dress and she had no intention to go to that expense at this time.  They would just have to meet her as she was.  Pulling her auburn hair back in a ponytail with a few strands framing her face that always refused to be tamed, she glanced one last time in the mirror, before she got in the old Jeep and drove to the ranch next door.

By the time she got there it seemed that most of the people had already arrived.  The yard was filled with vehicles of all shapes and sizes.  Clearly the curiosity was greater than she had expected.  That or they just wanted any excuse for a party.  Brad parked his car just as she was getting out and he greeted her jovially and offered an arm, before he barged in the front door without knocking.  She was grateful to know at least one person at this party full of strangers.

When he’d walked up to her outside she had noticed that he’d taken the time to shower and change.  The beige suit jacket he wore was slightly more casual than the dark suit he had worn that afternoon and he had paired it up with pressed, dark jeans and a striped, two-toned blue button up shirt, his shoes were also more casual than what he had worn that afternoon.  The smell of aftershave that came to her was pleasant and she smiled slightly.  Clearly he was very proud of his appearance and cleanliness.

Absently she wondered what his line of work was, since he did not look or act like a rancher.  But then he could be a gentleman rancher.  She would have to remember to ask him when she had a chance.

He took it upon himself to introduce her to each person and then start the conversation, whether anyone else planned to do it or not.  Kara noticed that everyone was amused with his character and he was clearly on the top of the guest list to anyone’s party.  His outgoing personality seemed to endear him to most of the people at the party.

Apparently, from the conversations that came up, his company did the bookkeeping for most of the farmers in the area and Kara made a mental note.  If she kept working as she did the last week, she would need his help sooner or later as she had yet to sit down in her Grandad’s office to work through his paperwork.

Kara tried hard to remember the names that were thrown at her, but she knew, as Brad had stated, that she would never remember them all the first time around.

When Brad went to get her a glass of wine and some tit-bits to eat while she was involved in a conversation, Kara was once again introduced to yet another group of ranchers.  As she took the offered hands in the circle of men, she smiled at each until she came to the last man.  The smile froze on her face when she looked into the eyes she had seen before.  Except now she could see more detail than just the eyes that was all she could recall of him afterwards. 

The man had longish black hair and the shadow of a beard was already showing on his strong jaw, though it was obvious that he had shaved that morning.  He had a straight nose and handsome face and he was once again giving her that crooked smile he had at the river.  He seemed to be about thirty.  She sensed that his taste in dress was casual and clearly meant for comfort, a lot like her own.  She just hoped that he would not remember her.

“Matthew Connor.”  Came the introduction and she took the hand he offered; this was then his ranch.  Apparently he was not a vagabond she could just forget like she had hoped.  She had stripped and swam naked in front of her closest neighbor.

Perfect!  Just something she would manage to embarrass herself with in her new home.

He grinned with pleasure and she knew without a doubt that he remembered her all too well.  “Good evening, Miss Daniels.  I hear you had to explore your ranch on the first week you came here.  Did you get to see the little Utopia we have on the border of our two ranches?  Some believe there are sprites in that clump of woods.”

Kara was chagrined to feel a blush rise and even more so to know that he was blatantly reminding her of the day she had met him by the small waterfall.  Not only was he causing everyone in the conversation to look questioningly at her, he also seemed to fancy her as a mischievous forest creature.  She gave him a cold smile.  “Really, Mr. Connor? And would you be one of those who believe such a silly tale?”

The other people in the conversation were sure there was more being said than what they understood and they were even more certain when they saw a slight flush come to her cheeks, but they knew that anything they were meant to know would be told willingly.  But then they also knew Matthew Connor very well since he had a tendency to torment people who were easily annoyed. 

All they were left to was to speculate about the joke, but they could see that he had already hit some nerve with her especially when he answered her question with a smirk.  “Honestly, I haven’t decided, yet, although I did seem to dream of a nymph that swims in that river, a while back.”  He replied with an amused grin.

Kara narrowed her eyes while she stared at him.  She honestly could not think of anything she could say without embarrassing herself.  Luckily Brad came to her rescue when he returned with the wine and food and he kept the conversation going in a safer direction, keeping her attention occupied, even if she could feel Matthew Connor watching her with endless enjoyment when she was drawn away and introduced to other people, though she also knew very well that he would not be caught at it.

She had tried to glance casually in his direction, attempting to catch him in the act, but he had always seemed to have his full attention on the person who was talking to him.

Finally, Kara felt she would scream if she had to feel his intent eyes on her much longer and she excused herself to go home.  Of course now she knew who he was and she also knew that he would take as much pleasure out of her embarrassment as he possibly could.  “You stupid fool!  Do you have to be so impulsive?”  She demanded angrily of herself while she drove the short distance back to her ranch; just her luck that she would embarrass herself in such a way in front of her neighbor.  Her parents had often lamented her recklessness and it would seem that they had been right; it would get her in trouble one day.

What would she do to get it out of her life?  For now she could avoid Matthew Connor, at least until she could figure out a way to free herself of what her impulsiveness had thrown her head first into.  At least he had not had a camera, she thought with some relief.  She had no doubt that if he had he would have somehow used that against her.

Her embarrassment would only last as long as his memory could recall, or until his attention had been caught by something else.  She just had to find a way to divert his attention from her moment of recklessness.  She had no idea how to do that, but she knew for a fact that avoiding him in such a small town would be near impossible since they would eventually meet again somewhere.

She did not doubt that he was taking great pleasure out of what he had seen, in more ways than one would think, but she had no intention on having that hang over her head indefinitely.  Perhaps soon he would lose interest if she gave him no more ammunition.