Pioneer Passion (8 page)

“Sweet Jesus! I’ll be damned,” Guy croaked,
aware of the jiggling form underneath him creating a feeling he now
understood. “I’ll be a horse’s behind!” He could have been blown
over with light spit by this turn of events. He was definitely an
ass! He had spent many days away from this person because he, no
she, caused him to doubt his own manhood. For anyone else this
might be funny but not for him. And if he wasn’t so irate he might
have agreed. But his anger renewed and did nothing to damper the
male reflexes his body was experiencing. Realizing this little minx
was the cause of his discomfort he jumped up and pulled Rusty with
him. Once on their feet, he let her go as if she had branded him
with fire. Brushing dirt from his denim pants, he growled, “Damn!
This is worse than before.”

Looking into the coldest cobalt eyes she had
ever seen, Rusty gulped. She was too afraid to be angry, as she
waited for the worst. Her body became rigid with fright, her heart
pounded wildly in her chest. But as scared as she was, she couldn’t
take her eyes off his sensual mouth, and lips that she so wanted to
kiss.

She had seen the sudden flash in those blue
depths as confusion turned to comprehension, then something else
that frightened her more. She held her breath. Rusty didn’t miss
the oddly stricken look on his face. Stumbling back, she knew she
turned ten shades of red; a mixture of mortification, confusion and
anxiety. She shivered from wet clothes, or was it from Guy’s hard
body that had been pressed into her soft form. She had felt the
bulge in his pants against her thigh, and it stirred her own
arousal. There was a strange glint in his eyes and the muscles in
his square jaw twitched.

Rusty’s stomach churned as tension in the air
closed in around her, strangling her. She backed away; he came
forward, his eyes boring into her chest. Putting her hand there,
Rusty touched wet skin, and gasped, mortified that her shirt had
opened in the struggle. To her horror she also discovered her
buttons were gone and some of her binding had come undone, exposing
much of her breasts. He leered at her looking as if he could…? She
was no longer sure what to expect as she tried to cover up.

She looked beseechingly at the man almost
upon her and swallowed hard. She wanted to cry out that she was
sorry but the expression on his face told her it would be of no
use. Tears blurred her vision; she was mortified that he had found
out the truth this way, but also excited at the knowledge she had
aroused him. Though frightened of his strength, his arousal flamed
her passion. She wanted to feel his hard form against hers again
recalling the poignant electricity that leaped from their bodies.
It had made her tremble with anticipation.

Instinctively, Rusty moved backwards wishing
to flee. Her heart palpitated against her ribs, her breasts
throbbed under the lose wrappings. A strange disturbance grew deep
in her loins smelling a strong manly scent of sweat and tobacco.
She fought to keep from swooning and stopped moving. But the cowboy
moved closer until she felt his breath fused with hers causing her
heart to race. She skimmed her dry mouth with her tongue and her
legs began to liquefy. Her eyes grew misty and he shook his head
sadly that told her that he was sorry that he had frightened
her.

“You look like a helpless fawn, nothing like
the hellcat I had fought with minutes ago. I wish that I can
promise you no more pain,” his voice sounded apologetic. “I
understand why you hid your sex from me but you shouldn’t have been
left alone. Why did you let me think you were a boy?” He spoke to
her in a low voice, keeping it taut with strained control.

“Pa felt it was safer for me to pass as a
boy. I was left alone many days when he and Scott went into town.
At first they took short trips, but later pa went mining with high
hopes of striking it rich. He stayed away longer and longer, then
Scott lost all interest in this place.” Guy didn’t hide his
disgusted frown and she knew that it wasn’t meant for her and she
blinked, trying to hold back a tear, but it escaped of its own
will.

She noticed how cold and clammy her wet
things made her feel and hugged herself, trying to ward off the
chill and emptiness that engulfed her. But she couldn’t control her
trembling that was only because of her wet clothes but mostly
because the strange feeling in the pit of her stomach. Too confused
to make any sense of all of this, Rusty snorted, “Ah jeeze, maybe
not, but no one really came around to bother me. A drifter now and
then, but I can take care of myself,” she jutted her chin jutting
out with pride. “And stop talking down to me as if I were a
child!”

“You’re definitely not a child!” he
rasped.

Her breathing quickened and she squeezed her
eyes shut and readied herself for her punishment; he obliged by
crashing his mouth over hers. Though expecting and wanting it, she
froze with dizziness, startled, completely flustered by her first
real kiss. Although she was reeling as passion ignited her mind was
filled with questions. Would he stop with just a kiss? Would she
stop him after one kiss? Did he think she kissed well? Her mind
reeled. God Almighty! What’s going on? What’s happening?

When Guy’s kiss deepened and his tongue
snaked around hers, Rusty no longer cared who thought what. In
fact, she didn’t want to think at all. She wrapped her limp arms
around his neck, returning his kiss with matching fever; their
tongues, slashing one another like dueling swords. A whimper of
desire escaped from her lips and she liked the feel of him against
her, making her warm and safe. Then he released her as quickly as
he had grabbed her and she tumbled back. Disappointment twisted her
mouth into a pout making her wonder what she had done wrong.
Swallowing a strangled scream, her confused mind believed he was
repulsed by her wanton behavior. Befuddled, she could only stare
with mixed feelings.

Rusty’s wet clean aroma with a hint of musk
caused Guy’s nostrils to flare. Blood charged through his body at a
frantic pace making his pants tighten around his crotch. But he
didn’t plan to let one kiss turn into something they’d both be
sorry for later. He wanted more than anything to make passionate
love to this captivating creature who stirred forbidden desires,
but he would have hated himself for taking advantage of her
innocence. He had known many women but he kept his distance from
virgins. Anyway, his gut told him this girl was trouble.

Who was he kidding? And when had he become
such a monk?

When he broke off the mind boggling kiss, he
couldn’t interpret her expression as she glared at him. He wanted
to apologize, but what for? He hadn’t done anything wrong. Rusty
was the one who deceived him. So why did she make him feel lower
than a snake? Standing there like a lost child, he wanted to gather
her in his arms again; she felt perfect in his embrace. Her tall
frame was carved to fit ideally with his.

When he had wrapped his arms around her
waist, he felt the thick cloth, but he suspected she was
slim-wasted beneath it all. Totally, exasperated, he raked his hand
through his hair, trying to shake his jumbled thoughts from his
head. He cleared his throat, and smiled at her but it was to hide
the annoyance at himself. Guy shook his head in wonder of her. She
had spunk, that one; he had to admire her and grinned. It had taken
all his will power not to skim his thumb across her cute, stubborn
chin and kiss it. Hell, that’s not all he wanted to do.

“Come on! Let’s get you out of those wet
clothes.” He turned and walked away but Rusty stayed, folding her
arms across her soggy chest. “My spare clothes are still damp from
the morning wash!” she yelled after him. Guy turned and eyed her.
She cringed under his critical stare and dug her booted toe into
the dirt, trying to avoid his gaze. “I don’t have any dry clothes,”
she murmured.

Guy replied, “It’s okay, you can wear some of
my clothes, although they might be a mite too big. They’ll serve
until we buy you some dresses.”

“No dresses!” She hissed her words at him
through clenched teeth and walked proudly passed him, keeping her
back ram-rod straight.

Rusty walked away with all the composure her
wet body could muster and was doing very well until she saw her
home lying torn asunder. It was as if someone took her life and
chopped it into tiny pieces, dropping it cruelly at her soggy
boots. Her pride ebbed from her body seeing her past destroyed
along with her home. There she stood, helplessly lost.

“Sorry, kid.” She felt his hand on her
shoulder. “I wish I could set your life right again.”

She turned with renewed rage in her eyes.
“Sorry just isn’t good enough!” Her body trembled, no longer from
the cold, but anger. How much more could she lose? Although,
frustrated beyond tears, she knew if she didn’t keep her temper in
check, she might be sorry afterwards. Like hell I’ll say my peace!
Her head was spinning with so much she wanted to say, but before
she had a chance, Guy grabbed her roughly by her shoulders.

“Now, hold on!” His grip was firm but not
painful. “I’ve had just about enough of you fighting me on every
turn. Girl, or not… you’re going to know who’s the boss here and
now!” Bending at the waist, so they practically stood nose to nose,
he said, not keeping ire out of his voice, “You, young lady, will
live in my new house! And I don’t want to hear any buts about
it!”

Seeing his eyes harden to blue ice Rusty
jumped. When he reached out to soothe her with a gentle touch, she
trembled. It was a nice contrast to his harsh voice, but she
overlooked it; she had to. Then she held up her chin in defiance
and with clenched fists, she turned and marched up the hill with
soggy hair sticking to her wet back. Her boots sloshed and she
cursed him for the turmoil in her life. Grumbling her way back to
the house, she opened the front door and entered. She stood
dripping, waiting for the cowboy. It dawned on her that she had no
idea where she was to stay. Guy must have sensed her predicament
when he stood behind her. He said, more gently, “Your room is to
the right, under the staircase. I did it up for a boy not a
girl.”

Rusty heard his voice tinged with an apology
but the décor didn’t matter, it was the least of her problems. Upon
opening the door, the room was bigger than she expected and when
she

saw the dark, bulky furniture, she understood
his remark. Her new quarters were definitely designed with a boy in
mind, but to her it was beautiful. A moment later a light tap on
the door gave her a little warning to compose herself. Wiping her
teary eyes with her damp sleeve, and sucking in a deep breath she
remembered to cross her arms to hold together the opened shirt.
Still angry with what Guy had done, Rusty felt her vexation ebb
somewhat when she had walked into the beautiful and spacious room.
This bitterness was tearing away at her guts and she had become a
stranger to herself so she had to calm her frazzled emotions as
best she could. This wouldn’t be easy but she would try and act
civil, if only for her own peace of mind. Knowing full well who it
was she said, in a sing-song-voice, “Who is it?” She heard the
snort and soberly said, “Come in.”

Guy gazed sheepishly around the room and
raised his shoulders as if he was trying again to apologize to her
for the décor. “I really like it. Besides, I’m not one for frilly
things, I confess.” The cowboy looked so serious and perplexed; she
could see he was in no mood to have his disposition sweetened by
anything she had to say. So she placed her hands out to receive the
dry clothes.

“You’re still angry?” he murmured.

Rusty knew it was both a question and
statement. “I’m not,” she contradicted, and she was rather pleased
with herself how positively sunny she sounded. “And, thank you for
these,” she grinned and placed the clothing on the bed. Still
slightly upset over her home but with the masquerade over, and his
kiss that made her heart explode, she was none the less elated.
That handsome cowboy had awakened new life in her soul even though
he took her heart as well as her home. But it wasn’t so bad she
admitted to herself because she now liked the idea of living in
this luxurious house.

Yes, it wasn’t too bad after all.

Rusty, feeling a bit foolish for her childish
behavior gifted Guy with another smile. “Guy, I’m sorry for the way
I acted,” she apologized, and then noticed where his gaze had
settled. Her breath lodged in her throat realizing when she took
the clothes, she had unfolded her arms, forgetting that her shirt
was undone. Her face stung as she became self-conscious of his hard
stare.

Guy had eyed her dubiously when he handed the
articles to her. This turning about of emotions made him a bit on
edge and he wondered what the little minx was up to. Her smooth
voice danced around his head and his eyes drank in her beauty once
more. Again, lost for words, he nodded and left, filled with
turmoil. He would have given her anything when she smiled at him
that way. Never had any female caused him to feel so rattled,
throwing his reason into a tailspin. He knew that, that night, he’d
lay awake for a long time trying to figure out how the young girl
could be a wild brat one minute and a sweet angel the next?

Who, indeed, was going to have the last word
around here? he asked himself. And who indeed acted like the
juvenile?

Chapter Ten

After Guy left, Rusty peeled off her wet
things and removed the constricting cloth from around her bosom,
glad to be rid of it once and for all. Her breasts were cold from
the wet rag and she snugly clutched her arms to warm herself,
stirring memories of Guy’s embrace and kiss. Staring listlessly
into space, she realized that not only had she shed her boy’s
attire, but was thinking more as a female now. She couldn’t
comprehend why he kissed her only once and then let her go so
abruptly. The quick separation had left her empty, wishing for
more. Maybe she had only herself to blame, acting like such a
child. But what choice had she, never having the chance to be
around females her own age? How does a girl her age act around men?
Maybe it was time to learn and grow up. Once again, she could have
used her mother’s advice.