His brother’s usually carefree face clouded over with worry. “Not good. He was out trapping mink and stepped into a bear trap, breaking his leg. He was able to make it back to the house but he refused to see a doctor even though the bone had broken through the skin. Mother tried to reset the leg herself but a bad odor has set in and he has a fever. He still refuses to see a doctor. He does not want to lose the leg but is too stubborn to realize he may lose his life instead. Mother thought maybe you could talk some sense into him. “
Brock sat quietly in thought before answering. “Of course I will go. Sabrina will have to come with us; I cannot leave her alone.”
“Sabrina?”
“The girl.”
Chase smiled. “Ahh… If she refuses, I can stay with her,” he offered jokingly, trying to lighten his brother’s mood. “Mother will not be pleased. You have not informed her you have found a friend.”
Brock sighed. “It came about very recently. I’ll go talk to her about the trip.”
Brock stood and headed to the barn, he knew that Sabrina would be angry if he answered for her. She was so strong and willful. It was that passion that he admired and drove him crazy at the same time.
In the barn, Sabrina had already rubbed down Troy and fed him. She had left the saddle on, not knowing what Chase’s presence here meant. A sinking feeling that Brock may be leaving her made her uneasy. Sensing her worried emotions, Justice snorted in distress. Sabrina went over to try to comfort them both. She heard the barn door creak open and set her chin up high turning to face Brock. She waited for the news, good or bad.
Seeing her, Brock swallowed hard. The light filtered in through the cracks in the weathered wood giving her an almost celestial appearance. Like an angel, he thought. How on earth had he ever thought she was a boy, he asked himself for the millionth time. Her pert mouth, slender nose and huge green eyes just screamed ‘girl’.
“What’s wrong?” she asked taking a hesitant step forward.
“My father is very ill. He mangled his leg and refuses to seek medical help. My mother thinks that I can persuade him to have the leg removed.“
Sabrina went to him and wrapped her arms tightly around his back giving him comfort as he buried his head into her shoulder. He did not cry but took long, deep, unsteady breaths. Sabrina closed her eyes as she thought of her own proud and stubborn father. She did not know which way he would have chosen and she was glad that she never had to face that decision.
“When are we leaving?” she asked with just a hint of uncertainty in her voice. What if he didn’t want her to go? What if he was embarrassed to introduce her to his family?
Brock hesitated and her heart almost stopped. “Tomorrow morning; I wasn’t sure if you wanted to go with us. Or if I should even go.”
“Well, of course you have to go! If I could have had one last chance to see my father before…” She trailed off, closing her eyes tightly. “You have to go. We’ll go together if you want me too.”
“Naturally I want you to go. I can’t leave you here by yourself; no telling what kind of mischief you could get into being left alone. And I would be proud for my family to meet you.”
“How come you never mentioned you had a brother?”
“I don’t know. It’s not a secret, it just never came up, I guess. I actually have a brother and a sister. Twins. They were younger than I was so I have not really had much contact with them since I left home.”
Sabrina accepted his answer as reasonable. After all she could not judge him for not staying in contact with his family members–not when she had been ignoring Warren for so many years. In that instant she was sure that sending Warren the letter was the right thing to do. In fact, she should have sent it a long time ago. Family was important. She wanted to meet his family. Moreover, she really wanted them to like her. Looking down sadly at her clothing, she realized a longing for a dress; she didn’t want them to think she was odd.
As if reading her mind, Brock lifted her face back up to look at him. “I don’t care what you wear and neither will my family. In fact I prefer it when you wear nothing at all.” He leaned down, capturing her lips in his and kissed her deeply. She returned the kiss with equal abandon. She felt Brock’s hand slide from her back to her bottom pressing her pelvis against his excitement.
“I take it she’s coming with us?” a voice interrupted and Brock hissed as Sabrina pulled away quickly.
“Thought you were tired,” Brock commented wryly.
Seeing the deadly look thrown his way Chase backed out of the barn and headed to the house to take a nap. Brock saddled Justice for Sabrina, ignoring her objection. Together they headed into town to gather the supplies they would need for the trip.
To move things along she took the list to the mercantile while Brock went to notify the council he would be gone for a while and make arrangements for the deputy to take over in the meantime. Sabrina checked her sheet of paper while she shopped and added a couple of items of her own. She put it on Brock’s tab and gathered up the bulky packages. Carrying the parcels outside, she filled the saddlebags and tied the rest to her saddle horn.
She grabbed Justice’s harness and led him down the street to Brock’s office. Tying him next to Troy, she stepped onto the boardwalk and went inside. She was surprised to see Brock talking to Thomas. He saw her at the doorway and nodded for her to come in.
“Hey, Will,” Thomas said, patting her shoulder as she joined the men. She nodded to him a bit awkwardly and looked at Brock.
Brock looked at her and hesitated before speaking. “I was talking to Thomas about my father’s condition and he volunteered to go with us.”
“Sure,” Sabrina said promptly. She wanted to say a whole lot more but would have to wait until they were alone. She did not think ‘Will’ would elaborate too much on the subject. She nodded to them and mumbled something about waiting by the horses.
She grabbed onto Troy’s harness as she tried not to panic. She was looking forward to being able to be with Brock and his family with no secrets. Now she would either have to keep up her masquerade or confess to Thomas. She knew she did not want to start her life with Brock’s family based on lies, so she would have to tell him the truth. Thomas had always been very kind to Will especially since he had returned from the physicians’ school. She trusted Thomas; it would be okay.
She pretended to fuss with the saddlebags as Thomas left and Brock soon followed. She went and mounted Justice as they headed out of town in silence.
“I didn’t mean to put you in that situation. I was just asking him for advice and he volunteered to come with us.”
Brock had stopped his horse and looked down apologetically at Sabrina while he spoke. She leaned over and grasped his hand. “No, it’s a great idea. I’ll tell him in the morning. Maybe it is time to inform everyone. I mean I can’t pretend to be a boy forever, right?”
“No, you can’t, but I know it’ll be difficult for you. I’m here if you need me.”
“I know,” she said softly as she nudged Justice forward and they rode home together.
Chase was still asleep when they arrived back. Brock woke him none too gently by kicking the bed frame. He groggily sat up as Brock filled him in on the traveling party.
Sabrina decided to make biscuits for the trip. She had never made them without supervision before and wanted to prove she was up for the task. They needed some food to take with them and biscuits would keep for a day or two. After pulling out the ingredients she needed, she started mixing a large batch. A few minutes later, she frowned at her mess. There was flour everywhere. She had no idea how Mac or even Brock for that matter could make biscuits without getting a speck of flour on them.
Brock came over to check on her progress and carefully wiped a bit of flour from her cheek. He kissed her swiftly as she shooed him away. She heard Chase laugh at the exchange and heard the door open and close and assumed Chase was gone.
She had never kneaded so much and her arms were achin
g from first mixing and then kneading the heavy dough. She laid out a clean pillowcase, covered it with flour and plopped out the sticky goo on top of it. Flouring her rolling pen, she began the tiresome task of rolling it out so she could cut it. Brock made drop biscuits; he was not into rolling. However, Mac and Alma rolled and so would she.
By this time her neck and shoulders were getting tired from the repetition. She took a second to stretch her arms, trying to ease the tension. She felt warm hands envelope her shoulders and massage gently. She stopped rolling to enjoy the sensations the manipulation was creating. She let her neck lull back as her muscles relaxed.
She heard the door open again and she jumped at Brock’s angry voice as he stepped inside. Sabrina froze as she realized it was not Brock but Chase behind her.
Embarrassed, she spun around, putting her floured hands on Chase’s chest and pushing. Taken off guard from the amount of force, he staggered back to regain his balance. She had left two distinct handprints on his dark colored shirt and she smiled.
“What?” he asked innocently as Brock grabbed him and shoved him against the wall.
“Okay, okay,” said Chase, “I know when I’m in the way; I’m riding into town.”.
“I thought it was you,” she explained as Brock stepped toward her. He let his hands run upwards from her elbows to her shoulders. She let a shuddered breath as electricity ran throughout her body. Brock smiled as he leaned over and kissed her neck, sucking gently; he was rewarded by her soft moan. He scooped her up in his arms and carried her to their bed. Soon, they were both covered in flour.
Afterward, Brock helped her finish the biscuits to make up for lost time. He took over the rolling and she used a cup to start cutting out the individual biscuits. She was still quieter than usual and he asked her about her silence.
“What if they don’t like me?”
“My family?”
“Yes.”
He stepped forward, pulling her into his chest for a hug. “They will love you as I do. Chase already likes you an awful lot,” he pointed out apologetically. She pulled away to resume her cutting and rolled her eyes. “I think he likes irritating you more than he likes me. I mean, will they be angry since we aren’t wed?” she asked softly, refusing to look at him as she concentrated on her biscuits.
Brock paused. They had never discussed marriage before. He had thought perhaps that she would not want to marry someone of his stature. Sighing he lifted her face up to look at him.
“According to Comanche tradition, we are already married. “ She raised an eyebrow.
“Since when?”
“Since you moved in with me.”
She smiled, “You thought I was a boy.”
“Yes, but when I found out you were a girl you didn’t move out.”
She blushed, realizing how very close they had become since then. “Do you think of us as being married?”
He hesitated, not wanting to say the wrong thing. “I do. However, if you wish to make it official I am willing.”
She laughed aloud and he frowned, misunderstanding her laughter. Seeing his hurt expression, she pulled him down for a quick kiss. “I’m sorry, Brock, it’s just that girls grow up dreaming of the perfect proposal of marriage and I get ‘If you want to.’ “
Brock smiled wryly. “I’m not very good with words but if marriage means that when I’m with you I never want to leave and when I’m not with you I count the minutes until we’re together again. Then, yes, I believe we are already married.”
“I think your words are just fine,” Sabrina said as Brock crushed his mouth to hers and was rewarded by a small moan.
“Again?” a voice called from the doorway.
Brock reluctantly released her and turned to glare at his younger brother. “Sorry, Little Beaver. I didn’t realize you were keeping count.” He was satisfied by Chase’s frown at the use of the Indian name he was called as a child.
“How cute,” Sabrina giggled. Chase winked at her and was rewarded by a smile.
After finishing their meal and packing for the trip the next day, they were all ready to retire early for the night. They had a long journey ahead of them.
Chase bunked in the loft at Sabrina’s insistence. He was going to stay in the barn but, with the fire still fresh in her mind, she refused to allow it. She readied for bed and climbed in, waiting for Brock to join her after extinguishing the lights.
Brock was dismayed as he settled into bed. He had just discovered that Sabrina was still wearing her long johns. Discontented that the obstructive fabric was separating his body from hers he rolled onto his side with a defeated sigh. Still self-conscious, Sabrina pulled away slightly turned her back to him and snuggled against his chest. She used his thick bicep as a pillow and tried to go to sleep since they had to awaken early.
Brock wrapped his arms around her and pulled her closer. He tilted his head and kissed the back of her neck. A shiver ran through her. He shifted a bit and her eyes opened wide as she felt his hardness pressing against her bottom. He moved his left arm from around her chest slowly down to the juncture of her legs. He slid two fingers further down and was gently massaging her through the fabric. She froze. She grabbed his wrist, trying to pull his hand away before Chase heard them but his hold was like iron. She could not budge it. She elbowed him in the chest and whispered “Chase” as she motioned up at the loft above him.
“Shhhhh,” he whispered, continuing his ministrations. Her body soon vetoed her mind and she was dazed to find her legs relaxing giving him better access. He suddenly pulled his hand away and she wanted to cry out in objection. She felt movement behind her and her eyes widened in surprise as she realized he had released the flap in the back of her garment.
Brock lifted her thigh as his hardness sought out her entrance. Wanting to make sure he found the correct one, she shifted forward a bit to assist him. He adjusted and entered her, oh so slowly. Sabrina let out a little hiss at the unfamiliar angle. Brock paused again moving his hand forward to massage her with his fingers. Her passion returning, she moved her hips, wanting to take in all of him. `She turned her head, twisting her torso to capture his lips with hers. His tongue mimicked the movement of his body as he thrust in and out, each plunge more demanding than the next. He felt Sabrina tighten around him as her body trembled. He continued to kiss her deeply as she moaned into his mouth. Feeling her body relax in his arms, he groaned, giving her his seed.
Their breathing labored. He pulled her tightly against him, hugging her closely as he kissed her now-damp neck and whispered his love to her. Sabrina smiled as she mumbled her love in return. Spent, they drifted off to sleep.
In the loft above them, Chase held a pillow over his ears, wishing he had slept in the barn.
Chapter 19
Brock awoke way before dawn. He marveled at the sleeping figure in his arms and eased out of bed so as not to disturb her. Dressing quickly he headed out to saddle up the horses. Chase followed him noiselessly as they went to the barn and worked in comfortable silence. After readying all of the horses, he headed in to rouse Sabrina. She sat up, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. Brock stepped outside to make sure she had privacy. Thomas had just ridden into the yard and he nodded to him.
Sabrina awoke fully and cleansed herself from the wash basin that Brock had thoughtfully left for her. Feeling refreshed, she dressed and went outside. Seeing Thomas she nodded to him. She was nervous about telling him the truth, probably because he’d been so kind to ‘Will.’ Brock came toward, her, leading Justice.
“Do you want me to stay with you while you tell him?” he murmured.
Sabrina nodded gratefully as she tried to combat the butterflies in her stomach. She was nervous and was not sure how to approach him but decided to handle the situation as she did all others, with her chin up and head held high. She marched up to Thomas and before he could greet her she spat out: “Thomas, I’m a girl.”
Before responding, he cast a quick look at Brock who was standing ve
ry close behind her. Returning his gaze to his friend, he smiled down at her.
“I know.”
Sabrina frowned at that as Brock’s eyes narrowed. “Since when have you known?” she asked.
He lifted his head and pretended to scratch his chin thoughtfully. “I guess it was when I returned home from medical school. We spent a lot of time learning about proper development. But you hadn’t grown any since you arrived, never had any whiskers, your voice never changed…” He shrugged, his voice trailing off.
“You’ve known all this time? But you’ve always been so nice to me…” She shook her head in wonder.
“I know. I guess I should have spoken up.” He looked a bit sheepish and his meaning slowly sunk in. A soft “Oh” escaped her lips.
“I suppose Will isn’t your real name,” he said in a more cheery voice, trying to cover the awkward encounter.
“It’s Sabrina.”
“Nice to meet you, Sabrina,” Thomas said serenely.
Brock stepped forward, placing a telling hand on Sabrina’s shoulder. “We need to go,” he announced, gently guiding her toward the horses. They headed out soon after.
Chase led the way–then Thomas, Sabrina and, lastly, Brock. The party was moving slowly since the sun had not risen as of yet. The trip they were taking would normally take about four days; they would make it in three, Chase did it in two. He boarded his horse halfway here and would pick it up on the return journey. She had gotten into the habit of sleeping in since she moved in with Brock. Well, she slept in until the sun came up at least. Of course, it was partly his fault since he kept her up most nights. She blushed as she thought of their time together. Looking back at him she slowed Justice so they were riding side by side.
“Penny for your thoughts,” she said to the brooding Brock. He spoke softly even though the others were too far away to hear. “I don’t know, just thinking.”
“About your father?”
“No.”
The Stafford Collection, Historical Western Romances Page 15