Chapter Six

 

“You’re absolutely sure this is a good idea?”

Carmen looked over at Dash, mounted on a big bay gelding named Moose, and grinned. He was so cute—she knew he was more worried about her than he wanted to admit, wondering if it was safe for her to be on horseback. Given that she was a far more experienced rider than he was, she couldn’t help being amused.

“Grandfather and Leah have trained Ghost specifically for me since she was a foal,” she told him. “She’s the gentlest, calmest thing on four legs. She’s also trained to stick closely to whichever other horse she’s with. I promise, Dash, one thing I don’t do is ride alone. I’m not unaware of my limitations.” The little gray mare wasn’t even spooked by Silver running alongside.

Dash snorted. “I wasn’t worried about you.” Since she knew his lie was intended kindly, she let it go. “I’m worried about that.” She knew he was pointing at the third horse on a lead rope behind them with a large plastic animal carrier mounted to its saddle.

From inside the carrier, the eagle gave a short squawk, as if responding to Dash’s concern. Carmen laughed. “She’s fine too, worrywart. She’ll be even better when we release her.” They were riding up to the hilltop where Dash had found the eagle. She was fully recovered now, and it was always better to let wild creatures go as close as possible to the place where they’d been found. Since it was Sunday, and Dash took weekends off from all but the most pressing ranch duties, Carmen had recruited him to go with her instead of her grandfather. “I’m sure her mate will be happy to have her home.”

“I’ll bet,” Dash agreed. “Especially if they have young.”

Carmen had explained to him that both male and female parents would normally take turns feeding any babies and protecting their nest. With the female missing, the male would have been doing double-duty as well as leaving the nest unprotected while he hunted. While Dash didn’t know much about Texas wildlife, he was interested and a quick learner. She was having fun teaching him as they got to know one another. They’d spent the last nights together, but this was the first time they’d actually left her property—almost like a date.

“I just hope we don’t run into whatever idiot shot her in the first place,” Dash continued. “Why on earth would anybody do that?”

“Well, a lot of farmers worry about them hunting chickens or young livestock,” Carmen replied. “Though they’d much rather fish. Some people just get freaked out by other predators. Honestly, it never made much sense to me either.”

“Any stories about eagles in one of your books?”

“Eagles are very important in Cherokee culture, but they’re mainly war totems, and since my books are for kids, I haven’t written one specifically about eagles. I do have one that features A-wo-ha-li, or Eagle, along with lots of other birds, reptiles and mammals.” The tale had been a favorite of her great-grandmother’s and retelling it always gave her a warm rush of memory.

“Tell me,” he said, his voice a silky caress that was almost as warm as the Texas sun.

“Okay. It’s about a ball game,” she began, speaking just loudly enough to be heard over the steady beat of their horses’ hooves. “The animals—the four-legged ones— challenged the birds to a game. Bear was the captain of their team, big and tough, and ready to take out anyone who got in his way. They also had Terrapin, whose sturdy shell would keep him safe—if he got the ball, no one would be able to get it away from him—and Deer, who could outrun everyone else. All through the dance before the game they bragged about their certain victory.

“Eagle was the captain of the bird team, and though he had Hawk and other strong fliers on his side, he was starting to get nervous. While they were getting ready for the game, two tiny animals, as small as mice, came running up the trunk where Eagle and Hawk were perched and asked if they could join in the game.

“Since they had four legs, Eagle asked them why they didn’t join the team down on the ground. The little mammals said they had, but Bear, Terrapin and Deer had just laughed and sent them away. Eagle thought this was unfair, but he knew he couldn’t let them join his team unless they could fly. Finally, one of the birds came up with an idea. They would make wings for their little friends. Using the skin from a drum and some cane splints, they made a set of wings and gave them to one of the animals, which is how Bat came to be. There wasn’t enough skin, though, to make wings for the other.

“Then someone thought of stretching the animal’s own skin, to make sort-of wings. Two birds on each side used their strong beaks to stretch and stretch the skin between the little animal’s front and back legs until it had flaps, enabling it to soar and glide, creating Flying Squirrel.

“When the game started, Flying Squirrel swooped in and grabbed the ball then carried it to a tree where he threw it to the other birds. They kept it in the air for a very long time, not even giving the four-legged animals a chance to get it back. When it did finally drop, Martin dove in to catch it before Bear could get there. He darted and dodged, avoiding all the other animals until he could throw it to the pole and win the game for the birds. As a thank-you, the other birds gave Martin a beautiful gourd for his nest, and that’s where he still likes to live today.”

Dash remained silent for several minutes after Carmen stopped talking. Finally she heard him let out a long, deep breath. “Wow. That was amazing. You could be a professional storyteller, as well as cook, writer, artist and opera singer. Is there anything you don’t do well?”

Basking in his regard, she laughed. “Well, I’m not terrific at driving a car.” It was so freeing to be able to actually joke with someone about her disability. “And I think you learned at the wedding that I kind of suck at dancing.”

“Nah, that was me,” Dash replied, “and my gimpy leg. You were…perfect.”

What the hell was she supposed to say to that? Fortunately for her crumbling defenses, she felt the ground beneath Ghost’s feet level out as they reached the top of the hill where Dash had discovered the wounded bird. When he reined in his horse, Ghost drew to a stop beside the larger mount.

They both swung themselves out of the saddle then Carmen held on to their horses’ reins while Dash untied the plastic airline kennel from the packhorse’s back and set it on the ground, following Carmen’s instructions.

“Okay, you’re the one who rescued her, you set her free,” Carmen said. “Just open the door of the carrier, with it pointed away from the horses, then step back so she doesn’t feel threatened.”

The latch clicked then Dash’s boots thudded on the packed earth as he moved back to stand beside Carmen, laying his hand on her shoulder. She heard the soft scratch of the bird’s talons on the newspaper lining the carrier, and then there was a loud, joyful screech and the flutter of powerful wings as she took to the sky.

“She’s calling her mate,” Carmen told Dash, blinking back tears. “We did good.”

“You did. All I did was bring her to you.” His voice was thick too, as if he had a lump in his throat. “Oh my god! There are two of them now, Carmen, circling each other.”

She heard the male’s welcoming cry and nodded. “Somebody’s glad to see her home.”

“That may be the single most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen in my life.” He pulled Carmen close against his side, and she felt his head tip down just as she lifted hers for his kiss. “Thank you for sharing it with me.”

His lips covered hers before she could say, “Anytime.” This kiss was hot and yet sweet at the same time. Carmen poured into it all the emotion she couldn’t yet put into words, and it seemed to her as if Dash did the same. Of course that might just have been what she wanted to believe.

“You know, we’re not far from my place,” he said when they came up for air. “It’s not much, but it’s more or less home. Want to come see it?”

“I’d love to.” She’d been in the shack before, back when it was actually used by ranch workers as an overnight stopping point. Grandfather had taken her with her sister and cousin for “campouts” there as children, though Aida had hated the dust and dirt of trail riding almost as much as Leah and Carmen had adored it. Carmen’s big sister was a city girl, through and through. “But let’s have our picnic here first.”

Later, after a hearty lunch of fried chicken, Carmen’s homemade biscuits and fresh fruit, they rode in a comfortable silence down the trail toward Dash’s line shack. It wasn’t really a shack, despite the name. The White Eagle maintained its properties better than that. The tidy cabin Carmen remembered had been small but pleasant, with two rooms, a full bath and a wide front porch.

She smelled bluebonnets as they rode up to the cabin and even saw the mass of indigo surrounding the dark brown blotch that was the house.

“There’s a paddock out back,” Dash said. “We can unsaddle the horses if you think you’re going to be here for a while. There’s even a sort of shelter with a bale of hay and a water trough.”

“The idea of a line shack is so the hands can take shelter in a storm,” she told him. “There has to be the means to care for their horses as well, just like there’s always food and coffee inside for the cowboys.”

“Was a half bottle of bourbon in the cupboard too,” he stated wryly as they rode around the house toward the paddock. “Wonder if that’s standard or just some cowboy’s private stash.”

When they reached the gate, he swung off his horse and opened it, leading his mount through on foot to the three-sided shelter. Ghost and the packhorse followed along. Once they were all inside, Dash stepped up to help Carmen down, sliding her torso slowly along his as he lowered her to the ground.

“Mm. I like the service here,” she teased, her face tilted up toward his.

“Just wait ’til we get inside,” he said. “Right now we’d better take care of the horses before we forget.”

“Right.” Going up on her tiptoes, she pressed a quick kiss to Dash’s chin then turned to her horse. Even though Dash had the advantages of height and vision, she’d been doing this all her life while he was a greenhorn. By the time he’d finished removing the tack from Moose, she’d finished with both Ghost and the pack animal, and sent them both out into the paddock. While Dash tossed a few flakes of hay into the feed trough, she turned on the water tap. Dash had quickly picked up on giving her simple instructions such as “Two steps forward and one to your left” without having to hover over her every move. Once again they instinctively worked in tandem, each conscious of the other’s every movement. As soon as their mounts were seen to, Dash caught Carmen’s hand in his and led her to the back door of the line shack, Silver padding along behind them.

“Welcome to my humble abode.”

The first scents she noticed were fresh pine and lemon disinfectant. Either Dash had planned to invite her back here or he kept his place sparkling clean—she’d bet on the latter. The main room was a big, open space with an oversized wooden table lined with benches and a couple of worn but comfy couches in front of the stone hearth. One corner held a stove, sink and refrigerator while a door in the opposite wall led to the bedroom and bath. It was simple and plain and something about it felt…sterile, reminding Carmen that Dash had still not committed to making this his home.

“Thirsty?” Dash asked after they’d both washed their hands in the kitchen sink. “I don’t have a ton of groceries in the place, but I can manage water, soda and beer.”

“A soda sounds great.” She sat at one of the benches while he gathered drinks from the ancient fridge. Something sat on the table in front of her, and she reached out with one finger to see what it was.

“Oh, let me get that out of your way,” Dash said, moving toward the table.

“What is it?” Carmen asked as she picked up the wooden…sculpture? She traced the lines of it with her hands and smiled. “It’s a bear, isn’t it? Where did this come from?”

“Therapy of a sort, I guess,” he said as she heard him take a seat across from her. “My hands still aren’t one hundred percent, so the docs suggested some kind of fine motor work while I’m sitting around in front of the TV at night.”

“You whittled this?” she ran her hands over it again, admiring the clear shape of the bear. It was simplified, almost a fetish, but the snout, legs and humped back were distinctive and the proportions were perfect. “This is great.”

“When I was a kid, my mom used to leave me with the lady in the next apartment while she worked. Mrs. Jones had her father living with her, so the old guy became kind of a surrogate grandfather. He couldn’t walk much by then, so whittling was one thing he could still do, and he showed me the basics. I hadn’t done any in years. I was supposed to find something to do with my hands and there was this big old woodpile alongside the house.” The sounds of him pouring the drinks accompanied his words.

“Then this is really fantastic,” she enthused. “This isn’t your first piece, is it?”

“No. A couple of the first attempts went back into the woodpile, but there are a few better ones over on the mantel. I’ll get them for you in a minute. I was going to send this one to my brother Nate. He’s a huge Chicago Bears fan.”

“And is it helping your hands?” She set the bear down when he placed a glass in front of her.

“Some. The computer work at the ranch seems to be exercising them too; just as all the riding is getting some strength back in the leg.”

They chatted idly as they drank then Carmen washed the glasses while Dash dried them and put them away since the shack didn’t boast a dishwasher. After that, they moved over to the hearth where Silver was already snoozing on a thick rag rug.

“Here’s the first one I kept,” Dash said. He reached up and took down a sculpture about eight inches long, slender and undulating.

“Rattlesnake,” she said. “Diamondback…you’ve even got the pattern worked into its back and the rattle on its tail.”

“It was a fairly easy shape to start with.” He took the snake and handed her another, this one mostly triangular in shape.

“Coyote.” It was the traditional fetish pose, with the animal sitting on its haunches and pointing its face up at the moon.

“Very good. I tried to do one of Silver, but it didn’t come out right, so that one went into the kindling bucket.” He reached for another and traded it for the coyote in her hand. “This one is for Leah…a welcome-home gift.”

The spindly legged foal was perfect…its legs knobby and slightly splayed, its mane curling on its long neck and ears pricked. “She’ll love it,” Carmen assured him. “You’ve got a real gift, Dash.”

“Nothing like yours,” he said as he replaced the foal on the mantelpiece. “But I’m glad you like them.”

“Don’t belittle your talent,” she told him, reaching up to tug on both his ears, bringing his face down to hers. “You do lots of things well.”

“Yeah?” This time sensuality whipped through his tone, and she could sense his smile. “Like what?”

“Like this.” She pulled him closer so she could plant a kiss on his warm, sexy lips.

“Mm. I must have been inspired.” He took control of the kiss, his tongue thrusting deep into her welcoming mouth.

Before Carmen even knew what had happened, their clothes were scattered about the living room floor, and she was glad Dash had thought to stuff a condom into the pocket of his jeans. She knelt on the floor with her torso on the cushions of the wide sofa, the tweedy fabric rough against her nipples, while Dash was on his knees between her feet, and slowly filled her from behind.

“I was hoping to make it to the bedroom.” He pushed into her with slow, sure strokes.

“Next time,” she said on a long exhale. “This is…nice.”

“Oh hell, nice is too pale a word, sweetheart. This is fucking phenomenal.”

“Uh-huh,” was all she could manage.

Sweeping her hair off to one side, he leaned over and sucked on the spot where her neck curved into her shoulder. It was one of those erotic zones she’d never realized she had before Dash had discovered it, and she felt her vaginal muscles squeeze down on his cock. She tilted her hips up, inviting him even deeper.

“You have the prettiest damn ass I’ve ever seen. Did you know that?” His words were clipped and he dragged in a breath between every three or four.

“No,” she gasped. “Feel. Free. To. Tell. Me.”

“Going to fuck it one of these days,” he muttered then added, “if you want.”

“Hell yes,” she groaned. She’d never actually tried that before, but with Dash she wanted everything. She wanted him to possess her in every way humanly possible. “Go ahead.”

“Not now.” He pistoned his steely erection into her wet, clinging cunt. “Too close.”

What he did do was wet his finger with saliva—she heard the damp pop as he stuck it in his mouth—and he pressed it up against the rosette of her anus.

“Oh Dash,” she moaned. The extra stimulation was exquisite. Then he pushed it an inch or so inside her sphincter and she squealed with delight. The extra fullness sent her arousal soaring. Apparently it worked for him too. Dash slammed himself deep and shuddered. He nipped down on her shoulder as he came, and that, on top of everything else, hurled her over the edge. Her climax roared through her, making her ears ring and all the breath whoosh from her lungs. Sparks flared behind her eyelids while her body quivered on and on and on.

Eventually she realized she needed to breathe, but it was tough with Dash slumped over her back. He must have figured that out too because he pulled out of her and stood then used the hand that hadn’t been inside her to help her to her feet.

“What do you say to a shower together before we head back to your place?”

“I’d say you read my mind,” she said as they staggered together toward the bathroom.

* * * * *

Later, as they rode back toward Carmen’s house where Dash had left his pickup and the ranch horse trailer for Moose, she felt a weird prickling sensation on the back of her neck.

“Dash, do you see anybody else out here?” she asked. “I’m kind of getting the feeling there’s somebody or something watching us.”

“You too? I thought it was just me being paranoid.” He drew Moose to a halt and she could tell he was looking and listening, using all his training as a cop and the instincts that had made him a good one. Even Silver seemed to be on alert, though he hadn’t growled or gone after anything.

Finally, Dash nudged Moose back into a walk, which Ghost automatically matched. “Nobody here as far as I can tell.”

Carmen shrugged. “Just our imaginations, I guess.”

“Yeah, well, after Leah getting shot a few months ago, I’m less sure that it’s safe out here,” Dash grumbled. “I’m definitely staying with you tonight unless you want to come back to my place.”

She smiled. “Well, either one is fine, but I think we’re overreacting.”

“Probably.” He didn’t mean it. She could tell he was still watching the horizon.

Confident in the fact Dash would never let anyone hurt her, she relaxed, determined to enjoy whatever time with him she could.