Prince Charming (50 page)

“I have to leave tomorrow,” he said.

The jolt of pain she felt took her by surprise. She had expected him to leave. Her own plans depended upon his going away. Why then did she feel as though her heart were breaking?

He waited for her questions. After a minute standing there staring down at her, he realized she wasn't going to ask him any. He'd already decided he wouldn't tell her much. He'd give her only a few details. She'd worry about him otherwise. She had enough to think about. He didn't want to add another problem.

In his entire life no one had ever worried about him. Until Taylor. Every time he'd left the hotel to search for the twins, she'd whispered her order for him to be careful. She didn't want anything to happen to him because she was relying on him to find her nieces. But there was another motive for her concern. She was softening toward him, and in time she might begin to love him. Family. Worrying was all part of this family business, he decided. He was now accountable to her for his actions, just as she was accountable to him.

She cared about him all right. She was appreciative and thankful and even beholden to him. He wanted more.

“Hunter's going to stay here with you and Victoria and the children.”

“He doesn't need to stay. We'll all be fine.”

“He's staying.”

He waited for her agreement. She reluctantly nodded. “I don't know how long I'll be gone. It could be three weeks. Hunter will help you find more suitable lodgings. You can't continue to stay in the hotel, not with the children. They need space to run and play.”

“What time are you going to leave?”

“Early.”

She pulled her hand away from his and untied the belt to her robe. The action broke his concentration. He watched as she slowly removed the garment and let it drop to the bed behind her.

He forced himself to gather his thoughts. “If you need anything . . . What are you doing?”

“Unbuttoning your shirt.” She could hear the blush in her voice. She hoped he wouldn't notice. She didn't want to be timid or embarrassed tonight.

“I can do that.”

“I know. I want to.”

They were whispering now. Lucas's voice had taken on a gruff edge. She found the sound arousing. She tucked her head down so he wouldn't see her blush. Her fingertips trailed down his chest.

It felt like a butterfly's caress, and it was driving him to distraction. He grabbed hold of her hands to stop the gentle torment.

“Don't you want to know where I'm going?”

“Do you want to tell me?” She pulled her hands away from his grasp and reached down to undo the buttons of his pants.

He took a deep indrawn breath. “Taylor,” he said. “We have to talk. We'll go in the other room and . . .”

He forgot what he was suggesting to her. Her fingers slid into his waistband. He looked down and watched her slowly undo one button and then the next.

She couldn't believe her own boldness. She had to remind herself she was his wife now and that it was perfectly all right for her to touch him. And he was leaving tomorrow, she silently added. She wouldn't be able to touch him again for a long, long while.

She loved the feel of him. His stomach was hard, his skin hot to her touch. She undid another button. Her fingers splayed downward into his crisp, curly hair. Her fingers wrapped around his hard arousal.

“Stop,” he demanded. “You're too tender. I'll hurt you.”

It almost killed him to reason with her. His hands were in fists at his sides, and it took a supreme act of will and determination not to reach for her. He wasn't an ogre; he could control his lustful thoughts.

Taylor pulled away from him. “It doesn't matter if you hurt me,” she whispered. “You're leaving tomorrow. We only have tonight, Lucas.”

He wasn't abandoning her. He was coming back. Hadn't she been listening to him? “Just three weeks, maybe even two.” He thought he got the reminder out, but his throat was so tight now, he couldn't be certain. His heart was thundering in his ears.

He forgot all about his plan to have a talk with her. It was her doing, of course. She took her nightgown off. Dear God, she was lovely. Each time he looked at her, he was stunned by her beauty. She was golden everywhere. Her breasts were full, her nipples rosy pearls. Her waist was narrow, and Lord but she had all the soft curves in all the right places. Her hips gently flared, and her legs were long, shapely, beautiful.

He pictured her wrapping herself around him. And then he tore his clothes off. He pulled her into his arms and held her and kissed her ravenously, and nothing else mattered but the feel of her against him. The world and all of his problems ceased to exist. There was only Taylor.

Their lovemaking was wild, intense, their hunger insatiable. He stroked her until she was ready for him, then moved between her thighs. He sank deep inside her. His mind reeled with each thrust. Her passion overwhelmed him, and her whimpers of pleasure drove him beyond his own control. His movements became rougher, more demanding. She tightened around him, squeezed him inside her, and whispered his name. His climax followed hers. His mouth covered hers for a long, searing kiss as he poured his seed into her.

The aftermath was just as fulfilling to him. He loved holding her in his arms and nuzzling the side of her neck while he listened to her heartbeat.

“Lucas, you're crushing me.”

He immediately rolled to his side and pulled her up against him. She tucked her head under his chin. Tears were streaming down her face. She didn't want him to know she was crying.

“No man should have to give up his dreams.”

He didn't know if she was asking him for his opinion or telling him a fact she believed. “What made you think about a man's dreams?”

“I was just wondering out loud. Even a man with responsibilities should be able to follow his dreams, shouldn't he?”

“What are you trying to tell me?”

“I'm tired tonight,” she whispered. “I'm not making much sense.”

“I guess we'll have to have our talk after I get back.”

“You're going to Chicago, aren't you?”

“How did you know?”

“I heard Hunter tell you the man you were looking for was in Chicago.”

“Yes.”

“What was his name?”

“It isn't important.”

“He's the man you want to hunt down, isn't he?”

“How would you know that?”

“On the ship, you told me you were going to go back to your mountains after you went hunting a man who'd done something to you. I asked you if he was evil.”

Her memory impressed him. He let out a sigh. “And I told you he was evil.”

“You want to kill him, don't you?”

He didn't know if he should tell her the truth or lie to her. She turned his attention with another statement. “You have responsibilities.”

“Yes, I do,” he agreed. He thought about the eight men Caulder had murdered. Lucas was the only voice left. The only gun. The others had been silenced forever. Only he heard their cry for justice. And revenge. He was going to kill John Caulder all right. He was going to feel good watching him die. The law wouldn't serve him or those eight men now.

Lucas closed his eyes. He had to deal with the past before he could turn to the future. He'd made a vow. He couldn't and wouldn't break it now. He knew all about responsibilities.

—William Shakespeare,
Merry Wives of Windsor

 

 

 

 

T
aylor seriously considered delaying their departure by another day. Getting all of their purchases packed and ready was going to take more time than she'd thought. The twins were into everything and made her task ten times more difficult. Georgie had made a pretend house in one of the extra trunks Taylor had purchased, and Allie was jumping up and down on anything that didn't move. Taylor's patience was sorely tested, and by noon, she believed it wasn't possible to get everything done. She fed the children, then put the twins down for a nap, and went back to organizing her things. Daniel was David today and he helped her.

Taylor tried not to think about Lucas. Tears sprang into her eyes twice during the morning for no apparent reason at all. She finally admitted the galling truth to herself. She missed him. Oh, how she wished she'd nagged the full story out of him about the man he was going to hunt down. She didn't think she would worry as much if she knew all the facts. She assumed Lucas was going after a wanted man, which translated to mean a dangerous man, and the longer she thought about it, the more concerned she became.

Her worries multiplied. She received a wire from Harry Sherman, the banker in Boston, informing her that her uncle Malcolm had petitioned the court to throw out his mother's last will and testament. He used the shameful reason that she was mentally incompetent and was under a terrible strain. Sherman added the news that until the matter was determined by the court, the accounts in England couldn't be touched. It was taking Malcolm's legal advisors longer to convince the American banks to cooperate.

Victoria had only just walked into the room when the wire arrived. She was alarmed by the news. Taylor wasn't at all surprised. She had expected her uncle to use every ploy possible to keep the money from slipping through his greedy fingers. It took her a few minutes to figure out how Sherman had tracked her down though, and then she remembered she'd given the banker in Cincinnati her temporary address when she'd signed the bank drafts and had a portion of her funds transferred.

The news of her whereabouts traveled with lightning speed. She and Victoria had only just agreed to wait until tomorrow to leave when a second wire was delivered. This one didn't just surprise Taylor. It scared the hell out of her. Malcolm had tracked her down. He wished to inform her that he had petitioned the court in London for custody of his grand-nieces and had just been awarded his request. He was sending armed escorts to collect the twins and bring them back to England, where he could watch over them.

“How did he find out about Georgie and Allie?” Victoria asked. “You were hopeful he wouldn't find out their father died, weren't you?”

“He's done his homework,” Taylor whispered. She was in such a panic she couldn't seem to make her hands stop shaking. “Madam named the twins in her will. The money she left for Georgie and Allie is a considerable amount. As their guardian, Malcolm must think he'll have control over their inheritance. Oh, God, I don't know any of the legal ramifications. Will the authorities here help him take the babies? Do the American courts have some sort of agreement with England?”

“We'll have to find out,” Victoria told her. “When we get to Redemption. I can be ready to leave in fifteen minutes.”

They checked out of the hotel a half hour later. Taylor left a note for Hunter, purchased the tickets at the station, and they were all on their way to Montana Territory a short hour later.

Hunter spent the day combing the city, looking for suitable lodging. He returned to the hotel late that evening and was given the news of Taylor's departure. He had to read the note she'd left him twice before he believed it. The daft woman thanked him for his kindness, explained she'd paid for his room, and ended her letter with the wish that he would come calling for supper once she and Victoria and the children were settled in their new home in Redemption.

He thought she had lost her mind. He packed his bag, left a note with the hotel staff to give to Lucas when he returned, and then went running to catch the next train.

His mood was as black as the night. Taylor and her sickly friend were both crazy. What in God's name could they be thinking? They were out of their minds all right, and after he finished blistering the both of them with his opinion of their outrageous plan, he was going to take on the real culprit. Ross. By God, their friendship had limits. Chasing after two demented women went way over the boundary. Lucas owed him, and if that red-headed woman threw up on him one more time, he might have to shoot Lucas to even the score.

By the time Hunter boarded the midnight train, he was in a rage. He'd come to the conclusion he never should have befriended Lucas Ross in the first place. And if he had it all to do over again, he sure as certain wouldn't have stolen that useless, dull-bladed paring knife in the first place.

 

The journey to Redemption took Taylor and her crew eight full weeks. They went by train to Sioux City, Iowa. They stayed there for two days so the children could run and play, and so that Taylor could purchase a few last-minute supplies. The first on her list was a large wagon. There were plenty to choose from, and it didn't take her any time at all to complete the transaction. Finding four sound horses took her much longer. She spent a long while making up her mind. The cost was outrageous, but she knew that if she waited to make her purchases in Fort Benton, the price would be sky high.