by Leah Brooke
Following her automatic retreat, his tongue slid over hers, tangling with it until she surrendered and touched her tongue to his.
The fire Eb and Jeremiah had already ignited inside her flared to life and began burning out of control. Rubbing herself against Eb in a frantic attempt to ease the tingling heat in her nipples, she was alarmed that she only managed to make it worse.
Jeremiah touched her leg. “That’s it, Maggie. Let go. You’re ours.”
The brim of Eb’s hat shaded her face and created an intimacy that only Jeremiah’s presence seemed to penetrate. The awareness that he watched Eb kiss her heightened her senses and almost made her feel as though he were a part of it. The sensation increased when she felt his hand slide under the hem of her skirt to caress her ankle.
Eb explored her mouth with a thoroughness that left her breathless, the barely leashed hunger in his kiss both alarming and irresistible.
One of his strong hands supported her neck while the other settled at her waist, squeezing lightly and making her squirm against him, silently urging him to touch her where she needed it most. He obliged her, his hand sliding up so slowly it made her breath hitch until he touched the underside of her breast. She gasped as it slid higher and closed over it, her heart beating frantically as he held it there, not moving at all while she writhed restlessly to get even closer.
He swallowed her moan, his hand tightening briefly when she pushed her breast more firmly into it, and with a groan, he sank into her, deepening his kiss until she saw stars and gripped him in a frantic attempt to keep from flying away. His hand shifted, his fingers gentle as he pressed his palm against her nipple, his low groan sending another wave of electricity through her.
Flames licked at her everywhere as his touch grew bolder, the raw possessiveness in his kiss adding to the feeling of being totally taken over as his fingers plucked at her nipple through her dress. Shaking uncontrollably, she rocked on his lap, whimpering as the burning between her thighs became unbearable.
When he lifted his head, she opened her eyes to find him staring down at her with an intensity that shocked her.
With a small, indulgent smile, he flicked his thumb back and forth over her nipple. “You’ll be a real wife to both of us. You’ll live on our ranch and bear our children. Now stop fighting us. We’ll leave for Oklahoma at the end of the week.”
Still wrapped in a cocoon of warmth and pleasure, she stared at him blankly before glancing sideways to see Jeremiah watching them with the strangest look on his face. Snapping out of her stupor, she fought her way out of Eb’s arms, putting as much distance as the seat allowed between them. “No. It was just a kiss. I…You surprised me. That’s all.” Unsteady, she held on to the side of her seat, trembling and so weak she was afraid she would fall off. What the hell had he done to her?
Mad at herself and them, and hurt that they thoughtlessly ignored her objections, she looked straight ahead and wrapped her shawl around herself again, fighting for some semblance of control. Now that Eb no longer held her, the cold crept back in, making her ache all the way to her bones. Lifting her chin, she did her best to keep her voice steady, not daring to let them see how easily they’d won so much of her surrender. “Please take me home.”
Eb snapped the reins, his face once again like stone. “Your home, Maggie, is a ranch in Oklahoma. Get everything packed that you want to take with you. We leave at the end of the week.”
Chapter Two
Barely holding on by a thread, she knew she’d fall apart if she didn’t get a few minutes alone to get herself back under control. Leaving Eb and Jeremiah at the stable talking to Jasper, Maggie turned away, looking over her shoulder and mumbling an excuse that she wanted to change out of her good dress.
Both Eb and Jeremiah whipped their heads around, spearing her with their sharp gazes before nodding, wordlessly giving their consent.
Hiding her anger and the uncomfortable suspicion that they would try to rule her if she allowed it, she started out, involuntarily pausing when Jeremiah called her name.
“We’re not finished talking with you yet, Maggie. We still have a few things to discuss.”
Maggie nodded, her knees shaking as she started walking again. She had no intention of finishing that conversation, her body still humming from the one they’d had several minutes ago. She knew they expected her to return after changing, the warning in their eyes making it blatantly clear.
They’d just have to be disappointed.
It would be a small but satisfying victory to disobey them, but she couldn’t face them again right now, even if she’d wanted to.
She hurried back to the house she’d shared with her father and ran straight into the bedroom. Stripping out of her dress, she started to toss it aside but held it to her breast instead, staring at herself in the mirror.
Her eyes looked too bright and too big for her face, her skin pale. Her lips looked swollen and dark, almost bruised, and when she licked them, she could still taste Eb.
Tracing her fingers over the bodice where Eb’s hand had been, she closed her eyes, no longer seeing herself but the image of his face as he stared down at her, his eyes hooded and shot with green.
The arrogance and possession she understood and expected, but the surprised wonder was something she didn’t think she’d ever forget.
Shaking off the image, she tossed the dress aside to don a pair of the pants she usually wore and a shirt that had seen better days.
This clothing suited her, the familiarity comforting her, something she desperately needed right now.
Almost as much as she needed to talk to Savannah.
Her friend’s failure to meet her yesterday morning at the general store worried her, especially after Savannah’s absence after the funeral, and Maggie wouldn’t feel better until she checked on her.
She usually snuck out to the Perrys’ house at the outskirts of town whenever she knew Savannah’s uncle wouldn’t be there and met her friend every week at the general store to talk.
Maggie went early, desperate to see if Savannah was all right and to tell her about Eb and Jeremiah coming back to town.
When Savannah didn’t show up at the general store Maggie knew something had to be wrong.
She’d gone out to their house last night and snuck around back, looking in the window to see Savannah reading from the Bible to Reverend Perry. Frustrated that she wouldn’t have a chance to talk to her friend, she’d reluctantly left. With all the rush and excitement of getting to the train station and Eb and Jeremiah’s arrival, thoughts of Savannah that had been pushed back came back now with an urgency that couldn’t be denied.
Maggie took the shortcut through the woods, both to get there faster and to keep anyone from town from seeing her and reporting it to Eb and Jeremiah if they came looking for her.
The fading daylight made Maggie a little nervous, so she rode as quickly as she could through the dense cluster of trees, dodging branches and careful to keep her horse from tripping.
Approaching the small barn behind the Perry home, she slowed and slid from the saddle, careful to keep out of sight. Darkness had fallen, but with the lanterns lighting the way to the barn, enough light shone that she could be seen if anyone looked her way.
She left her horse where he would be hidden by trees and carefully made her way through the trees and bushes and over the uneven ground to the edge of the woods where the trees met the Perrys’ yard.
The light coming from the dilapidated structure told her that the barn was in use. As she got closer, she heard the Reverend’s voice, condescending and raised in anger as he delivered his usual dire threats of hell for those who didn’t follow his teachings to the letter.
Ramblings was more like it. That man could go on and on about nothing longer than anyone Maggie had ever met.
For once she could be thankful for it, hoping it would give her some time to talk to Savannah.
She knew she’d find her friend in the kitchen, where she’d be
busy preparing refreshments for the Reverend’s flock. The Reverend worked Savannah incessantly telling her repeatedly that he did it to keep her out of trouble.
Maggie figured it was because the good Reverend wanted a slave to see to his every need and Savannah never complained.
She had a feeling her best friend was up to something, but she couldn’t get Savannah to tell her anything. She’d been too quiet lately, something that worried Maggie a lot.
She’d known her friend a long time, and one thing she knew for sure.
A quiet Savannah was a dangerous Savannah.
Savannah cooked and cleaned and had to help write her uncle’s sermons for him. She mended his clothes and cleaned the barn for him after his meetings while the reverend went to bed. She prepared cakes and fresh lemonade for his meetings and had to deliver the cakes and pies that she slaved over to those he saw as beneficiaries to his cause. He volunteered her services to see to the sick and read to them because he was too afraid of catching something to go himself.
In addition, she had to read to him from the Bible every night, and he kept her up until all hours, interpreting it to suit his own needs.
Savannah never complained, but Maggie couldn’t help but notice how distracted her friend seemed lately. She’d commented on it several times but could never get Savannah to confide in her.
She’d go crazy if she didn’t find out what her friend was up to.
No amount of begging or threatening could get Savannah to talk.
Something had to be done, though, and soon. Maggie didn’t trust the gleam in the reverend’s eyes one bit and feared for Savannah’s safety.
Maybe she should talk to Eb and Jeremiah.
Picturing that confrontation made her smile.
If the reverend had been scared of the old Eb and Jeremiah, she imagined he’d soil himself if he saw them now.
On that cheery thought, Maggie started up the steps to the back door.
“I’ll kill him.”
Startled by the deep, masculine voice coming from Savannah’s kitchen, and intrigued by the frustration and affection in the tone, Maggie paused on the second step, glancing over her shoulder toward the barn to make sure no one could see her.
“Mr. Matlock, you shouldn’t be here. Please go before my uncle finds you here.”
“When I kissed you, you called me Wyatt.”
Maggie’s mouth dropped open. What? Savannah kissed him? This was definitely a conversation she’d love to eavesdrop on, but she couldn’t stand outside for long or someone might arrive late at the meeting and see her.
“Please go!”
The panic in Savannah’s voice spurred Maggie into action. Glancing over her shoulder toward the barn, she raced up the rest of the stairs and hurried inside, careful not to slam the door behind her.
Shocked to see that instead of one man, two men stood in the kitchen, one on either side of Savannah, Maggie stopped short just inside the door.
Both men spun at her entrance, their hands going to their guns, stopping just short of drawing them. Eyeing Maggie warily, they took a protective stance in front of Savannah, appearing irritated at the interruption.
Maggie didn’t flinch, concern for her friend overriding everything else.
“Who are you, and what are you doing here?”
Taking a few steps closer, Maggie’s alarm grew when she recognized them.
They’d arrived in town several weeks ago, and when Maggie first saw them, she’d assumed they were outlaws.
Their loose-limbed strides had folks giving them a wide berth as they walked through town, their dark eyes razor-sharp and constantly moving. Their lean muscular builds drew plenty of attention from both nervous men and fascinated women, but neither man seemed particularly interested in either one.
They had the kind of presence seldom seen in Kansas City.
A picture of the way Eb and Jeremiah looked as they came toward her in the train station rose in her mind, a sharp reminder of the only other men she’d ever seen who had that ruthless look about them.
They didn’t look so ruthless right now. In fact, both looked more than a little frustrated.
Cursing the fact that she’d forgotten her own guns in her rush to get away from the ranch, she considered screaming.
The one on the right shifted his weight as though in anticipation to move after her if she tried to escape. When he stepped closer to the lantern, she found herself fascinated by the red glints in his otherwise dark hair. “Don’t scream. We won’t hurt either one of you. We’re friends of Savannah’s.”
Eyeing her red-faced friend, he sighed, the exasperation on his face easing some of Maggie’s fears. “Even if she doesn’t want us to be.”
“Savannah, are you all right? Who are these men?”
To her surprise, Savannah laid a hand on each of their sinewy forearms, sharing a look with them, the intimacy in their eyes making Maggie feel like an intruder and wiping away the last of her uneasiness.
Things just kept getting more and more interesting.
The men’s expressions softened, the change in them remarkable as they stepped aside to make room for Savannah to pass. Their eyes never left her as she approached Maggie, the affection and annoyance in them unmistakable.
When Savannah turned her head, the light caught an ugly mark high on her cheek.
Outraged, Maggie gasped, grabbing Savannah’s shoulders to turn her more fully toward the light. “Savannah! Damn it, Savannah, when did this happen? Where else are you hurt? Why didn’t you come to me?” Furious when her friend flinched, she released her immediately.
Savannah pushed the loose tendrils of hair from her face with the back of her hand, wincing when her hand brushed the bruise. “Shh, he’ll hear you. Please, Maggie, just go. I’m fine, I promise. Everything will be all right, but he can’t find you here.”
Outraged, Maggie spared a glance at the barn. “Savannah, he hit you! You can’t keep quiet about this anymore. Eb and Jeremiah came to visit. I’ll tell them.”
“No.”
The other man came forward, the shadows in the room making his dark looks appear even more threatening, but at least he smiled. “I appreciate that you want to help your friend, but we’ll take care of this. You should go.”
Shaking her head, Savannah stepped away from them. “I can take care of this all by myself. I want all of you to go. I promise you, I have this under control.”
Maggie eyed both men and put her arm around Savannah. “I can’t just sit around and do nothing. What kind of friend would I be if I just left her to two strangers?”
The unsmiling one inclined his head. “Fair enough. We’re lawmen and can be trusted to not hurt your friend. My name is Hayes Hawkins, and this is Wyatt Matlock.”
Maggie hugged Savannah, running her hands over her to see if she flinched again. She paused, shooting a grin at her friend. “The one who she kissed?”
Savannah gasped and pulled away from her, her face a bright red. “Maggie! How did you know—I mean—”
Maggie crossed her arms over her chest, hurt that her friend hadn’t confided in her, but thrilled that she apparently had a beau.
If Maggie had to leave Kansas City, nothing would please her more than to know that Savannah had someone to look after her. Eyeing the man on her left with new respect, she couldn’t help but smile at the way he stared at Savannah.
Wyatt Matlock eyed her friend as if he wanted to eat her alive, while the other man stood stone-faced, dividing his attention between her and the window.
Maggie winked at her. “I heard you talking when I was walking up the back steps. I’m glad, Savannah. He’ll stand up to your uncle. That’s something I’d love to see.”
The other man’s face hardened into a look that frightened Maggie just a little and reminded her of Eb in a rage. “Her uncle will be dealt with. You’d better leave before he finds you here.”
Shaking her head, Maggie wrapped an arm around Savannah. “No. You’re the o
nes who’d better go. Reverend Perry would have a conniption if he found you two here.”
Wyatt reached for Savannah. “I’m not worried about the reverend.”
Savannah stepped back out of his reach and glared at him. “I want all of you to leave. Your butting in is only going to make it worse. If you—” She turned to encompass the two men watching her attentively. “If any of you care about me at all, you’ll leave now before my uncle finds you here.”
When all three began to speak, she lifted a hand. “I mean it. Now just go. Please.”
Her voice broke on the last word, making both men shift uncomfortably and tying the knots in Maggie’s stomach tighter. Knowing that the reverend would be calling for refreshments soon, Maggie reluctantly nodded.
“If you agree to meet me tomorrow at noon behind the general store, I’ll leave. If not, I’m staying.”
“Savannah! It’s hot in here. Where’s that lemonade?”
Savannah blanched at her uncle’s demand and kept her voice at a furious whisper. “Fine. I’ll meet you there. Now just go. If I don’t get out there, he’ll be coming in here looking for me. Get out of here. All of you. Hurry!”
Maggie stood firm. “First I want to know if you’re hurt anywhere else.”
Shaking her head, Savannah pushed Maggie toward the front room. “No. This was an accident. I’ll see you tomorrow. Don’t you dare tell anyone.”
Savannah glanced nervously at the two men who’d followed them. “Please go before my uncle comes in here. And don’t come near me again.”
“Savannah!”
Maggie cringed at the impatience in Reverend Perry’s voice and shot a glance at the other men, a little surprised at the raw fury on Hayes’ face. “We’d better go before he gets really mad and takes it out on Savannah.”
She touched Savannah’s arm. “I’ll see you tomorrow. If you don’t meet me, I’m coming back with Eb and Jeremiah.”
“Damn it, Maggie.”
“I mean it, Savannah.”