Promises Kept (38 page)

“What did she say?”

“The first time I saw you in St. Louis, Mrs. Wellington said the Good Lord sent you into her boardinghouse for me, but I refused to help Him out.”

“I told you before, I’ve never believed in coincidences,” he replied. “I think God has a hand in everything,” he added before kissing her again.

When his lips moved to her neck, she curled her fingers in his hair, pulling him to her. Colt pulled back and stared at her. How many times had he thought about seeing her just as she looked in that moment, her face flushed from his kisses and her long hair mussed and falling seductively around her? “You’re so beautiful,” he told her sincerely. “We’re going to be married next week . . .” He stopped talking and started to unfasten the button at the top of her dress. Fearful she might tell him to stop, or that she wouldn’t, he said, “But if you want me to stop, I will.” His eyes followed the long, long row of buttons and his fingers moved to the second one. While he waited for her direction to stop . . . or continue, he thought his heart might beat out of his chest.

She responded by pulling his face to hers and kissing him again. This time, she was the one to pull away from his lips. Giving him a tentative smile, she whispered, “I love you.”

Colt took that as a yes, and he had her beneath him in record time, forcing Bandit to the foot of the bed in the process. His lips were on her neck and his fingers were on the third button of her bodice. All of a sudden his fingers stilled and he stared into her eyes while his mind warred against his passion. When he didn’t move for the longest time, she said, “Is something wrong?”

“I love you,” he replied, his voice low with desire. He didn’t tell her it was taking every ounce of determination to control himself. He wanted everything to be right for her, and more importantly, he wanted to do the right thing. Problem was, he’d never wanted any woman the way he wanted her. “I want to do this right,” he said. It was important to him that she knew she meant the world to him. He remembered what she’d said that day about men going to church and then seeking the companionship of the saloon women. He knew what he had to do. On the upside, he only had to wait a few days and they would be married.
A few days
, he mentally repeated.
Lord help me!

He could actually feel her heart thumping as loudly as his own. When he lowered his lips to hers again he almost missed the sound of the door opening. Instinct kicked in, and he whipped his pistol from his holster hanging on the bedpost, had it cocked and aimed at the door before Victoria could scarcely form a thought.

“Pa, can we sleep with you? We’re scared that man is going to come back.” Not waiting for an answer, Cade and Cody closed the door behind them.

“Aw . . . heaven,” he said, relieved it was the boys and not an intruder but frustrated at the same time. Quickly replacing his gun in the holster, Colt pulled the covers back. “Come on, boys, hop in.” The twins scampered across the room and dived on the bed.

“You two don’t have to worry about anything. You know I won’t let anything happen to you,” he assured them.

“We know, Pa,” they said together.

“We just feel safer with you,” Cady told him.

“Yeah,” Cody agreed.

Their words made Colt feel ten feet tall. And every time he heard the word
pa
he got a lump in his throat. “The only thing you need to think about tonight is that surprise I have for you tomorrow.” He’d already told Victoria he was giving the boys their horses tomorrow. What she didn’t know was he’d picked out a horse for her too. He intended to teach her to ride along with the boys.

“A surprise, for us!” they chorused.

Colt had a lot to learn about little boys, Victoria thought. “Shhh. You need to go to sleep or you don’t get your surprise.”

“Okay, Ma. Night-night, Pa,” they said, settling down beside Colt.

“Good night,” Victoria and Colt said together.

Victoria’s eyes welled with tears. When she told them she was marrying Colt, they’d asked if they could call her ma since they were going to be a real family. She thought her heart would burst from sheer joy.

“Do you think Mrs. Wellington will keep them on our wedding night?” Colt whispered in her ear.

She loved him all the more because he wasn’t upset, he was actually smiling. “I’ll see to it, cowboy,” she promised.

Five minutes later, Colt found himself in the middle of the bed on his back with Victoria snuggled close, her head on his shoulder. Both boys were on his other side, and Bandit was between his legs, snoring loudly. Not too long ago he thought he liked his life the way it was. He hadn’t known what he was missing. He leaned over and kissed Victoria on the nose, and whispered, “I could get used to this.” He couldn’t afford to take his good fortune lightly. He had to learn to let God fight his battles. “I won’t go after Thomas,” he whispered to her.

She hugged his neck and started to cry.

“Now don’t cry,” he said. “I thought that would make you happy.” More than anything, he wanted to make her happy. She deserved that.

“They are happy tears,” she sobbed. She pulled his face to hers and gave him a kiss. “Thank you.”

He grinned at her. He might not understand her on occasion, but he was willing to spend the rest of his life trying. “I’ll be expecting thousands of those kisses,” he told her. Victoria settled close to him and he knew he’d never been happier than he was in that moment, his family in his arms. He looked out the window at the glittering stars in the night sky and said a silent prayer, thanking the Lord and Chet Barlow.

She may be an heiress, but Parker Promise Sinclair
cares more about living an adventurous life than
snaring a suitable husband. So it’s no surprise when
she jumps at the chance to join a Wyoming
wagon train—only to survive a massacre that
leaves her with no memory, a target on her back—
and her abiding faith tested by the only man
who can possibly protect her.

His gunfighting skills and trail savvy have saved
U.S. Marshal Jake McBride more times than he can
count. And his instincts tell him the only way to keep
Promise alive is to take her along on his high-stakes
cattle drive. But she soon proves she can ride and
shoot with the best of them—and Jake finds it
increasingly difficult to keep himself from
falling for her. Soon, with danger closing in,
they’ll have only one chance to face their doubts,
their fears—and their growing love . . .

Please turn the page for an exciting sneak peek of

FINDING PROMISE,

the second book in Scarlett Dunn’s
McBride Brothers trilogy,
coming in January 2016!

Prologue

Charleston, South Carolina

Dear Aunt Nettie,

I hope this letter finds you and Uncle John well. Matthew and I were delightfully entertained by the stories of your grandchildren in your last letter. My cousins are certainly procreating at a rapid pace! I am eagerly awaiting our departure for Colorado, heartened to soon be with family again. In all truth, I can barely contain my excitement, but my brother may be somewhat reluctant, as he has a sweetheart he is leaving behind. I do not suffer the same hesitation since I have yet to meet a suitor who garners more interest than my painting. Matthew is of the opinion that I would be less willing to leave the familiar behind if I were more conventional like Mother. I remind him that our proper mother married her direct opposite, so she obviously desired some excitement in her life. I daresay I inherited Father’s adventurous spirit instead of Matthew.

Wouldn’t it be grand if Father and Mother were still with us to share in this journey? It was Father’s dream to go West, and he always regretted not traveling with you years ago, before he became governor. Aside from being with family again, I am absolutely thrilled by the possibility of capturing an actual cowboy on canvas. I am confident the novels over-romanticize these heroes of the West, and they cannot possibly live up to my expectations, but that does not diminish my enthusiasm to see them in person.

We are leaving Mr. Smythe, our barrister, to care for the estate while we are away. He is a capable man whom Father trusted implicitly. I doubt I shall return to Sinclair Hall in the near future, but I will not be surprised if Matthew returns within the year. He is interested in politics, and he would certainly have a future should that be his course.

The families we are traveling with are wonderfully caring people, and thrilled to be joining their families. Uncle John was a dear to provide that piece of land so they could start their little community. They are confident God will protect us on our journey, and I truly hope God is listening, as they refuse to carry weapons. Mr. Vincent, the leader of the group, told us he will be armed. Because he has made this journey twice, everyone places great confidence in his abilities.

We should arrive in Colorado in mid-August. By the time you receive this post, we will be well on our way. Please pray for our safe journey, and God willing, we will see you before winter. Give my love to Uncle John and my cousins.

Your loving niece,
Promise

Chapter One

If you wrong us, shall we not revenge?

W
ILLIAM
S
HAKESPEARE

Dodge City

T
ELEGRAPH
TO
C
OLT
M
C
B
RIDE
, W
YOMING
T
ERRITORY
W
E
DELIVERED
THE
JUDGE
.
M
EETING
UP
WITH
THE
CATTLE
DRIVE
IN
THE
P
ANHANDLE
.
E
XPECT
US
WITH
TWENTY
-
FIVE
HUNDRED
LONGHORNS
BY
END
OF
A
UGUST
.
K
ISS
YOUR
WIFE
FOR
ME
.
J
AKE

The telegraph operator peered over his thick wire-rimmed spectacles at the tall, muscular man at the counter. “Is that all?”

“Yep,” Jake McBride replied, placing some coins on the counter.

Cole laughed. “Your big brother is gonna kick your butt all over Wyoming for that last sentence.”

“It’ll give him more incentive to take good care of that beautiful woman.” Jake wanted to needle his big brother for no other reason than Colt thought he was the luckiest son-of-a-buck alive. He wasn’t jealous of Colt—he was the finest man he knew, and he deserved a woman like Victoria. Plain and simple, he was envious.

Cole slapped Jake on the shoulder. “I don’t think Colt needs incentive. I’ve never seen a man more in love.”

That was the truth if Jake ever heard it. Colt was crazy in love with his new bride. In Jake’s estimation, Colt had found the perfect woman, not to mention the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. She was also the reason he needed to get out of Wyoming for a while. Even his brother could see he was half in love with Victoria from the moment he saw her. Being recently reunited with Colt, he couldn’t allow his feelings to cause any ill will between them. It had taken him ten years to go home to Wyoming, but once he saw Colt, and the ranch where he grew up, he realized it was where he belonged.

Jake had resigned as a U.S. Marshal, along with his partner of ten years, Cole Becker. They’d just escorted the territorial judge to Dodge as a last favor for their boss, and now they were on their way to meet up with the cattle drive headed to Wyoming.

While Colt placed no conditions on his return to the ranch, Jake didn’t think it was fair to come back after all this time as an equal partner with no investment of his own. Colt had single-handedly made the ranch more successful than it had been under their father’s control, and Jake didn’t take that lightly. He couldn’t make up for the years Colt had invested in back-breaking ranch work, but he could use his savings to buy cattle to add to the ranch’s herd. He also figured the months spent on the drive would give him the time he needed to get his head on straight where his sister-in-law was concerned. Logic told him his infatuation would fade with time, but as he had learned through the years, logic and emotion didn’t often ride double.

Once they exited the telegraph office, Jake looked up at the low-hanging gray clouds. “Storm’s brewing, and from the looks of it, it’s going to be a good one.” The weather hadn’t posed a problem until now, but the angry-looking sky foretold that good fortune was coming to an end.

Cole glanced at the sky with a grim face. “Yeah, just as we’re headed into Indian Territory.”

When they reached their horses, Jake felt the first drop of rain on his Stetson. “Let’s ride.”

It had been raining for two solid weeks since Jake and Cole left Dodge, and today was more of the same. Jake was riding point in a torrential downpour, well over a mile ahead of the cattle, trying to locate a defendable place to camp for the night. Hearing thunder ahead of him was a sure sign the storm wasn’t easing. They were going to be in for a long night with twenty-five hundred head of restive cattle. He’d instructed Cole and the rest of the men to keep the cattle as close together as possible, hoping to forestall problems before nightfall.

An ear-splitting crack of lightning caused him and his horse both to jump. Jake stroked Preacher’s neck. “That scared you as much as it did me, huh, boy?” More loud bursts of thunder ahead of him darkened his mood even more. “This storm is getting worse by the minute,” he muttered.
Hells bells! I’m a dang fool for not stopping before now.