The Texan

by Bobbi Smith

  “I’ve enjoyed meeting you, too, Steve,” Millie said awkwardly.

  “I think we ought to get to know each other better, don’t you?”

  “What do you mean by ‘get to know each other’?” The look in his eyes left her leery.

  “I mean this.” Boldly Steve reached out and grabbed her by the upper arms to drag her to him. He kissed her then, his mouth claiming hers in a dominating, wet, hungry kiss. He figured she knew what she was doing. After all, she’d come with him willingly into the stable, knowing no one else was around.

  Millie was shocked and completely disgusted by his actions. She’d had her share of stolen kisses back in Philadelphia, but she’d never been manhandled this way. Steve rubbed himself hard against her as he continued to kiss her, and she felt almost violated. After her first shock wore off, she started to fight to get away from him.

  “No!” She gasped. “What are you doing? Let me go!”

  “I like women with spirit. I like it when my women fight,” Steve said, leering at her as he kept her tight against him.

  “I’m not ‘your’ woman! I said let me go!”

  “You’re the one who came out here to see me, darlin’.” He laughed unpleasantly as he kissed her again. Strong from years of ranch work, he had no trouble keeping his grip on her. “You are one pretty woman.”

  “Steve! Stop it!” Millie managed to get her hands up between them and pushed as hard as she could against his chest.

  He only laughed at her pitiful efforts. “When I want something, I get it, Millie, and I’ve been wanting you ever since the first time I saw you.”

  Steve managed to half drag her toward one of the clean empty stalls.

  “What are you doing?” she cried, resisting with all her might.

  “Come on, sweetheart. We’re gonna have us some fun back here where nobody will see us.”

  Millie cried out in desperation as he pushed her down on the fresh bed of straw he’d put down not long before. He lay down beside her, and when she tried to scramble away, he yanked her back to him. He pulled her forcefully beneath him and pressed himself full length against her.

  “No! Get off of me! What do you think you’re doing?” she shrieked.

  “Why, I’m just giving you what you want,” Steve said with a grin, enjoying himself.

  “Let me go!” Millie yelled again.

  “That’s it, sweetheart. It’ll be even better if you put up a little fight.”

  He was starting to unbutton her blouse and grope her when a man’s voice came from behind him.

  “I believe the lady said to let her go.” The tone was cold and deadly and commanding.

  Chapter Fourteen

  “What the…” Steve froze, then looked over his shoulder to find himself staring at the barrel of a six-gun that was pointed straight at him.

  “The lady said to let her go, and I suggest you do it—now!” the tall, dark-haired man standing over him ordered.

  Steve threw himself off Millie and scrambled to his feet. He stood there staring at the man holding the gun on him. “Who are you to order me around?”

  “Someone who doesn’t like to see a lady disrespected. Now, get off this ranch before I decide to shoot you where it will really hurt—for a long, long time,” the stranger ground out, smiling savagely at the weasel who stood shaking before him.

  Coward that he was, Steve ran from the stable.

  The tall man went after him.

  Gun still in hand, he waited and watched from the door of the stable until Steve had ridden out. Only then did he turn back to Millie. Holstering his sidearm, he made his way back to the stall, where she was standing in the back corner, clutching the edges of her torn blouse together and watching him suspiciously.

  “Are you all right?” the dark-haired stranger asked in a calming tone.

  Millie stood there, trembling, as she stared at the man who’d just saved her: tall and lean, clean-shaven and darkly handsome. She knew she’d never seen him before, for she certainly would have remembered him. “I…I think so. Who are you? Where did you come from?”

  “My name’s George—George Grady. I’m Josh’s brother,” he quickly explained.

  “Oh.” Now that she knew who he was, she did see a little resemblance to Josh, and a great sense of relief flooded through her.

  He saw the change in her expression, and he went to her.

  “Here, let me help you.” He gently slipped a supportive arm around her shoulders to guide her from the stall. “Let’s get you up to the main house.”

  Millie nodded, still too unsettled to say much more right then. She had always considered herself a strong, in de pen dent female—until now. The ugly physical encounter with Steve had left her reeling, and she was grateful for George’s support as he led her from the stable.

  “Thank you,” she finally managed, struggling to regain her self-control as she looked up at him. “Steve’s not coming back, is he?” Millie looked around quickly as they moved outside.

  “No. He won’t be back, if he knows what’s good for him,” George assured her.

  “Thank heaven.”

  “Where is everybody?” George asked. “Where’s Josh?”

  “They rode out this morning—Josh thought there were rustlers around.”

  Kate came rushing out of the house at that moment, a stricken look on her face. She’d been passing by a window when she’d seen George and Millie coming her way. She recognized Josh’s brother right away and was surprised to see him. She wondered why Millie looked so pale, and then realized from the state of her clothes that something must have happened. She feared Millie might have been thrown while trying to ride. “Millie! George! What’s wrong?”

  “We’ll tell you once we’re in the house,” George said.

  “All right.” Kate looked between the two of them and then turned back to hold the front door open for them. “I didn’t hear you ride in, George.”

  “I went down to the stable first and then everything happened fast,” George answered as he ushered Millie inside and took her to the sitting room.

  Millie sat down heavily on the sofa, and George remained close by. Kate went to sit with her, wanting to find out what had happened.

  “Were you thrown?” Kate asked.

  Millie looked up at her and shook her head. “No. It was Steve.”

  “Steve? What about him?”

  George spoke up, wanting to save the young woman from the horror of having to relive Steve’s manhandling again by speaking of it. “When I rode in I found Steve attacking her out in the stable.”

  “Dear Lord, no!” Kate reached out and took Millie’s hand.

  “I ran him off,” George went on, “but if he ever comes back—”

  “I can’t believe Steve would do such a thing!” Kate was horrified. She’d known the ranch hand for some time.

  “Neither could I,” Millie said.

  “He always seemed like a good man.”

  “He’s not,” George put in tersely.

  “You’re right,” Millie agreed. “He’s not. It was so scary—I tried to fight him off, but he wouldn’t stop. If it hadn’t been for George…” She looked up at him, the depth of her emotion showing in her eyes. “There’s no telling what would have happened.”

  Kate hugged Millie, horrified by what the ranch hand had done to her. “He’d better not come back here—ever!” Kate declared heatedly. “I can just imagine what Josh will do to him if he sets foot on the Rocking R again.”

  “I know,” Millie said, starting to feel a little more like herself. “I’m seriously thinking about taking more shooting lessons from Emmie.”

  “And I wouldn’t blame you a bit,” Kate agreed. “Are you sure you’re all right?” She could tell Millie was still trembling a little.

  “Yes—it just all happened so fast. I was bored, so I went out to the stable to take a look around. Steve and I started talking, and before I knew it, he grabbed me and threw me down in one of the stalls
.”

  Kate looked up at George with even greater respect. “I’m glad you arrived when you did.”

  “So am I,” Millie added, managing to smile at him for the first time.

  “So am I,” George agreed. He’d thought she was a remarkably pretty girl, but when she smiled, he decided she was downright beautiful.

  Millie was feeling uncomfortable after being manhandled by Steve, and she was longing to take a bath. “I’m going to go upstairs. I want to get cleaned up.”

  “Do you need anything?” Kate offered.

  “If you could bring me up some bathwater, I’d appreciate it.”

  “Right away.” Kate hurried from the room to start heating some bathwater.

  Millie looked over at George again. “Are you going to stay on here at the ranch for a while?”

  “If my brother will have me,” George said, smiling at her.

  “He’ll have you,” Millie told him. “And if he won’t have you, I will.”

  They both relaxed enough then to laugh together.

  Millie got up and started to leave the room. She paused in the doorway to look back at him and found that he was watching her. “George…thank you.”

  With that, she disappeared into the hall to go upstairs, leaving George alone in the sitting room.

  He stared after Millie for a moment, impressed by what a strong woman she was. He didn’t know many women who would have recovered their composure so quickly, after what she’d just gone through. He thought, too, about the fact that she was wearing pants. It wasn’t often that he saw a female dressed that way, and he had to admit it intrigued him.

  George hoped Josh made it back to the ranch house relatively early that day. He had a lot to discuss with his brother, and he wanted to find out more about Millie. He didn’t know anything except her name. He wondered, too, where Hank was.

  George thought about asking Kate, but didn’t see her again on his way from the house. He went to tend to his horse while he awaited Josh’s return. He hadn’t seen his brother in a while, and he had a big favor to ask of him. He had lost all his money in a poker game the week before, and now he needed work. He didn’t like asking outright for money, but he figured Josh could always use an extra hand on the ranch.

  Millie was grateful when Kate came upstairs with the hot water for her bath.

  “This should help make you feel better,” Kate said as she met Millie in the small room off the hall that was used for bathing.

  “It will,” she agreed, standing back while Kate poured the water into the tub. “How much do you know about George? It was so amazing to look up from struggling with Steve and find him just standing there like that.”

  “I’ve met him a few times since Josh has been here. He’s younger than Josh, but not by much.”

  “What does he do? Is he a rancher somewhere nearby?”

  Kate couldn’t help laughing a little. “No, I’ve never known George to try his hand at ranching. He’s more…”

  At her hesitation, Millie was curious. “He’s more what?”

  “Well, let’s say he’s wilder than Josh.”

  “How could anyone be wilder than Josh?” She was stunned. “Josh was a bounty hunter and—”

  “George is a gambler,” Kate hastened to explain.

  “Like a cardsharp?” Millie had heard the tales of gamblers who made their living cheating at cards, but there had seemed nothing dishonest about the man she’d just met.

  “No. He doesn’t cheat when he’s playing cards. He’s just real good at it.”

  “Oh, my. I wonder why he came here?”

  “I’m sure he just stopped by for a visit with Josh. He does that occasionally.”

  “What ever his reason for coming to the ranch, he couldn’t have shown up at a better time.”

  “You are right about that, and I’m glad he’s staying here right now, just in case Steve gets any foolish ideas about coming back.”

  “I almost know how to shoot,” Millie said tentatively. She didn’t know how close she would come to hitting Steve if he attacked her again, but she could at least try, thanks to Emmie.

  “And I definitely know how to use a gun,” Kate added, “but let’s hope it doesn’t come to that.”

  “Where does George stay when he’s here?”

  “When he’s visited in the past, he’s stayed with Josh at the foreman’s house. That’s much easier for him than staying in town.”

  “Good. I want to get to know him better.”

  “He’s a nice man, but remember—he is a professional gambler. He’s smooth-talking, and he travels a lot.”

  “I’ll remember,” Millie said, but, in truth, she found the idea that George was a gambler intriguing.

  Kate left her, giving her privacy to take her bath.

  Millie quickly stripped off her clothes and got into the tub, eager to wash up. She wanted to erase all memories of the vileness of Steve’s brutal touch. Bathing in the small tin tub at the ranch was a far cry from what she was accustomed to at home, but that didn’t matter to her right then. She just needed to feel clean again.

  It wasn’t long before Millie was drying herself off and preparing to get dressed. She hoped to find George again and get to know him a bit now that she was feeling more like herself. She looked through the clothing she’d brought along and selected a modest day gown. After what had happened in the stable, she wasn’t ready to wear pants and boots again just yet. Once she was dressed, with her hair brushed out and tied back in a simple ribbon, Millie was ready to go. She left her room and went downstairs, to find Miss Harriet in the kitchen with Kate.

  Miss Harriet had been sitting at the table, but the moment she saw Millie, she got up and rushed to her to give her a big hug. She had been truly shaken when she’d found out what had happened while she’d been upstairs resting. “Oh, Millie, thank God you’re all right! Kate was just telling me all that happened.”

  “Everything’s fine, Miss Harriet,” Millie said, hugging her back.

  “Are you sure? You haven’t been injured in any way?” she asked worriedly.

  “No. George showed up just in time to save me.”

  “That’s what Kate said. I have to meet this George and tell him how much I appreciate his valor. Men like him are very rare.” She went on anxiously. “What was I thinking, leaving you unchaperoned that way? I should never have gone upstairs to rest.”

  “Miss Harriet, none of this was your fault. I’m fine. Really.” Millie could just imagine that if she didn’t convince Miss Harriet of her blamelessness, the chaperone would be by her side every minute of every day for the rest of their visit at the ranch.

  The chaperone looked her over critically and then nodded. “If you’re certain.”

  “I am.”

  “I would like to meet this young man. Kate was telling me he’s Josh’s brother.”

  “That’s right, and after all that’s happened, I want to get to know him better, too. I don’t even want to think about what would have happened if he hadn’t saved me from Steve.”

  “He’s a hero. That’s for sure,” Miss Harriet declared.

  Millie knew that was high praise, coming from her. “We’ll have to tell him when we see him again.”

  “Do you think he’ll be staying here at the ranch for very long?” Miss Harriet asked Kate.

  “With George, you never know,” Kate told them.

  “Have you seen him since I’ve been upstairs?”

  “No. He hasn’t come back.”

  “I think I’ll go find him and bring him up here to the house, so Miss Harriet can meet him.”

  “Is it safe for you to go outside?” Miss Harriet worried. “What if that Steve is still around somewhere?”

  “George ran him off, but I’ll go with her, just to be sure,” Kate said, knowing Miss Harriet could offer little in the way of protection if Steve were lurking around out there.

  Kate and Millie left the house together after Kate paused to find her pistol
.

  “George may be down at the stable taking care of his horse, or he could be at Josh’s cabin,” Kate said.

  “I’ll go check at Josh’s. I don’t want to go down to the stable,” Millie said.

  Kate understood. “All right. I’ll go look down there. Just yell if you need me. I won’t be long.”

  Millie moved off toward the small house where Josh lived.

  George had stabled his horse and then walked all around the outbuildings. He wanted to make sure there was no sign of Steve anywhere. Once he was confident the other man was gone, he’d made his way over to Josh’s house and let himself in.

  George had been riding long and hard for days now, and after hearing Millie mention a bath, he decided he could use some cleaning up, too. He didn’t have the luxury of hot water, or a tub like the one up at the main house, but he didn’t care. He just needed to scrub off the trail dirt. George tossed his hat, saddlebags, and gear aside and stripped off his shirt as he went over to the washstand. He was glad to find there was water in a bucket, and he poured some into the bowl and started to wash.

  George was just finishing up when he heard a knock at the door.

  “Come on in,” he called out.

  Millie didn’t hesitate to enter. She opened the door and walked in to find George standing across the room from her with his shirt off, drying himself with a towel.

  “Oh!” she said, blushing a little at finding him partially unclothed.

  When George had heard the knock, he’d thought it was probably just a ranch hand looking for Josh. He was surprised to find Millie standing there, and he couldn’t help smiling at her. He’d known she was a beauty, but seeing her attired in a dress made him even more aware of her as a woman. “Hello, Millie. You look real pretty in that dress.”

  “Thank you,” she said.

  He reached for his clean shirt, not wanting to stand there before her only half-dressed. “Is there something you need?”

  “Yes, there is,” she told him. “I’d like you to come up to the house with me.”

  “Is Josh back?”

  “No, not yet, but Miss Harriet is awake now, and she wants to meet you.”

  “Miss Harriet?” He’d never heard that name before.