A Texas Sky (Yellow Rose Trilogy) (7 page)

though there was no tomorrow and never once said you

were hurt"

Dakota nodded with understanding. It took him a

moment to figure out what she was referring to, but this

made sense.

"I'm fine, Darvi."

Darvi looked irritated again, like a child who knew she

was being patronized.

"That's why you were bleeding!" she snapped. "I know

I always bleed when I'm fine."

Dakota tried not to smile at the sarcasm but couldn't

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help himself.

"Don't you laugh at me, Dakota Rawlings! I'm really

. upset about this." Her voice suddenly grew quiet; she

wished she could learn to bite her tongue. "I was all het up

to come here, and I didn't think about anyone but myself.

I'm sorry."

Dakota couldn't help but respond to such repentance.

^ "I could have said something, Darvi, but I didn't. Thank

you for your concern."

Darvi smiled a little at his forgiving tone. She regretted

the way she'd talfced to him but wasn't certain how to

explain. At times she asked the Lord why He ever put up

with her mouth.

All this was still rolling through Darvi's mind when she

saw that she'd lost Dakota's attention. He was still standing

in the same place, but his eyes were focused down and

behind her; a smile was just starting across his lips.

Darvi knew what had his attention. Vivian and Filar had

come downstairs with their mother.

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9owt,

"I'M merry scott." the doctor's wife was the first to

speak and came forward to shake Dakota's hand. The girls

stayed close beside her, but the shyness they had shown

with Darvi was not to be found. Indeed, they seemed quite

taken with this large, dark stranger.

"I'm Dakota Rawlings," Dakota said as he shook

Merry's hand, catching the girls' interest but not looking

directly at them. "I appreciate your hospitality. I'm sure I

feel better for having come inside to lie down."

"Well, Darvi tells me you'll be taking her to Aurora to

catch the train home, and you need to know that however

long you're here, we expect you to use that room."

"Thank you," Dakota said, before his amused eyes

swung to the strawberry blonde.

"Is that the plan? I'm taking you to Aurora?"

Darvi's mouth opened. "Didn't Uncle Marty tell you?"

"No. Maybe he thought you did."

"Oh, Dakota!" Darvi was horrified. "I had no idea. I

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mean, I just assumed you two had talked."

"It doesn't matter. Like I said, I have some free time

right now."

"To rest up," Darvi said wryly, thinking she could cry.

She had been so determined to get to Stillwater that

nothing else had mattered. She now wondered whether her

uncle knew of the situation.

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48 lori wick

"That was your uncle's plan/' Dakota answered the

unasked question, "but I don't think I'm going to be

needing much rest"

"But you're not working right now?"

"No. My time is my own."

Sounding rather crushed/she said, "And I'm sure this is

just how you had planned to spend it."

It was at that moment that the couple realized they were

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alone. When Merry and the girls slipped away, neither of

them knew. Darvi moved toward the door that led to the

backyard, obviously upset. Dakota followed.

"You need to listen to me, Darvi," Dakota said as soon

as he followed her to the back porch. "You're upset for no

reason."

"No reason ? " Darvi began in outrage, but Dakota put his

hand up, his face stern. Darvi subsided, something rather

new for her, and waited for him to take a seat on the porch

railing as she was in the only chair.

"I was hurt midsummer. Brace didn't want me back for

six months. I came anyway. Since my escorting you puts

me nearer my family's ranch, he said I should go there

whenever we're done and check back with him in a month.

The truth is, I don't feel a hundred percent, but neither am

I dying. I'll probably be pacing at the ranch for three weeks

before I'm supposed to report back in Austin. You may take

as long as you like to get on that train in Aurora. My time

is open. And unless you want me to wrestle a bear, I'm up

for just about anything."

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"But you were hurt some by how hard I wanted to

ride," Darvi couldn't help but say.

"At any time I could have asked you to stop, Darvi, but

I didn't. I have no one to blame but myself."

Darvi saw that he was right but still wanted to take

responsibility. She looked away from Dakota's eyes and

tried to work it out in her mind. When she looked back, he

was still watching her. For some odd reason, her heart was

wrung with compassion.

ATexasSty 49

"How were you hurt, Dakota?"

"A gunfight. It wasn't that they outnumbered me; it was

my miscalculation of where they were."

"You were shot?"

"Five times."

Darvi's hands came to her mouth.

"I'm fine," Dakota said gently. "I will tell you if I can't

do something."

Darvi mentally promised to pinch herself if she cried,

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and it seemed to do the trick. Nodding swiftly and dropping

both her hands and her eyes, she asked herself how

God could stand all this weeping she did. Ever since she'd

understood her own personal need for a Savior, she'd been

bawling over the silliest things.

Not that Dakota's being shot is silly. I just wish I could control

myself a little more.

"Are you all right?" Dakota asked. He hadn't taken his

eyes from her since they'd sat down. Nevertheless, she did

not look at him when she answered.

"I'm fine, Dakota, thank you. I'll just trust you to tell me

if something's not right."

"All right," Dakota said as he stood. "And 111 wait for

you to tell me when you're ready to go. Like I said, any

time is fine."

He slipped back inside on Darvi's nod and found Merry

and the girls in the kitchen. In the time he'd been gone,

their fascination had melted away. They showed their faces

long enough for an introduction but were terribly shy

about looking at him. Dakota took pity on them and went

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into his bedroom and shut the door.

^"S--^"

"How do you feel?" Calder asked Dakota the moment

he arrived home that evening and found him sitting alone

in the living room.

"Better. Thank you."

x

50 lori wick

Dakota had been sitting and looking out the large

window to the woods behind the house. It was a very tranquil

scene, and as the minutes ticked by, he felt himself

growing more relaxed.

Calder sat down with him,

"Any more bleeding?"

"No. Thanks for helping me earlier. I think I needed rest

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more than anything else."

Calder smiled.

"What does that look mean?" Dakota asked, his voice a

bit dry.

"Only that you sound like my brother."

"Was that a compliment or not?"

"Or not," the doctor replied, putting it plainly. "Most

days, Chet has more guts than good sense."

Dakota let himself smile over this, a smile that grew

quite wide when two little girls suddenly joined them.

"Papa!" they squealed in delight as the two scrambled

for his lap.

They were hugged, kissed, tickled, and snuggled in turn

before settling in to stare at Dakota in adorable splendor.

"Did you meet Mr. Rawlings?" their father asked.

Both dark heads bobbed up and down. Flyaway hair fell

softly around their faces, and round cheeks glowed pink

below sparkling eyes. They smiled easily, and their noses

were so soft-looking and rounded that Dakota wanted to

tweak them.

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"How do I tell who's Filar and who's Vivian?" Dakota

asked as he studied their cookie-cutter images.

The two girls stared right back, and Dakota had to

shrug.

Calder stepped in.

"Show him, Vivvy."

Vivian obediently pointed to her eye. Again Dakota

studied her but still had to look to Calder questioningly.

"Viwy has a tiny scar next to her eye," the older Scott

explained. "Do you see it?"

A Texas Sky 51

"Oh, yes. How did that happen?"

"She had just learned to walk and waited until she was

next to a rock to take her first serious tumble/'

Dakota smiled at both girls and then looked to Vivian,

"Did it hurt?" he asked, but Vivian only smiled at him.

Mercy, you two are cute! was all Dakota could think as he

watched them. He didn't know how long he and Darvi

would be in Stillwater, but he thought he could get very

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attached to these two girls. Though younger, they reminded

him of Lobby's sister, Laura.

"Dinner's ready," Merry announced from the edge of

the room.

The men thanked her and stood.

Calder gave Merry a kiss, and one of the girls went into

her arms.

"It smells good," Calder commented.

"Beef stew, biscuits, watermelon, and iced tea."

"Oh, my," Dakota said sofuy.

Merry turned to him, her eyes sparkling a little. "Don't

you care for beef stew, Mr. Rawlings?"

"On the contrary, Mrs. Scott, quite suddenly I'm

starving."

Having figured he would appreciate a home-cooked

meal, Merry was very pleased. She was even more pleased

when she saw that the girls were not going to stare at him

all evening and then hide their faces when he looked their

way. She was exhausted these days--she suspected she

was pregnant--and in her mother's pride, she wanted

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Dakota and especially Darvi to see the twins at their best

"All right, girls," Calder spoke after they had sat down.

"Whose turn is it to pray tonight?"

"Viwy's," Pilar was swift to say. "I was before."

Calder smiled at her wording and turned to Vivian.

"All right, Viv. Here we go. Dear Lord..."

"Dear Lor."

"Thank You for the food."

"For food."

52 lori wick

"And all Mama's work."

"Mama."

"For friends."

This was met with silence.

"For friends," Calder repeated, his voice prompting.

Still it was quiet.

Calder finally had no choice but to open his eyes and

look at his daughter. He found her staring around the table.

"Vivian, can you thank God for friends?"

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"No."

"Why not?"

"Where's Beth?"