Time Will Tell (Timeless Series) (18 page)

Libby hesitated. “I don’t know how much I should tell you about the future.”

“Fair enough.
Well, till tomorrow.” And then he was gone.

The days raced by in a blur. Near the end of
the first week, Colin provided Libby with a notarized copy of the deed. As one week became two, eventually easing into three, Libby tried not to obsess about her inability to return home. Instead she focused on the exhilaration of doing a job she loved, using her workday routine as something to count on. Breakfast in the morning followed by training the thoroughbreds with Colin until the heat set in. From there she helped Gus check on the mares before moving on to the foals, and then training the yearlings with Nathan in the afternoons. Lunch was somewhere in between.

The work was challenging as well as rewarding.
Mostly because the men around her took her opinion seriously and valued her contribution to their end goals. That alone was worth every bit of the time spent in the past, and did much to take her mind off the hardships of living without electricity and the Internet. What Libby would give for a hot bath, she thought, trudging down the path toward the trees in another attempt to wish herself home. Her routine now included visiting the trees every night. At this point, she was certainly ready to leave. Yet, no amount of wishing seemed to matter.

Was she stuck here? Her heart skipped beats at the thought. No! She refused to believe that. The trees weren’t working. With no idea as to why, the only thing to do was to keep trying. Hopefully, when she did return to her own time, it would be to within minutes of her earlier departure. The thought of having someone in the future worry over her disappearance only added to her troubles.

There was one advantage to her delay. Colin began joining her in the evenings. Libby looked forward to seeing him emerge from the path if she happened to have her eyes open. If not—if it was one of those times she’d closed her eyes, only to open them and find him watching her—a thrill always went through her. It was a rush to imagine that he’d actually sought her out. She was coming to depend on his quiet strength. Too much, if she were honest.

Tonight was no different as she glanced up and watched his approach. A smile lit his expression when he noticed her. Libby crossed her fingers, hoping that he was just as happy to see her as she was to see him.

Warmth flooded her senses when his steady amber gaze ensnared hers, holding her eyes captive for what seemed like infinity. Finally, the spell was broken when he turned to sit down next to her.

As Colin stared off in the distance, Libby surreptitiously studied him. He seemed different tonight. Smoothing out her jeans in an effort to calm her rapid heartbeats, she prayed he didn’t realize the effect he had on her. That was all she needed. To be trapped in the past with Sam Thorpe’s great—God only knew how many greats—grandfather and him knowing about her crush.
Just another destination to add to her guilt trip with Dave in tow, thanks to her constant comparison between the two men.

“So, how was your day?”
He tore off a blade of grass and stuck it into his mouth. “How is the foal doing?”

Libby cleared her throat.
“Fine.” She went on to tell him more about her day, something she loved—that and their common interest in horses. Libby could probably talk his ears off about the subject and he’d listen intently, as if he valued her thoughts. If only Dave could be more like Colin.

“
How about yours?” She must have imagined the earlier look because there seemed to be nothing out of the ordinary in his manner as he recounted his day.

“I thought you could wish yourself home
,” he said after a lengthy pause.

Libby shrugged. “I thought so too.”

“You have the deed, so why are you still here?”

“I don’t know.” She sighed. “But at least I’m enjoying myself.”

“I’m enjoying your company.” His gaze moved over the landscape as he exhaled. “I mean my words. I feel comfortable talking with you.” His attention returned to her face. “I find myself hurrying with my chores in order to come out and meet you under the trees.” He hesitated and met her gaze. “Why do you think that is?”

An honest yearning brimmed in his eyes. Libby sucked in a breath. “I don’t know.” She swallowed hard and looked at her hands to break eye contact. “I think tomorrow will be the day Fortuna’s going to beat Zeus.”

Colin’s low chuckle seemed to mock her evasive ploy, drawing her focus.

His smile slowly faded, his expression becoming tormented.

Her stomach did somersaults. For a split second, she could have sworn she spied desire in those brown depths. But it was gone in a heartbeat as he took the blade of grass out of his mouth and tossed it aside while his attention roamed over the horizon.

Seconds later his grin was back. “You think so?” he replied, now appearing so under control that her imagination had to be working in overdrive.

Squinting at him, Libby fought to figure him out as he added lightly, “Are you going to tell me about the racetrack and any races that are still run?”

It was the same question she always refrained from answering every night. Libby laughed, glad to note he was back to his normal teasing manner once again. “Not tonight. But you can tell me more about your plans.”

“I’ve told you about them already. I can’t see why you won’t give me a clue.”

She crossed her arms. “Time will tell, not me,” she countered, locking her mouth with an invisible key,
then adding, “Since I’m not talking, tell me more.”

Colin chuckled, the rumble of it zinging straight through her insides.
“Fair enough.”

The two spent several hours talking about everything and nothing before Libby said, “I think it’s time for me to go in. I had a wonderful evening, Colin.”

“The evening certainly passes quickly when I’m with you,” Colin said in a regretful voice. He stood, then bent to help her rise. “Here. I’ll escort you back to the Gundersons’ door.”

Together they walked the path to the house. At the door, Libby thought for a moment that he would kiss her. But all he did was pull her into his embrace for a warm hug and kiss her forehead.

“Good night,” he said, before turning and starting for his own house.

Libby went inside extremely confused. Walking upstairs, her mind was on the hours spent with Colin and whether or not she’d wanted his kiss.

~

The next morning Libby struggled to keep her thoughts off the man who’d kept her
awake most of the night. Walking toward the track to meet Colin for their morning workout, she forced herself to focus on Nathan instead.

Working with the bright boy gave her immense satisfaction. He usually joined her in the stables after his chores. She loved teaching him. Nathan was a natural with the horses, much like his father must have been at his age. The kid was such a quick learner, hanging on anything Libby said. She realized she was getting attached to him. In fact, she was becoming much too attached to all of them. The Gundersons were becoming family. The noisy meals she spent with them were always full of love and laughter. That never changed. Why couldn’t they all live in her own time so she wouldn’t have to leave them behind?

As she continued walking, her thoughts shifted to her other experiences since Colin’s discovery of her time travel. So much had happened in such a short span. The early morning was her favorite time of the day. Riding champion horses around a track and shaving seconds off their time gave her a sense of accomplishment. The elation she derived was like nothing she’d ever experienced.

She’d learned a great deal about riding and racing thoroughbreds in the past three weeks. As her technique improved, the horses began responding and their times improved. Both Gus and Colin had been impressed and her duties increased. She started working with all of the runners.

Colin, looking too handsome for words, came into view and Libby couldn’t help but remember last night. Chills tingled down her spine as she thought about how much she loved being with him. He always made her laugh.

That she was starting to enjoy their encounters more and more troubled her greatly. She wasn’t sure what she would have done if he had actually kissed her last night, another reason to worry. From the moment she’d first set eyes on him, he’d attracted her. Yet, getting to know him was actually more appealing as was their shared love of horses and the outdoors. Even worse, she saw his vision for the farm as clearly as he did.

“Good morning.” Colin nodded as she approached.

“Good morning,” she replied, watching him give an order to one of the grooms. Of course, she didn’t particularly care for his autocratic manner. Arrogant and confident, he assumed a leadership role, which carried over to everyone on the farm.
Including her.

Occasionally, he would say something that riled her. When this happened, he’d look at her with those incredible eyes—eyebrows raised—as if to say,
You really want to test me
?
Libby’s answer was always a resounding
yes
. Still, it did no good. He’d always win. But that didn’t stop Libby from trying. In fact, she was beginning to think he said things to get a rise out of her.

The thought brought a smile to her face. It was still there when Colin, holding two horses tacked and ready to
exercise, refocused on her. Dressed much as he’d been the first time Libby saw him, he looked totally masculine and sexy as all get-out.

He smiled. “Your expression’s very much like a cat that has swallowed the canary all of a sudden.”

Libby’s grin got wider. “Oh, and what expression is that?”

Colin’s laughing eyes caught hers. Having gotten used to the way his gaze affected her every time their eyes met, she’d come to expect it and accept it. But this look carried something different as he said, adding a wink, “A very satisfied one.”

My God. He’s flirting with me. The notion brought her up short. She wanted nothing more than to flirt back. Big mistake. Libby had to force herself to remember her fiancé.

Except that when she did happen to think of Dave
, she compared him with Colin and he kept coming up short. Unfortunately, that said a lot about their relationship. Colin Thorpe was everything any woman could ask for, but he belonged in 1874 and she didn’t.

Libby had no intention of remaining here. Not when she missed everything about the future.
Her friends. Technology. Feminism. Advances in medicine. The list went on and on. No one in their right mind would wish to remain without hot and cold running water if they had a choice.

Eventually, the oaks would take her home. They just had to.

In the meantime, she needed to keep her distance from the one who stood not a foot away with the killer smile that always made her heart flutter.
Ignoring the flutter now, she broke eye contact and said a little too curtly, “Well, I’m not a cat.” She then grabbed the reins from him and started leading her horse to the starting line.

~

The abrupt change in Libby’s manner and the tone of her voice stunned Colin. What got her back up this morning? Shrugging off disappointment, he followed her. Within no time they were back to their easy way and the two continued working as if the moment had never happened.

While training, Colin’s thoughts were on Libby. After last night, he’d decided that since his time with her was limited, he was going to enjoy what was left of it. That meant spending a little more of the day in her company. She made him laugh; made him forget his problems.

There were a hundred reasons he should keep a tight rein on his feelings, the biggest one being she’d be leaving shortly. Her life belonged in another era. She had a fiancé waiting. Yet none kept him from praying every night on his way out to the trees that her journey to the future would be delayed one more night. Colin could no longer deny living for their mornings together, and every evening he found he was in too big a hurry to join her by the two oak trees. He was wading in too deep, but he couldn’t prevent from treading deeper.

The thought of Libby returning to her home left him feeling bereft, so he refused to dwell on it. He’d come to accept that once she was gone, he’d miss her much more than he had his wife—despite only knowing her a brief period. He wouldn’t think about that either, or the timeless connection they shared.

The two finished training for the day and while walking back, Colin asked nonchalantly, “I need to check on some fences out by the south pasture. How about accompanying me and taking a ride simply for the pleasure of riding?”

Her face lit up at his suggestion. Then she frowned. “What about my duties?”

“Gus can handle things on his own,” he said. “Nathan can even help him now. One afternoon away shouldn’t hurt. What’s more, you’ve been working too hard. You deserve a break.” He stopped short when he realized he was pleading.

Libby appeared to be waging a mental battle. Finally, she sighed. “I really shouldn’t, but somehow I can’t muster the energy to refuse such a generous offer.” She laughed, the pleased sound sending a signal directly to his groin, one he ignored as she said, “Besides, riding any horse in your stable’s impossible
to turn down. I might as well enjoy myself to the fullest while I’m still here. No telling when I’ll be going home.” Colin felt a tug of regret when she sobered and scanned the landscape, adding, “To be honest, I’ve already gone past the point of involvement with all of you, so one ride won’t change anything.”