Chase’s mouth went dry.
It took all his balance to stay upright, not so much from whiskey consumed, or from the pain shooting along his ribs, or from Letty Sue’s unnerving beauty. No, it was a combination of the three that hit him hard and had him swaying against the opened door.
Letty Sue grabbed for him.
“Ouch!” he barked. She’d caught him just under the ribs.
“Chase, what’s wrong? Come and sit down. You’re bleeding.”
“My chin’s going to be just fine. It’s higher and lower that’s got me woozy.”
He staggered, trying to keep most of his weight off of her. She guided him to the parlor, toward a cushioned wing chair. He slumped into it.
“What happened?” Her voice lost its edgy tone. She spoke softly as she kneeled down to look up into his face. “Tell me.”
She put her hands on his knees for balance. Heat shot straight through him. His head spun in circles. Having her kneeling at his feet, looking up at him with those almond-shaped eyes gone wide with shock, was enough to make a man lose all his good intentions. He closed his eyes and the spinning slowed to a near stop. “Ran into some drifters at the saloon that don’t take kindly to Cheyenne.”
“What’d they do?”
He looked down at her and shrugged. “Pretty much caused a scene with the woman serving me drinks. I had to defend her honor. And mine.”
Letty Sue inhaled sharply. She blinked several times. “How many were there?”
“Three. But don’t you worry. Each one of them looks a hell of a lot worse than me. Sheriff took their guns and made them hightail it out of town.”
Letty Sue rose to dampen a cloth. Chase watched her enter the kitchen, his eyes following her every move. He shouldn’t be here, he told himself again. His feet weren’t moving, though, and neither was his humming body.
When she returned and bent down to dab the cloth against his chin, the scent of jasmine filled his nostrils, and soon just about everything that ached hurt a bit less.
He let his gaze wander over her face: eyes the color of a spring sky; slightly turned up delicate nose; a mouth made for kissing. Then his gaze dropped to those buttons at her throat, and lower, witnessing perfection in two rounded globes straining against the thin cotton gown. The pink of her nipples formed circular shadows against the material.
Another ache developed, one he was familiar with. This one, he didn’t want to fight anymore.
He swallowed hard.
“There,” she said, dabbing at his chin. “Where else does it hurt?”
“Took a hit to the ribs, and I think I’ve got a good lump on my head.”
Gently, Letty Sue removed his hat. “I don’t see anything, Chase.”
“Maybe the lump’s on the inside.”
“What?”
“Nothing, Letty Sue. I’d better get going.” He had to get out of there. But when he made a move to lift himself up from the chair, her hands were on him, easing him back down.
“No you don’t. Close your eyes and rest awhile. I’ll make you a cup of tea.”
He arched a brow her way. “Tea?”
“Yes, for heaven’s sake, Chase. I know how to make a cup of tea. It has healing qualities. Now wait for me here. Close your eyes.”
“Yes, ma’am.” He closed his eyes, but as she left, her fragrant scent wafted to his nostrils, filling his senses.
“Here we go,” she said minutes later, bringing in a tea tray. “Honey, sugar? How do you like your tea?”
Honey? Sugar? If only those words were used on him, as endearments. He half-smiled, chuckling to himself. He couldn’t imagine Letty Sue calling to him that way.
And suddenly, it was exactly what he wanted. “Any way is fine. I’m not much for tea.”
She put a drop of honey and a spoonful of sugar in both cups, stirring gently, then handed one to him. She sat down on the sofa across from him with her cup. He sipped the tea slowly, then set it down.
“Don’t you like it?” she asked.
“It’s fine tea. Thank you.” He flinched when a sharp pain slashed across his ribs.
“Your ribs hurt.” She was up from her spot on the sofa, rushing over to him. “What can I do?”
Chase’s body ached all over, some from the earlier altercation at the saloon, but most from having Letty Sue standing there, in her nearly transparent nightdress, tending to him. Without thought, he grabbed her wrist and gave a gentle tug.
“Chase!”
She landed on his lap, just as he intended. “Well, you asked what you could do.”
“I meant, to make you feel better.”
He snaked his hand around her neck and pulled her face close to his. “This is going to make me feel a whole lot better.” His lips met hers with blistering heat. He tasted her once, then twice, and when a tiny moan escaped her throat, Chase parted her lips and drove his tongue into her mouth.
Heaven wasn’t any better, he was sure. After her initial shock, she met him thrust for thrust, boldly, and Chase’s body went from solid to hard as stone in just one second. He was on dangerous ground, but hadn’t the power to stop.
Not now. It would have to come from her.
He drove a hand into her hair, pulling out the one pin that held that glorious mane up. Dark silky tresses spilled onto his fingers and floated down to graze his cheek.
She wiggled her bottom, getting comfortable, and destroying his own comfort completely. “Ah, Letty Sue.”
He removed his mouth from hers to suckle the straining fabric over her breast. He crushed his head to her chest and felt her give up her body to him. Her pleasured gasp was all he needed to hear. She arched and he moved to the other breast, suckling again, moistening the fabric until the full rounded globe appeared, pert and ready for him.
Chase’s heart pumped faster and faster. Stop me, Letty Sue, his mind screamed, because he knew he couldn’t stop on his own accord. Nothing but little pleasured moans escaped her lips.
He cupped her breast in his hand and, with his thumb, rubbed over and over the soft nub until it was pebble hard. She whimpered in pleasure, giving him great satisfaction. He claimed her mouth again, thrusting his tongue inside. His hand burned from where he caressed her, the soft, giving globe contrasting sharply with the diamond-tipped peak. His body was on fire, like dry brush igniting on an arid prairie.
“Oh Chase,” she whispered frantically, squirming against him, seeming to want more, asking for him to deliver what she craved. “I’ve never…”
“Tell me to stop, Letty Sue. Now.”
“But I’ve never felt this way before,” she exclaimed. “I’m trembling inside, Chase.”
“I know.”
“It’s a good trembling. Isn’t it?”
Chase groaned, kissing her one last time. He shouldn’t have let it go so far. His need for her tonight overwhelmed him, taking with it all common sense. “It’s a good trembling when it’s with the right person.”
He’d done his share of trembling, too. Gently, he lifted her off him. She looked up with fearful eyes as they stood facing one another. He had to tread carefully or he’d hurt her again, and they both knew it.
“I’m not that person, Letty Sue.”
“But, Chase, you made me feel…that maybe you were.”
“No.” He shook his head, and finally some sense entered into it. He slipped his hand into his pocket. “This is what you really want, darlin’.” He handed her the telegram. “It’s from your mother. It’s the reason I stopped by tonight.” The words rang false. He knew it now. He hadn’t come to her because of the telegram, he’d come to her because…he couldn’t stay away.
She took the paper and turned it to the lantern light so that she could make out the words. After staring down at it for several minutes, she lifted her eyes to his. “Mama wants me to meet them in St. Louis in a few weeks. She misses me. She said they’d both love to have me join them for the last months of their trip.”
Letty Sue’s gaze p
robed his, as if asking something from him. It wasn’t his permission, he knew—she would never ask for that, being far too obstinate. No, this was something more, something he couldn’t give. “It’s your decision.”
She closed her eyes. “I thought it’s what I wanted.” She searched his eyes once again. “Now I’m not sure of anything.”
“Letty Sue, don’t let what just happened between us change your mind. You’ve always dreamed of traveling East. It’s what you want.”
“Are you saying you want me to go?”
No. Dammit. He wanted to take her to the floor and make love to her, right there in front of the fireplace, until the sun came up. Drawing in a deep breath, he rubbed the back of his neck. “It’s not what I want that matters. It’s what you want. Go, Letty Sue. You might regret it if you don’t.”
“I might regret it if I do,” she said very softly, dropping her head to peer at the telegram once again.
He cursed quietly when he noted her hands quivering. “I’d better leave now. You have some thinking to do.”
Because of the late hour, Chase chose to depart the same way he’d come, through the kitchen door. No sense stirring up any gossip, even though he’d been sure the whole bunkhouse was asleep when he’d knocked on her door earlier.
Letty Sue followed him out. “Will I see you tomorrow at the picnic?” she asked, her blue eyes filled with sudden sadness.
“I’ll be there.”
Chase took several steps out the door, but her soft voice stopped him. “Chase?”
He didn’t turn around. “Yeah?”
“Are you bidding on Sally’s basket tomorrow?”
He put his head down for a moment. Then he turned to her, meeting her eyes. “It’s best that way, Letty Sue.” He swallowed hard. “Lock your doors.”
And lock me out.
She pulled her lower lip in, bruised now from his kisses, swollen from his desperate passion. She nodded.
Chase turned around and continued to walk. He didn’t dare look back, not into the face that could make him change his mind.
Wildflowers dotted the hilly rise just beyond the church grounds. Intermittent hues of pink, yellow and blue mingled amid the verdant green, proclaiming that spring was most definitely upon them.
Letty Sue took a deep breath and sighed.
She was glad to be off the ranch today. There were just too many perplexing problems at home, Chase Wheeler being first and foremost. She would put aside all thoughts of him and of her decision whether or not to make the trip East to join up with her mother.
Today was too glorious a day to spend time worrying.
She’d not concern herself about her picnic basket, either. She’d done her best with the drab colors she’d had to work with, and that was all she could do.
She greeted her friends and watched a baseball game in the yard behind the church. The new game was fun to watch, completely absorbing all the male players. She applauded their efforts each time they managed to hit the ball with that stick, called a “bat.”
“Morning, Letty Sue.” Tyler Kincaide walked up with his wife, Lily. He was holding his daughter, Bethann, by the hand. Lily had their new baby papoose-wrapped in a blanket in her arms.
“Morning. Isn’t it a wonderful day?” Letty Sue always had a soft spot for the handsome rancher, but Lillian Brody, Jasper’s niece, had managed to corral him into a wedding.
“Yes, it is,” he answered.
“How’s the baby?” She peered at the tiny infant, a shudder working its way done her spine. She knew nothing about children, much less babies. They looked so fragile and tiny, as though if you held them the wrong way, they’d just about break.
Lily smiled and shifted her son into a more visible position in her arms. “See, Letty Sue? He’s just fine. Little Ty’s got a sweet temperament.”
“Like his mother,” Tyler added, kissing Lily’s cheek.
“But he’s got his father’s handsome looks.” Lily smiled at her husband.
“And I’m goin’ ta get a chance to watch him, all by myself, when I gets older,” Bethann said proudly.
“My, that’s quite a responsibility, Bethann. Good for you.”
“How are you doing, out on the ranch these days?” Tyler asked.
Letty Sue knew Tyler was just being polite by inquiring, and that Joellen had probably asked him to keep an eye on her. “I’m fine. Really. I do miss Mama. She wired me and asked me to join them in St. Louis.”
“Uncle Jasper sent us a wire, too, last week. Sounds as though they’re having a splendid time. Are you planning on joining them soon?” Lily snuggled the baby to her chest and began rocking him in her arms when he fussed. “There, there, now Ty.”
“I, uh, I haven’t decided yet.”
“Well, let us know when you decide, Letty Sue, and if there’s any way we might help you.” Lily placed an adoring kiss on her baby’s forehead.
“Thank you. I will.”
“Sorry to say, it’s time for us to head home. This is little Ty’s first trip to town. I think he’s tuckered out. Send word if you need anything, Letty Sue,” Tyler said with sincerity.
“I will. Goodbye.” Letty Sue watched Tyler and his family walk off. They were a true family now. And all of them were as happy as could be.
Letty Sue had doubts as to what it would take to make her truly happy. But she shuffled them aside when little Elias Henderson came up and announced excitedly, “Time for the kissing booth, Miss Letty Sue. And I want to be first in line. Sally ain’t here yet. She stayed behind to help Sam Fowler.”
Letty Sue drew her eyebrows together and asked Sally’s younger brother, “Help Sam? Why would Sam need her help?”
“We found him on the road. His horse spooked at a snake crossing its path and threw Sam a mile into the air. Hit his shoulder hard when he came down. Sally took him back home to patch him up.”
“Oh dear. I wonder if I should go and check on him.”
“Nah, it ain’t that bad. Sally said they’d both be up at the picnic later. ’Sides, who’s going to do all the kissing in the kissing booth if you go?”
“Sally was supposed to share the time with me.”
“Looks like it’s gonna be just you now, Miss Letty Sue.”
“Well, I guess I’d better get to my booth.”
They walked to the makeshift booth, consisting of two tall poles set in the ground and a plank table. A banner attached to the poles and waving in the breeze announced:
Kissing Booth—2 Bits Each
Limit 5 to a Customer
Letty Sue chuckled. “Who made up that sign?”
“Me and a bunch of my schoolmates at Sunday school.”
“Well, it is for a good cause.” The money donated today would go to building new benches in the church and fixing the roof. The whole congregation had got flooded out when the last thunderstorm hit during Sunday services, leaving the church in a shambles.
Letty Sue took her place in the booth, behind the table. A line formed that stretched across the yard and out the church gate.
Oh Lordy.
Kisses to the cheek only, she decided.
No matter what.
Chase leaned against a mesquite tree, watching the festivities from a distance. He took one last heady puff on a cheroot, then tossed it aside. A tick in his cheek worked overtime, pulling the skin taut with undue tension. He scrubbed his jaw, then clasped his hand into a fist.
What in blazes was wrong with him?
He refused to believe it was the overly long line forming for Letty Sue’s kisses. Though from this distance, it looked innocent enough. She’d plant a quick kiss on a man’s cheek and he’d walk off with a satisfied smile.
Chase hated that he noted which of the men took all five kisses at once. He hated that she smiled at the men in line with that innocent-seductive smile of hers. And he hated that she was the prettiest woman on the church grounds today in her sunflower-yellow dress and white bonnet.
It was a dr
ess fit for a Sunday afternoon picnic, with just a touch of lace, and modest lines. But on Letty Sue’s body, there’d be no mistaking the curves and swells, the dips and hollows or the feminine shuffle of petticoats as she sashayed by.
Last night, he could have had her. She’d been willing, but her damn innocence had kept him at bay. She didn’t know what she’d done to him, how the yielding arch of her body had told him in an unwritten law of lovemaking what she’d offered him.
But, she’d have paid a sorry price in the morning for his sexual cravings.
And she would never have forgiven him.
He wasn’t forgetting his promise to Joellen, but hell, last night Letty Sue had nearly made him forget how to breathe, much less his trusted obligation to her family.
Chase pushed himself away from the tree. He needed to get away for a spell. Watching nearly the entire male population of Sweet Springs put their hands on Letty Sue made his blood boil.
And he hated that, as well.
Letty Sue stood on the sidelines. Eight baskets had been auctioned off already, the creator of each one anonymous. Blue, yellow or red checkered clothes covered each one. The auctioneer, Elvin Monahan, lifted a cover to reveal a lovely vine basket covered with an array of dried flowers. He called for a beginning bid, and the unattached males of Sweet Springs began to holler out. The colorful basket brought a decent price of four dollars. Applause broke out when the gentleman met the lady responsible for the basket. Timothy Higgins, a ranch hand, took up the basket, then met the shy brown eyes of Ellie Singleton, the sheriff’s daughter. Together they entered the eating area, set up with benches and tables under tall, shady mesquite trees.
Elvin Monahan uncovered the next basket in line. As the red checkered cloth was removed, Letty Sue held her breath. It was hers.
Compared to the others, this basket looked as though it had been through a stampede. A hush settled over the crowd. The auctioneer stumbled with his words. “Well, now, uh, look what we have here. Certainly, a worthy prize for anyone with a hankering for good food. Smells awfully delicious.” He lifted the basket up high. “We’ll start the bidding. Who’ll give one dollar? One dollar, I say, who’ll bid one dollar for this basket? C’mon now, gents, loosen up your pockets.”
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