North Dakota Weddings (27 page)

Amber rubbed her temples. Why’d her thoughts have to go there? How would she keep her brother and his deeds under wraps? Listening to Jason drone on, she glanced around the museum. When her brother was released, could he ever work in his field again? Or in a museum?

Resentment stirred in her heart. Staring at the floor, she wanted to send up a prayer; but she couldn’t get past her anger at God either. She knew she shouldn’t be angry, but…why had He let things happen the way they had?

Jason cleared his throat. Amber pulled her thoughts together and realized everyone was staring at her.

“You have anything to add?” he asked.

Oh yeah
. Cheeks burning, she tugged the slip of paper from her pocket. Jason wanted her to become accustomed to giving the spiel. “During the tour, we’ll give you time to do some collecting of your own, but remember you may only keep specimens that hold no research value to the museum.”

“Hey, that’s no fair,” Tim piped up again.

Amber glanced at Jason, hoping for some help. He held his tongue, prodding her with his eyes. She figured he wanted her to learn to deal with problems sooner, rather than later.

She smiled at Tim then addressed the entire group. “The tour is for you to get a hands-on look at paleontology. The museum has secured our dig site through a fossil lease and proper permits. We’re required to document fossils, and important collections are subject to further scientific study. We’ll be digging in what we call a bone bed—parts of dinosaur bones and incomplete fossils that have been washed out by an ancient river. They’re no longer in situ, meaning they’ve been disturbed. These specimens usually don’t hold much value. You can add these to your personal collection after we’ve documented them. Are we clear?”

“Yes.” Tim stuck a finger in his nose, it appeared, as a means of disrespect. The other boys laughed.

Boys.

Jason led the group out the door and to the head of the trail. “Ongoing research is currently conducted at several sites in the region, but today we’ll find our bone bed near an outcropping not two miles from the museum.”

Off to the left, a slightly overweight man frowned. Unhappy about the distance? Even if they drove to one of the dig sites, they’d still have to hike a mile or more over rough terrain where the researchers worked. As they moved out and down the trail, Amber brought up the back of the group.

Finally, they arrived at the end of the trail where they had to climb down a short rope ladder to the dried-up riverbed below. From where she stood, Amber could see for miles over the hills and buttes carved by the river and leaving many layers to be explored.

Her chest filled with the anticipation of being part of the paleontology dig at some point. The family heirloom was ever present in her mind as she cautiously stone-stepped over boulders of various sizes to make her way to the dirt. Though the pain was minimal and would often come and go, her ankle began to ache again, reminding her of her recent fall. She felt a small grin slide onto her lips as she recalled her run-in with Dr. Selman. Even before knowing his identity, she sensed he was someone special.

Once they arrived at the site where the tourists were allowed to dig, Jason explained what they would be looking for.

He held a rock in each hand. “Can you tell which one is bone?”

The group gathered in a tight circle. Most allowed the kids “front-row” access. One of the girls slid her hand across the rock in Jason’s right hand. “This one.”

“Wrong, this is sandstone. It looks smooth but when you run your hand over it, you can feel the gritty texture.”

He tossed it on the ground and held out his other hand. “This is part of a leg bone. Notice the porous texture. Lots of air pockets. Bone that you find as you dig will be a tan or pink color and if you break into the inside you’ll see dark brown. Also, a bone will bleach as it lies in the sun, so if you see anything that looks lighter in color than the surrounding rocks, that could be bone. When you’re exploring the bone bed, you’re looking for something that stands out, that doesn’t look like everything else lying around.”

Jason then pointed to something in the distance. “See the tarp shading the group over there? Researchers are excavating that quarry. One of our tour groups discovered bones that were weathering out but appeared to go back into the layers in the hills. That indicates the bone was in situ where it was deposited.”

Ohs and ahs escaped the group. Amber suspected that, like her, they’d rather be there than here.

“Do they know what it is?” Tim asked.

“Yes, that site has yielded a young
T. rex.”

“Oh! Can we go look?”

Jason shook his head. “For now, the only ones allowed on the dig other than researchers are the museum interns assisting them.”

Amber tried to get a glimpse of Muriel. She envied her working under Dr. Laudan on an actual fossil dig. Supposedly Amber was to work directly under Dr. Selman, but maybe it was meant to simply look that way on paper. She’d assumed she’d be working more closely with him so that she could ask questions, pick his brain, and look up to him as her mentor. This was only her first week though, and she knew her internship didn’t include giving tours the entire time. Dr. Selman had mentioned she might have the chance to assist Dr. Laudan at some point.

At least she wasn’t in the museum store any longer. And she’d had a chance to speak with Dr. Selman personally, get to know him a little. Amber sucked in a breath of dusty air and stood tall. She’d do the best she could, of course, no matter where she was assigned because she really wanted to impress Dr. Selman.

Once the gathering dispersed and began walking around in search of fossils, Amber leaned toward Jason, speaking softly. “Won’t we get to show them the
T. rex
find at some point?”

“Dr. Laudan doesn’t like to mess with tour groups. But I’ll ask Dr. Selman about making an appearance to show our group the discovery before the tour is over.”

Amber’s heart skipped a beat at the thought of seeing him again.

Hours later, the hot dry air had Amber gasping for breath. The blazing sun burned her skin despite the fact that she’d slathered on a thick layer of sunscreen and worn a hat. As Amber wiped sweat from her forehead, an errant drop burned her eye. Although she loved the digging and the excitement, sitting in a classroom for months hadn’t exactly prepared her for the labor part of this field. Nor did she feel ready to conduct a tour of her own, which, according to Jason, was on the schedule for next week. She licked her chapped lips, tasting salt.

Two women found what appeared to be a bone and Amber plopped down next to them, guiding them as best as she could to dig up the fossil. With chisels and an ice pick, they gently removed the dirt from around the fossil, then brushed the soil away to get a better look. Then more digging and more brushing.

Once the women got the hang of it, Amber stood back to observe the others, which was part of her assignment—answering questions and making sure no one took something they weren’t supposed to.

Amber noticed the man who’d frowned before they even started, sitting on a large rock, drinking his water. His chubby son appeared excited but tired. Though he wore a cap and she’d seen him put on sunscreen, he was already turning red.

She had her doubts that the man would come back tomorrow. What was the turnover rate on the tour? Even
she
wasn’t sure she wanted to come back. Every part of her body ached like she was twenty years older. Still, she knew she’d complete her internship this summer—no matter what that entailed.

Seeing the others relatively occupied with their various finds, and Jason busy talking dinosaurs with the boys, Amber decided to grab a quick look at the surrounding land—the Little Missouri Badlands had captivated her. She’d be back before anyone knew she’d left. To get a good view, she’d need to go higher, and she could still keep an eye on the group. Amber made her way up a rise that hadn’t appeared as steep as it now felt. Breathing hard, she wondered if she would actually make it to the top.

Finally, the ground flattened out. She’d made it! Still gasping for breath, she stood tall and took in the scenery. Spotting a rock she sat down while she caught her breath and poured water over her head, not caring that her face was probably now a muddy mess.

Wouldn’t it be funny if Dr. Selman could see her now?

She groaned at the wayward thought. Expecting someone old enough to be her father, she’d been surprised at his good looks and that she’d been instantly attracted to him. She’d have to curb that somehow. In a moment of weariness, she let her eyes drift shut. Still the bright sun fought to penetrate her lids.

A shadow gave her a moment’s reprieve until she opened her eyes. Her heart raced at the sight of him.

“Dr. Selman?”

Brandon watched Amber snap to her feet like she was in the marines, and he was her sergeant. He fought the urge to give her an answering salute.

He had the strangest desire to wipe the dust and smudge from her face. Now that would go over well with a board member, donors, researchers, and tourists looking on. Instead he simply smiled and said, “Hi, there.”

“What are you doing here? I thought you were busy running the museum.” The sun directly in her eyes, she held her hand up to shade them.

Her question prompted him to consider why, exactly, he’d made his way up here. But their paths hadn’t crossed in a few days. He was glad they did now.

“Yes, well, part of my job is to accommodate potential donors.” He nodded toward the two men and a woman standing in the distance, between the tourists and the active researchers under the tarp.

Amber squinted in the direction of the donors.

“They wanted to know what you were doing sitting by yourself. Is everything all right?”

“Sorry to worry you. I’m fine, just needed a break. I was about to head back down.” Amber wiped her face with a small towel she pulled from her pocket. After a glance at it, a look of horror came over her features.

Brandon chuckled. “Didn’t anyone ever tell you that digging for fossils is dirty work?”

An answering smile replaced her look of revulsion, and it appeared as though she was about to slap him playfully with her towel but thought better of it. Admittedly, had he not run into her today, he would have found any excuse to see her.

Unfortunately, his rule regarding protégés had everything to do with a previous office romance. Only in his case, the affections had been one sided—the young woman whom he’d mentored had her heart set on him. Focused on his research, he hadn’t seen her budding affection and the growing danger.

Wasn’t there already a natural law that workplace romances should be avoided?

Regardless, he’d governed himself in this matter, and recently proclaimed the no protégé rule. As he recalled, Jim had laughed. Now he knew why. Brandon was given to helping others, teaching them. It was unlikely he would abide his own rule.

And now as he looked at Amber McKinsey—dusty, sweaty, and still beautiful—the natural law was clamoring to be broken, too.

W
ould you like some help down?” Brandon had always said it was one thing to climb, quite another to come down. He proffered his hand.

Ignoring it, Amber scrutinized the hill below. At what should be her descent, her eyes grew wide.

Had she only now noticed how high she was?

She stared at his hand for a moment then shook her head. “No thanks. I’m good.”

As he became increasingly aware of his board member’s and prospective donors’ stares, his relief that he wouldn’t be holding her hand as he assisted her down was almost palpable.

Amber took a timid step toward the other side of the hill where her tour group waited at the bottom. Pebbles shifted under her foot, causing her to slip on her backside. Regardless of how he felt about the onlookers, the last thing he wanted was for Amber to get hurt. Nor did he need another incident, and right in front of them.

Still sitting, she looked up at him a bit sheepishly. He cocked a brow. “You’re sure I can’t help you?”

Offering his hand again, he wasn’t surprised this time when she took it. Soft and small, her hand felt good in his. “I’d like you to join me. I’m taking the donors to see the T. rex. That means we’re going in the opposite direction from your group.”

“But what about Jason? Doesn’t he need my help? I was just about to go back down when you showed up.”

“I won’t keep you long.”

“And the tour group? I’m sure they’d love to see the discovery, too.”

He smiled at her enthusiasm. “I’ll make arrangements for them on another day. Including them with the donors would make too big a crowd and too many questions. But I appreciate your concern.”

Amber nodded, and together, they scrambled down the steep side of the hill, over the ragged layers of sediment.

Once they cleared the hill, Brandon led Amber to the waiting threesome and introduced her to Sheila Longstrom—the only board member to oppose his hiring at Harrington—and the two potential donors, John Starks and Arnold Hammers.

“Nice to meet you, Miss McKinsey.” Sheila’s smile reflected no warmth. “I’m sure someone has explained to you how important it is for you to stay with the tour group. The museum doesn’t need any more mishaps.”