Teton Romance Trilogy Bundle: Includes Yellowstone Proposal (Short Story)

by Peggy L Henderson

  Joseph ground his teeth. Hell, nothing in this store would even come close to the frilly things Sophie preferred.

  “Practical,” he said quickly. “You can just wrap it all up with my other things,” he sputtered, and cleared his throat. When he turned back to the men, Chase Russell stared at him intently. Joseph’s knuckles itched to punch the annoying grin off the man’s face.

  Chase leaned forward and added something to Joseph’s growing pile of purchases. A flowery scent passed under his nose, something he recognized but couldn’t identify by name. It was a fragrance he’d smelled in Sophie’s hair, and a warm sensation passed through him at the memory of holding her close many weeks ago on his horse, inhaling her sweet woman’s scent.

  “Lavender soap,” Chase explained. “Trust me, women like that sort of stuff.” His grin widened. Joseph frowned, and eyed his mountain of supplies.

  “So, you got yourself a family now, huh?” Chase nodded with his chin toward Caleb, who seemed to have found a new friend in Chase’s son, Kyle. “He doesn’t look like he belongs to Sophie, and she’s a bit young to be his mother.”

  Joseph chuckled. “He’s an orphan. He ran away from the orphanage he lived at. I wasn’t gonna send him back, so I offered to bring him with me. He’s a good boy.”

  Chase nodded. “Well, your folks will sure be surprised, you coming home with a wife and kid.”

  “Wife?” Joseph’s head snapped up from looking at Caleb to stare at Chase. He laughed nervously, and ran a hand over his rough face. He could use a shave. “Sophie’s not my wife.”

  Chase’s eyebrows raised. He coughed loudly, and slapped him on the back. “Well, let me give you some advice then, Joey.” He paused, a serious look on his face.

  “What would that be?” Joseph asked reluctantly. Why the hell was he having this conversation?

  “Don’t wait too long.”

  Joseph frowned. “For what?” He paid for his purchases, and reached for the items on the counter that had been wrapped in brown paper, and piled them into his arms. He motioned for Caleb to come and grab one of the packages that contained the boy’s new clothes. Chase wordlessly grabbed the blankets and several burlap pouches that made up the rest of the items Joseph had bought. Together, they headed for the door, which Sam held open.

  Joseph blinked into the bright sunlight. The busy street teemed with riders and wagons. Chase helped him secure his purchases to his horses that were hitched in front of the store. The man still hadn’t answered his question.

  Tying the last blanket onto his gelding’s saddle, Joseph glanced up. His body tensed. In front of the building further down the street with a sign advertising it as a saloon stood a big dun horse tied to a post. Joseph squinted. At that moment, a man emerged from the establishment, and untied the reins from the rail. There was no mistaking that it was the same man Joseph had seen at the river that day. Pulling his wide brimmed hat low over his head, the man mounted the animal, and glanced over his shoulder. His eyes met Joseph’s for a split second, then he turned and kicked his mount into a trot, heading up the street that led out of town.

  Joseph’s eyes followed the rider. A rush of adrenaline surged through him. His gut instinct hadn’t been wrong after all. Was it purely coincidence that this man was here in St. Louis, so far from where the steamboat accident had taken place? What possible motive could he have to be following them? Sophie’s safety was foremost on his mind. He brushed off the ridiculous notion that Oliver Sabin might still seek revenge on something her father had done to him. Sabin wore an eye patch. Sophie’s father had blinded him during a fight at one point. This man didn’t have a patch, and he was much younger than Sabin would be.

  “Friend of yours?” Chase asked, glancing at him.

  “No. I’m not sure who that is, but I saw him a week ago near where the steamboat exploded.”

  “Wonder why he’s here in St. Louis,” Chase remarked.

  “I’m wondering that myself,” Joseph mumbled. “My gut told me we were being followed this past week. Seems I might have been right.”

  “Well,” Chase said, his eyebrows drawn together. “It could be pure coincidence. You wanna go after this guy and introduce yourself?”

  “No.” Joseph shook his head. “I don’t want Sophie to start fretting. Besides, I think he’s had plenty of chances to make a move if he’s a threat.”

  “Maybe he tailed you because you survived. Who knows, maybe he had something to do with the explosion,” Chase offered. “Maybe it wasn’t an accident, and he’s trying to figure out if you know anything to tell the authorities.”

  “Yeah. Maybe,” Joseph answered absently. He was glad that he would have company heading into the wilderness. Chase had made an interesting point. What if the boiler explosion hadn’t been an accident? But what did that have to do with him or Sophie? So far, even if this was the person Joseph suspected of following them, he hadn’t made a threatening move.

  “Well, we’d best find my daughter, and then head over to Zach’s place,” Chase said cheerfully, dismissing the stranger. He turned fully toward Joseph, his expression serious. “That girl of yours is gonna attract the attention of every brave, and probably every white man this side and the other of the Missouri. You’d better stake your claim soon, or she just might slip away. Unless, of course, you’re still holding out for your wife. Your former wife. She did toss you out, as I remember. You’re not bound to her anymore.”

  Joseph laughed to hide the jolt that hit him in the gut. Did everyone see what was in his heart and on his mind when it came to Sophie? He’d kept his distance, and stayed as impersonal as possible over the last week. What little sleep he had gotten was tormented by dreams of her and the kiss they’d shared. He watched her when she wasn’t looking, and was more aware of her than he’d ever been of another person.

  No matter how many times he told himself that nothing could ever come of his attraction to her, his heart had other ideas. Sophie wasn’t coming to the Tetons to stay. He shouldn’t entertain any crazy notions that she might choose him over her life of luxury in Boston if he asked. That she didn’t complain about her harsh conditions and seemed to take her predicament in stride had surprised him as much as everything else about her. Feather in the Wind hadn’t entered his mind at all, except to remind him that he shouldn’t pursue Sophie.

  “Sophie is heading back to Boston after she meets her grandfather,” Joseph said with as much conviction as he could muster. He tried to keep the regret out of his voice. There was no sense harboring feelings for a woman who would be gone from his life again in a few months.

  “If you say so.” Chase shrugged, and led the way up the boardwalk. They hadn’t gone far, when he stopped abruptly, and Joseph nearly collided with him. He nudged his chin at something up ahead.

  “Going back to Boston, huh?” he asked smugly.

  Joseph stared. Coming toward them were two giggling women. The blond wore a rose colored dress with a flower pattern and white lace trim at the collar. Her skirts swished lively around her legs. She wasn’t the one who caught his eye, however. The raven-haired woman walking next to her almost reminded him of an Indian brave if not for her decisive feminine curves. Buckskin britches hugged her slender legs, and a leather belt bunched the material of a tan cotton shirt around her waist. She walked gracefully beside her companion, her feet wrapped in moccasins that laced up to her knees. No one would ever guess that, several weeks ago, she wore gowns that probably cost more money than he would ever see in his lifetime. Joseph’s throat tightened, and he made a futile attempt to swallow. Sweat beaded his forehead.

  “Raven,” he whispered under his breath.

  She turned her head toward him in that instant, her face glowing with a radiant smile. Joseph held his breath. She’d never looked more beautiful. What would it take to have her smile like that for him? Their eyes met, and her step faltered for a moment. The smile froze on her face, but she raised her chin proudly and continued walking toward him.

>   “Doesn’t look like a woman who has plans to return to Boston.” Chase elbowed him in the side. “You’d best take those blinders off real quick, or you might lose what’s right in front of your eyes.” He winked, and stepped out to meet his daughter.

  Chapter Thirteen

  “We’ll stop here for the night.” Joseph turned in his saddle and glanced her way before directing his attention toward Caleb. “Help Sophie set up camp. I won’t be far.” Abruptly, he wheeled his horse in the direction they had just come from.

  Sophia stared after him and sighed. She ground her teeth in frustration. All day, he’d been more silent than usual. Trying to engage him in conversation had been about as successful as squeezing water from a rock. After endless weeks on the trail, they had parted ways this morning with Chase Russell and his family. She already missed the company of Sam Osborne’s wife, Summer Rain. The Shoshone woman had taught her so much during their time spent together, and Sophia had been determined to learn all that she could. The looks of satisfaction Joseph cast her way on occasion when she worked alongside the woman warmed her insides.

  “Some men require much time to understand what their heart feels,” Summer Rain had told her one day after Sophia served Joseph the first meal she had prepared herself. His simple thank you without further comment had left her on the verge of tears.

  “What am I doing wrong?” she’d blurted in frustration to her new friend. The perceptive woman had already guessed at Sophia’s feelings for Joseph shortly after they left St. Louis. It felt good to confide in another woman, and Summer Rain was easy to talk to. She wasn’t sure she could have even discussed such things with Lucy.

  Summer Rain patted her hand, and offered an encouraging smile. “In time, he will come to see what his heart is telling him.”

  When it came to Joseph, Sophia doubted the woman’s words. The man didn’t seem to know what he wanted when it came to matters of the heart. His confusing behavior toward her over the weeks was more than perplexing; it was downright frustrating.

  Under Summer Rain’s guidance, Sophia had learned how to set up and tear down a camp efficiently, cook meals over a campfire, along with some useful Shoshone words. She had told her that the Bannock were close relatives of the Shoshone, and their language was very similar.

  The work to set up camp at the end of a long day on horseback was challenging to say the least, and for the first few weeks, Sophia had simply wanted to crawl under her sleeping blanket from exhaustion every night. Determined to prove to Joseph that she wasn’t weak, she fought through the discomfort, until it didn’t seem so difficult anymore to build a fire, tend to her horse, and cook a meal when she’d rather just rest.

  The love between Summer Rain and her husband, Sam Osborne, was evident for anyone to see, and they both doted on their young son, Josh. Sophia had observed the couple discreetly when they sat close together at the campfire in the evenings, the smiles they cast each other throughout the day, or the subtle ways they touched hands whenever they were near each other. She wondered if her own parents had shared this kind of love. Her eyes would often seek out Joseph, wishing she could tell him of her feelings for him. He almost seemed to go out of his way to avoid her. A few times she’d caught him staring at her from afar, with a look she would almost describe as yearning in his eyes, which he masked the moment she looked his way. Confused at his behavior, she’d kept her distance as well.

  All the more perplexing was the look in his eyes that day in St. Louis, when she’d walked up the boardwalk with Kara after changing clothes at the dressmakers shop. Even then, she’d read a desire, a longing in his gaze that had sent heat through her much like the one and only time he held her and kissed her.

  “You look . . . different,” he’d said when she finally stood in front of him. Clearing his throat, his eyes drifted over her and, to her utter disappointment, the fire extinguished in their blue depths. “This will be much more practical than wearing silk gowns through the wilderness.”

  Chase chuckled next to him and shook his head. “Blinders, Joey. Blinders,” he’d said before reaching for Kara’s arm and leading the way to his brother-in-law’s home.

  Sudden anger had shot through her. More practical? That was all he could say? Sophia glared at him, fighting back the tears that threatened in her eyes.

  “I suppose it’s better than looking like a trollop,” she answered through clenched teeth. She turned on her heels to follow Kara without a backward glance at the most infuriating man she’d ever met in her life. Joseph would never see her as anything but a Boston-raised socialite. She was now all the more determined to prove him wrong, even if he never admitted he had feelings for her.

  Sophia had never seen more desolate or beautiful country as they headed into the wilderness. They traveled up along the Missouri River for weeks, where the land was flat and without much change in scenery. It seemed daunting to cross the endless sea of dry grassland that swayed with the relentless winds. Dabbing animal grease on her dry and cracking lips like Summer Rain showed her to do, Sophia often longed for the comforts of Boston.

  After weeks of travel, the flat desert gave way to a dark-colored mountain range that looked almost black from a distance.

  “The Lakota call them the Paha Sapa, the Black Hills,” Chase pointed out to her when she asked if they had finally reached their destination. These were not the Tetons Joseph spoke so fondly of. Apparently they still had a long way to go.

  Sophia’s first experience with Indians other than Summer Rain occurred during their trek through this mountain range. Apprehension filled her when a group of half-naked warriors on horseback met them one day. All of them carried bows and arrows, and some even had rifles. She soon learned how friendly this group of Indians was after they invited them all to spend a night at their village. The encounter was much different from the accounts of blood-thirsty savages she’d heard about in Boston. Nothing could have been further from the truth. These people were hospitable and fun-loving, and their harsh nomadic lifestyle centered around their families.

  More than one warrior had cast admiring looks her way, and Sophia had remained close to Summer Rain during their stay with the Lakota. The women had looked at her in astonishment when she had trouble communicating with them. Even without knowing their language, Summer Rain had at least been able to converse via hand signals and gestures, leaving Sophia feeling awkward and out of place.

  It was during that night at the village that she’d caught Joseph casting a look of longing and desire at her that sent hot waves of some unknown need through her. For the first time, he hadn’t looked away when she caught him staring. He’d hovered nearby that day, raising her hopes that he’d finally come to his senses and would acknowledge that he had feelings for her. When he came into the tent she had been given to share with Caleb for the night, her heart pounded in her chest with anticipation. Was this the moment she’d been wishing for? Sophia sat up straighter on her palette, and quickly ran her fingers through her hair.

  “These people assume that you’re my wife,” he told her when he ducked through the tent’s opening. “It wouldn’t look right if I slept outside. They might think you threw me out.” The grin on his face vanished as quickly as it had appeared, replaced by a fleeting look of anger.

  “Oh,” she managed to produce, her throat dry. It was the last thing she had expected him to say. “Why would they think that we’re married?”

  “I told them.” His eyes locked onto hers for what seemed like an eternity. Sophia scarcely dared to breathe.

  “Why would you tell them something like that?” she managed to choke out. There wasn’t another man on this earth she could see herself married to. If only he didn’t need to lie about it. At times like this, when he looked at her with such undeniable admiration, she was certain that he had feelings for her, but why was he holding back? She desperately wanted to go to him, and tell him that she loved him. She fisted her hands in her lap. He was only a few feet away. It would be
so easy to reach out to him. Glancing at Caleb sitting on his palette, whittling on a stick with his knife, this was not the right time. Just as it was never the right time during their hours on the trail, surrounded by his friends.

  “Because you might get offers from several warriors by the time we leave here if they don’t think you’ve already got a husband. Unless, of course, you fancy yourself marrying a Lakota.” Joseph’s lips twitched at the corners, a sparkle of humor in his eyes. Her heart skipped a beat in her chest.

  “Good night, Sophie,” he said abruptly without waiting for a response, and stretched out on the palette on the opposite side of the fire, and turned his back to her.

  “Good night, Joseph,” she whispered, fighting the urge to crawl to him and kiss him like she did that day at the river. Disappointment washed over her. She pulled the fur covers from her palette over her head instead, and allowed the tears to run silently down her cheeks.

  ****

  After watching Joseph disappear behind a stand of tall lodgepole pine trees, Sophia pulled her right leg over the back of the saddle, eased her left foot out of the stirrup, and jumped lightly to the ground. Riding astride had taken some getting used to, but so had wearing britches and moccasins. Every day, she was thankful to Kara Russell for the clothing. Men definitely had the right idea. The thought of wearing a dress seemed almost laughable now. She rubbed absently at her backside while the feeling slowly tingled back to life in her thighs. At least her muscles no longer screamed in agony after endless hours in the saddle.

  The bit jingled when her gelding shook his head and his body like a wet dog. His tail swished loudly at the swarm of evening bugs in the air. It was the horse’s customary routine every evening after someone called a halt for the day, and Sophie had learned fast that she needed to get off his back as quickly as possible if she didn’t want her body jarred by his shaking. She patted him lightly on the neck and led him to the creek that gurgled through the grass in front of her.