River Lady Read online

  “Because you can’t find a woman willing to have you?” she spat up at him.

  Revis raised one dark eyebrow. “Perhaps you should be taught a few manners. A little pain might make you less unwilling.”

  “She deserves it,” Abe injected.

  “Shut up,” Revis said with a growl, his eyes never leaving Leah’s face. “Did your stupid brother tell you about me? I take what I want and I use it until it’s all gone. You can’t resist me, can’t fight me, because I always win.”

  With that his mouth took hers in a rough, fierce kiss.

  When he was done, the light in his eyes told Leah he was sure she’d want him now. He was certain his kiss would make her fall down at his feet.

  With a snarl, Leah spat in his face then turned her head away as he raised his hand to strike her.

  “Bud and Cal,” she said, “if you don’t protect me, I’ll never cook for you again.”

  The statement made Revis halt his hand in midair. Abruptly he released her, pushing her back against the cabin wall. His handsome face twisted into an ugly smile. “You think you can turn my brothers against me? Do you think that perhaps you can control what is mine?”

  “No, I…I don’t want you touching me, that’s all. I don’t want control.” Something about him frightened her more than ever. Her hands clutched at the wall behind her as if she might be able to claw her way to freedom.

  “You need to learn that I am the master here and no damn woman—.” Again, he raised his hand to strike her.

  But the blow never landed.

  Bud’s big hand lightly gripped Revis’s wrist. “The woman will cook,” Bud said in a soft, gentle voice, but there was no mistaking the command it held.

  Revis’s face was a study in astonishment. He started to speak, but as he looked from the men flanking him, making him seem small by contrast, his eyes went back to Leah and what she saw made her shiver. He hated her now and for a moment she almost wished she’d given in to him.

  Revis twisted his arm from Bud’s grasp, turned on his heel, and left the cabin.

  For a moment all was silent. Then Verity began to cry loudly. Abe sat down heavily in a chair. “Oh Lord, but you’ve done it now, Leah. Revis ain’t one you oughta make mad.”

  Bud and Cal looked at one another then quietly left the cabin.

  With shaking hands, Leah began to clear the table.

  Chapter 17

  It was late at night when Leah finally was able to sneak away from the robbers’ cabin. Revis hadn’t returned, but his attack on Leah had frightened Verity so much that it had taken Leah hours to calm her. In her hysteria, the woman had started saying that Revis would come back and kill them all. Leah washed the frail woman and finally got her to sleep.

  Abe started to tell Leah what he thought of her turning Revis down, but a few choice words from Leah made him leave the cabin. Most of the long day Leah spent cooking and at the noon meal she tried her best to thank Bud and Cal for helping her. The young men acted as if they didn’t hear her. On impulse Leah kissed each one on the cheek.

  “You ain’t thinkin’ about beddin’ them dummies, are you?” Abe wailed. “You cain’t turn down Revis for these goons.”

  “Abe,” Leah said evenly, “I’ve just about heard enough from you. If you—.”

  Abe cut her off. “You make me or Revis too mad and I’ll let him know about that rich boy you got hidden away. So think twice about threatenin’ me.”

  Leah had not said much after that and Abe snickered in self-satisfaction and kept reminding her of little chores that needed doing.

  It was night when she got everything cleared away and began the long walk to the cabin where Wesley was hidden. All the way up she invented a story to give him as to why she hadn’t been with him.

  She was very tired when she entered the cabin, but her heart was pounding. Would Wesley be all right?

  She lit a lantern by the bed and breathed a sigh of relief when she saw Wesley sleeping peacefully. He opened his eyes immediately.

  “Leah?” he whispered.

  “I’m here now. I brought you some food. Can you eat?”

  He was silent as he watched her. “Where have you been, Leah?” he asked softly as he eased himself into a sitting position.

  “Don’t sit up! Lie still and I’ll feed you.” She tried to stop him, but he brushed her hands away.

  “I want an answer.”

  There was a command in his voice and suddenly it was all too much for Leah. She collapsed onto the edge of the bed, buried her face in her hands, and began to cry.

  “Leah, honey,” he began, reaching out to her. “I didn’t mean to make you cry.”

  “I…I’m sorry,” she said, sobbing. “I’m just tired and so many things are happening.”

  “What sort of things?” he asked, his jaw clenched. “Who shot me and why were you gone all day?”

  Leah wiped her eyes with the back of her hand. Tired or not she was now going to have to give the performance of her life. “Oh Wesley,” she said. “It was such an awful accident. The men were hunting and they shot you by mistake. They helped me carry you here then left. I guess they were afraid you’d come after them when you recovered so they wanted to get away.”

  She took a deep breath. Now was the hard part. “After I got you here, a little girl appeared at the door. She begged me to come to her house. Her father was dead but her ma and six brothers and sisters were all down with the measles and there was only the girl to look after them. I felt that you’d be all right here alone since what you really needed was rest so I went with her. All day I’ve been cooking, cleaning, and nursing sick people.”

  She stopped abruptly and looked at him, her eyes begging him to believe her. She wasn’t sure she could handle a fight with him on top of everything else.

  Wesley’s eyes bored into hers. Never in his life had he heard such a string of lies, yet she was begging him to believe her. There were circles under her eyes, her dress was food-stained. He knew no one lived in these woods, which was why he’d originally brought her to them. He also knew there was a nest of robbers here and if anyone tried to settle, they usually forfeited their lives.

  Yet Leah was making up a story about a woman and seven kids living here. Right now he was too weak to get up and find out the truth about where she’d spent the day, and from Leah’s look of fear she wasn’t about to tell him what was really going on.

  “That’s just like you to take on other people’s problems,” he said, forcing a little smile.

  “You…you don’t mind?” Leah asked, holding her breath. Was he really going to believe her and not tear his wound open when he went searching for her?

  “Leah,” he said softly, “have I been such a tyrant that you’d believe I’d force you to stay with me and leave a widow and some children to die? Is that what you think?”

  “No…I’m not sure I knew what to expect. You don’t seem as badly injured as I thought. I was worried about you here alone.”

  And too scared of something to stay with me, he thought, but he took her hand and kissed the palm. “Can you stay or must you return?”

  She dreaded the trip through the night down the mountainside, but she was afraid of remaining with Wes. Revis might start to look for her. “I have to return. Will you be all right?” She stood.

  “I’ll miss you but I’ll survive. You go on and get as much sleep as you can. I’ll just eat and sleep some more. My side hurts too much to do anything else.” His voice was a study in tiredness.

  “Yes,” Leah murmured, and while she still had some energy she left the cabin.

  “Goddamn her,” Wesley muttered as soon as the door closed. What in the world had she gotten herself into? First she’d slipped off into the night to meet that good-for-nothing who’d visited their camp and all the next day she was jumpy as a rattlesnake. The next thing he knew he’d been shot, and while he was bleeding to death, she was fighting with that scoundrel.

  Today Wesley had stay