by Connie Mason
“I want to be everything to you, lady. Husband, friend, lover.”
“Are you sure, Grady, absolutely certain it’s me you want and not the baby I carry?”
“I’ve never been more certain of anything in my life.”
“What about the violence? Can you give up the violence you’ve lived with these past years? I couldn’t bear to lose you, Grady. I love you too much.”
Grady’s heart nearly burst with happiness. It was the first time Storm had admitted she loved him. “If I wanted a life filled with violence, I wouldn’t have made the run for land in Guthrie. I can’t help what other men do, but I promise I’ll not instigate another violent act. Just tell me you’re happy about the baby.”
Looping her arms around his neck, she kissed his nose, his chin, his mouth, anyplace her lips could reach. “I love the babe you put inside me, almost as much as I love his father—or her father.” Storm giggled. “I hope you’re planning on a daughter or two.”
Grady grinned in genuine pleasure. “At least. And I want to get you home before travel becomes difficult for you. But don’t think I’m letting you off the hook. From now on there will be only truth between us. I’m still unhappy about finding out about your pregnancy from someone other than my own wife.” He tried to sound stern, but it was extremely difficult with Storm sitting on his lap naked as the day she was born.
“Grady, about Laughing Brook—”
“I don’t want to talk about Laughing Brook. I’m taking her back to the reservation where she can’t interfere in our lives again. But most of all, lady, I want to make love to you. I’ve been living in hell these past few days.”
“The door to my room wasn’t locked,” Storm argued. “You could have come in any time you pleased.”
“I had some decisions to make that weren’t easy. After Summer Sky’s death I was afraid of loving again. Losing someone you love is too painful; it was easier to harden my heart against every emotion except rage and revenge. After searching my soul I discovered I could love again, if the woman was you. For the first time in years my soul is truly at peace. Wakantanka was right. You are my peace.”
Storm’s eyes grew misty and the lump in her throat prevented her from coherent speech. Instead, she burrowed deeper into his arms and sighed in utter contentment.
Grady groaned deeply as the tension of passion swept through him. Storm’s body was warm and flushed and so damn tempting that the need to make love to her was like a fire in his blood. His mouth ground against hers as he pressed her onto her back. His tongue trust deeply, tasting her, demanding that she return his hunger in kind. His lips brushed her closed lids, the curve of her cheekbones, the tender arch of her neck. He lowered his head and suckled her breasts, lashing the dusky nipples with the rough, wet edge of his tongue until he wrung a cry of pleasure from her lips.
She moved against him in sinuous response as she tugged his shirt from his pants, urging him out of his clothes. He complied instantly, tossing them aside while she watched through heavy lids. When he was naked she pulled him down and ran her hands across the hard planes of his back, tracing the knobby ridges of his spine, then up again to smooth the taut cords of his neck.
“Oh, lady, I love it when you touch me. God, your hands …” The heel of her hand came down to rest against his stomach, and her fingers caressed his rigid member. He sucked in a ragged breath.
Fearing he would lose control, Grady reluctantly stilled her, but she continued to explore his flesh. Wherever the tips of her fingers touched, his skin seemed to jump in response. In self-defense he nudged her legs apart and slipped his hand between her thighs. He heard her soft intake of breath as he began to stroke her. When his fingers penetrated her she knew a moment of raw pleasure. When his mouth replaced his hand, Storm simply ceased breathing. She made a feeble protest, but it went unheeded as Grady’s tongue lashed deliciously at the dewy petals opening to him like a flower to the morning sun.
Intense rapture simmered through her, making her lightheaded as she floated on a fluffy cloud of incredible sensation. She was no longer flesh and blood but a spirit with no substance, existing on a high plane of physical awareness. When Grady’s first thrust filled her, her body responded, tightening around him, memorizing the shape and size of him. She raised her eyes and found him staring at her. His face was stark and intense, his eyes dark with fierce passion. Tension pulled his cheeks taut, making the hallows beneath more pronounced, his mouth nearly grim with purpose. She closed her eyes.
“No,” he said fiercely. “Look at me. I want you to know what you do to me.” His thrusts grew more rapid.
Storm was panting now, nearly senseless with the need to reach completion as she tilted her hips and thrust against him, meeting his frantic strokes with the frenzy of her own. Her eyes remained open. Not just because Grady had asked her to look at him, but because the stark beauty of his face and the raw passion in his expression held her enthralled. She wanted to savor the moment as her climax began, rising up from somewhere deep inside her. Grady’s mouth slanted across hers, swallowing her cry as his seed flooded her.
Flushed and perspiring, Grady remained embedded in Storm as the last shiver of pleasure coursed through him. His skin was so sensitive, he could have sworn white-hot sparks were dancing along his nerve endings. After several long minutes of silence their breathing eased and their heartbeats slowed to a dull pounding. Grady shifted his weight and lay beside her. “I didn’t hurt you, did I?”
“I didn’t notice.” Storm sighed dreamily. “I never knew loving could be so wonderful.”
“With the right person it is.”
“I loved Buddy, but—well, I never felt such profound rapture with him as I do with you. I used to feel guilty about it, but no longer. I loved Buddy in a completely different way.”
“Storm.”
“Ummm?”
Grady turned on his back, pulling Storm atop him. Her hair fell like a bright curtain about her face and shoulders. His hands grazed her breasts. “Are you tired?”
Storm grinned impishly. “What do you have in mind?”
“I want you again. This time you ride me.” He grasped her hips, urging her upward with the firm pressure of his hands. “Take me and put me inside you.” He almost exploded when she held him, guiding him into her. “Do whatever you want.”
She moved experimentally, and Grady followed. She leaned over, offering him her breasts. He took one nipple into his mouth, suckling with tortuous urgency. The exquisite pleasure mounted as he kneaded her breasts and thrust against her. His mouth whispered against hers, repeating her name as hot, sweet passion built inside him. His hands glided over her breasts and down her stomach until they rested at the place of their joining. When he massaged the tiny, sensitive button nestled at the juncture of her thighs, Storm arched her spine, threw back her head, and cried out in sheer joy. Grady bucked beneath her and found his own release.
Still panting, Storm raised herself and fell down beside him. If she wasn’t tired before, she was utterly exhausted now.
“I need a bath,” she said, wrinkling her nose. “I smell like I’ve been—”
“—Making love. You smell wonderful.”
“You’re incorrigible. I don’t know how I’m going to put up with you for the next hundred years or so.”
“Oh, lady,” Grady groaned, pulling her close. “If we keep this up, I’ll be worn out after the first fifty years. Go to sleep, sweetheart. I’ll wake you in time for supper.”
Grady was surprised to see Shannon pacing at the bottom of the stairs when he left the bedroom a short time later. “Mother, are you still here?”
“I couldn’t leave,” Shannon said, searching Grady’s face for a hint of what had happened upstairs. “I thought—that is—what if Storm needed me?”
Grady smiled, placing an arm around his mother’s narrow shoulders. “I told you I wouldn’t hurt Storm. I love her too much to harm her.”
Shannon clapped her hands together.
“Oh, Grady, do you mean it? I was so worried. I know you were angry, but I feel certain Storm would have told you about the baby soon. Are you happy? It’s time Tim had a brother or sister.”
“Yes, Mother, I’m happy. And since you’ve waited you may as well know that Storm and I have settled our differences. We’ll be leaving soon, before travel becomes dangerous for her in her condition. I also have wheat fields waiting to be harvested and a farm to run.”
“You know your father and I would love for you to stay on at Peaceful Valley.” Grady opened his mouth to speak. “No, don’t say anything. I know how you feel about your homestead. Blade and I felt the same about Peaceful Valley when we first settled here. As long as we keep in touch, I’ll be content.”
“I’ll never shut you or Dad out of my life again,” Grady vowed sincerely. “And I want you to visit us when the baby is born. Storm will need you.”
“I’ll be there, son, you can count on it.”
Grady made plans for their departure. Though Storm would miss Shannon and Blade, she was ecstatic about returning to the homestead to await the birth of her child. The one discordant note was Laughing Brook. Storm still hated the thought of the beautiful Indian maiden traveling with them, even if it was for a short time. Fortunately that problem was resolved when Soars-Like-An-Eagle and Laughing Brook approached Grady two days before their departure.
Soars-Like-An-Eagle’s handsome face wore a smug smile when he announced, “Laughing Brook will not join you when you leave Peaceful Valley.”
Grady slanted him a startled look. “Of course she will. I’m taking her back to the reservation.”
“No, you do not understand, Thunder. Laughing Brook is no longer your responsibility. It is my duty to see that she gets home safely.”
Grady’s puzzled glance shifted to Laughing Brook, who stood slightly behind Soars-Like-An-Eagle, her eyes downcast. “What’s this all about, Laughing Brook? What is Soars-Like-An-Eagle talking about?”
“Laughing Brook has promised to join with me,” Soars-Like-An-Eagle said before Laughing Brook could reply. “When we reach the reservation we will be joined according to the rites of the People. When I return to Peaceful Valley she will accompany me. Swift Blade has promised to hold my job for me until my return and has offered us the house Jumping Buffalo and Sweet Grass once occupied. I am most pleased with his generous offer.”
“Well, I’ll be damned,” Grady said wonderingly. He speculated on what Soars-Like-An-Eagle had done to wrought such a change in Laughing Brook. Then he looked into Soars-Like-An-Eagle’s eyes and recognized the proud gleam of possession, and the mystery was solved. He would have advised Soars-Like-An-Eagle to bed the little hellion long ago if it meant getting her off his back. “Is this what you want, Laughing Brook?”
Laughing Brook looked up at Soars-Like-An-Eagle with a sensuality Grady had never noticed in her before. Her lids were heavy, her lips slightly swollen, her face flushed. Having been awakened to sexual pleasure, she couldn’t keep the look of contentment from her eyes or turn her gaze from the man who had satisfied her so completely. Since that first time in the stable they had made love as often as they dared, and each time was better than the last. Laughing Brook had no idea Soars-Like-An-Eagle was a man of such fire and passion. So masterful, so powerful a lover! Why hadn’t she noticed it before?
“It is what I desire above all things, Thunder,” Laughing Brook said shyly.
“Then so be it,” Grady said, relieved to be spared the burden of returning the girl to the reservation. “I trust Soars-Like-An-Eagle to return you home safely.”
“I will guard her with my life.” Soars-Like-An-Eagle’s promise was pronounced with such passion Grady knew he had nothing to worry about. “She may already be with child.”
If Soars-Like-An-Eagle’s words shocked Grady, he gave no sign of it. Despite all the problems the girl had caused him and Storm, Grady felt that Laughing Brook would make a wonderful wife and mother to Soars-Like-An-Eagle’s children. He was glad they would live at Peaceful Valley instead of on the reservation, where survival was a constant struggle.
Storm was ecstatic when she heard about Laughing Brook and Soars-Like-An-Eagle. Nothing stood in the way now of attaining the kind of happiness she had always dreamed about. She wasn’t going to delve into the method Soars-Like-An-Eagle used to convince Laughing Brook that he was the man for her, but she’d be forever grateful to the young brave. And since they no longer had to make a detour to the reservation they could ride in comfort to Guthrie on the train.
Shannon and Blade accompanied them to the train station two days later. It was a sad parting, but one filled with renewed hope for the future. Grady was no longer a renegade Indian obsessed with revenge. Nor was he the mysterious drifter who hated white men and used his guns to prove it. He was Grady Stryker. Husband, father, farmer.
Tim was excited as the train approached Guthrie. But not as excited as Storm. Since their marriage she and Grady hadn’t been alone more than a few days. She looked forward with relish to her own household, with just Grady and Tim to occupy her days and nights. And the new baby, when it came, would make their life complete.
The train traveled through land lush with ripening wheat, and Grady hoped his own acres were faring half as well. The golden stalks appeared to be reaching out to the sun, their heads bobbing in the breeze. In a very short time he could begin harvesting. If this year’s crop was as good as expected, he’d soon be able to build Storm the kind of house she deserved. Grady couldn’t recall when he’d been so happy.
“We’re here!” Tim cried as the train pulled into the station in Guthrie only an hour behind schedule. Grady had been gone but two weeks, but Storm had been away over two months, and in that short time things had changed. There were several new businesses in town, a new church, and three new saloons.
“I left the wagon at the livery,” Grady said as they joined the passengers leaving the train. “We’ll stop for supplies first, then head out to the homestead. I hope the Martins fared well in my absence.”
“They’re the people you left in charge, aren’t they?” Storm asked curiously. Grady had told her how lucky he considered himself to find someone trustworthy to take care of things in his absence.
“Yes, Mabel and her son Clem. They were forced to sell their own homestead when the elder Martin died. I’d like to ask them to stay on and help out, but our house is too small to shelter two more people. They spoke of opening a business in town, but I got the feeling their hearts were set on farming.”
“Perhaps something can be worked out,” Storm mused thoughtfully.
After two stops, one at the general store and the other at the bank, Grady aimed the wagon toward the homestead. When they reached the outer borders of their land his heart swelled with pride at the sight of tall stalks of wheat bending in the gentle breeze. He hadn’t been able to plant all his and Storm’s combined acres, but enough had been cultivated to assure them a good yield. And as added protection for their investment, there were still Storm’s cattle to fall back on if the crop, for some unforeseen reason, failed. But from the looks of the healthy plants there would be no reason for failure.
Grady had sent a telegram ahead giving the date and approximate time they could be expected, and Mabel Martin had cooked a veritable feast in honor of their return. While Grady, Tim, and Storm devoured the meal, Clem and Mabel packed their belongings. Storm thought she saw a lingering sadness when Mabel looked around the snug cabin one last time.
“You’ve done a wonderful job looking after the farm, Mrs. Martin,” Storm said sincerely. “Grady was lucky to have found you and your son.”
“Please call me Mabel. It was a pleasure, Mrs. Stryker. Farming is really all we know, but when Hal died we had no money to support our farm. Clem worked hard, but our land isn’t as good as yours, and he wasn’t able to cultivate enough acres to make us a living. We sold out to a speculator for half what the land was worth. I’d give anything if we had a place like
this,” Mabel added wistfully.
“I have a suggestion,” Grady offered. “As you know, Storm homesteaded the quarter section of land adjacent to mine before we were married. Her cabin was burned down by hired gunmen, but the well is still intact. I could rent part of the acreage to you and Clem, and as payment Clem could work for me part time and you could help out Storm, since she’s expecting our first child. The only drawback is the lack of living quarters.”
Mabel’s brown eyes glowed with excitement as she mulled over Grady’s offer. “What do you think, son?” she asked as Clem came up to stand beside her. Clem was a big, strong lad of seventeen who had plenty of brawn but lacked direction. That was one of the reasons they’d had to sell their farm. The boy needed someone to tell him what to do.
“It’s better than living in town, Ma,” Clem said. “I don’t think I’d make a good shopkeeper. I’m not even sure we could afford to start a business with the money we got for the homestead. But we do have enough money to build a cabin if we rent land from Grady,” Clem added, warming to the subject.
“It would be wonderful having another woman close by,” Storm said, her eyes shining. Leave it to Grady to come up with a solution that served everyone concerned.
“Then it’s settled,” Mabel said, offering her hand to Grady to seal the deal.
“Take the wagon back to town,” Grady offered. “I’ll help build your cabin when you return with the material. Your help on the farm will be welcome, Clem. From the looks of the wheat, it will be ready for harvesting in a few days.”
Storm couldn’t recall when she’d been so content. Grady and Clem had worked tirelessly to erect the large, one-room cabin that would shelter the Martins. When it was completed Clem drove the wagon to town to pick up their furnishings, which had been stored in an empty warehouse after they moved from their homestead. Storm helped Mabel sew curtains. Mabel was thrilled with the results and expressed her gratitude for being given the opportunity to live where she and Clem would be happy doing the kind of work they enjoyed.