In the Shadow of the Mountains

by Rosanne Bittner

  She could taste her own juices on his lips as he explored her mouth. She felt his naked power then when at last he slid into her, filling her full and deep. At last they were one! Irene knew if she died this night she could never have lived long enough ever to know such happiness and ecstasy again. In moments his life poured into her in swelling throbs, but he did not stop his rhythmic movements. He whispered to her in Spanish, words she did not understand, but she sensed their meaning.

  In moments she felt the swelling again, as their heated bodies pressed against each other. He raised up then, grasping her under the hips and raising them with strong arms, looking down on her naked body as he moved in rhythmic, circular motions that made her feel wild and free and wanton. She grasped his forearms, thinking how he looked like a conqueror and she was his willing captive. She arched up to him in total abandon, never dreaming she could want a man so badly that it was almost painful.

  Again his life surged into her as he shuddered and groaned, and again he did not pull away from her. He only leaned down, moving his arms under her shoulders and resting on his elbows as he kissed and licked at her mouth. “I meant to go slower, mi vida,” he said softly. “But I cannot get enough of you.”

  “I don’t care,” she answered, her words coming in whispered pants. “Do whatever you want with me, Ramon.”

  He kissed her almost savagely, and she didn’t even mind. “It is the same for you,” he told her then. “You must do whatever you want with me. You have never enjoyed a man before, never allowed the true woman in you to be released. I am as much yours as you are mine.” He kissed her again. “I want you to learn there is nothing wrong with allowing your passion to decide your moves, mi querida.” He kissed at her eyes. “I have tasted you, and I will do it again and again, and you will taste me. For my people, there are no lines drawn when it comes to making love. Nothing we think to do can be wrong, because we belong to each other. God has given us to each other, to enjoy however we choose.”

  The night became a series of more than heated couplings. Irene learned to enjoy man, savoring Ramon in the same bold way he had savored her, doing things she never dreamed she was capable or brave enough to do. Sometimes she became the aggressor, exploring his maleness in near wonder, tasting him, moving on top of him in glorious union, riding him in splendid boldness. She never realized there could be so many positions, or that two people could want to make love over and over this way until by morning they were finally spent.

  Dawn was breaking when he finally gathered her into his arms and pulled the blankets over them to sleep. Never in her life had Irene felt so gloriously worn out, or so safe, so loved. She was painfully jealous of the other women who had shared this man, yet wanted to cry with relief at the knowledge that from now on he would share his beautiful, virile body only with her. At last she had a man who truly loved her, who would support her through the worst life might hand them, a man she could trust and depend on.

  “God has been too good to me,” she said then, breaking into tears of blissful fatigue.

  Ramon kissed at her hair, keeping her close. “He has given you what you deserve,” he answered, “what we both deserve. This is the way it should always have been.”

  They drifted off to sleep, while the rest of Denver was just waking up.

  For two days they did not leave their hotel room, which had a private bath. They bathed together, washing each other, touching, exploring, sharing bodies and souls. They refused to see anyone but the waiters who brought their food and the maids who brought clean linens. Ramon had left strict orders at his company that no one was to contact him with any problems short of a life or death emergency. The children were being looked after, and outside their window the citizens of Denver went about their daily routines.

  Ramon and Irene’s routine temporarily became one of making love, bathing, eating, talking, making love again. They explored not only each other’s bodies, but their hearts, their needs, their thoughts and beliefs. Irene wondered if it was possible to love another person any more than she loved Ramon Vallejo. He was not just her magnificent lover. He was also her best friend, and always had been.

  It was midmorning of the third day since the wedding when Ramon answered a knock at the door to see Kirk waiting outside. The man seemed a little embarrassed as he removed his hat. “I’m sorry to bother the two of you,” he told Ramon, “but Bea is worse. I thought Irene ought to get over to the house.”

  Irene hurried to the door, wearing a ruffled, silken robe. Kirk was struck by her radiant look. She had never before appeared more beautiful or happy, and he knew her marriage to Ramon was the best thing that had happened to her in a long time. “What happened, Father?” she asked, as Ramon opened the door wider.

  Kirk ignored the tumbled bed. “Bea collapsed. She’s asking to see you, Irene.”

  The joy left her face. “We’ll be right there!”

  She hurried away to dress, and Kirk moved his eyes to Ramon. “You’re good for her, Ramon. I can see it. I’m glad she has you.”

  “I love her very much.” Ramon touched his arm. “You go back to the house. We will be along shortly.” He closed the door, feeling suddenly very sorry for David Kirkland, realizing what a miserable personal life the man had led in spite of his riches. He had lost a son he had never even gotten to know, and two of his living children had all but deserted him. He had been married for thirty-one years to a cold, demanding woman who Ramon was sure had never given the man any real pleasure in bed. Now that woman could be dying. It seemed strange to think someone like Bea Kirkland could have the same frailties as other human beings, that she was just as susceptible to old age and death as anyone else. Still, she was only forty-seven.

  “It’s her heart,” the family doctor explained to Kirk and Irene. “It’s just giving out, and there isn’t anything I can do about it. She could last a couple of weeks or only a couple of days.” He looked at Irene. “She keeps asking for you.”

  “How could this happen?” Irene asked. “She’s always been so strong.”

  “Not the last few months. I’ve seen this coming. She’s been taking tonics and other medicines, but nothing has helped.” He looked at Kirk. “If you want my opinion, I’d say the woman has simply worked herself to death. Bea has always been an over-achiever, always fretting about the company holdings, the children and all.” He glanced at Irene. “I hate to say it, but bearing up to the remarks and gossip that surrounded your divorce and the discovery of your Indian blood also took a toll on her.”

  “That isn’t Irene’s fault,” Kirk spoke up quickly, as Ramon moved a supportive arm around Irene. “It was keeping it a secret from her that took its toll on both of us. Bea has always just been too concerned about making impressions on other people and with being at the top of society. Those things never mattered to me, so when the news broke it didn’t affect me nearly as deeply as it affected Bea.”

  The doctor sighed. “I never meant that it was anyone’s fault. I’m just saying that Bea’s basic nature and the very things you just mentioned can be harmful to a person’s health. She has always worried too much and has worked much too hard. It’s all catching up with her now.”

  Irene turned to Ramon, “Go and get John, will you? He was supposed to leave today. Tell him he’d better stay a while longer. And find Red. Have him tell Elly. I want her here, whether she likes it or not, even if you and Red have to drag her here. Tell her if she says anything to hurt Mother—” she looked at Kirk, “she’ll never see a dime of Kirkland money.”

  Kirk nodded, and Irene looked back at Ramon. “She’s going to be nice to Mother, even if I have to bribe her to do it.”

  Ramon grinned sadly, walking up and kissing her cheek. “I won’t be long, mi querida,” he said, squeezing her arm. “Do not worry about anything but taking care of your mother. I will watch after the children.”

  Her eyes teared. “How can you be so good about this after the way she treated you?”

  “She is your
mother, perhaps not by blood, but she has loved you the same, and I know that in spite of some of the things she has done, you love her, too. Now go to her.”

  He quickly left, and Irene went into her mother’s bedroom, a huge, high-ceilinged room decorated elegantly, with the most expensive carpeting and wallpaper, a French chandelier, gas lights and heat throughout the castlelike home. She thought how the outrageously ostentatious structure fit Bea Kirkland, but now Bea would never get to enjoy it.

  She approached the huge, four-poster canopy bed; and for the first time in her life her mother looked small and frail. She almost gasped at the sight. This was not the Bea Kirkland she had always known. The woman’s face was so pale, and dark circles surrounded her eyes. Her big-boned body was the same but had a slightly shriveled look to it. She realized Bea had looked thinner at her wedding, but to see how a person could change in just three days was shocking.

  The woman opened her eyes as Irene came closer then. Bea managed a weak smile, opening her hand. Irene took it and sat down carefully on the edge of the bed. “What are you doing lying around like a lazy woman?” Irene tried to tease. “I thought you hated lazy people.”

  Bea took a deep, weary breath. “I guess…I should have been lazier myself over the years.” She studied her daughter. “You look wonderful, Irene. You’re happy, aren’t you?”

  Irene smiled through tears. “I’m very happy, Mother. I’ve loved Ramon most of my life.”

  Bea tried to squeeze her hand, but it was a weak gesture. “I know, Irene. And I…don’t want to die with you…hating me…for keeping you apart. Ramon never told you…that I sent him away all those years ago, when he suddenly left Denver…did he?”

  Irene frowned. “No. Wasn’t it his choice?”

  Bea blinked back tears. “Elly saw you kissing. She told me…and I thought then he was just a Mexican boy…taking advantage of my beautiful daughter. I went to him…threatened to take away his grandfather’s ranch if he tried to keep seeing you. I was counting on…the Mexican pride in family. I knew…he wouldn’t do something to hurt his grandfather.”

  Irene shook her head. “But…you still took the land a few years later.”

  “I’ve done a lot of things others might consider wrong, Irene. Maybe they were.” The woman spoke slowly, as though every word was an effort. “I wish I could make up for some of them, especially for…hurting you, Irene. I thought Chad…would be so good for you…was so much more right for you. I’ve always…tried to do what was best for my children…and because of it I’ve lost their love.”

  A tear slipped out of one eye and down into her ear. Irene leaned closer. “You haven’t lost my love, Mother. I know what a sacrifice you made in the early years, marrying a man you hardly knew, taking in his child and loving her as your own. I know you thought some of the things you did were best for us.”

  Bea sniffed, studying Irene lovingly. “Of the three children, I used to think you were least suited to taking over K-E, Irene. Now I can see…you are the best suited. I gave John…all that education…and he squandered it on whiskey. Elly is a selfish, rude, ungrateful child who would quickly destroy everything I worked so hard to build. Kirk doesn’t care anymore, Irene. He’s changed…ever since finding Yellow Eagle and losing him to death. When I’m gone…he’ll carry on, but not with the enthusiasm we both once had. I’ve…put it in my will, Irene. When I’m gone, Kirk will remain chairman of the board…but you will be president of K-E.”

  Irene frowned in surprise. “Me! Mother, I have four children now, and Ramon and I want to have more.”

  Bea smiled. “My darling Irene. You…are everything I always wished I could be. If anyone can run a company…and still be a good, attentive mother…it’s you. You have Ramon. I can see he will be a much bigger support than Kirk was for me. I…had to do it alone, Irene, except for Kirk handling the gold mines. I’m not…blaming him. It was something I wanted, but he didn’t. Kirk never understood…the business end of it. Ramon has a thriving business of his own. He understands. He’s a strong, intelligent man. Together with Ramon…you will make K-E stronger than ever. Just hire good men, Irene. Don’t neglect the children…the way I did. Make time for your family. You…can do it.”

  “But, Mother—”

  “You can do it, Irene. Just tell me you love me…that you forgive me for all the hurt I caused you.”

  Irene swallowed back a painful lump in her throat. “You know that I do, Mother.”

  Bea smiled sadly, looking around the room. “This house…I wanted it so badly. But Kirk…he won’t want something so big once I’m gone…and this house doesn’t fit you and Ramon. I suppose…it will be sold.”

  “In years to come, Mother, people will know who originally built it. The Kirkland name will always be well known in Denver. You’ll probably be mentioned in history books.”

  Bea sighed deeply again. “Do you think so? I wonder…what Cynthia would think of that.”

  Irene fought an urge to break down in tears. “She will be outrageously jealous, Mother,” she assured the woman, amazed that she still wondered about the mysterious cousin named Cynthia. “The Ritter name will never be mentioned generations from now, but yours will.”

  Bea closed her eyes, letting go of Irene’s hand and putting her hand to her chest. “I want…to see Kirk.”

  “I’ll get him,” Irene told her, almost choking on the words. She hurried out to get her father, going into another bedroom to cry.

  Kirk entered the bedroom warily, surprised that the thought of Bea dying left him feeling as if he were a lost little boy. He moved to the bed, leaning over her. “Bea?”

  She looked up at him, smiling. “Do you know…what always irritated me most about you?” she asked. Kirk shook his head, his eyes tearing. “The way you always stayed so damn handsome,” she told him, “while I just got uglier and fatter and older.”

  Kirk sniffed, quickly wiping at his eyes. “I never noticed that much.”

  “Of course you did.” She frowned. “I always wondered…if you would grieve for me…like you did that O’Day woman. Now I see tears in your eyes.”

  “A man doesn’t spend thirty-one years with a woman and not feel something when he thinks he’s going to lose her,” Kirk answered. He took one of her knobby, work-worn hands into his own. “God knows we’ve had our differences, Bea. But we gave them hell, didn’t we? Denver might have gone the way of so many other ghost towns if not for us. It’s been a rocky road, but we stayed together through it all, and we were good friends and business partners.”

  Her eyes teared more. “We were husband and wife, Kirk. I’m…so sorry that I could never be the kind of woman…you needed. It was always so hard for me…to express my love. But I did love you, Kirk. I have always loved you. It was just…something inside…I could never show it for fear of losing you, I guess. I’ve always been afraid…of losing something.”

  “I know. I loved you, too, in my own crazy way. So many times you made me so damn mad. But right now…” He sniffed. “I don’t want to go on without you, Bea.”

  “You’ll be just fine. Maybe you’ll even marry…a woman who will make you truly happy.”

  He shook his head. “No. I won’t marry again.” A tear slipped down his cheek.

  “So handsome,” Bea said then. “I was always…so proud to call you my husband. I loved the jealous look…in other women’s eyes.”

  He smiled bashfully, rubbing at her hand. “Thank you, Bea…for marrying me in the first place…for taking in Irene. You think you have a lot to be sorry for…but so do I. I should have told you Red knew. I should have told you about Yellow Eagle right from the beginning.”

  “It doesn’t matter…anymore. Just keep the company alive, Kirk. Don’t let everything I worked so hard for…be lost. Irene will help you.”

  “Don’t worry about the company, Bea. Just try to get well.”

  “I’m not going to get well,” she answered. “I just…want you to do something for me. I just want you
to lie beside me…hold me. It’s been such a long time…since you held me.”

  He turned away, wiping his eyes. He got up and removed his jacket and shoes, then went around the bed and crawled in beside her, pulling her into his arms. She settled against him. “When was the last time we made love, Kirk? Oh…such a long time ago…I can’t even remember. I’m so sorry about that. So…sorry.”

  “Do you want me to go in with you?” Ramon asked.

  Irene stared at the door to her mother’s study. Elly was there, waiting to talk to her. Irene’s remark to Ramon that he and Red might have to drag the woman here had turned out to be not so much of an exaggeration as she had thought. “No,” she told Ramon. “I’ll talk to her alone.”

  Ramon drew her into his arms. “I am here if you need me. I am sorry about your mother, Irene.”

  Her eyes teared, and she kissed him softly. “I know. Thank God I have you. I’m the one who’s sorry, Ramon. I didn’t plan for the first week of our marriage to turn out like this.”

  He held her close for a moment. “We knew it could happen soon. In a while it will be over, and we can get back to just being together.”

  “But she expects me to take over K-E. I don’t know if I can handle all that, Ramon. I don’t even want to.”

  “Irene.” He pulled away, grasping her arms. “You can hire good men. I will help you. We will not let K-E take over our lives the way it did your mother’s and father’s. Now quit fretting about it and go and see Elly.”

  She smiled sadly, kissing his cheek quickly before leaving him. She entered the study to see Elly pacing nervously. She turned to face Irene then, standing as tall and overpowering as her mother once had. It was the first time they had seen each other since Irene first left Denver and divorced Chad. Irene was almost shocked at the hatred that spilled from Elly’s dark eyes, thinking how it should be she who hated Elly. “What gives you the right to force me to come here?” Elly sneered.