Ride The Wind (Vincente 3) (15 page)

If he was anything like Noble, he'd be out all
day trying to save as many head of cattle as he
could. He'd need a hot meal when he got home.
She rummaged through the well-stocked
kitchen shelves until she found the ingredients
to prepare a hearty meal.

She had been so busy she hadn't noticed that
it was almost sundown. She went to the front
door and stepped out onto the porch. The biting
wind stung her face. It had stopped snowing,
and the clouds had moved away; the brilliant
sunset painted the land with a crimson glow.
She considered going to the barn to see if Reese
was there, but he would only scold her for coming out in the weather. She shivered and stepped
back into the house, then went into the kitchen
and began kneading bread dough.

Warmth surrounded her heart as she removed
an apple pie from the oven and set it on the back
of the stove. She was happy and felt as if she
belonged there. It felt so right to be preparing a
meal for the man she loved. A sudden rush of
feeling assaulted her senses, and she found herself wishing that she had the right to be there,
to take care of Reese as a wife should.

Her heart was racing so fast it was hard for
her to breathe. She dropped down in a chair and
lowered her head, overcome with shame and guilt. She should not be having such thoughts
about Reese when she was engaged to Matthew.
If only she could talk to her sister-in-law, Rachel, perhaps she would be able to figure out
why she was having these disturbing feelings for
Reese.

Saber was always one to face the truth about
herself. She loved Reese, and she probably always would. But duty and honor burned deep
within her, and that honor would bind her to
Matthew. She was determined that when they
were married she would be the best possible
wife. She would hide her love for Reese, so Matthew would never know.

The hour grew late, and still Reese had not
returned. She opened the door and stared out
into the silent darkness. Loneliness pressed in
on her, and she shivered from the cold.

Where was Reese?

She went to the kitchen, where it was warmer
and laid her head down on the table; before she
realized it, she'd fallen asleep.

Reese opened the door and was immediately hit
by delicious smells. He removed his coat and
hat, put them on the coatrack, and went to the
kitchen.

Saber heard his heavy bootsteps and roused herself. When Reese appeared in the doorway,
she smiled. "You must be starved."

"What smells so good?"

Saber went about setting the table. "You
might want to invite the others. I made plenty."

He had been thinking about her all day and
wondering what she was doing with her time.
He saw the apple pie on the back of the stove,
and a steaming pot of stew bubbling in the large
iron pot.

He moved to the back door and gave her a
wide smile. "I'm sure Rosita has food waiting for
Miguel, but I'll get Jake and Gabe."

Moments later, Reese reappeared with the
other two men in tow. Saber dished up a generous serving of stew for each of them and
placed a pan of fresh, hot bread before them.

"Hello, Jake," she said to the young boy who
beamed at her. "I don't know how it'll taste. It's
been warming for quite a while." Her eyes
moved to the older man, who reminded her a lot
of Zeb. He was gray-headed and bowlegged; his
leathery face attested to the long hours he spent
in the saddle. "You must be Mr. Cooper. Please
sit and eat before everything gets cold."

"Yes, ma'am," Gabe Cooper said, straddling a
chair and reaching for a knife to slice the bread.
A warning glance from Reese reminded Gabe of
his manners. "Excuse me, ma'am," the old cow hand said remorsefully. "It's been a long time
since I feasted on food fixed by a female."

"You gentlemen go ahead and enjoy the meal.
I'll just leave you to eat in peace."

"Aren't you going to join us?" Reese asked,
holding a chair for her.

"I ate earlier." She smiled and moved to the
door. "Good night, gentlemen."

It was quiet in the kitchen after she'd gone.
The three men looked at each other and then
hastily began filling their plates.

It smelled good, but Reese couldn't form a picture of Saber cooking on the old woodstove.
Hesitantly he took a small bite of meat on his
fork and tasted it, noticing that Jake and Gabe
were already eating with gusto.

"Delicious!" Gabe pronounced with his mouth
full.

"Yes, it is," Reese agreed, taking another bite
and then another.

"Miss Vincente's a good cook," Jake said,
reaching for his second slice of bread while eyeing the apple pie-his favorite.

Reese smiled to himself. He owed the lady an
apology. Hell, he owed her many apologies. He'd
been treating her like the spoiled sister of a
Spanish grandee, when in truth she had acted
with intelligence, kindness, and patience, and had never complained when she was cold and
hungry.

After he'd eaten, he gave Jake and Gabe their
orders for the next day. When they left he went
into the parlor. He half feared Saber had gone
to bed and he wouldn't get the chance to apologize to her for his rudeness the night before.
He found her curled up in a chair, reading a
book under the dim light of an oil lamp.

Saber glanced at Reese and laid the book
aside. "Did you lose many head?"

He pulled a chair up beside her and nodded
grimly. "Yeah. Close to fifty so far."

She moved forward and in a feminine gesture
laid her hand on his. "I'm so sorry, Reese."

His hand closed around hers, and a knifelike
sweetness swept through her. She wanted to
comfort him, but would this self-assured man
accept comfort from a woman? She somehow
sensed that he needed it. "You will build your
herd up again. I'm sure Noble will give you a
sizable reward for-"

He jerked his hand free of hers and surged to
his feet, standing over her with anger etched on
his rugged face. "I don't need your brother's
money."

"No, of course not. I just thought-"

Again he interrupted her. "My problems aren't
yours, Miss Vincente." He moved to the corner, where she had neatly folded his pallet and carried the quilts to the fireplace.

"Now," he said, turning to her, "unless you
want to watch me undress, I suggest you go to
bed. It's been a long day, and tomorrow will
prove to be an even longer one."

With as much dignity as she could gather, she
stood, placed the book back on the shelf, and
moved out of the room, closing the door behind
her.

Reese stared up at the ceiling until he could
gather his thoughts. Hell, what was the matter
with him? He had seen the wounded expression
in her eyes. He had meant to be nice to her, and
all he'd managed to do was hurt her.

Without removing his clothing, he settled on
the pallet and turned to stare at the flames burning low in the fireplace. He was a fool. Why
couldn't he have just politely declined the offer
of her brother's money and thanked her for the
fine supper? Because, he told himself, he didn't
want her to feel that she owed him. He would
do anything for her and would stand between
her and danger anytime. It wasn't for
money it never had been. His gun belt was gouging him,
so he removed it and placed it near at hand.

Tomorrow he'd apologize to Saber for hurting
her tonight.

The bedroom door opened, and he saw Sa tier's silhouette dimly reflected by the lamplight
behind her. "I am going out with you tomorrow."

He raised himself up on his elbow. "No, you're
not. It's too cold, and we'll be out all day rounding up any strays that may have survived the
norther."

"You have no say in the matter. I don't care
how cold it is. I am accustomed to riding every
day, and I will ride tomorrow. Good night."

He could hear the determination in her voice.
"Very well. But don't say I didn't warn you."

She stepped back into the bedroom and closed
the door.

"Damn that woman!" he muttered. "She's as
stubborn as a mule." Well, he'd just let her have
her way and see how she liked it. She'd be begging to return to the house before the morning
was over.

Noble answered the knock at the door. Thinking
it would be the Halloway family, his heart
stopped when a beautiful woman with red-gold
hair flew into his arms.

She nestled against him, fitting just right, as if
she belonged there. Noble's arms tightened
around her, and his heart filled with warmth.
She had known he needed her and had come to
him. Had any man ever had such a wife? "Rachel, what are you doing coming here at this
time? If I know anything about you, you came
alone."

"No, I didn't, because I knew you wouldn't approve. Teak and George came with me. I just had a feeling you might need me, so here I am." She
turned her head up to his, and he raised her on
tiptoe to receive his kiss. At last she broke away
from him and went into the room. "I just
couldn't stay at home worrying about Saber.
Have you found her yet?"

He moved into the room and closed the door.
He hadn't known how much he'd missed her until that moment. "I sent a man to the ranch with
a message telling you all about it."

"We must have crossed paths. Have you found
her?"

There was leashed anger in his eyes when he
thought of what his sister had been through.
"Yes. She's been found."

She went into his outstretched arms. "Thank
God! I have been out of my mind with worry."
She felt the tension in him. "She is all right, isn't
she?"

"She's alive, but I don't know what she suffered at the hands of those bastards."

"Where is she? I want to see her."

Noble released his hold on Rachel and frantically paced the length of the room and back.
"It seems she was rescued by a man by the name
of Reese Starrett. Do you know him?"

Rachel frowned. "I've heard that name before.
Wasn't he the man who stopped the Comanche
from fighting with the army not too long ago? I believe he was hailed as something of a hero."

Noble stopped before her. "Did he? I hadn't
heard that. Zeb told me that Reese has already
killed one of the Miller brothers."

"Where is Saber now?"

"She's at Starrett's ranch. Zeb and Alejandro
saw her and have assured me she is in good
health."

Rachel shook her head. "I don't understand.
Why is she at the Starrett ranch?"

He put his arms around her and drew her
close. "Let me hold you, and I'll tell you what I
know." He laid his face against hers and felt the
familiar stirring of his body. "I have missed you,
Green Eyes. I'm glad you are here."

She knew him so well, and she also knew he
might go after the Millers and get himself killed.
He was not a man to stand by idly while others
hunted for the kidnappers. "What are your
plans?"

"I'm leaving early in the morning. Some buffalo hunters claim to have run into the Millers
just across the Mexican border."

She knew better than to try to talk him out of
going, so she asked, "Who is going with you?"

"Five men from Casa del Sol."

"I want to come, too."

He eased her out of his arms. "You can't do
that, Rachel. But it would ease my mind consid erably if you would go to the Starrett ranch and
find out about Saber."

She nodded in agreement. "Perhaps that
would be for the best. I'll leave in the morning."

He drew her tightly against his body. "How
did you know I needed you?"

She closed her eyes, loving her husband with
her whole being. "I just know you so well."

He looked at the bed, wanting to lay her down
and make love to her, but he groaned in frustration---that would have to wait until later tonight.
"Matthew and his parents are supposed to be
here at any time."

"What is the law doing to find the men, Noble?"

"You may well ask," he replied, his lip curled
in distaste. "Sheriff Davis has taken a posse in
the direction of the panhandle. That man
couldn't find his own tail."

She touched her lips to his, and he forgot for
the moment that he was meeting anyone. He
pressed his body into hers and pulled her tighter
against him.

Rachel knew that her husband needed comfort, and she knew just how to give it to him.

There was a knock on the door. Noble groaned
and set Rachel away from him. "Later," he said,
smiling.

A young soldier handed Noble a letter. "A mes sage from Major Halloway, sir. He said to tell
you how sorry he is that he and his parents can't
come to Fort Worth today." The young man
waited a moment. "Will there be an answer, sir?"

Noble felt irritated. "No. I have nothing to say
to them."

When Noble closed the door, Rachel pulled
him toward the bed. "I'm glad they aren't coming. Now we can be together."

It was still dark when Reese awoke and
stretched his cramped muscles. He ran his hand
over the bristles on his chin, thinking he should
shave, but he didn't want to take the time. Every
moment lost might mean more dead cattle.