When Roses Collide

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Harley sat on the back porch moodily plucking random tunes on her guitar, softly humming while she watched the sun slowly sink in the sky. The days were getting longer, but the cool bite of spring still lingered and she welcomed the crisp breeze that floated up occasionally to teasingly play with her long, loose locks.

Although the sight before her was gloriously peaceful and serene over-looking the back meadows, Harley couldn't help feeling melancholy. As the evening tried to melanize the day, so did the sad thoughts in her head. She missed her family and had been suffering pangs of homesickness ever since hearing their voices this afternoon.

Not to mention she had been rehashing the ghastly events of the feed store fiasco. She sighed miserably. What would Travis think of her now? On the bright side, he did come out to the truck to check on her wellbeing. That was a good sign right? Or maybe he felt sorry for her and was only being kind considering she had just been thoroughly painted as the town harlot by Rafferty.

Harley's heart plummeted. It was probably misguided pity that had him offering her a spot on his team, like the gawky kid picked last for dodgeball. She shook her head as humiliation seeped all the way into her bones. She probably misunderstood his look of relief as disappointment when she refused his offer.

Hanging her head, she squeezed her eyes closed against the tears threatening to fall. All her bravado of earlier, disappearing into the dusk. She didn't stand a chance to win the heart of a man like him. Who was she after all? She was a big nobody. A washed up rodeo has been, with nothing but a wall of awards to keep her warm at night.

Even if she could worm her way into his affections, Rafferty had proven he was going to be relentless in his desire to be rid of her. It would be stupid for a man with the kind of respect Travis had in this town to open himself up to ridicule just to be with her. And, to be honest, she couldn't blame him for it.

She lifted her eyes, searching the horizon for answers. Her dad's voice cajoled her in the back of her mind. She could almost hear him whispering in her ear. "Play for me, darling," and she smiled as her heart ached for him.

Her father had always loved to hear her play and sing. Together they had spent endless hours just like this night, sitting out on the porch picking songs and filling the night with their voices raised in harmony. On several occasions, he had tried to encourage her to do something with her music talents, but Harley had stubbornly refused.

Her heart lay with him and the Gypsy Rose and always would. She had no desire for fame or fortune and the only stage she wanted to stand on was the one attached to their back porch. The wind swept around her, lifting her hair, making the silky threads dance in the breeze. "Sing for me." Hearing the faint request, she bent her head and began playing a sweet melody by Dolly Parton called Eagle When She Flies.

Travis stood in the shadows of the porch, not wanting to disturb the lovely picture sitting before him. When he had pulled into the driveway, he had a moment of panic from the stillness which had greeted him. He assumed he would be run up on the hood of his truck by the storming death troop, but as he exited, not a peep could be heard.

He looked around and saw her truck parked along-side the corrals, so he knew she was home. The eeriness of it all sent his heart to pounding and he strained his ears for any sound that would give him a clue as to what he was facing as tingles of unease worked their way up and down his spine.

Suddenly, the soft strains of a guitar reached his ears and he curiously followed the sound. He found himself at the back of the house, freezing in his tracks when he came upon the beautiful vision sitting in front of him.

Harley was perched on the edge of the top stair leading down to the backyard bathed in the translucent evening glow from the last fingers of sunshine before they disappeared over the horizon. Her hair was a silken curtain falling around her shoulders and down her back to her waist, giving her a look of untamable beauty.