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Zach sat across
the table from Jake, his fork poised over the beans
he'd been picking at for the past half hour.
Jake had cleaned
his plate and sat nursing his second cup of coffee.
The man had the good sense to keep his mouth shut through
preparation of the meal as well as during the consumption.
Twice he'd opened his mouth, thought better of it, and
then closed it again.
Finally, Zach
laid his fork to the side of his uneaten meal. "Spit
it out."
"You gonna
leave her out there for the wolves?" Jake asked.
"What do
you suggest?"
"Well, it
ain't right to leave a defenseless woman outside in
the cold."
Zach snorted.
"Defenseless?" He held up his arm, displaying
the cuts and scratches and a bite mark. "She's
not defenseless."
"Trussed
up like that, she is." Jake glanced toward the
open door.
Zach had his
back to the woman. She'd been quiet now for almost an
hour. Guilt gnawed at him and the guiltier he felt,
the angrier he became. He'd seen her legs stretching
out beneath the hem of his best shirt. When she'd squirmed
in his arms, he'd felt the shapely curves of a woman.
Even now he remained affected by her feminine parts.
His shaft hardened,
pressing against the buttons of his trousers. He had
to shift and readjust twice before he got any relief.
Across the table, Jake stared at him, a smirk curling
the corners of his lips.
Zach frowned.
"If you laugh, I swear I'll punch you right in
the nose."
"We've known each other, what? Seven years?"
"So?"
Zach looked down at the food on his plate.
A grin spread
across Jake's face. "I don't think I've ever seen
you so confused."
"What did
you expect? After what happened out there…"
He nodded toward the door. "I don't know what to
think."
Jake laughed,
immediately holding up his hands to ward off Zach's
promised punch. "That's what I'm talking about.
Confused."
"Gentlemen,
it's getting cold out here," the woman called out,
her voice weaker than earlier.
Another pang
of guilt knotted Zach's belly, making it bubble.
"She's a pretty little thing, don't you think?"
Jake fiddled with his cup, his gaze on the coffee, not
Zach.
"That's
the other thing. How am I supposed to act around the
ladies after… Ah, hell." Zach rose so fast
his chair fell backward, thumping against the dirt floor.
Jake shrugged.
"The same. You act the same as always." He
stood slowly and walked around the table. He reached
out and laid a hand on Zach's shoulder. "Look,
it's nothing to get your breeches in a twist. You and
I, we're friends. That won't change."
Zach stared into
Jake's face. "How could it not change?"
"Hello?
Anyone listening? It's getting extremely cold."
This time the woman's voice shook.
"I'll always
be your friend." Jake glanced toward the door.
"Don't get me wrong, I still like women and look
forward to having me one in Idaho Springs, but what
we did was special. Don't make something dirty out of
it." He faced Zach and stuck out his hand. "Friends?"
Zach sucked in
a deep breath and let it out, then clasped Jake's hand
in a firm handshake. Man to man. "Friends."
The word was brief, gruff and not nearly as fancy as
Jake's flowery speech, but he meant it. No matter what,
he still had a great respect for the other man.
Jake's smile
widened. "Good. Now, are you going to do something
about our little thief, or am I?"
Zach pushed the
sleeves of his shirt up his arms and braced himself
for his next round with the hellcat.
He stepped through
the cabin door, for the first time realizing just how
cold it had gotten since he'd gone in to cook supper.
A chill shivered across his skin as he glanced down
at the woman in the dirt. Still he didn't move to untie
her or carry her into the cabin. "You gonna fight
me?"
She twisted her
head to look up at him, dirt streaking her face where
tears had dried. Fiery red hair sprang out in wild disarray,
the lustrous curls only slightly dingy from the layer
of dust. Long, slender legs ended in moccasin-encased
feet.
The little bit
of relief he'd gotten at Jake's hands in the pool didn't
seem nearly enough. A woman like this could provide
even more enjoyment if a man didn't have a sense of
morals and responsibility. He bent beside her. "That's
my shirt."
She glared at
him. "You can have it back. Just untie me."
He stared at
her for a long moment, admiring the emerald green of
her eyes and the dusting of freckles across her nose.
"You stole our gold."
"I swear
I didn't know about the gold. I was hungry. I only wanted
the beans." As if to emphasize her words, her stomach
grumbled loudly.
Jake laughed.
"Can't be lying about that, not with the noise
her belly's making. Let the girl up. We have some of
those beans she tried to steal left in the pot."
"Please,"
she said, her eyes pleading with him. "Please untie
me. I promise not to steal anything. I'll leave and
you'll never see me again."
Zach didn't know
what to do with the woman. The cabin barely had enough
room to house two big men. If he left her out in the
open, the wolves would finish her off. If the wolves
let her be, the cool mountain temperatures would be
the death of her, dressed in nothing but his best shirt.
Zach rubbed his chin.
Bruised, scratched
and thin, she could use a good meal. His dead mother's
voice poked at his conscience, urging him to take care
of those who couldn't take care of themselves.
This woman in
front of him had stolen from him. She didn't deserve
his charity.
Then again, he
couldn't leave her out in the open.
Zach sighed,
scooping his hands beneath her legs and back. He stood,
slung her over his shoulder like a sack of seed and
strode through the cabin door. Once inside, he dumped
her on his bed, flipped her onto her face and untied
her feet and hands. With one hand holding her arm, he
pulled her to her feet and spun her around to face him.
Her free arm
swung out and she slapped him hard across his cheek.
He jerked her forward, slamming her into his chest.
Both arms wrapped around her, pinning her arms to her
sides. "What'd you go and do that for?"
Her green eyes
blazed, bright red staining her cheeks beneath the dirt.
"That's for your poor treatment of a lady."
"Why I should-"
"What?"
She practically spit the word in his face. "Rape
me? Murder me? Leave me out in the cold to die from
exposure or as wolf fodder? Go ahead. You deserved that
and more."
Behind him Jake
chuckled.
"I don't
know what you're laughin' about, but you better shut
yer goddamn mouth."
"I wasn't
the one to get slapped." Jake laughed louder. "And
if you'd seen your face when she did it…"
Honor's chest
rose and fell with every breath. "You can't do
anything short of killing me that hasn't already happened.
I'm sick and tired of men treating me like a slave.
Here, give me your gun, I'll do the deed for you. I've
had quite enough-"
His ears ringing
and no spare hand to shut her up, Zach did the only
thing he could.
He covered her
mouth with his, kissing the fool out of the angry redhead.
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