by Debra Cowan
She glanced up. “Yes?”
“What do you do with it? Put it over something else?”
“You can. I’m buying it to make something for Catherine.”
“Like what?”
She started to answer, then must’ve thought better of it. “Never you mind.”
Her prim tone had realization zipping through him. It was for one of those combination chemise-drawers things like she wore. Davis Lee would bet his hat on it. “Did Catherine order that?”
“No. I want to give her something special, a little extra for nursing me after the snakebite.”
“Hey, I was there, too. What about me?” He’d gotten plenty of reward just seeing her in the see-through undergarment the first time, but he wouldn’t mind seeing her again.
“Want me to make you a shirt out of this?” Her eyes danced mischievously.
He grinned and leaned toward her to whisper, “That’s for underwear, isn’t it?”
She blushed. “Davis Lee!”
He straightened, unable to keep his gaze from sliding to her breasts. The image of her naked body teased by that sheer piece of nothing would stay with him until his last day on earth. His mouth dried up. “Jericho will think he’s died and gone to heaven,” he murmured.
She turned away as if she hadn’t heard him, but he knew by the flush on her neck that she had. He chuckled, following her to a section full of ribbon.
She chose a thin white satin as well as ten different shades of pink, green and blue. Sunshine filtered through the window behind them, and Davis Lee thought how beautiful her hair was in the golden light. He wanted to pull out her hairpins and release the silky curtain, bury his hands in its thickness. A ribbon the same moss-green as her eyes caught his attention. Her hair would be pretty caught back with that ribbon, but so far she hadn’t bought anything for herself.
Josie added her selection to the stack of goods he held, noticing as she did so that his attention was riveted on her hair. “Davis Lee?”
“Mmm?” His gaze moved to hers.
She smiled, wondering at his thoughts. Turning, she walked up the aisle toward the door and the sewing notions she’d spied upon entering. She chose thread and fastenings for Mrs. Eishen’s coat, and pearl buttons for Catherine’s combination.
Davis Lee lagged behind and she couldn’t imagine what he was doing back there, but by the time she put her goods on the counter, he appeared behind her with the rest of her purchases. She carefully counted out her money. As Mrs. Trent packaged everything in brown paper, Josie noticed the fancy wrapped soap in a bushel basket off to the side.
Before she could talk herself out of it, she stepped over and picked up a cake perfumed with the scent of honeysuckle. When she returned to the counter with the box, Davis Lee was leaning against it and the storekeeper was giving him a sly smile.
Josie looked at him, not caring for the stab of jealousy she felt at the other woman’s attention. He just smiled, thanked Mrs. Trent and carried Josie’s packages out to the buggy. After paying for her soap, she followed him, pulling on her gloves.
He adjusted then readjusted the biggest parcel under the middle of the seat. The other packages were under her side. He glanced over his shoulder. “Maybe I should’ve brought a wagon, after all.”
The way his gaze warmly held hers had her forgetting all about how the other woman had smiled at him. He helped her into the buggy, his big hand hot enough to send heat through her gloves.
After he climbed in, he drove farther up First Street and turned left on Walnut. “How about some lunch?”
“That sounds good. I’m hungry.”
He passed empty lots and several doctors’ and lawyers’ offices. Turning left onto Second Street, he pointed ahead to the Taylor County Bank, an imposing two-story stone building. “I bet we find some places to eat around there.”
Josie nodded, noting fewer people in this area of town and liking the quieter atmosphere. “Thank you for bringing me today. I’m glad I didn’t come by myself.”
“You’re welcome.”
“I appreciated your help at Trent’s, too. You can carry so much more than I can that I’m wondering if I should take you any time I need to buy things.”
“So you decided I wasn’t in the way, after all?”
She looked over, saw the teasing light in his blue eyes. “Well, I didn’t say that,” she murmured.
“Sass.” His gaze drifted over her face.
He stared so long she squirmed. “Davis Lee.” She looked away, noticed the buggy wheel was about to scrape against the curb in front of the bank. “Davis Lee!”
He jerked his gaze back to the road and righted the buggy, grinning.
Josie’s entire body thrummed with awareness. He continued down Second and reined up in front of a small restaurant with a hand-lettered sign. He set the brake, glancing at her hair as a thoughtful look settled on his face.
Self-conscious now, she lifted a hand to her chignon. “What is it? Has one of my pins fallen out? Is my hair loose?”
“No.” The deep gruffness of his voice sent a wave of sensation through her. He reached in his coat pocket. “I was going to give this to you later, but I can’t wait.”
She frowned, her eyes widening when he brought out a length of green ribbon. “Davis Lee?”
“I thought it would look pretty in your hair.”
Her mouth dropped open. She stared at the satin then at him. “You bought me something?”
“If you don’t like it—”
“Of course I like it.” Tears stung her eyes. “How could I not?”
“It’s the color. You don’t like the color.”
“I love it.”
“Then why are you about to cry?”
She answered without considering her words. “Because you are the dearest man and I…I can’t believe you bought me something.”
“If I’d known it would make you cry, I wouldn’t have done it.” He pressed it into her hand.
She inched forward, reaching back to wrap the ribbon around her chignon and secure it with a hairpin.
He laughed. “Josie, you don’t have to wear it now. It doesn’t match your dress.”
“I want to wear it.” She patted her hair and angled her head so he could see. “How does it look? Do I need to retie it?”
“No.” His fingers brushed the ribbon and she straightened in her seat.
“Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.” His hand stayed in her hair, the pad of his callused thumb stroking just behind her ear.
She could barely keep from arching into his touch. His eyes darkened. He slid his palm under her hair, cupped her nape and drew her toward him.
She never even considered pulling away. Anticipation pooled in a delicious heat low in her belly.
His lips touched hers and she sighed. She yanked off her right glove and curved her hand around his neck, felt his warm skin, the pulse throbbing against her palm.
He held her there with the barest touch. This kiss was nothing like the other one, but it was every bit as wonderful. His mouth moved over hers, tender and soft, dizzyingly sweet. She melted into him. He didn’t press for more, didn’t take the kiss further, just drew on her gently until she couldn’t tell his breath from hers.
When he lifted his head, it took a second for her to open her eyes. She saw tenderness and desire in his face. Her heart hammered against her chest. “Should we…have done that?”
“Probably not.”
She wasn’t sorry, though it unleashed a flood of emotion inside her.
“Guess we’d better go in,” he said.
She blinked. “A-all right.”
Her legs were still wobbly when they walked into the newly built restaurant, and she gratefully sank down into the chair at their table.
As they waited for their meal, Josie could hardly keep her eyes off him. She wanted to know more about him, more than the fact that he was sin-temptingly handsome and could kiss the starch right out of h
er.
“Is Riley your only sibling?”
“Yeah. I’m older by three years. Do you have any brothers or sisters?”
“No. I had two younger brothers, but they both died soon after birth.”
“That’s too bad.” His attention fixed on her as if everything she said was important. “So, you really are all alone?”
She nodded. “What about your parents?”
“They’re gone, too. Pa died about two years ago. Our ma passed on a year before that. Dr. Butler said her heart just gave out.”
“So it’s just you and Riley.”
“And now Susannah and Lorelai. Our ma was named Lorelai. Susannah chose that name for the baby because Riley helped deliver her. Have I ever told you about that?”
“No.”
He told her how Susannah’s brother, one of Riley’s best friends, had sent her here under the impression that Riley wanted to marry her. Riley hadn’t known a thing about the arrangement.
“But she and Riley ended up together anyway?”
Davis Lee grinned. “Yeah, no thanks to my hardheaded brother.”
“From what I’ve seen, that trait runs in your family.”
The crooked grin he gave her sent her pulse skittering. He hadn’t worn his badge today. His light blue shirt turned his eyes an even more intense shade of the same color. The bottom three buttons on his placket were fastened, but not the top one. The hollow of his throat was visible, and Josie’s gaze returned there several times before she realized why.
He ducked his head to peer at her. “Why are you studyin’ me so hard?”
She looked at him. “Your button. I— Who sewed that on for you?”
“I did,” he said rather proudly. Seeing the grimace on her face, he frowned. “Why?”
The button was hardly visible beneath a mound of thread that could’ve been used to sew on a dozen buttons. She bit the inside of her cheek. “How much thread did you use?”
“Enough to make it stay on.”
She hesitated over the next question. “Did you do it in the dark?”
He laughed, his eyes crinkling at the corners. “Just say what’s on your mind.”
“I need to fix that.” She glanced around, keeping her voice low but unable to stop the urgency. “You’ve got to let me fix it.”
“I think it’ll hold.”
“I’m sure it will hold until the Judgment. It’s not that. It’s—”
“You think I look unpresentable?”
“Not you.” She didn’t want to hurt his feelings. “First impressions are important,” she hedged. “You are a lawman, after all.”
“Okay. When it falls off, I promise to let you reattach it.”
“Oh, no, you can’t wait until then. I need to fix it right now.”
One dark eyebrow arched.
“You know what I mean. When we return to Whirlwind, I want you to bring me the shirt. Along with any of your other clothes that need to be mended.”
“Aw, now, Josie, I don’t want—”
“I want to. Please. I want to do something to repay you for bringing me today.”
“I was happy to do it.”
“And for taking such good care of me when I was ill.”
He considered her for a minute then shrugged. “All right.”
Their food came and they ate in companionable silence. When a young woman picked up their empty plates, Josie declined dessert, but Davis Lee ordered a piece of apricot pie for himself and coffee for both of them.
When the dessert came, he offered her some.
“Maybe a bite.” Her silverware had been taken away so Davis Lee held out a portion on his fork. She took it, enjoying the burst of fruit on her tongue, the sweet pastry crust.
She sipped at her coffee, her stomach doing an odd flip when his mouth closed over the fork exactly where hers had been.
“It’s good,” she said.
“Not as good as yours.” His big hand dwarfed the delicate china coffee cup.
She sat up straighter. “You tried my pie?”
“Yeah, the other night at the dance. More than one piece, too.”
That pleased her far more than it should have. It’s just pie, you ninny.
He contemplated her over the rim of his coffee cup. “Would you tell me how you met William?”
She thought back to the night when her fiancé had first knocked on their door. “He was a doctor. Late one night, he came to see my father about a patient because he was unsure of his diagnosis.”
“And it was love at first sight?”
“He says it was for him. I certainly liked him right off.”
“When were you supposed to be married?”
“In August, about three months after we met. He wanted to get his family to Texas for the wedding. They were in Ohio.”
“But then he—”
“Yes.” She cut him off. She didn’t want to talk about William’s death or her parents’ deaths, either.
Davis Lee didn’t say anything for a long moment, just looked out the window at the people passing by. “Do you still love him?”
With her index finger, she traced a circle on the white tablecloth. “I guess a part of me will always love him, but not in the here and now. Do you know what I mean?”
“You’re ready to move on?”
She nodded, trying not to allow the thought that she might like to do that with him.
“Got anybody special in Galveston?”
She looked up, her gaze locking on his. “No, not in Galveston.”
“Me, either.”
She couldn’t resist. “You don’t have anyone special in Galveston?”
He grinned, his eyes burning into hers until she glanced down, pleating and unpleating a piece of her skirt.
Davis Lee wiped his mouth with the cloth napkin and leaned back in his chair. “You said your pa taught you and your ma to defend yourselves using that scalpel.”
She nodded.
“What made him do that?”
She wasn’t sure she wanted to tell him everything about herself, but he’d answered her earlier questions without hesitation. “An old beau of my mother’s tried to force himself on her one night when my father was out.”
“Your parents were already married?”
“Yes. The man who attacked her was someone my mother had asked not to call on her again after she met my father. He could never accept it.”
“Never?”
Josie shook her head. “He still lives in Galveston. He never married, and he never forgave my mother for choosing another man over him.”
“Did he cause more trouble after that?”
“Only once,” she said quietly. She didn’t want to think about Judge Shelton Horn and how he’d refused to hold Ian McDougal for trial or even one hour in jail, all because of a bitterness that had festered for more than twenty years. She didn’t want to remember the reason she’d come to Whirlwind. The reason she shouldn’t be spending time with Davis Lee.
His hand touched hers. “Hey, I didn’t mean to bring up bad memories.”
“It’s all right.” She worked up a smile.
“You sure?”
“Yes.”
He gave her hand a quick squeeze. “I guess we should be getting on back to Whirlwind. Don’t want to be travelin’ much after dark.”
She stood, reaching for her cape but Davis Lee was there first. His big hands settled the wrap carefully over her shoulders then lingered.
“Thank you.”
His hold tightened fractionally then he stepped away. After plucking up his hat from the back of a chair behind his own, he shrugged into his coat.
He left money for their meal and they walked out, his hand light on her elbow. In the buggy, she arranged the lap robe over her skirts while he climbed in and took up the reins, urging the horse into motion.
As they drove out of town, Josie commented that there seemed to be even more activity now than there had been when they’d arrived. Davi
s Lee told her the place would be wild come dark and he didn’t want to be anywhere around when that happened.
“I’m off duty today,” he said with a grin that curled her toes.
His words reminded her that she could no longer pretend that they were simply two people enjoying the day.
They rode for a while in silence, straight into the sun. He pulled his hat lower to shield his eyes from the glare.
After a bit, he slanted a look at her. “If you want, you can rest. I won’t mind.”
“Maybe I will.” Sleeping might get her thoughts off the gnawing truth she was trying to escape. And closing her eyes would keep her from gazing at the big man beside her, which she couldn’t seem to stop doing.
She settled back into the corner and pulled the hood of her cape over her head. The edge of her garment kept the worst of the sun out of her eyes.
Sleep didn’t come, but she didn’t talk, either. When they were more than halfway to Whirlwind and the sun had started to sink below the horizon, the wind picked up. A cold gust blew across the buggy floor and up Josie’s skirts. She unfolded the lap robe and spread half of it across Davis Lee’s legs.
“Thanks.”
“You’re welcome.” She leaned back in the seat, her thoughts churning. She’d come to Whirlwind for one reason, and until they’d left Abilene a while ago, she hadn’t given Ian McDougal or what he’d done a single thought.
Even before Davis Lee’s kiss had driven every thought out of her head, all her attention had been centered on the handsome man who’d brought her.
She was reluctant to reach Whirlwind. For a brief time today, she’d been just a woman enjoying herself with a man. A man, she forced herself to recall, who could come between her and the vow she’d made to her family, to William.
Davis Lee turned his head, stared at her for a long minute. “You’re awfully quiet.”
She couldn’t meet his gaze. “Just thinking about the work ahead of me.”
“Was today too much for you? It didn’t occur to me that you might not have your strength back yet.”
“I’m a little tired, but I’m fine.” Why did he have to be so considerate? Make her think he really cared?
That sweet kiss earlier told Josie that he did care about her. And she cared about him, too. Enough not to want to hurt him. Enough not to want to lose whatever this connection was between them.
