To Love a Texas Ranger

by Linda Broday

  “I only have one simple hard and fast rule.”

  “What’s that, Miss Teacher?”

  “To never stop loving me.”

  He chuckled. “As if I could.”

  Nope, he’d love her when the world stopped turning and they laid him in the ground. Even then, he didn’t think death was strong enough to separate him from the woman who filled every inch of his heart.

  Sierra Hunt was both his love and salvation rolled into one.

  Forty-two

  The tall Texas flag came into view before Sierra realized how much time had passed. The ride from Lost Point had gone fast. With his powerful arms wrapped around her, she leaned against Sam’s chest. Despite being exhausted, she embraced the contentment filling her. Their bodies did the only talking that was needed. Inside that safe cocoon, the miles had melted away.

  She glanced down at those arms lying lightly across her breasts. The corded veins bulged. She supposed those veins told of his strength, but she knew it went much deeper, beyond mere skin, tissue, and muscle.

  Sam’s strength was in his heart and mind. Armed with a sharp sense of justice and dogged determination—this man of Legend would be impossible to defeat.

  He was a man to cherish, and she meant to spend the rest of her life doing that—and giving him babies. She wanted lots.

  “I’ve never loved you more than I do at this minute.” She kissed the bruised, bloody knuckles of his hand. “When faced with death, I didn’t fear for myself. What struck sheer terror in my heart was that I’d never see you again. That you’d never hold me in your arms once more, or kiss me like I’m someone to treasure.”

  Sam’s voice was husky. “You’re worth more than a pot of gold. I made up my mind if I failed to get there in time, I’d go off alone somewhere to die. I wouldn’t live without you. You’re my sun and moon, my compass. You pointed me in the right direction when I was lost and alone.”

  A rider galloped through the gate toward them.

  “Looks like we have company.” Sam shifted his hold around her and tugged the large shirt she wore closer to cover her ripped bodice. That he took such care to preserve her dignity spread warmth through her.

  The rider was Grady Wilkerson, a longtime hand at the Lone Star. He slowed and tipped his hat to Sierra. “Howdy, Boss. Ma’am. I’m mighty glad to see you found Miss Sierra and brought her back. Me and the boys were right worried. ’Course, ain’t no one can beat the Legends.”

  Sierra could vouch for that.

  What she would have given to have seen the look on Felix Bardo’s face when they showed up. She hoped he suffered greatly before he died.

  “It wasn’t easy, but we got the job done,” Sam replied. “The others are dragging up the rear with two wagons full of outlaws. See if you can rig a place up to keep them until rangers arrive.”

  “Does it have to be comfortable, like with a bed?”

  Sam grinned. “I want them to be god-awful miserable. Cages, if you can arrange it on such short notice. If not, chain them under a tree.”

  “Yessir! We can sure do that.” Grady’s grin covered his whole face. “How far back are they?”

  “At least an hour. Maybe more. They’re coming slow.”

  Warmth rushed over Sierra when Sam’s arm tightened around her. She was anxious to get undressed and lie next to him. They would soon. Home was a stone’s throw.

  “Welcome back, Boss. Ma’am. Sure wish I could’ve been there. I’ll go tell the boys the good news.”

  Trooper must’ve smelled the oats, because his ears perked up, and he stepped into a trot. Sierra was all for that. She meant to scrub Bardo’s stench off her first. Then she’d make slow, passionate love to Sheriff Sam Legend.

  Maybe he’d make her his deputy. Now, there was a thought.

  * * *

  With a happy yell, Hector ran to her side when they rode in and followed her and Sam to the corral. She kissed and hugged him, letting the boy see she was all right. Then telling him to give her a minute to get her breath, she and Sam locked themselves in the same bathing room she’d used before in the big house.

  While the water ran, Sam removed her ruined clothes. His eyes hardened to jagged bits of ice at the sight of her bruises.

  “I’m so sorry. I failed you. I didn’t protect you.” He kissed each mark of violence.

  “Mine are nothing compared to yours. The pain you must be in.” Sierra tenderly touched his scrapes, some of which were raw and bleeding.

  “None of that matters. I can take it,” Sam murmured against her temple.

  Her chin rose a bit. “Are you saying I can’t?”

  “Nope.” Lifting her hand, he pressed a kiss to her palm. “Good Lord, I know you have taken more than any person should and still can if you have to. You’re one tough lady, and you’re all mine. I intend to make it legal as soon as I can.”

  He helped her into the tub and pulled her back against him. Slowly, he began to wash away the dirt and each painful memory. Something told Sierra they’d never speak of this awful time again, and that was fine with her. To keep going over it wouldn’t change the horror of the past, and Felix Bardo would win.

  What mattered was to keep looking forward—to their bright, shiny future as husband and wife. Partners. Equals.

  Sam valued her, and she adored him.

  Tired and weary, she rested her head against his chest. His hands moved over her, soaping her breasts. No one had a gentle touch like Sam Legend’s.

  For a moment she wondered at this magic that filled her life.

  “Sam, will it always be this way, this love we share?”

  His voice rumbled in his chest the way men’s sometimes did, and the sound sent tingles through her. “My love for you will never, ever fade. I’ll always and forever be your husband, friend, and lover. After the hanging, I felt shriveled and dead inside, that there was nothing left of me, that I had nothing to give anyone, not even myself. Then you came and poured your amazing love on me.” His voice cracked. “You brought me back to life.”

  He’d once warned her of the dangers of loving him. Such beautiful words now from this tough, rugged man brought tears to Sierra’s eyes. They rolled unchecked down her cheeks.

  When she could speak, she maneuvered around and put her hands on each side of his face. “I once told you no one could fix me, that I was broken beyond repair. You did, Sam. I’m strong and whole. Your belief in me helped me find it within myself. I can’t wait to share this incredible, wonderful life with you.”

  Sierra pressed her lips to his in a kiss that bound them as surely as a piece of iron. Heat ran through her veins like molten steel, and she felt it in him too.

  Unwilling to wait for a bed, she positioned herself over his jutting hardness and lowered onto him. Powerful spasms of tenderness and passion made her gasp. Surrounded by the slickness of the water, her eyes holding his, Sierra began to move.

  Sam’s eyes darkened with hunger as he kneaded her breasts, worshipping her with his gaze. Fire shot through her when he took each into his mouth.

  She buried her hands in his hair, clutching him to her, wanting everything he had to give. He was her champion. He’d risked death to fight for her.

  The memory of once wishing for just one person to say she mattered to them, that they’d stand beside her to the end of time, flooded over her. Tears filled her eyes. She had all of that and more in Sam.

  She loved the power to make his breathing ragged and his heart race just like he did to her now. Sierra teased his lips, her hands brushing his scarred chest, murmuring words of love in his ear.

  “Lord, woman!” he cried hoarsely.

  The light tip of a fingernail raked down his chest as she followed the trail of fine hair even lower. His groan, the heat in his half-closed eyes spoke of deep hunger.

  Searing desire lay in the long, sco
rching kiss. She was through teasing.

  Sierra wanted him, ached to have him. Her breath came unevenly. Sam Legend had her heart, her body, and her soul.

  His fingers drifted down the column of her throat, between her breasts, sliding down to her stomach. Then gripping her hips, he increased the friction of her body on his. Desire for this man she was going to make a life with shook her to the depths of her being. With each stroke, the smoldering flames in his eyes grew higher.

  Sierra gasped with pleasure. One after another, she rode the waves toward fulfillment.

  Before the water grew cold, they shattered into millions of twinkling, beautiful stars.

  She collapsed against Sam’s chest, totally spent.

  When they recovered, Sam rose and wrapped a towel around his waist. He put Sierra into a thick robe and carried her to his bedroom. The quiet house told her the others hadn’t yet arrived.

  His bed swallowed her as she knew it would, but that was all right. Sam filled most of it with his large frame. She sank into the softness and reached for the corner of the towel he wore. Her hunger for him was insatiable.”

  “Love me, Sam,” she said.

  * * *

  Those quiet, perfect moments ended way too soon when the prisoners arrived and Sam had to get them settled. He glanced up from checking the ropes binding them when a rider rode toward the house from the gate.

  Sam narrowed his gaze. As the lean horseman drew closer, he recognized Texas Ranger Tom Burdine.

  “What brings you this way?” Sam called.

  “What’s going on, Legend?” Chuckling, Tom dismounted. “Did Stoker decide to open up his own jail now?”

  “You mean the prisoners?” Sam told him about Felix Bardo’s den of snakes. “Any thoughts on how to get the live ones to jail?”

  “Gonna have to wire for more rangers to bring a prison wagon.” Burdine pushed back his hat. “Heard Stoker put in his own telegraph.”

  “You heard right. Why the visit, Tom?”

  In the long pause, Tom glanced around. “The size of this ranch boggles the mind.”

  “It’s big, all right.” Why was the ranger avoiding the question?

  “Might as well get right down to it.” Burdine removed his hat to wipe his forehead with a sleeve. “U.S. Marshal Henry sent a telegram and never got a reply. Anything you want to tell me?”

  Sam had been expecting this. “Let’s get you something to drink and talk.”

  Over the next hour, he came clean about Luke. About everything.

  Finally, Tom Burdine wagged his head and set down his whiskey. “I wouldn’t be able to arrest mine either. It’s a hell of a deal to find out your own brother is an outlaw. I’ll think of somethin’ to tell Marshal Henry. Hopefully, you can help Luke, but a large part is up to him.”

  “Thanks for not hauling us both to the calaboose.” A sudden thought hit Sam. “Tom, didn’t you used to be a preacher before you joined up with the Texas Rangers?”

  “Yep. Got tired of savin’ my flock every Sunday after they’d been robbin’ and lyin’ and cheatin’ and beatin’ their wives during the week. Decided they’d listen better to a gun than sermons. I’m much happier sendin’ them to God and lettin’ him sort it all out. Why?”

  Sam told him about Sierra. “We want to get married. Tomorrow.”

  Ranger Burdine’s eyes narrowed. “Why the rush?”

  “It’s not what you think, Burdine. Death almost claimed us last night. We don’t want to spend a minute longer apart than we have to.” Sam’s gaze drifted out the window of Stoker’s office, and his heart caught at the sight of her coming toward headquarters.

  A solemn smile broke across Tom Burdine’s whiskered face. “Death can be a motivator all right. When do you want the ceremony?”

  “Come with me and ask the lady yourself.”

  Sierra’s smile widened when she saw him. He loved how her smile made her eyes twinkle. Sam introduced her to Burdine and said his friend was a preacher. “He wants to know when you’d like the ceremony to take place tomorrow.”

  Sierra wrapped her arm around his and gazed into his eyes. “At sundown. I’ve always thought sunsets to be God’s paintings to us.”

  “Sunset tomorrow it is.” Sam gave her a wink.

  “Below the bronze star with the Texas flag flying,” Sierra added quickly.

  * * *

  A whirlwind descended over the Lone Star as preparations began for the big celebration the following day. Sam sent Captain O’Reilly a telegram to apprise him of the situation with Bardo and his gang and to tell him about the rustling ring. The captain replied that a man had come forward and they’d arrested a wealthy businessman for being the leader of the operation. His former boss told him the rangers would be the worse for losing such a good lawman and wished Sam congratulations and good luck.

  Now, Sam sat with Sierra and Rocky on the wide porch, watching Hector play with some toys they’d scrounged from the mercantile.

  He glanced up to see Sofia, Carlos, and the other displaced families strolling toward them. They formed a line and came up the steps one by one. Sam held Sierra’s hand and stood as each person congratulated them. The group told them their plans for music and dancing after the wedding.

  “We take care of everything. Sí?” Carlos said, grinning.

  “Thank you, amigo. You don’t know how much work this saves me,” Sam said with a chuckle.

  Maria took Sierra’s hand. “We bring flowers. Sí?”

  “Oh, Maria, thank you.” Sierra gave her young friend a hug. “You’re a dear.”

  Hector jumped up from his toys to throw a spindly arm around both of them and grinned as though giving his blessing. A mist filled Sierra’s eyes. The boy had no one. What would become of him?

  She took Sam aside. “What do you think about adopting Hector? I’d like to make him our son.”

  Sam took her hand and kissed her fingertips. “I’m glad you mentioned it, because I’ve been thinking of doing just that. I love that little boy. My heart aches to see him so alone.”

  With his arm around her, Sam called Hector over. He and Sierra knelt down beside him. In halting Spanish, he asked the boy if he’d like to belong to them, be their son.

  Tears bubbled in Hector’s eyes, and his lips quivered. He glanced down at his feet, then at Sierra. He touched her cheek, and a sob escaped. Overcome, the boy swung his gaze to Sam and nodded.

  Hector dragged his sleeve across his eyes and whispered, “Hap-py.”

  A few minutes later, Sam stood behind Sierra and folded his arms around her. “I can’t wait to make you mine. This wedding, starting our lives together, will be everything we dared to dream of.”

  Rocky and Ranger Burdine wandered up onto the porch. The ranger grabbed a chair and leaned back, propping his feet on the railing. Sam grinned, remembering the days of riding with his ranger friend and the narrow scrapes. Burdine had more courage and more heart than any man he’d ever ridden with. Though a part of Sam was sad those days were gone, he had so much more waiting. He kissed Sierra’s dainty ear as Hector slipped his hand in hers.

  “How did you meet such a nice group of people?” Rocky asked.

  Sam told both men how Luke got shot, running into the travelers’ caravan, and what a lifesaver the weary travelers had been. “Luke wouldn’t have lasted if not for them. I offered the families work here on the ranch, so they stayed,” Sam explained. “What will you do now, Rocky?”

  “I’ll go back to Waco right after the wedding.” Rocky rubbed his dark beard. “I’m anxious to open up the newspaper office. I have to get these stories out of my head.”

  “Can’t you wait just a little longer?” Sierra begged.

  “I’m afraid not, sis. I’ve been gone too long already.”

  Luke trotted up on his black gelding and dismounted at the hitching rail
. He sauntered up the steps in that lazy way of his. Sunlight reflected on the silver conchas running up the side of each black trouser leg.

  Luke spoke to Sierra and Rocky before turning to Sam. “Got time for a word?”

  “Sure.” They walked down the steps where they could talk. “What’s up?” Sam asked.

  Luke seemed even more quiet and withdrawn. Something was bothering him. “How about a ride, little brother?”

  “Certainly. When?”

  “Daybreak. You wanted answers to your questions. I’ll show you so you’ll understand.”

  At last. Relief flooded over Sam. That Luke trusted him meant more than he could say.

  “Anything to help me learn more about my brother.” Sam paused, then said with a grin, “Just as long as I get back in time for my wedding.”

  “You will. It’ll take the better part of the day, so we’ll have to leave very early.”

  “Then absolutely. I can spare the time.”

  Finally, Sam would learn what made Luke do what he did. He couldn’t imagine what he’d find, but he couldn’t wait.

  Forty-three

  Though the talk was lively and laughter free, Sam could hardly sit through his prewedding supper for thinking about his impending ride with Luke. He sensed a turning point in their relationship and welcomed it. His brother was full of contradictions.

  Sam put his thoughts aside for now and focused on the celebration. Every seat at the long table was full. Houston’s Becky Golden had arrived with her parents and would stay until after the wedding. Despite all that, it was Sierra who stole Sam’s attention. She sat next to him in a pretty rose-colored dress he’d never seen before. The bodice dipped low in front, and he had hell keeping his eyes from straying to her enticing cleavage. Anticipation of stripping away the fabric made it difficult to sit still and calmly make conversation.

  He draped an arm around her and leaned close. “You certainly know how to torment a man.”