A/N Thanks so much you guys! Well now, an agreement has been reached - our couple are about to get a little sneaky. Will they be able to pull off a secret rendezvous? We're going to find out this chapter :)
Note: FF has stopped sending out notices when PMs are received, so you may want to check your inbox. If you left a signed review I promise I responded, and I appreciate the comments so much.
00
Oh my goodness, she can't believe she just said "yes" to breaking the rules with Daryl. And she did it with a smile on her face, and right in front of the other men. Her heart is pounding so hard it's frightening, her face feels like it's on fire, and there doesn't seem to be enough air in the room for her to get a good breath.
It's all worth it for the way he's looking at her now, with a sparkle in his blue eyes and that crooked little smile on his lips. It causes her heart to simply melt and it's like she's completely lost all of her good sense. Then he makes her tummy flutter even more when she hears that manly voice of his say the words, "Okay, thanks for checkin' Miss Beth, that's the answer I's hopin' for."
She seems to have so quickly forgotten about propriety and the many lessons her Mama taught her, and Miss Erma's warnings concerning men. They're the furthest thing from her mind as the happiest of feelings washes over her. She's more convinced each day that the two of them, her and Daryl, are meant to be.
Perhaps if the men at the table weren't so busy gobbling down their grits and pancakes they'd notice the look that has just been shared between the hired girl and their fellow boarder. But only one man has seen the truth in the seemingly innocent exchange.
Aaron doesn't miss how the often rough-looking fellow sitting next to him seems to suddenly appear softer, gentler. Or how Miss Beth has that unmistakable look of fascination in her eyes.
He smiles to himself as it occurs to him, he and Eric aren't the only couple living at Horvath's with secrets.
When it's time for him to leave for work Daryl can hardly bring himself to go. What he really wants to do is spirit her away. He'd like to take her for a ride out to his place, he'd like to hold her hand as they walk and talk. If everything were to go just right, maybe he'd finally get that kiss.
As he's walking out the door she's wishing she could call after him, "Wait, wait, please don't leave me here Daryl. I'll go anywhere with you, please just don't leave me."
Of course, it can't really happen that way, they both realize that. Still it's so pleasant to imagine these things, even if just for a moment. For now though, this is Monday and it's time for the workday to begin in earnest.
She's got the bone broth cooking on the stove and she's added a few other ingredients to the large pot. There are some carrots that haven't exactly gone bad, but they also aren't looking quite good enough to serve. There's some celery that has suffered a similar fate, along with onion and parsnips. All these things should help flavor up the broth even more.
For now, she leaves the pot to simmer and goes about her chore of cleaning up the breakfast dishes and wiping down the countertops, while Daryl drives through the city to his job site. He only stops for two things, traffic signals and his usual Monday morning visit to the Chinese laundry to drop off his bag of dirty clothes and collect the blue box with his clean things.
While Beth hurries to complete her kitchen chores Mister Horvath makes the short trip to see the butcher, and by the time Beth has the dishes done and the counters wiped he's back with the suet. What with venison having no fat running through the meat, when ground up it can't be used quite like ground beef; the texture and the flavor just won't be right.
He's returned with more than enough suet to compensate, they could easily make the mix 70 / 30, but Beth convinces him that won't do. Even at 80 / 20 so much will cook away. "Okay young lady we'll do it your way, now let's make some venison burger."
He clamps the heavy steel grinder to the edge of the big worktable, and she sets a good-sized rectangular pan below to catch the finished burger. Mister Dale has a smile on his face as he chooses the blade for a medium grind and shares with her, "I worked in a butcher shop when I was a kid and I always did like this part."
Once it's all assembled Beth goes to the fridge to retrieve the bowl of meat and begins to portion the meat and fat. She adds it into the grinder, tamping it down with the stomper, while Mister Dale turns the crank to grind everything together.
The job goes quickly, there isn't a great deal of scrap meat and when they're done, Beth weighs the meat on the kitchen scale and portions it before wrapping in the butcher paper. The grand total is four and three quarter pounds. That's wonderful, she can stretch it into two hearty dinner casseroles, and one tasty breakfast casserole. The men are always pleased to have a little meat at the morning meal.
As she cleans the mess they made she asks herself an age old question, why does the cleanup always seem to take so much longer than the work itself? Darn, and she's already running behind schedule. Any other day that wouldn't be such a worry, it would only mean she didn't have any free time in the afternoon.
Today is different though, today it's a big concern for Beth. She wants that free time. She wants an opportunity to freshen up before dinner, when she'll be seeing a certain someone. That's all it takes, just the thought of seeing Daryl this evening sends a little thrill through her, and she can't help smiling to herself.
She grabs her bucket with the cleaning supplies, a few extra rags and the carpet sweeper and hurries to the upstairs bathroom. Alone with her cleaning her mind again wanders to thoughts of him. What does he have in mind for a meeting place? How can they possibly find a way to see one another? Beth has no idea, she only knows what he said in his note, that he'll figure it out. She believes him. He seems able to manage whatever he sets out to do.
Her biggest concern is, how will they avoid being discovered?
For Daryl this is a big and worrisome day on the job. They've been installing new pumps at the treatment plant and today's the day they'll make the big switch. They'll shut down the old pumps while simultaneously powering up the new pumps.
All the work appears to be done and done correctly, but there's always a concern that somewhere in the system there will be a hitch. So, even though they've checked and double checked everything, he's doing it all again. Examining every electrical connection, every adapter, every tube fitting, and every pump setting, one more time.
Even with all the fretting over the installation, all the checking and the fear that something will malfunction and cause the entire City of Atlanta drinking water system to shut down; none of those concerns are enough to keep his mind off her.
He's well-aware of the mistake he made. When he got his bright idea in the middle of the night he didn't do enough thinking and planning. He was too busy imagining spending time with her and thinking about how badly he wanted that. He had no inclination toward practical thoughts. During those wee hours his mind seemed to be consumed only with thoughts of holding her, maybe even kissing her, of keeping her safe and always close to him. He wasn't thinking about the "how" of it, or the consequences if they were caught. He thinks of it now. Getting caught wouldn't affect him much, he'd come out just fine. But what about her? Shit.
Maybe he should have given the practicality of his request a little more thought. How in the world are they going to manage this tryst? He's never done anything even remotely like this, and he'd bet his land and everything he's put into it that she's never been so daring. He's mad at himself for not considering it all more carefully before putting pen to paper.
The hard truth is, there isn't even the beginnings of a plan. He's usually a lot more thoughtful in what he does, instead he acted on impulse and he fully understands why, he was fueled by the emotion that consumed him when he woke from the terrible dream. A dream where he lost her.
Then it comes to him. It's not much, not some date or even something romantic, just maybe a chance to at least share a few minutes together, and very soon. Just maybe, while they're together they can work on another plan. Hopefully she'll think that idea is all right.
Daryl holds his breath as the old pumps are powered down and the new, more efficient ones take over. He breathes a deep sigh of relief when the system immediately kicks back in and does what it's meant to do. It's running smoother and at higher capacity. It will handle the ever-increasing demand for clean drinking water as more and more people move to the city.
His lunch break comes and he walks to the outdoor employee common area, choosing to sit at a table alone. It's as he's eating that he writes her another note, accidentally dripping a little jelly from his sandwich onto the paper. He cusses under his breath, wipes the paper along his pant leg, and decides the purple stain isn't all that bad, it's hardly noticeable. Besides, there's no time to start writing all over again.
She's so far off her routine she'll never have time to freshen up before she serves his dinner, well everyone's dinner. There's nothing to be done about it, she's aware the inconvenience to her doesn't matter. She was raised in a household where everyone had a job to do and work always came first. Still, she sure wishes there was just one more hour in this day for her.
For now, she concentrates on the tasks at hand. Mister Dale brings the Vacuette up the stairs and she finishes her cleaning there. She runs the carpet sweeper over the front stairs and the backstairs, Mister Dale brings the Vacuette down and she vacuums the downstairs. Then she has her lunch.
She doesn't take long with it, she needs to get the venison roast in the oven, she wants to cook it slow. She wants Daryl to be pleased with the way she's prepared it.
She puts the meat in the big cast iron roaster and surrounds it with cut potatoes, carrots and white onions. It looks pretty but it needs a little something. Just like the burger, the roast has no fat. She doesn't want the meat to dry out or be too tough to chew, and she knows just what to do.
She makes a small and razor thin cut in the center of the roast and stuffs a bit of the suet in. She ladles bone broth over the meat and vegetables, adds a little seasoning and smiles at the thought, after cooking all afternoon it's bound to be tender and tasty. She covers the roaster with the big lid, and then attempts to lift it.
The pan all alone was heavy, and now filled with all that food it may be too heavy for her to handle. She feels as though she could probably get it in the oven, but she doesn't trust herself not to have an accident. She won't take a chance on dropping it and ruining Daryl's roast.
She can't ask Miss Erma for help, she's in her room resting and besides, she's no stronger than Beth. She hurries down the street to find Mister Dale, knowing that he's probably helping that young man with his automobile. She'll apologize for interrupting, explain the situation and ask for his help. She's certain he'll be good-natured about her request, he's always quite kind to her.
As she hurries along her way the streetcar comes down the tracks, and it causes an idea to come to her. Yes, it might work for a secret meeting. Maybe tomorrow at breakfast it will be her turn to slip Daryl a note. The thought has her cheeks flaming up, shame on her. A nice girl should not be planning secret meetings with a man. That's very true, however, the real truth of the matter is, she is so captivated with him she seems to have lost interest in what may or may not be proper.
He arrives home from work just in time to hurry up the stairs, wash up good, and head back down to dinner. The note is safely tucked in his pocket and he's decided that the moment there's an opportunity, he'll slip it to Beth.
He sits himself down at the table and its only seconds later she walks in the room pushing the dinner cart. He swears that smile of hers could light up the whole room when she tells the fellas, "Gentleman, we don't have chipped beef this evening, but I don't think you'll be disappointed."
As she lifts a huge platter from the top of the cart she tells them, "Mister Daryl had a successful day hunting yesterday and has been very generous in sharing his bounty with us. We have a venison roast and all the trimmings."
The men are all expressing gratitude to both her and Daryl, as immediately they begin to fill their plates. In the meantime, Beth sets a large bowl of gravy and a basket of dinner rolls at the end of the table closest to Daryl.
He makes as if he's helping her with the bowl, and he does do that, but at the same time he slips her the note. She's got the paper clutched firmly in her hand when she says, "Well gentleman, while you all enjoy your dinner I'll step in the sitting room and play a little music for you."
They all take a moment to smile and thank her again, while busily smothering their plates in gravy and preparing to devour the unexpected feast.
She quickly glances Daryl's way, smiling as she does, and the way he smiles back has her feeling whatever is in the note must be good news.
She sits at the piano, looks around just to be sure no one's watching, then reads what he wrote, "When you're done in the kitchen tonight, if you was to go out back for a breath of fresh air you'd find me waiting for you around the back of the shed. I'll be waiting there however long it takes."
She sings the hymn with a smile on her face while her heart beats double time to the music. A few minutes later, when she makes her way back in the dining room to clear the table, she's still smiling. She looks his way and attempts to be subtle as she gives him the slightest nod of her head.
The men have practically licked their plates clean and are complimenting the delicious dinner, thanking both her and Daryl again, and she tells them, "I'm so happy you liked the venison, we're going to be having quite a few dishes made with it this week, thanks to Mister Daryl and the buck. For now I'm on my way to the kitchen to get your dessert." It's the usual Monday night tapioca and no one's complaining. Miz Horvath is a master at making tapioca pudding.
He's enjoyed every morsel of the food she prepared, and even though it made him self-conscious, he's appreciated all the thanks he received. He loved listening to her pretty voice when she sang the hymn, but what he wants more than anything right now is to spend time with her behind the shed.
Tonight Beth has a little help cleaning the kitchen and that's a rarity. Mister Horvath tells her it's because he enjoyed his venison roast so much he felt he should offer. He doesn't say it's because he's a little worried about her tackling that heavy roasting pan. "I don't plan to help much young lady, but let me wash that roaster for you Beth, and whatever you do, don't tell Missus Horvath I know how," he chuckles.
Beth giggles too and tells him, "Thank you so much, it was the one thing I was dreading. My goodness it's heavy." Inside her tummy is doing flips, and it has nothing to do with Mister and Missus Horvath or the roasting pan. She's as nervous as a cat thinking about Daryl out there waiting for her. She knows he's been there quite some time already, she heard the hinge when he slipped out the side door.
As soon as Mister Horvath has the roaster clean, dry and returned to the cupboard, he smiles, "Well young lady I'd better get in there and get my beauty sleep. You have a pleasant evening."
"Thank you sir, you too."
She's finally off duty. She rushes into the bathroom, splashes a little cool water on her face, runs the brush through her hair, and then questions herself. What in the world is she doing? Has she lost her mind? Is she really going to risk her job for some man? No, not just for some man. For Daryl.
She's as quiet as a mouse as she steps first onto the back porch, then out the back door and into the yard. Thank goodness the glow of the streetlights is illuminating the yard enough for her to easily find her way to the back of the shed, and when she does, there he is. His face appears so happy when he whispers, "Beth, ya made it."
He doesn't bother to ask her permission, he simply takes her hand in his. She should probably mind, but she doesn't mind at all. Besides, his hand feels so strong and manly it sends a little tingle through her and she can't think quite straight.
She feels the heat in her cheeks as she leans her back against the shed and tells him, "I'm sorry it took me so long. I had a lot of dishes to do."
"I didn't mind waitin'. I knew you was busy and anyway, I woulda waited for ya all night Beth. I'm just sorry ya had ta work so hard."
She surprises herself and him even more when she admits, "The work wasn't so hard, but I was so anxious to join you."
His eyebrows raise just a little and his body moves closer to hers. Maybe he's too close, maybe she should back away. She can't back up though, the shed is right behind her and besides, she doesn't want to. This feels too good and no matter what may or may not be proper, it feels so right.
In a low whisper he says, "Thanks for meetin' me here Beth. I know this ain't exactly the best place a guy could invite a gal, but I didn't know where else we could go. All I knew was I just wanted ta spend time with ya."
She feels the warmth of his body and the warmth of his breath, and she's worried she might faint from the thrill of it. She tries to regain her composure. Keeping her voice at a whisper as she assures him, "This is fine, it's wonderful. I've wanted to spend time with you too Daryl, and anyway, it feels nice to be out here after working in the house all day."
His thumb is softly rubbing circles on the back of her hand and his clear blue eyes are gazing straight into hers. His look is so tender as he makes another bold move, a move she makes no effort to stop. His fingers are gently touching the curls that frame her face and he smiles when he says, "Ya sure are pretty Beth."
She casts her eyes down, feeling both embarrassed and pleased by his words. "Thank you, Daryl."
Judging by her reaction, he must have said the right thing. It encourages him to pay her another compliment, "And that was the best venison roast I ever ate, the gravy was so good I coulda drunk it."
She's all pink cheeks and a happy smile when she says, "Oh my, well thank you Daryl. I'm so happy you liked everything."
He's not shy at all about telling her, "You're a real good cook Beth, ya ain't ever fixed one dish I didn't like."
The more they talk the closer his body moves to hers, and now his cheek is so close to her cheek she's sure she feels the softness of his facial hair. She's already feeling almost dizzy from his words and actions when in that low whisper he says, "Maybe, if ya think it would be all right, we could just make it a habit ta meet out here in the evenings, just ta talk a few minutes before turnin' in."
She's appalled. Not just by his behavior, but by her own. Here she is hiding in the backyard shadows with a man she barely knows, and she's allowing him way too many liberties. And what about Daryl? What sort of gentleman is he to be so forward? And he's obviously quite presumptuous to think she would allow him such familiarity. Yet she has and she's happy she has. Oh my.
No, she was raised better than this, she simply can't allow this behavior to continue. She has to tell him no. But her heart seems to have a mind of its own, and she looks right back into his eyes and answers, "I would like that very much Daryl."
He can't believe it. None of it. He can't believe he's out here with this woman and he's being so bold with her, saying words he never dreamed of ever saying to anyone. What's come over him? He's talking sweet talk, paying complements, and holding her hand. Shit. He couldn't possibly be standing any closer, and the way he touched her pretty blonde hair…
Yeah but if we're going to talk about his behavior, he also has to wonder, what's come over her? He's certain this can't be her usual way. No. Not Beth.
He's looking in her eyes again when he questions, "Really Beth? Ya would?" Then his brow furrows and he says, "I can't meet ya here tomorrow though, right after dinner I gotta drive out ta my place and check on my brother. I might be out there a while."
Disappointment washes over her and to make matters worse, and much to her disgrace, the words just come right out of her mouth, "Oh. Well of course if you have to, but gosh I'll miss you." Mama would be horrified.
"So then Wednesday after dinner, right?" His voice is so hopeful.
She smiles, "Yes, Wednesday, just as soon as I'm done in the kitchen."
He gently squeezes her hand, "K, good. I'll look forward to it."
Then, oh my gosh doesn't she just make the boldest move of the evening, "I thought of a place we could meet Daryl. A place where I'm sure we'd be away from prying eyes."
His eyebrows raise and he has a smile on his lips when he asks, "Really? What place is that? Tell me."
She's mortified by her own behavior and concerned she might die of embarrassment, what is she proposing here? But she doesn't even try to stop herself, she wants to spend her time with him. "Well, I was thinking, you usually get home about mid-afternoon on Sunday, isn't that true?"
"Yeah, that's right."
"Well I thought this Sunday that maybe once you arrive I could just tell the Horvath's, just so they don't worry, that I'm going to ride the street car through the city, you know, to get out for a while. What I could do though, is get on the streetcar and ride it as far as the third stop on the line. There's a pretty little park there and I could get off the car and wait for you on a park bench. Maybe you'd want to drive there and meet me." She's embarrassed and mortified by the way she stumbles with her words, and the very idea that she would ask him such a thing at all.
Yet he's smiling and his body is now so close they're touching when he answers, "Yeah, yeah that'd be swell. Ain't anyone we know gonna be around, we could have a chance ta talk n such." Since when was he so big on talking? Never, except with her its different, and anyway, it's a chance to spend time with her.
She smiles and then a yawn escapes her. He touches her cheek when he says, "You're so tired. From what I seen all ya ever do is work. Ya best get yourself ta bed. I'll stay back here while ya go inside, make sure ya get in okay. I'll wait ten minutes or so before I slip in the side door."
That's when she feels his body leaning into hers completely, he's so close his whiskers are tickling her neck when he whispers in her ear, "I know I shouldn't be so forward with a woman like you Beth. I want ya ta know I got all the respect in the world for ya. It's just that, well the truth is I'm havin' trouble stoppin' myself. I just wanna be near ya, spend time with ya." He draws back, smiles and shrugs, "Anyway, ya best get ta bed girl. Thanks for spendin' your time with me."
She's trying to act calm but her heart is now racing and her whole body feels warm. She barely gets the words out, "Okay. Thank you, Daryl, have a good evening."
He lightly touches her cheek one more time and smiles when he says, "I just had a real good evenin' cuz a you, now go on in, ya need rest."
She walks no more than five feet when she turns to look at him once more, and that's all the encouragement he needs. He hurries to her, wraps her in his arms and as they share a warm embrace he whispers, "I'm sorry. I shouldn't be actin' this way with ya Beth, bein' so familiar n all. Please don't be mad at me. I just felt like I needed ta hold ya a minute."
How can she chastise him when her arms are wrapped tightly around his waist? "I'm not angry with you Daryl, how could I be? It's my own behavior I can't believe. Never could I have imagined I'd act this way with a man, but that was before I knew you."
00
A/N Well, neither one of them can believe it and I can't either, but it happened. Please leave a comment and let me know your thoughts. As always, the chapter photo is on my tumblr blogs gneebee and bethylmethbrick. I'll be back next Friday with more of The Stranger Upstairs and I hope you'll be back too. Until then stay well and remember, I love ya large! xo gneebee