Rachel's Choice by Judith French

You can’t work in the cornfield if you’re hiding in the hayloft.”
    His disapproving expression changed to one of amusement.“I don’t think much of this,” he admitted. “But it’s more than I’ve come up with.”
    She clapped her hands together. “I am brilliant.”
    He grimaced. “Devilishly inspired.”
    â€œThank you.” She laughed. “Naturally, I’ll need to cut your hair.”
    â€œCut my hair? The hell you will. I—”
    â€œNo one who looked at you would believe that you’re not …” She struggled to find the right words. “You look too … too …”
    â€œRoguishly handsome?” He arched an eyebrow.
    She giggled. “Healthy,” she corrected. “You look too healthy.”
    â€œHmmph,” he grumbled. “I suppose all mute men in this state have bad haircuts.”
    â€œNot all of them, Chance. Just this one.” She chuckled. “Be serious. I’m trying to save your neck. We need to find you some worn clothing or cut a few holes in what you’re wearing. And you’ll have to practice your walk.”
    â€œMy walk? What’s wrong with my walk?” He moved closer to the shore, and the water level of the creek dropped to his hips.
    â€œIt would be more realistic if you shuffle a little,” Rachel said. “Just when someone’s around. So long as you don’t talk, and you hang your head and—”
    â€œBark like a dog?” he suggested.
    â€œAbner isn’t crazy. He’s just slow.”
    â€œAbner.”
    â€œPotts. Abner Potts.” She couldn’t resist a smile. “But Abner’s very obedient. Once you teach him how to do something, he can keep doing it.”
    â€œOh, he can, can he?”
    She squirmed under his gaze and rushed to ease thetension between them. “Yes … yes. And did you see what Cora Wright and her friends did for me?” she blurted out. “They planted my crop and the garden. And they’ve loaned me a horse. We’ll be able to cultivate the fields, and I can ride him to town—so long as the soldiers don’t confiscate him.”
    He nodded, half turned, and dived under the water.
    She took a deep breath and rubbed the small of her back. All day she’d been troubled by an ache, but she’d been on her feet since dawn. It would never have done to sit and be waited on, not when some of the colored folk were so conscious of her white status.
    â€œChance?” He hadn’t come up, and she felt a momentary unease. Then his head broke water, and he took several powerful strokes with his good arm. “Oh, I thought for a moment that I was going to have to come in and pull you out,” she said.
    â€œThat will be the day.”
    â€œI’m sure you swim as well as you do everything else,” she replied, feeling suddenly weary.
    She sank onto the soft grass and let the scent of newly turned soil fill her head. For weeks—months even—she’d worried that she’d not be able to put in a crop this year. Now that awful weight was lifted from her shoulders, and she was weak with relief.
    â€œAre you coming out of there?” she demanded of Chance. “I won’t have to cook tonight. Cora left enough food to feed an army.” When he seemed to ignore her, she lost her patience and signaled to Bear. “Fetch!” she ordered her faithful giant. “Bring him in, boy.”
    Bear ambled down the bank and splashed into the water. Lady, who hated getting her feet wet, contentedherself with racing up and down the bank and wagging her tail.
    â€œI’m coming,” Chance answered. “No need to set the hounds on me.” He grinned as he splashed toward her. “Don’t get all prickly with me. I’m slow, remember.”
    â€œBut obedient.”
    â€œYes, ma’am.” He squeezed the water out of