Ride The Wind (Vincente 3) (12 page)

"It is," she assured him.

Zeb took her arm and led her a little away
from the others so he could speak privately with
her. "You sure you're all right, Miss Saber?"

She laughed and hugged him. "Yes, I am
sure."

He scratched his beard. "I almost didn't know you all dressed like a boy, and none too clean at
that."

She glanced down at her filthy trousers. "I
know. I can't imagine what Noble would say if
he could see me wearing these. I am tired, dirty,
and I long for a bath but thanks to Reese Starrett, I am unharmed."

"If you want to leave with us, just say so."

"Reese wouldn't hurt me, Zeb. And if I went
with you, I'd only slow you down." She glanced
down at her trousers again. "As you see, I'm not
properly dressed to ride about the country."

He was still reluctant. "If you're sure..."

Saber studied the crusty old cowhand who
had come to live at Casa del Sol when her
brother had married Rachel. In a short time Saber had grown fond of the old man who was her
sister-in-law's watchdog. "What do you know
about Reese Starrett, Zeb?"

"I heard he's one tough son-of a-er, a tough
'un. But I never heard anything bad said 'bout
him. Got himself a spread not far from here.
They say he's a loner. No one knows much about
his past. I reckon it don't matter none, though.
It's more important that he's respected and
feared. Make no mistake about it, Miss Saber;
he's deadly with a gun and meaner than hell
eh, begging your pardon, Miss Saber eh, he's
as mean as they come."

She placed her small hand on Zeb's rough one.
"He won't hurt me, Zeb. He's Matthew's friend."

"Yeah. Like I said, he's a man of honor. I've
heard that 'bout him."

"Tell Noble not to worry about me. Tell him
to be careful when he catches up with the Miller
brothers. The two older ones are ruthless, but
the younger one, Sam, is only a boy. He was
good to me, and kept Eugene Miller from...
from harming me."

Zeb nodded. "I'll tell Noble, but I 'spect it
won't make no matter to him. He'll want to see
them all dead."

Reese appeared beside them. "Tell your boss
that there are only two Miller brothers now. I
had to kill Earl."

Saber recoiled from Reese, feeling fear crawl
up her spine. He could be ruthless, and he could
kill a man. Still, she could not find it in her to
be sorry that Earl Miller was dead.

The campfire had almost gone out, and Saber
slept peacefully on the clean blanket Alejandro
had given her. The three men talked in low
voices so they wouldn't disturb her. She sighed
in her sleep, not knowing that Reese was staring
at her.

Reese's heart was light because Saber had
agreed to go with him. He'd insisted partly be cause he wanted to protect her, but he was honest enough with himself to admit that he didn't
want to give her up-not just yet. He leaned
back against his saddle, wondering why he
wanted to hold onto her. She didn't belong to
him, and she never would.

"Hell," he muttered, turning his back to her
and closing his eyes. She was getting past the
barrier he'd built around his heart, and a woman
was the last thing he wanted in his life-especially Matthew's intended bride!

The next morning Zeb and Alejandro had saddled their horses and were ready to ride out before the first light of dawn touched the eastern
horizon.

Saber stood looking up at Zeb. "Tell my
brother not to worry about me. I will be safe.
And don't let him go out on his own looking for
the Millers or Mr. Felton. You know how he is."

Zeb switched a hunk of tobacco from one side
of his jaw to the other, looking doubtful. "Now,
Miss Saber, you know iffen Noble takes it into
his head to do something, no one's gonna talk
him from it, 'cepting maybe Rachel."

Saber nodded. Her sister-in-law was the only one who could tame Noble's impulsive spirit.
"The trouble is, Rachel is at Casa del Sol, and
Noble is probably in a temper. Alejandro, you
try to talk some sense into him. Have him tell
the marshal or the sheriff what has happened.
Don't let him act impulsively."

"I will try, Senorita Saber. It could be that he
will want to first see for himself that you have
not suffered at the hands of the Millers."

"I know. And you must convince him that I
have come to no harm." She laid her hand on
Alejandro's. "Tell him where I am. He can come
and see for himself if he wants to."

The gran vaquero nodded. "The Starrett
Ranch is known to me-I will tell him you are
there." Then Alejandro's gaze went to Reese.
"Keep her safe, senor." It sounded like a warning. "I want no harm to come to her. Her brother
would not like it if it did, and neither would I."

Reese gave a quick nod. "We are all of the
same mind."

Saber stepped back and watched Zeb and Alejandro ride away. Lost in thought, she didn't
hear Reese when he came up beside her.

"We'd better ride, Miss Vincente."

Saber nodded. She was worried about Noble.
"Perhaps I should have gone with them. Or
maybe I should go to Casa del Sol and tell Rachel what has happened."

"I don't think so." He steered her toward the
horse. "We are only a day's ride from my place.
It's a seven-day ride to Casa del Sol."

Saber knew he was right. "I worry so about
Noble's impulsive nature."

"It must run in the family," Reese observed.

"It does. That's why I'm worried. I am very like
my brother in that way. You can see why I'm
concerned. I know what he'll do." She mounted
and turned to watch Zeb and Alejandro ride over
a rise and out of sight. "If you knew my brother,
you would realize that he's a force to be reckoned with."

"That's as it should be. Let him handle this in
his own way. A man has the right to defend his
sister."

"He might get himself killed."

"Of all the things I have heard of your brother,
I have never heard him called a fool. He will
want to know why Graham Felton had you kidnapped in the first place. I would expect no less
of him. And until we can find out that reason,
you will never be completely safe."

"You are right, of course."

Reese mounted and pulled her up behind him.
The brown, muscled horse galloped down the
mesa with ease. They rode silently and steadily
all morning. But Saber could not banish the
dark uneasiness that clouded her mind.

The last dying rays of the sun fell softly, bathing
the countryside in its golden light. Reese made
camp in a grove of oak and sycamore trees that
helped protect them from the continuous wind.

Saber shaded her eyes and gazed out on the
land, which seemed almost magical in the dying
light. She had never been in this part of Texas
and had not known it was so wooded.

Reese came up beside her, reading her
thoughts. "You should see it in the spring and
summer. It's green and lush with cottonwood
and hickory trees in foliage. There are bramble
bushes and dense thickets for as far as the eye
can see."

Her gaze followed the brown water that
snaked and circled between the trees to be lost
beyond the cliffs.

"I love it here now. I can only imagine what it
would look like in the spring," she said softly.
"It's breathtaking."

Reese stood beside her, and for a long moment they both stared at the countryside, sharing the beautiful sunset. "We are on my land,
Saber. I'm glad you like it."

She turned to him, pleased that he had called
her by her first name. "I thought you had only a
small spread?"

"I did. I just bought this land two months ago." Of course, he didn't tell her that he'd saved
every dollar he could get to buy the land, and
that it left him very little to live on.

Reese turned away. "I'll set up camp. There's
firewood and fresh water aplenty here."

"How far is it to your ranch house?"

"We will be there before noon tomorrow. I
wish I could have gotten you out of the weather
today, but the horse is just too tired to push any
farther."

"Will this storm be as bad as the one two
nights ago?" She glanced at the dark clouds in
the distance. "They don't look too menacing."

"One can never tell in this part of Texas. It will
hit later this evening."

He looked worried, and she knew his concern
was for her. Wanting to reassure him, she
touched his hand. "I have the second blanket
Alejandro gave me."

He looked at her for a moment and then said,
"Let's eat."

Later, they sat around the campfire, having
eaten and tended the horse. The storm still
hadn't struck, and it wasn't so cold near the fire.

"Reese, I'm trying to picture you in a domestic
setting. Is there a woman in your life?"

"I'm not married, if that's what you're asking."

She made a wide sweep with her hand. "There must be someone you want to share all this
with."

When he glanced down at her, there was smoldering fire in his eyes. Saber was caught by the
moment and could not look away. Reese didn't
have the chiseled, aristocratic looks of her
brother or the boyish good looks of Matthew.
His features were harsher, his eyes disturbing,
as if he'd lived hard and cared about
nothing and no one.

"There is no woman I want to share my life
with." He turned away so she wouldn't see the
pain in his eyes. He'd share it with her, he
thought, chastising himself for coveting Matthew's bride-to-be.

Saber felt sad because he seemed so alone.
"The wind has intensified," she remarked, turning her thoughts to the weather.

"Yes, I know. Don't wander far from camp.
I've heard of people freezing to death just steps
away from their houses."

"I know about northers. I'm from west Texas,
remember?" She shivered with a sudden chill.
"It already feels like the temperature is dropping."

"I'm going to shelter the horse. You'd better
get under the blanket. We can't have a fire in this
wind."

Saber rushed about, gathering supplies and shoving them into his saddlebag. Then she took
her blanket and moved against the wide trunk
of a cottonwood tree to find protection from the
bitter cold. In just a few minutes, the temperature had dropped drastically.

Moments later, Reese joined her. Sitting beside her, he draped all the blankets around both
of them and pulled her into his arms.

"It'll be warmer this way," he said, smiling
when she looked at him questioningly.

That was all the encouragement Saber
needed. She curled against him, melting into his
arms. She laid her head against his shoulder,
feeling the deep intake of his breath. In that moment, something poignant and alarming happened to her. She felt as if she'd been born to be
with Reese. She knew in a rush of feelings that
this was love deep, lasting love. She wanted to
live with him, bear his children, grow old with
him.

She loved Reese! Oh, how could this have happened? She had thought she loved Matthew, but
that hadn't been love, not like this. The powerful
feelings she had for Reese were nothing like the
young girl's affection she'd felt for Matthew. She
turned her head and rested her cheek against his
neck, allowing warmth and love to flood through
her body.

What would Reese do if he knew what she was feeling? Would he despise her for betraying his
friend? She despised herself for being faithless.
She was going to marry Matthew-why had this
happened to her now?

Her hand moved up his hard chest to rest
there. If this was love, it was the most painful
feeling she had yet experienced.

His voice was deep as he pulled her tighter
against him. "You'd better get some sleep. I'll
keep you warm."

She sighed, touching her lips to his throat and
feeling him stiffen. She turned her face away,
wanting to stay awake all night so she could savor this time. This was the last time she would
feel his arms about her. And maybe the last time
they would be alone together.

At last she fell asleep, feeling safe and warm,
although the cold wind struck with a punishing
force. Reese held her to him, wishing this night
would never end.

It was after midnight when the wind died down.
Reese's body was cramped from remaining in
one position for so long, and his arm had no
feeling in it. Yet he wouldn't move for any reason, because he held his sleeping love close to
his heart. Tomorrow he would have to let her
go, but tonight she belonged to him.

He glanced down at her. She looked so inno cent curled up in his arms, so trusting. She had
been protected all her life, and she trusted too
easily. Hell, if she knew what was on his mind,
she'd come awake fast enough. She wasn't aware
of the swell of his erection as he thought about
her sleeping naked in his arms. He wanted her
more than he'd ever wanted a woman before. He
reminded himself again that she was the one
woman in the world he could never have.