Corralling Callie

by Smarts, Amelia

  As though summoned by her thoughts, she felt the warmth of Jude’s body by her side. He touched her cheek lightly with the back of his hand, which caused her to flinch.

  “Easy. It’s going to be all right,” he said softly. He wiped a tear off her cheek with the pad of his thumb. “I have an idea.” He laced his fingers through her hair and cupped her head. Then he brushed his thumb back and forth over her ear’s opening, creating a sound like a loud rushing river. After less than a minute, her heartbeat slowed and her panting eased into normal breathing.

  “That’s it,” he said. “I’m going to keep doing this until you fall asleep, darlin’. Close your eyes.”

  Callie felt incredibly touched by the gesture and impressed by the ingenuity of it. “Thank you,” she whispered to him. Now that the panic was gone, she realized just how tired she was. It had been a very long day, and she drifted into sleep with the comforting sounds of a river next to her ear.

  Chapter Four: The Next Morning

  Callie startled awake. She rubbed her eyes and glanced around the room. The passengers milled about, rolling up their blankets and engaging in small talk with each other. Jude stood nearby rolling up his blanket also. His back faced her, and she studied the outline of his broad shoulders against the streaming light of the window in front of him. He’d already donned his gun belt and whip and looked ready to light out in a hurry.

  The way he looked—so strong and capable—made a feeling grow inside Callie that she’d never known before. Her skin prickled and her body came to life even as she retreated farther under her blanket, fearful of her sudden attraction toward him. She recalled the strength in his voice when he directed the horses and the way he cracked the whip with such authority, and she felt a magnetic draw to his power. The feeling was so intense that she had to convince herself to remain still as opposed to launching herself into his arms. She wasn’t exactly versed in proper behavior around a man, but she knew initiating a hug would be frowned on. She wanted Jude to like her, not be appalled by her behavior any more than he was already.

  She tried to make sense of the feelings brewing inside of her. Jude had shown her kindness just as Sam had done, but Callie looked at Jude differently than she looked at Sam. She knew this was partly because Jude was closer to her age and very handsome. She liked the sweep of dark hair over his brow when he removed his hat and the strong outline of his jaw under his neatly trimmed beard. His honey brown eyes caused her stomach to flop when directed at her, whether in a hard stare or twinkle.

  Callie wondered how long she could get away with lying on her blanket daydreaming. She didn’t want to speak with anyone except for Jude, knowing people would likely be annoyed with her after she woke them with her humming. She thought about apologizing, but that wasn’t something she felt comfortable doing. Apologizing would make her vulnerable and at people’s mercy in that they could choose not to forgive her. It had always worked better in her favor to act blameless. People’s mercy was not something she’d ever been able to count on.

  Suddenly the senator’s form blocked Jude’s. Callie moved her gaze from his hard, steel-toed boots up to his equally hard face. He regarded her without a trace of kindness, or even civility. “You’ll give up your seat in the box today,” he said to her in a harsh whisper. “The driver seems to have taken a shine to you for some unknown reason, but you aren’t even supposed to be on this ride.”

  “I’m the guard,” Callie said with a frown. “I have to sit in the front to be Jude’s lookout.”

  The senator crouched down and got in her face. “You’d better think smart and take your place in the coach. If you don’t, I promise you’ll be sorry.” His voice was threatening, and Callie would have felt afraid if Jude wasn’t only a few steps away.

  She considered giving up her seat for only a brief moment. She wanted more than just about anything to sit up front with Jude again. “I’m sitting in the box,” she snarled, scrambling to her feet and facing him with a proud lift of her chin. She raised her voice. “You’re a bully and an ass, and I won’t be cowed by you,” she told him in a louder voice than she’d intended. Annie gasped at her language, and Jude focused a disapproving look in her direction.

  Callie turned her back to them all and proceeded to roll her blanket. She could feel the senator’s gaze on her, heating her back with his hatred, and it sent a shiver of fear down her spine. She knew he was a cruel man. She’d seen that look before—the stony look in a person’s eyes that held not an iota of compassion. It was the same look she saw in Mrs. Bentley’s eyes, and she was familiar with the dangers associated with getting on such a person’s bad side. Still, she felt she had an ally in Jude, so that gave her enough courage to stand her ground.

  “All right, everyone, listen up,” Jude’s authoritative voice rang out, interrupting the silent battle she was waging with the senator.

  Callie turned to face Jude, as did everyone else. She was in the back of the room, and the senator stood in front of her, with his watch hanging slightly over his pocket. She had the sudden desire to swipe it. There was no reason for this desire except for her dislike of the man, but the urge to steal it felt uncontrollable. Glancing around quickly to make sure no one was watching, she reached out and took it discreetly. She shoved it in her suede pouch and felt a thrill of triumph.

  Jude stood with his hands on his hips, a pose that was becoming familiar to Callie. It made him look casual and commanding at the same time. “We’ve got eighty miles between here and the Copes River. There we will stock up on water and rest the horses for only three hours before continuing on. Then it’s another hundred miles of rough travel before we stop to sleep in a hotel in Paselo. That means we’ll be traveling overnight, so you’ll need to sleep in the coach, if at all. Any questions?”

  The senator responded in a cordial manner, quite differently from how he had just addressed Callie. “Driver, I think I speak for all of us when I say we are grateful for your leadership, which I have no cause to believe is anything but fair and equitable. On that point, I do believe it reasonable that one of us be offered a seat in the box for this next part of the journey. The girl has had more than enough time in the prime seat.”

  “I’m supposed to sit in the box,” Callie argued, anger lacing her words. “I’m the guard.”

  The senator didn’t even look at her. Instead his attention remained on Jude. The expression on Jude’s face stayed the same, but his voice sounded annoyed when he spoke. “Very well, Senator. Callie will sit in the coach for the next eighty miles, and one of you may join me in the front. Decide the person among yourselves. It makes no difference to me. Let’s get a move on now, folks. Breakfast will be served outside by the coach. No dilly-dallying.”

  Callie’s heart sank, and she felt stung by Jude’s decision. It hurt her feelings that he didn’t put up any resistance to someone else sitting by him. The smug look that the senator shot at her added anger to her hurt feelings. She gritted her teeth and strode outside, pointedly avoiding looking at Jude as she stormed past him, but she saw out of the corner of her eye that he was observing her with his hands on his hips.

  Outside, the groom buckled the straps to the horses’ harness, while the passengers ate their portions of bread and milk. They stood around the coach and chatted with each other, but Callie had no interest in participating. She collected her breakfast and walked away from them. She wanted to be alone.

  Jude noticed her retreat and called to her, “We’re leaving in less than five minutes, Callie. Don’t be going anywhere.”

  She ignored him and strode to the barn, where she meandered around to the back out of sight and continued to a thicket of trees. After she’d bolted down her fare, she reached inside her pouch and pulled out one of the letters from Albert. The border of the paper was worn and smudged with her fingerprints from handling it so often. She had memorized each line, but she still liked to read her favorite parts often.

  Thank you for sending your photograph, Callie. As I s
uspected, you are quite a lovely miss. I’m sorry for not having a likeness of myself to share with you at this time, but I shall describe my looks to the best of my ability. I am of slightly above-average height with even features, light skin, and blond hair. I am not sure how else to describe myself, but I hope you won’t be disappointed. I don’t believe I’m a bad-looking man, though from looking at your picture, I can see that you are far lovelier than I am handsome.

  Callie smiled, sighed, and held the letter to her chest. His words gave her comfort. She didn’t honestly care much about what Albert looked like, only that he would find her comely and be kind to her. She reckoned that particular paragraph from his letter told her all she needed to know about him, and it filled her with great hope for her future.

  Callie lost track of the time she spent apart from the others. She suddenly became aware of a bugle sounding and voices calling for her. The voices didn’t sound all too pleased. In fact, they sounded downright angry. This was confirmed when she heard the crackling of a weed beneath a heavy footstep and turned around to find Jude approaching her looking as tetchy as a teased snake. Her heart skipped a beat, and she rushed to apologize. “I’m sorry, Jude. I just realized people were calling for me. My mind was elsewhere.”

  “I told you not to go anywhere, and you pointedly ignored me. I would have let it slide if you’d come back in a decent amount of time.” He took hold of her arm and dragged her out of the thicket into the barn. She tried to pull away, but his grip was firm. He sat on a bench and hauled her over his lap.

  She wailed another apology. “I’m sorry. Please don’t spank me, Jude!”

  He tossed up her skirt and petticoat as she squirmed. “You decided to run off like a child when you didn’t get your way, so you’ll be treated as one,” he growled. He landed a hard swat over her thin drawers, nearly covering the entirety of her bottom with his large hand. “Other people want to sit up front, and you’re going to have a good attitude about it by the time I get through with you. You’re also going to mind my words when I speak.” He punctuated his admonishment with hard swats that jerked her forward each time.

  “I’ll mind you! And I’ll have a good attitude.” She squirmed frantically over his lap as his hand picked up speed and fell again and again.

  “Hold still,” he said sternly, landing two sharp swats on her thighs, “or I’ll remove your drawers and blister you with my belt.”

  She gasped, mortified, and stopped jerking about momentarily, but his swats were so hard that she found it nearly impossible to remain still. This punishment felt much worse than when he’d landed the belt four times over the protection of her skirts, and it sure lasted a lot longer than the first spanking. Jude grasped her waist and pulled her against his body to keep her from twisting off his lap. The smacks were loud and echoed against the walls of the barn. The horses and cow neighed and mooed along with her howls.

  Jude brought his hand down with great focus, not letting up for quite some time and making sure every inch of her bottom received punishment. He lectured her as he spanked, but Callie barely heard it, being so focused on the sting, which deepened with each fall of his hand. “You will stay with the others. I’ll not have you running off, worrying me and delaying our trip.” Smack!

  “I’ll stay with the others!” she promised in a wail.

  “That you will, young lady.” He smacked the low curve of her bottom especially hard. “Otherwise, you’ll be spending the entire trip sitting on a smarting bottom. Is that what you want?”

  “No,” she hiccupped, hating that tears were coursing down her face. She watched one drip on the ground next to Jude’s dusty boot. In addition to feeling pained, she also felt terribly angry and betrayed. She thought Jude was her friend, but instead of being friendly, he was giving her a very painful spanking, and after this, he was going to allow another passenger to take her place up front. She thought he liked her and wanted to sit with her, but he mustn’t think much of her at all if he felt inclined to cause her such agony.

  Jude stopped spanking. He ran his hand over her scorched backside and rested it on her thigh. “One more thing. The senator is bellowing that you stole his pocket watch. I really don’t want to believe him.”

  His touch felt gentle now, and she might have relaxed had it not been for his statement. Her heart sank, and she deeply regretted her impulsive theft. She searched for the words to say but couldn’t find them. Jude hadn’t exactly asked her if she’d taken the watch, and she certainly wasn’t going to offer him a confession, which as good as guaranteed more time in her current position. Callie remained silent, figuring that was the safest option.

  Jude sighed heavily, then righted her skirts and planted her on her feet in front of him. He held her arms and studied her, frowning. “Think you can behave now?”

  Callie shrugged out of his grasp and swiped at her tears with the backs of her hands. “I hate you.” The words were spoken hesitantly in a trembling voice. She worried the pronouncement might get her spanked again, but it was the only thing she wanted to say to him.

  Jude’s eyebrows lifted. “You can hate me, darlin’. What you can’t do is disobey me.”

  “Fine. You’ve made your point,” she spat and turned away. She felt humiliated, and her face felt nearly as hot as her bottom. She needed to get away from the man who had so unfairly chastised her. How could she have been foolish enough to believe he liked her? Hardly anyone liked her. She rushed out of the barn toward the coach. Much to her dismay, Jude’s long strides caught up with her, and he walked by her side. She wiped away the rest of her tears, hoping no one would guess she’d just been spanked. Everyone regarded her angrily as she approached. Feeling embarrassed, lonely, and misunderstood, she climbed into the coach, gingerly scooted to the far end, and retrieved a letter from Albert, which she proceeded to focus on while everyone else stepped in.

  The senator took the box seat; his snooty wife sat next to Callie. A short time later, the coach lurched forward. Callie read her letters from Albert over and over before finally putting them back in the pouch. When she looked across the seat at Billy and Annie who faced her, she found them regarding her warily, like one might a stray dog. Callie decided she didn’t wish to speak to them. They didn’t seem interested in speaking with her either and instead talked between themselves and with Mrs. Tucker. Callie closed her eyes and pretended to sleep while daydreaming about her future with Albert and lamenting her poor spanked bottom.

  Chapter Five: A Gentleman

  The coach finally came to a halt after what seemed like ages. The passengers groaned as they exited. Everyone felt stiff and sore after this part of the journey, which was quite bumpy, and they stretched and bemoaned the aches in their body. Callie walked a ways off to do the necessary, her bladder feeling like it might burst at any moment. She made sure to rejoin the others immediately after she relieved herself, not wanted to draw Jude’s ire again for removing herself from the party. He didn’t seem to notice her, though. She didn’t see him so much as glance in her direction as he unhooked the horses and rubbed them down.

  Mrs. Tucker and Annie rolled out a blanket on the ground and laid upon it, intending to sleep for the three hours they would be camped there, while the male passengers walked alongside the river to stretch their legs. Callie didn’t wish to nap with the other women, nor did she wish to exercise with the male passengers, so she felt at a loss over what to do. She didn’t feel like she belonged with anyone, and she felt a wave of loneliness. She often felt this way, like an outcast who would never fit in no matter where she went. To her mind, this would all change when she arrived in California and became Albert’s wife. Then she would have a purpose, and she would finally belong to someone.

  Briefly, she wondered if Jude would permit her to hike along the river on her own as long as she made it back in time to resume the journey, but she didn’t want to ask his permission. She didn’t want to talk to him ever again in fact. Frustrated, Callie took to pacing around the camp w
ithin sight of the coach. When she grew tired of that, she walked to the riverfront and sat on a large rock, which was still within sight of Jude and the horses. She skipped small stones across the water but couldn’t get them to skip more than twice. Still she continued idly tossing the rocks, grateful for the activity. She became so entranced by the sunset over the river that caused the water to sparkle that she didn’t hear the footsteps that approached her from behind.

  “If you use a flat stone and snap your wrist sideways, you’ll have more luck getting them to skip.”

  Callie looked over her shoulder at Jude and followed him with her gaze as he walked around and sat down next to her on the rock. He opened his fist, revealing a collection of flat stones, and gave her an encouraging nod. She picked up one of the rocks from his palm. Drawing her hand back, she snapped her wrist and let it fly. It skipped four times. She couldn’t help but smile a little after the minor accomplishment. He returned the smile and poured the rest of the flat stones he’d collected into her hands. She felt a trickle of warmth toward him. It was a small gift, but she didn’t often receive gifts at all.

  “You’re sulking, darlin’,” he remarked.

  She sat up a little straighter. “I’m not. I’m just sitting here minding my own business.”

  “Minding your own business and sulking,” he insisted.

  “Think what you like,” she said stiffly.

  “I know you’re still mad at me for spanking you, and I don’t like to see you angry.” He rubbed the back of his neck, appearing conflicted.

  She felt angry, yes, but more so her feelings were hurt. She glared at him. “My fiancé would never treat me brutishly as you have. I can’t wait ‘til I’m in California where I’ll be treated like a lady.”