“From then on, I made my own food. Nothing went in my mouth that I didn’t know where it came from. Wade took me as his apprentice, taught me how to steal, how to cheat, how to trick people.” Eve met his gaze, her blue eyes shining in the moonlight. “Your wife is not a good person, Adam. Eve Tate doesn’t exist except in the seven levels of hell.
“During the last swindle, I turned the tables and drugged Wade to escape. The rancher we’d targeted was a good man who didn’t deserve to be cheated. Wade ended up stealing from that poor man.
“I spent the last five years hiding from Wade and the law. That’s how I ended up at the hospital in Galveston. It was the last place he would look for me.” She shook her head. “I saw him one day and ran. When I was in Austin singing on the street, the gypsies found me and asked me to perform with them. Simza hated me from the moment she saw me. Accused me of being a whore and selling myself to the men, to Milosh, her son.”
“You didn’t sell yourself.” It wasn’t a question. He could hear the truth in her voice.
“No. I wouldn’t sell my body again, but then I met you. I sold myself to you for a few days of happiness, of the taste of a real family and a home.” She cupped his cheek. “I’m sorry I hurt you, Adam. I wish I could be the sweet girl you deserve.”
When she got to her feet, he wrapped his arms around her waist and hung on. She held his head against her belly and trembled from the force of her sobs. Adam didn’t blame Eve for the choices in her life. She survived no matter how hard it was. For that he would be grateful.
“Please don’t go.”
She tried to extricate herself from his grasp, but he wouldn’t release her.
“You have to let me leave, Adam. I can’t stay.”
He got to his feet and swept her into his arms. “You’re not going anywhere, Mrs. Sheridan. You’re my wife and I want you by my side. Isn’t that what married people do?”
She laid her head on his shoulder, her body curled in defeat. He promised himself he would help her heal. Eve had had a life of horror and manipulation, lovelessness and pain. Adam silently vowed she would not have to endure any of the darkness again.
If he had any part in it, she would be loved and would love in return. There were a few obstacles in his way, like Wade and her opinion of herself, but he would overcome all of it.
There was no other choice.
* * * * *
The bright glare of the sunlight woke Eve. She blinked and tried to open her eyes. Her limbs were heavy and she lay beneath a heavy quilt.
Then the quilt moved.
Adam.
The previous night came back to her in a rush. She’d told him everything. Everything. Shame and dismay flooded her and her cheeks heated. She needed to leave as soon as possible. No matter what he said, she was not for him. Her life had been a series of tragedies and disasters. She couldn’t allow herself to take what Adam offered, no matter how tempting it was.
She tried to maneuver out from beneath his hold, but the man was as big as an ox. He was too heavy for her to move.
“Going somewhere?” His sleep-tinged voice didn’t surprise her. She’d wiggled around beneath him like a puppy.
“I need to pee.” She wasn’t lying. It was morning and she did need to relieve herself.
“There’s a pot under the bed. You’re not leaving this room until we talk.”
She tried to scowl at him, but she couldn’t turn her head with the weight of his shoulder beside her. “I’m not peeing in front of you, no matter how much I confessed to you.”
“Suit yourself, but you’re not leaving.” He turned on his back and pulled her against him. She snuggled into him, despite her knowledge that staying was impossible.
“I have to leave.” She breathed in his scent and told herself to enjoy herself for just a few more minutes.
He rubbed his hand up and down her back. Somehow she’d forgotten to be frightened and sad. She simply enjoyed his touch. It was a fleeting joy she wouldn’t experience again.
“What’s your real name?”
She contemplated not telling him the truth but decided it was time to be honest with him. No more lies or half-truths.
“I don’t have one.” She told herself not to be embarrassed. “The women at the whorehouse called me Girl for the first five years of my life. The name Eve was given to me by that rancher. Wade gave me one too.”
He continued to move his hand, soothing the pain of the confession. “What did he call you?”
“He called me Desdemona. Thought it made him sound smart because it was a famous name from a play.” Eve sighed. “I was a child prostitute known within Houston. You can probably find some people who remember me.”
Adam was very still beneath her. His heart beat steadily in her ear, not fast or slow. She wasn’t sure if that was bad or good. If he truly cared about her, the idea she had a reputation in Texas should upset him. However, if he didn’t truly care about her, she wouldn’t be in his bed. The room he’d settled them in was definitely his room. It was meant to be their room after the wedding.
“We’ve known each other a week, married less than that. When I came back here last night I was sure you would be gone or I’d have to escort you out of town.” His voice reverberated through her bones.
“What changed your mind?” She didn’t want to know the answer, but she had to know the answer.
“You. I heard the truth in your voice, no matter how much you were scared or embarrassed. You told me what I asked.” He kissed the top of her head. “You can be whoever you want to be. If you want to be Eve Sheridan, I’m happy to be your husband.”
She closed her eyes and tried to stem the emotions that wreaked havoc through her heart and head. This man was better than she could ever hope to be. He’d forgiven her for lying, for half-truths and deceiving him.
That was when she realized he was tracing the scars on her back.
A lump formed in her throat and she couldn’t speak. To her shame, the scars were so old she’d forgotten about them.
“Did he do this?”
She didn’t have to clarify who “he” was. “No, I was whipped when I was five. It almost killed me. That’s why I left the whorehouse. The cook—Beulah was her name—helped me escape when I was healed. She knew the next time the madam took a whip to me, I would be dead.”
He continued to touch her, healing her with his calloused fingers. “I’m sorry that happened to you. I’m sorry any of that happened to you. As a child you should have been loved, cherished and taken care of. You should have climbed trees, played ball and learned to make cookies with your mama. Life has been kicking you since you were born, sweetheart.”
She had never considered herself in that light. Eve had always focused on surviving and living from one day to the next. It was probably a good thing she hadn’t thought she was a victim or she might not have lived past the age of five.
“Please stay.”
She closed her eyes and thought about all the times she’d wished she had someone to hold her. Now she had that someone. A man she was falling head over heels for.
Could she set aside everything she’d always done, believed in and strived for? Was Adam going to tire of her? No one had cherished her, loved her or taken care of her—just as he surmised.
“I hear your thoughts fighting over what to do.” He pulled her by the waist on top of him so they were eye to eye. His red hair stood up all cockeyed against the white sheet. A crisscross pattern of sleep lines marked his cheek.
She’d never seen anything so appealing.
“Kiss me, wife.”
Eve hesitated for only a moment. She couldn’t give him up, or his family. Perhaps everything she’d been through had been leading up to this place, this man, this town.
She leaned down and pressed her lips to his. He wrapped his arms around her and d
eepened the kiss. His tongue rasped against hers and she let herself get lost in his mouth.
The air between them heated with each kiss. Her nipples hardened to aching points, pressed against the solid wall of his chest. She opened her legs and nestled her pussy against the hard cock throbbing beneath her. He moaned into her mouth when she rocked on him.
She hadn’t expected to make love this morning. Hell, she’d never expected to. Everything she’d done had been fucking; there’d been no emotion involved. This moment, this precious time with this amazing man, was full of emotion.
He flipped her onto her back and removed her clothes before shucking his own in record time. She gazed at the beauty of his male form, marveling that this beautiful man was hers for the taking.
“You’re exquisite.” He climbed onto the bed, over her until he found her breasts. He cupped one and his mouth latched on to the other. His cock lay heavy and hard against her thigh. Arousal ricocheted through her body as he nibbled, licked and suckled her breasts, one then the other.
She hadn’t realized her breasts were so sensitive until Adam found them. It left her panting, eager to feel him inside her, to show him how much he meant to her.
“Please, Adam.”
He shifted his body as she opened her legs. He poised at her entrance and met her gaze. In the depths of his blue eyes, she saw her future. A smile spread across his face.
“I think I might love you, Mrs. Sheridan.”
She pulled on his behind and he entered her in one thrust. They paused, the only sound in the room harsh breathing. She pressed her forehead to his, thankful to have found her red giant.
When he moved within her, she clung to his back, pulling her knees up. Deeper, then deeper still. He thrust and withdrew in a slow slide. She wanted more, she wanted it all.
“Faster.”
He found her mouth again and his tongue mimicked the motion of his cock. He picked up speed, pulling all the way out before he buried himself inside her again and again.
She kissed him with her heart, showing him with her body what she couldn’t say. How much she felt for him, and how much it scared her, but she could find a home with him.
Her pleasure surprised her, sweeping through her like a twister. She clung to him, crying out his name as the orgasm pulsed through her. She clenched her muscles around him. He groaned and buried himself until he touched her womb.
They rode the wave of ecstasy together, their hearts beating in unison. Eve had never had a home to call her own. Until now. Until Adam.
* * * * *
After Eve had used the chamber pot under the bed, they stayed in bed another hour after making love. He dozed with her warm body against his. Adam had struggled with what to do about Eve. In the end, it was clear to him. No matter what mistakes or decisions she’d made in the past, it was today, not yesterday. They moved forward together or not at all.
He was sure his love for her would only grow stronger as time passed. Adam had been struck the first time he’d seen her through the cloud of flour. She might not be a typical angel, but she was his angel. She might be a bit tarnished, but weren’t they all? They would have a good marriage although it would be hard work.
After they washed up and dressed, he took her hand and kissed it. She watched him with wariness in her expression.
“I need to tell my parents about Wade. If they find out and I haven’t said anything, it will be worse.”
She frowned. “He will try to hurt you and your family. He’s dangerous.”
“I believe you, which is why we need to tell them. My parents and my aunts and uncles are a formidable team.” He wouldn’t reveal her story unless she wanted him to. That was hers to tell.
She looked away, her face pensive. “They may kick me out the door.”
“No, they won’t judge you. There is a lot my parents have taught me, including everyone deserves a second chance.” He pulled her into an embrace, her curves fitting against him as though she were made for it.
“I’m scared.” Her voice was muffled.
He smiled and kissed the top of her head. “I’m with you.”
“All right.” She squeezed him hard enough to surprise him. “If they tell me to leave, you have only yourself to blame.”
He released her then walked hand in hand to his father’s room. Pa was awake and Mama was changing the bandage on his shoulder. She smiled at them.
“Long day yesterday for you two? I didn’t see you at breakfast.”
Eve blushed, the pink stain in her cheeks surprising, given how much she’d endured in her life. She could still be embarrassed. Yes, she was the woman he thought her to be.
“We have something to tell you.” Adam squeezed Eve’s hand.
She let out a shaky breath and started speaking. Half an hour later, his mother had wept into her handkerchief for Eve and his father’s expression had turned to one of fury.
“This man Wade is in Tanger right now?” Pa’s voice had dropped to a harsh whisper. “Is he scrawny with pale skin and dark hair?”
“That’s him.” The memory of his sneer made Adam want to punch something.
“I watched him going up toward the church yesterday when I was peering out the window. Wondered if the preacher finally got a live one to save.” Pa’s frown deepened. “You need to find out what he wants and what he’s doing here.”
“Yes. I’ve got Jesse and Spencer working on information. Clint is watching him. We’re gonna find a way to get rid of him. For good.” Adam sat in the chair in the corner and pulled Eve onto his lap. She resisted at first but then sank into his hold. The emotional toll of telling her story twice in less than a day had exhausted her.
“You need to tell Zeke. He’ll want to know.” Pa looked at Mama. “She stays with you if she’s not with Adam. I’ll not leave her unprotected.”
Adam knew he’d been right. His parents treated her as if she was part of their family, which she now was. He squeezed her waist as she sniffed.
“We need to keep an eye on Rose and Bella too. They need to stick close to the house.” After Pa spoke again, Eve stiffened. “Don’t you begin to think any of this is your fault, young lady. You did what you had to do. Let us do what we need to do too.”
“Thank you.” She trembled in Adam’s arms. “I don’t know what else to say.”
Mama got to her feet and pulled Eve up too. “You’re a Sheridan now, honey. We protect our own.”
Eve’s gaze met his as his mother hugged the stuffing out of her. He smiled and blinked away the sudden stinging in his eyes. They saw what he did. She was a victim of circumstance, a fighter, a survivor.
She was also his wife. For now and for always.
“Go talk to your men; then come back. I won’t make you tell Zeke, but I think you’ll regret it if you don’t.” His father always let his children make their own mistakes. He didn’t tell them what to do, but he sure liked to strongly suggest.
No matter what, they would keep Eve safe. Adam wanted to start his marriage in truth. They couldn’t do that until the last specter of Eve’s past was vanquished.
It was time to get rid of Wade.
Chapter Twelve
Adam left Eve at the house with his mother and went in search of his cousins. The day was nearly half over when he walked through Tanger. The sun was high in the sky, the heat of early summer hanging in the air. The streets were busy with people, wagons and horses. A few dogs barked somewhere and two people argued in raised voices.
Jesse and Tabitha were staying with Uncle Zeke. If Adam was lucky, he’d find them there and not his uncle. No matter what Pa had said, Adam wasn’t ready to involve the fierce lawman in this business. He was afraid Eve’s past crimes might come back to haunt or harm her.
He knocked on the door to the large white house and waited until the door opened. Jesse flung the door open and
gestured for Adam to enter.
“Where the hell have you been? It’s been an entire day since you borrowed my horse. I know you brought him back to the stable, but you didn’t come by this morning. Jesus, I was worried.” Jesse wasn’t one to be angry, but he was definitely frustrated. “We’ve got a problem.”
Adam entered the house quickly, to find Tabitha prowling the dining room. She had a matching frown for him. “It’s about time. We were about to go searching for you.”
“I had some things to take care of. I’m back now and I’ve got to be at the mill in an hour. I’ve got a delivery coming in.” Adam knew he was straddling the line between Eve and taking care of his family’s business. “Before you tell me anything, Pa said he saw Wade going toward the church last night. Odd move for a man like that. Now tell me what you’ve found.”
“Wade isn’t his real name. I sent a few telegrams to some folks I know in Austin at the courthouse and found his real name is Eugene Dolan. He was released from prison a month ago and found his way here.” Jesse opened up a journal full of his neat handwritten notes. “He was convicted of robbery and served almost five years. He made no friends in prison and was a regular at the infirmary.”
“That doesn’t surprise me. He’s something of a bottom dweller.” Adam sat across from his cousin.
“He sent two telegrams this morning. I managed to find out to who but not what the telegram said. The telegram operator takes his job seriously. If I pushed him any further, he was going to talk to Zeke.” Jesse shook his head. “Until you tell me different, I’m keeping him out of this.”
“Thank you.” Adam was more concerned about whom Wade was talking to. “Who did the telegrams go to?”
“One went to a Michael Gonzalez. The other to an Alexander Smith in Galveston. Gonzalez is a rancher outside Austin. The other man doesn’t exist and the telegram is still sitting at the office.” Jesse turned the page. “Dolan has been holed up at the hotel, other than going to send the telegrams and paying a visit to the Ruby Slipper.”
Adam wasn’t surprised to find the man had gone to the whorehouse. Wade struck him as a man who would never have a woman stay with him unless she was forced to or paid to.
Adam, Devils on Horseback: Generations, Book 1 Page 13
