"Nancy! Over here!"
Startled, she looked over and saw Gerald Turkower standing on the riverbank near her.
"Hang on!" he shouted, cautiously stepping off the bank. He inched forward, the water swirling around his knees now, then leaned forward and stretched out his hand. Nancy reached out and grasped it. Gerald steadied himself, then reeled Nancy in to the bank as if she were one of those cutthroat trout he had talked about at lunch.
Nancy's legs were numb and wouldn't hold her up. "Thanks," she said to Gerald through chattering teeth.
"Nancy! Are you all right?" Bess demanded, running up.
"C-c-cold" was all Nancy could manage.
Gerald took off his fleece-lined leather jacket and draped it around Nancy's shoulders.
Bess turned to him. "Where did you come from?" she asked curiously.
His eyes flickered. "I was in the woods, taking pictures."
Nancy looked sharply at him and struggled to find her voice. "Was anybody with you?" she asked after a second.
Gerald shook his head. "Come on. Nancy, I'll help you to your car. You need to get in and turn the heater on full blast. How did you happen to fall in?" he asked as they walked.
"I didn't," she replied. "Somebody pushed me."
"What?" Gerald's face registered shock,
"Are you sure? Couldn't you just have been jostled?"
Nancy shook her head. "I distinctly felt two hands shoving against my back. It was no accident, take my word for it. Did you see anything, Bess?"
"No. I'm sorry," Bess replied on the verge of tears. "I was looking-at the falls."
"Don't worry about it," Nancy said. "You had no reason to think somebody was going to push me in."
As they reached the car, Gerald told Nancy to go back to the hotel and take a hot shower.
"I'll drive. Nan," Bess offered. "You relax."
Nancy gave Bess the keys, then thanked Gerald again for rescuing her.
"I'm glad I was there to help," he replied, holding the door for her.
Bess turned on the heater, and soon Nancy stopped shivering. "It was a man who pushed me," she said. "As I went over the railing, I got an impression of his hands. They were too big and hairy to belong to a woman. Oh, Bess," Nancy said, interrupting herself. "Your binoculars! They must have fallen into the river with me. I'm so sorry."
"Do you think I care about some old binoculars when I just watched you nearly drown?" Bess scolded.
As Bess turned into the hotel parking lot, she continued, "Who could have pushed you?"
"I don't know. I just don't know. In fact, I don't know what to think anymore."
A large, shiny bus was stopped in front of the hotel entrance. People were spilling out of it onto the sidewalk.
"Look, Nancy," Bess said excitedly, pointing out the bus, which said Randy Dean Productions. "Do you think Randy's with them?" she asked.
Nancy smiled. "I doubt if a big star like Randy Dean would arrive on a bus," she said. "He's probably coming by private helicopter."
"I guess you're right," Bess said, parking the car. "Come on, let's get you inside and warm." Nancy's legs felt like lead as she climbed the steps to the hotel lobby. "All I want to do is lie down in a warm tub and soak for a month or two," she announced as Bess unlocked the door to their room.
Bess gave her a concerned look. "Are you sure you don't want to see a doctor?"
"I'm sure," Nancy replied firmly. "After a hot bath and a little rest, I'll be as good as new."
At Bess's urging, the girls had dinner in their room. As the waiter took away the tray, Bess gave Nancy a close look and said, "You look a lot better. You may not be up for an evening of square dancing, but at least you can sit and watch."
"You really think I ought to go?" Nancy asked.
Bess was now standing in front of the mirror, smoothing the waist of her knee-length denim skirt. "You want to see Ned, don't you?"
"Of course I do," Nancy replied, then paused. "But I don't know what to say to him."
Bess spun around, went to Nancy, and sat beside her on the bed. "First you'll tell him you're sorry," she stated flatly. "Then you'll say that you love him. Then he'll take you for a moonlight drive ..." Bess giggled. "And I'm not going to say what happens after that."
Nancy shook her head sadly. "I only wish it could be that easy."
Bess gave Nancy a hug. "Stop worrying. It's going to be fine."
While Nancy pulled on a full-skirted blue corduroy dress, Bess went on. "I talked to Jack while you were napping. He'll meet us in the lobby at eight."
"'Us'?" Nancy repeated.
"Well, sure," Bess said. "This is a group event, you know, not a date."
When they reached the head of the stairs, Bess began searching through her purse. "I forgot my compact," she said. "I've got to go back."
"Okay," Nancy said. "I'll meet you in the lobby."
Jack, in worn but perfectly fitting jeans and a red plaid shirt, was standing near the foot of the stairs. He saw Nancy coming and gave her a warm smile. "I called Bess after you got back to the hotel, and she told me what happened," he said, concerned. "Are you all right?"
"Good as new," Nancy said. "Bess will be down in a minute."
She took in the transformed lobby. All the furniture had been cleared away from the central area, and a small stage had been set up near the windows. Paper lanterns dangled from the log rafters, and bales of hay had been placed along the walls.
"They did a great job of decorating this place, didn't they?" Jack said, and led the way to a table at the edge of the dance floor. "I'm glad you felt well enough to come. I've been really looking forward to the dance," he added with a glance full of meaning.
"So has Bess," Nancy replied pointedly as she spotted her friend coming down the stairs.
Jack sprang to his feet as Bess approached. "Hey, you look terrific!"
Bess blushed becomingly and threw in a little curtsy.
The other tables were filling up. Two men and a woman in matching shirts climbed up on the stage and started tuning a guitar, fiddle, and string bass.
A woman in a fringed leather vest joined the trio on stage and picked up a microphone.
"Okay, folks," she said. "We're going to start out real easy this evening. You don't need a partner for this one. Don't be shy, just form two long lines, gents on the left and ladies on the right. The name of the tune is 'Rabbit in the Peapatch.'"
"Come on, you two," Jack urged, springing up. As the band launched into the rollicking tune. Nancy saw Ned and Jennifer come in the door. Jennifer was pulling Ned toward the two lines of dancers.
As he passed, Ned spotted Nancy and smiled at her tentatively. Then the dance started, and Nancy was too busy following the caller's instructions to pay attention to Ned.
"This is fun!" Bess exclaimed breathlessly when the first number ended.