The Stafford Collection, Historical Western Romances (33 page)

Jasmine joined Sabrina at the table. She held in her hand a long sharp knife with a thin blade. Sabrina watched as she quickly cut off the head and feet and skillfully split the chicken down the middle. Seeing the
birds’ intestines spill out, Sabrina’s stomach lurched and she hurried outside to vomit.

She moved to the outside pump to cleanse her mouth and wash her face off.

Once she felt settled she returned back to the kitchen where Alma immediately put her to work at the stove making hoe cakes instead.

Hoe cakes were Sabrina
’s favorite. She wondered if Alma knew that or just liked them herself. She remembered the first time she tasted one. Her father had told them stories of the Civil War, about the soldiers’ plight, and the lack of food and equipment. He spoke of how the soldiers used their trench shovels to cook over the fire. They would mix up a thick cornbread batter and pour it onto the blade. Holding it over the open blaze it would bake into a handy pancake like bread that they could hold with their hand and eat or save for later.

Encouraged by her
children, her mother mixed up some batter and fried it in her iron skillet with a bit of bacon grease. The first bite into the crispy concoction and Sabrina was hooked. She was glad to be making them herself now instead of dealing with the chickens.

In the meantime Warren pulled Brock into his office. Offering him a cigar, Brock declined.

“I’m very grateful that you took up my offer to come to Montgomery.”

“
It was Sabrina’s decision. They are her demons and it is up to her to confront them or not.”

“
Nevertheless, it is good for her to be home. I would like to request, for proprieties’ sake, that until the wedding you sleep separately. I would not want to affront any of the guests.”

Brock snorted as his already tense body tightened.
“First of all, it saddens me that you would care about others’ opinions over that of your own sister. Secondly, we are wed under Comanche law, which you may not uphold but I do. Third, Sabrina does not sleep well alone; she has night terrors. If you want any of your guests getting rest, you may want to reconsider your request. Not to mention the fact that it should be quite obvious to everyone that we have been together since she is carrying my child.

On that note it is, nevertheless, your house,
and I will respect your wishes. Although, I doubt that your guests are as ignorant as you believe them to be. I think it’s a little late to pass Sabrina off as a virgin.” Brock stood in anger and nodded to Warren before leaving the suddenly cold room.

Brock stepped out on the front porch and took some deep breaths. He hated when people treated him like something they stepped in. That is one reason why he was not up front with his heritage. The reason he chose to follow his father
’s path instead of that of his mothers’ ancestors. He had just realized that he had been lying to himself all these years and he was ashamed. To think he had been angry at Sabrina for pretending to be something she was not when he was doing the same damn thing. He let out a sigh.

“
Rough day?” a voice asked.

Brock jumped as he turned to face Riley who was seated in a rocking chair nearby.

“Just had a talk with Warren.”

Riley laughed motioning to the chair next to him for Brock to sit. Brock shook his head as he still tried to calm his anger.

“Well, if you were with Warren, it was probably more like a ‘listen’ than a talk. Warren’s a good man, but he does tend to get his priorities messed up though. As I’m sure you know.”

Brock nodded sitting down next to Riley. They sat in a comfortable silence. Brock rocked slowly as the breeze and motion calmed him.

Dinner, however, was an awkward affair. Brock was quiet leaving the others to carry on the conversations. Sabrina was still queasy and was only able to nibble on a hoe cake. She could not even look at the fried chicken. She did not know if she would ever be able to eat chicken again. Excusing herself from the table, Brock followed.

“
You okay?” he asked in concern as they entered the family room.

“
Just a bit tired.” She told him about the chickens and he smiled.

“
You should have called me; I would have helped. “

“
I know,” she said, settling into his arms and stretching up to hug him. Their lips met gently in a sweet kiss. “Let’s go to bed.”

Brock pulled away reluctantly.
“Maybe we should sleep separately until the wedding.”

Sabrina frowned.
“What are you talking about?”

“
I just thought it might not look well.”

Sabrina took a step back and crossed her arms in anger.
“Where is this coming from? I know this is not coming from you. It’s Warren, isn’t it?”

“
Warren is just thinking about your welfare.”

“
If Warren was worried about my welfare, he would keep his stupid mouth shut,” she said as she turned to head back into the dining area.

Warren paused with the fork full of blackberry cobbler halfway to his mouth as Sabrina slammed her small fist down on the table.

“I’m not even here one day and you are trying to control my life? This is my house as well as yours and I will do what I damn well please. I am not some youngster you can manipulate to your will. I never was. Brock is my chosen and we will be sharing a room and a bed. If you have a problem with that or anything else I do I suggest you discuss it with ME!”

Warren met her eyes and nodded without speaking. Taking a deep breath to calm
herself, she turned to the others at the table watching with interest as they tried to hide their smiles. “Goodnight.”

“Night,
sugar.”

“
Sweet dreams.”

“
Have fun.”

Sabrina turned to glare at Samuel
’s reply as she left to head upstairs to bed with Brock.

The next morning after breakfast Sabrina took Brock on her own tour of the grounds. They walked to the river and Sabrina showed him where she had first met Samuel. He had
been almost whipped to death and thrown into the river to die. Sabrina found him caught in the branches of a fallen tree overhanging the river and dragged him to shore.

Next stop was the fishing spot. The one she had snuck off to with Samuel the day her family was attacked. She stood looking at the shadows of the fish in the water remembering that day vividly. Almost
trance-like, she retraced her path from years ago and stopped on the knoll above her home, remembering the carnage.

Warm hands covered her shoulders and she leaned back into Brock
’s solid embrace accepting his strength. Turning into his arms she hugged him back tightly, using him as a tether to reality. Her heart was filled with sadness but she did not cry. Crying would not bring them back.

The rest of the week passed quickly, Sabrina was anxiously awaiting Brock
’s family’s arrival. It would be good to have more people on her side. She was in a foul mood and Brock had refused to have sex until Thomas said it was okay. Nobody was immune from her bad temper.

She took solace in the horses. She would visit Justice and Troy daily but Brock refused to let her ride. So instead she would just visit, bring
treats to the horses, and brush them down. Brock would still ride them around the ranch occasionally to keep them in shape and Sabrina would busy herself with Alma while he did.

She had missed the older woman so much. She was constantly amazed at the knowledge the woman possessed and was willing to pass on. She had learned so much about gardening, sewing, cooking, and healing. She thought back to her pitiful little
overrun garden in Oklahoma and thought about how much she could improve it now with Alma’s coaching.

Her back was achy and sore from picking weeds and planting. Stretching as she
stood, she decided to have a bath. She was hot from the midday sun so instead of heating the water she used it straight from the tap to cool down. Climbing in, she lay back against the cold rim to relax. She heard the door creak open slowly and sat up covering her breasts from view.

“
Thought you may need some help,” Brock said, locking the door behind him as he knelt by the tub. He greeted her with a kiss. Sabrina kissed him back eagerly. It had been way too long since he had kissed her like that and she moaned out loud.

He shushed her with a chuckle as he moved behind her to lather up her hair.

Sabrina let her head lull back into his capable hands as he massaged her scalp and neck. Moving down to her shoulders, he kneaded softly releasing the stress from the past week. He lathered a cloth and scrubbed down every inch of her.

“
Better?” he asked moving back to her side next to the tub.

“
Mmmm,” she replied sleepily.

His hand dipped under the water to her thigh and her eyes popped open in surprise.

He trailed his fingers to the juncture of her legs as he bent down to capture her lips again. She moaned into his mouth as his fingers made their way past her soft curls to the silk below. He prodded gently before entering first one, then two into her depths.

His tongue mimicked his rhythm as his thumb rubbed her center.

Her breathing quickened and she had to pull away from his mouth so she could catch her breath. He chuckled as he kissed down her neck to her chest.

She grabbed his head with both her hands as he locked onto her nipple. Twirling his tongue around first one, then the other all the while keeping up his ministrations below the water.

Sabrina cried out as her body shuddered and he moved back up to muffle her sweet cries with his mouth.

He pulled away with a final kiss as she relaxed back into the water.

“Ready to get out?” he asked with a smirk as she shook her head no. He stood up and she frowned at him reluctantly opening her eyes.

“
Where are you going?”

“
Outhouse,” he murmured as Sabrina smiled looking at the stretched cloth of his pants.

She settled back into the soothing water as he snuck back out.

Chapter 6

The train rumbled down the tracks taking Amelia farther and farther away from home. Although Amelia loved her family, she had always had an independent spirit and no qualms about traveling alone. She looked around the gilded traveling car and her eyes fastened on a couple across the aisle. The wife was reading with her head tilted forward and her husband’s was thrown back against the seat next to her in a deep slumber. A loud snore rattled its way up his throat and she elbowed him in the ribs as he resettled in a more comfortable position. Amelia tried to hide her smile.

She watched them for a moment pondering if that was how her parents would have been if her mother had lived. If that
’s how she will be one day. Sighing, she drew her eyes away and stretched. It was nearly dusk. She figured she had better use the loo before it got any darker. She climbed to her feet and held onto the backs of the chairs to steady herself on the ever-moving floor. She clumsily made her way up the long aisle only to find she had to go into the next forward car. She took a second to fumble with the lock on the door and slide it open. The blast of wind and dust in her face pulled loose most of her hair from its pins. “So much for getting gussied up for travel,” she grumbled. Squinting her eyes, she precariously crossed the moving ground below to enter the next train. Making her way to the front, she was dismayed to find a long line and a horrible stench coming from somewhere up ahead.

The conductor spotting the well-dressed young woman hurried back to her.

Amelia covered her nose as he approached.

“
May I help you, madam?”

“
Um I need to use the loo.”

“
Are you ill?”

“No,
why?”

“
I’m a bit embarrassed, but some of the chicken that was served was spoiled and there is much sickness. I would not suggest using this privy for a woman of your stature.”

“
Is there another?” she asked hopefully.

He leaned close and spoke into her ear so she could hear him above the noise of the train.
“The last car is a private one. I’m sure they would be willing to share theirs with a lady of your quality.”

Amelia smirked at that, she was half insulted and flattered. Another gust of foul odor filled the car as the door opened and released a rather
white-faced man and a green-faced one took his place.

Amelia nodded her thanks and made her way back to her own car. She passed her seat and again went outside to cross over to the last car. She wondered what kind of people could afford their own private car. Well she would soon find
out, she rationed.

By the time she arrived her hair was completely
loose and billowing around her in the wind, and she really, really had to use the bathroom. The outer door was locked so she had to hold onto the railing as the wind threatened to rip her hair from the roots and knock with her other hand. When knocking didn’t work she resorted to pounding.