Blue Mist of Morning (2 page)

Ty Manning's briefcase slid from his lap. Papers scattered
over the floorboard, and had it not been for the seat belt he was
wearing, he would have probably landed on Anne. As it was, she was
mortified. Squeezing her eyes shut, she steeled herself for an
explosion of temper.

Oddly enough, it was Mike Bennett who erupted. His nap
rudely interrupted, he suddenly found himself sliding along the back
seat with Anne's coat, which he had been using as a pillow, covering
his face so he couldn't see. He was far from happy. Jerking the coat
off his head, he uttered an explicit curse. "How the devil did you
manage to land us in a ditch, Anne?" he growled. "I thought you said
you could drive. Of all the clumsy, inept…"

"That's enough, Mike," Ty Manning interrupted tersely,
giving the younger man one of his sternest silencing glares. Then he
turned his cold blue eyes on Anne. "Are you all right?"

She gulped, then gave a jerky nod of her head. "I'm just
sort of squashed up against the door, but I'm not hurt or anything. Oh,
Mr. Manning, I'm so sorry. It all just happened so fast. I'm terribly
sorry if I've damaged your car, but, well… I…
usually I'm a good driver, really I am. I've never had an accident
before in my life. I'm truly sorry, believe me. I…" As he
stared at her, the expression in his blue eyes beyond analysis, her
voice trailed off. The uneasy silence was broken almost immediately by
Mike's thoroughly disgusted sigh.

Ty Manning shot him another withering glance, then said
quite calmly, "I think we can blame the weather for this accident, not
you, Miss Fairchild. Now, we'd better concern ourselves with getting
out of the car." With amazing ease, he thrust open the door on the
passenger side, unfastened his seat and shoulder belts, and lithely
lifted himself out to drop to his feet on the snowy road with the
graceful lightness of a big cat. As Mike struggled to open the back
door to make his escape, Ty leaned back into the car, reaching out a
lean tan hand.

Unable to look at him, Anne fumbled with the catch of her
own seat belt. Her hands were still shaking so much from the shock of
the accident that it took her some time to release it. Even when she
had freed herself, she hesitated for a few tense seconds before
finally, reluctantly, raising her arm. Her small slender hand was
enveloped in Ty's much larger one. Strong fingers curved around her
delicate wrist, gripping securely yet with astonishing gentleness.
Then, almost before she could catch her breath, she was lifted halfway
through the open door. In the next moment Ty's hands spanned her waist
as he drew her out of the car and lowered her to the ground.

When he released her at once, she hastily smoothed the
skirt of the beige wool jersey dress she wore. As he turned away to
assess the damage to his car, she valiantly tried to subdue the tendril
of hair that habitually escaped the otherwise-neat braided chignon on
her nape, but her efforts were in vain, as usual. As if by magic, the
strand escaped again to fall forward and tickle one flushed cheek. The
cold wind was beginning to permeate her lightweight wool dress, and she
rubbed her hands briskly over the long, cuffed sleeves covering her
arms. She shifted her feet restlessly, grateful that it had been
raining that morning when she had left for work. Lacking rubber
rainboots, she had instead worn her knee-high brown leather boots, so
at least it didn't matter that she was now standing in about four
inches of snow.

Following Ty and Mike as they walked around to the back of
the car, Anne winced, imagining how many dents and scratches she had
put into the side as the car had ground to a halt in the ditch. Ty
flicked back the sides of his coat, resting his hands on his hips as he
stared expressionlessly at the Mercedes, but Mike was not inclined to
be so silently tactful. He voiced his opinion clearly.

"Have you any idea how much a car like this costs?" he
asked sharply, turning toward Anne. "Couldn't you have been more
careful, for heaven's sake? I thought everybody knew not to slam on the
brakes when driving in snow or ice."

With a defiant uptilting of her chin, Anne glared right
back at him. "Can't you be quiet? I don't need you to tell me this is
an expensive car. I didn't wreck it deliberately, and I'd appreciate it
if you didn't keep trying to make me feel worse than I already do."

"Yes, drop it, Mike. You've said too much already," Ty
agreed abruptly, thrusting his hands into his trouser pockets. "It's
possible the accident wouldn't have happened if Miss Fairchild hadn't
been tired. You were supposed to help her drive."

To his credit, Mike looked somewhat ashamed as he followed
Ty back around onto the road. "Well, what now?" he muttered. "Do we
just wait here until somebody comes along?"

"No. This road isn't very heavily traveled." Ty inclined
his head toward the snow-covered, boulder-scattered meadow that sloped
upward beyond the highway. "The house is right up there, just out of
sight in that stand of trees at the top of the hill. It won't be a long
walk." His dark brows lifted questioningly as he glanced at both Mike
and Anne. "Or, you two could climb back into the car and wait here
until I can drive back down in the jeep."

Mike's eyes brightened. "We'll wait."

"We'll go," Anne said simultaneously, and when Mike glared
at her indignantly, she lifted her shoulders and spread her hands in a
resigned gesture. "I'd just rather walk to the house than wait here in
the car." A hint of excitement sparkled in her gray eyes. "Come on, a
walk in the snow will give us a chance to stretch our legs after
sitting in the car all that time. Just think of it as a little
adventure, Mike."

Though a smile tugged upward at the corners of Ty's mouth,
Mike wasn't amused. Frowning, he looked down at his feet ensconced in
obviously new western-style boots. "I'd be nuts to go tramping through
a meadow in these boots. They cost me $400."

"They shouldn't leak then," Ty remarked casually, his eyes
narrowing enigmatically as he looked at Anne and found her biting her
lower lip to fight a smile. Then he stepped past Mike and leaned into
the car to pull out Anne's coat.

She slipped her arms into the sleeves as he held it for
her. After murmuring her thanks, she stepped away from him again and
wrapped the down coat snugly around her. It wasn't elegant. Slick and
unwieldy, it took up far too much room in her closet and she suspected
she looked like a shiny nylon-clad polar bear in it. But it was warm.
And, at the moment, staying warm was more important than trying to
appear elegant.

After Ty and Mike had retrieved their own overcoats from
the car and put them on, the three of them walked across the road,
stopping at the weathered split-rail fence that enclosed the meadow.
Anne eyed it with some trepidation, not exactly eager to try to climb a
fence in a dress. Apparently her uncertainty transmitted itself to Ty
because he suddenly swept her up in his arms and put her down on the
other side of the fence, saying softly, "There, that was simple enough,
wasn't it?"

Though Anne nodded automatically, his action had been so
unexpected that she was temporarily flustered. A blush tingled hotly in
her cheeks, and to conceal it, she hastily pulled up her collar and
hunched her shoulders, pretending to snuggle her face down in her coat
as if she were trying to get warmer. Actually, she no longer felt cold
at all, despite the icy wind that buffeted them. The blush that had
risen in her cheeks seemed to be spreading heat over her entire body,
but she supposed it was only natural to be a little embarrassed. Being
swooped up in a man's arms without any warning whatsoever was
disconcerting to say the least.

Leaving the fence behind, the three of them began climbing
the sloping meadow. Anne had to quicken her pace to keep up with Ty,
while Mike lagged along behind them, grumbling every step of the way.
When he mumbled something about Anne's lack of driving ability, she
stared back over her shoulder, but his head was bent so he didn't
notice she was watching him.

"I'm tempted to throw a snowball at him," she murmured,
mainly to herself, then smiled apologetically as Ty looked down at her.
"But I guess that wouldn't be a very dignified thing for an executive
secretary to do, would it?"

"I am surprised at you, Miss Fairchild," he answered quite
solemnly, though there was a barely perceptible glint of amusement
dancing in his blue eyes. "Considering your very proper, sedate
behavior in the office, I wouldn't have imagined you'd ever be tempted
to throw a snowball at anyone."

"All of us have our moments of madness, even we sedate
secretaries," she retorted mischievously, but her expression almost
immediately sobered. "I'm really sorry about your car, Mr. Manning.
Mike was right. Hitting the brake was a stupid mistake."

"Accidents happen, Miss Fairchild. If you drove like a
maniac the way my sister Jenny sometimes does, I'd have reason to be
angry. But you're a competent driver. I blame the icy conditions for
this mishap, not you."

"I know, but I still feel terribly guilty about scraping
up your car. I'm sure the repairs will be expensive, but perhaps if you
kept part of my salary every month, I…"

"Don't be ridiculous," he responded tautly, the contours
of his lean face hardening with something akin to impatience. "I don't
expect you to pay the repair bill. I have insurance."

"Yes, but I still feel responsible."

"Enough," he commanded softly but very emphatically.
"Let's just be glad that no one was hurt."

The no-nonsense look in his eyes silenced her effectively,
though she might have thanked him for not exacting payment from her if
he hadn't become so cool and remote again. As it was, she said nothing
else at all while they trudged up the hill.

At last they reached the crest and waited for Mike to
catch up before walking on through the grove of bare oak trees. The
wind rattled the branches and swayed the tall, full spruces planted in
a row before them. When they stepped between two of those bordering
evergreens, Ty's house stood before them. Anne liked it. A two-story
structure covered with wood shingles, it complemented the surrounding
woods rather than detracted from their natural beauty. Gray wisps of
smoke drifting from a stone chimney welcomed them as they walked
through the wind-driven snow to the stone steps leading to the veranda.
Before they could reach the front door, however, it was opened from
inside. A tall angular woman with graying hair and a broad friendly
face smiled with obvious relief at Ty, as she smoothed her hands over
the voluminous white apron she wore.

"Well, I'm glad it's you, Mr. Manning," she announced.
"Didn't hear the car and couldn't think who it might be out here
stomping around on the porch."

"We were just trying to knock the snow off our shoes,
Ellie," Ty said, indicating with a gesture that Anne should precede him
into the house. After they were all in and the door was closed behind
them, he smiled at Ellie. "Sorry if we startled you, but we walked up.
Had a little accident with the car."

Ellie demanded details, and after she had heard exactly
what had happened, she shook her head and clicked her tongue against
her teeth. "Ain't that a shame. Well, it's just a blessing nobody got
hurt. Now, I bet some hot coffee would taste good after that long walk
up here. Wouldn't it?" As she herded them along the wide entrance
foyer, she smiled sympathetically at Anne. "That wind must be mighty
cold. Your cheeks are rosy red, honey."

"Ellie, this is Anne Fairchild, my new secretary," Ty said
as they approached the winding staircase that led up to the second
floor. "And I don't think you've ever met Mike Bennett. He's one of the
lawyers with the firm. Anne, Mike, this is Ellie Caldwell, my
housekeeper."

As Ellie gave both visitors a genuine smile of welcome,
Anne extended her hand. The housekeeper clasped it firmly, but her warm
brown eyes widened and she shook her head and clicked her teeth again
when she felt how cold it was. "Goodness, girl, your skin's like ice."

"Maybe you should get Miss Fairchild some coffee and let
her take it up to her room. She might like a hot bath," Ty suggested,
running his long lean fingers through his thick dark brown hair. "I'll
wait and have a cup after I've driven down to the car in the jeep and
brought back the luggage."

"But you've just come in from the cold," Ellie protested
maternally. "I think you should have some coffee before you go back
outside again."

"Later. First, I'm changing my clothes and going back for
the luggage," Ty persisted, then took the steps two at a time.

As he disappeared upstairs, Ellie sniffed disapprovingly,
then directed Anne and Mike to the antique deacon's bench sitting
against a pecan-paneled wall. "Sit a minute and I'll put on a fresh pot
of coffee before I show you up to your rooms."

After the housekeeper loped away toward the back of the
house, Anne removed her coat and sat down on the bench, watching Mike
as he came to join her. "Aren't you going with Mr. Manning?" she asked.
"He might need some help with the luggage."

"There are only three suitcases," Mike answered rather
shortly, then gave her a sheepish grin. "To tell the truth, these new
boots are pinching like crazy. I'll be lucky if I can hobble upstairs."

"New shoes can be murder," Anne agreed pleasantly, while
trying to fold her unfoldable coat. "Maybe you should soak your feet.
That might help."

"Or, maybe I should invite you to my room and ask you to
massage them for me," Mike countered mischievously. "But before I make
such a provocative suggestion, I guess I'd be wise to apologize for all
the nasty remarks I made about your driving. I didn't mean them. I'm
always a real grump when I first wake up."

Anne laughed softly. "Well, that certainly was a rude
awakening. I accept your apology. But… you'd better ask
Ellie to massage your feet because I have to refuse your invitation."