The Bounty

by Beth Williamson

  There was a tension-filled pause as Tyler absorbed Rebecca’s bald statements.

  “If you were a man, I’d either call you out or beat you within an inch of your life for calling me a coward.”

  Rebecca didn’t seem to be cowed by Tyler’s words. She rose from the bench and bracketed her hips with her dainty hands.

  “The truth is always a bitter pill to swallow.” With that, she spun on her heel and walked back into the house.

  Perfect. Another woman telling him what to do. How the hell was he supposed to tell Nicky he loved her when she thought all he was after was her bounty?

  Tyler sat on the porch for a long time. He wondered why he’d told Rebecca that he loved Nicky. He hardly wanted to confess it to himself. He’d only known her a month, and she’d already turned his life upside down. A bounty hunter in love with an outlaw. What irony. If he could help Nicky get free, then maybe… No. His line of work wasn’t for a wife, even someone as tough as Nicky. She deserved a second chance at a normal life, a home, children…and a husband. His heart did a giddyup at the thought of Nicky in bed with another man. Like hell.

  He wanted to be with her as much as possible these last few days. Savor what he could, while he could. There wasn’t always going to be a tomorrow to pin his hopes on. He could store the memories he had, and take them out of his heart on rainy days to remember, to treasure.

  He finally rose and went upstairs. When he entered the room, he heard Nicky’s even breathing as she slumbered a few feet away. Without another thought, Tyler shed all of his clothes and climbed under the blankets to be close to his wife. The only things he wanted to do was hold her, comfort her, and keep her safe. She was soft and warm like a kitten, and nuzzled up against him instantly.

  “Tyler?”

  He raised his arm and she was enveloped in his embrace. Her soft curls caressed him, her breath on his chest tickled. He leaned down and kissed her forehead gently, and closed his eyes.

  “I love you, magpie.”

  Chapter Fifteen

  Rebecca was up at the crack of dawn fetching Dr. Miller to look at Nicky’s arm. She roused her friend quietly, trying not to disturb the man beside her.

  “Land sakes, he doesn’t have any clothes on,” she whispered under her breath. Tyler chuckled into the pillow at her discomfort.

  Nicky dressed hurriedly and went downstairs to see the doctor. She hadn’t wanted a confrontation with Tyler so early in the morning, especially when she realized she’d spent the night in his arms. Arms that were warm, inviting, and promised a future that she didn’t know she could ever hope for with a husband who she didn’t know she could believe in.

  Dr. Miller was a middle-aged man with sandy-blond hair with a few salt and pepper strands mixed in. He chatted with Nicky about his wife and three children as he examined her arm thoroughly.

  That’s what I want, thought Nicky miserably. I want a husband who will brag about me to perfect strangers…I want children.

  He complimented her on the splint. Nicky barely controlled not rolling her eyes. Leave it to Tyler to do it without any mistakes. The doctor confirmed that it was indeed just a simple sprain, not too severe, and was healing properly. In another week, she could remove the splint completely.

  Nicky thanked the doctor as Rebecca escorted him to the door and paid him. Then they went into the kitchen for some coffee.

  “Do you think he went back to sleep?” Rebecca queried, glancing at the ceiling as they sat down at the table.

  “If he wasn’t, he’d be tearing down the stairs looking for his bounty.”

  “Nicky Malloy, don’t put yourself down so. Any fool can see he loves you.”

  Nicky winced as her heart fluttered, hoping, no, praying, that Rebecca’s words were true. “It’s Calhoun, not Malloy.”

  Rebecca smiled. “Bother, I forgot that. He is your husband and he loves you. If you don’t believe me, march up there and ask him yourself.”

  Nicky regarded her friend in horror. How could she even suggest such a thing? She shook her head vehemently.

  “I couldn’t. I couldn’t just blurt it out. What would I say? Tyler, do you…” She paused.

  “Do I what?” came the familiar deep tones of her husband’s voice.

  Nicky nearly flew off the chair in fright and embarrassment. She clutched at the table for purchase with her good hand. It was the only thing keeping her vertical as she gazed at Tyler. He looked absolutely striking in a clean black shirt and pants. His hair was finger combed with small curls escaping the black waves here and there. He had shaved, and his strong jaw nearly shone. And he was smiling, just a hint of one, but it was there. That man had no right to look so gorgeous. The air was positively pulsing with emotion as they regarded each other across the kitchen.

  Rebecca excused herself and quickly left the little kitchen. Neither one remarked on her leaving the room.

  “Do I what?” he prodded.

  “Do you really think it’s necessary for all of us to go to Wyoming?” she hedged.

  His smile broadened, weakening her knees even more. No one had the right to look like that first thing in the morning. Made a body as limp as a dishrag.

  “Is that really what was on your mind?” His eyes searched her face. She writhed under his penetrating gaze.

  “Of course. Coffee?”

  Tyler studied her quizzically before he sat down. “Sure. The arm looks great. What did the doc say?”

  “A sprain, just like you thought. I need to wear the splint another week.”

  She poured a cup quickly, sloshing the hot liquid onto the table. Cursing silently, she reached for a rag to wipe up the mess.

  “I’m surprised you didn’t come looking for me.” She sat opposite him and lowered her eyes to her coffee cup, but the black steaming depths told her nothing.

  “Actually, I was sorry you weren’t there for other reasons,” he said. Nicky’s heartbeat ratcheted up a notch as she remembered their passionate lovemaking. “Besides, I could hear your voice down here. I knew you were with the doc, remember?”

  His last statement was like a pinprick in a soap bubble. She could almost feel herself visibly sag. Of course, he knew where she was all the time. His prisoner was always within sight or hearing.

  “Back to the subject of Wyoming.” She willed her voice to be steady. “Why didn’t you tell me what you were going to do?” Her green eyes rose to meet his blue gaze.

  “I didn’t know what I was going to do until I did it.”

  “I still wish you’d have discussed it with me before you bullied them into going.”

  His eyes narrowed. “I didn’t bully anybody.”

  “It should have been my choice. Not yours. Who are you to make the decisions about my life?”

  He took a long gulp of coffee. “You are my wife, Nicole. That gives me every right under the law. What put the bee in your bonnet?”

  “Me? I’m not the pushy one, smiling and flirting like a lunatic to get those two ladies to agree to your harebrained scheme.”

  Tyler’s mouth thinned into a white line, as the telltale muscle twitched in his cheek. “I was not flirting. I was trying to help save your neck.”

  “Hah! And soon we’ll see pigs sprouting wings and flying around barnyards.”

  “You’d better watch that mouth, Nicole.” As the words left his mouth, she felt exactly as she had when he’d said them before. It seemed like a lifetime between then and now. “Or I’ll gag it shut.” He stood to his full height, glaring down at Nicky, who was glaring right back.

  “Who’d have thought the mighty bounty hunter would have to resort to his manly wiles?” she sneered.

  “Manly wiles? Woman, are you crazy?”

  “Yes, I’m crazy,” she shouted up at him. “Crazy to have ever trusted you, crazy to have brought you with me, crazy to think you would give up a fortune for me, and crazy to think you could ever love me when the world is full of beautiful women like Rebecca and Belinda.” She clapped her ha
nd over her mouth as she realized what she’d said.

  Tyler’s face relaxed as he sank back into his chair, and a grin began to play around his lips. “You’re jealous, magpie.”

  “I am not jealous,” she denied vehemently. “I just don’t want to see my friends used.”

  “You are jealous, and you’re using it as an excuse to fight with me.”

  “For the last time, I am not jealous.”

  “You have nothing to be jealous about, Nicky. Rebecca and Belinda are sweet ladies, but nothing more. I don’t have room in my life for lace and frills.”

  “What do you have room in your life for?” she said before she could stop herself.

  He stared at her long and hard. “I don’t know,” he finally answered.

  She wrapped her arms around herself in a hug as she regarded him warily. “I don’t like the idea of going back to Cheshire.” She looked off into the distance. “Even if it means the chance to see my family again.”

  “I think if your friends tell their story, and you tell yours, the sheriff in Cheshire should help us clear your name.”

  “What if he doesn’t?” she snapped as her gaze swung back to his. “What if he doesn’t?” she repeated in a whisper.

  “He will. Trust me.”

  She stood abruptly, clearing her cup from the table with a swipe. It clattered in the sink as her hands shook. Suddenly, he was behind her, turning her to draw her into his warm, strong arms. She wasn’t crying, but she was trembling, and his embrace never felt so good. Nicky tried not to melt into his arms, but she was so frightened, her heart overrode her head and she wrapped one arm around his wide back. Her nose was pressed up against his shirt. He smelled so clean, so safe, so…Tyler.

  “I’ll never let anything happen to you.” His voice resounded through his chest to her ear. “Even if we have to become the Calhoun gang.”

  She looked up into his blue eyes, which radiated sincerity. He’s telling the truth. A surge of raw emotion accompanied her realization.

  “Tyler, if only I could believe it. Safe forever.” She shook her head sadly. “I’ll never be safe from Owen. You see, I know his secret. He’ll see me dead one way or another.”

  Tyler stared down into her eyes. She felt so different from the wildcat he’d found in a saloon so long ago. “He won’t hurt you with me by your side, magpie. I won’t let him.”

  Slowly, he lowered his lips to hers. It was the gentlest kiss he’d ever given her. Light, like butterfly wings. Nicky felt her body sway under his gentleness. She sighed softly as the pressure of his kiss grew stronger. The clash of lips and teeth deepened to tongues as the kiss flared out of control like wildfire. She couldn’t let go of him, his embrace, his passion, until she heard a startled exclamation from the kitchen doorway.

  Nicky dragged her mouth away from him forcibly and they both turned to see Rebecca and Belinda. Rebecca was smiling broadly. Belinda was blushing furiously.

  “Does anyone want breakfast?” asked Rebecca.

  Chapter Sixteen

  After a week’s preparation, they left the Connors’ house together. The doctor had removed Nicky’s splint, wrapped it in a bandage, and declared her fit to travel. It was a little tender and ached after each day’s ride, but it wasn’t too bad. The bandage helped keep it secure.

  The cold bite of late October was making its presence known as the small group made its four-day journey to Wyoming. Rebecca and Belinda rode in a wagon. Tyler had switched to riding his horse, and he finally let Nicky drive the wagon. After three days of travel, her hands were nearly frozen, even with her thickest gloves on, but she was nothing if not stubborn, so she drove the wagon without complaint.

  Nicky knew they were getting close. She had been recognizing landmarks for the last several hours. Each clop of the horses’ hooves was like a small blow to her heart. She felt as if they were approaching a point of no return, but she wasn’t sure if it was close to death or to life. Her stomach was tied into an unbreakable knot of tension and fear.

  Tyler rode his horse steadily beside the wagon of women, regardless of how slow the pace. She had heard a few snickers from men in the town they’d settled at the first night. Words like “harem” and “herd of mares” drifted to her ears. He quelled any backhanded chattering with one steely glance. As the sunlight waned, the twinkling lights of a town in the distance locked a grip of ice on her heart.

  “How close are we?”

  “It’s Hawk’s Bend. About ten miles from Cheshire.” Her voice was tight and raw. Fear was a tangible entity in the air. Nicky could see Rebecca and Belinda were teetering on the edge of out-and-out terror.

  “We’ll stop there for the night.”

  Tyler’s proclamation seemed to ease the tension that was madly escalating. He must have been feeling the effect of the unknown, too. Just what would happen?

  Nicky pulled her hat lower over her eyes when they rode into town. It had been over three years, but someone could still easily recognize her. She had spent plenty of time in Hawk’s Bend, and certainly people must know of Owen’s unrelenting hunt for her.

  Rebecca and Belinda climbed down from the wagon with Tyler’s assistance. The two went inside the hotel to secure rooms. Tyler paused at the wagon. She felt him staring at her. Finally, her head slowly swiveled to him.

  “Will you stay with me tonight?” he asked softly, so softly she wasn’t sure she had heard him. For the past two nights, she had stayed with the two cousins, not daring to risk her heart further with Tyler. His quiet question knocked her completely off balance and made her heart thump so loudly she was sure he could hear it.

  “Why?”

  Tyler closed his eyes and took a deep breath. When he opened them again, the need for her shone brightly in their blue depths. “Because after tomorrow you’ll be gone from me. Free to leave me, to go back to your family, the life you had. Tonight, I want you to be mine.” He paused. “Please, magpie.”

  Nicky had to swallow hard to push back the lump that had risen in her throat at Tyler’s honesty. He had not said she might be dead tomorrow, but voiced his fear over her loss by other means. She struggled to come to a decision in the face of her desires for her husband. She was spared when Rebecca and Belinda returned to gather their belongings for the night.

  “I’ll set up the wagon at the livery.” Tyler held his arms up to assist Nicky down. She hesitated for a brief second before she stood and leaned into his big hands. She swallowed the groan that rose to her throat. She wanted to be in his arms forever.

  When her feet hit the dusty ground, his hands lingered a little bit longer than necessary on her slender waist. The achingly familiar moment nearly tore Nicky’s heart from her chest. She wrenched away from him, leaving him standing alone, scowling at her, with more than a hint of despair in his eyes. Turning her back, she walked away.

  ———

  Nicky paced the empty hotel room. Her boots sounded hollow in the deafening silence. She cursed her men’s garb as she silently wished for Tyler to stay out all night. The desk clerk, assuming she was a man, had put her and Tyler in a room together. She couldn’t exactly explain to him that she was a woman, dressed as a man, on the run from the law. As Rebecca and Belinda went to their room, Nicky could only helplessly enter hers. She knew Tyler would think she had given in to his plea to spend the night with him. When he got back, she’d set him straight. It was the floor for him tonight. There was no way in hell she was sharing a bed with him. It’s not that she didn’t trust him, but that she didn’t trust herself. She swore softly as she lay back on the bed.

  It’s just for a moment or two. I’m so damn tired.

  Nicky rubbed her gritty eyes with the heels of both hands. Within a few moments, the exhaustion claimed her and she slept.

  ———

  Tyler cautiously stepped inside the hotel room, and stopped short when he saw Nicky on the bed. After he closed the door, he broke out into a wide grin, then crossed the room to the bed. After stripping down
to nothing, he gently removed her boots and gun belt, laying them on the floor next to his own. He eased his weight onto the small bed, trying not to wake her. He gathered her sleeping form into his arms and held her close, reveling in the small pleasure of her even breathing caressing his chest.

  She was so important to him now, he didn’t think he could even remember his life a month ago, much less resume it. But he knew the time would come when he’d have to let her go. He had coerced her into marrying him, bullied her actually. He hadn’t known why at the time, or maybe he did, but he refused to acknowledge that even then, he had loved her. Tonight was the last night he’d hold her, and he was going to grasp that time with both hands and hold on tight.

  Long into the night, Tyler kept his wife close, content to sleep with her, and not expecting more. This, for now, was enough.

  ———

  Nicky woke first. She burrowed into the warmth of Tyler before full consciousness snapped her to reality. She was lying in his arms again. And it felt incredibly, deliciously wonderful. She dared not move too quickly since she didn’t want to wake him. When she stole a glance at his face, those blue eyes were already open and alert. What she saw swirling in their depths stole her breath away. She saw peace, acceptance, and unconditional love. She could only gape at the feelings Tyler was expressing with his eyes.

  “I don’t know how you ended up in my bed, magpie, but for the rest of my life, I’ll thank whatever forces brought you here.”

  “I was tired, and the desk clerk thought I was a man, and…and I guess I fell asleep.”

  “It doesn’t matter. I have something to say so I’m going to get it out before I lose my nerve.”

  She stared at him, willing him to continue, wanting him to stop.

  “Until I met you, I never let myself get close to anybody. You pestered, badgered, annoyed, and excited me like nobody else I’d ever met. You took my heart, woman. Lock, stock, and barrel.” He smiled sadly as he ran his fingers slowly through her sleep-tousled hair. “When we say goodbye later, know that I will never, ever forget you… I love you, Nicky.”