Stacey Kayne Read online

  He wouldn’t risk taking her into one of the few settlements frequented by travelers through these parts. Though he’d love the chance to send a few telegrams and catch any word on Sumner’s location, he couldn’t chance running into him. Not yet. A man like Sumner wouldn’t be traveling alone.

  Jed prayed Buck had received the message he’d sent through Delilah, and was planning to meet up with him in Shadow Canyon. After all, Rachell was his sister-in-law. He was counting on Buck to lead her safely across the Sierras before Sumner arrived.

  The sound of rushing water penetrated his thoughts. The whispering hush grew louder, echoing off the high canyon walls and sending a wave of relief throughout Jed’s body. He needed some distance from the woman sitting rigid in front of him. Running Bear’s tribe occupied these valleys near the streams during the spring. With any luck, he’d be able to locate their camp and replenish his supplies.

  Just as the river came into view, Rachell pulled his rifle from the scabbard at the side of his saddle. She slid from his lap in a flutter of green fabric, all before he reined his horse to a stop.

  “What the hell do you think you’re doing?” he called after her.

  She ignored him, taking brisk strides. She cocked the rifle with familiar ease, never slowing her stride as she took her aim at a duck flying overhead, and fired.

  Damn if the bird didn’t fall from the sky.

  “Where the hell did you learn to do that?” he shouted in sheer astonishment, but he was talking to the wind. Rachell had disappeared over the hillside into a small meadow. A moment later, another gunshot carried across the narrow valley. Jed dismounted and went to retrieve the duck she had marched past. He walked back toward Sage, thinking he was probably safer staying out of rifle range. By the cold look he’d seen in her green eyes lately, she’d been picturing his face flying around up in that sky.

  He sighed, leading Sage toward the river. Perhaps he’d been too hard on the woman. Maybe she needed to be coddled a bit more.

  Another gunshot echoed in the distance.

  “Nah.” He shook his head. For all her softness and beauty, Rachell was twice as strong and ten times as stubborn. When life handed her lemons, she wasn’t the sort to sit around and fuss about it. She rolled up her sleeves and made lemonade. Course, with her knack for cooking, it wouldn’t taste worth a damn, but like the three batches of stones she’d baked, Rachell didn’t let her lack of know-how keep her from trying.

  Jed grinned as he pulled out his knife and crouched beside the river. The woman wasn’t short on spunk. He imagined Miss Abigail had had more than a handful with the young Rachell. And for all of Miss Abigail’s effort, Rachell’s lady polish was beginning to wear off.

  As Jed finished cleaning the duck, Rachell returned from her hunt. She walked toward him with the rifle clamped in one hand and the ears of two large rabbits in the other. Jed strode toward her, reaching for the rabbits. “Rachell, I can—”

  “I’m not helpless,” she spat, jerking her hand beyond his grasp. “I may not be able to cook it, but I can clean my own kill.” She walked past him, never taking her eyes off the river as she continued toward the edge.

  Jed saw the moment her fear of the fast-moving current caught up with her anger. She came to a dead stop a foot from the edge. There were no shallow pools in this stretch of river, only a hard, cold current moving across slick rocks. A tremor shook her body as she stared out at the water. Jed moved behind her and carefully pulled the rifle from her hand. He took the rabbits from the other.

  “You know,” he said softly, leaning toward her ear. “If you’d have mentioned your skill with a long gun sooner, I could have been catching up on my beauty sleep while you worked off some of the aggression you’ve kept bottled up for the past twelve years.”

  She glanced over her shoulder, a smile playing on her lips. “I told you I was a decent shot.”

  “Decent? Hell. You’re better than decent. Where did you learn to shoot like that?”

  “Home. My brothers used to take me hunting with them, until I started bringing in more game than they did.”

  “I don’t doubt it,” Jed said with a grin. “I’ll clean the rabbits. Go powder your nose or somethin’.”

  Her lips blossomed into a full smile, bringing a brightness into her green eyes.

  “I think I’ll settle for washing the blood off my hands,” she said, dropping her tired gaze to her red-stained fingers.

  And there was that damn smile again. Much to Jed’s relief, she turned away from him and walked downstream.

  “She has the prettiest smile,” he murmured as he drew his knife again. He hated to admit it, but he’d missed the upward curve of those soft, pink lips in the past few days.

  When he finished with the meat, he strode toward his horse who’d trotted off to a patch of tall spring grass. He found the empty sack that had held his flour and dropped in the duck and rabbits.

  Rachell might not know squat about cooking, but the woman had real salt. She had surely trudged through hell and back in the past few years, not to mention the past two weeks, but she didn’t hound him with complaints or whine about the fatigue he could see in her eyes.

  She’d been one surprise after another since the moment he’d laid eyes on her. He’d never been real keen on surprises, but was finding Rachell to be more and more intriguing.

  “Well, hell,” he muttered.

  He surely didn’t need to like this woman. Physical attraction was one thing, but likeability, now that was another thing entirely. Considering the staggering force of his attraction, it was downright dangerous.

  “What are you lookin’ at,” he said, glancing at Sage’s dark eye. “I saw her scratching your ears yesterday. She’s already got you snared.” His buckskin was as ornery as they came, and usually downright vicious to anyone but him, yet whenever Rachell stroked his golden hide, Sage acted like a big hound, lowering his block head to get it under her palm.

  “Come on, boy,” he said, taking Sage by the reins. “Let’s go find her. Lord knows what kind of mischief she’s stirring up.”

  Jed walked a couple hundred yards before he spotted her. She sat on a grassy river bank, holding a two-foot garter snake. She held the colorful serpent at eye level, just a few inches from her face. Her free hand caressed the black, white and orange coils banded around her arm. Her lips drew into a smile as the snake’s black tongue flicked out.

  Jed’s mouth gaped.

  Lord, save me. She can even charm snakes. Damn if she wasn’t conversing with the slithery thing.

  She had unraveled her braids, and her long hair rippled across her back and into the tall grass. The light afternoon breeze tugged at the wispy red ends. Her dress blended well with the blades of lush green, bonding her to the earth. She looked to be just as he’d named her, a little forest sprite, finding mischief and delight in the nature surrounding her.

  Jed shook off his trancelike state, released Sage and continued toward her. “Did they teach you to speak reptile at that fancy school back east?” he asked as he sat beside her.

  Startled by the sound of his voice, Rachell nearly dropped the snake on her lap. “Jed! How do you creep about like that?”

  “I’d be happy to show you, if you’d be willing to give me a lesson in reptile talk.”

  She released the snake then glanced up at Jed with those pure green eyes. “What do you mean?”

  His gaze settled on her succulent lips. He yearned to press his lips to her sweet mouth, the way a drowning man craves air. Before he found the sense to stop himself, his lips were moving over hers in a light caress. She didn’t back away as he would have expected, nor did she show any sign of resistance when he lifted her hands from her lap and wrapped them around his neck.

  His body surged with heat as she trembled in his arms while he traced the rim of her mouth with his tongue. “I’m waiting for that flicking tongue,” he whispered.

  Rachell’s eyes opened wide at the sound of Jed’s husky voice.
Gracious! How had her fingers become entwined in his hair?

  She’d been too caught up in the shivering bursts of heat rippling though her body and the caress of his lips to notice anything else. Her eyes drifted shut as his incredibly gentle hands continued to stroke her back. His mouth nibbled tenderly at her lips. She pushed her fingers deeper into his smooth, black hair, and was sure he liked it when he groaned, pulling her closer.

  “Imp?”

  She shivered as his tongue skimmed across the seam of her lips. Did he truly want her to stick out her tongue? Parting her lips, she discovered that was exactly what he wanted. His tongue didn’t wait, however, but came seeking, into her mouth.

  Rachell was jolted by surprise and an unexpected rush of pleasure as Jed molded his mouth to hers. His scent, taste and texture surrounded her, consuming her. She gave herself to his kiss, swept up in the sweet intimacy and sheer wonder of the wild sensations coursing through her.

  Belatedly, she felt the cool grass against her back, her sole focus on the rhythmic probing of Jed’s velvety tongue, encouraging her to take part in the delicious dance taking place inside their joined mouths. His restless hands carried fire across her body, caressing her shoulders, her sides, her hips.

  Her own hands mapped the firm muscles of his sides and back. She shifted beneath him, trying to pull his body closer, wanting to feel his weight, but it was like trying to move a mountain. His knees, straddling her hips, securely supported his weight just inches above her.

  Jed’s senses reeled as Rachell allowed him to taste her sweetness. She seared him to his soul with the timid strokes of her tongue and her soft sighs of surprise. He slid his hand beneath her waistcoat, brushing across the satiny skin of her trim abdomen, slowly seeking the tender rise of her breast.

  His whole body trembled with a rush of desire as he found the gentle swell. He swallowed another soft moan and caressed the firm peak rising to his touch. Her sharp fingernails bit into his shoulders, her back arched off the grass.

  “Oh, God,” he groaned against her mouth. He shouldn’t be doing this! She’s Elizabeth’s sister; with a taste as sweet as honey and skin as smooth as silk. He massaged the soft satin flesh, caressing her delicate breast. She trembled beneath him, sounds of pleasure and surprise rising from deep in her throat.

  Her passionate response to his touch went to his head faster than whisky.

  She’s Buck’s sister-in-law!

  Using every last ounce of his willpower, Jed wrenched his mouth away from hers and forced his hand away from her body. For a long moment he hovered above her, his arms braced on either side of her head. Breathing heavily, he stared into her passion-filled eyes.

  She’d been telling the truth about her line of work. This woman was no prostitute. If he didn’t know she was a widow, he’d damn near bet his ranch she’d never been properly kissed. Her kisses were timid, unskilled…and pure fire.

  Damn if she hadn’t burned him senseless with those chaste kisses and soft cries.

  “Sorry, Rachell,” he rasped, his chest still pulling for the air that somehow kept eluding his lungs. “I shouldn’t have done that,” he said as he rolled away from her and stood.

  Rachell sat up, dazed and gasping for breath. She watched Jed walk downstream. What on earth had just happened? He had just…he had… She drew a hand to her tingling lips.

  Good gracious. She hadn’t made the slightest attempt to stop him. She cringed with indignation, realizing she hadn’t wanted him to stop. But he had, obviously finding her to be less than adequate.

  No news there. She glanced down at the small peaks he’d thoroughly measured in his hand. Miss Delilah hadn’t been the first to point out her boyish figure. The thought of the voluptuous saloon owner increased her growing despair.

  Jed had undoubtedly expected a woman skilled in the area of physical pleasures. She had no more experience with the intimacies between a man and a woman than she did with cooking. She’d never had an interest in either, or at least she hadn’t until she’d come into contact with a certain man with quicksilver eyes, magical hands and unbending confidence.

  Tears swelled into her eyes, increasing her self contempt.

  “Now he truly believes I’m a whore,” she muttered, swatting at a fallen tear. “A lousy one at that.”

  But, what did it matter? She only wanted to get to California. Once she arrived, she wouldn’t have to see him. He wouldn’t want her to cook for his cowhands…or want her for anything else.

  She should be relieved, but somehow, she wasn’t. Jed stirred the strangest feelings inside her. She’d tried to tell herself it was fear. What woman in her right mind wouldn’t fear a man his size, with his dark moods?

  She clearly wasn’t a woman in her right mind.

  In the past few days, all she could think about was the late-night hour when Jed would pull her close, warming her, sheltering her with his body. Only then did she drift into a peaceful sleep.

  A shiver vibrated through her at the thought.

  “Rachell.”

  Startled by Jed’s whispered voice, Rachell clutched her chest. Lord, the way he crept about, a body would die of heart failure!

  Noting his frigid gaze, she followed it across the river and sucked in a hard breath as she spotted the small band of Indians riding toward them. She scrambled to her feet and clutched at Jed’s shirt.

  “Don’t panic,” he said, pulling her against his side.

  The three men had the appearance of young warriors. Rachell hoped the red markings painted on their cheeks didn’t signify hostility. Clad only in buckskin britches and moccasins, their bronzed, muscular chests and torsos shone brightly in the sun. Large feathers were bound in their long black hair. A wide black stripe was painted across the eyes of the man riding in the center, reminding Rachell of a raccoon.

  “Are they friendly?” she asked.

  “Hard to say,” Jed replied as he backed up toward Sage, keeping Rachell close to his side.

  “Do you know them?”

  “Nope. By the markings on their horses, I’d say they’re Apache.”

  “Is that bad?” she asked, his neutral tone giving her no indication.

  “Depends.”

  “On what?”

  “On whether or not they’re bad men.”

  Recognizing the contempt in their gazes, Jed didn’t hold much faith in their good intentions. These three had strayed pretty far north into Ute territory. As he watched the Apache slowly plodding across the river, his focus locked on the brave riding in the center. The young man’s eyes moved admiringly over Rachell’s auburn hair. A sharp smile sliced across his face. Seemed this brave had a mind to acquire a new woman.

  My woman.

  “Jed.” Rachell’s voice quivered. “I don’t like the way that racoon-eyed Apache is looking at me.”

  “Neither do I,” he said under his breath. “Don’t worry, Imp. I won’t let him take you.”

  “Take me?”

  Jed wrapped her hands around the reins. “Stay put and don’t speak unless I ask you to.”

  As the Indians reached the rocky edge of the river, the one in the center lifted his hand, calling out to them. Rachell was stunned when Jed answered in the foreign tongue as he strode toward them. The Apache seemed to share her surprise.

  They reined in a few feet before Jed, the racoon-eyed warrior doing all the talking.

  Jed’s harsh-spoken response startled her. The only word she understood had been the first—a hard-spoken no.

  The young warrior’s dark eyes seethed with anger. He clearly didn’t like whatever Jed was saying. When again the warrior spoke, Jed shook his head.

  “Rachell. Come stand behind me,” he called.

  She complied without hesitation. Terrified, she wanted to be near him. Jed tugged her in front of him, spreading his hand across her stomach as he spoke. The warrior’s face creased with blatant rage before he shouted a response.

  Jed stepped in front of her. Rachell suppressed a screa
m as Jed pulled his long knife from the scabbard at his waist.

  After a few minutes of what appeared to be a heated debate, they seemed to reach a settlement. Jed took her by the hand and led her back to Sage.

  “Are we leaving?” she asked with hopeful earnestness.

  “Not just yet. You picked a fine time to let your hair down. Seems if I want to keep my fire-haired wife, I’ll have to fight for her.”

  “Fight? Jed, there are three of them!”

  “Ain’t that the truth?” he said, shaking his head as he unhooked his gunbelt and slung it over the back of his saddle.

  “Why on earth are you removing your gun?” She glanced at the Indians standing in front of their horses, talking amongst themselves. “Can’t you just shoot them?”

  “Now, Rachell, that wouldn’t be honorable.”

  “Why not?” She whipped her gaze back to Jed who was digging in his saddlebags.

  “Because they’re not gonna use guns,” he said as he tucked another knife into the tall shaft of his moccasin.

  “How can you be sure?”

  “Take a gander, sugar. See any holsters or pockets on those boys?”

  Rachell bristled. He wasn’t thinking rationally! “Are you telling me there are rules to be followed when trying to keep a woman from being abducted by savages?”

  The insufferable rogue had the nerve to smile!

  “Two, to be exact,” he said. “They won’t kill me if I kill them first, and the last one standing gets to keep my wife.”

  “But I’m not really your wife!” Lord, she wished he’d stop smiling. She was feeling real fear. She watched in disbelief as he pulled his shirt over his head, laughing all the while.

  “Don’t tell them that,” he said, his silver-gray eyes shining with his ill-gotten humor. “Then you’d be free for the taking. I suggest you sit tight and start casting them some of the ferocious glares you’ve been using on me all week.”

  Without warning, he took her by the waist and lifted her into the saddle.