Western Spring Weddings

by Lynna Banning

  She slipped her arms into her cotton robe, her heart a thousand times lighter than when she’d gone to bed the night before, and opened the bedroom door to her son.

  Brody rushed to the window and peered out. “Look at him ride! I gotta learn to ride like that.” Then he turned and raced from the room, leaving the door wide-open in his wake.

  It warmed her heart to see him so excited after the past few days. She walked to the window. Gabe had his back to her. He removed his tan Stetson, raked his fingers through his thick black hair and resettled his hat. His broad shoulders bunched as he gathered his rope. He stopped, half-done, and twisted on his saddle, looking up at the open window. Their eyes met.

  An invisible current pulled at her. And she knew with a certainty he still wanted her and was waiting—waiting for her to decide—waiting for her to come to him. She moved away from the window and began breathing again, the breath shuddering out of her. Heaven help her...she wanted him, too. In her life, in Brody’s life, in all ways. She just didn’t know how to make it happen.

  Quickly she dressed, intent on what she would say to him. She descended the stairs and heard voices coming from the study. She recognized Gabe’s. Her father quieted when he saw her at the door. “What is going on?” she asked the both of them.

  “Just clearing the air about a few things,” her father said. “Coulter is heading back out now.”

  She needed more than that for reassurance. “So you are staying?” she asked Gabe.

  He slipped on his Stetson. “Yes, Miss Rawlins. For now.”

  For now?

  She followed after him. “Wait! What do you mean...for now?”

  He stopped in the kitchen, waiting for her. “Just what I said,” he replied, his voice low and serious, his brown gaze piercing her. “I did some thinking the past few days. I’ve done enough running over the years. I’ve got reason to stay here.” He swept the back of his fingers down her cheek, leaving a trail of sizzling heat, and then lightly brushed his thumb over her bottom lip, leaving no doubt what one of his reasons for staying would be. “So I will...and I’ll play by your rules... For now.” He turned and walked out the door.

  Dazed, she simply stood there and watched his easy saunter to the stable. He might as well have kissed her as touched her cheek. The effect would have been the same—tingles all over her body. Years ago his first kiss had been sweet and tentative. The one the other day, and the way he had looked at her just now, said he was all grown up and wanted what a man would want. For now, he’d said. Which meant he wouldn’t wait forever.

  A noise behind her made her turn. Her father stood in the doorway that led to the dining area. How long had he been there?

  “I explained about his mother and me. I think he believes me. It’s too bad Ramona passed on before he could ask her about it.”

  “Did he happen to say why he came back?”

  Her father tilted his head slightly, studying her.

  Warmth spread over her cheeks. She could no longer hide her feelings about Gabe, and her father wasn’t dense. He must know by now that she felt more than just a passing concern.

  “He didn’t mention anything in particular. ’Course he does want to pay off the taxes on his land. Likely that’s the most of it.” He shoved his hands in his leather work gloves and headed outside toward the corral.

  The day was long and hot and the air full of dust that the cattle stirred up. Riley helped Rosaria make lemonade and sandwiches for the men. It seemed she would make one trip out to the pens and by the time she returned to the kitchen, it was time to make more.

  She kept an eye on Brody, who sat on the fence, watching the activity all around him. After a while, instructed by her father, he jumped down and started herding the calves one at a time into the chute, supplying a constant stream of bawling calves to Gabe. At first unsure and a bit hesitant, it wasn’t long before her son was as dirty as the rest of the cowhands. He seemed to enjoy the hard work much more than he’d ever enjoyed school.

  By evening they were all worn out and tired. No one talked much during supper. After helping Rosaria clean the kitchen up, she found her father snoozing in the large parlor chair. She tiptoed upstairs to her son’s room and peeked in. Brody lay sprawled out, facedown on his bed, asleep in his clothes.

  She should be exhausted, but instead a vague restlessness gripped her. With the busyness of the day, she had not spoken with Gabe privately. Over and over her thoughts recalled the look in Gabe’s eyes that morning.

  The moon was full when she crept down the stairs and out to the stable. Glad that no one else was around, she quickly saddled the small mare. Once astride, she rode up the deer trail into the wooded area behind the house and followed the creek that divided Gabe’s family land from the Rawlinses’ spread. She now knew her destination—the waterfall.

  Up near the ridge a six-foot waterfall spilled into a pool on what had once been Gabe’s land. It had been a favorite place when Riley was young. A rope hanging over the water from the branch of an oak made it a fun place to cool off. She could use that about now. Gabe had kissed her there for the first time in her life—a tentative, searching, sweet kiss—a first kiss for the both of them.

  The next time they met at the pool had been much different—a passionate seeking of two souls. They had made love—she was sure of that now—and started a baby.

  The sound of water trickling over the boulders indicated she was close to the secluded pool. She dismounted and tied her horse to the branch of a pine and then stepped onto a huge flat boulder that overlooked the water. The reflection of the full moon rippled in the gentle current and there, waist-deep in the cold spring water, stood Gabe.

  Had he come for the same reason she had? Hot and restless?

  She couldn’t keep from staring—at his wet, blue-black hair, at the muscular curve of his shoulders and chest, and at the beads of water that clung to his smooth skin. Once she had stroked those curves. At the memory, tension curled inside. Deeper, a warmth spread rapidly through her.

  She sat down on the boulder, dangling her feet. Gabe started toward her. Without saying a word, he removed one boot and stocking and cupped the cool water over her foot. The touch of his warm hands along with the icy water on her skin sent shivers coursing through her—and goose bumps. He removed her second boot and stocking and did the same with more water. He didn’t release her foot, instead trailing his fingers around her ankle, and then slowly moving his hands up her calf, under the hem of her split skirt, to her knee.

  She forgot to breathe.

  He moved closer to stand between her knees, stroking each hand slowly up the outer aspect of both of her ankles, to her calves, and to her knees. Then he circled his fingers over the tops of her legs and to the inside trailing his hands back down to her feet.

  She started breathing again. Parts of her tingled that had no business tingling. “Gabe...”

  “Shh...”

  When he pursed his lips like that, all she could think about was kissing them. “Gabe...” She leaned closer. His warm breath tickled her ear and a shiver swept through her.

  His eyes darkened and suddenly he was kissing her—tender, warm and breathtaking. He cradled her head and his kiss became more insistent. She parted her lips and he took her with his tongue. He stirred feelings in her that had been long dormant. Hot, and at the same time cold, she leaned nearer, craving his touch. It had been so long since she’d been moved like this. She knew instinctively that he was the reason. She had never wanted anyone but him. She looped her hands behind his neck, her arms languid and heavy as she stared into the depths of his brown eyes. “You were right when you said you could be dangerous, Gabe Coulter. After all these years, you still have power over me. It’s so dangerous to play at this.”

  The corner of his mouth quirked up slightly. “It’s not play to me. I am very, very seri
ous.”

  He captured her with a look that made her swallow hard. He wanted more—was asking for more. Once she crossed that line, there would be no turning back and things would only get murkier. “Please, Gabe...”

  He leaned in and kissed beneath her ear on one side and then the other. “Please what?”

  “We should talk.”

  He hesitated for a brief moment and then kissed the base of her throat, his breath warm and exciting on her neck. “Right now talking is the furthest thing from my mind.”

  She shuddered as a delicious sensation coursed through her and lifted her chin to allow him further access. A sigh escaped from her when he pressed even closer, his chest up against her as he nuzzled her neck. His breath was ragged and uneven now. She felt the same—wanting to consummate their newfound desire...but she couldn’t. She just couldn’t. Not until words were spoken...not until vows were said. At that thought, she let out a strangled cry. Smoothing her palms over his shoulders, she forcefully pushed him away. “No, Gabe. Allowing this to continue will only make things worse. I want you for always...not just one night.”

  He pulled back. He opened his mouth to speak but no words came out.

  She swallowed. She had as much as said she would marry him...that she wanted to marry him!

  He sank into the pool, letting the water cover his head. He surfaced and with several powerful strokes he swam to the far side and stepped from the water. His nude body glistened in the moonlight for just an instant before he gathered his bundle of clothes from a bush and sprinted into the cover of the woods.

  Her skin was on fire. She scooped up a handful of cool water and patted it on her face. Then she pulled on her stockings and boots. Before any time had passed, she heard the rustling of leaves and then footsteps behind her.

  “More easy now?”

  She nodded, still not trusting her voice after what she had just seen.

  “Good. At least one of us is.” He took her hand and helped her to her feet. “Are you sure? About what you just said? Or did you say it to stop things?”

  “Maybe a little of both.”

  His shoulders lowered in resignation.

  “Gabe...I can’t deny that I still care. I do. But...how can it work? What are we to do?” she said on a sigh. As she uttered the words, she realized something had changed inside her. She had said we.

  He must have sensed it, too. “I love you, Riley. That will never change. You and I...we’ve always been stronger together than apart. I wish you could trust that.”

  The tenderness in his eyes, in his words, overwhelmed her.

  He took hold of both her hands. “You were right about taking some time. Guess we both needed that. I’ve had a few days to think things over. I wish I’d been there for you...and for my son. It couldn’t have been easy to raise him on your own. We can’t go back and fix things, but I don’t want to let one more minute go by without you in my life.”

  She hadn’t expected it to affect her when he called Brody his son. It did. It sounded wonderful. The fact that he still wanted her after all this time...still cared for her...began to seep inside. The way he looked at her, the hope in his eyes made her feel special and beautiful and stronger. “Oh, Gabe. I want that, too, but...”

  “You’re scared,” he said, his voice flat.

  “Aren’t you? A little?”

  “No.”

  “Where will we live?” With the question, she realized that she had made up her mind...and she had chosen him.

  A slow steady smile grew until it lit up his face. “We’ll figure it out. Trust me.”

  “I do.”

  * * *

  After seeing Riley back to the ranch house, Gabe took the mare to the stables and unsaddled her. His hopes had been riding high during the walk, but now they were tempered with reality. He didn’t expect Rawlins to give his blessing. Likely, Rawlins would do what he could to stop the entire thing. Gabe being a hired hand was one thing—over the past months they’d come to have a tentative respect for each other—but marrying his only daughter was something else entirely.

  Which meant they had to leave.

  He had to find a job elsewhere. Maybe even move into town. That thought made him die just a little on the inside. He’d do it so that Brody could finish his schooling. But Nuevo was too close. There’d be stares...and gossip. He’d have to figure out something else. Maybe they should travel north...get completely away from the area. He’d seen plenty of nice-looking towns over the years.

  Suddenly the enormity of what he was giving up—the dream of getting back his family’s ranch—washed over him. Yet in all of the worries, there was one thing more important than all the rest—despite his past, despite his prison record, Riley wanted to make a life with him.

  He couldn’t let her down.

  It was time to face Rawlins.

  Chapter Eight

  “Boots on, Coulter.”

  Gabe opened his eyes. Towering over him, one on each side of his bed, stood Johnson and another man with a star badge. A sheriff. An iron cuff clasped onto his wrist and the sheriff turned the key. Gabe’s heart raced from zero to a hundred in the space of a second.

  Johnson hauled him up from his straw pallet to his feet.

  “What’s this all about?” Gabe fumbled—one-handed—with his boots.

  The minute they were on, Johnson yanked Gabe’s free arm around to his back and secured it with the other iron cuff. His shirt still hung open, unbuttoned, but there was nothing he could do about it. “You’re going back to jail. Can’t change a rooster’s feathers. I told Rawlins you weren’t to be trusted.”

  With the ruckus, the others in the bunkhouse started to rouse.

  “I have a right to know what I’m being arrested for.”

  “Oh, I think you know good and well. Johnson says you were gone half the night,” the sheriff said. “Somebody get Frank Rawlins. Let him know I’m taking Coulter in.”

  With a tilt of his head, Johnson motioned to a ranch hand. Then the foreman shoved Gabe ahead of him into the yard with enough force to land Gabe on his knees. He heard the door of the ranch house open and he scrambled to his feet.

  Whatever was going on, there was no way he was going back to prison. Spending any more time inside that concrete fortress would kill him just as surely as a bullet would. A bullet would be faster...

  For an instant Gabe contemplated trying to run. His muscles bunched, his pulse quickened... But then he saw Riley and Brody rushing out of the house behind Rawlins. Guess he wouldn’t run...not yet anyway. He didn’t want to be flattened with a bullet in front of Riley and his son.

  Rawlins strode down the walk. Had he learned about last night? Was this his way to separate them again? Just put Gabe back in prison with a trumped-up charge? Gabe’s gut rebelled at the thought. Rawlins wasn’t the same man who had ordered men to drag him away. He’d changed over the years. They all had.

  “What’s going on?” Rawlins demanded. “Sheriff?”

  “Patrick Odom won a sizable amount at the poker table last night and then was murdered. When I discovered his body behind the saloon, the money wasn’t on him. Tracks led back here.”

  “I didn’t do it,” Gabe said. “I wasn’t anywhere near town.”

  “Well, you are the logical place to start,” said the sheriff, drawing his gun. “You killed a man before. It’s not a long jump to think you would do it again.”

  “We had a full day of branding cattle yesterday,” Rawlins said. “My ranch hands were dog tired last night.”

  “Apparently not all of them. Doesn’t account for the tracks I found.”

  Rawlins rubbed his whiskered jaw and shook his head. “This is serious business.”

  Beside him, Johnson gripped Gabe’s upper arm and squeezed hard. “About time he
recognized you for what you are,” he said under his breath.

  Gabe knew the reality. He was an easy mark. The sheriff would stop looking for any other suspects as soon as he locked the cell door. Riley had to be having second thoughts about marrying him now. She would realize he was too much of a risk to bring into her life and into Brody’s. Heck, in her boots he wouldn’t marry himself with his odds.

  “Can you account for your time after your duties were finished yesterday?” the sheriff asked.

  Gabe avoided looking at Riley. He wasn’t about to drag her into this. Saying anything about being with her would ruin what was left of her reputation. He met the sheriff’s gaze. “I wasn’t in town. That’s all I will say.”

  “Coulter’s telling the truth.”

  Gabe snapped his attention to Rawlins. He was vouching for him? The man who had caused him nothing but grief?

  “And you know this for a fact?” the sheriff asked. “You saw him here on the premises last night?”

  Rawlins stared the sheriff down for a moment and then finally admitted, “No.”

  “Much as I respect your standing up for your ranch hand, believing a man doesn’t carry much weight. He needs an alibi.” The sheriff let his gaze touch on every ranch hand there. “Anybody else notice anything last night? Otherwise I’m taking Coulter in for questioning.”

  Gabe darted a look at Riley. She stood next to Brody, a few paces back from the tight group of men. She stepped closer. A shaft of fear sliced through him. She couldn’t be thinking to say something! He shook his head in a small tight movement.

  She stopped, the anxious look on her face replaced with confusion. He shook his head again. He wouldn’t have her putting herself out there for him. This was his problem. His fight.

  She glanced at Brody and in that moment he realized she didn’t care about the rest of the men. It was her son’s reaction that she worried about. For a fleeting moment Gabe thought back to when he believed his mother was seeing Rawlins. He set his mouth. He didn’t want Brody thinking those kinds of thoughts about Riley.