by Morgan, Kit
He smiled. She was nervous as a cat. He could feel her body tremble against him. “Levi,” he corrected. “Husband, if it suits you. Tell me, does it?”
“What?” she said, her voice bordering on a moan.
Levi’s smile broadened. Was that desire in her eyes? “Husband. Are you comfortable calling me that?”
“As a nickname?” she asked, as if it took great effort to speak.
“Yes,” he said, lowering his face to hers.
“Why would I … call you that? You … have a perfectly good name.”
His hand went under her chin, and he tilted her face up to meet his. “I want to hear you say it.”
“Say … it?”
“Call me your husband,” he whispered against her ear. Her body shuddered in response. It rocked him to the core. He’d have to stop soon, or risk losing control.
She froze in his arms and stared at him. “But you are,” she breathed.
“Say it, beautiful. Call me by name, and tell me what I am to you.”
She studied him a moment. “What is it you want?”
He captured her eyes with his, and held her tighter. “Don’t you understand? Do you have any idea how long I’ve waited for a wife?”
She shook her head, her eyes telling him she still didn’t comprehend what he was saying. But how could she? She had no idea how he’d burned for a wife these last two years, or that he came out west to carve a new life for himself with a woman at his side. One who was beautiful, intelligent, and full of life. And here he stood, holding her in his arms.
* * *
Fina felt her knees weaken, tried to lock them, and failed. Down she went. “Fella!” Levi cried, alarmed. He picked her up before she slid past his chest. He carried her to the bed, and set her down. “Are you all right?”
No, she wasn’t all right! Wasn’t it obvious? But wait, did she almost faint? Maybe she wasn’t in as good shape as she thought. “I don’t know.”
“Maybe you’d better lie down. I’ll finish unloading the wagon, and unhitch the horses.”
His voice was gentle; his face inches from hers, and full of concern.
She stared back. “I’m afraid I don’t know what happened.”
“You’ve had a hard day. One you … weren’t ready for.”
She didn’t speak, only nodded. “One point,” she whispered.
He gazed at her, and brushed some hair from her face. “Whose?”
She felt something pool in her belly at his touch. “Yours.”
He raised his brows at that. “You’re giving me a point?”
“Yes,” she nodded. “I’m afraid so. You’re quite right. I wasn’t as ready to get married as I thought. Now that I think on it, I wasn’t ready for a lot of this.”
He sat up and sighed. “What does that make the score?”
His question threw her. She expected him to get angry. She sucked in her breath and stared at him. “Well?” he asked, his voice gentle.
“I do believe that makes it four to two, your favor.”
“Confound it, you’re getting behind. I was hoping we’d stay even; just to make it fair, of course.”
He looked so serious when he said it, yet his voice was tender. It made her smile. “I’m sure I’ll endeavor to catch up.”
He studied her, and she wished she knew what he was thinking. All she did know was that he was not the man she’d first thought he was. Levi Stone the tease was also Levi Stone the man, and an interesting man he was. She likened learning about him to studying a painting she admired, examining every line, every brushstroke, in order to get to know something of the artist himself. So far she was able to tell he was very passionate, and not afraid to show his emotions. She wished she was the same, but it was hard to go against twenty-two years of upbringing and express herself to him all at once, no matter how he infuriated her. Or impassioned …
“I think I’d better go unhitch the horses, or risk finding out what would happen if I kissed you.”
His words hit her, and pulled her out of her musings. “What?”
“Kissed you. Tell you what, if I’m right, I’ll give you the points.”
“Right about what?”
“What you’ll do if I …”
“Kiss me?” she finished for him, her voice raising in pitch.
Levi grinned down at her, and leaned in her direction. “Yes. Shall I see if I’m right, and help even the score?”
She swallowed hard. “You’d better go unhitch the horses.”
“Surely you’re not afraid. We are married, after all,” he said as his face drew closer.
“I … you … unhitch the horses …”
“You’re blushing, Fella. It gives you away.”
“I’m doing no such thing …”
His lips descended on hers, cutting her off. Her hands pressed against his chest as if to push him away but, instead, found his shirt, and gripped it as his tongue delved between her lips and invaded her mouth. Before she knew it, his weight pressed against her, holding her down as one of his hands went behind her head to anchor her in place.
He deepened the kiss.
Much to her dismay, and Levi’s pleasure, she moaned.
He broke the kiss and brushed his nose against hers in a playful gesture. “You know what, Fella?” he whispered as he gazed into her eyes.
“Wha…” Good grief! He’d rendered her speechless!
“The score is now four to four.”
* * *
He left. Again.
It was bad enough the first time he’d done it and abandoned her on the porch. But this time, as he lifted his warm body from the bed (not to mention her) a strange emptiness took hold, and it was all Fina could do not to reach out and pull him back down alongside her again.
Fina sat up as Levi closed the door and went to unhitch the horses. At least she assumed that's what he was doing. Why else would he have left? She stood up, smoothed the skirt of her dress as best she could, and headed for the door. She stopped as she passed the window, and looked outside. She saw Levi remove things from the back of the wagon, then disappear from sight as he brought them into the house. After a moment, she heard the front door close and knew he'd gone back outside. Sure enough, he reappeared and started to unhitch the horses. “A score of four to four. Hmmm, now how am I going to get ahead?” She continued to watch her new husband do his work, until he disappeared into the barn, and then decided she'd best go downstairs. At least she’d been given a moment to calm down. If he kissed her like that again, she didn't know what would happen. Would she faint? And what if he anticipated that very thing? The blackguard would win another point and that would never do.
Once downstairs, she saw that Levi had brought in a couple of baskets that she’d forgotten about. She recalled Mrs. Dunnigan shoving them into his hands, before he had a chance to climb up beside her on the wagon seat. Curious, she removed the folded cloth- covering from one of the baskets and peeked inside. “Oh, my,” she whispered. “Mrs. Dunnigan, you angel! You've just spared me the task of cooking.” Fina reached into the basket and pulled out a bowl of fried chicken, a bag of cookies, and two loaves of bread. She went to the second basket to see what treasures lay inside. She wasn't disappointed. Two pies, a dozen boiled eggs, a bag of apples, and some jerky. Fina looked to the ceiling, closed her eyes, and said a silent prayer of thanks to the Lord above for the likes of Mrs. Dunnigan.
She covered the baskets back up, then began to look around the kitchen to see where she might store some of the wonderful food they'd been given. She found a bowl to put the eggs in, a place for the apples and jerky, and had just set the pies and chicken on the table when Levi walked in. “What's all this?” he asked.
“This is what was in those two baskets Mrs. Dunnigan handed you,” she told him as she reached into one and pulled out the loaves of bread.
“That was mighty kind of the woman to fix us all this food,” he said as he picked up a pie and examined it. He held it under his no
se and inhaled deeply. “Mmm, nobody makes pies like Mrs. Dunnigan.”
“So I've heard,” said Fina, hoping her own pie-baking skills wouldn’t be put to the test.
As if reading her thoughts, Levi set the pie on the table and closed the distance between them. “I'm sure you'll be making pies just like Mrs. Dunnigan’s in no time.”
“Ha! That's what you think.”
He raised both eyebrows at her remark. “You know the old saying, practice makes perfect.”
“Then I can guarantee you that I’ll be getting in lots of practice.”
“I’m counting on it.”
“Counting on it? What do you mean, counting on it?”
He grinned. “You said yourself you'll need lots of practice, and I knew you would.”
“So?”
“Sooo… that means I just won myself another point.”
Fina's eyes narrowed on him. “Levi Stone, that's not fair! Stop tricking me into telling you things!”
“You're not telling me anything I don't already know.”
Fina put her hands on her hips and glared at him. “That point doesn't count!”
He chuckled and pulled her into his arms. “Did anyone ever tell you you’re mighty pretty when you're mad?”
“I'm not supposed to be pretty when I'm mad!”
“Why not?”
“Because I'm mad!”
He laughed, kissed her on the forehead, and then grabbed a piece of chicken out of the bowl on the table. “Eat something if you're hungry, then I'll show you around the place.”
“What about the score?”
“What about it?” he asked with a shrug.
“Are we still even?”
Levi took a bite of chicken and eyed her as he chewed, then swallowed. “The score is five to four, beautiful, my favor. Now grab an apple or something, and let's go.” Fina grabbed an apple all right, and made as if to throw it at him. He weaved and bobbed to dodge the flying fruit, then realized she hadn’t let go of it. “Hey, what are you doing?”
Fina stood in triumph and tossed the apple from one hand to the next. “Did you really think I'd throw this at you?”
Levi stood and watched as she continued to toss the apple from one hand to the other, with a smirk of victory on her face. “All right,” he finally said. “You got me.”
She put the apple on the table. “And the score is now…?” She cupped a hand to her ear and leaned in his direction.
Levi bit his lower lip and glared at her. “Five to five,” he ground out. “Now, let's go.” He spun on his heel and headed for the door. “I'm going to show you the barn,” he said, then suddenly turned to face her. “And if I had any sense, I'd make up a bed and sleep in there tonight.”
“What for?”
His eyes roamed her face, studying her mouth, before they drank in the rest of her. “Because, as I see it, it’s going to be a long night, no matter how I look at it.”
“What is that supposed to mean?”
He cupped her face with a hand. “You're too beautiful for your own good; you know that, don't you?”
“I know no such thing,” she said, her voice solemn.
“Well, you are, which means the next nine days are going to be pure torture for one of us; maybe both, who knows?”
“If it is for me, do I get another point?”
“No.”
“Then what do I get?”
His arms came around her so fast she had no time to think, only react. She gasped as her head tilted back. “Levi,” she breathed. “What are you doing?”
“Making sure I don't sleep in the barn tonight.” That said, he kissed her like she’d never been kissed before.
Five
He shouldn’t have done it; knew he shouldn’t have, but with the way her hazel eyes flashed at him, and her dark hair loosened from its pins and escaped in tiny, dark tendrils to frame her face, Levi had to kiss her.
She didn’t push him away as he thought she would. Instead, she melted against him, and, try as he might, he couldn’t help but deepen the kiss. He’d wanted to tease her with his words earlier, give her a light peck, and leave her shocked. He didn’t expect such a fire to flare between them, nor the bone-deep possessiveness that consumed him. She was his. His and his alone; and Lord help any man who so much as looked at her. For, in that moment, Levi could picture himself beating some poor fool half to death for doing so.
He slowly lifted his face from hers. A slight sheen of sweat covered her brow and he smiled. He’d lit a hotter fire in her than he thought. “I do believe, I just won myself a point, Mrs. Stone,” he whispered against her face.
She shook her head.
“You don’t think so?”
She shook her head again and her mouth moved, but no sound escaped.
Levi chuckled. “Kissed you senseless, have I? Then I get two points.”
“No!” she forced out. “No fair …” She caught her breath, but her knees gave out.
Levi grinned like the devil, more pleased than ever, and held her tightly against his chest. “Dare I say three points?”
She shook her head again, gave him a glazed look, and swallowed hard. “You haven’t earned a thing!” She straightened her knees and pushed against him to free herself.
“Haven’t I?” he held her prisoner and studied her flushed face, could feel her heart slamming against his own chest. She was on fire and fought to put it out. This, of course, would never do.
“Let me go!” she cried as she struggled against him.
“No.”
She stopped and glared at him. “What do you mean, no? Let me go at once!”
“You don’t want me to,” he drawled, his voice silky smooth.
“Who are you to say if I do, or if I don’t? Now release me!”
His eyes raked over her as she began to tremble in his arms. He lowered his face to hers. “No,” he whispered, and then nipped at her ear lobe.
“Sto …stop …”
“Oh?” he said as he nibbled his way around her neck to the other side. “You want me to do what?”
Her knees gave out again.
Levi assaulted her other ear with his lips and tongue, moved to the side of her neck, then worked his way to her mouth. “I’ll never stop, Fella, do you hear me? I can’t. For the life of me, I can’t …”
“No, I can’t …” she rasped. “Too soon, I hardly know …”
And then it happened. She fainted.
Levi felt her entire body go limp in his arms, and stared at her in shock. “Fella?”
No response.
“Fella!” He scooped her up, carried her to the sofa, and gently laid her upon it. He then got on his knees next to her. “Fella,” he said as he patted the side of her face with his hand. “Fella, wake up.” Kissing her senseless was one thing, but this? If he wasn’t so worried about her, he’d be feeling mighty proud of himself right now. What man could kiss a woman into a dead faint?
Apparently he could.
“Wha … what happened?” she asked in a weak voice as her eyes fluttered open.
He relaxed his posture and sat on the floor next to the sofa. “You fainted, due to the talented ministrations of my lips upon your person.”
She sat up in shock. “What?”
He gently pushed her back down. “Don’t move so fast; lay still for a while.”
She stared at him, wide-eyed.
“And, yes, I kissed you completely senseless, my dear.”
“You didn’t.”
“I did.”
“I don’t believe you.”
“Shall I see if I can do it again?”
“No!”
Levi chuckled as he drank in the sight of her. She looked more beautiful than ever, and he sighed as he admired his new bride, but then had a sobering thought. If she fainted from this, what would happen when they…
“I’m fine; let me up,” she said as she tried to rise.
Levi put a hand to her chest and held her dow
n as he pondered this new revelation. She flayed her arms and tried to get her balance, but was helpless as he held her in place and stared at the floor. “I didn’t take into consideration your delicate sensibilities. Tell me, am I the first man to ever kiss you?”
She smacked his arm with a hand. “Yes. Now kindly let me up.”
“Ahhhh …” he mused as he continued to pin her down. “That explains a lot.” He looked at her. “I’ve learned something new about you. That makes the score six to five, my favor.” He released her, and jumped to his feet. “If you need me, I’ll be out in the barn.” And with that, he left. Again.
* * *
Fina stared after Levi, her jaw slack. She hoped this wasn't going to be the norm for their entire marriage. She was getting pretty tired of having to snap her mouth shut. This time, however, she closed it slowly before balling her hand into a fist, and then punched the sofa. “Oh, the nerve of that man!” she said in a huff. But was she angry because he’d left again? Or because she didn't want him to leave? Truth be told, if she were to be honest with herself, it was the latter. By golly, if she didn't want him to kiss her again!
And again…
And again.
And again!
But to do so would only grant him more points, and she was determined to get ahead in this game of theirs. The question was how to do it. Levi seemed to be pretty good at anticipating her reaction to things. But were they her reactions he was able to foretell so easily, or that of women in general? Fina knew she should've listened better when her mother gave her and her sisters “the talk”.
She blew a loose strand of dark hair out of her eyes and got up off the sofa. As she didn't know enough about Levi to anticipate his reactions to things, perhaps she could find out more about him; things that would help her stay one step ahead of him, and gain a few points in the process. And, by golly, she was going to make every point count! She wanted, no, needed the nine days they’d agreed upon. She'd stretch them out to ten if she could manage it; for Levi Stone had awakened in her something she'd not expected, and it scared her.
Fina studied the parlor area and wandered to a small desk in the corner. A few books were stacked upon it, along with an inkpot, quill, and writing paper. “I wonder if he keeps a journal,” she mused aloud. She crossed her arms over her chest and tapped a foot while she thought on the possibility. “If I was a man and I kept a private journal, where would I hide it?” She continued to ponder the thought when an idea struck. She turned toward the staircase. As most women hid their diaries in their bedroom, then why wouldn’t a man do the same?
