The Outlaw Takes A Bride (The Burnett Brides) (8 page)

She flicked her tongue across her bottom lip to moisten them, feeling a flush of heat she’d never experienced before, and wondered at the emotions Tanner evoked in her. A breathless stirring seemed to encompass her as she returned his stare.

Nothing could come of her growing awareness of Tanner. She had no choice but to wed the man she was to meet in Fort Worth. Tanner was just a man who had taken care of her since she’d been shot, and she must be feeling grateful for his kindness. That’s all it could ever be.

She was lying to herself, but she didn’t dare explore her feelings for Tanner any further. He swallowed, glanced away, and she felt a keen sense of disappointment. No, she refused to feel anything for this man. She had a respectable man waiting to marry her, and she was not about to let him go. She needed a husband, a supporter, or she would be destitute.

Tanner cleared his throat. “I’m going out for a while. You’ll be safe here alone.”

“Where are you going?” she asked, and then realized her mistake as he sent her a look that showed his disapproval.

“I’m sorry, that’s none of my business. I ... I guess being cooped up here in this room has given me a case of nosiness. You go out. I’ll still be here when you get back.”

As if he’d just been released from prison, he stood, grabbed his hat and gun belt off the table, and began buckling it around his hips. He made his way toward the door, his actions hurried. She knew without asking that he wanted to get out of this room, and she was envious of his freedom.

“I don’t know what time I’ll be back,” he said as he walked out the door, not looking back.

Beth stared at the closed door that Tanner had just gone through and felt more alone than on the day she buried her parents. She had to get out of here before she did something she’d regret, like exploring the feelings this man stirred within her.

***

The next morning, Beth awoke to the sound of the door closing. The sun was shining through the open windows, and she knew that Tanner had just left. She couldn’t help but wonder where he’d gone the night before and whom he’d been with. She had no right to question his whereabouts or even wonder what he’d done, but still she was intrigued. And as much as he’d been on her mind the last few days, she had no business thinking about this man.

Living in close proximity with Tanner had certainly awakened parts of her she thought had died with the war. But Georgia lay behind her, and she couldn’t lose sight of her goal—to reach Fort Worth and marry. And the attraction she felt for Tanner was beginning to plague her every waking moment and could not be acted upon. In fact, the sooner she left, the better.

He was such a complex man, part nurse and defender, part rogue and gunslinger. Whenever she thought she was beginning to understand him, he seemed to change right before her eyes. He was intriguing in a way she’d never before thought a man could be. And she had to get away.

Beth reached over and touched her shoulder. It was still sore, but she felt stronger, the swelling was going down, and it hadn’t bled in several days. Why couldn’t she leave today? Right now?

Surely she was strong enough to get dressed, sell the pieces of jewelry that had been stowed in her luggage, and walk to the stage office. Once she was on that stage, she could rest all the way to Fort Worth. If there was a stage leaving today, she could be on it. And suddenly the need to be gone from this town, this room, and Tanner was urgent.

The sooner she was away from Tanner, the less she would feel compelled to act upon the apparent magnetism that had developed between them. Yes, he was an eye-catching man, and yes, she appreciated what he had done for her, but Tanner was not a man prone to settling down. And there was another man waiting for her in Fort Worth who wanted to settle down, who wanted a wife. Her future lay with him. She was thankful for Tanner’s help, but nothing could come of this temptation.

Rising from the bed, she swung her feet over the side and slowly stood. Her legs felt wobbly and she swayed, surprised at her own weakness. She hadn’t felt this frail in bed. Holding on to the furniture in the room, she walked to where her satchel sat and found her corset. There was no way that she could put it on by herself, so she packed it in her bag. She tugged and pulled until she removed the nightgown. After resting for a few moments, she then tackled putting on her petticoat.

The garment slipped over her head fairly easy, and she tied the string on each side. Letting go of the dresser, she took her dress in her hands, determined to get it on by herself. She glanced at her dress and knew it was going to be a struggle. She looked at her arm and the dress and wondered how she would get her sore shoulder in the garment without passing out from pain.

Finally, she lifted her dress with her good left arm and almost cried at the pain that shot through her right shoulder. She managed to get the dress over her head. Her left arm was in the sleeve, but the right one still hung limp at her side. She knew it was going to hurt before she even attempted to squeeze her arm through the sleeve. With a deep breath, she bent her arm and tried to slip the dress over it. Pain shot through her shoulder, causing her to gasp and double over, almost incapacitating her.

She stopped, leaned over the table, and took several deep breaths, trying to ease the ache so that she could continue. The sound of the door opening startled her, and she glanced up into the hot blue eyes of the man she was running from.

“What the hell do you think you’re doing out of bed?” he said, his voice rising as he strode into the room. “Are you trying to finish killing yourself?”

“I ... I felt better and thought . . . thought I would try to go down to the telegraph office.” She didn’t have the courage to tell him that she was really trying to sneak out of town and leave him behind, that she was afraid of the feelings his nearness was beginning to evoke and how hopeless she knew they were.

“You’re hardly healed, lady.” He lifted her dress off her shoulders and pulled her good arm back out through the sleeve.

“What are you doing?” she questioned.

“I’m putting you back in bed,” he snapped. “Whatever color you’d managed to put back in your cheeks is gone.”

“No, really, I think I’ll be okay. I’ll keep the dress on,” she said. “I’m tired of being in that bed, in that nightgown.”

He threw the dress on the bed. “Your shoulder is not ready.”

“But I am,” she said stubbornly.

She stood before him dressed in her chemise and petticoats, feeling exposed, almost naked. A flush started at the base of her neck and warmed its way past her cheekbones.

He shook his head. “No.”

“I’ve got to get to Fort Worth. I can’t spend another minute lying in that bed,” she said, her voice weak, tears dangerously close.

She spun around and bumped her arm into the table. She gasped and stumbled, almost fainting from the pain.

Tanner reached out and grabbed her waist, pulling her up against his solid chest. She stood in his arms, half-dressed, a feeling of protection and shelter overwhelming her. The pain slowly subsided, until she relaxed and was able to take a deep breath.

His hand reached up and smoothed back her tangled hair, and she laid her head against his shoulder. A feeling of warmth and safety stole over her. “I guess I’m not as strong as I thought I was.”

“No,” he said, his voice a deep, husky tone that reached inside her and stroked her like a lover.

She raised her head from against his chest and glanced at his stony expression. Her breathing became quick and shallow as she looked up into his blue eyes and became lost in their smokiness. She watched with fevered anticipation as his mouth hovered over hers. He moistened his full lips, and she almost moaned with need, fearful he wasn’t going to kiss her, needing the feel of his lips against hers. Then, swiftly, his lips descended, and she eagerly met him halfway.

His mouth covered hers, and she felt whatever strength remained drain from her body. He clasped her waist and pulled her gently against him. He tasted of potency and masculinity, and he kissed her like a man who had been denied passion for a long time. His lips devoured hers, his tongue running along the edge of her mouth, testing and tasting. And she met his every stroke with one of her own.

She gasped, and his lips covered hers once again. He seemed famished for her, and she reveled in the feel of him. She felt protected, safe and secure, as though she had found a haven from the ugly world and he was her strength, her fortress. She felt cosseted and coveted and more secure than she had for many years.

And she’d never been kissed so thoroughly that she felt on fire with desire. The general’s kisses had certainly never left her quivering with need. They’d never incited her to want more. They’d never left her feeling faint.

His hands caressed her shoulders, trailing down her back, touching her, clasping her to him. She realized she was standing in the arms of the man who had saved her, who was taking care of her, and she was clothed only in her chemise and petticoat. Her intended waited for her two hundred and seventy miles to the north, in Fort Worth, and she was acting like a wanton in a hotel room with a man whose full name she didn’t know.

Beth pushed away from Tanner and gasped, her lungs rapidly filling with air. She staggered away, her hands gripping the nearby table for support. When she felt confident she could stand, she raised one hand to her chest and the other to her bruised lips. Finally, she lifted her gaze to his.

Desire—hot, raw, naked need—shone from his eyes, and she was stunned at the impact. He desired her, and she couldn’t deny she wanted him just as badly. But it was impossible. She was on her way to meet the man she intended to marry. Tanner was a man she knew so little about, and what she did know seemed dangerous— much more than the image he portrayed.

“I—can’t. I can’t do this,” she gasped.

His expression changed from one of desire to remoteness.

“It won’t happen again.” He ran his hand through his hair. “Get back in bed. I’ll go get you some breakfast.”

Tanner strode quickly from the room, the door slamming behind him. It was almost as if he ran, and Beth couldn’t help but think she would run, too, if only she could.

Tanner leaned against the closed door and wondered what in the hell was wrong with him. He’d kissed her. Like a starving man, he’d put his lips to hers and drank of her sweet nectar until she’d pushed him away.

The sight of her standing there in her chemise and petticoat had left him rigid with desire. But the feel of her soft curves molded against his limbs had surprised him. He hadn’t been prepared for the onslaught of craving that had rocked him. He hadn’t been prepared for the protective feelings that had suddenly awakened within him when he’d seen her standing there weakly trying to dress. Damn, but he could ill afford the complications a woman would bring to his life, especially now.

The kiss had been a mistake, one he could not repeat. In fact, the sooner Beth was on her way to Fort Worth, the better. He could not afford to become involved with any woman for more than a night no matter how beautiful, how kind, or how intriguing. Good women, the kind who wanted marriage, were just simply not for him. He didn’t deserve them, and they certainly didn’t merit being shackled with a man like him. When he was younger, he had wanted a wife and a family, but now his life had no room for those simple trappings. The thought saddened him, but he knew he could never marry, he didn’t want to tarnish a woman with his soiled reputation.

Beth Anderson already had a man she was going to marry. Tanner just needed to finish taking care of her and then put her on the next stage to Fort Worth without kissing her again. But that was easier said than done. Every time she gazed at him with those hazel-green eyes, he felt a response unlike anything he’d ever experienced before, and those full, pouty lips of hers were almost irresistible.

The feel of her curvaceous body in his arms, the touch of her satiny skin, was more tempting than a bank filled with gold and he couldn’t help but think he’d be safer in jail than in this hotel room with Beth.

God, how could he keep from touching her when all he wanted to do was lay her down and find the release he so desperately needed? Her recovery had better come soon or he could be seriously jeopardizing her future and his.

***

In a fog, Beth awoke to the sound of raised voices. For a moment she thought she was home—her father and the general were arguing—but then she remembered that the war was over. Her papa was dead, and the general had returned to his wife.

“What the hell are you still doing here? Do you not give a damn about our agreement?”

She didn’t recognize the furious voice and almost opened her eyes to see who had come into the room. Instead she lay still as stone and pretended to sleep.

“Keep your voice down, she’s asleep.”

Tanner’s voice sounded strained, but there was a dangerous edge to it that she’d never heard before. It was just another facet of the man she realized she didn’t know.

“You said you’d find someone to take care of her. Why is she still here?”

Stunned, she realized they were discussing her.

“I said I’d take care of Miss Anderson,” Tanner said. The tone of his voice almost made Beth shiver at the cold briskness. “Don’t worry, you’ll get your piece of me, just not quite yet.”