Cimarron Rose

by Nicole Foster

  “I thought everyone had gone to bed,” she said quietly.

  “Not everyone. I waited for you.”

  “I know. Everywhere I’ve looked this evening, there’s been you.” Katlyn avoided his direct gaze, afraid he would recognize the longing in her eyes. And he was watching her with that intense, perceptive look that at times like this would melt her completely if she so much as let her eyes meet his for more than a moment’s glance. She felt the weight of his eyes on her like a heated caress.

  She wanted to be with him. But by being with him, she felt compelled to tell him she was leaving. And right now, after all the emotional upheaval and an exhausting performance, she couldn’t do it.

  Case, very slowly, walked up to her. He trailed one fingertip from her temple to the curve of her jaw. “I missed you at lunch.”

  “I—I had to run an errand for my…my companion,” Katlyn stammered. Even so simple a touch made her heart leap.

  “You’re wearing your necklace again,” Case said. He ran his finger between the cool metal and her throat, finding the combination of cool hardness and warm silk an intoxicant. “I’m glad. This is where it belongs.”

  “Case…” She stopped, licked her lips, then tried again. “I need to talk to you.”

  “No. I don’t want to talk anymore tonight.”

  “But—you don’t understand. I have to talk to you about—”

  “Not tonight, Katlyn. Whatever it is doesn’t matter. I just want us to be together tonight. I don’t want us to talk about the past or the future. Just the present.”

  Case moved slightly closer and from the glint in his eyes, Katlyn thought he would kiss her. And, oh, how she wanted his kiss. Her whole body ached for it and, forgetting her confession, she leaned toward him, anticipating.

  Instead he smiled and lightly brushed his lips against her hair, then took her hand in his.

  “Where are we going?” she asked, baffled.

  “You’ll see.” Case smiled as they neared the saloon doors and Katlyn’s eyes rounded. With a flourish, he flung open the doors and ushered her in.

  She stared at the refurbished room, wood and brass polished and gleaming, the bar rebuilt, and new card and billiard tables, chairs and curtains in place. A glistening mirror lined the wall behind the bar, reflecting each gleam of lamplight back into the room. On one wall hung a huge painting of Custer’s Last Fight Case said one of his investors had donated.

  “You’ve been so busy with everything else around here,” Case said, “Bat and I were able to get it done without you knowing it. I thought I’d surprise you.”

  “You have done that. Oh, Case, it’s beautiful! It’s really perfect.”

  Katlyn let go of his hand and stepped farther into the room, turning around and around, catching her breath a little. “It’s even better than before. Truly, Case, you’ve done a wonderful job.”

  “I’m happy you’re pleased. I wanted the perfect setting for my songbird.”

  “I—I don’t know what to say.” Katlyn flushed and looked away from him.

  “Say you’ll dance with me.”

  “Dance?” The low, caressing note in his voice, the slow slide of his hand down her cheek, flashed an image in her mind of Case holding her in his arms, loving her. A warm, sweet longing tremored through her, all the more keen because she could see he easily read her thoughts.

  “Are you such a magician you can create music from the air?” she asked lightly to dispel the persistent, tantalizing vision.

  “Maybe I am.”

  Case moved away from her, and taking his time, went around the room, dousing all the lamps save for one. Finally he went to the bar and came back with a small box, sitting it on a table near them.

  Katlyn looked at it curiously, understanding when he opened the lid and the tinkling notes of a waltz began to play. As if in the dream from which she never wanted to wake, she stepped into his arms.

  He held her close and the press of her breasts against his chest kindled a slow heat that rolled through her in a wave. They swayed together, his thigh brushing hers, her hand rubbing over his shoulder, his lips teasing the edge of her ear, neither of them aware when the music box wound down and the waltz stopped.

  Katlyn tipped her head back to look at him, tempting Case with her parted lips and the longing in her eyes that turned them the color of twilight. Still, he denied them both the kiss she invited and instead moved around behind her and started pulling the pins from her hair.

  “Case…” she breathed his name on a sigh.

  The pins fell to the floor with a soft click as he slowly removed them, one by one, and let loose the coppery ripple of her hair. When the last one dropped, Case threaded his hands through her curls before lifting the silken mass to one side and kissing her nape.

  “You smell like a summer meadow,” he murmured. “Sweet and wild.”

  Katlyn let her head fall back as Case continued kissing her neck while his hands caressed her shoulders. When he finally turned her in his arms and covered her mouth with his she responded with all the fire and storm he’d incited with his slow seduction.

  Heartache honed her desire for him to an almost painful sharpness. This might be the only time she could be with him like this, to love him as his touch made her ache to do. She would never feel like this again and this once, she wanted more than anything to catch and hold every sensation so she could have the memories to cherish when she was alone and lonely.

  Case tried to gentle their embrace, to give Katlyn time to decide how far she wanted to take this dance they’d started. But she seemed determined to rush them headlong into the fire and Katlyn, bold and willing, drove him to the edge of his control.

  She pushed his jacket off his shoulders and he shucked it along with his vest. His hand cupped her breast and teased the peak through the slick satin of her dress as his tongue probed the depths of her mouth, foreshadowing a more intimate joining.

  Knowing she had aroused him made Katlyn daring and intensified her need for him. She fumbled with the buttons of his shirt. When the first few gave way she rubbed her palm against his bare skin and felt a clenching low in her belly when he gave a low groan.

  “Katlyn—” His breath came hot and fast in her ear. “Are you sure this is what you want?”

  Katlyn stilled her hands, suddenly unsure. Had she been too brazen? “I…yes. But—” She hesitated, then, “Is it what you want?”

  “Is it what I want?” Case took her face between his hands so their eyes met. “I’ve never wanted anything more in my life. I love you, I want to be with you, now and always.”

  Tears welled in her eyes. “Oh, Case.” Her voice cracked and broke.

  “Sweetheart, what’s wrong?”

  The tender concern in his voice and touch released Katlyn’s tears. “Nothing. Nothing, this is right. I know it is, it must be, because I love you, too.”

  Reaching up, she pressed her mouth to his and even as he tasted her tears, Case’s hunger for her hit him full-force. His intention to gently woo her burned away as their kissing grew harder and hotter.

  Finally, in danger of laying her down on one of the tables, Case scooped her into his arms and carried her up the stairs to her suite. Kicking the door open, he shoved it closed behind them and strode into her bedroom.

  He lowered her to her feet. The look in his eyes made Katlyn feel both vulnerable and strong. She wanted to tell him how good he made her feel, how she yearned to be with him, how much she loved him. She knew she should tell him he would be her first lover; with the certainty of love she knew he would be her last.

  But when he began unfastening her dress, inching the satin off her body until it pooled at her feet, Katlyn couldn’t think of anything except the exquisite rough and firm feel of his hands stroking her body.

  Case undressed her slowly, with tender reverence, until she wore only his necklace. Her hair curled like spun fire against the cream of her skin, the contrast like Katlyn, fiery and sweet.


  “You’re everything I dreamed of, and so much more,” he murmured, kissing the hollow of her throat where the silver roses lay cool against her warmth. Cupping her breasts, he caressed her softness, stroking her nipples until they peaked, then taking one into his mouth and suckling her.

  The intensity of the pleasure caught Katlyn by surprise. After all her imaginings, how should she have expected it would be like this?

  The little moan she made sent a tremor through Case. He laid her on the bed, pausing only to strip off the rest of his clothes before joining her there.

  For a moment, only his eyes made love to her. Katlyn wriggled a little at his intense scrutiny, not from modesty but from anticipation. He appeared to be contemplating every way he would touch her and she felt her body tighten and tingle in response.

  Katlyn let her eyes linger over him, too, relishing the masculine strength stretching across his broad shoulders and narrowing to his strong but slender hips. She knew well the power swelling in the muscles of his arms and legs, had felt it beneath her fingertips, had seen it when he worked. What a perfectly formed work of art his body was, she thought, her fingers aching to caress every magnificent part of him.

  Case abandoned his indulgence when she reached out and stroked her hand over his chest and hip, coming tantalizingly close to his arousal. “I’ve waited so long for you,” he said hoarsely, nuzzling her throat. “Katlyn…”

  Moving over her, Case kissed her deeply, touching her intimately between her thighs and feeling her shudder when he brushed her moist heat.

  When he parted her legs and Katlyn felt him hard against her, she sucked in a breath at the first jolt of uncertainty. But then he was inside her in one smooth thrust and the stab of pain quickly drowned in a flood of exquisite sensation.

  Case hesitated for a moment. He stared at her with a look of confusion but Katlyn gave him no time to think. Wrapping her legs around him, she drew him back into her again, craving something she couldn’t name, something only he could give her.

  Centered at their joining, the feeling built and swelled inside her until just when she thought she would die from the wanting, Case thrust deeply into her and she shattered. Slowly it subsided and left her shaking so she barely realized it when Case stiffened above her, groaning her name as he found his own release.

  He held her for long minutes afterward, his forehead resting against her shoulder, panting. At last, he rolled onto his side, pulling her close so he could cradle her against him.

  “I love you,” he whispered, lifting her chin to kiss her slowly and deeply.

  Katlyn kissed him back, clinging to him. She held to him tightly long after Case pulled the bedclothes up around them and drifted into a light sleep. And in the darkest hours of the night, she wept, for what she had lost, and what she could never have again.

  Dawn came with the first bite of a winter chill, spurring Case to reach out and pull Katlyn’s warm body against him. In the gray light, he stretched out a hand for her, seeking the comfort of her embrace, the pleasure of touching her again.

  He supposed he ought to get up and relight the fire, but holding Katlyn close and coaxing the heat from her body was a far more enticing thought. He reached across the bed—to emptiness.

  Jolted fully awake, Case stared at the rumpled bedclothes, momentarily stunned to find the obsession of his thoughts not in his bed.

  Something deep in his stomach clenched into a fist.

  He shoved upright, searching the shadows for her. “Katlyn?”

  Cold silence answered.

  Swinging his legs to the icy floor, Case tossed on his clothes and headed back to his rooms. Maybe Katlyn had gone to check on Emily? Walking through his sitting room, he moved quietly to Emily’s bedside. She slept soundly, her child’s breathing quick and deep.

  Gently he closed the door behind him and went back to Katlyn’s bedroom, finding it just as he’d left it. He sat on the edge of the bed, not sure what to feel.

  Surely she wouldn’t leave him in the middle of the night, not after what they’d shared. But then, where had she gone, without even a word to him?

  He was about to search downstairs for her when he heard the slight sound of her door opening and cautious footsteps moving across the sitting room.

  Katlyn hesitated in the middle of the room, trying to steel herself for what she had to say to Case this morning.

  Waking hours before dawn after a few restless hours of sleep, she’d slipped away from his arms and gone to the kitchen to make herself some coffee, and to sit and think. Though so far, thinking had done her little good.

  She’d lain awake long after their rapturous lovemaking, torn hopelessly between a sort of awestruck wonder at the depth, the beautiful intimacy of her love for Case, and her despair at knowing she was about to destroy everything they had shared, everything they had built together.

  But one thing was certain now. If she didn’t take advantage of this moment’s courage it would surely fail her again.

  Before she could make herself walk to the bedroom, Case came out. He stopped when he saw her, his expression a mix of delight at seeing her and uncertainty at her leaving.

  “I wondered where you’d gone,” he said. “And why.”

  Katlyn clasped her hands tightly together, her nerves so raw her whole body shook. She forced her fingers apart and pulled her shawl tightly to her as if it could shield her from the hurt to come. “I need to explain.”

  Case strode up to her side and touched her cheek. Her skin felt chill and trembling. “I’ll start a fire. You’re freezing.”

  “No—” Katlyn grasped his arm. “Please. It’s not the cold. It’s what I have to say.”

  The resolute tone in her voice peaked the apprehension knotting every muscle in Case’s body. “I’m listening.”

  Katlyn’s heart began to pound. In her mind, she could already hear the pain and anger in his voice, even though it was yet to come. Give me strength…

  “Whatever it is, know that it won’t change the way I feel,” Case said. “If it’s something about your past—” He stopped when she shook her head. Sorrow hung over her like a shroud, but it confused him because he couldn’t understand the reason. “Do you regret making love?”

  “Oh, no,” she said softly. A tear slid down her cheek. “Never. How could I regret something so wonderful?”

  “Then what is it?”

  “I have to leave Cimarron.” She hurried on before Case could interrupt. “My companion has to go to a hospital in Las Vegas for treatment before the snows set in. She’s too ill to wait until spring. I have to go with her.”

  Katlyn faltered as she watched the realization of what she was saying change Case’s expression to stunned disbelief.

  She turned away, unable to bear looking in his eyes any longer. “I have to stay with her.”

  An endless, agonized silence fell between them. Case turned and paced across the room. Stopping in front of the desk, he slammed a fist down hard then whirled on her so suddenly Katlyn jumped.

  “Why are you telling me this now? You knew last night before we were together, probably long before that. Couldn’t you have been honest with me?”

  Katlyn flinched at the raw anger in him. “I should have told you sooner. I know. I—I just couldn’t.” A sob caught in her throat, stealing all her voice but a whisper. “I didn’t even have the courage to tell myself. But Dr. Garrett forced me to face the truth yesterday. I don’t have a choice. I have to leave now. Please, try to understand.”

  “I don’t understand. It doesn’t make any sense. Why couldn’t you just tell me? And why do you have to go, too? I can hire someone perfectly trustworthy and responsible to see that she arrives at the hospital and is settled safely in Las Vegas.”

  “You don’t understand.”

  “You’re damned right I don’t understand! What is this companion to you? You act as if she’s blood and not just someone who works for you.”

  Wiping at the tears she couldn’t hol
d back, Katlyn tried to face him without breaking down completely. “She’s never been just someone who works for me. She never will be. And you’re one to talk about treating employees like family!” she added with a spark of her old spirit.

  “Katlyn…” What could he say to the woman when she seemed so hell-bent on ruining both their lives? Looking away for a moment, he finally walked back to her side and gently put his hands on her shoulders. “Who is she, this so-called companion of yours? Why is she so important to you?”

  Even with the pain cold inside her, her skin warmed to his touch, the scent of him recalling with disturbing vividness their loving only hours earlier. Katlyn breathed him in, momentarily overwhelmed by images of the most perfect night of her life.

  “She’s—someone very close to me,” she answered at last. “That’s all I can say. I made a promise, I won’t break it. Please don’t ask me to tell you more.”

  “Then let me go with you to Las Vegas.”

  Katlyn pulled back slightly. “Case, thank you, but I can’t accept, no matter how much I want to. You can’t leave the hotel.”

  “Can’t I?” He let out a short cynical laugh. “The St. Martin is nothing without you.”

  “That’s not true and you know it. There are dozens of singers who would fill my shoes gladly and easily. You’ve made the St. Martin the best hotel on the Santa Fe Trail. This is your dream, Case. You’ve made it come true. I’m not going to be responsible for making you risk losing it now.”

  Slowly, Case’s hands slid away from her and he took a step back, an odd distant look replacing the hurt in his eyes. “I’ve already lost. Because you made me believe it was your dream, too.”

  Mrs. Donaldson led Katlyn upstairs to her mother’s room, chatting as she went. “She’s still sleepin’. I tried to bring her a tray of sweet rolls and coffee earlier, but she didn’t so much as stir so I left it on her nightstand.”

  “Thank you,” Katlyn said, quietly opening the door to her mother’s room. “You’ve been so good to her. We owe you a great deal.”

  The older woman waved Katlyn’s words away. “Now, don’t you go talkin’ about such things again, lass. Why hearin’ you sing that night was a finer gift than all the coin you could ever give me.” With a pat on Katlyn’s hand, Mrs. Donaldson turned and headed back downstairs.