Beauty and the Beasts [Bride Train 6] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) (6 page)

“If you’re eager to kiss me, a bit of pain won’t matter.” He pulled her a little closer so he could whisper into her ear. “You going to give me a kiss for luck?” He nibbled on her earlobe. Her breath caught. After a moment she shook her head.

“If there’s anything left of you after this stupid fight, I might kiss you,” she said. “Maybe.”

He let Sarah pull away. She stomped into the kitchen, head high. If she wouldn’t marry Luke, maybe she’d consider Gabe. It didn’t matter to Oz as long as she was on the Circle C, sharing with him.

“You’re going to have your hands full,” said Jack, chuckling. “She’s way shorter than Beth, but just as wild.” He slapped Oz on the back.

“You think Sarah’ll kiss me again, Sophie?”

She gave him one of those female smiles that could mean anything, or nothing, before following Sarah into the kitchen.

“The rest of the room couldn’t see but, from the way she kissed you, I bet Sarah’s got as much passion as Beth,” said Jack. “But you’d better stop thinking about her or you’re going to injure something vital during that fight.”

Oz bounced on his feet, eager to prove himself again. Anticipation flowed, bringing a tingle of awareness to every part of him.

“I don’t care where I get hit, as long as Sarah kisses it better.”

Luke saw Oz riding up the lane from town, but he kept working. A quick glance and he went back to swinging the adze, squaring the logs for the addition to their cabin. After his run-in with Sarah that morning he wasn’t going appear too eager by asking about her.

He didn’t expect Oz to understand why he wanted sons so much, but he’d grown up with Gabe and his half dozen older brothers. The man knew it was up to Luke to ensure the Frost name continued. With his father and uncles dead, and no male cousins, the entire future of the family rested on his shoulders.

He snickered to himself. No, the future was riding on his cock. On his ability to find a woman, marry her, and make babies. He’d found the woman last fall, when Sarah looked up at him with trust and courage. Right there, he knew she was for him. But what would make Sarah agree to marry him?

He used to be wealthy, handsome, and privileged. As the only son of an important family he could take his time deciding which woman would best enhance the family’s holdings. But then war intruded. Both his father, and Gabe’s, were killed because they supported the North. Of course, the two of them had to join the fight.

Looking back, would he do it again? Yes, but he would make sure he got home a week, even three days earlier. What happened to his face was nothing compared to the destruction of his family. That had nothing to do with war. It was due to jealousy, lechery, and greed.

He couldn’t save his family back then, but he could protect Sarah now. He would give her his name, his protection, and himself. She would give him comfort, children, and a future worth living. He didn’t care what was done to her in that whorehouse. She’d endured two weeks of hell, but she was alive. His sisters were not.

Gabe rode toward Luke, coming from the northwest. He set the tool on a log, crossed his palms on the end of the handle, and rested. Sweat soaked his hair and ran down his chest and back. He had a few blisters on his palms, but that wasn’t unusual. Unlike his wealthy father and grandfather, who were proud of their smooth skin and pale complexion, he was a rancher. He did honest work with his hands instead of trading in commodities and other people’s lives.

“Your grandpa would have taken a switch to you for leaving a couple of buttons undone,” said Gabe. “And here you are, shirtless.”

“My great-grandfather would as well. But unlike them, I work for my living.”

“You missed a spot.”

Gabe pointed to a bump caused by a knot. If the timbers weren’t smooth they wouldn’t sit tight one on the other. That meant weather, critters, dust and, worst of all, freezing winter winds, would sweep through their home. Luke took care of it with one slice.

“You satisfied with my work now? I have to put supper together.”

“Yep.” Gabe nudged his horse forward. “And since we’re having leftovers from yesterday’s weddings, you won’t burn anything.”

“That was once!” called Luke after him. Gabe raised a hand to say he’d heard but wasn’t taking back his words.

No one could rile him like Gabe, though Oz was getting close. The longer he knew his friends, the easier it was for them to stir him up. Women were different. You didn’t have to know them at all before they could make you want to set your hair on fire just by looking at you.

Luke put his tools away, slapped his folded shirt over one shoulder, and shambled down to the cabin. Only ten feet by twelve, it was far too small for three large men. He couldn’t marry Sarah before finishing the addition, which would triple the size.

After washing up he put on a pot of coffee and assembled supper. Sophie and Sarah had packed up wedding feast leftovers for the bachelors. The married folks went home early, so missed out on the extra food. He laid out cold roast chicken, bread, mayonnaise, and pickled beets. His stomach rumbled. They’d all be better off when Sarah married him. There’d be hot, tasty food waiting at the end of a long, cold day. A light in the window would beckon them home, and a woman would warm his bed. Later, there’d be children to continue the respected Frost name.

Oz shuffled into the cabin. Luke couldn’t stand it any longer. He’d been worried about Sarah all morning, thinking of the dirty, woman-hungry miners he’d seen lining the boardwalk, waiting to get inside the hotel dining room.

“Did you see Sarah?”

“Yep.” Gravel crunched under Oz’s boots as he walked over to the table. He kept his head down as he looked at the food.

“And?”

Oz ignored Luke’s question. The man liked to get under a man’s skin. A shadow fell across the small room as Gabe leaned into the doorway. His massive chest more than filled it.

“Did Sarah serve in the dining room?”

“Yep,” replied Oz.

“You’re not talking much,” said Luke. “You get in another fight?”

Oz turned. He’d pulled off his eye patch, which he usually did as soon as he left town. Luke raised an eyebrow at the new cuts and bruises. Oz might be able to open his good eye tomorrow, but he doubted it.

“You win?”

Oz scowled. Luke read his “you have to ask?” expression.

“One good thing about Oz fighting,” said Luke to Gabe, “it’s quieter around here until the swelling around his mouth goes down.”

They sat down to supper, knowing it would be the best meal for a while. Luke grinned when Oz stuck to bread and mayonnaise. He tried the beets but hissed when the spices touched his cut mouth. Luke saw him glance longingly at his steaming coffee. The man had been in enough fights to wait until it cooled before drinking.

“Sarah should be sitting with us,” Luke groused, “not serving strangers in the hotel dining room. Someone might bother her.”

“Won’t happen again,” mumbled Oz. He chanced a sip of coffee.

“Again?” Luke leaned forward. “Did something happen today?”

Oz shrugged. He winced and rubbed his shoulder. “Miner grabbed her skirt. She whapped him on the knuckles. He howled and let go.”

Luke slammed his palm on the table. “You waited this long to tell us someone attacked her?”

“Me and Jack threw him out.” Oz used his hand to move his jaw left and right. “He won’t be back.”

“If you look like that, how bad is he?”

“This wasn’t from the miner. Some guy who thought himself a curly wolf insulted me, so I had to—”

“How is Sarah?” Gabe asked quietly.

His voice, like the bottom of a well, cut through most voices. Oz smiled like a cat with more cream than he knew what to do with. Luke’s gut clenched.

“She kisses real good,” said Oz, dragging the words out.

“She kissed you?” Luke looked at Gabe, then back at Oz.

“She pecked Jack’s cheek.”

Luke waited while Oz carefully sipped more coffee. “And…?”

Oz sat up. He blotted his bleeding lips with his shirt. He reached for his coffee mug again but Gabe put his paw over it.

“You kissed Sarah?”

Oz ignored Gabe’s question. Luke and Gabe shared a look. They stood up, shoving the bench on its side. Each man grabbed Oz by his shirt and lifted. Oz squawked, his toes dangling above the floor.

“For a man who usually won’t shut up, you’re not saying much,” said Luke. “I assume that means something important happened?”

Oz nodded. They released his shirt, letting him drop to the floor. He took a moment to settle his clothes and further frustrate them. He looked at Luke, and then Gabe. He sighed and smiled through his cracked lips.

“She wanted to thank me and Jack with a kiss for tossing the miner in the street. I told her more men might go after her unless she already had a husband in mind. Being the gentleman I am, I offered the Circle C’s help. You weren’t there, so I kissed her.” He slowly shook his head, sighing. “That woman kissed like she meant it, and wanted more.”

“You kissed Sarah in front of the whole damn room?” sputtered Luke. “
You?
”

Oz nodded. Luke was sure there was a smirk hidden in his swollen face.

“Dammit, I’m the one that needs sons to carry on my name.”

“You weren’t there. I was.” Oz smoothed his shirt with his palm as if it would take out the wrinkles. “But don’t worry, I told her it was from you.” He rubbed his jaw again. “You can thank me now.” He waggled his eyebrows as a further insult.

Luke grabbed hold of Oz’s shirt and pulled his fist back to smash that smirk. A hand caught his wrist. He tried to punch but couldn’t move his arm.

“Let it go,” growled Gabe. “You got what you wanted. In the eyes of the town, and all around, Sarah accepted the Circle C.”

“I told her you’d want to prove you’re a better kisser,” said Oz, still taunting him. “You’re not, of course.”

Luke fought to get loose and wipe the insolence off Oz’s face.

“Oz, shut up,” said Gabe calmly. “Luke, stand down. Oz took advantage of the opportunity, but he got the job done. No decent man will bother Sarah now.”

Luke glared at Oz, promising retribution, but relaxed his arm. Gabe let him go.

“I’m going into town tomorrow and tell her to get used to the idea of becoming Mrs. Luke Frost!”

“I’d think twice on that,” drawled Gabe. “The lady told you she won’t marry.”

“She’ll change her mind once I tell her I won’t take away her bakery after our wedding.”

“You’d let her work in town?”

Luke shrugged off’s Gabe’s question. “I didn’t say that. Once she marries me, I could sign the building over to her. She could rent it out for pin money.”

“Sarah wants to run her bakery as a business.
Her
business,” said Gabe. “She won’t marry you or anyone else who’d take away something so important to her.”

“She won’t have time to work there, especially after we have a baby or two.” Luke looked at his partners, who stared back.

“They might end up being our babies, instead of yours,” said Oz. He laughed when Gabe, caught in mid-swallow, choked on his coffee.

“You’d better get your chores done before that eye closes,” ordered Luke.

Oz gave Luke a flippant salute and headed for the barn.

“You want to marry Miss Sarah so bad, but you’re not going about it right,” said Gabe after the door slammed behind Oz. “Sarah needs a better reason to give up her dream than giving you sons.”

Luke shrugged off the complaint. “Marriage is a business arrangement. My mother and father married to improve both their families. So did my grandparents, and great-grandparents. Sarah meets my needs, and then some. Why shouldn’t we marry?”

“And how do you meet Sarah’s needs?”

Luke hadn’t given that much thought, but figured she was like the women he knew back East. “From what Oz said about that kiss, whatever happened to Sarah in Bannack City didn’t kill off her interest in sex. If she wants a man in her bed, and children, she needs a husband.”

“No, she doesn’t,” said Gabe, his face and ears reddening.

“Are you going to offer your stud services?” Luke laughed at Gabe’s discomfort. “She has a lot more experience than you. Hell, you ran out on her this morning!”

“She took me by surprise. I’m a fast learner, and I respect her. Do you?”

Luke looked at the floor. “Yes, I do,” he said quietly. “Having family means so much to me that sometimes I get my mind on that and everything else goes out the window.”

“So start thinking before flapping your jaws.”

Luke shrugged off the old complaint. “If Sarah wants to keep that bakery, she has to marry someone. The town council will shut her down if she stays single. Why not marry me? I’d never do anything to hurt her.” Luke stacked the plates and cups for washing.

“Not on purpose.”

“You’re saying I’d hurt her without knowing it?” He dumped the dishes into the pan.

Gabe shook his head. “She says she can take care of herself, and she needs to believe that. In order to feel safe, she needs to think she’s in control. You want to take over making her decisions. That destroys her sense of control, and safety.”

“Control?” Luke snorted a laugh. “She’s a woman. That means she’s always in danger. Knowing we’ll come after them and take vengeance stops most men, but there’s always some who’ll try to hurt a woman just because they can.”

“Like that Joe Sheldrake.” Gabe shook his head. “Never met the man, but I heard he’ll be coming to town to check Miss Sarah out, for sure. One kiss by Oz isn’t going to stop him. He’ll take it as a challenge.”

“If he goes near her I’ll—”

“Get pummeled into the dirt? And how would that help her? We have to keep an eye out so she doesn’t get hurt.” Gabe pointed his callused finger at Luke. “Don’t go getting her riled up about marrying you.”

“Or what?” Luke felt like exploding. Instead, he slapped Gabe’s finger aside. “I don’t need you hovering over me, telling me what to do.”

Gabe set his hip on the corner of the table. He sniffed and looked around the room as if bored. “You plan to act like a child, or like the man you say you are?”