Simply Heaven (24 page)

She pressed her lips against his ear. "Ned let you know he only wanted to share your spirit, not take it away from you, didn't he? I wish I could do that too, because now you stand alone. You've still got your spirit, but no one to share it with, and that makes you sad, doesn't it, boy? I know how you feel, because I'm lonely too. Life was meant to be shared, I guess."

He twitched his ears as though he understood, gave a soft whinny, and tossed his head.

Slowly, in the uncanny way nature had blessed her with. Raven felt that Starfire was trying to tell her something. "Would you like for us to share our spirits? Is that what you're trying to tell me?"

He became still, but his eyes took on a strange sheen she had never seen before. Cautiously, she positioned herself at his side. She placed her left hand on his neck, her other on his back, but he remained perfectly motionless. He wore no bridle, no halter. She had nothing to cling to except hope.

She swung herself up.

He swished his tail, as though impatient.

She gave him a slight nudge with her knees.

He started forward, slowly at first, but then she dared to dig her heels into his flanks, and he took off like the wind, galloping across the verdant pasture.

With a triumphant, thrilling wave of joy, she knew he was not going to try to throw her off.

Workers in the fields bordering the pasture paused to stare. They recognized the galloping horse as Starfire and assumed the girl riding him was Raven, her long black hair streaming behind her. They murmured among themselves, for well they knew the legend of how Starfire allowed no one on his back except Master Ralston.

Suddenly the haunting sound of pealing bells began to spread like a pall across the land.

A hush fell, moving from field to field. The slaves laid down their picking sacks, their rakes, and their hoes. Mule drivers dropped the reins. Kitchen workers stood rigidly, hands covered in dough or wrists deep in soapy water. Blacksmiths set aside their irons. Potters stilled their wheels. Masons stepped away from firing ovens.

All over Halcyon, time came to a momentary standstill as the message spread that the master's life had ended.

Raven rode Starfire onward, across the land her father had died begging her to claim, and felt closer to him than ever before.

And suddenly she knew that, for his sake, and also for her mother's, she had to at least try to make Halcyon her home.

It would not be easy. She didn't know the first thing about running a plantation of any size, much less one of such magnitude. But there would be people to help, the overseers... and Steve.

Thinking of him brought what had happened at the stables only a few hours ago rushing back. It frightened to know that she had been about to give herself up to the love that had been growing inside her for so very long. She had to keep her wits about her and be in control of her every emotion if she were to run Halcyon successfully as her father had. She needed total concentration.

But perhaps most of all she needed her heart, and something told her that if she surrendered her body to the desire that Steve alone could provoke, she would surrender her heart as well.

She would have to fight to keep that from happening.

* * *

It had taken Steve awhile to track her down. Mariah looked for her in her room, then all over the house, and told him she had no idea where Raven had gone. So he had got on his horse and ridden out and made inquiries, and a field hand finally said he had seen her going toward the far pasture.

She was getting ready to mount Starfire when Steve spotted her. His first instinct had been to gallop toward her and shout for her to stop, but a strange feeling had come over him, as though something was holding him back.

And then she was up, and Starfire was not bucking but galloping, and he dared to believe the stallion would not throw her.

He was not about to intrude, watching till she and Starfire disappeared over a slight ridge.

And though there had been no rain or storms of late and the sapphire sky was cloudless, Steve could have sworn that for the briefest of moments it looked as though they had ridden beneath the arc of a rainbow.

Chapter 18

Raven looked at the neat row of bottles, each positioned on a stump some thirty feet away. A double holster was strapped about her waist, an unlikely accessory to the yellow lace-trimmed gown she was wearing, but then nothing about her appearance was akin to that of a gunslinger.

"Look. She's fixin' to do it again," one field hand whispered to another, pausing in his weeding of the sweet potato patch. "I swear, you can't even see her hand move when she draws."

Six shots sounded in rapid succession, and all six bottles exploded in sequence.

"Lordy," the other worker said in awe. "Lightning don't even strike that fast. I never saw her move a'tall."

They leaned on their hoes to watch as Raven reloaded the pistol and the man she had chosen to assist her set up more bottles.

The sweet potato patch was situated in a remote area. Raven had chosen it in hopes the gunfire wouldn't be heard all the way to the house. She did not want to disturb anyone but had felt the need to practice her shooting, for she'd not had a chance since Steve had come into her life to change everything about it so drastically.

In the three weeks since the funeral, she had been busy trying to learn about the operations of Halcyon, which had not been easy. Julius apologized for not helping her, saying he'd never paid much attention. And she did not want to ask Steve anything, keeping the promise she had made to herself to avoid him. The only time she saw him was when she went to the stables, and she always made sure others were around.

But now she was satisfied that she was well on her way to knowing what she was doing. As soon as the lawyer, Mr. Deyermond, had read the will, she had called each overseer to her father's study, now
her
study, and had written down what their responsibilities were as she interviewed them. After carefully going over her notes, she had called them in again to let them know she had familiarized with what they were supposed to be doing and would learn even more as time passed, and they would not be able to slacken their duties without her knowing it. They had reacted with proper respect and acquiescence, and though she knew she would have to keep on her toes, she had dared to feel optimistic she was meeting the challenge and would succeed.

Except for Julius and Lisbeth, she was dismayed to remind herself.

She had been surprised that they had not seemed at all astonished to learn of Ned's provisions for them. It was as though they had expected it. And when they excused themselves as soon as Mr. Deyermond had finished the reading, the suspicions she'd had all along were intensified. They had to have known about her,
and
the will, for how else would they have known everything would then go to them if she chose to leave?

Mr. Deyermond had wasted no time in making an offer on their behalf, something Ned obviously had not foreseen. She would not be penniless if she left. Instead, Julius and Lisbeth agreed to give her such a large sum that she would not have to worry about money again.

But Raven had declined.

Mr. Deyermond had been quite taken aback. "But you'll have plenty of money, young lady. This is an extremely generous offer. If you turn it down now and later realize you're not happy here, they might not be so benevolent once they start to build their lives elsewhere. You wouldn't get anything."

She had tried to explain to him that the money didn't matter. That was not why she was staying. "It was my father's wish, and I want to honor it. And while I appreciate their offer, I would rather they felt that we're all family. There's room here for all of us."

But it hadn't happened. Maybe it never would. Lisbeth was cold to her, even downright mean sometimes in her admonishments over Raven's
faux pas,
as she called them. Raven looked on them as simple social blunders and promised herself to try harder to learn the proper ways of doing things.

Julius was another matter. He was being nice, almost too nice.

As for Steve, he had declined to be at the reading, and when Mr. Deyermond had announced the amount of money Ned had left him, Julius and Lisbeth had exchanged incredulous glances. Obviously they hadn't been aware of that provision, or the exact amount, anyway.

But as Mr. Deyermond had continued, explaining how the racking horses would go to him only if Raven so desired, she had shaken her head at such a notion, not knowing it was how Ned had hoped she would feel.

She could not help worrying that with that much money Steve would leave Halcyon. After all, he could afford to buy a small ranch and start breeding racking horses of his own. She hoped he didn't—even though it might be best if he did. Then a few days later Mariah had confided joyfully that Steve had told her he had no immediate plans to leave. Raven was secretly pleased. Even if she did not intend to keep anything from happening between them, she could not help wanting him near... just as she could not help loving him.

She fired six more rounds, and six more bottles shattered.

She supposed she had practiced enough but was in no hurry to go back to the house. The reception was being held that evening. She was not looking forward to it and wanted no part of the preparations. That was why she had quietly left the house with her guns and ammunition, determined to stay away till it was time to get dressed.

She started to reload but paused as she heard Julius call out. "So here you are." He rode up to her and dismounted with a frown. "I couldn't find you anywhere in the house and went to look for you. When I heard gunfire, I worried there might be trouble and got here as fast as I could. Whatever are you doing? And where did you get that gun?"

"It's mine."

"Why on earth would you want a gun?" He looked from her to where the field hand was setting up more bottles. Bits of glass were everywhere. "Did you hit all those?" he asked incredulously.

"Stand back and I'll show you," she said proudly.

"No, no, it's all right, I believe you. May I see it?" She obliged, and he turned the weapon over in his hand a few times, then gave it back. "I don't like guns."

"You mean you don't have one of your own?"

"Just a derringer I carry for protection when I'm in Mobile. It can be dangerous sometimes, especially on the waterfront."

"But a derringer is no protection." She knew the weapon well. "It only fires one shot. What if you miss? With mine, you've got five more chances. It's called a Colt revolver, and it was first used in the Mexican war."

"Well, I suppose guns are a necessary evil, but even when I was in military school I never liked handling them."'

"You would if you got used to them. Did you shoot much?"

"Rifles. Only when I had to."

"Well, you need to learn how to use a pistol. Let me show you." She holstered the gun, then whipped it out so fast that he, like the slaves, never saw her draw as the six bottles exploded with lightning precision.

"Now you try it," she said amiably, offering him the gun. "I'll watch and see what you need to work on."

He stepped back. "I'd rather not. I'm satisfied with my derringer. It's all I need."

"No, it isn't. If you were jumped by more than one man, you would certainly need more than one shot, don't you agree?"

Julius gave her the adoring look he had practiced so many times in the mirror. Women, he found, liked for men to appear to adore them in any situation. "I only agree that you're too pretty to be concerned about such unpleasant subjects as guns and violence. Let's go back to the house. We've got time for lemonade before we have to get ready. You're going to have a wonderful time tonight. Raven."

She doubted that but didn't say so.

As they rode side by side, Julius thought about his decision to ask her to marry him. He was confident it was the answer to everyone's problems. Not only did he want her fiercely, but their marriage would ensure that he and Lisbeth would have Halcyon forever. The only hard part was convincing Lisbeth it was the right thing to do. But he would worry about that later.

Pleasantly, he talked about the schedule for the weekend. "Tonight will be formal, of course, but tomorrow will be casual. I'll take the men on a trip into the hunting preserve while the pigs are cooking for the barbecue later. You'll have a delightful day with the ladies. Lisbeth tells me Maudina Tremayne has a new quilting pattern she's anxious to show everyone."