The Cowboy's Honor

by Amy Sandas

  Dean nearly choked in reaction to that last quip. She’d done it on purpose—taken his words and twisted them inside out to suit her new approach to the situation. Her about-face was irritating and impressive at the same time.

  But mostly irritating.

  “Time to go,” he said curtly. “There’s work to be done yet today.”

  “I’m ready. I just need to grab my bonnet.”

  Great. A bonnet too.

  He turned—resisting the twist of amusement that threatened his lips—and started from the shop, feeling more than hearing her as she rushed to follow close behind him. As soon as they stepped into the sunshine, she came up alongside him despite his ground-eating stride. He had to admit to a small dose of admiration for her clever bit of revenge. From the periphery of his vision, he saw her place a straw bonnet on her head and tie the ribbons beneath her chin, covering the vivid red of her hair and shading her creamy skin.

  She’d probably throw a fit if the sun started to bring out some freckles.

  Though, in thinking about it, the damned things would likely only make her more attractive.

  Stopping at the wagon, Dean turned and grasped her about her trim waist. His stomach clenched as he realized she no longer wore the stiff, unnatural corset. Under his hands was nothing but warm, soft woman.

  Before he could lift her, she leaned away from him and pressed her hands against his shoulders in an attempt to hold him at bay. “You do not have to lift me up every time,” she stated firmly. “Now that I do not have the confining skirts of my bridal gown, I am sure I can manage just fine with the offer of your hand.”

  He paused. His eyes slid over her features, and he noted again how pretty she was, especially since she wasn’t glowering at him as intensely as she usually did. Her eyes were smart and direct beneath the elegant line of her russet-colored eyebrows. Her cheeks were high and held a faint rosy hue, while her nose was straight and narrow, and her lips… Their natural coral-pink color made him hold his breath. He wasn’t sure he’d ever seen lips that color before. And surely he’d never seen a mouth that curved in such a way, with pert arching lines and a lush dip at the bottom.

  When he didn’t speak and didn’t move to let her go, she tipped her head curiously and lifted one brow by the tiniest degree. The shift in her expression fanned the inner discomfort he’d been feeling since he’d run into this woman.

  He replied in a tone rougher than it should have been, “This is quicker.” And he swung her up into the wagon, ignoring how the sudden widening of her eyes at the maneuver sent a streak of satisfaction—and something else—shooting through him.

  Chapter Ten

  When Courtney Adams set her mind to something, she didn’t often fail. She enjoyed facing challenges head-on with unwavering faith that things would turn out as they were meant to.

  Of course, it was rare for anything not to go in her favor. Her father had once told her she had been born under a charmed star.

  So, despite the extremely odd and distressing news that she had been married without her consent and the fact that she was now stuck in this rural area of Montana—who knew how many miles from Helena—she had decided to stop dwelling on what had gone wrong and start enjoying what was right.

  One, she was well out of Boston.

  Two, she was not married to Geoffrey and living in complete ignorance about his love affair with another.

  Three, aside from the little issue of being the momentary bride of a gruff yet stupidly attractive stranger, she was entirely on her own, which led to…

  Four, her adventure had begun.

  She was going to spend the next four weeks on a real working cattle ranch. How much more adventurous could a pampered lady from the east expect to get?

  And, of course, she knew she was pampered. She knew the man sitting beside her on the uncomfortable wooden seat saw her as the spoiled little heiress she was. He probably also thought she was a frightful shrew after the fit she’d thrown the day before.

  But she didn’t particularly care what he thought of her.

  She had come west to test herself, to push herself to new limits of experience and previously unexplored levels of independence, and to discover if she was worthy of more than to be the arranged bride of a man who possessed all the characteristics of a perfect husband but reserved his love and passion for someone else.

  Love and passion.

  If she was to be honest with herself—and Courtney always tried to be at least that—beyond independence and self-confidence, perhaps she was hoping she might find something like that for herself.

  She had to admit that Alexandra’s escapade the year before and her letters detailing her new life had inspired Courtney more than she’d been willing to acknowledge.

  She feared, however, that the kind of connection her friend had found with her bounty-hunter husband was not for everyone. Courtney couldn’t think of a single other person of her acquaintance who had the same.

  So true love and passion were probably a long shot. Adventure was still a worthy goal.

  “I’m sorry for what happened yesterday.”

  Courtney startled at the roughly muttered words. She’d assumed their drive would be made in silence, as the previous two trips had been. But then the meaning of his words sank in and she turned to face him.

  “You’re sorry for what happened?” she repeated, slightly incredulous.

  Aside from a quick and subtle flick of his gaze to the side, he kept his focus trained on the road ahead. It took a few moments to realize that was all he was going to say. That was the extent of his apology.

  After waiting so long for it, Courtney had built up the moment of his contrition in her mind. The reality did not come close to what she’d envisioned. She couldn’t even say she’d heard any honest regret in his tone.

  She suspected his pride kept him from saying more. But she had a touch of pride herself.

  “Oh,” she exclaimed with a good dose of drama, “you must be referencing the fact that you dragged me before a judge and married me against my will.”

  “I didn’t know it was against your will,” he grumbled.

  “A simple question, such as Do you want to marry me? would have cleared that up rather nicely.”

  “You showed up in town wearing a wedding dress.”

  The way the muscles of his jaw clenched when he spoke was fascinating.

  “We have already gone over that. More than once,” Courtney replied, trying not to get irritated. “It is no excuse for the way you treated me.”

  He took a deep breath. “I know. I just said I’m sorry.”

  “Well. That must have been extremely difficult for you, but I find it a little difficult to simply forgive such high-handed, careless behavior,” she finished primly as she turned to face forward.

  She would forgive him eventually, of course. She was not good at holding a grudge. But she figured she deserved to see a little groveling first.

  That, and she suspected her refusal would trigger a rather heated response, and she’d decided she liked it when he got all gruff and irritated. It was far better than extended silence.

  Muttering something incoherent, he gave an expert flick of the driving reins, and the wagon drew up to a swift and sudden stop right there in the middle of the dirt road.

  Courtney glanced about, wondering what had caused the abrupt halt.

  But she could see nothing to suggest a need for the maneuver. Just the long stretch of the rutted dirt road ahead and behind them, and the endless raw countryside all around. They weren’t near any other homesteads at the moment, and there was certainly no other traffic. She might have suspected a wild creature of some sort had gotten in their way, but there was nothing.

  Then the man beside her—her husband—turned in his seat and swept his hat off his head to smack it hard against his thigh.r />
  “I apologized. You’re gonna accept, then we’re gonna move on. Got it?”

  The flash of ire in his gaze and the way his features became all tense and hard sparked an answering response inside her. A brilliant flare of heat threatened her recently reestablished good humor, but she resisted its lure. As much as she may have enjoyed it, she really should not lose her temper again.

  “No,” she replied in a tone of forced lightness, “I do not. Frankly, an apology means nothing if it isn’t sincere. And I find myself doubting yours, especially as I still have absolutely no idea why you did what you did.” She smiled. “If you’d care to enlighten me, perhaps I will reconsider.”

  His gaze narrowed, causing fine lines to fan out from the corners of his eyes. It was odd how those lines made him appear more human somehow, more vulnerable.

  Then he spoke and ruined it. “It’s none of your damn business.”

  Courtney stiffened at his language and the heavy-handed tone, but she continued to meet his gaze as she rested her hands calmly in her lap. “I disagree. Since it landed me in the position of being your wife for the next four weeks, it most certainly is my business.” She lifted a brow, figuring she would give him a little nudge. “I gather it has something to do with your brother…Randall, is it?”

  He smacked his hat against his thigh once again and glanced skyward, as though wishing for a heavy dose of patience to be delivered from the heavens. Then he put his hat back on his head and slid her a sideways glance. “You’re not gonna let this go, are you?”

  Another practiced smile. “I’m afraid not.”

  The lines across his forehead deepened. He really did not want to do this.

  Courtney smiled wider.

  He took a heavy breath, then shifted his gaze to look out over the horses, which had started to graze on some grass at the side of the road.

  “My brother got it into his head that I need a wife.” He paused, and Courtney held her tongue, fighting the urge to ask why. “A few weeks ago, he brought home one of those pamphlets for Eastern brides seeking husbands in the Western Territories. I told him to go to hell, and he said something to the effect of that if I didn’t have any interest in finding a bride, maybe he’d do it for me.”

  Courtney gasped. “He wouldn’t have!”

  “I didn’t think so either.” He glanced at her from the corner of his eye. “Then I saw you.”

  “And your first thought was that your brother had brought me here to marry you?” She could not manage to keep the incredulity from her voice.

  He muttered a few incoherent words beneath his breath as he swept his hat off again. Apparently, it was something he did when he was particularly agitated.

  “Women like you aren’t common around here. The last time a fine-stepping Eastern lady passed through these parts was more than twenty years ago. Before I headed to town yesterday, Randall asked me to pick up something special at the post office.”

  “I was at the post office,” she said, starting to see how he might have jumped to a certain conclusion.

  He eyed her directly. “Wearing a wedding gown.”

  He was really stuck on that point.

  But maybe she could understand his assumption. “Still, you could have asked me who I was and why I was there. And you certainly didn’t have to take me straight to the judge and marry me, especially since you didn’t even intend to honor the union.”

  He lowered his chin a notch while still holding her gaze. “I know.” His voice was hard and curt. “But at the time, it seemed like the best way to keep you safe from unwanted attention while I figured out what to do with you.”

  Courtney’s eyes widened in astonishment. “You married me to protect me?”

  “These parts can be dangerous for a woman alone. Since I thought you were brought here on account of me, I figured you were my responsibility.”

  It took a moment for that idea to sink in, and when it did, a rush of warmth accompanied it. But Courtney wasn’t quite ready to accept the explanation as it was. “Surely, marriage was not the only solution to the situation.”

  He muttered a curse under his breath. “Probably not, but I was frustrated about Randall going behind my back. I wasn’t thinking straight.”

  “You were not thinking much at all, in my opinion.”

  The muscles in his jaw ticked. “I didn’t ask for your opinion.”

  “Well, now you have it. I imagine you will be getting quite a bit more of my opinion over the next four weeks, so you should probably get used to it.”

  “Now, hold up,” he said, his spine going stiff and straight. His features darkened with tension, and his light eyes met hers, hard and direct. The hard shift in his manner caused a wary thrill to chase along her nerves.

  The broad width of his shoulders was intimidating when so close, and for a moment, Courtney had to resist the urge to shrink away.

  She was not a shrinker.

  She didn’t think his rough, commanding attitude was intended to frighten or bully. It seemed more that he was just accustomed to his orders being followed. This man was not like the gentlemen back home. He was not bound by the social parameters of behavior she was accustomed to maneuvering around to get her way.

  This man lived by different rules. Rules she was not privy to, though she suspected she was about to learn a few of them.

  “We’re gonna get something settled right here and now,” he continued. “We might be married on paper until Judge Wilkerson rips that certificate to pieces, but you are not my wife. I am not your husband. This was a mistake…one I’ve apologized for once and won’t again,” he added when she opened her mouth to interrupt.

  Courtney pressed her lips together. She could bide her time for the chance to respond.

  “You’ll have a room in my house,” he continued in that sharp tone, “and a seat at my table. But I do not need to hear your opinions or thoughts or anything else you might have to share.”

  Her eyes narrowed as the blood in her veins grew hot. But still, she held her tongue.

  “I have a ranch to run. You need anything, you go to Jimena. Otherwise, you keep to yourself. Got it?”

  Courtney took a steady breath, then smiled slowly, though her heart beat fast and heavy with the desire to bash the man over the head. She had never in her life been spoken to in such a manner, and she wasn’t about to allow it now. Not from this uncouth, ill-tempered cowboy.

  “Again…no, I do not get it,” she stated firmly. “I have no intention of getting in your way or interfering with your ranch, Mr. Lawton. However, I will not be shoved into a corner so you can do your best to forget I exist. I’ve just liberated myself from a gilded cage, and I have no plan to accept more of the same from you. I’m here to start living my life in full, and I will do it on my terms.”

  He stared at her. His lean, muscled body was unmoving and only inches away. His icy gaze flashed, while his mouth pressed into a firm, frustrated line.

  She stared back, soaking in the heightened energy that seemed to bounce between them. Something about going toe-to-toe with this man made her feel so thoroughly…alive. She was not about to let him intimidate her with his harsh, masculine irritation. And she absolutely refused to think about how, in the oddest way, when he was all intense and annoyed, his handsomeness became that much more obvious. It was because of the hard angles and shadowed hollows of his face, those intriguing lines at the corner of his eyes, and the harsh shape of his mouth that looked well-suited for smiles and laughter if the man would just lighten up a bit.

  No. She wasn’t going to think about that at all.

  “Lest you forget,” she continued in a lowered tone, “you dragged me into this mess of a marriage, so you are going to have to deal with me. As I am. Opinions and all.”

  His brows lowered, and somehow, the shift actually softened his expression. Not by much, b
ut enough for Courtney to notice. Then one corner of his mouth tilted upward. She wouldn’t have called it a smile exactly, but it seemed to be something rather close to it.

  “How could I possibly forget when you keep reminding me every chance you get?” His tone was rueful.

  Almost amused.

  Courtney’s insides fluttered wildly, nearly distracting her from her purpose. She would not let the suggestion of his smile ruin another good argument. Keeping her internal reaction under wraps, she lifted her brow in a subtle question, intentionally challenging him to dispute her. “I simply want to make sure we understand each other, Mr. Lawton.”

  He narrowed his gaze in a hard squint for several long moments, then gave a rough clearing of his throat. “It’s gonna be a long four weeks,” he muttered as he shoved his hat back on his head and picked up the reins to start the wagon moving again.

  And the point for that round went to Courtney.

  Chapter Eleven

  The sun was getting high by the time they reached the ranch, and Dean still had a lot of work to do that day. He hoped Randall had at least gotten the horses moved to the western pasture as he’d asked.

  He should probably ride out there to check.

  His mind on other things, Dean drove the wagon around to the barn as he would have any other day. He didn’t realize his mistake until he stepped to the ground and saw the crate in the bed of the wagon that he still needed to bring over to Randall and Pilar’s place. “Aw, hell.”

  “What is it?”

  Dean hopped back up into the driver’s seat. “I forgot to take care of Randall’s package. I’ll bring you ’round to the house first.”