Twelfth Moon (7 page)

When he reached toward her face, she flinched away from him. “You’ve got a few cuts there, on your cheek,” he said, gesturing with his hand.

He cut the ropes, then, and Cadence groaned as she flexed her fingers, and stretched her arms and legs. She forced herself into a sitting position. He was still crouched in front of her, knees wide. Without following his asinine advice, she swung her fist.

Her punch hit his jaw with a satisfying
smack
.

Jonah’s head turned to one side. He’d barely flinched. It hadn’t even knocked him to his finely molded ass as she’d hoped. Cadence cursed loudly, pulling her throbbing hand into herself, cradling it in self-pity. She should have kicked him between the legs, instead!

“I suppose I deserved that,” Jonah said mildly, and then stood up and walked away. He returned with a plate of cold rabbit meat, setting it in front of her. “Eat up. We head out in ten minutes.”

So much for the nicer side of Jonah Kincaid, Cadence thought sullenly, her shoulders sagging. At least he hadn’t killed her. She pushed the meat around the plate, picked up a piece, and placed it in her mouth. It tasted like sawdust, her appetite completely lost. Suddenly, a wave of despair settled heavily over her. She was unable to stop the tears as they flooded her eyes, spilling onto her cheeks.

Her situation was hopeless. Her attempt to escape had failed. It was only a matter of days before the moon was full and she would turn into the worst kind of hussy. And she was on her way back to New Orleans, where she would stand trial for murder…and probably hang.

Maybe it would have been easier for everyone if Jonah
had
just killed her. But no – what a selfish thing for her to even contemplate! She could not wish Jonah to become a murderer.

“Are you crying?”

Cadence stared at the pair of boots that appeared in her blurry line of vision. She noted vaguely how his shiny, silver spurs contrasted sharply with the scuffed leather. Damn him for always sneaking up on her like that! It was humiliating enough that he’d so easily prevented her escape, but to have him witness her bout of tears was intolerable. “No!” She swiped the moisture away with her sleeve. “Got dust in my eyes.”

She avoided making eye contact with him, hastily scrambling to her feet. Ignoring her aches and pains, she busied herself with rolling up her blankets.

“Everything else is done,” Jonah said softly. “I’ll just wait over there.” He hesitated a short moment and then strode off.

Cadence imagined he might have pointed in some direction, but hadn’t looked up to find out. She was afraid he’d see her reddened nose and eyes, and tear-spiked eyelashes. What a horror this has all turned out to be! Maybe she should just tell him the truth – tell him everything right from the beginning.

Maybe – just maybe – he could help her.

And maybe pigs could fly! He was a U.S. Marshal. His job was to bring in criminals like her and that was the end of it. Plus the man she’d killed happened to be Jonah’s brother. He wouldn’t help her. She would just have to find another opportunity to escape.

She grabbed the bedroll and headed toward her horse. When she looked up, Jonah was standing next to it, waiting for her. He took her bundle, stuffing it in the saddlebags.

“Come here.”

She paused for only a moment, and then stepped closer to him. He reached toward her face, holding a dampened bandana. But when he tried to wipe her cheek, she swatted his hand away. “I don’t need that.”

“It needs to be cleaned, or it could get infected.”

“Fine.”

Cadence held her breath, her heart beating rapidly as he placed two fingers on her chin, tilting it up. He raised the cloth in his other hand. With gentleness she wouldn’t have expected from such a large, masculine man, he wiped away the dirt.

His touch, just those two fingers supporting her chin, sent a riot of sensations zipping through her body. She inhaled slowly through her nose, his scent intensely pleasing.

He smelled of shaving soap, smoke from a wood fire, and the salty tang of male sweat. And it was so enticing, her knees weakened, her breasts tingled, and she felt a languid heaviness settle in her loins. She grew moist down there and had to struggle to keep her breathing even.

She wanted to let her eyes drift shut and savor it. Instead, she studied his rugged face. Without a hat, his dark hair curled over his broad forehead, behind his ears, teasing his collar. His black eyebrows curved gently over eyes the color of frosted silver. His nose was long and straight. There was only a faint shadow where a beard would grow quickly if he didn’t keep it under control, so he must have shaved this morning.

Then Cadence stared at his mouth. Mistake. His lips were full and supple, her own lips tingling as she imagined what it would be like to kiss him. She almost leaned in, but halted herself just in time.
What a fool!
Jonah would not take it too well to be kissed by a boy, or at least that’s what he’d think, before he pummeled her into the ground.

He produced the can of ointment and she allowed him to dab some into the cuts on her cheek. But when it appeared he was going for her throat next, she’d had enough. She couldn’t take anymore contact with him or she’d leap on him. She snatched the can from him. “I’ll do it, if you don’t mind.”

He raised his hands in surrender, stepping back. “Okay, suit yourself, kid.”

She dipped a finger into the ointment and smeared it on her neck, but without having actually seen where the bruising was, she wasn’t sure if she was getting it in the right place.

With a sound of impatience, Jonah pushed her hand aside and rubbed the ointment slightly above where she’d been applying it. Cadence groaned. His touch shot sparks of desire through her veins.

Jonah snatched his hand back, suddenly feeling awkward. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to hurt you.”

“I-It’s okay.”

Jonah waited while Cade applied the ointment to his wrists, thinking about when he’d touched the kid’s cheek. It had been soft as a baby’s belly – no sign of whiskers, not even a little peach fuzz. Cade had to be at least fifteen. The top of his head reached Jonah’s nose and Jonah was a tall man. A lad that age should be sprouting some facial hair, but Jonah had detected none at all. It was very odd.

What was also odd and deeply disturbing was the way he felt compelled to be gentle with the kid – even after Cade had almost cracked his skull. Jonah had been angry enough to throttle the kid until his teeth rattled, and yet this morning he was back to coddling him. It must be that look of dejection he’d seen on Cade’s face earlier, and the fact that he’d been crying, even though he’d denied it.

Cadence finished, handing the tin back to Jonah. With nothing left to do but mount their horses, Jonah nodded his head toward hers. “Well, get on up there.”

When she reached for the saddle horn, Jonah was there to assist her onto the horse. He lifted her by the waist as she swung her leg over the saddle. His hands were like hot brands and she was relieved when he quickly released her.

When he’d helped her apply the ointment to her neck, he’d thought he’d hurt her. It had been agony – but not one of pain. She hadn’t been able to suppress her groan of pleasure. And now, the return of his kindness, the gentle way he’d helped her tend her bruises, and his solicitousness in helping her into the saddle almost brought tears to her eyes again. But she choked them back, not wanting to give herself away with a feminine display of emotion.

They rode out, Jonah setting an easy pace. When Cadence realized there was no rope connecting them, she darted a glance in his direction.

Obviously reading her thoughts, Jonah looked over at her. “Don’t even think of running off, or you’ll be sorrier than you’ve ever been.”

Cadence snorted, turning her attention straight ahead. They passed the next few hours in silence, neither one of them, apparently, feeling the need for conversation. As another hour passed, she began to shift uncomfortably in her saddle.

She cursed inwardly. She’d been so busy feeling sorry for herself back at the camp that she’d neglected to see to nature’s needs. Now, her bladder was rebelling for that oversight, and she remembered what Jonah had said about ‘doing his business’ – that he would no longer cater to her need for privacy.

“You got bedbugs biting you in the ass, boy?” Jonah barked. “You’ve been fidgeting for the last hour.”

There was no way she would be able to hold off much longer. Sooner or later she’d be forced to do something about it – and she’d rather it be sooner, rather than have an embarrassing accident because she’d waited too long. “I have to—” She had to remind herself she was supposed to be a boy, so she amended that by saying, “I gotta piss.”

Cadence scanned the area. For miles there was nothing but short, scrubby bushes, and small boulders scattered here and there. Damnation! What was she going to do now?

Reluctantly she dismounted, stumbling when her feet hit the ground. She was still sore from being hog-tied like a wayward calf, and her bottom had gone numb within an hour of being on the trail. She clung to the pommel, not sure what to do.

With a snort of disgust, Jonah swung a long leg over his saddle, dismounting with a grace she could have slapped him for. “Fine, I won’t look,” he grumbled, turning his back to her. “Just hurry it up.”

Eyeing his broad back for a moment, Cadence moved around to the other side of her horse. The animal would provide at least a little bit of a barrier between her and the handsome, but infuriating U.S. Marshal.

She quickly finished her ‘business’ and prepared to mount her horse. She fumbled, trying to find purchase to lift herself up. With a foot in the stirrup and her hands on the pommel, she found herself catapulted into the saddle. Her rump smacked the hard leather, sending a painful jolt up her spine.

“Christ-almighty!” Jonah snapped as he mounted his own horse. “You’d think a hardened criminal like yourself would be able to get on a horse unassisted.”

“I didn’t ask for your help,” Cadence volleyed back, rubbing her behind. “I could’ve done it myself.”

He shot her a disbelieving glance. “Whatever you say, kid.”

They fell back into silence as they got on their way again. Cadence grudgingly admired how well he sat a horse, the expert touch he had with the animal seeming as natural as if he’d been born to it. He was obviously a man who’d spent a lot of time in the saddle. And even though he wore a set of impressive-looking spurs, she’d noticed he rarely made use of them.

That night, after Jonah set up camp, they ate a light supper consisting of strips of jerky and coffee. When it was time to turn in, Jonah placed the bedrolls next to each other. Cadence wondered what he was planning. She didn’t have to wait long to find out when he slapped one end of the handcuffs on her, the other to his own wrist.

He lay down on his blanket, forcing her to follow. On her knees, she faced him. “I can’t sleep like this,” she said huskily. Her voice was still raw, but it was partly due to the idea of sleeping so close to his hard body.

“I’m not having a repeat of last night.” He said it with irritating calm, placing his hat over his face. “Now get some sleep.”

With a huff, Cadence plopped onto her back, as far from him as she could go without moving past the edge of her blanket. She did notice, grudgingly, that he’d placed her closest to the fire.

Cadence lay quietly, afraid to move the slightest inch, listening until his breathing fell into the rhythmic pattern of sleep. The heat radiating from his body competed with that of the fire on her other side, and all she could think about was what his bare skin would feel like.

Her nostrils flared to take in his scent, her heartbeat began to pick up its pace, beating rapidly within her chest, and her breathing deepened. Warmth flooded her core, her hands itching to reach out for him, to explore his muscled contours.
Hell and damnation!
She had to stop this madness! She was sweating from not only the heat on both sides of her, but from her outrageous fantasies, as well.

Deciding a change of topic for her thoughts was for the best, she wondered how her sisters and father were doing. Thinking of home, of a time when life was simpler and happier, she started to drift off.

Cadence’s dreams were filled with erotic images of their naked bodies – hers and Jonah’s – entwined in the heat of passion. His mouth devoured hers hungrily, his hands feverishly exploring her curves. Then his lips moved down her throat to her breast and he suckled greedily until she moaned in blissful agony.

A forceful shove, accompanied by a sharp elbow in her breastbone, jolted her awake.

“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” Jonah glared at her, his silver eyes dark and menacing. “This here—” He gestured back and forth between them. “—isn’t a pack of dogs snuggling together to keep warm.”

“I – sorry.” Cadence’s heart was still thudding from that dream. In her sleep, she must have gotten too close. She was lucky all she got was an elbow in her chest.

“You just stay over there, on your own blanket.” He lay down, setting his hat back in place.

Jesus
, Jonah thought, the kid had been clinging to him like a monkey, groaning like he was having a wet-dream. And Cade’s mouth had been just inches from making contact with his neck. If he’d turned his head, they’d have locked lips. Jonah inwardly cringed with revulsion. Was it possible the kid liked men? Could it be that his brother and Cade – no. He couldn’t even bring himself to think it.

At dawn, Jonah and Cade went about breaking camp in silence. Cade wouldn’t meet his eyes, appearing sullen and embarrassed. Once they were on their way, Jonah said, “We’ll be making San Antonio today. You give me any trouble, I’ll knock you upside the head, and handcuff you to the watering trough.”