She smiled and looked over her shoulder at him. “Don’t question it, honey. Just go with it. God is good. Remember?”
“Yes, ma’am,” he agreed earnestly and moved far enough away from her and made the sign of the cross over his chest with gratitude and reverence. “Are you getting warm?” he asked her curiously.
“Yes. Are you?”
“Yes,” he said wondrously and wiggled his fingers in front of his face, feeling them for the first time in hours and surprisingly, they didn’t hurt. He wiggled his toes in his boots and found the same thing. “I know I have frostbite and I’m sure you do, too,” he said in amazement, easing her chin around to look for the tell-tale frosty look on her face. He saw nothing but radiance. Her skin wasn’t white or black to indicate frostbite but a healthy pink over the tan. “This is amazing,” he said slowly, looking up at the brightly lit sky. “Thank you,” he said in earnest and crossed himself again. “Thank you, God,” he said humbly and crossed himself once again.
“I’m grateful, too,” she added to Cody’s prayer of thanks. “Very grateful.”
With the new warmth and the bright light, Titan began to move faster through the heavy snow as it was quickly melting, no longer working so hard to carry his riders to safety.
Cody took the reins from Suzanne as the horse was rejuvenated and moved quickly and gracefully. He didn’t guide him at all as he held her around her waist. The horse needed no direction or control and seemed to know where he was going. He was following the light.
Suzanne let the warm fur drop open in front of her and looked at Cody’s hands as one held her and the other rested on the saddle horn. “Cody?”
“What, honey?” he asked clearly, all signs of fatigue gone from his voice.
“Um, are we dead?” she asked uncertainly.
He smiled a little. “I don’t think so, but if we are, we’re dead together.”
She smiled then. “What a clever thing to say.”
He kissed her on her warm cheek. “If I had to die with someone, I would want it to be with you,” he murmured as he kissed her ear.
She ran her fingers over the hand that held her around her waist. He felt real. He was warm and his skin was just as brown and healthy as ever. She could feel his breath on her neck and she could smell him and smiled. They both needed a shower. “Are we dead?” she asked again.
He could feel her tension and unease and realized this was scaring her. “No, sweetheart. We aren’t dead. We’re doing something most people never get a chance to do.”
“What’s that?”
“We’re running with God. Don’t be afraid, Suzanne. This is a good thing. He’s guiding us out of here,” he said seriously, looking at the light. “This is very good.”
He wrapped the reins around the horn of the saddle and sat back enough to make the sign of the cross over his chest again, giving thanks for the salvation of his life, but mostly for Suzanne’s life and the life of her child.
Suzanne admired Cody’s conviction and reverence to God and had to admit she owed Him one, too, and gave a silent prayer of thanks. She’d heard that Indians of this era were considered heathens. She didn’t know if that was true or not, but if it was, Cody was an exception. He gave thanks for everything. She figured she could learn a lot from him and this experience.
As they traveled south, the amount of snow began to decrease and the light began to dim while Titan tirelessly kept the brisk pace headed to a destination unknown.
She was suddenly sleepy as was Cody, and they both fell asleep in the saddle, he holding her to his chest and resting his cheek against hers as she nestled into him and Titan continued their trip.
A miracle had happened this night.
Chapter 38
Cody woke up slowly to a bright blue sky, feeling the sun beat down on his face as he still held Suzanne to his chest and as Titan grazed on the lush green grass contentedly.
He looked around with confusion. A quiet stream was flowing within feet of them. There were wildflowers spread out on the bluffs. He wasn’t sure of where they were, but was sure they were on the right track. He eased himself out of the saddle and caught Suzanne as she fell into his arms.
She woke with a start and met his dark eyes for a moment, holding him around his neck. “Where are we?” she asked in confusion.
He set her on her feet with a smile as he took off his coat. “I don’t know, but it’s warm.”
She returned his smile and took hers off, too. “It is,” she said with wonder as she looked around at the beauty of her surroundings. It was breathtaking. The air was fresh and clean and the quiet stream screamed for her to bathe in it.
“I have to clean this wound,” he murmured more to himself than to her and unbuttoned his shirts as he made his way to the stream.
She went with him, hoping to help and to clean up a little herself.
He dipped a corner of the shirt into the crisp, cool water and was about to dab away the blood that he was sure was there when he noticed the wound was gone.
She noticed the same thing and looked at him with questioning eyes.
He held the shirt up to look for blood and when he found none, he began to wonder if he’d really been shot or if he’d imagined it. “I was shot, wasn’t I?” he asked in confusion.
She nodded. “You said it was a scratch, but it hurt.”
“He healed me,” he said slowly with the realization that the miracle had gone further than he thought. “Holy Mother of God,” he said in awe.
She was speechless.
He dropped to one knee and bowed his head and made the sign of the cross over his bare chest several times as he said prayers of thanks. He took her hand and gently eased her to the ground beside him and held it as he bowed his head. “Thank you,” he murmured sincerely. “You have spared our lives and healed me.”
Suzanne bowed her head, but had no idea which way to cross herself and watched him out of the corner of her eye. “Thank you,” she murmured with him, feeling now that things were going to be okay and she would be home soon. “Thank you,” she said again with feeling.
He looked into her eyes. “I think we’re going to make it.”
“Yes,” she agreed breathlessly, trying to avert her eyes from his broad chest, remembering how he’d made such sweet love to her that one time at Boris and Marda’s. He’d been so patient and kind and made her feel so loved and she’d hoped she made him feel the same way.
She thought of Beau and how well he’d been built with his muscular chest and abs and tight butt, big biceps and handsome face. He’d gone to the gym almost every day even if it was to pick up women more than to work out, but even if he was alive, he wouldn’t have had held a candle to Cody.
As she looked at his body, she couldn’t help but notice his broad chest, defined abs, bigger biceps and a great view from the back, but she knew he’d never lifted a weight in his life. He probably didn’t even know what one was. He was toned naturally just from his lifestyle. He was forever on the move and working at something.
He could feel her looking at him and met her eyes for a moment before leaning over and kissing her softly and lovingly, slowly exploring her mouth with his tongue as she tangled her fingers in his long, black hair and returned the kiss.
She was being swept away. After the stress of nearly freezing to death, going hungry, him getting shot and the supernatural way to safety, she needed this and she wanted him to have it, too, even if she wasn’t very good at it.
He ran his fingertips over her soft cheek as he kissed her then made a slow trail to her neck following his fingers with his mouth, where he kissed, licked and sucked.
She moaned softly, wanting to clean up before they did this, if they did this. She gently pulled his head back by his hair and kissed him on the lips. “I’d like to clean up a little first,” she whispered to him.
“Me, too,” he whispered back and began to unbutton the high collar of her dress as he kissed her lips again, intentionally gr
azing her breasts through the cotton chemise with the backs of his fingers as he pushed it open, feeling the pressure against the buttons of his buckskins with his own desire.
“I wish we had some soap.”
He kissed her briefly. “You want soap?” he murmured as he gazed into her eyes.
She shrugged shyly, hating to ask him for anything after all he’d already done for her and what he’d been through.
He stood up and went to Titan and dug in one of the saddle bags and came back to her with a small bar of white soap. “Will this do?”
She looked up at him with a smile of appreciation. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome,” he told her with a slight smile and sat down and took off his boots and socks as she did hers.
“I need a razor and a real toothbrush.”
“Why do you need a razor?” he asked in confusion. “You’re a woman and women don’t shave.”
She gave him a timid smile. “We do now.”
“What do you shave?”
“I shave my legs and underarms. Most women do.”
“Why?”
She shrugged. “I don’t know. We just do,” she said nonchalantly. “I guess it isn’t attractive running around with hairy legs and armpits.”
He smiled with wonder. “Well, women don’t do it here and men don’t expect them to.”
She loved his innocence and kissed him on the cheek. “Can I wash your clothes?”
“Do you want to stay here for a little while to let them dry?”
She nodded. “Unless you don’t want to.”
“I’m going to warn you. I have nothing else to wear.”
“You won’t be needing clothes anyway,” she said with a teasing smile and a wink.
He laughed with some shock at her outrageous flirting, but liked it very much and watched her walk into the water with her dress open where he’d unbuttoned it. He liked the playful side of her and took off his buckskins and followed her, finding the water to be rather warm for this time of the year. He waded into the middle, knowing it wasn’t very deep, and felt lucky that it came to his waist.
She watched him for a moment from where she was standing in much shallower water, getting the lower quarter of the dress wet then waded out a little farther as he dunked himself, getting his hair completely wet as well as his entire body. She handed him the soap when he surfaced again then began to take off the heavy dress as she watched him bathe.
He met her steamy gaze as he washed his body with the soap then his hair, watching her as the dress slowly came off, followed by the dirty chemise. He could see her shyness, knew she was forcing herself to undress in front of him and didn’t want her to do that. He wanted her to feel comfortable around him and free to do as she pleased.
He went under water again to rinse himself off then resurfaced, pushing his hair out of his face and looked at her, seeing her bite her lip with apprehension and wring her hands nervously. He’d seen her numerous times without clothes, but only one time intimately and it had been dark. He didn’t say anything as he made his way to her. He handed her the bar of soap, and kissed her softly as he pushed the dress off her shoulders. He steadied her as he freed her from the voluminous skirt that was under the water, leaving her in the white cotton chemise that barely covered her belly and was held up by wide straps. Without saying anything, he draped the heavy dress over his arm, lifting the chemise to her chest. “Arms up,” he told her in a quiet voice, noticing she hadn’t looked him in the eye since she’d been here.
She reluctantly did as he’d said and turned her face away and covered her naked breasts with her arms.
He doused the chemise in the water for a moment, before wadding it up and throwing it on the grassy bank of the stream, followed by the dress. All the while, watching her watch where they’d landed. “You can’t take a bath with your clothes on,” he told her good-naturedly, taking her hand and leading her to the deeper part of the stream. He took the soap from her and eased her down so she could get completely wet.
She found herself on eye-level with his belly button and was mildly surprised when he arched her back over his arm and got her hair wet. She became acutely aware that he could see every part of her body and scrambled to cover herself with her arms.
He couldn’t stop her or would end up dropping her. Holding her still, he slowly began to wash her body with the soap, starting at her belly that was big with child and moved to her breasts, brushing his fingers over his rosary she wore around her neck, touched that she was wearing it. He wondered if he’d missed it the first time they’d made love or if she recently started wearing it. He moved to her arms as they covered her ample breasts, slowly guiding the soap over them before lowering her into the water to rinse her off.
He set her back on her feet in front of him and turned her back to him and began to lather her hair, gently massaging her scalp, moving his hands to wander to her breasts as she relaxed enough to finally let her arms drop.
She swallowed her moan of pleasure as he kissed her shoulder and made his way to her neck, pressing himself against her. She trusted him and knew he wouldn’t hurt her, but she was self-conscious about how she looked and wanted him to stop but couldn’t say the words.
He turned her so she faced him again and took his time in running his tongue along her lips, continuing to run his fingers through her hair, getting them soapy again. He eased her back down over his arm to rinse the soap from her hair, watching it splay in the slow moving water as the suds disappeared downstream.
Once she was clean, he threw the soap on top of her clothes, wrapped his arms around her thick waist and pulled her to him and kissed her hungrily, feeling her hands hold his face as she kissed him back with ardor of her own.
She was filled with desire as he backed her toward the bank and then ran his finger over her intimately. “Cody,” she gasped with surprise.
“It’s okay,” he whispered and kissed her again. “I just want to make sure you’re ready.”
“I’m ready,” she said raggedly.
He hauled her to the lush grass and lowered her to her back, kissing her hotly as he moved to her side, keeping his leg over hers, he gently groped her breasts before taking one into his mouth to suck and caress the nipple with his tongue.
“Oh my God,” she gasped, tangling her fingers in his wet hair and writhed under him and let him move to the other as he maneuvered his way between her legs.
He rested on his knees and moved to her lips, kissing her wildly as he entered her easily and eased back, pulling her knees over his thighs, gazing into her flushed face and slowly began to move.
As ecstasy took over, she whimpered and found herself moving against him, creating the most pleasurable friction she had ever felt. It had never been this good with Beau and this was better than the first time she’d done it with Cody. He was passionate yet gentle as he breathed raggedly and kept a steady rhythm. His hands were calloused but so masculine and touched her everywhere with care and finesse. He definitely knew his way around a woman’s body.
He moved a little faster and positioned himself to go a little deeper, whispering things to her in his Native language he knew she didn’t understand. She felt so good and despite the fact she was pregnant and had been with her husband, she felt as if she’d never been with another man before. He found himself taken away with the great feelings as a huge climax was building in him.
She could see the ecstasy in his face as he arched his back and tossed his head with a groan as he trembled and climaxed, his body shaking with the sweet release, and he whispered her name. His release triggered hers and she found herself holding his hands as she tightened her legs around his waist as he still moved slower and their heartbeats returned to normal.
He would have loved to have her like this forever, but after a few minutes, he moved next to her and pulled her into his arms with a kiss to her forehead and slept with her.
~~~
Suzanne woke to a dark, starry sky, co
vered with her coat while Cody sat next to a good, strong fire, wearing his coat and no shoes. He was cooking something other than rabbits and was using a small pan and stirring whatever it was with a spoon.
He looked over at her when he felt her watching him and gave her a little smile. “Hello, beautiful,” he told her.
She smiled shyly. “Hi, handsome.”
“You flatter me,” he said humbly. “Are you hungry?”
“I am, yes. Whatever you’re cooking smells great,” she said as she sat up, holding the coat over herself and saw that he’d laid out their clothes to dry. “Let me go pee and I’ll eat with you.”
“Don’t wander off too far. There are animals around.”
“I won’t,” she promised and struggled to stand. The size of the baby and her weight made her clumsy and awkward.
He was on his feet in an instant and took her hand to help her up. “Are you okay?”
She nodded shyly, gathering the coat around her bareness.
He watched her walk into the darkness, keeping an eye on her in case she needed him as he made his way back to the fire.
Suzanne came back and sat next to him on the ground, crossing her legs in front of her, but said nothing as she gazed into the small, mesmerizing flames. She was deep in thought about how Cody was going to make it over with her. How all of it had happened was beyond her realm of understanding. How had she gotten here? Why was she here? Was he even real? Was this all a horrific nightmare with a splash of good things?
He was rethinking the situation. He wasn’t sure he wanted to go now. Her world was so different. He had no idea what he would do there or how he would survive. Keeping her here wasn’t going to work. This life was too hard and after all the time that had passed, she still wasn’t used to it. Would she give up her world for him? Would love conquer all? Did they even have a choice?
He realized he really had nothing here anymore. His people were annihilated. The fort was gone, not that he wanted to be an Indian agent again. He had no friends and was treated with disdain by most everyone due to his mixed race. He was considered a criminal by the white people and a traitor by the Chiricahua. He had no reason to stay and she definitely had no reason to stay, either.
For the Love of Suzanne Page 23
