Wolf Shadow (34 page)

“Thank you, Mason.”

“Shall I wait, Miss?”

“That won’t be necessary. Take the day off, if you like.
Just be back before dinner, say six o’clock?”

“Yes, Miss, thank you, Miss.”

She opened the gate and started up the walk to Cynthia’s
house. Pausing, she glanced over her shoulder to make sure the carriage was
gone, then hurried back down the walk to where Chance was holding the gate open
for her.

She looked up at him and smiled. “Hello.”

“Hello, yourself,” he murmured and pulled her into his arms.

For a moment, she surrendered to his kiss; then, mindful of
being out in the open, she drew away. “Not here.”

“Where, then?”

“I don’t know.” She bit down on her lower lip, her brow
furrowed thoughtfully. “I have to go explain to Cynthia. She’s waiting for me.
I’ll be right back.”

Chance watched her hurry up the steps to the front door,
noting the gentle sway of her hips. She wore a pale blue dress that he guessed
probably cost more than his cowhands made in a year, and a small white hat with
blue feathers.

A butler answered the door and Teressa disappeared inside
the house. The man stared at Chance with disdain, then closed the door.

Chance glanced up and down the street. The houses were all
large and well-kept, the grounds impeccable, a sharp contrast to the seedier
side of the city he had visited earlier, where harlots waited in shadowed
alleyways and men sought forgetfulness in smoke-filled opium dens.

He glanced up at the house, wondering what was taking
Teressa so long.

* * * * *

Cynthia Witherspoon swept into the front parlor in a brown
and yellow striped dress dripping lace at the collar and cuffs. She was a tall
girl, with light brown hair, hazel eyes, and a determined chin. A dimple winked
in her cheek when she smiled at her guest.

“Tess! You’re right on time. Come in and sit down. Helga
made the most divine tea cakes. I can’t wait for you to try one.”

“Not now, Cyn. I know we were supposed to spend the day
together, but something’s come up.”

“Is anything wrong?”

“No, nothing like that.” Teressa took Cynthia’s hands in
hers. “He’s here, Cyn. Wolf Shadow is in San Francisco.”

“He is! When can I meet him?”

“He’s waiting for me outside.”

“He’s here, now?” Cynthia hurried to the window in the front
parlor, and pulled back the edge of the curtain. “Oh! Is that him? The man
standing by the horse?”

“Yes.”

“He’s very handsome, isn’t he?”

“I told you he was. Anyway, I want to spend the day with
him.”

“Of course you do. Where are the two of you going?”

“I don’t know. Someplace where we can be alone.”

Cynthia’s eyes lit up. “That’s so romantic! But do be
careful. I can’t imagine what your mother would say.”

“I can, but it doesn’t matter. Oh, Cyn, I love him so much.”

Cynthia hugged her. “I was the one who always wanted to go
and have adventures, remember? You were the one who always wanted to stay at
home. Life just isn’t fair,” she said with a dramatic sigh. “You’d better not
keep him waiting any longer. What time will you be back?”

“Sometime before dinner.”

“All right.” Cynthia’s expression sobered. “Do be careful,
Tess.”

“I will.” Teressa hugged her friend, then hurried out of the
house and down the steps.

“Ready?” Chance asked.

“Yes.”

He lifted her up on Smoke’s back, then vaulted up behind
her. Taking up the reins, he clucked to the mare.

“Where are we going?” she asked.

“I found a place on the outskirts of town where we can be
alone.”

“What kind of place?”

His lips brushed her hair. “You’ll see.”

Content to go wherever he wanted, she leaned against him,
happier than she had been in weeks.

He took her to the backside of a park located near the
outskirts of the city. Dismounting, he lifted her from Smoke’s back, unsaddled
and hobbled the horse, and then took Tessa in his arms.

She hugged him tight. “I missed you so much! I didn’t think
you were coming.”

He gazed burned into hers. “How could you think that?”

“I was afraid,” she admitted. “Afraid you didn’t love me the
way I love you.”

“Don’t ever be afraid again,” he admonished, his voice
husky.

She cupped his cheek in the palm of her hand. “I still can’t
believe you’re here.”

“Maybe this will convince you,” he said, and claimed her
lips with his own.

A slow fire spread through her, engulfing her, warming the
cold empty places his absence had left deep inside her.

His tongue slid over her lower lip, dipped inside to engage
in a sensual mating dance with her own.

She moaned softly, her fingers digging into his back to draw
him closer, closer. She gasped, “I love you,” when he lifted his head, and then
he was kissing her again, harder, deeper, his hands gliding over her body until
she was shivering with desire, aching with need.

Chance swore softly as they parted, both out of breath.

Teressa looked up at him. “Wolf…”

“I know, sweetheart.” He glanced around. He couldn’t make
love to her here. This was a public place and even though it was deserted now,
that didn’t mean it would stay that way.

“How do you feel about going to a hotel?”

“Together?” Her eyes widened. “In broad daylight?” Though
she had only been back home for a few weeks, her mother had already made
certain Tessa understood how important it was to comport herself in a ladylike
manner at all times. An unmarried woman’s reputation must be above reproach.

He shrugged. “Not a very good idea, I guess.”

“I don’t care! I want you so bad. Let’s go somewhere.
Anywhere! Hurry!”

Minutes later, Smoke was saddled and they were riding back
toward the city.

Chance drew rein in front of the first hotel they came to.
Dismounting, he tossed the reins over the hitching post, then lifted Teressa
from the saddle. Taking her hand, he led the way into the hotel.

It was small and clean. Chance asked for a room, signed the
register, and picked up the key.

Teressa’s heart was pounding as they made their way up the
staircase and down the hall to their room.

Chance opened the door; then, swinging her into his arms, he
carried her across the threshold, and closed the door with his foot.

Teressa glanced at their surroundings. It was a pretty room,
done in dusty rose and white. But it was the bed that caught her eye. A big
brass bed with a cherry-colored spread. The sight of it, and what they would be
doing in it, made her heart pound with anticipation.

Chance followed her gaze. “We don’t have to make love if you’d
rather not,” he said. “We can just talk.”

A faint blush pinked her cheeks. “I haven’t changed my
mind.”

He kissed her as he lowered her feet to the floor. Removing
his hat, he tossed it on a chair, then drew Tessa into his arms. His body
reacted immediately to the feel of her body pressing against his. “You’re
sure?”

She wrapped her arms around his waist. “Very,” she replied,
and then looked up at him, her eyes narrowed. “You haven’t changed your mind,
have you?”

He put his hands over her buttocks and drew her hips closer,
letting her feel his arousal. “No, ma’am.”

Chance took a few steps backward, drawing her with him, and
then fell back on the bed.

“Wolf, my hat! You’ll crush it.”

“Sorry, sweetheart.”

She quickly removed the pin that held her hat in place and
set it on the table beside the bed, then, laughing softly, she bent down to
drop butterfly kisses on his cheeks, his nose, his jaw.

When he reached for her, she batted his hands away. Sitting
up, she straddled his hips and then began to unbutton his shirt. He lifted up a
little so she could slide it off his shoulders. She dropped his shirt on the
floor, paused a moment to admire the width of his shoulders, the broad expanse
of his chest, his hard flat stomach, then reached for the buckle of his gunbelt.
He obligingly lifted his hips so she could remove it, sucked in a breath when
she unfastened his belt buckle, unbuttoned his fly.

“Hold on a minute,” he said. “It’s my turn.”

Holding her gaze with his own, he unfastened the long row of
tiny cloth-covered buttons that fastened her gown down the front. He drew the
bodice slowly over her shoulders and down her arms, slipped the straps of her
chemise down, baring her breasts to his gaze.

“Beautiful,” he murmured. “So beautiful.”

Gathering her skirts in his hands, he lifted her dress and
petticoats over her head and tossed them aside, leaving her clad in only her
shoes, stockings, and drawers.

She ran her hands over his chest.

He caressed her breasts.

She pulled off his boots and his socks.

He removed her shoes, slid his hands over the smooth curve
of her thighs before removing her stockings.

She dragged his trousers over his lean hips and down his
legs and tossed them on the floor in a heap.

He peeled off her drawers, plucked the pins from her hair
until it fell like a dark brown waterfall over her shoulders, and then tugged
her down beside him, crushing her breasts against his chest while his hands
drifted lazily over the smooth skin of her back.

“How soon do you have to be home?” he asked.

“Not for hours.”

A slow smile spread over his face. “Hours to make love to
you.”

She smiled back at him, her fingertips playing in the hair
on his chest, sliding over his belly, teasing the inside of his thigh.

“Keep that up and it won’t take hours,” he drawled.

Happy laughter rose in her throat as she locked her arms
around his neck. “I’m sure we’ll be able to find a way to fill the time.”

“Got any ideas?”

“We could do this.” She nibbled on his ear lobe. “Or this.” Her
tongue slid across his lower lip.

“Or this,” he said, and deftly tucking her beneath him, he
kissed her, his tongue plundering the warm depths of her mouth, his hands
playing over her body. He was the bow and she was the violin, and his touch was
the touch of the master’s hand, playing notes only he would ever hear.

She quivered beneath him as his body merged with hers,
giving him everything she had to give, reveling in every kiss, every caress,
until her body arched with pleasure, her hands clutching at his shoulders as
ripples of pleasure spread through her.

He cried her name as her body convulsed around him. With one
last thrust, he followed her over the edge.

He rolled onto his side, drawing her with him, their bodies
still joined, while the sweat cooled on their skin and their breathing returned
to normal.

Her eyes were closed, and his gaze moved over her face,
noting the sweep of her lashes on her cheeks, the satisfied smile on her face,
the curve of her cheek, still faintly flushed with passion.

Leaning forward, he brushed a kiss across her lips.

She moaned softly and opened her eyes, her smile widening. “I
love you.”

Her words sank deep into his soul, wrapped around his heart
like fine silken threads, forever binding his heart to hers.

“Teressa, sweetheart.”

“Tell me,” she whispered.

“I love you,” he said, his voice rough with emotion, yet the
words seemed inadequate to convey the depth of his love, to express the way she
made him feel, the things she made him want. For the first time since his
mother died, he wanted more than revenge. He wanted a real home, a wife, a
family.

She gazed into his eyes, hers glowing with love.

“Marry me, Tessa.”

“All right.”

“Just like that?” he asked, chuckling.

“Just like that.”

“Are you sure? Your folks won’t like it. They might even
disown you.”

She threw her arms around his neck. “I don’t care.”

“Brave girl. I always said you had the heart of a warrior.”

“When?” she asked, dropping kisses on his cheeks, his brow,
the tip of his chin.

“That’s up to you.”

“I’ll have to tell my parents.”

Chance nodded. “Do you want me to be there?”

She nodded, grateful that he had offered. She would need his
strength because her mother and father were going to be furious when they found
out. But she didn’t want to think about that now. Now, all she wanted was to be
in Wolf’s arms.

It was what he wanted to, and he spent the rest of their
time together telling her and showing her in every way he could think of how
much he loved her.

* * * * *

Teressa sighed. “I wish we could stay here forever.”

They were lying on the bed, facing each other, arms and legs
entwined. Chance gave her shoulder a squeeze. “We could stay and live on room
service.”

She grinned and then grew sober. “My parents will never
approve of our marriage. Maybe we should just run away.”

“Is that what you want to do? If it is, just say so.”

“I don’t know.” Her finger made lazy circles on his chest. “They
really have been good to me since we got here. I know they love me. I don’t
want to hurt them.”

His hand caressed her cheek. “Just tell me what you want to
do, sweetheart.”

“Maybe we should tell them and see what happens. We can
always run away if they put up a big fuss.”

“All right, that’s what we’ll do.” He glanced out the
window. “We’d better go. It’s getting late.”

Rising, they filled the basin on the highboy with water from
the pitcher and took turns washing each other and then drying each other off.

When they were dressed, Chance drew Teressa into his arms
for one more hug, one more kiss, and then reluctantly released her. “When do
you want to talk to your folks?”

“Tomorrow’s Sunday. Papa will be home all day. Can you come
by after lunch, say about one-thirty?”

Chance plucked his hat from the chair and settled it on his
head. “I’ll be there.”