Teton Romance Trilogy Bundle: Includes Yellowstone Proposal (Short Story)

by Peggy L Henderson

  “How is your pa?” Sophie’s question startled her. “I remember Alex tried to remove the bullet that was in his chest, but couldn’t. He seemed to be on the mend, though.”

  Tori stared at her hostess through glassy eyes. “He didn’t mend,” she said bitterly.

  Sophie’s hand reached out to grab her arm. “Your pa died? When? That was . . . eighteen or so months ago.”

  Tori shrugged listlessly. “I ain’t been counting the months.”

  “You’ve been alone all this time?” Sophie’s grip tightened. “I’m so sorry for your loss, Tori. I’m glad that Lucas found you and brought you down off that mountain. How did you—?”

  Whatever else she wanted to say was cut off by the loud voices of men entering the house.

  “That horse has been nothing but trouble, Joseph. You’d do well to trade him for a decent Indian pony. Hell, just give him to the Blackfoot.”

  Tori sat up stiffly at hearing Lucas’ voice. His brother laughed. Seconds later, both men appeared in the room. Lucas’ eyes instantly sought hers. The laughter on his face vanished, but the intensity of his stare only increased. Tori stared back, refusing to let this lout intimidate her.

  Sophie stood from her chair, and rested one hand on her hip. She glared from her husband to Lucas. “How could any of you mistake Victoria for a boy? Are you men blind?”

  “You knew she wasn’t a boy?” Joseph moved to his wife’s side.

  Sophie angled her head up at him. “Of course I knew. I didn’t say anything at the time because I figured there had to be a good reason she didn’t want anyone to know.” Her eyes darted to Tori, then to Lucas.

  “Well she looked and smelled worse than a skunk that’s been drug through bear dung the first time I met her, and she was more ornery than a porcupine cornered by a pack of wolves. Hell, she still is.” Lucas’ lips widened with every word he uttered. Apparently he failed to see that his sister-in-law’s eyes shot daggers at him.

  “Lucas Walker! If you weren’t a fully-grown man, I’d tell you to go wash your mouth out with soap.” Sophie advanced on the taller man, both hands on her hips. Lucas took a step back, even as the corners of his mouth curved upward. There was a definite mischievous twinkle in his eyes.

  Tori’s gaze darted from one person to the next. It didn’t matter what Lucas had thought of her the first time he met her, or now, for that matter. She wrung her sweaty hands together in her lap. Abruptly, she stood. She needed to get away from all these people. The room suddenly seemed to close in around her.

  “Is there somewhere I can go to rest? I’m feeling rather tired.”

  Three pairs of eyes stared at her, but only one pair caused her pulse to quicken.

  “You don’t want any supper?” Sophie asked.

  “No. I just need some rest. It’s been a long day.”

  Sophie shot a final glare at Lucas, who stood as if he’d grown roots. His jaw muscles tightened.

  “We have a spare room.” Sophie took her by the arm, and led her out of the kitchen, back through the main room, and down a narrow hall at the opposite end of the house.

  Tori’s teeth and jaw hurt from clenching by the time she reached the door at the end of the hall. Sophie opened the door for her, and stepped aside.

  “It’s small, but should be comfortable enough. Are you sure you don’t want to eat something first?”

  Tori shook her head. “This’ll be fine,” she choked out, and quickly stepped into the room. She closed the door behind her, and leaned her back against the wood. Her eyes filled with tears, and she allowed herself to cry like she hadn’t cried in a long time.

  Chapter 17

  “Thanks.” Lucas accepted a steaming plate of stew from Sophie, and sat at the table across from his brother. Guilt nagged at him that Tori had decided to go hide out in the spare bedroom. What the hell had made her so mad at him that she felt the need to avoid him? She’d always stood her ground with him before, one of the many things he liked about her.

  The feel of her in his arms, her soft lips and body pressed to his, still heated his blood like nothing ever had. The way her eyes shimmered with warmth and longing after that last kiss under the cottonwoods twisted his chest to an almost painful ache. The need to protect her, keep her with him, and claim her as his own was more overpowering than anything he’d ever felt before. Not even the thrill of a buffalo hunt on the Great Plains, or facing a war party of deadly Blackfoot against insurmountable odds had ever made him feel so completely alive and ready to face any danger.

  Why had she reacted with such anger when he mentioned that they should get hitched? The idea of tying himself to a woman had never occurred to him before. He’d scoffed it off whenever his mother hinted that it might do him good to settle down with a woman. His burning need for Tori had made him throw caution to the wind, and bring it up with her before they reached the homestead. Lucas almost laughed out loud. The one woman he wanted to tie the knot with had reacted in anger at his suggestion.

  He stabbed his fork into a piece of meat, and lifted it to his mouth. Women. He’d never understand the inner workings of the female mind. Tori had to come out of that room at some point, and he’d talk to her again. He couldn’t simply let her disappear back into the mountains. If she chose to run off again, there was no telling what sort of trouble she’d get herself in. Trying to make her see reason might take a lot more persuading.

  Glancing up, his eyes connected with Joseph’s, who studied him with keen interest. Sophie sat beside her husband, and shot him an expectant look, as if she was waiting for him to say something. Lucas lowered the utensil. His eyes volleyed between his brother and sister-in-law.

  “What?” he finally asked. He dropped his fork into the bowl, and sat back. The smug looks on the faces staring at him from across the table grated on his already edgy nerves.

  “How did you get Victoria—”

  “Tori,” Lucas quickly corrected his sister-in-law. Her eyebrows rose even more, and the smile on her face widened.

  “Tori,” she repeated slowly. She leaned forward over the table. “How did you manage to get Tori to reveal that she was a woman, and not the boy everyone thought she was? She played the part very convincing.”

  Lucas cleared his throat. Memories flooded his mind; memories of Tori lying in the snow after that wolverine attack, adamantly fighting him off to keep him from tearing at her shirt to find her injury. He ran his hand through his hair.

  “She, ah, didn’t exactly tell me. I sorta found out after . . . a wolverine attacked her. I thought she was Jasper’s son when I saw her fall to the ground. After my own scuffle with that nasty critter, I tried to see to her wounds.”

  Lucas darted glances from Sophie to Joseph. Their eyes were fixed on him, waiting on him to continue. His hand tightened in a fist under the table to curb the urge to wipe the smirk off his brother’s face.

  “She had a deep claw mark across the . . . ah . . .” Lucas made a slashing motion across his chest. “She was passed out when I pulled her shirt apart.” He clenched his jaw and pushed the chair back. It nearly toppled over behind him when he leapt from his seat. He couldn’t stand to look at his brother any longer. What the hell did he and Sophie find so amusing? Tori had nearly died. He certainly didn’t see the humor in that.

  And she nearly died several times again because of your carelessness.

  “She must be some woman to have you so rattled.” Joseph chuckled behind him.

  “Your mother always said it would take an exceptional girl to catch Lucas’ eye. Looks like he finally found her,” Sophie said in her soft voice. “Strange that she would live all by herself in the mountains. I’m so glad you convinced her to come with you, Lucas.”

  Lucas turned slowly and faced his sister-in-law.

  You kidnapped me from my home against my will because you said it was for my own good. Tori’s anguished words replayed in his mind. Dammit! It had been for her own good. Why the hell didn’t she see that?

 
“I didn’t give her much choice in the matter,” he conceded. Before either of them could react, he glared at the two people sitting at the table. “She would have died if I had left her on that mountain. If not from the elements, then from Black Sparrow.” A surge of anger rushed through him, speaking that accursed Blackfoot’s name. Somehow it was important that his family agreed with his decision, even if Tori didn’t.

  “Black Sparrow?” Joseph’s smile left his face. He tensed. “Ain’t he that Blackfoot you like to rile so much?”

  “Yeah.” Lucas smirked. “Turns out he had his eye on Tori. He would have carried her off to his lodge already if I hadn’t done it first.”

  Sophie gave an un-ladylike snort. “So you simply carried her off the mountain? Does that make you any better than the Blackfoot? She didn’t want to go with you, did she?” Her eyes blazed as she threw her accusation at him.

  Lucas stared at her. He worked the muscles in his jaw. “I saved her life, dammit,” he growled, and pounded his fist on the table. “I . . . I couldn’t leave her there. She’s . . .” His voice trailed off.

  She’s what, Lucas? You could have easily killed Black Sparrow the day he showed up at the cabin. Then she wouldn’t have been in any danger from him.

  The truth stared him in the eyes. He couldn’t leave her there, because he wanted her with him. Sophie was right. It made him no better than the Indian. Tori had already worked her way under his skin even then, and he wanted her with him, not alone on that remote mountain. He could have supplied her with meat, restocked her woodpile, and been on his way. Then why the hell hadn’t he just done that?

  “Lucas has it in his mind that he’s going to marry Tori,” Joseph said calmly to his wife. He covered one of her hands with his.

  Sophie’s hard stare instantly softened. Her face beamed. “I knew I saw something in the way you looked at her when you came into the kitchen, Lucas.”

  “Do you plan to ask her before you leave again?” Joseph stood from the table, and carried his bowl to the long counter along the wall next to the hearth.

  “I already did,” Lucas grumbled. He brought his own bowl to the counter, his food uneaten.

  His brother’s head turned to him, his forehead wrinkled. Joseph’s eyes roamed over his face with a sympathetic look.

  “I talked to her just before we pulled up to the house.” Lucas ground his teeth. “When I told her that she should come with me to Fort Pierre so we could get hitched, she got angry. What the hell is it with women, Joseph?”

  Sophie shot to her feet and pushed between him and her husband, glaring up at him as if he’d insulted her grandfather.

  “You told her to come with you to get hitched? Are you that daft, Lucas?” Her voice rose, and she advanced on him. Gone was the refined look of an eastern-raised lady. Her features transformed into that of a fierce Indian. Joseph placed his hands on his wife’s shoulders and gave a gentle squeeze. She shot Joseph a hasty look, then turned her attention back on him.

  “Lucas Walker, I would trust you with my life in any situation, but when it comes to women, you don’t know the first thing, do you?” She glowered at him. Thankfully, she didn’t hold a cooking pot in her hand, or she might have hit it over his head. For a second, Sophie displayed Tori’s spitfire personality. Lucas smiled, a warm sensation coursing through him. It was another thing about her that set his body on fire. Tori didn’t back down or cower from him, or anyone else. She was the most courageous woman he’d ever met.

  “Princess, let me talk to my brother. I think you and I both know what’s wrong with him. I just don’t think he does.” Joseph whispered to his wife loud enough for Lucas to hear. He let go of her, and nudged with his chin toward the front door. “Let’s take a walk, Lucas.”

  “Well I hope you can get something through that thick skull of his. No wonder Tori looked so dejected when she arrived. I thought she might be sick.” Sophie’s eyes softened at her husband, then glared at him once again. Lucas quickly skirted around her, and followed Joseph out of the house.

  “What’s got your wife’s dander up, Joseph?” Lucas hissed after closing the door behind him. “I told Tori I thought we should get hitched. What the hell was I supposed to say to her?” He matched his brother’s stride toward the barn. The last rays of sunlight were quickly fading behind the mountains.

  “That’s not how you ask a woman to be your wife, little brother.” The laughter in Joseph’s voice was unmistakable.

  Lucas gritted his teeth. If he wanted advice from his brother, he’d best not lose his temper. “I ain’t been myself lately, Joseph. I can’t shake this affliction.”

  Joseph stopped walking when they were a good distance from the house, and faced him. His lips twitched. “Of course you can’t shake it, Lucas. There’s no cure for this sort of thing.”

  Lucas frowned.

  Joseph grinned broadly. “I never thought I’d see the day when you’d fall in love, little brother.”

  Love? Lucas’ heart slammed against his chest. His mouth went dry.

  “Have you told her you love her? That might be worth mentioning before you bring up the notion of marriage.”

  Love? You’re afflicted, Lucas. He’d known that the woman had gotten under his skin, but love? Was that what he felt when he couldn’t stop looking at her, thinking she was the most beautiful thing he’d ever seen? When she set his heart to beat wildly just thinking about her smile? Her touch turned him into a heaping mass of embers, ready to ignite the moment her lips touched his. He’d fight anyone to the death if he thought her life was threatened. Was that what love felt like?

  Lucas, you mule’s ass.

  “I figured I’d just marry her, like you did with Sophie. I remember you being all addled. It seems to have brought you back to your senses.” His voice sounded strange even in his own ears.

  Joseph chuckled. “Marriage didn’t cure me of loving Sophie. It’s only made my feelings stronger.” He placed a hand on Lucas’ arm. “You’re the one who told me that I needed to tell her that I love her, remember? You told me women like that sort of talk. I was as blind as you are now. I think it might be time for you to heed your own advice.”

  You’re in love with Tori. The thought pounded in his ears like a war drum. You’re in love with Tori, and you couldn’t see it. He almost laughed. Everyone else had seen it. Buffalo Horn, his brother, Sophie. Had Tori seen it, too?

  You bloody fool, Lucas. He kicked at some dirt on the ground. How the hell could he have foreseen that he would fall in love with her? It wasn’t something he had planned. Hell. Hadn’t he always said he’d never fall in love with a woman because he’d seen what it did to his brother? Because a woman would only tie him to one place?

  The feeling had ambushed him like a war party of Blackfoot. Before he had any chance to recognize it for what it was, or even attempt to fight it off, it had hit him harder than an arrow from a Sheepeater bow. Then it had blinded him to see what was right in front of him, and he’d acted like the jackass Tori proclaimed him to be. He’d told her she was beautiful, desirable, and that he couldn’t get her out of his mind, but he’d left out telling her the most important thing. No wonder she’d told him to find a willing woman elsewhere.

  “I’m gonna give you a little piece of advice, Lucas. Don’t make demands on a woman. The quickest way to get their dander up is if you tell them what to do because you deem that it’s best for them. I made the same mistake when I met Sophie. I told her she had to come with me to meet Two Bears. Her feathers were ruffled worse than a sage grouse during mating season. When I backed off and let her make her own decision, she came around. You have to ask like you mean it.” Joseph paused, a serious look on his face. “And you need to make your feelings known.”

  His brother slapped him on the back, then turned and headed back to the house, leaving Lucas standing in the dim evening light.

  Lucas paced the path that led from the house to the barn. He glanced off toward the mountains. A faint white glow outl
ined the snow-covered peaks, but the valley was quickly enveloped in darkness. Clouds covered any stars in the moonless sky.

  Faint light shone from the windows of the home Joseph and Sophie shared with his folks. The soft snorts of horses in a nearby corral mingled with the yip of a coyote in the distance. Peaceful sounds, belying the turmoil that twisted his insides into knots.

  When he was home, Lucas slept in the hayloft above one of the barns, where he’d built a bunk and kept several trunks with his belongings. Aside from his clothes, weapons, assorted harness, and gear, he didn’t own much. Not that he had use for anything else. He did own one-third of the homestead and the livestock, and his mother often asked him why he didn’t sleep at the house in the room he had occupied when he was a young boy. The room that Tori now slept in. The big house had become too confining for him over the years, and he preferred the solitude of the barn.

  He ran his hand through his hair. He loved her. It was plain as day to him now. Why hadn’t he realized it before? Was he truly as daft as Sophie said?

  Marriage won’t solve that you have nothing but straw between your ears, Lucas.

  The hurt in Tori’s voice echoed in his mind. Would she have agreed to a marriage if he’d made his feelings known? He swore under his breath. He’d gone about it all wrong. He’d messed up everything he’d done since he stumbled across Tori Williams and discovered that she wasn’t a he.

  There’s one secret she hasn’t revealed yet. He would get the truth out of her. Regardless of whether she agreed to marry him, he’d clear her name. He had acquaintances in St. Louis, lawyers, to whom he could go for help and advice. But first she had to tell him what had happened.

  First, you have to tell her how you feel about her, you knobhead.

  Lucas glanced toward the house. He had to tell her now. His heart rate increased with every determined step he took toward the house. He was about to tell a woman that he loved her. His lips curved upward. Excitement surged through him just like it had when he and Tori made their escape from the Blackfoot camp. He loved her, and he couldn’t let another minute go by without telling her.