She hoped Josh planned to allow for a day or two of rest at his cabin. She didn’t know if she could continue on in this weather without giving her body a chance to recover from the unbearable cold. If he meant to push on straight away, she wouldn’t complain. She’d get through this ordeal somehow. The last thing she wanted was to appear weak in his eyes.
Hopefully she could find a boarding house that would take in a pregnant woman once they reached Helena. She needed to get settled somewhere before her baby’s birth. All these months, while trying to find a way out of these endless mountains, and during her time with the Shoshone family, she’d always held to the belief that her father would welcome her home. She hadn’t expected such complete rejection and hatred from him. None of what had happened to her had been her doing. Surely he understood that. His drunkenness must have blinded him to see reason. It would have been futile to try and explain the events that led to her condition more clearly. Perhaps then he wouldn’t have forced this marriage. The money Martha had given her was enough to get her through a few months, but she had no idea what she would do then. Something will come to you, Dani. It’ll all work out. She refused to give in to negative thoughts.
A strong gust of wind blew across her face, and Danica sucked in a mouthful of icy air. Her lungs burned from the sensation. Surely, she would freeze from the inside out. Her baby had been unusually quiet over the last few hours as well. Did he feel the cold? Danica pulled the blanket up over her head. She could barely move her stiff arms. She clamped her mouth shut, otherwise she would have called out to Josh, asking if they could please stop and build a fire. Her hand reached up to her face, and she swiped at the frozen tears on her cheeks.
Danica glanced up between her horse’s ears when her mare’s movement slowed. Josh’s horse stopped suddenly in front of her. Danica’s mount didn’t wait for her to draw back on the reins. The mare pulled up just behind the paint gelding. Danica rested one hand on the saddle horn and slumped forward as far as her stomach would allow, her other hand clutching at her blanket. Please let him say we’re stopping for a while.
Josh turned his head, and their eyes met. His brows furrowed, and some emotion Danica couldn’t name flashed in his eyes. She held his gaze briefly, then lowered her eyes and head to shield herself from the wind, too exhausted and cold to keep her chin up. Her horse took a step to the side, and Danica raised her head again, but only slightly. Josh had maneuvered his horse next to hers.
“Dani?” he called, and reached out to touch her on the arm. How could his hand be so warm? Even through the layers of the blanket, and the buckskin of her dress, heat seeped into her skin from where he touched her. Involuntarily, she leaned into his hand. His fingers curved around her arm in a firm grip. “Why the hell didn’t you tell me you were this cold?” His voice held an angry edge.
“We need to get to Helena, remember?” she answered weakly, each word painful to her raw throat. She dared not look at him.
“Dammit, woman. Your stubbornness is going to get you killed.”
“Speak for yourself,” she whispered a retort, and shifted in her saddle. The movement caused a painful jab in her lower back, which radiated up her spine, and down into her legs. She couldn’t hold back a gasp.
Josh’s grip tightened on her arm, and his horse moved close enough that his leg brushed up against hers. Danica gripped the saddle horn in an effort to remain upright. All she wanted to do at this moment was fall into his arms, be enveloped by his warmth.
“Dani.” He shook her slightly. “Look up. The Madison is just below this rise. We’re almost to my cabin. Can you make it just a bit longer?”
His words brought her head up. They were almost to his home? She’d be warm again soon. The hope of a fire, and perhaps a bed to sleep in renewed her inner strength. She gazed up over her horse’s neck. They stood on top of a gentle rise, a meadow spanning out below. Patches of snow covered the area, and the river’s edge was iced over. Tall mountains rose sharply into the gray sky on the opposite banks of the river, their peaks obscured by dense clouds. Further ahead, where the river turned in a wide, sweeping bend, she saw what looked like buildings.
“I can make it.” She forced the words out. She didn’t know if he heard or not, or if the wind had drowned out what she said.
“Dani, stay with me. You can’t fall asleep. You need to stay alert, do you hear?” His words sounded so far away. Josh tugged the reins from her frozen grip. “Just hold on to the saddle. We’ll be at the cabin within minutes.”
Automatically, she did what he said. Forcing her frozen fingers to move and grip the saddle horn with both hands, she fully released her hold on the reins. Her horse moved underneath her. As much as she tried to stay alert, her eyelids became heavier by the second, and she finally gave in and closed her eyes. Only for a minute. Her head swayed in time with the horse’s movements. Instinctively, she leaned back when the animal moved down the hill.
The rhythmic timing of her mare’s four-beat footfalls lulled her into an almost dream-like state. The rushing sounds of water drew closer.
“Open your eyes, dammit!” Josh’s rough words jolted her out of her relaxed state. She forced her lids to open, and she dragged her head up. The horse kept moving, but Josh was right beside her. His leg kept bumping hers as he tried to keep both horses moving closely next to each other. He tugged at the blanket to pull it more firmly around her. It must have come loose while she’d gripped the saddle. The sudden heaviness of a warm robe weighed on her shoulders.
“We’re almost there. Think of your child, and stay awake.” His heated tone fueled her own anger.
“Why do you have to be so bossy?” she hissed. Why couldn’t he just leave her alone. She wanted sleep more than anything right now.
“That’s it, get mad. It’ll keep you alive.” Josh slapped her on the back, startling her more fully awake. Danica gripped the saddle horn for support, even as it jabbed into her stomach.
“Have you always been such a gentleman, or am I the only one who brings out such charming behavior in you?” She managed to raise her head and glare in his direction. His lips curved in a slow grin. Danica’s heart skipped a beat. His handsome features became more pronounced when he smiled.
“Why, you bring out the best in me, Dani,” he drawled, his words purely dripping in sarcasm.
She forced her eyes away, and tried to focus on the landscape ahead. They were closer to the river than she had realized. The flat ground that spread out before her was muddy and brown from the recent snow melt. The horses’ hooves squished loudly through the slush. Danica envisioned a lush green meadow to replace the drabness when spring arrived. At the moment, springtime and sunshine seemed far away. She thought about the warm sun on her frozen skin, how it would melt away the cold. Right now, the sun was unable to penetrate through the thick clouds of the grey skies, making her entire surroundings appear dreary and colorless.
Up ahead, two large cabins, and some horse corrals came into view. A barn stood further back of the cabins.
“This is where you live?” Danica asked, her eyes widening. It wasn’t what she had envisioned at all. She had expected Josh to live in a small shack in the middle of the forest somewhere. These cabins looked like real homes, somewhere a family would live.
“You live in two cabins?”
Josh chuckled. “No. This was my grandparents’ home for many years. My grandpa settled here a long time ago. I live in their former home.”
“And who lives in the other cabin?” Did other people live here besides Josh? She had always assumed he’d be completely on his own.
“My cousin, Kyle Russell, his wife Kate, and their daughter Ashlynn.”
Danica turned in the saddle to stare at him in disbelief. “Kate Russell lives here?” Her heart sped up at the prospect. She hadn’t seen her friend in five years, when Kate’s vile former husband forcefully removed her from Virginia City. Perhaps Kate and Kyle could help her, although she didn’t relish the idea to ask.<
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Josh’s eyebrows drew together. “You know her?”
“Yes. We were friends a while back, when she stayed in Virginia City.”
Josh’s face turned dark. He probably remembered what had happened five years ago, and how his cousin had nearly died. To this day, she felt somewhat responsible for Kyle getting shot and thrown out a hotel window when she helped him sneak in to see Kate. Did Josh know the role Danica played in his cousin’s near-fatal encounter? She dismissed the thought. He couldn’t know, since he hadn’t even remembered her.
“Well, you can see them when we get to Helena. They’re staying with Kyle’s folks for the winter. Since he’s been made superintendent of the Yellowstone Park, business keeps him in the city.”
Danica tried to hide her disappointment. It would have been nice to see Kate. It would have to wait for when they got to Helena. At least it gave her something to look forward to.
Josh brought the horses to a halt in front of the smaller of the two log homes. He swung his leg over his gelding’s neck, and landed lightly on his feet. Wordlessly, he moved around the horses, to appear seconds later to the left of her mount. He looked up at her. “Let’s get you inside and warmed up,” he said casually.
Danica groaned. She was too stiff and frozen to move. She tried to move her right leg to swing it over the horse’s back. It felt as if someone had tied a sack of river rocks to it. She could barely move it. It would have been easier if she could have leaned forward, but her heavy bulk and the saddle horn prevented her from any attempt at gracefulness. Suddenly, Josh pulled the robe and blankets away from her, and the icy wind blasted her anew.
“What are you doing?” she gasped.
“I ain’t waiting around all day for you to decide to get off that horse,” he said impatiently. In the same instant, he grabbed fistfuls of her buckskin dress at either side of her waist, since he obviously couldn’t get a good hold on her with her expanded midsection, and pulled her from the saddle like a sack of flour. She had no time to react before she found herself in Josh’s arms, cradled against his solid chest. He was so warm. Danica flung her arms around his neck.
“You’re going to rip your shoulder open again,” she whispered breathlessly, her face inches from his.
“It’s healing fine,” he said dismissively, then added, “but you are a mite heavy.” The sides of his lips twitched. His gaze lingered briefly, before he abruptly broke eye contact and stepped up to the cabin door. Somehow, he managed to push down on the handle. With his elbow, he nudged the door open, and stepped sideways into the cabin.
“Why, Josh Osborne,” Danica exclaimed dramatically, a wide smile on her face. She tightened her grip around his neck, and batted her eyelashes at him. If he could make sarcastic remarks, then so could she. “Do you realize you just carried your new bride across the threshold of your home? A girl might get the wrong idea.”
Josh’s eyebrows furrowed, and any hint of a smile left his face. As if he realized what he’d just done, he abruptly set her on her feet. She clung to his neck to keep from collapsing to the ground, her frozen limbs too weak to support her fully. Her legs tingled from the bottoms of her soles upward as blood rushed through her veins. Her racing heart would surely speed up her thawing out process.
Josh reached up and extracted her arms from around his neck, and took a step back. His eyes narrowed, his mouth drawn in that familiar hard line.
“Don’t play games with me, Dani. That might work on other men. I’m not like the man you may have seduced, and whose child you’re now carrying.” His cold words matched the icy winds she’d endured all day.
Danica pressed her lips together, then raised her chin and looked him squarely in the eyes. Gone was the man from three days ago, the one who tenderly rubbed the pain out of her back. She couldn’t figure him out. He could be kind and thoughtful one moment, and in the next, tear her heart out with a few cold words. Tears blurred her vision. Regardless, she was sure of one thing. Josh Osborne could never do the things her baby’s father had done to her.
She took a deep breath. “No, Josh,” she whispered, not daring to speak normally for fear her voice might crack and betray her hurt. “You’re most definitely nothing like him. Because if you were, I would have to kill you, too.”
Chapter Ten
Josh stood in stunned silence, thinking about her words. She would kill him if he acted like her baby’s father – whatever the hell that meant. Dani fisted her hands at her sides and glared at him.
“You’re no different than my father, Josh,” she said in a much too calm voice. “He made assumptions about me as well.” Her voice grew louder with each word. She hastily swiped at the tears running down her face. Josh cursed himself silently. Holding her in his arms, carrying her into the cabin, had stirred something in him that he didn’t care to explore further, something he’d been trying to avoid for the last three days.
She threw her hands in the air. “No questions asked, not giving me a chance to speak, and explain myself.” She inhaled deeply, and turned away from him as quickly as her bulky form allowed, still slicing her hands through the air in an agitated manner. “You and he simply drew your own conclusions, based on my appearance and condition. Well you’re both wrong.” Dani spun around to glare at him again, and Josh’s hand reached out reflexively, afraid she’d trip and fall with that quick maneuver. She swiped his arm away, and laughed a bitter laugh. Her eyes narrowed on him, and he swallowed. If she didn’t stop her rant soon, he was tempted to pull her in his arms and kiss her just to shut her up. To keep himself from doing exactly that, he folded his hands across his chest, a gesture that seemed to only spur her on.
“You made unfounded accusations against me five years ago when we first met,” she accused, advancing on him. Standing almost close enough for her protruding stomach to touch him, she challenged him with her blazing eyes. “You called me a silly female, simply because I accidentally bumped into you. What the hell do you even know about me, Josh? I’ve never looked at you to see an Indian standing before me. You’re a man, like any other.” She assessed him boldly as her eyes traveled up and down his body to make her point. He shifted his weight, groaning silently when heat pooled in his gut.
”You, of all people, I would expect more from,” she continued, and mercifully took a step back. Josh fisted his hands under his armpits. “I’m sure being of mixed blood has made some people wary of you. People like my father, who can’t see past the color of a man’s skin. Yet here you are, seeing me only as a pregnant woman without a husband, then drawing the conclusion that I must have loose morals, like some . . . some common saloon whore.” Her body shook as she drew in a fresh breath. “Perhaps you’re not the man I thought you were,” she added after a brief pause, her voice eerily quiet.
Josh moved away from her when he was reasonably sure she was done talking, and headed for the hearth. Time to get the cabin heated up, not that his body needed it. With his back turned to her, he reached for some kindling in the wood box. The last time he’d received a tongue lashing that came close to Dani’s had been fifteen years ago when he was ten. His grandmother had caught him spying on his cousins while they bathed in the river. After a thorough dressing down, he hadn’t been allowed to go hunting with his grandfather for an entire month.
“You’ll find blankets and a clean bed in the room to your right,” he said for lack of anything better to say, without turning to look at her. He focused his ears for any sounds behind him. All was silent momentarily, then the squeaking of some floorboards as Dani moved in the direction of the room. Only when the bedroom door opened and then closed softly, did he turn around. He stared at the door, ran his hand through his hair, and expelled the breath he’d been holding. He felt about as low as a snake slithering through the grass.
Several hours later, Josh stood motionless, gazing out the window at the gloomy landscape across the meadow. Devoid of the lush green color it would take on in a few months when spring’s renewal brought forth a
thick green carpet of grass, the meadow looked brown and drab, patches of ice and snow sprinkled everywhere like a sugar dusting on his grandma’s sweet rolls. It would be dark soon, even though it was early in the afternoon yet. The ominous gray sky promised a blizzard. Since breaking camp this morning, the weather had turned from cold to downright freezing. The further onto the plateau they traveled, the colder it became, and Josh had pushed as fast as he dared with Dani in tow, to reach the Madison Valley before it started to snow. He hadn’t bothered telling her about the impeding blizzard. No reason she should have to worry about the weather.
He muttered a curse under his breath. He’d been so focused on getting to the valley, he hadn’t paid attention to the woman riding behind him for hours that morning. In truth, he’d kept his distance as best as he could since leaving Virginia City.
His reaction to her three days ago in his aunt’s bedroom disturbed him. Since when had he ever given a fair-haired white woman a second glance? Growing up in both the white man’s world and in the Shoshone traditions, he’d come to realize at an early age that acceptance among white people would not come easy. Josh considered himself lucky to have grown up within a family that didn’t buy in to the prejudices of most white men. He knew his white father had loved his Shoshone mother. They’d been married in the traditions of her Akaideka clan, as well as by a white judge.
His mother, Tatsawani Uma, had chosen to abandon her life in her clan in order to be with her white husband. She had shortened her Shoshone name to the English version Summer, and taken her husband’s last name. Josh knew his father hadn’t asked her to give up her traditions and customs to live as a white woman. She had simply done it out of love and respect for her husband.
Yellowstone Dawn (Yellowstone Romance Series Book 4) Page 9
