Chapter 3 #2
She stopped on the bottom step that led to the third floor and stared at him in surprise. He’d been right when he’d said he hadn’t shared much about his family. She knew he had a brother, but she didn’t even know his parents’ names.
“Someone in your family stabbed someone?” she asked incredulously.
“She tried,” he said flatly. “My father briefly remarried after my mother died. He thought my brother and I needed a mother, but she didn’t have the temperament to be a mother or a wife.
My dad said something that got her back up and she threw a knife right at him.
Went into his thigh. He pulled the knife out and told her he didn’t think his boys needed a mother after all.
Told her to pack up and head back from where she came from.
Gave her money for her time and travels, and she gladly took it. ”
“Good Lord,” Elizabeth said. “You dodged a bullet there.”
“That was another life,” he said. “Another time. My dad did the best he could. I was never really sure if he wanted to ship us off too, but we learned how to work and work hard from an early age.”
“You’re making it hard to be mad at you right now,” she said.
“I’m sorry I’m missing out on it,” he said with a grin.
“I saw that look in your eyes when you walked in and all I could think about was getting you upstairs and in bed. Your father always said you had a heck of a temper when riled. I’ve waited for a year to see it.
Maybe I could do something else to get you riled back up. ”
“I might have left the knife downstairs, but I’m still wearing my guns. Proceed at your own risk.”
“My, my, my, Mrs. O’Hara,” he said, moving in close behind her as they reached the top of the stairs. “What have you been holding out on me?”
Her breath caught as he maneuvered her to the door of their suite and pressed against her. She felt his breath on her neck as he turned the key in the lock and opened the door.
She hadn’t forgotten why they’d come upstairs to begin with, and it definitely wasn’t for this, no matter how badly she wanted to feel his touch. His lips glanced the side of her neck and she whimpered, even as chill bumps pebbled her skin.
The room was nice and warm, and it looked as if Will had started a fire in the fireplace. The rooms they’d been assigned brought back memories of their wedding night. She couldn’t help but blush at the thought.
There was a small sitting room with a couch and two chairs in front of the fire, and the frost-etched windows looked out over Main Street, though it was impossible to see anything but the falling snowflakes. She turned and made her way toward the bedroom.
It wasn’t a large room—or maybe the bed was so large that it made the room seem small.
It had four posts of the same carved, dark wood as the rest of the furniture.
The bed was covered in a white quilt and looked soft as a cloud.
And above the bed was a painting of a woman, scantily clad.
Elizabeth raised her brows at the scandalous nature of the artwork and found herself wondering why she’d never heard talk of it around town.
But then, it made sense that the people who lived in Laurel Valley wouldn’t be staying in the hotel, just like her.
There was a washroom to the side, and she peeked inside, surprised to they’d added a deep porcelain tub and gold faucets.
“I’ve never seen anything like this in my life,” she finally said. “Can we afford this?”
“It depends on your definition of afford.”
Her head snapped around to look at him in surprise.
She’d thrown everything she had into the ranch the past year—the breeding and selling of cattle, the upkeep on the fences and barn.
From the moment she and Cole woke in the morning to when they lay in bed together at night, she worked herself to the bone.
When she was working, it was easier to forget that she felt like she was carrying the weight of the world on her shoulders.
She knew the ranch was in the black. The bookkeeper kept her up to date on the finances.
But she also didn’t have a clue as to how much in the black they were.
What was left to spare. And she had no earthly idea what Cole brought in as sheriff, though it seemed people paid him more in favors, like food and supplies he might need.
“I’m kidding,” he said. “Gerald Clark owes me a favor or two. The season hasn’t started because of all the snow. The train hasn’t been running as usual, so there haven’t been new guests. The room was available, so he said to take it for a couple of days.”
“Oh.” She felt very awkward all of a sudden. The emotions she’d felt earlier were still there—the anger and hurt—but they’d faded once she and Cole were alone. “That was nice of him.”
“These two days,” Cole began. “They’re really important to me, Elizabeth. We have a lot to talk about. I think you’d agree that the last year of our marriage hasn’t really been a marriage at all.”
Elizabeth’s traitorous heart sank. This was it. This was when he’d end it. When he’d tell her he was leaving. She braced herself for it, and hadn’t realized she’d sat with the weariness of a long day settling into her bones on the edge of the bed and closed her eyes.
“I guess that’s my fault,” she said. “I’m not really sure how to be married. My mom died when I was so young…”
“And you think I do?” he asked, sounding surprised. “I don’t remember my mother. And all I’ve seen of a marriage is the brief time between my father and stepmother. Believe me, that didn’t exactly imprint visions of happily ever after on my mind.”
She scrubbed her hands over her face and got to her feet, and then crossed her arms over her chest. Anger was bubbling beneath the surface and she paced back and forth.
“This is my father’s fault,” she said. “You got trapped into marriage because of your sense of duty. You knew what would happen to me and everything he and my grandfather built if I didn’t have a husband.
So you agreed to his ridiculous terms and put all your own dreams on hold.
It’s made me realize I don’t even know you.
I didn’t know of your plans to become a marshal.
I only know about your time in the war because people like Miss Adelaide like to spread the worst of things.
Of course, I don’t believe most of what she said, but there’s probably a shred of truth in there somewhere, otherwise the president wouldn’t be trying to recruit you.
She knew about the marshal who’d come for you today.
Why didn’t you tell me? Were you going to pin on your badge and send me a letter from somewhere in Wyoming? ”
“Elizabeth,” Cole said, coming to her. He put his hands on her upper arms to keep her from pacing. Her body was quivering with everything she’d kept inside all this time. “First of all, let’s set something straight.”
Before she knew what was happening, his mouth was on hers and every thought in her head rushed out of her ears.
She remembered the first time he’d kissed her, at their wedding, and she understood there was something powerful in the connection they shared that she never would’ve understood if her father hadn’t negotiated her marriage to Cole.
His lips were soft, his mouth hot against hers, and she sank against him, as if her body had a will of its own.
It was easy to close her eyes and just feel.
To hold on and let their bodies meld together.
This was when she felt closest to him, when she felt she really understood him.
When their bodies were joined and they were perfectly in sync.
When he pulled away they were both breathing heavily and she could barely stand.
“Let’s get two things straight before we move forward.
I never wanted to be a marshal. I came back to Laurel Valley after my travels and the war because this is where I wanted to be.
This is the life I want. I’ve turned down every marshal that’s come to pin that star on me. This one won’t be any different.”
“There have been others?” she asked, surprised.
“Three others. And my answer has always been the same. This is my home. You are my wife. My family. I’ve never had a family before. At least not a real one.”
“You said there were two things,” she said. “What’s the second?”
“The second is that your father didn’t have to persuade me to marry you.
I don’t remember when exactly I took notice of you.
One day you were a child and then one day you weren’t.
It was like being slammed in the face with a piece of wood.
You’re not like any woman I’ve ever known.
Looking at you is like staring at a single, beautiful rose in a garden of weeds.
I knew if I noticed you, that others had noticed you too. ”
“I have no idea what you’re talking about right now,” she said, confused.
He released her and ran a hand through his hair. “I’m not good at explaining myself. I’ve never had to do it before, but I can see that’s where I made the mistake with us. We haven’t exactly done a good job at communicating.”
He turned and walked away and she could sense his frustration. But she’d found her tension and worry had eased as soon as he’d told her he had no plans to become a US marshal. She followed him into the sitting area, but she’d observed him enough to know he’d talk when he was ready.
Elizabeth unbuckled her holster and set it on the table in front of the windows and then she used the boot pull in the corner to remove her boots. The wind was howling, and the snow was blowing sideways. The street was impossible to see.