The next morning after giving her lessons, Katie immediately went back down to the river. When she got there, she realized that the ribbon was gone. She looked around on the ground but didn’t see it. Katie just knew that some of the guys were playing a trick and thought nothing more of it. She found Billy’s hiding place, went in, looked around, but found nothing. Another dead-end. Katie returned home for lunch.
Mark greeted her on the porch. “Find anything?”
“No, but I will.”
“That’s what I love ‘bout you K. You never give up.”
They walked in for lunch, as everyone was just finishing.
“Well, I see how important I am to have everyone wait for me.”
“Ma’am,” started one for the ranch hands, “Mark waited on you but told us to eat.”
“Oh, he did? Well thank you Mark. I hate eating alone.”
“Welcome, I hate eating without having your beautiful face across the table.”
Katie loved the way Mark flirted with her. He was so sweet and really made her feel good. There were times he made her forget about Billy. She wasn’t sure if that was good or bad, but she certainly enjoyed it.
A few days passed, and finally Brian called. Katie was out giving lessons when one of the house staff yelled for her.
“Hello?”
“Katie, it’s Brian.”
“Hey, how are things?”
“Well, not so good.”
“What’s wrong Brian?”
“Well, Katie, I am afraid that I won’t be able to contact you anymore for sometime.”
“Why Brian? What’s wrong?”
“Katie, I was court marshaled and found guilty.”
“Guilty? Guilty of what?”
“Interfering with a US Army investigation. I have to serve 1 ½ - 5 years.”
“Brian, I am sorry. It’s all my fault.”
“No, Katie, it’s not. I never used your name so they don’t know you were involved. I didn’t want you to be arrested too. Anyway, my sentence hearing is tomorrow, so I thought I would call and let you know. I’ll contact you if I can but don’t count on it.”
“Well, Brian, thanks for everything. Let me know when you get out. Again, I am very sorry.”
“Don’t worry Katie. You’ll figure it out. I’ll let you know when I am released. Bye.”
Katie couldn’t believe it. The only link she had was gone. She was now on her own. Katie wanted so bad to figure all this out but in the back of her mind knew that she might never do so. She immediately went outside and told Mark. He couldn’t believe it either.
“Well, that defiantly throws a monkey in the ring, but don’t worry K, we’ll find the truth.”
She smiled at his words and knew that the we meant that he would help her every step of the way. Katie thanked him with a hug and a peck on the cheek.
It wasn’t long before Mark and Katie began spending more and more time together. She would give her lessons in the morning while he worked with some new horses. After lunch, they would stay pretty much together until bedtime. The only time they were apart was when there was a problem on the ranch Mark had to take care of.
Mark soon realized that he had fallen in love with Katie. He also knew that he could never let her know until she had put Billy’s death and Billy to rest. Little did he know that Katie knew how he felt and even found herself wondering if Billy’s death was keeping herself from falling in love with such a wonderful man.
Everyone on the ranch saw what was happening. The guys all kidded Mark, who denied everything. There were some that saw the sparkle in Katie’s eyes when she looked at Mark. He was a very handsome man. About six foot two inches tall, light brown hair, soft baby blue eyes, nicely tanned skin, a perfect loving smile that just made you melt, and was pretty well built from all the work. Katie would sometimes catch herself staring on really hot days when he would remove his shirt and dip his head in the water trough. She also loved the way his tight Wranglers fit him oh so perfectly.
It wasn’t long before Katie began to realize that she was indeed falling in love with Mark, in spite of the love she still had for Billy. As more and more time went by, it became more realistic that she would never find the truth behind Billy’s death. This saddened her because Billy was such a great part of her life, but she knew that she would eventually have to move on with her life.
Katie decided that she needed to get away from everything and figure stuff out. She decided to take a vacation. Katie loved the mountains and countryside but also loved the ocean. She decided the best vacation would be on the beach. She called and rented a condo near Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. The beach in this area was fairly private so she would have it pretty much to herself.
She informed Mark of her plans and told him he was in charge. Katie didn’t know how long she would be gone. Just however long it took. Mark drove her to the airport. Katie hugged him goodbye and off she went.
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