Kaitlin's Silver Lining (16 page)

She let Bryce know
she was ready, and he took his turn at the basin of water. Afterwards, he
pulled off his boots and turned out the kerosene lamp. He lay on the palette
fully clothed.

The soft bed should
have lured her immediately to sleep, but her senses seemed tuned to his every
movement. She should be upset with Bryce for his highhanded manner, for
presuming she needed his protection. She should, but she wasn’t. His kindness
was unsettling, and his attention toward her, unnerving. He seemed so unlike
the men she’d known. So unlike Sarge. Completely different from James Latham.

James
Latham
. As she lay in bed, memories washed over her. She hadn’t allowed
herself to think about James since she’d seen him last. Today put a period on a
very long sentence. James had tried to kill her, and he’d ended up dead
instead.

Curled on her left
side facing away from Bryce, she played over the events of the day in her mind.
She pictured James’s crumpled body, the wedding band gleaming on his pinky
finger. A single tear rolled down her cheek, and she tossed to her other side.
Unable to stop the memories once they’d begun, her tears flowed more freely.
She flipped back over, not wanting Bryce to know of her distress.

With each movement,
the ropes holding the mattress made a groaning sound. Realizing that the noise
probably kept Bryce from sleep, she tried to force her body to relax. The
attempt proved futile. More memories of James flooded her mind. She pitched
about restlessly with each new thought, each sordid reflection.

The mattress gave as
Bryce climbed into bed beside her. Very gently, he rubbed her back. “Tell me
about it?”

At his genuine
concern, tears poured from her eyes. She said nothing about the impropriety of
his presence beside her. It felt too good to have his gentle touch soothing her
tense muscles.

“You’ll feel much
better if’n you share your pain.” His soft words caressed her soul.

“I...I never cry.”
Her voice broke with pent-up emotion. “Never.” Her weakness in front of Bryce
made her cry even harder. What was wrong with her?

His hand stilled on
her back for a moment. “I’m surprised you lasted this long without showin’ any
emotion. It’s hard to imagine someone wantin’ you dead, especially someone you
knew.”

“Oh God, how could
he?” She wiped her face. “James tried to kill me and now he’s dead.”

“Sssh. I know.”

“I was once engaged
to be married. Did I ever tell you that? Of course not. No one would believe a
woman like me could be engaged to a handsome, gregarious man, but I was. He
swept me off my feet with such promises. They were all lies. All lies.” She
sniffed.

“You sell yourself
short, Katy. You’re a very dynamic woman, a woman a man would be lucky to call
wife.”

“You’re sweet to say
so. James would say the same things, only he never meant any of them.”

“James? Latham was
your fiancé?”

“That ring on his
pinky was to have been my wedding band.” At this, a fresh bout of tears
erupted. She was powerless to stem the flow of emotion.

“Why would your
fiancé want you dead? Why would anyone want you dead?”

“I...I don’t know.
Honest. Oh God, my life seems so messed up.”

Bryce dangled a
handkerchief in front of her face, and she grabbed it gratefully. She blew her
nose in a most unladylike fashion, wondering what had possessed her to tell him
about James.

“I’d say he wasn’t a
very bright man to ruin a chance to be married to you.”

She rolled over to
face him and punched him in the shoulder. “Don’t say things you can’t possibly
mean just because you think I want to hear them.”

Bryce pushed a curl
from her face. Her eyes felt puffy and bruised. It was a good thing the light
had been extinguished, and he couldn’t see her tear-stained features.

He brought his face
close to hers. “You should know by now I don’t lie. What I say, I mean.”

She didn’t know how
to answer him. “Kiss me, Bryce. Make me forget what he tried to do,” she
whispered.

“No. That’s the last
thing you need from me right now. Go to sleep, Katy. Things will look better in
the morning.”

“You—you don’t want
me either.” She turned on her side. “It’s okay. I understand.”

“No, you don’t
understand.” He kissed the back of her neck. “I want you too much. If I kiss
you now, while you’re hurting and vulnerable, you’ll hate me in the morning,
cuz I don’t think I can stop at just kissin’.” His rough fingers stroked her
cheek.

She turned her head
and kissed the inside of his palm, grateful for his kindness. She’d been wrong
about Bryce. He wasn’t anything like James. She closed her eyes, sure she
wouldn’t be able to sleep. Bryce stayed by her side, fully clothed on top of
the covers, but sometime during the night, he’d wrapped his arms around her and
drew her close to him. It was his willingness to just hold her that thawed the
ice around her heart. With Bryce near, she wasn’t afraid of the ghosts that
haunted her memories.

Twenty
One

A full moon
illuminated the entrance to the Silver Saddle Ranch. The massive archway was
meant to impress. Whoever Sarge was, he’d done well for himself.

Bryce pulled his
horse alongside Kaitlin’s as she gazed at the panoramic view of gently rolling
knolls, an impressively large herd of cattle, and various outbuildings
silhouetted against the moonlit sky. In the far distance, on top of a hill,
Bryce could just make out the dark shape of what must be the main house.

They’d already been
to town, which turned out to be nothing more than a glorified mining camp.
There they alerted another lawman of James Latham’s death. Kaitlin had been
asked several questions, but none she answered to his own satisfaction. With
the man dead, Bryce hoped her troubles would end. Unfortunately, he wasn’t
convinced that she was free from harm. Until he knew why James wanted her dead,
Bryce would remain her constant companion.

After visiting with
the local authorities, Kaitlin headed out of town. Curious, he tagged along.
Though he expected her to protest, she said nothing about his desire to shadow
her movements.

Without a word,
Kaitlin pulled away from the allure of the ranch and headed down an overgrown
path. They traveled northeast, skirting the outer perimeter of the ranch. Bryce
had plenty of questions, but he remained silent, strangely content to follow
Kaitlin’s lead.

He should be upset
for having to take the time to assist Kaitlin, especially since she didn’t seem
to appreciate his help. He figured another month, and he’d have to get back to
the Double S Ranch. His brother William would be anxious for his return. At
this rate, he doubted he would be bringing home a bride, and it didn’t look
like Kaitlin was anxious to offer Charley a permanent home.

For Charley’s sake,
he’d tried to find a suitable woman, but the courting thing just hadn’t worked
out. He’d taken several eligible young ladies for buggy rides, bought them
dinner at various restaurants, and even strolled through the local park with a
few. They were all pretty women, but none had any lick of sense. The few he’d
spent any time with couldn’t seem to hold his interest for very long. Like any
man, he was taken by a pretty face and trim ankle, but tired of them easily
when he discovered they lacked substance.

He stole a glance at
Kaitlin. She perched upon the horse like she’d been born riding. The skill with
which she maneuvered the animal seemed inconsistent with the prim spinster he’d
come to know. He’d never met a woman so full of arrogant pride or so versatile
with her abilities. Yet, it was her bold tenacity that fired his imagination.
Kaitlin would not welcome his affections, but he found his thoughts straying in
that direction. She would make some man one hell of a wife.

The kiss they’d
shared prompted him to reevaluate Kaitlin as a possible mate. Never before had
a single kiss held the power to make his insides buck like a fresh bronc. If
one kiss could stir his blood, then a lifetime waking up with Kaitlin in his
arms was bound to be an exciting ride.

From what he could
gather, Kaitlin adamantly opposed marriage. Her confession about James Latham
gave him some clue as to why, but failed to give him the full reason. If he
could pry more information from her, he might be able to change her mind. Once
the thought took hold, he couldn’t shake it loose. He could think of no other
who would suit as his wife. Of all the challenges he had taken on, she would be
the most difficult by far. He grinned, enjoying the way her body moved in
rhythm with the horse’s steady gait.

Another half-hour saw
them to their final destination. Kaitlin pulled up in front of a small log
cabin. In the distance, a wolf howled, lending an eerie cadence to their
arrival. An inch of packed snow covered the ground, a cold welcome for the
weary travelers.

Kaitlin seemed
oblivious to the frigid invitation depicted by the darkened cabin.
Apprehensive, Bryce tied his horse to the hitching post, pulled his saddlebag
free, and followed Kaitlin inside. An icy chill enveloped the gloomy interior.
The wind whipping through a cracked window shrieked across his eardrums.

“I think your ghosts
have invaded.” His dry remark won him a soft laugh that filled him with
longing.

Kaitlin found a
lantern and trimmed the wick with a pair of scissors she pulled from her
saddlebag. In the corner sat a jug of kerosene that she used to fill the
reservoir. Striking a match, she lit the wick and snapped the globe into place.
Light did nothing to help the sparsely furnished interior.

“I’ll start a fire,”
Bryce said, glad to see a pile of wood in the corner. “Why don’t you try to
sweep away some of this debris?”

Kaitlin stiffened.
“Because sweeping is a woman’s job?” She shoved the broom toward Bryce. “You
sweep, and I’ll start a fire.”

Bryce accepted the
broom without comment. There was no point in arguing about it. Both chores
needed doing, and Bryce was bone tired. Arguing would only prolong the end
result, but he wondered what caused her surly tone. Three nights ago he’d held
a tempting woman in his arms, one he entertained thoughts of marrying, and
they’d managed civil, even friendly conversations over the last two days of
hard riding. Today, that same woman acted prickly and short-tempered as if the
past three days had never existed. He gripped the broom handle, allowing his
frustration to release during the simple chore. Dust clouds floated about the
room as he angrily swept the floor clean of what looked to be years of neglect.

When the floor was as
clean as it was going to get for the evening, Bryce set the broom back in the
corner. A quick glance at Kaitlin reassured him she had managed the fire fine
without his help.

They were in a
sitting room that boasted one table with three rickety chairs. Off to the side
was another room he assumed to be a bedroom. With the fire going in the
fireplace, Bryce commandeered the one lantern to investigate.

Setting the lamp on a
small bedside table, he retrieved the broom and set about sweeping this room as
well. It was a nice sized area with a double bed and a crude wardrobe. Someone
had covered the mattress with a large blanket. He pulled the blanket off and
went outside to shake it free of dust and debris. When he returned, he found
Kaitlin preparing a tin meal of beans and biscuits.

Thus far, she had
surprised him with her outdoor knowledge, and he said as much.

She gave him a
condescending look. “Contrary to what you may have assumed, I spent the better
part of my youth on a ranch. I’m quite capable of handling myself out in the
open country.”

“Like you handled
yourself when that man shot at you.”

His quiet words made
her catch her breath, and she shifted in her chair. “This alliance we’ve formed
won’t work if we don’t set some ground rules.”

“Your rules or mine? As
I recall we’ve already put a set of rules in motion. You have a mighty short
memory.” The last few nights she’d seemed almost amicable to the situation.
What had happened to change things?

“I think you like
being purposefully ornery.”

“Well, now. There’s
ornery and then there’s ornery. I like to think of myself as bein’ stubborn as
a mule on pack day. The minute I met you, I sensed a mystery. I can’t stand not
knowing all the facts, so I’ll do what’s needed until those answers become
known. It’s a quirk of mine, a flaw in my personality. So, if’n it bothers you
to have me meddle in your business, I’ll apologize now, but it won’t stop me.”

“That grin of yours
isn’t going to charm me into revealing anything. Besides, I can be just as
stubborn.” She inclined her head and swallowed another bite of beans. “I know I
can’t make you leave. But the least you can do is stay low. I don’t need you
tagging along, following after me like a puppy.”

“A puppy, am I? Dogs
do much better when they’re rewarded,” he suggested lazily. “Dogs like to be
petted and hugged. What reward are you offerin’?”

She leaned forward,
smiling brightly. “Dogs that don’t mind get swatted. I promise not to beat you
over the head with a shoe.”

“Well now, that’s
reassurin’.” Bryce laughed. “It’s hard to picture a beautiful woman wieldin’ a
shoe. Although I do recall getting’ smacked with my hat.”

“You deserved that
whack.” The bright smile faded quickly from her face. “I don’t care for false
flattery. You and I both know I’m rather plain.”

“To a blind man,
perhaps. But I happen to have both eyes wide open, and what I see is far from
plain.”

His compliment must
have frazzled her, for she began clearing the table. Her hurried movements
indicated her nervous agitation. He stared at his empty can of beans and
grinned. Maybe, just maybe, he could convince Kaitlin marriage might just be in
her best interest after all. It would sure solve both his problems with
Charley. Charley would be close to her aunt, and he’d have a wife.