by Connie Mason
Convincing himself that needing Hannah didn’t necessarily mean he was obsessed to the point of forgetting all else, he rolled on top of her, spread her legs, and joined their bodies. If he divorced himself from his emotions, he saw no reason why he shouldn’t avail himself of his wife’s body.
Hannah awoke with a start, the soft warmth of Wind Rider’s lips coaxing her from a dream world into reality. This time there were no flowery words as he joined their bodies, no promises, no aching tenderness. There was only passion, hunger, and brutal need. Hannah sensed his confusion, felt the forces tearing him apart, and her heart nearly shattered from an emotion she didn’t want to acknowledge.
Straining over Hannah, Wind Rider denied that she meant more to him than a warm body to assuage his needs. To acknowledge his feelings would betray his Cheyenne heart. Yet despite his forced emotional detachment from the woman in his arms, Wind Rider wanted to give Hannah pleasure. Deliberately gentling his strokes, he slowly brought her to passion, waiting until she cried out and shuddered in climax before seeking his own fulfillment.
Hannah awoke late, aware of an emptiness, not just in her bed but in her heart. She knew without being told that Wind Rider was gone. Her body ached, feeling his loss keenly, wondering what would happen when she returned to his lodge in the village. Voices outside the lodge brought her to her feet. Dressing quickly, she stepped outside into the bright sunshine. Woman-Who-Waddles stood nearby, accompanied by the same two women who had helped her erect the honeymoon lodge. They had brought a horse and a travois, which she supposed was to be used to transport the tepee back to the village.
Woman-Who-Waddles greeted her effusively; then she and the other women set to work. Within a very short time the tepee was dismantled and loaded on the travois. Hannah followed behind to the village. When they reached Wind Rider’s tepee Woman-Who-Waddles indicated that Hannah was to go inside. She gave Hannah a look that could only be interpreted as pity, but the look was so fleeting Hannah quickly dismissed it. Instead, she searched for Wind Rider, wondering why he wasn’t on hand to greet her. Hurt and dismayed, she turned and entered the tepee.
A prickling sensation at the nape of her neck told Hannah she wasn’t alone. Disappointment made her shoulders slump when she saw a woman tending a small fire in the center of the tepee. Had Wind Rider sent someone to help her? Her question was answered when the woman rose to greet her.
“Spotted Doe, what are you doing here?” Spotted Doe was the last person Hannah would expect to pay a visit so soon after returning from the honeymoon lodge.
“Has Wind Rider not told you?” The malice in her voice did not bode well for Hannah.
“Told me what?”
“While you were away the council decided that he should take a second wife. He was told when he returned from the honeymoon lodge, and he approached my brother early this morning. Naturally, Cut Nose agreed to our joining.”
Hannah blanched. No, it couldn’t be true! Wind Rider wouldn’t do such a terrible thing to her, no matter what the council’s decision. “Why would the council demand that Wind Rider take a second wife?”
Spotted Doe didn’t say that Cut Nose had complained so loudly about his family’s embarrassment over Wind Rider’s refusal to join with his sister that the council had reconsidered and decided that Wind Rider should appease the family by taking Spotted Doe as a second wife. “I do not know. If you do not like it, you may divorce him.”
“Little Sparrow will not leave my lodge,” Wind Rider thundered fiercely. He had ducked into the tepee in time to hear Spotted Doe’s words.
Hannah whirled, struck anew by the magnificence of his golden physique, blatantly exposed by the brief breechclout.
“She may divorce you if she wishes.” Spotted Doe replied sullenly. “It is the custom.”
“Leave us,” Wind Rider ordered brusquely. “I wish to speak in private to Little Sparrow.”
“There is no need,” Hannah said stubbornly. “I will take my things and leave.”
Spotted Doe sent Hannah a baleful look and refused to budge.
“Go!” The stern tone of Wind Rider’s voice left no room for argument, and Spotted Doe turned and ran from the lodge, but not before sending Hannah another murderous glare.
“Why?” No matter how hard she tried, Hannah could not keep the hurt from her voice. Though she was Wind Rider’s wife against her will, she felt the wrenching ache of betrayal. Somehow this fierce white Indian had stolen her heart, and she didn’t know what to do about it.
“There is nothing wrong with taking a second wife,” Wind Rider said, making it sound as if it was something he had intended to do all along. “I was not aware of how much I embarrassed Cut Nose’s family when I refused to join with Spotted Doe. Making her my second wife will appease her family and satisfy the council.”
“What about me? You didn’t have to marry me.”
“No,” Wind Rider agreed evenly. “I could have let Cut Nose have you.”
“Is what Spotted Doe said true? Can I divorce you simply by leaving your lodge?”
Wind Rider scowled. “You can try, but I wouldn’t advise it. I suspect it is what Cut Nose wants. I know him. He is counting on his sister distracting me, to make me forget I have a first wife. If you divorce me, you will fall in with his plans/’
Hannah slumped in defeat. Was there no escape from the overwhelming power this man held over her? How could she pretend not to see or hear when he coupled with Spotted Doe, doing with her all those arousing things he had done with Hannah? “I wish I had never met you.”
Wind Rider wished the same thing. Finding Hannah in the woods that day had been a most disastrous meeting. During the brief time he had known her, she had succeeded in making him aware as never before that he was white. She had forced him to face things he neither liked nor accepted. He wanted to tell Hannah that joining with Spotted Doe wasn’t his choice, that he had done so to keep peace in the tribe. Truth be known, he wanted no other woman. But neither did he wish to leave Red Cloud’s village. Raiding with the fearless Sioux suited him.
“You will try to get along with Spotted Doe,” he said finally. “I will have peace in my lodge.”
“Tell that to Spotted Doe,” Hannah snorted belligerently.
Wind Rider stared at her but did not reply. She looked so adorable with her green eyes flashing and her cheeks burning that he wanted to throw her down on the mat and make violent love to her, thrusting into her again and again until there was no more talk of her leaving his lodge. Shaking his head to clear it of such disturbing thoughts, he turned and ducked through the opening.
“What did you say to make him so angry?” Spotted Doe entered the tepee the moment Wind Rider left, confronting Hannah angrily.
“Nothing.”
“Are you going to divorce him? What does a white woman know about pleasing a man?”
“I have nowhere to go. And I have no desire to please Wind Rider.” Lies! All lies, her mind screamed. She was certain she had pleased Wind Rider, just as he had pleased her.
Spotted Doe smiled complacently. “Just as I thought. It is good he has taken a second wife. I will show him how a real wife acts.”
Taking a water bag from where it hung on a tent pole, she thrust it into Hannah’s hands. “Get water. Woman’s work is hard, and I don’t intend to do it all by myself. I will take care of Wind Rider’s needs between the blankets and you can do the other chores.”
Hannah stared at the water bag, aware that she had gone from slave to wife and back to slave again in a very short time.
Hannah was exhausted at the end of the day. Spotted Doe had given her every difficult task she could devise. She knew so little about Indian culture that she had no idea Spotted Doe had no right to order her about like a slave. But the fact that she was an outsider to the tribe made her vulnerable to the other woman’s whims. And Wind Rider had made himself scarce, preferring the company of men to the uneasy atmosphere of his own lodge. He had returned to partake of
the evening meal and then disappeared again, joining the warriors who sat around the campfire, exchanging tales of bravery.
When it grew dark Hannah slipped away to bathe in the river. So did Spotted Doe, taking care to choose a location a good distance from where Hannah bathed. Hannah returned to the lodge first and made her bed. Stripping, she climbed beneath the blanket, praying for sleep to come swiftly so she would not have to hear Wind Rider and Spotted Doe coupling. Fate was not kind to her, for she tossed restlessly, painfully aware that the Indian maiden waited for Wind Rider to come to her.
The good-natured teasing of his comrades grated on Wind Rider’s nerves until he could stand it no longer. The men offered lewd comments and speculations, none of which Wind Rider found particularly amusing. After listening as long as he could, he rose abruptly and walked away. They let him go, but not before Cut Nose offered a few well-chosen words of advice.
“You are a lucky man, Wind Rider. My sister could have had any warrior she desired. She will please you well. I predict you will soon forget your yen for white flesh. When you tire of your slave I will take her off your hands and teach her how to act like a proper slave.”
“I will remember your words, Cut Nose,” Wind Rider threw over his shoulder as he walked away, “but I would remind you that Little Sparrow is my first wife.” It would be a cold day in hell, he grumbled beneath his breath, before he’d hand Hannah over to a man like Cut Nose.
The tepee glowed with muted light from the dying fire when Wind Rider entered. Adjusting his eyes to the dim interior, he saw Hannah lying farthest from the fire, apparently asleep. He smiled and took a step in her direction. When a hand caught at his leg he looked down, suddenly recalling Spotted Doe. She rested on her elbow, her eyes glowing with dark promise.
“Go to sleep,” Wind Rider hissed, shaking free of her grasp.
She smiled up at him. “I am your wife, Wind Rider. This is our wedding night.”
Hannah stiffened at the sound of Wind Rider’s voice. She had no idea what he said to Spotted Doe, for they spoke in their own language. Whatever it was, the other woman obviously didn’t like it. Hannah waited with bated breath for him to join Spotted Doe on her mat, cursing her bad luck at remaining awake when she had no desire to hear Wind Rider making love to his second wife.
“Do not remind me of my duty, Spotted Doe,” Wind Rider said sternly. “The truth is, I do not wish to lie with you tonight.”
“You go to her!” Spotted Doe spat. “Are you so enamored of her white skin that I am no longer pleasing to you? Are you remembering your own white heritage? Perhaps you should return to the white world.”
“Think carefully before you speak again, Spotted Doe.” Wind Rider’s voice was low with implied menace, bringing Spotted Doe’s hurtful words to an abrupt halt. With marked reluctance, she lay down. Wind Rider turned his back on her and continued on to where Hannah lay.
He dropped to his knees, whipped off his breechclout, pulled back the covers, and slid down beside her. When his hand sought her breast Hannah stiffened. Surely he didn’t intend to make love to her with Spotted Doe watching, did he? It might be the Indian way, but it wasn’t her way.
“Don’t!” she hissed when he turned her toward him.
“You are my wife.”
“So is Spotted Doe. Go to her.”
“I don’t want her.” His hand slid between her legs.
“Not with Spotted Doe watching!” Her voice sounded frantic, touching something deep inside Wind Rider.
“If that is your wish, we will go where no one can watch us.” Scooping her into his arms, he rose, kicked aside the flap, and strode outside. Hannah had sense enough to drag one of the blankets with her as Wind Rider carried her into the woods.
Chapter Nine
The following day the great Sioux chief Red Cloud returned from the council at Fort Laramie, where he and several important Sioux leaders and prominent Cheyenne chiefs had gathered to negotiate terms for use of the Bozeman Trail, which cut directly through much of the buffalo country. But much to Red Cloud’s chagrin, there had been no negotiating. The army was prepared only to issue demands. What the chiefs did not find out until the negotiating had reached a stalemate was that as they were parlaying, Colonel Henry Carrington had arrived at the fort on his way to build forts along the Bozeman. When Red Cloud learned of this he fell into a rage and left the fort, which was tantamount to a declaration of war by the Sioux and Cheyenne Nations.
Immediately upon his return to his village, Red Cloud called a council meeting to tell his people what had transpired at Fort Laramie. Wind Rider listened carefully as the great chief described how the army wanted to steal the Bozeman Trail from the Indians while offering cheap gifts to appease them. Wind Rider knew instinctively that nothing short of a miracle, or the demise of the entire Indian nation, could halt the ensuing bloodshed. Mentally, he prepared himself for a long battle that would most likely end with his death.
Hannah felt tension building in the village and was puzzled by it. She had learned a few words of the Sioux language, but not enough to know what Red Cloud’s words to his people meant. Spotted Doe consistently refused to speak to Hannah, so Hannah learned nothing from her about the current situation.
Just thinking about what had happened after Wind Rider carried her off into the woods the night before brought color rushing up Hannah’s neck. She had tried; Lord knew she had tried to discourage Wind Rider, but he would not listen. Instead, he made love to her until the blood sang through her veins and nothing mattered but the touch of his hands and his mouth on her body, until she begged him to make her one with him.
When Hannah saw Wind Rider striding toward her, his body tense, his mouth compressed into a grim slash across his face, she knew Red Cloud was not the bearer of good news. He stopped inches from her, grasped her arm, and dragged her inside the tepee.
“What is it?” Hannah cried, perturbed by his brusque manner.
“War,” Wind Rider said. “The army will not listen to reason. Tonight all the men of the tribe will gather to dance and feast before going to the purification hut. We will remain sequestered in the hut for two days, fasting and praying for the Great Spirit’s blessing.”
Hannah blanched. “Then what?”
“The War Dog society and the Strong Heart Society will ride out together to raid along the Bozeman Trail, while Red Cloud remains behind to rest and fortify himself before joining us.”
“You’re leaving.” Her voice quivered. “What will happen to me?”
“Nothing. You will remain behind and wait for me to return.” Unspoken between them was the possibility that he might not return.
“Coyote will remain behind with the Shield Society to protect the village. I have asked him to provide you and Spotted Doe with meat. If I do not return, he has agreed to take you to the fort.”
Hannah sagged, half in relief and half in fear. Without Wind Rider’s protection she’d be completely vulnerable to the tribe’s whims. They might decide to give her to Cut Nose or another like him. But even more terrifying was the thought of Wind Rider’s death. A vicious stab of pain made her gasp and shake her head in vigorous denial.
Wind Rider’s expression softened. “Does the thought of my death make you unhappy, Little Sparrow?”
“Of-of course not,” she stammered, aware that she was lying. “I fear for my own safety.”
“You lie,” Wind Rider whispered. His silver eyes glowed hotly as he pulled her against the hard wall of his bare chest. “Last night you were a wild thing in my arms, loving everything I did to you and begging for more.”
Long lashes slid down to shutter her green eyes, resting like dark butterfly wings against her pale cheeks. She could not deny Wind Rider s words. ”I-I could not help myself.”
“Nor I,” Wind Rider admitted.
“Spotted Doe is very angry.”
“I did not want Spotted Doe. I took her for my second wife to appease her family. I am not required to lie with her.
Look at me.”
Tilting her chin upward, Wind Rider made it all but impossible for her to look away. Slowly, her lashes swept upward, baring her soul to the hypnotic spell of his silver eyes. What he saw must have pleased him, for he lowered his head and kissed her, drawing her even further into the magnetic power he held over her. His mouth was soft, drugging and addictive. Prodding her lips apart with the hard blade of his tongue, he deepened the kiss, pressing his body against hers, making her fully aware of his blatant state of arousal.
When he slowly bore her down to the mat spread out beneath the smokehole Hannah gasped and fought free from his grasp. “Wind Rider, no! Spotted Doe could come in at any moment/’
“She will not return any time soon,” Wind Rider said with assurance. “She went with the other women to gather berries and edible roots for the feast tonight.” Grasping her shoulders, he lowered her to the pallet. “This is the last time we can be together like this before I leave,” he murmured softly against her ear.
Before she could reply his mouth found hers again, his tongue penetrating deeply, unable to get enough of the taste and texture of her. Breaking off the kiss, his lips slid along the slim column of her neck, pausing where the pulse throbbed at the base of her throat before continuing downward to where his fingers had loosened the ties of her tunic. Impatiently, he pulled the opening wider, exposing her to the wet lash of his tongue as he kissed a molten path to her breasts. When even that didn’t satisfy him, he worked the tunic down her arms and over her hips and tossed it aside. His breechclout followed.
Desire for her surged, awakening in him a need that almost destroyed him. He hated being so deeply affected by a woman but couldn’t help himself. He kissed her again, his sharp teeth nipping at her soft bottom lip, then soothing it with his tongue. His fierce aggression made her tremble with heightened awareness as she willingly surrendered to his passion, kissing him back with wanton fervor.