Colton's Folly (Native American contemporary romance) (9 page)

“Exactly.”

“You believe in that?”

Abby nodded. “Enough so that I spent five years searching for mine.”

“Did you find them?”

She shook her head. “I wasn’t as lucky as you kids.”

“What happened?”

“Too much time had gone by. Nothing was left.”

“That why you came here?”

Startled, she searched his face, saw no malice and smiled ruefully. “How did you get so smart?”

His answering smile was pure mischief. “I read a lot.” Their laughter echoed across the plateau.

“Is
that why you came here?” he asked again.

“That was part of it. I figured that if I could help you kids stay in touch with your heritage, it would kind of make up for not having one myself.” Suddenly embarrassed, she gave Richie a sideways glance. “Corny, huh?”

He shrugged. “Yeah, well, teachers think that way, I suppose... and parents.” He was quiet for a moment, then cleared his throat. “Uh, if I wanted to talk some more about this stuff, would that be okay?”

She smiled. “Any time you’d like.”

“I might...” His voice trailed off as he looked out across the Buttes, his focus, Abby knew, turned inward.

She rose and turned to find Cat leaning against the tree, a strange look on his face. He’d been listening, and that made her angry, though she couldn’t have said why. “Didn’t your mother ever tell you that it’s rude to eavesdrop?” she asked accusingly.

Without waiting for an answer she brushed past him and joined a group of children seated around a burned-out campfire, playing a storytelling game that was as ancient as the legend they were reciting, and had been designed to pass on the tribe’s history from generation to generation.

Because the story was her favorite she tapped Cory on the shoulder and slipped into the place the girl made for her, to listen to how
Pte-San-Win,
White Buffalo-Calf-Woman, brought the sacred pipe to the Lakota people; how from then on, they were connected to the other creatures of the earth, and to Mother Earth herself, and to the Great Mystery,
Wakan Tanka.

Each child took a turn recounting a different portion of the legend until it was Abby’s turn, and although no one expected her to take part, she began to speak. “This pipe brings you knowledge, and with it you will always be heard by
Wakan Tanka.
You will increase in numbers, receiving everything good and living in peace and harmony with the world around you. Therefore keep it sacred, for it is holy.”

Abby felt someone ease down beside her; the strong electric contact when an arm brushed hers told her who it was. She kept her eyes down, staring at the remnants of the campfire while his deep, smooth voice supplied the final lines of the story. When he finished Abby looked around at the children’s faces. They seemed uneasy, confused and very much in awe of their leader.

“Thank you for letting me join you,” Cat said. “It’s been a very long time since I played the game. It’s nice to know I still can.”

And then he was gone, leaving the children to chatter about him for a minute or two before going on to other things, and Abby to wonder if what he’d said had been a message for her.

On Saturday morning, after helping Martha with the household chores, Abby saddled Ghost and rode out to the H-M-R. Jacinta opened the front door and ushered her into the kitchen.

“Sit down. Have some coffee with me while I try to get some breakfast into the little one.”

She nodded in the direction of a little girl of about six, who stared silently at Abby with wide cornflower-blue eyes. Abby sat down opposite her and smiled. “Are you Penny?”

The child continued to stare, and Abby looked to Jacinta for help.

“The little one does not speak.”

“Why not?”

“She could speak once, but she has not said a word since her mother died two years ago. So perhaps it is from sadness.” She looked at Abby for confirmation. “Do you think so?”

“If it isn’t, we have a strange sort of coincidence.”

Penny lowered her head to eat her cereal. A shaft of light from the window illuminated the golden blond curls that fell to her shoulders.

“What beautiful hair you have,” Abby murmured. “Like sunshine.”

Penny looked up with a strange expression that Abby couldn’t read. Then she picked up a piece of biscuit from her plate and offered it to Abby, who took it.

“Thank you. How did you know I was hungry?”

Penny picked up her glass of milk and offered that, too. Abby looked down at the cup filled with steaming black coffee that Jacinta had placed before her. “May I have some of your milk for my coffee?”

The child handed her the glass. Abby stirred some milk into her cup, then took a spoonful of the lightened coffee and added it to Penny’s glass, again stirring carefully.

“I’ll wait while you finish the cereal Jacinta made for you, and then we’ll have our biscuits and coffee together.”

Abby turned away and smiled at Jacinta, who nodded in response. “I am happy to see you, but why have you come?”

“To see Hank.”

Jacinta gave her a knowing look. “I am glad you are as impressed with
Senor Matthews as he is with you.”

Abby held up a hand. “Hold on, now. Don’t get the wrong idea about this visit.”

“You are not interested in the
senor
?”

“He’s very nice, Jacinta, but no, I’m not interested in him. At least, not in the way you hope.”

“If you’re not here to see me, why did you come?”

Abby turned with a start to find Hank lounging against the doorframe. “I did come to see you,” she said with a smile. “I just didn’t come a-courting.”

He laughed heartily, then took a cup from the sideboard and seated himself between Abby and Penny. “Mornin’, little one. How are you today?” He bent down and kissed the top of his daughter’s head.

His eyes shone as the child reached for him; he slid her onto his lap and folded his arms about her little body. Abby felt her own eyes fill with moisture as she watched them embrace, awed by the gentleness of the man. A woman could count herself lucky to be loved by him. Some woman...

Penny started to wriggle, and when he loosened his hold, she slid to the floor and went to Jacinta.

Hank took a sip from his cup, then asked, “What’s up?”

“The kids at the school told me that they have permission to visit the ranch whenever they like. If you think you could handle the whole bunch at once, I’d like to bring them out for a day.”

“How come?”

“Yesterday I took them on an outing to the Buttes. They seemed to relax around me for the first time, a feeling I’m hoping will carry over into the classroom. But whether it helps or not, I did promise one more trip--out here--if you agree. What do you think?”

“I don’t see any problem with that. How about Friday? Things are slow right now, so I can get some of my hands to help out. The only real hitch I can see would be bad weather. Barring that, I’d say come ahead.”

He turned to Jacinta, who had been brushing Penny’s hair while listening to the conversation and was now weaving the strands into a single thick golden braid. “Would you mind preparing a barbecue for the children?”

“Of course not. It will be my pleasure.”

Penny walked over to Abby and timidly took her hand. Abby looked down at the girl, who waited expectantly. “Would you like to take a walk?” Penny nodded her head. “Well then, get your coat. You can give me a tour.”

Penny held Abby’s hand as she led her to the stables, to the nearest pasture and to her tree house, which they explored thoroughly. By the time they were back on the ground once more Penny was exhausted. Abby lifted the child on her shoulders and carried her to her room, where she gently lowered her to the bed and covered her with an afghan. Penny’s eyelids were heavy with fatigue, but she struggled to stay awake. Abby sat on the edge of the bed and took a tiny hand in hers.

“Don’t fight sleep, love. Let it come, so you’ll have energy to play again when you wake up.” The child’s bottom lip began to tremble. “Now, now,” Abby crooned. “Don’t be sad. I’ll come and visit again. I promise.”

Abby leaned down to place a kiss on Penny’s forehead and felt the girl’s arms slip around her neck. Abby lifted her and held her tightly for a moment, then lowered her once more.

“I’ll be back, Penny.”

Penny sighed and closed her eyes; in seconds she was asleep. Abby slipped out of the room, leaving the door slightly ajar. She paused in the hallway, leaning against the wall for a moment and closing her eyes to a sudden, stinging rush of tears. The sleeping child seemed to tug at her, and she fought the impulse to reenter the darkened room.

“Damn you, Colton,” she whispered viciously. “You can’t take them all on. Leave this one alone.”

She wiped away the tears with the back of her hand and went down to the kitchen, where Hank and Jacinta waited.

“So, it’s okay for Friday?” Abby asked as Hank helped her into her jacket.

“Sure,” he answered. “You bring ’em on out. We’ll make it a good day for them.”

Cat mentioned the trip at dinner that evening. “I hear you’re taking the kids out to Hank’s place on Friday.”

“How did you hear that?” she asked, her curiosity piqued.

He shrugged. “Sources.”

“Your sources are correct. I can count on you to help, can’t I?”

“I don’t think so.” His face was hidden behind a cloud of cigarette smoke; his tone was cold.

Abby found it impossible to conceal her disappointment. “What’s the problem?”

He could feel her eyes on him as he crushed his cigarette in the ashtray and took his dishes to the sink. She was waiting for an answer, and he didn’t have one. At least, not one that he could voice. He ran his fingers through his hair, then lit another cigarette. The truth is, he thought, you just don’t want her to go out there. And it doesn’t matter that she’ll have twenty--excuse me, eighteen--assorted children with her, God knows how many ranch hands and dear Jacinta between her and him. He’ll be there and she’ll be there, and that’s driving you crazy. But it shouldn’t. It shouldn’t matter a damn what she does or doesn’t do, or who she’s with...

He looked at her for a moment, and with his heart thudding heavily beneath his ribs, brushed past her. He grabbed his jacket from its peg and left. She called out to him, but he kept going, out the back door and along the side of the house, heading nowhere in particular. Once he reached the open air he felt calmer and merely perched on the front porch rail. He grimaced in the dark; he didn’t have to go far to regain his equilibrium, just anywhere she wasn’t. Not a good sign, that. And he was in no mood to speculate why.

He groaned deep in his throat as he heard the screen door open. He traced her footsteps as she came around the corner and stopped to call his name. Fighting the impulse to hightail it out of there, he answered, “I’m over here.” Abby saw a cigarette glowing in the shadows of the porch overhang. She climbed the steps to join him at the rail, where he sat with one leg propped against the newel post and his back against an upright. She stood silently, trying to sort out her feelings, trying to find a way to communicate without violating the distance he always maintained.

“What are you doing out here?” He spoke in a tired, throaty whisper.

“I came to find out why you’re angry with me.”

“I’m not... angry,” he growled.

“Oh, no,” she chided. “Not much.”

Just then a gust of wind tore through her, and she realized that she’d left the house without a coat. She shivered. “God, it’s cold.”

He stirred in his place. “Come here.”

When she was close enough he opened his jacket and wrapped it around her, adding her body heat to his own and sending his senses into turmoil. They huddled silently for a long time, until finally she spoke.

“You haven’t answered my question.”

“Ajustan,
Abby.”

“What does that mean?”

“Let it lay,” he translated impatiently. “Just leave it alone.”

“Okay.”

He responded with a grunt, but made no move to turn her loose, for fear of ending his sweet torment. For her part, Abby was content to stay put, tucked inside his jacket, sheltered in his arms, with her head on his shoulder. Time passed, and neither noticed or cared how much. But gradually Abby became aware of Cat’s quickening heartbeat thrumming against her arm where it was caught between them. Her own pulse responded, sending the blood coursing hotly through her body.

As a warning sounded in her brain she leaned back against his arm, trying to see his expression in the darkness. “What are you thinking?” she asked quietly.

He pulled her close for a moment, then spoke in a voice husky with feeling. “I’m thinking we’d better go inside.”

She nodded silently against his shoulder, her hair brushing the side of his face. He pressed a kiss onto the crown of her head, and they went into the house, which was dark except for the glow of a fire in the hearth.

Abby stood with her back against the door, looking up at his face, willing her heart to cease its erratic pounding and getting no cooperation. Cat removed his jacket and tossed it on the hall table. Then he leaned forward, with a hand against the wall to either side of her head, and seemed to examine her as she waited for the kiss she both feared and craved.