A New Chapter In His Life (closed for Rayne_Clowd)

Martin Davis, thiry one, looked down at his left hand, and the slim band of gold on the fourth finger. For seven years, that ring had meant something; Had meant he had found a woman special enough to want to share his life with her, and she with him. Now, it was a symbol of what was taken away from him by his publisher in his own bedroom, followed by a team of lawyers.

He shook off those thoughts and loaded the last of his boxes into the moving truck. His entire life, boiled down to a couple boxes and half of the money his books had brought in...which wasn't near as much as some people might imagine. Martin had written three novels of medieval fantasy; Sword and sorcery, with a hint of romance and a pinch of erotic material throw in. They had all been well received by the critics, highly praised. Trouble is, the general public gave him a less enthusiastic response; The books sold, he had a few pockets of followers and a few fan sites on the internet, but he'd never be another Tolkien.

After the unfortunate afternoon he came home early...the next city on his book tour had been snowed in, and his plane could not land, cutting things short by two days...he had left his current publisher. 'Creative Differences' was the official statement; 'Publisher Screwing Authors Wife' was the private truth. Martin was just over six feet tall, lanky thin, with red hair right on the edge of brown, and a face he had occasionally been told was handsome. His wife Vanessa had apparently decided she much prefered the short, balding man publishing Martin's work at Phoenix Publishing instead; The same man they had often joked was a dead ringer for Jason Alexander.

Raven Books had eventually picked him up, but had put a condition into his contract. They wanted to see something a bit different from him, to see how he could do in other genres, maybe expand his fan base. Martin agreed to the logic in that, and asked what they would suggest. The answer; A western story. Trade in all though cloaks and armor for boots and chaps...swap swords for six guns. Martin told them it would be a challenge, but he was willing to give it a try, if they could afford him some time. His publisher agreed to that, giving Martin a small advance and three months to turn out an outline and the first few chapters.

Flash forward two weeks, to find Martin on the road out of the city he'd called hom since birth, behind the wheel of a moving truck, followed by one of the interns from RB driving Martin's little black Beetle. Destination: Ogden Marsh, Iowa. A farming town just big enough to make it onto the maps, but small enough to offer peace and quiet as he worked. He'd come across an ad for a room to rent on one of the farms, by someone named Billie Jacobs. Martin had thought the spelling of the name was a bit different, but it was only a passing thought and was soon out of his head for good.

Pulling into the drive of the farm, Martin was pleased to discover it was a little distance out from town, which meant that much more solitude. He passed a pasture with a small herd of cattle grazing, and felt compelled to moo at them as he went by; He'd never understand why people did that, not even why he himself did, but it's just what everyone does. He stopped and climbed out of the truck, spotting a chicken coop, and a patch of vegetables beyond it. It struck him as a very quaint, iconic slice of small town America, and absolutely perfect for his needs. Nothing around for miles to distract him.

Martin mounted the steps up to the porch, a bit troubled by the squeaky protest of each wooden step. He had dressed in a pair of black slacks and a white polo shirt, his standard casual. Pushing his glasses up on his nose, he checked the address one last time, and rang the bell, waiting to meet this Mr. Billie Jacobs.

Billie-Jane Jacobs


Name: Billie-Jane Jacobs - just "Billie" if you want to live.
Age: 30
Quick BIO: Billie inherited her small farm in Ogden Marsh, Iowa from her later father just 12 months ago. It is in bad shape so she is working herself to the bone and has even taken an ad out renting one of her rooms just to make mortgage repayments. She has never been married and never been out of Ogden Marsh except to go and pick up livestock.

(I will be back later with a post this was just a tease)

Billie had been in the kitchen, laying on her back her head under the sink wrench in hand cursing at the broken pipe when she heard the truck pull up. She paused and put the wrench down beside her and climbed back to her feet and tucked a strand of her messed up hair behind her ear and let out a deep breath....this was it, she was going to rip Phil an new one.

Phil Baker had been telling her for weeks he would come by and fix the pipes for her, she had cornered him last week at the grocery store and demanded he keep his appointment this time. He was the only plumber in town but the man was lazy and forever spending his time at the local pub rather then doing his job. He was already two days late so she was pretty pissed as she had spent the last hour under the sink and battled numerous bugs and still the bastard thing dripped and rattled like an old freight train.

Billie-Jane had been born on this very farm, However she had never really worked it until recently. Instead she had been in school and then the local college and then she had used that priceless education to pour drinks for slack jawed locals who tips were not even worth counting. She had worked at the local pub, "Flanagan's" it was an Irish pub. Billie had worked there ever since college it had been her way to stay close to her dad and look after him and to contribute to the farm when he allowed .......which wasn't often at all.

Billie-Jane was an only child, She had been raised by her dad alone since the age of 13. Her mother Carol-anne had died in a tragic car accident involving the local milk tanker, a foggy morning and her rushing to town to work at the local hospital. Her mother had been a registered nurse and highly dedicated to her job and to her family. It was a freak accident no one was really at fault bad weather and a stray cow..... But it had left Billie and her father Joe with holes in their hearts that she never thought would heal.

This last year Billie's hole got a little larger when her father passed away from a heart attack, He had been out in the field working on some broken fence when it hit. Billie had been at work and had only found out what happened when their neighbor Jeana Mann came into Flanagan's and took Billie into the back room and broke the news. Jeana had been heading into town when she had spotted Joe in the field slumped on the ground. Billie had been like a zombie she had heard the news but her body and mind simply shut down and didn't allow her to show a response. She had thanked Jeana left the pub and headed home. It was there that she had crumbled and sobbed like a babe, her heart ripping to shreds at being left alone to try and carry on.

Billie's world had changed so much that day she had inherited her family farm and all the debt that went with it. Debt that she had never known about, and now for the first time she had to do the work not only to repair it but to keep it. So she had been waking every morning at 6am tending to the animals, digging in the vegetable patch trying to get it to produce enough produce to sell for extra cash to repair some things and to pay for the mortgage that was hanging over her head.

The truth was she had sold off most of the livestock, taken on night shifts at the pub, even advertised to rent out one of the rooms in the farm house, because she was very close to loosing it all, and that was something she couldn't bare to consider this was her home. The mortgage on the place was so far behind the figures were blinding but she was digging her boots in and was determined to keep this place even if it killed her.

Billie stormed to the front of the house and flung open the door she was about to rip into Phil when she noticed it was not him at all, her face went from anger to confusion and she glanced from the stranger to the truck and back again "Can I help you Mr?"

It was a bit of a shock when the door flew open infront of him, and Martin staggered back a helf step. Standing in the doorway was an attractive red haired woman, with a look on her face that threatened to confrim every stereotype he'd heard about the dreaded red head temper. He openned his mouth, not sure exactly what he was going to say, but thinking he had best offer up some sort of appology for bothering her at what was clearly a very bad time. Then the fire in the woman's eyes subsided...not entirely, the embers were still there and no doubt they always would be, he thought...and she looked confused instead. Guess she was expecting someone else, he thought. And whoever that person is, he or she would be wise to not show up.

"Can I help you Mr?"

He shook off his surprise, and offered a small, shy smile. "Well, hopefully you can. I was wondering about the room for rent." Martin had noticed the ring on the woman's left hand, and figured this must be Mrs. Billie Jacobs. He made a point to look at her face, and not let his eyes travel below her neck to notice anything else. All the same, he couldn't stop himself, and his gaze did flick down all her body just once to take her in; She was nicely put together, and while he would kick himself for it later, and might even offend her by looking, he was unable to stop the male impulse in time. He hooked a thumb over his shoulder towards the truck. "I am sorry for just showing up, but I called about a week ago...I'm Martin Davis...and I said I might like the room if it's not taken. I didn't hear back, and so I just..." About then Martin realized he was rambling a bit, and he trailed off. The possibility he had dialed a wrong number also crossed his mind, now that it was too late to do anything about it. He simply shrugged. "I just took a chance. Anyway, I was looking for Billie Jacobs; Is he here right now?"

Billie-Jane looked him over as she casually leaned against the door frame waiting for the stranger to explain who he was and what he wanted, His black slacks and polo shirt told her he was not from around here. There was nothing wrong with his outfit or with his taste, it just wasn't the normal every day wear for around here. Jeans, cotton or flannelet shirts, boots and a stetson were the usual atire...of course most also crowned the look with some large buckle on their belt. It was just what the good old boys around here wore.

She eyed the truck again and then looked back to him and listened as he began to explain, She vaguely remembered hearing part of the call. The answering machine had eaten the message on her when she tried to play it, the answering machine had decided to join the list of things that were now broken around here. She nodded and then smiled clearly amused when he asked for Mr Billie Jacobs.

Moving away from the door frame Billie looked him up and down purposely and then smiled at him as she extended her hand to shake his "Well Mr Davis I am Billie Jacobs, this would be my farm and it would be my room for rent." She met his eyes to see what he would make of that "I remember your call sorry to say I couldn't call you back because the machine ate the message, so I guess it is a good thing you just showed up. The room is $150 a week and that includes half the grocery bill....would you like to see the room before you decide?"

"Well Mr Davis I am Billie Jacobs, this would be my farm and it would be my room for rent. I remember your call sorry to say I couldn't call you back because the machine at the message, so I guess it is a good thing you just showed up. The room is $150 a week and that includes half the grocery bill....would you like to see the room before you decide?"

That was the second surprise in as few minutes, but this one wasn't nearly as frightening as the sudden appearence Billie had made before her temper cooled. Martin listened to what she said, and gave the offered hand a quick shake. He was sure his embarassment was writen across his face plain as day at the assumption that Billie would be a man.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to...well, I mean I assumed..." He shook his head. "Nevermind. Yes, I'd like to see the room. But I'm pretty sure I'll want to take it; The terms sound fine, and this area looks right for my work." And my land lady is rather easy on the eyes. "So, unless there's something drastically wrong with the room, I can pay for the first week or two in advance." He decided to try a little humor, and sadly only a very little humor is what he came up with. "I'm not a criminal...but I guess that's just what a criminal might say, so I guess that won't count for much."

Martin kicked himself on the inside for that, and pulled out his wallet. He counted out three hundred dollars in tens and twenties, and looked up with a look of realization. "Oh...sorry, did you want to consult with your husband first? I can head into town, find something to eat, and come back in a while, whenever you're expecting him."

She smiled at the look on his face, truth was he was not the first to make the mistake and she doubted he would be the last but Billie refused to go by Billie-Jane it was such a horrid name as far as she was concerned and she had always hated it. She had gotten into many brawls with boys at school when she was younger because they would tease her and call her Billie-Jane just to get her riled up.

She shook his hand and smiled warmly, "Don't sweat it Mr Davis, I have been called worse" She grinned a little at her attempt at humor. She nodded when he said he didn't see the room, it was his choice. There was nothing wrong with the room but it was nothing special either, a four poster bed, a closet, a comfortable chair and that was about it. They would have to share the rest of the house but she assumed he knew that.

Billie quirked an eyebrow at the criminal comment, and for a moment paused wondering if she shouldn't be doing this after all. But as he pulled out his wallet and began counting off the notes all Billie saw was a mortgage payment hanging over her head so she decided to risk it. It wasn't like she was a shrinking violet and she let eyes roam over him trying to get a read on him. He seemed to notice her pause or perhaps he saw her rub her finger across the gold band on her finger.

"I do not have a husband Mr Davis, this was my mothers" that was all she said as she showed him her hand and then put her hands in her pockets hiding the ring from view. "Come on in I will show you, your room" she said simply and then walked back into the house expecting him to follow her.

She walk through the front door and down a hall way, there were four doors along the hall, her room, the bathroom, the office and what was once her parents room now converted too the room for rent. She stopped outside a door on the right hand side of the hall way at the far end. She twisted the door handle and opened it for him. "This is it" she stood back to let him walk in.

"I do not have a husband Mr Davis, this was my mothers. Come on in I will show you, your room"
With that, Billie had simply turned and walked into the house, after tucking her hand away out of sight. Martin was curious about the fact that she was wearing her mother's ring...her parents must have seperated, he figured. Billie looked a few years younger than himself; Mid to late twenties at the most, too young to have lost her mother. But for all his curiousity, it wasn't his business, and he wouldn't think about it. Too much.

He turned and gave a quick nod to the intern, James he thought he remembered the man's name being, to let him know to go on and unload the few boxes Martin would be needing. His clothes (which it seemed would make him stand out in town), some books, his laptop of course, and a few other odds and ends. The bulk of his property was going back into town, to be put into a storage facility. Vanessa had been very clear that his half of it all could be anywhere but 'their house', which she was selling off as soon as possible. That was fine by Martin, he didn't want her or her new lover living there; Sleeping in the room they'd shared. The idea made him ill, and he made a point to get the bedroom set in the split. On a more practical note, the sale would also mean a fair size check to keep him going if this new book didn't pan out.

Turning back to the interior of the house, he followed along behind Billie. The sway of her hips as she walked , and round rump in her jean skirt were just one more confirmation that she was very certainly a she. He pulled his eyes up to a much more polite level just before she faced him, holding open one of the four doors of the hall.

"This is it"

Martin stepped past the young woman, so careful to keep a distance that his back grazed the door frame, and inspected the room. It was only sparsely furnished, but he hadn't expected much. He ran a hand over the chair, and looked into the closet. Smiling, he looked over to Billie in the doorway. "This is perfect, thank you. Oh, and you can just call me Martin if I'm going to stay here...no need to stand on formality."

Billie stood back and watched him look around the room, she knew it wasn't anything impressive but it was comfortable. There was fresh linen on the old four poster bed and a fluffy towel folded and placed at the bottom for him to use. It was a simple room but it was also clean and tidy.

"I am glad you like it Martin, You can feel free to add what ever you need. It's your room but just don't do any cosmetic changes that I will have to paint over later or anything." she was pretty sure he knew what she meant, and given the removal truck outside she assumed he might have some things he wanted to have in the room.

Billie crossed over to the window and opened the curtains for him and the window to air out the room a little, "The view isn't bad either" she said as she gazed out the window across the pastures to the hills beyond, she always found it soothing and often spent time on the porch swing just relaxing and soaking up the view. Billie turned to him and smiled, "well I will let you get settled in. If you need anything just let me know" Billie then headed to the door "Oh if you need the bathroom to freshen up or anything, its just down the hall" she said as she slipped out and headed back to the kitchen to wrestle with the pipes.

She wasn't really comfortable with strangers and she wasn't sure how she was going to go sharing her home with a someone, but it was a necessary thing if she was going to meet the mortgage repayments and keep it. This was the only home she had ever known, she couldn't bare the thought of having to part with it.

As she entered the kitchen her hand casually brushed over the door frame and the notches in the wood, were her dad had measured her hight every year since she was 3 years old. Every birthday since that year he had notched the wood even last year he had jokingly stood her in the door way and notched the wood. Billie smiled as her hand caressed the wood and then sighed as her eyes fell on the tool box and the kitchen sink.

Slipping down onto the floor again, her head under the sink she began to bash away at the pipes with her wrench, muttering and cursing Phil the whole time.

"I am glad you like it Martin, You can feel free to add what ever you need. It's your room but just don't do any cosmetic changes that I will have to paint over later or anything."

Martin nodded, already planning to get James to help him bring in his writing desk and bookshelf. He didn't have any intention of messing up the room in any way, so that was no trouble. Billie crossed the room to draw the curtains on a wide expanse of pasture with hills off in the distance, where she stood looking out for a moment.

"The view isn't bad either"

No...not too bad at all, from where I'm standing. The thought was in and back out of his mind before he knew it, and he felt his face heat up just the tiniest bit. He ran his left thumb over onto his wedding band and pressed the finger into his palm, and old nervous habit he'd picked up. Can't be thinking like that; It's too soon, if you're not ready to take off the ring, you're not ready to be looking at beautiful red heads. Least of all the beautiful red head you're going to be staying with.

"Well I will let you get settled in. If you need anything just let me know. Oh if you need the bathroom to freshen up or anything, its just down the hall"

With that, she walked away the direction they had come, and shortly there after he heard the sounds of banging and cursing. Martin made his way out front again, to find his boxes piled on the porch. He called to James to help carry in the two heavier items, and then he could head back. Passing the kitchen, the two men were treated to a glimpse of smooth white legs protruding from under the sink. Martin turned his eyes away, but James was so caught up he stopped moving and dropped his end of the bookcase on his toes. Which, in turn, made Martin lose his end. It missed his feet, but landed with a thud on the floor. They hurried to pick it back up and got it into place in the rented room. Martin avoided looking into the kitchen on the way back, afraid he'd see Billie sitting up giving them a curious look about the noise.

Back out at the truck, they got the desk unloaded and made for the porch. James grinned a goofy grin like some high school age mass of hormones. "I dunno about the room...but I'd sure pay to rent some of that." Then, he burst into a low chuckle and winked. Martin let his end go, giving James another sore set of toes. The intern yelped and fired off an angry look, but Martin just dug out a twenty and thrust it at James, along with the keys to the truck.

"I think I can manage from here, thanks. Here's a few bucks for gas and a quick meal...get the rest into the storage space and return the truck. And be more careful when you get there."

James still looked angry, but he left without another word, driving the truck off down the road. Martin sighed, looking at the desk. In retrospect, maybe he should've waited until it was down the hall, into the room before he got rid of James. But...at least it was up the steps. With another quiet sigh, he started to work the desk through the front door into the house.

Billie was getting so cranky with the pipes under the sink, she was startled when she heard a loud bang coming from the front of the house but aside from jumping little an almost taking her head out on a pipe, she figured it was just Martin moving in so didn't bother to go look.

She gave the pipe one last bash before dropping the wrench in frustration and cursing Phil again, she was going to have to ring him again. With that thought Billie slid out from under the sink and was making her way to the office to make the call when she discovered Martin struggling with a desk. She smiled and wondered where is helper had gone but it was none of her business so she didn't ask. But he clearly needed help so Billie walked over and lifted up the other end of the desk "need hand?" it wasn't really a question as she already had hold of it and was just waiting for him to catch on and go with it.

Martin was glad when Billie took up the opposite end of the desk and more insisted than offered to help him carry it. He wouldn't have asked, and a part of him felt bad she clearly felt obligated to lend a hand...but, since she had, he wasn't going to argue. He smiled across it's surface to her, that same sheepish smile from when he first met her.

"Thanks Billie. I sent James off because he was..." He stopped, and quickly edited himself. "Because he was in a bit of a rush, and, well...my fool pride said I could handle this alone." Passing the kitchen, he cocked his head in the direction of the door. "Meanwhile, I saw you in there on the first pass; Sounds like you have problems of your own that're bigger than one heavy desk."

The desk was soon in place against the wall facing away from the window; If he didn't keep his back on that view, work might never happen. "Thank you again. Didn't mean to trouble you like that. The rest'll be easy though, so you can get back to what you were doing." After he said the words, Martin realized they might come out as a brush off to get rid of her, which wasn't the impression he wanted to portray. Shy, yes, he could admit to being that, but he didn't want to start on the wrong foot and have her think he was stand-offish.

Billie smiled as she helped him with the desk and nodded when he mentioned the plumbing problems. "Nothing a decent plumber who did his job wouldn't' fix" she replied clearly frustrated "I am about to call him again once I help you with this" she nodded to the desk as they carried the it into the room and placed it on the blank wall away from the window, Billie was going to suggest by the window so he could soak up the view but it was none of her business.

He thanked her and so Billie nodded and smiled and then left the room, she had things to do and she didn't want to distract him or be a bother. Heading into the office she picked up the phone and dialed Phil Baker the plumber. She got his answering machine and began to grind her teeth in frustration as it beeped in her ear she hissed out in a none to pleased voice "Phill this is Billie, if your not here to fix this pipe today you better find yourself a new pub because you will not be getting a peaceful drink at Flanagan's ever again" and with that she slammed down the phone.

Billie then sighed and went back the kitchen, it was like the pipe was mocking her she kept looking at sink as if it was taunting her, how hard could it be to fix a leaky pipe. So Billie slid onto her back again and under the sink, it was not like she could count on Phill Baker to fix it. Billie was bashing away under the sink and swearing up a blue streak.......finally at the end of her tether she whacked the pipe hard.

This turned out to be a BIG BIG mistake water gushed every where and Billie choked spluttered and screamed as she battled her way from under the sink, she was soaked and the kitchen was filling up fast, running out the back door she shut off the water to the house, panting and soaked through she came back into the house and groaned at the mess. She needed to get the mop from the hall cupboard and some towels.

Billie walked down the hall huffing and puffing clearly pissed off, pulling her white tank top away her body were it clung to every curve and hid little from view as it was now transparent. Her hair was stuck to her cheek and hung wet and limp from her head. She was going to spit in the next beer she served Phill, she was sure of it.

Martin listened to Billie explain the trouble with the sink, telling him a lot more about the situation than just what she said. This was, evidently, not a very recent problem. Unfortunately, when it came to home repairs, he had always been better at handling the repairmen section of a telephone book than he had been with a wrench, a hammer, or...well, any tools. So, much as he might have liked to offer to help out, take a look at the pipes himself, and save Billie the agrivation, Martin was fairly sure he would manage to make things that much worse.

"Phill this is Billie, if your not here to fix this pipe today you better find yourself a new pub because you will not be getting a peaceful drink at Flanagan's ever again" Billie's voice trailed in from the hall, followed by a just audible metallic clang. He was just in time to see her stalk back into the kitchen before going out of the room himself. He began bringing in his few boxes, just getting them inside for the moment, not wanting to get in the way with a bunch of trips back and forth.

That's when the swearing and banging started, and he knew for certain he didn't want to even attempt going near that sink.

Martin took a single box of his clothing back to his room, stealing a glance into the kitchen along the way...they really were some impressive legs, and just plain deserved another looking at. He picked up his travel bag with his toiletries, the towel Billie had mentioned leaving for him to freshen up, and made for the bathroom to do just that. Stepping in and turning on the light, he found the bathroom to be well kept up (something he would make a point to do as well), he found it to have a pleasent, natural/woodsy scent from some source he couldn't immediately track down (something which further feminized Billie), and he found it to contain four bras...two white, one black, and one scarlet red...drying in a line over the curtain rod (something which drastically feminized Billie, and simultaniously turned him scarlet red).

After a moment in which he considered just leaving the way he came and showering after the unmentionables had been cleared away, and saving him having to mention finding them at all...Martin simply transfered them to a towel bar, handling them as little as he needed, and went about his business. True, it had been a momentary surprise to find the bras, and...okay, true, he did for just a second or two have a vision of Billie in the black one. But he wasn't going to start tip-toeing around while he was staying here with her, and if she said anything about it later, well then he would know what to do in the future. With that resolved in his own mind, Martin undressed and stepped into the shower, turning on a warm spray to wash away his day's worth of travel.

As he washed, thoughts of the fiercely attractive woman who answered the door came to him. Followed by thoughts of smooth white legs, topped by slightly swaying hips and a sexy little backside. Followed very rapidly by thoughts of turning the shower water cold, as simple human nature took its course with him. Suddenly, the water shut off completely, hot and cold both, leaving Martin dripping wet, lightly soapy, and utterly confused. And still physically arroused.

"...Ohh, shit, the pipes!"

Hitting a fist against the wall, Martin wrapped his towel around his waist and made a dash across the hall to get dressed and investigate what happened more fully. He only made it halfway before he collided with Billie. In the span of two seconds, he tried to determine what he should be the most embarassed about. Running into the woman was low on the list. The fact he had knocked her bras to the floor in his hurry to leave the bathroom was a bit higher. Billie being wet and all but naked for him to see, higher still. Him being all butt-naked for Billie to see, save for his towel, was nearly at the top. None the less, taking slot number one was the fact that Martin's towel was just tented enough in front for Billie to know about his current condition.

Stammering for words...any words...his gaze flicked between her eyes, the funny/adorable/sexy way her hair was clinging to her face, and (despite his best efforts) her breasts.

Billie was in a fowl mood you could almost see the steam coming from her ears, Phil would not be safe from her wrath after this "that lazy good for nothing" she was muttering to herself as she came face to face with Martin. She stopped dead and couldn't help but look him over he was half naked and wet and smelling of soap and that erotic all male smell, she inhaled a little and then bit her bottom lip as she savored it.

After a moment she snapped out of her little daze and blushed a little "Uh sorry" she took a step back and then glanced from his wet body to the door to the bathroom and then back "sorry I broke the pipes" she said and released her breath. Billie suddenly felt warm and breathless, she swallowed and tried not to stare at Martin. She lowered her eyes and it was then she noticed the front of his towel, and his arousal this caused her to stammer a little and flustered she turned around forgetting the mop and headed into her office and picked up the phone and left another scathing message for Phil the plummer.

Billie tried to calm herself she knew she shouldn't be embarrassed and she shouldn't be curious as to what he looked like without the towel but that was immediately where her mind went when she saw the front of his towel tented out , she licked her lips and took another deep breath and hoped that Martin would not be in the hall way when she went back out. She still had a kitchen to clean and she had to change her clothes.

After a stunned silent moment in the hall way, Martin was glad that Billie made a quick exit. He ducked into his own room as well, happy the little scene wasn't going too play out any longer than those few uncomfortable seconds. He shut the door and dressed in another polo shirt and a pair of jeans. By the time he risked emerging back out into the hallway, his...situation...was no longer an issue, and with any luck the woman hadn't noticed among the confusion of a moment ago.

Billie appeared to be in her office still, or else had gone off to her bedroom, because he didn't see her on his way back through the house. Martin finished moving his few boxes, then made a quick search of the house to locate a mop and bucket. Having found them, he set about cleaning the massive puddle that streached across the kitchen. Easy as it would've been to simply stay shut up in his room, spending the whole night slowly unpacking and avoiding Billie, it wasn't going to help anything. There would no doubt be a day or two of nervous akwardness between them, and as long as it was going to be a bit uncomfy to live there, might as well get to it.

Billie was acting childish, she opened the office door and peaked her head out as if she was playing peek a boo. When she saw the hall was clear she released her breath and headed to her bedroom. Closing the door behind her she began to strip out of her wet clothes dumping them on the floor, as she then rustled through her closet for something clean and preferably dry.

It was still warm outside and she still had work to do and a few hours to kill before she had to go to work so she didn't bother changing into her uniform just yet, instead she settled for a simple green summer dress that would be cool while she cleaned up the mess the burst pipes had made. She mutter a curse to the absent plumber again and then left her bedroom to get the mop.

But the mop wasn't in the cupboard, she ran her hand through her hair confused and then walked slowly into the kitchen. She was surprised when she found Martin cleaning up the mess for her. "You don't have to do that" she said softly and took a step into the kitchen looking at the progress he had made. "Thank you, I will take over if you want?" she extended her hand for the broom.

Billie's Dress
http://www.angiehearts.net/v/vspfiles/photos/mm-88073-2T.jpg

Martin turned around when he heard the voice behind him. Despite his best efforts, he found himself once again giving Billie a once-over glance...a habit he was afraid he wouldn't be able to break for a good, long while, if ever. The image of her in the hall, her clothes wet and clinging to her frame, came back to him, and he turned quickly back to what he was doing.

"Oh, uhh...no, that's alright Billie. I'm almost done as it is, and I don't mind helping out a little anyway." He still kept his back turned, and cleared his throat after a moment of working up some nerve to breach the subject. "Listen, I'm...I'm sorry about what just happened. I didn't mean to run into you the way I did. And I certainly didn't mean to..." Martin paused, and looked at the young woman over his shoulder, slightly red faced. "To look."

And I don't mean to keep looking, but...damn, but she is noticable.

Billie smiled when he turned to look at her, it was a nervous friendly smile. She nodded when he said he was fine to do the cleaning up, she all but whispered "If your sure then..thanks"

His eyes where moving over her body, she couldn't help but notice and he seemed really nervous as he stammered an apology. Billie could feel the heat fill her cheeks so she turned and faced the fridge and opened the door getting out the jug of water.

"no worries, it was my fault I busted the pipes" she didn't really want to discuss his arousal because that meant she may have to discuss her own. Billie went to the cupboard and leaned up to get down a glass "would you like a drink?" she asked over her shoulder her body stretched out as she reached up to the top shelf, the skirt of her dress rising up to expose more of her tanned thighs.

Martin turned at the sound of Billie's question, and his mouth stopped halfway open. Her dress had pulled a bit higher up with her streach, putting a little more lovely leg into view. Briefly he wondered, if she were to reach high enough, might the skirt lift to flash a tiny, barest hint of her panties? It was doubtful...it wasn't really all that short...but it did make for an interesting thought. Before the thought took him too far away from the present though, he remembered to answer her.

"No, no drink, thank you. I think I, ah, had my fill of water for the time being." It was a pretty stupid joke, he knew, and too late he realized it might sound like Martin was making a jab at Billie for what had happened to the pipe. He thought how best to move the conversation along before his hostess had a chance to be offended by his slip of the tongue, and came up empty. Ironic that stringing together the right words in the right way was his job, when he was so terrible at doing so when he most wanted to.

He finished mopping the excess water from the floor and put the mop aside. Leaning back on a counter, Martin faced Billie. His eyes stayed where they belonged for a change, admiring her red hair instead of everything else he'd been looking at since he arrived.

"Anyway...like I said, I don't mind helping out a little around the house, with anything. Writing isn't going to occupy me so deep that I couldn't stop to...you know, whatever; Washing dishes, laundry..." Images of various colored unmentionables passed before Martin's eyes; Maybe not laundry. "...Whatever you might need or want help with. Just so you know."

Billie smiled to herself when he said he'd had enough water for the time being, she took it as good humor and wasn't offended. Getting herself a drink she turned to look at him. He was very tall and his hair was almost like rust it was a shade of reddish brown, he finished up the mopping and she smile and said thank you again.

"it was really nice of you to do that, this plumber has me all in a tizz he was supposed to be out her about 3 weeks ago" she rolled her eyes. Martin then told her he was glad to help and would help around the farm if she needed it....but Billie wasn't the type to really ask for help it kinda went against her nature so she simply nodded and smiled and tried not to laugh at the thought of him wrestling with the prehistoric washing machine to do the laundry.

It was one of those old style ones where you had to fill it with water and then add the clothes and soap and let it swish for a while before running everything through a wringer once and then rinsing in clean water and wringing again........it usually took her the best part of the day just to do her clothes...which was why her bra had been hanging in the bathroom.

"well since you have that handled, I might go out back and get some gardening done before I have to go to work" she put her glass in the sink and then at the back door slid on some gum boots and an apron and picked up a large basket that had some gardening tools in it. "help yourself to what ever and make yourself at home" she smiled again and went out the back door.

"Well since you have that handled, I might go out back and get some gardening done before I have to go to work. Help yourself to what ever and make yourself at home"

Martin nodded to Billie, and naturally he watched her departing backside until she was out of sight. Shaking away the lingering image, he set about getting familiar with the kitchen and made himself a sandwich in the process. That done, he carried it back to his room and settled in at his laptop. By the time he finished eatting, he still had no idea where to even begin writing, and he glanced over his shoulder towards the window.

Well...if I'm supposed to be working on a western, I guess a description of the country side wouldn't be such a terrible place to start.

Martin was able to fill a good portion of blank space with a pile of adjectives, embelishing on what he saw outside as much as he was able. It was about time for a character though...or a wayward cow, if nothing else...and the first person to come to mind was Billie. Which, once he put some genuine consideration into it, wasn't such a bad idea after all; Martin went back to his typing.

The next thing he knew, a couple of hours had slipped past without his noticing it. Martin wasn't sure if Billie was still around or if she had left for work yet (What was the name of that pub I heard her mention on the phone? Something Irish I think, but then aren't they all?), he was too caught up in his own work. The story was blatently taken from his own life, but nobody would ever be able to guess that, and it was sounding pretty good to him. It was the story of a strong, independant young woman, Elizabeth, scraping out a living running a farm alone a few miles outside of the nearest town. A wanderer trying to distance himself from his old life, Daniel, arrives one day offering to help out in exchange for room and board, and what little money she might be able to offer. Elizabeth agrees for the simple reason that she needs the help if her farm is going to survive. Very likely an uneasy romance is going to develop down the line, cliche as that was, but really, things only become cliche because those are the tried and true things that work well enough to be used over and over again.

Too bad I don't see any romance turning up here in the real world.

The thought made Martin chuckle to himself for some reason, and he decided to take a short break. He left Daniel washing up at the water pump and Elizabeth trying to sneak back inside after one of the horses knocked her into the water trough without being seen dripping wet. When he stood up to take his empty plate to the kitchen, it was almost painful, so stiff was he from sitting at the keyboard. With a few quiet groans, signs he was getting old for his age, he made his way through the house, glancing around once in a while for signs of Billie.

Billie had worked in the garden for a fair while, she had managed to plant some new seedlings and harvested what was ready. She had also fed the chickens and given some feed to the horses in the stable.

Now she sat on a stool in the kitchen her legs parted with a large bowl between her thighs that she was shelling peas into. She popped a few into her mouth and smiled the sweetness was so good, nothing beat home grown. Hearing Martin enter she looked up and smiled "NO water this time just peas" it was a lame joke but she didn't want him to feel life was always so chaotic around here.

"there is also some fresh strawberries in the fridge if you want some, they are so good" she smiled again and then began to shell the rest of the peas "is everything okay? are you getting settled in?"

Martin smiled to Billie when she made the joke about the water, genuinely glad there was a friendly atmosphere developing around the house. Seeing her sitting on the stool, snacking on her harvest, he thought he had never before in his life wanted to be a pea. Or a bowl, for that matter. Or maybe even a stool, to get near that butt of her's.

"There is also some fresh strawberries in the fridge if you want some, they are so good. Is everything okay? are you getting settled in?"

He went to the fridge and took out the strawberries. Bringing a chair over from the table, he sat down with them beside Billie. On the surface, they could now share both items if she wanted the berries or him the peas. At the same time however, it brought him close to her. There was a good, clean, earthy scent around her from her gardening. Just below that, almost but not quite lost, was something else he couldn't exactly pin down. Maybe it was just from being around the strawberries that it clung to her (maybe it was just the berries themselves, and he was attributing it to her). Martin didn't think Billie was the perfume type, so he dismissed that idea, but it could've been lingering shampoo. Her hair was the right shade for it, why not make it smell just as delicious?

"Everything's very good, thank you, and I am settling in. Plus, I think this environment suits me, since I managed to get a good deal of writing done this afternoon; Rough of course, but still not too bad in my opinion." He bit into one of the strawberries, his eyes on the features of her face...and her lovely hair of course. Martin was utterly stupid when it came to red heads, he couldn't deny it. The smile on his face widened. "If I can keep up this pace, either I can finish a book quick and you can have your privacy back...or, I'll get too used to it, and never want to leave." Something else he couldn't deny, at least to himself, was how much he already wanted to stay in this house, for reason which had nothing to do with his career.

It was then, after his brief rambling, he realized Billie probably didn't know he was a writer. He didn't remember it coming up that day, and this woman was a ways outside the target audience for his previous works. Well...now she knew. On the back of that thought, he realized that mentioning how well his manuscript was coming along, Billie might ask to read over it, to be polite if nothing else, which could be a bad thing.

In the midst of planning out how to handle that situation if it came up, and still admiring her looks, Martin reached for one of the peas...and missed. Now, aside from the situation, he found himself briefly handling a mid-thigh, recoiling sharply as soon as it registered in his mind. Well, okay, two or three seconds after it registered. Also, aside from the situation, he willed something else not to come up, and was thankful his body seemed to be doing as it was told this time.

Billie smiled and listened as he got the strawberries from the fridge and sat down to join her. She wasn't surprised to hear he was a writer it seemed to fit, she could tell he wasn't a far boy and judging by what he brought with him by way of furniture it just fit.

She smiled when he said he was liking the place and might not want to leave "It certainly has my heart rooted here" she smiled up at him but then jumped a little as his hand caressed her thigh, it was an accident he had been reaching for the peas but it shot electricity up her leg and set her heart racing. She almost dropped the peas, but she didn't say anything she could see his embarrassment and could feel the colour filling her own cheeks.

Billie tried not to fuss she placed the bowl on the table and stood up and went to the fridge with her back to him she asked "would you like a drink Martin" she was suddenly feeling very thirsty.