Kidnapped By An Outlaw (Emerald Falls Book 1)

by Ivy McAdams

  His arms slipped down her body and fell away as he walked back to the bedroom. His dark pants rode low on his hips, but he was still shirtless. Sadie eyed the tawny back muscles and the smooth slope of his waist as it disappeared beneath the hem of his pants. Her tongue ran along the inside of her lips as she recalled the feel of her hands on that skin. Caressing, molding to him, pulling him closer.

  Clay Pearson was a delicious man.

  Just as he was disappearing into the bedroom, there was a knock at the doorway. The door was missing, so there was no mistaking Mason standing just outside. Sadie leaned over the food with a smile tugging at her lips, hiding her blushing cheeks as she called out.

  “Come in.”

  Mason’s boots crunched through the mess, and he let out a low whistle.

  “What happened in here?”

  Sadie found a knife on the kitchen counter and sliced into the bread. “Bear ransacked the place.”

  “He sure did, and left his mighty stank behind for us. Whew.”

  “Not to mention he ate half the food and ruined the other half. Thankfully I did find some things for us to eat.”

  “Excellent. I prefer not to eat the jerky rations unless I have to. Where’s Clay?”

  “Here.”

  Clay emerged from the bedroom, shirt in place and belt buckled. He looked just as he did every other day, except for the extra twinkle in his eye. The crease at the edge of his mouth when he smiled. The strong arms and rough but gentle hands. Those lips that could ignite fire.

  Sadie’s body twitched, and she snatched her eyes away, focusing on cutting the bread and cheese. It was impossible to look at him and not leer. She cut her eyes over one more time before forcing herself back to work, scooping out some beans and creating a few sandwiches.

  “Find any information?” Clay asked.

  “A ledger confirming the money delivery tomorrow. It seems everything is on schedule.”

  “How did you get a peek at the post office’s ledger?” Sadie asked.

  Clay stepped up to the counter where she worked on the food, and his hand brushed hers as he gathered the empty cans. Her eyes popped up to his, gazing at him beneath her lashes. The edge of his eyebrow perked as he smiled at her, and it took all her willpower not to throw down the sandwiches and kiss him again.

  She nearly forgot Mason was in the room, his voice sounded so far away.

  “Ladies like my smile.”

  She frowned a little, looking back at him over her shoulder. He grinned—it certainly was dazzling—and popped the edge of his hat in the air.

  “Evening, ma’am,” he drawled with enough charm to smother a horse. “Might you be willing to give me directions to St. Aspen?”

  Sadie’s face broke into a grin at the reenactment. He was good. His green eyes and bright smile were enough to make any woman stop and look.

  She propped a hand on a hip. “It worked just like that, did it?”

  “Oh, sure.” Mason straightened the collar on his shirt. “A little smile, a little lean over the counter with a pouty lip. Drives ‘em wild. She fetched me a map, and I took a peek at her book there. Easy as pie.”

  “Mmhmm,” Sadie murmured, crossing her arms over her chest delicately. “Does Bridget know that’s how you get stuff done?”

  Clay’s chuckle next to her was low, meant only for her.

  Mason’s grin didn’t falter as he took a seat on the only chair still standing.

  “Sure, she does. We all have our talents. But she ain’t worried about me.”

  “Why not?”

  A light twinkled in his eye as he shook his head. “No offense, Miss Tanner, but Bridget Steele is the best lady I’ve ever met. She hung the moon in my sky, and she won’t let me forget it.” The tips of his ears flushed, and Sadie pressed a couple fingers to her lips to hold back her giggle.

  “Doesn’t sound like she has too much to worry about after all.”

  “No, ma’am.”

  Clay cleared his throat as he stepped up behind Sadie. Quite close. She could feel one of his legs on the back of her thigh and his fingers sliding against the small of her back. She glanced up at him, suddenly so close she had to crane her head. His eyes were heavy-lidded, sultry.

  “I don’t know about you, but I’m starving,” he rumbled.

  Her body slackened, leaning back against his chest. He moved an arm around her, strong fingers closing on her arm. When a wicked grin curved his lips, she snapped back to the present.

  “Oh, right. Food,” she said as she slipped out of his grasp and opened a low cabinet near the kitchen sink.

  “Whatever you’ve got smells good,” Mason said.

  What they had was cold food, but she supposed he’d eat anything that wasn’t the dried rations in his saddle bag. She pulled out a stack of plates and served up the sandwiches. When she held one out for Clay, she found him wrapped in the wool blanket from her bed.

  “Thank you,” he said as he took the plate, then swung his blanketed arm toward the door. “Mind if I sit out on your front porch?”

  “Of course. It’s not any warmer in here anymore.”

  “If you want warm, you should feel this blanket I found back there on the bed. It’s like a furnace under this thing.” He gave her a small wink as he turned, and her insides melted.

  She had her own furnace burning already, but she couldn’t deny the urge to hop under the blanket with Clay. To feel his body against hers again.

  She gave a quick glance to Mason as she handed him a plate, and he averted his eyes.

  “Starving,” he murmured under his breath as he took a bite.

  Her back straightened, and suddenly she didn’t care about Mason’s opinion any more than he wanted to give it. She marched for the door and stepped out into the darkness.

  Clay sat on the thick wooden chair where she’d seen her father sit on many occasions, whittling wood or telling stories about Mama. The memories of being a young girl, sitting on the edge of the step and listening to Papa’s words, were drowned by the image of Clay. He leaned back in the chair, draped in the blanket like a royal chieftain. His large form filled the chair like Papa’s never did, and she stared at him in silence.

  When she didn’t move, the corner of his mouth crooked up, and he tilted his chin up an inch to beckon her over.

  Her legs moved of their own accord, and she was at his side in a few steps. They slid together as if they’d done it every day of their lives. She sat astride his knee, leaning back against his chest, and he wrapped her in the red and black wool.

  They were silent a moment as they ate. She hadn’t realized how hungry she was until she took her first bite. It took only moments for them both to devour the sandwiches.

  “Thanks for the food,” he said, setting their plates aside. “My brother used to make bean sandwiches for me.”

  Sadie’s nose twitched. “You mean Tom? I can’t imagine him doing anything nice for anyone.”

  Clay’s chest shook her as he chuckled. “I know. He’s pretty rough on the outside, but he was a damn good older brother.”

  “Really?”

  “Sure. He took care of us after our mother left. I doubt I’d have survived without him.”

  “By himself? How old were you?”

  “Five I think. Tom was seven. Technically my mother’s Aunt Mae was caring for us, but things were rough there. Her husband was an evil man.”

  Her fingers tensed against his arm. She forced them to move again, drawing long lazy circles against his arm.

  “Evil?”

  He grunted a low reply. "Cut from Satan's belt itself. The man loved whiskey. Couldn't function without it. Unfortunately, we were often in his way."

  She stared off into the trees behind the grazing horses, spines lit by the soft blue glow of the moon. Living with a drinking guardian sounded horrific.

  She wanted to give her deepest sympathies, but she was sure nothing she said would ease his past pains. Instead, she twisted to look up at him, ru
bbing her nose up under his chin as one of her hands found its way into his hair. She trailed her fingernails delicately along his scalp, and a shiver moved through his body.

  “I’m sorry you had to go through that,” she whispered.

  The blanket shifted, and his fingers eased along her jaw, caressing her cheek and teasing her lips.

  “You grew up without a mother too.”

  “I did, but I had a father that cared for me.”

  “Enough to hide you away from the world.”

  Emotion knotted in her throat. “He changed after Mama died. I’m not sure what drove him to the woods. She loved it out here, but she was also well-known in town. I doubt she would have moved while she was alive.” She shrugged. “It was unfortunate, but I never doubted that he cared for me.”

  Clay’s lips turned up, and he pressed a soft kiss to her mouth. “I’m glad you never felt unloved.”

  She smiled against his lips, and he pressed his forehead to hers.

  “What happened to her, your mother?”

  “She got sick. Pneumonia. Papa never really talked about it much. She just got sick and was gone so fast.”

  He nodded gently, head still resting on hers. “I’m sorry.”

  “I would ask him. I wanted to know more about her, but he got really sad when he spoke of her. One day he caught me trying on one of her dresses. I don’t know why we still had them. Something in him changed after that. He treated me more like an adult. I think that’s when he started trying to figure out how to get me back to Emerald Falls.”

  She hadn't considered how he would go about making that happen until he brought home the news.

  The very thought of Robert and Papa’s arrangement made her insides squirm. Ice filled her chest, and she snuggled deeper into the blanket. Clay didn’t speak another word, only pulled her closer into his chest, and they watched the wide expanse of starry sky through the trees.

  She’d been so excited by the marriage proposition in the beginning. It was her ticket back to town. Sure, Robert was dull, but he was a gentleman. He lacked a few notches in bravery, but he was respected in the community. His father was definitely someone everyone wanted to know.

  It had been the perfect opportunity to integrate herself back into the lifestyle she missed so much.

  Until the afternoon on the train.

  In just a few days, her world had been turned upside down. She’d gone from wanting to run back to her life to being swept off her feet by the very man who’d stolen her away.

  The longer she was away from her old life, the more she’d doubted Robert would take her back. And the more time she spent with Clay, the more she was sure she didn’t want him to.

  As if she’d spoken the words aloud, Clay came to life beneath her, and his breath touched her ear.

  “You can do better than Emerald Falls, Sadie Tanner.”

  She turned to look up into his deep blue eyes. Barely a glimmer in the darkness, but they still reached for her.

  No matter what else was to happen in her future, she felt quite content in her little cabin in the woods. Normal for the first time in her life. Desirable. Come what may with Aunt Hilda’s money and Robert’s judgment, she would lose herself in Clay for as long as she could.

  His hands slid beneath the edge of her shirt, rubbing into the soft skin of her waist. Any confusing thoughts that had been clouding her mind grew fuzzy and disappeared. Then his mouth found hers, and it was doubly difficult to hold any rational thoughts in her head.

  He kissed her with a strength that took her breath away. Then he twisted her beneath the wool blanket to slip an arm beneath her knees and hoisted her up against his chest as he stood. He cradled her in his arms and strode across the porch. Nothing else existed in her world as he stepped back inside and carried her to her bedroom.

  Chapter 15

  Sadie tied a second bundle of pelts onto Clover's back. Her saddlebags were already stuffed full of the last of her clothes and some of the surviving cans of food. Georgene and Mason's gelding were loaded down with animal pelts as well.

  The morning sun streamed through the tree limbs, leaving a patchwork of light over the horses’ coats. Sadie looked up into the clear sky, the steam from her breath puffing lightly into the cool air, and smiled. Most of her worries from the night before had been put to rest when Clay had scooped her up in the blanket and taken her back to her bedroom. He’d worshipped her body again, and she, his. The dance hadn’t been as foreign as before, but it was no less enjoyable. She’d slept like a rock in his arms afterward.

  “That’s the last of them,” Mason said from the porch.

  She gave him a wave of acknowledgment as she checked the rope on her hides.

  Mason had slept on Papa’s bed in the main room. The three of them had spent breakfast nibbling on some canned peaches and not meeting one another’s gaze.

  “I think that’s it then,” she said.

  She’d collected her belongings and everything they could, knowing she might not return to the cabin again. It would be abandoned. For now. The land did technically belong to Papa. She could get in contact with someone in town about selling the place. After disclosing that he’d passed on. She didn’t want to face that part.

  “Good. Grab Clay. We need to head out.”

  Sadie climbed the step to the porch and stuck her head inside the cabin door. Clay stood near Papa’s bed, a stack of papers in hand. He shifted one back, reading intently. When she stepped inside, he looked up.

  He ruffled the papers. “Have you seen these?”

  She lifted a shoulder as she approached. “What are they?”

  “Letters. Your pop kept letters from everyone.”

  A melancholy smile twitched in the corner of her mouth. “I didn’t know that. Where were they?”

  “Stashed in the corner under his bed. You should probably read them.”

  The tone in his voice perked her eyebrow. “Why?”

  He paused, and his eyes searched her face.

  "Just interesting exchanges between your parents is all. I'm sure you'll enjoy it."

  A more genuine smile came over her, and she nodded. “Thank you. I’ll bring them along. Mason’s ready to go.”

  Clay wrapped the papers up in twine and stuck them back into an old paper sleeve.

  Sadie took one last look around, said her silent goodbyes with a glimmer of moisture in her eye, and followed Clay outside into the sun.

  Mason was mounted up and waiting near the edge of the clearing. Clay walked with Sadie to her mare and tucked the stack of letters into the recesses of her nearest saddle bag. Then he offered her a hand and helped her up onto the horse.

  “Beautiful morning,” he said, rubbing his thumb over her knuckles before dropping her hand. “Nice day for a little financial reassignment.”

  Despite the morbid implications, she laughed aloud. His grin grew.

  “Busy day ahead of us,” he said, voice lifted so Mason could hear him as well. He grabbed his hat from Georgene’s saddle horn and climbed up. He settled the black hat on his head, low over his eyes, and nodded. “Let’s get a move on.”

  Mason heeled his horse out onto the road.

  The three of them left the cabin and the clearing behind, turning out onto the main path. The road split the forest for half a mile before it spread out into wide expanses of green prairies and long straight roads. Mason took the lead while Clay trotted at Sadie’s side.

  She loosened the thick jacket collar at her neck as the sun crested the mountains in the distance and warmed the air. Soft white clouds stretched across a robin egg blue sky. A gentle breeze touched Sadie’s cheeks and stirred her hair.

  It was a perfect morning.

  The horses had settled into a peaceful gait, and she stole a glance over at Clay just in time to catch his eye. And a dark smile.

  Georgene moved close enough to bump Sadie’s leg, and Clay’s hand moved over to take hers, resting against her thigh. Despite the warming air, his hand
felt hot. She squeezed it lightly.

  Ahead of them, Mason glanced back at them. When his eyes fell on their hands, Sadie’s first instinct was to let go, but Clay’s fingers wove into hers with a finality that sung in her heart. Rather than hide, she sat a little taller in her saddle.

  Mason’s brow knit slightly as he turned back to the front. He spoke without turning again.

  “Let’s keep our head in the game today. There’s a lot at stake.”

  Clay grunted a halfhearted chuckle, then set Sadie's hand aside. At first, she was disappointed at his reaction, but the firm set in his jaw and brow said he wasn't casting her off. He had other matters to tend to.

  He nudged Georgene forward and flanked Mason, giving him a solid chin-nod.

  “What’s the problem, Kent?”

  “Nothing. We just need to be sharp. You know that.”

  “I’m fine. I’m here. Let’s do this.”

  Mason cast a short peek over his shoulder at Sadie and spoke in a hushed tone. “You’re not fine. You’ve got your head in the clouds back there.”

  Clay’s head lowered an inch, the rim of his hat casting a shadow over his sharp eyes. “You think because I fancy a lady I can’t stick to a plan?”

  Butterflies set off in Sadie's stomach. As if the previous evening with him hadn't been any indication, the words on his lips sent a thrill rushing through her. Even if he was using it in his defense.

  “I just wanted to be sure, is all. You’re like my brother, Clay. I ain’t going to let some woman endanger you.”

  Clay turned toward the road ahead of them without a word, and Sadie shrunk inside herself.

  She didn’t want to cloud his judgment either if their plan involved something so dangerous. She considered asking to stay back at the cabin, out of his way and where she would provide no distraction, but a fear tickled at the back of her neck. That bear could come back, and she’d be all alone.

  She grimaced and rolled a shoulder up to rub at the shiver in her bones.

  Ahead of her Clay glanced at Mason and reached over to shove him in the arm. Mason rocked in his saddle but remained upright.

  “I appreciate the sentiment,” Clay rumbled, “but just because you’re the fastest gun in Wyoming, don’t mean the rest of us can’t take care of ourselves.”