Eddie’s Prize (21 page)

“No!” The word exploded out of Lisa in a wave of shock. “Of course not.”

“I don’t mean punching you. There are more kinds of abuse than physical abuse.”

Lisa focused on her fingers picking at the seam of her jeans. “I know that. Eddie goes a bit overboard with the jealousy thing, but he loves me. He doesn’t mean to hurt me. We’ll work it out.”

“Lisa, that’s what every abused woman says.”

She was right. Lisa looked up. “I’m positive we’ll be able to work it out.”

The other woman searched Lisa’s face before sighing. “Okay. But if it doesn’t work out, remember you can come live here.”

Tears threatened. Lisa blinked them back. “Maybe you should talk to your husband before you invite people to move in.”

“No. Taye would agree with me. He hates to think of a woman in trouble.”

“I’m fine. Thank you. But I’m fine.”

A series of solid knocks pounded on the door. Carla stood up. “There’s our lunch call. Before we go, promise me you’ll come here if things don’t work out. Promise me.”

“Okay, I promise.” Lisa’s smile wasn’t entirely forced. A friend was a wonderful thing. She wouldn’t need to take Carla up on her offer. Eddie wasn’t perfect, but he did love her, and with him she had a place in a family. Carla, with her loving parents, four brothers, and half a dozen nieces and nephews, couldn’t understand how precious that was to Lisa.

In the dining hall Lisa tried not to be obvious as she looked around. The two dozen mostly naked men eating at the tables didn’t bother to try to hide their fascination with her. None of them came close or spoke to her, but they stared avidly at her until another of them said something in a firm voice. Once their eyes had dropped back to their plates, Lisa was able to breathe a little more easily.

“I haven’t seen so many good-looking male bodies in one place since the Chippendales show I was dragged to last year,” she whispered to Carla.

“They can hear every word we’re saying,” Carla whispered back.

Lisa jerked horrified eyes to the men. Several were smiling at their plates, while others were blushing. Afterward, Lisa imitated her husband and paid strict attention to her food.

She was relieved when Carla was done and walked her back to her room. They sat on the couch, both cross-legged and facing each other.

“Now,” said Carla encouragingly. “Before lunch, you were telling me about how you were doing.”

Except for Eddie’s jealousy, Lisa thought her life was pretty great. She tried to use the right words to explain her feelings to her friend. She’d never thought she’d like being a housewife, but watching Eddie eat something she cooked made her feel good. Putting away clothes she had spent a lot of time and energy washing made her proud. Sitting on the floor of her in-laws’ living room next to Eddie while they played antique board games gave her a sense of belonging. It was not the life she’d planned on, but it had its satisfying moments.

Carla listened with flattering attention and said, “Do you remember, when we were in the wagon just coming into Kearney, you asked if I thought you were shallow and vain?”

Lisa remembered. “You said ‘a little’.”

“Yeah, I did. But, really? I thought you were more than a little shallow.”

“Oh.” She shriveled a little.

“That was then. You’ve changed in the past couple weeks.” Carla leaned forward to pat her knee. “Really.” She wiggled her fingers at Lisa’s face. “No makeup. Hair in a pony. Plain jeans and a shirt. You look great. You always look nice. But you don’t look like you miss your hair being done or your makeup.”

Lisa blinked, thinking about it. It was true. Two weeks ago, she would have felt naked without her makeup. “I don’t have time to worry about that.”

“See? You’ve made my point.”

She was still thinking about it. “It’s Eddie,” she decided. “That’s what’s different. He likes me the way I am. He’s always telling me I’m beautiful. Even without my makeup.”

“And you’re cooking like a pioneer wife. Two weeks ago could you have done that?”

Lisa laughed. “A week ago I couldn’t even heat up leftovers.” Her breath caught as the truth hit her. “Really. I tried one night when Eddie was out, and I couldn’t get the fire to light. I was crying when Bree and Darlene rescued me.”

Carla nodded with an I-told-you-so smile. “Well, there you go. You’re more than just a pretty face. You’re a cook too.”

An unaccustomed sense of accomplishment twirled inside Lisa. “I am,” she agreed with wonder.

Eddie showed up to collect her the next day before lunch. Lisa was relieved to see he looked relaxed. He even walked beside her on the way home and held her hand.

“Did you have a nice visit?” she asked.

“It was good. Me and Dane were able to work out some details of how to generate electricity for Kearney someday.” He peered sideways at her. “We talked about you too. He won’t bother you, and you can pretty much ignore him if you see him. Okay?”

At least Eddie wasn’t bristling with aggression when he said Dane’s name. Lisa shrugged. “Sure.”

He drew their joined hands into his roomy coat pocket to warm them. “I missed you last night,” he whispered.

“I missed you too. I had a double bed all to myself, and it seemed so empty. I kept patting the mattress, looking for you.”

He dipped his head as if he was going to kiss her, but he glanced around at his friends walking as escort and changed his mind. “How was your visit?”

“It was wonderful seeing Carla. Did you know the toilets at the den flush?”

Eddie smiled. “Someday, all of Kearney will have running water. We just have to figure out how to do it.”

A zing of excitement went through her. “I would love that. Hot water and flushing toilets would be nice, but I could never stand to live at Carla’s place. All those werewolves.” She shuddered. “It would make a great setting for a reality TV show, but count me out.”

They passed through the gate, and Eddie waved his friends off. He pulled Lisa toward their little house. “What’s reality TV? Never mind. Hurry.”

Lisa giggled when he rushed her down the road, up the steps to their front door, and inside, whirling her and pinning her to the door. “Brr! It’s cold in here! Let’s get the kitchen fire started.”

“I’ll warm you,” Eddie promised, running a cold finger over the edge of her jaw.

“Hmm.” Lisa wasn’t averse to that. “But it’s past lunch. Aren’t you hungry?”

“Yes.” His lips closed over hers, opening her mouth for his tongue. “For you, Lisa-love. Come on, let’s go to bed.”

He maneuvered her down the hall, stripping her clothes as they went. His urgent kisses and caresses stoked her need until she was urging him to fill her. The bed was cold against her bare back, but he was a human space heater against her front. The finger he slipped inside her was still cold, and she arched desperately against him.

“Now, Eddie,” she commanded. “Come inside me now.”

“Yes, wife,” he murmured in a wickedly obedient tone.

Their lovemaking was a desperate dance, each demanding and taking pleasure from the other until they lay in a panting tangle of sated limbs.

“I told you I’d warm you,” he said smugly.

She found the strength to snort. “You did.”

The smug smile faded into an intense expression as he looked into her face. “You are so beautiful.”

She’d heard those words so many times in her life they were almost meaningless to her. “Even though I’m too skinny?”

Eddie smoothed his hand over her cheek. “I’m not talking about your looks. When I saw you for the first time in that wagon, I was drawn to you right away. Your face is pretty and your eyes are lovely and you have the most captivating smile I’ve ever seen. But that’s not what makes you so beautiful.”

She blinked. “It’s not?”

“No. It’s your compassion. It’s the way you took care of a little boy when he was dying. It’s the way you work so hard to learn to cook and do laundry though you’ve never done it before. It’s the way you put up with me even when I’m an idiot. Lisa-love, that’s what makes you so beautiful to me. I love you.”

Lisa stared back at him, her heart pounding and tears threatening. No one had ever called her beautiful for anything other than her looks. “Thank you,” she whispered. “That’s one of the nicest things anyone has ever said to me.”

As he brushed his lips over hers, his stomach growled. “Now I’m ready for lunch!”

Lisa got up and found their rumpled clothes. She tossed Eddie’s at him and hurried into her own. The coals in the kitchen stove were nearly dead, but with patience and care she got them going again. Eddie went out to check on some of his patients, and when he came back an hour later, she had hot beef sandwiches with mounds of mashed potatoes under gravy and a half of an apple pie ready for them.

Eddie sat down at the table and snatched her hand as she came to join him. He kissed her fingers. “This looks wonderful, Lisa-love. You’re getting to be a good cook.”

Pride straightened her shoulders. “Thank you. I’m learning,” she said with quiet, new-found self-confidence.

* * * *

Lisa’s domestic skills continued to grow. She learned how to juggle her cooking and cleaning chores at home with drawing her clothing designs and visiting Hannah at the shop. When Eddie went to see Dane, he would bring Lisa as far as the den and drop her there to spend some time with Carla. The other women who survived the plane crash were brought to Kearney and settled into an old apartment building. It was a real fixer-upper, but Steve Herrick and the other men in town were more than enthusiastic about working on it. The excitement the men displayed at the thought of two dozen single women both amused and dismayed Lisa. She visited the women when she could squeeze in the time, and they sometimes came to visit her. A few of the survivors had been claimed by wolves, and they stayed at the den with Carla.

Eddie was still exasperatingly protective, but he was handling his jealousy better. At least, most of the time. He had finally introduced her to his friends who acted as an escort for her when he wasn’t around to take her places. Cory Haas was usually one of Lisa’s escorts to the Plane Women’s House because he had met and hit it off with a survivor named Val. Charles Driscoll, usually called Chas, was most often her escort to the Martins’ store.

A newly found survivor named Tami Casper had been brought to the House, and Lisa wanted to welcome her and see what she needed. She and Bree went together with both Cory and Chas as escort.

After meeting Tami and hearing a little of her story, Lisa realized how lucky she had been. Tami had been forced to marry several men who had raped and beat her until she managed to escape. The Bride Fight hadn’t been pleasant, and she and Eddie had some troubles, but he didn’t rape her or beat her. As she and Bree walked home, they ran into Dane Overdahl and his younger brother, Neal.

“Lisa,” Dane called. “You look beautiful.”

The brisk late November air didn’t chill Lisa nearly as much as the predatory look on Dane’s face. Eddie told her Dane wouldn’t trouble them anymore, but something about his smile made Lisa think of trouble.

“Hello, Mr. Overdahl,” she said coolly.

Bree glanced from Lisa to Dane, apparently confused. “Are you coming to see Eddie?”

“Actually, we were visiting the Grays. Neal is engaged to marry Mr. Gray’s granddaughter, Ellie Burnet. It’s just our good luck to meet up with you two lovely ladies.”

Cory was neither as tall nor as broad as Dane, but he maintained his position between Lisa and Dane. Even though he slapped Dane on the shoulder in a friendly way and chatted with him about electric light, Lisa had the impression Cory was trying to protect her. But Dane was wily, and soon he was walking at Lisa’s side, paying her lavish compliments and trying to flirt with her, while Neal walked with Bree.

Lisa drew a breath of relief when they got to the gate in the fence around the mayor’s compound. They could leave Dane here. When Dane picked up her hand to kiss it, Lisa jerked it back with a glare.

“Don’t be so stupid!” she said.

Her voice was drowned out by an animalistic roar, and Eddie came barreling down the street. Lisa cringed at the collision of bodies when Eddie crashed into Dane.

“Come on,” Cory said softly, waving her and Bree toward the open gate. “Get inside where it’s safe. Eddie can handle himself. Chas will walk Bree home, and I’ll walk you home, Mrs. Madison.”

A meaty thud made Lisa wince. “But Eddie—”

“Will be fine. Come on.”

With nothing else to do, Lisa let him walk her to her house. He stayed on the porch while she went inside and started supper. Why he was standing out in the cold she didn’t know, and she didn’t ask. Dane had behaved like an idiot, but Eddie was acting like a caveman. It was enough to make a girl kick something. Turning the hand crank on the grinder to turn the mostly-thawed beef into hamburger helped work off some of her anger. The only reason there were tears in her eyes was because of the onion she diced and added to the meat, egg, and breadcrumb mixture.

Eddie came into the kitchen, dirty from rolling around on the ground, one eye swelling shut. “I told you to ignore him!” he snarled.

He thought this was her fault? She slammed her fist into the meat in the bowl to break up a clump of breadcrumbs. “I tried!” she returned through clenched teeth.

“Really? Holding hands with him is not ignoring him in my book.”

Lisa gasped. “I wasn’t holding hands with him! He grabbed my hand so fast I couldn’t avoid it.”

Eddie turned from her to pace. “You shouldn’t have been with him in the first place.”

Lisa slapped the meat in the bowl into a ball and picked it up to slam it on the baking sheet. “It’s not like we were alone. The Overdahls walked me and Bree home, along with Chas and Cory. It’s not a big deal.”

“It
is
a big deal!”

Eddie would have gone on, but Cory stepped into the kitchen. Had they been loud enough to be heard outside?

“Hey, Eddie,” he said mildly. “Don’t take it out on your missus. If it’s anyone’s fault, it’s mine. If I’d known you’d be this unhappy about it, I’d have told Dane to get lost. But how could I know?” He spread narrow, long-fingered hands. “You and Dane have been friends since you were a kid.”