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laugh, has family values, and isn’t afraid to be himself. Someone that I can trust,” she felt Noah’s hand on her shoulder and turned to him. “How about you? What do you want in a woman?”
    His other hand caressed her cheek as he leaned in closer to her, silently answering her question.
    Despite the whipping winds around her, a fire burned beneath her skin. And when she felt the pressure from his lips over her own, her heart exploded with pleasure. His hand moved from her shoulder and slid down her back as he gathered her closer to him. Her legs almost buckled from dizzy intoxication.
    However, it wasn’t long until Amanda’s cautious nature interjected. She pulled away from Noah, feeling extremely frustrated. Pushing at his chest with her hands, she tried to escape his embrace, but he would not release her. “Why do you keep teasing me, Noah? It’s just like when we were younger--”
    “ What are you talking about?” his lips were gliding gently over her hair.
    Your kisses will hurt me, she wanted to scream, so don’t kiss me again! But she flashed a smile instead. “I–I mean that we shouldn’t get so caught up in the moment anymore.”
    “ Caught up in the moment? That’s not what happened--”
    “ Yes it is. W-we started talking about marriage and ideal mates. It’s only n-natural we would turn to each other romantically,” she shrugged. Closing her eyes, she hoped he would reply in agreement. But oh how desperately she wanted to pull him to her and resume their kiss!
    “ No, Amanda...” he protested, But was suddenly distracted by Maria’s high-pitched scream. Slipping away from Amanda, he dashed to the house and found Maria on the front porch, waving her short arms hysterically.
    “ No breathing, no breathing...” she cried, twisting her apron into knots.
    “ Slow down, Maria,” Noah requested calmly and grasped her arms.
    Amanda stumbled onto the porch, directing a worried glance at Noah. “What’s wrong?”
    “ That’s what I’m trying to figure out but Maria is so upset,” he answered, then turned his attention back to Maria.
    “ It’s Mr. West,” Maria sobbed, shaking her head. “I went to check on him--”
    “ Is something wrong?” Noah broke down in despair. “Maria, tell me! What’s wrong with my father?”
    Maria’s teary gaze wavered to Amanda, who was biting her bottom lip, and then settled on Noah’s blank stare. He already sensed what she was going to say. “He’s not breathing.”
    ********
    A light breeze in the air kept lifting Amanda’s dress collar and flipping it up against her chin. She patted it down for the umpteenth time, searching the black-clothed crowd for Noah. He seemed to have suddenly disappeared. Rubbing her weary red eyes, she moved quietly with the crowd, taking one last glance at where Thomas had been buried. She already missed him terribly and was also quiet upset that she hadn’t been able to reach her grandparents the last couple of days. She had hoped to get in touch with them so they could make it for the funeral, but hadn’t been fortunate to catch them at home. And they never left their answering machine on so she couldn’t even leave a message. Wiping her eyes, she climbed into her truck.
    On the drive back home, as the sun was setting, she contemplated her future. Noah would surely sell the ranch now. Or would he surprise her and keep it to honor his father? Shaking her head, she chastised herself. Thoughts of Thomas should be on her mind right now, not the ranch! Suddenly, without warning, she clutched the steering wheel and swerved off the windy country road to avoid hitting a jeep parked in the center. Angrily, she yanked the keys from the ignition and stormed from the truck. But halfway to the jeep, she wondered if the driver could be hurt or maybe had engine trouble. Quickly, her anger subsided and she made her way to the jeep with concern.
    Narrowing her eyes to see better in the dusky evening, she began to recognize the