by Sky Winters
“It was different before,” she said vaguely, looking off in the distance as she spoke.
“Why? Why? What has changed? Is living here with me suddenly so objectionable to you?” he cried, grabbing her arms and forcing her to look at him. The passion in his eyes took her breath away.
“No, it not objectionable at all. That is why I have to go,” she said, flustered by his physical closeness to her. He had never touched her in such a way before and it was exhilarating to have his hands on her. She was surrounded by his scent and it made it hard to keep her wits about her.
“You are not making any sense,” he snapped, releasing her arms so that he was free to pace back and forth in agitation.
“Our arrangement was fine before I realized…” she began, stopping before she allowed the words to escape her mouth. She knew that the moment that she told him that she was leaving because she loved him, he would be fully lost to her and she could not bring herself to say the words that she knew would put a permanent wall between them.
“Realized what?” he demanded as he stalked towards her. They stood toe to toe as he towered over her, waiting for her to explain to him why she had run away. It took all of his effort to keep from gathering her in his arms and holder her close to him so that she could never leave him. The thought of never seeing her again weighed heavily on his heart and he was not entirely sure that he could stand to let her walk away from him.
She was mesmerized by the look in his eyes. He looked so sad and hurt and she could not allow that to continue. He had been hurt too much when his fiancé abandoned him without explanation. She owed him the truth, no matter what it meant for her.
“Before I realized that I am in love with you. Having a business arrangement was one thing when the only feeling I had for you was respect. Now that I love you, I cannot go through life living so close to you, caring for you with my whole heart while you look at me like one of the ranch hands,” she said, barely louder than a whisper. She felt her eyes filling with tears and she was too emotionally and physically exhausted to fight them.
He stared at her in shock. He had heard Hank’s words, but he had never imagined that she had truly left the ranch because of her feelings for him. Now though, he knew that it was the truth. She loved him so deeply that she had been willing to walk away from her comfortable life at the ranch because living with him would have been more painful than returning to a life on her own.
“You love me?” he asked, needing to hear her say in one more time to be able to believe that it was true and real.
“Yes,” she said, her tear stained face full of emotion and her voice betraying the depth of what she felt for him.
“When did you fall in love with me? What did I do to earn your love,” he asked in amazement, reaching out his hand and resting it on her cheek, using his thumb to wipe away a wayward tear.
“It starts the day you taught me to ride, though I do not think I realized it until you were shot. When I saw you like that, I felt such fear, just like I did when they brought Robert home after his accident. I knew then that I loved you, no matter how much I tried to hide from my own feelings. Then, when you told me about you fiancé, I realized that you were telling me that you were never going to open yourself up to love again. I do not blame you for it but I cannot stay to live like that, loving you while you look at me with no more affection than you do Hank,” she said as the tears began anew.
“So you are leaving me just like she did?” he asked bitterly as the pain from his past bubbled to the surface.
“No. She left with an empty heart. I am leaving with a heart full of love for you. I cannot help that,” she said, as angry as he was after his accusation.
“Where will you go?” he demanded. He wanted to gather her to him and tell her that he loved her too, but he needed to understand what she had decided to run away too. He needed to be sure that her love for him was true before he bared his own heart.
“I will return to the orphanage where I grew up. The old woman who runs it was always fond of Robert and me. She will let me stay there and help out with the children and the cooking until I find another situation,” she said boldly, unwilling to show him how afraid she was of the uncertainty of her own future.
“Why didn't you leave the day I told you about my fiancé?” he demanded. He thought back to how weak and tired he had been when he and laid there and told her of his own painful past. “If you had left then, you might have made a clean escape. I was not strong enough to chase after you. You would have been back to West Virginia before I had the presence of mind to realize that you were gone.”
She could no longer keep her temper in check, shouting “Because I could not bring myself to leave until I knew you were alright. I'm needed to be here to help you heal, no matter how much it hurt me to fall more in love with you each day while you grew more distant.”
While her eyes looked absolutely murderous, Liam’s softened. Her words and the anger that sparked in her told him all that he needed to know. Her love for him was not temporary or feigned. It was genuine and deep and he could not believe that he was such a lucky man. To have earned the love of the finest woman that he had ever known was an amazingly humbly feelings and he swore to himself right then that he would spend the rest of his life earning the love that she had for him.
“You cannot leave,” he said, taking both of her hands in his and pulling her close to him.
“I told you that I have to,” she said, trying to pull away but he tightened his grip, holding her fast.
“No, you cannot leave because I love you too,” he admitted bluntly. He made no effort to say it in flowery words or with a surplus of sentiment. He said it with all the conviction of fact though, and the look of intent and devotion on his face told her that he meant it.
“What?” she asked, falling against him as her knees buckled as the emotion overtook her. He gladly supported her, sweeping his arm around her waist and holding her tightly against him. If he had his way, in fact, she would have spent all the rest of her days held tightly in his arms, where he could know she was safe and keep her that way.
“The only reason I have been so distant is because I did not think you wanted my love. I thought you wanted only a safe place where you could mourn Robert. I did not want to let you even suspect my feelings because I did not want to make you feel like I was pressuring you. Just having you close was enough,” Liam admitted, using his free hand to cradle her face. He looked down at her with such love and devotion that she could not believe that it was real.
“Robert was my best friend. He would have wanted me to be happy,” she said gently, raising her hand and running it though his hair to comfort him. The thought that he had been going through the same torment that she had been, worrying that he was going to spend a lifetime loving her while she did not love him, brought her a renewed hope for their future. If he had been willing to love her for a lifetime, while thinking that she would never love him in return, spoke to the depth of his feelings for her.
“If you will let me, I will make you happy all the days of our life together,” Liam promised her. Though she had regained her composure, he was still holding her tightly. She suspected that he had a fear that she would vanish from his site the moment that he ceased to touch her.
“As long as you truly love me, I will be the happiest woman on earth,” she said, gently pulling him down to her and kissing him softly to seal their new vow to each other, a vow of love.
“I love you. I have known it since the moment I woke up and saw you there, fussing over me when I was shot. Just your presence brought such peace to my mind and to my heart. Don't ever leave again. I could not bear it,” he said as he rested his cheek upon the top of her head. Indeed, his first thought as the shot gun blast had torn through his body had been of her face. Seeing her there, by his side, when he awoke, exhausted and in pain, the site of her beautiful face had meant the world to him. She had been the reason he fought so hard to heal, though he h
ad not even admitted it to himself.
“I will never leave you again. I am so sorry,” she said, wrapping her arms around his waist and laying her head against his chest to listen to the steady, healthy beat of his heart. Thinking of that awful day when she had almost lost him brought back an echo of the terror she had felt that day. Listening to his heart was all that kept the fear and sadness at bay.
“Don't be sorry. If you had not gone, I would never have known that you love me,” he said, laughing at the ridiculous truth of his words. Their situation was complicated and messy. They both had hearts that were heavy with sadness from the past, but love had still taken root. Together, they had begun to heal without even realizing it.
“I should have been braver and told you,” she said, laughing at all that they had suffered because of their unwillingness to be honest with each other.
“And I should have shown you all I felt for you. We have the rest of our lives together to make it up to each other,” he said as he kissed the top of her head gently.
Liam gently helped her up on to his horse and swung himself up behind her. He looped a hand around her waist to keep her steady on the horse and used his free hand to guide the horse back to Vista Roja. He took his time, enjoying the silence of sitting here with her back pressed against him, the lavender scent of her hair surrounding him.
Anna was in no hurry either. These were the first moments of their new life together, bound by love rather than responsibility and duty. She leaned against him, feeling his heart beating behind her. It was dark when they finally returned to Vista Roja, but there stood Hank on the porch, smiling.
-The End-
A BRIDE IN TIME
Chapter 1
"Jess," Sarah yelled as she walked into the barn, frustrated by her brother’s ability to hide from her when she needed him most.
"Yes Sarah," he said, his voice coming from above. She looked up to see him in the hayloft, his cell phone in his hand, texting endlessly as usual.
"Did you oil those saddles like I asked you to?" she demanded. Though her brother had worked for her on the ranch for months, he still routinely shirked his responsibilities.
"Yes, big sister. I did just what you asked me to in just the way that you asked me to do it," he said, rolling his eyes.
"Don't get sassy with me little brother," she said, her anger justified. She had used all her savings to buy the small ranch so that she could begin her own business as a horse trainer. She was widely respected in the industry, but now that she had begun her own business it was more important to her than ever that everyone working for her be as passionate about their work as she was.
"You have no faith in me," he answered defensively.
"I have plenty of faith in you but I know how easily you can get distracted," she said, her expression softening. Her brother had come to work for her during his summer break from college. She knew he had no plans on following her into the business, and she truly was glad to have him around. It was the first time in ten years they had been able to spend so much time together.
"Has the world ever ended because I forgot to do something?" he asked, not quite ready to forgive her earlier anger.
"No, but someone could get hurt. These horses we work with are no joke," she explained.
"Maybe you should treat people as well as you do the horses," he said with a playful smile as he made his way down from the hayloft.
"Most people do not deserve to be treated as well as horses do," she said with a laugh.
"You need to have some fun. Go out on a date or something," he advised.
"I don't have enough hours in the day to date," she replied dismissively.
"Maybe if you did, I would get a few hours of peace," he said with laugh as he wrapped his arm around her shoulder.
"Jess," she said as she playfully elbowed him in the ribs.
"You are obsessed with these horses," he pointed out.
"There is nothing wrong with being passionate about your work," she said, now the one who sounded defensive.
"I just wish you had as much passion for the rest of your life," he said, suddenly looking truly concerned.
"You do not know what you are talking about," she said dismissively, though the way she turned away to avoid his gaze was more telling than any words could have been.
"I know more than you give me credit for," her brother said.
"I very much doubt that. I have no clue why I keep you on here," she teased with a loving smile that softened her words.
"Because I am your brother and you love me," he replied with a chuckle.
"Unfortunately that is very true," she said, unable to keep from laughing with him.
"I don't know if this is the best time to tell you this, but I can't do the evening feeding tonight," he said, suddenly looking sheepish.
"Why on earth not?" she demanded.
"Because I have a date with Madelyn," he grinned.
"What happened to Janet?" she asked, unable to believe he was already over the petite blond that he had told her last week was absolutely he love of his life.
"Madelyn happened to Janet," he said with a wink.
"You go through girls like no other man I have ever known," she said, not sure when her baby brother had become such a lady's man.
"I am just looking for the right girl. I think Madelyn might be the one," he said, a twinkle in his eye.
"You love the feeling of falling in love more than you love any of these women," his sister warned.
"What is so wrong with loving love?" he said with a dreamy expression in his eyes.
"It is unrealistic," she scoffed.
"It's romantic," he countered. "Were you ever in love?"
"I told you I don't have time for that," she said, avoiding his question.
"I hope someday you make time. You deserve to be happy Sarah," her brother said, suddenly turning thoughtful.
"Thanks sweetie," she said gently, “Just for that, I'll cover the evening feeding for you."
"You are an angel," he grinned.
"Remember that next time you are mad at me," she said with a laugh.
"Deal," he said as he rushed off to get ready for his date.
Alone in the old barn, she turn around, looking at every detail. This barn was one of the originals to the property when it was built in the 1880s. It was one of her favorite spots on the entire ranch, full of the history and legacy that had drawn her to the property to begin with. There were even carvings on the walls and side rails that had been done by the original ranch hands. There were names and dates, even carved images. They reminded her of the cave paintings one often heard of, a link to what had come before. She often ran her hands over the wood, now smooth from the passing of time, when she felt the need to connect with the heritage of the work that she had chosen to dedicate her life to. She reached out to do just that. She noticed one on the railing that she had never noticed before. It read only "P 1874," but there was something about it that called to her. When her fingers reached the wood though, the barn began to spin around her. She tried to grab at the railing beside her but it was as though she was frozen. Then, suddenly, everything went black.
Chapter 2
Sarah woke up lying on the floor of the barn. Her body ached and her head was throbbing as she pulled herself up from the ground.
“Oh my head! What the hell happened here?” she muttered to herself as she looked around in shock. The barn that had once been the oldest on the property now appeared brand new. Even the scent of the building was changed. Now it smelled of sawdust and new construction.
“Hello,” came a voice from behind her. Sarah turned to see an older woman wearing a long dress that she knew was from a different time- the time in which the ranch was built.
“Hello,” Sarah said, putting her hand on her head in an effort to stop the room from spinning. Nothing around her made any sense. What made even less sense was when she looked down at her own clothing. Where there had once been jeans,
now there was a long dress very similar to that of the stranger standing across from her.
“What are you doing here?” the woman asked. Though her words were a bit harsh, her tone was not, and the small smile on her lips relaxed Sarah immediately.
“I'm not sure. I fell and I must have hit my head,” she said, trying to explain to herself how she had come to be in a place that she knew so well, and yet was so far from home.
“You poor dear. You must be Peter's girl,” the other woman said as she wrapped a comforting arm around her.
“I don't think so,” Sarah answered. She might not know what exactly had happened to her, but the one thing she knew for sure was that she did not know anyone named Peter and even if she did, she certainly was not anyone’s girl.
“You’re just a bit scrambled honey. Don't you worry dearie. He is out with the boys working with the herd right now, but I will get you settled into a room in the house,” she said as she began to guide her towards the door.
“Thank you,” Sarah replied. She thought again of objecting, but she could not deny that she was vulnerable in her current situation. The thought of being accepted as this woman seemed to be willing to accept Peter’s girl was too appealing to pass up.
“Do not look so afraid. He is a good man. You will like him, and he will make you a good husband,” she said as she led her out into the bright light of the day.
“Husband?” she said, pulled from her daze by that word.
“Yes dear. I know you are a little fuzzy right now, but you came here for a reason. You are here to marry Peter,” she explained, looking at her as though she expected her to faint at any moment.
“I am a mail order bride?” she gasped. Her mind was racing. What had she gotten herself in to? She had hoped only to find a bit of quiet calm in which to figure out what happened to her. Now, she was a man’s bride to be. There was no way she could pretend to be anyone’s fiancé, and she knew that she was not going to be able to keep up the charade for long.
“Something like that. Don't you remember anything?” she asked as she opened the door to the main house and took her inside.