Sandra Steffen - The Bounty Hunter's Bride

Suddenly she moved toward him, her hands reaching around him, drawing the ends of the towel together at his side. Her fingers shook slightly as she tucked the edges underneath. Slowly she raised her gaze to his. “There’s plenty of time to think about it, Kane.”

Kane was struck speechless all over again. He thought he’d faced the biggest shock of his life when that bullet had sliced through him three days ago. It had been a week of firsts. That had been the first time he hadn’t been able to dodge a bullet, and this was the first time anyone had offered him a virgin sacrifice.

“I don’t need to think about it, dammit. I already told you I live alone. Besides, you’re too young and too skinny.”

Josie felt the floor shake as he stomped away. His words might have hurt her feelings, if she hadn’t caught a glimpse of—what was it her mama used to say? The proof is in the pudding. Whether Kane Slater knew it or not, she’d seen living proof that he didn’t find her nearly as repulsive as he claimed.

While he banged around on the other side of the one-room cabin, tugging on his own clean jeans and shrugging into the makeshift sling she’d concocted from one of her brothers’ shirts, she drained the bathtub and tidied the place up a little.

He swore loudly and often. Josie let him cuss. His orneriness didn’t faze her. Good heavens, she was closely related to five of the grouchiest men on the planet. She’d always wanted a sister, but now she was beginning to think it had been a good thing she’d been exposed to so many grumpy men. She’d been educated by the best. Consequently she shouldn’t have too much trouble dealing with Kane’s ornery side.

She loved him. She was sure of it now. That made this serious.

She’d thought it would never happen to her. And yet here she was, sitting in a quiet cabin on a quiet mountain, her heart brimming with quiet emotions that simply refused to settle down. She loved a man from Montana, a man who’d risked his life and who claimed he needed no one. No matter what he said, he seemed more lonely than loner.

Fishing the soap out of the bottom of the bathtub, she reminded herself that Kane was very, very stubborn. It just so happened that she held the title for that one. A few years ago she’d gone on strike, refusing to cook meals for her brothers and wash their dirty clothes. All because she’d gotten sick and tired of their slovenly ways and lack of manners. At first they’d been downright snide about their refusal to change, but when they were hungry enough and smelly enough, they’d given in. Oh, they were still a little on the slovenly side, but at least now they said “thank you” when she served them their supper and “excuse me” when they belched.

Luckily Kane wasn’t slovenly or rude. She was just going to have to find a way to win him over to her way of thinking. Food had been the straw that had broken her brothers’ backs. Remembering the way Kane had kissed her and what that kiss had done to his body set off a new round of flutters deep in her belly. Something told her that in order to win Kane over, she was going to have to whet his appetite. Not necessarily for food.

She hummed to herself while she added a log to the fire. By the time she’d added carrots and celery to the venison roast she was cooking in the oven, she had broken out in song. Casting a surreptitious glance at Kane, her tune trailed away. He was stretched out on the bed, one leg dangling over the side. Evidently he hadn’t been able to manage the shirt on his own. He’d given up, an arm in one sleeve, his other shoulder and arm bare. Eyes closed, he looked pale, his chest rising and falling evenly.

Pressing one hand over her mouth and the other over her heart, she thought, He’s beautiful in repose. Striding closer, she imagined herself watching him sleep thirty years from now, thinking the same thing. Of course, he would be older, his face more lined, his body a little thicker. But his chest would still be as broad, his jaw as square, his lips as enticing. She would have liked the freedom to kiss each of those features.

Someday, she told herself. First she had to get to know him better, to become familiar with the little quirks that made up his personality. She wanted to figure out what it took to make him smile and what was behind the low rumbling sound he made deep in his throat.

Covering him with the quilt, she whispered, “Rest now, Kane. You’re going to need all your strength for what I have in store for us.”

She glanced around the sparsely furnished room before strolling to the window. Outside, the wind had piled the snow in huge drifts, some of them reaching all the way to the branches on trees. She’d uncovered most of the woodpile and had shoveled a path to the outhouse, but the rest of the area was untouched.

The sky was a vivid blue, the sun glinting off the white surface, causing her to squint. It was almost April, and the sun was already trying to melt the snow. Wondering how much longer she would have before Kane insisted he was strong enough to make it down the mountain, she decided she’d better not waste any time. She would begin winning him over as soon as he woke up from his nap.

“I’ve never even seen Graceland. Can you believe that? Opryland, either, for that matter.” Head tipped over, Josie smoothed the brush over her damp hair with long, slow strokes. She couldn’t see much beyond the square of floor directly in front of her. Therefore, she couldn’t tell if Kane was listening to her or not. It wouldn’t be the first time she’d found herself talking to herself when she’d thought she was talking to him. Resigning herself to the possibility, she said, “I guess there are a lot of things I haven’t seen in this great big old world.”

“You should try to get out of the house once in a while.”

She felt her eyebrows go up. “Get out of the house,” she repeated, encouraged by his attention. “I get out of the house every day. I just don’t get very far in my travels. A storytelling festival takes place in Jonesboro every October. J.D. and Billy tried to get me to go there to spin my tales one year.”

“You didn’t go?”

“Nah. I’d rather talk to folks I know. I mosey on up to Picket Pass to talk to Nellie Peters every morning after breakfast. Minerva Jones says she can set her clock by me. That woman really appreciates punctuality....”

Kane shifted in the hard-back chair, trying to get comfortable and trying not to notice the way Josie’s hair swished with every stroke of her brush. Two days had passed since she’d made her suggestion regarding the method of repayment for all her help. Although she’d talked about everything else under the sun, she hadn’t mentioned her, er, virginity again. He squirmed, scowling, because he’d thought about it a hundred times. Her hair crackled; his fingers flexed, his imagination picturing those silken tresses gliding over his skin.

He jerked to his feet.

Jerking to his feet wasn’t wise with a sore shoulder. The pain was his own stinking fault. Actually the pain was the fault of the bail jumper who’d shot him. Okay, then the desire shooting through him was his own fault. He knew exactly what to do about it. As soon as he was miles and miles away from here, he’d find a warm and willing woman.

There was a warm, willing woman in this very room.

He swung around fast, swearing out loud at the new shooting pain. Josie was so busy talking she hadn’t heard.

“...If I’m not careful I’ll end up like Edwina Gilson...”

Talking. Talking. Josie was always talking. She talked while she fixed meals. She’d even talked while she took her bath a little while ago. Kane had kept his back to her the whole time, commending himself on his willpower. Still, every splash had been sheer torture. He was getting worked up all over again just thinking about it. For crying out loud, he didn’t even like skinny women.