The Mavericks (6 page)

“You think she's going to let him?” Hawk asked after Ben had started toward the campsite.

“Don't know,” Zeke said. “I never have understood women.”

“Hasn't stopped you from admiring Josie.”

Zeke directed a hard look at his friend. “I'll be the first man to admit Josie is a beautiful woman, but I'll also be the first one to tell you she's as hard as nails. I feel perfectly safe admiring her beauty because I know she wants nothing to do with me.”

“How about you? You want something to do with her?”

Zeke wasn't sure how to answer that question. It was useless to deny that he was attracted to her. Any man would be. What disturbed him was the fear that this might be more than simple physical attraction. From the moment he'd set eyes on her, he'd had the disquieting feeling that Josie was someone special in a way that had nothing to do with her beauty. It made absolutely no sense. They were about as close to opposites as two people could be.

“It wouldn't matter if I did.” Zeke felt like a fool admitting even that much to Hawk, but they'd been closer than most real brothers for too long to start withholding confidences now, especially about something like this. “You saw what she's like, the way she dresses. You also saw the way she reacted to me.”

“She could be very different once you get to know her.”

Too restless to remain still, Zeke got to his feet. It angered him that he could be so agitated over any woman, but especially a woman like Josie. Everything about her—her clothes, the face paint she used, the way she looked at him, the way she talked—all of it practically shouted that she found everything about the kind of life Zeke lived distasteful. The way she acted toward him—moving away when he approached, glaring at him, resenting his help and trying to refuse it—said that she disliked him in particular. He kicked the sand, but the futile gesture only made him more disgusted with himself.

“She's not going to be any different,” he said, turning back to Hawk. “The trouble is, I want her to be.”

Zeke forced himself to stop pacing and sit back down. If he kept this up, he'd make the horses restless. Besides, stewing over the situation wasn't doing him any good. He had to accept the fact there were some things even his iron will couldn't control. His best course of action would be to relax and let the situation take care of itself. He and Hawk would leave tomorrow. As soon as they reached their ranch, he'd have too much to do to worry about a woman he'd never see again.

But what if she got that job in Tombstone? It wasn't so far from their ranch that he couldn't ride over once in a while. Hell! She couldn't stay in Tombstone. Besides, the town was dying now the mines were flooded. Maybe she'd go to Bisbee. Even better, maybe Zac Randolph could get her a job at his old saloon in San Francisco. That was far enough to guarantee he'd never see her again.

“Just how different do you want her to be?” Hawk asked.

“You know what I want,” Zeke said, his voice devoid of anger, even lacking energy. “You want the same thing, but we both know we're not going to get it.” He sighed. Dammit. All his brothers had managed to find women who could love them. What was so different about him and Hawk? He knew the answer to that question. He also knew that saying it wasn't fair wouldn't change anything. “This thing with Josie probably won't last more than a couple of days. It's probably the shock of finding such a beautiful woman out here.”

“A beautiful black woman?”

“That, too. What about Suzette? She spent nearly an hour with you.”

“She spent it with the horses. I just happened to be there.”

Zeke looked at Hawk from under his hat. “You like her?”

“I don't let myself think about that anymore.”

“I wish you could tell me how you do it.”

Hawk removed his dusty hat and slapped it against his jeans. “I guess it's because I know nothing will ever change. Dusky Lady is as close as I'm going to come to finding a female to love me.”

“I wouldn't advise you to get between her and that stud when she comes into heat.”

They were both laughing when Ben returned, leading his horse and looking glum. “Josie said it was bad luck for the groom to be with the bride on the night before the wedding.”

“Pull up a chunk of ground and make yourself comfortable,” Zeke said. “But if you snore, you'll have to bed down across the creek.”

Despite the late hour, Suzette didn't feel sleepy. She supposed it was the excitement of Anna's marriage. She was sorry that she wouldn't be with Anna when she stood up with Ben before the justice of the peace, but she was glad she wasn't going back to Globe. And to be frank, she was relieved she wouldn't be forced to witness another woman's happiness. If Josie hadn't been adamant, Anna would have spent the night by Ben's side. She hadn't looked any happier than Ben when Josie made him leave. She'd climbed inside the wagon with a muttered good night.

Suzette stirred the coals of the dying fire with a cottonwood limb, mulling over whether to put on any
more wood. The temperature had dropped at least twenty degrees since the sun went down. If she stayed up, she'd need something warm to put on. She looked in the direction of the men's camp. She wondered if they were still talking or if they'd gone to sleep, if Dusky Lady was still grazing, or if she'd lain down to rest. Did horses in the wild actually lie down when they could sleep standing up? Wasn't it too dangerous if wolves or cougars were around? Hawk would know. Maybe she'd ask him tomorrow before he and Zeke left.

She poked at the fire some more, causing sparks to rise in the air. She stopped. Was it possible for sparks to start a fire in the desert? Hawk would know that, too. She wondered what he was sleeping on. She couldn't remember whether she'd seen a bedroll tied to his saddle, but surely he had one. The desert floor was covered with too many tiny thorny plants to sleep on the bare ground. She wondered if he slept in his clothes or without them.

Suzette tossed her stick into the fire and gripped her hands across her chest as a slight shiver shook her body. The last thing she needed was to be thinking of Hawk's unclothed body. She'd sung and danced in front of hundreds of men, maybe thousands, since her husband had died, but she couldn't recall a single one who had engendered such a strong physical response in her. It was almost as if there was something connecting her to Hawk that allowed his energy to flow into her body, that caused her to be acutely aware of his physical presence. She had been married for a year, so the source of that attraction was no mystery to her. It was sexual, and it was very strong.

Another shiver shook her body. She couldn't decide whether it was from the cold or the sexual need that was burning a hole in her insides, but she was reluctant to disturb the other women to get a cloak from the wagon. She'd never loved her husband—he'd been chosen for her—but she'd developed a keen appreciation for their physical relationship. In the five years since his death, she'd had a difficult time sublimating her need for a man. Most of the time, she simply concentrated on her work, or on the fact that she wouldn't have gone to bed with any of the men she knew even if her body had been on fire.

She didn't feel that way about Hawk. The fact that the horses trusted him, that Dusky Lady would walk up to him to take sugar from his hand, proved he was reliable as well as kind. You could tell a lot about a man from the animals in his care. Hawk might be just as attractive on the inside as he was on the outside.

Which was exactly what Suzette was afraid of, especially now, when Anna's impending marriage was causing her to feel so needy. She hated feeling vulnerable, unable to cope with the challenges before her. She knew she
could
cope with them, and had been doing so for years. What was it about Hawk that unsettled her so? She couldn't have fallen in love with him so quickly; it was probably pure lust. Yet it would be impossible to satisfy even that simple physical need, because they were going their separate ways in the morning.

“If you're planning to stay up all night, you need something to keep you warm.”

Josie's voice jerked Suzette out of her reverie. “I didn't know anybody else was awake.”

“I couldn't sleep, either. Anna is still whimpering, and Laurie's breathing has gotten noisier.”

“You think she's worse?”

“I don't know. She's been blubbering all night, saying she's so happy for Anna she can't stop crying. I'm glad we're close to her parents' place.”

“I think I'll sleep outside tonight,” Suzette said. She didn't want to be kept awake. What she needed was oblivion until tomorrow solved her problem by taking Hawk away.

Josie knelt by the fire, poured herself some coffee, and sipped the bitter brew. She didn't like coffee, but she needed something to wake her up. She hadn't slept well because Laurie had gotten worse during the night. She and Suzette had done all they could, but nothing helped. Curious about why they were up, Hawk had come to see if they needed anything. After talking with Laurie, he'd gotten his saddlebags, put some herbs in water, and brewed a tea that lowered Laurie's temperature and eased her breathing so she could sleep. Hawk and Suzette were with her now, discussing what they ought to do.

“I feel bad leaving you when Laurie's so sick,” Anna said.

Ben stood next to Anna, a troubled look on his face. Josie knew he was worried that Anna might refuse to leave.

“There's nothing you can do,” Josie said. “Hawk says he has enough herbs to take care of her until we reach her parents' place. Suzette and I will keep an eye on her. There's no need for you to stay.”

“I know, but I still feel guilty.”

“No point if there's nothing you can do,” Ben said.

Josie had to give him credit. He was trying not to show how impatient he was to leave. His arm around Anna's shoulder tightened. He was visibly staking his claim to her. Josie resented his possessiveness. It was just like a man to think a woman belonged to him once she agreed to be his wife.

“We need to be going if we're going to get married today,” Ben said to Anna. “And we gotta get married today,” he said when Anna seemed to hesitate. “I don't think I can stand being separated from you for another night.”

“Oh, Ben, I'm sorry. It's just that I'm so worried about Laurie.”

“You don't need to worry,” Josie said.

Ben took Anna's elbow and tried to steer her toward his horse. “Come on, honey, let's go.”

Anna held her ground. “Are you sure?” she asked Josie.

“Positive. Now get out of here and be happy.”

Anna threw her arms around Josie. “I wish you were going back with us.”

“We'll find better jobs in Tombstone.”

Anna released Josie and turned as Suzette climbed out of the wagon. “Promise you'll write.”

“You'll have to write, too,” Suzette replied. “If your first child is a girl, you can name her after me.”

“I'll have three girls so I can name one after each of you.”

Ben smiled down at her. “We can have as many as you want.”

“I've got to say good-bye to Laurie, and then I'll be ready to go,” Anna said to Ben.

“You take good care of her,” Josie said to Ben after Anna disappeared inside the wagon. “If you don't, I'll come after you.”

“I'm crazy about that woman.” Ben's eyes were on the back of the wagon where Anna had disappeared. “I'll do everything I can to make sure she's happy.”

“I'll hold you to that promise,” Josie said. “Now put her on that horse and get going. We need to get started ourselves.”

Anna emerged from the wagon with tears running down her cheeks. She cried some more as she hugged Suzette and Josie good-bye once again.

“Go,” Josie said, pushing her toward Ben. “Your future husband is about to bust open with impatience to have you to himself.”

Ben lifted Anna into the saddle, then climbed up behind her. Anna kept looking over her shoulder, waving to them, until she was out of sight. Her disappearance left Josie feeling empty. They'd been friends for more than two years, but she knew that part of the reason she was feeling so low was that Anna had found a man who made her very happy. Anna's happiness reinforced Josie's own sense of loneliness.

“I guess I'll have to drive now that Anna's gone,” Suzette said.

“Why? Do you think I can't handle a pair of mules?” Josie asked.

“You can take care of Laurie and figure out what you're going to fix for dinner.”

“You're better at sitting with sick people than I am.”

Josie felt guilty about not wanting to sit with Laurie, but being strong and self-reliant, she didn't understand someone like Laurie. She tended to grow impatient with Laurie's dependence on other people.

“You can both sit with her,” Zeke said.

Josie hadn't heard him come up. “And how can we do that?” she snapped.

“I'll be driving. Hawk and I are going with you.”

The words popped out of Josie's mouth before she realized what she was saying. “Then I'm staying here.”

Zeke had been counting on leaving at dawn, but Hawk had decided they should stay close to Laurie until they could turn her over to her parents. She hadn't gotten any worse, but she hadn't gotten better either, and traveling would be hard on her. Zeke never argued with Hawk about anything medical.

“Do you have everything you'll need?” Zeke asked.

“What are you talking about?” Josie snapped.

“Food, something to heat water in, and enough clothes to keep warm at night.”

“Josie's not going anywhere by herself,” Suzette said, her attitude a mixture of frustration, irritation, and amusement.

“She said she was.”