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barn, Jerry said it was a scarlet snake. That a scarlet snake can look like a coral snake, but it isn’t venomous. He wasn’t afraid at all. He went over, cornered it against the wall so he could pick it up, but it went for him. Bit him in the leg and held on. I was terrified. It finally let go and slithered away. Jerry said the bite hadn’t hurt, but I could see he was scared too because scarlet snakes never, or rarely, bite. So we decided to head for home. Even before we were halfway there, Jerry was having trouble breathing. I had to leave him by the side of the road, run for help. But it was too late.” Jace stopped.
    A blind terror of snakes had stayed with him since. Would remain for life, he was certain of it. Even now, he had to force himself to look at the photo of the rattler. “And that thing looks huge.”
    Alice nodded. “Around three feet long. They can grow to five feet or more, but that’s rare.”
    “Are there a lot of those around here?” he asked, dreading a positive answer.
    “Great Basin rattlesnakes? I found this one not a hundred feet away from the house.”
    “You took that picture?”
    “You can get fairly close when the weather gets cold, because they move slowly then. Besides, Great Basin rattlesnakes are timid and would rather slide away than strike.”
    “That’s exactly what Jerry said about coral snakes,” said Jace dryly.
    “He was right,” Alice answered. “All snakes are passive. If you leave them alone, watch them from a distance, they’d never think of hurting you. The snake that bit Jerry probably panicked because it was being cornered.”
    “I know that,” said Jace. “I know that
now
. Because I had to understand what happened. To get information. Investigate.” He smiled faintly. “It was a way of living with tragedy. And I suppose, it started me out on my career of investigative journalism.”
    “Turning a horrible experience into something positive.” Alice smiled at him.
    “How do you know all this about snakes?” Jace asked. He’d confided in her; now it was her turn to let down her guard, tell a few secrets.
    “I’m a herpetologist,” she said simply. “I study snakes, I photograph them, I write about them for nature magazines. I protect them.”
    “Do you have snakes here in the house?” he asked, dreading a positive answer.
    “Around the house, yes. I certainly don’t chase them off, if that’s what you’re asking.”
    “I see.” The list of things he had to tolerate was getting longer: desert dullness, endless dust, multi-colored dog hair, horrific reptiles — all that for a woman who was rarely welcoming, who would probably like to get him out of her house, out of her life.
    “If this is a problem, Jace, I can understand your wanting to leave,” Alice said. “I did try to warn you when you said you intended to board here. I just didn’t realize it was such a big issue.”
    And now she’d even found the best way of getting rid of him. But he knew one thing: he didn’t want to go — despite the snakes. If this fragile-looking woman had no fear of them, he could make an effort, tolerate their proximity, or try to. Yes, he’d stick around. For a while. Not for forever, of course. Just long enough to get to know Alice better, see what the world was like when you looked at it from her direction. Just to investigate another lifestyle. “No way I’m leaving. It’s not every day I meet a genuine herpetologist.”
    To his great surprise, her golden eyes warmed like suns. “Good. I’m getting used to having you around.”
    Had he heard correctly? Had she really said that? Incredible. His heart rose. Fighting to hide how pleased he felt, he stood, headed for the door. Then paused, turned. “Don’t make dinner tonight.”
    He caught the sudden disappointment she was trying to hide. “Because you won’t be coming home?”
    Home
, he’d said? “Because I’m taking you out. For dinner.”
    Alice jumped to her feet.