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1 1858: Texas Territory H e hated the sound of a woman’s scream. Caine pulled Chaser up short. The black Appaloosa’s hoofbeats ended in cadence with Tracker’s and Sam’s horses. After fifteen years together, there was no guesswork to the men’s moves. They were a team. The high-pitched scream came again, cutting through the cold morning air, hovering a desperate moment on the heavy mist before dropping off with eerie abruptness. Tracker took the blade of grass he’d been chewing from between his teeth. “Looks like we’ve found them.” “Yup.” Caine pulled his rifle from the scabbard, scouting the surrounding area. There weren’t that many areas a man could hide here in the flatlands. Sam tipped back his hat, his blue eyes glittering like cold ice. “About the only place that offers protection is that cluster of trees yonder.” Caine didn’t need to hear the grim edge to the statement to know what that meant. If those were true Comancheros who’d stolen the women, they’d already been spotted. The
2 “Y ou cannot expect decent women to be seen in the company of someone like her.” The way the older woman, Mrs. Hatchet, referred to Desi set Caine’s back teeth to grinding. And it wasn’t because of the nasal twang to her voice or the highfalutin way she pronounced her words. It was her absolute belief that because she had a husband to shield her that she was better than other women who’d run up against the hard truth of this land. Specifically, Desi. “Lady, what I expect is silence and obedience.” He jerked his thumb over his shoulder, indicating the open range beyond their sheltered spot. “In case it’s escaped your notice, we’re in the middle of Indian country. Those gunshots are going to attract every Comanche out there, so what I expect is for you to use the next few minutes getting ready to ride, because as soon as we gather what we can off those bodies, we’re lighting out.” “You’re robbing the dead?” If a man had made such an accusation, he’d have punched him in the mouth for bo
3 W ell, at least she was consistent. Caine shifted Desi as she sat sideways on his lap, pulling the thick collar of his coat up over her cheeks, protecting her from chill as they rode into the wind. Adjusting his own poncho, he glanced over at Sam, and damn, he wanted to laugh all over again. Sam was as wet as Desi and mad enough to chew lead and spit bullets. Served Sam right, though, for thinking Desi had even a passing acquaintance with the word quit. Untying her hands at the river crossing had been Sam’s first mistake. Thinking a fear of drowning would be a deterrent to trying to escape had been his second. Hell, for that much foolishness he deserved a cold ride back. Water seeped from Desi’s clothes through Caine’s denims as he scanned the countryside. They’d saved half a day by cutting through Hell’s Eight land and slipping through the cave at the back of that box canyon, but he didn’t like how quiet things were. The hair on the back of his neck was standing up straight, which a
4 D esi huddled deeper into the warmth of her borrowed coat. She pulled the collar up against her cheeks and watched as Caine hunkered down beside the saddlebags and fished something out of the depths. Firelight flicked shadows over his big form, elongating his silhouette into the deeper gloom between the rocks. Making him more than he was, but more distant, too…. “You hungry?” The question was tossed over his shoulder. “I’m fine.” He paused. The glance he cast her was knowing. “I seriously doubt that.” The shame of that burned to her soul. There weren’t words strong enough to cut him down. She lifted her chin and pulled the cold around her, letting it seep into the well that wedged permanently in her soul. “Nevertheless, it’s true.” He took his big knife out of its sheath. The rasp of metal on leather was loud. He opened the packet on the ground. Firelight caught in the blade and reflected back as he brought it down. He took the food and held it out to her. “It’s not too tasty, but it
5 I t wasn’t as bad, it was worse. Desi stared at the bedroll set on the opposite side of the fire from everyone else, the distance emphasizing this was her wedding night. She’d come back from changing into her new clothes and found this. The euphoria and contentment from her full stomach faded. She glanced across the fire to where Caine stood talking to Tracker and Sam. While she didn’t consider twenty feet a token to privacy, Caine probably did. Men, she knew, didn’t mind other men watching them stake their claim. She’d hoped it would be different if she were a wife, but she glanced at the double bedroll again and knew that had been a vain hope. The Hell’s Eight men did everything together. Legend said they were ghosts of warriors past come back to right wrongs. Others said they’d made a deal with the Devil to survive when the Mexicans had wiped out their town. No one ever said they worried over much about what was proper or respectable. And she was a whore in the eyes of everyone ar
6 I don’t have anything else to compare you to. Caine had never heard so much hopelessness contained in simple truth. The tension left her body. Ah, hell. He slipped his hand under her head, the wealth of hair acting as a cushion between her skull and his palm, and dropped his forehead to hers. For sure he liked her better when she was fighting. This lack of passion left him fumbling for a way to restore it. His kept his whisper so low, the words didn’t drift farther than her ear. “I think I mentioned before, that’s your whole problem.” A stick popped in the fire. She jumped. He pulled her closer, the length of her feeling too fragile to him, the surrender in her body there for all the wrong reasons. He brushed his lips across her cheek. Her muscles grew tighter. “Easy, Gypsy.” She didn’t move, didn’t respond, just held herself there as if waiting for a death blow…which in her mind, maybe she was. He slid his hands between them, found the bunched mess of her skirts. A soft whimper brok
7 S he didn’t make it. Six hours into the ride, as the flatlands gave way to the rocky canyons, Desi slumped forward in the saddle. Sam came up alongside as Caine reached for the paint’s reins, pulling it up short. He clucked his tongue, eyeing Desi with disappointment. “I had a gold piece bet on her making it.” “With Tracker?” Sam brought the paint even with Chaser. “Yup.” “You should know better than to bet against Tracker. He’s got a sixth sense when it comes to a body’s endurance.” A trait that had stood them all in good stead over the years. Desi listed to the left as the pony stopped. Caine slipped his arm around her narrow waist and lifted her up and over. She jerked at the shift in her balance, but she didn’t come fully awake. Sam ground his smoke out on his boot. The paint shied as Desi’s legs slid down its side. Sam held it put. “I was banking on that grit of hers to make up the difference.” Caine eased Desi’s weight across his saddle, tucking her shoulder under his as she se
8 I f Desi had been expecting privacy, she was doomed to disappointment. As the last binding came off her feet, Tia gasped. “Your feet are a mess.” She cast a look at Caine. “How again did it happen?” Desi turned her foot and looked at the angry abrasions. “I didn’t run fast enough.” The brim of Caine’s hat blocked her view of his face, but from the jerk of his shoulders, he might have chuckled. She had an insane urge to knock that hat off his head. It was as much of a shield as the carefully blank expression he often wore. “From what?” Again, Caine didn’t deny his part in her downfall. “Me.” He pressed to the sides of the deep cut down the middle of her right foot. Blood welled. “You opened this up again.” Tia halted on the way to the tub and headed back the way she’d just come. “I will get the salve.” As she walked by, she clapped Caine on the head, knocking his hat askew. “And you—I taught you better on how to treat a wife.” Caine straightened his hat. “She wasn’t my wife at the tim
9 T wenty minutes soaking in a full-to-the-brim tub of hot water could do a lot for a woman. It could steal the tension from her bones, the cold from her soul. It could even make her forget that her husband was in the same room. Make her forget everything except that one brief taste of heaven, one Desi was determined to savor. Lord knew when it would come back again. Floorboards creaked. Caine was on the move. Her haven was about to be invaded. She felt him before he even touched her. Lassitude from the bath delayed her reaction. Two thunks punctuated his kneeling behind the high-back tub. Low and deep, his drawl slid into the calm of her bath. “Time to get that hair washed, Gypsy.” Tension in her skull let her know he’d lifted the heavy mass up. She took a breath and sank beneath the scented water. Around her waves marked the swishing of his hands in the water while tugs on her scalp marked his progress. A tap on her shoulder directed her to rise up on her knees. A dry cloth immediate
10 T he knock at the door ruptured the intimacy. Caine steadied Desi as she jumped, not letting her lift that tight pussy from the tip of his cock. Not yet. “What is it?” he called, stroking Desi’s back, moving under her wet hair, cupping her slender shoulders and savoring her soft skin. “Supper will burn if you do not hurry,” Tia warned. “All right.” From the way Desi was trying to burrow into his chest, her arms crossed over her breasts, Caine could tell the intimacy he’d worked so hard to create was gone. A pity. She was a hot little bundle of passion when a man got past her guard. He caught her hands in his and pulled them away from her chest, tucking them behind her back, arching her spine and thrusting those breasts out. His cock hardened again as if he hadn’t just come twice, nudging its way deeper into the snug little channel that he wanted to fuck until they were both raw and sated and completely lost in each other. Desi flinched and shifted to the side. “Easy.” She didn’t hav
11 S he didn’t stay settled for long. As soon as they got back to the house, Desi started twitching. It was all Caine could do to keep her on the horse once they reached the barn. “Hold on a minute,” he ordered as she squirmed to get down. “I want to get to the house.” So did he, but probably not for the same reasons. “And I don’t want you opening up those feet again.” Desi twisted in his lap, moonlight painting her hair an ethereal white. “I’ll be careful.” He let her flip over on her belly, then placed his palm in the middle of her back, pressing her into his thighs. The little squeal and kick she gave when she realized she couldn’t get away made him chuckle. “I intend for you to be very careful.” “Let me down.” Tracker looked back over his shoulder and smiled. “Need any help?” “I’ve got it under control.” No sooner had the words left his mouth than Desi sank her teeth into his thigh, which made him jump and Chaser crow-hop and Desi squeal again. For a minute, it was all Caine could
12 “Y our husband wants you.” She wished. Desi pushed the hair out of her face with the back of her hand. She gave the shirts in the laundry kettle another stir with the wooden paddle, suppressing a moan as her overworked muscles burned at the exertion. “For what?” Tia held out her hand for the paddle. “You will have to ask him.” She would if she wasn’t afraid of the answer. Since the evening of their fight over a week ago, Caine hadn’t wanted her physically, and she couldn’t shake the feeling that she’d somehow ruined things. If Caine threw her out, she had nowhere to go, and Tracker probably wouldn’t look for her sister. She couldn’t let that happen. Ari depended on her. Desi tightened her grip on the paddle. “Caine wants me to learn to do this.” “He does not expect you to try to learn everything at once.” Probably not. The man didn’t seem to have very high expectations regarding her. Since the night he’d said they were going to start over, he’d been distant; watching her but not app
13 H e had her running scared. She’d taken the attempted kidnapping in stride, but he had her running scared. Caine set the bucket inside the kitchen door and leaned against the jamb, watching Desi in the bath. That hadn’t been his intention when he’d given her time, but it seemed to be what he’d accomplished. Instead of learning to trust him and appreciating the courting he was doing, she was just getting edgier and edgier. And while he couldn’t fault Desi for the effort she was putting in to being helpful, there was a desperate edge to her behavior that he didn’t like. He wanted her settled, not wearing herself out in exhaustion proving something that didn’t matter. Her head lolled to the side against the high back of the copper tub. She was asleep. He shook his head. It wasn’t right that with the sun still shining, she was exhausted. He grabbed the bucket and carried it over to the side of the tub. Her hair was piled on top of her head, ruthlessly contained with an abundance of meta
14 O ne of them was coming. Desi eased the hairpin out from the lock. She got to her feet, holding the chain so it wouldn’t rattle, inching away from the sliver of light and back to the bed. With the utmost care, she tucked the hairpin into a tiny slit in the mattress, smoothing it down so there was no evidence of the hiding place. With almost desperate panic, she checked the lock in the shackle around her ankle. There was the barest of scratches on the surface, but unless he looked closely, suspected something, he’d never attribute it to anything more than normal wear and tear. Desi stroked the lock. Hope battling with despair. She was close to figuring out how the mechanism worked. If she could only do it before they tired of her or things changed, she’d be free. She just had to figure it out in time. The footsteps got closer. For a moment she didn’t recognize them. Were they sending someone new? And then she heard it, that slight drag on the other step. Oh, God, it was him. She’d th
15 H ow could a man so hard, so dangerous, kiss so softly? Desi lay beneath Caine, surrounded by his heat, his power, holding her breath as the mattress creaked when he leaned in, releasing it on a startled gasp as he fitted his mouth to hers, edge to edge, exerting the slighted pressure, holding himself there, seeming in no hurry, though she could feel his cock pressing into her side through his denims. His lips—so different from hers…firmer, wider—touched the other corner of her mouth in a caress similar to the one he’d just finished. “What do you want from me?” His mouth left her ear, drifted downward. “Right now, or just in general?” His lips found a spot they seemed to like, just under her ear. Instead of moving on, they pressed, opened, sucked. Another streak of sensation followed the first, racing down the now familiar path, making her jerk as it landed hard on the first, the repercussions reverberating outward in a wave of tingles that had no mercy. It spread to her breasts, he
16 “H ow good? ‘Like a lady’ good or ‘like a woman’ good?” “What’s the difference?” “One’s a hell of a lot more fun.” If Caine thought to throw her off with straight talk, he was mistaken. She pursed her lips and cocked her head to the side. “I was a lady for a lot of years and never had much fun so I’m thinking ‘like a woman’ good.” “Damn, I love it when you bring your wild side out to play.” “You think I have a wild side?” “I think you’re wild, passionate and everything else a man could want.” “You’re a very strange man.” “Now is that any way to go talking about your husband?” Her arms linked around his neck, pulling him toward her. He braced his arm on the other side of her. “No.” “But—” He shook his head. “No reminders.” Her gaze skated over his. “That’s going to be hard to accomplish.” “You thinking you know all there is to know about lovemaking because of what they did to you?” That was a definite “yes” in her eyes. He rolled them back to the middle of the bed, stopping with her
17 T hat damn rooster was going to meet its maker. Desi scattered a bit more grain on the ground, coaxing the hens out of the house. From the edge of the enclosure, the rooster watched, head canted to the right, comb flopped over, staring balefully at her out of one small beady eye. She threw some more corn to the side, trying to lure him away from the edge of the pen. He didn’t move, but the fluff of his feathers meant business. So did she. Desi gripped the basket handle in both hands. The damn bird—she repeated the curse because it felt so good—had forced her to stay up late last night sewing the gashes he’d put in her clothes. And when Caine had asked her why, she’d been forced to lie. He already saw her as a useless bit of fluff in need of pampering. She was not confirming it by admitting that a ten-pound rooster had defeated her. If Tia didn’t swear the hens wouldn’t lay without the rooster around, she would have gladly wrung his neck. Not that she’d worked up to that skill yet, b
18 W hat did he think five minutes would gain? Desi stared up at him as he rubbed her back. He was always touching her, tempting her, caring for her, and it always made her feel so bad, because she didn’t deserve it. He was a good man. Hard enough to survive in this land, but good. He deserved better than to be used; better than what she’d become. He deserved a woman like she used to be. Innocent, uncorrupted. Unknowing. Considering all that, the least she could give him was honesty. “I can spare five minutes.” She pulled out a chair. He didn’t say a word as she sat. Just watched her in that way he had, assessing every inhale and exhale, probably every involuntary twitch of her muscles, cataloging it all so he’d know if she lied. Unreasoning resentment flowed through her at the suspicion in his look. “I can tell the truth, you know.” He reached across her for his coffee, his scent and strength enfolding her, making her want to reach up and cling. “I don’t recall saying you couldn’t.” “
19 S he unbuttoned the last button. The material gaped in invitation. He brought his leg down as she slid her hands into the welcoming hollow, palming the hard curve of his buttocks before sliding his pants down. They fell six inches and stopped as he leaned back against the table. She looked up at him. “In case I have to get dressed in a hurry,” he explained. The possibility teased her awareness. Someone might come in, might catch her tempting Caine with her mouth, might see her giving him pleasure. A hot bolt of lust shuddered through her, tightening her nipples. His hands in her hair steadied her as she sank to her knees in front of him. “Does that excite you, sweetheart? Worrying that someone might see me enjoying your mouth?” It scared and excited her in equal parts. She nodded. “It excites me, too.” Her breath caught, trapped in her throat by the temptation that he’d want to explore that excitement. That he’d let others watch. “Gypsy?” Caine’s thumbs rubbed over her cheeks in sma
20 T hree days later, Caine decided Desi didn’t have a lick of natural talent, which shouldn’t surprise him, seeing as she was an easterner, but the ferocity with which she tried had made him expect…he didn’t know what. Just more. He came up behind her, reaching around to guide her. “Hold the gun like I told you.” She jerked it into position. “Gently.” He adjusted her aim. “The goal isn’t to throw the gun but to let the gun throw the bullet.” “I just want it to get there.” He couldn’t see her expression clearly, but he could see the creases across the top of her nose from how hard she was concentrating. “Well, when it comes to shooting, all helping it along does is ruin your shot.” She sighed and squared her shoulders. “Now, remember the kick and brace for it.” She aimed at the bottle sitting atop the log. “Good.” He kept his hand on top of her wrist as she settled her weight. He’d seen more than one greenhorn bust his face by not preparing for the kickback. “Now, squeeze the trigger s
21 H e enforced the order with a tug on her hips. It took another tug before she realized what he wanted. She scooted forward, unconsciously letting him support her weight on his palms in another of those betraying moments of trust. He didn’t rush her, just let his fingers sink into the lush curves as he admired the view. She had the daintiest little pussy he’d ever seen, as delicately made as the rest of her, dusted with a thin layer of blond curls that did little to hide the ripe flesh beyond. Beautiful pink flesh just swelling with passion. Another nudge and she shuffled forward, her knees hitting the underside of his arms. She stopped, teasing him with her scent and the promise of her taste. His next nudge didn’t get a response. It only took a glance to figure out why. She had no idea what he wanted, which was a crime in his book. He stroked her buttocks, soothing her because he could feel the tension building. The woman had a real problem with always wanting to get things right. “
22 H is shadow blocked out the light, fear and possibly common sense, because even though she was surrendering everything to Caine, Desi wasn’t afraid. Instead, as Caine came over her, the heavy weight of his big body pressing her into the mattress, she felt free. Freer than she’d ever felt in her life. Caine didn’t need her to be perfect. He liked her just the way she was, with all her unconventional thoughts and reactions. He even liked her temper. She slid her fingers into the cool strands of his hair. He needed a haircut. The sense of right deepened as she realized, as his wife, it would be her job to give it to him. She smiled as she pulled his mouth to hers. Lord knew what he’d look like after she got done with him. “Kiss me, Caine.” She wanted his mouth on hers, wanted to be so immersed in him. There’d be no chance for the memories to howl. He obliged, his mouth taking hers with that barely civilized command that melted her all the way down to her toes. A press of his thumb unde
23 T racker and Sam were waiting for him in the barn. “For a man about to deliver an ass-kicking, you’re not looking too happy,” Sam observed, tightening the cinch on his saddle. Caine shrugged and opened Chaser’s stall, grabbing the bridle off the hook. Down the way, the stallion screamed. To the left, Lily whickered. The place was growing fast. Next year, if he got that mare and the stallion settled, they were going to need a bigger barn. He wasn’t going to take any chances with his mares getting pregnant by accident or being brought down by predators. Chaser greeted him with a snort. “Morning, fella. Ready to ride?” The big horse ducked his head for the bridle, nuzzling his pocket for sugar cubes. Caine slipped the bridle over his ears and shoved his head away. “Desi sure has you spoiled.” Desi was trying to bribe her way out of fear with the horses by bringing them precious cubes of Tia’s sugar when she thought he wasn’t around. He didn’t know why she tried to hide what she was doi
24 D esi was no match for this. Tired from lack of sleep, grumpy from the inability to take Caine to task for how he’d left, Desi stared at the chicken coop and the rooster guarding it. She held the pacifier in her hand while Cantankerous strutted and dared. They both knew he could take her. They both knew she could bribe him. The problem was she was having a hard time falling into Caine’s habit. Bribing with sex, she was discovering, was against her nature. Maybe because she’d just realized Caine used the same techniques on her when he wanted her to look away from what he was doing. And, according to Shadow, a veritable font of information, he hadn’t wanted her to know a bounty had been put on her head, so he’d kept her distracted with orgasms while he went out and risked his life. When he got back, she was going to kill him. Cantankerous clucked. Boone, sitting by her side, whined anxiously, his attention totally focused on the feathered demon. “Don’t worry, you won’t have to come sa
25 A good man deserved a scandalous woman. Caine had told Desi that once and she’d scoffed, but as Desi slipped inside the warm barn she realized the truth in those words. A man did deserve a woman who put him first, a woman who matched his passion in bed and out of it, the same way every woman deserved a man who saw her as beautiful, worthy and smart. The way Caine saw her. Caine was everything her father had warned her against growing up—out for all he could get with no respect for propriety or a woman’s delicate sensibilities, demanding in bed and out of it. Elementally protective, brutally honest. Caring. Special. In other words, exactly what she wanted. And he had the crazy idea that if he pushed her away, she’d get a sudden hunger for the empty life she’d led before and catch the next stage back east. That was never going to happen. She’d been home since the first touch of her feet on Hell’s Eight land. It’d just taken her a bit to realize it. She shooed Boone back, stealing hers
Epilogue
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