by Sara Jolene
Dutch rode up and hitched his horse to the post Aedan had his at. The two shook hands, and Rachel and Nessa listened as Aedan attempted to introduce him, but he was quickly interrupted by John Henry. “Oh, I know who he is…” He looked over at Rachel, who blushed immediately. “He’s the man that’s trying to court my daughter.”
Nessa rushed over at the sudden look of shock on Aedan’s face. She totally forgot she hadn’t had a chance to warn him. In that moment, she also knew that her sister hadn’t said a peep about her heading back to New York, because the look made it clear that Aedan still thought she and Dutch were planning to be together.
“Why don’t we all head inside? I’m sure Kara is cooking something delicious, and it’s got to be close to ready by now. She’s been in there all day. Kicked me out when I got home.” Nessa turned her attention to John Henry. “How’s your ankle, sir? Healing well?”
He nodded. “As well as to be expected.” He offered his arm to his daughter. “Rachel here is an excellent nurse. So much so she’s been workin’ with the doc down at the clinic.”
Nessa nodded. “I’ve seen her working there. She’s great with the patients and is really showing how fast she learns. I’m sure you’re very proud.”
John Henry was glaring at Dutch. Nessa wondered if he’d heard all the rumors about him around town. She knew he didn’t have the best reputation, but that was only because people took him as what they thought they saw. She knew him better than anyone in town. “I have to admit, I’m surprised to see him here.” John Henry stopped with Rachel on his arm right by the front door.
“My sister and I have known him since we were very small children. He’s one of my best friends, not just here in Creede but even in New York.” She made sure to connect her eyes with Rachel’s father’s. She wanted him to see how sincere she was being. “Kara’s too.” Nessa pushed the door open. “Everyone is hungry,” she called out, and just as she expected, Kara came hustling from the kitchen, apron still covering her dress and a cloth in her hand as she ushered them all into the sitting room.
“Supper will be on in just a moment.” She found Nessa and tipped her head toward the kitchen. “Nessa, could you help me get everything to the table, please?”
Nessa nodded and followed her sister. Rachel made sure her father was settled on the sofa and called out behind them, “I’d like to help too.”
Nessa turned and smiled at her as she tried to catch up. She also noticed that Dutch’s eyes hadn’t left Rachel since the moment he’d ridden up to the porch. Her smile grew. He was smitten, and she couldn’t wait to hear all about it.
Dutch didn’t, or couldn’t, pay attention to anything that everyone was talking about at supper. His mind was going over everything that had happened, again and again, interrupted only by thoughts of Rachel. He wondered if she was excited to see him tonight, as he was to see her. He’d wanted to thank Nessa. He’d known it was her doing that had brought them together.
She’d seen it even before he had. He wondered if all females had that way about them. Could they all tell when two people were meant to be together? The voices around him started to get louder. They were all laughing and having a good time. Dutch looked around the table and couldn’t help but smile. In one room was everything he’d never thought he’d had.
Growing up in Five Points had been rough. There’d been expectations, and people had to take care of themselves, protect themselves. High society, or any society actually, looked down on them, never coming to Five Points at all most often, and when they did, it was to do some sort of charity work. He remembered one time, just before his tenth birthday. There was a knock at the door. He was the only one home, and he’d answered it to find a very well-dressed man behind it. He was younger than most of the adults he’d ever seen. That man had been Holden Dobbs. His life had completely changed that day.
Holden had come looking for Dutch’s older brother, and when he’d not been there, he’d reluctantly settled on Dutch to run his errand for him. It had taken a lot of convincing, but by the next day he had steady work and was helping to feed his family. Holden had become his mentor that day. He’d watched everything the man did. Learned his every mood and preference. He had wanted nothing more than to be just like him.
Dutch looked up from his plate to Kara when she asked, “Freddie… Do you not like your biscuit?”
He looked back down at his plate, seeing the biscuit sitting there, untouched. Kara knew him well. Biscuits were his favorite. She probably wouldn’t have noticed if he’d kept pushing his vegetables around the plate or if he’d only cut up his hamburger steak and not actually eaten it, but since the biscuit sat there, it was his undoing. He shook his head and picked it up. “No. Sorry. I’m sure it’s wonderful. I was saving it for last.” He took a bite and tried to smile and chew at the same time.
Rachel laughed. The sound seemed to echo through the room and pierce through him.
“Don’t get distracted. I’ve been trying to stay away, but you’re not helping me help you very much.”
Dutch wanted to shake his head and rant at his old friend. But instead, he stared and tried not to make it obvious that there was someone in the room talking to him that shouldn’t have been. “You’re going to have to find a way to get out of here. You have to head to the mine. You’ll find answers there but only tonight. If you miss it, you’ll never have the opportunity again.”
Dutch panicked. He needed to go to the mine. Had to. He had to understand why things were happening in Creede the way they were and at the speed they were. Women had been being kidnapped, but Archie had turned out to be behind that. Reverend Bing and his wife were being harassed, but that had been Archie as well. Even John Henry, someone had caused him to fall off the roof of the new pub and break his ankle. There was no proof that it was Archie, but once Archie had been run over, the town had settled down. The villain was dead. He was gone. Everyone could live happily and peacefully. But it hadn’t lasted long. The news had spread quickly that one of the wealthiest men in the West had left behind a legacy with no heir. The vultures had descended.
Streams of unsavory men had ridden into town on horseback and by rail. There were carloads of miners but no mines for them to work at. There were all sorts of folks that had come to Creede looking to get a piece of what Archie had left behind, but things had become clear pretty quickly that he’d been in over his head in debt. Archie had been a man of words rather than action. He owed more people in and around Colorado than he’d have been able to pay back in lifetimes. Turned out he’d been a man that had held more of an illusion of money rather than actual handfuls of it. Those men had come to collect, and when they’d found out there was nothing but a line forming, they’d gotten rowdy and angry.
Now someone was trying to blow Dutch up, and he had to find out who. He’d been thinking more and more about Rachel and the possibility of having a family but knew that his life would have to change first. In order for him to move forward with any of the plans he had rolling around in his head, he had to know that he was safe because that would mean his family would be safe. He needed to find the person that had set those explosives and make sure they weren’t going to try again.
Dutch swallowed the chunk of biscuit he’d bitten off. It was dry and seemed to turn to a sticky ball in his mouth, making it hard for him to talk. He knew it was because he needed to leave. Kara’s cooking was excellent, and she’d never made anything he hadn’t liked. Her Sheppard’s pie was the best he’d ever had. He drank deeply from the cup that had been set in front of him. After returning it to its spot, he went to stand. “Kara, Nessa,” he glanced between the sisters, and then to Rachel, “Rachel… Ladies, I apologize, but I have to go. I forgot that I have a very important meeting this evening, and I’m afraid I’m going to be late if I don’t ride out now.”
All three women looked at him oddly. Nessa as if she knew he was fibbing, Kara with concern, and Rachel, well, Rachel just looked sad, and he couldn’t take it. He di
dn’t wait for anyone else to speak. He just turned and left the table. As soon as he was out of the room, he walked as quickly as possible to the door, pulled it open, and dove into the night. He gulped in the cool night air. The sun had set over the hill, causing there to be a chill in the air. You could almost taste autumn on your tongue as you breathed.
Dutch unhitched his horse and had one foot in the stirrup when a soft voice behind him caused him to stop and turn. “Please be safe.”
Rachel was there, her eyes piercing his even though they were soft and welcoming. He let out a breath and took his foot from the stirrup. He moved closer. He couldn’t help it. “I will be.”
Rachel took a step toward him. “No more accidents.”
Dutch smirked. “As much as I enjoy the nurse at the clinic, I don’t enjoy being blown up.”
Rachel took another step, her heart beating hard against her chest. She wondered if he could see it. She wondered what would happen if she took another step. They were so close, would she touch him? She inhaled sharply, his scent overwhelming her. He still smelled of ashes and flame though there was another scent, more powerful, that had tried to disguise them. She took the step.
She’d been right. Her body was so close to his that when her lungs filled, her body brushed against his. She tried to stop herself from holding air in her lungs, wanting to relish in the feeling of her body against his. But then, as she looked up to see his face, he leaned in, slanted his mouth, and covered hers in a soft kiss.
Chapter Nine
The ride up the mountain was difficult during the day, but at night, it was treacherous. More than once, Dutch felt the horse’s hooves slip off the side of the trail. He held tight and rode slowly, finally making his way to the top. He hitched his horse a ways away from where the shack used to be, not knowing what or who he’d run into. He’d seen brief flashes of light as he rode the trail, making him think there would be a fire, but so far he hadn’t seen anything.
Dutch crept over to where there was a line of trees that separated the area where the security shack had been and where the miners usually ate their lunches and congregated in the morning before they set to work. He peered through the trees, staying hidden from whatever could be on the other side. There was a fire, its flames hidden by the trees and the remnants of the shack. Beside it were four men.
Dutch crouched as low as possible and moved along the line of trees, trying to catch a glimpse of faces. He wanted to be prepared for what he was walking in to. He recognized Ab as his hair was a dead giveaway. So much so that Dutch briefly wondered why the man didn’t cut it. It was long and looked as if he never combed it. He wore hats but none of them hid the mess on his head. The man they’d met the other day, Jack Apple, was there, along with a man Dutch hadn’t met and Wade. It was all Dutch could do to keep from jumping out of his hiding place and attacking Wade. Instinctively he knew it had been him that had lit the wick.
He watched for a while, not seeing much. The men were standing around talking, sharing some food. It looked like someone had stopped by Edwin’s and grabbed a few meals. Just when he started to get impatient, Holden appeared by his side. “Not yet. They’re about to get to the good stuff.”
Dutch rolled his eyes. Holden had always been a little less than sophisticated when he talked, even for a derelict. He liked to try to turn most things into a joke, and more often than not, it came out as him sounding like he wasn’t up to the task he’d been given. Dutch knew better though. He knew Holden and his ways. The two had been a team for many years. He turned to where his old friend was watching the other men through the trees. “Why didn’t you tell me?”
Holden looked back at him.
“And don’t even say, ‘tell you what?’ because I know you can hear what I’m thinking, and even if you couldn’t, you already know what I meant,” he whispered.
His friend seemed to fade from view for a moment, right there in front of him. “What are you?”
The look in the man’s eyes was terrifying and reassuring at the same time. “Everything I did, I did to protect you and my daughters. As for what I am, I’m not sure there’s a good answer for that. I can tell you I was sent here to return to my former duties, protecting you and my daughters.”
“Do they know? Can they see you?”
Holden shook his head. “They don’t need me like you do, and unless they do, they won’t be able to. There have been a few moments when I’ve given one or both of them a word of advice, but nothing more than a voice in the wind.”
Sudden understanding settled over Dutch. He remembered a few times when Nessa had seemed off and then suddenly wasn’t. Plus, she’d mentioned a voice the other day.
“You have to help her get back to New York,” Holden explained. “Everything is arranged. If she can manage to stay out of the Whyos’ way for a day or two, the plan I had in place for this situation before they left so abruptly should come to fruition. She needs to go back though. It’s what’s best for everyone.”
Dutch nodded. “I will. First thing tomorrow, I’ll head to the house on the hill, and I’ll tell her everything she needs to know.” Quickly returning his attention to the men around the small fire, Dutch saw Ab and Jack, the man in the duster exchanging packages—packages that he’d never seen before—and then he saw small bags of what looked like silver. That was easy to understand. The part he didn’t get was when Ab handed one of the bags directly to Wade.
Rachel moved around the clinic, collecting linens and soiled clothes for her to take out and wash in the tub. Though she didn’t enjoy that particular chore that came with the job, she was looking forward to the way that working the cloth against the board helped her to think. It was one of the few chores at the clinic that required nothing but muscle, so her brain would be free to wander. And wander it did.
She heated the water, and after pouring it in the tub, she set to work, her mind immediately going to the conversation with her father last night after Dutch’s abrupt departure from supper. He didn’t think that Freddie was the right man for Rachel. Told her that he was nothing more than a hooligan, and that he’d wind up getting her into trouble. Rachel had tried to explain how Dutch had already impacted her life positively, but he wasn’t hearing any of it. Even Nessa and Kara had tried during dinner. Her father’s displeasure with the man Rachel was falling in love with had been palpable around the table.
Rachel moved the linens to the rinsing tub and started to wring them in her hands. She twisted and turned the fabric until her hands were red and raw before she hung them on the line that stretched from the back of the cabin across to a tree beside where the creek began. Rachel tried hard not to break down in tears. She knew that she was falling for, or rather already had fallen for, Dutch. The moment she saw him that night behind the mercantile, she’d known she’d see him again. Known that there would be more to their relationship. That he’d be significant in her life and not just for saving her from whatever that one group of outlaws had had planned for her. She turned back to her pail but ran smack into a broad, hard chest.
Rachel knew immediately it was Dutch. Her arms lifted of their own volition and wrapped around his back, hugging tight to his body. As a sense of peace washed over her, erasing all the doubt her father had planted, she whispered against his chest, “I’m learning that you have a knack for timing.”
He laughed and it vibrated through his chest where Rachel had her ear pressed against his skin. The sound filled her with a sort of hope. “Happy to be of service.” Rachel melted against him as his arms came up and around her back, returning her embrace, and they stood there holding each other.
“Want to tell me what happened?”
Rachel lifted her head and let her hold on him loosen. She looked up at his face and shook her head. “It’s nothing.”
Dutch’s eyes were dark. “It’s not nothing. Let me help.”
Rachel shook her head again. “What are we doing?” She had no idea where the words had come from. Her mouth hadn
’t even conferred with her brain before saying them. They’d just come out.
Dutch looked taken back. Rachel was horrified. She tried to pull away. Started to mumble apologies and things like never mind. But Dutch held her, letting her wiggle but not escape. Rachel appreciated that he let her fight. It made her feel like she had some control over the situation. She squirmed until the fight in her died and she stood, encircled in Dutch’s embrace, embarrassed and downtrodden.
Dutch moved one hand from her back to her waist and the other to her chin, where he lifted her face to meet his gaze. He was breathing heavily, and Rachel’s heart started to beat faster. Her mouth ran dry, and her cheeks got hot as her hands got sweaty. She went to lift them, to place them on his chest, but thought better of it as he leaned toward her and used his grip on her waist to slowly pull her closer. Rachel held her breath as he moved even closer, anticipation growing thick between them. He was going to kiss her, and she suddenly realized that she was going to let him. Not only let him, but she wanted him to. With a rush of sudden bravado, Rachel wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him to her, her lips crushing against his.
Dutch had been waiting for her to push him away or to tell him to back off, but none of that happened. Instead, one second he was dreaming of what it would feel like to have his lips on her softer ones again, and the next second it was happening. The instant he registered what was happening, he took over the lead, moving his lips against hers and pulling her body close to his, all thoughts being consumed by the fire that raged between them.
Dutch gently pulled away, wanting to gasp for breath but knowing that breathing would never be the same ever again. Breathing used to be easy, carefree. Not anymore. Now he knew he’d need her in order for his lungs to feel full. He knew what he needed to do. He had no idea how she’d react, but he was doing it anyway. He pulled in a deep breath. “What I’d like to be doing is marrying you.” Finally answering her question, he ran a hand down the side of her cheek. “Rachel, would you do me the immense honor of becoming my wife?”