Montana Legend (Harlequin Historical, No. 624) (21 page)

A wedding ring.

She blinked, not trusting her eyes. No, it was still there, shimmering like stars in the night.

“I bought this in Helena when I was delivering the horses. I'd already made my decision then. Do you like the ring?”

She nodded, daring to touch the diamonds that winked and twinkled against his skin. Warm from his touch.

He took her left hand in his. “I wanted to do this right. Figured maybe I ought to ask you in the moonlight and figure out the pretty words you want to hear. But the plain truth is that I want to marry you. Please, be my wife.”

Smooth gold slid onto her ring finger, over her knuckle and into place.

A perfect fit.

“There are five diamonds. One for each of us and
our two girls, and one to represent the promise of more.”

“Oh, Gage. I can't believe—” But it
was
true, the diamonds and promises still glittered in the ordinary lamplight. “I want to be your wife. More than anything.”

He kissed her tenderly. Slow and deep. It was more than a kiss. More than a promise. They were going to be married.

“Does Lucy know?”

“Figured I'd wait until you said the magic word. And since you have.” His eyes glittered with meaning.

Desire flickered low in her stomach. “You have a celebration in mind, do you?”

“Sure. Figure a kiss is too small. We ought to make a grand gesture. Something climactic.”

She buried her face in the crook of his shoulder, refusing to laugh. She really shouldn't reinforce such behavior. “You're a bad man.”

“Sure, but I don't hear you complaining.” His chuckle rumbled through her like her own. “Lucy's tucked in her bed, and Ella's fast asleep. She might not need you for a little while.”

“I want to be close, just in case.”

He kissed her again, taking his time, a promise of the passion to come. “Go check on her first.”

She loved his kisses, but she loved his thoughtfulness more. Lifting her skirts, she took the steps two at a time, bare feet padding against the warm boards. Sure enough, Ella was asleep, her forehead cool and her breathing relaxed and clear. Not a cough or rattle to be heard.

The ring on her hand felt strange and new, and Sarah studied it and considered all Gage was pledging to be. The love he felt for her.

He caught her the moment she stepped through the door. Made sure the door clicked shut before he guided her into one of the empty bedrooms in the long hallway. Where he'd been sleeping through Ella's illness.

“You'll be close by if she needs you later,” he whispered as he shut them in with a low lamp burning and the top sheet turned down on the straw tick he'd been using. “Right now, I want you naked and moaning beneath me.”

“Moaning, huh? That's going to take some work on your part.”

“Yes, and I'm up to the task.”

“I'm not even going to comment on that—” His kiss cut off her words and drank in her laughter as he guided her to the mattress in the corner.

Where he entered her in one slow thrust and loved her until the stars faded from the sky, until dawn peeked into the room, and still he loved her.

 

Sarah dropped a freshly laundered nightgown over Ella's head. It was hard to concentrate when she was brimming with joy. The morning was lovely. The room was already warm, filled with bright sunshine.

“Ma, I'm tired of staying in bed.” Ella coughed into her hand, her shoulders shaking hard.

“Here, baby.” Sarah handed her the cooling cup of lovage tea and held it steady while she sipped. Ella's
thin shoulders stopped shaking and her coughing faded.

“It hurt, Ma.”

“I know. Finish the cup. The tea will help.”

“It tastes bad.” An ill-tempered frown creased her brow.

Being cranky was a good sign. “I'll see if I can't round up a piece of peppermint to take the bad taste away. Finish the cup, and I'll let you sit on the window seat for a while.”

Ella perked up. “And you'll read to me?”

“Absolutely.” Sarah reached for the hairbrush and the sun caught the diamonds on her left hand.

“Ma!” Ella grabbed the ring. Her eyes grew round. “Married ladies have those. Like the rich ladies in town.”

“I know.” She couldn't help it. She liked the ring, but more than that, the man who had given it to her. “I'm going to marry Gage. What do you think about that?”

“I'd get to live here forever and ever in Lucy's room? And ride horses and have a kitten?”

The hinges on the door whispered open. “Sarah!” Lucy screamed, streaking through the room and jumping onto the bed. “Pa didn't tell me. He didn't tell me! Do you know what?”

“What?” Sarah braced herself as Lucy launched into midair and wrapped her arms around Sarah's neck.

“I knew it! I knew Pa ought to love you. Because when we first came here, and all them ladies brought
him cakes and fawned all over him, he liked your cherry pie the best. The very, very best.”

“What's all this noise? Don't you know I'm trying to cook downstairs?” Gage eased into the room, a spatula in hand. “Sounds like there's a party in here.”

“Pa! I knew it! I did, I did, I did!” Lucy raced into his arms, hugging him fiercely.

“I'm glad you approve, darlin'.” He swung Lucy up into the air and back down. “I've got breakfast almost done. Ella, do you want me to carry you down to the table?”

“Yes, please. I can sit up real good now.”

“You sure can.” Gage shot Sarah a hot, meaningful gaze. He hadn't forgotten about last night. Nor had she.

She felt thoroughly loved and deliciously sated as he wrapped her into his arms for a noisy smooch that had the girls giggling.

This was how it was going to be, a house full of sunlight and laughter and love. Especially love.

 

“Now that Ella's recovering, I can't stay here night after night.” Content and deliciously sated, Sarah snuggled against Gage's side.

“I don't see why not. I'm glad you're here.” His thumb grazed one swollen nipple, sending delicious shivers of pleasure through her. “
Real
glad.”

“I noticed.” His tongue replaced his thumb, dampening her flesh. She arched her back, and he took her into his mouth. “You're forgetting something important.”

“I'll get there, angel.” He winked.

“I'm taking about a wedding.” She sighed when he blew on her damp nipple. “We're not married yet.”

“We can remedy that situation easy enough. We ask the minister to marry us. Tomorrow, maybe.”

“Tomorrow?”

“The next day, then.”

She raked her fingernails gently down the center of his chest. “What's your hurry, cowboy?”

“I think you already know.” He was hard against the curve of her stomach, proof that he was ready for her again. “I want you, Sarah.
Now.
”

His hands on her hips guided her over him, and she sheathed his thick shaft with one slow slide. “You're a demanding man, Gage. I'm not sure I should give in to your desires.”

“Too late.”

Such exquisite sensation. Sarah closed her eyes, savoring the heavy thrum of him inside her. This was something she could never get enough of, holding him so intimately, feeling the love for him well up from deep in her heart. She cried out at the tight, sharp pleasure coiling within her, where their bodies joined.

She wanted it slow, but he surged upward, driving into her, setting a fast rhythm that tore away her control. The tension gathering inside her unraveled. Wave after wave of searing pleasure, hot and deep and sharp, rolled through her. Leaving her so weak she sank onto his chest and surrendered.

She held him as he came, shuddering hard and thrusting deep, holding himself to the hilt as he pulsed within her. She kissed him as he sighed, as his arms
enfolded her. His lips claimed hers in a slow, gentle caress.

This man was hers. Emotion overwhelmed her as he rolled her onto her side, kissing her with more tenderness than she'd ever known.

He was her life, her future and every dream come true. “I love you, Gage,” she whispered.

His arms stiffened. His kiss ended. “I care for you, too, Sarah.” His lips grazed her cheekbone and he snuggled against her, tucking her against his hips.

His lips nibbled and kissed the nape of her neck. His hands stroked her breasts and stomach and thighs. But he said nothing more.

No words of love. No whispered declarations of great affection. Not even a good-night as he drifted off.

She counted the hours, too troubled to sleep.

S
arah opened her eyes and knew she was alone in Gage's bed. Dawn was changing the dark to shadows, so she didn't bother with a lamp as she found her clothes by feel. She wanted to catch him alone before he headed out to the stables.

Just her luck. He was already gone. The fire snapped in the cookstove, the oven door propped open to feed the new flames licking at the dry kindling. That could only mean—

The back door swung open. The hired girl rushed into the kitchen carrying two pails full of milk. “Beautiful morning, isn't it, Mrs. Redding? Let me feed the fire before I start the salt pork.”

Maybe she could catch Gage alone in the stable. It was worth a try. Sarah shouldered through the door and out into the yard. Morning came in a hush of peaches and golds as she made her way through the tall, seed-heavy grasses and the wild roses twined on the rail fencing.

There was Gage, not in the stable at all, but out in the pasture with one of the hired men, inspecting a sorrel mare's rear hoof. She wouldn't likely be able to
get him alone now, not between his work and the girls. Troubled, Sarah watched him a minute, before she turned around and hurried back to the house.

Last night she'd told him that she loved him. And he hadn't been able to say the same.

He did love her. This much she knew. So why were the words so important?

She helped Ella wash and dress and plaited her blond hair into two braids. Lucy bounded in, wanting her hair braided, too. While she worked, Sarah listened to Lucy's ideas for the wedding. Ella chipped in a few of her own.

All the morning through, she couldn't set aside the doubt she felt.
I care for you,
he'd said. Care.

Not love.

There was an enormous difference between the two. She'd made the mistake of marrying a man she'd cared for, thinking that was love. And it had been a hard road to haul to make a good marriage from that. She wouldn't do it again.

“Can I go out and play, Ma?
Please?
”

“Not today. You're still coughing, baby.”

“But it's hot out, Sarah.” Lucy turned on the charm. “What if she don't run? Or, I know, what if she stays out of the creek? Or we could sit quietly on our horses and keep 'em to a walk. That wouldn't hurt none.”

“Tomorrow, if today goes well.” Sarah spoke above the chorus of disappointed “Aws” and searched through Gage's top bureau drawer for her buttonhook. “Lucy's right. Today is already hot. I don't see why we can't sit outside in the shade and do something quiet.”

A round of “Yippees” rang in the happy room.
Sarah dug Ella's shoes out of the closet, joy filling her up until there was no room to breathe. The girls were giggling on the bed, Ella was pale but stronger, and the ring on her finger sparkled.

Sarah stopped at the window and leaned her forehead against the glass. There he was, astride a gray Arabian, lasso in hand, Stetson shading his face as he rode flank, moving a herd of horses to another pasture. Half a dozen cowboys rode with him, following his lead. He sat tall and straight, always patient when a spirited colt broke free.

She melted, watching him. She thought of all he'd done for her. He was steadfast and unfailing, tender and true. Love was not only a feeling, but an action, too. With everything he did, Gage showed her beyond words what his feelings were.

So she ought to stop borrowing trouble. Gage loved her. He might not say the words, but he felt them, right?

Still her doubts remained.

 

After a long day in the hot summer sun, seeing Sarah was more refreshing than if he'd jumped in the well. Gage ambled to a stop midfield and let the sight wash over him.

She was sitting on a quilt in the shade of the house, in that yellow dress he liked so well. Her hair was pulled back in a loose braid at her nape, and escaped curls framed her face and tumbled over her shoulder to touch her breasts. The girls sat on either side of her, heads bent over needle and thread.

As if she could sense him, she looked up from her sewing. The smile that lit her up tugged at the hard closed places inside him.

“Pa!” Lucy hopped up, waving a blue piece of fabric for him to see. “Look. Sarah's teaching me to make a dress. A real dress.”

“That's nice, darlin'.” He loved seeing his girl so happy. Right there, that told him everything he needed to know. Marrying Sarah was the best decision. “That's an awfully small dress. How is it going to fit you?”

That made her laugh, as he knew it would. “It's for my
doll.
Sarah's making her right now!”

“I'm making a dress, too.” Ella added quietly. “Ma's making us matching dolls so they can be like sisters.”

“That sounds like a great idea.” Gage hunkered down on the front step and knuckled back his hat. “Hate to interrupt such beautiful girls while they're sewing, but I just got back from town. After stopping by the saddle shop, I looked up the minister. Seems he's got time to perform a wedding tomorrow afternoon.”

Over the girl's excited squeals, Sarah tucked her needle into the seam she was working on and set her work aside. “It seems sudden.”

His pride took a small hit seeing that she was acting uncertain. “If you want to wait, we will. It's just sensible, that's all. We've got the girls to consider, and with you living in the house and all.”

She blushed, knowing exactly what he meant. He couldn't tell her in front of the girls that having her in his bed, so warm and willing and incredible, was what he wanted. And he didn't want to feel guilty about it. Didn't want to worry that folks might start to talk about Sarah in a bad light.

He wanted to marry her. He knew he'd be happy
with her. Look at them right now. The girls content, the afternoon pleasant, and even when it came to a disagreement, he and Sarah were talking rationally. There was no arguing, no fury, no heartache, no accusations as had been the case in his first marriage.

It wasn't going to be like that with Sarah. She would never know how grateful he was, to find a woman who fit into his life, like a piece missing suddenly found and it made him whole.

She tucked her lip between her teeth, the curls framing her face ruffling in the wind. He itched to touch her, so he did, cupping her jaw in the breadth of his palm. She came against him like poetry. Made him feel a beauty he didn't believe in.

“No, you're right.” She sounded shaky, and there were shadows in her eyes that hadn't been there before. “There's no sense to waiting. I love you. You love me. And we have the girls to consider. Look how happy they are.”

“We want cake for the wedding,” Lucy informed them, swirling around in circles, catching Ella by the hand and tugging her 'round and 'round, too. “A big chocolate cake with flowers on the frosting. Like at the hotel.”

Gage tried to figure out what Lucy was saying. Her mouth was moving, but suddenly the world was spinning. The ground moving.

Sarah snuggled against him, smiling at the girls.

She thought he loved her. She thought…

Wait. He knew exactly what she thought. She believed she'd found her happily-ever-after.

The problem was that life wasn't a fairy tale. Sarah ought to know that, too.

His guts knotted, always the sign of trouble. Had he made a terrible mistake?

Sarah's ring sparkled as she splayed her hand on his chest, stealing a kiss from him. “I have supper almost ready. Did you get a chance to buy more popcorn?”

“Sure, but will I share?”

“Popcorn!” Lucy and Ella shouted in unison and stopped twirling. “We want it, Pa! Yeah, we want it.”

“One place it isn't, is in the wagon.”

The girls were off, running at full steam to be the first to find the special treat. Lucy was happy. He was happy.

“I bet I can make you share some of your popcorn with me.” Sarah winked at him, blushing a little, before she disappeared into the kitchen, leaving the screen door to bang shut behind her.

This is what it could be like forever. With Sarah's smile to renew him at the end of a hard day. With Sarah's supper waiting on the pretty cloth-covered table. With Sarah to pull close and hold through the night.

This is what he wanted. This happiness he'd never thought was possible. A marriage between them was going to work. He could feel it deep in his bones.

And if it troubled him what Sarah said, he decided to ignore it. Love was a word for something that didn't exist. If she wanted to use it for this incredible feeling of happiness, then that was fine by him.

By this time tomorrow, she would be his wife. His wife to make love to, to hold and to cherish. As for the wedding night. His blood kicked at the thought of what he intended to do to Sarah once he got her alone in his bed.

Yep, he was going to like being married just fine.

 

It happened again. It was all Sarah could think about as she felt Gage relax in the bed beside her. She'd told him she loved him and this time he hadn't said anything at all. Except, “Good night.”

He'd been a thoughtful lover. Every touch tender and passionate. He'd told her that she was the one he wanted. And his ardent lovemaking had left her in no doubt of that. He'd possessed her completely.

Good night,
he'd said.

His hand was heavy on her bare hip and she carefully lifted his wrist so she could scoot out of bed. He didn't stir, breathing heavy and deep, the sheet twisted around his knees. The moonlight spilled through the window, worshiping every inch of him, leaving no doubt. He was a desirable man, and love rose in her heart like an ocean's tide, so powerful nothing could stop it.

She grabbed his cast-off shirt and shrugged into it, breathing in his pleasant man and wind scent. Desire twisted low in her stomach as she curled on the window seat and gazed out at the night. Calm and peaceful, with the moon only a thin sickle hanging low in the sky.

“Hey. Thinking of me?” The bed ropes groaned as he shifted. “You ought to be deep in a satisfied sleep. Since you're not, that can only mean my work isn't done.”

“I guess not.” A satisfied sound escaped her throat as he settled behind her on the seat and pulled her against him. His arms enfolded her until she was snug.

“I hope you admire how hard I'm willing to work to satisfy you.” He nibbled her earlobe. “And how big my work ethic is.”

“Stop it.” She swatted him playfully on the shoulder. “You are not going to get any more pleasure if you keep that up.”

“That's not a problem.” As if to prove it, he placed her hand on his aroused shaft.

“That's it. I'm not going to marry you.”

“We'll see about that. Come back to bed with me and I'll change your mind.” He moaned as her fingers tightened around him. “Forget the bed.”

He guided her over him. The swollen head of his shaft nudged against her, stretching her, and every worry tumbled away, leaving only desire. Only the feel of him pushing inside her, inch by slow inch. She took all of him, loving the feel of his thickness, his length, nestled deep. Pleasure twisted like a fire-hot blade as she rocked against him. Intense as it was, it paled against the emotion building in her heart.

He suckled one breast and the other as she set a slow pace. This feeling, it swelled each time they came together. A feeling so raw and aching and vulnerable she fought it. Tried to keep from surrendering her entire heart to this man who couldn't say that he loved her.

He came first, thrusting hard, muscles rippling, ten-dons straining. She could feel the pulse of him, like a life force that moved through her, too, pulling her into a slow, powerful release that left her spent and crying against his chest.

“Angel.” He stroked her hair, kissing her face, his touch so cherished. “This window seat is nice, but let's get you back in bed.”

That wasn't what she wanted him to say. Was she the only one feeling this way? “I have to ask you something.”

“Anything you want.” He growled against her throat. “As long as I'm on top this time.”

“No, Gage.” She sat up, moving off him, moving away. “You think we should get married tomorrow, but—”

“Tomorrow, two o'clock.” He brushed tangles from her face, not understanding, still thinking she wanted to talk about the wedding before he hauled her back to bed and made love to her.

She closed her eyes, afraid of saying what was on her mind. Afraid of saying nothing at all.

“I told Mrs. Flannery I'd be by tomorrow or the next day to pick up your things. She was pleased I was making an honest woman of you.” He kissed her wholly, with lips and teeth and tongue, a hungry possession that told her he wanted her all over again.

“Mrs. Flannery knows we're getting married?”

“Sure. Probably the whole town by now.”

She closed her eyes. Everything was spinning away from her and she felt as if she couldn't stop it. Couldn't make it right.

“Tomorrow night you'll be mine.” His hand wound through her hair, the weight of his palm cupping her nape as he nudged her toward his jutting shaft. He bumped his knee against hers, pressing apart her thighs. “I want you, Sarah. For the rest of my life, I want to have only you.”

Have, not love. Pain clawed through her and she pushed away, standing on her own two feet. “Do you love me?”

“If that's what you want to call this between us, that's all right with me.” He wrapped his arms around her waist from behind, his whiskered chin rough on the curve of her shoulder. “You are the best thing that
has ever happened to me, Sarah. Come back to bed. Please.”

His plea shivered across the shell of her ear, sending arrows of desire down her spine and through every inch of her body. “What do you mean? If this isn't love, what would
you
call it?”

He tugged her backward toward the mattress. “Come on, angel, I'll show you want I mean.”