“That is your aura, your soul springing to life. Touch him.”
“I don’t think I should. That’s actually pretty creepy and weird that you want me to touch a stranger to see if he is my perfect match. It’s not that easy or I wouldn’t still be single.”
“Then don’t touch him and see what happens.”
“What does happen?”
“Well, when you aren’t paired or matched, your soul searches for its match. Sometimes the calling is strong. Other times, not so much. You’ve been alone a long time. But now, time’s up. Your soul is searching. I was serious about these three men. Each one has something that will call part of your soul forth. Good, bad, or otherwise. It’s the part your soul needs or wants that jumps forward. If you want love, it searches for love. If your soul is full of greed, it searches for another greedy person.”
“I touched the redheaded guy and nothing happened.”
“No, because you sensed a stronger connection nearby.”
“Is that why I didn’t want to touch the other guy?”
“That is self-preservation, my dear. You don’t reach for the dark part of your soul when you interact with others. You’re resilient and brave. Loving. But if you aren’t paired and he touches you, then you could be matched to him forever. If that part of your soul turns out to be stronger, it takes you over.”
“Oh, hell no!” Sabine shouted in denial and slapped her hand on top of the third man’s hand that rested on his thigh. The second she touched his hand, she felt a pop of electricity crackle between them. Staring at her hand, she could practically feel the intertwining between them at their touch.
“Language! But a very good choice, my dear,” she heard faintly through the breeze as everything began to move yet again. Including the warm strong hand, she was currently touching.
“Can I help you? Are you lost, boy?” His warm voice melted over her, making her shut her eyes momentarily.
What do I say? Where’d you go?
Pretend to be a boy. Tell him you want to be a volunteer, too.
A volunteer?
Did I forget to mention the year? It’s 1850. The militia are called volunteers. They aren’t officially called Rangers yet, but it’s the same deal. They get called up. They fight and disband. Currently, your fellow is on his way to collect his payment for his service.
“I want to be a volunteer, too,” Sabine announced gruffly, trying to lower her voice.
“You are too young. Go back to your mother,” he barked abruptly, jerking his hand from hers. She felt the fragile connection pull as he drew away. She wanted to reach back out and had to fight the urge.
“My mother is gone,” she answered softly, looking away and feeling tears well up. Everything was gone, actually. Her home, her family, her career. The brief trip into space seemed to be so very far away and fading every second. Gravity held her firmly to the dusty landscape where she stood.
“Find someone else to take care of you,” he said quickly, not moving. He looked quite bothered by something and was fighting an internal battle. His lips looked as if they practically disappeared from the intense frown he was giving her. The shadow from the brim of his hat hid his eyes.
“I don’t need anyone to take care of me, jackass!” she snapped angrily at the cold reception she had received from him. He’s telling me to get lost? Really? I thought you said I was destined to be here. Was that a load of hooey? He’s an ass!
Hey! Language, Cadet!
He’s awful! You sure that I am supposed to pair with him? Let’s make with some magic and snap some personality into the guy!
“Jackass, huh? This jackass has the horse. You are on foot and in the middle of nowhere,” he said with an amused smile that seemed to blossom, suddenly making him look so much more appealing.
“Bet that horse wishes I was riding it instead. I’m a lot smaller than you,” Sabine countered. Swallowing hard, she took a step backwards as he leaned down from his horse to look her directly in the face. As her eyes suddenly met with his warm gaze, they measured each other silently. She could see confusion reach into his eyes as he shuttered his expression and his smiled faded. His green eyes reminded her of warm, wet moss that grew on the tree roots at the planetarium. She would never forget that brilliant shade of green and how much she adored the hue. Her bedroom wall was accented that color because it made her feel peaceful.
“True. Guess that means you won’t eat as much either. Can you cook, boy?” he questioned.
“If I have to. It will be edible, but I’m certainly no chef,” she admitted softly, still stunned by the intense attraction she felt growing as she looked at him. The hat hid quite a bit of his face, but those brown curls that escaped from underneath were endearing. His lips were exquisite and the slight dusting of a shadow highlighted his strong chin. Oh yes, he was getting better and better looking the more she stared at him.
“Well, you might ‘have to’ if you are coming with us,” he said lightly, fighting a smile at her words. Sabine watched his eyes crinkle for a split second and then it was gone.
“Leave him, Jack. You don’t have to help every damned stray that comes around!” the second bachelor interrupted harshly. Sabine was extremely glad she had not been paired with him. He was abrasive. Her mind knew it and his words confirmed it.
“Billy, shut it. It’s not his fault if he is alone. Besides, one day he might be able to pay us back for helping him. You never know when you’ll run into someone again,” she heard the tall cowboy announce as he sat tall in his seat, speaking with Angry Bachelor number two.
He helps people? I thought you said he had a chip on his shoulder?
Hmmm. Maybe that was the other guy.
That would have been nice to have known up front.
Quit complaining, you are paired now. Get to know him!
“Sir.” Coughing, she cleared her throat and lowered her voice again. “I am a quick learner and I can help out.”
“That’s fine, boy,” he said holding out his hand. He sat there waiting expectantly and staring at her. “Are you coming?”
Get on the horse, Space Cadet! What are you waiting for?
“Yes, sir!” she said, grasping his hand and feeling the surge again as they touched. Her cowboy must have felt it too because his dark eyebrows shot up in surprise as she pulled herself upwards behind him in the saddle. Sabine fought the urge to purr aloud as she felt his body close to hers.
“What’s your name?”
“Uh, Chip.”
Chip? what kind of name is that?
It’s a BOY’S name. Can’t exactly go around saying, ‘Hi, I’m a boy and my name is SABINE’, now can I? You said he had a chip on his shoulder. Well, now he has one riding on the horse with him.
You’re too funny, Space Cadet.
I hate that nickname. Frankly, so far, I hate the last two hours.
You’ll thank me for this someday. I promise.
Don’t hold your breath.
I don’t breathe.
Creepy, Witchy Woman. That is creeee-py!
I am more than you could ever know or comprehend. Let’s not limit me to a mere witch, okay? Let’s just call me a relocation specialist.
Is that like a realtor?
For stray souls, yes.
Creepy as fuuuuu...dge.
Good girl! I use butter beans, but fudge works for me! Now, hang on tight, because he is fixing to gallop and you will fly off.
Feeling the horse’s flanks begin to move, she locked her arms around his waist unannounced. Oh, good golly! she thought, as the muscles under his shirt lurched and she could practically picture them under the cotton. Firm, hot, smooth… and hers. Feeling him jump, she apologized. “I don’t want to fall off.”
“Loosen up there, Chip,” he snapped gruffly.
“Yes, sir!”
“Call me Jack,” he said quietly after a few moments, almost absently.
Nodding, she rested her head on his back. She heard him catch his breath
and disregarded it. Her hat slid backwards and hung around her neck. Hearing his heartbeat through the linen shirt was comforting. If this moment could freeze, she might be okay with all of this strangeness. Touching him felt blissful. It reminded her of having a nice relaxing massage. She felt whole, warm and utterly complete. Shutting her eyes, she locked her fingers around his waist and dozed slightly, feeling content.
Several hours later, Sabine felt the swaying of the horse stop finally. She was beyond fatigued and everything hurt still from the day’s events. Body and soul. She felt torn, lost, and sore from hours on end on the horse. Thankfully, it seemed to be dark out now. She assumed that she could just lie down and sleep now, welcoming the idea of a good night’s rest. Sabine felt Jack move away from her and dismount the horse. She blindly reached for him, resulting in her falling off the horse directly into his arms.
“Chip, you okay?” she heard him ask distantly. She practically sighed in exhaustion against his warm chest as he held her. She felt like she was being cradled in his arms for the moment.
“Is the kid dead?” Billy’s voice grated her nerves. He was disturbing her cloud of peace she seemed to be wallowing in currently as she savored the moment. The cotton material did nothing to detract from the heat that was emanating from him. Simply touching his hand earlier in the day had been surprising. Riding behind him all day and being held? That felt exquisite!
“Billy, do you ever have anything good to say?” she heard rumble under her ear as his voice resonated from his chest. She could just picture him whispering sweet nothings to her intimately, as long as he stayed like this. Gentle, warm, approachable. There were obviously two sides to Jack because it was certainly different from how they had greeted each other at Eve’s disposal of her in the middle of nowhere. He had been abrupt, cold, stern.
“It’s a good question, Jack. If the kid is sick, we don’t want to catch anything!”
“I know, Sam. I think the boy is just tired.” Sam the redhead, Jack the bodice ripper and Evil Billy. Oh, and me. Chip the ultimate dipshit, for going along with this fiasco her life had become. Yeah, what a fine bunch, she thought idly. Jack the bodice ripper? Where’d that come from? No bodices here though! She yawned absently to herself and gave a massive sigh.
“If he is ready to travel in the morning he can come with us. If he is sick, he’ll have to stay or get dropped at the next town.” She heard the comments and disregarded them. There was no way she was being left behind. Eve was gone and she was completely out of her element. Until she found her footing in this life, she would not be parting from the only thing that made her feel safe so far: Jack. The perfect stranger that was supposedly her soulmate.
“I know.”
Sabine was carried not far away and placed down in the grass. Curling onto her side, she briefly looked at the stars above her in the sky and shut her eyes. Never again, she thought sadly, feeling a tear slip from the corner of her eyes. That seemed so very long ago but was only less than a day. Hours. Sighing, she gave in to the exhaustion that claimed her.
Chapter Four
The next morning was a rude awakening. If this is what her life would be like, it sucked. Evil Billy kicked dirt directly in her face to wake her up as the sun rose. Unfortunately for Sabine, she had slept with her mouth open from exhaustion, thus landing her a clump of dirt right on her tongue. Sitting up quickly, rubbing her eyes, gagging and coughing, she almost lost her temper at the obnoxious treatment from the hulking ogre. Evil Billy was laughing at her sputtering and then kicked her boots.
“Get to moving, if you ain’t dead yet,” he announced lightly. “We are mounting up. Jack, thought you were gonna take care of the boy?”
“I am,” he countered. “I was letting him get some sleep so he can pull his weight. Remember we thought he was ill? I think he needs a bit to get used to life as a volunteer.”
“You’re too damned soft on him. Get up, kid,” Billy ordered again, swinging his boot out to kick her foot again. This time, Sabine was ready. She had wiped her face and spat out the dirt, watching the men nearby. She swung her legs away from Billy’s boot, almost causing him to lose his balance, eliciting a grin from Jack off in the distance as he watched the display.
Sabine hopped to her feet and glared at the big oaf, her hands clenched to the side. She had just gotten here and didn’t feel she deserved to be treated as such! Not to be ungrateful, she would bite her tongue until absolutely necessary.
The last thing she wanted to do was wear out her welcome on the first day. Jack didn’t know her and she didn’t really know him. If the roles were reversed and someone challenged a person she had known for a while, she’d be tempted to side with them. That was the last thing she wanted! If push came to shove, she wanted someone, anyone, on her side! If she was supposed to actually be “matched” with Jack as Eve had told her, she didn’t want to drive a wedge or create disharmony between them so early on. She wanted a friend to have her back. Her father always supported her mother and she wanted the same thing for herself.
Billy began kicking dirt onto the small fire they had built. Sabine saw the tin plates and bones on the makeshift spit. Figures! They let her sleep and ate already. Her shoulders dropped as she realized that not one of them had chosen to wake her in time for a meal. Instead, she would go hungry for a while longer.
“Chip,” Sam called out. “If you want to wash up before we head out there is a creek over yonder. Just hurry and we’ll wait.” Looking away, she felt tears welling up at the first nice or polite thing said to her. Unfortunately, it was from the redheaded man she had passed over due to his lack of teeth. Why couldn’t it have come from Jack?
“Thanks,” she said quietly and walked off towards the creek alone. “He said hurry!” she heard Billy call out behind her rudely. Just ignore him, she thought, like they ignored me.
She walked downstream a bit in order to have a bit of privacy. She wanted to wash up and use the restroom. She also hoped for a bit of privacy in case she wanted to have a small pity party and give in to the tears that were now rolling down her cheeks silently. She wasn’t sure if she even wanted to stay with the group at this point! Maybe if they left her, Eve would just swoop right down and remove her from this setting, too. After all, she had been yanked from her life just as it had fallen into place. Perhaps, she could find another reason to have it all start over again.
Kneeling by the creek, she washed her face and stared at the water. Her mind was racing at any other places and locales she would rather be at right now, complete with issues each one would incur. Here was obviously a rough lifestyle. They had been on horses for hours yesterday to the point that she didn’t even realize they had built a fire as she slept. She could have been attacked, tied up or killed without knowing. At this point, she kinda didn’t care. Could it get any worse? What would life be like if it was better? Could it get better?
“Eve?” she called softly, hoping for an answer and hearing none. Staring at her reflection, she saw that she had dirt in her hair as well due to her rude awakening. She’d love to climb into the creek and float in the cool water, but she knew there wasn’t enough time for that. Instead, she rolled up her sleeves and proceeded to brace herself so she didn’t go headfirst into the water. Carefully, she dunked her head and shook it around in an effort to wash it. With no soap or comb, she realized that she might have made things worse. The water certainly felt better and made her feel like a person again. Using her fingers, she tried to comb down the brown mass that was now standing on end like a troll doll. A wild looking person, she thought, amused.
“Chip, you ready?” She heard Jack’s deep voice behind her and groaned aloud at her reflection. Of course, he would catch me with my hair standing on end, wouldn’t he? Noooooo, couldn’t wait until I was somewhat presentable – could you? Sighing, she hurriedly finished trying to smooth down the stray locks.
“Yes, I’m ready. Sorry I took so long,” Sabine said politely, looking over her shoulder at him. She
felt her stomach clench at his rugged good looks. Jack had obviously either had a bath in the creek or had washed his hair as well. He stood nearby and his brown hair had curled from the water. He seemed almost larger than life as he watched her. Jack had a presence that called to her. It was obvious as she felt her body respond. She was just depressed that it was all so one-sided.
He didn’t seem interested in the slightest and looked vaguely bothered at times. Times like now! While she thought he looked devastatingly handsome standing there, he looked at her like she had sprouted horns on her forehead. Honestly, he looked truly baffled and appalled the longer he looked at her. It was insulting to see such an open reaction quickly get hidden away. Looking in the water at her reflection one more time for good measure, she sighed and slapped the dusty hat on her head in frustration.
Standing, she dusted off her knees and ran to catch up with him as he walked off towards the horses. Jack mounted his horse easily and held out his hand politely to help Sabine up. Grasping his hand, she pulled herself upwards and took her seat behind him. She couldn’t help the sigh that slipped from her as she wrapped her hands around his waist. He must have heard her because he jumped, yanked her hands right off his stomach where they lay and leaped down from the horse.
“You go ahead and ride,” he said abruptly, looking away and taking the reins of the horse. “I’ll walk for a while.” Evil Billy and Sam stared at the two of them oddly at the scene that they were making. If Jack walked, they would be moving at a slower pace, increasing their travel time. Sabine blushed, embarrassed and humiliated at the treatment, and silently nodded. She moved herself up onto the saddle from the horse blanket she had sat upon yesterday during their ride. Catching him watching her, she saw him quickly look away as he pulled his hat down low on his face.
Sabine rode silently for quite a while. The landscape was gorgeous in its own wild way. Occasionally, she would see something off in the distance and remark on it, but that quickly went by the wayside as well. When she saw a group of jackrabbits, she exclaimed, “Look at the sweet bunnies!” as she heard several loud pops making her jump in response. Turning, she saw Sam and Billy both had their revolvers drawn, grinning at their handiwork. Glancing back, she saw that two of the rabbits had been shot. Sabine looked at Jack horrified, only to find that he was staring back at her with almost the same expression. Looking away quickly, she tried to mask the hurt she was feeling and how out of place she felt.
Enchanted by You: Timeswept Soulmates (Timeless Brides Book 3) Page 4