by Connie Mason
Sleep? Meg thought wryly. How could she sleep with Jess's arms around her and his unique masculine scent teasing her senses? She should hate being close to this man, depending on him for her welfare, but curiously she wasn't. She felt... Words couldn't explain the strange effect Jess had on her, or express how much it frightened her to entertain those feelings.
Despite her resolve to remain alert, Meg dozed off and on during the day. They stopped briefly around noon to lunch on leftovers and relieve themselves, then continued on. Meg must have dozed off again for she was rudely awakened by a loud, gravely voice yelling, "What the hell did you do to my Meggie?"
"You're home, Meg," Jess whispered into her ear. "Tell your lover to put his shotgun down."
Zach's beloved face wavered before Meg as she shook off the last dregs of sleep. He was brandishing his trusty shotgun in Jess's face.
"Zach, it's all right," Meg exclaimed. "This is Dr. Jess Gentry."
"You sure about that, Meggie girl? You'd better explain before I blow the bastard to kingdom come."
"I'm sure, Zach. Put the gun down. I was shot and Jess saved my life."
Jess's eyes narrowed as he studied Zach. Somehow he had expected someone other than the middle-aged, grizzled man with gray-streaked blond hair and beard who glared at him with obvious distrust. His face beneath his untrimmed beard was deeply lined, and his nose looked as if it had been broken several times. He wore his hair long and clubbed in the back. This man was Meg's lover? Somehow Jess expected better of Meg.
But Jess was even more surprised when Zach set down his gun and stumbled toward him and Meg. Each step Zach took seemed awkward. And then Jess realized why; he dragged his left leg behind him.
"Shot! My God! Give Meggie to me." Zach's face held a world of concern as he held out his arms.
Jess hesitated, hating to place Meg in the care of a man who might drop her.
"I can stand on my own," Meg insisted. "Put me down, Jess."
Since Jess thought that was the best course of action, he carefully lowered Meg to the ground. When she wobbled, Jess quickly dismounted to help her, but he wasn't quick enough. Zach was already beside her, placing a steadying arm around her shoulders.
Unfortunately he gripped her too tightly and Meg cried out. "You've hurt her!" Jess all but shouted. "Be careful. She sustained a grave wound."
"Where was she shot and who did it?" Zach growled in reply.
"Beneath her right shoulder, just above her breast. Her whole right side is tender. One of the Calder brothers did it. She still isn't well enough to travel, but she insisted upon returning home." He shoved Zach's arm from around Meg's shoulder and replaced it with his own. "Open the door and point out her room, she needs to rest."
"Now just a blasted minute! Meggie is my responsibility. I appreciate what you did for her but I'll take over from here."
"Quit fussing, you two" Meg said in a voice that trembled from weakness. "I can do this on my...oh..." Her knees began to buckle.
Ignoring Zach's scowl, Jess scooped Meg into his arms. "Lead the way," he barked at Zach. "I need to inspect her wound. All the jostling today might have reopened it."
Zach sent Jess a hard look but didn't argue as he led the way into the house. Jess passed through a homey parlor and entered a hallway. Zach stopped at the end of the hallway and opened the door.
"This here's Meggie's room."
The room was neat and cheerful, with bright curtains at the window, a rug on the floor, and a patchwork quilt covering the bed. Jess placed Meg in the center of the bed.
"I'm all right, really," Meg insisted.
"There's blood on your shirt," Jess said grimly. "I'll get my bag."
Jess made a hasty exit. He returned a few minutes later, annoyed to find Zach hovering over Meg, holding her hand and gently stroking her face. It was obvious to Jess that Meg and Zach shared an intimate relationship. The thought of them together as lovers was not a pleasant one, in fact, it was downright disgusting.
"Move away from the bed, Zach," Jess ordered as he opened his bag and placed it on the bed. "Meg's wound needs immediate attention."
Zach gave him a belligerent glare. "I'll do it."
One of Jess's brows rose upward. "Are you a doctor?"
Zach wasn't giving an inch. "Are you?"
"Damn right I am. Move away so I can see to my patient."
Reluctantly Zach moved aside. But when Jess started to unbutton Jess's shirt, Zach roared out a protest.
"What in the hell do you think you're doing?"
Jess gave an exasperated sigh. Meg must have noted that he was at the end of his tether for she said, "Jess really is a competent doctor, Zach. He saved my life. It's a little late to worry about propriety."
"If you say so, Meggie," Zach grumbled. "You must be hungry, I'll go fix something nourishing to eat. You both look like you haven't had a decent meal in days."
"I'll need clean bandages," Jess called after him. "I've used up all I had."
Zach nodded and left the room. "That is one jealous man," Jess complained after Zach was gone. "How long have you two been together?"
"Five years."
Jess's hands stilled. "That's a long time. You must...love him a great deal."
He had her shirt off now and was carefully removing the bandage, which had become caked with blood.
"There isn't a finer man alive," Meg vowed.
"Isn't he a little old for you? A woman your age needs a vigorous lover."
Meg's eyes spat emerald fire. "You don't know a damn thing, Jess Gentry!"
Chapter Three
Jess was smart enough to figure out what was going on between Meg and Zach. What he assumed had been going on for five years, in fact. Why should it matter to him whether or not Zach was a good lover? Apparently Meg loved the man.
"That remark was uncalled for," Jess apologized. "Obviously Zach cares for you. You did say he wasn't your father, didn't you?"
Give it up, Jess, he scolded himself.
"That's right, Zach isn't my father."
"Your uncle?"
"No."
Jess didn't press further for Zach had returned with a handful of clean cloths.
"Will these do? I tore up a sheet."
"They're fine."
Zach's worried gaze settled on Meg. "Is everything all right? Meggie's gonna recover, ain't?"
"There's some bleeding but it's not serious. The wound looks clean. Where can I wash my hands? I don't want to touch Meg with dirty hands."
"There's a well outside, I'll show you."
"I'll be back in a minute, Meg," Jess said. "Try to relax."
"You really are a doctor, ain't you?" Zach said, looking on as Jess scrubbed his hands.
"I said I was."
"This is rough country. One never knows. I gotta protect Meggie. I'm all she has."
Jess couldn't help lashing out at him. "Sending her out after outlaws isn't the smartest way to protect her."
"Becoming a bounty hunter was Meggie's choice, not mine."
"Why does she do it?"
"It's all she knows. She's damn good at it. I taught her myself."
"You taught her?"
"I wasn't always the cripple I am now," Zach said defensively. "At one time Zacharia Purdee was the best damn bounty hunter in these parts. An bullet put a swift end to my career."
Jess dried his hands on the towel Zach offered. "How did you and Meg hook up?"
"Didn't she tell you?"
"No. All she said was that you weren't a relative."
"I ain't, and that's a fact. It ain't my place to tell you about us. You'll have to ask Meggie."
Jess searched his face. "Aren't you a little old for her?"
Zach bristled indignantly. "I ain't as old as I look. I'm only forty-five, still man enough to take care of Meggie."
Why didn't Zach come right out and say he and Meg were lovers? Jess wondered. Why did Jess even give a damn?
"I'd best get back to Meg. I hope you mak
e plenty of whatever it is you're planning on cooking. I'm starved."
Meg was sleeping when Jess returned. She didn't even stir when he cleaned her wound and covered it with a clean bandage. When he finished, he sat in a chair and watched her sleep. The next thing he knew, Zach was shaking him awake.
"Grub's ready. Should I wake Meggie?"
"No, let her sleep. The ride wore her out. That bullet took a lot out of here. She's a long way from well."
"You want to eat now? I'll set Meggie's food on the back of the stove to keep warm."
Jess rose, stretched, and followed Zach to the kitchen. "You've made Meg a comfortable place here."
"Meggie deserves it. I sent back East for a cookstove, just to please her. I was flush with money then, before that blasted bullet ended my career."
"So now you think it's all right to let Meg support you," Jess said with bitter emphasis. "You sit back while she risks her life. She almost got herself killed. What about next time?"
"Don't you dare judge me, Jess Gentry. Do you think I want Meggie placing her life in danger for me? She's her own woman. I've never tried to tell her what to do and I ain't gonna start now. We've got an understanding. It's been that way since the day I found her."
"Do you love her?" Jess challenged.
"Damn right. That little filly means the world to me."
"Then you'd best keep her home. She seems to think she needs to provide for you. You're lame but you're not helpless. Surely there is something you can do to provide a living for the both of you."
Anger simmered in the depths of Zach's intelligent blue eyes. "You don't know a damn thing, medicine man. No one wants to hire a cripple. Besides, I've known for a long time that something ain't right inside me."
"Maybe you should let me examine you."
"Yeah, maybe," Zach said noncommittally. "Sit down, grub is ready."
Jess mulled over Zach's words as he dug into the plate of savory venison stew loaded with vegetables, and biscuits that literally melted in his mouth. He couldn't recall when anything had tasted so good.
"Reckon I'll see if Meggie is awake," Zach said. "She should have something substantial in her stomach."
"Its time for me to move on," Jess said, pushing his plate back.
Zach paused with the ladle poised over the plate he was filling for Meg. "Where you headed?"
Jess shrugged. "Nowhere in particular."
Zach searched his face, as if seeking answers. "You running from the law?"
"Ask me no questions and I'll tell you no lies."
"Suit yourself. I ain't about to delve too deeply into the past of a man who saved my Meggie. Since you ain't in no hurry to get somewhere, why not stay on here for a few days? You said yourself that Meggie ain't out of the woods yet. I'd feel a heap better if I knew a doc was nearby to tend to her."
Jess was stunned. He'd gotten the impression that Zach didn't want him around Meg. That he was jealous of another man's attention to his Meggie. For some unexplained reason it irked Jess to see the older man's devotion to his young lover. They shared the kind of closeness he hoped to have one day with a special woman, should he ever be free to love and marry.
Jess had had his share of women, and upon occasion had visited whores, but none of them meant anything to him except for the release they brought him. That's why he felt such overwhelming guilt for not accepting responsibility for Delia Wingate's pregnancy. He was a doctor. He should have protected Delia against pregnancy, but she'd seemed so knowledgeable he assumed she had taken precautions. Besides, he knew there had been others before him; he would never know whether the child was truly his.
The guilt of making outlaws out of his brothers, however, still plagued him. He should have assumed responsibility even if the child wasn't his and taken the loan Wingate had offered. Had he done so, his brothers would be home on the farm where they belonged instead of fugitives.
"What do you say, Jess?" Zach prodded. "Will you stay on until Meg is well?"
"You sure I won't be intruding?" Jess couldn't help asking.
Zach slanted him a baffled look. "Meggie needs you, that's all that matters. She'll be out of that bed and overdoing before she's ready if someone doesn't lay the law down. She won't listen to me, and I don't have the gumption to deny her anything. Stay, Doc, for Meggie's sake."
"Very well, I'll stick around for the time being," Jess agreed somewhat reluctantly. "Meg is an exceptionally strong woman. I don't know how much longer she'll follow my advice, but you have to promise me something first."
"What's that?"
"You have to keep Meg home after she recovers. Don't let her continue to endanger her life. She's a woman, for godsake!"
Zach bristled angrily. "Meg is more than a woman. She's a damn good bounty hunter, one who's made a name for herself in these parts. But I reckon you're right," he said more reasonably. "I worry about her constantly when she's out. I tried to earn money to support us but no one would hire me. And decent jobs are scarce for women like Meggie. She preferred bounty hunting to the jobs she'd been offered in town."
"You'll just have to try harder to support Meg," Jess scolded. "For starters, you should marry her."
"Marry Meggie?" Zach said, as if the idea was abhorrent to him. "I wouldn't...I couldn't..."
"I could think of a lot of reasons why you should," Jess said, turning away in disgust. If Zach didn't want to make an honorable woman of Meg it was none of his concern.
"Truth is," Zach confided gruffly, "I have a wife back East. We never suited one another and she refused to accompany out West. Since neither of us had any desire to marry anyone else, we never bothered to divorce. Had a daughter once, too."
"Does Meg know about your wife?"
"Meg knows everything there is to know about me."
"If Meg is satisfied with this arrangement, then who am I to interfere? Where can I bed down? I noticed a barn outside. I've slept in worse places during the war."
"I never fought in the war," Zach reminisced. "I was too busy hunting down fugitives from the law. It was a hard life, but I earned enough money to buy land and build a decent house."
He paused, suddenly lost in memories. Then he cleared his throat and said, "No need to sleep in the barn. There's a room in the attic. Nothing fancy, just a cot and washstand. You should be comfortable enough."
Jess nodded. "Sounds fine. I'll bring in my saddlebags."
"Good. You do that while I bring Meggie her dinner. You'll find the stairs to the attic right through that door," he said, indicating a door located at the rear of the kitchen.
Jess found his horse in the barn where Zach had taken him earlier. Jess fed the tired animal a measure of oats, rubbed him down, and returned to the house with his saddlebags. He dropped them beside the attic door and strode down the hallway toward Meg's bedroom. The door was open and he paused in the doorway, frowning when he saw Zach carefully spooning food into Meg's mouth.
Meg looked up and saw him.
"I should check Meg's bandage one last time for blood," Jess said as he approached the bed.
"Soon as she's done eating, Doc."
Meg pushed the plate aside. "I've had enough."
"No, you ain't, honey. You gotta get your strength back, don't she, Doc?"
"Zach is right, Meg," Jess concurred. "How do you feel?"
"I slept most of the afternoon but I'm still tired. And I hurt. But I suppose that's normal. I'll be on my feet in a day or two."
"Like hell," Jess argued. "I should have listened to my better judgement and insisted that you stay put for another day or two before attempting the journey home. The ride wore you out. Maybe even set you back some. You're not getting out of that bed until I say so."
Meg's chin tilted stubbornly. "After you're gone I can do as I damn well please."
"I forgot to tell you, Meggie-girl," Zach explained. "I asked Jess to stay on a few days, until you're feeling better. Since he ain't headed anywhere in particular, he agreed. You're to do as he
says, hear? I ain't taking no more chances with your life."
"What does that mean?" Meg challenged.
"It means your bounty hunting days are over," He said sternly. "I don't want to lose you, honey."
"You won't lose me, Zach," Meg said, touching his face.
Jess didn't know how much longer he could watch the tender display between Meg and her lover. For some unexplained reason he wanted it to be his face Meg was caressing.
"If you've finished eating, I'll check your bandage before I turn in," Jess said, interrupting the poignant moment.
"I'll take the dishes to the kitchen and clean up," Zach said, relinquishing his place to Jess. "I'll come back when the doc's finished.
"There won't be any need for you to return," Jess said. "I'm going to give Meg laudanum for the pain. She should sleep the night through."
Zach sent Jess an unwavering look. "Nevertheless, I'm gonna be right here beside her all night."
Did Zach intend to lie in the bed with her? Jess wondered, picturing Zach in bed with Meg and not liking it one damn bit.
"Try not to jostle her," Jess said sourly. "She's still in considerable pain."
"I ain't gonna hurt her," Zach defended. "You don't have to warn me. Just see that you practice what you preach." With a last look at Meg, he picked up the dirty dish and shuffled out the door, closing it softly behind him.
Meg searched Jess's face. She couldn't imagine why he hadn't already left for parts unknown. "Why did you agree to stay?"
Jess shrugged. "You're my patient. I want to make sure you're completely healed before I leave. Besides, like Zach said, I've no place in particular to go."
He lowered the blanket and opened her shirt so he could inspect the bandage he'd changed earlier. "Looks good so far." He pulled the blanket down further. "You're still dressed. Do you have a nightgown? You'd be much more comfortable without those tight trousers."
"There's a nightgown in the chest at the foot of the bed. Bring it to me and I'll put it on."
Jess found the nightgown and shook it out. "I'll help you. You can't possibly manage on your own."
Meg groaned inwardly. Though Jess had seen every inch of her, she was suddenly uncomfortable with the thought of him looking at her. At first she'd been too ill to care, but now those incredible hazel eyes touching her flesh made her feel...not exactly uncomfortable but...tingly all over.