Beverly Jenkins (14 page)

“Logan told me about the bear and Tom and about the gun lessons, but why are you dressed that way?”

“I’ve been planting roses over at the church.” Billie was wearing a pair of snug-fitting denims. “They used to belong to your brother Noah. They’re easier to maneuver in when I’m planting and I don’t want to ruin the skirts and blouses Mariah’s been loaning me to wear.”

His face was so unreadable she couldn’t tell whether he approved of the attire or not, not that it mattered. When they reached the door, she stopped. Although she’d told herself she wouldn’t ask, she had to know. “You mentioned you were already on your way here when Logan arrived. Why?”

“Prince DuChance.”

“What about him?” she asked warily.

So he told her everything.

And when he was done, her eyes were blazing. “If he comes anywhere near my son, I will kill him with my bare hands. Did you get to see Addy?”

“I did. She’s fine. She’s a very odd old woman though.”

“I know, but she took me in and I’ll owe her for the rest of my life. Thanks for coming all this way to let me know about Prince. Are you going back to San Francisco after the birthday dinner tomorrow?”

“No. I’ll be staying here.”

“Why?”

“Because whether you like it or not, you’re my wife, and husbands protect their wives and children.”

“You don’t have to get all testy, Drew. It was a simple question. And you don’t like being married any more than I do.”

He didn’t respond to that, but said instead, “Logan and I will alert the ranch hands and tell them to keep an eye out for strangers.”

She faced him with her arms crossed. “Okay.”

“And I’ll need you to stay close to the house.”

“You’ll get no argument from me. I know how dangerous Prince is, but I put two slugs in his head, so he knows how dangerous I can be, too.”

He paused and studied her for a moment. “When did this happen?”

“A few years before you and I met. I had a problem waking up with him on top of me and tearing at my clothes, so I shot him. That’s why his face is such a mess and his ear’s missing. Addy sewed him up and kept him from bleeding to death.”

He stared.

“So thanks for coming back, but I can take care of myself.” And she resumed her journey to the door.

Watching her walk away, Drew wondered what was wrong with him. By all accounts he should be irritated by her thorny and prickly manner. Instead he wanted to call her back so they could talk about how seeing her again made him feel, and why in the world she’d been out planting roses, and how relieved he’d been to find her safe and not in DuChance’s clutches. The rose planting must have included manure because she stank to high heaven, yet all he could focus on was the snug fit of her thighs and hips in Noah’s denims.

T
he family gathered for dinner and as they shared the meal, they spent a few moments talking about the threat DuChance posed.

“Do you really think he’ll come here?” Alanza asked.

“Without question,” Billie replied.

Alanza said, “Hopefully, he’ll realize his quest will only result in his death and we can go on about our lives.”

Wine goblets were raised in agreement.

“And on a brighter note,” she said, “Max and I will marry later this summer.”

Grins spread around the table.

“I want to hear from Noah before we set the date.”

Applause broke out, followed by cracks of “about time” from her sons, and words of congratulations from her daughters-in-law.

Mariah said excitedly, “I’ll begin working up sketches for your gown right away.”

A
fter putting Tonio to bed, Billie sat on her verandah as had become her custom each evening. She was very happy for Alanza. Although Billie had only met Max once, she’d liked him and decided he had to be a very special man for Alanza to want to be his wife, but her happiness was dampened by her own reality. Prince knew where she was. The news wasn’t surprising but it was unsettling. She’d been serious about using everything in her power to keep him away from her son and she was certain Drew’s family would, too. Drew’s arrival coupled with his declaration that he’d not be returning to San Francisco was also on her mind. Parts of her wished there was a way to banish the distrust and distance between them so that at some point down the road they could be happy together, but she knew pigs would fly first. That he’d helped his fairy princess escape Prince’s clutches was admirable, and it caused her to wonder if Rosa still held his heart. She assumed that to be the case so she decided not to think about it.

Drew was on his way to his room to soak in a tub and hopes of ridding himself of the harrowing day but found himself knocking on his wife’s door instead.

She opened it.

“Are you busy?” he asked.

She scanned him as if unsure about his motives. “No. Do you need something?”

They hadn’t been alone since the encounter before dinner. “Thought maybe we could talk. May I come in?”

He sensed her reluctance, but to her credit, she stepped back and let him enter. “I’m outside,” she explained. “Join me.”

“Nice evening,” he said once they took seats.

She stole a glance at him, then turned back to the dusk descending over the fading day.

“Are you settling in okay?” he asked.

“I am. Your mother and Mariah have been very kind. I’m working on my reading and other things to improve myself.” She paused before adding in an honest tone, “If we have to be married, I don’t want to shame you.”

Drew wasn’t sure how to respond to that but found the confession very moving. “I appreciate that, Billie. The baby’s asleep, I take it?”

“Yes. Be nice if you’d call him by his name sometimes.”

The softly spoken censure stung but he didn’t push back because she was right. His son’s name had yet to cross his lips. He supposed it was his way of distancing himself from the truth. “You’re right. I’ll do better.”

“Not for me, but for him.”

He nodded solemnly. “I don’t know much about children.”

“He doesn’t know much about fathers either, so you can learn together.”

That made him smile even as he wondered what the future would hold for the three of them. Deep down inside he wasn’t as angry as he’d been the day they married and he was having difficulty putting a finger on the reason as to why not. “Has Alanza had a chance to take you two shopping?”

She shook her head. “No. I’ve been too busy saving ranchers from bears and planting rosebushes all over the county.”

“Tell me about that.”

“Do you really want to know?” she asked eyeing him.

He nodded and listened as she filled him in on Alanza’s original request and how she’d come to know so much about the flowers and their care.

“Tom Foster sent me a slew of them this past week, but when one of his hands brought eight this morning I had to put my foot down.”

Drew was confused. “Where’s he getting them?”

“He’s been sending his men out into the countryside to dig them up. He found out how much I enjoy them when he was recovering here after the bear attack. He was too injured to go home, so the doc treated him here for the first couple of days.”

Drew wasn’t pleased hearing Foster knew something about her that he didn’t. He told himself it wasn’t jealousy, but didn’t delve into his reaction any further. “So are you done with your planting?”

“I am.”

“Then maybe in a few days the three of us can go to Sacramento and pick up some things.”

“Your mother and I can make the trip, you don’t have to concern yourself.”

“And if I want to?”

Her eyes met his. “You gave your son your name, Drew, it’s enough. I know you have better things to do with your time.”

“Such as?”

She shrugged. “I don’t know. Lawyer things.”

“And suppose I want to go shopping for my family instead?”

He enjoyed the way she studied him as if trying to discern what he was about. Truthfully he didn’t know either.
And you will love her until there is no tomorrow . . .
He pushed away the old woman’s words.

“Are you being nice because you want sex, Drew? Because if that’s all this is about then we can go in the bedroom now.”

His jaw tightened. “This isn’t about sex, Billie.” Although his body begged to differ. Seeing her earlier and being near her now reminded him of the tastes of her breasts and how her soft hips felt against the skin of his palms. He wanted her mouth, and to dally in the silken heat between her thighs, fit himself there and stroke her until she screamed with rapture. Realizing he’d made himself harden, he shifted his position to accommodate the awakening in his loins

She was watching him. “Then what is this about?”

“Can I not just sit with you?”

“I suppose, but we didn’t exactly part on friendly terms when you left for San Francisco, so I thought maybe you coming here was about something else.”

“And whose fault might that have been? After our wedding night, I didn’t expect to wake up and find you gone.”

“What reason did I have to stick around? You were still going to leave, weren’t you?”

He looked away.

“My point is made.”

The hard look he flung her way didn’t seem to faze her at all, because she said, “You’re angry. I’m angry. I’m going to bed. See you in the morning.”

She stood and waited.

That she was dismissing him had Drew hovering somewhere between laughter and fury at her audacious, maddening, and, yes, beautiful self. He didn’t know whether to spank her sassy little behind or drag her into his arms and kiss her in order to give that smart mouth something better to do. In truth, he wanted both. Instead he rose and studied her through the shadows. He finally inclined his head. “Good night, Billie.”

“Good night.”

W
hen the men Prince sent to Yates’s office hadn’t returned by sunset, he assumed they’d failed the task and had fled the city to escape his wrath. First, Billie and now the Ruiz girl. Even though he knew where Billie was he was still furious that the girl had slipped through his fingers, too, so he’d taken it out on the illustrious Emmalina Ruiz and to eliminate witnesses, the servant, too. Both were lying dead in the parlor—their throats cut. While ransacking the house to make it appear like a robbery, he’d searched for valuables, because even in death, Senora Ruiz owed him, and he’d left the house with a few pieces of jewelry and some gold doubloons. The booty didn’t equal the loan, but it was better than nothing.

Now, seated in the back of his well-sprung carriage, he was headed for the docks. There was one last loose end to snip, then he’d call it a day.

Addy knew her death was coming, so she’d prepared herself by taking a bath and putting on a white gown. Earlier in the day, she’d given away her small cache of valuables to longtime customers and what little money she possessed to friends. Nothing else in the house was likely to survive, so she didn’t worry about the rest. Now as the sun set, she knew it wouldn’t be much longer. Taking a seat in the center of her bed, she waited.

As night fell, she heard footsteps making their way around the perimeter of the house and smelled the kerosene being splashed around its base. She knew the men were there on Prince’s orders because her death would come not by his hands but from his words.

A big whoosh sounded as a match was tossed into the kerosene and she sensed the spreading flames. Smoke filled the small house, stinging her eyes and lungs. After a short while, fire crept into the bedroom, tentatively at first, and upon finding no resistance grew strong and tall. The flames crawled up the walls feeding greedily on them and the thin drapes with shimmering tongues of red and orange, bringing with it a tremendous heat and a desert-hot wind. They jumped to the bed and moved up her body and crawled up her arms raised in praise. The flames embraced her and danced over her with a joy she and they both shared. She was finally going home to the River of Life to stand beside her mother, grandmother, and her precious Chassie. As the firestorm burned away her last breath, she smiled.

Outside a crowd gathered and a bucket brigade formed in a desperate attempt to save the structure, but it was too far gone. Watching the blaze from the interior of his carriage, Prince smiled too as the house began to fall into itself and the towering flames stood bright against the night. The men he’d hired to do the job had long since melted into the darkness, and his day was now complete as well. He tapped the head of his cane against the roof, the carriage pulled away, and he settled back against the seat. The burning of the witch pleased him on myriad levels. Now, she’d never be able to implicate him in her daughter’s death, and although he had no direct proof, his gut told him she’d not only played a role in Billie’s escape, but also was the reason his mother was near death. Pearl DuChance was no longer the famed beauty she’d once been. Her gums and tongue were black, her teeth had fallen out, and her ivory skin was now the color of piss. The doctor he’d brought in to evaluate her failing condition said it appeared as if she’d been poisoned over a long period of time. Other than making her comfortable by giving her opium for the pain there was nothing medically he could do. It was his opinion that she wouldn’t live much longer: maybe a day or two more and then Prince would bury her. Nothing would assuage his fury and grief, but watching the old woman burn helped immensely.

Chapter 15

“I
f the scowl you’re wearing gets any uglier, Alanza’s going to send you to your room.”

Drew cut his brother a look and groused, “I thought this was supposed to be a children’s party. Why are there no other children here, and why are all the men circled up around my wife?” He swore if another man came up and told him how lucky he was to have such a fierce and beautiful little wife he was going to start throwing punches.

“She and Tom are telling the bear story. First time many people have heard the full details.”

Drew rolled his eyes and took a small sip of his sangria.

“Feeling neglected, are you?” Logan asked, sounding amused.

Drew watched Billie laugh in response to something Tom was saying. “She thinks I only want her for sex.”

“Why wouldn’t she?”

Drew’s scowl deepened.

“Personally I’m still trying to figure out what you see in her. She’s life smart, has a backbone, and is way too mouthy for my liking.”

“That’s right, you prefer your women to kick and throw rocks.”

Alanza walked by carrying a grandchild in each arm. “Drew, stop scowling. You’ll scare the children.” She moved on.

He shook his head and took another sip.

Logan asked, “Do you want some brotherly advice?”

“No.”

“Surrender.”

“To what?”

“Billie. Your feelings. Love. Whatever you want to call it. But it’s got you by the bullocks and the longer you fight it, the more miserable you’re going to be.”

“Are you done?”

“Almost. Remember the hard time you gave me last summer over Mariah? It’s your turn.” Leaving him with a pat on the back, Logan walked across the room to join his wife and the others listening to the bear story.

Drew spent the rest of the evening nursing his sangria and mulling over his wife. She met his eyes a few times across the room, but he supposed his impassive response wasn’t encouraging so she ignored him from then on. He made an effort to mingle and to speak with a few people but they kept pointing out how charming and witty Billie was, so he eventually made his way outside to the patio.

To his surprise, Mariah stepped out to join him. “Are you unwell?” she asked.

“I’ve been better.”

“The cure is to let her know how you feel.”

“You sound like your husband.”

She laughed softly. “If it’s any consolation, she does care about you, but she doesn’t think her feelings are reciprocated.”

“She’s doing a good job of hiding it.”

“And you aren’t?”

He didn’t reply.

“You might want to dust off that legendary Spanish charm you’re supposed to be so famous for and start using it, otherwise we may have to put you down.”

He laughed. She gave him a kiss on the cheek and left him outside alone.

Lying in bed, Drew thought back on the advice he’d received. He didn’t deny he had feelings for Billie, but Logan had called it love. Having never been in love, he wasn’t sure if his brother was correct or not but one thing he had gotten right. Whatever was going on inside did have him by the bullocks and was growing more and more pronounced.

Drew slept in the following morning and by the time he came downstairs the household was well into its day. He found his mother in her study. The cousins were playing with toys on the carpeted floor. He nodded at his niece and said to his son, “Good morning, Antonio,” which brought on a blissful smile, followed by the raising of his little arms.

Drew picked him up. Because he didn’t live on the ranch he’d had only minimal contact with his niece, so what he knew about babies would fit on the head of a pin. Drew was amazed at how light he was in his arms. Father and son eyed each other just long enough for Tonio to begin his usual stream of chattering. “What’s he saying?”

Alanza shrugged. “Only he knows, but the idea is to respond. It’s how little ones learn the back and forth of conversing.”

Drew assumed she knew what she was talking about and apparently his son thought so as well because he kept up his part of the conversation, complete with gestures for emphasis. “What should I say?” He was finding this very amusing.

“Doesn’t matter. Just say anything. Agree. Ask him to tell you more.”

“But he doesn’t understand.”

“
Dios
, Andrew. That isn’t the point. The point is to play. Enjoy. Loosen the lawyer’s vest and be silly with him. He won’t be little for long. Soon he’ll be talking back and chasing women.”

He shot his mother a look, which she met with a smile.

Little Maria was observing all this. Drew leaned down and asked, “Do you know what he’s trying to say?”

She chattered a moment as if to offer a translation then resumed trying to eat a wooden block that was as large as her head.

“Where’s your mama, Antonio?”

Alanza answered for him, even though Tonio was chatting away. “She’s over at Tom’s giving gun lessons to Amanda and the other ladies. She’ll be back later.”

Drew noticed his son was wearing miniature denim trousers. “Where’d he get these denims?”

“Mariah made them. Little Maria has a few pair, too.”

Traditionally children of both genders wore clothing that resembled dresses or jumpers. Only when boys were much older did parents dress them like little men. Drew himself had grown up wearing the same kind of apparel, but he was glad that times were changing so that boys could stop being mistaken for their sisters. “Do you think Billie will mind if I took him for a ride?”

“Probably not, he’s ridden with me a few times, but be sure you ride slow and hold onto him. He’s wiggly and quick. You don’t want to have to come back and explain to his mother how her son fell off your horse.”

No, he didn’t. So with a wave good-bye, father and son left for the stables.

They rode to the portion of the Yates land Drew had been dreaming of building his house on since he was fourteen. It was on a rise above the river and had a magnificent view of the mountains. “You think you’d like to live here, Antonio? We’re a pretty good piece away from your
abuela
, but close enough for her to ride over to visit, and for you to ride to see her once you can sit a horse.”

The open land spread out around them was in bloom with the wildflowers of May and there were dragonflies darting and in and out of the cattails and tall grasses down near the water. Seeing two eagles soaring overhead, Drew pointed them out, but Tonio was focused on trying to put the end of the reins in his mouth. “Don’t eat that.”

Laughing and appalled at the same time he pried the leather loose. “We need to have your mama feed you better. Leather is not something little boys have for lunch.”

The boy giggled as if he understood the joke and in that beaming smile Drew saw Billie’s face for the first time. The realization stopped his heart and swelled it with an unnamed emotion. Their eyes were shaped similarly and the smiles were nearly identical. Why had he never noticed the resemblance before?
Probably because you’ve never bothered to get close enough before,
a sarcastic voice inside pointed out. Tonio reached up and attempted to put his fist into his father’s mouth, but Drew kept his lips sealed. For a few moments they played the silly game and there were no words to describe how it made him feel. From that moment forward Tonio ceased to be just the “the baby” or “Billie’s son.” In the blink of an eye he’d become Antonio Andrew Yates, their son. His son. The certainty was overwhelming. He wondered if Logan felt the same connection to his daughter. He could only guess that he did. “You’re not supposed to make your papa want to tear up like an old woman, son.”

They dismounted and Drew tossed Tonio into the air, which the boy enjoyed immensely. The toss was repeated and upon catching him this time, Drew looked down into the sparkling black eyes and his heart was full. “Let’s go see the water.”

Leaving the horse behind, Drew carried his son down to the river’s edge then set him on his feet. He made a point of holding on to his hand. Tonio strained against the hold, so Drew let him go but kept an eye on him. The boy soon found a stick and used the end to poke at the muddy bank. Drew wondered what the world would be like when he reached maturity. Would it be a fairer one where his son could achieve whatever he put his mind to without being hindered because of his race or the language he spoke? Drew glanced up at the eagles still soaring overhead. He wanted his son to be able to soar in much the same way, but most of all he wanted him to have what life had denied Drew, a father. He turned back to Antonio, but he wasn’t there. His heart pounded as he hastily looked around.

“Antonio!” He fought to remain calm even as the fear climbed up his chest. “Antonio!” Panicked he reasoned the boy couldn’t’ve gotten too far. There’d been no sound of a splash so he hadn’t gone into the water. “Antonio!”

The bank was lined with cattails and equally tall grasses, so he began to move through them while praying aloud for the first time in a very long time. And then, a dragonfly appeared and out of the grass toddled his son. He wanted to weep with relief. Scooping him up, Drew held him against his pounding heart and whispered a fervent prayer of thanks. He glanced down at his smiling son, who was squirming to be free because the dragonfly had flitted near again. “
Dios!
Are you trying to kill me? Please don’t ever do that again. You almost gave me heart failure.”

Drew hugged him tightly again and only when he was sure that he was unharmed and in one piece did he carry him to the waiting stallion. “Time to hand you back over to the womenfolk. They’re obviously much better at taking care of you than I am. I need a drink.”

Once they were mounted, Drew turned the horse towards home. “And this is not a story to share with your mama, remember that, okay?”

B
illie was behind the reins as she and Mariah were heading home. “Do you think I’ll ever be able to shoot straight?” her sister-in-law bemoaned.

“Takes practice. At least you keep your eyes open. I have no idea how Amanda Foster plans to shoot anything if she closes her eyes every time she squeezes the trigger.”

There’d been six ladies at the lessons today. Now that they’d conquered their initial fear of the guns, bullets and the sound of the guns firing, their aim and skill had much improved.

“There’s Logan,” Mariah pointed out at the sight of her husband riding in their direction.

Billie had to admit he cut a fine figure mounted on the big black stallion.

When he reined to a halt beside them, Mariah asked, “Where are you headed?”

“To pick up Eli. He’s coming in on the afternoon train.”

Billie had no idea who Eli might be so she concentrated on the scenery. Her brother-in-law continued to be cool towards her and she didn’t want to draw his attention, but apparently she failed.

“Billie.”

She looked over into his stern eyes.

“I want to apologize for not believing your story about DuChance.”

She was surprised by that. “None needed, but thank you.”

“You’re welcome.”

She wondered if his attitude towards her was beginning to thaw. Mariah was wearing a pleased smile that lingered even after he offered her his good-byes and rode away.

Billie got Duchess moving again. “Did you put him up to that?”

“No. He’s a lot like Alanza in that sense. No one can make him do anything. He rarely apologizes because he’s rarely wrong, but in this instance he was. I’m proud of him.”

“I doubt we’ll ever be close, but I do appreciate the gesture.”

Upon entering the parlor, Billie was caught off guard seeing Drew sitting on the floor of the parlor with both children in his lap. He was reading to them in Spanish. Alanza looked on from the sofa.

Mariah asked, “What are you reading?”

“
Las sergas de Esplandian.
”

Billie grinned. “Aren’t they a bit young to be hearing about Queen Calafia?”

“You remember,” Drew replied quietly and her insides fluttered in reaction to his tone and knowing gaze.

“I do.”

She saw Mariah and Alanza exchange an arched glance. Little Maria wriggled out of her uncle’s lap, wobbled to her mother and raised her arms. Mariah picked her up. “Thanks for watching her, Alanza. I’m going to take her home and put her down for her nap.”

Tonio scrambled off his father’s lap and reached up for his mother, too. Billie obliged him. “Have you been good for your
abuela
and papa while I was gone?”

He placed his head against her shoulder as if ready for a nap of his own, and she was very confused by that. Getting him to nap willingly was akin to putting a bear in a bottle. “What’s got you so tuckered out, little man?”

The explanation came from his father. “We went riding, we chased dragonflies, gathered sticks. We looked at the land where we’re going to build our house.”

She stared at him like she’d never seen him before then over at the chuckling Alanza. “
You
took him riding?”

“And brought him back in one piece.”

Mariah interrupted. “We’ll see you at dinner. Bye, Billie. Thanks for the lesson.”

“You’re welcome,” but her eyes were still on Drew as Mariah departed.

Drew calmly closed the book and stood. “How about I come learn how to put him to bed, that way I can do it on my own if I want to.”

Her jaw dropped.
Who was this man and what had he done with the real Drew Yates?
She stammered, “Sure.”

Alanza viewed their exit with a knowing smile.

Tonio was already asleep when she placed him in the crib and covered him up. “Usually putting him down for a nap is a test of wills, so don’t think it’ll always be this easy. I believe he thinks he’ll miss something if he sleeps.” She ran her hand lovingly over his head, then leaned down and gave him a soft kiss.

Most days, Billie used the free time to sit and catch her breath because he never slept more than an hour, but with Drew in the room, she wasn’t sure what to do next. “Most of the time, he doesn’t sleep for long.”

“Then come sit outside with me for a moment or two.”

Both wary and suspicious due to how’d they parted the last time they’d been on the verandah together and because of his distant manner last night at the party, she agreed nonetheless.