Sunflower by Jill Marie Landis Page A

need to explain some things to you. How about it?”
    A day without work. A day to walk with Caleb, to talk and to enjoy a few moments of leisure. He had promised to demand nothing of her. Analisa returned her gaze to Caleb and nodded.
    “I promise not to swim in front of you.”
    She tried to hold back the smile, but she was unsuccessful and felt herself smiling openly while she spoke to him. “I will give you the hardest task. You shall explain to Kase that he may not join us. The picmick will be ready in a few minutes.”
    Caleb threw his head back in laughter, startling Analisa. “Picnic,” he said.
    Pointedly ignoring his laughter, Analisa brushed at the full skirt of her dress as she stood and began opening tins and bags of food. Caleb’s laughter filled the room and followed him outside.
    The cotton woods along the stream offered a shaded retreat from the September sunshine. With the remains of their picnic spread out on a piece of calico between them, Analisa and Caleb rested in silence, awkward with their new status as man and wife. A jackrabbit hopped tentatively near the silent figures and froze as Caleb slowly raised his hand to draw Analisa’s attention to the curious creature crouched amid the scrub. She watched it with a smile until the animal darted away into the brush.
    “Thank you for the meal.” Caleb’s voice mingled with the sound of the stream sliding over the rocks along the bank. “And for the company.”
    Analisa nodded in acknowledgment and continued to relax in silence. She fought to keep her eyes from straying too often toward the handsome figure beside her. Caleb had changed into a crisp white cotton shirt and had left the collar open. Although creased from being folded in his saddlebag for so long, the shirt was clean and made of quality material. The white of the cloth enhanced his dark skin and magnified the deep blue of his eyes. She wondered for a moment how he would look in a shirt the color of the sky.
    “I’ve never seen that dress before,” he said. “I like it. Did you make it?”
    Analisa blushed. She thought he hadn’t noticed her change of clothes. The dress was one she’d designed herself, a deep rose-colored cotton with simple lines, suitable for everyday wear, but ornamented with ruffles around the neckline and cuffs. The high collar that graced her long neck also gave Analisa a regal appearance and enhanced the smooth bodice, which outlined her firm, full breasts. A wide sash encircled her waist. Although it was made of inexpensive yard goods, the dress was Analisa’s best, and she was secretly warmed to hear that Caleb liked it.
    “Yes, I made it. Thank you. There’s not much cause for me to own the fancy gowns the ladies of Pella order. I have never worn this dress before today.”
    Caleb was at once reminded of women he knew in the East, women with wardrobes full of gowns from France, worn once and then discarded. Analisa lived a life altogether unsuited for such possessions, a life not all that different from that of his Sioux mother’s people. Indeed, like Caleb himself, Analisa lived somewhere between two cultures.
    “You said you are leaving soon?” She brushed some dust from the toe of her wooden shoe and then, on impulse, slipped the clogs off and set them beside her.
    Caleb pushed the brim of his hat back and unfolded his long legs, then lay back in the grass, propping himself up on one elbow.
    “Tomorrow.” He lifted a sugar cookie from a round, shallow tin. Taking a bite, he let his eyes roam over Analisa’s trim form. She was leaning against the trunk of a cotton wood, her knees bent, legs pulled up against her. She reminded him of a child, the way she held the hem of her skirt tight against her ankles. The tips of her socks peeked from beneath her dress. She said nothing.
    “I’ve been here too long already. I can’t put off leaving another day.”
    “Someone’s expecting you?” A woman? She left the second question unasked.
    “Yes.”