Taming the Author

16: Don't Push People

It was late in the afternoon when the rains calmed to a stop.

I buttoned the loose flannel shirt that the old man - Matthew - and his wife, Helena, lent us as I inwardly muttered about how Rupert didn't even tell me he owned the ranch. I left all the reservation tasks to him because he said he would take care of it.

But he didn't tell me we were crashing in his property.

I sighed as I glanced out at the window of the bedroom Matthew and Helena prepared for me. It was a homey room with a soft bed, neatly prepared with deep brown sheets that matched the wood theme of the bedroom. White flowing curtains obscured my view of the six-panes of the windows. I had a polished study desk that seemed like an antique heirloom, a heater that kept me warm despite the cool air, a bedside table that held a lampshade and a desk clock, and a wardrobe that almost touched the ceiling.

I felt like I was occupying a hotel suite.

I slowly sat down the bed and felt my body sink into the plump cushion. I sighed as the urge to throw my tired body onto the bed coursed through my veins. I closed my eyes.

I wanted to lay there and spend the night in the ranch. It was Friday. My date was on Saturday night. I had plenty of time to spare before my schedule with Heather. I could stay there for the evening. After all, Matthew and Helena did prepare a two-week stay for two people - Loramina and me.

I opened my eyes at the thought of my favorite author. Her room was just beside mine. If I knocked on the wall behind my bed's headboard, I was sure she would hear it. Did her room look like mine?

I remembered how pale she was when we sat in the living room; how purple her lips were and how they slightly trembled as she spoke. I noticed how her shoulders shivered when we walked up the stairs to our rooms. Helena gave us fluffy slippers since we didn't have any footwear on, but we were wet with storm water so we were still freezing despite the warmth our hosts offered.

I wondered if Loramina would be bothered if I decided to stay there for the night with her. We weren't going to be in one room; just one house. Perhaps she wouldn't mind if I decided to crash in there for the night..?

I heard knocks on the door and imagined Loramina standing behind it. I shook my head, thinking I was being stupid, and stood up.

Opening the door revealed Matthew in his own flannel shirt. "Hey," he said, giving me a fatherly smile. "The rain and the wind has faltered. I've got Harold and the guys outside ready to help pull your car out of the mud."

"That's great!" I said. "I'll go with them."

I headed downstairs with Matthew and met with a group of guys. Harold turned out to be one of Matthew's four sons. He was around my age but he was more built for hard labor than me. His sun-kissed skin seemed off with the current gray weather but he explained how he herded cows and worked in the neighboring fields on sunny days.

With him were two middle-aged men and two other guys around our age. They all worked in the ranch and lived somewhere close to the place. Apparently, Rupert's family own a huge piece of land in the area. He inherited the ranch, which was named after his grandmother, and the nearby farm which was currently being handled by Matthew's eldest son.

Matthew grew up with Rupert. His family had served Rupert's family for generations. They were both the only child of their parents so they grew up seeing each other as brothers. When Rupert took over the property, he gave Matthew part of the land and made him a partner in the family business.

"I've always enjoyed working in the ranch," Matthew explained as we shared tea with the crew in the living room. "I liked cows and working in the fields. So Rupert's parents helped me get a degree in agriculture. Rupert on the other hand preferred reading stories. He helped me learn how to read and write. He also read me a book when we were younger. We even role-played the stories he read to me for fun! So when he took a degree in Business Management instead of a degree in Literature, I knew he wasn't happy. He managed the family business after graduating, but it turned him into a gloomy man."