Promise Me (33 page)

Several of the miners who had brought Sam up to the surface made a space for her. Sam was stretched upon the ground, covered by a woolen blanket. There was a dark, shiny spot where he had bled through the fabric. Amanda bit hard on the knuckle of her fist to hold a scream within her throat. His face was so pale, it appeared to be carved from alabaster.

She fell to her knees, barely able to breathe. Tears trickled down her cheeks despite her effort to hold them back. She grasped Sam's hand in her own and whispered his name over and over, like a litany. His skin was so cold, his body so still, she felt her world spinning sideways as an icy numbness seized her.

Doc Potter was on the other side, ordering the women behind him to rip their petticoats into strips for bandages. His leather bag was open at his side.

Amanda tried to rise and join the other women, but a firm hand gripped her shoulder. “Never mind that,” Father Mikelson said. “Stay here and talk to him.”

Tears rolled down her cheeks, and she wanted to put her hands to her face and sob out the great piercing sadness that was shattering her heart. Sam was going to die, and she had never told him about their child. It was so unfair, and she knew that she would never be able to forgive herself for withholding the truth from him. An aching loneliness washed over her at all the love she'd squandered because of her foolish pride. Her heart had cracked in two.

Doc Potter drew the blanket aside, and she flinched when she saw Sam's torn and bleeding flesh. The doctor poured alcohol on the wound, and her spirits lifted for a moment when Sam swore and twisted with the pain.

“He's still alive,” she whispered, a jolt of hope gripping her.

The doctor gave her a desolate look. “He's lost a lot of blood, and this leg is broken.”

Amanda tightened her hold on Sam's fingers. “He's strong, and I know he wants to live.”

Doc Potter shook his head. “I won't give you false hope, Mrs. Calhoun. I've seen wounds as bad as this on the battlefield. There's not much chance he's going to make it.”

Amanda laid her head on Sam's shoulder and let the tears flow freely. Several of the men stepped back, giving her a little privacy to say good-bye to her husband.

There were so many things she had left unsaid. So many promises they'd made to each other and then broken. She regretted the lost time, the harsh words and arguments. They'd spent their days so angry at each other that they had squandered their only chance at happiness. She'd never love any man as much as she loved Sam. The enormous sadness within her broke loose like water surging over a dam, releasing a flood of tears. She felt a hand gently stroking her hair and lifted her gaze to find Sam's clouded, pain-filled eyes staring at her.

“Don't cry darlin'. I never could stand to see you cry.”

Amanda took a deep breath and tried to steady her voice before she spoke. “I love you, Sam. I wish I could have been a better wife to you, and that I'd been kinder and more understanding. I wish...” She couldn't go on. She dissolved into great gulping sobs.

“None of that matters now, darlin'. I've loved you since that first night I met you.” He gasped. “I tried to keep from giving my heart to you, but it's no use. You were right last night. I never could really let you go.” He closed his eyes. “We belong together.”

Amanda gazed down at Sam with all the love and tenderness she could muster. Pain was etched deeply onto the pale surface of his face.

She could give him one last gift before they said good-bye for eternity. She swallowed and worked to make her voice steady and strong.

“We're going to have a baby, Sam.”

Ebony lashes fluttered, and his amber eyes opened wide. He stared at her, incredulous, before his face split with a huge grin.

“I'll be damned.” He winced, and it appeared that speaking was causing him a great deal more pain. He grinned again.

“That's wonderful news, darlin'. Promise to stay with me, right here by my side.” He coughed. “I believe I can get through this.” He closed his eyes and drifted off.

Amanda licked her lips and took a deep breath. “I promise, Sam. I'll be here with you every moment. I need you, Samuel Calhoun. If you dare to leave me, I swear, I'll come right down to hell and battle old Beelzebub himself to get you back.” She gently placed her lips to his and sealed that oath with a kiss. His mouth was cool and tasted salty.

He opened one eye to give her that infuriating, lazy, lop-sided grin. “Just one more thing, darlin'.”

“Yes, Sam?”

“Tell me why you're so all-fired sure that if I do die, I'm going to end up burning in hell.”

Epilogue

“I see that very familiar glint in your eye, Sam, and you can just forget about it.”

Amanda raised one leg in the bath and gently soaped its length. She felt Sam's gaze on her, his amber eyes shaded with gold as they filled with desire. She should have known better than to arrange her bath here in their bedroom, but th
e house was so crowded with company today, it was the only place she could find some privacy.

“There isn't time.”

“I won't take long, I promise.” His voice was a sexy, inviting drawl, and the familiar heat washed over her.

She should be embarrassed that she could respond so quickly to her husband's passion, but instead she felt a tremor of excitement.

“The other guests will be here at noon.” She dropped the soap to reach for a length of linen toweling to dry off. Rising from the scented warmth of the hip bath, she started to rub her body with the towel.

The flare of desire in her husband's eyes banked to a raging flame.

“I hope you're not going to make me climb out of this bed and come over there to grab you, woman.”

Amanda flirted with him, fluttering her lashes like a brazen hussy, and grinned.

“With that bum leg of yours, I could easily escape.”

Sam threw back the covers and brought both of his long, muscular legs to the floor. The jagged scar on his right thigh bore testimony to the ordeal they'd survived over a year ago in the mine shaft.

“I'm getting stronger everyday, madam, so I wouldn't count on getting away so easily.”

She crossed the room to lean forward and touch her lips to Sam's mouth, the kiss deepening, her tongue thrusting and parrying against his. His hands moved to squeeze the smooth mounds of her buttocks and she sat on his knee rubbing her soft, moist slit against him.

“Woman, you're torturing me.”

“Heavenly torture,” she murmured. “We've got a busy afternoon, but a long night to look forward to.” She delighted in the way they fit together so perfectly. And the way their carnal appetites matched just as well.

“You never cease to amaze me, darlin'”. His hand gently kneaded her soft flesh, and there was admiration in the tone of his voice.

“Amazing Amanda will be my stage name when I join the circus.” She laughed as his tongue slid into her ear and he tickled her.

“Why would you need to do that? Isn't there enough excitement here in Willow Creek?”

She stroked the side of his face playfully. “Things seem to have calmed down a bit around here lately, don't you think?”

He twirled a strand of her hair around one finger and gave her a lazy grin. “Hell, darlin', it's been months since you've tried to shoot me, anyone has attempted to murder us, or I've set something on fire. I guess we've settled into being old married folks.”

Amanda wrinkled her nose. “Do you really think so, Sam? She gently rubbed his chest with one hand. “I would hate for people to think we're boring. Since you broke up the plot the other mine owners were hatching to profit from manipulating the supply of silver, this town has been downright tedious.”

A deep laugh rumbled in his chest. “With all the excitement of the new houses for your miners, our ranch, and a baby, I doubt you've had time to become bored.” He patted her gently on the bottom. “But I suspect if we don't get some clothes on and get down to the willow grove for our son's baptism, Father Mikelson will come barging in that door searching for us.”

Amanda giggled. “Imagine being caught by the priest in the middle of the day in our bed, naked. That should stir up some interesting gossip.”

“Our reputations might never recover from such a scandal.”

Amanda took a deep breath, savoring the image of her husband's hard, smooth body. Her fingers gently traced across his skin and she marveled at the warmth, the heat he produced.

She shrugged. “We're already legendary. It's probably not a major leap to becoming notorious.”

Sam shook his head sadly. “We might consider poor little Ethan. He
will
have to grow up in this town.”

“Everyone adores Ethan. He's the most perfect baby ever born.”

“Spoken like a very proud mother.”

Amanda tossed hair as she grabbed her undergarments.

“And who was the one boasting that his baptism day will be the biggest celebration ever held in Montana territory?”

She tied the ribbons of her petticoat, then wrapped her corset around her full rounded curves. She struggled to fasten the front and frowned at Sam.

“Having a baby certainly creates havoc with one's figure.”

Sam pulled himself off the bed to stand in front of her. “In my eyes, you're the most beautiful creature on earth. There isn't a soft curve”—his fingers brushed against her breast—“an angle, or a line that isn't perfect on your body.”

She stepped into his embrace, leaning forward to place her head against his chest to listen to the steady cadence of his heart. “Will you always love me, Sam?”

He lifted her chin gently with one finger and gazed into the depths of her eyes. She could see the chocolate highlights flickering in his gaze.

“I promise to love you with every inch of my being, for every moment God allows us to be together. I've learned to live each day as if it were my last, because someday...it's gonna be.”

“I never imagined I could be so happy, Sam. When I first met you, all I could think about was how much I wanted you. It terrified me that my sensual hunger could be so consuming.” She studied the smooth, chiseled line of his jaw carefully. “I thought such desire was sinful, and that I would be destined to burn in hell for eternity in penance for my carnal lust.”

Sam laughed. “Don't you think a lifetime with a devil for a husband might be enough penance for a good woman like you?”

Amanda smiled. “I thank God every day that you managed to lure me off the path of the straight and narrow.” She gave him a playful look. “If being bad feels this good, being good couldn't be much of an improvement.”

Sam laughed, the deep rumble in his chest comforting her with its sound. His mouth covered hers and she closed her eyes, allowing contentment to wash over her.

Amanda had learned to cherish her life with Sam and their son, Ethan. Every day was a precious gift from God, and she promised herself her life would be filled with all the happiness she could find.

And she knew better than anyone that a promise kept was one of the most powerful forces on earth.

The End

Special Bonus Short Story

A Winter Welcome

“She's a fine figure of a woman, Sam. I will say that.”

Samuel Calhoun nearly spit out his cigar. Robert coughed, and tried to hide his grin at his friend's response. He'd likely shocked Sam with the comment, because while Calhoun was a great admirer of the female form and known to dally with a woman once in a while, Rober
t was more subdued when it came to romancing the ladies.

“I was beginning to think you were beyond any interest in the fillies,” Sam commented as he sipped his black coffee.

Robert leaned his chair back and considered the lady serving a weary group of travelers on the other side of the dining room. She brushed back a curl that fell into her face before pouring the exhausted looking woman at the table a cup of coffee.

“I own up I ain't no man whore.” Robert said, never taking his eyes off the mature, voluptuous woman as she swirled though the dining room.

Sam laughed. “Nope, I don't believe I could ever accuse you of that. Far as I can recall, you hardly ever visit the sportin' gals, which maybe isn't natural but I've learned to live with your peculiarities.”

Robert snorted. “Particular ain't exactly the same as being peculiar. I don't fall in bed with every calico queen we stumble across just to ease an itch. I guess it takes more'n a scrap of petticoat to hold my interest.”

Sam nodded. “A man of high ideals and exacting standards. I admire your principles, Robert.” He raised his coffee cup in salute. “Wish I could say I'd emulate your behavior but I try not to make promises I don't intend to keep.”

The woman waiting on tables sailed across the room. Her dark brown eyes sparkled as she lifted the coffeepot and nodded at the men. “Can I interest you gentlemen in some more?” Her cheeks were bright red spots of color, and the heat of bustling around the room made the dark black hair sprinkled with