In fact, she had spent most of that time in a euphoric haze. Memories of Jesse’s lovemaking had preoccupied her in the morning, and their interlude in the barn, his proposal and their subsequent quarrel had kept her agitated until well after dark. It wasn’t until nearly nine o’clock Saturday evening that she realized how late Jack was in returning home and began making inquiries.Honey was aghast when she discovered Jack had not spent the night with a friend—or even made plans to do so. He hadn’t gone tubing on the Frio, either! Jack had never lied to her before. She couldn’t imagine where he could have gone last night, unless…The worst conclusion to be drawn from the facts came first: Jack had run away from home. Honey suddenly remembered how hard Jack had hugged her last night before he left the house, how intently he had looked into her eyes. She hadn’t paid much attention to the hug except to be pleased by it because Jack so seldom indulged in such sentimentality these days.
