When Lettie appeared at the aisle's end in her simple white dress, Julian swayed on his feet. He had to be propped up by his best man, Wiggly Joe, who had bathed and shaved for his friends' special day. Both were so uncommon for Wiggly, he was barely recognizable.
“You look so beautiful,” Julian whispered to his bride when she joined him at the pulpit. “So beautiful.”
“You're not so bad yourself, Julian,” Lettie winked as she returned the compliment.
When the priest began his speech, a ripple of yawns echoed through the audience. Julian's coarse crewmen had no interest in the love story of their captain, but they were required to attend. Jun, however, couldn't stop smiling. There were roses all around, and their sweet scent was carried by the wind. As Julian stared into the eyes of his bride, Jun could tell he was madly in love with her. If only, Jun thought to herself. If only someone would look at me like that.
Unbeknownst to her, Flynn could barely take his eyes off of her. Every few seconds, he stole a glimpse of the girl sitting beside him. Jun's smile encouraged him to copy the gesture. Flynn was one of few men in the audience whose lips weren't torn apart by frequent yawns.
“Do you, Letitia Jordan, take this man to be your lawfully wedded husband? To have and to hold, in sickness and in health, for richer, for poorer, for as long as you both shall live?”
Lettie's answer came without hesitation. “Yes.”
“And do you, Julian Featherstone, take this woman to be your lawfully wedded wife? To have and to hold, in sickness and in health, for richer, for poorer, for as long as you both shall live?”
Julian's stomach tumbled as he replied with a firm, “Yes.”
“And so... by the power vested in me, I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride.”
When Julian's lips landed on Lettie's, Jun leapt from her chair and applauded the couple. She was a fan of true love—even if she had yet to find it herself.
Shortly after the wedding, Jun found herself in Lettie's company.
“My father's going to kill me,” Lettie whispered to her new friend. “Or... more specifically, he's going to kill Julian.”
“Your father doesn't approve of him?” Jun asked.
“No. He hates Julian. And he would have wanted to be at the wedding.” Lettie's gaze dropped to her feet. “If my new husband doesn't survive another fortnight, I wouldn't be surprised. Admiral Jordan can be... harsh.”
While Lettie confided in Jun, Julian bragged to Flynn.
“Tonight's the night, man!” Julian nudged him with an elbow. “After nearly four hundred and thirty days of waiting... Lettie will finally be mine. And you know what? It was definitely worth the wait.”
“You mean...” Flynn's eyes widened. “You two haven't...?”
“Nope.”
“For over four hundred days?”
Julian nodded. He wasn't ashamed. In fact, he was proud of himself for waiting.
“And you haven't been with... with any other women?”
Julian shook his head. “Not a single one.”
“Well, I commend you.” Flynn clapped a congratulatory hand on his new friend's back. “I don't know if I could've held out as long as that.”
As Julian discussed his new-found faithfulness with Flynn, the girls were watching them.
“I envy your love,” Jun confessed to Lettie. “I really do. You and Julian have the kind of love I've wanted my whole life.” She turned her eyes to the heavens, where a golden sun glowed atop a hazy desert sky.
“You mean... you don't have that with Flynn?” Lettie asked.
“What? Me and Flynn?” A tense giggle bubbled up from Jun's throat. “No!”
“Really? I was under the impression that you and he...?” Lettie didn't finish her thought. Instead, she said, “Well, clearly he adores you.”
“Maybe he does. I mean... we are good friends.”
“He's only a friend to you? Clearly you're more than that to him.”
“Are you sure?”
“Absolutely sure.” Lettie gave her a light push in Flynn's direction. “Why don't you go talk to him?”
Meanwhile, Julian asked Flynn, “Are you telling me it'd be impossible to wait? If Jun was your girl, and she wanted to wait for sex... you couldn't do it?”
Flynn was gradually overcoming his shyness, but the uncomfortable topic made him stammer. “W-w-well... she isn't mine, so I don't know.”
“But you do want her, right?”
“W-well...”
“The answer's yes. Of course you do,” Julian finished for him, then he pushed his young friend toward Jun. “Now you need to tell her how you feel, or she'll never be yours. Be brave, my man! Be brave!”
Prodded by the newlyweds, Jun and Flynn shyly staggered toward each other. When they were reunited, Jun was the first to speak. “So... that was a nice wedding.”
“Yeah. It was,” Flynn quietly agreed.
“Lettie seems happy.”
“So does Julian.” Flynn nervously scratched his head. There was so much he wanted to say to Jun, and it felt like the right moment, but his courage was wavering and weak. “So, um... my brother's alive.”
“I know. That makes me really happy.”
“Do you still...” Flynn's throat tightened as the words fought their way through his lips. “Do you still have feelings for my brother?”
“O-oh...” Jun timidly tugged on the ends of her long black locks. She hadn't anticipated such an uncomfortable question. She felt like she was being ambushed. “I, um... I... n-no. I guess not. Not really.”
“Are you sure?”
“Well, I thought he was dead.” Jun shrugged. “I felt like I had to move on.”
“Have you moved on?” Jun look puzzled, so Flynn added, “Do you have feelings for anyone else?”
“Oh... I... umm...” Jun's cheeks were warmer than the blistering sun above them. She couldn't bear to answer truthfully, so she changed the subject. “I'm glad you can talk to me now, Flynn. I still remember when you were too shy to say a word.”
“I'm still pretty shy.”
“Yeah...” Jun agreed. “So am I.”
“So...” Flynn's fingers frantically fidgeted behind his back.
“So...” Jun's heart thumped wildly, foolishly anticipating a moment that seemed unlikely to occur.
But it did, albeit awkwardly.
“I-I-I was just wondering, Jun...” Flynn dragged a hand through his hair at least a half-dozen times. “I was just wondering if, uh... if p-perhaps you would, uhhh... if you'd like to go out with me sometime?”
Relief exploded in every bone of Jun's body. Her tensely held breath was slowly expelled through quivering lips. Pretending he hadn't rattled her to her core, she coolly replied, “That would be lovely, Flynn. I'd like that very much.”
Thirty One
After escaping an unpleasant wedding night with her unwanted husband, Gwen needed a place to hide. She couldn't return home, not when it was the first place Ju-long's men would search for her. She couldn't leave the city, not while train service was suspended and airships were grounded. Gwen and Nicky had already proven they knew nothing about wandering the desert on their own. Until the situation stabilized, they were stuck in Gravestone.
Temporarily, they decided to hide in the stables of a rich old man. It wasn't ideal, and a bed of hay was hardly the sort of comfort Gwen was accustomed to, but it was still preferable to sharing a bed with Emperor Ju-long. Specifically, they were hiding in the hayloft. If anyone happened to enter the stables, they wouldn't be spotted right away.
Suspended above the horses, Nicky could see them clearly. While staring at a speckled gray stallion, he heaved a sentimental sigh. “I miss Buckles.”
“Really?” Gwen shrilled. “That was just about the ugliest, most useless horse I've ever seen!”
“Hey! Buckles was my friend! Don't be rude!” Nicky pouted. “Sure, he could be a little bit stubborn, but for the most part, he was a loyal companion. We'd
been through a lot together, you know. I even trained him to run backwards. How many horses can do a trick like that? Now I'll never see that old bastard again, and it breaks my heart.”
“Why won't you see him again? Did he die?”
“No. But I lost track of him when the Hershalls grabbed me back in River Ranch. I hope someone found him and adopted him.”
Under her breath, Gwen added, “Or put him out of his misery...”
“Maybe I should go back to River Ranch and search for him?” Nicky suggested to himself. “When things settle down, of course. I wouldn't leave without you, Gwen, don't worry. From now on, I'll be as loyal to you as Buckles was to me.”
“That's... nice?” Gwen didn't have particularly good memories of Nicky's old horse. One time, Buckles even spat on her when no one was watching. To hear Nicky compare himself to the ornery beast was far from inspiring.
Gwen turned her attention to the stables' cross-shaped window. Soon, daylight would retreat with the sun, leaving them in darkness.
Nicky must have been reading her mind, because he said, “It'll be dark soon.”
Gwen's shoulders fell. “I know.”
“We won't be able to climb down from the hayloft if we can't see the ladder, so if there's anything you need to do, you should probably do it now,” Nicky advised her as he scratched his messy hair. “It's too bad we don't have some candles, huh? Although... fire and hay is probably a dangerous combination.”
“Nicky.” Gwen tried to get his attention, but he was lost in his own thoughts.
“What's it like to be married, Gwen?” he asked her. “I mean, I know you didn't want to be married, but I'm curious. Does it change the way you see the world?”
“Nicky?” Gwen tried again, but his mind floated from one thought to the next and never stopped.
“You can already hear crickets out there,” Nicky observed. “So yeah... it'll be dark real soon. When I was a boy, I used to lay in the grass and listen to chirping crickets. I used to like the sound. Now I think it's annoying. Sometimes you just want peace and quiet, but those little buggers never stop. They ain't as bad as cicadas, though. Now those things make a noise that really gives me the heebie jeebies.”
“Nicky!”
“I can't wait until we have cooler weather. I sweat too much at night. Way, way too much. Every day, I wake up and my collar's soaked in sweat. My brother sleeps naked. He says it keeps him cool, but I can't imagine doing that. It'd be too awkward. It'd be--”
After failing to capture his attention, Gwen resorted to drastic measures. She pulled her dress over her head and tossed it on a haystack beside her. As soon as he saw her undergarments, Nicky's rambling ceased.
“But, uhhh...” Nicky chuckled nervously. “You're more than welcome to sleep naked. In fact, go right ahead. You won't hear me complain.”
Gwen suddenly climbed onto Nicky's lap, unhooked her brassiere, and let it slide from her shoulders. Before removing it, she asked, “Do you want me, Nicky Gunn?”
“Heck yeah!” Nicky chuckled at his overeager reply. “I mean, uh... sure. Do you want me?”
“Would I be sitting on you in my undergarments if I didn't?”
“I don't know. Maybe you like to tease?”
“Oh, I'm not teasing!” Gwen removed the brassiere and tossed it aside. When his enlarged eyes locked onto her breasts, she giggled. “I want you. I really do. I need to be close to someone.”
“But... do you like me?” As soon as the words were out of his mouth, Nicky silently chastised himself for asking such a stupid question. If she wanted to sleep with him, did it really matter if she liked him or not?
“Of course I do.”
“I mean... do you really like me?” Nicky's hand boldly glided along Gwen's stomach. “Because I really like you a lot, Gwen. I care about you. A lot.”
“I care about you too, Nicky Gunn.” Gwen brought her face closer to his. “Don't ask me why... but I do.”
When her lips touched his, Nicky moaned. He was kissing a topless Gwen Montgomery. No matter how many times he tried to soak that thought into his head, it didn't seem real.
“You're the definition of beautiful.” Nicky's fingers gently brushed Gwen's cheek as he complimented her. “You're like an angel... o-or a goddess. You're too beautiful for me, that's for sure.”
“I'll be the judge of that,” replied a grinning Gwen.
Then she tore off Nicky's shirt, shoved him on his back, and climbed on top of him.
Thirty Two
Gwen awoke the next morning, naked and wrapped in a tattered horse blanket. Beside her, Nicky was still asleep and fully clothed. When he said he wasn't comfortable sleeping in the nude, he wasn't kidding. He must have gotten dressed after she fell asleep in his arms.
The call of nature beckoned, so Gwen peeled herself away from Nicky and collected her clothes. Fully dressed, she climbed down from the loft, tiptoed from the stables, and searched for a spot to relieve herself. Unfortunately, her timing was terrible. As soon as the stable door was open, she was spotted by one of Ju-long's patrolling guards.
“There you are!” The guard raised his pistol, aiming at her head. “Don't move! The emperor's been searching for you, you know.”
“Please,” Gwen begged him as he took a step in her direction. “Just let me go. I don't want this life. I don't want--”
“His Imperial Majesty was afraid you'd left the city. When this guard proves him wrong... do you think this guard will get a reward?” Before Gwen could flee, the man leapt forward and roughly seized her arm.
“Unhand me!” Gwen demanded. “I'm still your empress! I plan to tell my husband how rudely you've treated me. You're giving me bruises, and when I show him--”
“I doubt you'll be an empress much longer,” the guard said as he lifted her over his shoulder. “If you really did run away, you'll be lucky if he doesn't kill you.”
“Help!” Gwen squealed and flailed. “Nicky! Nicky Gunn! Niiicckkyy!”
Gwen and the guard were several yards away when Nicky exploded through the stable door. Seeing Gwen in the distance, Nicky raised his revolver and took aim. He was a terrible shot. He always had been. If his aim was off, there was a good chance he'd hit Gwen instead of the man who carried her. Time moved in slow motion as Nicky closed his left eye and carefully lined up the shot. His ears thrummed, his pulse drummed, and his lungs refused to release the breath they held. After the longest five seconds of his life, Nicky fired a shot.
By some miracle, he landed a head shot that would have made the Cole brothers proud. The guard dropped, as did Gwen. Nicky hurried to her side and helped her to her feet.
“Nicky!” Gwen's arms flew around his neck. “Oh my god, that was amazing! I didn't know you could shoot as good as that!”
“I can't. That was a first.” Puzzled by his accuracy, Nicky stroked his bristled chin. “Apparently, I'm a dead eye when I need to be.”
“I'm really proud of you.”
“Yeah?”
“Yeah.” Gwen lightly kissed him on the lips. As soon as they were safe, she planned to give him a bigger, better reward—one that involved the removal of clothes. “What do you think we should do now? The emperor's men are obviously looking for me, so--”
“Gwen?”
When she heard someone say her name, Gwen spun around to greet the speaker. Behind her, a dark-haired young man was frowning at Nicky. Though she recognized him as a former suitor, she couldn't quite remember his name.
“What are you doing here, Gwen? Why aren't you with the emperor?” her nameless suitor asked. “You married him, didn't you?”
“I did.” Gwen's toes nervously wiggled in her sandals. “And then I... ran away.”
“Well... shit, Gwen, you need to get out of here! So does he, whoever he is.” Her former suitor's frown morphed into an all-out scowl as he studied Nicky's face. “Princess Isabella's airship touched down about three minutes ago. Soon, there'll be war on the streets of Gravestone. The emperor pull
ed his troops from the skyport and now they're gathering at the town square, preparing for battle. Everyone with half a brain is heading to the skyport and begging for a lift out of town. If you two are smart, that's what you'll do too.” The unnamed suitor sent a final scowl in Nicky's direction before tipping his hat to Gwen. “Now... if you don't mind, I'm getting the hell out of here. Good luck!”
As Gwen's suitor fled, an epiphany dawned on Nicky. “Julian!” he exclaimed.
Gwen's nose puckered at the name. “Who?”
“Julian Featherstone. I befriended him a couple of days ago. If I can find him at the skyport, maybe he'll let us go with him?” Nicky's fingers curled around Gwen's. “It's worth a try, right?”
“Sure...” Gwen sounded less confident. After such an unlucky week, she didn't expect to catch a break. “It's worth a try.”
“No no no, Lettie, no!” Julian whined as his new wife ushered a family of refugees onto his airship. “We can't squeeze anyone else onto the ship. We're practically at max capacity as it is. You're just going to have to turn some people away. We can't help everybody!”
“I can't turn them away!” Lettie rejected the notion. “I can't! People are panicking. Gravestone might turn into a bloodbath... at least, that's what everyone's saying. I want to help as many people as I can!”
“Well... it seems like premature panic, if you ask me. This battle might not be as major as everyone thinks it'll be. It might end up being a teeny tiny trivial thing that everyone laughs about later.”
“Oh?” Lettie raised a dark eyebrow. “If that's the case, why don't you stay behind in Gravestone?”
Julian shook his head. A part of him wanted to stay behind and help Princess Isabella take back the city, but a larger part of him wanted to flee with everyone else. He couldn't blame anyone who wanted to run—after all, running was what Julian had done for most of his life. “I can't.”
A Broken Outlaw (Belles & Bullets Book 7) Page 21