Surrendered on the Frontier (9 page)

“Oh, it’s much better,” Hannah said, then her eye caught Matthew’s as he looked up from his schoolwork. “I mean, it still hurts, Ma. I don’t think I’ll be able to do chores for a good long while.” Her eyes were twinkling and mischievous.

Matthew’s eyes narrowed. “That’s not what you said earlier!” he chided. Hannah giggled, so I tugged her braid.

“You leave poor Matthew alone,” I said, and Hannah covered her mouth with her hand. They’d sort their chores out fine. I’d be sure Hannah didn’t take advantage of the situation, and Samuel would be sure Matthew did as he was told.

Matthew sat next to her with his books, scowling. “Today at the dinner break, I saw Hannah pick up a ball and chuck it,” Matthew said. His eyes looked up at me, challenging. “And if she’s well enough to throw a ball, I reckon she’s well enough to do her own chores again.”

I looked reproachfully at Hannah, who merely gave me a sheepish grin.

“I completely agree with you, Matthew,” I said. “You no longer have to do Hannah’s chores.” Hannah’s face fell but Matthew grinned. “And I’ll talk to your brother about it.”

Eager to have an excuse to go see Samuel, I left the cabin and headed to the barn. “Samuel!” I called. I peeked around the edge of the barn. As I turned to look in the direction of the chicken coop, I felt strong arms wrap around me from behind, and I screeched, instinctively elbowing him hard in the ribs.

He groaned, releasing me.

“Don’t you do that!” I squealed. “Samuel, you scared the bejesus out of me!”

“What’d I tell you about hittin’ me?” he said, his eyes flashing even as he was doubled over.

I bit my cheek to keep from smiling. It wasn’t often I bested the man who easily dwarfed me in size. “You said something about hitting you?”

He frowned, crossing his arms on his chest. “Well, let’s get that straight now, then,” he said. “You’ll not hit me or hurt me. I don’t take kindly to that, even in jest. You understand me, young lady?”

I took a step toward him and planted my hands on my hips, but I was at a loss for how to respond, for when I opened my mouth to speak, I noticed his arousal tented in his pants. He loved my sass. I decided to push it a bit further.

“Maybe I don’t understand,” I said, all humor gone now as I scowled at him. “When a mammoth man like you grabs me, I ought to be able to defend myself.”

Maybe he loved my sass, but I had pushed too far. Unfolding himself to his full height, he reached a hand out and grabbed my arm. Before I knew what he was doing, he spun me around and landed one hard, uncompromising swat to my backside. I felt my cheeks flame. From behind, his arms wrapped around my chest and his mouth went to my ear.

“Things changed today between me and you,” he said low. He pulled back just a tad, and to my shock, I felt another hard swat land against my skirt-clad bottom. Blood pounded in my ears and my palms grew sweaty as my desire for him was renewed even while I squirmed in embarrassment. “I know how you responded to me today. I know what you need. And honey, I fully plan on giving you what you need.” He turned me around to look at him, his hands on my shoulders. “You understand me, little Ruth?”

Did he know what I needed?

How could he know what I did not know myself?

I nodded dumbly. He pulled me closer for a kiss. But even as I submitted to being held by him and kissed, I knew that I could not let this continue.

Chapter Five: Chased and Caught

It amazed me how long I successfully managed to avoid Samuel. It seemed he’d been attached to my side for days, but now, with an effort, I managed to evade him.

I did not go down to the creek to fetch my water; nor did I swing by Ma’s while Hannah was in school, to cook, or bake, or mend together. I disliked hastening to the well to fetch my water, but I did not want to risk going to the water alone in the morning, especially as Samuel was so handy with his palm now, and I’d been told not to go. I told myself I wasn’t
obedient
to him, but rather it wasn’t worth the effort of dealing with him.

Matthew was busy helping Aaron with some jobs on his homestead before the arrival of the new baby, so we saw little of Matthew. I had much to do during the day, and fortunately it seemed my jobs easily took place at the same time as Samuel was working himself.

As I was mending by the fire early one morning, after Hannah had gone to school, I heard a knock come at the door. I leapt to my feet and raced to Hannah’s room, where there was no window, peeking out at the window in the main room. It wasn’t until I saw his shadow pass the curtain in the main room that I dared creep out again. And it wasn’t until I’d picked up my mending again that the realization hit me: I’d been hiding from him. I was not a woman who hid. Even when I had faced a drunken husband who would raise his fist to me, I had never hidden. I had faced him, fought him, and thrown myself at him to protect my daughter.

Then why did I hide now?

Determined not to be pushed to do something I need not do, I got to my feet, placed my mending on the table, and yanked the door to the cabin open. I would face him. If he’d gone back to town, then I would simply walk toward town until we met.

Clouds crept in front of the sun, darkening the sky, and the woods adjacent to where I walked now seemed ominous as elongated shadows danced upon the ground in front of me. I felt a chill creep over my arms, the hairs standing on end. Rubbing my hands briskly over my arms, I continued to walk rapidly, determined to stay on my mission.

The snap of branches immediately behind me made me jump.

“Ruth.”

I spun on my heel, the panic I’d felt making me angry. I struck Samuel as hard as I could, my balled fist landing a solid punch to his midsection, causing him to double over. I was so angry with him, I could’ve smacked him again, but my conscience pricked me when he braced himself on the trunk of a snow white birch, holding one hand out in surrender.

I moved toward him, but his voice thundered at me. “Enough!” he roared. “You raise your hand to me one more time, woman, and you won’t sit for a week!”

I froze, painfully aware of the mistake I’d just made. I’d been warned sternly never to raise a hand to him. Still, I felt somewhat justified.

“You scared the living daylights out of me!” I protested. “I thought you were a bandit or savage! How dare you?”

He was still bent over, panting for breath, but his blue eyes were storm clouds warning of the tempest that lay ahead. “You were walkin’ through the woods like Little Red Riding Hood,” he said in a short, clipped tone. “With no care for your safety. And I ain’t a scholar, little Ruth, but I’m not a fool. I damn well know you were in the cabin hidin’ on me. I came behind you just now and didn’t mean to scare you.”

“That’s the most foolish thing I ever heard!” I shouted, not even bothering to modulate my voice. But as he finally regained his breath, unfolding himself to his full length, he towered over me, stern and foreboding. His eyes were thunderous, his nostrils flared. He placed two enormous hands on his hips.

He shook his head. When he spoke it was in a low, warning tone. “Woman,” he growled, “I’m fresh out of warnin’s for you.”

I knew he was coming for me. And I knew when he caught me, I was going to end up belly down and blistered. So I did the smartest thing I could. I turned tail and ran.

I was fast and he was still wheezing, which gave me the decided advantage. I made quick use of my tiny stature, dodging between narrow branches, trying to ignore his growls behind me as nimble limbs snapped back and whipped him. I wasn’t sure where I was going or how I would prevent him from getting his hands on me, but I did know I had to try.

I ducked below a weeping willow and around a pine tree, leaping straight over a fallen log and narrowly missing a huge broken branch in front of me. I turned quickly to the left and under an overgrown mass of thistles and ferns, to where I knew a small clearing was hidden. I turned and looking quickly over my shoulder. I breathed a sigh of relief. He was a good distance behind me, hindered by his larger size and my nimble feet. I kept running.

I had run before, my skirts flailing about me, my hairpins jostled from the knot at the base of my neck, with my hair tumbling about me. But those times were not the same as they were now. Now, I ran with my heart tripping within my chest, knowing that when he caught me, and I knew it was only a matter of time, I would be overpowered. That his large, strong body would pin me down, and I’d be helpless. He’d very likely spank me, and I knew I deserved it.

To my right, I saw the dim entrance to a cave, and my desperate mind grasped onto that. I was vaguely familiar with the area, nearby the berry bushes I frequented when the berries were ripe. The cave would be perfect. He was far enough behind me that he wouldn’t see me. I dodged to the right, but the minute I came to the entrance of the cave, I froze. The temperature had dropped, and what would be in that cave, anyhow? A bear? Bats? Rats? I knew then I’d rather face Samuel and his wrath than whatever loathsome creatures would be found in the cave.

It only took several seconds for me to decide what to do. But those several seconds were enough. I’d underestimated the speed of a man on a mission.

I spun around, my eyes darting about me to see where to go next, when Samuel stood in front of me. We both froze, staring at each other in the dim light of the forest. Shadows fell across his face from the sun peeking through the branches overhead. Surrounding us, I could hear the familiar twitter, calls, and chirps of the birds, murmur of the creek, and whisper of wind through the leaves. But the loudest sound of all was my own panting and his. I was caught, the prey now at the mercy of my hunter.

His eyes were narrowed, his lips thinned in an implacable line. I wiped my dampened hands on my skirts and met his gaze. He was handsome when he was angry. His blue eyes the color of cornflowers looked darker in the woods. His chest rose and fell rapidly as he sucked in breath. His eyes darted to where I stood and around me, likely trying to see if I could plan another escape route. But there was none. With the cave at my back and a bank of trees on either side of me, the only way out was through him. I was trapped, and he knew it.

He stepped toward me, the crack of the branches beneath his feet making me jump, one firm step after another, until he stood directly in front of me and I had to do what I always did when we stood that close. I craned my neck to look up at him, feeling the stretch along my spine as I lifted wide eyes to his massive form. One enormous hand went to my chin, not rough but not gently, and I felt my face engulfed with his warm, firm touch. I could not look away. His fingers flexed, and my jaw clenched.

He inhaled, still panting, as he spoke. “Young lady,” he began, then paused for more breath. His voice was deep, chiding, and I began to tremble as he spoke. “You’re in trouble the likes of which you’ve never known.”

I noticed several thin red stripes across his cheeks, where the tree branches had lashed him. He wouldn’t have gotten hurt if I hadn’t run from him. A stab of remorse hit me, and my eyes misted as I reached one hand to his cheek, tracing a finger along the line.

“I’m sorry,” I whispered in a shaky breath. Still holding my chin, he dipped his mouth to my ear.

“Oh, little Ruth,” he said. “You will be.”

He released my chin and dipped down, both of his hands under my arms as he hoisted me up and straight over his shoulder. I sprawled, helpless, the prey caught with no choice but surrender. I did not fight. I knew I deserved whatever would happen now.

I’d been holding everything on my own now for days. I felt riddled with guilt from having caused him distress and pain. I longed to be close to him again. A small part of me, if I were really honest,
wanted
him to take over.

It was hard to see where we were going, strewn over his back as I was. With the first few steps I noticed a large broken pine, its branch sticking out oddly, but it was the only thing I noticed, as I dared not lift my head too often. Squirming resulted in a firm swat to my backside, so I laid as still as possible. But we were moving out of the forest now, and onto the plain. Still, we walked on.

“If you let me down, I will walk and not run,” I said. “I don’t want you to hurt yourself, Samuel.”

His only response was another sharp swat to my bottom. I fell silent.

We walked on, and I closed my eyes, realizing then that he was heading back to my home. I recognized the area around us now, and knew that soon we’d come to my cabin. I shivered now that my punishment was imminent.

He put me on my feet, then large fingers tightened around my upper arm, marching me forward toward my cabin. He opened the door and tugged me in, shutting the door behind him. With no further ado, he wrapped one large hand around the chair by my table and dragged it to the center of the room, the scrape of the feet echoing in the silence of the cabin. Still holding me, he sat heavily, dragging me forward almost roughly so that I stood between his large knees. His blue eyes bored into mine, his jaw clenched, as he glared at me. I’d hoped the little walk in the woods had calmed his temper. It seemed instead he was angrier now than ever. Both of his hands grasped my waist, and he yanked me even closer to him so that I felt the warmth of his legs straight through my skirts.

“What do you have to say for yourself, young lady?” he asked. I squeezed my eyes shut. I wasn’t prepared for the question.

I took a minute to compose myself, before deciding brutal honesty would be best. I opened my eyes. “I’ve hidden from you for days, yes, I will admit.”

Jaw still clenched, he deigned to give me one stout nod. “Go on.”

I swallowed, taking a shaky breath before I continued. “I just… was afraid. Not sure what happens next. But I wanted to speak to you, so I followed you. And I never heard you approach. You scared me when you grabbed me like that.”

He nodded again and his eyes were still hard. “Why do you think I don’t want you in the woods alone? If you don’t hear a big, lumbering man like me coming along, how would you hear something that would be a danger to you?”