Secret of the Wood

"I've got the perfect place. It's just up ahead."

Brooke held out a hand, letting it brush through the needles of a pine to her side. "So this is all your land out here?"

"You remember Sheriff Robinson?" When she nodded, he continued, "He decided to retire in Florida, and asked Dad if he wanted to buy the land, since it was between our house and my sister's."

"Must have been expensive."

"Nah, not really. He wanted to sell it to someone who would leave it as it is, so he cut us a pretty good deal."

"Still... I thought your family did charity work and stuff."

"Well, Dad and my brother-in-law are both lawyers. Mom and Sis are about the only large animal vets around, too. Even with all the stuff they do for free, we get by."

A bend in the trail opened into a familiar clearing, and Dan was amused to hear Brooke emit a gasp.

"What's that?" she asked while taking in the combination of a clubhouse and tree house. The lower section was on the ground and around ten foot square, with a gabled roof, and a rather conspicuous sign reading no gurls allowed! This was connected to the upper level by an enclosed ladder leading up into the widespread lower limbs of the tree, where rope swings hung from a balcony attached to the tree house. The entire structure was freshly painted to resemble a stone castle, complete with battlements.

Dan chuckled. "My nephew's tree fort. It was actually sort of mine for a while, until he was old enough to take over as lord of the castle. It was his dad's before that."

His skin broke out into goose bumps when Brooke loosed a beautiful, musical laugh.

"It's a good thing my brother never saw this. He always thought his tree house was the greatest thing in the world," she explained. "So, are we going to eat here?"

"Just a little farther." Daniel guided his horse off the trail and through a narrow gap in the trees. The red pines formed what he liked to think of as his privacy fence, hiding his spot from the world. After a short ride, he emerged with Brooke right behind him into the clearing around the pond.

"Another well kept secret?" Brooke asked as she took in the view. The brilliant sunlight shining down seemed even brighter after the ride through the shadowed wood, and the thick evergreen walls kept the wind at bay.

"From everybody but my family," Dan answered as he rode toward his spot.

"That tree is a little out of place," she remarked as he reined in.

Dan climbed down from his saddle with practiced ease. "It's a refugee from the city."

Her eyes lit up and she said, "Oh yeah. I remember hearing about it. So this is where you moved it, huh?"

He nodded and walked over to help her dismount. He barely managed to keep from shuddering when she took his hand and used his shoulder to help steady her as she dropped down out of the saddle. "Yep. She holds the fort when I'm not around."

"She?" Brooke asked with an amused grin.

"Uhm, yeah," he responded, followed by a nervous chuckle. His grandmother had referred to the tree in the feminine while using her magic to nurture it, and he'd gotten into the habit as well, since it seemed appropriate for some reason. "So, let's eat," he said, changing the subject.

Dan pulled what he'd packed out of the saddlebag while Brooke walked toward the elm and observed, "I guess she really isn't all that out of place. She's sort of the queen at the center of attention."

Naturally, he stared as she stretched, standing up on her tiptoes and making her already stunning bottom all the more eye-catching in her jeans. She didn't help him keep his eyes from wandering to her body when she tugged at the neck of her sweater as she turned back toward him, causing her breasts to bounce.

"Whew. This may be a little warm here, out in the sun."

Dan knew that it wasn't just the sun. Knowing how much he enjoyed this spot, his grandmother had extended a little extra measure of her magical blessing upon the place. It was always warmer or cooler here, depending upon the weather, than the surrounding woods. He finished retrieving everything for their picnic lunch and gave his horse a pat on the neck. "Okay you two, go have a drink and find something to munch on. Don't wander far."

The two horses nickered and took off simultaneously toward the pond.

Brooke laughed. "It's almost like they understood every word you said."

He shrugged, nearly losing his precarious one-finger grip on a thermos full of coffee in the process. "I was there when Mom helped deliver them, so they've known me all their life. They're twins." He sat everything down and grabbed the blanket he'd brought to spread it out underneath the tree. He would have been perfectly content to sit on the ground, but he wasn't willing to take the chance that she wasn't.

"Horses can have twins?" she asked as she sat down on the blanket.

"It doesn't happen very often, and at least one usually doesn't survive. Mom fought pretty hard for those two."

"Your family is pretty famous for things like that around here."

"We all do what makes sense to us — even if it doesn't make much sense to anyone else," Daniel responded and chuckled as he started opening containers to lay out lunch. "All we're doing is talking about me, though. Have you decided what you want to go for once you're out of school? Print? Television?"

♠~~~~~∞~~~~~♠

Kia grinned approvingly as she peeked through the foliage.

She could hear Glen and Xanmara starting to fidget behind her, and knew that they were eager to see their great-grandparents, so she stepped back from her clandestine listening post. The whole family had been a bit worried about Dan's shyness around girls, and it was a relief to see him doing all the right things.

She turned back to the kids, pressed a finger to her lips to indicate silence, and then waved for them to follow her back to the car. She'd originally planned to walk to her grandparent's pool, but decided she didn't want to invade her brother's privacy any more than she already had. He would likely ride back the way he'd come, and might encounter them along the way if they walked.

Besides, she was just as excited to deliver the news about Daniel's budding relationship as her kids were for the family visit.

♠~~~~~∞~~~~~♠

Brooke finished a last strawberry and leaned back on her hands. She let her head loll back and gave a contented sigh. Dan turned his attention to the containers from their picnic lunch as a distraction, because he felt as if his eyes were about to pop out of his head. The pose was one of the sexiest things he'd ever seen in his life.

"Oh, I swear you're trying to make me fat." She sat back up and asked, "Where did you get those strawberries? I almost never see any in the stores this early, let alone any that aren't almost tasteless."

"Mom picked them up somewhere." It wasn't exactly the whole truth, but he could hardly explain how his mother had actually come by the treat. His grandmother loved strawberries, so they grew most of the year round at various places within her wood. She was a little stingy about sharing them, which meant that anyone in the family who wanted some had to go hunting.

Brooke picked up a small container outside of Dan's reach to hand it to him and laughed. "How old is this Tupperware, anyway? It looks like the stuff my grandma had, and it was old then."

Dan chuckled as he nested the container inside another that he'd already wiped out. "It lasts forever if you take care of it."

"So you don't use any more plastic than you have to?"

"Yeah," he answered, a bit embarrassed. One of the things that had always set him apart from his peers was his conservation-minded upbringing, which he'd espoused constantly when he was younger. It had taken quite some time to get over bringing it up in every conversation, and only because his mother had convinced him that beating people over the head with it only made them resist all the more.

She must have noticed the blush he could feel burning in his cheeks. "It's good, really. You're probably smarter than the rest of us. Everyone will have to come around eventually, I guess."

He shrugged, wearing a sheepish grin. "Sorry if I'm driving you crazy about it."

"You aren't, really." She picked up the thermos. "Let me help."

"Thanks."

Once they finished gathering everything up, Dan clucked his tongue, and the two horses immediately turned from where they were grazing to approach. Dan stowed away what he was holding, and then took Brooke's burden to do the same. While he situated everything in the saddlebag, she folded the blanket.

Her horse turned to him and snorted once everything was put away and Brooke prepared to climb into the saddle.

"Not today, Altivo. Sorry."

Brooke gave him a curious look. "Hmm?"

"I know that look. He's in the mood to run."

She brought a finger to her lips for a moment and then smiled as she asked, "Could we?"

The excitement in her eyes convinced him. "I'll take us the short way back, and then we can give them a little free rein in the pasture."

"Let's go," she declared, anticipation obvious in her voice and body language.

Riding out past his sister's house cut the journey down to less than half the length of the leisurely ride in, and would bring them to the back of the farm that the horses called home. Shortly after passing by Kia's house, she asked about his jacket, which bore the logo of a forest preservation group that the family belonged to. The question provided a useful distraction as he urged his horse to a faster walk at the edge of the wood. Her horse matched the speed, which resulted in a wider smile on her face — and even more pronounced, hard to ignore jiggling.

He thought to keep the explanation simple at first, but she kept asking questions and seemed genuinely interested, so he fell into talking about what the group stood for, how they got funding, and the most recent push for green legislation that they were focused on. The last drew her deeper into the conversation, as it involved an effort to get the message out in the media to counter the opposition.

Though they were from completely different worlds, talking as they rode brought up some common interests. It started with the media, which was critical to the environmental activism of his family, and her foremost passion. That had somehow segued into favorite television shows, followed by movies and music, revealing a shared love for songs a generation out of sync with their peers.

Dan almost regretted seeing the fence on the back side of the pasture when they approached. He'd barely noticed the half hour passing as he talked to Brooke. The light in her eyes as he opened the gate was well worth the break in the conversation, though.

Dan hopped back up in the saddle, because her horse made it quite plain that he was ready to stretch his legs. Once he rode through with Brooke, he asked, "Ready?"

Altivo's whinny almost completely drowned out her enthusiastic, "Uh huh."

"Okay. Lean forward a bit if you feel unsteady, and just give a yell if you want to slow down. Here we go." He then gave a flick of his reins and called out "Yah!"

Her horse dutifully stayed alongside as Dan urged his to a canter, though he could see the animal constantly looking toward him in anticipation of a real run. Brooke was keeping her seat well, and glanced over to say, "Faster."

Dan laughed, and then gave both his date and her mount what they wanted. Two sets of hooves thundered across the pasture, accompanied by Brooke's cries of excitement, which sounded distinctly sexual to him. By the time they neared the other side of the trek, near the barn, he was half hard from the arousing sounds she made along the way.

As he slowed the pace back down to a fast walk around the barn, she released a loud, "Yes!" She then moaned and added, "Oh my god. That was incredible."

The sight of her breathing hard, her face flushed, and the orgasmic quality of her voice was almost too much to handle. He smiled and spent the rest of the ride around the barn trying to force the swelling in his jeans to go away before he had to dismount.

♠~~~~~∞~~~~~♠

Brooke looked into her rear-view mirror as she drove away after the date, more than a little perplexed with Daniel. She'd done her level best to attract his eye at every opportunity, without much effect. Considering the outrageous amount of flirting she'd poured on, she'd expected him to be all over her.

Instead, he was a perfect gentleman. He'd certainly noticed her trying to accentuate her charms, but he just didn't react in the way she was used to when men thought they had a chance to get in her pants. He hadn't even pushed for a kiss afterwards, and she thought that taking that initiative might have been a bit too much.

Her phone rang, and she clicked the button to turn on the speakerphone.

"Get anything juicy? I haven't heard from you in two days." The caller asked before she could even say hello.

"Nothing yet," she answered. "I had a chance to peek into the sister's medicine cabinet, but there wasn't anything interesting there. He hasn't said anything really suspicious yet."

"Has he talked about all that land they have or the charities?"

"Yeah, I got him talking about it. I don't know whether he's telling the truth or not, but he has good stories to explain it all."

"He'll slip up eventually. Keep at him."

Brooke said, "I'll see what I can find out."

"There's something fishy with the whole family, and I'm going to find out what it is. They're just too good to be true. Get me the key to this story, and I guarantee you that you'll be working at the station as soon as you graduate."

"He's supposed to call me tomorrow."

"Don't keep me in suspense for so long next time. Gotta run. Keep me posted, babe."

Brooke hung up the phone, suddenly feeling a little uneasy about the whole situation. The talk with Dan had surprised her quite a bit, revealing common interests that she never would have anticipated. More than once, she'd caught herself forgetting what she was trying to wheedle out of him, telling stories of her own.

She shook it off, thinking that she was never going to make it as an investigative reporter if she didn't keep an objective eye on the ball. Daniel's family seemed too good to be true, and experience told her that such a feeling was almost always right — especially when it came to men.

She'd learned that lesson hard and fast, many years ago.

♠~~~~~∞~~~~~♠

Daniel didn't know whether to be grateful or sad when Brooke pulled the popsicle stick from her mouth one last time. Her now bright cherry-red lips turned up into a smile, and she handed him the stick, which he deposited in the trash bin next to the bench where they sat.

After two weeks of dating, Dan was glad the amusement park had opened. He was running out of new ideas around town, and the park had provided a perfect solution for today.

He did at least have a great idea for tomorrow, which had taken a couple of days to set up. He couldn't wait to see her face when he sprang the surprise on her.

"Ready to go?" he asked.

She nodded, and they both stood up. She reached for his hand as they walked toward the exit of the park. "It's been so long since I actually came here to ride anything. All my friends ever wanted to do was walk around and flirt and gossip."

"Too bad it hasn't warmed up enough for them to open up the log flume. I like that better than the roller-coasters."

Brooke tugged on the sleeve of her white t-shirt as she stepped through the gates into the parking lot. "I think we might've had to skip it, even if it was open."

Daniel's cheeks warmed as he considered the thought of that t-shirt soaked through with water. Even dry, it didn't leave much to the imagination, thanks to an apparently thin bra and the still crisp spring air. "Yeah, I guess so."

She leaned into his shoulder and laughed. "You're so cute when you blush."

Because they'd arrived early and it was still the off-season, it was only a short walk from the gate to the car. Dan opened her door for her, and then crossed in front to his own side of the car.

As soon as he sat down, Brooke said, "I haven't had this much fun here since Mom and Dad brought me when I was little." She paused and rolled her eyes. "Before they got divorced and started hating each other."

"Had to be rough," he sympathetically offered as he backed out of the parking space.

"They did their best to keep us out of it, but we heard," she responded with a shrug.

For the next few minutes, she talked about the back and forth of her parent's divorce and how it made her feel. She seemed to need to talk, so Dan just let her know he was listening by making a few comments. Finally, she said, "Listen to me, trying to ruin the day. Can't expect all marriages to turn out as well as your parents'."

"Guess it's just a matter of finding the right person." He let his gaze linger on her just a little bit longer than intended — and far longer than he should have while driving. The reward of her uncharacteristically shy smile was well worth it, though.

He focused his eyes on the road just in time to see the dually pickup merging into his lane.

With traffic in the lane next to him, Dan had to hit the brakes hard. Brooke gasped and then exclaimed, "What a jackass!"

Once his heart stopped pounding, Dan noticed the advertisement for Greentree Timber painted on the tailgate of the truck and his eyes narrowed.

"There's no how's my driving number. I already looked," Brooke remarked.

"It's not that. That's the timber company that's after the patch of land the county is thinking about selling. I wonder where they're going, and what's under that tarp?" Dan felt a little stab of guilt that thoughts of Brooke had pushed the effort to prevent the sale to Wilson almost completely out of his head.

"Well, let's follow them, then."

Dan smiled and kept pace. Remembering the camcorder Brooke had brought with her to the park, Dan asked, "Hey, can you film that truck? Try to get the logo."

"Sure," she responded and opened her purse to retrieve the digital cam. She turned it on and aimed it out the windshield, recording the truck ahead. "How long?"

"Just a minute or two for now, then check it out to make sure you can read the logo."

She kept the camera on the truck for a while longer, and then turned it off to review what she'd just recorded. "It's clear. I can almost read the address at the bottom even on the viewscreen."

"Great. I don't know what good it will do, but I know that Dad will want to see it."

"I think he's going to exit," Brooke said a minute or two later.

"Yeah," Dan agreed, and flipped his turn signal to slip into the exit lane at almost the exact same time as the driver of the truck. He realized that there were two places of interest the truck might be going along the road they were circling around to.

Sure enough, the driver of the truck slowed down when approaching the turn toward the woods. Dan started to ask Brooke to get out the camera again, but when he glanced her way, she'd already aimed it at the truck.

"He's still going too fast, if he's planning to turn," she noted.

"Probably just drooling in anticipation."

"You really don't like them, do you?" she said as she shut down the camera again, the turn already past.

"I've seen the way those guys work. They claim to be conservation minded, but they leave just enough and replant just enough to hide where they clear-cut everything and tear up anywhere they go. They probably dump used oil and who knows what else too."

"Why is the county selling it to them, then?"

Dan shook his head. "Don't have enough proof to convince the council that it will happen, and we think some of them are on the take."