Whirlwind Bride

by Debra Cowan

  “Is there anything I can do?”

  “Check in with her off and on. With winter coming, she’ll need wood and someone to help with the chickens.”

  Riley nodded, made a mental note to stop by and offer his condolences on the way out of town. And he’d help out often, too, even though he hated chickens.

  Ollie and Cora Wilkes had lived in Whirlwind as far back as Riley could remember. Cora supplied all the fresh eggs in town. Ollie used to let him and Davis Lee ride the boot on short stagecoach runs.

  “I’ve had all the trouble I want out of those outlaws.” Davis Lee slid his knife into the top drawer of his desk. Both brothers had blue eyes like their father, but Davis Lee’s dark brown hair testified to their mother’s brunette coloring, whereas Riley had their father’s sandy hair. “I spoke to a Ranger a week or so ago. He thinks they’re closing in on them. ’Course, they’ve been chasing those Irish bastards as long as the rest of us have.”

  “They need to be stopped,” Riley agreed. “I’ll join up if you want to put together a posse and track them.”

  “We’re better served to patrol Whirlwind. I plan to do that twenty-four hours a day, especially after what happened today. The McDougals killed Ollie a scant two miles from here. It’s not like them to strike so close. I don’t want to leave the town unprotected.”

  “I guess the Rangers are tracking them, anyway.”

  “And every bounty hunter who hears about them.” Shaking his head in disgust, Davis Lee ran a practiced hand over the row of rifles in the open gun cabinet behind him. “I can help them out best from here. I’ve already deputized all three of the Baldwins, plus Jake Ross and one of your ranch hands, Cody Tillman.”

  “Five deputies? Where do you think you are, Dallas?”

  His brother gave a small smile. “I need enough men so that someone can stand watch in town while others patrol. And I need someone here at the jail round the clock. I’ve got a murderer in the back, waiting on the circuit judge for his trial.”

  Riley cleared his throat, his nerves still jumping at how close Susannah had come to harm. “Adam Phelps’s sister, Susannah, came in on the stage this morning.”

  Surprise spread across the other man’s features. “What’s she doing here?”

  Riley saw no reason to humiliate her or himself by telling his brother the truth. “Visiting, I guess.”

  “Staying long?”

  “No.” He walked to the window, wondering if she was settled into her hotel room or if she was off with one of the Baldwins. Whatever she was doing was none of his business, he reminded himself.

  “Where’s she staying? The hotel?”

  “Yeah.” A glint of blond hair drew Riley’s eye, but it wasn’t her.

  “I’ll go say hello.” Davis Lee walked up next to him, looking toward the hotel.

  “There’s no need,” Riley said quickly. Too quickly.

  His brother sent him a sideways look.

  “She probably won’t be here long, is all.” He wondered if she had any idea what trouble she courted by traveling alone, especially through the outer edges of Texas. “Well, I’ll leave you to it.”

  “See you Sunday for lunch?”

  “Yeah.” Riley and Davis Lee never missed Sunday lunch together, especially since their father had passed on last year. Davis Lee still had a room at the ranch, but he’d taken to staying in town after returning from Rock River to Whirlwind and being elected sheriff two years ago.

  Riley left the jail and headed up the street toward his wagon, which he’d left in front of the post office. Other rigs lumbered up and down the street. A group of boys, whooping and hollering, darted out of the schoolhouse.

  As he started to climb onto his buckboard, he glanced up and saw Susannah headed his way. He considered letting her pass, but the reminder of how close she’d come to Ollie’s fate changed his mind. Removing his hat, he stepped up onto the planked walk in front of her.

  Her step faltered. Sunlight gilded her perfect magnolia skin, lit her eyes like endless pools of blue.

  “Susannah,” he said quietly, suddenly uneasy. He had to force himself not to crush his hat.

  She stopped and gave him a curt nod. “Mr. Holt.”

  “Are you getting settled? Do you need anything?”

  “I’m fine.” Her gaze was guarded.

  “Good.” He ran a hand over his jaw, wishing they hadn’t gotten off to such an awkward start.

  She smiled brightly and he thought she was easily the nicest sight he’d witnessed all day. It was a shame she wasn’t cut out for life here.

  “Will you be leaving soon?”

  “Leaving?”

  “For St. Louis.”

  “Oh, I’m not leaving. I’m staying in Whirlwind.”

  His eyebrows shot up and he couldn’t stop the sudden quirk of his lips. “Really.”

  “Yes, really. That amuses you?”

  “Hardly. You don’t belong here.”

  “Pardon me?” Her shoulders stiffened and her gaze turned downright frigid. “I wasn’t aware I was in Riley, Texas. Are you the mayor? The sheriff? Is this your town?”

  “Life here is hard.” He flexed his hands on his hat to keep from shaking her. “This land is unforgiving, sometimes brutal.”

  “Evidently some people are, too.”

  That made him feel lower than a whipped dog, but the possibility that he might someday find her pale and lifeless pushed him on. “I just mean it’s not easy here like it is in St. Louis.”

  “You might be surprised to learn life isn’t that easy in St. Louis, either,” she said quietly, making him wonder at the shadows in her eyes.

  He had no intention of telling her about Maddie, but he had to make her understand. “We have Indians—”

  “We have outlaws.”

  “We have snakes.”

  “We have floods.” Her gaze stayed stubbornly locked on his.

  “Things happen here that you’d have no idea how to handle. Things that could get you killed.”

  “You think I’m stupid, is that it? Lacking in some way?”

  “No, stop twisting my words around. I’m just trying to warn you.”

  “And you have.” She smiled, a patently dismissive smile, and started forward. “Nice to see you again, Mr. Holt.”

  Frowning at Susannah’s formality, he moved to the edge of the walk so she could pass. He knew it wouldn’t matter a damn if he pointed out that at least in St. Louis she had her father and her brother for protection. “If you need anything at all—”

  “Don’t give it another thought.” She tossed the words over her shoulder. “Truly. I’ll be fine.”

  She continued down the walk, heading toward the post office. No doubt she planned to wire her brother, just as he had.

  Riley’s gaze locked on Susannah. The petite blond beauty’s hair caught the sun and glittered like a star. Dragging his gaze from the enticing sway of her skirts, he climbed into the wagon and picked up the reins, snapping them against Pru’s rump. Damn Adam, anyway.

  Chapter Three

  If you need anything at all, let me know.

  How many times had Riley said that? She needed a husband, but she didn’t see him offering to help with that, Susannah thought indignantly as she walked away from him toward the telegraph office. She could feel him staring.

  His gaze burned between her shoulder blades, causing her skin to prickle. She fought the urge to smooth her hair or turn around.

  Her voice had come out more stiffly than she’d liked when talking to him, but seeing him reignited the embarrassment she’d felt in his barn. Adam had a lot to answer for.

  Couldn’t Riley have married her just because she was told he wanted to…even if he didn’t make the promise himself? Evidently not. She wondered why he’d been so mean. Maybe he was merely concerned. His dire warnings sounded like something her brother might say. But Susannah was staying. She was glad she hadn’t told him about the baby, but what was she going to do now? She wa
sn’t going back to St. Louis.

  Her entire family would be in even more disgrace. First the baby, then this. Paul hadn’t wanted her. It wouldn’t do to advertise that Riley didn’t, either.

  Susannah tugged on her gloves and opened the door to the post office, which also served as the telegraph office. She needed a place to live, which she could secure using the money she’d received from the sale of some jewelry before she’d left home.

  She sent a curt telegram to her brother, ordering him to respond immediately and tell her exactly what he’d said to Riley. She also asked that he not tell Riley about her “situation,” hoping her choice of words would keep eager-to-please Tony Santos from figuring out that she was expecting. She’d endured all the embarrassment she could for a while. A final plea for her brother to wire some money ended her telegram. It was the least he could do after sending her to Whirlwind under false pretenses.

  After leaving the post office, she started back to the hotel, stopping at the Pearl for a dinner of stew and fresh bread. The rich, meaty meal wasn’t the roasted pork with pearlized onions Minnie the cook served every Friday night at the Phelps’s house, but the meal was good and very filling.

  Susannah traced a square on the red-checked tablecloth, hit with a pang of homesickness as the aroma of fresh pie and bread drifted around her.

  A shadow fell across her plate and Susannah looked up. A tall, lanky man with dark brown hair stood there. “Evenin’, ma’am.”

  “Good evening.” Her gaze skipped over a handsome face, then dropped to his tin star. “Sheriff.”

  The blue eyes beneath the dark slash of brows reminded her of another pair of blue eyes.

  “You’d be Miz Susannah Phelps?”

  For one heartbeat, she thought perhaps her parents had sent someone after her. “How did you know?”

  “I’m Davis Lee Holt.” A broad smile split his face. “Riley’s my younger brother.”

  “Riley’s brother.” Relieved that Davis Lee wasn’t here on behalf of her parents, she kept her smile in place, but her thoughts whirled. Had Riley sent his brother, the sheriff, to kick her out of town? “It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

  “Same here. My brother thinks a lot of yours. And you, too.”

  She wasn’t so sure about that, but nodded, anyway. What had Riley told his brother about her? Whatever it was, the eldest Holt seemed too polite to say. Though he didn’t look much older than Riley, his features were sharper and just as compelling. But Davis Lee didn’t make her nervous the way Riley did.

  “Riley says you’re here visiting.”

  “Uh, yes.” She dabbed at her mouth, then returned her napkin to her lap. She hoped that was all Riley had said.

  Davis Lee’s gaze searched her face and she recognized the probe beneath the question. Intelligence glittered in his eyes. She sensed the sheriff knew there was more to her story. If Riley had enlisted his brother to send her packing, he was going to hear from her.

  Instead of the leashed wildness she detected in Riley, she recognized a calm in his brother. But he had the same restrained power in his broad shoulders.

  After a short exchange about the food and her accommodations, the man bade her good-night. “Hope you have a nice visit in Whirlwind. Please let me know if there’s anything you need. Drop by my office anytime.”

  “Thank you, Sheriff.”

  “Davis Lee, please.”

  “All right, Davis Lee.” Susannah smiled up at him, relieved that he was leaving. She wondered how Davis Lee would’ve responded if she’d shown up on his doorstep instead of his brother’s.

  She paid her bill and went up to her room, looking forward to sleeping on a mattress, despite its lumps.

  It was a relief to take off her dusty traveling clothes. She’d let out the seams in a few dresses. The roomier garments, along with her cape, had hidden her expanding curves, but she could no longer lace her corset. In days, her condition would be obvious to the whole world. Soon she’d need a couple of new dresses. Clothes were easy to find, but what about a husband? She couldn’t advertise. It simply wasn’t done.

  Pulling the pins from her hair, she tilted her head back and let the heavy mass tumble down her back. She dug her brush from her smallest valise and walked to the window, staring out at the sky, which was turning a vibrant orange and pink. She dragged her brush through her hair, enjoying the comfort of the familiar routine.

  Who would want to marry a woman carrying another man’s child, anyway? The stigma of Susannah’s illegitimate child was one reason she’d left St. Louis. Despite its distance from big cities, Whirlwind wasn’t removed from convention.

  The land stretched forever, vast and unending, golden plains melting into the flame-colored horizon. Susannah felt small and out of place. Just then, the baby kicked.

  Placing a protective hand over her belly, Susannah determined her baby would have a place here, somehow. She’d figure out a way.

  And suddenly she had an idea.

  For the third time, Riley unwadded the crumpled telegram and stared at it, his shocked numbness edging into a quick flare of temper.

  She was in the family way, dammit. A baby!

  All last night he’d wondered why she would marry a man she didn’t know, and he’d never once considered that.

  Miz Susannah Phelps had some explaining to do. Riley told himself it should be enough that he’d escaped her marriage trap. It wasn’t. Aware now of the real reason she’d come to Whirlwind—to him!—he had to know what would’ve happened if he’d agreed to marry her. Would she have told him she was expecting?

  Trying to calm the angry disbelief perking inside him, he saddled Whip. He made it to town in record time, going straight to the Whirlwind Hotel. She wasn’t there. He asked the desk clerk, Penn Wavers, if he knew where Susannah had gone, but the nearly deaf old man just smiled and told Riley to sign the register.

  Jaw clenched, he walked out and looked up and down the dusty street. Just like yesterday, cool sunshine glittered off the plate glass of Whirlwind’s businesses. There were only so many places she could be; if he had to go in every one of them to find her, so be it.

  Turning, he moved quickly down the planked walk, going into the bank, the Pearl Restaurant, peering into Davis Lee’s office, but there was no glint of silvery-blond hair. Just as he turned away from the sheriff’s window, he saw Susannah coming out of Haskell’s General Store across the street.

  “Miz Phelps!”

  She turned and he saw apprehension flicker across her pretty features.

  As he neared, she backed up against one of the rough wood columns that supported the awning. Shoulders taut, she looked poised to bolt. He figured if the lady thought she had a prayer of outrunning him, she would’ve chanced it.

  She held a soft, lumpy package wrapped in brown paper and tied with string. She clutched it closer as he stopped inches away from her.

  Her delicate scent teased him. She wore a white, soft wool dress with thin red stripes, too pretty and frothy to be practical for this part of the country. Thick, gleaming hair was piled atop her head like silky sunshine. Just the sight of her made Riley’s mouth water, and it wasn’t because she reminded him of his favorite candy.

  She looked cool and sweet; he just bet she would taste that way, too. Damn.

  Sky-blue eyes regarded him warily. Her chest rose and fell rapidly. The fabric of her dress pulled taut across her breasts with each breath. She was one fine-looking woman. He might not want to marry her, but that didn’t mean he was blind. He forced his gaze to her eyes.

  “Mr. Holt.”

  He doubted she’d be so formal once he told her what he knew. “I need to talk to you.”

  “I’m on my way to—”

  “Now.” He gripped her elbow, not hard enough to bruise that creamy flesh, but firmly enough that she knew he meant business.

  He tugged her over so that they stood away from the street and against the wall of the store. The wall without a window.

 
She pulled away from him, paper crackling as she hugged the package to her. “What do you want? I don’t like to be manhandled.”

  “There are a few things I don’t like, either, such as being lied to.”

  She went as still as a spooked rabbit. “What are you talking about?”

  “I’m talking about your little secret.”

  She started to turn away. “I don’t have time for—”

  “Your baby.”

  The words were enough to stop her. She faced him, eyes wide with horror. “Adam told you?”

  “Damn straight.”

  Tension vibrated in her body, and he knew if he touched her, she’d be as rigid as a wagon axle.

  “I asked him not to say anything,” she whispered harshly, her gaze darting around.

  “He didn’t say it plain. Still protective as all get-out.” She was so pale that Riley thought she might faint. That wouldn’t surprise him a bit. “He reminded me of a situation with a girl we knew at university. The same thing happened to her.”

  “So he didn’t—”

  “No. Your secret’s safe, though you can’t keep it quiet forever.”

  She let out a slow breath, a hint of color returning to her face. “I don’t know why you’re concerned. It’s not your problem.”

  “I have to wonder if you would’ve told me the truth, had I agreed to marry you.”

  “Of course!”

  “Now, how do I know that?” His gaze skimmed over her full breasts, her still-defined waist.

  Before he could ask when the baby was due, Tony Santos rushed up. Doffing his hat, he gave Riley a quick hello before turning to Susannah. “Miz Phelps, did you get the telegram all right?”

  “Yes, thank you, Mr. Santos.”

  “I sent my nephew as soon as it came in, just like you asked.”

  “I appreciate that.” She smiled, not showing any signs of the impatience clawing through Riley.

  He cleared his throat, giving the older man an expectant look.

  Tony shifted from one foot to the other, then smiled at Susannah. “I hope you’re having a nice day, ma’am.”

  “Thank you.”

  Riley stared hard at him until the older man stammered a goodbye.