Echoes of the Heart (15 page)

           
Brain
still active, he thought of Dull Knife his former in-law, running through a
list of supplies they would need.
 
Since
hunting buffalo left the Indians vulnerable to capture, they would need plenty
of food and warm blankets.
 
Slim had
already taken them cattle, the rest available at the mercantile.

           
Perhaps
political involvement offered the answer to aid their cause but he felt the
position of governor would not have much impact on the federals in charge of
decisions regarding the Natives.
 
He did
not like feeling powerless.
 
There had to
be something he could do about their situation.
 
Putting the thoughts aside until later, he left to purchase their goods.

           
A
voice in the back of his mind told him Raeden would be nothing but trouble if
he continued contact.
 
He seemed drawn
like a magnet and his thoughts became muddled.
 
When she came near him, he wanted to bed her and the urge became more
difficult with each meeting.
 
He would
just have to try harder.

***

Heavy boots on the
wood planks pre-announced his entrance and breathed in her aroma when he
entered the storefront, even though vacant of her presence.
 
Then he scanned her workspace and found her
there, leaning over her machine sewing pieces of fabric cut into forms.
 
He marveled at her precision with the
machine.
 
She was so engrossed in her
labor, she did not even notice he had arrived and stood directly behind her.

His eyes poured
over the gentle curve of her neck, along her back to the small waist to settle
on the striking chestnut hair falling in waves around her shoulders and down
her back.
 
He curbed the urge to pull her
into his arms and take what he wanted—no needed.

           
He
assumed she sensed his presence when she rose to face him, her stern cat- like
green eyes glaring.
 
“Are you here to buy
the supplies you mentioned last night?
 
I’m sure Mike or Diane will be pleased to assist you.”

           
Her
irritation apparent, he laughed to himself.
 
After all, she had not put up too much resistance to his advances.
 
“I have a list of things here.
 
Tell Mike I will be by in the morning.”
 
His mind told him to run but his eyes
betrayed him.
 
They scanned the length of
her lithe figure leading to a swelling in the lower part of his anatomy.
 
His jeans became tight.
 
No way would he stand there and endure this
torture.
 
He spun around and went for the
door.

           
“Good
day, Marshal.”
 
Raeden’s face fell with
disappointment while her heart sank to her feet.
 
Why am
I attracted to such a ruffian?
 
How
dare he turn his back on her and leave as if she had cooties.
 
She had wanted at least to have the chance to
tell him what she thought of his attempts to deceive her into thinking him more
than the creature he appeared on the surface while intending only to use her
for his own amusement.
 
She had heard of
men like him, the cads and rakes preying on innocent women.
     

           
Standing
at the door watching his back, he did a sudden about face and in an instant she
found herself absorbed by his arms.
 
He
bent down to possess her mouth, demanding and hot.

           
Against
her own will she opened her mouth to receive his kiss, yearning for his hands
to explore her body, to bring back the sensations she had felt at his touch
once before.
 
When she almost collapsed,
he pulled away leaving her breathless and standing on wobbly knees.
 
Why do
I want him even though I am a target?
 
He will only take his pleasure and cast me aside.
 
His actions spoke of a nature to take what he
wanted with no regard.
 
She watched him leave.

           
To
distract her thoughts she grasped the dress brought from her wardrobe for
exhibition and placed it in the window on the dress form with shoes and a
handbag on a small table nearby.

           
She
went outside to view through the window, pleased with the display.
 
When a few children passed by, Raeden hurried
inside to grab some candy.
 
She enjoyed
their antics playing stickball in the street until a customer entered to
purchase hardware then returned to the walkway to stand in the sunshine for a
few moments before resuming her recent project.

           
Feeling
hungry when Mike relieved her, she made the decision to dine at the hotel.
 
When walking past the jail, a thought
emerged—maybe he would join her.
 
What am I thinking?
 
Her feelings clouded her judgment.
 
It was all best forgotten.
 
She needed to pull herself together.
 
He considered nothing but to taunt and take
liberties.

           
Raeden
walked past the jailhouse.
 
The door
opened suddenly and a strong hand grabbed her wrist.
 
She stumbled inside and stood temporarily
paralyzed.
 
He kicked the door closed
behind her and scanned her length, enfolding her in his hard muscled arms.
 
Cash’s lips bent to kiss her as his hands
moved down her back pulling her against his hard lean body, crushing her
breasts against his chest.

           
His
lips left her branded.
 
“I see you can’t
stay away from me, and just in case I don’t see you later, I thought I would
get my good-bye kiss now.”

           
He
dropped his grasp and she struggled free.
 
Anger from his taunting flared inside.
 
“Can’t stay away from you?
 
It
seems I am being stalked by a madman.” Shoving him aside, she ran from the room
into the dusty street.
 
His laugh echoed
in her ears while she scurried back to the shop, lifting her skirts with both
hands to avoid stumbling over the hem of her dress in her haste to return.

***

Raeden stood idly
cutting a pattern, her mind not engaged in her task while she thought of Cash
and her body’s perfidious conduct whenever he kissed her.
 
On one hand, she wanted to have more control
yet when he touched her, cravings brought out a desire to let him do anything
he would like.
 
She wanted to feel his
burning kisses all over her naked skin.

           
She
shook her head to clear her mind of such lurid thoughts then resumed her task
half-heartedly, angry at her lack of self-discipline.
 
She swore to stay away from him in the future,
her dream being more important than a wild fling with a conceited rogue.

Sixteen

Cash strode toward
the livery disgusted with his lack of restraint concerning Raeden.
 
No one had ever disturbed him the way she
did.
 
Why could he not leave her alone?
 
He detested his lack of self-control and the
reality he wanted her.

           
He
decided to leave at first light just to get away sooner.
 
A few days without the temptation should cure
him and allow the detachment he felt for women to take hold, giving him some measure
of peace.

           
Arguing
voices rang from the saloon as he walked past.
 
The hairs on his neck rose.
 
When
he entered, two men argued at the card table. A man in his thirties dressed in
dusty clothes with dark air and blood shot eyes, stood fists curled ready to
fight.
 
Cash’s muscles relaxed only
slightly when he breathed deep.
 
“Hey
boys, is there a problem here?”
 
He moved
slowly to keep the mood calm.

           
“This
bastard’s cheating.”
 
Noticeably
intoxicated, the man swayed on his feet.
 
Cash neared the man with caution watching his eyes.
 
“You’re the marshal.
 
Arrest him!”

           
Cash
placed a hand on his shoulder steering him toward the exit.
 
“I’ll tell you what, buddy.”
 
He casually slipped the man’s gun from his
holster.
 
“I’ll just take this until you sober
up.
 
Why don’t I take you to the
hotel?
 
You can sleep for a while then we
can talk.
 
Looks like you have had a
little too much whiskey.
 
What’s your
name, pal?”

           
“Harry.
 
You know Marshal, I do feel tired.
 
I’ll go get the room like you said.”
 
He staggered toward the hotel, Cash watched
from the sidewalk while he stumbled toward the hotel figuring he would go sleep
it off.

***

           
Cash
drove a wagon to the rear of the store, stomped dust from his boots and entered
through the back door.
 
Approaching Diane,
he found himself searching for a glimpse of Raeden, relieved he would soon be
away from the temptation to seek her out and take her directly to his bed.
 
“Hi, Diane, thought I would come by now.
 
I will be leaving earlier than I planned.”

           
“Everything
is ready, Cash.
 
Mike will help you
load.”
 
He turned to face Raeden when she
entered the room.

           
“Good
afternoon, Miss Newell.”
 
His fingertips
moved to the front of his hat in a polite gesture.
 
No words spoken, she turned and left the room
closing the door behind her.

           
Nearing
the saloon with his heavily loaded wagon, the sound of gunshots filled the
air.
 
He willed his heart rate to slow as
he leapt from the seat.
 
He ran all out
to the source of the noise, his Colt revolver in hand.

           
At
his approach, the man called Harry stumbled through the swinging door almost
falling, randomly shooting into the street.
 
Where in the hell did he get the weapon?
 
“Put the gun down
now
.
 
Don’t make me shoot you.”
 
The
crazy bastard will probably shoot himself.

           
“This
place is crooked.”
 
When Harry’s gun
turned toward Cash, without hesitation he fired, shooting the man in the
leg.
 
Harry fell to the ground grabbing
his thigh and screaming in pain.
 
Cash
darted forward and kicked the gun from his reach just as John sprinted to his
side.

           
“Go
check inside.
 
See if anyone is hurt.”

           
Watching
Harry’s blood gush from the wound, he yelled.
 
“Someone get the doctor.”
 
Sliding
his weapon back in the holster, he removed the neckerchief from his throat,
tying it tightly above the hole in Harry’s blood-soaked leg.

           
A
gasp sounded behind him.
 
His gun cleared
leather with lightning fast speed as he leaped from the ground spinning to face
the threat.
 
In less than a heartbeat, he
found himself aiming point-blank at Raeden’s gaunt face, etched deeply with a
look of panic mixed with revulsion.
 
Jesus Christ!

           
He
turned immediately back to the man lying in the street.
 
He would never allow her to drive him to
distraction in the midst of danger.
 
“Get
out of here
, now
!”
 
Dammit, whatever possessed her to come out
here in the middle of a gunfight?

Seventeen

           
That
night in bed, Cash replayed the scene in the street again and again.
 
He had considered his work a necessary
safeguard but she made him feel like a hired assassin.
 
Well, what did it matter?
 
Raised in a civilized city, she would never
understand.
 
Only trouble came from
getting too close to women.
 
Since the
death of his wife, they only wanted to tie him down, so he preferred women like
Angie who did not desire commitment.
 
He
knew his heart had hardened into a stone wall, allowing no one to enter or to
let himself feel but he did not care.
 

           
Why
hadn’t she gotten married?
 
Had she drawn
others with her coquettish and alluring body?
 
Her fiancé must have found her in the arms of another, called off the
nuptials and embarrassed, her family sent her away.