Enchanted Ecstasy (13 page)

"Good for what?"

' 'Good for you, I think. He returns,'' Lamas told her at the same time she detected Kane's footsteps.

Looking up, Maleaha saw that Kane carried his bedroll, which he tossed to the ground.

"I have decided it is not safe for you to sleep so far from camp with only the old Indian to protect you," he said, unrolling his bedroll.

"I am safe enough with Lamas. He detected your footsteps long before you came into sight."

Kane watched as the old Indian stood up and walked away, soon to be swallowed up by the night shadows.

"I do not like to have to repeat myself, but I am in charge, and what I say goes. Do I make myself clear?"

"Oh, I understand what you are saying, major, and if it makes you feel more in charge to be asserting your authority over me, so be it," she said flippantly.

With a quick motion he grabbed her by the wrist and pulled her to her feet.

"My God, you try a man's patience. I have taken about all I intend to from you." He pulled her into his arms.

Maleaha struggled as his hands moved down her back, drawing her tightly against his body. Looking into his face, she saw the anger leave him, to be replaced by a look she could not define. His silver eyes froze her into immobility.

She felt herself being pulled under his spell. It was as if she were being drawn to him, as a helpless moth seeks the flame knowing it will get its wings singed.

Maleaha waited expectantly as his lips moved to within a hairs-breadth of her waiting lips.

"Damn you," he ground out between clenched teeth as he shoved her roughly away from him.

Maleaha looked away from him, feeling heartsick and ashamed. She knew at that moment he had felt drawn to her, as she had to him, but she was wise enough to know that attraction was not the same as love. Did he resent the fact that he was drawn to her? Was he repelled by his attraction to her? Deep inside, did he still think of her as nothing more than an Indian?

Lamas had returned and lain down on his blanket, and Maleaha walked over to him on shaky legs, needing to put Kane out of her mind. She heard him lie down on his bedroll, and she sat down beside Lamas and folded her legs beneath her. The old man's eyes rested on her. How like her mother she looks, he thought. Lamas had secretly loved Cimeron, and her daughter was very dear to his heart.

"Do not be troubled, Maleaha. Look at every day as a gift. When one wastes time worrying, then the gift is wasted."

"Lamas, I have many worries on my mind, not the least of which is wondering what Mangas will do when he sees me again."

"I have heard it said that Mangas wants you for his woman. I told you it was not wise for you to go to his camp. I will try to prevent him from taking you, if I am able.'5

"I knew the danger when I agreed to come, but I felt I could help sway Mangas to aid the army in rounding up the Arapaho." She sighed. "I am frightened, Lamas. What shall I do?"

The old man was quiet for a moment, pondering her words. "You could tell Mangas you are this man's woman. It could work well for you if Mangas's spies are watching you, and they see this man lying beside you."

Maleaha looked over her shoulder to where Kane was lying on his bedroll. His arms were folded behind his head and he seemed oblivious to his surroundings. She eased herself to her feet and walked slowly over to her blanket. As she lay down she noticed Kane had turned his back to her. She supposed her reputation would be in shreds when it was learned she had slept beside the major, but that was the very least of her concerns at the moment.

"I suppose you will wreak havoc with my reputation, major," she said sadly, not really expecting him to understand.

"Go to sleep, Miss Deveraux," he said wearily.

The same pattern was repeated the next night. The major came to where Maleaha and Lamas were camped and unrolled his bedroll, then turned his back on her and drifted off to sleep.

In the daytime, as she rode beside him, he was silent. Word must have reached the rest of the soldiers that they were not to have any conversation with Maleaha, for not one of them had approached her. Every so often she would see Lieutenant Maxwell watching her, and she would smile at him, but she noticed he would look around for the major before he would return her smile.

Around noon on the fourth day they stopped to eat and rest the horses. Maleaha sought out Kane. He had been talking to his sergeant, and he watched her as she approached. He noticed the way her hips moved as she walked, and by the look on the sergeant's face, he knew he had noticed also.

"I'm an old man, major, but that is the prettiest little gal I have ever seen. Makes me feel good just to look at her, sir," The sergeant told Kane.

"I suggest, sergeant, that you tend to your duties and forget about Miss Deveraux."

The sergeant laughed. "I'll go about my duties, sir, but I doubt I will forget about Miss Deveraux."

By now Maleaha had reached Kane's side, and he turned angrily to face her.

"What do you want, Miss Deveraux?" he asked in an incensed voice.

She blinked at the anger in his voice. ' T only wanted to tell you there is a stream about five miles from here. If you will have your men camp there, you, Lamas, and I will go on to the Jojoba village alone."

She watched as Kane angrily stalked away. Was that man always angry, she wondered. He surely spent most of his time being angry with her. She shrugged her shoulders and went in search of Lamas.

After Kane had instructed Lieutenant Maxwell on what he wanted him to do, he mounted his horse and rode away beside Maleaha, with Lamas riding just to the rear.

Maleaha looked at him and noticed that he was still angry, so she did not try to talk to him.

By nightfall they were deep within the mountains, and that night they set up camp in the dense forest. After they had eaten, Maleaha disappeared, and she had now been gone for over an hour. It was dark, and Kane paced back and forth, waiting for her to return.

"Why does she not return?" he asked Lamas, but the old Indian merely shrugged his shoulders and acted unconcerned.

Kane had just decided to go and search for her when he saw her emerge from the trees. Her hair was wet, so he suspected she had been bathing. She stopped beside the old man and spoke to him rapidly in the language of the Jojoba, and then Lamas stood up, and was soon lost among the dark shadows.

Maleaha walked casually toward Kane.

"Act natural, major; we are being observed."

Kane reached out and put a protective arm about her shoulder. "Did you discover you were being watched before or after you bathed?"

"It was during my bath that I realized I was being watched," she told him with a look of amusement.

"Do you think it is the Jojoba?"

"I cannot be sure, but I pray it is."

The two of them waited tensely for Lamas to return. When he did reappear, he was so silent that Kane did not see him until he was beside them. Kane waited while the old man spoke to Maleaha.

"We have nothing to fear, major. It is the Jojoba."

Kane looked past her into the dark forest that surrounded them. How was it that she could see and hear things that no normal person could detect? It was irritating to him that she always seemed to have the upper hand where he was concerned.

He unrolled his bedroll and placed it under one of the trees. He was surprised when Maleaha walked over to him with her blanket and spread it beside him.

"Major, I am going to do something you may not understand, but please trust me and ask no questions." She removed her moccasins and lay down beside her blanket.

Kane looked from her to the old man, in total confusion. Apparently Lamas found nothing out of the ordinary about the sleeping arrangement. He merely yawned and rolled up in his blanket, turning his back to them.

Kane lay down on his bedroll, and was further confused when Maleaha moved over and placed her head on his shoulder.

"What the hell do you think you are doing?" he asked, as he grabbed a handful of wet, ebony-colored hair and forced her to look at him in the face.

"What game are you playing?" He looked into luminous green eyes and drew in his breath as her sensuous lips parted in silent invitation.

"Kiss me, Kane," she said, using his name for the first time.

The use of his name and the feel of her soft body pressed close to him was his undoing. His lips came down on hers hungrily. But no sooner had his lips touched hers, than she shoved him away and laid her head down, looking at him with amusement.

Kane glanced at the old man, who appeared to be sleeping. "Did you wish to test me to see if you could make me want you, Miss Deveraux?" Kane said through stiff lips. The brief contact with her had stirred his body to life, with awareness of her. Every nerve end cried out to possess her.

"I am sorry, major. You must think my actions very strange, but please trust me, and ask no questions."

Her lips opened in a provocative smile. "Do not worry; your virtue is safe with me."

Kane had the impulse to turn her over his knee and give her the spanking her father had probably never given her.

"God, it must be some sort of punishment for me to endure. I think you are aware of what you are doing to me and are enjoying yourself at my expense. Just be warned that you have almost pushed me to my limit."

"And what will you do when you reach your limit?" She taunted, unaware of the dangerous ground she was treading on.

Kane's hand shot out and grabbed a handful of ebony hair and jerked her toward him. His face was a mask as he looked deep into her eyes, and Maleaha saw his nostrils flare as his silver eyes narrowed.

"Congratulations, you have just succeeded in pushing me to my limit," he whispered against her lips. "Now
you
can feel what it is like to be driven half out of your mind."

Kane's lips moved over her face, teasing and arousing, but never settling on her lips. Maleaha turned her head, trying to capture his lips with hers, but he always moved out of her range. She heard his deep laughter as he nuzzled her ear, and a gasp escaped her lips.

"It's hell, is it not?" he whispered in her ear. Maleaha knew she should be angry with him, but all she could think of at the moment was the feel of his lips, and his hands, which were gliding sensuously down her back.

"Beg me for a kiss, Maleaha, beg."

"No!"

"You know you want me to, Maleaha," he said, his warm breath caressing her face.

"Please."

"Please what, Maleaha?"

"Please, release me. We are being watched."

Kane had forgotten all about the Jojoba Indians who were watching them. He cursed under his breath as he untangled her arms from around his neck and shoved her away from him. Gritting his teeth, he turned his back on her.

"Consider yourself lucky that I do not perform well in front of an audience, Miss Deveraux."

Maleaha swallowed a sob as she tried to stop her body from trembling. Her love for Kane was second only to her need for him. He had awakened her body from that of a child to that of a woman, and it was a long time before she finally fell asleep. Her only consolation was that maybe the watching Jojobas warriors would report back to Mangas that she was now Kane's woman.

The next morning as they broke camp and rode away, Kane was silent and brooding. Maleaha knew he was still angry about the night before, but she knew of no way to tell him about her fear of Mangas. Most probably he would not understand. One thing was for sure. Kane would not like it if he found out she had used him last night to fool Mangas.

As they drew ever closer to the Jojoba village, Maleaha's mind shifted to thoughts of Mangas. She loved him in a way that was hard to explain. He was the chief of her mother's people, and a man whom she respected, but she did not want to be his wife. She was proud of her Indian blood, but she was too much her father's daughter ever to be able to live the nomadic life of the Jojoba. She supposed if she loved Mangas she would gladly live with him as his wife, but her heart belonged to another, one who was unaware of the love she had for him. Nor would he welcome her love, should he ever find out about it.

Maleaha looked at Kane's dark, handsome face, and when he looked at her she quickly turned her head, fearing he would be able to read the love in her eyes.

When they stopped for lunch, Maleaha found Kane watching her, and when he walked over to her she turned away with the pretense of filling the coffee pot with water from the stream they had been following all morning.

"What do you think you are doing?" he asked her as she placed the pot on the fire and added coffee to it.

"I am making coffee for Lamas. He has a passion for coffee," she said, not fully understanding his question.

"That is not what I was asking, and you know it."

"Lamas is more like a white man than you may suppose. He likes to sleep in a bed with a soft mattress, and, as I said before, he has a passion for coffee," she told him nervously.

"I was referring to last night, and you know it. I have had a lot of time to think about it, and I have finally put the pieces together. Last night was not for my benefit. You were hoping that Mangas's warriors would report back to him that you and I were on . . . for want of a better word, friendly terms."