Sweet Silken Bondage (46 page)

Dev felt like a green, callow youth as he rode the
distance back to Molly's. His stomach was in knots,
and, had he not had such a firm grip on his reins,
his hands would have been shaking. He thought it
strange that he could track down outlaws and shoot
it out with them without flinching, that he could
contemplate his own hanging all those weeks and
face his own mortality without terror, but just the
thought of telling Molly he loved her rendered him
nearly useless.

He was happy, there was no doubt about that.
His life was perfect right now...or at least it
would be soon.. .once Molly said "yes" to his
proposal of marriage. But he was scared. The horrible, terrible possibility that she might turn him
down haunted him.

As Dev caught sight of the Magee house just a
little way down the street from him, he almost
wheeled his horse around and took off. Only the
sarcastic urging of some inner voice tauntingly calling him a coward kept him going forward.

It wasn't that he was a coward exactly, Dev rationalized to himself, alternating between excited
anticipation and something he refused to identify as fear. It was just that he had never asked a woman
to marry him before, and he wasn't sure exactly
how to go about it. If he did it wrong, and she said
no...Well, he couldn't even bear to think about
that right now.

To settle his nerves, he remembered that Molly
had declared her love for him. He hung on to that
encouraging thought as he reined in before the
house.

The special dinner Molly had so carefully prepared was eaten in relative silence. Though Eileen
tried to make conversation, neither Molly nor
Jimmy was in the mood to talk. Eventually, she
gave up trying.

As they began to clear away the dishes, Jimmy
heard the sound of a horse outside.

"He's here!" he shouted excitedly, almost dropping
the load of plates he was carrying.

He dumped the dishes near the sink and raced to
the front door to throw it wide. The sight of Dev
on horseback sent his spirits soaring. He charged
forward to greet him with youthful exuberance.

"Dev! I knew you'd come back! I knew you
would!"

Jimmy nearly tackled Dev when he dismounted.
He threw his arms about his waist and hugged him
tight. For a minute, he kept his face against Dev's
chest because he didn't want him to see the tears
that were burning in his eyes.

"Whoa, there, Jim," he said as he gave a warm
laugh at the rousing welcome. He tousled his hair
affectionately as he held him back away from him
to get a look at him. "Where did you get the idea I
wouldn't be back?"

The boy gazed up at him, his expression worshipful. "Mother said that you didn't have a reason to
come back to us any more now that you were free.
I was just afraid you wouldn't. Molly and me, we
were worried about it." He glanced toward the house
where his sister was standing in the doorway.

Dev looked up with him and saw Molly there.
Her slender body was silhouetted by the light behind her. Her whole manner was tense, poised and
watchful.

"Well, this time your mother was wrong, Jim. I
do have a reason for coming back."

"You do?"

"Yes, more than one, in fact," he reassured the
boy.

"Are you going to stay?"

His earnestness surprised Dev. He wanted to tell
Jimmy that there was nothing he wanted more in
the world than to live with them, but he knew he
had to talk to Molly first. "I'm not sure."

Molly heard his answer, and the hope she'd been
feeling died. She believed Dev had only returned to
thank them and to say good-bye.

Dev started to walk toward Molly, keeping an
arm around Jimmy's shoulders. "Molly."

"Hello, Dev," she said, her voice almost a whisper.

She sounded so forlorn that he gave her a curious
look. When he'd left her she'd been as excited as
he'd been, but he realized that something must have
happened while he was gone. Without hesitation, he
held his hand out to her, knowing he had to set
things straight right away.

"Let's go for a walk, Molly, just you and me," he
invited.

She took his hand without hesitation and let him
draw her down to his side. Dev was aware of the coldness of her small hand as he held it in his, and
he wondered why she seemed so nervous.

"Hello, Dev, and congratulations," Eileen called as
she came to the door to greet him. "I'm glad things
have worked out right for you."

"Thank you, ma'am."

"Jimmy, you come on inside now," she told her
son, wanting to give Dev some time alone with
Molly.

Jimmy looked up to Dev, hoping that he would
ask him to stay, but he gave him a shake of his
head.

"You go on in like your mother says," he told
him. "I need to talk to your sister for a while."

"Will you come back inside when you're done?"

"Sure."

At his promise, the youth did as he'd been told.
He entered the house and shut the door behind
him.

When the front door closed, Molly and Dev were
engulfed in the darkness of the night with only the
moon to light their way. They stood there for a
moment in total silence. Both of them were a little
hesitant and unsure, but for completely different
reasons. Neither of them knew quite what to say
first.

Molly trembled as she imagined that this was the
last time they would be together. She feared he was
only here to say his farewells before resuming his
life as a bounty hunter. The thought of never seeing
him again upset her, and she fought hard to control
her emotions.

Dev felt Molly shiver slightly, and he looked
down at her to see the uncertainty in her expression. It hurt him to think that she could be that
unsure of him, but then he realized that he'd never given her anything solid to believe in. He had
always held himself deliberately aloof from her and
had tried desperately not to care about her or her
family. He'd failed miserably, of course, but Molly
didn't know that. Evidently, she'd believed his act
completely. He knew then that right now, he had to
prove to her he loved her.

"Let's walk down to the pond, all right? I think
there are a few things that need to be said between
us.

"All right." She nodded in agreement. As they
started to walk down the path, memories of that last
time they'd been at the pond swept through her.
She wondered miserably if Dev would kiss her
good-bye before he left.

They had walked nearly to the barn before Dev
finally spoke up.

"Did you really think I would just leave and
never come back?" he asked huskily.

"I wasn't sure," Molly replied with painful honesty, gazing up at his moonlit profile as they walked
through the night. He looked so handsome, and
remembering his kiss, her heart fluttered wildly in
her breast.

"Why?"

She gave a little shrug. "Everything's changed
now. I mean, there was no real reason for you to
return here any more. You're free to go. You have
your job as a bounty hunter and your friend
Clay..."

"I am a free man now, but I never said I wanted
to leave," he told her gently.

"You don't?"

"No, or at least right now, I don't think so. But
you tell me whether I should leave or not, Molly.
The sheriffs just offered me a job as a deputy, working for him. Should I take it? Should I plan to
spend the rest of my life here in Monterey?"

"I can't tell you how to live your life, Dev. It's a
decision only you can make."

"Oh, no," he countered. `It's our decision."

They started walking again, moving past the barn
and on down to the gentle, grassy slope of the
bank.

"Ours?" His statement was such a surprise, that
Molly stopped to look up at him.

"Ours," he repeated firmly. The pay's decent and
steady. Enough to support a family on, I think."

"A family?"

They stopped near the water's edge much where
they'd stood the other night. The whole scene had a
dream-like feeling to it. The moon, the stars, the
gentle night breeze and the soft lapping of the water
at the bank. It was romantic and wonderful, and
Dev only hoped everything turned out the way his
dreams usually had-happily.

Dev faced Molly, his expression growing serious
as he struggled to find the words. In desperation,
he finally decided just to tell her the truth and be
done with it. The suspense was driving him crazy.
He had to know if she would marry him. He
wouldn't be able to relax until he knew.

"Molly..." He paused, then forged ahead.
"Molly, I love you."

His words were a heart-sent caress, but at first,
she didn't quite believe it. Dev loved her?

Dev wasn't sure if her silence was good or bad.
He lifted one hand to caress her cheek.

"I love you, Molly." Said the second time, his
words were almost a groan. "It seems like I have
forever."

"But you were always so cold ...so distant..."

"Not all the time," he reminded her, giving her a
lop-sided, self-deprecating grin. "I'm sorry if I hurt
you, but I had to be strong... for both our sakes.
I thought I was going to die. I didn't want to drag
you down with me. I'll make it up to you now, if
you'll let me. I love you, and I don't ever want to
leave you again."

"Oh, Dev..." she sighed ecstatically. "I never
thought I'd hear you say that. I love you. I love you
with all my heart."

No more needed to be said then, as Dev bent to
Molly and claimed her lips in a passionate kiss of
promise. He had denied himself for so long that the
embrace was exquisite agony for him. It felt so
good and so right. She was so wonderful. He knew
there was no place else on earth he would rather be
than there with her. When the kiss had ended and
they broke apart, they stared at each other in a
fever of sensual understanding.

The kiss had told him all he needed to know, and
Dev delayed no longer. Emboldened, he asked the
question that had been tormenting him.

"Marry me, Molly..." he urged. "Let me make
a life for us. Let me love you like I've wanted to for
so long."

It had been wondrous enough that he'd told her
he loved her, and now he wanted to marry her. It
was all she'd ever hoped for, all she'd ever dreamed
of.

"Yes, Dev. Oh, yes!" she cried in delight as she
clung to him.

"You will? You really will?" Dev was amazed that
his luck could have changed so dramatically within
the space of just a few hours. That morning, he'd
been nearly certain that he would hang, and now
his every wish in life had been fulfilled.

"There's nothing else I would rather be than Mrs.
Devlin O'Keefe," Molly vowed, linking her arms
around his neck and kissing him soundly.

Standing in the quiet of the night, their arms
wrapped around each other, they were lost in a
haze of rapturous contentment. Their lips met and
parted, savoring the taste of one another. It was a
tender moment, a foreshadow of the years of loving
to come.

"How soon?" Dev asked hoarsely, breaking the
sensual mood. His need for her was threatening to
overpower his common sense, and he knew he had
to be sensible. They weren't married yet.

"How soon, what?" Molly blinked, trying to focus
on something besides the glorious feelings that were
sweeping over her. Just a short time before she'd
feared never to see him again, and now he wanted
to marry her...to make her his wife.

"The wedding," he answered, pressing a gentle
kiss to her forehead, then one to the softness of her
cheek, and then settling on the sweetness of her
mouth once more.

Shivers of delight coursed through Molly at his
tender ministrations.

"The wedding," she rhapsodized, her expression
decidedly dreamy. "Whenever you want."

Dev kissed her again, unable to resist, then said
distractedly, "I suppose I should wait until Clay gets
back."

"I guess that would be best," she agreed slowly.
"When is he due to return?"

"I don't know. He was hired to find somebody
and bring them home. As soon as he does that,
he'll be back."

"Will it be much longer?" Molly wondered, her
fingers innocently tangling in the hair at the back of his neck where it grew over his shirt collar.

Dev knew she wasn't being deliberately provocative, but at her simple touch, the heat within him
was building to a fever pitch. He wanted her. He
had for weeks now. It had been difficult enough not
making love to her when he'd been a prisoner, but
now that he was free and the future was theirs for
the taking, he was finding it next to impossible to
control himself. She was all woman, warm and
willing, and he loved her.

"God, I hope not," he growled as he pulled her
close and kissed her deeply.

Molly melted against him. This was heaven for
her. Her prayers had been answered. Dev loved her,
and they were going to make a life together.

Caught up in the splendor of their embrace, Dev
never wanted it to end. His lips plundered hers,
teasingly arousing her to heights of desire she'd
never experienced before. The raging emotions he'd
created within her, left her feeling weak and pliant
to his will. She wanted him, and she wanted to
please him. They dropped down to the grassy bank,
their bodies pressed hotly together. Their hands
moved restlessly over each other as they strained
closer, anxious for complete intimacy

For Molly, it would have been enthralling to
share his love fully, but Dev was not about to let
that happen. He could feel the eagerness in her. He
could sense that she was his for the taking, but he
would not do it. He held her trust, and he would
keep that trust. He would do what was right for the
both of them.

"Molly ...we can't do this. Not yet." Dev protested painfully. His body clamored for him to satisfy his desires, but his heart and mind cried out
for him to wait.