by Jillian Hart
She grabbed her nightshirt and drawers, yanked them on and rolled out of bed. The gray, pre-dawn light held hints of gold and pink as she hurried to the house. Mindy and Fred were both sound asleep. She was able to grab her clothes and boots without waking them. On her way out the door, she caught her reflection in their only mirror. Hair tousled, rosy-cheeked and smiling ear to ear. Yes, it was a new day. A whole new life, she thought, stepping into the beautiful world.
Wildflowers lazed and the grasses were silent. No winds blew to accompany her as she headed across the yard, tying back her hair as she went. The faint murmur of his voice carried to her. She spotted him at the corral fence, one hand braced on a rail, leaning in toward the foal in the long shadows before sunrise. Head down, kind tone, quiet strength.
Little Cookie gazed up at him trustingly. Kit knew how the filly felt. She'd never met a man like Dakota either. He was genuine, the real thing. She looked up to him, too. How was it possible to love a man so much?
"Are you sweet talkin' some other girl already?" Kit strode through the tall grasses to his side.
"Sorry, couldn’t help myself. Those big eyes got to me."
They smiled together, both bashful of what was easiest done in the dark. She pressed her palms against a wooden rail, trying to pretend her heart wasn't skipping beats because of him.
"Good morning." He caught Kit by the collar and pulled her into him.
"Good morning?" She simply could not stop smiling. "Yes it is."
His kiss claimed her mouth, reminding her that she was his. She grew warm in secret places, remembering last night and their surrender to each other. As Dakota hauled her into his arms, pressing her against his long, hard body, sunrise began to color the world, casting great long beams of gold across the prairie and onto them.
Hope was a frightening thing, like suddenly being lifted off your feet and into the air. At first all you can think about is falling, or fearing how long the wind could keep you airborne before you surely came crashing down.
But maybe falling wasn't inevitable. She tightened her fingers around Dakota's thicker, much bigger ones. Maybe, if it was the right wind, it would always hold you up.
"Come on." She tugged him by the hand. "I want to show you something."
"I've already seen it," he quipped.
"Yes, you have." Her long mane of hair trailed down her back, emphasizing her straight, lean back and small waist. "I wasn't talking about that. Sorry to disappoint you. This has to do with my plan."
"Not the plan again," he teased, surprised humor came easily. It was because of her, of what she'd given him.
As they passed by the gate, Renegade woke with a start, nickered sharply to her baby. Little Cookie galloped over to her mama. At least he'd made progress with her.
He held the barn door for Kit, following her in. Straw rustled as horses stood. Jack poked his nose over his gate, ears up, hoping for grain. The palomino mare nickered a shy greeting. Blue gave a deep-throated nicker as Kit opened a gate.
"Hey, handsome." Unguarded and open like this, the warmth and goodness in her shone bright. "Do you feel like a little morning stroll?"
His steeled horse shoes thudded on hard packed earth in answer.
Dakota whipped open Jack's stall, felt the bay's warm breath scatter his hair, and caught hold of the rope halter. "C'mon, fella."
"Hurry up, we've got to hurry." Kit handed him a bridle and buckled Blue's onto him.
"What about the mare?" he asked, as he eased the metal bit into Jack's mouth. The golden girl watched them with hopeful eyes.
"Fred will picket her and feed her grain. He'll be thrilled." She scrabbled onto Blue's bare back, her calico dress hitching up to show her slim calves. "Let's go!"
She was out the door before he could hop onto Jack's back. The gelding snorted, as if telling him to hurry up. He winced at the ache in his arm as he threw a leg over Jack's broad back and grabbed a handful of mane. It had been a while since he'd ridden bareback, but the horseman in him would never forget. He leaned forward, gripping with his knees, and touched his heels to the gelding's side. The big guy shot forward into a smooth lope, following Kit and Blue into the bright shafts of sunlight.
They rode beyond the corral and followed the winding creek. Cottonwoods stood still, as if sleeping. In the tall grasses a deer bedded down in the cool shade watched them, frozen, until they passed.
"I can't remember a more beautiful morning." Kit stopped Blue to admire the view and tossed her ponytail over her shoulder. "Can you?"
"You're smiling awful wide for a woman who's been ruined."
"Ruined? I wouldn't call it that. Not even close. Loved, definitely."
"I can't argue with that." He nudged Jack closer so he could push a lock of hair out of her eyes and fold it behind her ear. Just to touch her. Last night he'd lost all control, his love for her had been too great. "You didn't make things easy for me last night coming to me the way you did. You stripped my willpower down to nothing."
"That wasn't all that you stripped." Mischief twinkled like chips of sapphire in her eyes.
"Can't argue with that, either." Images of her naked beneath him in the moonlight haunted him. It probably would for the rest of his life. "I just wanted you too much."
"Are you sorry we—?" She bit her lip, as if she couldn’t bear to say the words.
"No," he corrected her quickly. He couldn't stand for her to think that even for a second. "Not sorry. I don't have the words to say what last night meant to me."
"But you sound sorry."
"Part of me is." He fisted his hands. "I just don't want this to end."
"Neither do I." She settled her hand on his chest, directly over his heart. "I know there's something in your past that hurt you, and you've kept on the move ever since. I don't need to know what it is. I do need you to feel safe here. As safe with me as I am with you."
Her words touched him in a way nothing had. He did feel safe with her. Safe from the past, safe from hurt. Safe to love her.
The honorable thing would be to tell her the truth. He even opened his mouth to do it, but the words stuck in his throat, refusing to be spoken. He wasn't sure he could take it if the love slipped from her eyes. Didn't know how he would survive if she pushed him away.
"Here's where we stop," she whispered, slipping from Blue's back. She dropped the reins and padded through the grass. She went down on all fours and stretched out on the crest of a bluff. When he lay down beside her, he saw why.
The black stallion's herd. He didn't dare speak. Down below the horses were drowsing in the mellow sunshine, sheltered by the creek and cottonwoods on one side and the bluff on the other. Foals frolicked, yearlings played in the cool water, and mares napped or grazed or nursed their young. Horses of every color—lustrous reds, satiny blacks, polished browns and honeyed golds. The stallion watched over them all, head up, neck arched, mane flying.
Kit sighed, with wonder and longing. He draped an arm around her. He needed to touch her. To make sure something this rare and precious was really his.
They watched the herd for awhile, until Kit touched his arm and eased back away from the ridge.
"The herd spends most nights here," she explained as she hopped up onto Blue. "It's a good protected place."
"And you figured it would be the best spot to try to catch them." He gathered Jack's reins and swung up. "You're right. It's protected, and if we're downwind, we could surprise them. The trees and bluff naturally block them. It will require fewer riders."
"That's good because there's only the three of us—you, me and Fred." She wheeled Blue toward home. "Four if I ask Mr. Mason to help."
"I'm sure he will." He gave his hat a hitch to scan the horizon, squinting in the sun.
Dressed in all black, he still looked like an outlaw, but she could see the change in him. He'd relaxed, his features had softened, he was no longer distant. She figured the folks in town would still call him Outlaw, but she called him hers.
&
nbsp; Remembering how close they'd been last night made her blush. The liquid desire she'd felt for him returned, stirring in her, making her want that closeness with him again.
"So you're thinking of driving them, not roping them?" she asked, instead of saying what was on her mind.
"We'll get more of the herd driving them. They are here, and there's no telling how long they will stay in these parts. August is almost over. I say we get as many mares as we can at a time."
"You've done this before?"
"Not wild horses, no, but I worked for a horse ranch out in Wyoming. Have a few annual round-ups under my belt."
"I'm not surprised." She patted Blue's neck as he strolled along. "Is there anything you haven't done?"
"Mining. I've never been interested in climbing into a hole in the ground and shoveling in the dark all day long."
"It's good to know there's one thing you can't do." They shared a smile, her heart lurched, unable to ban the sensation of his kiss and his caresses from her thoughts.
"Won't do," he corrected. "There's a difference. I could mine, if I wanted to. I don't."
"Right." She rolled her eyes, liking his soft bark of laughter. He leaned across the small distance between their horses and kissed her. The velvet-warm contact sent a pulse of liquid-heat rushing through her even as home came into sight. "I don't pay you to kiss me."
"Guess we're off the clock, then." Crinkles dug deep around his eyes when he grinned. Happiness snapped in those dark blue depths.
She liked seeing him happy. She liked how it felt, too.
"Hey, Kit! Dakota!" Fred waved, setting aside his pitchfork. "Did you see 'em?"
"They're still there. The whole herd." She slid off Blue, landing in the soft grass. All the barn work was done, the palomino mare was picketed, and fresh water glinted in the corral's trough. "You did a good job, kid."
"I'm not a kid, I'm a real rancher now." He flashed a lopsided grin. "I got the palomino picketed. She let me come right up to her."
"You have a way with horses." Dakota dismounted.
"I do. Besides, she really likes me. I named her Honey. Hope that's okay. She's real sweet and her coat is that color." Fred looked happy, too. No worries, no shadows or strain. Being settled on this land, with a real home had been good for him. "I'll take care of Blue and Jack. Blue, stop that."
He laughed as the horse lipped his hair, as if trying to eat it. "That's not straw."
Blue gave what sounded like a horsy laugh and tried again. Fred giggled, so Jack joined in. The boy led the horses away, leaving laughter in their wake.
"Guess there's nothing left for me to do," Dakota quipped. "Fred can manage it. You might not even need me for the round-up tomorrow."
"You read my mind."
"You mean, about me leaving?"
"No, going after the horses tomorrow morning." She caught his hand in her smaller one and held on tight.
He pressed a kiss to her cheek, still not believing she was holding him. The past felt a lifetime away, banished by her affection. He hoped it would stay that way forever.
"Is that your stomach growling?" She tipped her head back to peer up at him from beneath the brim of her gray hat. "I thought it was another bear attacking."
"I worked up an appetite last night." He waggled his brows.
"Yes, you did." Her wide smile said it all. "I'd better go help Mindy with breakfast. After we eat, we can head to town. We have supplies to buy. Lassos, feed, more water tubs."
"And you expect me to help with this?" He gestured toward the red and white mare, racing the wide perimeter of her corral. "I have horses to train."
"Not this morning, you don't." Affection warmed her blue eyes, proof of her feelings for him, and that sustained him, filled up the places in him he'd thought would always be empty.
"Come on." She laced her fingers between his, tugging him along. "And don't worry, it won't take long. I'm a quick shopper. I like to get the job done, in the store and back out, no lingering."
"No wonder I sort of like you." The closest he could come to confessing the truth.
"I sort of like you, too." She tossed a smile at him, her silence saying more. "And to prove it, I'll let you carry my packages."
He let out a chuckle. "It would be my pleasure."
Chapter Sixteen
Sweat gathered behind his neck as he hauled the final grain sack out of the ramshackle excuse for a feed store and plopped it with the others in the back of Kit's wagon. The hot breeze puffed on and off today, skidding tiny dust devils down the dusty main street every now and again. He swept off his hat, rubbed sweat off his neck and cast his gaze to the mercantile across the way.
He spotted Kit through the grimy front window. She was like a sunbeam from her hair to the bottom of her skirt ruffle. She held up a length of fabric, shook her head, and tried another. Mindy ambled over to give her comment.
"I got a new halter for Honey." Fred clamored out of the door and tumbled down the boardwalk steps. "It was real good priced, too. The storekeeper said he'd throw it in free 'cuz we bought so much."
"Good negotiating, kid." He fanned himself with his hat.
"I'm a rancher, now. I gotta be a smart businessman, too." The boy dropped his purchase in the back with coils of lariat. "I saw you and Kit kissin'."
"You did." He put on his hat. "What do you think about that?"
"I dunno." Fred looked like he couldn't imagine kissing anyone. He wrinkled his nose. "Are you gonna marry her?"
"That's in my plan. I can't say for sure if it's in hers." He leaned against the wagon bed and crossed his arms over his chest.
That was the knell of doom. He'd said his wish out loud for the Fates to hear. Maybe it was possible. In the light of day, with the nightmares forgotten, he could almost believe. "Would you hate it if I stuck around?"
"No." Fred leaned against the wagon bed, too, and crossed his arms over his chest. Took a minute to think things through. "You'd be around to take care of things, so Kit wouldn't have to try so hard."
"That's right. I'd always help her out."
"That'd be good for her. Plus, you can help with the horses. You know a lot about horses." Fred bit his bottom lip as he considered things further. "It's almost like having a brother around, one who can do stuff. Like shoe horses and build a roof. You could show me."
"I'd be happy to."
"Then you can marry her." Fred gave an emphatic nod, his hat brim bobbing. "As long as she says yes."
"Well, I appreciate that. When I feel the time is right, I might ask her."
"Hey, Outlaw." A familiar voice shouted from down the boardwalk.
Dakota glanced over his shoulder. Baldy strolled into sight, his hat askew on his head. "I spotted ya through the window of the boarding house. What are ya doin' in town this time a day?"
"Escorting Kit. She's at the mercantile." He gestured across the street.
"That's Hubert's daughter, if'n I remember right." Baldy scuffled close, pulled a red handkerchief from his back pocket and swiped the sweat from his grizzled face. "And, sonny, you must be Hubert's boy. Let me think what yer name is."
"It's Fred."
"Howdy-do. That's a lot of grain. You and Howie must be planning something big for that ranch."
"We're rounding up some mustangs late tonight. We're gonna catch 'em when they're sleepin'," Fred explained. "There's four of us, because Mr. Mason is gonna help."
"Only four riders? That ain't enough fer a round-up, sonny."
"That's all we got." Fred adjusted his hat, unable to stand still from the excitement. "Kit has it all planned out. We're gonna catch as many mares as we can."
"Ooh, ho! A woman with plans? That there's a sure trail to disaster." Baldy refolded his handkerchief and dabbed his throat with it. "Hubert didn't talk much about his girls. Not a good idea 'round here. Purty young ladies are a rarity in these parts. Best to protect 'em. Glad Howie hired you and your gun."
"I'm no gunslinger." Dakota patted his holst
ered Colt. "But I'll do in a pinch."
"I'll say. Saw the way you handled Tannen. The whole town's talkin' about it. About time someone stood up to him. And here we thought he was just real good at cards." Baldy uncapped his flask and tipped it back, swallowing hard.
"He's real good at cheating." Dakota studied the town street. Quiet. Most folks working or tucked in a saloon drinking this time of day. A dust devil swirled down the center of the street, the only activity.
"Think he'll want revenge?" Baldy asked.
"Men like him often do." He said nothing more, aware of Fred listening in. He didn't want to scare the boy.
"The Sinclairs are the biggest landowners in the county." Baldy capped his flask and tucked it fondly into his pocket. "Land is money here. Power. Brings out the worst in some folks. You best watch yer back, young man."
"Will do." He didn't need reminding.
"Well, nice meetin' ya, sonny. Good luck with yer round-up." Baldy stumbled back a few paces. "Maybe I'll come lend a hand. I used ta be a cowboy in my day. A helluva good one. Be sure and tell Howie he can come play with us any time."
"I will." Dakota watched the old man disappear into the dim interior of the neighboring building.
"Do you really think he'll come help?" Fred asked.
"Hard to say. Let's go see if your sisters need help carrying any packages." He pushed away from the wagon bed. "Are you up to the job?"
"Yessir." Fred darted ahead of him into the empty street, chasing a dust devil across.
Kit. There she was, chatting with someone inside the store, someone out of his sight. Her gray brimmed man's hat framed her heart-shaped face, and her cheery yellow calico dress skimmed a body he knew by memory.
"Howdy, Outlaw." A booming tenor shattered his thoughts.
"Sheriff." He'd been watching the mercantile with so much intensity he hadn't noticed the lawman heading down the boardwalk. He nodded in greeting, pushing his hat brim low to shield more of his face. Not that the man had remembered him, but it didn't hurt to be cautious.
"Folks are still talking about what you did last night." Beauregard's badge caught the late morning sun.
