Love a Dark Rider

by Shirlee Busbee

  For once Sara was glad of Bartholomew's protective intervention, and sweeping grandly past Yancy, she said airily, "Actually, there is nothing further to discuss! I shan't be going to del Sol and that's final!"

  Yancy caught her arm and spun her around. "I had hoped to do this pleasantly, but you're not going to give me any choice, are you, chicaT'

  Despite her inward trepidation, Sara's chin came up. "You mean we were going to do things your way and that as long as I spinelessly went along with them, it would be pleasant—for youV Her small bosom heaving from sudden, deep emotion, she snapped, "I am not going to del Sol—I'm going to Casa Paloma and you can't stop me!"

  His mouth thinned and he hung on to his temper with a visible effort. "You shouldn't toss about that kind of challenge, sweetheart... and when you twist the tiger's tail, you'd better be damned ready for what comes afterward!"

  He flung her arm away from him and stalked down the hall. Obviously disturbed by the exchange, Sara nervously rubbed her hands on the front of her black skirts.

  "You know," Bartholomew began conversationally, "Yancy is used to arranging events to suit himself. Sometimes he does things without thinking of the consequences, but it has been my observation in the past that when it is diplomatically pointed out to him that he might have been too hasty ... or high-handed in his plans, he usually will reconsider." He shot Sara an oblique look. "I should tell you also that one sure way to have him dig in his heels and obstinately refuse to budge is to hurl a challenge at his head the way you did just now."

  "Well, that's just too bad!" Sara retorted. "I'm not about to just let him barge right in and start rearranging

  my life to suit him! Besides, since he feels the way he does about me, I can't imagine why he wants me at del Sol. Whatever he might say to the contrary, it wasn't kindness that prompted him to make the invitation! And now, if you don't mind, I'm going to the kitchen to eat that excellent meal you said Tansy has waiting for me.

  In the mysterious ways of extended households, the news of Yancy's offer to buy Sara's share of Magnolia Grove and the proposed removal to del Sol had already spread to all the interested inhabitants. While she ate her meltingly tender dumplings and tasty chicken, Sara had to listen to the excited chatter of Peggy, Tansy, Noah and his wife, Mercy, who also happened to be in the kitchen as they exclaimed over the news. Inwardly seething, Sara kept her own thoughts to herself; until she had settled things with Yancy, there was no use telling the others that she'd eat sand and spit out bullets before she'd go to del Sol! The food stuck in her throat, and after calming the worst of her hunger, she pushed her half-full plate away, ignoring Tansy's vocal dismay at how little she had eaten and fled the kitchen.

  Afraid that she would be ambushed by either Tom or Ann if she returned to the house, she decided to take a stroll along the small creek that ran behind the kitchen. It was pleasant here, the shady oaks and magnolia trees creating a cool haven from the almost tropical heat of the April sun. She took several steadying breaths, and with her thoughts dwelling on what had occurred this morning and what it all meant to her immediate future, she wandered aimlessly along the gently burbling creek.

  Sara was so lost in her own musings that she didn't realize how far she had walked until a faint, ominous rustling in a thicket of blackberry bushes startled her. Despite the various plantations scattered about this part

  of southeastern Texas, there were countless acres of wilderness, only the land cleared for planting and the areas near buildings and bams in any way considered tamed. Somewhat uneasily, Sara glanced around; seeing the tangle of honeysuckle, blackberries and wild grape that festooned the thickly crowded trees, and with visions of rattlesnakes, bears and cougars spilling into her brain, she decided that she had better head back to more civilized areas.

  There was another rustle, closer this time, and a shiver snaked down her spine. She spun around, her steps quickening as she walked swiftly back the way she had come. Almost at a run, she rounded a slight curve and stopped abruptly when she saw Hyrum, a frown on his face, coming toward her. His expression bleak, he hurriedly approached her and asked bluntly, "Is it true? Yancy is buying you out and you are moving to del Sol?"

  Sara was so glad to see him that she didn't take offense at his manner. "No, I'm not going to del Sol! That's just a silly notion that Yancy has—and just how very silly it is, he will soon learn."

  Hyrum's handsome features relaxed slightly. "I'm afraid that my motives in coming to you are totally self-serving—I was fearful that you would be letting me go."

  "Hyrum, don't worry! I have promised you that when we go to Casa Paloma, you will go with us." She smiled at him. "Haven't we discussed that you are to help me in the breeding program? That you will be my foreman?"

  "If Yancy will let you," he said bitterly. "He hates me and will stop at nothing until he has driven me away."

  Sara sighed. She was in no mood to soothe Hyrum's worries and she wasn't about to get into a discussion about Yancy Cantrell! "I wouldn't worry about what

  Yancy thinks," she said lightly. "Yancy will not be running Casa Paloma, / will!"

  "I repeat, //"he lets you! He swore he'd kill Margaret before he'd let her have Casa Paloma." Startling Sara, Hyrum suddenly grabbed her hand and clasped it tightly between his. Staring fervently at her, he muttered, "Look what happened to Margaret—he killed her! Do you really think he will just tamely let you take over Casa Paloma? And if he manages to spirit you away to del Sol, what chance do you think you will have?" His grip on her hand became almost painful. "You must not trust him, no matter how charming and kind he may seem. I don't want you hurt by him and... and..." Before Sara's horrified gaze, he dropped to his knees in front of her and began pressing frantic kisses onto the hand he held. "Sara, Sara, you must know how I feel about you!" he exclaimed passionately, his eyes lifted to hers. "I've tried to hide my feelings—I know it is too soon after Sam died, but Yancy's presence compels me to speak now!" He took a deep breath and said in a rush, "I've always loved you—practically from the first—marry me! Let me stand between you and Yancy Cantrell!"

  "Oh, Hyrum!" Sara said distressfully, trying to untangle her hand from his and wishing heartily that she could instantly disappear in a puff of smoke. "Oh, don't,. . Oh, please, you don't know what you're saying! You're upset right now, but I'm sure if you think things over, you'll realize that. . ."

  Nothing was going to stop Hyrum, not even the fact that his lady-love seemed distinctly unenthusiastic about his proposal. Rising from his knees, he embraced Sara. "I know it is too much to hope that you will love me as I love you, but, Sara, darling, give me a chance!"

  He pressed his mouth ardently to hers and Sara had never been so uncomfortable or embarrassed in her life.

  As his mouth groped for hers, a shudder of repugnance went through her. She wanted and needed Hyrum's help to implement her plans for Casa Paloma, but not at this price! She didn't want to hurt his feelings, but she also wasn't about to be subjected to his unwanted and uninvited advances! She began to struggle in his arms, turning her face aside so that his seeking lips only grazed her cheek and trying with a minimum of fuss to disengage herself from his embrace.

  To Yancy, approaching from the same direction Hyrum had taken, the situation looked far different; with something that resembled a feral growl, in two swift strides, he fairly leaped upon the entwined pair and ripped them apart. With one powerful movement he sent Hyrum flying to the ground, knocking the breath from him. One hand firmly wrapped itself around Sara's wrist, and a revolver suddenly appeared in the other— the long blue barrel aimed at the stunned Hyrum.

  Hyrum glared at Yancy and rose slowly to his feet. Fists clenched at his sides, he asked harshly, "Why don't we ask Sara how she feels about me touching her?"

  For one terrible moment Sara thought that Yancy would shoot Hyrum where he stood, and desperate to avert a terrible tragedy, she said sharply, "Stop it—both of you! I am not a bone to be fought over by a pair of surly dog
s!" Sending Hyrum a speaking glance, she said in a calmer tone of voice, "It's all right. I can handle this myself." She smiled shakily. "Please, Hyrum, don't cause any trouble—go back to the house."

  It was obvious he didn't like it, but after taking a considering look at the gun in Yancy's hand, Hyrum nodded curtly and said tightly, "We'll talk later."

  "I doubt it!" Yancy retorted in a clipped tone.

  "We'll just see about that, won't we?" Hyrum threw back challengingly, an ugly look in his eyes. "Perhaps

  you'd like to drop that gun, and we can see just how bold you really are!"

  "Hyrum! PleaseV Sara cried in an anguished voice. "Go."

  Ignoring Yancy, Hyrum looked intently at Sara. "Only because you ask it of me," he said softly and turned and walked away.

  Held prisoner by Yancy's unyielding clasp, Sara watched him go, envying Hyrum his escape. Somehow she didn't think she'd be let off so easily. Although, she thought with a frown, what she had done to arouse such behavior on Yancy's part was inconceivable! Her initial astonishment at what had happened faded and a strong sense of injustice welled up through her. Whether or not she wanted to be kissed by Hyrum wasn't any of Yancy Cantrell's business, and he'd had no right to burst upon them like that. As the seconds passed, she became thoroughly enraged, and finally managing to free her wrist, she unconsciously rubbed it where Yancy's savage grip had bruised the soft skin. Her green eyes snapping with temper, she demanded hotly, "And just what the devil do you think you are doing? How dare you treat Hyrum that way!"

  Yancy's fierce gaze swept back to her, and instinctively Sara took a step away from the fury she saw glittering in the depths of his eyes. There was something so deadly in his expression that for a moment she wondered uneasily if her instincts had played her false and that she would be wise to fear for her life.

  Some of what she was thinking must have shown on her face, because in the next instant the worst of the terrible rage had left his features. Slowly reholstering his pistol, he said quietly, "You know, if I were you, I'd be more worried about myself than Hyrum!"

  "Why?" Sara countered bravely. "I've done nothing wrong! But you! You're the one who burst in on us and

  threatened Hyrum. How do you explain your actions?"

  Yancy took her firmly by one arm and began to lead her back toward the house. "Let's just say that I was protecting my interests, shall we?"

  "Protecting your interests!" Sara exclaimed furiously. "And what do you mean by that?"

  Yancy slanted her a mocking look. "I think you know very well what I mean!" And to her astonishment, he jerked her into his arms and kissed her.

  It was a hard, possessive kiss, and as that same giddy burst of excitement that Sara always felt when Yancy kissed her surged up through her, there was a part of Sara that marveled how very different her reaction had been when Hyrum had tried to kiss her. Yancy's mouth was warm and demanding as he kissed her, his teeth nibbling on her lower lip, half coaxing, half ordering her to open her mouth for his hungry exploration. He was very adept at what he did, but Sara doggedly resisted the treacherous desire that threatened to override her senses. Pushing him firmly away from her, she asked tartly, "Is that your answer to everything? A kiss?"

  A smile quirked at the comers of his mouth. "Can you think of a better one?"

  Resentment welled up inside her at his teasing tone and hotly she began, "I certainly—!"

  Yancy's lips on hers cut off the stinging reply, and despite her struggle to escape him, he kissed her deeply and thoroughly, a guttural groan of satisfaction revealing his pleasure. When he lifted his mouth from hers and looked down at her, his eyes filled with emotions she could only guess at, he growled savagely, "You're minel And remember that the next time Hyrum or anybody else attempts to touch you! I don't like my woman entertaining the advances of other men."

  Indignation swelled in Sara's breast and her pretty face tinted rosily from temper. "You don't own me!

  And just where you got the ludicrous idea that you have some prior claim to me—or to my affections— is beyond comprehension!"

  Again displaying one of his lightning-swift mood changes, Yancy seemed to relax and, a mocking smile on his mouth, he drawled, "Why, sweetheart, have you forgotten? According to Sam's will and your conniving, we're going to make a baby, maybe two or three, together! I think that explains my 'prior claim,' don't you? I certainly can't stand by and let other men charm you away from me, can I?"

  "Oh, stop it!" Sara said exasperatedly. "You have some sort of unhealthy fixation about Casa Paloma and it is time you got over it! Your ancestors may have settled the land generations ago, but it is only land, and I don't intend to become a broodmare for your children simply so you can satisfy some driving ambition!" She glared up at him, unaware of how attractive she looked with strands of honey-gold hair which had escaped from the neat braid curling wildly near her cheeks.

  An enigmatic gleam in his eyes, Yancy lazily pulled a resisting Sara into his arms. With insulting ease he subdued her struggles and brushed her mouth tantaliz-ingly with his. "Are you so certain, amiga, that it is just the land that prompts me?" She stared in amazement at him. He kissed her then, his knowing mouth intent upon inflicting a mind-drugging assault, but Sara grimly fought out of his arms, and gazing up into his dark face, she demanded, "What do you mean by that? If it isn't the land, why else would you be so, so .. ." Words failed her and she glared at him.

  He flicked a careless finger down her cheek and murmured, "You're an intelligent woman ... I'm sure if you think about it long enough, you'll come up with an answer."

  He began to walk away from her, but she was determined to get a straight reply from him. "Yancy Cantrell, you come back here this very instant!'* she ordered him imperiously. "Don't you walk away from me! I'm not through talking to you!"

  Yancy glanced back at her, an inftiriatingly smug smile on his lips. "Ah, but, sweetheart, I've said all I have to say on the matter!"

  It was too much, and with a decidedly ferocious little growl for such a dainty creature, Sara picked up her black silken skirts and raced after him. Catching up with him, she began to pummel his broad, muscular back with her fists. "Don't you ever,'' she exclaimed, almost breathless from her exertions and the anger that flooded her, "walk away from me again!"

  Laughing, Yancy turned and caught her flailing fists in his hands. "What a fiery little tigress you can be," he said half teasingly, half admiringly, and there was a soft light in his eyes that suddenly made Sara breathless for entirely different reasons.

  His laughter faded and they stared at each other, utterly mesmerized. They might have gone on standing there looking into each other's eyes indefinitely, but Tom Shelldrake's voice rang out, shattering the fragile spell that had enveloped them.

  "Oh, Yancy! Yancy! I must speak with you!" Tom cried loudly.

  Yancy released Sara and looked in Tom's direction. He had not yet seen Tom Shelldrake since he had arrived, and it was only by the greatest effort of will that he did not betray his shock at the changes in the older man.

  The years and the war had not been kind to Thomas Shelldrake. He had come home from the battle a broken and shattered man. It wasn't just the terrible wounds that he had sustained, but the sights and sounds that had accompanied the ugly act of war. His nerves were

  gone, along with the boyish charm he had once possessed. He looked years older than his age of forty-two, his once thick tawny hair lying in thinning, lank wisps across his head. His once bright, laughing brown eyes were dull and lifeless and he seemed to have shrunk, to have become an old man; he bore no resemblance to the jovial, bluff, handsome individual he had been the last time Yancy had seen him. Tom carried his useless left arm in a black silk sling, and Yancy, who had not felt at all kindly toward him previously, was suddenly aware of a burst of compassionate pity. Tom Shelldrake had lost everything—his fortune, his home and his physical well-being—^and Yancy was thoroughly ashamed of his earlier observations about the Shelldrakes.


  A warm smile crossing his dark features, Yancy walked swiftly toward the older man. When they were close enough, he thrust out his hand and said awkwardly, "Well, Tom, we meet again!"

  There was a twinkle in Tom's brown eyes and a hint of his former heartiness was apparent as he clasped Yancy's hand and shook it enthusiastically. "Indeed we do! Indeed we do! And I want to thank you for your generosity! Ann has been telling me about your so-very-kind invitation to us. I won't deny that I have had some grave misgivings about moving to Casa Paloma, but now that I know you're in charge, I can rest easy."

  Tom between vexation and resignation, Sara watched the two men, their heads bent together, stroll slowly toward the house. Her mouth twisted ruefully. There was certainly nothing to be gained by trying to continue the argument with Yancy at this point. She would just have to keep a civil tongue between her teeth until she could get him in some private place and make him understand—if she had to take a club to him to do it— that she was not going to del Sol, that he was not taking over her life and that if he wanted to have the Shelldrakes

  live with him, that was fine with her! She giggled suddenly. She could almost feel sorry for Yancy—he was probably still reeling from the brash way in which Ann had ruthlessly manipulated events, and now that he'd seen Tom Shelldrake, even if he was angry with Ann's high-handed machinations, Sara doubted that he would withdraw the supposed invitation.

  Her sympathy for Yancy, however, was short-lived. Just a few minutes after the two men had disappeared in the direction of the now dilapidated stables, Sara returned to the house to find everything in an uproar. Bartholomew, Tansy and Peggy seemed to be very busy stripping the walls of what few paintings and ornaments remained, and there was a growing pile of selected furniture and household items in the main hallway.

  "What are you doing?" she demanded bewilderedly as she watched the three servants darting here and there.