Discovering Daisy (2 page)
Authors: Lacey Thorn
Tags: #Romance, #Erotic Romance eBooks Erotica Total-E-Bound eBooks Books Romance
But it was her eyes that called to him, that pulled at his soul. They were filled with a wisdom that didn’t fit with her youthful figure. She had seen a lot, probably experienced more than anyone knew and it had left its mark on her. Her eyes were sad. And he wanted to erase whatever had put that emotion there and see happiness instead. He wanted to hear her laugh, to see her smile. And that scared the hell out of him. His life wasn’t easy. Not his or his brothers’. That’s what came with being the son of a Texas Ranger and his Indian wife. A half-breed. No life for a woman.
He had spent his years as a Ranger, following in his father’s footsteps. And now he was done, returning home to help on the ranch that his dad had worked so hard to obtain. It was his younger brother’s turn now and his turn to head home and take over. Dad’s health was bad and their mom was a worrier. Plus with both of their grandfathers living there now it was sure to be stressful. At least the two men got along which was funny to see. The big Irishman with his black hair and blue eyes and the Indian with his long braid and weathered skin. It was the only family Jacob had ever known, though, and he wouldn’t have it any other way.
He glanced back as his new bride wavered in the saddle again. The silly woman was going to hurt herself if she fell, but so far was too stubborn to admit she was tired. He’d push them just over the river and to the clearing on his father’s land. They would be safe there to spend the night before travelling the rest of the way to the ranch in the morning. He wondered if he would be sleeping alone tonight or if his wife knew what to expect as a bride. He didn’t think his body would wait much longer for the release it was in need of.
He turned his horse to cross at the shallowest part which would still have the horses swimming for just a few paces before they found solid ground again. It couldn’t be helped and she seemed to be okay on the horse as long as she stayed awake.
He’d no sooner thought of that than a splash pulled his attention to the woman behind him again. She must have fallen asleep and fell. Thankfully the fall didn’t seem to hurt her and she was swimming towards him. The current was with them so it wasn’t as bad as it could have been. She grabbed the arm he held down to her and he easily lifted her into his lap.
She was laughing. Her face lit with the joy of her unplanned swim. And he felt his heart do a flip in his chest before settling back into a steady rhythm again. Her wet dress clung to her revealing the turgid points of her nipples. Water dripped down her face and where her dress rested on his legs he was quickly becoming wet as well. The weather was typically unpredictable. He could be scalding hot in the day and still feel a chill in the air in the evening. He would need to stop and build a fire so that they could both dry out.
But first he was going to do something that every bride should experience on her wedding day. Jacob leant down and captured her soft lips with his. He flicked his tongue and when she gasped slipped it inside her mouth to taste and explore. She was sweet and hot and he didn’t want to pull away even when he knew they both needed air. Reluctantly he did and wasn’t surprised to see the look of nervousness in her eyes. But he was surprised to take in the flush of desire on her face, the way her breasts rose and fell and the way her nipples were even more prominently displayed against the wet fabric of her dress. His little wife appeared to want him as much as he wanted her.
“Let’s get settled in and get out of these wet clothes,” he rasped out in a husky voice.
Her eyes flared and only when she wiggled on his lap did he realise that she probably felt how much he wanted her as well.
As soon as they were out of the water and on solid ground she slid from his lap. “I may be your wife but for right now that is in name only. You’re bigger and stronger and if you decide to take what you want I might not be able to stop you. But I’ll do my best to try.”
Her hair was slipping free of its binding. Her legs were braced about shoulder width apart. Her hands on her hips and her chin back as she looked up at him with fire in her eyes.
With a deep breath he nodded and rode forward leaving her to cool off and giving him a few minutes to deal with what had just hit him. Jacob Donavan was going to fall in love. And he was going to fall hard.
Chapter Two
Daisy didn’t know what to think. Her breathing had increased. Her breasts ached. And she wanted the man who was now her husband like she had never wanted before. His kiss had awakened something inside her, something scary and yet exciting. She found herself wondering what it would feel like to let him touch her as a man touched a woman. How it would feel to let him see her body unclothed, to run his hands and mouth over every inch of her skin. She shivered and it was just as much from her thoughts as from her wet clothes in the cooling evening air.
His horse was ground tied just ahead in a cluster of trees. She could tell that he intended to spend the evening here and wondered if he had more than one bed roll or if she was supposed to share with him. She gulped as she realised that she didn’t know which one she wanted. She started picking up kindling as she headed to the camp and he smiled at her as she dropped it when she reached him.
“Do you know how to make a fire?” he asked.
“Yes,” she nodded thinking of Saviour and all the things that he had taught her. They would come in very handy now.
“We are on my family’s land now,” he said. “We’ll be safe enough here.”
“If your family owns this then why don’t we just go to the house?” she asked suddenly, wondering if he was ashamed to show his lottery wife to his family.
“The house is still a good ride from here and you’re falling asleep as it is,” he stated. “We’ll pass the night here and go the rest of the way tomorrow.”
She nodded once, still uncertain but not willing to ask him yet. She couldn’t blame him if he was having second thoughts about her as his wife. She wasn’t sure she’d make a good one anyway. She knew for a fact that she would not be able to tolerate the things that her sister had. No man would ever strike her in anger. Not as long as she could move.
“Start the fire and I’ll grab some bigger pieces of wood,” he grunted throwing his saddle down beside her. “Then we’ll fix something to eat.”
She nodded again and knelt to do what he said. She would rather be busy than just sitting around not knowing what was coming. She was nervous, scared, and heaven help her even a little excited. Jacob Donavan honestly seemed like a good man. He hadn’t yelled at her or struck out at her for slowing him down on the trail today. He had been patient and silent which she much preferred.
A loud shot jerked her from her thoughts and had her up on her feet instantly searching for any type of weapon that he might have left behind. A rifle lay next to his saddle and she grabbed it with both hands and tucked it close to her shoulder just in case.
Jacob came back into camp with his game only to see his new wife holding his gun on him. Not exactly the way he wanted this evening to go. The sheriff had told him that she confessed to murdering a group of men. Jacob had thought he was joking but then Duckett had never really been known for his humour.
“Want to ease that down, sugar,” he said calmly as he walked up next to the fire she had built. She did appear to know how to do some things.
“I heard a shot,” she whispered as she eased the gun from her shoulder and then being sure to keep the barrel down handed it to him. He took it and laid it back by his saddle before looking up at her.
“You know how to shoot that thing?” he asked.
“Yes,” she said and there was a fire in her eyes. “I practiced every day my brother-in-law was gone.”
“You any good?” he had already skinned and cleaned the rabbit and now made a spit over the fire and put the rabbit on to cook.
“I can hit what I aim at,” was her only response but he noticed the shiver that went through her and wondered if it was from more than the cold.
“Why don’t you get out of those wet clothes,” he told her turning towards his saddle bag and rummaging inside. He pulled a clean shirt out and held it out to her. It should cover her well enough. “This will have to suffice until your clothes dry out. Then we’ll worry about getting your stuff once we reach the house.”
“My stuff?” she queried as she took the shirt he held out to her.
“I figured you’d want your clothes and personal stuff from the house you lived in,” he said and looked up in time to see one tear leak from her eye and trail down her cheek. She wiped it away and staunchly held back the rest he could see shimmering.
“Thank you,” she said. “I’d like that.”
She hadn’t actually thought that he was going to leave her with just the clothes on her back, had she? What kind of men had she known in her life? Obviously not very good ones. He had his work cut out for him where his new bride was concerned. But then he figured she’d be worth it.
“Go on and change,” he said turning his eyes back to the rabbit cooking. “Hang your stuff over the lower limbs to dry and then you can lay the bedroll out and go ahead and climb in if you want.”
“Is there only one bedroll?” she asked.
“I only carry one,” he said and wondered if now would be the time that she told him she would not sleep with him.
She said nothing and it took all he had not to turn and watch her as he heard the rustle of her clothes coming off behind him. It was long agonizing minutes later before he heard her finally grab the bedroll and smooth it out. She cleared her throat twice before he heard her say, “You can look now.”
He turned and lost his breath. She sat on top of the covers with her knees tucked to the side. His shirt was long but every time she shifted it did as well giving him glimpses of her creamy flesh. She was unbraiding her hair, a brush in her lap. He loved the way her full breasts pressed against the material of his shirt and knew that she had no idea just how gorgeous she was.
“Dinner will be ready soon,” he grunted as he shifted his position trying to find relief for his swollen cock.
“What should we do in the meantime?” she asked and he wondered what she would do if he said he wanted to take her right now, to hell with ever eating.
“What would you like to do?” he asked instead.
“We could talk,” she offered. “Maybe get to know a little about each other?”
“Alright,” he agreed. “Sheriff said you killed a group of men. That true?” He watched her closer. He was a damn good Ranger. He could spot a lie a mile away. His new wife looked him straight in the eyes, never blinked, and lied.
“Yes,” she said and he was damned if he wouldn’t find out just who she felt such a strong need to protect.
“Want to tell me why?” he asked.
He caught the flashes of emotion she was struggling to hide. Fear, anger and a deep sorrow.
“They killed my sister,” she said. “And the baby she was carrying.”
“What?” he thundered and his voice must have startled her because she jumped, his shirt riding up to the top her thighs. It was a site that had his dick jumping and begging for release. “How many men? Who killed your sister? How the hell did this happen? And how did you do it on your own?” He’d seen a lot in his life both in and out of the Rangers. Enough to know that one woman would not have been able to kill the three men that Sheriff Duckett had said were found dead.
And the sheriff had found footprints to indicate that there might have been more. His new wife was about to learn that there would be no lying to him. Ever.
“I did,” Daisy stated and a calm seemed to fill her. She would never let a soul know that Saviour had been there, that he had tried to save her sister. As far as she was concerned she had killed one man so what did it matter if she claimed two others.
Jacob’s gaze seemed to probe inside her searching for the truths she couldn’t tell. “I can spot a lie a mile away, wife,” he assured her and she felt a shiver work its way down her spine again. “You sure you want to stick with this story?”
She didn’t want to lie to him, didn’t want to start their relationship out this way. But honestly what choice did she have. No one had been there to help her and her sister. No one had cared. Until Saviour. And keeping him out of what happened seemed such a little thing to do when trying to repay him. “It was me,” she said again but even she could hear the uncertainty in her voice.
“Eat,” he said and handed her a plate. She could hear the truth of her lie in his voice and worried that she may have already killed what could have been.
They ate in silence and were done far too quickly to suit her. He took their plates and set them aside before turning back to her. He stared at her for a long moment and she couldn’t help the way she fidgeted. It was as if he was waiting for her to confess, but that was something she couldn’t do.
“Let’s just go to sleep,” he said and began to pull his boots off, removing his gunbelt and moving it by the top of the bag she was lying on.
