by Linda Bridey
Though she was strong, she still had a womanly shape and looked quite attractive in more feminine attire. She eschewed such clothing, however, in favor of jeans and western shirts. Working as a deputy and a bouncer would have been impossible in a dress and petticoats. Also, Sammi hated dresses and was always cranky when she had to wear one for some function or another.
Suddenly Ben was dragged off his chair from behind and he swore as Reckless landed a blow to his solar plexus. The brave was always sneaking up on the other two bouncers. He treated Sammi the same way since that was what she preferred. She didn’t want any special treatment because she was a woman.
Ben rolled and gained his feet. He glared at the smiling Reckless as some of the patrons laughed. Reckless picked on any of the guys who came in the Watering Hole, including the mayor. Sammi, or Warrior Woman as she was called by the Lakota, was the only female who was fair game.
“I told you to knock that off,” Ben said.
Reckless said, “What’s the matter, old man? Can’t take it?”
Ben laughed at his taunt. “You need some new insults. Those are getting tired, Injun.”
Reckless hated that moniker and it never failed to anger him. “And yet it bothers you.”
They circled each other, seeming to forget about the crowd around them.
“My money’s on the brave!” Joe Dwyer had just stepped into the barroom to see the pair facing off.
Ben gave Joe an irritated glance even while keeping Reckless in his peripheral vision. “Why do you always bet on him?” Ben asked loudly.
Joe laughed. “Because I like creative people and he’s about as creative as it gets.”
Reckless smiled. “Thank you, Joe.”
“Don’t mention it,” Joe said.
Ben stopped and said, “I’m not fighting tonight, Reckless. Another night, but not tonight.”
Reckless walked over to him and looked at him with concern in his dark eyes. “Is everything all right?”
“Yes. It’s just that I have a surgery scheduled for tomorrow and I don’t want to take a chance on hurting one of my hands,” Ben said.
“Oh, okay,” Reckless said. “We don’t need that to happen.”
“Aw, c’mon now,” Joe said. “Ya’ll get my hopes up and then leave me hangin’?”
“Sorry, Joe,” Ben said. “You’ll have to find something else to bet on.”
The mayor was notorious for his affection for games of chance and would bet on almost anything.
“All right. I understand. Well, I’ll go wet my whistle so I’m ready once the gang gets here,” Joe said, and walked back to the bar.
Ben decided that it was still early enough to pay Marcus a visit and thank him for his help.
A week later, Sasha signed the paperwork that officially closed the sale of her house and property. Even before her husband Ken had passed away, the large house had seemed more like a mausoleum than a home. It had been just her and Ken along with a couple of servants living there. It was devoid of warmth, much like her marriage. Ken had never been physically abusive; he had simply been distant and inattentive.
During their courtship, he had been engaging and gentlemanly. They hadn’t been married very long when he’d changed dramatically. When she had pressed him about it, he’d simply responded, “The honeymoon is over and we should settle down to married life.”
They had argued about it, but Sasha realized that she wasn’t going to change his mind. She’d also had come to know that her husband didn’t love her and probably never had. Trapped in a loveless marriage, Sasha had endured a life of loneliness. She had a few friends, but what she desired was a man who loved her and wanted to spend time with her.
Eventually, Sasha had moved into a different bedroom. Ken’s only remark about it was that it was probably a good idea since he usually came to bed late and would wake her up. So she slept alone, without knowing the loving touch of a man.
There were few good memories of the house and even those were tainted by the knowledge that her husband had simply been pretending to love her. Sasha was only too happy to sell the house and as she had put pen to paper to make it legal, she felt as if the past was finally closing and the future was full of possibility and adventure.
She had received a fair sum for her home and it would last her for quite a while if she lived modestly. Thanking her lawyer, Sasha left his office and walked to the post office. Seeing another letter from Ben brought a bright smile to her face and her heart fluttered inside her chest. Somehow she was able to resist reading it until she arrived home.
Then she made some tea and took it and a scone with her into the smaller parlor and settled on the sofa to read it.
Dear Sasha,
Thank you for inquiring after my welfare. Rest assured I am doing well, especially after receiving your reply to my letter and advertisement. Yes, Marcus certainly does have a flair for writing that sort of thing. He also sends his regards in return.
I cannot tell you how delighted I was to learn that you had already planned to return to Dawson so soon. Perhaps fate has intervened and has granted us a second chance. It certainly sounds as if you meet all of the requirements in the ad, as I knew you would.
You are correct in assuming that I was speaking of the Watering Hole where I moonlight as a bouncer from time to time. I find it is a good way to relieve stress and it is also good exercise. I hope that does not bother you.
I know what an arduous trip you had last year, so I think you are wise to come as soon as possible to avoid repeating the bad experience. Please keep me apprised of when you are expected to arrive in Dawson so that I may meet the stage. Will you be staying with the Samuels clan again?
My apartment is spacious as it runs almost the whole length of the building. It is fairly soundproof, although when the music portion of the evening is in progress, it does carry upstairs. However, if I have brought charts home on which to work, or I am reading, it tends to help my thought process rather than impede it.
Usually by the time I am ready to retire, the loudest of the noise is over and my slumber isn’t disturbed. Once a month, there is a fighting match, which brings in a large number of onlookers, and things get rather wild. On those nights, I am usually in the thick of it, helping to keep some kind of order.
I hope I have answered your questions adequately, Miss Sasha. Please do not hesitate to send any inquiries that you may have.
Yours truly,
Ben
Sasha began choosing which furniture pieces she would have shipped to her new residence in Dawson. Tessa Samuels, her gracious hostess in the past, had agreed to help Sasha secure a house and it had been found rather quickly. Marcus’ nurse and sister-in-law, Hannah, and her husband Owl were moving to a larger home on the other side of town since they had had a baby the previous December and they required more room.
Tessa assured her that it was a quaint little house and would serve her well. It felt exciting to Sasha to buy a house sight unseen. She was confident in Tessa’s assessment of the new home and was looking forward to seeing it. That it was small didn’t bother her in the least. It would be homey and that was exactly what she was looking for.
Until she could move into the new house, she would stay at the hotel in town so she would be able to run errands and conduct business related to the new house more easily. She had informed Ben of all this in her last letter to him. She had also told him that she would arrive on November 23rd, the Monday right before Thanksgiving.
Ben had sent back a letter containing a second envelope with a formal invitation from Joe Dwyer to dine with his family. Ben’s letter elaborated on the affair and who would be attending it.
Joe tends to go over the top on some things, but it’s just his nature. Prepare yourself for a feast because that’s what the Dwyers’ cooking staff prepares. The food is always of excellent quality. Joe spares no expense when putting on a holiday event. Our mayor is a competitive person and along with gambling, enjoys parlor games
. While some evenings spent playing such things are absolutely tedious, not so with this group. As of this letter, the guest list is as follows:
Anyone and everyone because that’s who Joe invites; close friends, employees, business associates, and members of the Lakota tribe.
It’s a good thing his estate is large, because usually a large number of people show up. It’s never dull and you can expect to be hoarse by the time the evening is over because you’ll have to shout to carry on a conversation sometimes. Since you’ll be arriving close to the day, I would like to formally ask if you would permit me to escort you to this entertaining affair. I shall await your answer with impatience.
Ben closed his letter soon after that and Sasha smiled as she pictured what Thanksgiving must be like at Joe and Lacey’s. She also imagined that attending with Ben would be wonderful. Sasha thought it was a good thing she had money at her disposal so that she could do some shopping before she left. She needed new dresses and other clothing to wear to social functions.
Suddenly Sasha realized she had a lot to get done if she wanted to leave for Dawson on time. Using her formidable determination and organizational skills, Sasha began her mission. There was no way she was going to delay her trip.
Chapter Three
Snowflakes drifted along on the chilly wind as Ben waited for the stage coach to come. He looked up at the slate-gray clouds and hoped that snow hadn’t delayed the coach at all. So far that year Dawson had been free of snow, but that could change at any time. There was no way for him to know whether that was the case for Nebraska or Wyoming, through which Sasha would be traveling.
He thought about what a remarkable woman Sasha McCall was. She had braved everything the year before to help Sparrow escape. It was unusual for a woman to embark on something like that by herself, and the fact that Sasha had done exactly that was a testament to the dedication she had to the people she cared about.
Now here she was making the trek yet again, only this time she wasn’t planning on going back. Ben smiled at that idea. Normally Ben wasn’t given to being nervous about seeing a woman, but there was something about Sasha that made him a little anxious. He cared more about her impression of him than he had with other women.
He looked at his watch. The coach was almost twenty minutes late. While for some coaches this might have been standard procedure, it wasn’t for Beth. The lady driver kept a tight schedule and became extremely unpleasant when something held her up. After waiting for another twenty-five minutes, Ben concluded that something was very wrong. He clicked to his horse, Othello, and turned his buggy around to head out of town the way the coach would have come. Ben figured that he would drive to Wolfe Point to see if he could glean any information about the coach’s whereabouts.
As Sasha rode along on one of her Morgans, Ingrid, she thought that the route from Lexington, Nebraska to Dawson, Montana must be cursed. This was the second time that something bad had happened while she was on her way there. This time, one of the axles on the coach had broken. Thankfully, they had just about reached Wolfe Point when it happened.
Beth had said it might be a couple of days until they could get the coach repaired and Sasha had groaned internally at the thought of being held up that long. Then she remembered how they had used her mares to get to Dawson the previous year. She’d brought them with her, trailing behind the coaches. The mares were quick and had stamina to spare, so she had decided to ride Ingrid to Dawson, while she led the other mare.
Beth said she would bring her suitcases as soon as the coach was repaired. Sasha had taken what she could carry in her large reticule; a couple changes of clothing and a few toiletries. She could buy more things in Dawson if she needed them until Beth was able to get her suitcases to her. She kept the mares at a fast trot.
Sasha judged that she’d gone about half the distance to Dawson when she saw a buggy coming her way. She made sure her other mare, Sandy, was over out of the buggy’s way. The buggy got closer and Sasha went to smile at the occupant when she saw that it was Ben. He’d been about to tip his hat to her when he recognized her.
“Ben!” Sasha couldn’t prevent the smile that seeing him brought to her face. She halted her horses.
Ben pulled Othello down to a walk and turned the buggy around to come up beside her.
“Miss Sasha, it’s a pleasure to see you again, but what on earth are you doing on the road like this? What happened?” Ben said with a grin as he looked up into her beautiful face.
“It’s a pleasure to see you, too, Ben. The coach axle broke and I didn’t want to stay in Wolfe Point for another two days. So I decided to bring my horses and come on to Dawson,” Sasha said.
Ben looked at the Morgans. “Well, they’re a fine looking pair of mares. Don’t let Joe try to buy them from you, because he will. Stay right there,” Ben said.
He pulled the buggy in front of the mares and then jumped out of it. Coming back to the horse Sasha rode, he said, “Let’s get you down from there, sugar. You can ride in the buggy with me and we can lead your mares.” He offered her his hand.
Sasha hid a smile at his use of the word “sugar”. It was also amusing to her that he thought she needed help dismounting. Knowing a little of his history, Sasha understood that he’d been raised to be chivalrous. She offered no objection as he helped her from the mare’s back and set her on the ground.
He looked down at her and Sasha thought she was going to swoon as those fabulous green eyes locked on hers. She’d never had such a reaction to a man before. Then he smiled at her and it got worse. Sasha was very glad that it was so cold out because she was suddenly very hot. “Thank you, Ben,” she said, trying to sound poised when she was not.
“My pleasure,” Ben said, and couldn’t stop smiling for a few moments. Then he remembered that they were in the middle of the road. “All right. I’ll get these pretty ladies tied to the buggy and we can be on our way.”
Sasha watched Ben work, noting once again the contained kinetic energy in his movements. It intrigued her and reminded her of a panther. While he was very considerate and gentlemanly towards her, she had briefly glimpsed something darker in him when Ben had taken her to dinner earlier in the year.
After their meal, Ben had gone to retrieve his buggy while Sasha waited for him. A man had gotten a little too friendly with her. When Ben had arrived and had seen what was happening, he’d jumped out of the buggy and had taken ahold of the offender. Instead of hitting the man as Sasha had expected, Ben had leaned over and whispered something in the man’s ear. Then Ben had given the man a malicious smile, the kind that chilled the blood. It wasn’t but a few seconds until the man had apologized to her and left.
When Ben had Sasha’s horses secured, he took her reticule and stowed it in the back of the buggy. He took her hand to help her into the vehicle and they both felt a spark of awareness pass between them. Unconsciously Sasha’s gaze settled briefly on his sensual mouth, and she longed for him to kiss her. Then she looked in his eyes and saw the same desire mirrored in their jade depths. Quickly she lowered her eyes and got in the buggy.
Ben smiled as he went around in front of his horse to get to the opposite side of the buggy. It was obvious to him that she had wanted to kiss him as much as he had wanted to kiss her. He slid onto the buggy seat, took up the reins, and smiled at her.
“We’ll get you to town and settled in no time,” he said as they started out again.
Sasha said, “I am very excited to see my new house. I never got around to visiting Hannah and Owl at home last time. There was so much going on with the holidays and then…all that nasty business with Sparrow’s ex-husband.” A little shiver ran through her as she remembered being held at spear point by Lakota braves from a different tribe than the local Lakotas. She’d never witnessed anything like it before, and hoped never to again.
Ben saw her shudder and knew it had nothing to do with the cold. He placed a hand over hers and said, “I’m so sorry for everything you went through. No one
should have to endure such a brutal event.”
“Thank you, Ben. You’re very kind,” Sasha said as she squeezed back a little.
“There shouldn’t be any trouble now, I hope,” Ben said. “So far so good. I hope it stays that way.”
“As do I,” Sasha said. “I’ve been around Indians before, but I’ve never been involved in anything like that. I mean, Sparrow and I are the best of friends, and it never mattered to me that she was Lakota. I’ve missed her and I’m looking forward to spending more time with her and seeing their little boy.”
Ben smiled as he thought about little Danny. “He’s adorable, to say the least. Such a happy little fellow.”
Sasha smiled and then realized that she still held his hand. “Oh, I’m so sorry,” she said and let go of it.
“No need to be sorry. It was not a hardship to hold your hand, Sasha,” Ben said with a chuckle.
“For me, either,” she admitted. She had been without physical human contact for so long, especially of the male variety.
Ben could see that she was slightly uncomfortable about it and decided to change the topic. “Once I have delivered you to the hotel, would you perhaps like to freshen up and have some dinner?”
“Yes. That would be lovely,” Sasha said.
“How much time would you need to get ready?” Ben asked.
“Only an hour,” Sasha said. She was trying not to sound too eager, but the fact of the matter was that she wanted to spend more time with Ben and would like to be back in his company soon.
“Very well,” Ben said. “I trust there were no difficulties in the selling of your home?”
“No, everything went very smoothly. It was never a home. Just a place where I lived,” Sasha said. The words were out before she knew it.
Ben arched an eyebrow and gave her a questioning look. “Oh?”
Sasha averted her eyes for moment and then said, “I should not have said that.”
