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that abounded. Straddling a branch high above the ground, they watched as Lowell searched for them. He finally gave up, going home.
     
    Ruby looked up at Rafe, grinning, and saw him watching her with an odd expression on his face.
     
    “What?” she asked defensively.
     
    “Nothing,” he said. He scooted a little closer to her and reached behind her. As his arm bushed her shoulder, and his shoulder neared her face, Ruby felt something unusual crawl up her belly. It was a feeling of thrill, a sort of tightness that came when something exciting was about to happen. She breathed in Rafe’s familiar scent, and her heart skipped a beat. Heat flushed her cheeks as she realized she was thinking of Rafe in a way she definitely shouldn’t be.
     
    He pulled back, the leaf held in his hand. “Look at this,” he breathed.
     
    Ruby pulled her eyes from his face and looked at the leaf. It was amazing, the colors not easily found all together in a single leaf this early in the season. “Wow,” she agreed. “It’s beautiful.”
     
    “Yeah, it is.” Something in his voice caught her attention and she looked at him to see him watching her. His words seemed to have a different meaning behind them, though she couldn’t fathom what.
     
    “You should give it to your mom,” she said, trying to sound normal while wondering how Rafe would react if she threw herself at him and planted a kiss on him.
     
    Rafe’s eyes dropped to the leaf. He caressed it with his thumb. Ruby’s gaze was drawn to the motion and she imagined him doing the same thing to her cheek.
     
    “You know the legend of oak trees, right?” he said, shaking her from her musings.
     
    “Oak trees have a legend?” she asked.
     
    “Several actually. In many cultures the oak tree was seen as god-like, so it was considered a sin or bad luck to cut one down.”
     
    “Really?”
     
    “Yeah. And see that?” He pointed to a large round object about ten feet above their heads attached to a branch. “That’s called an oak apple.”
     
    “Oaks don’t have apples.”
     
    “It’s not an apple you can eat. They’re created by worms. Legend says if you find the worm, you’ll have prosperity and success your whole life.”
     
    Ruby lifted a brow. “You’re making this up.”
     
    “I’m not. If you catch a falling leaf before it hits the ground, you won’t get sick all winter.”
     
    “Did you catch that one?” She pointed to the leaf he held.
     
    “Nope. I plucked it.”
     
    “Bad luck,” she teased.
     
    “Maybe. The Druids practically worshipped oak trees. They used them in rituals, for protection, and they always carried an acorn to prevent old age.”
     
    “Uh-huh,” she said disbelievingly. “And you know all this because . . .?”
     
    “I read about it.” He shrugged and smiled at her, and her heart flip-flopped. “They’re strong and mighty, the mightiest of all the trees. Oaks symbolize strength and courage.” Ruby thought Rafe was like an oak in that way, strong and mighty. He was built for the hard farm work he did every day. His thick arms, broad shoulders, and hard muscled chest attested to that. He continued, unaware of her perusal. “Romans thought oak trees attracted lightening on purpose, which connected the oak to the sky god Jupiter and his wife Juno, the goddess of marriage. So the oak also symbolizes fidelity.”
     
    Rafe held the leaf out to her. “Here. I want you to have it. That way, you won’t ever forget me.”
     
    Ruby took the leaf, and not wanting him to know what it meant that he’d given it to her, said, “As if I could ever forget you, you big jerk. Who else would feed me full of a bunch of made up stories about a tree?”
     
    Rafe laughed and swung down from the tree. Ruby tucked the leaf carefully inside her vest and then followed him. He picked up an acorn and handed it to her.
     
    “Supposedly, the acorn keeps you young and increases fertility and sexual potency. You might need that