“Are you?”
“Am I what?” She was confused. His broad chest under his shirt was doing nothing to fix the situation either.
“Are you planning to stay on here?”
“Well, I’m not quite sure yet. Would you like me to?” Embarrassment flushed her cheeks. “Never mind. I really shouldn’t have asked. That was totally inappropriate for me…”
She didn’t quite finish before Seth’s response tripped across her heart, and her breath caught in her throat.
“Yes.” Seth looked at her for a second and then turned his back to her to finish setting up the target.
“Yes?”
One shoulder lifted in a half shrug. “Yes, I’d like for you to stay.”
“Well then, maybe I will.” Lily said, blushing at her confession. “Shall we get started with the lessons?”
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* * * *
When Seth turned back around, his thoughts scattered to the wind. She stood in front of him so prim and proper in her dress, but when she moved, he could see the outline of her long legs under her skirts. He sucked in an unsteady breath in a fleeting attempt to curtail the raging desire running rapid through his veins.
Clearing his throat in case his voice came out in a squeak, he instructed her, “Move over here in front of the target. I’m going to get behind you so I can show you how to hold the pistol.”
Seth handed her his gun, and she almost dropped it on the ground because of the weight of the firearm.
“My goodness. I didn’t realize they were that heavy.”
“They can be heavy if you're holding a six-shooter, which is what that one is. There are smaller guns for ladies you can hold in the palm of your hand. That might be an option for you, but if you want to get off more than one shot, you need something bigger.”
Their fingers brushed when he took it from her. Her touch sent tingles of electricity crawling up his arm and settling in his chest. Stepping behind her, he tried to take a calming breath before he moved to put his arms around her.
“Now, turn toward the target. Take the pistol in both hands. Raise it so you can look down the barrel of the gun and sight your target.”
His hands shook when he slipped them around her waist and placed them over hers so he could steady her grip with his.
This is a big mistake.
The lavender scent he would forever associate with her drifted to his nose while the hair that had come loose from its pins tickled softly along his jaw.
Clearing his throat, he murmured, “Steady the gun with both hands, aim at the center of the target and pull the trigger.”
The gun barked, and she jerked back against his chest. Screaming, she dropped it on the ground, causing the gun to go off again. She swung around wide-eyed and frightened.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t realize it would be that loud.”
“It’s all right. Scared the daylights out of me the first time I shot one, too.”
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“Really?”
“Yes, really, now let’s try again. Your muscles will be very sore tonight.
You’ll have sore spots where you didn’t even know you had muscles by the time we’re done.”
Seth stood behind her and braced her arms while he held onto her hands tightly with his to steady the gun. “Remember the kick. Aim at the target, and pull the trigger lightly. You don’t have to pull it very hard.”
The gun barked again, but this time she was more prepared. She didn’t hit the target at all, but the bullet didn’t go completely wild.
“Better,” he praised, taking the gun from her hands.
“But I didn’t even hit the target. I think I hit the side of the barn and scared the heck out of the chickens.” The gorgeous smile gracing her mouth when she spun around drove the blood straight from his brain to his groin.
A small sheen of perspiration gathered on his top lip, and he had to stifle a groan threatening to slip from his mouth.
“For the most part, sweetheart, you aren’t here to learn to kill anyone.
You’re here to learn how to defend yourself if someone breaks into your house, correct?” The endearment rolled so easily from his lips, he had to bite back the urge to correct himself and bring her attention to it.
“I… uh… yes.”
“Shall we try it again?” He felt her shiver, and he asked, “Are you all right?”
“Yes. Sorry. I’m fine. My ears are just ringing a bit I guess from the noise.”
“It can do that to you if you aren’t used to it. Now hold your arms straight out, bend your elbows just slightly to absorb the recoil, sight down the barrel at your target and slowly pull the trigger.”
Fighting the desire rushing through his blood, he attempted to give her instructions even though his mind was wrapped in the woman in his arms.
He found it extremely difficult to concentrate on the target and not on the smell of her skin, the softness of her hair or how perfectly she fit against him.
The gun barked a third time, and he knew Lily was completely stunned to see she had hit the target.
“I did it!” she squealed, twirling around in his arms and with a self-satisfied smile on her pretty mouth, she threw her arms around his neck.
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Not quite sure what else to do, he held on tight, making sure he took the gun from her fingers first.
“That was perfect,” he whispered, inhaling her scent, letting it swirl around in his head.
“Supper is ready, Mr. Seth.” Carmen smirked with an I-told-you-so look while her eyes danced with mirth.
He smiled and held out his arm. “Shall we?”
“Thank you, sir,” Lily answered with a wide smile as she took his arm and they headed into the house.
He held out her chair, and tried desperately to rein in his raging desire before everyone in the room knew where his thoughts centered.
“How’d she do, Pop?” Johnny asked from his place at the table.
“Very well for a woman,” Seth replied, waiting for the reaction he was sure would come, and he wasn’t disappointed.
“A woman!”
He gave her a wide grin, and she smiled in return when she realized he was teasing.
Lord, how she can make my heart pound.
He sucked in a ragged breath and took his own seat next to her.
“Johnny, would you care to say grace for us?” Lily asked, and Johnny began a small prayer that gave thanks for the food they were about to share, to their new teacher for coming here to help them, to his pop for taking care of them all and finally, to his momma, “May she rest in peace.”
The smile that had graced Lily’s lips after Seth’s teasing was now gone.
* * * *
The sobering prayer made Lily think of her own mother, the one she didn't know but would hopefully someday find.
The rest of the evening passed quickly while she joined the family in some games around the living room. When the evening sun started to set behind the hills, she found herself reading a story to the children before they were to head off to bed. Daylight came early for the ranch, and the children were no exception to the early rise.
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Seth tucked them all into bed, and when he entered the living room, Lily sat in one of the large wingback chairs. “I have a request from one of the children for you.”
“Oh?”
“Yes, Anne would like for you to tuck her in.”
“Really? I’m surprised, but of course I will. I would never let those children down.” She rose and asked Seth to show her which room belonged to Anne.
Lily walked silently into the room, where Seth had left the lamp burning on the bedside table, and approached the bed. The little girl was all snuggled under the covers pulled clear up to her chin.
“Anne, your father said you want me to tuck you in. Is that correct?”
Lily asked, sitting on the bed next to the little girl.
Anne just shook her head with a quick nod as her big blue eyes looked straight into Lily’s soul.
“All right, then. Let me get these covers tucked around you so you’ll stay nice and warm tonight.” Lily bent down to kiss her softly on the forehead before she turned to go. “Sweet dreams, princess.”
“Can you be our new mommy?”
The words the little girl whispered reached her ears, and shock rippled down Lily's back. “What did you say?”
“Can you be our new mommy? We need a mommy real bad, and then maybe Poppa won’t be so sad all the time.”
Lily pushed the curls from Anne's forehead and smoothed her fingers down her cheek. “Sweetheart, I’m so glad you’ve decided to talk to me, but let’s see what happens in the future, all right? No one can tell what the future brings.”
“I can’t talk to anyone else. I’m scared that if I do, they will go away too, like my mommy did,” the little girl whispered, terror lacing her words.
“Oh, sweetheart, they won’t go away if you talk to them, but for now, we’ll keep this our little secret, all right?” Lily assured her before she bent to kiss her forehead again. “Now, you get some sleep, and I promise, I won’t tell anyone.”
“All right,” Anne whispered sleepily. “I love you.”
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Lily stood and looked down at the precious little girl. She was so frightened and alone, and to have her give her love so freely brought tears to Lily's eyes.
“I love you too, sweetheart. Everything will be all right, you’ll see.”
Please Lord, don't let this angel get her heart broken.
* * * *
When Lily returned to the living room, Seth was concerned by the look in her eyes. “Everything all right?”
She took a chair opposite him. “Yes, everything is fine. Why do you ask?”
“The look on your face is a bit strange, that’s all. Is there something wrong with Anne?”
“No. I just told her good night and kissed her on the forehead, that’s all.
She really is a sweetheart, Seth. You should be very proud of her.”
“I am tremendously proud. She’s smart as a whip, and she looks exactly like her mother.”
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to bring up memories that you aren’t willing to share.” Lily stood and said, “It’s getting rather late, so I suppose you should take me home now.”
“Yes, of course. Let me get your shawl.” He grabbed her shawl from the hook and swept open the door. “Shall we?”
He grabbed her firmly around the waist and lifted her onto the wagon seat before he went around and jumped up himself. Grabbing the reins in his hands, he snapped them over the horses’ rumps, and Lily clutched the side of the seat.
“Sorry. I guess I should have told you to hang on. This wagon ain’t quite the smooth ride of a smaller buggy like you had the other day.” Seth slowed the horses to a walk.
“It’s quite all right, really. I should have thought to hold on, that’s all.”
“Are you sure you are all right? You seemed preoccupied?”
“No. I’m fine. Thank you for teaching me how to shoot today. It doesn’t seem to be all that hard.”
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“You do realize that it will take more than one lesson for you to become proficient.”
Why did I say that? It means she'll need me longer, and I'll have
to spend more time with her.
“Really?” Lily answered, surprised. “I thought I did quite well today.”
“You did very well for someone who has never held a pistol before, but if you want to be able to hit whatever you are shooting at, you need to practice. I don’t think the townspeople would be too pleased if you went around shooting at the side of saloons or the livery, just so you could practice with a gun. Somehow I don’t think their teacher, packing a pistol strapped to her thigh, would give them a very big sense of security.” He grinned, amused at the thought.
“Why do you strap yours to your thigh?”
That sounded an awful lot like she had been paying attention to him a little more than she wanted to. “It makes it easier for me to draw quickly if I need to, like on the train.”
“Ah yes, the train. I do want to thank you for helping me. I had truly forgotten about the whole incident until now.”
“You’re welcome. I really do have a problem with people taking what doesn’t belong to them, if you hadn’t noticed. For a bunch of lowlife, gun-toting scum to accost innocent people who are traveling from one place to another, or a nice schoolteacher going to her first job, it just doesn’t sit right with me.” Anger reverberated through him.
“I suppose the feeling probably stems from what happened before.”
“No, not really. I’ve always felt that way, even before Victoria was killed.”
“Maybe you should run for sheriff,” she replied half jokingly.
“No. Too much dealing with drunks and people acting like children for me. I’ll stick to ranching. At least with cows you know they ain’t that smart and will only do what nature tells them to do. People have a brain. They just don’t use it all the time.”
“That’s very true.” They hit a large rut in the road, nearly bouncing her off the seat, but Seth grabbed her hand to steady her.
“Sorry. I didn’t see that one.”
Their banter kept his thoughts from how warm her body felt next to his on the wagon seat, but now he looked scared. The pulse beat rapidly at the base of her throat while she held onto the wagon seat with one hand and Ebook piracy is stealing. It is a federal offense.
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held onto his arm with the other. He pulled his gaze from the slim column of her throat and the pulse beating like a wild bird in a cage to refocus on the road. A few moments later, they rolled into town and headed toward her small house.