by Linda Bridey
He laughed and Brook said, “Serves you right, husband.”
“Yes. Serves you right, Reckless. Just for that, I won’t make you any cookies,” Zoe said.
“Cookies? What kind?” Reckless asked.
“It doesn’t matter because you won’t be getting any,” she said.
He grinned. “And what do I have to make you forgive me?”
“Make sure you take me to see your first dive this year,” she said.
“So Raven has told you about my diving, huh?”
“Yep. If you promise to take me along, I’ll make you whatever kind you both like,” Zoe said as she successfully got hold of a hot stone and dropped it into the water. “Yay! I did it.”
Brook laughed at her. “Good job. Now chop up the turnips.”
“Ok. Your twins are so cute,” she said as she watched Reckless play with them.
“They are everywhere now since they are crawling,” he said as he pulled Blue Bear back from getting to close to the fire.
The little guy wasn’t happy about it and let out one of the growls for which he was known. Rick had said on the day the twins were born that the growls reminded him of a bear. The baby’s eyes had stayed blue like Brook’s and they had combined the two things into Blue Bear. Their other twin’s name was Eaglet after Reckless’ eagle that used to come to him and assist him spiritually in times of trouble.
Brook picked up Eaglet and bounced him on her lap as she watched Zoe work. Brook could tell that Zoe knew how to cook by her competent actions. She was only hesitant about using the unfamiliar cooking equipment. When it came to chopping, washing, and cutting, Zoe made quick work of things.
Once Zoe had the water boiling, she put in the meat, turnips, and other vegetables Brook had told her Raven liked. Then she added a little salt and sat back to watch it cook.
“How was that?” Zoe asked.
“You did well,” Brook said.
“I’m so nervous. I hope he likes it,” Zoe said.
Reckless said, “I will taste it and let you know if it is any good.”
Brook said, “It will be good. Do not listen to him.”
Eaglet held out his chubby little arms to Zoe and leaned in her direction. Zoe took him and hugged him close. “You are a very handsome boy,” she told him and he smiled at her.
Brook and Reckless exchanged smiles as they watched Zoe play with their son.
*****
When Raven and Dean arrived home, Raven changed into a loincloth, glad to be rid of his clothing. It was warmer that day and the fresh air against his bare skin felt good. He thought of Zoe’s ice skating and was glad that she’d gotten to skate before the ice started melting. He came out of his tipi to see Katie running in his direction.
“Han, cousin,” she said. “How is our family?”
Raven said, “They are well, but then you knew that. Rick said that you went three times this week.” He grinned at her. “What are you going to do when you are too tall for Rick to hide you?”
Katie gave him an impish smile and said, “I will think of something.”
“I’m sure you will,” Raven said.
“Zoe said you are to go to Reckless and Brook’s tipi,” Katie said. “But I never heard that, and I do not know where you are going.”
Raven bent and kissed her cheek. “Thank you cousin. Be good,” he said and began running down the drive.
*****
Zoe was trying to learn how to play knuckles when Raven trotted into view. She froze upon seeing him wearing only a loincloth. All of those wonderful, bronzed muscles of his were bared and she drank in the sight as he approached. He smiled as he saw what they were doing.
“Hau,” he said.
“Han,” Zoe answered.
He grinned. “You remembered.”
“Tókheškhe yaúŋ he?” she asked.
Zoe asked the question slowly, but correctly and Raven laughed. “I’m fine, thank you,” he said in English. “That was very good.”
“Thanks. It took me all afternoon to learn it,” she said. “Are you hungry?”
He nodded as he picked up Blue Bear and swung the baby up in the air. Blue Bear squealed with laughter and Raven chuckled.
Zoe said, “Good. I cooked.”
“You cooked?” Raven asked.
“I did. I hope it’s edible,” Zoe said.
Brook smiled. “I am sure it is very good. She has worked hard on it.”
Raven sniffed the air. “You made beef stew.”
Zoe said, “Yes.” She was trying so hard not to stare at him, but it was difficult.
Raven pretended not to notice because he didn’t want to embarrass her. He wanted to let her get used to seeing him like that because he wasn’t going to stop wearing a loincloth whenever he could during warm weather. It pleased him that she found him attractive, and he had no shyness over so much of his body being exposed.
Inside the tipi, the two couples settled around the fire. Brook served Reckless and Zoe followed her example and dipped out a bowl for Raven. She watched to see how they were going to eat it without utensils. Eating without spoons and forks was a foreign concept to her and she wasn’t sure how it would be accomplished.
The two men and Brook blew on their soup until it had cooled a little and then drank the broth first. Some of the vegetables would slide out of the bowls into their mouths while the others had to be scooped out with their fingers.
Raven grunted his approval. “It’s very good, Zoe. I would say your first Lakota dish is a success. Why aren’t you eating?”
Zoe said, “I wasn’t sure how I was supposed to do it. I’m not used to eating without utensils.”
The others laughed. “I did not think about that,” Brook said. “I am sorry.”
“It’s ok. I’ll just have to be careful so I don’t dump it all over my face,” Zoe said. She began drinking the broth and found that it wasn’t very difficult.
Raven smiled and dipped out a second bowl. With quick glances, Reckless watched his cousin and saw that Raven had very strong feelings for Zoe. He’d never seen Raven act this way with any other woman and he was happy for Raven. Perhaps a wedding was in their near future and then he wondered how that would be accomplished. Would Raven agree to a Christian or blended wedding? It might be the only way since he doubted the army would allow them to go to the reservation for a wedding. Of course, Rick might be able to do something about that.
Zoe was able to eat without making a mess of herself, which was a relief to her. She was enjoying the experience of cooking and eating in a tipi and wondered if she would be able to live that way. So far, she liked it, but what about for the rest of her life? What was it like living in one with small children? What about intimacy? She wasn’t sure she could make love with Raven with children present. Did they do that, she wondered. These were things she would have to find out.
After supper was over, Brook showed Zoe how to wash dishes in the stream that ran in back of their campsite. Then they tidied up the tipi while the men kept the twins occupied. Once that was accomplished, Raven told them about his visit to the reservation.
“I am worried about Aunt Squirrel. She is very depressed. She wouldn’t even visit with Uncle Dean because seeing him reminds her too much of when we were free. Mother said there were two suicides this week,” he said.
Zoe gasped. “Oh, how terrible!”
Raven nodded. “Some of our people can’t tolerate living there. The white army is trying to strip us of our identities. They make many wear white man’s clothing and other things to try to make us assimilate into white society. I think it is easier for Reckless and I because we have been such a part of our white family’s life since we were very young. We’re familiar with their ways and are used to their food.”
Reckless nodded. “He is right. At least Raven and I can hunt and live the way we want to. They cannot hunt on the reservation because they are not allowed to have weapons. They are forced to eat the food that they are given. It ca
uses digestive problems because their stomachs aren’t used to it.”
Zoe suddenly felt ashamed to be part of the white race. She kept her eyes downcast and said, “I’m so sorry. What they’re doing isn’t right.”
Brook nodded. “No, it isn’t. We were peaceful and bothered no one. We got along fine with most of the whites in town and with our white family. I will never understand why they had to come after us.”
Raven didn’t want Zoe to be sad so he changed the topic and told them about the way Dean had confronted the guard at the checkpoint and the Lakota man who had been irritating Black Fox.
Reckless laughed. “That sounds like him. He is formidable when he is angry. He and my father argued a lot. I think they enjoyed trying to best the other.”
Zoe smiled. “I would have liked to have seen that.”
Raven said, “It was very amusing.”
“I’m sure.”
The memories weren’t comforting yet and Reckless needed to stop talking about it. “Zoe, do you want to try playing knuckles again?”
She smiled and said, “Yes. I don’t understand the game at all.”
They spent the next hour trying to teach her and then Reckless said that he had to get ready for work.
Zoe asked, “I forgot to ask Joe if I’m supposed to play tonight.”
“I would prefer it if you didn’t go tonight. Saturdays get pretty rough,” Raven said.
Zoe looked up at him and said, “I could use the money. You’ll keep me safe.”
He looked down into her gray eyes and smiled. It was hard to refuse her anything. With a shake of his head, he said, “Ok. I have to go change. I’ll take your horse and go change and get my horse.”
“All right. I’ll be right here,” she said, smiling.
As Raven rode away, Reckless said, “You are good for him, Zoe.”
She gazed into Reckless’ eyes and asked, “So you approve?”
He nodded. “Yes. You are the first woman he has brought around to see any of us. It tells me that you are very special to him and that he is serious about you.”
Zoe’s smile reflected her happiness. “I never dreamed when I moved here that I would meet anyone like him. I came to marry Will, but there just aren’t any romantic feelings between us. Some people might say we didn’t give it long enough, but sometimes you just know.”
Brook said, “Yes. I was not sure when I came here that Reckless and I would be a good match, but it did not take long for us to fall in love.”
The smile she and Reckless shared was one of mutual adoration and Zoe felt glad for them. She wanted that sort of relationship with Raven. He returned shortly, dressed in jeans and a white shirt. Zoe thought he looked very handsome, but she was sorry that his beautiful body was covered once again.
Reckless had also changed. He kissed Brook and the babies goodbye, and the three of them started out for the Watering Hole.
Chapter Fourteen
That night when they were on their way home from the Watering Hole, Raven took her to the old camp again. He’d brought some blankets and materials for building a fire. At the site of where his family’s tipi used to stand, he spread a blanket on the ground and went to find some kindling.
Zoe looked around at the space and tried to imagine what it had looked like with all of the tipis and children running around. She smiled as she thought of how fun it must have been. Then Raven returned and started a fire. She watched him with interest and noticed how quickly he produced a flame that rapidly ate the small, dry twigs. He gradually put on bigger pieces until the fire was good sized.
Once he was done with it, he looked at her with a serious expression. She waited for him to speak.
“There are things we need to talk about,” he said.
Zoe nodded. “I know.”
“I told you that I was going to court you with the intention of marrying you. If we were to marry, would you live in a tipi?” Raven asked.
Zoe considered it. After being with Brook and Reckless all day and seeing what it was like, she thought she could live in one. She had no problem sleeping in one and fixing a meal was not difficult once she saw how to go about it. She was sure that Brook and Sparrow would give her other lessons as she needed them. It was certainly easier to keep clean than a house and there was less for her to trip on.
“I have a question for you.”
“Go ahead,” Raven said.
She couldn’t look at him as she said, “I don’t think I could be intimate in front of children.”
Raven smiled. He knew that white people were sensitive about this and he wasn’t surprised at her objection to it. “Then we won’t be. There are ways around that. When they are infants it doesn’t matter, but when they are older, they can stay with family overnight or during the day, we would put cross sticks in front of the tipi flap so that others would know not to disturb us unless it’s an emergency.”
“Cross sticks?”
Raven took two sticks and demonstrated, making an X with them. “Like that. People do that when they want to be intimate, if they want to have a private conversation, or they are not feeling well. It is respected by children and adults alike.”
Zoe smiled. “Oh, I see.”
“We can also go off by ourselves somewhere. There are many places I know of around here,” Raven said with a smile.
“You mean outside?” Zoe said.
He cocked his head at her. “We have been meeting outside and you have had no problem with it so far.”
She blushed and said, “You’re right. There would be no real difference would there?”
“No, there wouldn’t.”
“All right. What about the wedding?”
Raven sighed. He would prefer to have a traditional Lakota wedding, but he knew that it wasn’t going to be possible. He also wanted his family to be able to attend, but most likely that would be out of the question.
“Perhaps we could have a blended ceremony,” he said as he thought about Owl and Hannah’s wedding. Jack and Sparrow had also had a blended wedding. There were people around who could advise them on how to go about it. “Would that be acceptable to you?”
Her eyes lit up. “Yes. I think that would be beautiful.”
“Ok.”
“Where would we put your tipi?” she asked.
“That is a problem. I don’t want to keep living up at the ranch, or at least so close to the house.” He looked around them at the clearing and tears welled in his eyes. If he could, he would settle right where they were. He didn’t know who owned the land now. An idea came to him. What if he could buy land there? How much would it cost and could he get a loan? Did he have any legal rights to own land? Joe would be the one to ask about it all.
He said, “I would like to put it right here, but I don’t know anything about who owns the land now. I will have to talk to Joe about it. Do you have any objection to that?”
Zoe knew how much the old camp had meant to him and how he loved the area. “No, I don’t have an objection to living here. It’s beautiful.” And it was. She remembered the rock ledge and the splendor of the river valley far below it. Something occurred to her. “If we settle here, why couldn’t Reckless and Brook? He said something about not liking being too close to the other camp. Could they come here with us?”
Raven’s brows rose. He had not thought of such a thing, but it made sense. Why couldn’t they? Would there be a way to make that happen? He began to grin as he thought about Marcus and Owl’s families. They could have tipis there, too. What about Jack and Sparrow? Maybe they could create their own smaller camp.
He moved closer and embraced her. “You are so smart. There are others who could have tipis here. Maybe we could all buy this land together. We’ll go talk to Joe in the morning and see what he says about it.”
She wrapped her arms around him. “That would be wonderful.”
Raven held her closer. She felt so good in his arms. He tipped her chin up and kissed her. “You’re wonderful.
And beautiful,” he said and ran his fingers through her long, soft hair. The thick, auburn mass felt good in his hands. “You have such pretty hair. Like a flame.”
She was enjoying what he was doing and closed her eyes in pleasure. He kissed her lightly and she shivered when his fingers grazed her neck.
“Zoe, look at me,” he said softly.
She opened her eyes and she saw his love and desire for her in his shining, black eyes. “Yes?”
“I love you. You are so good and kind and beautiful. Your hands make beautiful music and you can glide across the ice like you are floating over it. You are talented and funny and I don’t want to be without you anymore. Will you marry me?”
Tears sprang to Zoe’s eyes and she nodded. “Yes. Yes, I’ll marry you, Raven.”
His lips descended on hers in a kiss filled with love and promise. Zoe kissed him back as tears trickled from the corners of her eyes. Kissing Raven was intoxicating and she craved him like nothing else in her life. She stroked his shoulders and tried to get even closer to him. Raven hauled her onto his lap and groaned as their bodies came into fuller contact.
Zoe wanted to feel his skin under her hands. She unbuttoned his shirt and trailed her fingers down over his chest. Raven’s growl sounded and Zoe answered it with a soft moan. She felt feverish with desire and had never knew anything could feel so wonderful.
Raven held onto his control by the thinnest of threads. He broke the kiss and looked down at her. Never had he felt such yearning for a woman and he knew that it was Zoe herself that brought it out in him. In her silvery, gray eyes, he saw the same longing.
“Zoe, I want you.”
“Please make love to me,” she whispered.
“If I do, there will be no turning back. We will belong to each other and we are eloping and will therefore be considered married. Is this what you desire? Think carefully,” Raven said.
“You told me before that there would have to be a ceremony shortly afterward. How soon?”
“As soon as it can be arranged,” Raven said.
“What would we do in the meantime?” Zoe asked.
