Anna's Heart (Wilderness Brides Book 2) (11 page)

“I hope you find what you’re looking for. I’ll get a letter to you somehow after the baby is born.”

“I’d like that.”

Anna gave her one final hug, then raised her foot to the wagon wheel to climb up into the driver’s box. She swiped her hand across her face and inhaled deeply. Her eyes drifted to Ethan, who sat on his horse several yards away, watching.

Her heart sped up. This was really happening. She was leaving, and with the most unlikely of men she could have chosen to lead her to Fort Hall. Anna unwrapped the reins from the brake handle, and gave Ethan a nod to let him know she was ready. Ethan’s horse moved toward her, coming up beside the wagon.

“You sure you can drive the team?”

She raised her chin, ignoring the wild beating of her heart at Ethan’s perusal of her. His eyes drifted from her hands holding the reins to her face.

“A little late to be asking me that, isn’t it?”

Perhaps she was mistaken, but it looked as if Ethan grinned just before he reined his horse away from her and rode past the mules to lead the way out of the valley. Travis yelled something to him, and Ethan raised his hand without a backward glance.

Anna clucked to the team, slapped the reins against their backs, and the wagon lurched forward. She didn’t look back when several people called to her to have a safe journey. Her vision blurred and she blinked away the tears.

She was doing the right thing. She’d been strong enough to leave everything behind when she’d left her broken heart in Ohio. She could do it again. For now, all she had to do was follow the man who rode his horse a good fifty yards ahead of her.

E
than reined
his horse to a stop along a meandering creek, his eyes scanning into the distance. An eagle screeched overhead, soaring toward the glowing ball of fire sinking lower into the horizon to the west. A soft breeze drifted over the grassland, making the tall blades sway back and forth as if in a dance. The leaves of the cottonwoods that lined the water rustled loudly, while behind him, the jingle of harnesses and the squeaking of wagon wheels drew closer. He inhaled a deep breath.

What on earth had he been thinking?

That question had grabbed hold of him for the last week like a wolverine sinking its deadly fangs into its prey.

Ethan shifted in the saddle. He glanced over his shoulder even though he didn’t have to look to know that she’d catch up soon enough. Anna had driven the wagon every day since leaving the valley with no complaints, keeping up with the pace he’d set. If he’d been alone, he could have covered the distance much faster, but with a wagon, it meant moving at a crawl. By tomorrow, they’d finally reach their destination.

He lifted his hat from his head and raked his hand through his hair. Why had he impulsively told Anna that he’d take her to Fort Hall?

You know why, you fool.

He’d known Anna Porter for months, yet this had been the first time he’d really taken notice of her as more than one of the women his brother had brought to the valley. So, he’d done the first thing that had come to mind to put some distance between them – he’d offered to take her to Fort Hall. No matter how often he’d called himself crazy for his rash decision, he couldn’t have gone back on his word.

Later, he’d reasoned that someone needed to go to Fort Hall for supplies anyway, so he might as well take Miss Porter along and deliver her there. She’d wanted to leave the valley, and it was for her own good. Unfortunately, he didn’t believe his own excuses. He wanted her gone for different reasons. Reasons he hadn’t wanted to think about at the time, and still didn’t want to think about now. Trouble was, his mind wouldn’t give him any peace.

Since that day when she’d gotten lost in the woods, he’d needed to put as much distance between himself and her as possible, if he wanted to keep his sanity. Once she was out of his sight for good, his life could get back to the way it had been, without his mind wandering into territory he’d sworn he’d never cross.

He hadn’t been able to get Anna out of his thoughts. Getting gutted by a moose couldn’t have produced a more powerful jolt of emotion. Since then, he’d spent more time lying awake at night than was healthy, remembering those soft fingers on his skin, or her warm, tender eyes looking at him.

Stupid fool that he was, that day she’d gotten lost he’d brazenly tried to make her nervous by removing his shirt in front of her. He’d noticed how it had made her uneasy to see him bare-chested once before, and he’d needed to get the upper hand after his embarrassing mishap in the creek.

His plan had backfired on him in the worst way possible. He hadn’t counted on her feminine touch and the way it had soothed his battered and heated skin. Her soft and gentle hands on him while she’d doctored his scrapes and bruises had been sweet torture – for him.

She’d stirred a part of him he’d thought had died alongside his folks and little sister, and she’d done it without even realizing it. The way her fingers had moved as they’d applied the salve to his wounds had almost been seductive and purposeful, but he knew her better than that. Her actions had been completely innocent, yet they had ignited a fire in him that he hadn’t been able to put out. And he’d decided right then and there that she had to go. She was becoming too dangerous for the kind of life he’d made for himself.

Ethan shook his head to try to rid himself of the images of her sitting so close to him under a rocky shelter. Her damp shawl had framed her soft face, while her skin and lips had glistened with moisture. Eyes, soft like a doe’s, had stared back at him, cautious and confused. She’d been taken off guard by their encounter as much as he. It had taken all his willpower not to find out what she’d do if he kissed her.

He rotated his shoulder to dispel the sudden tingling feeling on his skin, as if Anna’s fingers caressed him at this very moment. The breeze did little to cool the heat coursing through him.

All these years since leaving his old life behind and following Harley into the wilderness, he’d made it clear that he liked to keep his distance from people. It was easier than forming attachments. His family called him surly and grumpy like an old bear, and that was fine by him. His reckless days, along with emotional attachments, had ended when his folks died. Someone had to step up and be responsible and sensible in the family. He’d fallen short before, and his parents had paid the ultimate price for it.

Anna had stood up to him when she’d accidentally tossed the water at him. Whatever had happened that day and all the mishaps that followed, it had awakened something dormant in him. He hadn’t figured out whether it was the fact that she’d put him in his place for his foul mood, or for some other unexplainable reason.

For the past three weeks, most everyone had stayed out of his way, accusing him of being more cantankerous than ever, which had suited him just fine. At least when he kept folks at arm’s length, he didn’t have to get too close to anyone. Of course, Harley had nearly come undone with happiness when Ethan had told him he’d take Anna to Fort Hall.

“Ya doin’ the right thing, Son,” the old codger had said, slapping him on the back. His face had lit up as if he’d struck gold.

Nathaniel had taken the news with a suspicious look in his eyes and a smirk on his face. Ethan had dared him with a scowl to say what had been on his mind. Nathaniel was much too perceptive and looked as if he’d read his thoughts. His younger brother had wisely kept his mouth shut.

The last five days on the trail to Fort Hall had only made his troubles worse. She’d kept up with the fast pace he’d set without a single complaint. During their first night, he’d set up camp in silence, and she hadn’t said much, either. She’d fixed a meal of biscuits and meat, which they’d eaten in awkward silence. She’d quickly excused herself, saying she was tired from the long day, and had disappeared inside the wagon. Ethan had sat by the fire long into the night, reminding himself why he had to keep his distance.

“Do you expect to get to Fort Hall within a week?” she’d asked the next morning after helping him break camp and get the mules hitched to the wagon. She’d climbed into the driver’s seat, looking at him for an answer.

“If we push hard, it’ll be about six or seven days. Depends on whether you can keep up.”

Her brows had shot up at his comment. Ethan hadn’t been able to suppress a smile, no matter how hard he’d tried to remain impassive. Something about Anna awakened the man he might have been, had the tragedy with his folks not occurred. His brothers had always found pleasure in trying to rile him for his moods. Anna’s quiet personality and the way she’d calmly dressed him down on several occasions for his demeanor was appealing.

“I think I can manage to keep up with you, Mr. Wilder.” Her eyes had flashed in a haughty challenge.

Although she’d always been rather reserved and sensible, he’d seen that playful side in her a few times with the other women and with Patrick. He’d never paid much attention to it before. Like the day in the woods, it was different out here on the trail, when it was only the two of them and he was completely focused on her.

“Then let’s not waste any more time,” he’d said with a nod and reined his horse away from the wagon. The harnesses had creaked and jingled behind him as he’d led the way in the direction of Fort Hall and getting Anna Porter out of his life.

“What a beautiful spot,” Anna called from behind him. Ethan shifted in the saddle to glance over his shoulder. She’d nearly caught up to him. “Is this where we’re making camp for tonight, or do you plan on going further?”

He nodded toward the sun sinking in the horizon. “Best to stop here. There’s water and good grass for the animals.”

There was a hint of relief in her eyes and a faint smile on her lips as she pushed some loose strands of her dark hair back under her bonnet. Gritting his teeth, Ethan pulled his gaze away from her and nudged his horse toward the water. There was a sheltered spot to make camp for the night under the cottonwoods.

Ethan dismounted once his horse reached the creek and dipped its head to the water. He flexed his left hand, bringing feeling into his fingers. The wound had healed nicely, but there was still a lingering lack of sensation where a large scar ran across his palm. His sprained foot had taken less time to heal. Trevor had suggested he not wander in the woods for a while. Travis had chimed in that he should spend more time with Anna Porter, that if they were lucky, she might finish him off for them. Ethan had silently agreed with his brother.

He hobbled his horse, then moved to the wagon to unhitch the mules. After a long day, they were eager to get to water and grass. Anna climbed down from the driver’s box. Her foot stepped on her skirt as she descended and she nearly lost her balance. Ethan rushed to her side, but she recovered before he reached her. She turned her head to him, surprise registering in her eyes.

“Guess I’m a bit clumsy from sitting in the jostling wagon all day,” she said with a faint smile. She adjusted her bonnet on her head and rubbed her hand across her forehead. “If you’ll start a fire, I’ll get supper ready.”

This had been their routine since the first night. While he tended to the animals, she prepared supper. They’d sit at the campfire, mostly in silence or making meaningless small talk. She’d been as reluctant as he to speak of anything that involved personal matters.

“If you’d like, Miss Porter, I can try and rustle up a rabbit or something for supper,” he offered once a nice-sized flame crackled in the small pit he’d created.

“That would be nice.” She offered a smile, glancing over her shoulder, then continued to rummage in the back of the wagon for her Dutch oven and the coffee pot.

A strong gust of wind whipped her skirt around her legs, and her bonnet blew off her head. Ethan stepped closer and reached for the handle of the heavy cast iron pot to lighten her load. She fumbled with the bonnet that hung from its ties around her neck and flapped at her shoulder, then raised her eyes to his with a grateful look on her face. Ethan swallowed past the sudden dryness in his throat.

“Don’t you think it’s time you called me Anna?” she offered with a hint of shyness in her voice.

Ethan cleared his throat. “I s’pose you should have called me by my first name a long time ago. You don’t call any of my brothers by their surname.”

He peeled his eyes away from her and took a step back. He stood much too close to her, letting him notice every little detail about her face. The freckles on her nose, the way the setting sun played in her eyes, the slight quiver of her lips.

Damn! His hand formed a fist at his side to keep from reaching out and touching the smooth skin of her cheek. Ethan gritted his teeth. He set the Dutch oven near the fire, then abruptly stomped off to pull his rifle from his saddle scabbard. Without looking back, he followed the creek, putting some much-needed distance between himself and Anna.

By the time he returned with a pair of jackrabbits that populated the tall grasses along the creek, Anna had a pot of coffee sitting in the coals next to the flames. The aroma drifted on the breeze before he reached camp. She stood with her back to him, leaning over the fire as she stirred something in her oven that sat next to the pot. With the sun going down, she must have decided to abandon the bonnet. Her dark hair hung down her back in a long braid.

The strong breeze nearly blew his hat from his head, the wind having shifted and gusting from behind him. As he reached up to secure it, the hair along the nape of his neck raised and an inexplicable feeling of foreboding rushed through him.

His eyes went to the woman by the fire. He rushed forward, dropping the rabbits and his rifle. Anna’s skirt, which had blown toward the flames, had caught fire.

“Anna,” Ethan roared.

She spun on her heels to stare at him, then looked down. The shock of seeing her clothes on fire clearly sent her into a panic. She screamed as she ran.

“Don’t run,” Ethan called. She didn’t listen. He caught her around the waist as she fled toward the wagon, and pushed her to the ground, landing on top of her to smother the flames. He rolled with her in the dirt until the flames were out.

His chest heaved and his heart pounded like a stampede of elk when he twisted to the side and off of her. The last time fear had gripped him with such force had been the day he’d returned to his parents’ camp, seeing all the smoke from the fire that had been set to the wagon and the lifeless image of his mother on the ground.

“Are you all right?” he rasped, forcing air into his lungs. He gripped Anna’s arm, who lay on the ground beneath him, staring up at him with wide and fearful eyes. She nodded vigorously.

“Are you burned?” He shifted to look down her body at her legs. The skirt was tattered and charred in places, and would be useless. The petticoat underneath it looked singed, but not burned through.

“I don’t think so,” she said in a weak and cracking voice. She breathed as hard as he, her chest moving up and down in quick succession.

Ethan pushed away from her and stood, then offered his hand. She clasped his wrist as he pulled her to her feet with more force than necessary. The momentum brought her much too close. Anna’s trembling hands braced against his chest.

“It’s all right. You’re safe,” he murmured. His hand came up to push loose strands of hair from her face. This was not how he’d envisioned caressing her face, but he couldn’t have stopped himself anymore than stopping the wind from blowing.

“I know better than to run,” she whispered. “I must have taken leave of my senses.”

“It’s a natural reaction,” he offered. Her eyes shimmered as she stared up at him and her lips quivered in a thankful smile.

“Anna,” Ethan uttered, and all his good intentions and willpower faded away in that moment.