Dawn over Sun Valley Ch. 05

Leanne forced herself to meet Tammy's eyes. "I love him, too. But I told him from the get-go not to expect this to be something it can't be. I will leave come Halloween.

"Why, Leanne? Why not give this relationship a real chance?"

Because it never had one. Not really.

"It's just - I'm too young to think about a serious commitment, you know? I literally just started my life as an independent adult a couple of months ago. I - I'm just not in that place in my life right now."

Tammy made a sad face at her. "It's not fair. I really like you. I would have loved having you as my sister."

Leanne wanted to cry. "We could still be soul-sisters, right?"

Tammy hugged her again. "I'm an optimist, AND incurably romantic. I'll just do everything in my power to change your mind and keep you guys together here on the farm. Okay?"

Leanne's pained smile was her only response. She had learned the hard way life didn't turn out the way you wanted just because you wished it so. But she didn't have it in her heart to tell Tammy that.

*

For the next few weeks, Leanne had squashed any thoughts of the future before they could take residence in her mind. November was a while away, and the here and now demanded her full attention. Work was intensive, and she thrived on it. And Joe -

She sighed, and wished for the thousand's time that things could be different. Sitting at the dining hall together with the other seasonals at lunch - their last lunch together, this being Labor Day Monday - she tuned out their excited conversation about their upcoming vacations as she played absently with her food. Thinking about Joe and their situation kind of killed her appetite.

With a muttered curse, she made herself think of something else. Like the upcoming Labor Day Party that evening. She was excited!

Tammy told her it was a steadfast tradition on the farm. Every year, they would celebrate the end of summer with a huge bonfire party. On Monday night, when the last of the weekend visitors had left, they invited friends from all over the county, as well as every hand on the farm - past and present - to celebrate with food and music and dancing.

Leanne was wholeheartedly looking forward to it. Maybe he'd even dance with her...

...Or maybe not, she was quick to remind herself. While their relationship was no longer a secret, it was highly unlikely that Joe would engage in any public displays of affection in front of his staff. She sighed. It was a shame, really.

Shrugging mentally, Leanne raised her eyes to look around, only to notice Joe and Tammy walk into the dining hall and head straight over to the buffet, along with their father and a second older gentleman, whose gait was surprisingly springy and energetic, completely at odds with his frail, slightly-hunched frame.

Something tugged at the back of Leanne's mind; a small string of memory. Had she seen this man before?

A little panicked at the thought, Leanne didn't want to stay and find out. It would be safer to simply keep her distance. The past was weighing on her conscience, fraying her nerves. I should just tell him and be done with it, and hope as hell he'd forgive me. I can't go on like this, she thought, but knew it wasn't the time nor the place to do it. Tonight. I'll tell him tonight, after the party. After we've made love one more time... I'd just lie low until then.

Her mind resolved, Leanne kept her head low hoping for an opportunity to escape before the older gentleman had seen her. Joe had turned with his full tray and spotted her, giving her a smile and a nod from across the room before walking over to the only open table. Soon his family and their guest joined him, and Leanne was relieved that the he had sat with his back to her.

She realized standing up and walking out right then would just draw undue attention to herself, so she gritted her teeth and waited until everyone in their table had finished and stood to take their trays to the far edge of the dining hall. She kept herself semi-hidden amongst her peers when they'd all scraped their leftovers into a large bin and submerged their dirty dishes in a soapy water basin.

Then they all moved to the hallway and stopped there to wash their hands after the meal, forming a makeshift line. Leanne looked over her shoulder to see the McConnels and the elderly gentleman already en-route to deposit their trays, too, and decided not to wait any longer. Mumbling a hasty goodbye to her friends' surprised faces she set out in a half-walk, half-run towards her room. Better not push her luck.

*

"Hey, Joe, I've a question for you." Dr. Lewis asked conversationally as they'd all made their way from the dining hall and around the farmhouse, to get back in through the front door.

"Sure, what's up?" Joe paused in his stride to turn to the doctor. His father and sister had continued walking, deep in their own conversation, but then slowed and stopped when they noticed them falling behind.

"Oh, you two go on, we'll catch up with you in a moment." said the doctor, to which Michael raised an eyebrow. But Dr. Lewis waved his hand at him reassuringly - "Go on. We'll be there in a moment."

Shrugging, his father turned and fell into step with Tammy again, jumping right back into their heated discussion. Dr. Lewis watched them for a few moments, until Joe cleared his throat.

"Ahm, anything you wanted to chat with me about, doc?"

Dr. Lewis's sharp, light-grey gaze met Joe's, giving him a silent once-over before replying with his own question. "How come you haven't scheduled any baseline checkups this year for your summer temps?"

Joe scratched his jaw. He could point out it was Tammy's job, as head of HR, to do it, but Dr. Lewis was well aware of that fact, and still chose to ask him. Joe relented. "We honestly didn't think it was necessary. I mean, I know it's part of your retainer, but it's such a hassle to go through with young, healthy people who're gone before they get here." He shrugged, but then tilted his head, looking questioningly at the older man. "Why?"

Dr. Lewis kept quiet, and Joe was getting a little uneasy. "Do you think there may be something wrong with one of them? They all seem perfectly okay to me. And they did fill out the health questionnaire for their insurance when they'd arrived. None had any pre-existing conditions to report. "

The doctor didn't respond, but searched Joe's face, and the silence stretched for so long it was downright uncomfortable. Finally he spoke up, his voice surprisingly thick with emotion.

"No, it's not that at all. It's just... that girl, the blonde temp? She reminds me of a woman I met briefly, many years ago... I'd always wondered about her." He took in a deep breath, and then continued. "I know it sounds crazy, but she looks so much like that woman I could swear they were related."

Joe looked over to the women's dorms, frowning, and then levelled his gaze with the doctor's once more. "What's the secrecy, then? You could have mentioned it in front of my dad and sister. What aren't you telling me?"

Dr. Lewis thinned his lips, clearly uncomfortable answering the question. Joe kept silent, and a few moments passed in tense silence.

"I met that woman on the night of the accident. The night your mother died."

Joe's breath caught in his chest. It took a couple of false tries before he managed to choke out -

"What?!"

Dr. Lewis looked undecided before he continued in a measured voice. "I don't know how much you remember from that night. I know you saw some of it, and later you went into some kind of shock, but -" he drew a deep breath, then exhaled loudly. "That drunk driver, he came here to pick up his wife and daughter. He took a winery tour while they were here, and when he returned..."

The doctor's voice trailed off. Joe's throat hurt as agonizing memories rushed in, unchecked.

The screeching tires, spewing gravel every which way. The screaming. The sick, muted thud. And then, the silence that stretched forever while he was planted to his place, unable to move, unable to tear his eyes away, until suddenly there were people running everywhere, shouting, calling for help... he remembered little Tammy bursting out the main door and then freezing next to him when the horror scene sunk in, remembered her chubby hand slipping into his, tugging... they couldn't see his mother's face - the wretched car blocked their view - but they could see her legs lay in an unnatural position, and could hear her pained moans. He remembered thinking 'Tammy can't see this.' and he'd turned and picked her up and ran inside and up the stairs to her room, where he'd tucked her into bed although it was still only afternoon and then snuggled next to her and hugged her shaking form to his, telling her 'it's all right, Tammy, it's all right' although he knew even then that he was lying, and that nothing was ever going to be all right.

Joe coughed to clear his clogged airway, struggling to refocus his mind on the present, and on the doctor's words. "I - I didn't know there were a wife and kid - dad never said anything."

"Hmm. Yes, of course you couldn't have known. They were at the petting zoo when - when it happened. They must have not realized something had happened, or maybe the mother didn't want to scare her kid, I'm not sure - either way, they stayed there for another hour or so, until closing time, and only when no-one came by to close, nor did her husband come looking for them, she must have realized something bad happened."

Joe cleared his desert-dry throat once more. "Yeah, well, what I don't understand is - what's that got to do with this Leanne - the temp you saw?"

Dr. Lewis's head snapped back. "Leanne, that's her name?" he asked sharply, and Joe nodded slowly. "Yeah - why?"

Dr. Lewis stalled, but finally admitted - "well, she's the spitting image of that woman - Holly Richardson, William Richardson's wife. Holly fainted when she'd learned what happened, and they called me to check up on her - by that time your mother was already at the hospital, taken by ambulance, while I stayed here. I couldn't leave before I knew... And then Holly fainted and they called me to help..."

The older man's voice trailed off as he shrugged helplessly, until finally he added - "That little girl, she wasn't much more than a toddler. Maybe three or four years old. Her mother called her Lily - or so I thought, but it could be a nickname - LeeLee?"

Joe felt all his blood draining from his face, leaving him dizzy, while his heart beat erratically in his chest. No, no, it couldn't be... could it?!

Through numb lips he managed to mumble: "Do you - do you think Leanne is William Richardson's daughter?!"

Dr. Lewis shook his head. "I don't know. All I'm saying is, her resemblance to Holly Richardson is uncanny. I feel like - like I've seen a ghost."

Joe breathed a silent expletive. "This can't be a coincidence, can it?" he asked quietly, and Dr. Lewis's frown deepened. "I don't know. It might be. I just felt I needed to say this."

Joe thinned his lips, then turned on his heel and started towards the offices.

"Where are you going?" Dr. Lewis asked after him, but Joe just muttered over his shoulder - "To check the facts before I jump to conclusions. Go ahead inside, I'll join you in a few."

Dr. Lewis stood and watched as Joe paused outside Tammy's office, as if afraid to go in. Finally, he turned to go up the steps and into the main house.

*

The party was in full swing already, but Joe still hadn't showed up. Leanne tried to swallow her nerves and disappointment. He'll come. He has to! Even if they couldn't dance, they could still have fun tonight before she would tell him, right? And then, maybe, she could make him see -

"C'mon, don't brood there on the sidelines. Shake that bootie with me!"

Tammy took her hand and pulled her into the action, and Leanne let her, leaving the beer bottle she was nursing for some liquid courage on the makeshift bar. It really was fun - the weather was perfect, the air still warm even though the sun had sunk; the music was loud and lively and upbeat, and there was food and drinks and lots of happy, celebrating people around. Leanne pasted on a smile and joined her friend, rocking and swaying to the rhythm.

Truth was, aside from Joe's out-of-character tardiness and the nerves from her decision to come clean to him, she was feeling darn good. The dress she had on - a short, flirty little thing in bright blue - made her eyes pop and skimmed her curves in all the right places, and she felt beautiful in it. Her grey flats were great for dancing on the packed dirt, and were a passable match, for which she was thankful - there weren't any other options - but that's why she bought the neutral-colored, practical pair in the first place.

She didn't have any jewelry on, but she took care with her small stash of makeup, and loved what Tammy had done with her hair. She talked her into using some kind of hot ceramic curler thing, and the soft wavy curls floated around her shoulders and framed her face perfectly.

She couldn't wait for Joe's reaction, seeing her like that. The man loves you. She gave herself a quick pep-talk. He will listen, and he will understand. Trust in him.

A half-hour later she was out of breath and antsy again. "I'm going to grab something to drink," she shouted to Tammy, who nodded and gave her a thumbs-up. Leanne turned and walked back to the bar on the other side of the huge bonfire.

The huge bowl of spiked lemonade looked heavenly, and Leanne took one of the already-filled cups and downed it with a few large gulps, refilled it, and then sipped the second one more slowly. She was halfway through when a hand closed around her wrist, and tugged none too gently.

"Come with me."

Startled, Leanne turned to look behind. Her slightly-buzzed mind seemed to follow at a slight delay, and then took another moment to recognize Joe, who stood in the shadow just outside the fire's circle of light.

"Joe! You came. Now the party can start!"

Her smile faltered when he didn't return it, but rather tugged at her hand once more.

"Let's go. Somewhere private."

"Um... okay, if that's how you want to get the party started, I'm totally game!"

His jaw tightened and his steps quickened, and Leanne's heart skipped a bit. She liked having this effect on Joe. Maybe it was the alcohol making her more brazen, but she didn't think he'd mind. In fact, maybe he'd like it!

He was walking so fast she had to break into an awkward jog once or twice to keep up, and something about his silence jarred her, but she figured he didn't want to draw any undue attention, so kept her own mouth shut, too. Joe led them towards the two small sheds at the Southern edge of the farm. The evening was quite dark; the moon was only a thin sliver of light in the black sky, and the few lights from the party and main house were too distant to give good illumination.

Once there he stopped, so abruptly that she bumped into him, and his hands closed around her shoulders - steadying her, but squeezing harder than usual. Leanne reached her arms to circle his waist, moving closer. His hands flexed, fingertips digging into her shoulders.

She couldn't quite grasp his mood, nor see his features properly. But she had sensed the tension in him, humming in his taut muscles. Was it desire? Stress? Something else? She wasn't sure.

"What is it, baby?"

When he wouldn't answer she hesitated, but then went on tiptoes and spoke close to his ear.

"Whatever it is, maybe I could make you feel better, cowboy?"

*

Joe's heart was going to pound right out of his chest. Rage and hurt burned in his gut, and now passion - swift, hot and unexpected - added even more fuel to the flames.

He didn't want to want her. He hated the way his body responded to her proximity like it always did, growing painfully hard in seconds.

She's a fucking liar. He shouted inside his head. She is a lying, scheming, manipulative little bitch, who'd been playing some kind of a sick game with you right from the very start. Just tell her the game's over, and walk the hell away.

But even as he was rehearsing the words in his mind, his hands were drawing her to his body, his mouth taking hers, accepting her sweet tongue inside.

He hated that she looked like a sweet angel under the moonlight, with her blond curls framing her face like that. He hated that she tasted like innocence and sweetness, when he just learned she was anything but. He hated that every cell in his body craved her when she called him 'cowboy' in that sexy voice. He hated that he couldn't resist her.

Just one more time, was the last thought in his mind before he let his body take over, his hands closing on her ass and lifting her up so that he half walked, half carried her backwards to the narrow alley between the two sheds. Just once more, before you finish this once and for all.

*

The rough surface of the sidings scraped at her back, but Leanne didn't care. The annoying little pain was insignificant, drowned by the overwhelming, intense pleasure engulfing her, focused between her legs.

Being fucked standing against the wall was completely different than anything they had done before, but oh, was it good!

Joe had pinned her against the outer wall of one shed, and then grabbed her thighs and had her spread and prop them up against the other side of the narrow pathway, forcing her dress to bunch up at her hips. His weight against her torso kept her suspended as he fumbled for his belt, button and zip, and pulled his cock out, and then reached for her panties, and with a muttered curse tore them off her body.

She tried to help him, had reached for his chest, kissed his jaw as he held his shaft in his fist and slid it along her dampening pussy until his thick head found her opening, but he jerked back, and then found her hands, pulled them up above her head where he pinned both her wrists with one of his hands.

"No, don't." He hissed through clenched teeth. Don't, what? Leanne's brow furrowed as she tried to make sense of his strange mood, but then he pushed in, and all thought was lost.

He felt so freakin' good inside her body!

Leanne tilted her pelvis to better accommodate him. Usually he would start slow and easy, but not tonight. His thrusts came sharp and deep right from the get go, as if staking his claim. His fingers held her wrists in an iron vice, while his other hand found her breast through her dress and squeezed. Then he tugged at her neckline impatiently, until the soft material bunched with her bra under her small breasts, making them push up obscenely.

He stared at them, panting, even as his hips continued their relentless thrusts, and then looked up. Their eyes met and held through the blackness.

"Joe -" She tried, unsure what she wanted to say.

"No. Don't speak, either."

Leanne swallowed her protest, and then whimpered when he dropped his head and took one of her nipples in his mouth, sucking it deep, almost too hard. The sensation traveled down right to her pussy, making her clench around him.

Joe released her breast only to take the other, his fingers squeezing the soft mound while his mouth covered its tip, tormenting it with sharp pleasure. Leanne's head lolled to one side, resting against her raised forearm, and her back arched, offering herself to him.

"At least this is real." He muttered harshly, and then cursed hard under his breath, and wet his thumb in his mouth before bringing it down to the point where their bodies were connected.