"All right, boys," Jason said. "I think we can have this stand of timber cleared by the end of the week." He and his brothers were standing at a table inside a tent up at the logging camp. They were looking at a large map spread out on the table.
Joshua took a sip of coffee. "Right," he said. "And then we can move on to this area over here." He pointed to a spot on the map.
Suddenly they heard someone clearing his throat. They all looked up to see Aaron Stempel standing in the tent opening. He'd just come back from San Francisco. He was dressed impeccably, as usual, and was holding his riding gloves in his hand. He appeared very uncomfortable.
"Oh, good morning, Aaron. Come on in," Joshua said pleasantly.
"Oh, uh...thanks," Aaron mumbled. He entered the tent.
"How was your sister's wedding?" Jeremy asked.
"Fine." Stempel looked at Jason. "Bolt, can I speak to you privately for a moment?"
At that, Josh and Jeremy glanced at each other, eyebrows raised.
"Anything you say to me you can say to my brothers," Jason stated.
Aaron squirmed. "Oh. Well..."
"That's all right, Jason," Josh said, stifling a smile. "We can leave."
"Right. We need to talk to the f-foreman, anyway," Jeremy added. "See you later, Aaron."
"Yes, yes, good-bye," Aaron said quickly. The two younger Bolts left.
Jason put his hands on his hips. "Okay, Aaron. What's so important that you had to come all the way up here to speak to me? Couldn't it wait?"
Stempel cleared his throat again. "I...uh...wanted to talk about...the current contract and find out why you're...a day late on it."
"I told you we'd get that job done, and we will," Jason affirmed.
"Well...can't I come up to the camp to consult with you every now and then?" Stempel said irritably.
Jason's face was suspicious. "All right. What's this visit really about?"
Stempel walked around the tent, tapping his gloves against the palm of one hand and looking a bit flustered. "To tell you the truth, Jason, I need to ask you...well, a bit of a favor." He had trouble getting the words out.
Jason looked shocked. "You want to ask me a favor?"
"Yes," Aaron said reluctantly.
Jason folded his arms. "Now this is getting interesting. I'm listening."
"Well..." Stempel looked down at the gloves for a moment. "You see, er...the thing is, I just don't have your way with words, Bolt, and I...well, as you know, I've been known to court a Bride or two, but I never have been serious about any of them." He paused, looked up, and a small smile suddenly came to his face. "But last week, when I was in San Francisco at my sister's wedding, I...well, I met a woman." His stern expression returned. "And if you laugh, I'll break your neck."
Jason hid a smile behind his hand. "Laugh? Not me. Never."
"Right," Aaron said dryly. "Anyway, Eloise..." He stopped and smiled. "...Ellie...well, she's the most wonderful woman I've ever met. And what's most amazing of all, she seems to feel the same way about me, and...well, I just don't want to do or say the wrong thing."
Jason managed to keep a serious face. "Let me get this straight: You, Aaron Stempel, have fallen in love and are asking me, Jason Bolt, for advice?"
Aaron sighed. "Yeah. So go ahead and have your laugh."
"No, no...it sounds to me like you are quite smitten, Aaron."
"I am."
"And you think this woman may be the one?"
"Well...yes. She's like no one I've ever met before. And I'm aware that courting her won't be easy, what with her living in San Francisco and me in Seattle, but I think she's worth it."
"I see. So...I assume you'll be making more trips to San Francisco in the near future?"
"I hope so. Which doesn't mean you can deliver the lumber late, by the way!"
"Oh, I'd never take advantage of you being gone, Aaron."
"Anyway, if all goes well, I'll eventually be bringing Ellie to Seattle as my bride. If all goes well. That is, if I don't...if I don't ruin things."
"So what kind of advice do you need, Stempel?" Jason asked.
Aaron took a deep breath. "Well...I know I tend to be a little...er..stiff."
Jason choked a bit. "You, Aaron?"
Stempel grimaced. "Yes, me. I'm only going to admit this once, but I just don't have your charm with the ladies, Bolt."
"You flatter me, Aaron." Jason bit his lip to hold back the laughter.
Stempel paced again. "I think I'll do okay in letters to Ellie, but when I go to San Francisco to court her, well...I just want everything to be right."
Jason thought for a moment. "You need only be yourself," he advised. Then he paused, looking Stempel over. "On second thought..."
Aaron stopped pacing and gave him an insulted look.
Jason spoke again. "Just...just loosen up."
Stempel appeared eager in spite of himself. "Loosen up, eh?"
"Yes. And tell her how beautiful she is," Jason continued. "She is beautiful, right?"
Stempel looked downright dreamy for a moment. "You have no idea, Bolt. She's a vision."
"Have you told her that?"
"Oh, yes. I did get that much right."
"Well, good, good."
Aaron tugged at his vest to hide his self-consciousness. "So..."
"Tell me, what is it about her that appeals to you so much?" Jason inquired.
"She's...she's bright and lively...cultured..."
"Then tell her those things. Tell her how impressed you are with her, how much she means to you."
"All right. All right. That's good. Very good. What else?" Aaron said anxiously.
"Tell her...tell her you don't think you can live without her."
"Oh, that's good, too. Do you...do you have a pen and paper?"
Jason, still holding back a grin, produced a small pad of paper, a pen and an ink bottle. Stempel put his gloves in his pocket and quickly began writing, talking as he did so. "Can't...live...without...her. All right. What else?"
"Don't forget to always tell her how nice she looks," Jason instructed.
"Oh, that's an easy one to remember. She's such a beauty." Aaron wrote some more. "Looks...nice."
"Praise her in every way. Tell her that her eyes sparkle like diamonds....her hair, it glistens like the sea..."
"Good, good. Not so fast, Bolt...diamonds...glistens...the sea. All right."
"...that she is as beautiful as...as a princess from a storybook!"
Stempel stopped writing for a moment and looked up. "You're good." He wrote again. "Story...book."
Jason was truly warming up to his task now. "And tell her...tell her that your world would be empty without her," he added dramatically.
Stempel turned the paper over, having filled the first side. "World...empty."
"Is that enough to start with?" Jason asked.
"I think this will get me through my next meeting with her," Aaron said, looking pleased. He folded the paper, put it into his inside breast pocket, then shook Jason's hand. "Thanks, Bolt."
Jason grinned. "Anytime, Stempel."
Aaron started to leave, then suddenly turned. "Uh...you won't tell anybody about this, will you?"
Jason looked innocent. "Who, me?" Stempel's expression turned annoyed. Then Jason smiled, relenting. "I can tell my wife, can't I, Aaron?" he asked.
"Oh, I suppose so. Anyway, thanks, Jason. I'm in your debt."
Jason grinned again. "In my debt, eh? I'll be sure to remember that."
"Not that much in your debt!" Stempel snapped. Then he hesitated. "Well...good- bye." He turned to leave.
"Good-bye, Romeo...I mean Aaron."
Stempel stopped in his tracks, his back to Jason. "Very funny, Bolt," he muttered. He stormed out of the tent.
As soon as Aaron's horse had galloped away, Joshua and Jeremy hurried back into the tent. "Jason, what was that all about?" Jeremy said eagerly.
Josh laughed. "First Aaron wanted to talk to you alone, and then we saw him leaving here looking like he was in a daze or something."
"Has he lost his mind?" Jeremy wanted to know.
"No, Jeremy, he hasn't lost his mind," Jason said. "Just his heart."
"His heart?" Jeremy repeated.
"Aaron?" Josh exclaimed in disbelief.
"Brothers, Aaron Stempel is in love!"
Josh looked amazed, but Jeremy folded his arms proudly. "Oh, I saw this comin'," he said smugly.
"You did, eh?" Jason asked.
"Sure! After all, he and Laura Hayes seem to be m-made for each other."
"Right," Josh agreed with a chuckle. "They're both snobs!"
"Sure of yourselves, aren't you?" Jason said with a grin. "Well, you're wrong. It's not Laura Hayes he's in love with."
"Well, then, who is it?" Josh asked, surprised.
"It seems he met a girl while he was in San Francisco for his sister's wedding," Jason explained.
"So why did he want to t-talk to you?" Jeremy questioned.
"Well..." Jason smiled, a bit embarrassed. "He wanted some advice from me. Advice on how to sweet-talk her."
The two younger Bolts laughed loudly. Jeremy punched Jason in the arm. "He must've f-figured, when you want advice, go to an expert, eh, Jason?"
Jason's eyes were twinkling. He stroked his chin. "It was sort of amusing. He was taking notes and everything!"
Josh and Jeremy laughed even harder. "Taking notes?" Jeremy snickered.
"I can see it now," Josh said. He started walking back and forth across the tent, one hand on his chest like a stuffy, self-important person. "Oh, darling," he said with exaggerated pomposity. "Your eyes...your eyes are like..." Josh stopped talking and mimicked taking a piece of paper out of his pocket. "Your eyes are like crystal blue pools!"
Jason and Jeremy laughed. "That's a good one, Josh," Jason said. "I'll have to remember that one."
Joshua continued with his Stempel impression. "Sweetheart, your teeth are like peas...oops, can't read my own writing...I mean pearls!"
They all laughed again, then Jason spoke. "Now, you two know that this little scene doesn't leave the tent, right?"
Josh and Jeremy looked at each other, faces angelic.
"Well?" Jason insisted.
"Now, J-Jason, you know, as a married man, I just couldn't keep anything from my wife!" Jeremy said with a laugh.
Josh chortled. "That's right. And then Candy will tell Biddie, and that's as good as telling the whole town!"
"Well," Jeremy added, "that's something that ol' S-Stempel will just have to live with, now, won't he?" He and Josh laughed some more.
"All right. Let's get back to work," Jason said, trying to look stern. "We've got a logging operation to run here."
"Okay, Jason," Josh said. He and Jeremy walked off, still chuckling.
After they'd gone, Jason stood and thought for a moment about what had just transpired. Then he burst into loud laughter.