One thing that came to light really early on, was that Darlene was extremely jealous of Steve. If another woman would do as little as speak to him she...would manage to get between them.On Saturday I did notice that Steve had moved not only a chair but also a small table to the end of deck, thus reinforcing what Katie has said. I decided to go over and talk to him about the situation.After the conversation all that was settled was the fact that it was his deck and he would sit wherever and. This time it was slightly more perceptible. I would say 'louder' if I was sure it was actually a sound.The thought occurred to me that it may be a physical problem. Maybe high blood pressure that was whooshing through my ear as my heart rate went up or something. I don't know, I'm not a doctor; I was grasping for any logical explanation.I decided to experiment a bit, and stopped masturbating long enough for my heart rate to settle, then started over. As I approached orgasm, I again heard the. Just peachy.I crawled back into bed anyway, shutting off my lamp and getting comfortable. Even if I couldn't manage to reclaim sleep, I could at least rest my body. I slowed my breathing and concentrated on relaxing each muscle, starting with my toes. By the time I got to my stomach, I was breathing evenly and I never noticed when I fell back asleep.That was the first night I' dreamed like that and, even though I didn't remember much about it when I woke up later, I could remember the eerie. I hadn't even seen it fall; I was concentrating on the other one so much.I started moving toward her when I saw a rattlesnake near her right foot. "Elizabeth, sweetheart, don't move." She looked down and froze in fright. "Liz, don't move, honey." I took out my .22 from the holster and approached her. From 3 feet away, I aimed at the snake's head and fired.Elizabeth jumped away from the snake and into my arms. I held her as she shook, murmuring soft noises. She gradually calmed down and backed.