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Back Come Again No More Save as PDF
Chapters (55)
  1. Cover
  2. Back Cover
  3. Title Page
  4. Contents
  5. PART I 
  6. 1.
  7. 2.
  8. 3.
  9. 4.
  10. 5.
  11. 6.
  12. 7.
  13. 8.
  14. 9.
  15. 10.
  16. 11.
  17. 12.
  18. PART II 
  19. 13.
  20. 14.
  21. 15.
  22. 16.
  23. 17.
  24. 18.
  25. 19.
  26. 20.
  27. 21.
  28. 22.
  29. 23.
  30. 24.
  31. 25.
  32. 26.
  33. 27.
  34. 28.
  35. 29.
  36. 30.
  37. PART III 
  38. 31.
  39. 32.
  40. 33.
  41. 34.
  42. 35.
  43. 36.
  44. 37.
  45. 38.
  46. 39.
  47. PART IV 
  48. 40.
  49. 41.
  50. 42.
  51. 43.
  52. 44.
  53. 45.
  54. AUTHOR’S NOTE
  55. Touchstone Reading Group Guide

As the days went by, Juanita began to rule Jake in other ways. He was in the habit of strolling into the house with his boots on, tracking in manure from the corrals. Horse manure, cow manure, sheep manure, pig manure. Emaline had tried without success to get him to use one of the three bootjacks on the back porch to take his boots off. After a single day of sweeping and mopping the floor every time Jake came in, Juanita had put her foot down. The next morning, when he returned to the house after milking the cows, she met him at the door.

“Take off your boots.”

“What?”

“You heard me. I said take off your boots.”

She had been cutting slices of ham for breakfast, so she had a butcher knife in her hand. She didn’t threaten him with it, but she didn’t look defenseless either.

He started to push his way past her. “I’ll be damned if a Mexican housekeeper is goin to tell me what to do in my own house.”

Juanita took him firmly by the shoulder and pushed him toward the porch. “If you don’t take off your boots, you don’t come into this house. We are not going to clean up after you a dozen times a day. You track manure every place, even into the bedroom. No more.”

Juanita’s black eyes flashed. She held firm to the butcher knife. Had she been a man, he would have knocked her down, but he was not inclined to hit a woman, especially not a beautiful woman holding a sharp knife. He backed away in search of the bootjack, making like it was all a big joke.

“Hell, if you want me to take my boots off, all you got to do is say so. I aint goin to argue with a woman pretty as you.”

After that, he made a show of removing his boots each time he came into the house. It was a small victory, but it established one thing. If you were sufficiently stubborn and determined, Jake McCloskey would sometimes back down. Once she was back on her feet, Emaline decided that she would have to try to assert herself more with him, because since the first day they were married, he had done exactly as he pleased. Not for one moment had he behaved like a married man who had to consider her feelings, not even when she was flat on her back in a hospital bed because of his carelessness.