Land of Enchantment (9 page)

He took a step towards her, then another. His eyes were smouldering dark fires with what Diana mistook for anger.

'I didn't mean to, Lije,' she hurried her words. 'It just happened. Love isn't something you can turn on and off at will.'

Her eyes pleaded up at him to understand, to stop looking so arrogantly down at her. His hands reached out and dug into the flesh of her shoulders. Diana steeled herself to endure the shaking that was coming, but instead, Lije lifted her into the air above his head, then slowly lowered her to eye level. With her feet still dangling off the ground, he proceeded to kiss her. He kissed her so thoroughly that when he lowered her to the ground amid the scattering applause from the onlooking cowboys Diana could barely stand on her shaking legs.

'Let's get out of here,' he muttered, picking up her cases that had at some time tumbled to the ground.

'Lije?'

Her hand touched his arm, and he smiled down at her. It was a miracle. That was love shining out of his eyes. An arm swept around her waist as he hustled her out of the arena.

Lije didn't stop until they reached his pick-up camper, then only long enough to open the door and push Diana inside. She would have gone back into his arms then, but he held her at arm's length.

'We have to talk first, Diana,' he said firmly. 'And I can't think straight when I hold you.'

'There's nothing to talk about,' Diana smiled, supremely confident in the face of his love for her. 'I'll follow you all over the country or all over the world.'

'No. I meant what I said last night. I couldn't put you through the agony of wondering every time I was in the arena whether I was going to come out in one piece.'

'Then I'll wait for you. Two years, three years, whatever it takes.'

'I can't wait that long for you.' There was no mistaking the reason for the burning look in his eyes.

'I'm in love with you, Lije. I can't let you go.' Panic crept into her voice, and involuntarily she moved closer to him.

'There is an alternative,' he said, gripping her shoulders to halt her movement. 'But it won't be easy. I can quit the rodeo and go back to the ranch. It will mean some lean years where we'll have to do without a lot of things, but we could make it.'

'You said you needed another two years at least,' she murmured. 'How can you do it?'

'I can sell Red,' Lije sighed grudgingly. 'I had hoped to keep him for a second stallion. As it is I'll only get half what he's worth, but it will give me the money to make the necessary improvements to the ranch to get us by for a couple of years.'

'I could keep on working, Lije,' Diana offered. Her heart going out to him because of the sacrifice he was making for her. 'I have a little money saved now. Not much really, but…'

'No! Absolutely not!' he barked. 'Listen, darling,' he went on more calmly. 'I'm the original male chauvinist, but my wife is going to be with me wherever I am, not off posing for some guy with a camera. We'll make it together.'

'That's the way I want it, too,' she whispered earnestly.

'I love you, Diana.' The hands that had held her away now drew her to him as Lije proceeded to rain kisses on her lips, nose, eyes, and neck. 'Tonight will be my last rodeo, darling,' he murmured against her cheek. 'Tomorrow we'll drive to El Paso. We can get married in Juarez, Mexico. By Tuesday, we'll be at my ranch…our ranch…our home. Is that too long to wait?

'I would wait a lifetime if you wanted me to,' Diana breathed, her happiness knowing no limits when he held her like this in his arms. His mouth covered hers quickly, letting her know without words that that wasn't necessary.

With a shaky laugh of exaltation, Lije lifted his head from hers. 'The first thing we'd better do is get you checked back into a hotel for tonight.'

'Do I have to?' she asked impishly.

'Yes,' he growled mockingly. 'This afternoon you can go out and buy yourself a wedding dress while I handle a few other things.'

'You're the boss!' Her blue eyes twinkled up at him demurely. She was rewarded for her meek acceptance with another kiss and a promise of more.

Chapter Six

'WELL, Mrs. Masters?' Lije looked at her lovingly. 'You're now in New Mexico, the land of enchantment. Are you happy?'

'Very happy,' she answered, snuggling closer to him as she gazed out the window of the pick-up truck at the thinning marks of civilization.

It was all too wonderful to believe it had happened, Diana thought, sneaking a glance at the man who, last night, had become her husband in every sense of the word. She still marvelled at how tender and gentle he had been with her when he had discovered that she had never been with a man before. And she had been astounded by her own response. Lije had always been able to arouse her, but Diana had never believed that she could be transported to that level of rapture.

'Darling, are you sure you don't mind not having a honeymoon? We could spare a few days in El Paso. We aren't that far away that we couldn't turn back.' The concern and desire to please in Lije's gaze made Diana's heart leap with love.

'I'd rather go home, Lije,' she assured him.

'I hope you won't be disappointed,' he said quietly. 'Don't conjure up images of an enormous house with plush furnishings. It's just a one-storey frame house that's seen better days. Some day I'll build a new home for you, but…'

Diana placed her hand on his mouth to hush his proud apologies. 'If you're there, it will seem like a palace to me.'

His arm circled her shoulders and pulled her closer against his chest while he drove with one hand on the wheel.

'With you, right now I feel like a king,' taking his attention from the four-lane highway long enough to give her a quick kiss. 'There are so many
places I want to show you. Where I used to hunt when I was a kid. We'll sleep out under the stars sometimes, too, when it's warmer. I hope you grow to love the ranch as much as I do, Diana.'

'I will.'

When they turned west out of Socorro and left the Rio Grande Valley behind, the landscape began to change. The few towns they passed were minuscule compared to the metropolis of Dallas/Fort Worth where Diana had lived all her life. The mountains, too, seemed more rugged and forbidding even with their pine-covered slopes. Diana was beginning to realize what an alien world she was coming to live in.

She wouldn't let the distances daunt her, not even when Lije turned off the main road on to a dirt one and several miles later turned off of it on to a two-rutted track that led off into the mountains.

'This is the ranch,' he announced. His grey eyes left the land around them to look at his wife. There was so much pride and contentment in his gaze that Diana had to smile.

'It's like something out of a Western movie.'

There was not a cloud in the azure blue sky or a telltale mark of civilization to blot its horizon. Snowcapped mountain peaks sloped away to plateaux, mesas and rolling plains where patches of snow melted slowly in the shadowed areas of grass. The rutted track stretched endlessly into these hills without a sign of any buildings. The emptiness, isolation, the immense space all struck Diana simultaneously. Gone was the security of tall skyscrapers and crowds of people that had constituted her life. Lije had told her that his ranch was miles from anywhere, but the force of his statement didn't sink in until now.

At last they topped a rise and the buildings of the ranch were ahead of them. As they drew closer, Diana could see a weathered one-storey house standing away from the outbuildings. The fact that it had more windows than the others was the only difference between them. All the buildings were a dirty white, their paint chipped and peeling.

'The first trip into town I'll buy some paint,' Lije said grimly. 'I assure you the framework is sound and sturdy.'

'Don't do it for my sake,' Diana said quickly, glancing up to meet the masked expression on his face, wondering if her disappointment had shown on her face. 'If you need the money for something else, don't worry about making an impression on me.'

'The money will stretch to cover paint. Just because the ranch isn't as prosperous as it could be it's no sign that it can't look that way.' Lije smiled down at her, removing his arm from around her and gradually slowing the pick-up down to a halt near the first of the buildings. 'I'll put Buck away, then we'll go up to the house together.'

Diana slid out of the pick-up after Lije, following him to the rear where the horse trailer was hitched. This was a homecoming for her husband. She could tell it by the light glowing in his eyes when he looked at the corral and the horses inside. They were his. Everything on the place belonged to him and the pride of ownership was in his face. But Diana felt out of place, a stowaway who had no business here at all. She touched her gold wedding band to reassure herself. Lije had enough to worry about without bringing up her insecure feelings. She had always been able to adjust to anything. And now, as his wife, she had even more reason.

The breeze was cool, carrying the sting of biting cold from the mountain tops. Diana drew her blue corduroy parka closer around her neck as she followed Lije to the corral. While he was engaged in caring for the horse, she took the opportunity
to study the ranchyard, determined to become familiar with everything. A movement was detected out of the corner of her eye and she turned to look. A man was walking out of a near building. He had jet black hair that hung over his forehead and his cheekbones were wide and prominent, setting off the deep-sunk dark eyes. He, too, had on a heavy parka jacket over faded blue levis. At first she thought he was of Mexican descent, but as he came closer Diana could tell he was an Indian.

'Lije?' Her voice raised with a trace of questioning fear. She glanced at her husband.

Lije was just shutting the corral gate when she called to him. Following the direction of her gaze that she had returned to the Indian still walking closer, his firm stride quickly carried him past Diana towards the man. She braced herself, expecting to see Lije order the man off the property, then stared in stunned disbelief as he clasped the Indian's hand in both of his and shook it warmly. Lije's broad back blocked out the Indian's face, but the friendly tone of their voices reaffirmed the handshake.

'Diana, come here,' Lije called, a grin spreading across his face. She was glad of his arm around her waist when she reached his side. 'I want you to meet Jim Two Pony, my friend and my foreman.'

'How do you do?' Diana nodded nervously.

There was no welcoming light in the dark eyes that looked back at her, only taciturn reserve. The barest inclination of his head indicated that Jim Two Pony had heard her words before he turned back to Lije.

'It is good to have you back, Lije,' the man said in a bland but well-educated voice.

'I didn't expect you to be here at the house when we arrived,' Lije smiled, taking no notice of Jim's lack of attention to Diana. 'I thought I'd have to go into the mountains to find you.'

'The jeep broke down again. I was fixing it,' Jim replied. His mouth moved and the words came out, but there was never any discernible change in his expression.

'I'll take Diana up to the house, then I'll come down and give you a hand. It's good to be back, Jim.' Lije clasped the Indian's shoulder for a brief moment before he turned to Diana. 'I might as well start to work right away,' he said to her.

'Of course,' she agreed. She had to force herself to smile. If Jim Two Pony had wanted to make her feel more of an outsider, then he had succeeded.

'Hey, you're awfully quiet.' As they reached the house, Lije lifted her chin and warmed her lips with a kiss. 'I think it's time for the groom to carry the bride over the threshold.'

He opened the door leading into the house, then turned to Diana. The coldness that had begun to numb her swiftly fled away under the adoring look in his grey eyes.

'I love you, Lije,' she whispered fervently as he swept her up into his arms.

'You'd better, Mrs. Masters,' he grinned, walking through the door with Diana's arms firmly entwined around his neck.

She clung tightly to his hand as he set her feet down on the yellow linoleum floor of the kitchen. She glanced around at the old-fashioned white metal cabinets and the heavy porcelain sink. A square wooden table and chairs sat in the middle of the room. The white paint that covered them had turned a dingy yellow. Against the side wall was an electric stove of antique vintage. Faded curtains of drab yellow hung at the window above the sink and the one near the cabinets. The walls were covered with old-fashioned glaze paper with a nondescript design of yellow flowers.

'None of the house has a decorator's touch, but it's serviceable. It needs a woman's touch, Diana. Yours,' Lije told her with a loving glance at her silver-blonde head. 'Let me show you the rest of the house.'

The living room was roomy, but with the same austere look that would be expected with only masculine inhabitants. A fireplace was on the outside wall, its hearth blackened from its many fires. There was a little nook that had been intended as a formal dining area. Lije had installed a desk and office files to maintain the records for the ranch. A small bedroom was opposite the larger main bedroom. Both were sparsely furnished with little decoration to relieve the effect of the heavy furniture. The bathroom was large, with an old bathtub that was supported by cast-iron legs.