A Window in Time

by Carolyn Lampman

  “For me? Are you sure?”

  “Has your name on it, and it’s addressed to Split Rock Station.”

  “How strange.” Brianna looked at the letter curiously. “I’ll see you next week,” the driver said, tipping his hat.”

  Brianna smiled and waved. “Have a good trip,” she called as he gave the team the signal to start. Then she turned her full attention to the mysterious letter. As she opened it and began to read the single page, a smile lit her face.

  “What are you grinning about?” Lucas asked.

  “We got a letter from Seth. Listen to this. Dear Brianna and Lucas. I thought I’d write to let you know where I am. I have been reassigned three times since I left Split Rock. It seemed like I would just get to know the trail, and they’d move me again. This is supposed to be my last station. Believe it or not, they sent me to the same one as Ian MacTavish. We’re both happy about that, but it isn’t the same without the two of you. Ian’s cooking isn’t quite as bad as yours, Lucas, but it isn’t very good either. Do you think I should send for a wife for him?”

  Lucas snorted at that. Brianna just grinned and kept reading.

  “Ian’s family came for a visit just after I got here. You wouldn’t believe how pretty his sisters are, especially the one that’s the same age as me. Her name is Melissa. Do you ever hear from Billy? I wonder about him sometimes. The other rider here isn’t near as friendly.”

  “Good Lord,” Lucas said. “He’s less friendly than Billy? I almost feel sorry for Ian.”

  “Billy just acts tough to hide the fact that he’s a marshmallow inside.”

  “A what?”

  “It just means he’s like a bowl of mush.”

  “Ah. And that means?”

  “That he’s actually a softie at heart.”

  Lucas shook his head. “The more you explain the less I understand. Maybe you better just read the rest of the letter.”

  “There isn’t much else. It just says Ian sends his love and says he misses us both.”

  Brianna sighed as she folded the letter. “I sure miss them. It seems so quiet.”

  “I know, but at least you won’t have to worry about quiet for a day or two.”

  “Oh? Why not.”

  “That’s why,” he said pointing to the south.

  In the far distance Brianna could see a huge cloud of dust. “What is it?”

  “Unless I miss my guess, it’s a wagon train. Kind of early, but about the only other thing that will raise a cloud of dust like that is a buffalo stampede. I’ve been watching it move this way all morning. Buffalo would either have stopped or they’d have been here by now.”

  “Then it’ll be here this afternoon?”

  “More like tomorrow sometime. They only make about eight or ten miles a day. If they don’t stop when they go by, we can ride out to their camp tomorrow night.”

  “I’d like that.”

  “You might want to come up with some barter.”

  “Why?”

  “They almost always have cows.”

  Brianna’s eyes widened. “Milk?”

  “There’s a good chance of it. Some of them even have butter. The motion of the wagon churns the cream as they travel.”

  “Oooh!” she said with a kind of breathless wonder. “I’d better get busy. Do you think I might even be able to buy a cow?”

  “Who knows? If not, there’ll be others along soon enough. They keep coming all of June and the first part of July. You just missed the last one last year.”

  “I’ll take my money just in case.”

  “Sure is hot today,” Lucas observed casually as she turned to go. “Could be a real scorcher by this afternoon. Don’t you think it’s about time to start swimming again?”

  Brianna repressed a smile. He probably thought he’d have better luck wearing down her resistance if he got her out of her clothes. Honestly, he was so transparent sometimes. “It kind of depends on whether the wagon train gets here by tonight, doesn’t it?”

  “I suppose so, but it sure is hot for this time of year.”

  “Maybe what you need is a nice cold shower,” she said and ran into the cabin before he could answer. It wasn’t until later that it occurred to her he wouldn’t have had any idea what she was talking about.

  The wagon train didn’t arrive that night, but Lucas and Brianna didn’t go swimming, either. Huge, threatening black thunderclouds filled the sky like a silent ominous presence. The air was still and stifling as though the very earth lay in wait for the storm. Lucas kept rubbing his arm where it had been broken, and Brianna knew it was bothering him. She gave him a light dose of aspirin just before bed. He was asleep almost immediately.

  Brianna wasn’t so lucky. She lay in bed for the longest time, miserably hot and sweltering. She’d left the window open hoping to catch any breeze that might come along, but there was none. She was still horribly uncomfortable when she finally fell asleep, only to have disturbing dreams. Once again, she was in a balloon high over the Wyoming prairie, only this time Lucas was the pilot, and he wasn’t particularly interested in flying the balloon. They stood silhouetted against the sky, their naked bodies pressed together as they explored each other with eager hands and hot kisses.

  Suddenly there was an earsplitting crack of thunder, and a bolt of lightning snaked out of the heavens with a white-hot intensity that seared and blinded. Lucas exploded into a shower of sparks and slumped to the floor of the gondola, a charred skeleton where living flesh had been a moment before.

  Brianna started screaming and couldn’t quit. On and on, louder and louder until the entire world became an echo of her horror. Then suddenly, Lucas was there holding her in his arms, rocking her as he stroked the back of her head.

  “Shhh, it’s all right. You’re safe.”

  “Oh, Lucas,” she cried, throwing her arms around his neck. “I thought you were dead.”

  “It was only a dream. I’m fine.”

  A flash of lightning lit up the prairie just beyond the window, followed almost immediately by a crack of thunder. The sound was an instant replay of her dream, and Brianna pressed herself tighter into his warm, comforting embrace with a shudder. She ran her hands frantically over his body to assure herself he was alive, desperately trying to break the link between dream and reality. “The lightning struck you, and...and oh, Lucas, it was awful.”

  “Don’t even think about it, love,” he whispered kissing her forehead. “It’s over.” As his lips traced a gentle path across her face, the horror of the nightmare faded and the erotic fantasy returned. Brianna closed her eyes and gave herself over to the sensations. When his moustache touched her cheek, she turned her head and met his lips with her own.

  At first it was soft and gentle; a delicate exchange of kisses so light butterfly wings might have created them. Yet, the feelings they aroused were so intense that Brianna and Lucas weren’t even aware of the thunder moving away and the storm finally breaking outside. Torrents of rain fell from the heavens, but the two inside were conscious only of each other as their kisses deepened and they drifted down into the welcoming comfort of the bunk.

  Brianna gloried in the body that was so familiar yet so foreign as her fingers explored smooth, hard muscles beneath warm, supple skin. It was as though all the months of lust-filled dreams had come to life, and she indulged herself to the fullest, touching, caressing, worshiping. There was no part of him that didn’t receive her love and adoration.

  The instinct to protect had been the only thing on Lucas’s mind when the thunder and Brianna’s screams awakened him from a sound sleep. He hadn’t even stopped to put on trousers in his rush to get to her. Now his original intentions were forgotten, for his entire being was focused on the woman in his arms, his other half, his love, his mate. His only thought was to consummate the magic that flowed between them, to become one with her.

  As Brianna enjoyed his body, Lucas did the same with hers. His hands slowly explored her from shoulders down to hips, thigh
s, knees; even her toes received his undivided attention. Then he started back up again, his passage all the more erotic because she was still fully clothed in her nightgown. The soft material against her fevered skin added to the stimulation as his hand moved across her ribs to the swell of her breast. He swallowed the moan that came from deep within her when he caressed the sensitive tip with his palm.

  The sensation was like nothing Lucas had ever experienced before. Hot, lustful, prurient, an overwhelming need rose in him like a tide. He wanted to take her right then, joining their bodies and riding the wave of passion until they exploded together in glorious harmony. Instinctively, he knew it was too soon for her, that he needed to feed the fire already burning within her, to stoke it until it raged out of control.

  His fingers undid the buttons of her nightgown and his lips began an even more sensual journey down her throat and body. If his hands had given her pleasure, his mouth drove her wild. The sounds that came from her throat were very familiar. He’d heard them all winter long, night after night as she cuddled into his solid warmth. Only this time she was awake, and they were alone. Lucas’s iron control began to slip.

  Brianna was in heaven. Lucas was creating the most incredible inferno within her. At first she wanted it to go on forever, then she thought she might die if it didn’t end soon. Her already sensitized skin reacted to the soft, seductive caress of his lips by sending tremors of hot delight through her whole body. As a molten pool of desire gathered near the center of her being, Brianna wondered if it were truly possible for a person to go up in smoke.

  She sought his mouth, bringing his body back into full contact with hers. It was too much. The wanton mating of their tongues and silken heat of skin against skin was more than she could stand. With a sound halfway between a whimper and a groan she pulled her mouth away and arched into him, wanting, seeking, needing.

  Lucas’s restraint was at an end. When her legs parted to receive him, he lost his control completely. No longer able to resist the urge, he buried himself within her in a single powerful thrust. He felt the delicate membrane tear and heard her cry of pain in the same instant. The significance of it slammed into him with the subtly of a cannon shell.

  The tableau seemed frozen in time as Lucas and Brianna stared at each other, his eyes reflecting shocked surprise, hers full of horror.

  “Oh my God, what have I done?” Brianna whispered.

  “It’s all right, love,” he said soothingly as she started to struggle underneath him. “It will only last a minute.”

  “No, you don’t understand. I...oh hell! Let me go, Lucas.”

  “No, I—”

  “For heaven sake, Lucas!”

  “Don’t worry, sweetheart, I can make it better.”

  “No, you can’t. It has nothing to do with my virginity or loss of it.” Her squirming did little to dislodge him from her body, but obviously caused her a great deal of pain. “Dammit, Lucas, can’t you figure it out? I don’t want you to make love to me,” she cried desperately. “Just let me

  go.”

  The anguish in her voice and the tears in her eyes hurt nearly as badly as her words. He withdrew and rolled to the side, fully intending to hold her in his arms and somehow fix whatever was wrong. But she was too fast for him. In the blink of an eye, she was off the bed and running for the door.

  He started to go after her and got clear outside before he realized he was stark naked. The rain hit his fevered skin like tiny bullets as he watched her white nightgown disappear into the darkness. What the hell was the matter with her?

  Shaking with emotion, he turned back into the cabin and lit a lantern. The sight of her blood on his body hit him like a hammer blow and he swore under his breath. Damn it to hell anyway. Why hadn’t she told him she was a virgin? He’d been too rough. No wonder she ran away from him.

  Lucas dressed hurriedly, his fingers fumbling with buttons in his haste. She’d be soaked to the skin and freezing by the time he found her, if he found her. He started to pull the blanket from his bed then realized it was wet. He hadn’t even noticed the rain coming in through the open window. Reluctant to take the bloodstained blanket from the other bunk, he turned to Brianna’s trunk. He could take the heavy flannel nightgown she wore in the winter and grab one of the blankets Seth and Billy had used on his way out.

  He found the nightgown immediately; it was right on top. The minute Lucas lifted it, he realized the garment had been used to hide something underneath. Frowning, he picked up the odd, heavy bag. He’d never seen anything even remotely like the substance it was made of, nor the strange closing across the top. The intensely curious scientist in him couldn’t resist the urge to look inside.

  Brianna sat huddle beneath the granite boulder and shivered in abject misery. Nobody had ever been a bigger fool. That she was cold and wet were minor irritations compared to the turmoil within her. How could she have let herself get so carried away? The very worst of it was the look on Lucas’s face when she said she didn’t want him to make love to her. It made her want to die. She wished she could go back and do it over, to replay the scene and stop herself at the very beginning.

  She sank her head to her bent knees. Who was she kidding? What she really wanted to do was go back and finish what she and Lucas had started. In all her years of dating, Brianna had kissed many boys and men, she’d even considered sleeping with a few. But never in her wildest dreams had she ever imagined it could be so wonderful with a man she truly loved, and they hadn’t even gotten to the good part yet.

  Brianna wasn’t aware of Lucas’s presence until a heavy blanket dropped around her shoulders. She looked up in surprise. The first thing she saw was the frown on his face and Tom’s backpack in his hand.

  She winced as it dropped at her feet with a heavy thud. So much for Tom’s expensive camera. “I guess you want an explanation,” she mumbled.

  “I think,” Lucas said with heavy sarcasm, “that one is long overdue.”

  CHAPTER 39

  (May 1861)

  Brianna swallowed hard. The moment of truth had arrived. “I know it’s hard to believe, Lucas, but I...I’m from the future.”

  “Time travel. No wonder.” Lucas closed his eyes and rubbed the bridge of his nose for a moment. Then he sighed deeply and handed her the heavy flannel nightgown. “Here, you’d better change before you catch a chill.”

  “You mean you believe me?”

  He nudged the backpack with his toe. “There’s some pretty damn convincing evidence in this...whatever it is. You can change behind the rock. Keep the blanket. I brought another.”

  By the time Brianna returned, Lucas had built a fire, though she had no idea where he found the dry wood. Everything outside the overhang was soaking wet. The other blanket lay on the ground with the contents of the backpack spread out upon it.

  Lucas said nothing when she sat down next to the fire and pulled the blanket closer around her shoulders. Silence filled only with the crackling of the fire surrounded them as he picked up the flashlight and studied it. “You must have seen some pretty amazing things in your life,” he said at last.

  “I...I suppose I have, but I never really thought about it.” Brianna wanted to cry. She hadn’t known how he’d take it, but she certainly hadn’t expected this brittle quality about him as though she had somehow betrayed him. She hadn’t even told him the worst of it yet. “Lucas, I’m sorry—”

  “Why were you sent here?” He interrupted as he flipped the switch on the flashlight and played the beam across the surface of the glacier-scarred rock that loomed above them. “Are you supposed to be studying this time period in general, or me specifically?”

  She frowned in confusion. “What do you mean?”

  He glared at her. “Did you come back to watch me struggle through my feeble attempts at invention? Lord how you must have been laughing at me all this time.”

  “Oh, Lucas, no, never. You’re the most brilliant man I’ve ever known. I lived my whole life around electr
icity, but I never even began to understand it until you taught me. Your feeble attempts, as you call them, are years ahead of your time. I don’t know exactly when Thomas Edison invented the light bulb, but I know it wasn’t before the Civil War and...” she trailed off when she saw the look on his face. She might just as well have struck him.

  “Thomas Edison?”

  “Y...yes.”

  “I see. And the talking telegraph?”

  “It...it’s called the telephone.”

  “Edison again?”

  She shook her head miserably. “Alexander Graham Bell.”

  “Ah.” He turned off the flashlight before carefully setting it back on the blanket and picking up the camera. “So much for my importance. You’d never even heard of me before.”

  “A...actually, I had. Lucas Daniels was a famous balloonist who spied for the Union army during the Civil War.” She didn’t have the courage to tell him the rest.

  He gave a humorless laugh. “Well, sweetheart, somebody didn’t do their research. They plunked you down with the wrong Lucas Daniels.”

  “No, Lucas, you don’t understand,” she said desperately. “I wasn’t sent by anybody. At least, not intentionally.”

  “What do you mean you weren’t sent. How did you get here?”

  “I haven’t got a clue. Time travel isn’t any more possible in my time than it is now. The only thing I know is that I’ve apparently traded places with my great-great grandmother somehow.”

  “Anna?”

  “Right. The last thing I remember was a horrible black cloud and a bolt of lightning. I came to in the middle of Bart Kelly’s wagon wreck.”

  “Tell me everything from the very beginning.”

  Brianna described it all, starting with the errant breeze that blew them off course right up through the last time she’d seen the blue mist. For the first time, she had hope. Lucas was listening with rapt attention, and the more she talked, the more like himself he became. He wanted to believe her.

  “It sounds like some kind of electrical field,” he said thoughtfully when she finished, “except that it’s visible and somehow can connect two different times. It moves when you try to reach it, so light has to be involved somehow. Any idea what we’re dealing with here?”