Dashing Druid (Texas Druids) (37 page)

“Dear Lord,” Tye gasped in awe. Realizing he shared her feeling of unearthly bliss, she saw for the first time how his gift bound them together. Accepting it as the blessing it was, she silently repeated his prayer and drifted back to sleep, content in his arms.

* * *

Dawn had just broken when Tye awoke. He lay on his side with Lil snuggled against him, breasts molded to his chest, legs entwined with his. The feel of her brought to mind that moment of perfect union they’d shared during the night. It seemed like a dream, yet he knew it had really happened.

Raising his head, he gazed at his sleeping wife. With her sable hair tousled from a night of lovemaking, her flesh rosy with sleep and her lips invitingly parted, he thought her the most arousing sight he’d ever seen. More than anything, he longed to wake her and seek paradise again, but there was no time. Gently brushing her hair aside, he nibbled her ear and the sensitive place beneath it. She came awake with a languorous hum of pleasure and sought his mouth for a kiss. He gladly obliged but forced himself to draw away after a brief moment.

“Tye?” she murmured in a sleepy voice. “What’s wrong?”

 “Sorry,
mavourneen
, but we need to get moving if we’re to catch the stage to Denver.”

“Oh! I forgot.” Untangling herself from him, she pushed up on her elbows. “What time is it? Did we oversleep?”

Chuckling, Tye sat up and threw his legs over the side of the bed. He pointed to the window. “’Tis early yet. We’ve time enough to enjoy breakfast in that fancy dining room downstairs if we don’t dawdle too much.”

Mindful of the kind of stares Tye hadn’t wanted her to face, Lil donned her trusty blue gown. He’d said it wouldn’t bother him if she chose to wear her regular duds during the trip south, but it felt wrong to do that. She was a wife now; she wanted to look like a woman. She wanted Tye to be proud of her.

* * *

Traveling by stage and train, the journey to Texas was tiring and uncomfortable at times, but next to the cattle drive, it was like comparing a milk-fed calf with a wild range bull. Once across the Red River, they reached the end of the rails and again boarded a stage for the journey to Waco. There, they purchased mounts with the last of the ‘wedding gift’ Lil had reluctantly accepted from David and finished the trip on horseback. Choosing comfort over propriety, Lil donned her britches and was glad of it. This dressing like a woman wasn’t practical when it came to riding a horse.

They rode onto Double C land around mid-afternoon. A short while later the homestead loomed ahead of them. Lil pulled up, heart heavy with dread.

“Are ye ready for this, love?” Tye asked, bringing his horse to a halt next to her. “We can head over to the River T and send word to your folks that we’re back if ye wish.”

“No.” she shook her head. “Putting it off won’t help.” She met his gaze. “Pa will be on our side, I hope, but Ma will be . . . difficult. Are
you
ready? Maybe you’d rather wait for me at David and Jessie’s.”

He nudged his horse close, wrapped his gloved hand around the back of her neck and looked her in the eye. “You’re my wife. Where ye go, I go. Aye?” Then he leaned in and kissed her, leaving her unable to speak past the lump in her throat.

Moments later they drew rein in the ranch yard. Lil had just enough time to drink in the familiar setting before the door to the house opened and her father stepped out.

“It’s about time the pair of you showed up,” he said gruffly. With a wide grin he came to meet them. As soon as Lil alighted from her horse, he pulled her into a crushing hug. “I’d about given up on you, girl.”

“Sorry, Pa. It took me a while to track down this stubborn galoot and convince him to come home.” Grinning at Tye as he dismounted, she was grateful when Pa released her and extended his hand to her husband.

“Good to see you, son. I’m glad Lil managed to talk sense into you.”

“Aye, well, she’s very convincing when she puts her mind to it.” Tye smiled as they shook and sent Lil a heated glance that warmed her all over.

Then she spotted her mother standing in the open doorway. Her mouth was set in anger.

“Ma!” Lil started toward her but halted when her mother stepped back and slammed the door shut. “Ma,” she repeated in a whisper. She was unaware of Tye’s approach until his hand settled at the small of her back. Turning to him, she couldn’t stop her lips from quivering.

“I’m here with ye, love,” he said, thick voice revealing he shared her distress.

“Fool woman! It’s time she let go of the past,” her father muttered. “Come on. We’d best have this out right now.” Motioning for them to follow, he marched up the front porch steps and ushered them into the house.

Ma stood kneading bread dough at the kitchen table. She punched it violently, never looking up. Her voice was iron-hard. “I do not want that Irishman in this house.”

“Would you turn our daughter away, too, woman?” Pa barked. For a moment there came only the sound of her mother pounding the dough. Then she relented enough to answer.

“She can stay, but he goes,” she snapped.

“No!” Angry herself by now, Lil crossed the room to face her. “If he goes, I go. I’m his wife.”

Ma’s head snapped up. Fury shot from her dark eyes. “You took a no-good Yankee murderer to husband?”

“Yes. And don’t call him that.”

“Betrayer!” With a feral snarl, her mother slapped her hard enough to make her ears ring.

Lil cried out and stumbled backward, hand pressed to her stinging cheek. Her father bellowed something, but she was too stunned to take it in.

Her pain and shock slammed into Tye’s head, magnifying his own outrage. Swearing, he strode forward and turned Lil into his arms. She’d gone pale as a ghost. Seeing the red mark on her cheek when she removed her hand, and sharing the hurt in her glistening eyes, he scowled furiously at Rebecca Crawford.

“Madam, ye may hate me as much as ye wish, but you’ll never raise a hand to Lil again. Not so long as I draw breath, d’ye hear?”

“Get out!” the woman spat.

“Dammit, Rebecca!” Del shouted. “Tye didn’t kill Toby. He didn’t even fight in the war. I won’t have you ordering them out.”

She glared at him. “They go or I do.”

Del
swore volubly. Scrubbing a hand down his face, he glanced back and forth from his wife to his daughter, looking desperate.

Lil smiled sadly at Tye, and he reluctantly let her ease out of his embrace. Facing her father, she said, “It’s all right, Pa. We’ll go.”

“It ain’t right. This is your home.” He cut a condemning glance at his wife, who stubbornly ignored him.

“Not anymore. We shouldn’t have come.” Lil bussed his weathered cheek and turned to Tye. “Let’s go.”

Del
followed them out to their horses. He laid a hand on Tye’s shoulder. “I’m awful sorry about this. Take care of my girl.”

“I will, never fear. We’ll be with my sister and David for a while, I expect, should ye need to reach us.” They shook hands and Tye mounted up. He knew Lil was on the verge of tears as she hugged her father, but she didn’t let it show. Breaking away from him, she quickly swung into the saddle.

“So long, Pa.” Setting spurs to her mount, she galloped away with Tye rushing to catch up.

* * *

They received a far different greeting at the River T. It was close to dark when they got there, reminding Tye of the night he’d first arrived a year ago. But this time he and Lil made it onto the front porch without attracting attention. His knock brought David to the door. When he saw it was them, he grinned broadly and threw the door open.

“Come on in.” Over his shoulder he called, “Jessie, it’s Tye and Lil.”

Tye heard his sister shriek and drop something metal, like a cooking spoon, in the kitchen. Then she came running into the hall, an apron draped over her expanding middle. As on that other occasion, she greeted him with a fierce hug and tears of gladness. She even found a stiff smile for Lil.

David welcomed Lil with a brief, brotherly embrace and slapped Tye on the back. “I was about ready to come looking for you both. Jessie’s been driving me loco with her blasted dreams.”

“David!” Jessie batted his arm and nodded pointedly toward Lil, who stood next to Tye, observing their exchange in silence.

Tye laughed. “Ye needn’t worry, sis. I told her all about us.”

“Ye did?” She gazed warily at Lil as if expecting her to make some scathing remark.

“Oh aye. I felt it my duty just as ye did yourself before marrying David.” He winked at his wife, enjoying Jessie’s open-mouthed stare.

“Y-you’re wed?” she squeaked.

“Aye, we tied the knot in Colorado.”

“But why didn’t ye wait until ye got home? I’d like to have seen my only brother speak his vows, ye big idjit!” Her eyes sparked with rising temper.

“It was the only way he’d agree to come back with me,” Lil put in. “He did it for my sake, so if . . .” Her voice wobbled. “. . . if anything happened to him and my folks wouldn’t take me in, I could come to you.”

Tye stared at her in surprise.

“Didn’t think I figured that out, did you, Devlin?”

“Nay, I didn’t,” he admitted in chagrin. “More fool I for thinking I could keep anything from ye,
Mrs. Devlin.”

A trill of laughter sounded from Jessie. “As ye once said to me, brother dear, I believe you’ve met your match.” Good humor restored, she smiled openly at Lil and latched onto her arm. “Come on out to the kitchen. Did ye know David added it when we rebuilt the house?”

“N-no, I didn’t,” Lil muttered, clearly stunned by Jessie’s sudden friendliness.

“Well, ye need to see it, and supper’s nearly ready. Ye can help me get it on the table while ye tell me all about your wedding. Ye wore a gown, I hope.”

“Y-yes, a yellow one with lace trim.”

“Yellow’s a nice cheerful color. It must have been lovely with your dark hair.”

“I’ll be,” David muttered as the women’s voices faded to a chatter in the kitchen. “I never thought I’d see the day when Jessie would warm up to Lil.”

“’Tisn’t so strange. They’re family now, and we Irish have a love of family.” Which was what Tye had counted on when he married Lil. The fact that she’d deduced his reason for insisting they wed before returning to Texas shouldn’t have surprised him. His wife had a good head on her shoulders, as well as being beautiful.

Smiling to himself, he followed his brother-in-law into the parlor. “Speaking of family, Lil told me yours was increasing again,” he remarked, seating himself in one of the familiar chairs near the hearth. “I see ’tis true.”

“Yeah, it worries me some, coming so soon after little Reece was born, but Jessie says she feels fine.” Crossing to the liquor cabinet, David poured whiskey into a pair of tumblers and brought one to Tye before settling in the other chair.

“And what of Anna and your da? Are they well?”

“Sad to say Anna passed on not long after you left on the drive. She caught lung fever. It took her fast.”

“Ah. I’m sorry ye lost her.” Recalling the old woman witlessly rocking and humming a tuneless song, unaware of anyone or anything around her, Tye thought death a blessing for her, though he kept that opinion to himself.

David nodded and downed a swallow of whiskey. “As for Pa, he’s not doing too good. His stomach pains him all the time, making it hard for him to eat. He’s lost a lot of weight.” He sighed heavily, staring into his glass. “I’m afraid we’ll lose him, too, before long.”