Episode 5

Eda swallowed before answering with her particular soft voice.

"You have nothing to thank for," she assured him. "I'm glad I could be of help."

"How did you know exactly what to do?" he asked curiously, as he had seen the agility in her hands.

"I used to help on my family's farm," was all she said. He didn't miss the different sparkle in her eyes upon hearing that, and some questions arose in him.

He stared at her, and she again felt the current run through her body and focus on her chest. Something about the way he looked at her disturbed her in a way very unknown to her.

Max said nothing more and turned to enter the office, but then that soft voice that made him feel something he knew very well he couldn't allow made him stop.

"If you stay in those wet clothes, you'll get sick," she reminded him.

Without doing anything in response other than a simple nod, he entered the office, and she went upstairs.

Eda took a hot shower and went to bed. The rain continued to fall in torrents. The rooms with large windows were filled with light when lightning struck. Although she had been afraid in the past, she gradually overcame it when her brother made her see that nothing would happen to her because he would take care of her, and now that he was gone, she consoled herself only with a photograph of him embraced to her chest, and that night was no exception.

It was three in the morning when Max left that small room in one of the houses in the urbanization. Cynthia followed him to the door, but when she was about to throw herself into his arms to hug him, Max stopped her abruptly.

"But what's wrong?" she asked, offended.

"Don't get me wrong, Cynthia," he growled as he finished adjusting his shirt.

"But I thought that..." the girl began to say, but Max interrupted her.

"What we just did is just sex, you know that," he blurted out. "I've always made that clear to you, remember now?" he asked, looking at her fixedly. "No physical contact outside of sex."

"Yes, Max," she finally said, but without any conviction in her voice. "I'm sorry."

Max looked at her and said nothing more. After finishing dressing, he left that small place and went out into the rain.

"I assure you that you will be mine, Max," the girl sentenced to herself as she watched him walk away in the darkness of the early morning.

Eda opened her eyes very early and was surprised to see the gray clouds still. The weather forecast remained the same; the climate was cold, even more so than the day before.

She put the thin coat over the pajamas she was wearing, and when she went downstairs, she heard some voices in the kitchen, and upon entering, she found Max sitting at the table with a steaming cup of coffee beside him.

His cell phone started ringing just as Eda sat down in front of him.

"Okay, I'll get changed right now and go over there," he said with a neutral expression.

Eda didn't want to ask anything, but she was dying of curiosity, but she refrained from doing so because she knew he wouldn't tell her anything.

"Goodbye," he said, getting to his feet after finishing the cup of coffee without further ado. "You're alone in the house. If someone comes looking for me, have them call my phone. I'll leave it written down," he said without another word, and before she could say anything, Max turned around and left without further ado.

Eda peeked out the kitchen window and saw him heading towards the stables. He was wearing a white shirt rolled up to the elbows, black jeans, and boots of the same color.

A couple of minutes later, Eda continued to look out the window at the landscape left by the previous day's rain. At that moment, although it wasn't raining, the clouds were dark and the breeze was strong. The grass surrounding the house was very green, and the rose bushes were flowering and very beautiful. Then a large silhouette caught her attention as it passed nearby. Max was riding his horse at great speed. On that saddle, he looked much bigger. His hair swayed in the wind because he wasn't wearing a hat.

Eda followed him with her eyes until he disappeared.

The call that Max had received was from one of the men from the neighboring ranch to inform him that the rains and strong winds had wreaked havoc on the entrance again after his men had left in the early morning after removing the tree that had fallen and was preventing entry to the property.

But when Max arrived, he realized that the situation was a bit more complicated. Now three trees had fallen, and one had done so on the machinery they had used before to remove them, and the branches were entangled in some electrical cables that provided light to the neighbors, which was also dangerous in case there was a short circuit.

Max got off the horse quickly and walked to where the ranch workers were. The expression of those men was tired, and it was no wonder, as they had spent all night and early morning on it.

"Sir," the foreman began to say, approaching him.

"How's it going?" he asked.

"The machine for moving the logs has broken down, sir," he informed. "We'll try to do it by hand, with saws or axes, but it will take us a long time, and the weather is not in our favor," the man explained in an agitated voice.

"I'll help you," he said and began to take off his shirt, remaining in a t-shirt.

An hour later, despite the cold weather, sweat began to run down Max's strong arms. The veins on his forehead stood out every time he raised the axe to chop the wood.

A couple of hours later, one of the men, on Max's order, approached with the last bottles of water they had left there. Max took one in a single gulp.

Meanwhile, Eda was in the house preparing something for lunch. As it was still cold, she prepared a chicken broth. Although she was hungry, she didn't eat immediately. She often looked out the window without knowing why, but no one showed up.

Eda gathered her hair on top of her head and put on her coat to go out. The surroundings of the house seemed to be in complete silence. She went to the stables to see the mare she had helped the day before to have her foal.

Upon reaching her, the animal recognized her and began to make noises as if she wanted to say something.

"Hello beautiful," she whispered sweetly, while caressing her tenderly.

"Miss Eda," she heard someone say, and upon turning around, the same man who had gone to ask for help during the night to the house was there and gave her a smile.

"Hello, good morning," she said politely.

"Likewise to you," he said, taking off his hat. "Did you need something?" he asked.

"Oh, no, don't worry," she assured him. "I just wanted to see them," she said with a smile, looking towards the little horse and its mother.

"Thanks to you, they're both fine," he affirmed. "You're very good at that," he assured her sincerely.

"I couldn't do less," she said. "What's your name?" she then asked.

"Mike, Miss," he answered.

"Well, Mike," she began to say. "Then what will this little one be called?" she asked, caressing the foal.

"It is the Young Joseph who chooses the name, miss," he said.

"So this beauty will have to wait a couple of days to have a name?" she asked, raising her eyebrows, and the boy nodded with a smile as he saw how she behaved with the animal.

"Then while Joseph comes, I'll call you Kay," she said sweetly.

"It's a good name," Mike then said. "Maybe Young Joseph will like it and leave it," he said with a smile.

"We'll see," she said. "Where are the rest of the men?" Eda asked, remembering that she hadn't seen anyone before.

"They are with Mr. Max at the entrance of the ranch," he began to say. "The rain has made a mess, and access to the ranch is limited. The trees that have fallen have damaged some posts and electrical cables, miss," he explained.

"Oh God, how unfortunate!!" she exclaimed. "But no one has been hurt, right?" she asked with concern.

"No, so far the damages have only been material," he said calmly.

"Thank heavens," she exclaimed. "Can I help you with something?" she asked as they both walked to the exit.

"The work they are doing is very strenuous, miss," he said. "They have to chop the logs with axes because one of the trees has fallen on the machines and damaged them," he explained. "But if you want, and we take advantage of the fact that it is not raining, I can show you the rest of the horses and the animals we have here, as well as the cuts of flowers that we also cultivate." Eda's eyes sparkled like those of a little girl upon hearing that, and she quickly nodded.

Eda knew that that boy became a friend for her in that place. After seeing the animals, Eda felt hungry, so they had to leave the walk to see the flowers for another day. She even invited Mike to eat with her, and although he had refused at first, he later accepted when she insisted.

While they were finishing eating, Eda's eyes widened as she realized something.

"Oh my God!!" she exclaimed. "How has that not crossed my mind before?"

"What's wrong, miss?" Mike asked.

"The men who have been working non-stop since the morning haven't stopped to rest," she said, and the boy nodded.

"Come on, Mike, help me prepare something to take to them," she said with concern.

A moment later, Mike was moving at her command, explaining to him exactly what to do.

Max sat for a moment on a large log. The others had already rested, and that's why they were still working. Max looked at the palms of his hands and realized that blisters and small cuts adorned them. He didn't give it much importance and only wrapped the handkerchief he always carried with him around one of them.

Just when he got to his feet and took the axe again, he heard the noise of a car. When he turned around, he realized who was at the wheel. It was Mike driving one of the trucks where they transported the hay inside the ranch.

But when it stopped and the passenger side opened, he realized that he wasn't alone. A moment later, he felt his breathing quicken. The black mane fell over the girl's shoulders like waterfalls. Max felt a strange sensation upon seeing her. She had cheeks as red as a tomato, contrasting perfectly with her clear skin.

"What are you doing here?" Max asked abruptly when Eda began to approach him.

"I've brought you something to eat," she said, pointing to Mike, who was taking a cooler from the back of the truck. "I've also brought something to drink so you can hydrate," she said with a sweet smile, but Max remained serious.

"Why did you do such a thing?" he asked.

"I know you've been working non-stop since the morning, and the staff in charge of making food and other things is in town," she said. "I thought it would be very bad for you to be without food or drink for so long," she explained, while turning around to instruct Mike to deliver what they had brought.

"Are you worried that I might faint or something?" he asked, raising an eyebrow. She blushed a little more. "Wouldn't that be better for you?" he said.

"What do you mean?" Eda asked.

"If something happens to me, you'll have a free path to carry out your plans because you know I won't let them, right?" he said, crossing his arms.

"Don't talk nonsense, Maximiliano," she growled. "Fortunately, not all of us are as cruel as you," she accused, and he pretended to be offended.

"What are you basing your claim on to call me cruel?" he asked, looking at her with narrowed eyes.

"On the same thing that you do to accuse me of being here only for your family's money," she blurted out defiantly.

"I do have my reasons, Eda," he assured, getting closer to her in a threatening manner.

"Well, keep them to yourself, Maximiliano," she blurted out. "I'm going to give the others what we've prepared for them," she said, and without another word, she turned around and went with the rest of the men who greeted her with respect, because although the engagement party had not yet been held, everyone already knew that she would soon be the lady of those lands by marrying Maximo.

Max stayed behind watching how she interacted with the others, a humble and beautiful smile shone in her eyes while serving what she had brought, although he did not want to admit it that had been something very good, because the men were tired but they had to continue and finish before the rain that threatened to do so at any moment fell.

Eda looked out of the corner of her eye at Max but did not want to approach until finally a good while later when the rest of the men thanked her with a smile and returned to work she approached him with a glass of hot chocolate in one hand and a sandwich in the other.

"Here," she said without another word, extending her hands towards him. "You must also eat something," she said calmly while looking him in the eyes.

"Ha!!" he blurted out. "Are you worried about me?" he asked, but she did not answer and stretched her hands towards him again.

"Eat," she said without another word when he accepted it.

Max took what she gave him and saw her turn around and walk away.

Eda stayed there for a while longer, Mike was next to her and the others had returned to work including Max, she tried not to do it but it was impossible for her not to look at him, he had very strong arms and they tensed every time he raised the ax and lowered it with force, his expression was hard and he made no gesture of pain or tiredness.

Just when Mike was opening the door for Eda, a shout was heard behind them.

"CAREFUL!!!" when they turned around They saw Max lying on the ground with a somewhat large log on his abdomen.

"Max," she said and ran approaching to where he was lying. "What happened?" she asked anxiously when she arrived next to him.

"The gentleman saved me," one of the men suddenly said. "This log would give me on the back and the gentleman has realized and has pushed me but has been affected him," he explained with anguish.

"Max?" she asked approaching him but he did not answer. "Take that off his back," she said looking at the others.

"It's only hit me," he whispered in a low voice.

The others joined and began to lift that log with great force but when they removed it Eda realized that not only had it hit him.

The shirt was covered in blood.

"Oh Max!!" she exclaimed bringing her hands to her mouth "You have blood," she said and he tried to sit up but fell again when he felt the strong pain..

The rain began to fall again with force, Eda asked that they put him in the truck to take him home and heal him as best she could since the entrance was still closed as was the road to look for the doctor in the town.

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