She stared at him, and he stared back, unflinching. Grace inhaled a deep breath to calm her insides. She nodded.
“I’m sorry,” she mumbled.
Levi’s calloused hand lingered on top of hers. “I understand,” he said quietly, his eyes locked on hers. “Maybe someday, you’ll tell me what you’re really afraid of.” His eyes darted quickly to Rose, then back to her.
He let go of her hand, and reined his horse back in the direction of the valley below. “Cade and Laura are good people. They’re not going to turn you over to the authorities,” he called over his shoulder.
Rose hugged her from behind, soothing Grace’s turmoil. She sighed, and stared after Levi. It was time to put her fears aside, and time to stop running. In front of her was a man she could care for deeply, if only she let it happen. Was it time to stop fighting what was right in front of her? Perhaps Rose was right. She glanced over her shoulder, and offered a smile to her little sister.
“You’re right, Rosie. I think we can trust Mr. Colter,” she conceded.
The admission made her heart jump in her chest. Levi had completely turned her world, and plans, upside down, and her mind had swung like a wild pendulum from on thought to another ever since that kiss. She was weary of her conflicting thoughts, and an instant surge of relief swept over her now that she’d come to a firm decision to put her trust in him. Rose beamed with a bright smile.
When they approached the farm, a young boy, who looked to be a year or two younger than Andy, darted from the house. A man followed. Grace’s heart sped up again, and she swallowed her apprehension. There was nothing to worry about. Levi dismounted his horse, setting Andy on the ground in front of him, and the two men exchanged greetings.
“I was just heading out,” the man named Cade said. There was an urgent look to his face. His gaze darted to the mule for a moment, and lingered on Rose, then Grace. He turned back to Levi, a question in his eyes, but something other than satisfying his curiosity seemed to take precedence. “I think Laura’s close to having the baby, and I need to ride for help. Her friend, Sally, was going to come by tomorrow, but it looks like the baby’s not gonna wait.”
The man’s voice betrayed his calm, outward demeanor.
“We’ll move on, and camp out in the woods,” Levi suggested. “I didn’t mean to impose on you and your family.”
Cade shook his head. “No, it might be good to have someone else here.”
“Tell me which direction to go, and I’ll ride for help,” Levi offered.
A woman’s loud cry from inside the house made everyone’s heads turn at that moment.
“Laura?” Cade rushed up the porch.
“My mama is going to have a baby,” the little boy announced, a worried look on his face.
“Get down off the mule, Rose,” Grace nudged. She held her sister’s arm while Rose slid from the animal’s back.
Grace scrambled to bring her leg over the back of the saddle, and eased to the ground. Levi was instantly at her back, helping her down, and supporting her weight. Grace flinched at the touch of his hands on her waist, and drew in a quick breath. She tilted her head up and over her shoulder, and was met with Levi’s warm stare.
“I’ll get your crutch, and then I’d best ride for help.”
“I think it’s too late for that.” Grace glanced at the house, then hobbled toward the porch. She headed up the steps, and tentatively knocked on the open door. Cade stood in the center of the main room, supporting a dark-haired woman who bent forward, clutching at her stomach.
“I think that baby’s coming now,” she said in a pained voice to her husband. Cade glanced toward the door at Grace.
“Should Mr. Colter ride for the doctor?” Rose came up next to her, her eyes wide with wonder and fear.
“There’s no time.” Grace shook her head.
“How do you know?”
Grace faced her sister, and she turned her head when she sensed Levi standing behind her. He looked about as comfortable as a field mouse in a room full of cats.
“Help me get to the bedroom, Cade,” the woman said to her husband. She leaned heavily against him. Grace startled when the woman looked at her. A large scar ran down the right side of her face. Grace blinked, and mentally shook her head. She smiled at the laboring woman.
“I’ve tended to a couple of births before,” Grace said slowly. “If you’d like my help.” The woman nodded, and so did her husband.
“Thank you,” he said, casting a quick glance at Levi, before leading his wife down the hall and into one of the rooms.
Grace looked from her sister to Levi, who both gaped at her.
“You know about birthing babies?” Rose asked, her eyes wide.
Grace glanced at the ground for a moment, then looked Levi in the eye. “Coming in the family way was a common side-effect of working in a bordello,” she murmured. “Calling for a doctor was never an option for a whore, so the rest of us did what we could to help, when the time came.”
Rose’s mouth dropped open. Grace shifted her gaze to her sister. Perhaps it was good that she spoke frankly in front of Rose. Just then, the laboring woman let out a loud cry in the back room.
“Then I reckon we arrived just in time,” Levi said. Their eyes met again. Grace nodded.
“Start water boiling.”
She straightened, and leaned on her crutch, then hobbled as fast as she could to the back room.
Chapter Fifteen
Levi stood at the corral fence, one foot propped on the lowest rail, his arms draped over the top one. The cool evening breeze chilled his face, and he closed his eyes for a second, savoring the quiet of the evening. There was too much activity inside the house, and he’d escaped outside to find some solitude.
Crickets chirped in the grasses, and frogs croaked from the nearby creek, but these were soothing sounds compared to the flurry of people. A barn owl fluttered in a tree, giving off a quiet hoot. Somewhere in the distance, a coyote answered the bark of another.
Faint light glowed from the windows in the house, but it wasn’t enough to illuminate anything outside. The sky was dark except for the twinkling of countless stars. Levi drew in a deep breath. The rich smell of lush grass mixed with the more pungent odor of horses. The scents in the valley were different than the strong, familiar smells of the pine trees and musty soil in the high country.
The crunching sound of boots on gravel grew louder, but Levi didn’t turn around. He’d already heard the front door of the house open and close, and footsteps come down the porch.
“Sure is peaceful out here.” Jack Kincaid, who was known to everyone in the valley simply as Cade, came up beside him and leaned against the fence. “I forgot how much noise a newborn can make, and how demanding they are.” He chuckled. “If Laura has her way, the house will be full of kids in a few years. I’m gonna have to build a bigger place.”
Levi turned his head to the man’s silhouette. “Congratulations again on your daughter.”
“Thanks. She looks just like her pretty mama.”
Levi stared off into the darkness. It had been three days since Laura Kincaid had given birth. She’d labored all through the night and into the early morning, until her baby finally came into the world. He hadn’t seen Grace at all after she’d disappeared into one of the back rooms to act as midwife. She’d sent Rose to the kitchen for water and various other things several times, and Levi had kept the nervous father company in the main room, and outside on the porch. Luckily, Andy had fallen asleep after playing with his new friend, Jonah, who was Cade’s son.
Cade had lost his first wife, Jonah’s mother, when the boy had been just an infant. Seeing Cade now, years later, as a happily married man, with a new wife and family, had sent Levi’s thoughts drifting to Maggie. He’d held onto the grief and guilt of losing his sister for so long, he’d forgotten what it was like to be happy and among family. Grace and the kids had reminded him, but Cade was proof that it was all right to let go and move on. Then
there was just Grace, who’d made him yearn for something he thought he’d never want.
“Thank you for riding to Sally and Ethan’s place, and letting them know that the baby arrived safely.” Cade’s words pulled him from his thoughts. “And for getting here when you did the other day. Laura couldn’t have had a better midwife tending to her than Miss Jennings.”
Levi nodded. Now that the excitement of the birth was over, and he was back from his errand to Cade’s neighbor, as well as something else he’d needed to take care of, he’d have to find out what Grace planned to do. Cade had sent him off with the parting words that Grace and the kids would be safe here.
He hadn’t had the chance to talk to Grace at all in private. She’d had supper ready when he’d returned a short while ago. At least she hadn’t looked as if she’d wanted to bolt like a skittish deer. She’d seemed at ease, working in the kitchen to get everyone fed, and giving strict orders that mother and baby weren’t to be disturbed.
Andy and Rose had been happy to see him. Their enthusiastic welcome had put a smile on his face, which had dissolved quickly when Grace had all but ignored him. She’d set a plate of food in front of him and told him to eat, but she’d avoided eye contact, and disappeared to tend to Cade’s wife before he even had a chance to ask her how she’d been.
Levi turned to Cade. They’d had plenty of time during the long hours a few nights ago, waiting for the baby to come, to discuss Grace and her circumstance. Cade wasn’t the sort of man who’d simply turn her and the kids over to the authorities or the Children’s Aid Society that ran the orphan train.
“The last time I spoke to Trace Hawley, he told me that you hadn’t found those kids,” Cade had said, stopping his pacing on the porch that night. No doubt, he’d wanted to talk about something to get his mind off his wife and the birth for a few minutes.
Levi had gripped the porch rail. “I don’t recall him asking me specifically if I had found them, only if I’d picked up their tracks,” he’d said slowly. “Which I hadn’t. They found me, not the other way around.”
Cade had chuckled. “I bet that must have been quite a surprise.”
“With the weather being so bad, I couldn’t bring them off the mountain any sooner.”
He’d turned his head. Cade’s features had been difficult to make out in the dark.
“Are there still search parties out looking for them?” The question had burned in his mind since the other morning, when he’d set out to bring Grace off the mountain at her insistence. She didn’t stand a chance of getting to a nearby town if there were men out looking for her and Rose.
“Far as I know, they all gave up. Figured those kids were dead at this point, what with the bad weather, and more than two weeks passing.”
“That’s a large reward that was put up to find them and bring them back.”
Levi had opted to tell Cade what he knew about Grace and her sister. When he’d finished, Cade had turned to him and said, “Sounds like Miss Jennings has been through a lot, and it’s really admirable what she’s done to reunite with her sister, especially with her physical limitations. If there’s anything I can do to help, I’ll gladly do it.”
Cade had chuckled again, and put his hand on Levi’s arm.
“Levi, I ain’t gonna turn them in, reward or not. I am mighty curious as to what their story is, and why you didn’t tell Hawley that they were with you, but until I know the details, they’re welcome to stay as long as they want. There was a time in my life when I needed to stay hidden myself, and Laura would have my hide if I sent them back to the children’s agency. And we owe Miss Jennings our deepest gratitude.”
Levi straightened, and shifted his shoulder to ease some of the tension in him, thinking about the conversation. Children’s laughter came from inside the house, along with Rose’s high pitched voice, sounding displeased about something the boys were doing.
Cade grinned. “Rose certainly puts those boys in line. She ain’t afraid to speak her mind.”
Levi huffed, but couldn’t help smiling. How well he knew that. He ran a hand over his face, then shook his head, and laughed. This might be his opportunity to talk to someone who could give him some advice about females. Cade was a happily married man. He obviously knew something about the subject.
“Rose put the notion in my head that I should marry Grace, so they wouldn’t have to keep running. When I told Grace not to go off on her own, she balked at the idea.” He scoffed. “That woman doesn’t trust anyone, least of all me.”
He faced his friend fully. “How do I convince that stubborn female not to go running off on her own? How do I tell her that I’ll take care of her, if she’ll just let me?”
For the last two days, he’d thought of nothing else but how he was going to talk Grace out of leaving. An overwhelming feeling of loneliness had hit him after seeing Cade with his family. The love the man had for his wife was plain as day. He’d seen it that day in Elk Lodge, too. It hadn’t made the same kind of impression on him then as it did now, after he’d had his own taste of living as a family, and harboring feelings for a woman. If only he could communicate to Grace that he wanted something like that, too, and that she was the woman he couldn’t stop thinking about.
Cade held his stare in the dim light. The noise of the crickets and frogs seemed to grow louder. He didn’t speak for what seemed like hours. When he finally did talk, his question startled Levi.
“Have you told her how you feel about her?”
Levi drew his brows together. “I . . . ah . . .” Words failed him. He’d told Grace she should stay, that Rose might be right about them getting married. Wasn’t that enough?
Cade laughed. “That sort of talk usually breaks the ice.” He slapped Levi on the back, making his muscles tense. He gritted his teeth.
“What the hell was I supposed to say to her?” Levi grumbled. “I ain’t got no experience talking to females.”
“I can see that,” Cade replied smugly. “I think the first thing you ought to do is let her know that you don’t want to see her leave, and not because it’s just a plain foolish thing to do. That’ll just get her back up more. Then you need to tell her how you feel about her. Women like to hear that.”
“How I feel about her?” Levi echoed.
“How does she make you feel, Colter?” There was a distinct note of laughter in Cade’s voice.
Levi gnashed his teeth. He’d never been good at small talk, and this subject was downright uncomfortable. How did he feel about Grace? He’d already come to the conclusion that he was smitten with her. Rose had told him as much, too. He raked his fingers through his hair. He didn’t have the first inkling how to express his feelings in words. Why was that even necessary? Frustration welled up in him like a frozen waterfall that was about to thaw and burst.
“I can’t get that fool woman out of my mind,” he said, more forcefully than he’d intended. “She raises my hackles with her stubborn attitude, and that she won’t trust me, and jumps to the wrong conclusions about me. On the other hand, I can’t bear the idea that something might happen to her, but she won’t let me take care of her.”
He wheeled away from Cade, and stared up at the night sky. His pulse pounded at his temples. Cade’s heavy hand on his shoulder did little to soothe the irritation coursing through him.
“Seems to me you’re more than sweet on Miss Jennings. Maybe tell her what you told me, but . . . say it in a gentler way.”
“Well, that’s just the trouble,” Levi scoffed. “I don’t have the first inkling on how to talk to her proper without getting her back up, and making her think the worst of me.”
Cade was silent for a minute, then asked, “Have you . . ah . . . done anything to act on your feelings?”
Levi straightened. “Hell, no,” he said, his voice raised. “She’s the one who kissed me, right before she told me she was becoming too dependent on me.”
Cade snorted, sounding like he was holding back a laugh. “Well, then.” He cou
ghed, and cleared his throat before he added, “I suppose you might want to let her know you can’t stop thinking about that kiss, and ask her if she might be agreeable to letting you court her. She obviously sees you differently from the men she’s had to deal with in the past. The fact that she kissed you tells me she’s sweet on you, too. I bet she’s as scared as you are.”
Levi shook his head again. His lips curved up in a smile. “That woman terrifies me more than a grizzly protecting cubs.”
Cade laughed, and slapped his back again. “I’d say you’ve got it bad, then. That’s what a woman does to a man when he’s in love. Once you get it out in the open with her, it’ll get easier, mark my word.”
Levi smirked. “I ain’t so sure with Grace. She’s as stubborn and ornery as that mule I own.”
“Well, you’ve figured out how to handle that critter. I’m sure you’ll learn what to do to make Grace come around, too.”
Cade squeezed his arm, then disappeared back in the house. Levi stared after him for a moment, then paced the fence leading to the barn. He’d set up his bedroll in one of the stalls. Maybe it was best to call it a day, and see about talking to Grace in the morning. Something might come to him after a good night’s sleep.
He headed for the barn. The back of his neck prickled unexpectedly, and an odd sensation of awareness hit him. He stopped and turned to look toward the house. His heart nearly stopped beating. A female silhouette stood on the porch, just outside the shine of the light coming from one of the windows. The skirt she wore danced around her legs in the evening breeze. She leaned on her crutch, staring out into the night.
Levi’s mouth went dry. Standing in the shadows, his eyes feasted on her. He hadn’t seen her, much less talked to her, in several days, and it slammed him in the gut how much he’d missed her. She’d worn that dress earlier, given to her by Laura Kincaid, and she’d never looked prettier.
In His Arms: Blemished Brides Book 3 Page 12
