Home. Warmth spread through Kelsey. Never had the word sounded so good.
* * * * *
School was over and Angelina walked slowly down the boardwalk. Unbelievable as it seemed, she was missing Kelsey. Reese, too, of course, but mostly Kelsey, who was the closest thing to a loving mother Angelina had ever known. She wondered what would happen to her, now that Reese and Kelsey were married. They probably wouldn’t want to have some girl who wasn’t even a relative living with them. Maybe she could stay with Papa Joe…
The sound of someone calling her name drew her attention. Looking up, she saw Danny hurrying toward her, a smile on his face. Just seeing him brightened her mood.
“Hi, Angelina.” He reached for her books. “Here, let me carry those.”
“Thank you. What are you doing in town today?”
“My horse threw a shoe. I was at the blacksmith’s when I saw you.” He smiled at her again. “I guess horseshoes really are lucky.”
“What do you mean?”
“If my horse hadn’t thrown a shoe, I wouldn’t have seen you today.”
“I’m glad to see you, too.” With Kelsey gone and the house locked up, there was nothing to look forward to but homework and a long night in her room.
“I had a good time at the dance the other night,” Danny said.
“Me, too.”
Angelina stopped in front of the hotel. “Well, here we are. Thanks for walking me home.”
“Any time.”
“Would you…do you want to come up to my room for a while?”
Danny stared at her, his eyes wide, making her wish she could take the words back.
What had she been thinking? No decent woman invited a man to her room, especially when that room was in a hotel.
“Never mind,” she said, her cheeks burning with shame. “I shouldn’t have said that. It’s just that Kelsey’s gone and I don’t have anything to do and it’s so lonely and…”
Danny pressed his fingertips to her lips, cutting her off in mid-sentence. “It’s okay. I understand.”
“You do?”
“You said it yourself. You’re lonely.” He looked thoughtful a moment. “Why don’t you come home with me and meet my folks?”
“Do you mean it?”
“Sure.”
Her joy in being asked was quickly swallowed up by a surge of uncertainty. What would his parents think of her? What would he think of her, if he knew who her mother was?
“Angelina?”
“I don’t know…” She cast about for a good excuse. “Kelsey will be home today.”
“You can leave her a note and tell her where you are. I’ll bring you home early.”
“All right.” She agreed quickly, before she could talk herself out of it. “I’ll be right back.”
Taking her school books from Danny, she hurried into the hotel and up the stairs to her room. She dumped her books on the bed, brushed her hair, pinched some color into her cheeks. Going back downstairs, she quickly wrote a note for Kelsey and left it with the desk clerk.
Danny was waiting for her on the boardwalk. Hand in hand, they walked down the street to the blacksmith’s shop.
“We’ll have to ride double,” Danny said. “You don’t mind, do you?”
“No, I don’t mind.”
With a wink, he lifted her onto the back of his horse. “Ready?”
She felt her heart skip a beat when he vaulted up behind her, then reached around her to take up the reins.
“Ready,” she said breathlessly.
* * * * *
Due to the heavy load in the wagon, the return to Grant’s Crossing took a little longer. Kelsey didn’t mind. Sitting beside Reese, munching on a licorice whip, she considered the vast changes in her life. Once, she had been certain she would hate living in the Old West. Now that she was actually there, she found that she rather enjoyed the rugged life. It was hard to remember that she had once spent her days in a high-rise office building worrying about invoices and shipping dates or that she had spent hours in front of a computer or on the phone. She didn’t miss her job much, although she did miss the comforts of the future. But she knew she would miss Reese even more. And Angelina, too.
She frowned, thinking of the girl. “Reese?”
“Yea?”
“What am I going to do about Angie? Do you think I should tell her that I might be going back to the future? Do you think she’d believe me? And what’s going to happen to her when I’m gone?”
“There’s an easy answer to all those questions, you know. Just stay here.”
It did sound easy, the way he said it. Just stay here. Forget about your family and your job and your responsibilities. But how could she do that? She had a loyalty to her boss, assuming she still had a job and a boss. She had bills to pay. And her family, how could she let them spend the rest of their lives wondering what had happened to her? Just stay here. Forget about your friends. Give up television and movies and modern medicine and all the wonders of the twenty-first century, like fast food and pizza, her new car, her dishwasher and microwave, her washer and dryer, designer clothes, Godiva chocolates, Christmas with her family.
How could she leave all that behind?
How could she leave Reese?
Of course, when Papa Joe went back, he could tell her parents where she was and that she was all right. He could call her boss, pay off her debts and her lease, sell her car.
She closed her eyes. How could she be expected to make such a decision? If she stayed, would she wish she hadn’t? If she didn’t, would she wish she had?
She shook off her dreary thoughts. It wasn’t a decision she had to make right away. Until the time came, she would cherish every precious moment with Reese. She would memorize the sound of his laughter, the way his eyes crinkled at the corners when he smiled, the rich timbre of his voice. She would bask in his touch, soak up every word, commit the lines and angles of his face to memory so that she could recall them at will.
“Here now, what’s wrong?” Reining the team to a halt, he wiped the tears from her cheeks.
“I don’t know what to do,” she wailed softly, and collapsed in his arms.
He knew her well enough that he didn’t have to ask what she meant. Holding her close, he rested his chin on the top of her head, wishing he could help, but this was a decision she had to make on her own. Of course, if it was up to him, she would spend the rest of her life here, but it wasn’t up to him. And, from what she had told him about the future, maybe it was selfish of him to want her to give it up for life in the past. He could barely grasp the scope of the things she had told him about, like horseless carriages and wireless telephones and the ability to send words and pictures across the world in mere minutes. A distant part of his mind wondered if it was possible for someone from the past to go forward in time and who would have a harder time adjusting, the one who stayed in the past or the one who went into the future.
She sniffed one last time, then sat back, wiping her eyes. “I’m sorry, I don’t know what came over me.”
“PMSing, maybe?” he suggested, his tone and expression grim.
He smiled when Kelsey burst out laughing.
“Feeling better now?” he asked.
“Yes.” She blew out a sigh. “You always make me feel better.”
“I love you, Kelsey. Whatever you decide, wherever you go, I’ll always love you.”
She couldn’t help it. His words, the tender touch of his hand on her cheek, had her crying all over again.
* * * * *
It was near dark when they reached Grant’s Crossing. Reese pulled up in front of the house and began unloading the back of the wagon while Kelsey unlocked the front door and went inside to light the lamps.
They had unloaded most of the lighter stuff and were about to lift one of the settees to the ground when Papa Joe showed up.
“What did you do, Kelsey, buy out the town?” he asked.
“Not quite. Where’s Angie?”
>
“She’s out at the Hamilton place with that boy.”
“What?”
“I got back to the hotel late. When I asked Wexler if he’d seen her, he said she’d left a note for you. I read it and…” He shrugged. “That’s all it said.”
“You want me to ride out and get her?” Reese asked.
“No, that would just embarrass her. I don’t want to do that. And as she’s said so often, I’m not her mother. Still, if she’s not back by dark…”
Before she finished the sentence, Danny Hamilton rode up with Angelina mounted behind him. Dismounting, he helped her from the back of the horse.
“Hi,” Angelina said brightly. “Did you have a good time in Bitter Ridge? It looks like you bought everything they had.”
Reese grinned as she echoed Papa Joe’s remark.
“Do you need any help?” Danny asked. “I’d be glad to give you a hand.”
Kelsey looked at Reese and shrugged and what could have been an awkward moment passed.
Between the five of them, they had everything unloaded and carried inside in no time at all, then Angelina and Kelsey stood in the middle of the room, trying to decide how to arrange the furniture. First, Kelsey had the men put the settees in front of the windows, then facing each other in front of the fireplace, then on opposite sides of the room and finally facing each other in front of the fireplace again. They arranged the smaller dining tables in a half circle around the edge of the room, with the settees the focal point in the middle. She put the one large table in the dining room, in case someone wanted to have a party there, or a meeting of some kind.
The beds came next and after the men set them up, Kelsey let Angie choose which bedroom she wanted and then gave her a set of sheets so she could make the bed.
Reese followed Kelsey into the second bedroom while Papa Joe took the team and wagon back to the livery.
“So,” he said, one shoulder resting on the door jamb, “how soon are you gonna open up for business?”
“Probably not for at least a week. I need to buy supplies and try out some recipes first. And I need to make tablecloths and napkins. When do you pay the rent on your room again?”
“Next Friday.”
“Then we can move in here on Saturday, if it’s all right with you.”
“Where’s Papa Joe gonna stay?”
“I guess he’ll have to stay at the hotel. There’s no room for him here.”
Pushing away from the door, Reese took her into his arms and kissed her.
“What’s that for?” she asked.
“Does a man need a reason to kiss his wife?”
She shook her head, then went up on her tiptoes and kissed him back. They were still kissing when Angelina entered the room. “Oh! Sorry.”
Kelsey peeked around Reese’s shoulder. “Did you want something, Angie?”
“No, we just wondered if you needed anything else done tonight before Danny goes home.”
Seeing Danny standing behind Angie, Kelsey moved away from Reese. “No, I think that’s all for tonight. I appreciate your help, Danny.”
“Glad to do it,” he said affably. “Goodbye Mrs. Reese, Mr. Reese.” His voice softened. “Good night, Angelina.”
Later that night, after telling Angie good night, Kelsey walked down the hall to Reese’s room. It seemed strange, being able to share his room, stranger still to think that her grandfather and Angie were only a few doors away. For a moment, she felt guilty for being in Reese’s room and then she shook her head. She was a married woman now and she had every right to be there!
She found Reese sitting on the bed, a hand of solitaire laid out before him. He looked up when she entered the room. “Get all your good nights said?” He placed a red eight on a black nine.
Nodding, Kelsey closed the door. “Black four on the red five.”
“We haven’t played poker in a while,” Reese said, scooping up the cards. “Wanna play a hand or two?”
She frowned. It seemed like an odd way for a newly married couple to spend their time. “Sure, if you want. What’ll we play for?”
“Kisses?” he asked.
“We could do that,” Kelsey said, “or we could play strip poker.”
He lifted one dark brow. “I don’t think I’ve ever played that one.”
“It’s easy. We’ll play five card stud. If you lose, you remove a piece of clothing.”
“I’m game if you are,” he said, and dealt the cards.
Kelsey won the first hand with three deuces. Reese removed one of his boots.
She won the second hand and he removed the other one.
She lost the next hand and the next and every hand after that until she was left wearing only her bra and panties.
“I like this game,” Reese said as he dealt a new hand.
Kelsey looked at him through narrowed eyes. “You’re cheating, aren’t you?”
He looked shocked. “Who, me?”
“Yes, you. I know you’re good, but you can’t be that good.”
“Honey,” he said, sounding deeply offended, “it’s how I make my living. Of course I’m good.”
Kelsey picked up all the cards and shuffled them twice and then dealt a new hand.
“Don’t trust me, huh?” he mused, picking up his cards.
“Not a bit.”
Laughing, he tossed his cards on the bed and pulled her into his arms. “All right, I admit it, I was cheating.” He ran his hands over her bare back. “Can you blame me?”
“Yes!” She pushed him away. “Pick up your cards.”
“Aw, Kelsey, sweetheart, I don’t want you to be mad.”
“Then you’d better let me win from now on.”
“I’ve got a better idea.” Rising, his gaze fixed on her face, he began to undress, first his socks, then his vest, his shirt, his gun belt.
Kelsey felt warm all over as he unbuckled his belt and tossed it aside. She licked her lips expectantly, felt her cheeks grow hot under his knowing smile. And then he was on the bed beside her, unfastening her bra, slipping her panties down her hips.
“My turn.” Her hands were shaking as she pulled off his trousers and the long drawers that fit him like a second skin.
Reese drew her close, his arms tight around her. “Not mad anymore?”
“No.”
Tucking her beneath him, he nuzzled the sensitive skin behind her ear, nibbled on her lobe and then her lower lip before claiming her mouth with his.
Was there anything more erotic, more pleasurable, than the abrasion of bare skin against bare skin? She had never known that making love could be so heart-stoppingly satisfying or that, with the right man, it could be such a soul-stirring experience. When she made love to Reese, it was more than the mere joining of flesh to flesh. She felt as if she was truly a part of him, as if they were indeed one heart, one soul, one flesh.
She had never felt that way with Nick and she had often wondered what was wrong with her, why a vital spark was missing from their relationship. She knew now that what had been missing was the kind of love she felt for Reese, a love coupled with affection and passion that she had never felt for Nick.
The touch of Reese’s hand sliding along her thigh drove all thought of Nick from her mind. There was only here and now, there was only this man, rising over her, his voice whispering that he loved her more than life itself as he buried himself deep inside of her.
And as he carried her over the brink into fulfillment, she prayed that the portal that led back to the past remained closed for all time.
Chapter Nineteen
Kelsey had planned to get up early Tuesday morning and get busy making tablecloths and napkins. Her mistake was in kissing Reese when she woke up, because one kiss led to another and then another and before she knew it, it was almost noon. By the time she dressed and ate a very late breakfast, it was after one, which meant she only had three hours until she had to go to work.
But she couldn’t be upset. How could she be, when she h
ad spent the morning in Reese’s arms?
She found herself smiling as she walked to the house, already looking forward to the time when she would see Reese at the Square Deal and, later, have dinner with him and Angelina and Papa Joe. But, mostly, she looked forward to bedtime when they could shut the door and shut out the rest of the world.
Kelsey had just finished hemming one of the tablecloths and was getting ready to head over to the saloon when Angelina burst into the room. “Kelsey, Kelsey, help me!”
“What is it?” Kelsey asked, alarmed by the note of panic in the girl’s voice. “What’s wrong?”
“He’s here! He’s come to take me back!” Slamming the front door, Angelina turned the key in the lock, then grabbed Kelsey’s hands in hers. “Please don’t let him take me!”
“Who’s here?” Kelsey asked. She glanced around, but there was no one else in the house. “What are you talking about? Who’s here?”
“Jed Lynch. I saw him a few minutes ago. He was walking down the street.” Angie squeezed Kelsey’s hand. “He’s come for me. Mama sent him. I know she did!” She was sobbing now, tears rolling down her cheeks. “Please don’t let him take me back!”
“No, no, I won’t. Hush, now, Angie, it’ll be all right.”
“You…you promise?”
“Yes, of course. Come on, let’s go find Reese and Papa Joe.”
“I’m afraid to go outside. What if he sees me?”
“Do you want to stay here?”
“Alone? No! Don’t leave me.”
“All right, Angie. Calm down. We’ll stay here.” She led the girl to the settee. “Sit down and dry your eyes while I think of what we should do.”
“I’m sorry.”
“There’s nothing for you to be sorry about. And nothing to worry about. When I don’t show up at the saloon, Reese will come looking for me. We’ll just sit tight until then.”
Angelina nodded, her eyes wide and scared.
“Who is Jed Lynch, exactly? Does he work for your mother?”
“Yes. He…he keeps the girls in line.”
Kelsey had a pretty good idea of how he did that. “Did he ever strike you?”
“No.” Her gaze skittered away from Kelsey’s.
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