The Christmas Bride - A Western Romance Novella (Book 4, Burnett Brides Series)

by Sylvia McDaniel

  Bundled in her coat, with her mittens on and her scarf wrapped tightly around her, they ventured out into the snow. The first step out of the cabin, she sank into the snow all the way to the top of her boots. Wyatt held her arm as they staggered toward the wooden lean-to, her skirt dragging in the snow.

  “I don’t think I’ll slip and fall,” she told him. “But my dress is getting wet.”

  “I know, but I kind of like holding on to you,” he said, smiling at her, his brown eyes filling her with warmth. “And your dress we can hang by the fire to dry.”

  She laughed at him, yet a ripple of awareness went through her at the idea of going without her dress. “You’re naughty.”

  “No, I just like to look at you.”

  When they reached the lean-to, he let go of her arm and went inside. He slipped the bridle onto her horse and led the mare out into the snowy yard. The horse snorted and sauntered along with Wyatt talking to her softly.

  Eugenia walked alongside Wyatt and the mare while she gazed out at the frozen countryside. Everything was dripped in white. The trees, scrub brush, and prairie had ripples of white where the wind had made small drifts. “It’s been years since we’ve had this much snow.”

  “It’s pretty, but I’m glad we don’t get it very often,” Wyatt said, turning the horse and walking the other direction.

  They exercised the mare long enough that Eugenia’s toes started to freeze and she began to shiver.

  Wyatt put the mare back in the lean-to and retrieved his horse.

  “Come on, Sally,” he said. “Let’s do a little walking.”

  “Why did you name your horse Sally?”

  He shrugged. “I always had a fondness for the name and would have named my daughter Sally, but Beatrice said no.”

  He turned the mare in the opposite direction and Eugenia followed beside him, enjoying his companionship even if they weren’t saying much.

  “What about you?” Wyatt asked. “What would you have named your daughter? Eugenia?”

  “Dear God, no. My mother saddled me with this name, and I hated it,” she said. “I think I would have gone with Corabell or Elizabeth.” She pushed through the snow, her skirts dragging alongside Wyatt. “What would your daughter think if you were to marry again?”

  She didn’t know why that question just seemed to slip out, but also it seemed like important information she needed to know.

  He shrugged. “I don’t know. I hope she’d be accepting since she lives so far away and I only get to see her once or twice a year. It’s not good for a man to live alone.”

  She gazed at him. “Have you been lonely? You have all those men working for your ranch. You’re surrounded by people.”

  “Yes. I’ve been lonely for a long time. Even before Beatrice passed on. We were happy, but once she became sick, we didn’t have much of a marriage. I’ve hungered for more. I’m going to have more with someone.”

  Surprised to hear him admit to being lonely, she failed to see the frozen puddle on the ground. Her foot slid, and she threw her arms up trying to catch herself. Then she was falling.

  With a plop, she landed in the snow.

  Wyatt dropped the reins of the horse and hurried to her side. “Are you all right?”

  She sat up laughing. Her skirt had come up, and she’d landed on her drawers, which were rapidly becoming wet. “I’m fine. A little cold, but fine.”

  He leaned down, his lips found hers, and he kissed her. Her body softened, and she melted into his kiss as she reached up and shoved a handful of snow on his face.

  He gasped.

  “Just thought I should bring down your temperature a bit,” she said with a laugh, wanting nothing more than to have a good roll in the snow with him.

  “It’s going to take more than that little bit of snow,” he said. “Come on, I’ll help you up.”

  Reaching out his hand, she grasped it, and just as her feet came underneath her, she saw him starting to slide.

  “Oh no…” she cried as he fell to the ground and she went down beside him.

  She couldn’t help but laugh at the sight they made, both of them on their backsides in the snow. Yet she worried he could be hurt. “Are you all right?”

  He lay in the snow beside her. “Other than my pride smarting a bit, I think I’m fine.”

  The horse whinnied.

  “You look pretty funny lying there in the snow,” Eugenia said. She crawled over to him and checked to make certain he wasn’t hurt.

  He grinned at her. “You don’t look any better. In fact, I see snow in your bonnet.”

  She sat up. “Should we try this again?”

  “Let me go first and I’ll pull you up.”

  He got to his knees, and just as he stood, she watched his boots start to slide.

  “Be careful.”

  Finally he was standing, looking down at her. “You know I think there’s some ice beneath us. I’m going to walk around and see if I can pull you up this way.”

  He moved behind her and pulled her up. “Don’t walk over there.”

  She brushed the snow off of herself, and then she started brushing the powdery white stuff off him. His backside had snow and mud on his pants. Without thinking, she reached up and brushed her hands over his firm butt and down his long, shapely legs.

  Even at this age, the man had a body made of steel. A body that she enjoyed. A body that made her heart beat a little faster. A body that she couldn’t wait to try again.

  Finally she looked at herself. “I’m a mess. I’m frozen, and I can’t feel my toes.”

  “Why don’t you go to the cabin and start cleaning up? I’ll be there as soon as I put the horse back in the lean-to.”

  “You don’t have to tell me twice.”

  “Be careful,” he said. “I’ll be there just as soon as I finish here.”

  “I’ll make a fresh pot of coffee.”

  “Sounds warm.”

  Five minutes later when Wyatt walked into the cabin, she had added another log to the fire and put on a pot of water to heat. There was a wooden bathtub sitting in the middle of the tiny room.

  “Look what I found outside leaning against the wall of the shack.”

  He smiled, his brown eyes dancing with delight. “Looks big enough for two.”

  She could feel her cheeks blush. The idea of the two of them together in that tub had her imaging all kinds of things that had her heart racing. “I hadn’t thought of us using it. I was going to wash clothes in it.”

  “First us and then the clothes,” he said, shedding his coat.

  Eugenia gazed at him and shook her head, feeling a little nervous about bathing with Wyatt. It seemed so intimate, so personal. “I don’t think I’ve ever bathed with a man before.”

  “I’ve certainly never bathed with a woman before. It’s a first for both of us,” he said.

  “But…we were under the covers this morning. It’s daylight and well…”

  He ambled over and kissed her full on the mouth, his hands bringing her buttocks in close. He whispered against her lips, “I promise not to look. Much.”

  She swatted him on the arm. “Do you think that makes me feel better?”

  “Honey, believe me, we won’t be in that tub long. I’m already hard just pondering you and me naked in that warm water.”

  She laughed, and her breathing quickened at the picture his words conjured up in her mind. “Wyatt!”

  Suddenly it dawned on her to wonder how could she ever face this man after this day? How could they go on? “How am I going to look at you without everyone knowing what we’ve done?”

  “If you were my wife, it wouldn’t be a problem.” He held up his hands. “Just saying, and you brought it up, not me.”

  He turned his back to her, picked up the kettle and poured it into the tub. Sinking onto the chair, he removed his wet boots and put them next to the fire to dry. “Sit down, and I’ll pull off your boots for you.”

  Remove her boots? Really? The m
an was waiting on her? She sank onto the chair and he untied her boots and pulled them from her feet. When he removed her wet socks, he laid them by the fire.

  “Turn around, and I’ll help you with your dress.”

  “Wyatt?” she said, gazing at him, wondering if he were serious. “Are we really going to take a bath?”

  “Why not? It will warm us up. What else are we going to do?” he asked, his expression innocent.

  She bit her lip. “I found a bar of soap and even a towel in the cupboard.”

  “Great,” he said, undoing the buttons on her dress. He leaned over and kissed the back of her neck and along her throat. Her knees felt weak, and she leaned back into him, offering him more of her neck.

  He tugged off her wet dress and laid it over the chair to steam by the fire. Then he helped her remove her chemise and finally her pantaloons. Awkwardly, she stood there without a stitch of clothes on in broad daylight.

  “Wyatt, I’ve had three babies. I’m almost fifty.”

  He kissed her mouth, her neck, his hands gripping her face. “I don’t care, Eugenia. All that matters is that you’re here with me.”

  His words warmed her, and she realized he made her feel cherished.

  He stepped back and started to remove his shirt. “Ladies first. I thought you might like a few minutes in the tub before I join you.”

  She stared at him in surprise. Why was this man always so thoughtful, so kind? Would marriage be different with this man?

  She stepped over the edge of the tub and sank into the warm water. She sighed at the bliss that overcame her. She’d been cold. She’d been achy from the fall, and this was the perfect remedy. She leaned back, and though it wasn’t a huge tub, it was long enough she could at least rest her back against the rim.

  With a sigh, she half-closed her eyes until she heard him remove his pants, and then she opened them and stared at the proud man standing there nude.

  “Ready for some company?” he asked.

  “Are you sure we can both fit in here?”

  “We’ll make room.”

  He poured more water into the tub, careful not to let the hot liquid touch her skin. Then he climbed in behind and sat her between his knees. It was a tight fit, but when she leaned back against his warm chest, it felt so right.

  “Not bad,” she said. “I thought you were crazy for wanting us to take a bath, but this feels so nice.”

  “Told you,” he said, his lips close to her ear. His low voice sent ripples of pleasure along her spine.

  She could feel his penis hard against her back. “You were right when you said we wouldn’t be in here long.”

  He chuckled. “That obvious?”

  “Oh yeah.”

  “I can’t help it, Eugenia. You do this to me. Not Myrtle or any of those other casserole-toting women you were sending me. Just you.”

  She sighed and pulled his arms around her. For today, this man was hers, all hers, and she was going to enjoy every bit of him. “Would you wash my back? And my front? And any other parts you might find interesting?”

  “I thought you’d never ask,” he said.

  Chapter Nine

  Eugenia awoke just like the day before, but this time, she and Wyatt were naked as the day they were born. This time, her back was snug against his chest, her leg entwined with his, skin against skin.

  Yesterday after the bath, they had made love once more, and then together the two of them had washed their clothes in the bathtub. The two of them. They had done everything together, and while she wanted to believe that if she married him, life would be like this, a voice of doubt kept telling her he was just being nice.

  Once they began to live as man and wife, things would change. He would change. She’d be back to taking care of a man, waiting on him, cooking for him, cleaning for him, only doing what he wanted, and she wasn’t ready to give up her freedom for incredible sex.

  They had fun together. She enjoyed being with Wyatt. He was everything she’d ever want in a husband if she were looking for a man. But there was no reason for her to marry again.

  And then she had the most outrageous, naughty idea. Would Wyatt be agreeable to them slipping off occasionally to this cabin? They could meet and spend the day together, right here in this bed.

  His lips nuzzled her neck, and a delightful tremor wound its way from her neck straight to her groin. She sighed. “Good morning, Wyatt.”

  “Good morning, Eugenia. Hungry?”

  “Famished, for you,” she said, her body pulsing with need.

  He groaned. “You’re a hard woman to please.”

  “And you enjoy pleasing me.”

  “More than you’ll ever know.”

  His lips kissed a trail down her naked back, and she shivered as his fingers reached around to massage her nipples. She ran her hands along his strong legs and found his manhood hard and ready. She grasped the taught muscle in her hands and squeezed.

  He gasped. “Jesus, Eugenia.”

  She laughed and continued her sweet torture of him as she ran her hands along his shaft, teasing and tempting. His breathing was harsh in her ears, and she loved his reaction to her caresses. Soon he flipped her onto her back and covered her body with his.

  Sweet desire filled her as she gazed up into his brown eyes and lost herself in his embrace. In a matter of moments, his fingers found her center, teasing her, torturing her with his caress. She moaned, and her heart filled with an ache that only Wyatt evoked.

  As she stroked him, he plunged two fingers into her, and she couldn’t remember a time in her life she’d ever felt more loved. A time when lying with a man had her more aroused and needy than her next breath.

  She couldn’t remember making love ever being this good with Thomas, and she wondered why they’d never had this much fun.

  Quickly, Wyatt entered her in one solid thrust, joining their bodies and their souls. She wrapped her legs around him, needing him close, eliciting a groan from him. His lips found hers, and he consumed her, his mouth moving over hers, his hands wringing moans from her as he plunged deep inside her.

  Over and over he stroked her while his other hand skimmed her body, caressing her, making her feel like she was a cherished woman that he loved. She’d never felt so special, so loved, so regarded.

  Her control slipped as the contractions built within her, and then Wyatt was there, holding her, crying out her name as he took them both over the edge. He held her as the two of them reached the summit and plunged over the side in a grasping almost-death experience.

  For a moment they were both silent as they lay there. Her heart hammered in her chest, and her breathing was harsh as she willed her overexcited body to return to normal, slowing her pulse.

  Wyatt rolled off of her and pulled her to him, adjusting the blanket so they were both covered. “I love lying here naked with you.

  “Hmm, it’s nice,” she said, still in an afterglow fog that had her gasping for air.

  Just then, the door burst open.

  Wyatt sat straight up in bed. Eugenia held tight to the covers, her heart pounding in her chest as her three sons stepped through the door.

  Oh no! What she’d hoped to keep secret now lay exposed to her children.

  Her sons stared at her as if she’d lost her mind. And maybe she had. Reality blew into their make-believe world, shattering the dream quality.

  “What the hell?” Travis said, staring at his mother.

  “Mom?” Tanner asked.

  Tucker just stood there looking at the clothes strung around the cabin to dry, shaking his head, and laughing.

  “Boys…” Eugenia squealed, wondering how she would explain this away.

  “Wyatt, I think we need to have a little chat about our mother and you,” Travis said, walking toward the bed.

  Wyatt held up his hands as if he were being arrested. “Now wait a minute. I’ve been asking your mother to marry me for months, and she’s refused, so don’t get the wrong idea here. In fact, why don�
��t you boys step outside long enough for us to get dressed, and then we can talk about this situation like civilized folks.”

  Eugenia knew her sons, and her chest tightened like a cinch on a horse. There would be hell to pay for this incident.

  #

  As soon as the door closed, Eugenia sprang out of the bed. “Oh poppy-cock, I didn’t want them to know.”

  She pulled her clothes off the line and started to yank them on, her movements sharp and quick.

  Wyatt moved to the side of the bed, stood, and leisurely began to pull his pants on. “Honey, it’s okay. We’ll just assure them that we’re going to meet with the preacher just as soon as the roads clear.”

  Eugenia stopped and stared at him. “Haven’t you been listening?”

  “Of course I have,” he said, bewildered.

  “I don’t want to get married. No one will force me to marry,” she said, jerking on her petticoat.

  She pulled her stockings on one by one. When she went to put her dress on, she noticed that Wyatt was sitting, watching her, and not saying a word.

  “What?” she asked. “Hurry. The boys are standing outside in the cold.”

  Wyatt stared at her, his eyes dull as flint, his expression bitter. “Tell me something, Eugenia. Have these two days meant nothing to you? You’re still not going to marry me after the time we’ve spent together?”

  She stopped lacing up her shoes and gazed at Wyatt. For a moment, she felt torn. If she were to remarry, Wyatt would be the man she’d go to the judge with. But she didn’t want to relinquish her independence.

  “These past two days have been wonderful. But I…I don’t want to answer to any man.”

  Wyatt took a deep breath and began to dress again. He wouldn’t look at her.

  “Do you understand?”

  He yanked on his shirt and hurriedly buttoned the front and stuffed it into his pants. “No, Eugenia, I don’t think I’ll ever understand. Thomas must have made your life hell for you to give up what we shared this weekend.”

  Fear flooded through her, and she realized she didn’t want to lose Wyatt. “Why can’t we just remain friends? We could sneak off and meet here once a week.”