by Cyndi Raye
After that it was an all out war in the saloon. The music stopped. Voices were raised, fists began to fly through the air, unsure of where they would land. It was a free for all, with Max pounding the cowboy with both his fists. He was not a violent man but the atmosphere, the way the cowboy acted as if he did no harm got the best of Max. A young cowboy jumped on his back before he flung him off.
Before Max knew what was happening, another landed there, knocking him to the ground. Three fists came flying at him, hitting him in the skull, his face, pummeling his shoulders and stomach. Max figured he was done for now but continued to fight, kicking and raising his fists to no avail.
Two men pulled several cowboys away, grabbed Max by the arms and drug him out of the bar. They got him on to his feet, along with two other men and practically carried him across the street. All Max remembered was a sign, something about a Land Office before it all went blank.
Chapter 6
Max stirred. Afraid to open his eyes, he figured he would see bars after the all out brawl he started. Mustering up the courage to lift heavy lids, four men, along with four beautiful women stared down at him.
“He’s alive,” a soft voice said, her thick blonde hair pulled back in a tight bun. She had the most beautiful creamy skin he ever laid eyes upon. A pure angel stood there, along with three other women, dark-haired, who were just as beautiful.
“Did I die? Am I in heaven?” he asked.
One of the men chuckled. “I’d say right now you are in hell, brother. I’m Marshall Montgomery. I wouldn’t move any muscles if I were you.”
Max tried to lift his hand. Pain shot through his arm like a hot branding iron. His other arm felt the same way. He hung his head. “I can’t move. Help me up.”
Marshall quipped. “You were being trampled on when we got you out of the saloon. Lucky your back isn’t broken.”
Two of the men helped him to a sitting position. Max was on a settee in a big room, a pot-bellied stove in the center. A large desk sat along one area, overlooking a large picture window. He tried to read the letters through the glass but found it impossible. Max ached in every bone and muscle. He tried to stand. It didn’t happen.
“Now, Mr. Ward, you sit right there and settle yourself. Here’s some brandy, warmed up.” The one dark-haired beauty handed him a tin cup. He struggled to lift it to his mouth. She guided his hand as if he were a mere child. After taking a few large gulps, which slid down his throat and tasted mighty refreshing, he realized they knew who he was. “You called me by my name. You’re not offended?”
One of the other men shook his head. “If anyone here should be, it would be me. I’m Ben Sloan, this is my wife Lily.” The woman clung on to her husband’s arm. She had dark hair, a beautiful smile and a worried look in her eyes.
“Ben. Lily.”
One of the other ladies spoke up. “Lily is the one your father wanted, but that’s another story.”
Max’s eyes shot up. The name rang a bell. Why were they being nice to him? Rumor had it that Lily hated his father. She had stood up to him in the end.
“I am sorry about your father, Mr. Ward.”
“Max. It’s Max. Maybe I should change my last name. Ward seems to bring out the worst of people in this town.” Dawson and Grace Sloan introduced themselves next.
Marshall Montgomery spoke up after his wife poked him in the side. Max pretended not to notice. “This is my wife, Ruby.”
“Pleased to meet you, Max.”
Max nodded, turning to the other man standing beside Marshall.
“I’m Daniel Ashwood. I believe we met the other night. I was closed. This is my wife, Charity.”
He nodded to the couple. The two were even now giving each other a look that made Max yearn for Hannah. “I need to get back to my ranch.” He tried to stand. A pain shot through his hip and thigh that made him groan out loud.
Marshall hauled him up on his feet, while Ben and Dawson each slung an arm over their shoulder. “Your hired hand is waiting with the buck board. We’ll get you there and ride with you back to your ranch. Just in case there’s some shenanigans going on. We heard the South Round Ranch is after your land. Everyone is fired up tonight. Best we give you a hand.”
“I’m not sure why you even care, but, thank you. I can get home myself.”
The women tsked, tsked, and shook their heads in unison.
“It ain’t gonna happen, my friend.” Dawson’s voice rose above the women. “You can barely walk let alone get on that stallion. Lucky for you we just happened to be having our weekly card game tonight.”
He was right. Looks like he made some friends. Who knew a saloon brawl would weed them out.
Max, determined to ride on the hard seat with Georgie, bounced around, teetering back and forth. His stallion was tied to the buck board, following behind while the four riders rode two on each side of the wagon.
The ride back to the ranch went well with no surprises. The four men hauled Max inside to Marni’s cry of dismay. They got him as far as the settee in the parlour when he collapsed. “I’m fine, dammit. Just need to take a rest here.” Then he immediately passed out.
<><>
Hannah stirred when she heard the loud noises outside her room right before the door was flung open. Her head felt so much better after resting for hours. Gasping at the commotion, she pushed the covers back, jumping from her bed to stand on the cool floor in her bare feet.
Four men carried Max, his bruised and bloody body to her bed.
She gasped and slapped a hand over her mouth so she didn’t cry out.
“Ma’am, sorry to disturb you.”
“Put him in the bed,” one of the men ordered.
Marni came bustling in to the room. “That wasn’t exactly the right bed, but, well, just put him there anyway.”
Hannah watched the scene play out before her. She finally found her voice. “What happened?”
Marni rushed to her side, placing a robe over her shoulders. Hannah let the robe warm her. She gathered the material closer.
“Sorry to disturb you, Mrs. Ward. Seems your husband got in to a fight. He’ll be fine, just needs some tending to.”
“A fight? Why?”
“I can’t answer that. We should go.” The tall man, the spokesperson of the group turned to the others. Hannah watched him mouth to the others that they should leave. Probably before she asked too many questions.
“Thank you for bringing him home. Can we get you anything?”
“No. Were fine, we’ll be on our way.”
“Marni, please see them out.”
When everyone left, Hannah stood by the bed, staring down at Max. His eye was swelled, his nose bloody and scratches covered his face. She gazed at his hands, the knuckles swelled and bleeding. It reminded her of the boxer friends her step-father would bet on. They were a brutal bunch. What in the world was Max doing getting in to a fight?
She poured water in to a basin from the pitcher on her night stand, tore a sheet in pieces and began the task of washing his face. He winced but she kept on until every spot of blood disappeared. Hannah busied herself cleaning his bruised knuckles, washing each finger and carefully wrapping a sheet of linen around his hand. When she was finished she looked up to find his eyes on her.
Max tried to speak. His voice was gravely, strained. “Thank you.”
She placed a hand against his cheek. “You took care of me, remember. Not even twenty-four hours ago. What happened?”
He winced. “I believe I got whooped.”
She smiled. “By the looks of your hand, I believe you did a bit of whooping yourself.”
“There were too many of them,” he mumbled, his eyes closing.
“How many were there?” she asked, her heart pounding.
“A saloon full.”
Her hand stilled. “What? You took on a whole saloon full of men?”
He groaned. “Something like that.”
Hannah remembered the man on the horse that ran
her over had gone in to the saloon. “Oh, Max, did you go after that man? The one who tried to hurt me?”
“Hmm,” was the only thing that came from his mouth. Hannah watched the steady rhythm of his chest as he fell in to a deep sleep. Marni came in to check on them but left after seeing Hannah had everything under control.
The four men who brought him home had put him in the wrong bed. Determined to make the best of things, Hannah doused the lamps and climbed in beside Max. She pulled the covers over their bodies and laid on her back, feeling the heat from his. Snuggling closer, she let her mind drift, knowing the events of the day meant the two of them were more than just business partners. It was happening so fast. She wanted more than a casual business relationship with him and now it seemed to be going in that direction.
She had the right to be sleeping in the same bed as her husband. Then why did she feel as if she was doing something wrong? She was married to him, for life. There was no way they could make a business relationship work for the rest of their lives. Not when every fiber of her being called out to his. Not when being near him caused every single nerve in her body to stand on end.
Max moaned in his sleep, turned and flung an arm across her stomach. His touch scorched her skin, sending Hannah to snuggle even closer. A need she had never before realized filled her up. Before she knew what hit her, Max nestled his face in her neck, his warm breath sending shivers down her spine.
“Oh.” She didn’t understand the fires that were burning inside of her. A strange feeling began low in her belly, below his hand. No one had ever made her feel this way before. Hannah didn’t understand, found it confusing. She tried to move away from his hand, his burning touch but he held on to her.
“No. Stay.” His words caused her to gasp. The warmth tickled the skin on her neck and she pushed in, wanting to feel it again. Max’s mouth began to move slowly, pressing kisses there, drifting lower, at the neckline of her gown. A groan escaped him from somewhere deep in his throat.
Hannah tried to touch him but her arm was caught under her, the other in a sling. She let her head fall back so he could kiss her neck where she exposed the skin. It felt so right, so exquisite she wasn’t sure how to come back from this euphoria.
Then it stopped. She heard his breath rising and falling in unison to realize he was sleeping. Her body ached for something she had no clue of. But then a small smile crept upon her face. He had gone to the saloon to fight for her honor. No one had ever done that. She always had to fight her own battles. Interesting.
Hannah yawned. It had been a heck of a day. First, getting run over by a careless rider and then this, her husband, acting like a knight in shining armor. She turned her head and placed a gentle kiss on his brow, letting her lips linger there for a brief moment.
Hannah closed her eyes. Could she be falling in love with this man?
<><><>
Hannah woke to find an empty bed. As she got dressed, her eye caught his profile sitting out on her balcony, his back to her. She slid out of the door to come up behind him. Placing her hands on his shoulder, she leaned down and kissed him on the cheek. He winced.
“How are you feeling this morning, Max?” Hanna sat down in the opposite chair, noticing he had a tray with a cup of coffee for her. She busied herself with the pot, pouring herself a cup and refilling Max’s cup. Sipping on the warm liquid, she waited for an answer.
“Sore. My ego is bruised.”
“Must’ve been quite some fight.” She was smiling.
He shook his head. “I went in there after one man. Didn’t realize the whole saloon would start brawling.”
“Lucky for you those men brought you back here.”
“Yeah, guess not everyone hates the Ward name. Reminds me, I need to go thank them today.”
“I think perhaps you should stay out of town for awhile. At least until the bruises heal.”
He rubbed his jaw. “You’re right. No sense in letting them see all the damage they did to me.” Max leaned his head back. “Hannah, I’m not sure I can fix things. No one wants to hear the Ward name. Everyone and I mean everyone, hated my father. That’s a big burden to carry.”
Hannah’s heartstrings tugged at his words. “Not everyone. The men who brought you back here seemed to care. Start with them.” She reached across and took his hand. “Max, we’ll do this together. I have some ideas I’d like to share with you.”
He turned his head slightly, wincing as he did so. “I like you, Hannah. More so than I ever thought I would care about anyone. When you got knocked over by the horse and rider, I lost my mind, my anger got the best of me. I went after that man planning to hurt him but good. We’ve got a good thing going here, I hate to lose that.”
“Why would we lose that? I don’t understand.”
“I brought you here on a business arrangement. If we can’t turn this town around, I’ll understand if you want to go back to New York.”
Hannah got up to kneel down in front of him. She took both hands in hers. “Maximilian Ward, I’m ashamed of you, giving up after one silly saloon fight.”
He gazed at her with dark eyes so intense it surprised her. “I’m not giving up. I care about you and don’t want anything to happen.” He took her hand and brought it to his mouth.
“Max.”
“I won’t let anyone hurt you again. This whole thing, the reason I’m here. It’s not worth anything if you get hurt.”
“That’s the sweetest thing anyone has ever said to me. Thank you.”
“I mean those words. I won’t hold you to this marriage if you want out.”
Hannah panicked. Was he trying to get rid of her? “I wasn’t planning on going anywhere, Max.”
He grinned. “Good. I don’t want you to go.”
“Do you mean that? Truly?”
“Truly.”
“There for a moment I thought it was your way of getting rid of me.”
He shook his head. Wrapped his arm around her and pulled her forward. “Never,” he mumbled right before catching her mouth with his own.
The kiss was sweet, meaningful. As if he were claiming her. She gave back from deep in her core, showing him that she meant every word she said. When they broke apart, he held her, words not necessary.
Hannah looked up at him. “I know this was supposed to be all about a business arrangement, Max. I want to try to make it a real marriage. I’ll never go back to New York. My life is here, with you. Please, don’t ever mention that place again.”
“Deal.”
“Deal, then. Let’s go over my plans.”
His brow shot up. A smile crept across his face. “You are taking the bull by the horns here? Well, then, tell me your ideas.”
Over coffee, Hannah explained how a live auction would get people out here to the ranch.
“I don’t see how it will change anyone’s mind about us.”
“Max, of course it will. The money from all of this stuff will be donated to build a school. Wichita Falls doesn’t have one. We can hire a school teacher, too. You’ve got the money to do so.”
He chuckled. “Spending my money so freely?”
She grinned. “Yes, I am and if you know what’s good for you, you’ll agree. This is the perfect way to get people here to meet you, to see you are not an evil man like he was. It will work. It has to.”
Two wagons came rolling in as they were discussing the sale of almost every piece of furniture. After realizing how much Max wanted to be rid of it all, she was starting to feel a bit overwhelmed. “Can we keep our beds to sleep in?”
Max laughed as he went out the door to see who was coming in the wagons. Hannah followed to find four couples disembarking. The ladies all ran to her, giving her hugs and introducing themselves.
“I’m Ruby,” the dark haired lady said. She looked very pregnant. “This will be my second child.”
Hannah heard the pride in her voice. “Congratulations.”
“I’m Lily.”
“I’m Grace.
Pleased to meet you.” She held out her hand.
“I’m Charity. Co-owner of the only newspaper in Wichita Falls.”
Marni came bustling out with Mary in the rear. “Come inside, Ladies. I’ve put tea and coffee on and some special treats.”
Hannah glanced back to find Max in the middle of a serious conversation with the four men. He looked up in time to give her a nod as she followed everyone inside. A warm feeling went through her. Finally, a few friendly faces.
<><><>
“It’s been quite awful for you, hasn’t it?” Lily asked.
“I’m just thankful that all of you have come through to realize we are nothing like Byron Ward.”
“Lily knows first hand and told us we have to make the first move.” Grace smiled. She was always outspoken, matter of fact and got straight to the point.
“Either way, thank you. It’s a relief. Now if I can figure out how to pull off this auction, I think it’s another step in the right direction.”
“Do tell?” Ruby said, rubbing her belly.
“Max can’t stand all this furniture and art sitting here, wasting away, so I suggested we have a live auction and donate the proceeds to build a school.”
“That’s a great idea,” Ruby told her. The others nodded in agreement.
Hannah bit her lip. “I just, I am overwhelmed. Max only wants to keep a few pieces. I don’t know where to start, how to set things up. I had no idea he wanted to get rid of everything!”
Grace stood up and clapped her hands. “Oh, sweetie, you let me handle this one. I’m an accountant, by the way. This is perfect. I can do an inventory and organize it all for you. Easy peasy! Right, ladies? We can do this.”
Hannah’s heart swelled at the offers. She wasn’t about to turn them down. “I would appreciate your help.”
“We can all help. I’ll write up the advertisement right away and disperse them all over town.” Charity whipped out a pencil and paper from the pocket of her dress.
“Ruby and I can sell food to add to the coffers. It will be fun.”
