The Officer and the Southerner (Historical Western Romance) (Fort Gibson Officers Series, Book 2)

by Gordon, Rose

  “I’ll start breakfast when you come back.”

  “No, you won’t. You’ll just stay right there and rest.”

  “Are you afraid if I move around a lot while you’re gone, we’ll have a repeat of yesterday, when you came in here and I added a little more decoration to your uniform?”

  “Exactly. You just rest. I’ll be back in a little while with breakfast.”

  “Thank you,” she murmured, then closed her eyes.

  Wes looked relieved and Allison downright excited when Jack told them about Ella’s progress after he’d found the two of them down in the stable for the early morning ride they’d made a habit of taking each day.

  Jack blew out a deep breath. “Now that she’s awake, I don’t know what to do with her.”

  “Do with her?” Wes asked, lifting his eyebrows.

  “She’s well enough to stay awake for a few hours. She can talk and eat without problems. But she can’t stay there alone.”

  “She can join us at Mrs. Lewis’,” Allison suggested as if Jack were simpleminded.

  “I don’t think she’s well enough for that.”

  “Then keep her in bed,” Gray said, coming up behind Jack. He grinned. “At least that’s what I’d do.”

  Jack clenched his fists. “I couldn’t care less about your opinion on the matter.”

  Gray threw his hands into the air. “I was just trying to help.”

  “I don’t need that kind of help, thank you.” Jack shook his head. “One day, you, too, will have a wife and I cannot wait to see just how often she allows you entry into her bed.”

  “I didn’t realize you had such an interest in my private life.”

  “Well, when someone like you makes his private habits so public, one can only continue to speculate.” Jack grimaced. “Anyway, Gray, this is not about you and your constant need for female companionship. I just came to ask Wes—and Allison—for advice on whether I should go to work today or stay with Ella again.”

  “Why do you even need to ask that?” Gray asked with a scoff.

  Jack ground his teeth and turned to Wes and Allison.

  Allison glanced at her husband, then to Jack. “How well can she walk?”

  “I don’t know,” he admitted. “There hasn’t been a need for her to walk. I brought her a bowl of soup in bed. She hasn’t needed to stand for anything else.”

  “Does her leg hurt?”

  Jack cocked his head to the side. He’d thought to ask her, but the opportunity hadn’t presented itself. Surely, if it hurt that bad, she’d have said something. “If it does, she hasn’t said so.”

  “My only concern is her ability to use it,” Allison said. “That infection ate a lot of her muscle. She’ll be likely to fall.”

  “But will she have to get up and walk around if you and the other ladies join her in her room today?” Wes asked.

  “No, I suppose not.”

  “Good. Then my vote is now that she’s awake, you should leave her be and go to work,” Wes said.

  “Is that what you’d have done if it were me?” Allison asked.

  “Of course.” Wes grinned at her. “What is it they say, absence makes the heart grow fonder, or something like that? It would have been painful to leave you, but worth every moment of separation when I returned from work.”

  “For some reason, the look on Allison’s face doesn’t echo those thoughts,” Gray mused. “I also vote you return to work. I’m tired of having your men under my command. They’re almost as bad as—”

  “Your own men,” Jack cut in, garnering a snicker and a grin from Wes. “As it would happen, Colonel Lewis has granted me today off anyway. So what you want doesn’t really concern me.”

  “Well then, since it seems as though that’s what you want to do already, then there’s no reason to ask us for an opinion. Just stay home with her,” Gray said in a tone Jack couldn’t quite place.

  Jack ignored him—and Wes—and turned to Allison. “If you were Ella, would you want your husband’s company or prefer to be taken care of by a pack of fawning females.”

  “I can’t answer that, Jack. What I want and what Ella wants might be two very different things. All I can tell you is to go with your instinct.”

  “Thank you, Allison.” Jack swung his gaze to Gray’s hopeful one and winked. “Be sure to watch Private Galworth when he’s shooting. He doesn’t always remember to point his gun down when reloading.”

  ***

  Ella stared up at the ceiling, unable to fall back asleep. Jack would be back soon. Last night hadn’t gone so well between them. Well, that wasn’t true. Right before bed, their chat had been fine, probably because only he was talking. A pang of regret hit her chest. He’d had a very hard life, being abandoned by his mother and barely seeing his father. Even while her father was in the army, his family had traveled with him. Pa hadn’t spent more than an hour or two a day with his family, but he’d at least been there. That was more than Jack could say for his mother.

  The click of a lock pulled her from her thoughts.

  “Are you ready to eat?” Jack asked, carrying in a tray with two plates of food.

  “Yes. I’m so famished I could eat an entire herd of buffalo.”

  Jack set the tray down. “Be careful who you say that to around here. If one of the Indians heard about your hidden desire, we could find ourselves going to war.”

  She made her eyes go wide and pressed her fingers to her lips. “You won’t tell anyone, will you?” she asked in feigned horror.

  His face suddenly went blank and he began looking around the room as if he were genuinely befuddled. “Tell anyone what?”

  She grinned at his antics. He truly was a good sort.

  Breakfast was...simple. Bread and an unidentifiable globule. The bread was fairly good. The globule was not. Oh well, she’d make them pancakes or biscuits tomorrow.

  “What are your plans for the day?” Ella asked.

  Jack took a swallow of his coffee. “Entertain you.”

  She frowned. “You don’t have to do that.”

  “Are you saying you don’t want me to?”

  “No. It’s just... Don’t you have to march your men and patrol the area?”

  He cocked his head to the side. “You seem to know a lot for having just arrived on a fort.”

  “My father is General Samuel Davis,” she said with a blush. When Jack’s dark brown eyes flared wide, she grinned and said, “I take it you’ve heard of him?”

  He twisted his lips. “Yes. He presented me with my diploma when I finished last in my class at West Point.”

  Ella instinctively reached for his hand. “Don’t be so critical of yourself. Many men cannot even finish. Besides, someone had to be last.”

  “Thank you for putting that into perspective for me,” Jack said dryly.

  “You’re welcome.” She reached for her cup, then retracted her hand. She should have used the chamberpot while he wasn’t there, but hadn’t wanted to get out of bed. Now she’d have to wait for him to go to work— She frowned. “You never did answer my question. Why don’t you have to work today?”

  “I have the day off.”

  How fortunate was that. He had the day off and she needed to use the privy. She pushed the thought from her mind. Surely when he was done eating, he’d give her a few minutes of privacy to take care of her needs. She felt a blush creep up her face at the brief memory of the dream she’d had yesterday. Though the man’s face was blurry and indecipherable, she could remember his actions well enough, as he ran cool rags over her, helped her drink and even saw her in her most vulnerable state.

  “I’m so glad the idea of spending the day with me can bring such a pretty blush to your cheeks.”

  Ella started. Then coughed. “I was thinking... Never mind that.” She repositioned the pillows behind her then readjusted her sheet to keep herself covered. She frowned down at her chemise. She didn’t recognize it as hers. Likely, she’d accidentally taken one of Michaela’s w
hen she’d snagged them from the line before Grace had had a chance to fold them and put them away. “So tell me, Lieutenant Walker, how do you plan to entertain me today?” She prayed he hadn’t planned an activity that would require her to expend a lot of energy, for she was still a little tired.

  Jack reached into his pocket, then tossed something on the table with a thump loud enough to make her jump.

  She furrowed her brows. “Cards?”

  He nodded. “I reckon it’s the only way I’ll be able to stay out of trouble.”

  “How so?”

  He flashed her a quick, teasing grin. “My talking will be limited to asking for another card.”

  ~Chapter Twenty~

  “I win!” Ella burst out with a giggle.

  Jack tossed his cards down on the bed. “I demand a rematch.”

  Ella’s hands slowed their gathering of the cards and she peeked up at where he sat cross-legged on the other end of their bed. “I don’t know about you. You’ve lost three times now. You might cheat just to avoid being bested by your wife.”

  Jack raised his hands into the air in a show of overdone innocence, a giant grin splitting his handsome face. “I swear I won’t.”

  She narrowed her eyes on him. “I don’t know. I have to be careful around you. I never can tell when you’re scheming something.”

  “I swear the card just fell into my sleeve,” he said evenly, sending her into another fit of giggles.

  “I’ll just bet it did. Just like it was a complete accident when you shifted to get more comfortable and the entire deck slid from the bed.”

  “I’m a big man, Ella. I can’t make small movements.”

  She pressed her lips together to try to keep from laughing. Finally. It had taken an hour or so, but the tension that had settled over them from their rough start had finally faded and fun and laughter had taken its place. She liked this better. They’d argued too much since her arrival. Of course, some things would have to be discussed, but for now, this peace and joy was wonderful.

  “What do you say? One more game before lunch?”

  “Oh, all right!” She handed Jack the cards and watched him carefully as he shuffled them.

  “Here, you deal.”

  Ella dealt them their cards, doing her best not to laugh at the look of concentration on Jack’s face as he watched her, presumably to make sure she wasn’t cheating.

  “On the count of three,” he murmured, putting his hands on top of his cards and staring intently at her.

  She mimicked the action and narrowed her eyes on him. “Are you going to start counting soon?”

  His voice was silent, but the focused look on his face spoke volumes.

  She tried to keep a straight face and her hands itched to turn the cards.

  “One, two, th—”

  Ella flipped her cards.

  “You cheated!” Jack accused with a laugh.

  Ella started. “What?”

  “I didn’t even finish the word!” He grinned at her in a way that made her insides flip.

  “I find it sad you have to resort to such tricks to be able to accuse me of cheating,” she said as best she could against the giggles that were threatening to escape. “I demand you expunge it from my record immediately.”

  He set down his cards and leaned forward. “I will do just that, but it will cost you a small fee.”

  “A fee?” She crossed her arms and leaned closer to him.

  “Mmmhmm,” he murmured, “just a small one.”

  Her breath caught. “How small?”

  “A kiss.”

  Her blood picked up pace at his request. “On the cheek?”

  He paused but only for a second. “As long as it’s within an inch of my lips, then yes, on the cheek will suffice.”

  Her lips twitched. She knew what he was about. He was going to turn his head at the last second and kiss her fully on the lips the way he’d intended to at their wedding.

  Her skin heated. Did she want him to kiss her that way? A shiver ran down her spine at the realization that she did. “A-all right,” she said softly. “I’ll pay your fee.” She licked her lips and moved closer—

  “Jack!”

  Jack and Ella both jumped when a voice yelled his name through the door. Then the two exchanged looks.

  Slowly, Jack got off of the bed and walked to the door. “Colonel Lewis?”

  Colonel Lewis gave Jack a nod then let himself into their room.

  Mildly embarrassed for just being caught sitting in Jack’s bed and wearing only a chemise, she grabbed the sheet and rushed to cover herself.

  “I see you’re doing well today,” the colonel said to Ella.

  She nodded. “I feel much better thank you.”

  “Much better?” He looked at Jack. “How long?”

  “Since last night.”

  Ella blinked. That was an odd exchange.

  “I see,” Colonel Lewis went on. “And now that she’s doing better, you plan to return to work next Wednesday then?”

  Jack’s answer was drowned out by the sudden sound of her blood roaring in her ears. “I’m sorry, but what did you just say?” Ella said in a voice she barely recognized as hers.

  “I just wanted to ask Jack when he’d be returning to work now that you’re well.”

  Every drop of blood that had just been racing through her veins crashed to her feet and bile surged in her throat at the crushing sensation in her entire abdomen. “Is there anything you will not stoop to, Lieutenant Walker?” she demanded, hot, angry tears welling in her eyes.

  “What are you talking about?” Jack demanded.

  “You used me again,” she said as evenly as she could despite the storm of emotions swirling around inside of her.

  Jack frowned. “How so?”

  “You’ve used my minor bout of stomach flu as a means to get yourself excused from having to work for an entire week.”

  “Minor?” Jack scoffed. “Is that what you think?”

  “Do you doubt I know my own body?”

  “Perhaps.”

  She had the urge to throw a pillow at his careless expression, but refrained. He was clearly trying to upset her. Unfortunately, it was working. “Would you please go?”

  “No.” He crossed his arms. “Not until you tell me what you mean. How am I using you?”

  She stared at him. “You know exactly what you’ve done.”

  “No. I don’t.”

  Ella swallowed the sob that had lodged itself in her throat. “My presence here has drastically improved your life.”

  “I think that’s standard when most men marry,” he said with a grin.

  She didn’t return his grin. “Yours improved more than most. Our marriage has garnered you a bigger bed in a room with more luxuries—” she cast a glance to the private tub he’d been bathing in last night— “it has also gotten you removed from the duty of watchtower and now you’re taking leave for my illness. You’re using me.”

  A light blush stained his cheeks. “That wasn’t my intent.”

  “Wasn’t it?” she challenged, fighting once again to keep her voice even.

  He shook his head and clenched his hands into fists. “I’ll admit that I do like the idea of a private room and not having to take a turn in the watchtower, but I didn’t marry for that sole purpose.”

  “No, you didn’t. Why stop there when you could get a reprieve from work to care for your ailing wife for a week while she recovers from an upset stomach.”

  His face went red. “Lift your sheet.”

  “I will do no such thing!” She cut her eyes to Colonel Lewis, who looked just as uncomfortable as she felt. The difference was, he could leave the room if he wanted to, but it seemed by the stunned expression on his face—likely because of Jack’s scandalous and highly inappropriate statement—he lacked the ability.

  “I see,” he said slowly, giving his head a single nod. A muscle in his cheek ticked. “Fine. I take it you’d like for me to return to work
. Or would you prefer I be sent to the stockade?”

  Something about his tone unsettled her. He was angry with her! How dare he? He was the one using her, not the other way around. “If that’s where Colonel Lewis sees best to send you, then yes.” She bit her lip to stop its quivering then inclined her chin and met his intense gaze. “That’s where my father would send you for such blatant deceit.”

  “Very well.” He snatched up his hat from where it sat on the bureau. “I shall bid you farewell.”

  ***

  “You’ve done nothing wrong. I granted you those days off and I’ll explain that to her,” Colonel Lewis said in a tone that suggested he’d really rather not, as soon as Jack pulled him out of the room and slammed the door behind them.

  Jack shook his head and gripped his hat so hard he’d likely put a permanent bend in the brim. Yes, he had done something wrong. Worst of all, Gray was right. He clamped his jaw shut. To everyone: Wes, Gray, the entire army, and most of all Ella, he was using her. He’d dismissed the notion when Gray had mentioned it the other night, but he couldn’t now. The truth was plain to see.

  So much made sense now, such as why her face had grown hard when he was explaining that they’d have a private room. And when she’d abruptly departed dinner after the watchtower was mentioned along with his being released of his duty to stand watch. She thought he was using her and it had led her to grow cold and distant toward him.

  “Jack?”

  “I’m not using her,” he spat.

  “I didn’t say you were,” his superior said slowly. “But I can see why she thinks you are.”

  Yes, and now so could he. It hadn’t been his intention though. When he’d first advertised for a wife, he didn’t truly expect to get a reply that would make him take action. He’d liked the idea of a wife and seeing Wes and Allison so content had spurred him to write the ad, but he wasn’t convinced he’d find a wife that way. Ella’s letter was the only one he’d responded to. Something about the way it was worded intrigued him and he truly became interested in her. No one else. Many of the other young ladies would have come, but she was the only one he wanted to come. He remembered the conversation Gray mentioned the other day and even remembered saying that exact statement Gray had said he’d made. But even as he said it then, he knew that he’d never bring a woman here he didn’t truly have an interest in just for the benefit of bettering his situation.