The Sheriff (Historical Romance) (18 page)

“I
want to go home,” Kate said, and not for the first time.

“Not a chance,” Travis calmly told her.

Forty-eight hours had passed since Chang Li had carried the wounded Kate to the sheriff’s quarters. It was just past sunset, the start of another freezing cold night. Travis was stirring the new logs he’d thrown into the fireplace, watching the flames leap high and set shadows to dancing over the big, warm room. When he laid the poker aside, he turned and came to the bed.

“I know you want to go home, Kate, but I can’t let you. You’ve lost blood, you’re weak and you need bed rest. Besides, we’re not sure who was behind this shooting. You wouldn’t be safe alone.” His tone was mellow, the look in his dark eyes one of compassion.

“I’m not afraid, Sheriff,” Kate said softly, disarmed by his demeanor.

Travis’s smile magically changed his handsome face like some inner burst of light from within. His obsidian eyes glittered when he asked, “Is there anything in this world you’re afraid of, Kate VanNam?”

They stared at each other.

“You, Sheriff,” she finally replied candidly, unnerved by the intimacy that circumstances beyond their control had forced on them.

Travis sank down onto a chair beside the bed. He reached for her hand and held it in both of his own. “Don’t be afraid of me, Katie. I could never hurt you.” He squeezed her fingers and said, “Do me a favor? Call me by my name, just once. Say it. You never have. Do it now.”

Kate gazed into his dark, penetrating eyes and was mesmerized. She drew a shallow breath and said, “Thank you very much for all you’ve done for me, Travis.”

“Again.”

“Travis.” Kate smiled at him. “Travis,” she said once more. “Travis, Travis, Travis. I do like your name, Travis.”

“And you’ll call me by name from now on.”

“Yes, I will, Travis.”

He smiled and slowly lifted her hand as he bent his dark head. He placed the softest of kisses in her
open palm, then lowered her arm and tucked it back beneath the covers.

“Now, how would you like some of Alice’s delicious vegetable stew?” he asked.

“I’d like that.” She favored him with a teasing smile before adding softly, “Tra…vis.”

He nodded, rose to his feet and turned away, hoping she didn’t see the foolish grin on his face. It thrilled him to simply hear her say his name.

Kate turned her head on the pillow and watched as he crossed the room. With his back to her, he stood at the cookstove ladling stew from a pan. She stared at him, wondering if he had any idea how glad she’d been to see him when he’d returned to his quarters at sunset.

Alice had been in and out several times, running over from the bakery across the street, bringing food and good cheer. And Chang Li, now well and worried about her, had stopped by to check on her and to assure her that he was keeping close watch on the mine. And, of course, Cal had spent long hours stretched out on the foot of bed, his mere presence a comfort.

But while she had soundly objected to being left alone with the sheriff at night, Kate found herself looking forward to the moment when, after a long day spent discharging his many duties, Travis returned to his quarters. And her.

Watching him now as his midnight hair gleamed
in the firelight and his wide shoulders strained the fabric of his tan gabardine shirt, Kate felt incredibly safe and content. Travis had taken excellent care of her, serving as both doctor and nurse. To her surprise, he had been unfailingly kind and understanding.

Also, more than once she had awakened from a catnap to catch him gazing at her with an expression of such unguarded tenderness in the depths of his beautiful eyes that she had fought the strong desire to reach out and lay her hand on his tanned face.

Kate sighed now with satisfaction.

Then almost immediately, she frowned.

What was she thinking? Had the bullet that struck her shoulder weakened her brain?

By the time he brought her supper tray to the bed, Kate was no longer speaking to him. She shook her head and refused to let him set the tray across her knees.

Baffled, Travis stood with the tray in his hands, saying, “Won’t you try some of the stew?”

Kate stubbornly shook her head.

“But a minute ago you said you were hungry. What’s wrong, Katie?”

“I told you not to call me Katie!” she snapped, eyes flashing. “Go away, Sheriff!”

“You need to eat something so that—”

“I am not hungry!”

“Fine.” Travis walked over and placed the tray on the table. He sat down, shook out a napkin, draped it over his knee, picked up a spoon and began eating
the hot vegetable stew and freshly baked yeast rolls Alice Hester had brought earlier in the day.

Kate had been hungry for the past hour. She had looked forward to enjoying the tasty stew and fresh bread, and now she watched the sheriff devouring it all as if he had forgotten she existed.

Kate grew angrier by the minute. And when, his bowl empty, Travis picked it up and headed back to the stove for a second helping, she could stand it no longer.

“Don’t you dare eat all that stew!” she warned.

Over his shoulder he called, “Why not? You’re not hungry. No sense letting good food go to waste.” He was grinning, but he didn’t let her see it. “You hungry now?”

“I…yes, a little.”

“Coming right up, Katie.”

She gritted her teeth, but said nothing. Travis came directly to the bed, eased her up into a sitting position and plumped the pillows behind her. He returned with the tray and placed it on her lap.

“Want me to feed you?”

“I can manage just fine, thank you.” She looked up at him. “Stop hovering over me. I’m not helpless.”

“Great,” he said, backing away. “I’ll go across the street, have a drink, maybe play a hand of poker.”

Kate ignored him. She picked up a piece of bread, tore it in two and winced with pain.

Travis was back at her bedside in the blink of an eye. “You okay? Let me have a look.”

Over her objections, he unbuttoned the nightshirt, pushed it aside, gingerly lifted the bandage and studied the wound. “No real harm done, but you must be more careful.” He put the bandage back in place and rebuttoned the shirt. “Won’t you let me help you a little?”

“How can you? You’re leaving me alone, heading over to the Golden Nugget.”

“Who said anything about the Golden Nugget?”

“Isn’t that where you’re going?”

“I’m going nowhere. I’m staying here with you,” he stated. “All night.”

“Thank you.” Kate looked into his eyes and murmured softly, “Travis.”

T
ravis came home earlier than usual the next evening. The sun had barely set when he walked through the door. Kate was not surprised. She knew the reason he was early. He couldn’t wait to see her again. She knew because she felt the same way.

“Hi, Travis,” she said with a bright, welcoming smile.

“Hi, Katie,” he replied with a slow grin, unstrapping his gun belt and hanging it on the coat tree by the door. He looked around and asked, “Where’s your cat?”

“He was restless, so I let him out,” she said.

“You shouldn’t be up walking,” Travis warned as he sat down on the chair beside the bed. Affectionately, he reached out and cupped her cheek.

“You’re cold,” Kate said with concern, laying her hand atop his.

“It’s freezing out there and…and…” Travis stopped speaking. He almost stopped breathing. He swallowed hard as Kate guided his hand from her face down under the covers.

“We have to warm you up,” she said, briskly rubbing his hand through the blanket.

Travis cleared his throat. He felt his heart slam against his ribs. His hand was resting on the soft swell of her breasts as she pressed it close.

He said, “I’ll, uh, build up the fire.”

Carefully, he extracted his hand and rose to his feet. Hoping that she couldn’t tell how badly he wanted to take her in his arms, he turned away, closed his eyes for a minute and collected himself.

For the moment he was successful.

But it didn’t last.

Not for him, not for her.

The attraction that had been there from the beginning—an attraction both had tried so hard to deny—had quickly grown as Kate recuperated in Travis’s care.

Four days had passed since the shooting, and Kate, a healthy young woman, had regained her strength. The color was back in her cheeks. She felt fine, but she was almost sorry that she did. As long as she was weak and helpless, she got to stay here near Travis.

At bedtime that night, she said, “Thanks to you, I’m about well, Travis.” She drew a shallow breath. “I should go home tomorrow. Don’t you think?”

Travis felt a squeezing in his chest. He came to the bed and sat down on the mattress’s edge, facing her. He tried to sound casual when he said, “You don’t want to rush it, Katie. Maybe you ought to stay a couple more nights.”

“You’re the doctor,” she replied, barely able to hide her relief.

“I am and it’s time you get some sleep.” He spread the blanket over her, tucked it in around her shoulders, smiled, leaned down and gave her a very gentle, very brief good-night kiss.

That’s all he meant to do.

But her lips were so soft and warm beneath his that he couldn’t keep from kissing her again. This time it was not so gentle, not so brief. Travis turned his head slightly, slanted his lips across hers and covered her mouth with his own. He smoothly parted her lips, and Kate’s pulse leaped at the first touch of his tongue on hers. Just as it had been that night at the mansion, his kiss was at once invasive, demanding and heart-stoppingly thrilling.

Travis put a hand in her hair and held her head still on the pillow while his mouth hotly plundered hers, taking, giving, swiftly igniting the fires of passion in them both. Kate squirmed and sighed while he kissed her over and over again. His lips were blazing hot and his sleek tongue filled her mouth, tasting, conquering, setting her on fire.

After numerous heated kisses, Travis abruptly
raised his head, hastily released Kate and—apologizing for his behavior—hurried out the back door to cool off in the freezing winds.

It didn’t work.

He spent several long minutes out in the cold, taking deep breaths of the frigid air, warning himself to keep his hands off Kate. But when he came back inside, his blood was still scorching through his veins.

Kate sat up in the bed, smiled at him, threw back the covers and opened her arms wide. “Come here, Travis,” she commanded.

“You sure, sweetheart?” he replied, his heart hammering.

She nodded. “I’ve never been more sure of anything in my life.”

His legs weak, his pulse racing, Travis crossed to the bed. He again sat down on the edge of mattress and gazed at Kate for a long moment, saying nothing. He wanted this image of her, as she was on this cold autumn night, sitting in his bed and wearing his nightshirt, to be indelibly etched in his memory.

“Ah, Katie,” he said at last, and reached for her.

In one swift motion, Travis lifted her from the bed, turned her about and sat her on his lap. He kept one hand around her waist, the other wrapped around the back of her neck. He drew her face down to his, and when her lips were less than an inch from his own, he said, “Kiss me, baby.”

Kate kissed him.

She took his handsome face in her hands and pressed her lips to his. Travis quickly took over. He kissed her as he’d been kissing her before he went outside, and soon she was sighing and squirming on his knee. Her arms had gone around his neck and one hand was wound through his hair at the back of his head. The other eagerly explored his back through the fabric of his shirt.

When, breathless, she finally tore her lips from his, she hugged his dark head to her breasts and rested her chin against his forehead. It was then Kate realized that at some time during the onslaught of blazing kisses, as she squirmed on his knee, Travis had deftly removed her lace-trimmed pantalets. They lay on the floor by the bed.

Her face flushed.

She felt Travis’s fingers at the buttons of the nightshirt. In seconds it was open to her waist. To Kate’s relief, he rose to his feet with her in his arms, kissed her, carefully laid her in the bed and drew the covers up to her waist.

Kate watched as he unbuttoned his shirt midway down his chest, reached up behind his head and drew it up off in one swift movement. He sat down and took off his boots and stockings. He rose to his feet again and his hands went to the fly of his snug gabardine trousers. He shoved them to the floor, but kept his snowy white underwear on.

Then he got into bed with Kate.

“I have wanted,” he said, his smooth baritone voice a caress, “to hold you like this in my arms from the first minute I looked out the window of the jail and saw your golden hair blazing in the sunlight.”

“You mean it?”

“I mean it and I’ll show you that I do.” He took her in his arms and once again kissed and caressed her, his warm hand slipping inside the open nightshirt to gently enclose a soft breast. His callused thumb rubbed the rigid nipple and Kate tingled all over. His lips on hers, he gently toyed with the nipple until she was sighing and anxiously thrusting her tongue deep into his mouth.

When he ended the kiss, Kate whimpered in protest at the desertion. But not for long. Travis’s burning lips pressed kisses to her chin, to the hollow of her throat, to the swell of her breasts. With his face he moved the open nightshirt out of his way and brushed a kiss on the nipple he had brought to life.

He felt Kate stiffen and exhale. He opened his mouth and warmly enclosed her left breast. Kate’s head tossed on the pillow and she clutched handfuls of the sheet when he began to tease her nipple with his tongue, circling it, playfully biting, raking his teeth back and forth. And when finally he began to suck on it, Kate said his name with a sigh.

Travis was such an adroit lover and she was so enraptured, she hardly realized when her nightshirt came off and his underwear vanished. She only knew
that she was now wonderfully naked and Travis was, too, and he was doing such incredibly sensual things to her that she might insist neither of them ever get dressed again.

Her eyes opening and closing with bliss as they kissed, Kate felt Travis’s hard male flesh pressing against her thigh and his hand on her bare belly, touching, caressing and slowly sliding lower. She emitted a little gasp of excitement when his long fingers raked gently through the crisp curls between her thighs. With his thumb and little finger he gently urged her legs apart. Kate quickly opened them.

And heaven was hers.

Travis separated the golden coils with his middle finger and touched that tiny button of flesh that was wet and swollen and throbbing. Kate began to breathe through her mouth as he dipped the pad of his middle finger into the silky wetness her aroused body provided. He circled the flesh briefly before taking his wet fingers away, spreading the moisture on the head of his throbbing erection, then positioning himself between her legs.

He gripped her pulsing flesh, placed just the gleaming tip inside her and anxiously glanced up at her to see if she was all right. Her beautiful face was aglow and her hair was spread out on the pillow like a gleaming golden waterfall. Travis took his hand away, braced his stiffened arms on either side and easily slid into her.

Kate gasped at the feel of him, hot and hard and heavy, buried deep inside her. She clasped his biceps as he bent and kissed her and began a slow, intoxicating dance of desire. Both gloried in the languid loving. It was as though their bodies had been made for each other. The fit was perfect, the rhythm ideal.

But paradise was short-lived.

The naked pair were so hot for each other, they began to climax almost immediately.

“No…!” Kate murmured, eyes widening, heart pounding.

Travis was relieved she was coming so soon. She was too sweet, too beautiful, too desirable. All his pent-up passion was threatening to explode and come gushing forth. He couldn’t hold back much longer. He swiftly speeded his movements, and Kate followed his lead. They moved together in a frenzy of building sexual delirium. They rocked the iron bedstead, its legs thumping loudly on the floor.

Seconds later Kate screamed in ecstasy, and Travis groaned as he joined her in a draining release that left him weak and light-headed.

“Please don’t…don’t move yet,” Kate murmured when she could get her breath, her arms wrapped around his neck.

Travis laughed, turned his face into hers on the pillow and said, “Baby, I couldn’t move if I tried.”