“I’m only
staying because we’re in the middle of a dance and it would be rude for me to
walk away,” said Bella. As much as she tried to be angry with him, she found
his closeness intoxicating. It would suit her if the dance lasted forever.
“Would you run
if I kissed you?”
“I’d probably
slap your face.” Bella was not quite sure that was true, but she tried to say
it and mean it, which she felt was at least something.
“Really?” He
grinned. “You’d slap my face?”
“Yes, really.”
“But you’re such
a polite little English girl. Surely you’d just faint.”
“You appear to
be confusing me with some other little English girl,” said Bella “If you
behaved like a cad, I’d be forced to slap you.”
He threw back
his head and laughed at that. “A cad? What a quaint old word.” He put his mouth
nearer to her, until she felt his lips brushing her cheek. “Believe me, the way
I feel right now if I kissed you, you’d be yelling ‘savage’ not ‘cad’.”
“No,” said Bella
looking up at him with earnest eyes. “I’d never do that, Vance.”
“May I cut in?”
Griffiths appeared at the side of them.
To Bella’s
dismay, Vance stood aside, almost as if it were a relief. “Of course.”
If it had been
possible for Bella to dance with Griffiths whilst standing in a separate field,
she would have done it. As such she kept as much distance as she could between
herself and him. “You look very beautiful tonight, Miss Tennyson. Or may I call
you Bella?” He did not wait for an answer. “Your brother has told me so much
about you. I wondered if I might call on you sometime?”
“I’m very sorry,
Mister Griffiths. I don’t know what my brother has said, but I am not looking
for a husband.”
“Really? The way
you were dancing with the marshal, folks might be forgiving for thinking
otherwise.”
Bella pulled
away. “Thank you, Mister Griffiths, but I’m very tired. I’d like to go home
now.”
“Then allow me
to escort you.”
“That won’t be
necessary. My brother will…” Bella looked around for Andrew, and saw him far in
the distance, riding the buggy towards Milton. Which meant she had no means of
getting home.
“I told him I
would see you home safely.”
“Thank you, but
I can find my own way home.” Bella turned away, trying to look more resolute
than she felt. She walked to the corral, but most of the guests had started to
leave, and those that remained she did not know well enough to ask for
assistance.
She sat down on
the edge of a water trough, and rested her head in her hands. She was miles
from home, and had no transport, but she was not going to be left at the mercy
of Arthur Griffiths. She could hardly believe Andrew would put her in such a
position. Did he really expect her to prostitute herself? She wondered exactly
what Griffiths had promised her brother in return for handing her over like a
bag of wheat from the supply store.
“Bella? I saw
your brother leave. Is he coming back for you?" Vance’s deep tones came
from somewhere above her. She looked up to see him astride his horse. He had
removed his jacket, his white shirt standing out like a beacon of light in the
darkness. She shook her head.
“No, I don’t
think so. And Griffiths…” She shuddered.
“Come on, I’ll
take you home.” She took the hand he offered without hesitation, and he pulled
her up so that she sat in front of him, sitting sideways.
Neither said
anything for the first mile or so. He had his arms around her waist, holding
onto the reins. She could feel the heat of his skin beneath his shirt. She had
to fight the temptation to lay her head against his chest, but she was acutely
aware of his body brushing against the side of her breast. She shivered a
little but it was not an unpleasant feeling.
“Are you cold,
Bella? You’re trembling.”
How could she
tell him that he was the one making her tremble? The very nearness of him was
enough to send her senses into a tailspin. Andrew had said that he was sure she
would not do anything immoral, yet Bella knew that if Vance were to ask her,
she would do anything he wanted. As Miss Grant had said, Gloria was not here.
“Do you like
Miss Grant?” asked Bella, trying to turn the conversation away from the way her
body was reacting to him. The annoyance Miss Grant caused to her was enough for
her to use it as a barrier between herself and Vance.
“No, she’s a
little too vacuous for my tastes. Does it bother you to think I might?”
“It’s really
none of my business,” said Bella. “Though I’m sure Gloria would …”
Vance stopped
the horse and pulled Bella into his arms. He turned her face towards him,
covering her mouth with his. She should have fought him off. It would have been
the right thing to do. But all thoughts of right and wrong disappeared under
the urgency of his kiss, and the feel of his hands on her body. “Now tell me
how you feel about Miss Grant,” he muttered savagely, covering her neck with
kisses and tracing the curve of her breast with his fingertips. She moaned,
running her fingers through his thick hair, wanting his hands to cover every
part of her.
“I hate her,”
said Bella. She could not speak anymore because his lips found hers again. He
caressed her mouth with the tip of his tongue, sending an electric flame
shooting through her body. Bella’s only previous experience of kissing had
involved a chaste kiss on the cheek by one of her beaus in England, and that
was after six months of discussing the weather in the parlour. Nothing had
prepared her a man as experienced as Vance. He knew how to kiss her and exactly
how and where to touch her. She was both terrified and exhilarated by the
feelings he aroused in her.
It was probably
just as well that her fear was stronger than she was at that time. “No,” she
said, pulling away. “We can’t.”
Vance leaned
back and took a deep breath, leaving Bella feeling more than a little disappointed.
If truth be known, she wanted him to go on kissing her. But he was an
honourable man, and despite her disappointment, she loved him even more for
behaving as an honourable man should. “You’re right. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t
have done that.” He got off the horse and walked a few feet away, looking up at
the diamond-strewn sky, as if seeking some advice from above. Bella sat in
silence, whilst he stared into the distance, seeming to be bringing his
emotions and his customary stillness back in check. “I promise it won’t happen
again, Miss Tennyson.”
He walked
alongside the horse the rest of the way, leaving Bella to sit in the saddle.
She felt cold and alone. More than once she fought the compulsion to lean
forward and stroke his hair.
She told herself
it was probably for the best. She knew that if he kissed her again she would
not be able to say no. Vance was a man who kept his promises. Had he not said
so? It was with sinking heart that Bella realised he would probably be true to
his word.
When they were
just half a mile from the vineyard a shot rang out in the night.
Chapter Six
Vance pulled her
from the horse, and threw her to the ground, covering her body with his, whilst
his one hand struggled to get his gun out of its holster. Another two or three
shots hit the area around them. The horse bolted, turning and running off
towards Milton.
Vance fired in
the direction of one of the shots, but whether it found its target, it was hard
to tell. He hauled Bella up roughly and pulled her behind a large rock.
“What’s
happening?” she whispered, suppressing the urge to cry out.
“We’re being
shot at.”
“Yes, I worked
that out, but why?”
“I think it’s
likely that I’m being shot at. Obviously Milton is already tired of its new
marshal.”
The reality of
their situation hit Bella like one of the rocks on the ground. She began to
shiver, and this time it was not a result of Vance’s proximity.
“The vineyard is
less than half a mile away,” he said. “I want you to run there…”
“I’m not leaving
you.”
“Bella, they
don’t want you, they want me. So I think you’ll be safe. Just keep to this side
of the canyon, using the rocks for cover. Then fetch help.”
“Help? Who?
There’s only May.”
“Yes, and she’s
pretty good with a gun, and I’m gonna run out of bullets soon. So will you please
go fetch her?”
“I don’t want to
leave you,” said Bella, torn between wanting to fetch help and wanting to stay
at his side. “What if they kill you while I’m gone?”
“What if they
kill us both when you stay?”
“I’d rather that
than you die out here alone.”
Another shot
rang through the air, close enough to suggest that whoever was firing had
worked out their position. Bella and Vance ducked further down behind the rock,
but it afforded them scant protection.
“Bella, you’re
no help to me here. In fact, I’d say you were a hindrance the way you keep
talking all the time. So please will you just get gone? Crawl to that next
rock, then the next one…”
Even though it
hurt her to admit it, Bella knew he was right. Her being there only made things
worse. Vance would probably die trying to protect her. Still, the thought of
leaving him to be killed tore at her heart. “I’ll bring help,” she said.
She started
crawling to the next rock, only to have a bullet hit the ground near to her
hand. She felt Vance yank her backwards. “They can see your white dress,” he
said. “Damn! I should have thought of that.”
“You said they
didn’t want to shoot me.”
“They don’t, but
I’m wearing a white shirt. They won’t know if it’s me or you so they’ll just
shoot anyway. Damn, damn, damn!” He leaned against the rock, but a sudden
footfall caused him to spin around and fire. They heard a cry in the night.
“Well, it sounds
like I hit one,” he said. “Now we just need to find somewhere to take cover.”
He looked around him. “I know where we can go.” He picked up a couple of
pebbles and threw them to his right, before pulling Bella to the left, and the
next rock along. She heard another shot fire out, presumably in the direction
of the pebbles. “There’s some caves up in the canyon,” he said in a low voice.
“We’ll try to get up there.”
“Won’t we be
trapped?”
“Yes, but
there’s a few of them and they all go dark and deep. Come on.”
It took them
over half an hour of moving slowly, from rock to rock, whilst Vance worked at
redirecting the rein of fire from their assailants. Finally, they reached a
ledge in the canyon and another rock to hide behind. “Be careful up here,” he
said. “Keep very low, because we’ll be in view. Wait a minute. I’ve got a
better idea.” He took off his shirt and rolled it up tight. His dark skin tone
camouflaged well against the rocks. “Now we only have to worry about your
dress.”
“I am not taking
it off.”
“No, if you do
that, I’ll be more of a danger to you than they are. I know.” He picked up a
handful of dirt and brushed it on the skirt.
“This is my best
dress.”
“You got a
choice, Bella. It can either be stained with dirt or blood. Perhaps you’d
rather deal with the bodice.”
She picked up
some dirt and began rubbing it over her dress.
“Turn around, so
I can get the back.”
Bella did as she
was told, trying hard not to think about his hands sweeping dirt over her rear.
“May is going to
be furious,” she said.
“Not when I
bring you home alive, she isn’t. Come on.”
He led her
across the ledge. At first it was wide, and they were able to take cover behind
some of the rocks that rested on the edge. Then it became narrower, and cover
hard to come by. He missed the first cave, and the second, pulling her around a
corner where the ledge became narrower still.
“Don’t look
down,” said Vance, with his back to the ledge. Bella did the exact opposite,
feeling herself sway a little. She grabbed the cliff wall, and cried out in
terror.
“Shh,” said
Vince as a shot rang out. “Do you wanna let them know where we are?”
He held her hand
tightly, before leading her into a third cave. When they’d walked a bit further
inside, any light from the moon and stars disappeared, leaving them in
pitch-blackness. Bella walked forward a little, coming straight up against
Vance’s bare chest. She moved, backing into a wall, which felt damp and slimy
to the touch.
“With any luck
they’ll get tired of looking in the others and give up,” Vance said.
“What if they
don’t?”
“They won’t be
able to enter the cave with their gun pointed, not on that narrow ledge.
They’ll be too busy holding on to the side, so I’ll be waiting to pick them off
with mine. Are you cold?”
“Freezing.”
“Here,” he
reached out in the dark. “Put my shirt on.”
“What about
you?”