The rain fell steadily on the ground, but somehow it didn’t dampen the mood of James Hickok. He had plans today, and as far as he was concerned, the floor could sink, the sky could fall, and the ground could swallow up his horse and he wouldn’t care.

He tightened the buckle on his gunbelt, wishing that everywhere he went he didn’t have to keep it soldered to his hip like he did. That was the way things were though, and he was just going to have to make the best of it. As long as his name had “Wild Bill” tagged to it, he’d always have to carry a gun.

“Hey,” Rachel called to him as she opened the door to the bunkhouse. In her hands was a large basket full of the best food you could possibly imagine. She extended it out to him. “You have a great time.”

Jimmy took it from her gratefully, “Thank you, Rachel, you didn’t have to you know.”

She shrugged, “Just take her out and have a wonderful outing. I’ll expect you back before dark though.” Rachel couldn’t resist adding a little wink at the end of her sentence. She realized how difficult it must have been for Jimmy to even ask a woman out on a picnic. “You still going to sit outside if it keeps raining like this?”

Hickok shrugged, “Actually I know a place where we can keep from getting wet,” he said coyly. It was the true though, he did have the perfect place, that would be completely sheltered.

“Okay, then I’ll see you later.”

“Thanks again, Rachel,” he added as she left the bunkhouse.

She emerged from hiding a few moments after Jimmy left to hitch the wagon. Her hair was flowing freely, and although it was still quite short, her curls added an adorable touch. The dark pink dress that she wore only brought out the dark lipstick that she had put on, which in turn brought out the vividness of her eyes.

He extended his had to her, “You look beautiful, Lou.”

Lou smiled, blushing as she always did. “Thank you.” With one swift motion, she was seated comfortably and was ready to go. She looked up to the sky and noticed that the gray clouds were starting to clear, while the sun began to show itself. The rain had completely stopped, and everything was turning out to be perfect.

Jimmy hoisted himself up next to her, and smiled at what seemed to be a contented expression cast on her face. “Shall we go?” He asked playfully.

“You’re the driver,” she responded with equal liveliness.

In moments, Jimmy had urged the horses off, and they were headed towards the one area that he thought would be the loveliest location for their outing. Seeing as the rain seemed to be on his side, he went with his original plan........the oak tree by Hampton Creek.

After a wonderful meal and pleasant conversation, Louise eased herself back on the blanket so that she could look at the sky. Jimmy in turn did the same thing.

“Thank you for putting all of this together,” Lou began, “I haven’t had a meal that tasty in a long time.”

Jimmy’s hands were under his head, but he still managed to shrug. “Actually it was Rachel’s doing, so you can thank her,” he turned to her and smiled.

Lou propped herself up on one elbow so that she was almost staring down at him. She loved having this time to get away from everyone else and enjoy some peace and quiet with a man that she truly cared for. Still, in the back of her mind she couldn’t help but wonder what it was that had prompted him to do this for her.

Not wanting to insult him, or think that she didn’t appreciate it, Lou sought out the most diplomatic approach she could think of. “Jimmy,” she waited for him to turn to her, and once he did, she looked into his eyes and found that a lump had formed in her throat. Clearing it, she continued, “Don’t think that I’m not grateful for all of this, because I am. I just can’t help wondering why you are doing this for me.”

Jimmy looked back up at the sky. I don’t know, Hickok, why are you doing this for her? It was a question that even he wasn’t sure he could answer. “I don’t know, Lou, it’s just that with everything that has been going on, I figured it might be time for us to have some time together,” he looked back into her gentle brown eyes. “Maybe even sort some things out.”

Satisfied with the answer for the present, she laid back down with her head resting on her arm. They stayed there in silence for what seemed like an eternity, unsure of what to say to the other. Lou began absentmindedly picking at the grass that was sticking through the blanket. “Jimmy, do you ever think about the future? What’s going to happen to us five years from now?”

Again, it was a question that Jimmy wasn’t sure he could answer. Yeah, he’d thought about the future, and what his ideals were and what dreams he had kept tucked inside. Still, when she asked that question, he wasn’t sure that he had the right answer. “I don’t know, Lou, I really don’t,” he said softly.

She nodded, understanding, because she honestly didn’t know what she wanted for her life either. Then, before she knew what happened, he reached for her hand and squeezed it tenderly, “You think that maybe we could help each other sort some of it out?”

Lou looked into the eyes of the man that she truly favored, “I’d like that Mr. Hickok,” she paused, “Very much indeed.”