Beneath The Texas Sky (20 page)

Bethanie turned and ran for the house. She thought she heard Josh start to follow, then stop. In that second on the barn floor, she had seen the promise in Josh’s eyes. She could bolt her door tonight, but could she close her heart to him?

Josh took two steps to follow Bethanie before a mighty hand grabbed his shoulder. Rage flowed through him like water through a broken dam. He swung around blindly at the huge man behind him and plowed his fist into Cain’s middle. Cain stumbled back a few feet in shock, then stood ready to fight.

“I’ve had enough of your interfering,” Josh said as he swung and missed Cain’s jaw by an inch. “You act as if I could do her harm. I don’t know what you think gives you the right to protect Bethanie against me. I’ll have no more of it.” He swung again and heard a grunt as muscles bruised knuckles.

“You’re a good man, Cain, but unless you’re Bethanie’s
father, stay out of her life. I love that woman. She’s mine. No man is ever going to come between her and me again while I’m alive.”

Josh struck again, but not as hard. He realized that Cain was not fighting, only blocking blows. As his fist turned Cain’s jaw, the man dropped suddenly to his knees making no defense to block another blow. Josh stopped his blow in mid-flight and knelt beside the strong man. Cain’s head rested on his chest in total defeat, not by Josh’s blows, but by his words.

“Cain?” Josh put his arm on the man’s shoulder. “What is it?” Could it be that Cain loved her, too? Josh could not hate the man for that flaw. He had felt the pain of loving her and not being able to have her.

Cain raised his deformed face to Josh. Tears fought their way down his scarred flesh.

“I’ll have the truth, Cain.”

The older man nodded as if he could no longer hold his lie within himself. He tried to speak but a sob tore the words from him. Finally his voice won over a low cry of pain. “I
am
her father,” he whispered. “Though I have no right to see her again, I’d give my life for her. I’m her father.”

Bethanie arranged the oak table in the large dining room for dinner. The house must have been beautifully stocked before vandals broke in and stole many of its treasures. All the linens and china seemed to be present, but most of the silverware had vanished. She searched every cabinet for candlesticks nice enough for the grand table. Finally she had to settle for an overturned china bowl as a base for three fat candles.

Each time she passed the wide bay window, Bethanie paused a moment. There was a magnificent view of the storm rolling over the mountains, but it was the barn that drew her constant attention. Josh and Cain had been in there for hours. Were they fighting, or merely waiting out the storm? The pounding of the rain against the house echoed the throbbing at her temple. She had so much to talk over with Josh. How would he react when he learned half of the mine was hers? His eyes had told her he still loved her, yet he had said nothing. Would he always see his brother’s widow when he looked at her? Bethanie had known the minute she touched him that her passion for Josh was the same as it had been three years before. Even his angry words in the barn seemed to tell her he still cared.

As the rain slowed and dusk blanketed the mountains
in velvet, Bethanie heard Josh and Cain return. She paused outside the kitchen door, listening to the two men.

“I still think you should say something.” Josh’s voice sounded adamant.

As Bethanie pushed the door open silently, she saw Cain run his hand over a worried brow. “Some questions are better left unanswered.”

“As you wish,” Josh agreed, raising his head to observe Bethanie watching them. His gaze seemed to devour her with a long-denied thirst. Though his words were for Cain, his eyes never left her face. “Will you join us for dinner, Cain?’

“No.” Cain backed away. “I’d like to eat in here with Miss Rachel, as usual.”

Bethanie thought little of Josh’s invitation, since she’d seen Ben do the same with many ranch hands. Josh, like his brother, treated all men equally regardless of position. Whatever had been the thorn between Cain and him, it must have been solved in the barn, for they were friendly enough now.

Josh offered his arm to Bethanie and they walked into the dining room. Dark eyes stared down at her as his free hand reached to cover her fingers. She felt his muscles tighten as her hand pressed into his damp shirt. He smiled as she shivered beneath the pressure of his touch. His pace slowed to a lingering walk. Could it be he wanted to savor this moment of nearness?

Josh pulled out her chair as if they were dining at a fine restaurant. “I bought this house from a lucky gold miner who hated the winters up here. When he sold it to me, there were more chairs,” he smiled. “I seem to remember a housekeeper, too, but guess she got swept out with the broken furniture.”

Bethanie liked the little game he was playing and decided to play along. “You might find her piled up with
the broken wood behind the house. No doubt the candlesticks will be packed in her pockets.”

“I guess so,” Josh sighed. “But to tell the truth, this place never looked better than it does tonight.”

Even before she looked up, she knew he was staring at her and not the room. She felt her cheeks redden at his compliment. His fingers lifted and brushed her jawline, then returned to rest lightly on her shoulder. The passion smoldering in his dark brown eyes said more than any words ever could. With great willpower, he made himself move away and take his seat opposite her.

Bethanie tried to bring up all the things that needed to be said between them, but, as always, words came awkwardly to her. Conversation seemed only background noise to the emotions she read in his eyes. He was caressing her with his gaze, brushing over every curve of her body, undressing her with his eyes even as she served dinner. She felt a fire burn from the core of her outward, blushing her skin with its warmth.

As if knowing of her distress, Josh talked of his luck buying old gold mines when gold was running out and the silver being discovered. His low voice was an embrace, and she had trouble following what he was saying.

As Josh talked, she watched his mouth move and wished she could touch her finger to his lips. The wonder of looking at him had not diminished in the past years. He was a handsome man, strong in body as well as character.

Leaving their plates of food almost untouched, Josh carried their coffee over to the huge fireplace. He pulled two chairs close to the hearth. They sat talking of nothing while each drank in the nearness of the other. Her gaze became hypnotized by his strong tanned fingers holding the fragile china cup. She remembered how gently those fingers had touched her body, and how quickly they’d been covered with blood when he’d slammed his fist into
a tree at the falls after he’d learned of her marriage to his brother.

Bethanie heard Mariah cry out as they finished their coffee. She hurried up the stairs to her daughter. Mariah’s room was across the hall from Bethanie’s. It was large and airy with a small side room built for a maid or nanny. Rachel had claimed the space to be near the child even at night.

With Mariah in her arms, Bethanie returned. She wanted to reassure herself that with the reality of Mariah, the dream with Josh wouldn’t vanish.

Josh had pulled off his boots and stretched his long legs out in front of him. Tears came to his eyes as he watched Bethanie and Mariah coming toward him. He slowly stood and leaned his long frame against the doorway.

“There must be no beauty anywhere else in this world,” Josh whispered. “For it’s surely all now within my vision.”

Mariah looked up at Josh and joy filled her face. His resemblance to Ben seemed enough for her to welcome him openly. She moved into his arms willingly. For a few minutes, Josh didn’t know how to handle such a wiggly bundle. He sat back and cradled her to him.

He stroked her black hair, the same coal color as his own. She lay her head against his chest, and after a few moments of nestling, fell asleep in his arms. Josh tucked her bare toes under the hem of her long gown and kissed her cheek. “She’s wonderful,” he said to himself.

He cradled Mariah as if holding a great treasure. “I have to ask, Bethanie,” he whispered. “I’ve wondered all these years, is she mine?”

Bethanie moved beside him. She placed her hand on his shoulder and leaned close. “Does it matter?’ she whispered, her lips brushing his ear.

Josh cuddled the sleeping child closer. “No,” he answered. “It doesn’t matter at all.”

Josh stood and carefully carried Mariah up the stairs. He tucked her in bed and kissed her forehead. Bethanie felt tears flood her eyes as she watched him. He would never know he was kissing his own daughter, but somehow she felt now she must keep her secret in honor of Ben’s memory. Bethanie smiled suddenly at life’s funny turns. First, she wouldn’t tell Ben the truth about Mariah and now she wouldn’t tell Josh. Somehow, if she told Josh, she would be taking something away from Ben. She moved next to Josh’s side and blew out the candle on the bedstand.

They stood in the shadows beside the bed for a moment. She could hear his breathing in the darkness. Without speaking they moved nearer to each other as if magnets were pulling them together.

Josh folded Bethanie gently against him. His fingers lifted her chin and turned her face toward him. “One thing does matter,” he whispered as his lips brushed her forehead. “Are you mine?”

The dam of emotions Bethanie had held back, all the promises she’d made to herself about going slowly, vanished with his words. She returned his embrace as completely as if three years had never passed. She ran her fingers through his black hair and fought to keep from screaming out her joy.

Josh’s lips found hers, and his kiss was as tender as the touch of first love. His hands roamed slowly over her back as if he feared he might frighten her away. She slid her arms around his neck and brushed the raven curls. Her lips blocked his moan as she pressed her breasts against his hard chest. There was a crying need between them. A need as vital as air to survive. A longing within each that only the other could fill.

As if from miles away, they heard steps coming up
the stairs. Bethanie spoke her thoughts. “Will you come to me tonight?” she whispered.

Josh pulled away as the steps neared. “Bolt your door,” he answered in haste, as Rachel appeared at the door of Mariah’s room.

Alarm showed in the older woman’s eyes as she whispered, “There’s a man downstairs and he’s demanding to see you, Mr. Weston. I think there’s some trouble at the mine.”

Josh ran toward the hallway with Bethanie only a step behind him. She stood on the stairs as he greeted the dirt-covered young stranger. She forced Josh’s last words, and the hurt they bore, to the back of her mind as she concentrated on the conversation below.

The young man’s speech was coming in rapid gulps, telling of his long ride and of his fear. “There’s been an explosion, Boss. Down in shaft three. Most of the men were already gone home when it blew. The few left say they ain’t goin’ down there.” He stopped to breathe, and Bethanie saw his eyes enlarge as Cain entered from the kitchen. The stranger quickly turned back to Josh. “They say all the charges might not have exploded. I didn’t know what to do, so I just came after you.”

“You did right.” Josh’s voice was reassuring, but his movements were swift. He grabbed his hat and raincoat and started toward the door.

“Wait!” Bethanie cried. “I’m going with you.”

Josh swung around as if he couldn’t believe his ears. Passion still touched his eyes, but his voice was cold. “No, Bethanie, you stay here. I’ll be back before morning.”

Bethanie hurried down the last few steps, unafraid of his raised eyebrow and wrinkled forehead. “Rachel, get that brown bag out of the pantry. Cain, saddle Twilight for me.” She looked straight into Josh’s eyes. “I’m going
with you, Josh Weston, and there is no way you are going to stop me.”

“Why?” Josh asked as all the people around him ran to do her bidding. “What are you trying to prove, Bethanie?”

“I’m not trying to prove anything. If there are men hurt, I can do a fair job of doctoring.”

“But the mine is no place for a woman.” Josh’s intelligent eyes were studying her. He did not miss the changes in her self-confidence or in the touch of authority in her voice.

“If you’re there, I will be there, also.” She wanted to add that she would never again hide from danger while someone she loved died, but he might not understand. Finally the only sensible answer she could think of came out. “Because I own half of that mine.”

Her words hit Josh like a slap. His dark eyes turned mahogany-hard as he stepped away. “Is that why you came here, to tell me I now have a partner?’

Bethanie resented his cold words. Couldn’t he see that if men were hurt at the mine she could be a great help? Didn’t he realize she was not the girl he had left behind three years ago? She had nursed men after cattle stampedes and Indian attacks.
Well, if her owning part of the mine blurred his vision, so be it.
“Yes,” she nodded as she put her coat around her shoulders and took the bag from Rachel. “And not a silent partner. Where you go…I go.”

Josh opened the door in an exaggerated gesture. “Then by all means, Mrs. Weston, let’s go.”

They rode through the night in silence, mud muffling even the sound of hooves on the path. Bethanie wished she had told Josh about Ben’s will from the first, but it hadn’t seemed that important. Now, he thought she was coming with him because of the mine. How could she tell him that it was him she could not leave in danger?
She’d made up her mind the second she’d seen the fear in the young miner’s face. She wouldn’t wait in safety only to learn of Josh’s death. If he died, it would be in her arms. Somehow, when this was over, she would make him understand. He might have told her to bolt her door from him, but she had no intention of doing so. The only thing that would turn her from him was his cold arms, and she’d seen too much fire in his eyes to believe he could ever turn her away.

As they dismounted at the mine entrance, Josh made no effort to assist her. He seemed to be pointedly ignoring her presence as he strode to the group of miners clustered around a fire. The night was so dark, and the crowd of men seemed like ghosts floating in the blackness.

The men, covered with rich black dirt, opened their circle to Josh, but their voices bore no welcome. The small campfire cast frightening shadows across their faces as they complained. Bethanie stepped silently behind Josh.

“We ain’t taking a chance of there being more explosions,” one man with massive shoulders shouted.

Josh pulled his hat off and ran his fingers through his hair. “Look, men, I left orders for everyone to stay out of shaft three until tomorrow. I was with Jackson when he laid the charges.”

A cruel sound of hard laughter came from another miner. “Jackson is one of the fools who went down. Nothin’ came up but dust and noise.”

“But why, Blade?’ Josh looked at the man who had just laughed.

“He’s hungry for that bonus.” The man shrugged. “You had a good idea to offer us a piece of any new strike, but some men take crazy risks for enough money.”

Josh cursed under his breath. “How many men went
down with him?” Again his question was directed at the man he had called Blade.

“Four we think. We were all quitting for the day when they went down. The only reason some of us were still around when the shaft blew was ’cause we were waiting for the rain to let up.”

Josh nodded as he pulled off his rain slicker. “Who’ll go down with me? If they’re alive, they’ll be out of air by morning.”

All the men seemed to back away a step except Blade, who crossed his chest with massive arms. “Four, maybe five fools already down there. Ain’t no amount of money going to make us go.”

“Look,” Josh tried to reason. “I know where the charges are. All I need is someone who can hold a good light while I pull them out. Then we can dig through the cave-in.”

“You get them charges out, and we’ll help with the digging,” Blade answered, and the others nodded in silent agreement.