At 9 am the heat of the sun had hit Dan Carney like a wall of fire. Scrambling his six-foot frame into his van had been like squeezing into an oven. On the road with the windows wide open allowed the rush of warm air to give some relief. He reckoned that it had to be the hottest day ever. He pulled the peak of his baseball cap lower to counter the glare of the sun.How he wished he could afford a van with air conditioning. But his art work was not yet earning him enough to take such extravagant steps. Dan was twenty-six years old, and since leaving university his art only just kept the wolf from the door. That door was fixed on a tight little downstairs flat in a city which was a long way from where he was at present.Most of his earnings came from doing carbon sketches of people. He could do caricatures if requested, but mostly factual representation that, if he rendered them in a slightly flattering way, usually ensured a better fee. Yes, a few successes with portraits in oils, which he was good at, had helped his bank balance, but he did not yet have the contacts or the stability to build on that.He would admit to an equal expertise in landscapes, oils or water colours. This meant that his little flat was often uninhabited now. He was always on the move, chasing that illusive masterpiece. His dream was to one day have his own studio, and people would come to view and buy his landscapes or to request a sitting for something more personal. But right at this moment, all his art equipment and finished paintings were stored haphazardly in the back of this vanHitting the main road east that the hotel manager had indicated, Dan sighed, knowing the fulfilment of his dream might be many years away. This near nomadic life he was leading had already cost him a two year hectic and hot relationship with Vanessa. She had been keen to show Dan how generous her voluptuous body could be in bed. Without ever commenting about it, Dan had sensed her motives very early in the relationship. It was her mistaken belief that attaching herself to this, then twenty-three-year-old artist might one day repay her sensuous attention. But Dan had to admit he had learned much from her profound sensuality.It had taken her a year to learn that it wasn’t easy to be good in bed with somebody who was rarely there. So, six months earlier, Dan had returned to his flat from one of his trips to find Vanessa, and her whole wardrobe gone. A note, written on the back of an envelope, merely stated, ‘Bye, bye, loser!’Dan’s regrets had been short-lived. Although he had looked forward to coming home to experience her avid attention, her frequent moaning and griping during those later weeks he could do without. Now, she was gone and near forgotten.On this particular day, he was heading for the Arrowhead Falls, one of the features of the Ascow River, which he had noticed in a magazine photograph. The falls and various aspects of the river life intrigued him, and he hoped to do some justice to it in watercolours or even oils.This road passed through open farmland, a mix of cereal, crops and cattle. There was the occasional farmhouse set well back from the road. At one point, about two miles out of town he saw on a hill partly shaded by trees, a large white-fronted house, which he thought seemed slightly out of place in the general lay of the land.Dan groped beneath his seat. Dammit, he’d left his water bottle back at the hotel. The intense heat had his shirt sticking to his back, and a drink would be essential. A slurp from some dubious stream might be his only option.Without giving it too much consideration he turned the wheel left at a cross roads. Was this the right turning? Driving two or three miles along this road there was no sign of a river, let alone a waterfall. Up ahead was a farm house, the first that had been close to the road, set just a hundred yards back. Maybe the farmer could give him directions.He pulled the van up onto the verge, under a patch of convenient sheltering trees. Hauling himself out, he stood for a moment, stretching his legs and easing the shirt that clung to him. A wide gate blocked the drive up to the house. Dan clicked it open, stepped inside and closed it behind him, having noticed a pig and several hens loose beyond what looked like a small garden in front of the house.As he took the first few paces towards the house, a woman appeared out of the front door, holding a glass of something. She was about to sit down by a table on the porch when she noticed Dan’s approach. She put her glass down and stepped to the edge of the porch.For some crazy reason, Dan had not expected a woman. From this distance, he could not tell much about her. Her figure looked fairly neat in a yellow summer dress, and the way she stood suggested that she was not an aged old crone. Conversing with younger women always made him slightly uneasy, despite what he’d experienced with Vanessa. Cassandra Masters, known to everyone as Cassie, wasn’t expecting anyone as she watched the tallish man coming down the drive. Presumably, the blue van out on the road belonged to him. Seeing a strange man approach always produced that initial frisson of concern, mainly because it was so rare. Ever since Gordon, her husband, had been killed two years earlier she had run the small farm.Gordon had been the first and only man she had ever slept with. After succumbing that first time, she had found that she was pregnant. As a consequence, and under pressure from parents, they had married when she was twenty years old. The birth of her son, Vince, had brought some joy into her life, as, very early on, she knew the marriage had been a mistake.Gordon owned the farm and filled the role of farmer very well. The role of husband was a different story. His demands on Cassie were that she helped with the farm, kept the house tidy, cooked his meals, and, when he was in the mood, parted her thighs for him to relieve his physical tension.One of those cold couplings had resulted in a second pregnancy, and the blessing of her daughter, Angela, who was now eight years old. Cassie could not recall any time when words of love had spilled from his mouth.Both children were away at summer camp until the weekend, and she missed them terribly. Watching this stranger approach had her feeling that at least here was a break in routine. As he strode nearer, she was taken by the easy movement of his body, a sway, a rolling walk that she found quite fetching, but didn’t know why. She saw the damp patches under his armpits, and the way his checked escort izmit shirt was glued to his broad chest by sweat. He took a kerchief from a pocket, removed his baseball cap and mopped at his brow. A crop of short, black hair curled out in all directions, and a smile creased his face, as their eyes met.Something jumped inside her, and she was strangely glad that, because of the heat of midmorning, she had changed out of her working jeans and boots into her thin summer dress. She didn’t even question why she was bothered about not having brushed her hair or applied any lipstick. She rarely wore lipstick.His walk, his hair, the smile on his open face, all combined to scramble her thinking. When he spoke, his voice had a deep brown quality that so fit in with the rest of his persona, as he smiled again, and said, “I’m sorry to trouble you, but I’m not sure if I’ve taken a wrong turning. I’m supposed to be finding the Ascow River, and particularly the Arrowhead Falls.”Cassie’s breath had seized up in her throat. Somewhere inside her brain had developed the realisation that something was about to change. As she stood looking down at him from the porch, taking in the pure masculinity of him, noticing the deep brown eyes, the way his light blue jeans pulled tightly across his thighs, she struggled to formulate an answer.”Th-the n-next turn off would have been better. But there isn’t that much in it. Just a mile down this road there’s a right turn along a narrower lane, and that bends directly to the falls.” Having spoken she was even more breathless, as the stranger’s head nodded, and he half turned away, before turning back to look up at her. God, were his eyes on the front of her dress?Cassie would never know what prompted her next move. This was a complete stranger. He could be anything, but nothing else seemed to matter except to make him the offer, “You look awfully hot out there. Come and sit under the porch. Would you like a cold lemon drink? I was just about to have one.” Vaguely she waved a hand at her glass on the table.For a moment he appeared to hesitate, a serious look on his face. Then he said, as he took the two steps up to the porch, “That’s very kind of you,”Standing on level ground he seemed to tower over her. Looking up into those deep eyes, Cassie could smell the sweat on him mingled with something unfamiliar, but not unpleasant. She was wrestling with twin impulses, one to step back and the other to move closer to him. “Please, sit,” she mumbled, before scuttling into the kitchen for his drink. Just a little confused, Dan eased himself into a chair. Whoever said distance lends enchantment was totally misguided. His early impression of this lady changed as each step along the drive brought him closer to her. Definitely not an old crone, and in that yellow dress her figure was a few points ahead of just ‘fairly neat’. As he neared the woman standing on the porch, a wayward breeze stole in from the heated atmosphere and pressed the yellow dress against her thighs emphasising the point where they met.As he gave her his warmest smile in an attempt to reassure her of his innocent intentions, his eyes took in the way her hair tumbled wildly around her face. Hair that was somewhere between brown and blonde, a tawny colour, that happened to be his favourite.That hair framed a face that was just lovely. No make-up, the bluest of eyes, which regarded him with some concern he felt, and a mouth that was full lipped and looked so kissable. Dan tried to think of any woman he’d known who could look so good without make-up.After she had kindly given him directions, he had turned away, then her offer of a drink gave him a real buzz. Mounting the stairs, he couldn’t help noticing that her nipples pushed out against the thin material of the dress. Did that signify that she didn’t need a bra?When she made the offer for him to sit, he was sure his heart had pushed in an extra beat, as, for the first time, he’d wondered where her husband might be. Dan had noticed the ring on her finger. Standing on the porch close to her, he had thought she had swayed for a moment. A good rich aroma of the earth and something floral, not perfume, came from her.As she came back holding out the glass of iced lemon, he couldn’t help noticing that her hair was less mussed than it had been. Dan felt flattered. “This is very kind of you,” he told her, as she settled down in the chair on the other side of the table. Dan took a quick thirsty gulp of the contents of the glass. It tasted so refreshingly quenching that he had to congratulate her, adding, “I’ll enjoy this and not delay you any further.”Cassie felt a twinge of regret that he would leave. Yet common sense told her it was inevitable. To hell with common sense, as she looked directly at him and said, “I don’t get much company.” She needed to know much more about him, and asked, “Why do you want to see the falls?””I’m an artist. I want to paint them and the general river area.”An artist? Cassie tried to cover up her surprise. Somehow she did not equate his stolid masculinity with an artist. Still, it was intriguing. “Might I have seen any of your work?”He gave a rather bitter chuckle, “Only if you looked in the back of my van.” And then, as though he wanted to change the subject he asked, “Is your husband out working the fields?”Cassie looked from that strong face, out to where one of the pigs was trying to nose his way past the wire mesh into the vegetable garden. What to say? Let him know she was alone and defenceless in this house? But her insides had already told her how she felt about this stranger. Besides, telling him might delay his departure”My husband was killed two years ago,” she said in what she hoped was a matter of fact voice as she could muster.The stranger’s face showed instant sympathy and concern, “Oh, I’m so sorry. I didn’t realise—””How could you? “”How did it happen?””He was helping a neighbour, and drove a tractor along a dip in one edge of a field. The tractor toppled throwing Gordon out but it rolled on top of him. They said it was instantaneous.” Cassie was surprised how easy it was to talk about it now. She was almost tempted to tell this compelling stranger how her personal grief had been short-lived.Brown eyes were fixed on her face, “Have you managed the farm alone?”Cassie had to look away from the intensity of his gaze. “The farmers around here all help each other,” she told him, “but I’m lucky enough to have a couple, Anna and Barry Naylor, in their late forties, good honest izmit escort farm hands, who live in the small shack we have just over the hillock behind the house there.”She looked back at him, into his eyes, so deep, so genuine, and wondered how old he might be. Younger than her thirty years, was her immediate thought, yet there was a worldliness about him that made his age difficult to read.He glanced at his watch and said, “It’s been really pleasant, but I really must get on.” As he stood up, Dan knew he had to keep up his resolve to move. Staying here with this lovely lady had so much appeal, so much so that he found himself trying to make pointless conversation.”I saw a big white house on a hill just out of town. It looked so out of place.”For a moment he thought she looked just a little annoyed that he would move the conversation to something meaningless. But she did answer, “Oh, the Cunningham place. Great-grandfather made a fortune in timber, but descendants have become general entrepreneurs, fingers in many pies, very rich, very boring.”Looking down at her, at the subtle curves showing at the split neckline of her dress, had him quivering inside. On a sudden mad impulse, he said, “Are you able to come with me to show me the way?”For a moment, he was sure her eyes had lit up, but just as quickly her face fell as she said, “That might have been good, but I have two friends calling for coffee this afternoon.”Dan nodded, hoping his disappointment didn’t show. If her reason was genuine, fair enough, or maybe she was just uncertain of him.”Will you be going back tomorrow?” she asked.Was this a door opening? “Oh, yes,” he said positively, “I’ll only be doing a preliminary inspection of things today. Maybe make a sketch or two, ready to make a start tomorrow.”His invitation for her to show him the way had set her heart pounding. Did he really want to be with her beyond this brief meeting? By the same token, she wondered what she was getting so excited about. Why was he affecting her this way?Nevertheless Cassie had cursed the fact that Dianne and Claire were coming around today of all days. Desperately she had wondered if she could phone them, but no ready or believable excuse would come to mind. Yet his request deserved something more than a blind refusal, didn’t it? Are you going to take that big step, Cassie Masters?There he stood, looking down at her, and maybe, down the front of her dress, and she didn’t care. Take the step, you fool. Coming to her feet, she asked, “Would you allow me to come with you tomorrow?” And just to divert her motives she added, “I’ve never watched an artist working before. If you wouldn’t mind?”His answer came back faster than she’d dared hope, “I don’t mind at all.” he said, as he moved to the edge of the porch. “Nine o’clock too early?”The fluttering in her chest would not go away, and she said, “I’ll be at the gate.” A moment’s pause, then to add extra garnish to the prospect, “Could I ask your name?”His laugh warmed her insides even more. “That would be useful. I’m Dan. Dan Carney.””My name is Cassandra, most of my friends call me Cassie.”His smile was as effective as his laugh had been when he said, “I hope I will fit into that category.”She tried to keep her voice calm as she replied, “Yes, I think that will be all right. But only if you let me bring the refreshments we’ll need tomorrow.””That’ll be good. Till then,” he said, and the look he gave her was so intense, so full of something she could not read, it brought a rush of blood to her face.She watched his tall figure stroll down the drive with that enthralling rolling style, and she noticed how small and firm his buttocks looked under the tightness of his jeans. Another first. Had she ever noticed a man’s buttocks before? Oh, tomorrow was too far away. Opening the door of his van, Dan took a last glance back at the figure in the yellow dress. A small, distant figure, but her image filled his mind. Face, hair, the body hinted at under her dress, her gentle voice, her kindness, all remained with him as he drove away.He found the falls without any problem, thanks to Cassie Masters, no, concentrate on work. There was initial disappointment as he came to the falls. Not as high as he’d expected, seven metres maybe, but there was no large flow. Four separate streams poured into the river below, each flow scattered thinly as they struck jutting rocks. The photograph he had seen suggested a torrent. It certainly wasn’t that. Cassie prepared to retire that night after having spent much of the afternoon trying to concentrate on what her friends had to say, while her mind continually drifted to that six-foot image called Dan Carney. As she removed her clothes, she did something that she could not recall having done for many years. She stood in front of the mirror and viewed her naked body critically. Her breasts had acquired little droop, her belly maybe had a slight swell, but was acceptably level, and her thighs remained strong.She could be quite pleased with what she saw but still could not reconcile herself to why she should be viewing herself in this way. There was only one obvious reason, and that was Dan Carney, but what was she expecting? She had been a sensuous person, in her late teens, but Gordon had cooled most of that. All she knew, from chats and gossip with Dianne and Claire, both married, was that she had been missing something in her married life.Climbing into her bed she wondered how well she might sleep, but when the alarm woke her at her usual six thirty she was quietly surprised. There had been no dreams, but the day ahead, the Arrowhead Falls and Dan Carney were quickly to the fore, as she occupied her time with the daily routine of the farm, with the able assistance of Anna and Barry.After advising them she would be missing after nine o’clock, she had a quick shower, before deliberating on what to wear. She chose jeans with a white blouse, suitable for the kind of terrain they would be on. Bra or no bra only took a moments consideration, no bra. She brushed out her hair, and again, after a little thought, she applied a delicate touch of pink lipstick.A good twenty minutes before nine she completed and packed the refreshments she had promised for the day ahead. She wondered what else the day might promise, before advising herself that basically seeing an artist at work was all that had been promised. Dan awoke feeling good in anticipation of seeing Cassie again. Driving his van down the road towards her farm, he was izmit kendi evi olan escort contemplating what if she wasn’t at the gate waiting for him. Would that mean she had changed her mind? Should he just stop the van and wait to see if she arrived?Given the camber of the road, the house came into view first, and then, he saw that his fears were unfounded. A pure white blouse appeared to glow in the sunlight, and the heat Dan experienced had nothing to do with the sun. Getting closer, he saw her step out to the roadside, her hips slim in light blue jeans, her smile wide as she held up a basket, obviously keeping her promise of refreshments.Cassie knew she was at least five minutes early, but she couldn’t help worrying that he wouldn’t turn up. The first sight of the blue van appearing over the brow of the hill, had her insides quivering. Calm it, Cassie, she warned herself, as she stepped out holding up the basket. The van stopped and there he was, his black hair wind-blown, his tanned face so manly, his smile so genuine as he opened the passenger door for her to scramble in.He took the basket and placed it behind the seats. Cassie could see the mixed range of items in the back of the van, and, as she settled herself she realised that the undefined aroma about him on the previous day had been something to do with his artwork. It was a smell that dominated in the van.”You look very cool,” he said, as he set the van in motion, paused, before adding, “and very neat.”Neat? Was that a compliment? But since it raised her pulse rate she reckoned it had to be, and she was compelled to respond, “And so do you.” Now how vague a reply was that? Seeing her up close as she climbed into the van, Dan had immediately noticed the light coating of lipstick, the slickness of her tawny hair, and the subtle perfume which might have been lavender. He just could not resist making his comment, using that obscure word ‘neat’.Once again he had to remind himself that, in spite of her company, he was here to paint. When Cassie asked whether he’d found the falls easily, he told her how he had been a little disappointed at the way the flow was split into four.”A dry spell with little rain always has that effect,” she told him. “If you saw it after a few days rain you’d see a real tumble of solid water.”Dan went on to tell her about other aspects of the river he’d viewed, and how he had selected a point from which to start his painting. Then, he moved his hand from the wheel to indicate his A4 pad between the seats. “See my first impressions in there.”Having driven into the narrow lane he regretted not being able to take his eyes off the winding road to see her reaction to his sketches. But her keen comment gave him some satisfaction. “Oh, they’re so good. So accurate. Even in black on white, you’ve really caught the sense of flow.” Even as he was revelling in her admiration she added, “You’re really good.””Did you doubt it?” he asked, having his words carried on a laugh.”Never,” she replied, joining in with his laugh.Then he was applying the hand-brake exactly where he had parked on the previous day. Dan risked a quick look at the lovely face beside him, telling himself that she didn’t really need the lipstick. This lady had a natural beauty which, in his opinion, was very rare. The urge to kiss her was massive, as she looked at him questioningly.”Now we unpack and prepare,” he said, breaking the spell, and taking his sketch pad with him, he climbed out of the van. At the rear door, he took out the easel, a canvas, pulled a small box containing his oil paints to the edge.Perfume hit his nostrils, before he realised she was standing beside him. Once again, the sun was not responsible for the warmth that suffused his body at that moment.”Is there anything I can do?” she asked.Everything off-loaded, she had watched, from under the shade of a large parasol, fascinated as he set up his easel. His movements were so co-ordinated, so positive. Cassie found time to clamber down to the river’s edge and deposit the few bottles she had brought in the water to keep them cool.It had been a long time since Cassie had been at the falls, and she had to agree with Dan when he commented about what a beautiful area it was. He had brought two folding chairs which he placed in the shade of the parasol, and gestured for Cassie to sit in one, while he remained standing as he set out his palette and chose his starting colours, explaining to her as he went exactly what he was doing.He fell silent as he commenced painting, and Cassie took the hint that he was in deep concentration. She was perfectly content just watching his movement, the creasing of his brow as he worked, the movement of his fine hands. They were indeed fine, long-fingered, and she wondered what it might be like to be touched by those fingers.After almost two hours Dan put down his brush, and turned to give her a smile, “Bored yet?” he asked.”Not at all,” she replied, adding rather boldly, “I enjoy watching you.””A drink of water would be appreciated,” he said, and had his eyes wandered down over her blouse as he spoke?”Just water?””There’s a choice?””There are a couple of bottles of beer or a flask of coffee.”His eyes on her face were appreciative as he said, “Water would be fine.”Cassie stood and moved towards the descent, “I hope it’s cool enough.”Dan watched her nimble figure, move easily down the rough descent. He would never admit it but having her near did impinge on his concentration. Time and again he found himself wanting to look at her, to see that face, the hair, the eyes. Just a moment earlier, when he’d been asking for a drink, he couldn’t help noticing that the way she was sitting had tightened her blouse over her breasts and the nipples were prominent once more.The bottle of water she brought back was indeed cool enough and he gulped at it gratefully. As he lowered the bottle he saw that she had been watching him, and she immediately looked away and began drinking from her bottle. The bending back of her head, revealed the throbbing motion of her throat as she swallowed. It also tightened her blouse, so that he had to look away, and bend to his brush once more.Shortly after he started and almost as though she sensed she was distracting him, she said, “It’s so long since I’ve been here. I think I’ll take a little stroll downstream. Find you some other interesting subject locations maybe.”She put on her wide-brimmed hat, and Dan laughed as he said, “Mind you don’t fall in.””I’ll be careful,” she replied, and quickly disappeared behind some shrubbery. Dan immediately began working furiously at his painting. Despite Cassie’s presence, he was quietly pleased with how it looked. Now he had to make as much progress as possible as some instinct told him that he wasn’t going to get in a full day’s work.