Water Witch Read Online Free PDF

almost feel the spirits of Indians and wild game from ages past, almost expected a bronze-skinned brave to step from behind a buckeye thicket.
    The setting sun spilled gold over the fall grasses and sparked and danced on the rock-strewn rapids. The countryside was so eerily beautiful, her breath knotted in her throat. The air was rife with the strange presence of something she couldn’t name, but moved through her in a poignant fluttering. An incorporeal quality hovered like a mist, so strong she wanted to reach out and grab a handful and rub it into her skin.
    “It’s . . . it’s . . .” Her voice was soft, husky, barely a whisper.
    Sam smiled. “It is, isn’t it?” he answered quietly. “There’s my house.”
    A sprawling stone house on the rise ahead blended so perfectly into its surroundings that Max almost missed it on first glance. She pulled to a stop in front and climbed out, Dowser following close behind her.
    Sam watched as she stood on the terrace wall, arms hugged tight, drinking in the view. He recognized her infatuation with the spot; he’d felt the same way when he’d first found the place ten years ago. To this day the land, the river never failed to fill him with awe. He chuckled. Score another point for his side. He and his property were a package deal. And he wanted her looking at him in that same entranced way.
    He walked over to her, then stopped, scratched Dowser’s head, and made his move while her defenses were down.
    “Do you like fried catfish?”
    “Love it,” she murmured absently, not looking away from the fabulous view.
    “Great. I’ll tell Loma to get it started.”
    “Get what started?” Max asked, coming out of her dreamy abstraction. “Who’s Loma?”
    “Loma’s my housekeeper, and I’m going to tell her to start dinner for us.”
    “I told you I wasn’t having dinner with you tonight.”
    Keeping a perfectly straight, if somewhat hangdog, face, Sam said, “But you said you liked catfish.”
    “I do, but—”
    “I caught two of them just for you. And in honor of your company Loma has already made potato salad and cole slaw. And her hush puppies,” he said, feigning a look of rapture, “will melt in your mouth.”
    It was tempting. Max didn’t think she could face another bologna sandwich when she could have catfish. As if on cue, her stomach rumbled.
    He cupped his hand to his ear. “Is that a yes?”
    She laughed. “I think that’s a yes.” She looked down at her grimy clothes and dusty boots. “But I’m not dressed for dinner. I’m filthy.”
    “No problem,” he said, shepherding her toward the house before she could change her mind. “You can take a quick shower in one of the guest rooms. Adrienne and Linda usually leave a bunch of stuff here for when they visit. I’m sure you can find something of theirs that will fit.”
    “Adrienne and Linda?”
    “My older sister and her daughter.” He held open the front door.
    An open foyer arched into a huge room with a high beamed ceiling and a wall of glass that wrapped around one end of the house. Designed to take full advantage of the view, every point in the semicircle revealed a different scene, each more breathtaking than the last. The remaining walls were cedar and stone and covered with paintings. An enormous round stone fireplace with a hammered copper hood stood in the center of the room, and Indian rugs were scattered across the polished wood floor. The furniture was plush black leather and heavy nubby cotton in earth tones. It was sturdy and comfortable looking, Max thought. Like its owner.
    “Sam, your home is beautiful.” She ached to explore, but he directed her down the hall.
    “I’ll take you on a tour later. I’ll tell Loma we’re here, then see that Dowser gets fed. I need to clean up a little myself after I unload the truck. Take your time.” He grinned and added, “As long as you don’t take more than forty-five minutes. I’m starved.”
    *    *    *
    Long before