Taming Texanna

by Alyssa Bailey

As she heard the creek that was a tributary of the Trinity River rush past, she thought of the banks of that same river bordering hers and Colton’s home. She was happy to be near familiar ground. As she approached the exact place that Colton had found her that day they married, soaked and distraught over the turn of events of the morning and the mess she perceived her life to be in, she heard a man speaking ahead of her around the river bend.

  He wasn’t speaking to her, nor could she actually see him, but his unfamiliar voice carried an almost evil quality about it, sending an uncontrolled shiver up her back. The trickling water was calling to her but she didn’t dare dismount when she did not know who it was around the bend. There was rustling in the woods. Now she heard someone else or something behind her in the autumn leaves. The shuffle of vegetation encouraged her to lead her mare to the small copse of trees to allow whoever it was, to pass in front of her.

  She had to cover her mouth when she saw who it was that had crossed her path, Horace Grant. Texanna’s mind went wild trying to understand why he was there. Had he followed her to cause trouble? What was he doing? To her memory, he’d never come down here. He’d never tracked her to the creek and as far as she knew, he never realized that was where his quasi-daughter ever went. Watching him for a few seconds longer, she saw a hard, determined expression on his face that frightened her.

  Trying to hide, she watched Horace round the bend and became lost to her sight. She waited and listened as Horace spoke with a hesitance she had only detected once before; when Colton had come to her defense. She then noted a responding male voice followed by the dark voice of the first man she’d heard. He said something she could not quite make out but if they were meeting out under cover, she knew it couldn’t be good. It just could not be good.

  Texanna grabbed the reins but pulled up too quickly and her mare’s whinny brought unwanted attention to them. Grabbing onto the saddle horn, she lifted her head preparing to ride away quickly. She made one final glance for safety and her gaze latched onto the coldest set of eyes she had ever had the misfortune of encountering. She could hear Pia and Kaku call them bad medicine spirits in her mind.

  They were evil eyes. The man tilted his head slightly, focusing those coals on her. She shivered as he stared at her for a split second longer. He was closer than she liked.

  “Texanna Rae,” called Horace Grant. “What the hell are you doing here?” Both men began to advance on her. “Are you here to spread your legs for someone other than your husband? Figures you’re a whore like your ma.” A malevolent laugh emanated from his wicked soul. The unfamiliar quality chilled her heart.

  The man he stood next to, the man with the black eyes took up the taunt. “I will strip you right here, right now.” He seemed to be getting closer. She felt panic begin to rise. Her hands began to sweat and she could hear her heartbeat in her ears. “I love to play with young tits and make them all angry and red from my pulling and twisting. Then I will shove my hand in that pussy you have and show you how a rough ride feels. Then I’ll take my cock and ram it…”

  Texanna had frozen for a moment of time, scared beyond comprehension, but that last comment slammed her back to reality. At the repeat of her name by the devil’s henchman, she came out of her trance-like state, reared her mare up to help her gain some space, and took off riding as hard as she could.

  She knew every way out of this area of the creek and with the men yet on the ground, it didn’t take her long to find the quickest and cleanest path to town, never slowing until she reached Mandy Joseph’s house. Here she promptly tied her horse and raced inside without as much as a knock. Thankfully, both Mandy and her brother had come home by then and she told them the tale.

  Brock Joseph was not happy with Texanna for riding into town without her husband’s knowledge and without an escort. After sending his younger brother out to move her horse to the barn and tend to the mare, Brock extracted an easily agreed upon promise to not leave the house nor Mandy’s room until her husband had fetched her.

  “But he won’t know I’m here, Brock.”

  “Why won’t he know you are here, Texanna Rae? Did you take off again and tell no one?” asked Brock.

  “Yes,” she replied her voice no more than a whisper.

  “Well, I’ve known Colton for close to my whole life and I have a good idea he’s on his way to town if he hasn’t already hit it. He has a way of knowing these things. He also knows you and Mandy are good friends and Mama is his cousin. Not much happens around that man that he doesn’t already have an idea about.”

  “You know about Colton? I mean, about the odd way he just knows things?”

  “I said I have known him most of my life. He has some kind of something.”

  “Yes, but he was working out on the property clearing a building site.”

  “Well, I’ll go send one of his people after him or one of the sheriff’s deputies. But you mind me and do not leave that bedroom.” Brock was only two years her senior but was fully a man, and knew how to get his desires known and orders obeyed.

  “I won’t, I promise.” It was not an empty promise. Texanna was as frightened as she ever remembered being. She thanked Brock again and sat down to wait. She wasn’t worried that Colton would not come to fetch her anymore. She worried what he would do when he did. She was offered some tea, which sounded too civilized when thinking about what had happened to her. She allowed her thoughts to wander.

  ***

  When Colt arrived home, he asked where Texanna was. Kaku said she went into the barn. Odd, he had not seen her in there but he didn’t go entirely inside as he passed. He walked toward the barn and looked for the little mare in the corner stall, but she was gone. Colt knew his sassy Texanna had taken off again but she might have decided to go further down on the land and so rode the mare. He would have to check the tracks but even before he looked at them, he knew that wasn’t the case. Something was wrong. Colton walked with purpose to the stall and saddled his own mount. He needed to find her. Something wasn’t right and damn if he was once again looking for his woman. He finished tacking his horse and quickly let the house know he was going into town.

  “If Texanna Rae finds herself back at this house before I do, sit on her. She is not to leave to go anywhere. I mean it.” Colton was sure he had gotten his point across and was sure if his wife did make it back before him, she would be there when he returned

  He mounted and reined around to head off towards town. Colton knew his wife was sizzling with mixed emotions and she was confused about his actions this morning. He was thankful for his spirit medicine because he was able to see that she was restless and angry but her emotions were so mixed up that it was, at times, more difficult to interpret her thinking. Colt knew she was upset about his lack of response and affection. What he didn’t know was why she was defiant on some days and compliant on others. He figured she didn’t know either.

  When he inquired of her why she was ornery, she would typically offer no other reason but that she felt contrary. So far, she had gotten that reassurance she needed, but, at some point he knew that she was going to have to trust his love and direction enough to do what he said just because he said it. There was a time to discuss and debate, and a time to take him at his word. Today was for the latter.

  Colt stopped and jumped down to see if he could still see her mare’s horseshoe print. Yep, there it was. She’d been gone two or three hours, for sure. It must have been right after lunch.

  Colt had made a conscious decision not to give his wife what she was seeking; attention the wrong way. Not receiving gratifications for her sassy misbehavior would change the game. That was the plan, anyway. So today, he didn’t say anything when she blatantly disobeyed him. He knew children would not be bothered by the cattle drivers but a lovely young woman was a prime target because she had to walk along the open road making her vulnerable. The property was undeveloped from the barn to the work site, perfect cover for ambushing. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have cared. He had
thought she would know that.

  He instead gave her no attention. It was all or nothing. He was protective in his love or he wasn’t. He told her just that morning she was going to have to learn to rein her own self in but that seemed to be ignored.

  He was determined that Texanna minded him, either because she trusted him or because she knew it was the right thing to do. This immature game she was playing was not going to be played any longer.

  He stopped to check the tracks at the last fork before town. She had ridden on into town. He was relieved but also irritated she had gone at all. That wasn't all though, he sensed something else about her. Before he went back out to finish the clearing and woodcutting, he alerted Pia to the fact that she might run.

  “Texanna is restless, Pia. If she doesn’t settle, you need to watch which direction she goes in. Send Walker out to let me know.”

  He had expected Walker to come out but he never came. Instead of taking a break before evening chores, he was out looking for his errant wife with the confused thinking, the untamed responses and calculating just what he was going to do when he found her. He sure loved her but he was beginning to think breaking a horse was easier than taming his Texanna.

  Now was the time that he needed to explore this need to run off when things were not as she liked. Colton worried as his inner voice told him she was not safe and that took over his mind. He wanted her safe and they would deal with any other issues after he made sure she was unharmed.

  Finding no available deputy, Brock was just preparing to leave the most populated part of town and head off toward Colton’s place when he heard his name called. Looking in the direction of the call, Brock hailed his cousin coming toward him, pulling up on his reins to wait for Colt to get to him.

  “Looking for that little spark you married, by chance?” Brock grinned widely at Colt.

  “Yeah, and by the way that you said that and look to be headed toward my place, I figure you know where she is,” drawled Colton.

  “Matter of fact, I do. She’s at the house but as we go back, I have a story to tell you.” Brock proceeded to give Colt the story as told to him by Texanna.

  Colton listened with ever-increasing alarm. He knew that it was entirely possible that the man described to him was one of the Adder gang. He had been led to believe they were coming their way. This was one cunning gang. They were believed to have three members because they had been seen enough as three. Adder was easily identified and so he tended to be seen less than the second man. However, the third man was a mystery. Adder killed without a conscience and didn’t mind killing women or men if they got in the way of what he wanted which was usually money. He would have to talk to his soon to be red-bottomed wife.

  “How is she?”

  Brock shrugged. “Shook up, I guess, and a bit worried about meeting up with you, no doubt, but safe and sound.” Brock looked over at Colton, who sighed heavily.

  “Good. I love her so much that it hurts. I don’t know what I would do without her now, even though two months ago I was simply keeping an eye out to catch a glimpse of her. Now she is my world.”

  “Yeah, love will mess a man up.”

  Colt laughed. “How would you know?”

  “I hear things,” returned Brock. “I’m sorry Anna had to deal with all of this by herself today. You know, shook up and twice devastated by the man who should have protected her. I don’t know what has gotten into her pa. He has changed over the years.”

  Because identifying the man at the creek needed to happen quickly, Colton stopped at the courthouse and ran in to grab an extra poster he had in his office. This was not a green, inexperienced gang but if there was anyone who could take Adder and his two sidekicks down, it was Colton.

  As for now, however, he worried about Texanna. At first, Colton had thought that he was forcing her to be more independent, but that was not how it worked out. That wasn’t her problem. She wasn’t too dependent on him as a person. She needed a husband. He needed to wrap her in such tight arms of protection, love, and care until she was drunk with the effects of it. His whole premise earlier had been wrong to some degree. She was pushing him away because she didn’t expect their life together to survive. She didn’t know that love should only grow stronger. She evidently didn’t understand a family was forever. It should be. She wanted him to prove he was going to continue loving her. Unfortunately, he proved the opposite by ignoring her.

  She was reacting immaturely in the proper way of looking at things but she had never had unconditional love. Oh, he figured her brother or whoever he was, did love her, maybe more than anyone, but he had left her at a vulnerable time in her life whether he realized it in his young adulthood or not. Colt had no illusions that if her brother Ben had thought that anything bad would happen to her with him gone he would have made a different decision. It probably never entered his mind.

  Now this Grant, he was another story altogether. Colton had let go of his feelings before and had not acted on them. After today, that changed. Just thinking what he had tried to do today to his sweet Anna, made him want to hang up his badge and go gunning. However, Colt wouldn’t. He knew he couldn’t, but it didn’t make the urge any less difficult to control. Not protecting what was his made a man think crazy thoughts. Colton knew there was something that he could do with his badge still on that might stick. Grabbing the posters off his desk, he sent his deputy to do his bidding. He sent him to round up and arrest Mr. Horace Grant for trying to attack Texanna in the Café.

  Joining Brock outside, he went on to his cousin’s house and he wondered what his reception was going to be. He had told Brock just a little of the morning’s issues so that if Texanna was not acting as though she was happy to see him, those same events might be the root cause. He hoped not, though. He honestly hoped that his wife would be as relieved to see him, as he would be to see her. The naughtiness conversation would wait until later.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Texanna knew it would be a while before her husband was located and she didn’t even know if he would come after her. She had gotten used to being the bottom of the barrel when it came to any kindness from her pa, but she wanted to be the first pick with Colton. He had said she was all he had ever wanted and more than he would ever need. She just didn’t know how to get that proven.

  If he did come, she was not going to be in his good graces. Glancing after Mandy as she when to refill the teapot, she thought it could get awfully embarrassing if Colton decided to show her how upset he was while they were at the Josephs’ house. Maybe it was better she was in Mandy’s room. If Colton came for her, how would she react and oh, God, if he didn’t collect her, how would she ever get over the humiliation and the pain of the rejection? Somehow, she didn’t think Colton would do that.

  He would be angry, yes, but the way she felt when he was holding her, she was sure what he showed her was love. She was more cautious with that sentiment than he ever was. Still the fear was there. Could she be confident that his feelings were real? He might say he loved her and that his love was different from what she had known but how could she believe it? She hadn’t known him that long really and lust was not love. She was worldly enough and now experienced enough to know the difference.

  Horses galloped up to the house and while she was fairly sure she heard more than one set of hooves, in her troubled mind, she wasn’t positive. As she walked into the front parlor of the Josephs’ home, she decided she would keep her emotions intact. Whether Colt was with Brock or not, she would not lose all propriety. She would not cry or run to him if he did come.

  She heard Brock call out her name causing her to stiffen in preparation for the news. He didn’t say anything else and just as Texanna was about to turn to confront the reality of whether her husband was coming or not, she heard the sweetest sound she could ever recall hearing. Her heart hurt immediately and her head pounded.

  That soft, husky male voice full of emotion rasped across the room. “Texanna, baby, are you all r
ight?”

  His voice was all she heard, not the words, not the questions, just his voice and the love he had wrapped in that rough, urgent resonance. With a great sob, she turned and watched Colton as he extended his arms soundlessly to her in invitation. Gone were all the anxieties and doubts about how her husband would receive her. Forgotten were the resolves to maintain her decorum and not give away her feelings in her responses to him. She squealed and ran to her protector, her lover, tossing herself into his arms, only to be wrapped so tightly that she might have worried about her ability to breathe at any other time. Then she cried.

  Colton carried Texanna to the nearest sofa and simply held his wife. He whispered, “I’m here, you’re safe.” He rocked her back and forth in a calming, soothing rhythm. He loves me, she chanted in her head. He loves me.

  She had sobbed for a considerable amount of time before Colton changed his words from kind and soothing to brisk and commanding. It seemed her husband was done with her pity party now.

  “Texanna Rae, you have had your cry and as much as I want to be sympathetic to your day, I have to think what all could have been avoided if you had not tried to annoy me. Then you came to town to cinch the bet that you would succeed in doing it.” Colt lifted her face from his now thoroughly soggy shirtfront to point her face toward his. “We are going to discuss this in private after I get you home, my dear.”

  Colt held her chin in place and she knew he was waiting for her to at least acknowledge his words. She wasn’t sure she was ready to speak but he lifted his eyebrow in that questioning and yet demanding way as she croaked out some words. “Yes, sir,” felt the most natural.

  Colt nodded, then pulled out a handkerchief and wiped her face and the drops that fell from her chin. He kissed her eyes, moving to her nose and chin. Finally, he latched onto her lips briefly for he knew they were on public display. Patting his hand on her knee after diverting his hand in time from its original goal, he leaned in close and Anna waited for him to speak to her.