Christmas at Dove Creek

by Scarlett Dunn

  He forced his eyes back to hers. “Well . . . I’m not a marrying man.” He swallowed hard as he felt himself sinking in the depths of those blue eyes. Maybe one kiss wouldn’t hurt anything. She was looking at him like she wanted to be kissed. He removed her hat and her long hair fell over her shoulders. He slid his hand behind her head and lowered his head until his lips were covering hers. His intention was to be gentle, a first kiss kind of kiss, but his honorable intentions floated away on a frosty breeze. He tightened his arm around her waist and he lifted her close to his body, pressing her back to the heart he’d just carved. He kissed her like a man who hadn’t kissed a woman in months. He kissed her like he’d never kissed another woman. He kissed her like he’d never kissed Evelyn. Evelyn. There she was again. The very reason he didn’t want another woman. Abruptly, he pulled back, but he couldn’t go far because her arms were looped around his neck holding him to her. When did that happen? He lowered her to the ground and her arms dropped from his neck.

  “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have done that.” He was saying the words he wanted to say, but his baser instinct was to pin her against that rock wall again and kiss her some more. He took a step away, as far as he could go without falling off the ledge. It wasn’t nearly far enough away to prevent him from giving in to the temptation of kissing her again.

  Lily looked away as she settled her hat on her head. She wasn’t one bit sorry, but she felt like crying because the look on his face said he regretted what had just happened. “Think nothing of it. We’d better get back.” She turned and started to make her way down.

  Their descent was quiet, and Thorpe felt bad about that. He didn’t know what he’d been thinking to do something so harebrained. Problem was, he wasn’t thinking. Just like that night he’d allowed Evelyn to seduce him; his brain had stopped working seeing her without her clothes. Lily was fully clothed, bundled up in a coat, and his brain turned to mush. Oh yeah, he’d liked that kiss. Too much. But he figured he would like any woman’s kiss right now since it had been so long since he had kissed one. If he was certain of one thing, he wasn’t about to compromise a woman’s virtue. Logically, he knew he’d spend some time with women in the future, but not one he’d have to marry. Maybe when Evelyn’s betrayal faded, he’d be more inclined to think about marriage again. But that day was a long, long way off.

  Lily couldn’t get back to the wagons fast enough. She wasn’t a woman who showed her emotions easily. But right now, she was on the verge of tears, and she didn’t want to cry in front of Thorpe. All of these feelings were new to her and she needed to figure them out privately. She remembered her mother told her she knew her father was the man she loved because the first time she saw him he took her breath away. Thorpe definitely took her breath away. He evoked passionate responses she had never experienced. But he’d made himself perfectly clear that he didn’t share her feelings. He was interested in her, but not for marriage. And she wasn’t a woman that could give a man what was most precious to her without marriage. Isabelle had done that, and now she was setting her hopes and future on finding a man that may or may not want her. It was clear Thorpe might like her, and would take what she was willing to give, but he didn’t love her. It was her misfortune that somewhere along the way on this trip she’d fallen in love with Thorpe Turlow. She couldn’t blame him for that since he’d made his intentions clear from the start.

  * * *

  “Did you enjoy the climb, Lily?” Isabelle asked when she returned to camp.

  “Yes, but I’m cold. I’m going inside the wagon.” Lily didn’t stop; she half ran to her wagon.

  Thorpe stopped at the fire, grabbed a cup of coffee, sat down on a rock, and stared into the fire.

  Isabelle and Stone looked at each other. “Thorpe, did you see a lot of names on the rock?”

  It took a few seconds for Thorpe to realize Isabelle said his name. “Huh?”

  “Did you see some names carved up there?”

  “Yeah.” Thorpe stood, tossed his coffee out, and walked to the corral to saddle Smoke. He needed to think and he did that best on horseback. He didn’t ride far from camp; he just circled it, keeping it within sight at all times. He continued to berate himself for his impulsive actions with Lily. It was out of character for him. Evelyn had popped into his thoughts in time to prevent him from making matters worse. He didn’t know why he kept thinking of her; he thought he’d forgiven her and moved on. Just because he was no longer angry didn’t mean he’d forgotten her duplicity. At least it kept him from making the same mistake twice. He wanted to get home and put all of this behind him. Once he was back at Dove Creek, his life could get back to normal. Lily would go on to find her grandfather and she would no longer be a temptation. The routine of the ranch was what he needed. Hard work always helped him sort things out.

  * * *

  Lily was relieved to be in the privacy of the wagon. Blue, Spirit, and the puppies were inside with her so she wasn’t totally alone, and she could cry in front of them. She wiped away the tears on her cheeks and Blue moved to her and put his head in her lap, offering her comfort. “I don’t know why he did that, and then he apologized,” she said to Blue. The corral was near the wagon and she heard Thorpe ride away. What if he didn’t come back? No, she only heard one horse. If he planned to leave he would come back for Shadow, and he had supplies in one of the wagons. She didn’t understand what was going on with him. The only thing that made sense was he hadn’t forgotten the woman that left him at the altar. He was still in love with her. That was probably why he hadn’t taken Dora up on what she was offering without a thought to marriage. If he didn’t leave them, she would stay away from him. They’d be in Fort Steele in a few days and she wouldn’t see him again after that.

  Chapter Nineteen

  As soon as the newcomers rode into Fort Steele they were greeted by the officer in charge. “Hello, I’m Captain Wallace Anderson.”

  “I’m Thorpe Turlow.” Thorpe pointed to his fellow travelers. “This is U.S. Marshal Stone Justice, Jedidiah Clarke, Lily Starr, and Isabelle Baker.”

  The captain nodded to the men, but reached up and tipped his hat when Thorpe introduced the women. His eyes moved over the group and zeroed in on Lily. “How may I help you?”

  Thorpe answered for them, first explaining why Stone was with the group, and inquiring about the soldier Isabelle was looking for and Jedidiah’s brother.

  The captain invited the men to the post headquarters later to allow him some time to make the necessary inquiries. “I’ll have a man show you where to put the wagons, and they’ll help you with the animals.” He glanced back at Lily, and said, “You ladies can go to my personal quarters where you can freshen up and relax until dinner. It would be my honor to have you join us for our Thanksgiving meal.” He motioned for one of the soldiers. “Sergeant Greene will escort you. We have a general store if you ladies are in need of anything.”

  “Thank you, Captain. We will be delighted to join you for dinner,” Lily said.

  The captain touched the brim of his hat again and smiled at Lily. “Until then.”

  Thorpe noticed Captain Anderson seemed to be taking a keen interest in Lily. And Lily seemed eager to join him for dinner.

  Sergeant Greene stepped forward. “Ladies, if you would care to follow me. I will show you to your quarters.”

  “I need to send a telegram to my headquarters to inform them of the situation with Harlow and his gang, and the transfer of the money,” Stone said.

  “Of course, please come with me.”

  * * *

  After Stone sent his telegram, and Thorpe sent one to his foreman informing him he would be home in a few days, they followed one of the soldiers to the building where they would bunk for the night. Once they cleaned up, they joined the captain at the headquarters building.

  Stone told the captain about Harlow and his gang, and about the thirty thousand dollars. He asked if the captain could take charge of the money, guaranteeing its safe delivery
to the designated bank. “I can assure you we will get the money to the bank.” The captain walked to a table and grabbed a bottle of whiskey. “Gentlemen, would you like a drink?”

  Thorpe and Stone accepted, but Jedidiah declined his offer. As they sipped their whiskey, they related the events that had taken place with the outlaws on their way to the fort.

  “It sounds as though you’ve had an eventful journey,” the captain said. “Are the ladies you’re traveling with your wives?” He noticed the different last names when they were introduced, but it was a subtle way to find out if Lily was married.

  “No, none of us are related.” Thorpe wasn’t surprised the captain found a way to inquire about Lily’s marital status. He was surprised it had taken him so long, seeing the way he was gawking at her when he was introduced. Thorpe heard Jedidiah take up the story about Lily saving his life.

  “That’s some story,” Anderson said. “Sounds like you were lucky she came along.”

  Thorpe didn’t respond to his comment. He wasn’t in the mood to discuss Lily with the captain. He’d kept his distance from her since their kiss at Chimney Rock and she hadn’t said two words to him either. “What can you tell us about Jed’s brother?”

  “Mr. Clarke, your brother’s regiment was dispatched to northeastern Wyoming to Fort Kearny. It may be a few months before they return.”

  “Thank you for the information, Captain. I haven’t seen my brother in a long time. It’s good to know he’s still alive.”

  “Of course, if you’ve a mind to stay here and wait for his return, we can always use a skilled blacksmith. Either way, I will get word to him where you are located,” Anderson said.

  “I thank you, sir, but I may just go on with Mr. Thorpe.”

  “What about Ethan Horn?” Thorpe asked.

  “I’m sorry to inform you that Second Lieutenant Horn was killed two weeks ago. His battalion was in a skirmish with the Sioux. Everyone was killed.”

  “Are you positive, Captain?” Stone asked.

  “Yes. No one survived. We’ve had some difficulty with the Sioux. If someone in your party is a relative, Mrs. Horn has not left the fort.”

  “You mean his mother is here?” Thorpe asked.

  “No, his wife,” Captain Anderson replied. “It was an unfortunate situation. Horn’s wife had just arrived the day before he left. They were planning on settling here. To make matters worse, she is carrying their first child. She will be having this baby in a few months, and when she is able, she plans to go back to Missouri.”

  Thorpe glanced at Stone and Jed. They were as surprised as he was to hear about Mrs. Horn. “We are not relatives. A member of our party had met Ethan before and we wanted to say hello while we were here,” Thorpe said smoothly. “We’d appreciate it if you wouldn’t mention his death to the ladies. We don’t want to upset them.”

  “I won’t say a word.” Captain Anderson was curious to know if Lily was the one who had met Lieutenant Horn. He’d heard from his men that the lieutenant had been real popular with the ladies. It came as a surprise to the other soldiers to learn he had a wife. The captain stood and said, “Dinner will be in two hours.”

  * * *

  Back in their quarters, Thorpe, Stone, and Jed were alone discussing how they were going to tell Isabelle about Ethan Horn.

  “We can’t tell her right now. In her condition I don’t think she could handle the heartbreak,” Stone said.

  Thorpe understood what Stone was saying, but they couldn’t keep this information from her. “She can’t stay here waiting on a man to return that will never come back. After she has the baby she needs to go back home to be with her family. She’ll need help caring for that baby.”

  “Mr. Thorpe, Miss Isabelle has no place to go,” Jed told him.

  Thorpe and Stone stared at Jed. “What do you mean? She has a home. She told us about her family. Her father is a preacher,” Thorpe said.

  Jed shook his head. “I wouldn’t say anything, but now with the father of that baby dead, I have to tell you.”

  “Tell us what, Jed?” Stone asked.

  “Miss Isabelle’s father told her she wasn’t welcome in their home. He told her to leave when he found out about the babe,” Jed told them.

  Thorpe processed what Jed said. “That does change things.”

  “What kind of father would say such a thing to his daughter?” Stone asked. “Not only did Ethan Horn lie to her about marrying her, but her father didn’t treat her any better.”

  “Yeah, I was surprised to hear Horn was married,” Thorpe said.

  Stone was livid at the man that had taken advantage of Isabelle. He was sorry to hear he’d been killed, but he was still angry with a man he didn’t even know. It had been his intention once he met him to give him a piece of his mind about not marrying Isabelle once he’d compromised her. He’d also planned to give him a warning that he’d better treat Isabelle the way she deserved to be treated in the future. A real man didn’t walk out on a woman like Isabelle.

  “We should talk to Lily and ask her how we should tell Isabelle,” Thorpe said.

  * * *

  Thorpe found Lily at the corral checking on the animals. She spotted Thorpe as soon as he walked to the fence.

  “I need to speak with you a minute,” Thorpe told her.

  Lily walked to the fence where he was leaning on the rail, Blaze and Daisy following her. Her first thought was Thorpe came to say he was headed out. Now that they had arrived safely to the fort, he had no reason to stay with them. She waited for him to speak since the huge lump in her throat prevented her from saying a word.

  “Where’s Isabelle?” Thorpe asked.

  “She’s lying down. I just came out here to check on the animals. Why?”

  Thorpe took his hat off and slapped it against the rail before he settled it back on his head. “Lily, we just found out that Ethan Horn was killed.”

  Lily stared at him and shook her head as if she wasn’t going to accept what he was saying. “Surely not!”

  Thorpe saw some soldiers nearby and he wanted more privacy to tell her the rest. He reached out and opened the gate to the corral. “Walk with me.”

  Lily walked beside him in the direction of the building where they were staying.

  “Lily, I’m afraid his death isn’t the only thing I must tell you. Captain Anderson said Horn was married.”

  “He must be thinking of the wrong man. Ethan told Isabelle he would marry her when he returned.”

  Thorpe stopped walking and turned to face Lily. “No, he didn’t have the wrong man. That’s not all. Ethan’s wife is here at the fort and she is carrying their first child. She’d just arrived before he was killed. Once she has her baby she plans on returning to Missouri.”

  Lily could hardly believe what Thorpe was saying. Poor Isabelle. What would she do now that she would be having this baby without a proper marriage? An unmarried woman with a child would not be welcome anywhere. How would she support herself? She quickly concluded she would have to find a way to help her. She could find a job and help support Isabelle and her baby. They would simply say the baby’s father was killed, which was the truth. They wouldn’t need to advertise that Isabelle was an unwed mother. “How will we ever tell Isabelle this?”

  “I don’t think we should. I asked the captain not to mention it.”

  Lily gaped at him. “You didn’t tell him about Isabelle and Ethan!”

  “No. I just told him a member of our group had met Horn and we wanted to say hello.” Thorpe didn’t say he sensed the captain was skeptical about his explanation.

  “Thank goodness,” Lily said. She wanted to spare Isabelle further embarrassment. Isabelle was in a fragile state right now and she was worried this news might be too much for her to handle. “How will we get her to leave if we don’t tell her the truth? She won’t leave if she thinks he will return.”

  Thorpe knew Lily was right. Isabelle had traveled all this way and she was determined the baby would have
a father. “I guess we have no choice, but don’t you think we should spare her the other details?”

  “Oh, you mean how Ethan deceived her to get what he wanted? How he told her he would come back and marry her when he could? How he forgot to mention he had a wife and how she is also with child?” Lily had worked herself into a dither. It was all so unfair. Isabelle would be labeled a fallen woman for one mistake: being led with her heart. And no one would think the worst of the soldier. He was no doubt considered a hero.

  Thorpe didn’t respond. What could he say?

  “Men!” Lily said.

  “Lily, men aren’t the only ones who deceive.”

  She’d forgotten about his fiancée. The woman that had stolen his heart. The woman who didn’t appreciate the man Lily thought was wonderful. The woman that made it impossible for him to love again. She took a deep breath and collected herself. “Let me tell Isabelle after dinner when we are alone in the room. I’ll tell her he was killed, but no more. We will have to leave here. She can’t stay with Ethan’s wife here at the same time.”

  Thorpe had already thought about that situation, and after what Jed revealed about Isabelle’s father, he thought he had a solution. “You can go to Dove Creek with me. I think I’ve talked Jed into staying until spring. Instead of spending Christmas here, you can stay at Dove Creek.”

  His offer brought tears to her eyes. “That’s generous of you. Do you think I could find a job in town so I could help support Isabelle and her baby? She’s going to need help.”

  “Why don’t we talk about that later? Our biggest concern is to get everyone to Dove Creek in one piece, and make sure she doesn’t have that baby on the trail. We should plan on leaving in the morning.”

  He was right, of course. Isabelle was so huge that Lily feared she could have that baby at any moment. If they stayed at the fort, Isabelle was sure to hear about Ethan’s wife and baby. “Yes, we should leave as soon as possible.”