"You made me feel welcome. I haven't been around these parts for years, yet it seems as if I never left. Will you show me the ropes, especially with the kids?"
"Sure," Megan said, unable to comprehend the doubt and uncertainty in Faith's voice. "The best advice I have. Don't let them see you sweat."
They both laughed. "We're going to be good friends," Faith said. "Good night."
"Good night." As Megan headed towards the cabin, an unrecognizable, low guttural sound stopped her in her tracks. Her heart raced and she shivered. "Is it Clay or the unknown man?"
Like a thoroughbred in the last leg of the Kentucky Derby, Megan sprinted to the cabin. The closed door did not offer comfort to her wildly beating heart. The giggling stopped. "Are you okay?" Christa asked.
"Fine." Megan shook off the fear. "Shouldn't you be sleeping?"
"Talking about boys is more fun," Bridget said, her blue eyes dancing with enjoyment.
"Don't mind me." Megan collapsed onto the bed, covering her eyes with her arm. "Was I interested in boys when I was twelve? That's right, I wasn't what most girls my age considered normal. These girls are definitely normal."
"How's Jefferson?" Christa asked, surprising Megan. Her rosy lips curved upwards as she remembered their last telephone conversation a week ago. Jefferson was taking care of his grandmother but would try to get to the ranch for a few weeks. Megan expected to hear from him soon. She missed him and the way he made her laugh and feel confident about her choices. She doubted they would ever be more than friends, but in today's world friends were very important. Bridget and Paige disrupted her thoughts when they asked who he was, what he looked like, what music he liked, and did he have tattoos or piercings.
Taming a crazed horse is easier than deciphering their questions. What happened to personality and a man's attitude towards women and children? "Oh, that's right," she said, hitting her head, "I'm talking to teenagers." Megan sat up. "Jefferson and I dated, broke-up… "And reunited last summer," Christa said, a dreamy smile on her face. "It's like something out of a romance book or movie. Talk about good-looking and nice. If the boys in our grades looked like Jefferson…. the principal would have to transfer him to keep the peace."
"What about Mike?" Paige asked raising her eyebrows.