Mail Order Bride - Westward Sunrise: Historical Cowboy Romance (Montana Mail Order Brides Book 9) (8 page)

“Yeah.”

“It’s a secret and you’re the only one who’s gonna know it, so if I hear it from someone else, I’ll know you opened your mouth and then I’ll be really mad at you,” Jack said.

“I won’t tell a soul, I promise,” Rachel said.

“Okay.  I’ll tell you and it’s okay if you laugh.  I used to have a crush on my Aunt Claire,” Jack said.

Rachel’s eyes got big.  “Your Uncle Marcus’ Claire?”

“The very same.  Of course, she wasn’t’ anything to him when she first came here.  She was eighteen when Grandma and Grandpa and her came for Uncle Seth’s wedding and I was like ten, I guess.  She was only here for a short time and then went back home to Pittsburgh.  Then she came back out here for a visit and I was thirteen and I still had a crush on her.  When she and Uncle Marcus got together, I was mad as hell, but I never said anything because I was afraid of being laughed at.  Still am.  You had more guts than I did,” Jack said.

Rachel’s lips trembled as she fought laughter. 

“I told you that you could laugh,” Jack said and they laughed together.  “If Pa or any of my uncles knew about it, I’d never live it down.  So it’s our secret.”

“I swear I won’t tell anyone,” Rachel said.  “So can we still be friends?”

“I don’t know.  You tell me.  Am I gonna have to worry about you tryin’ to kiss me all the time or anything?” Jack asked.

Rachel laughed.  “No.  I think I got that out of my head.  Mostly.”

Jack nodded.  “At least you’re honest.  I guess we can still be friends then.  Let’s get out of here.  I’m ready to go home.”

“Okay.  Thanks for being so understanding, Jack,” Rachel said.

              “You’re welcome.”

              Jack waited for Rachel to leave before blowing out the lamps and going outside to lock the door.  He looked up at the moon that was just beginning to rise and wondered what his Lakota maiden was doing right that minute.  Was she watching the moon, too?  Had she fallen in love with some brave and forgotten about him?  Had her father forced her to marry someone? 

He had no answers to these questions because he hadn’t been to camp since the tribe had returned, and he had made it clear to Marcus and Owl that he didn’t want to talk about her.  On one occasion, he’d started heading to camp, but hadn’t been able to make himself go because she wouldn’t be there and it was just too painful. 

He watched Rachel walking towards her home and thought about how much courage it had taken for her to face him again.  Jack screwed up his own courage and once he’d mounted up, he turned his horse in the direction of the nearest trail leading to camp.

              “Would you like more pie?” Abby asked.

              Elliot groaned.  “No, thanks.  There’s no more room down here,” he said, patting his stomach.  “You keep cooking like that and I’m gonna gain a lot of weight.”

              “I know how we can work it off,” Abby said.

              Elliot asked, “How?”

              “You run in the morning, right?” Abby said.

              “Yeah.”

              “So take me running with you,” Abby said.

              Elliot laughed and then realized she was serious.  “You want to go running?”

              “Yeah.  It’ll be fun.  We can watch the sunrise together,” Abby said, and tucked her legs under her as they sat on the sofa.

              “What would you wear?” he asked.

              “You wanna see?” she asked, and hurried from the room before he could answer.  She returned momentarily and put several items of clothing on the sofa.  She held up a Lakota maiden’s leggings and shirt. They had been modified a little and didn’t have any fringes.  Then Abby showed him a pair of moccasins.

              “Where did you get them?” Elliot asked as he looked the outfit over with a critical eye.

              Abby said, “My friend Wolf Song made them for me.  She does such good work.  Feel them.  They’re so soft and comfortable when you run.  She made them a little looser so that they wouldn’t hamper movement.”

              Elliot admired the supple texture of the leggings.  It had never occurred to him to have anything like that made.  He had to admit that they would be very comfortable to wear while running.  He started smiling as he tried to picture her in it with her short hair.  “Go put them on.  I gotta see this.”

              “Only if you’ll take me with you in the morning,” Abby said.  Her blue eyes smiled as she awaited his answer.

              Elliot said, “Ok.  What the heck.”

              Abby squealed, kissed him, and took her outfit to her room.  Elliot laughed as the door shut.  He tried not to think about her undressing and dressing again, but it wasn’t easy.  It didn’t take her long to change before she emerged and ran around the sofa again.  She turned this way and that so Elliot could get a look from all sides.

              While the leggings were form-fitting, they were still loose enough for physical activity.  The shirt was gathered a little at the waist but it, too, was not binding.  Her small feet were encased in the pretty moccasins that were not only comfortable, but gave the runner traction.  Elliot found that her short curls didn’t detract from the outfit at all.  It also didn’t hurt that it showed off the shape of her legs.

              “So?” she asked.  She bit her lip because he wasn’t saying anything.  Abby was afraid he wouldn’t like it.

              “It’s adorable and attractive.  I wouldn’t have believed it without seeing it,” Elliot said.

              “You think so?” Abby asked.

              Then she squealed again as Elliot grabbed her around the waist and pulled her onto the sofa with him.  They laughed and Elliot kissed her long and hard.  Then he drew back and said, “Yes, I think so.”

              Abby laughed.  “That’s a relief.  I thought you might get mad about it being pants.”

              “One word: Sammi. Oh, and Hannah wears jeans sometimes, too.  And Claire wears leggings in the winter time once in a while.  I don’t have a problem with it,” Elliot said.

              “Good,” she said, and kissed him.

              Elliot’s hand rested on her thigh as they kissed and he squeezed it as things became a little more passionate.  He was surprised by her firm leg muscles and wondered if her calf muscles were as strong.  Abby knew it was not proper for him to be handling her leg like that, but she liked it.  She did nothing to discourage him when Elliot ran his hand down over her knee and squeezed her calf.

              It tickled and Abby laughed and pushed his hand away.  “Stop that!  You’re tickling me!”

              Elliot laughed.  “Am I?  You mean when I do this?” he asked as he squeezed her knee.

              “Yes!” she yelled, and twisted away from his grasp and got up from the sofa.  Abby laughed.  “Shame on you, Elliot.”

              He said, “I didn’t do anything.  I don’t know what you’re talking about.  Come sit back down.”  He patted the sofa.

              “Only if you behave yourself,” Abby said.

              “Define ‘behave myself’,” Elliot said.  “Just the tickling part, or all of it?”

              She gave him a saucy look and said, “Just the tickling part.  The rest of it I liked.”

              Elliot’s eyes got big.  “Ok, I think that’s my cue to leave.”

              Abby’s face fell.  “What?  Why?”

              He rose from the sofa and said, “Too much temptation.  I’m not sure you realize the effect you have on me, Miss Porter.”

              Abby said, “Me?  I have an effect on you?” she said, and moved towards him.

              “Yep,” Elliot said, and backed up. 

              “Good.  So what time will you come for me in the morning?” she asked.

              “About five or so,” Elliot said.  “Is that too early?”

              “Nope.  I’ll see you then,” Abby said.

              Elliot kissed her briefly and left.

              When Elliot showed up at Abby’s slightly before dawn, he had a mysterious gleam in his eyes.  He kissed her hello and asked, “Are you up for a little adventure?”

              “Yes!  Where are we going?” she asked.  Her eyes were wide with anticipation.

              Elliot smiled.  “You’ll see.  Dang, but you look so cute in that outfit,” he said of her buckskin clothing.

              “I’m glad you like it.  It’s so comfortable,” she said with a smile. 

              “Good.  Let’s go.  I want to see what you got,” Elliot said.

              Abby said, “Just you wait and see.”

              They started out a jog because Elliot didn’t want to tire her out too soon.  He discovered that there was no need to worry about that.  Abby’s five foot, five inch height was much shorter than his, but she kept up easily with his longer strides.  They jogged through town out past the medical clinic and kept going until they reached a field. 

              “Follow me,” Elliot said as he started cutting through the field.

              “Okay,” Abby said.

              He noticed that she was breathing easily and still looking strong.  He smiled at her and she smiled back.  The sky was just beginning to lighten as they crested a ridge.  There was a large stand of apple trees.  They went down the other side of the knoll and came out onto a wagon track.  It went uphill.  Elliot slowed down to make it easier on Abby going uphill.  Abby noticed and kept jogging at the original pace and outdistanced him briefly.  Elliot smiled and picked up speed again until he was beside her.  The road became a little steeper and they had to work harder to reach the summit.  When they did, Abby’s breath caught at the beautiful sight before them.  The ridge on which they stood overlooked Dawson.  The town stretched out below them.

              Elliot put an arm around Abby and she leaned against him as the first rays of the sun emerged over the top of a high ridge on the opposite side of the valley in which Dawson sat.  Gold, pink, and white clouds created a gorgeous tableau and Abby felt as if they’d stepped into a painting.

              “It’s breathtaking,” Abby said. 

              Elliot nodded.  “I know.  I always run here first in the morning.  This is Jake’s apple orchard.  Sometimes if he has a good crop, he’ll bring apples to the store to sell and we split the profits.  Other times, he just gives them away.”

              “That’s nice of him,” Abby said as the sun was halfway up over the ridge.  She looked up at Elliot and liked the way the sun turned his chestnut hair to gold and made his eyes appear a lighter shade of brown.

              Elliot looked at her and got lost in her pretty blue eyes.  He put his hands on her shoulders and sampled her lips.  Abby grabbed his shirtfront and pulled him closer and kissed him harder.  Elliot’s hands moved from her shoulders to her back and caressed her tenderly.  Abby couldn’t control the impulse to explore his torso and moved her hands across the lean muscles of his chest. 

              Burying one of his hands in her short curls, Elliot made a sound he’d never made before.  He growled and the rough, deep sound released a primal response in Abby.  Her need to touch him became overwhelming.  She started undoing his shirt buttons and Elliot offered no objection.  She parted his shirt and pressed her palms to his warm skin.

              Elliot groaned against her mouth and caught her hand between his hand and his chest.  He broke their kiss and said, “Oh, Abby, I don’t know how much more I can take.  I’ve never wanted anything as much as I want you.”

              Abby met his gaze and said, “I want you, too, Elliot. You’re not alone in that.”

              “I’m not normally a very reckless person, Abby, but when it comes to you, I want to throw caution to the wind and just do what I feel and not think about it,” Elliot said.

              Abby smiled.  “Me, too.  I can’t help myself when I’m around you.”

              Elliot groaned.  “I know the feeling.”  He fought an internal battle and came to a decision.

              Abby watched as his face took on a determined expression.

              “Abby, I love you.  I fell in love with you while we wrote each other and as soon as we met, it got stronger.  I know it hasn’t been very long, but I can’t fight what I feel anymore and I don’t want to,” Elliot said in a rush.

              So much joy filled Abby’s heart that she felt it was in danger of bursting from her chest.  Tears pricked the backs of her eyes.  “Elliot, I love you, too,” she said as she gazed into his eyes.  “When I received your first letter, I just knew.  I had this feeling about you and I was right.  This is right.  We’re right.”

              Elliot nodded.  “Yes, we are.”  He kissed her then and held nothing back.  Her fevered response drove him wild and he pulled her hard against him. 

              Abby pushed against his chest and he released her.  He watched in utter amazement as she backed up and removed her buckskin shirt. 

              “Abby, what are you doing?” Elliot asked, and swallowed hard at the sight of her bare arms.

              She didn’t answer him. Instead she pushed his shirt down over his arms.  When she started lifting the camisole she wore under her shirt, Elliot stopped her. 

              “We don’t have to do this, Abby.  I’m not rushing you,” Elliot said.

              She smiled at him.  “You’re not rushing me and if I didn’t want to, I wouldn’t.  It’s like you said, Elliot.  I think it’s time we feel and not think.”

              Elliot got nervous.  “Abby, I, uh, this is new for me.”

              Abby smiled.  “It’s okay, Elliot.  I think we can figure it out together.”

              Elliot didn’t argue after that.  He looked around and led her into a stand of trees where it would be more private.  There in the shade of the elder trees, they lay down together and shared an expression of love that was timeless and natural.

              Abby felt as though she were floating through the day.  She couldn’t get that morning with Elliot out of her mind.  Their lovemaking had been slow and sweet and Abby thought that where and when it had happened was very romantic.  They’d dressed slowly and walked hand in hand back to town, each feeling as though they were living the sweetest dream.  Elliot had gone to her cottage with her.  He was reluctant to leave her, but eventually did.

              That afternoon, she stopped by the store to see Elliot briefly.  She didn’t want to bother him at work, but she couldn’t fight the need see him.  Rachel was minding the counter and Elliot sat in his office doing paperwork.  Abby went in and smiled as soon as she saw him.  Her heart swelled with happiness.  He looked up at her and grinned.

              “Hi,” he said.  “How are you?”

              She shut the door and locked it.  “I am wonderful.”

              “You certainly are,” Elliot said.

              Abby blushed and laughed.  “You’re pretty wonderful yourself.”

              Elliot gave her an uncertain look and asked, “Any regrets?”
              “Not a single one.  How about you?” she asked.

              “None,” Elliot said with a smile.

              Abby went to him and sat right on his lap.  “So what are you doing tonight?” she asked as she played with the top button of his shirt.

              “Um, whatever you want to do,” Elliot said as she undid the button and played with the exposed skin there.  “Abby,” he said in a slightly pleading tone.

              She giggled and buttoned the button again.  “Sorry.  Well, I would like to go hear Rebecca play tonight.  Is that all right with you?”